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Pilot Project Funding Opportunities

Updated: August 2024

The Pilot Project program is supported through philanthropic committed funding and is designed to provide seed funds for investigator-initiated research. The intent of these pilot grants is to encourage translational research by funding well-designed projects that could be competitive for future larger grants from a federal or private agency.

  • Archived pilot project RFPs from the past year can be found here.

 

Funding SourceGrant NameDescriptionDeadline
Institute for Translational MedicineVarious Opportunities Visit the Institute for Translational Medicine for current opportunities.Rolling basis
Chicago Chronic Condition Equity Network (C3EN)Small Grant ProgramThe Chicago Chronic Condition Equity Network (C3EN) aims to expand and cultivate the network of health disparities researchers throughout the Chicago region. In addition to funding Research Project Pilot Studies (see companion funding announcement), C3EN awards small grants of up to $3,000 to support well-defined formative and summative research activities that strengthen community partnerships around health disparities research. Formative research activities such as community needs assessments, key informant interviews, and analyses of existing data can help an investigator identify the most appropriate targets and strategies for intervention, and refine aspects of a study protocol that bear on feasibility (e.g., recruitment approaches). Similarly, summative research activities ultimately enhance the impact of a completed research project by examining its implications for the community in which it was conducted. Summative research activities such as producing infographics or summaries of study findings, giving community presentations, or holding roundtable discussions serve to bring the research process back to the community “full circle”. Formative and summative research activities are generally narrow in scope, but can significantly enhance the rigor and relevance of community-engaged research programs. More information

Rolling basis

 

ITM/Chicago Biomedical Consortium CBC-HITES Windy City Innovation AwardThe Chicago Biomedical Consortium Hub for Innovative Technology and Entrepreneurship in the Sciences (CBC-HITES) has announced its newest award: The CBC-HITES Windy City Innovation Award. This new funding program is designed to propel scientific discoveries into impactful biomedical solutions that could change lives. More information10/01/2024 and 04/01/2025
RUSHRush BMO Institute for Health Equity

The Rush BMO Institute for Health Equity is requesting applications for the RBIHE Health Equity Research Scholars Program to support the expansion of researchers conducting innovative community-partnered health equity research addressing health across the lifespan. The Scholars Program supports RUSH faculty members to develop a program of research that will lead to the identification of evidence-based approaches to improve health equity. Research topics within the following areas are of particular interest:

  • Development of interventions to improve health equity

  • Implementation of interventions to improve health equity

  • Examination of the influence of environment, social determinants, and other underlying mechanisms that lead to differences in health outcomes, in order to inform future intervention and program development 

More information

01/06/2025 LOI Due