New Associate Director for Contracting

The Office of Research Administration (ORA) welcomes A. Keith Weiner, J.D., as the new Associate Director for Contracting. Mr. Weiner will negotiate all commercial agreements for departments formerly assigned to Stewart Craig, who has left the ORA to work at the Office of Sponsored Programs at the University of Virginia, until Mr. Craig's replacement is hired. The Directors of ORA will also refer some commercial agreements in other departments to Mr. Weiner for negotiation as needed. Additionally, ORA has retained a contract attorney, George Kohutiak, J.D., to assist with the backlog of commercial agreements. Please view the updated ORA Department Delegation/Contact list for details at: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/Research/handbook/appendixa.html.

New Electronic Information Sheet

SOM Research Administration is prepared to launch the new Electronic Information Sheet (eIS). eIS, a University wide information sheet (for grants and contract applications and administrative actions), will replace the current paper version of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Information Sheet in late summer. Training is scheduled to begin July 7th and Departments will be notified of their specific training date/time for personnel. For additional information regarding training sessions, please contact Amanda Gibson in the Office of Research Administration at agibson8@jhmi.edu.

School of Medicine Research Compliance Training Course Requirements

A new web page has been developed listing the requirements for SOM research compliance training courses. Check it out here: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/
Research/compliance_reqs.html

NIH Announces NEW High Priority, Short-Term Project Award (R56)

R56 grants will be awarded beginning in Fiscal Year 2005 and will fund, for one or two years, high-priority new or competing renewal R01 applications that fall just outside the limits of funding of the participating NIH Institutes and Centers. The R56 award will help early career stage scientists trying to establish research careers as well as more experienced scientists who just miss getting funded. The R56 will provide interim funding while they revise their applications.

INVESTIGATORS MAY NOT APPLY FOR AN R56 GRANT. Recipients of R56 awards will be selected by IC staff from R01 applications that fall at or near the payline margins.

Competing R01 applications prepared and submitted in accordance with NIH procedures will be peer reviewed and assigned a priority score and in most cases a percentile rating. Nominees for the R56 will come from the R01 applications pending for the current fiscal year. Nominees for the award must be in the most meritorious half of the priority or percentile range. Previously approved, but inactivated, applications from this time period may be considered and if awarded will be converted to an R56.

R56 awardees will be encouraged to submit a revision of their original competing application at the earliest convenient date to be considered for future funding. Applicants are reminded that the limitations on time and the number of amendments described at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-03-041.html apply to all subsequent revisions. If a revised competing application is funded while an R56 award is active, the balance of the R56 Award will be deducted from the approved amount of the competing award.

Additional information is available at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/r56.htm

The complete announcement may be viewed here: http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/
notice-files/NOT-OD-04-047.html

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