Proposal Development Accelerator Policy

Policy and Guidelines (DRAFT)

Owner: PHT180 Leadership Team
Effective Date: 3/11/2026
Review Cycle: As needed

1. Purpose and Scope

This policy establishes the rules, expectations, and procedures for the PHT180 Proposal Development Accelerator Program (the Program). The Program is intended to identify highly fundable research ideas and provide targeted resources to accelerate the development of competitive external funding proposals that will be submitted to an external sponsor as an outcome of the Program.

The Program is not a traditional seed funding program. Awards are intended to address proposal-development bottlenecks (sponsor alignment, team formation, proposal drafting, targeted feasibility evidence, partner engagement, and review/iteration) rather than to fund open-ended research.

2. Program Overview

The Program operates on an approximately six-month timeline and includes three stages:

Stage I – The Pitch:
Open call and selection of initial awardees.
Stage II – The Boost:
Milestone review and selection of a smaller set of teams for additional support.
Stage III – The Launch:
Final proposal development and external submission support.

2.1 Expected Outcomes

Submission of an external proposal to the targeted sponsor/mechanism.
(or required pre-proposal stage, where applicable)
Improved proposal quality through structured development, gap closure, and review cycles.
Strengthened collaborations and sponsor-aligned research portfolios among PHT180 affiliates.

3. Definitions

Affiliate: A faculty member recognized as a PHT180 affiliate according to center policy.
Base award: Initial proposal development support provided to Stage I selected teams.
Boost award: Additional support provided to Stage II selected teams based on milestone progress and submission readiness.
External sponsor: An organization outside RIT that provides competitive funding.
(e.g., federal agencies, foundations, state agencies, industry)
Proposal-development costs: Costs directly supporting the preparation and competitiveness of an external proposal.
(see Section 11)

4. Governance and Administration

The Program is administered by the PHT180 Leadership Team (Program Leadership). Program Leadership is responsible for issuing the call, reviewing submissions, making selections, and overseeing award administration.

4.2 Conflicts of Interest

Reviewers must disclose conflicts of interest (COI) and recuse themselves from discussion and scoring when a conflict exists. Conflicts include, at minimum: being a member of the proposing team; current or recent close collaboration on grants/publications; or other relationships that could reasonably be perceived to bias judgment.

5. Eligibility

Eligibility requirements:

The proposing RIT team members must be PHT180 affiliates prior to submission, consistent with PHT180 policy.
Cross-department and cross-college collaboration is encouraged where appropriate.
Cross-institutional collaboration is encouraged where appropriate. In this case, RIT must be the lead institution for the proposal to be developed as an outcome of this Program.
Maximum number of submissions per PI (in PI role) per cycle: 1

6. Funding Model

Selected teams receive an award in the form of authorized use of PHT180 central funds (up to the award amount) for eligible proposal-development costs.

6.1 Award Levels

Stage I – Base award for ~8 teams: Up to $10,000*
Stage II – Boost award for ~4 teams: Up to $20,000* (additional to Stage I Base Award)
- Stage II selected proposals have access to up to an additional $10,000 in PHT180 awards available through a 50/50 cost-sharing commitment from a departmental/college fund. This is beyond both Stage I and Stage II awards.

*All awards expire at the end of the program

7. Program Timeline and Key Dates

Program Leadership will publish specific dates for each cycle. The following provides the standard cadence.

Call for pitches released:		March 16, 2026
Stage I pitch submission deadline:		April 13, 2026
Stage I decisions announced:		May 11, 2026
Stage II milestone packet due:		August 10, 2026
Stage II Boost decisions announced:		August 17, 2026
PDAP Program end date:*		November 30, 2026

*The program goal is to have all Stage II proposals externally submitted within the 6 months of the PDAP program. No-cost-extension to support a delayed external submission is negotiable subject to valid reasons for the delay.

8. Stage I – The Pitch

8.1 Formatting Requirements

Unless a template is provided, all submitted materials should follow the formatting guidelines below:

Page size: No larger than standard letter paper size (8½" × 11").
Page margin: Provide at least one-half inch margins (½") — top, bottom, left, and right — for all pages.
Font size: Must be 11 points or larger. Smaller text in graphics, figures, graphs, diagrams, and charts is acceptable, as long as it is legible when the page is viewed at 100%. Note: Some PDF conversion software reduces font size — confirm that the final PDF document complies with the font requirements.
Type density: Must be no more than 15 characters per linear inch (including characters and spaces).
Line spacing: Must be no more than six lines per vertical inch.

