Society of '67 Trainee Project Grant in Health Services Research or Education Application, 1st Phase: Letter of Intent (2026)

Letter of Intent Application

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION: The Society of ’67 of the Association for Academic Pathology (AAPath) grant program for pathology trainees (medical students, residents, fellows) in Pathology Health Services. Grants will fund innovative projects that are relevant to health services research or education, including but not limited to healthcare quality, costs, and/or access related to pathology services. Two categories of grants will be considered: Research and Education. Funding is up to $5,000 for one (calendar) year.

Research Project Grants: To investigate a question and/or to develop a technology in pathology/lab medicine services that improves healthcare quality, cost, or access.
Education Project Grants: To develop an educational program or offering in pathology/lab medicine services focused on improving healthcare quality, cost, or access.

ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION: Eligible applicants must be either:

A medical student at an AAPath member institution.
A resident in an ACGME accredited pathology residency program at an AAPath member institution.
A fellow in a pathology subspecialty program or a postdoctoral certification program at an AAPath member institution.

Applicants must have a faculty sponsor/advisor who is a full time faculty member in the Pathology Department (AAPath member department) at their institution. If invited to submit a full proposal, applicants must also have a letter of sponsorship/recommendation from the Chair of the Pathology Department (for medical students) or Program Director of the pathology training program at their institution (for residents and fellows). For the purposes of this grant award program, the eligible applicant must be listed as the principal investigator.

ABOUT THE PROGRAM:

Review an Information/Q&A Session recorded on September 15, 2022, to hear about the program from past award recipients, a Society of '67 Board member, and the program administrator.
Learn more about Health Services Research in a guest editorial by Dr. Fred Sanfilippo published in the American Journal of Pathology (2014).

LETTER OF INTENT: Interested applicants must submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) via this online form. Only one LOI per applicant is permitted. LOIs must be submitted no later than 10:00am ET on Wednesday, October 1, 2025. LOIs will be screened and all applicants will be notified of the review committee's decision the week of October 20, 2025. Only applicants whose LOI demonstrates alignment and value to health services research or education will be invited to complete a full proposal and application, which must be submitted no later than 2:00pm ET on Thursday, November 20, 2025. Details on the application format and process will follow for successful LOI submitters who are invited to submit a full proposal.

DEADLINES:

October 1, 2025 by 10:00am ET - Letter of Intent (LOI) Deadline
Week of October 20, 2025 - Notifications/Invitation for Full Proposal
November 20, 2025 by 2:00pm ET - Full Proposal Deadline
Week of December 22, 2025 - Notifications

FUNDING RESTRICTIONS:

Funds may be used for data collection and analysis, supplies, equipment, and technical support that are directly related to the conduct of the project.
Funds will not be allowed for salary support of university faculty, hospital medical/nursing staff, or student stipends.
Budget should include direct costs only.
Funding of applicants whose relevant certifications have not been provided within the first 3 months of the project may be rescinded. Funds will not be transferred until relevant certifications (CITI, IRB, etc.) are provided.
Funding will be transferred to the pathology department, not an individual, for the faculty advisor/mentor's responsibility in the appropriate use by the investigator.

REVIEW CRITERIA: The major criteria for evaluation by the review committee will be the creativity, quality, and potential impact of the project. The following criteria will be included in the review committee's assessment:

Project Plan of Action, including methods to measure potential outcomes
Significance, potential impact in pathology and healthcare delivery
Innovation
Collaboration (the extent of inter-disciplinary and inter-organizational collaboration)
Potential for success
Requisite skills and experience of applicant and faculty advisor
Budget (cost effectiveness and availability of any additional support/matching funds)
Likelihood of completion in the time frame proposed
Potential for success

AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

Award Notices: Award notices for projects in 2026 will be issued from the AAPath Society of '67 the week of December 22, 2025.
Reporting: All awardees are required to submit to the Society of '67: (1) a mid-term progress report (at the half-way point of the projected timeline in the proposal, and (2) a final report due no later than 30 days past the award period end date. Failure to submit a timely progress report may result in departmental exclusion from future award opportunities and support. The AAPath Society of ’67 reserves the right to contact awardees/sponsors periodically to continue tracking progress and outcomes of the resulting awards.
Publicity: Information about grants awarded under this program will be posted on the AAPath website. Applicants must agree to acknowledge the AAPath Society of ’67 in any website, journal publications, presentations, future grant applications, and/or invention disclosures that result from this award. Citation information will be provided in the Notice of Award.

QUESTIONS: Requests for additional information and questions may be directed to awards@academicpathology.org - Melvin Limson, PhD, Executive Director, Association for Academic Pathology. Phone: 302.660.4944.