Strategic Investment Fund

The Strategic Investment Fund is designed to support and build capacity to position research teams for success in securing major, center–scale grant opportunities, or to create a series of investments (federal, state, philanthropic) in a strategic research area.

There are two mechanisms under the Strategic Investment Fund.

  • Track 1 provides funding for researchers to pursue immediate opportunities for major submissions (i.e., new center grant FOA) or engage in strategic planning in preparation for a Track 2 proposal.
  • Track 2 is designed to provide significant administrative and proposal development capacity through external contractors or other strategic collaborators to engage in a multi-year proposal development and project execution for a transformative research center proposal (i.e., NSF STC, DOE EFRC, etc.).

Both types of awards also may use funding to generate preliminary data and/or build partnerships with external collaborators (i.e., national labs, other institutions). While not mandated, it is likely that competitive Track 2 awards would already have completed a successful Track 1.

Faculty funded via this program are expected to achieve the proposal development and submission milestones articulated in their proposal. Additional outcomes, such as publications, conference presentations, and student mentorship are expected as appropriate for the discipline. Researchers funded in this program are expected to work closely with OVPRI’s Strategic Research Initiative team to ensure they have the training, support, and resources to secure and launch new major federal awards.

Request for Proposals and Templates

Deadline: Rolling

Proposals may be submitted at any time. Research Development Services (RDS) aims to respond within one month of submission.  

Eligibility

Eligible Principal Investigators (PIs) are tenure-track faculty and career research faculty with the classification of research associate, research professor, research scientist, research engineer, principal research scientist, or librarian with 0.50+ FTE appointments during the academic year of the research award.  

Ineligible PIs:  

  • Faculty who received an OVPRI Research Seed Grant within the past 3 award cycles. 
  • Emeritus, retired, courtesy, visiting, instructor, and pro-tem faculty, as well as postdoctoral scholars. 
  • Recipients of any competitive award from the Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation who have not submitted a final report for their prior award(s). 

Note: Faculty who are ineligible to serve as PI/Co-PI may serve as key personnel on a project team.

Faculty are only permitted to serve as the PI or Co-PI on one application per cycle. Applicants may serve as collaborators or team members on additional proposals.

Budget & Use of Funds

Track 1 Awards: Up to $85,000 for a project period of up to 12 months

Track 2 Awards: Up to $250,000 for a project period of 12-36 months

Allowable Costs: Funds may be used for costs necessary to plan and execute the proposed research project (consistent with university and state rules) including:

  • Travel, which may include funds to support a planning workshop or faculty retreat, to host a distinguished speaker who will help you initiate your project, to visit key resources and/or archives, or to visit a program officer to discuss your project
  • Equipment
  • Materials and supplies
  • Contractual services
  • Salary for career research faculty, graduate students, undergraduates, and/or technical personnel under the supervision of the principal investigator.
    • NOTE: If you plan to hire graduate employees, please include only their salary and OPE on your budget. The GE tuition, insurance, and fees will be contributed by the OVPRI, at the College of Arts and Sciences rates, to maximize funds available for your work. If your unit has higher tuition/fee rates, please include the supplemental amount under “OTHER” on the budget template
    • NOTE: The R&R Budget template used for your submission automatically calculates and auto-populates cells for GE tuition, fees, and insurance. Please work with your budget/grant administrator to ensure your budget only includes salary and Other Payroll Expenses for GEs
  • Other direct costs: core/shared user facility use, speaker stipend, etc.
  • Faculty summer stipend and/or course release (as per departmental policies and guidelines)

Unallowable Costs:

  • Replacing current funding from another internal or external source
  • Renovation, remodeling, or alteration of research laboratories or core/shared facilities

Matching Funds:

  • Given the potential return on investment and benefit to the faculty member’s home unit, proposals are encouraged to identify potential matching contributions from their department, institute, school, or college

Application Instructions & Materials

Request for Proposals and Templates

Application:

