NEI Collaborative Clinical Vision Research : Chair's Grant (UG1-Clinical Trial Required) | PAR 18 523

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 18 523

The NEI Collaborative Clinical Vision Research: Chair's Grant (UG1 - Clinical Trial Required) is a National Eye Institute (NEI) funding opportunity that supports large, complex, and higher-risk clinical vision studies through a cooperative agreement mechanism. The intent is to fund investigator-initiated clinical trials that are substantial in scale or complexity, including trials involving human gene transfer, stem cell therapies, and other studies that may require significant resources or present elevated safety considerations. Because these projects can have meaningful public health impact and involve intensive coordination, the program emphasizes strong study governance, clearly defined roles and responsibilities across the team, and rigorous oversight and monitoring to protect participant safety.

To fit this announcement, the proposed clinical study must focus on interventions related to vision disorders. That includes research designed to evaluate approaches for screening, diagnosing, preventing, or treating eye and vision conditions, as well as studies comparing the effectiveness of two or more established interventions. In other words, the core requirement is an interventional clinical trial (as indicated by "Clinical Trial Required") where the outcomes inform how vision care is delivered, which interventions work best, and under what circumstances they should be used.

A key feature of this UG1 program is how NEI often structures awards as a linked set of companion grants rather than a single standalone award. Typically, a funded project may include a Chair's Grant (the focus of this FOA), plus a Coordinating Center award and, when needed, separate Resource Center awards. This reflects the reality that large multicenter trials often require dedicated infrastructure for data management, statistical analyses, recruitment coordination, clinical site support, safety reporting, and centralized operations. However, the FOA also allows flexibility: if a project is less organizationally complex, functions such as data management, statistics, recruitment activities, and certain resource-center responsibilities can be built directly into the Chair's Grant application rather than being proposed as separate companion awards.

This specific FOA encourages applications for the "Chair's Grant," which is centered on the scientific leadership of the trial. The Chair's component is expected to present the scientific rationale for the study, clearly defined aims, and the overall significance and impact of the research question. In practical terms, the Chair's Grant represents the scientific and clinical vision for the trial and the leadership plan for executing it under the cooperative agreement model, where NEI typically has substantial involvement in oversight compared with standard research grants.

The opportunity is offered by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), with NEI as the sponsoring institute, and uses the cooperative agreement funding instrument (UG1). It falls under the health activity category and is associated with CFDA number 93.867. The funding opportunity number listed is PAR 18 523. The original closing date shown in the source information is 2020-11-18, and the award ceiling and expected number of awards are not specified in the provided data, suggesting applicants would need to consult the full FOA text for budget limits, project period expectations, and review considerations.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of organizations that can support complex clinical research. Eligible applicants include various levels of government (state, county, city or township, special district), independent school districts, public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, public and private institutions of higher education, and nonprofit organizations both with and without 501(c)(3) status. It also allows for-profit organizations (other than small businesses) and small businesses, as well as Native American tribal governments (federally recognized) and tribal organizations (other than federally recognized governments). The FOA also highlights additional eligible applicants such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISIs, Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and even non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations), indicating an intent to support diverse institutional participation where appropriate for the research.

Overall, this grant opportunity is aimed at well-justified, carefully managed, clinically meaningful vision trials that require robust coordination and safety monitoring. Applicants are expected to propose a strong scientific case for the intervention being tested, demonstrate the organizational capacity to run a complex clinical trial, and lay out a clear operational framework that matches the scale and risk profile of the study, whether through linked companion components or a more consolidated structure within the Chair's Grant application.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NEI Collaborative Clinical Vision Research : Chair's Grant (UG1-Clinical Trial Required)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.867.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-12-20.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-11-18. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PAR 18 523

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