RECIPIENTS: PLEASE FEEL FREE TO SHARE THIS OPPORTUNITY WITH YOUR COLLEAGUES ANNOUNCEMENT The National Science Foundation’s Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program will be accepting proposals in January 2010. Specific details can be found at the following website: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2009/nsf09502/nsf09502.htm#awd_info The MRI Program serves to increase access to shared scientific and engineering instruments for research and research training in our Nation's institutions of higher education, museums and science centers, and non-profit organizations. This program especially seeks to improve the quality and expand the scope of research and research training in science and engineering, by providing shared instrumentation that fosters the integration of research and education in research-intensive learning environments. Development and acquisition of research instrumentation for shared inter- and/or intra- organization use is encouraged, as are development efforts that leverage the strengths of private sector partners as appropriate for the goals of the MRI Program. To accomplish these goals, the MRI program assists with the acquisition or development of shared research instrumentation that is, in general, too costly and/or not appropriate for support through other NSF programs. For the purposes of the MRI Program, proposals must be for either acquisition or development of instruments The MRI program now accepts proposals for the acquisition of a single instrument costing up to $4 million. For proposals requesting $2 million or less, investigators may seek support for instrument development or for acquisition of a single instrument, a large system of instruments, or multiple instruments that share a common or specific research focus. Instruments that are being developed are expected to be operational for regular research use by the end of the award period. Note #1: This is a limited submission opportunity which means that an institution may submit a maximum of three proposals, one of which must be for equipment development. (This limitation includes consortium partnerships where NU is a subcontractor.) Consequently, there will be an internal competition to determine which proposals will represent NU. Note #2: There is mandatory 30% cost sharing involved in this proposal. You should consult with your department chair and school dean to ascertain whether they will support your proposal with matching funds. It is expected that the PI will obtain 15% of the cost sharing through such sources (including university institutes and centers) and the other 15% through the Office for Research. For the latter, please contact Philip Hockberger, Director of Core Facilities ([log in to unmask]) for assistance or advice. IMPORTANT DATES • October 15, 2009 – approval of ORD to submit an Internal Proposal • November 1, 2009 – deadline for submission of Internal Proposals (5:00 p.m.) • November 16, 2009 - Meeting of the Internal Review Committee to evaluate internal proposals • November 20, 2009 - Notification of PIs whose internal proposals were approved for full submission to NSF • January 28, 2010 - deadline for full submission proposals to NSF Faculty interested in submitting an Internal Proposal should contact Alden Chang in ORD at [log in to unmask] by October 15, 2009, to ensure that there is no duplication of proposals and that cost sharing has been approved. Once approved, Internal Proposals must be uploaded via Depot by November 1, 2009, by 5:00 PM following the instructions that appear below. Faculty preparing an application are also strongly encouraged to contact Philip Hockberger, Director of Core Facilities (p- [log in to unmask]), for guidance. Notification regarding the outcome of Northwestern’s internal review will be provided to the PIs no later than November 20, 2009. The National Science Foundation deadline for a full proposal is January 28, 2010. INTERNAL PROPOSALS Internal Proposals uploaded to Depot for review by the Internal Review Committee must contain the following materials, combined into a single PDF document: 1. NSF-formatted biosketches of all key personnel (two pages max per biosketch) 2. A four page summary narrative which includes the following elements: a. A title. The title must include the words “Equipment Acquisition: XXXX” or “Equipment Development: XXXX” where XXXX is a descriptive title of your project. b. A description of the equipment and need justification. c. A list of faculty who will be involved in the submission and the estimated number of researchers who will benefit from the use of the equipment d. A description of project and management plans, including plans for the maintenance, operation, and technical support of instrumentation; a plan for attracting new users; any other requirements as outlined in the NSF guidelines for the MRI Program (e.g., how the instrument will impact interdisciplinary science, research in the private sector and/or other academic institutions, risk factors involved and how they will be addressed). e. A summary of your proposal as outlined in the program solicitation (http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2009/nsf09502/nsf09502.htm#awd_info). The summary MUST address the "Intellectual Merit" and "Broader Impact" of the proposal. 3. A summary budget, with an indication of expected sources of the required 30% cost sharing. If the budget exceeds $2M, then the sources of cost sharing must be documented with letters from the relevant partners (chair, dean, institute director). This can be satisfied with an email string of the commitments. Internal Proposal files should be named ”LastName_FirstInitial_NSF_MRI.pdf," replacing "LastName" with the nominee's last name and "FirstInitial" with the nominee's first initial. Please follow the instructions below to upload the file to Depot: UPLOAD INSTRUCTIONS 1. Click on the Depot ticket https://depot.northwestern.edu/xythoswfs/webui/_xy-6588542_1-t_gYRs6lXf to access the "FY09-NSF-MRI" Depot folder. 2. Click the Upload button. 3. Click the Browse button and navigate to your file on your hard drive or network. 4. Click the Open button in the file selection dialog. 5. Click the OK button in Depot. (Note: You will get a tiny confirmation message upon upload. If you do not see it, you may contact Alden Chang for a verbal or written confirmation) Please note that uploads to Depot are time stamped. In the case of multiple uploads by the same PI, the latest one will be the one considered by the Limited Submissions Committee. CONTACT INFORMATION • Alden Chang, ORD Research Administrator, alden- [log in to unmask], 847-467-0043 • Philip Hockberger, OR Director of Core Facilities, p- [log in to unmask], 847-467-1509 or 312-503-5625 • Randy Phelps, NSF Staff Associate, [log in to unmask], 703-292-8040 ` PROGRAM The full program announcement is available at http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2009/nsf09502/nsf09502.htm#awd_info SUPPORT PROVIDED Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation will be competing for about $115 million in Fiscal Year 2009; up to $20 million of these funds will be available for "mid-scale" instrument acquisition, pending availability of funds. The maximum request is $4 million for acquisition proposals or $2 million for development proposals. Acquisition proposals over $2 million must be for single instruments only. The minimum request is $100,000; proposals requesting less than that will be considered only from non-Ph.D. granting institutions of higher education or from the disciplines of mathematical science or social, behavioral, and economic science at any eligible organization. Applicants may request an award period up to three years for acquisition proposals and up to five years for development proposals. The anticipated earliest starting date is August 1st after submission.