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The Department of Allied Health Sciences Office of Research and Scholarship is pleased to announce its third and final round of pilot funding for the Sleep Innovation Research Grant (SIRG) program.


Bondurant Hall

The Department of Allied Health Sciences Office of Research and Scholarship is pleased to announce its third and final round of pilot funding for the Sleep Innovation Research Grant (SIRG) program. The purpose of this program is to promote the study of clinical and translational sleep science. SIRG applications are open to any UNC-Chapel Hill investigators who incorporate sleep as a component into their research; i.e., investigators do not need to consider themselves primarily sleep researchers. The competitive award process is open to both faculty and post-doctoral fellows.

SIRG awards are for one year at a maximum of $10,000. The goal is to support successful pilot projects that will seed future larger-scale grant applications. A letter of intent (LOI) is due February 17 and asks for basic information about the proposed research team and project. Grant applications are due March 31.

The SIRG program launched in 2018 thanks to the generosity of the Eddie and Jo Allison Smith Family Foundation. Continuing through 2021, the program awards up to three grants annually in an initiative to build an internationally recognized program of research in sleep science at the University.

“Sleep science is a research field that impacts all populations and has major implications for quality of life,” said Brad Vaughn, medical director of the sleep science bachelor’s program.

The pilot grant program has been successful in bringing together cross-disciplinary researchers, some of whom have formed collaborations to seek larger-scale funding support.

John Grose, PhD, is the associate chair for research in the DAHS.

Important Deadlines

  • LOI due February 17, 2020
  • Grant applications are due March 31, 2020