Pilot for Anti-Racism Research

Project Award Amounts: $10,000 or up to $50,000, depending on award type (see below) 

Description

The UCSF Office of Research is committed to building capacity for research on anti-racism in biomedical research. We are offering two separate award types:

1. $10,000 for an Anti-Racism Research Capacity Building Grant
2. $50,000 for a Pilot for Anti-Racism Research Project Grant

We anticipate making 2-3 $10,000 capacity building grants and 1-2 $50,000 research project awards.

Recall that RAP is a consortium of funders. Any given Anti-Racism Research Grant may be funded by any of the funding agencies within the RAP consortium, depending on available funds, agency funding strategy, and proposal review scores.

Note: The CTSI and the office of the AVC-ROI developed a consultation service to support anti-racism research efforts. To request a consultation in support of a RAP application for this mechanism, please email [email protected]. The service can help on a range of topics including study design, application of anti-racism frameworks, and more.

Background and Definition of Terms:

“Race is a social construct, a social classification based on phenotype, that governs the distribution of risks and opportunities in our race-conscious society.”¹ The socioeconomic and political forces that create racism determine its content and importance. An assessment of race measures this societally-imposed identity and consequent exposure to the societal constraints. Racism operates at several levels:

1. Institutional and Structural: The unfair policies, practices and procedures of particular institutions and systems that routinely produce racially inequitable access to services, goods, and opportunities.
2. Individual and Interpersonal: Individual acts of discrimination and prejudice, stereotypes, hate.¹

‘Race’ has often been inappropriately used in medicine and biomedical research as a proxy for genetic ancestry and admixture. However, race does play a powerful role in influencing individuals’ health, not due to innate biologic differences but to the health-harming effects of racism and oppressive social forces.^1,2

Anti-racism is the active process of identifying and eliminating racism by changing systems, organizational structures, policies, and practices, as well as attitudes and behaviors, so that resources, opportunities, and power are redistributed and shared equitably. Anti-racism examines and disrupts power imbalances. Anti-racism research uses theoretical approaches and research frameworks that ground the research in understanding of structure and power. Although anti-racism research includes a focus on health disparities, it differs by explicitly examining the contribution of racism, particularly structural racism, to disparities and by examining the racial context in which the research is conducted, such as power sharing between academics and community partners in the research process. For support in identifying and applying an anti-racism theory in your work, please reach out to [email protected] for a consultation.

¹ C. Jones, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11495851/
² L.N. Borrell et al., https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMms2029562

Anti-Racism Research Pilot Grants will be awarded in two categories:

1. Capacity-Building Projects ($10,000 maximum): These awards support the development and strengthening of partnerships between UCSF research teams and communities to enhance their shared capacity for conducting collaborative anti-racism research to address structural issues related to health. The goal of this funding is to support the time and effort to identify collaborative research questions, approaches, and methods for a subsequent anti-racism research project. Through these planning grants, we seek to support efforts to conduct and build capacity for partnered research using anti-racism approaches. We are particularly interested in supporting projects exploring the multiple levels at which structural racism impacts health and well-being and promising approaches to dismantling structural and institutional racism. Applicants must indicate the general subject matter that would be the focus for developing a future specific collaborative research project (e.g., middle school disciplinary policies, housing insecurity, or telehealth barriers). The expected outcome of a pilot award in this category is a collaboratively developed plan for an empirical research project on structural racism and health. Applications must specify the community groups or community members partnering in the project, the plan for supporting their involvement, and the process for creating the deliverables required for the pilot award. “Community partners” are broadly defined and may include individual community members or patients, community- and faith-based organizations serving under-resourced or excluded populations, civic organizations (e.g., school districts), and other entities. It is expected that a substantive portion of this award will be allocated specifically to support community partner participation (e.g., salary/stipend, local travel, childcare, meals, etc.). 
    
2. Research Projects ($50,000 maximum): These awards will support empirical research studies using an anti-racism framework. Although this award amount may be sufficient for conducting some types of research studies (e.g., analysis of secondary data, an observational study), we will also consider funding projects that collect pilot data or refine interventions if the award may enhance the ability of the study team to apply for larger extramural awards. Research projects must include a clear articulation of the approach to community engagement and the role of community members/organizations as full research partners.
   
   Research projects may include (but are not limited to):

• collection of original data intended to understand the role of racism in health and healthcare or to provide evidence or infrastructure to intervene upon unjust policies, practices, or institutions;

• analysis of new or existing data that informs or examines the effects of racist policies or initiatives or attempts to intervene upon them;

• a historical analysis of the unjust origins of current policies or institutions with a focus on addressing racism in today’s policy and practice in the biomedical research or healthcare setting;

• evaluations of policies, programs, or training initiatives designed to reduce health disparities.

