Premier's Summit Award Guidelines

In the 2006 Budget, the Government of Ontario announced the creation of the Premier’s Summit Award in Medical Research. The $25 million program provides extraordinary research support to a small number of outstanding medical researchers, helping attract them to or retain them in Ontario and enabling them to significantly expand their research programs. The Award forms part of a cohesive innovation strategy that focuses on excellence in research and commercialization as cornerstones of the economic future of the Province of Ontario.

It is expected that the Award competition will be held annually until the award fund is depleted or replenished. Each of the anticipated ten winners of the Award will receive $5 million over a five-year period, derived from a $2.5 million contribution from the Award program matched by $2.5 million from the sponsoring institution. The structure is designed to help catalyze new investment in research in Ontario.

Two competitions have been held and six winners have been selected and have received awards. Information about the first six recipients is available here.

The Award Committee serves as both an oversight committee and review committee and includes highly qualified reviewers from outside and within Ontario. The members of the Committee are listed here.

ADMINISTRATION OF THE PROGRAM

The Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation (MRI) identified MaRS Discovery District as the administrator of the program and the provider of logistical support. MaRS will disburse the funds and monitor reporting and use of the funds throughout the program term.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE AWARD?

Eligible applicants will be internationally recognized leaders in medical research whose work is transformative in their field, and who are conducting research in an academic or research institution in Ontario. The application must be sponsored by the President or CEO of the eligible institution. The Premier’s Summit Award is intended for a researcher who has made a substantial and distinguished contribution already, but who shows promise to do even more. The winner will be expected to continue to be productive and active in research. It is not intended as an “end of service” reward or as recognition for one great accomplishment. Only an individual is eligible for the Award.

WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE NOMINEE AND THE NOMINATING INSTITUTION?

The Award will be administered by the nominating institution on behalf of the recipient. The applicant’s institution will be responsible for all subsequent expense tracking and reporting.
At the time of nomination, the individual must hold a current appointment or be employed at an Ontario institution eligible for CIHR/NSERC funding or have an offer for such a position.
Award winners will receive their funding as long as they hold a current appointment or are employed at the institution with which they were affiliated at the time of application and which provides the matching funds. The individual must be actively engaged in activities related to the project.
The Award amount is $500,000 per year for five years from the Premier’s Summit Award and another $500,000 per year for five years of matching funds from the researcher’s institution. The matching money must be new incremental money (not reallocated from existing sources) and must cover half of all eligible research expenses. “New” money cannot come from other granting agencies. At the time of application, the matching funds must be committed for the full term of the Award.
The President/CEO of the institution will be required to nominate a candidate for the Award, commit to providing the matching funds for five years and report on the source of the new matching funds.
The spirit of the Award — to enhance research in Ontario — also means that the institution may use the Award to recruit a top medical researcher to their Ontario institution.

HOW WILL THE FUNDS BE DISBURSED? WHAT REPORTING WILL BE REQUIRED?

The Award committee wants to ensure that the funding is used for the academic purposes outlined in the application. As such, the institution will submit expenses to the administrator at MaRS Discovery District quarterly. The Award will cover 50% of expenses, up to $500,000 per year. An initial installment of $125,000 will be advanced upon execution of the funding agreement. All subsequent claims will be paid quarterly. The timing of disbursement of the funds may be adjusted to suit specific circumstances.
The Award recipient will be required to provide a detailed budget forecast that estimates eligible expenditures during the award prior to the release of the funding agreement.
It is expected that the Award will cover 50% of the expenses in every fiscal year. However, the Award will cover up to 60% of the expenses in a fiscal year provided that the final aggregate Award amount does not exceed 50% of the eligible project expenses.
The institution will submit an annual financial report and forecast containing the statement of expenditures incurred and paid during the previous year and shall include an estimate of expenditures for the following fiscal year.
The recipient and the institution will submit a yearly progress report on his/her accomplishments.
Disbursements will not be limited per quarter, which will allow for capital purchases or for ramping up research capacity over the course of the year.
The date of eligibility of expenses for the second competition is April 1, 2009.

WHAT EXPENSES ARE ELIGIBLE?

The Award will be directed to the needs and priorities of the recipient. The Award will cover reasonable research and operating costs. Based on the researcher’s needs, the Award could cover the following:

DIRECT COSTS:

Salaries and Benefits:
- New Faculty (appointed after the Term start date)
- Post Doctoral Fellows
- Doctoral Students
- Masters Students
- Undergraduate Students
- Technicians
- Administrative Support (in direct support of the research team)
Lab Services
Research Facility Modifications
- New Lab Space (costs per sq. ft.)
- Renovations
- Leasehold Costs (directly associated with the Recipient’s planned research program)
Equipment (including shipping, taxes and installation)
- Purchase of Major Equipment
- Components
- Extended Warranty / Service Contract
- Initial Training of Infrastructure Personnel
Materials and Supplies
Software
Reasonable Travel and Conference Costs
- Travel in Canada
- International Travel
- Conference, Workshops and Seminar Fees

INDIRECT COSTS: (Note: Indirect costs that are eligible for coverage through the Federal Indirect Costs Program are eligible. Costs that are claimed through other indirect cost programs should not be claimed under the Premier’s Summit Award. The total indirect costs cannot exceed 20% of the direct costs in any period and must be accounted for specifically by cost category.)

