Some links will work for NIAID staff only.
|
Standard Operating Procedure Table of Contents
|
|
Purpose
To stimulate
grant-supported research in high-priority and
high-opportunity areas of science.
Procedure
A program
announcement (PA) is one of three types of initiatives --
together with requests
for applications (RFA) and requests
for proposals (RFP) --
NIAID develops with its advisory Council.
See the Concept Development SOP for
more information on concept and
initiative processes.
PAs may be sponsored by one or more NIH institutes.
They usually use standard NIH submission
dates, see the NIH
Standard Due Dates for Competing Applications. PAs
remain active for three years, unless NIAID inactivates them sooner;
see
the Program Announcement Inactivation SOP for more on that topic.
PAs differ from RFAs as follows:
- PAs may or may not
have set-aside funds.
If they do not, NIAID may fund some of the applications beyond
the payline.
RFAs always have set-aside funds.
- PAs are usually broader; for example, a PA may focus on biodefense
research opportunities, where an RFA will focus on developing therapies
for a particular disease.
- Applications in response to a PA are not reviewed together; rather,
each application goes to whatever
study
section is the best match. Applications responding
to an RFA are always reviewed together.
There are two special types of PAs:
- PAR -- applications are reviewed by an IC or
a special Center
for Scientific Review committee and
have receipt dates that are specified in the Guide announcement.
- PAS -- PA with set-aside funds.
Investigators
Program Staff
- After developing a concept for a PA, enter
the concept into the Scientific Initiative
Management System.
- Once your division, the NIAID director, and
Council recommend a concept for approval, work with Division of Extramural
Activities (DEA) staff to create a phasing plan that schedules all
steps needed to proceed from concept to award. See Phasing
of Initiatives SOP.
- Prepare first and final drafts of a PA and
forward to your program
division coordinator for internal division review. After your
division approval, your program division coordinator submits the
drafts to DEA for review and approval.
- After you can view the electronic applications, perform
an administrative review to ensure they respond to the PA's objectives
and requirements.
- For nonresponsive applications, do the following:
- Determine if the application fits
NIAID's research mandate. If it
does,
NIAID will accept it as an investigator-initiated application.
- If it is not responsive to NIAID's
research mandate, see if another IC will accept assignment
of the application.
- If no other IC will accept the application,
inform the PI that the application is nonresponsive
and withdraw the
application. See Withdrawal of a Nonresponsive Application SOP.
Division of Extramural Activities Staff
- Create phasing plan and receive internal
DEA approval of the plan before sending to program divisions for
approval.
- About four to eight weeks before the due date for the first draft,
DEA schedules a pre-initiative planning meeting to discuss scope,
requirements, and other issues. The meeting includes the program
officer, branch chief, program division coordinator, DEA staff, and
possibly a representative
from NIAID's Office of Technology Development. See the Pre-initiative
Planning Meeting Checklist for details.
- Provide guidance to program staff during all stages of PA development.
- Review first and final drafts and send comments to the program officer
through the program division coordinator according to the phasing
plan.
- Enter PAs into the Early Notification System to allow other ICs
the opportunity to comment before the PA is published.
- Ensure PAs are formatted according to the most recent PA guidelines
and templates.
- Send the final PA to NIH Guide staff for review, approval,
and publication.
- Monitor phasing milestones and revise as necessary.
Contacts
Applicants with questions should Contact Staff for Help.
PAs -- Contact
for NIAID Staff
Phasing -- Contact
for NIAID Staff
Program division coordinators
Contact
for NIAID Staff -- DAIDS
Contact
for NIAID Staff -- DAIT
Contact
for NIAID Staff -- DMID
If you have knowledge to share or want more information on this topic, email deaweb@niaid.nih.gov with the title of this page or its URL and your question or comment. Thanks for helping us clarify and expand our knowledge base.
Links
424
Template files for PAs
Early Notification SOP
Grants.gov
NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts SOP
Release of Funds for Solicited, Opportunity Pool, and Career Awards SOP
Repooling and Reprogramming SOP
Searching
the NIH Guide for Expired Initiatives
SIMS on the intranet Submission
Guidelines and Templates for Publications in the NIH Guide for Grants
and Contracts
Using Concepts to Your Advantage, NIAID
Funding Web site
|