For both Capacity Building and Research Project applications:

This pilot grant program is meant to support community-based, theoretically driven research focused on understanding and intervening on racism. Consequently, traditional biomedical research projects that simply add a focus on the inclusion of diverse or historically excluded populations will not be considered. Similarly, projects that seek only to document disparities without exploring or addressing structural racism will be considered nonresponsive. 

Pilot projects are for one year and not renewable. (Some funding agencies may allow for no-cost extensions. This will be clarified in the Award Letter.) All funding agencies require progress reports at the completion of an awarded project. The number and timing of those reports may vary between the agencies, and detailed information about this will appear in the respective funding agency’s Award Letter.

Eligibility

Eligibility requirements must be met as of the date of submission; no waivers will be accepted.

Who is Eligible as a UCSF PI:

UCSF Faculty in any Series (Ladder Rank, In Residence, Clinical X, Health Science Clinical, Adjunct) in the ranks of Instructors and Assistant/Associate/Full Professors may apply. Appointees to the Professional Research Series in the rank of Assistant/Associate/Full Research can also apply. Appointees to the Librarian Series may also apply. Every proposal must have at least one PI that meets the Faculty eligibility requirements defined above. Fellows, specialists, students, and community members can apply only with an eligible UCSF PI listed as contact PI. 

NOTE: Academic Senate can only fund projects with a contact PI who is faculty with Academic Senate appointments.
Research Evaluation and Allocation Committee (REAC) can only support projects where the contact PI is a UCSF School of Medicine faculty.

Who is Not Eligible as a UCSF PI:

Fellows are not eligible. Specialists are not eligible. 

Submission Rules

Criteria for Review/Evaluation of Applications
Projects will be evaluated based on:

1.  Team composition:
   • The team must include at least one UCSF PI as well as substantively include community partners, some of whom may also serve as a multi-PI. If using a multi-PI structure, a UCSF PI will serve as the contact PI;

     • The quality and potential of the applicant and the project team to successfully complete the proposed specific aims of the proposed project should be addressed.

2.  Quality of the proposed project:

• For the Capacity Building project grant, the plan for supporting community involvement and the process for creating the deliverables required for the pilot award should be well articulated.

• For the Research project grant, the specific aims should be well-described and address a research question using a named and described anti-racism framework. The methods and approach should be well-conceived and described with a clear connection to the chosen framework. The feasibility of successfully achieving the proposed project aims in one year should be addressed.

3. Potential impact and significance of the project: The potential of the proposed project to lead to clear and actionable next steps through the lens of anti-racism and racial equity should be described.

In addition, the following specific evaluation criteria will be considered:

1. Priority will be given to projects with cross-sector and/or transdisciplinary teams, where “sector” refers to community, government, non-profit, industry, academia, etc., and where “discipline” refers to research expertise. 
2. Pilot projects that involve human participants will require IRB approval before funding is released.

Selection of Awardees
Funding decisions will be made independently by each funding agency based on factors including:

1. Scores and ranking from the review committee:
   1. Review by a RAP-independent review committee consisting of UCSF faculty and staff with relevant research expertise and members of the public community solicited through existing partnerships of CTSI’s Research Action Group for Equity Core and Community Engagement Core;
   2. Projects will be scored on several criteria and then ranked for funding by the committee for project feasibility, potential for impact, and alignment to campus-community partnership goals; 
2. Alignment with the funder’s strategic goals.

TO APPLY: 

STEP 1) Complete the electronic application form. Please note there are several pieces of information that need to be provided directly via the electronic application form (selecting the appropriate grant mechanism, providing demographic information, uploading an abstract, etc.). Click here to preview an inactive template of the electronic application form.

STEP 2) Upload your proposal as a SINGLE PDF that includes all the things listed in numeric order in the instructions below. Do not include form fields in your PDF document.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROPOSAL PDF

Please write your proposal following the instructions listed below and create one single pdf file. Do not include form fields in your PDF document.

Proposal Length (see format below): maximum 3 pages for the Capacity Building Project grant and maximum 6 pages for the Research Project grant, including figures and tables, excluding table of contents and literature cited.

Format Requirements: Arial font; 11pt; minimum 0.5 inch for all margins; no appendices; include page numbers and table of contents.

Resubmissions:

Definition: a ‘resubmission’ is an application that was submitted to the same mechanism before and that involves the same research topic with an amended application or research plan. rather than a new research topic and new research plan.

