Applications now open!

2025-2026 Small/Working Group Grant

Request for Applications

Deadline: July 31, 2025 at 5:00 pm EDT (UTC-5)

Notification of award (NOA): August/September 2025

Proposed completion date: within one year of NOA

The NIA-supported Research Network on Animal Models to Understand Social Dimensions of Aging will fund 1-2 small working group meetings. The goals of these working groups are to facilitate collaboration among Animal Model Network members and generate new comparative research regarding animal models or comparative studies relevant for understanding the social determinants of health and aging. 

Eligibility: Proposals must be organized or co-organized by Animal Models Network member(s). 

Details: We expect to fund 1-2 small working group meetings with a maximum budget of $10k per meeting. Researchers who are not current members of the Animal Models Network may be listed as participants, but a substantive proportion of participants should be associated with the Animal Models Network (e.g., as previous McEwen or Travel Fellows, pilot program awardees, advisory board/leadership team members, members from collaborating centers and networks, or Catalysis/small working group meeting alumni). For lists of Network members not included in the linked pages above, please contact soci-age@umn.edu directly.

Application: 

1. Cover page: Name(s) of organizer(s) and title of meeting, meeting location and proposed venue, and tentative date(s)

2. An NIH-format Biosketch for the meeting organizer(s);

3. Meeting description (2 page maximum, including figures): meeting aims, tentative schedule, and a list of potential invitees;

4. Budget and budget justification (1 page, see more details below).

The full application packet saved in a single pdf file named “ProposedMeetingName.2025.pdf” should be submitted via email to soci-age@umn.edu by July 31, 2025 at 5:00 pm EDT (UTC-5).

Budget: At the application stage, the budget may be rudimentary. Once the award letter is received, the awardee will work closely with the R24 grant administration team at the University of Minnesota (UMN) to make payments to vendors (e.g. venue, catering), track meeting invitations and attendance, process prepayments and/or reimbursements for attendee travel, and other matters as they arise related to the execution of the award for the proposed meeting. Awardees are encouraged to seek administrative assistance from their own institution as well, and to connect their administration to that at UMN. NIH guidelines for allowable expenses must be followed; eligible costs include travel, accommodation, and consumables. 

Review of applications and funding priorities: Applications will be reviewed by the Research Network PIs, members of the Advisory Board, and ad hoc reviewers with appropriate expertise. Applications that organize a meeting within the scope of the Network and the funding priorities of the NIA (https://www.nia.nih.gov/about/aging-strategic-directions-research) will receive the highest priority. 

Report of activities and acknowledgements: The organizer(s) must provide a report of the meeting including workshop deliverables and/or activities to be pursued as a result of the meeting to the Research Network leadership, no later than one month after the meeting date. Publications, presentations, or material disclosed to the public domain should be reported to the Network PIs for dissemination and reporting purposes and should acknowledge support from NIH/NIA R24 AG065172.