Conference Awards

Purpose

To support scientific meetings, conferences, and workshops in areas related to NIAID's mission.

Procedure

NIAID receives a specific allocation of funding to support conferences and gives each scientific division an annual budget. NIAID follows guidelines outlined in the latest program announcement.

NIAID gives priority to the following:

• Applications for open meetings, including conferences that cover broad subject matter and for which the sponsoring institution invites anyone interested to attend but uses selection criteria to decide on the final list of participants.
• Applications that provide funds to graduate students, postdoctoral trainees, and junior faculty members for the purpose of attending conferences.

Conference grant applications must be submitted electronically. See the Grant Application Guide of your funding opportunity announcement for detailed instructions.

General Information:

• NIAID funds scientific meetings through conference grants (R13) or cooperative agreements (U13) for up to five years.
• A permanently sponsoring organization can receive an award for multiple years but is funded annually for an annual or biennial conference on a recurring topic.
• In all aspects of planning, organization, and implementation of NIH-sponsored or supported meetings, applicants must include people from underrepresented groups.
• Applicants must obtain advance permission to submit an application.
• Applications must receive Council's review and recommendation for funding.
• NIAID will cofund or accept cofunding from other ICs for $2,500 or higher.
• NIAID must issue an award before a conference starts.
  • In rare cases, NIAID will issue an award after a conference has been held to cover post-conference costs such as publishing the proceedings.
• Grantees must acknowledge NIH grant support and provide a note of funding source on conference materials related to the project. Their Notice of Award will include the following term of award:

  All conference material (promotional materials, agenda, publications and Internet sites) related to this project must include an acknowledgement of NIH grant support and a disclaimer stating the following:

Funding for this conference was made possible (in part) by (insert grant number) from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The views expressed in written conference materials or publications and by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Department of Health and Human Services; nor does mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Applicants

• Before submitting your application, do the following:
  • Get advance permission from NIAID that states we accept it as a primary assignment. Request this permission no later than six weeks before the receipt date. Go to Standard Due Dates for Competing Applications.
    • Email a one- to two-paragraph synopsis of your conference to Dr. Milton Hernández, director, Office of Special Populations and Research Training, at mh35c@nih.gov. Include:
      • Funding Opportunity No.: PA-06-041
      • Funding Opportunity ID: PA-06-041
    • If NIAID accepts the application, Dr. Hernández will send you a letter in PDF format to include in your electronic submission.
  • Consider the number of conferences given in your chosen area. NIAID may give priority to less visible topics. For guidance, contact one of the NIAID staff members listed below.
• Apply at least six months before the conference, and make sure you meet one of the three submission dates. NIAID will also accept applications throughout the fiscal year with prior approval from NIAID staff; see contacts below.
• Describe your meeting's objectives, specific program, and logistical arrangements in a Conference Plan that doesn't exceed 10 pages. See the Application and Submission Information section of the funding opportunity announcement for details.

Program Staff

• Evaluate and review applications for relevance to your program.
• After Council review, develop a funding plan in the NIAID Planning and Reporting System (NPARS).
• On the program officer checklist, document for the grants management specialist whether there are future year commitments for the award and if so, whether to provide an escalation if requested in the application.
• If there are future year commitments, notify your divisional conference grant coordinator so your division can factor these funds into its future funding plans.
• If the application is for a cooperative agreement (U13), work with the grants management specialist on terms of award.
• Notify the applicant whether the application is approved for an award.
• Provide grants management specialist with information on ICs interested in cofunding and the amount.

Grants Management Staff

• Ensure that program officer documents future year commitments for an award and whether escalation should be provided.
  • If an applicant has requested escalation but this has not been addressed on the program officer checklist, ask the program officer to document whether the requested escalation is approved or disapproved.
  • If the program officer approves the escalation, provide no more than the allowable percentage.
• Work with program officer on cofunding with other ICs.
• Ensure you've received all cofunding documents before issuing an award.
• Ensure that applications receive Council's review and recommendation for funding.
• For cooperative agreements, work with program officer on terms of award. Also include the standard U13 term of award.
• Issue the award reflecting the appropriate conference grant term of award.

Read GMP's Conference Grants SOP for more responsibilities.

Contacts

Milton Hernández, mh35c@nih.gov, 301-496-3775

Division Conference Grant Coordinators

DAIDS -- Opendra Sharma, os4g@nih.gov, 301-496-9041; Patricia Baron, pb28o@nih.gov, 301-435-3738

DAIT -- Nancy Coulter, nc48k@nih.gov, 301-402-8175

DMID -- Susan Daniels, sd300s@nih.gov, 301-402-2572

DMID Biodefense -- Susan Garges, sgarges@niaid.nih.gov, 301-402-8584

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

Electronic Application Resources

Release of Funds for Solicited, Opportunity Pool, and Career Awards SOP

NIH Support for Conferences and Scientific Meetings Web site

NIAID Funding Policy and Process SOP