Requirements: Please use up to one extra page to introduce your revised proposal, addressing the issues raised in the review, and any additional changes to your proposal. Make sure the new changes are highlighted in bold or italic font so the reviewers can easily see where and how the proposal has changed. Do not use track changes. A new letter of support from the Department Chair or other Unit Head is required in all cases.

NOTE – Funding Cycle Break: Prior RAP Anti-Racism Program Awardees cannot receive funding in two consecutive cycles for the same mechanism.

Human Subjects Research: It is recommended that PIs with projects involving human subjects prepare an IRB application concurrently with the application for funding. Please refer to the UCSF Human Research Protection Program to determine if your research requires IRB review and if your research meets the definition of human subjects research.

Capacity Building Project Application:

1. PI Name(s)-You may apply with multiple PIs. If funded, PI1 will be the primary contact for the award set up and management. At least one PI must have a UCSF faculty appointment. Only one RAP application from any person named as a PI (PI1 OR PI2) is permitted per cycle.
2. Project Title
3. Anti-racism theory or framework used
4. Name of community partner(s) (organizations and/or individuals)

5. Proposal maximum 3 pages for the Capacity Building Project grant, including figures and tables, excluding literature cited

   1. Lay Summary: Provide a brief summary of the goals and activities of the capacity-building  project that ensures that complex ideas and technical and scientific terms can be understood by those without prior knowledge about the subject (500-word max).
   2. Background and Significance: Describe the general subject matter that would be the focus for developing a future specific collaborative research project (e.g., middle school disciplinary policies, housing insecurity, or telehealth barriers) and the importance of this topic. Describe any relevant preliminary research studies and/or existing projects/relationships with community partners. 
   3. Proposed activities: Describe how you will collaboratively create a plan for a future research project that articulates specific research questions and crafts a design for a research study or approach to answer the research question(s). Include a clear plan of project execution, including a detailed timeline (12-month project period) and intended outcomes.
      1. Feasibility: Describe what steps you are taking to ensure the proposed project can be completed within the one-year project period for this grant (300-word max).
   4. Community engagement: Applications must specify the community groups and/or members partnering in the project and the plan for supporting their involvement. Proposals should describe the current state of the partnership along the community engagement spectrum (e.g., inform, consult, collaborate) and describe the intended stage of engagement at the end of the award period.
   5. Anti-racism framework: Clearly name and articulate how the research study will use an anti-racism framework in the capacity-building work of this project. This could include discussions of how academic and community partners will collaborate to identify a framework for future research. The role of racism in the topic/problem of interest should be clearly articulated.       
   6. Impact and future directions: Describe how successful completion of the deliverable project outline may enhance the ability of the study team to apply for larger extramural awards using an anti-racism framework.
   7. Literature cited (not included in page limit)

6. Detailed Budget: including Allowable/Not Allowable Table, Budget Justification, Biosketches, Other  Support, and Letters of Support - see below under the Research Grant Project Application. These are ALL  REQUIRED for both Mechanisms ($10,000 and $50,000).

Research Grant Project Application:

1. PI Name(s)-You may apply with multiple PIs. If funded, PI1 will be the primary contact for the award set up and management. At least one PI must have a UCSF faculty appointment. Only one RAP application from any person named as a PI (PI1 OR PI2) is permitted per cycle.
2. Project Title
3. Anti-racism theory or framework used
4. Name of community partner(s) (organizations and/or individuals)
5. Research question 
6. Proposal maximum 6 pages for the Research Project grant, including figures and tables, excluding literature cited.
   1. Lay Summary: Provide a brief summary of the aims and methods of the empirical research project proposed that ensures that complex ideas and technical and scientific terms can be understood by those without prior knowledge about the subject (500-word max).
   2. Background and Significance 
   3. Specific Aims
   4. Preliminary research: Describe relevant preliminary research studies and/or existing projects/relationships with community partners.
   5. Experimental Design and/or Methods: Effectively detail your experimental design, highlighting how the methodology is linked to the chosen theory or framework. Include a clear plan of project execution, including a detailed timeline (12-month project period) and intended outcomes.
      1. Feasibility: Describe what steps you are taking to ensure the proposed project can be completed within the one-year project period for this grant (300-word max).
   6. Anti-racism framework: Clearly name and articulate how the research study will use a theory or framework that explicitly addresses racism. Describe how successful completion of the proposed project increases the understanding of causes of health disparities and their consequences and/or will identify structural anti-racism strategies or will inform policy change. 
   7. Community Engagement: Research projects must clearly state the community impacted by the research as well as include a clear articulation of the approach to community engagement and the role of community members as research partners. Proposals should describe current state of the partnership along the community engagement spectrum (e.g., inform, consult, collaborate) and describe the intended stage of engagement at the end of the award period. It should be clear what role the community partner played in the development of the research question or topic, who initiated the collaboration and the project, and the role the community partner will play in the proposed research.
   8. Future Directions: Describe how successful achievement of the aims may enhance the ability of the study team to apply for larger extramural awards or other planned outcomes and next steps from this research. 
   9. Literature cited (not included in page limit)
7. Detailed Budget for both Mechanisms
   • Detailed Budget – $10,000 maximum for Capacity Building per proposal; round up to the nearest thousand (i.e., instead of 9,867, list $10,000). Budgets that do not appropriately support community partners for their role in the project will be considered non-responsive.
   • Detailed Budget - $50,000 maximum for Research Project, per proposal; round up to the nearest thousand (i.e., instead of 49,867, list $50,000). Budgets that do not appropriately support community partners for their role in the project will be considered non-responsive. UCSF indirect costs are not allowed in the budget.

