Renée Fleming Neuroarts Investigator Awards

Overview

The Renée Fleming Foundation has joined forces with the NeuroArts Blueprint initiative to establish the Renée Fleming Neuroarts Investigator Awards. The awards will support both basic and applied research that expands the evidence base of the emerging field of neuroarts and furthers the mission of the Neuroarts Blueprint.
 
Neuroarts is the study of how the arts measurably change the brain and body and how this knowledge is translated into practices that advance health and wellbeing. This work can help people prevent, manage, and recover from physical and mental challenges across the lifespan. The mission of the NeuroArts Blueprint is to have the arts — and their use in all their many forms — become part of mainstream medicine and public health.
 
Two types of awards are available, both of which are designed to support innovative and collaborative neuroarts-related work, conducted by early career investigators and researchers:

• Basic Research Grants: To be jointly awarded to (1) an early career investigator engaged in a field of basic science related to neuroarts and affiliated with an academic or research institution; and (2) an individual working in an arts-based neuroarts discipline. The proposal must be designed to expand the science behind neuroarts, i.e., the scientific evidence that demonstrates the power of the arts to measurably change the brain and body in advancing the health and wellbeing of individuals. Fields of basic science related to neuroarts include neuroscience, cognitive science, psychology, public health, neurology, complementary medicine, pediatrics, gerontology, and rehabilitation science and may involve others. Arts-based neuroarts disciplines include visual arts, dance, music, expressive writing, performing arts, digital arts, and may involve others. Two one-year grants, each for up to $25,000, will be awarded.
  
• Applied Research Grants: To be awarded to (1) a post-doctoral fellow or PhD candidate with a demonstrated interest in the field of neuroarts and affiliated with an academic or research institution; and (2) working under the guidance of a faculty member affiliated with an academic or research institution and engaged in the field of neuroarts. The proposal must be designed to apply the science behind neuroarts in a community-based setting to advance the health and wellbeing of individuals or groups of individuals. Community-based settings include health, arts, and other community-related organizations and may involve others. Four one-year grants, each for up to $7,500, will be awarded.

Applicants may submit only one proposal and for only one type of award. Applications for both types of awards will be reviewed by a committee of experts in the field of neuroarts. The deadline for submitting proposals is February 1, 2024. Final award decisions will be made by the NeuroArts Blueprint leadership team in consultation with the Applications Review Committee and the Renée Fleming Foundation. Awards will be announced on April 1, 2024.

Additional information regarding both applications is provided below. Please direct all questions about the application process to the general inquiry email address for the NeuroArts Blueprint: [email protected]. A webinar to review the Awards Program and respond to questions about the application process will be held on January 5, 2024.

Application Guidelines

General Application (applicable to both Basic Research and Applied Research proposals)

• Applications must:
  • Identify and briefly describe the principal investigator(s) and other key individuals who will staff the project.
  • Provide a description of the project including plans to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion.
  • Include a budget provided in accordance with the application template. Note that: (1) indirect costs, including rent for office space, are not afforded as part of the award; (2) funds may not be used for operating support of existing programs; and (3) funds may not be used to purchase equipment totaling more than $1,500.
    
• Applicants must be US citizens or permanent US residents.
  
• Individuals affiliated with the NeuroArts Blueprint initiative, including members of its Advisory Board, as well as members of the Applications Review Committee and staff of the Renée Fleming Foundation may neither apply for a Renée Fleming Neuroarts Investigator Award nor participate in the development or execution of any proposal for a Renée Fleming Neuroarts Investigator Award.
  
• Awards are for a period of one year, beginning on the date notification of the award has been received.
  
• For projects involving human subjects, approval from the academic or research institution’s Institutional Review Board (or an equivalent such committee) must be secured.

Basic Research Grants

• Applicants: Proposals must include two co-principal investigators:
  
  • An early career investigator with an appointment at an academic or research institution and engaged in a field of basic science related to neuroarts. Such investigator may apply as an individual neuroarts-based researcher or to lead a team of researchers.
    
  • An individual engaged in an arts-based, performance, or other neuroarts-related discipline. Such individual may apply as an individual practicing within a discipline of arts-based neuroarts and/or as an individual affiliated with an organization engaged in an arts-based neuroarts discipline.

An individual with an appointment at an academic or research institution engaged in both a field of basic science related to neuroarts and an arts-related neuroarts discipline may apply.

• Supported Activities: Funding may be requested to support staff, research supplies, imaging techniques, computers, and other items and activities related to carrying out the project.
  
• Reports: A brief interim progress report is required mid-year. A written final report, required at the completion of the project, should summarize the results of the project as well as the prospects for securing additional funding based upon the work produced through the project. Photographic and/or video documentation of the work, adhering to best practices for privacy protection, may be included.

Applied Research Grants

• Applicants: Proposals must include a principal investigator who is:
  
  • Either a post-doctoral fellow or PhD candidate affiliated with an academic or research institution.
    
  • Engaged in a field of basic science related to neuroarts or engaged in an arts-based, performance, or other neuroarts-related discipline.
    
  • Working under the guidance of a faculty member affiliated with an academic or research institution and who has experience and expertise in the use of evidence-based neuroarts research and its application to individuals or groups of individuals to advance their health and wellbeing.

Such individual may apply as an individual or to lead a team of researchers. In either case, the individual must work under the guidance of a faculty member affiliated with an academic or research institution and who has experience and expertise in neuroarts research.

In the case of an individual engaged in a field of basic science related to neuroarts, such individual is encouraged to collaborate with an individual or team of researchers engaged in an arts-based, performance, or other neuroarts-related discipline.

In the case of an individual engaged in an arts-based, performance, or other neuroarts-related discipline, such individual is encouraged to collaborate with an individual or team of researchers engaged in a field of basic science related to neuroarts.

• Supported Activities: Funding may be requested to support surveys, focus groups, implementation plans, awareness plans, and other items and activities related to carrying out the project.
  
• Reports: A brief interim progress report is required mid-year. A written final report, required at the completion of the project, should summarize the results of the project as well as the prospects for securing additional funding based upon the work produced through the project. Photographic and/or video documentation of the work, adhering to best practices for privacy protection, may be included.

Criteria for Awarding Funds

Guided by the following criteria, proposals will be evaluated for scientific merit and potential for providing evidence necessary to help build the field of neuroarts:

• Leadership: Is the principal investigator(s) well qualified in expertise and experience to carry out the project effectively and efficiently?
  
• Advancing the Field: Are the results of the project likely to help advance the field of neuroarts, including the possibility of securing additional research support to build on the results?
  
• Innovation: Does the project make a novel contribution to the field of neuroarts through innovative concepts, approaches, or methods that will help advance research in the field?
  
• Multidisciplinary Approach: Does the project involve collaborators from multiple disciplines of both the arts and the sciences?
  
• Early Career Opportunity: Does the project involve a principal investigator(s) whose proposal has not yet received significant financial support?
  
• Timeliness: Can the project be completed within the one-year timeframe allotted under the terms of the award?