UMII Fast Track Training -2009 Call for Proposals
I. Program snapshot
II. Program description
III. Eligibility criteria
IV. Application procedures and documentation
V. Application target dates
VI. Evaluation criteria and procedures
VII. Award procedures and conditions
VIII. Remarks
Title
University of Minnesota Interdisciplinary Informatics (UMII) Fast Track Training Program
Purpose
To support researchers continuing education across the fields of informatics and other disciplines and foster exploration of promising emerging opportunities. The goal of this training award is to provide researchers with opportunities to learn quickly about key informatics or computational concepts, methods, tools and practices and their roles for potential application in their research. Equipped with this new knowledge and skills, researchers will become better prepared to expand their current research domains and investigate new ones either as a single investigator or as part of an interdisciplinary research collaborative.
Target dates
August 1st, 2009; October 15th, 2009 and quarterly starting Jan 1st, 2010.
Eligibility
Open to faculty and staff holding a current appointment at the University of Minnesota and eligible for University PI status.
Amounts
Award will cover registration fees, travel and lodging in an amount up to $5,000 total. A total amount of $25,000 will be made available for this program.
Questions
Anne-Francoise Lamblin, PhD
UMII Coordinator
Email: lambl001@umn.eduTel: 612-625-7414
The University of Minnesota Interdisciplinary Informatics has established its UMII Fast Track Training Program to provide investigators with the opportunity to learn quickly and efficiently about leading edge research tools and practices in fields that intersect and are complementary with their current research. It is envisioned that this quick and intense immersion will provide investigators with a better understanding of “where to start,” necessary skills as well as developing the awareness of the best informatics practices, approaches and tools applied in interdisciplinary research.
Typical classes or workshops last between a few days to a few weeks. The selection of the course or workshop is at the discretion of the applicant. However competitive requests for support will clearly identify how attending the proposed workshop or course will address an unmet need and will enable the investigator to tackle new approaches in his or her research.
Letter of Intent target dates: August 1st, 2009; October 15th, 2009; and quarterly starting Jan 1st, 2010.
Pre-award notification: Within 10 days of post-target dates.
Award funds allocation: Upon proof of completion.
Applicant affiliation
Program is open to all faculty and staff members that hold a current University of Minnesota appointment and eligible for University PI status.
Application procedures and documentation
Application will be in the form of a letter of intent (LOI) no longer than two pages and accompanied by a cover page.
Cover page
A downloadable standard format cover page will be available on the OVPR UMII web site. Cover page should provide the following information:
Course or workshop name
URL
Dates
Registration Deadline
Costs:
• Registration fees
• Lodging cost (if not included in registration)
• Travel cost
Attendee's name and affiliation
LOI - Project description
Applicant should provide a description of their current research project or area and the envisioned opportunities for interdisciplinary approaches and integration of informatics approaches.
LOI - Justification
The justification should be written in non-technical terms for a general audience and state clearly how the knowledge or skills gained by attending the proposed workshop or course will enable the adoption of interdisciplinary and informatics approaches not currently pursued. The justification should highlight the anticipated impact of attending this course or workshop.
Letter of support
Non-faculty applicants are to provide letter of support from supervisors indicative of their authorizations for the applicant to attend the proposed workshop.
LOI to attend a selected course or workshop should be submitted by e-mail to umii@umn.edu with the subject line: “2009 UMII FTT application – Applicant’s last name”
Evaluation criteria and procedures
LOI will be reviewed by the OVPR and evaluated based on the merit of the justifications provided by the applicant. Such justifications shall clearly indicate how the applicant’s research and teaching will benefit from the anticipated new knowledge and enable the integration of informatics and interdisciplinary research. Pre-award notification will be made by the OVPR. Award will be made by the OVPR upon completion of the course or workshop (see below).
Award procedures and conditions
Pre-award and award notification
Successful applicants will be notified that their requests have been selected by the OVPR (pre-award). However selection of that application does not equate to a monetary award. The monetary award will only be made after full attendance and completion of the proposed course or workshop by the applicants and fulfillment of the reporting conditions. Partial attendance to the workshop or course will not be reimbursed.
Reporting
Within two weeks of completion, awardees will need to submit a description and evaluation of the course or workshop using the provided template (URL). This report is intended to be informative to other investigators, and will be made available through the UMII web site.
Faculty and staff interested in developing such courses or workshops are invited to contact the UMII.