  1. RDS Pre-Consultation:
    1. Although not required, it is highly recommended that anyone interested in applying to the Strategic Opportunity Fund contact Research Development Services in order to set up a pre-consultation to determine if this mechanism is appropriate for your given project before undertaking significant work on the application.
  2. Application Form:
    1. Basic Information: Please complete the form’s text boxes. (Note: the form cannot be saved part way through).
  3. Proposal Documents: (Times New Roman font, single-spaced, in 11 point or larger and 1” margins).
    1. Proposal Narrative (4-page limit): Use the narrative template in the guidelines to complete this component of the application.
    2. References Cited (no page limit).
    3. Biographical Sketch or CV (5-page limit): All PIs should submit a Biographical Sketch or CV. While there is no specific format, you are encouraged to use the format associated with the funding agency to which you would typically apply (e.g., NSF, NIH, NEH, etc.).
    4. Current and Pending Support (no page limit): For each PI, Use the C&P template in the guidelines to complete this component of the application to list any current and/or pending funding for any research project at UO, whether or not related to the proposed project.
    5. Budget: Use the “R&R 1 to 5 Year Detailed Budget” Excel template on the Sponsored Projects Forms webpage.
      1. Note 1: Internal awards do not require indirect (F&A) costs. Please set that cell in the template to 0.
      2. Note 2: If you are including graduate employees, see the Budget & Use of Funds section above for details on how to budget for these personnel.
    6. Budget Justification: Use the budget justification template in the guidelines to complete this component of the application.
      1. If this is a multiple-PI proposal, please note the potential distribution of ICC returns (for the target external award) among administering units.
    7. Unit Head Approval Form: Scanned copy or e-signature confirming your unit head approves of the proposed application, including the budget.

Submission Instructions: Complete all components of the application and combine them into a single PDF in the order listed above, with each component on its own page. Save with the naming convention [Contact PI Last Name] _FY 24 StrategicInvestmentFund.

  1. Fill out the basic information in the online application form.
  2. Upload the complete PDF.
  3. Submit the form.
  4. Each PI may complete the demographic survey described below (optional).

Optional Demographic Survey (online): The OVPRI is committed to creating an environment that fosters sensitivity to and understanding of the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic backgrounds present in our community. The application form includes a section to disclose demographic information aimed at assessing the success of our activities towards this goal. Response to these questions is entirely optional and is not considered in award decisions. This information will not be seen by the review committee, but rather used by OVPRI leadership to ensure our internal granting programs are inclusive and equitable and serve diverse populations at UO. We welcome submission of this information from all PIs on the project.

Review Process & Criteria

RDS will conduct an initial review of applications to ensure that proposals are in compliance with all guidelines. A review panel, convened by RDS, will evaluate the grant proposals and recommend proposals for funding to the Vice President for Research and Innovation who makes the final funding decisions.

Criteria: See an example of a review sheet as used by the review committee when scoring proposals.

  1. Research Project: Weighted 30%
    1. How clearly does the applicant describe the research problems or questions?  Does the applicant specify a gap in the research to be addressed?
    2. Is the project’s significance well-articulated?  Does the project have intellectual merit?
    3. Does this project have the potential to be transformative for the University’s research and training mission?
  2. Research Approach: Weighted 25%
    1. How clearly does the project describe the overall project aim and/or goals?
    2. Is the methodology clearly articulated and appropriate to the proposed project?
    3. Are the roles and responsibilities of the team members clearly described and well-justified?
    4. Do the research activities proposed enhance the competitiveness of the project for external funding?
  3. Researcher or Research Team: Weighted 10%
    1. Does the researcher/ research team possess the appropriate qualifications and experience to accomplish the proposed research objectives and be competitive in applying for the intended solicitation?
    2. Does the researcher/ research team provide evidence of past success in obtaining external research funding?
    3. How does the proposed research align with the researcher/ team members’ long-term research agendas?
  4. External Funding Strategy: Weighted 30%
    1. Does the research team clearly identify an external funding mechanism or program to which they intend to apply?
    2. Does the proposed research align with the funding mechanism and the funding priorities of the external sponsor(s)?
    3. Does the application describe a feasible and appropriate strategy for preparing and submitting a proposal for external funding?
    4. Do the proposed investments represent the highest impact ways of developing a competitive proposal? Is UO well-positioned to compete for this award if the proposed activities are completed?
    5. If applicable based on funding targets, do the proposed strategies for developing a competitive broader impacts plan, plans for enhancing diverse perspectives, or other funder-specified expectations for advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion position the team for success? Are the future plans well-conceptualized?
  5. Timeline and Budget: Weighted 5%
    1. Does the applicant describe a realistic timeline to accomplish research goals and proposal development activities?
    2. Is the budget well-justified?  Will the budget support the development and implementation of the project?

Reporting

A final report is required and due to Research Development Services no later than one month (30 days) after the conclusion of funding. RDS will supply awardees with a link to the final report form in the last quarter of their project.

Contact Research Development Services with questions about this program.