Limited Submission Funding Announcements

The NIEHS Environmental Health Sciences Core Centers (EHSCC) Program brings together investigators currently funded by NIH or other Federal or non-Federal sources to enhance the effectiveness of existing research and extend the focus of research for environmental health sciences. An EHSCC is expected to support innovation and be on the cutting edge of science. As such, research activities should cross a variety of disciplines to bring multiple perspectives and approaches to bear on significant environmental health research questions and health impacts.

As intellectual hubs for environmental health science research, the EHSCC are expected to be the thought leaders for the field and advance the goals of the 2025-2029 NIEHS Strategic Plan. The Core Centers provide critical research infrastructure, shared facilities, services and/or resources to groups of investigators conducting environmental health sciences research.  An EHSCC enables researchers to conduct their independently funded individual and/or collaborative research projects more efficiently and/or more effectively. The overall goal of an EHSCC is to identify and capitalize on emerging issues that advance improving the understanding of the relationships among environmental exposures, human biology and disease. The EHSCC supports community engagement and translational research as key approaches to improving public health.

FUNDING INFORMATION: New or first-time applicants can apply for up to $850,000 direct costs per year for up to four years ($3.4M total).

Renewal applications can apply for up to $1M in direct costs per year for up to five years ($5M total). The EHSCC does not require cost sharing.

ELIGIBILITY: To qualify for an EHSCC, the applicant institution must have a base of ongoing, independently supported, peer-reviewed research projects clearly dedicated to the study of environmental health sciences.

Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as the Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) [PD(s)/PI(s)] is invited to work with their organization to develop an application for support.

INTERNAL SELECTION: BU may forward one application.  BU faculty who submit grants through BU can send the materials listed below via InfoReady Review by Oct. 17, 2025. For BU faculty who submit grants through BMC, please contact Carolina Giudice, strategic research growth program manager at carolina.giudice@bmc.org by Aug. 18, 2025. Consult the BUMC Home Institution Finder if you are uncertain whether you submit grants through BU or BMC.

• Statement of fit (one paragraph) describing how the proposed center fits with the mission of EHSCC.
• Resources statement (one paragraph) describing how the proposed project would utilize existing skills and technologies and any preliminary plans for building this research capacity at BU.
• Two-page project proposal describing the central theme of the center and its relevance to environmental health, the goals and directions for planned projects, the significance of the research for environmental health sciences and who are the proposed collaborators. References may be included on an additional page.
• Up-to-date CV or biosketch for PI/PD.

As necessary, a faculty committee drawn from both campuses will select the nominee.

DEADLINES:

• Internal Materials Due: Oct. 17, 2025, by 11:59 ET
• Anticipated Notification Date: Friday, Oct. 3, 2025
• NIEHS Application Due: April. 20, 2026

In requesting to be considered for this limited submission funding opportunity, you are making a commitment, if selected, to submit your proposal to the sponsor in a timely manner and to Sponsored Programs in accordance with the Proposal Submission Policy.

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The W. M. Keck Research Program seeks to benefit humanity by supporting medical research and science & engineering projects that are distinctive and novel in their approach, question the prevailing paradigm or have the potential to break open new territory in their field. Grants support pioneering biological and physical science research and engineering, including the development of promising new technologies, instrumentation or methodologies.

View examples of funded projects on the Keck Foundation’s grant abstracts page.

FUNDING INFORMATION: Requests can be $1-1.3M over three years, but larger grants will require stronger justification from applicants.

ELIGIBILITY RESTRICTIONS: Funding is awarded to projects that:

• Focus on important and emerging areas of research.
• Have the potential to develop breakthrough technologies, instrumentation or methodologies.
• Are innovative, distinctive, and interdisciplinary.
• Demonstrate a high level of risk due to unconventional approaches, or by challenging the prevailing paradigm.
• Have the potential for transformative impact, such as the founding of a new field of research, the enabling of observations not previously possible or the altered perception of a previously intractable problem.
• Fall outside the mission of public funding agencies.
• Have been recently denied funding by a federal funding agency expressly because the project was judged too high risk or early stage. The foundation prefers to see the rejection in writing.

The Keck Foundation does not fund:

• Clinical or translational research.
• Treatment trials or research for the sole purpose of drug development.
• Disease-specific research.
• Environmental conservation or monitoring.
• Purely theoretical projects.
• Follow-on funding.
• Device development.
• Public health-focused projects.

INTERNAL SELECTION PROCESS: The internal selection process depends on whether your grants are managed by BU Medical and Charles River Campuses or Boston Medical Center (BMC). If you are unsure whether your grants are managed by BU or BMC, please consult the BUMC Home Institution Finder. Use that information to guide which process you follow below.

BU Process: BU may forward up to two total proposals, one in each of the following research areas: medical research, science & engineering research.

Interested candidates should submit the following materials through InfoReady Review by Friday, Oct. 24:

• Information about any co-PIs.
• Proposal Alignment statement describing how your proposal fits with the mission of the Keck Foundation (One paragraph).
• Funding statement explaining the need for support from the Keck Foundation; demonstrations of federal rejection of the project on the grounds that it is too high-risk or early-stage and that the foundation is the last resort are preferred (One paragraph).
• One-page concept paper without images/illustrations, that includes the following:
• Project Overview – emphasize any unique aspects and pilot studies (indicate area of emphasis for project) and background to put the research into perspective.
• Description of methodology – be specific about how the project will be conducted and how the PI will achieve their goals. Focus on the What and the How. For example, highlight project challenges and innovative ways the PI will overcome them.
• Key personnel.
• Impact – how will this project be a scientific leap forward? How is this project transformational? What makes this project distinctive?
• One additional page may be used for references.
• Updated CV for lead PI.

