Tips & Tricks for Submitting a USDA Grant Guests Panelists Mary Burrows, Plant Pathology Specialist, Extension/Plant Sciences & Plant Pathology Carl Yeoman, Assistant Professor, Animal & Ranges Sciences

5 Tips & Tricks Read the Request for Applications carefully Start and end with your project summary Talk to your National Program Leader Explore the full range of options Keep the reviewers in mind

Parts of the Proposal Narrative Forms Supporting Docs Project Summary/Abstract Project Narrative Introduction Rationale and Significance Approach Bibliography & References Cited Biographical Sketch Conflict of Interest Current and Pending Support Budget Budget Justification Data Management Plan Facilities and Other Resources Equipment Letters of Support Key Personnel Roles Logic Model for Integrated Program Management Plan for Integrated Program

Slides from 2013 Presentation https://research.missouri.edu/federalupdate/fy13/Poth_NIFA_Overview.pptx National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) established by the 2008 Farm Bill Research enables us to develop the knowledge needed to solve many of the issues facing our nation Education strengthens schools and universities to train the next generation of scientists, educators, producers, and citizens Extension brings the knowledge gained through research and education to the people who need it most – in the United States and around the world

National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Integration brings the three components of the agricultural knowledge system (research, education, and extension) together around a problem area or activity. Integration occurs when the components complement one another and are truly necessary for the ultimate success of the project or program.

Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Foundational Program RFA: Plant Health and Production and Plant Products Animal Health and Production and Animal Products Food Safety, Nutrition, and Health Renewable Energy, Natural Resources, and Environment Agriculture Systems and Technology Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities

Agriculture and Food Research Initiative These Challenge Area grants are larger, typically over $1 million. The program generally focuses on integrated projects with multiple investigators or large teams where the research component is more applied. Childhood Obesity Prevention Resilient Agroecosystems in a Changing Climate Water for Food Production Systems Food Safety Sustainable Bioenergy

Read the call CAREFULLY

#1… READ THE RFA!!! Explore to find your competitive advantage! Program priorities can and do change! The RFA is more than just the Program Description Eligibility Funding levels DEADLINES (Letters of Intent, Full Proposals) Review criteria Project requirements NPL contact information

Read and Re-read the Guidelines Does your project help meet the goals of the call and the NIFA program? Who has applied to this call in the past? Any in Montana? How much money did they receive? Are there any special requirements? Special review criteria? Who do you need on your team? At MSU or other? Does it require a Letter of Intent or Letters of Support?

Project Summary

#8… Write a Meaningful and Engaging Project Summary Summary should include goals and objectives, hypothesis being tested Highlight what’s innovative about your project Describe outputs and outcomes TIP: Recall that most panelists will not read your entire proposal – get them interested with your Project Summary N.B. – Cutting and pasting the first two paragraphs of your Introduction generally is not successful.

Why start and end with the Project Summary? Before you submit Outlines the proposal Used to start the discussion with the National Program Leader Used to start discussions with collaborators After you submit It is the first (or only) thing your reviewers read Sets the stage for the rest of the proposal

A Graphical Abstract is a single, concise, pictorial and visual summary of the main goals and outcomes of the proposal. Michelle Flenniken, Plant Sciences & Plant Pathology NSF CAREER Grant - Honey bee host-virus interactions: Investigating dsRNA mediated immune responses and virus specific determinants of transmission and pathogenesis

Talking to your NPL

Explore the full range of options

Food and Agricultural Science Enhancement (FASE) Grants: Pre-doctoral Fellowship Grants Postdoctoral Fellowship Grants New Investigator Grants (Restricted eligibility) Strengthening Grants (Restricted eligibility) Sabbatical Grants Equipment Grants Seed Grants Strengthening Standard and Strengthening CAP Grants

Agriculture and Food Research Initiative: FASE Strengthening Awards -Funded from 7.5% set aside from AFRI appropriation ( that’s 7.5% of $264 million in FY2012! Or over $19 million) - Eligibility limited to EPSCoR states or small to mid sized institutions (<17,500 enrolled with limited institutional success not in the top 100) or Minority Serving Institutions. Just meet one of these requirements and you are eligible!

Strengthening Award Types Standard Strengthening (second chance funding for full research grant $300k to $30 million) Career Enhancement Award (Sabbatical, “one year of salary plus travel and supplies”) Seed grants (up to $150k) Equipment grants (the only AFRI grant type that requires a match)

Strengthening Strategy Plan your work to link awards and leverage Grants Evaluate where you are and what you need Equipment? Training or a collaborator (sabbatical award)? Preliminary data (seed/sabbatical)? What is your three year plan? (equipment>seed>standard or sabbatical>standard or other) How will this fit with your unique institutional advantages and strengths?

Understanding Reviewers

Participation (20 points) Review Criteria Successful Proposal Adequate plan, team and budget Alignment with funder goals Novelty and soundness of the idea NSF What is the potential for the proposed activity to Advance knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields (Intellectual Merit); and Benefit society or advance desired societal outcomes (Broader Impacts)? To what extent do the proposed activities suggest and explore creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts? Is the plan for carrying out the proposed activities well-reasoned, well-organized, and based on a sound rationale? Does the plan incorporate a mechanism to assess success? How well qualified is the individual, team, or organization to conduct the proposed activities? Are there adequate resources? NIH Overall Impact Scientific Merit Significance Investigator(s) Innovation Approach Environment USDA We will use the evaluation criteria below to review applications submitted in response to this RFA: Relevance (20 points) Quality (20 points) Feasibility (40 points) Participation (20 points) DOE Scientific and/or technical merit of the project;  for example, the influence that the results might have on the direction, progress, and thinking in relevant scientific fields of research; the likelihood of achieving valuable results; and the scientific innovation and originality indicated in the proposed research. Appropriateness of the proposed method or approach; for example, the logic and feasibility of the research approaches and the soundness of the conduct of the research. Competency of the personnel and adequacy of proposed resources; and for example, the background, past performance, and potential of the investigator(s); and the research environment and facilities for performing the research. Reasonableness and appropriateness of the proposed budget.

#7… Write the Proposal for the Reviewers Put yourself in the shoes of a reviewer who will read between 15 and 20 proposals. Capture their attention Get to the point = Be succinct “What will be different as a result of your project?” “So what?”

Evaluation Criteria (e.g., AFRI research proposals) Scientific merit Qualifications of project personnel, adequacy of facilities, and project management Relevance and importance of topic to US Agriculture as articulated by the program’s priorities

#2… Serve on a Panel Contact the NPL or Panel Manager and volunteer to serve Add your name to the Reviewer Database: Send an email to: newreviewer@nifa.usda.gov N.B. – You may not serve on a panel in the same year that you submit to the program.

Links to More Info USDA slides: https://research.missouri.edu/federalupdate/fy13/Poth_NIFA_Overview.pptx NIFA RFA List https://nifa.usda.gov/rfa-list AFRI Website https://nifa.usda.gov/program/agriculture-and-food-research-initiative-afri CRIS https://cris.nifa.usda.gov/ OSP website http://www.montana.edu/research/osp/ Workspace Submission System https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/apply-for-grants.html

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