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Coronavirus Information

New research supports for early career faculty impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic

April 2, 2021

Dear Faculty Colleagues, 

Your efforts to sustain Johns Hopkins’ missions of discovery, education, and service during the last year have been nothing short of extraordinary. You have kept us at the forefront not only of the world’s response to COVID-19 but also the advancement of knowledge in scores of disciplines across all our departments and divisions. Yet we also know that the pandemic has posed unique challenges to the academic community, whether it was delayed field work, interrupted human subjects research, or sudden changes to personal circumstances that have delayed data analysis or publication. These effects have been disproportionately felt by early career faculty, and particularly by women and members of underrepresented minority groups. 

If you are experiencing delays or setbacks in your research due to COVID, we encourage you to speak with your dean, department chair, or director to discuss options for protecting time to renew your work. We also recognize that the ability of schools and departments to provide those accommodations varies, and that the current circumstances require a much higher level of, and new approach to, support through centralized, standardized bridge funding for Johns Hopkins faculty.  

As a result, we have collaborated with the deans on a plan to allocate $10 million in funding to support three initiatives: 

JHU COVID-19 Bridge Grants 

  • Grants of up to $50,000 will provide short-term support to sustain research programs of faculty members who are facing a gap in sponsored funding. 
  • These funds are intended to support PIs and programs for a limited time to facilitate success in resecuring sponsored funding. 
  • This program will focus on those whose work involves bench and related sciences or human subjects research, though faculty in other disciplines may also apply.
  • The program will be jointly funded by the university and a center, institute, department, division, or school. 
  • When a proposal is selected, faculty members will work with their vice dean for research, or equivalent, to attain matching support from their school. 
  • Tenured, tenure-track, or similar (e.g. School of Education full-time faculty) assistant and associate professors, BSPH scientists, and SOM instructors with an established record of externally funded research programs are eligible to apply. 

JHU COVID-19 Research Accelerator Grants 

  • Grants of up to $30,000 will help faculty reinvigorate their research programs and complete significant projects that have been put on hold. 
  • These grants are designed to support faculty in the humanities and related disciplines, and social and behavioral sciences. 
  • The program will be funded jointly by the university and a center, institute, department, division, or school. 
  • When a proposal is selected, faculty members will work with their vice dean for research, or equivalent, to attain matching support from their school. 

Editorial Assistance Services Initiative 

  • The Research Development Team (RDT) in the Office of the Vice Provost for Research will expand its pool of writers to provide editorial support to at-risk faculty members in all fields as they submit manuscripts or proposals. 
  • As capacity allows, the RDT will also assist with managing and facilitating the pre-award phase for teams who submit large grant proposal opportunities (>$5M) that support multidisciplinary and collaborative research. 
  • No divisional commitment for matching financial support is required. 

Full details on all three programs, including eligibility criteria and application instructions, are available here. Deadlines to apply for the bridge grants or accelerator grants are both May 24, and we expect to begin awarding funding in July. A second call for bridge proposals will be shared in early fall.  

We know the last year has been difficult in myriad ways, and we want to assure you that we are here to support you in your research and career development. If you have any questions about these programs, please do not hesitate to reach out to Reyn Boyer at rboyer@jhu.edu on the Vice Provost for Research team. 

Sincerely, 

Ronald J. Daniels  
President  

Sunil Kumar 
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs