Submissions accepted November 1 - January 2

The mission of SPR is to create a multi-disciplinary network of diverse researchers to improve child health. Implicit in our mission is our foundational commitment to supporting the success of young investigators in child health research through activities that include facilitating connections with peers, potential collaborators, and national mentors.

The SPR Bridging to Success Award, a program initiated in 2016, supports transitioning pediatric physician-scientists and other researchers involved in pediatric research, who have submitted a K08, K23, AHRQ K08, CDC K01 (must be an MD), A0 or A1 grant, which although not funded, may be potentially competitive on resubmission (including a 3rd submission) to the NIH.

The support mechanism consists of $40,000 awarded to the sponsoring institution with no indirect costs. The sponsoring institution and Department match the $40,000, thereby constituting $80,000 of the awardee's support for two years. Salary support is the preferred mechanism of support though alternative uses of awarded funds may be considered on a case-by-case basis if justification for the use of funds for non-salary-related costs (which must be provided by the awardee) is approved by the SPR Awards committee. In all cases, at least 75% protected research effort must be assured. The award does not allow for fringe or indirect costs and these costs should be covered by the institution from separate sources. The $40,000 from SPR will be disbursed in two installments: $20,000 the first year starting on July 1, and the second installment of $20,000 the following year on July 1, dependent on the K not being funded as of June 30^th of that year.

Eligibility 

• MD or MD/PhD, MPH, DO, MS applicant who is an SPR active member or SPR junior section member (rolling admission for SPR junior section applicants is available). NOTE: there is no limit to the number of applicants from a single institution.
• K08, K23, AHRQ K08, CDC K01 (must be an MD), A0 or A1 (i.e. resubmitted proposal) application summary statement dated within the 2-calendar years of this Request for Application (RFA). For applicants with an A1 application, the summary statement from that application needs to be submitted. Unfortunately we are not able to consider A1 applications that haven't yet been reviewed.

Main Round Application

• A Letter of Intent signed by the applicant and sponsoring department chair includes:
  • Agreement by the sponsoring department/institution to match the SPR award and to contribute the total amount (i.e. SPR award plus department/institution match) to salary and/or research program of the awardee.
  • Agreement that the awardee will have 75% effort protected for research during the award years.​
• Specific Aims page of the supporting K08, K23, AHRQ K08, CDC K01 (must be an MD), A0 or A1 application.
• Summary Statement from the review of the supporting K08, K23, AHRQ K08, CDC K01 (must be an MD), A0 or A1 dated January 1, 2022 or later. The most recent summary is a requirement. If you have submitted a revision and have not received the summary, then you are not eligible to apply.
• ​​​​​​​Commitment from the applicant to provide SPR with requested updates on the outcome of the revised K08, K23, AHRQ K08, CDC K01 (must be an MD), A0 or A1 application submitted by the applicant after receipt of this award.

Final Round Application

Based on Main Round review, in late-Jan/early-Feb finalists will be chosen to submit a full package which should include the entire application of applicant’s most recently revised K-Award and:

• Cover letter describing the applicant's current position and how the support will be used for the next 1-2 years.
• K-Award Application - please provide the entire application of your most recently revised K-Award, including the introduction section with the applicant's response to reviewers. It should be the newest version with a response to the criticism raised during the review process.
• Specific plans - please provide a 1-2 page document describing how the applicant plans to respond to the criticisms and revise the K-award application.

Awardee is expected to attend the PAS 2025 meeting.

​​​​​​​Questions?

See FAQ for additional information.

Please email info@societyforpediatricresearch.org.