Developmental Research Project Program

ABSTRACT The NH-INBRE Developmental Research Projects Program (DRPP) provides student research training, grows faculty research productivity and independence, and strengthens research and scientific culture at our Partners. The DRPP accomplishes these overall aims by soliciting, reviewing, and awarding, individual and collaborative biomedical developmental research and pilot projects to investigators in the Network. Additionally, the DRPP provides faculty with scientific and career mentorship and training to improve faculty research productivity and competitiveness for extramural funding opportunities. While the NH-INBRE co-leads have considerable external research support, the 9 primarily undergraduate (PUI) 4-year college Partners, and the Community College System of New Hampshire have drastically less research support. DRPP-supported projects that provide project leaders with supply funds, student salaries and faculty course release have been central for increasing the research activity and enhancement of the research culture in our Partner Network. The DRPP will develop and release funding opportunity announcements to NH-INBRE Partner institutions to solicit biomedical research proposals from faculty members. Project proposals will be evaluated by reviewers with relevant scientific expertise and scored using NIH criteria. Both scientific merit and the ability of the project and its Project Leader to provide a solid research experience for undergraduate students participating in the project are considered in ranking proposals. The DRPP will increase faculty research and mentoring productivity through scientific mentorship and training. Project leaders will be assigned a mentoring team consisting of an Academic Mentor from their institution, one or more trained Scientific Mentors, and a member of the NH-INBRE AC faculty leadership. Mentoring meetings held twice each year will focus on a Research Development Plan (RDP) that outlines short- and long-term expectations, goals, progress, and outcomes. PLs will have access to core facilities and scientific training opportunities at the co-Leads, including the COBRE-supported cores, BioMT, CQB, and CIBBR, for biochemical, high throughput screening, single cell, bulk and spatial sequencing, microscopy, and flow cytometry and many other scientific approaches. A grant writing workshop series that meets September through February will personally guide PLs and faculty through submission of a new or revised NIH R15 grant application. Last, the overall impact of the DRPP will be reviewed annually and discussed in detail with the EC, SC, and EAC. These reviews and formative evaluations will guide future DRPP improvements.