University of Kentucky SuRE Resource Center

SUMMARY

The overarching goal of the University of Kentucky SuRE Resource Center (UK-SuRE), supported by an

NIGMS U24 grant, is to assist faculty and Office of Sponsored Project (OSP) staff at SuRE-eligible

institutions (25% PELL eligible students) prepare and submit competitive NIH

grants applications, with an emphasis on SuRE and SuRE-First awards. To accomplish this goal, UK faculty

and research support staff with experience in all aspects of NIH grant applications will share their

knowledge with those at SuRE-eligible institutions through a series of webinars, workshops, and direct

consultation. Three regional coordinators will provide vital links between faculty and OSP staff at SuRE-

eligible institutions and faculty and research support staff at UK-SuRE. This center will also coordinate

biennial SuRE Conferences and oversee a competitive seed grant program that will provide funds for

SuRE-eligible institutions to establish or grow OSPs. Specifically, four aims are proposed: (1) Assist SuRE-

eligible faculty write grants and manage research programs, with success being measured by number of

grants submitted, scored, and funded; number of publications, seminars; and meeting presentations; and

tenure and promotion outcomes; (2) Assist SuRE-eligible institutions to establish and grow OSPs and

research infrastructure, with success being measured by growth/establishment of OSPs in SuRE-eligible

institutions, number of research grants received and overall research funding at these institutions, and

questionnaires for SuRE faculty regarding the quality of in-house OSP services; (3) Grow the number of

institutions that participate in the SuRE Program and establish an interactive community of SuRE-eligible

institutions, with success being measured by the number of institutions that participate in webinars, attend

the biennial conference, and submit NIH grants (with an emphasis on SuRE applications), as well as the

amount of peer-to-peer faculty mentoring and social media engagement; and (4) Enhance the research

experience for students who are working in NIH-funded labs in SuRE-eligible institutions, with success

being measured by student conference presentations, authorship on publications, degrees earned, and

post-graduate employment. Taken together, these activities will enhance the research capacity at SuRE-

eligible institutions and promote high-quality, student-centric biomedical research. In the process, these

outcomes will contribute to diversifying and strengthening the nation’s research enterprise.