Use the following form: PHS 398 Form Page 4, "Detailed Budget for the Initial Period" http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html.

Budget Preparation Resources:
    OSR: Develop a Budget 
    Standard Budget Components, including information on personnel costs (salary and benefits)
    NIH: Develop Your Budget

General Guidelines:
*The NIH base salary cap applies. PIs are required to list their effort whether it is paid or in kind.

PI partial salary support should be well-justified with respect to project activities. Due to their small size, RAP grants are designed for project support and are not intended to provide PI salary support unrelated to the project. PI salary amounts greater than ~10% of the requested award amount (e.g., $5,000 of a $50K award proposal, not 10% FTE) must be well justified and it should reflect work done by the PI to conduct specific scientific tasks on the project (e.g. data collection, computation) and not merely general supervision of project goals and personnel. 

• Multiple PIs can decide how to distribute the 10% salary support among themselves (e.g., 5%/5% or 6%/4%).
• The 10% limit on salary support is a guideline and includes SALARY & FRINGE BENEFITS.
• Update: General Automobile and Employee Liability (GAEL) insurance are NOT allowable costs.
• The award amount is DIRECT COST ONLY.

If you need assistance with budgeting for statistical or recruitment help, please contact Consultation Services. Consultation Services offers a free hour to all researchers per project and service, and it can assist with appropriate budgeting if your project is awarded.

Sponsor constraints:

Academic Senate will not fund fellows and postdocs.

Research Evaluation and Allocation Committee (REAC) To be funded by REAC applicants must have an appointment with the UCSF School of Medicine. Note: social/morale events are not allowed on REAC funding.

  8. Budget Justification for both Mechanisms: Clearly justify all costs fully.

For all personnel, clearly identify any discrepancies between the actual effort (i.e., real percent time) the individual will contribute to the project, versus the amount of salary effort they are requesting. This is particularly important for personnel/PI's who expect to contribute project effort with little or no salary, such as those whose salary is above the NIH base salary cap.

  9. NIH Bio-sketch of Principal Investigator(s) and Co-Investigator(s) and UCSF Faculty Mentor(s) for both Mechanisms (5 page maximum): 

• Use Form Version H at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/forms/biosketch-blank-format-rev-10-2021.docx

• Include biosketches for both PIs of a multi-PI application. Letters or CVs may be provided in lieu of biosketch for non-academic community partners. 
   

 10. Other support pages of Principal Investigator(s) and Co-Investigator(s) and UCSF Faculty Mentor(s) for both Mechanisms

• Use form at https://grants.nih.gov/sites/default/files/other-support-format-page-rev-10-2021.docx

• Include active grants and pending proposals.

• NOTE: If your Other Support references projects that may appear to have scientific or budgetary overlap with this proposal, please clearly identify and explain why this proposal is unique and non-overlapping. 
  
  

 11. Letter(s) of support for both Mechanisms: 
       Provide a letter of support from the department chair or other unit head. In addition, for junior investigators, department        chairs/unit heads should comment on the independence of the applicant and availability of research space and other            resources for the proposed research. Include the letter of support at the end of your pdf document and address it to the        RAP Committee. If there are multiple (two) PIs, a letter of support is required for both PIs. If PIs are in the same depart        ment, the chair can vouch for both PIs in a single letter. VIEW SAMPLE.

       Provide a letter of support from all community partner groups.