Funding Opportunities

07/20/2026

Cognitive Neuroscience of Development and Aging (CoNDA) Center
Funding Opportunity (Pilot Projects Grants)
Cognitive Neuroscience of Development & Aging (CoNDA) Center

REQUEST FOR LETTERS OF INTENT TO APPLY FOR PILOT PROJECT FUNDING

Letter of Intent to Apply Deadline: 5:00 PM Monday, August 17, 2026

Program Summary:
The CoNDA Center is pleased to announce a funding opportunity for Pilot Projects. The CoNDA Center is a NIH/NIGMS supported Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) that focuses on cognitive neuroscience across the lifespan and strives to support and develop neuroscience research in the region.

The goal of the Pilot Project Program is to provide support to promising research led by faculty at CoNDA participating institutions (UNMC, UNO & Creighton). Applicants must not have concurrent funding from other IDeA programs (INBRE, other COBRE or CTR). Applicants must be in a full-time, independent faculty position; postdocs, trainees, or similar non-independent positions are not eligible to receive COBRE funding. Faculty investigators of all ranks are eligible to apply (senior investigators my apply they seek to explore a new research direction), though priority will be give to Early Stage and New Investigators. If you have any questions about these criteria, please contact the project coordinator or center director. Preference will be given to those proposals likely to lead to the submission of Research Project Leader proposals to the CoNDA COBRE.

The mechanism aims to support innovative, collaborative projects in the field of neuroscience in general with emphasis on the cognitive neuroscience in development and aging in health and disease. At this time preference will be given to investigators performing human subject research, through all are encouraged to apply.

Applications that propose the use of the CoNDA Center Research Cores will be prioritized.

Successful applications (up to two candidates) will receive up to $50,000 in direct costs for one year. Upon receipt of letters of intent, up to four candidates will be chosen to complete a full application. Awardees must devote at least one person-month of effort to the CoNDA Pilot Project, however the award can not be used to support applicant salary.

To apply, please submit a brief letter of intent highlighting your research background and plans for the Pilot Project; please also provide your planned Specific Aims (one page) and your biosketch.

Please submit your Letter of Intent, Specific Aims, and Biosketch as one PDF file to:
eharkness@unmc.edu

LETTER OF INTENT DEADLINE: 5:00 pm on Monday, August 17th
Anticipated Full Application Due Date: October 2026
Anticipated Project Start Date: March 2027

 

Grant Forms and Submission Information:

Applicants may submit only one application per cycle.

Applications should use standard NIH formatting requirements (1/2 inch margins, Arial size 11 font). The application should be submitted in a PDF format and sent by email to eharkness@unmc.edu, with "CONDA Center Pilot Project Application" in the subject line. Application due date should be anticipated in October 2026,

Using PHS 398 forms and instructions, the following sections need to be submitted:
 1. Face Page (form Page 1)
 2. Project Summary (Form Page 2; limited to 30 lines or less of text; please type Project Title and PI name in the header of this page).
 3. Research Strategy Section (limited to 5 pages total, see instructions/sections
     listed below):
     1. Specific Aim(s): one page maximum.
     2. Research Strategy:
          a. Significance; the rigor of prior research -- the strengths and weaknesses of
          the research that is used to form the basis for the proposed research
          question.
          b. Innovation: briefly describe how the proposed research may refine, improve,
          or propose a new application of an existing concept or method.
     3. Approach:
          a. Can include preliminary data, although not required.
          b. Experimental design, including steps taken to ensure scientific rigor
          (robust and unbiased experimental design, sample, measures, procedures,
          analysis, interpretation, and reporting of results, explained as appropriate for a
          pilot project) and consideration of key biological variable is applicable.
          c. Plans for extramural funding applications (to NIH or other agencies, please
          specify) upon successful completion of this project.
          d. References: excluded from 7-page limit.
4. Biographical Sketch (for Pilot Project Leader only)
5. Budget and Detailed Budget Justification (Form Page 4)
6. Relevant Regulatory Information:
     a. If the proposed Pilot Project involves human biospecimens or data, include:
          Current PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information Form
     b. If the proposed Pilot Project involves Human Subjects, include
          Current PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information Form
          Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval
          Human Subjects Education Certification (required even when research is 
            exempt.  
     c. If the proposed Pilot Project involves Clinical Trials, include: 
          - Current PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information Form
          - Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval
          - Human Subjects Education Certification and Good Clinical
             Practice (GCP) Training Certification
          -For all clinical trials, in addition to the information requested in Section 3.3
             of the PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials information form, the
             awardee institution will provide NIGMS with a statement detailing the 
             risks to study participants, the frequency of monitoring of clinical trial 
             data and the name(s) of the responsible party/parties for regulatory
             and legal compliance, adverse event reporting, and clinicaltrials.gov
             registration and results reporting
       d. If the proposed Pilot Project involves Vertebrate Animals, include:
                  IACUC approval
                 Vertebrate Animal Section    

Convert and combine the final documents into one PDF file and email to Emily Harkness
 

Anticipated Project State Date: March 2027

Special Considerations, Institutional Approvals and Reporting:

• Funds can not be used to support applicant salary.
• Equipment (>$5,000 per item) and/or computer purchases are not allowed.
• Renovation and/or Honorariums are not allowed.
• Travel is limited to research-related tasks only (e.g., no conference travel). Travel to locations outside of the US & Canada is not allowed.
• Awardees are responsible for working with their department grants administrator to monitor and manage fund available/spent on this award.
• All awardees must provide quarterly annual progress reports.
• Awardees are required to present the Pilot Project progress at meetings organized by the CoNDA Center.
• As part of their grants, awardees must provide documentation of publications and peer-reviewed funding that result from their award.
• Awardees are required to cite CoNDA Center supporting in publications and presentations that are generated by or related to research performed using CoNDA Center funds.
• Direct and Indirect costs: The budget should list direct costs only. If the application is funded, the UNMC CoNDA Center will pay for indirect costs (overhead) per NIH guidelines. For non-UNMC applicants, indirect costs associated with Pilot Project will be awarded to the investigator's institution for NIH-funded pilots. Please work with your Sponsored Programs office ot ensure that your proposal budget includes your institution's correct F&A rate.

 

CONTACTS:
CoNDA Center Director
Prof. Anna Dunaevsky, PhD
402-559-3165

Project Administrator
Emily Harkness
402-552-3588

Grants Administrator
Johna Belling
402-559-5483

Future dates for applications to be announced.