This year marks the 25th anniversary of the ASH Scholar Award program. Since 1985, ASH has supported many great researchers through this program. The ASH Scholar Awards are designed to support hematologists who have chosen a career in research by providing partial salary or other support during that critical period required for completion of training and achievement of status as an independent investigator. In recognition of this anniversary, The Hematologist will be highlighting past and present award winners throughout 2009, including D. Gary Gilliland, MD, Margaret A. Goodell, PhD, Susan S. Smyth, MD, PhD, and Ari Melnick, MD.

• Eligibility Criteria
• Application Process
• Acceptance Policy
• Research Supported
• Support
• General Timeline
• ASH Scholar Awardees
• Transfers
• Reallocation of Funds
• Progress Reports
• Final Reports
• Joanne Levy, MD, Memorial Award for Outstanding Achievement
• Supporters
• Questions

Eligibility Criteria

(as of August 27, 2008)

To be eligible for the Junior Faculty Scholar Award (either basic or clinical/translational research), applicants must be within the first three years of their initial faculty appointment as Assistant Professor at the time of application.

To be eligible for the Fellow Scholar Award (either basic or clinical/translational research), applicants must have more than two years, but less than five years postdoctoral research training at the time of application. Applicants who are fellows must have completed their ACGME clinical year plus two full years (but no more than five) of postdoctoral research at the time of application.

In addition to fellows, instructors, lecturers, and research associates should apply in the fellow category. The five-year maximum for postdoctoral research training also applies to these individuals. Applicants with these job titles are not yet eligible for the Junior Faculty Award.

All Applicants:

• Applicants must be an ASH member or have a pending application for membership.
• Applicants must work in a U.S. or Canadian institution (such as a medical school, hospital, or research institute). An institution qualifies if it independently receives and administers grants and contracts from the National Institutes of Health.
• Only one application per laboratory should be submitted per category (basic research fellow, basic research junior faculty, clinical/translational research fellow, and clinical/translational research junior faculty) for this competition.
• Employees of the PHS at the NIH are not eligible for these awards as their salaries for research are covered under the terms of their employment.
• Individuals with R01 grants or equivilant grants at the time of application are not eligible for these awards. Individuals with K awards from the NIH are eligible to apply.
• At least 75 percent of the applicant’s full-time professional effort must be devoted to research.

back to top

Application Process

FAQs for Scholar Award Applicants

ASH requires applicants to submit a letter of intent (two copies) by May 1, 2009, in order to be eligible to submit a full proposal in August. The letter of intent should include the following:

• Cover letter signed by applicant (include mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address)
• Abstract of proposed project, including title (please do not exceed 350 words)
• Applicant's curriculum vitae
• Identify which award category you plan to apply for:
  • Basic Research Fellow
  • Basic Research Junior Faculty
  • Clinical/Translational Research Fellow
  • Clinical/Translational Research Junior Faculty

Please mail two copies of your letter of intent to:

American Society of Hematology
Attn: Elisa Shea
1900 M Street, NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20036

ASH will perform a preliminary review of these materials to confirm eligibility and the appropriateness of the research category applied to. If additional information is required, ASH staff will contact you prior to June.

The full ASH Scholar Award applications will be available in early June only for those individuals who successfully submit a letter of intent by the deadline and are confirmed to be eligible.

back to top

Acceptance Policy

Anyone meeting the eligibility requirements set forth above can submit an application. The review of the scholar award applications is based solely on the scientific merit and quality of the applicant. However, in fairness to programmatic balance, no more than two awards will be granted per category (basic research fellow, basic research junior faculty, clinical/translational fellow, clinical/translational junior faculty) per medical school. For this purpose, ASH defines medical school so that it encompasses all sub-institutions (e.g., University of Washington would include the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Children’s Hospital, etc.).

back to top

Research Supported

Basic Research: ASH considers basic research to include a broad spectrum of studies on genes, proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, biochemical and signaling pathways, receptors, cells and animals, as well as samples obtained from humans, all of which are designed to further our understanding of the blood, bone marrow, and related organs or the pathogenesis of blood disorders. The emphasis for grants in this category should be on the discovery of new knowledge in a traditional laboratory setting.

Clinical/Translational Research: ASH considers clinical/translational research to include translational research, patient-oriented research, and outcomes-based research. ASH emphasizes that clinical/translational research must involve substantial interaction with patients.

• Translational Research
  For the purposes of the ASH Scholar Awards program, translational research means using knowledge of human biology to develop and test the feasibility of relevant interventions in humans and/or determine the biological basis for observations made in individuals with hematologic conditions or in populations at risk. Translational research should be founded on and directly connected to some aspect of human biology and may encompass any form of cellular, molecular, structural, biochemical, genetic, or other appropriate experimental approach. The proposal should address clinical applications – not just test development – although the development of novel instrumentation of value to hematology is clearly within the scope of the application.
  
