Re-entry to Active Research Program

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*Who May Submit Proposals: Proposals may only be submitted by the following: -Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs): Two- and four-year IHEs (including community colleges) accredited in, and having a campus located in the US, acting on behalf of their faculty members. Special Instructions for International Branch Campuses of US IHEs: If the proposal includes funding to be provided to an international branch campus of a US institution of higher education (including through use of sub-awards and consultant arrangements), the proposer must explain the benefit(s) to the project of performance at the international branch campus, and justify why the project activities cannot be performed at the US campus. *Who May Serve as PI: Investigators must contact a RARE program director to confirm eligibility prior to submission. The investigator will receive an e-mail confirmation of eligibility, which must be uploaded as a Single Copy document with the proposal submission. The investigator must hold a PhD in engineering or a closely related discipline, with prior research experiences in an area within the scope of the Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems. Application to the RARE program is not limited by demographics. Tenured or tenure-track faculty may apply. Adjunct, affiliated, research, or teaching faculty may apply if they are employed either full or part-time by an academic institution, provided they have a plan to seek future employment on the tenure-track. Other qualified individuals who lack University affiliation may apply, provided they have identified a senior research mentor at a University; in this select case, the mentor may serve as PI(see ‘Additional Eligibility’ information below). Investigators that have previously received a RARE award are ineligible for a second award. PIs that are eligible for a CAREER submission are ineligible for a RARE submission. Proposals from investigatorswho have had no change in career status for an extended period of time are encouraged. The RARE investigator must demonstrate a substantial decrease in research metrics that result from the research hiatus to receive a confirmation of eligibility.The metrics must be communicated to a RARE program director to receive an e-mail confirmation of eligibility. Also, full documentation of these metrics should be included in a full curriculum vitae that is uploaded as a Single Copy document with the proposal. Applicable research metrics include: (1) research publication activity; (2) external research support as PI or co-PI, at a funding level that is consistent with a typical CBET individual investigator award; (3) resources with which to collect preliminary data. A Track 1 investigator must demonstrate a decrease in one or more metrics. A Track 2 investigator must demonstrate a lack of activity in all three metrics in the new area of interest (publications and funding in other areas are allowed). Examples of acceptable documentation of these metrics include: a full curriculum vitae with all publications and funding activity, a budget balance sheet showing funds from current awards are fully committed, a lack of support for research staff, reviews from a proposal saying preliminary data is needed, declined seed grant proposal from home institution, a lack of access to a necessary collaborator. Other metrics and means for documentation of the metric may be considered, after consultation with a RARE program director. The curriculum vitae should be formatted such that a decline in the research metrics is clearly indicated, for example, by separating entries into pre- and post-stagnation periods. In cases where the curriculum vitae may be unclear or ambiguous, the investigator should discuss the metrics with the RARE program director during the initial eligibility discussion. Track 2 proposals from an investigator with an active NSF award are discouraged.