Facilities
Research Resources
Management and Administration
Regulatory Requirements and Accreditation
Intellectual Property

PROJECT AUDIT:
There are two independent audit requirements:

at the end of the second year and
at the end of the project.

The audit costs are considered eligible and are to be included in the Award budget.

WHAT EXPENSES ARE NOT ELIGIBLE?

Overhead calculated on a formulaic basis
Salary of the recipient if already working at an Ontario institution at the time of submitting the application

All costs will be considered on a case-by-case basis, focusing on the needs of the researcher.

Eligible direct and indirect costs for the Premier’s Summit Award are broad. Administrators can reasonably submit the usual directly incurred costs that arise specifically from a project of research under the direction of the Award recipient. The Award can also be used to cover build-out and fit-out of new research space, costs of hiring new technicians or junior faculty to work with the Award winner or members of her/his collaborative group, secretarial services, computer purchases and maintenance costs, maintenance contracts on equipment for the Award winner’s work, charge backs from use of shared equipment and facilities (including libraries or specialized databases), and applicable charges for animal care or ethics review.

As a general guideline, indirect costs that are eligible for coverage through the Canada Research Chairs program or through the Indirect Costs program for the three federal Granting Councils will also be eligible for coverage by the Premier’s Summit Award. The only caveat, logically, is that costs should not be claimed twice.

All costs and expenses related to the project, which are not eligible expenditures, will be the sole responsibility of the institution.

WHAT QUALIFIES AS "MATCHING FUNDS"?

Part of the intention of the Award is to catalyze new investment in research in Ontario. As such, the Award consists of two components: $500,000 per year from the Premier’s Summit Award fund (administered by MaRS Discovery District) and $500,000 per year from the institution. These matching funds must be new money to the institution.

WHAT IS NOT CONSIDERED "MATCHING FUNDS"?

Funds reallocated from existing sources
Funds originating from any granting agency solely funded by the federal government. For greater clarity, the following agencies shall not be permitted:
- Canadian Institutes for Health Research
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada
- Canada Foundation for Innovation
- Genome Canada
- National Research Council of Canada
Funds originating from any provincial granting agency
Ongoing funding from foundations for existing project support. However, new foundation money, targeted specifically at the Award and as unencumbered as the Award’s funds, will be eligible.
A flat overhead rate does not count as the institution’s contribution of matching funds.

WHO OWNS THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND EQUIPMENT FUNDED BY THE PREMIER’S SUMMIT AWARD?

The institution shall hold a majority interest in, and exercise de facto control over, the research infrastructure contemplated by the Project for a period of at least five (5) years from the date of acquisition and installation of the research infrastructure or such other period as MaRS may deem appropriate.

WHO OWNS THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DERIVED FROM THE PREMIER’S SUMMIT AWARD?

MaRS does not claim any ownership of, or exploitation rights to, any intellectual property arising from PSA-funded projects. All intellectual property that may arise during the course or as a result of the project shall be owned in accordance with the institution’s applicable policies and procedures.

HOW DO I APPLY FOR THE PREMIER'S SUMMIT AWARD?

The application for the Premier’s Summit Award consists of several elements (application forms and these guidelines are available in PDF format.

Applicant Information Form (see below)
Institution Information Form (see below)
Full academic CV
Statement by applicant addressing the following (not to exceed five pages):
- What the Award will enable the applicant to do that he/she would not otherwise be able to do
Nomination letter from the President or CEO of the including the following:
- Reasons the nominee merits consideration for the Award, including past work and its significance in the field
- Promise for continuing work at a high level
- Impact of the work on human health
- Assurance of the long-term commitment of the institution to the individual researcher
Half-page statement by the applicant on what research will be undertaken with the Award in terms understandable by the general public
List submitted by the applicant of his/her three to five most important or significant publications
Three independent letters of support for the nomination
List of three additional people who could serve as independent referees with recognized expertise in the candidate’s field
Letter from the source of the new matching funds (either donor or CEO, President, or Board Chair of organization), committing their support and explaining their reasons for supporting the nominee’s research program, as well as their contact information

WHEN IS THE DEADLINE FOR THE APPLICATION?

Applications must be received in hard copy by 5pm on Friday, November 28, 2008. Successful applicants will be announced in the spring of 2009.

WHO DO I CALL IF I HAVE QUESTIONS?

Please direct any questions about the Premier’s Summit Award program to:

Aimee Park
Premier’s Summit Award
MaRS Discovery District
T 416-673-8196
E apark@marsdd.com