• Patient-Oriented Research
  For the purposes of the ASH Scholar Awards program, patient-oriented research is defined as research conducted with human subjects and involves an investigator directly interacting with human subjects. Categories of patient-oriented research include: 1) mechanisms of human disease, 2) therapeutic interventions, 3) clinical trials, and 4) development of new technologies.
  
• Outcomes-Based Research
  ASH strongly encourages applications in outcomes-based research. Options for outcomes-based research include: 1) a decision-analysis or cost-effectiveness analysis of a relevant topic within hematology, 2) survey-based research investigating practice patterns, access to care, quality of care, clinical outcomes, or quality of life among patients with hematologic conditions, 3) retrospective analyses of large administrative databases (e.g., CMS, a large insurer, SEER) that may enlighten health care policy decisions related to hematologic disease, and 4) large scale epidemiologic or genetic epidemiologic studies that define the incidence, prevalence, prognosis, and natural history or the effects of therapy of blood disorders.

Applications that fall within any of the categories discussed above are encouraged.

back to top

Support

Awards are limited to a maximum of $100,000 for fellow scholars and $150,000 for junior faculty scholars over a two- to three-year period, with an annual maximum of $50,000 for fellows and $75,000 for junior faculty. Up to 15 percent of the award can be (but is not required to be) used for benefits, including medical and dental insurance, life insurance, and retirement benefits.

All awards are activated on July 1 of the following year. The applicant has the option of concluding the award on June 30, two or three years after activation. All award payments are made on a quarterly basis – the amount depends on whether the award is being spread over two or three years. Payments are made to the appropriate financial officer of the institution as indicated on the proposed budget within the full application.

back to top

General Timeline

back to top

ASH Scholar Awardees

• 2009 ASH Scholar Award Winners Announced
• Past ASH Scholars

back to top

Transfers

In the event the scholar transfers to another institution during the funding period, continuation of the funding at the new institution may be allowed with prior approval from the Society. To obtain permission, the scholar must make a request in writing to the Society before the transfer occurs.

back to top

Reallocation of Funds

Scholars may request a reallocation of funds from one expense category to another by submitting the request in writing to the Treasurer at the Society’s headquarters. This written request must specify the dollar amount, which categories are impacted, and a justification as to why this change is necessary.

All transfer and/or rebudgeting requests must be sent to the attention of Elisa Shea at ASH Headquarters, who will work with the ASH Treasurer to make final determinations.

back to top

Progress Reports

Scholar Award recipients are required to submit annual progress reports to the Society. The progress reports include a summary of the work performed and reprints of publications written by the scholar during the term of the award. This must be a two-page summary of the work accomplished in the first year of the award. This summary should be accompanied by a letter from the scholar’s Division Head or Department Chair requesting the second year of funding. It should also provide assurances that the scholar’s work has progressed and that both appropriate facilities and the scholar’s mentor will continue to be available to the scholar. Failure to submit the progress report after the first year will render the scholar ineligible for the second year of funding. The recipients will be expected to cite support from the American Society of Hematology in any publication describing research conducted during the period of the award.

back to top

Final Reports

A final written report (not to exceed five pages) is expected within 30 days of the end of the award period. Scholar Award recipients, along with the financial officers from their institutions, must also submit a financial report detailing how the funds were used over the two- or three-year period. This report must be sent to ASH Headquarters to the attention of Elisa Shea within 60 days of the end of the award period.

back to top

Joanne Levy, MD, Memorial Award for Outstanding Achievement

ASH is honored to offer the Joanne Levy, MD, Memorial Award for Outstanding Achievement as part of the ASH Scholar Awards program, a $2,500 grant, made possible by the Levy family to continue the legacy of their daughter, Joanne, a past ASH Scholar Award recipient and distinguished ASH member who passed away in 2004. Dr. Levy graduated from Harvard Medical School and went on to receive many prestigious awards and honors, including an NIH K08 award for research on the role of the transferrin receptor in erythropoiesis in 1996 before receiving an ASH Junior Faculty Scholar Award in 2000 for research on the genetic regulation of iron metabolism at Children’s Hospital Boston.

This annual grant will automatically be awarded to the current ASH Scholar who has the highest scoring abstract for the ASH annual meeting as determined by the appointed abstract reviewers.

back to top

Supporters

2008 Scholar Award Supporters:

• Amgen, Inc.
• Baxter Healthcare
• Celgene Corporation
• Genentech BioOncology
• Gloucester Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
• Millenium: The Takeda Oncology Company
• Otsuka Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

2008 Scholar Award Foundation Supporters:

• Henry M. & Lillian Stratton Foundation
• Henry M. Stratton – Ernst R. Jaffé Scholarship Fund

back to top

Questions

For more information about the ASH Scholar Awards program, please contact Elisa Shea, ASH Awards Manager, by e-mail or by phone at 202-776-0544.

back to top