Questions may be directed to Cassie Riger, Senior
Director of Foundation Development, at cassie.riger@ucr.edu
The W.M. Keck Foundation offers the opportunity to
discuss potential projects with universities in the areas of 1) Medical
Research; 2) Science & Engineering Research.
Purpose: 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.
Award: $1.2 million over three years, starting January
2025
Eligibility: Faculty may be nominated by Deans of
Research or may self-nominate. Both Senior and Early Career investigators are
encouraged to apply.
Process:
Interested faculty should submit an internal preproposal following the
below one-page format at by. After initial campus review, UCR designated
liaison will submit up to four (preproposal) concept papers in Medical Research
and four in Science & Engineering Research for consideration. ?One proposal
from each area will advance to the Phase One application.
Instructions: Per the Keck Foundation’s guidelines at
Concept Papers (wmkeck.org), concept papers must fit to one page in a Microsoft
Word document formatted with 12-point Times New Roman font with 1 inch margins.
Include: - Organization Name, Project Title, and Full Name of
Principal Investigator - An overview of the proposed project emphasizing any
unique aspects and pilot studies (indicate area of emphasis for project -
medical research or science and engineering research); - A description of the methodologies and listing of key
personnel; - A brief justification of the need for W.M. Keck
Foundation support; and - An estimated budget broken down, if possible, by major
areas, e.g., personnel, equipment, consumable supplies, etc. Budgets should
total $1.2 million and expenses should be rounded to the nearest $100,000. A
rough estimate is sufficient. - Submit by 12/1/2023 to limitedsubmissions@ucr.edu. DO NOT
contact the Keck Foundation.
Illustrations are not recommended at this phase as they
take space needed for text. If a reference is necessary, abbreviate it as
(Science, 323, 45, ‘11). DO NOT USE (Jones et al., 2011). If space allows, the authors are free to add
other details (e.g., background to put the research into perspective,
description of the institution’s prominence in the field, etc.)?
Selection Criteria:??A successful Keck proposal
- Focuses on a unique, important emerging area of research
Has the potential to develop breakthrough methodologies
Demonstrates a high level of risk due to unconventional
approaches, or by challenging a prevailing paradigm
Has 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
Falls outside the mission of public funding agencies
Common reasons why concepts are rejected by Keck:
- The project is not ambitious enough (i.e., it represents
only a small advance vs. creating a new paradigm).
The proposal does not fully detail the scope of work and
potential impact.
The proposal lacks clear research methodology.
The project focuses on disease-related therapies or
treatments (in the case of medical research) as opposed to bench science.
The project is focused on a device as opposed to bench
science.
The project focuses on revision or scaling of existing
technology.
The project focuses on implementation or policy.
FAQ:
- For the pre-proposal, a one-page concept paper is
required (NOT the three pages that are usually part of UCR’s Limited Submission
process). - Projects proposed must already have been declined by
relevant federal agencies; Keck’s first question is whether all other funding
possibilities have been pursued. - The Keck Foundation will request previous federal
feedback as part of their review process. Ideally, federal reviewer comments
reflect that the research is innovative, exciting, and would have a large
impact, but is too risky or falls outside the scope of federal agencies.?
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