Internal Funding Opportunities

Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute provides internal funding opportunities to its researchers. Various types of internal grant and award opportunities are available bi-annually, in the fall and spring. Funding opportunities may vary depending on the year and cycle.

Fall 2024 Cycle Details

  • Applications will open October 7, 2024.
    • Request for applications (RFAs) and application links are available in each specific funding opportunity accordion dropdown listed below. 
  • Applicant Resources

Current Internal Funding Opportunities 

These opportunities provide resources to a faculty member or other person who has PI-eligible status to develop projects that will lead to a highly competitive extramural application for sustained research support within 18 months of receiving the award.

This section includes information on available Fall 2024 funding opportunities along with links to detailed RFAs and applications. Send questions about eligibility or the application process to manneresearchinstituteiga@luriechildrens.org.

The Catalyst's Spark Award a one-year award for up to $100,000 to support novel population health, implementation science, or community-engaged research. This should be an innovative research project that results in pilot data to support a competitive future extramural funding application with a community, population health, or outcomes focus.

  • All concepts will be weighted using the following priority criteria:
  • Proposal engages diverse stakeholders including communities, patients, and families.
  • Proposal clearly articulates planned engagement with SCHORE Catalyst
  • Interested investigators should contact Michelle Macy, Director, Mary Ann & J. Milburn 
    Smith Child Health Outcomes, Research, and Evaluation Center and Scientific Director, 
    Community, Population Health, and Outcomes, for consultation on Catalyst’s expertise 
    and resources.
  • Investigators without significant pre-existing funding.
  • Investigators without evidence of long-standing research effort in direct line of the proposed 
    area of study.

Apply Starting October 7

The Health@Home Healthcare Innovation Grant Awards are part of the Health@Home strategic 
research initiative at Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute. Health@Home’s goal is to 
catalyze science that equitably transforms how digital healthcare is developed and delivered
outside of hospital and clinic walls. Lurie Children’s faculty and research scientists are invited to 
submit proposals that advance our understanding of how we can improve the health of children and the wellbeing of their families at home and in the community (including advances in technology and devices).

Available Opportunities: 

  • Activation Grant: Up to $5,000. Designed to activate new research data collection protocols and/or healthcare techniques in the home and community. 
  • Today Grant: Up to $10,000. Designed to assess how existing health interventions are impacting a healthcare process or health outcome. 
  • Tomorrow Grant: Up to $30,000. Designed for a project aimed at developing a new healthcare intervention not yet in clinical practice or further mature an existing program that is hypothesized to improve a specific healthcare process or outcome. 

Apply Starting October 7

The Interdisciplinary Colloquia Award is a one-year award for up to $5,000 to bring together multi-disciplinary investigators from Stanley Manne Children's Research Institute, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, and Northwestern University to share scientific knowledge and envision future research related to children’s health. Support may be justified for recurring group meetings with food, visiting faculty costs relevant to the group's area of interest and mission, and/or mini-symposium costs designed to bring together the working group and scientists in the area of focus. 

Apply Starting October 7

 

The Kenneth C. Griffin Research Catalyst Award is a one-year award for up to $100,000 to support novel preclinical and translational research. This award supports early-career researchers to pursue translational discoveries, which will ultimately lead to significant, long-term grant funding from federal agencies and the private sector.

Priority Criteria for Award Selection: 

  • Investigators without significant pre-existing funding.
  • Investigators without evidence of long-standing research effort in direct line of the proposed area of study.
  • Well-articulated translational scientific potential. 
  • Distinction from other areas of funded investigation. 

Apply Starting October 7

The Proposal Revision Award is a one-year award for up to $100,000 to support the preparation of a revision and resubmission of an application for federal research support. The prior extramural application must have received a priority score and full review by the sponsor within the past two years. Training grants (e.g., K08,  K23, TL2) and R03 submissions do not qualify for this award. 

Apply Starting October 7

The Program Accelerator Award is a one-year award for up to $75,000 to support planning and development of program project-related applications expected to lead to a submission within 18-24 months of the start of funding. Support justification may include administrative and grant writing support, material support for preliminary data generation, and personnel support. 

Priority Criteria for Award Selection: 

  • Novel clinical, translational, and basic scientific synergy (Does not need to be a new line of scientific inquiry to the principal investigator or research team). 

Apply Starting October 7

The Scientific Advocacy Award provides up to $1,000 per year to advocate for children's health research at the regional and national level and raise the stature of Stanley Manne Children's Research Institute and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago investigators in scientific advocacy. 

Priority Criteria for Award Selection: 

  • Evidence that the proposed role and engagement by the awardee will have influence on children's health research.
  • National level advocacy.
  • A sustained advocacy plan. 

Apply Starting October 7

The Schreiber Family Center for Early Childhood Health and Wellness is excited to announce our Generating Research on Outcomes of exposures and experiences from Womb to age 5 (GROW to 5) Planning Grant initiative. The Center will support up to three one-year grant awards, allowing for the collection of pilot data, that will increase the competitiveness of extramural proposals for career development (K), R, P, and U-series awards. 

We encourage submission of grant planning and pilot data collection proposals in the following areas of research emphasis:

  • Providing evidence for effective strategies to break cycles of health and racial inequities or promote safe, stable, and nurturing relationships during early childhood.
  • Exploring how Positive Childhood Experiences modify the effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences, stress (positive, tolerable, and toxic), and structural racism on the brain, biology, and behavior of parents and their children, from conception to age 5.
  • Investigating the physical, developmental, and behavioral health impacts of the exposome (including physical and social environments) in which children younger than 5 are conceived, grow, live, learn, and play.
  • Advancing evidence-based practices for promoting physical health, mental health, and wellbeing 
    in clinical and community settings among children before birth to age 5.
  • Establishing partnerships to engage families and communities in research that advance evidence-based practices that promote physical health, mental health, and wellbeing in clinical and community settings among children before birth to age 5.

Available Opportunities:

  • Flourish Award: up to $75,000 for a one-year project period to develop a multi-project research program or cooperative agreement proposal.
  • Thrive Award: up to $50,000 for a one-year project period to collect pilot data for an R-series proposal.
  • Nourish Award: up to $50,000 for a one-year project to support the advancement of junior faculty pursuing mentored career development awards (K or equivalent)
  • Cultivate Award: up to $25,000 for a one-year project period to engage family or community members to establish or enhance research partnerships. 

Apply Starting October 7

The Visionary Award is a one-year award for up to $75,000 to support potentially paradigm shifting research. This should be a visionary idea with a new, multi-institutional team supporting it. 

Priority Criteria for Award Selection: 

  • A new line of research for the investigators without significant pre-existing funding or evidence of long-standing research effort in direct line of the proposed area of study. 
  • Distinction from other areas of funded investigation. 
  • Clearly articulates the translational nature of the research area.

Apply Starting October 7

Applicant Resources

Researchers interested in applying to any of the internal funding opportunities have many resources available to them listed below. Email manneresearchinstituteiga@luriechildrens.org with questions or for support. 

Manne Research Institute strongly encourages applicants to leverage the following resources for proposal design and budgeting: