TO:          Cornell faculty members or senior research associates (of any campus in New York)
FROM:     Matthew DeLisa, Director, Cornell Institute of Biotechnology
DATE:     August 30, 2021
RE:          Call for CAT Grant Proposals – Cycle 1

We are pleased to announce our biannual Center for Life Science Enterprise/Center for Advanced Technology (CAT) call for grant proposals, administered by the Cornell Institute of Biotechnology (CIB). Starting in FY 21-22, there will be two annual CAT grant deadlines, with the first occurring on Nov. 15, 2021 (cycle 1) and the second occurring on March 15, 2022 (cycle 2).

This call for proposals seeks collaborative applied research between Cornell faculty members or senior research associates (of any campus) and New York State company partners that will lead to an eventual commercialized biotechnology product or service, with quantifiable economic impact within the State.

We will be making grants in many life sciences fields, including but not limited to the following:

•  Agricultural & Environmental Biotechnologies •  Biochemistry/Biophysics •  Bioengineered Pest Control •  Bioremediation/Biodegradation •  Bioinformatics/Computational Biology •  Diagnostics & Detection Technologies •  Genomics/Proteomics/Metabolomics

•  Medical Devices •  Microbiome Technologies •  Nanobiotechnologies •  Therapeutics •  Tissue Engineering •  Vaccines & Immunotechnologies •  Veterinary Technologies

Applications will be evaluated based on the following:

1. Scientific merit – sound research design and methodology, innovativeness, potential for impact

2. Market potential and commercialization pathway – demonstrate understanding of target market and its size, competing technologies, regulatory approvals needed, scale-up

3. Economic impact – potential for job creation and revenues within New York State that could arise from your technology in the future, and approximate timelines for the impact

Mandatory committed cost share at a minimum of a 1:1 match of CAT grant funds and NYS company partner funds is required. Additional sources of support are permitted, but may not be used towards the NYS company cost share.

Application deadline is Nov. 15, 2021, with an anticipated project start date of Jan. 1, 2022.

Supplement Option: An additional $5,000 award supplement is available for materials and materials-related support provided by the Cornell Center for Materials Research (CCMR), http://www.ccmr.cornell.edu. A budget and justification should be included in your application.

Further details about the CAT grant program are available on the CIB website at: https://www.biotech.cornell.edu/commercialization-cat. Previously funded projects can be found at: https://www.biotech.cornell.edu/commercialization-cat/awarded-projects.

[see next page for Guidelines]

Grant Proposal and Reporting Guidelines

Who is eligible: Principal investigators must have faculty status (assistant through full professor) at any campus of Cornell University in New York State (NYS). Senior Research Associates may be eligible, but should consult with the Director prior to applying. Cornell University is committed to diversity and inclusion.

Criteria for CAT awards: 

·       Projects must be within a life sciences field.

·       Proposals will be evaluated on scientific merit, clear commercialization pathway and economic impact potential. Proposed work may be related to ongoing work, but must not duplicate projects funded elsewhere.

·       The grant must include significant collaboration with a NYS company, with matching funds (cost share) of 1:1 from the company. An NYS company is defined as one that has a manufacturing or research entity or headquarters in the State. The cost share must be in the form of a cash match in a Cornell account, and must be spent at approximately the same rate as the CAT grant funds. Other sources of support may be included in the proposal to demonstrate the strength of collaboration, but  may not be used towards the company cost share requirement.

 Reporting Obligations:

1.     Prior to start date, PIs are required to submit 1–3 slides, including images related to the project and a layperson’s explanation of the science, to be used as an example of the research being undertaken with CAT funding. 

2.     A brief narrative report is due by July 10, 2022 (cycle 1) or January 10, 2023 (cycle 2).

3.     An expanded final narrative report by January 10, 2023 (cycle 1) or July 10, 2022 (cycle 2).

Application form: Please contact biotech_CAT@cornell.edu for an application packet. Online forms and instructions are also available directly in the CIB website at:

https://www.biotech.cornell.edu/commercialization-cat/cat-grants/application-form-instructions. 

Proposals are to be brief and extensive documentation is not necessary, so only a few key references should be cited. A letter of intent from the company collaborator should be attached.

Budgets: The dollar amount for a single investigator project is up to a maximum of $75,000 per year. Support levels for multi-investigator CAT projects will be based on total company matching dollars of all investigators on the project. Budget direct costs, including fringe benefits. Indirect cost recoveries based on 15% of personnel costs will be budgeted by the Institute. Project cash match is required, at a minimum 1:1 CAT grant funds and NYS company partner funds.

Budget restrictions: Funds cannot be used for building renovations, foreign travel, entertainment, consultants, journals and books, or office equipment. Requests for equipment and travel must be justified. Detailed CAT Reporting Guidelines on use of funds can be found on the CIB website noted above.