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The ASH Bridge Grant is open to ASH members at various career stages who the meet the eligibility requirements. MDs, PhDs, and MD-PhDs conducting malignant and classical hematology research are encouraged to apply. Bridge Grants allow recipients to keep their labs operating, retain staff, and continue their contributions to the hematology community.

Supported Research

Applicants must submit proposals to conduct research in hematology. Proposals that fall within any of the categories discussed below are encouraged:

• Basic Research
• Translational Research
• Patient-Oriented Clinical Research
• Outcomes-Based Research

For additional details on eligible research categories, please consult the Research Definitions page.

Eligibility Requirements

To be considered for an ASH Bridge Grant, the applicant must:

• Have submitted to the NIH in the past 18 months a hematology-related R01 or application that was scored but not funded. This includes investigators applying for their first R01.
• Please note: The 18-month timeframe begins the date your R01 was reviewed by the NIH study section.
• Be an ASH member in good standing and plan to maintain membership for the duration of the award term.
• Hold a faculty position at an academic institution or the equivalent position at a non-profit research organization. Employees of independent research institutions are eligible to apply if they have a faculty-type appointment and the institution is allowed to independently apply for and receive NIH funding.
• Have the commitment of his/her institution to match $50,000 in funds.
• At the time of award activation, have available no more than $250,000 annually in other research funding. This amount does not include the applicant's salary/fringe or funding from within the institution.

Exclusions:

• Previous Bridge Grant recipients cannot apply for a second award.
• Individuals cannot apply for the Bridge Grant more than three times.
  • Requests for exceptions can be made when grants have been completely written with new aims and new questions asked.
• Individuals eligible to apply for the ASH Scholar Award are not eligible to apply for the ASH Bridge Grant.
• Individuals cannot hold two active ASH awards concurrently. If the other ASH award ends before the Bridge Grant begins, you may apply but there can be no overlap.

Application Process

The Bridge Grant application, as well as all supporting documents outlined below, must be submitted through ASH’s online awards portal.

All applications must include the following:

• Completed Application Form
• Completed Budget Supplemental form
• Applicant’s NIH Biographical Sketch
• Institutional Commitment Letter
• Specific Aims Page From Original R01
• Complete Summary Statement From Original R01
• Response to Critiques From Original R01
• Documentation From NIH Confirming That R01 Score Was Out of Fundable Range
• First-Year Budget From R01

If you are having trouble completing your application online, please email [email protected] to request assistance. An Awards Department staff member will be happy to walk you through the process.

Evaluation, Selection, and Notification

ASH will perform a preliminary review of the application and all required materials in order to confirm eligibility and completeness. All eligible applications will be reviewed by the Bridge Grant study section based on the scientific merit of proposed research, the quality of the response to the NIH critique, and the applicant. Award winners will be notified in late February for cycle A and June 1 for cycle B.

Terms and Conditions

As a condition of acceptance of the ASH Bridge Grant, it is required that the award recipient cite support from the 91¹ú²ú¾«Æ· in any publication, poster, or presentation describing research conducted during the period of the award.

ASH will pay the award in one installment of $150,000. Awards are non-transferable between individuals or across institutions.

The following expenses are allowable in the $150,000 ASH Bridge Grant budget:

• PI salary (the percent effort and related salary from the unfunded R01 should be retained) and fringe benefits
• Travel, if well justified
• Salary and fringe benefits of research personnel
• Research supplies
• Equipment (up to $10,000 if required for and justified by the applicant)

Final Report

Bridge Grant recipients are required to submit to ASH a final progress report within 60 days of the end of the award period. ASH will send an email containing the final financial report template and the link to the survey. Award recipients should be prepared to provide information on, but not limited to, the following topics:

• Number of extramural grants applied for and obtained during the grant period
• Number of patents submitted and awarded during the grant period
• Number of publications submitted and published during the grant period
• Final financial report describing actual expenses and variances to budget

Reallocation, Extension, and Deferral

All reallocation, extension, and/or deferral requests and justifications must be sent to [email protected]. The ASH Treasurer will evaluate each request.

• Requests for fund reallocation from one expense category to another must include the dollar amount, which categories are impacted, and a justification as to why the change is necessary. The salary from the ASH award to the investigator must remain within +/- 10 percent of the original budget proposal submitted with the application.
• Funded researchers may apply for no-cost extension.
• Requests to defer commencement of the award for up to three months will be considered. Deferral requests should be noted in the award application, emailed to ASH staff following application but before notification, or emailed within 10 business days of the award notification.

Termination

An award will be terminated if the applicant moves to a non-research position, leaves the institution at which he/she worked at the start of the award, or is dismissed from the institution.

Questions?

For questions about the ASH Bridge Grant, please contact [email protected].