8.2 Required Submission Materials

Applicants must submit a two-page pitch (PDF) and a filled-out Sponsor and Submission Plan:

Project Summary (1 page): Significance and innovation; team and expertise; tentative aims.
Plan of Development (1 page): Target sponsors and mechanisms; submission timeline; gaps and areas of development needed; areas of PHT180 support needed; requested services; requested funding (dollar amounts with brief justifications).
Sponsor and Submission Plan (1 page structured form).

Program Leadership may provide templates and formatting requirements in the call.

8.3 Stage I Selection Criteria

Stage I pitches will be evaluated on the following criteria:

Sponsor/mechanism fit (alignment to sponsor priorities and review criteria).
Significance and potential impact of the work.
Feasibility and timeline realism for reaching external submission.
Team readiness and a credible plan to close gaps.
Aims maturity (clarity, scope, and coherence).
Quality of the development plan (clear next steps and de-risking activities).
Appropriateness of requested support (targeted, proposal-development focused).

9. Stage II – The Boost

9.1 Milestone Submission Materials

Stage I awardees must submit a short milestone packet designed to be quick to prepare and review, including:

Updated one-page project summary or specific aims (1 page).
Progress and traction summary (1 page, bullets) including key artifacts developed since selection.
Boost request (up to 1 page) describing the additional support requested and how it will increase submission readiness.
Updated Sponsor and Submission Plan (1 page structured form).
Letter of commitment to cost-sharing from the PI's department or college (if applicable).

9.2 Boost Selection Criteria

Boost awards will be based on demonstrated progress and readiness to submit:

Aims quality and sponsor fit (updated aims clearly aligned to target mechanism).
Submission readiness and timeline realism (clear path to submission within the Program window).
Progress to date (evidence of traction, e.g., draft sections, figures, partner commitments, preliminary analyses).
Plan of gap closure and de-risking (credible mitigation plan for the top reviewer concerns).
High-leverage use of additional support (boost request is targeted and justified).

10. Deliverables

Teams receiving boost packages are expected to complete submission of the proposal to the designated external sponsor (or required pre-proposal stage) within the Program window.
Acknowledge PHT180 affiliation in the IRF of the proposal submission.

11. Allowable and Non-Allowable Costs

Program funds must be used for proposal-development costs that directly support the competitiveness and submission of the targeted external proposal.

11.1 Allowable Costs (Examples)

People-time relief: Partial summer salary, course buyout, or other approved mechanisms to create protected proposal-writing time.
Graduate or undergraduate assistance for proposal-related tasks (literature synthesis, preliminary analyses, figure generation, proposal assembly).
Targeted feasibility evidence: Small pilot experiments, prototype development, or analyses required to address reviewer risks.
Professional services: Grant editing, proposal graphics/design, consultant expertise (e.g., evaluation, biostatistics, clinical advisor).
Proposal development operations: Mock review honoraria, travel for sponsor/program officer meetings or collaborator development (reasonable and justified).

11.2 Non-Allowable Costs (Examples)

Open-ended research not directly tied to proposal development and submission.
Major equipment purchases not justified as necessary to prepare the proposal.
Routine conference travel not tied to sponsor engagement or proposal development milestones.
Costs not permitted by RIT policies or the sponsor's rules for the targeted proposal.

12. Reporting, Monitoring, and Compliance

Reporting is intentionally lightweight. Stage I and Stage II submissions serve as the primary progress documentation.

Stage II milestone packet submission is required to remain eligible for boost consideration.
Program Leadership may request brief check-ins or updates to support timely submission.
If a team anticipates missing the submission window, the PI must notify Program Leadership with a revised plan.

13. If Outcomes Are Not Met

If the targeted external submission outcome is not met, Program Leadership will consider circumstances on a case-by-case basis. Factors may include sponsor deadline shifts, documented efforts, and feasibility constraints. Failure to make a good-faith effort toward submission may impact eligibility for future Program cycles.