The font size must be 11 point or larger with six lines per inch and margins of at least one-half inch. The sections identified below may not exceed their indicated page limits.  The following headings are expected.

Title Page (Limit: one page) – Include the title of the project, names of both principal investigators, their contact information (including institutional e-mail and phone numbers, name of department or center) and total dollars requested for the period of support.

Abstract & Key Words (Limit: thirty lines of text) – The abstract should briefly state the significance and goals of the proposed study and summarize the work to be accomplished. It should be suitable for assigning the applications to appropriate reviewers. Four to six key words are required to identify the general area of the research and to define the principle elements of the study.

Biographical Sketches (Limit: four pages per investigator) – Provide biosketches of principal investigators and co-investigators.

Budget (Template automatically generated in LLeRA) – Design a complete budget for up to 24 months of support. Identify amounts for each PI, with expected expenditures for non-faculty salaries, supplies, and miscellaneous costs. Only non-faculty salaries and wages are permitted. GRASP awards do not provide for equipment purchases ($2,500 or more), travel expenses, or indirect costs. The total budget for the project period may not exceed $75,000. Consult with your assigned financial analyst in Research Affairs - Financial Management (ext. 44589). No carryover of funds will be permitted beyond 24 months from the date of award account activation.  Find out more about drafting a proposal budget.

Budget Justification (Limit: one page) – Indicate the purpose of supplies, support personnel and other costs.  

Research Plan (Limit: ten pages) – (See LLU guidance for writing a research plan) Provide information for the five subsections described below:

A. Specific Aims (Limit: one page)

Summarize the overarching problem that is under investigation. State the hypothesis or objective(s) and list the specific aims of the proposed project and their overall significance or impact.

B. Leadership Plan (Limit: one page)

Both PIs must make major contributions to the project with responsibility for about half the study activities.  Indicate the individual research assignments of the PIs.  State how the co-PIs will coordinate their activities, resolve problems, and allocate responsibilities for management and reporting.

C. Background and Significance (Limit: one page)

Describe the background leading to the present application. State the significance and usefulness of the proposed research to unsolved problems in science, health care, public health, society, the environment, industry, agriculture, etc.

D. Research Design and Methods (Limit: six pages)

Describe the procedures to be used to accomplish the specific aims. Include preliminary data when available.  Diagrams, figures and tables should be embedded in the text. Emphasize the novel concepts, approaches, tools, or technologies in the proposed studies. Discuss potential difficulties and limitations of the proposed procedures and alternative approaches to achieve the aims. Explicitly address how the data will be treated statistically, analyzed and interpreted.  

E. References (Limit: fifteen references)

Animal Studies or Human Subjects – When laboratory animals or human subjects are involved, integrate those descriptions into the Research Design and Methods section. If the proposal is awarded, separate applications for the use of animals or for the involvement of human subjects must be submitted for approval by the Institutional Care and Use Committee (IACUC) or by the Institutional Review Board (IRB), respectively, before work may begin. 

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Progress and Final Reports

A progress report is due 12 months after award account activation. It will include:

a summary of results and observations;

an assessment of the rate of progress;

whether the study is on track for completion by the end of the project period; and

anticipated changes in the research plan with their justification.

No extensions of the project period are permitted.  Within 30 days of the end of the project period, a final report is due. It should include:

accomplishments;

significant results;

manuscripts prepared for publication; and

plans for extramural grant applications. 

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Intent to Apply and Application Process:

Applications will be submitted electronically through the LLeRA Proposal Development module, a part of the institutional research management software (Request LLeRA password). Intent to submit an application must be indicated by sending an email message to Sherie Donahue (sdonahue@llu.edu) with

the names of the two PIs,

whether the proposal involved human and/or animal subjects

a tentative title,

and a proposed start date (between January 1 and April 1).

• The intent to apply must be received by 5:00 pm, August 15, 2012.  An electronic project record will be created into which applicants may load the application. A printed, fully executed LLU Transmittal form is required by the application deadline (September 4, 2012, 5:00 pm).