A faculty committee drawn from both campuses will review internal proposals and select nominees. All inquiries must be submitted through BU’s institutional liaison: Director of Foundation Relations, Joe Loftus at joloftus@bu.edu.

For more information on drafting a compelling application, refer also to the Keck Foundation’s application process or review sample materials from previous successful applications in BU’s Proposal Library.

BMC Process: BMC may forward one proposal in the Medical Research category. If you are a BUMC faculty member who works in BMC space or a fellow whose faculty advisor is a BMC investigator, please contact the Program Manager of Strategic Research Growth, Carolina Giudice at carolina.giudice@bmc.org by Nov. 1.

BMC investigators do not need to submit applications through InfoReady Review for this LSO. The internal deadlines listed below only apply to investigators who submit grants through BU. BMC investigators should contact Carolina for guidance on next steps.

DEADLINES:

• Internal Deadline: Friday, Oct. 24, by 11:59 p.m. ET.
• Anticipated Notification Date: Friday, Nov. 28.
• Concept Counseling: Jan. 1 – Feb. 15, 2026
• Phase 1 Application Deadline: May 1, 2026, by 4:30 p.m. PT.

In requesting to be considered for this limited submission funding opportunity, you are making a commitment, if selected, to submit your proposal to the sponsor in a timely manner and to Sponsored Programs in accordance with the Proposal Submission Policy.

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The St. Baldrick’s Foundation advances the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives. Research grants are for specific two-year research projects that are hypothesis driven and may be either laboratory, clinical or epidemiological in nature.

Current funding priorities are divided into four categories:

• New discovery research.
• Translational research and early phase clinical trials.
• Phase III clinical trials and infrastructure support of participating institutions (primarily the fall grant cycle).
• Education of new pediatric oncology researchers.

In addition to research to understand the biology of childhood cancers and discover leads to more effective treatments, topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Adolescents and young adults.
• Survivorship, outcomes and quality of life.
• Supportive care.
• Epidemiology and pediatric cancer predispositions.
• Precision medicine.
• Alternative and complementary therapies.

FUNDING INFORMATION: Up to $100,000 for two years.

ELIGIBILITY: PIs should hold at least an MD, DO or PhD degree by the date the grant becomes effective. Applicants do not need to be U.S. citizens, but must be employed at an academic, medical or non-profit research institution within the U.S.

A PI may only be the lead investigator on one application per grant cycle. Co-PIs are allowed for research grants, but the LOI must be submitted by the lead PI.

Limited Submissions Exception

BU may submit one additional LOI/application overall for the cycle if they are focused on one of the following areas of high interest from donors and low numbers of past applications:

• Brain tumors – all types, including rare forms, especially atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor (AT/RT), diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG)/diffuse midline glioma (DMG) and glioblastoma (GBM).
• Burkitt lymphoma – all types, especially sporadic.
• Ewing sarcoma.
• Rhabdoid tumors – Extrarenal.

INTERNAL SELECTION: The internal selection process depends on whether your grants are managed by BU Medical and Charles River Campuses or Boston Medical Center (BMC). If you are unsure whether your grants are managed by BU or BMC, please consult the BUMC Home Institution Finder. Use that information to guide which process you follow below.

BU Process: BU may forward one application, unless the proposal meets the above exception criteria. Medical Campus investigators should submit the following materials via InfoReady Review by Oct. 26.

• One-page Letter of Intent (LOI) in the Foundation’s format, which includes the following components:
  • Area of focus for the research.
  • Relevance of the project to the Foundation’s mission to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives.
  • Rationale for the project.
  • Gant chart for the timeline of the progression.
  • References may be included on one additional page.
• General audience/lay abstract for the proposed project (250 words).
• Updated Biosketch for the lead PI.

As necessary, an internal faculty committee will review and recommend a BU applicant. Foundation Relations will assist the applicant to submit their Letter of Intent by Dec. 8.

BMC Process: BMC may forward one application. If you are a BUMC faculty member who works in BMC space or a fellow whose faculty advisor is a BMC investigator, please contact the Program Manager of Strategic Research Growth, Carolina Giudice at carolina.giudice@bmc.org by Oct. 17.

BMC investigators do not need to submit applications through InfoReady Review for this LSO. The internal deadlines listed below only apply to investigators who submit grants through BU. BMC investigators should contact Carolina for guidance on next steps.

DEADLINES:

• Internal Materials Due: Sunday, Oct. 26, by 11:59 p.m. ET.
• Anticipated Notification Date: Monday, Nov. 10.
• Letter of Intent Due: Monday, Dec. 8, by 5 p.m. ET.
• Full Application Due: Friday, Feb. 27, 2026.

In requesting to be considered for this limited submission funding opportunity, you are making a commitment, if selected, to submit your proposal to the sponsor in a timely manner and to Sponsored Programs in accordance with the Proposal Submission Policy.

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St. Baldrick’s Foundation advances the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives. The Scholar (Career Development) Award is meant to help develop the independent research of highly qualified individuals still early in their careers.

In requesting to be considered for this limited submission funding opportunity, you are making a commitment, if selected, to submit your proposal to the sponsor in a timely manner and to Sponsored Programs in accordance with the Proposal Submission Policy.

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