Annual Call for Proposals
Competition Details:
The Midwest Roybal Center holds an annual competition that reviews and awards up to 2 randomized controlled trials. Trials begin June 1 of each calendar year. Projects can be funded for up to $200K DIRECT for INTERNAL (UIC) applicants or $220k TOTAL for EXTERNAL applicants for 1 or 2 years.
Application Details:
The Midwest Roybal Center Trial Competition supports the efforts of researchers to translate basic behavioral and social science research findings to benefit the health and wellbeing of older adults living in the US. Fundable trials must be fully powered interventions that have a strong promise of potential to progress across the NIH Stage Model. See here for more information: https://www.nia.nih.gov/research/dbsr/stage-model-behavioral-intervention-development.
Although trials may address all Stages of the NIH Stage Model, we expect that most trials will be Stage 1 and will use a randomized controlled trial design to assess intervention safety, feasibility and preliminary effectiveness. All trials should have a sound scientific basis, be adequately powered, be highly innovative, and provide data needed for subsequent grant applications to NIH, preferably the National Institute on Aging (NIA). The Midwest Roybal Center has been designated an Alzheimer’s Disease/Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders (AD/ADRD) Center and seeks to fund trials that prevent or reduce cognitive decline and/or AD/ADRD in at risk individuals or groups by focusing on the four following topic areas:
1. Developing and testing principle driven interventions to increase physical activity among older adults at risk of ADRD;
2. Designing interventions to maintain and/or enhance memory and/or cognitive function and mobility;
3. Harnessing technology to promote healthy cognitive aging and to improve the scalability of existing interventions for cognitive health including physical activity, diet, and stress reduction; and
4. Targeting mechanisms of behavior change to promote and sustain behavioral and lifestyle change.
The current Roybal Center has a focus on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders. Therefore, all trials should explain how their intervention will improve cognition among older adults. We encourage applicants to consider how they can incorporate cognition measures from the NIH Toolbox.
The proposed intervention must be a fully powered clinical trial. The trial must be an intervention that focuses on translation research relevant to older adults (50+) living in the US, include an ADRD risk reduction component, and, ideally, include underrepresented groups. Each proposal will be judged on its scientific merit and on its anticipated impact on science and on the community and population of focus.
Awardees are expected to participate in Midwest Roybal Center activities pertaining to research, education, and service and will be expected to make brief presentations to the Center Executive and Advisory Committees during the course of the RCT and upon its completion. Awardees must comply with NIH and NIA reporting requirements e.g., ClincalTrials.gov and CROMS. Funded RCTs may also be required to participate in an NIH data sharing plan and in a Center Data Safety Monitoring Committee.
Competition Eligibility:
Open to all US research and clinical early, mid, or late career faculty.
Letters of Intent for next year's applications are now being accepted (Due October 15, 2025):
Please use this form to submit a Letter of Intent for the Midwest Roybal Center trial application (Letters are due October 15th):
https://redcap.northwell.edu/surveys/?s=78ENNDYXLTLE4R7T
To review detailed submission instructions, application requirements, and other Roybal Center funding opportunities, please click here:
https://www.roybalniaresearchcenters.org/post/call-for-proposals-translational-research-on-aging