2025 Innovation Grant

Eligibility

Applicant Eligibility: must be met at the time of application 
• Applicant institutions must be based in the United States or Canada. Applicants need not be United States citizens. Funds must be granted to nonprofit institutions or organizations. 
• Applicants must have an MD, PhD, or MD/PhD (or equivalent) and be appointed as faculty (or equivalent) at an academic institution. 
• Applicants must have a track record of publication with at least one publication as a Senior Corresponding Author and funding productivity that demonstrates the project can be accomplished by the investigators. 
• Applicants must have a track record of research grant productivity with at least one NIH R01 equivalent awarded. 
• Applicant must propose a new research direction, not a continuation of ongoing funded research.

Summary

Innovation Grant Program Description 

ALSF is committed to creating opportunities for new and innovative research into treatments and cures for childhood cancers. The Innovation Grant is designed to provide critical and significant seed funding for established researchers with a novel approach to pediatric oncology scientific investigation. Proposals should have clinical translation in view. This may represent a change in research direction and/or an innovative new idea that moves away from an investigator’s prior research but for which a strong case is made for the potential impact on childhood cancers. 

Application Timeline and Review 
• A letter of intent (LOI) must be submitted, and all eligibility criteria met to be considered for the full proposal stage; otherwise, LOIs will be administratively rejected. 
• Upon invitation a full proposal must be submitted that meets all guideline criteria as well as all eligibility criteria; otherwise, applications will be administratively rejected. 
• LOIs and full proposals will be reviewed by an independent panel of experts according to the NIH recognized peer-review process.

Scope of Proposal 
• Proposals must fall within the scope of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation’s mission, focused on childhood cancers. Proposals with a sole/primary focus on patients >19 years of age will not be considered. 
• Proposal must be hypothesis driven and mechanistic. 
• Innovation must be clearly presented. 
• Potential for major scientific and/or clinical impact in pediatric oncology is critical. 
• While preliminary data are not required, the applicant must demonstrate feasibility of the research plan. 

Budget 

The requested budget should be in proportion to the scope of the proposed project and should be for direct costs of $250,000 USD or below over two years. A maximum of $125,000 in total direct costs may be requested per year. 

Restrictions: 
o ALSF adheres to the NIH Salary Cap for principal investigator(s). 
o Indirect costs are not allowed. 
o The grant may not be renewed; one no-cost extension request is allowed with the Final Report. 
o Other budget items may include fringe, travel, supplies and small pieces of equipment. ALSF funds cannot be used for tuition remission. 

Overhead

Not allowable.

Pre-application deadlines

RSO internal deadline

Pre-application program deadline

Application deadlines

RSO detailed review deadline

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

Application Package Instructions 
• All sections described below should be combined into one PDF (max 20 MB) and uploaded to the ALSF online application form (see application submission instructions). 
• All templates mentioned can be found on ALSF’s Resources for Grant Applicants page.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Support for projects involving Indigenous Research:

Support with the development of your grant application is available internally through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST). Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Support for Knowledge Engagement:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation is available internally through the Knowledge Engagement Team. Applicants can reach out by email to the KE team at knowledge.engagement@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information, please visit the KE team webpage.

Support for Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@libanswers.ucalgary.com and/or visit https://libguides.ucalgary.ca/researchdatamanagement.

Support for EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice. Contact Erin.OToole@ucalgary.ca for more information.

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award LOI

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application