Grants for Research and School Partnerships: GRASP & SIMS

The Office of the Vice President for Research Affairs is pleased to request applications for the 2027 Grants for Research and School Partnerships Program. These awards provide support for investigators from different schools to collaborate in pioneering research projects. GRASP, GRASP INTL, and  SIMS are designed to be awards that focus on collaborative partnerships with the goal of increasing the ability of new researchers to apply for extramural grants.

View the complete Notice of Funding Opportunities for each grant below. You must sign in with your LLU.edu Microsoft account to access the documents.

• GRASP 2027 Notice of Funding Opportunity 
• GRASP INTL 2027 Notice of Funding Opportunity
• SIMS 2027 Notice of Funding Opportunity

Please note that a Letter of Intent (LOI), including signatures from both PIs, must be received by the applicable deadline to be eligible for application submission. GRASP, GRASP INTL, and SIMS LOIs should be submitted to the Pre-Award Office at [email protected]. 

• Letter of Intent (LOI)

Below are instructions on how to upload your proposal to the LLeRA system (InfoEd).

• PI Upload Instructions

Deadlines

GRASP, GRASP INTL, AND SIMS

Letters of Intents and applications must be received by 5 PM (Pacific Time).

GRASP

• Letter of Intent due on November 6, 2026
• Applications due December 18, 2026
• Awards announced March 2027
• Earliest project start date April 1, 2027

GRASP International

• Letter of Intent due on September 15, 2026
• Applications due December 10, 2026
• Awards announced March 2027
• Earliest project start date April 1, 2027

SIMS

• Letter of Intent due on November 6, 2026
• Applications due December 18, 2026
• Awards announced March 2027
• Earliest project start date April 1, 2027

Criteria for Evaluation

Awards will be based primarily on scientific merit, including significance, innovation, originality of approach, technical merit, and consistency with institutional interests and goals. The quality of co-PI collaboration, the PI leadership plan, budget justification, and potential for future funding will also be considered.

Inclusion of preliminary data supporting the proposed study is recommended. In the absence of preliminary data, strong literature support for the planned study is required.

The focus will be on funding high-impact, paradigm-shifting, innovative projects. Consequently, applications must clearly describe the potential impact of the proposed project on the field and highlight its innovative elements. Applications are expected to appropriately address issues of rigor and reproducibility.

Proposals will be reviewed by a panel of investigators selected to include individuals with extramural funding and service on federal grant review panels. Applications focused on social, behavioral, and qualitative research may be reviewed by a subset of panel members with expertise in those disciplines. To the extent possible, applications will be kept confidential throughout the review process. However, abstracts of funded projects will be published.

Principal Investigator Requirements

• GRASP: Two faculty co-Principal Investigators from different schools on the LLU campus, including Medical Center or FMG employees.
• GRASP INTL: Two co-Principal Investigators. One co-PI must be an LLUH faculty member. The second co-PI must be a professional with a post-baccalaureate degree and employed by an international SDA hospital, medical center, college, or university. The non-LLU co-PI must be approved by the Office of the Vice President for Research Affairs prior to Letter of Intent phase
• SIMS: The project must be directed by an eligible LLU PI from any LLU school. The research collaborator must be from an R1 research institution and have expertise in the discipline relevant to the application. He or she must also have a primary appointment corresponding to this expertise.

Eligibility for Previous GRASP & SIMS Recipients

Eligibility for previous GRASP recipients (one page for each previous GRASP awardee, to be submitted with LOI form):

• Extramural grant applications (LLeRA number, PI, title, sponsor, submission date, amount, status)
• Peer-reviewed and published papers acknowledging GRASP support

Eligibility for previous SIMS recipients:

• Extramural grant applications (LLeRA number, Principal Investigator, title, sponsor, submission date, amount, and current status)
• Peer-reviewed publications published or accepted subsequent to the GRASP award that acknowledge SIMS funding support (include a PDF or hyperlink to the publication)

Contacts:

• GRASP, GRASP INTL, and SIMS Applications: Pre Award at [email protected] or call ext. 19402
• Award Management: Post Award at [email protected] or call ext. 87819