New Funding Mechanism
In 2007, we changed the way the Biological Analysis Core provides services to NIEHS Investigators in order to provide access to the variety of resources available in Boston's Longwood Medical area. Instead of directly supporting the Center's facilities for about one day per week (or less), the Biological Analysis Core now uses its funds to pay for facility charges, after rapid review and approval of requests made by NIEHS Investigators. You can request funds to pay for facility services, provided either by those presently in the Core or by any other facility that does work relevant to your environnmental research.
This mechanism allows users to benefit from the many well-equipped facilities and services available in the medical area, thereby expanding the palette of technologies available for NIEHS Center research. Flow cytometry, imaging, electron microscopy, and other HSPH-NIEHS Center services remain available, but users now request funds to pay for the services. All of these existing facilities have fee schedules on a per hour or per project basis.
How?
- Details are in the single-page documents called "Administrative Process".
- Complete the application: "NIEHS Bioanalysis Core Funding Application".
- Key points:
- Requests of up to $5000 will be considered, although most will likely be lower (e.g. 5 hours confocal time $250, etc.)
- Requests will be processed with a goal of 72 hour turnaround.
- To assure transparency, all approved requests will be public information for NIEHS investigators. Check List of Funding Requests Approved since 4/1/07.
- We will try to spend about 1/12 of the annual budget every month.
- Any unused funds (every 6 months?) will be turned over to the larger pilot project pool.
- These funds are meant to provide services not already covered by extant grants.
Contact
Director: Lester Kobzik, Professor in the Department of Environmental Health
Coordinator: Marshall Katler (mkatler@hsph.harvard.edu), 617-432-3485, contact person to request funds. He will arrange billing and keep centralized records to track usage. He will also help with details of using extramural facilities, (e.g. interface with microarray facilities).
