Early Career Investigator Award

Purpose:

In line with SPARTAN’s vision to accelerate research in the field of spondyloarthritis and to improve the care of patients with axial spondyloarthritis, this Early Career Investigator (ECI) Award supports ECIs (eligibility defined below) who are working in the field of axial spondyloarthritis. The goal is to support the early stages of a research project to generate preliminary data that will support future grant applications to funding agencies such as the National Institutes of Health (or equivalent) and the Rheumatology Research Foundation (or equivalent).

Applicant Eligibility:

• Applicants must be SPARTAN members (Full, Associate, or Trainee)
• Within first 5 years of starting first faculty research position at the time of the start of the award; applicants may be trainees at the time of submission.
• Appointed at the level of Assistant Professor or Instructor (not higher)
• Track record of publication(s) in the area
• There is no specified threshold for protected time. Applicants with less than 50% protected time will need specific assurances in their letter of support that they will be able to complete the project.
• Not a previous recipient of a career development grant of award 3 years or longer, with direct funds exceeding $250,000 total over the entire award period.

Funding:

• Grants are awarded for up to two years.
• A maximum of $25,000 will be allocated per project per year for two years (for a total of $50,000 per awardee). Year 2 of the funding is contingent upon demonstration of satisfactory progress, ideally with evidence of peer review grant application(s).
• The maximum number of grants supported each year will be determined annually by the SPARTAN Board
• The funding period will start August 1, 2026.

Use of funds

Funds can be used for activities directly linked to the proposal including expendables, services including analytic support, or salary/stipend of fellows, technicians, or research coordinators. The funds cannot be used for salary support of the PI. Institutional indirect costs are not supported.

Application deadline: February 28, 2026
Notification by April 30, 2026
The funding period will start August 1, 2026

Adjudication

The SPARTAN Research Committee will review applications, which will be reviewed by the SPARTAN Research Committee and ad hoc reviewers with relevant research expertise, and approved by the SPARTAN Board of Directors. Applicants will be notified of decisions by April 30, 2026 and awards will be announced at the SPARTAN Annual Meeting in May.

Requirements of funding

• Grant recipients must acknowledge SPARTAN in any presentations or publications related to the project
• In oral or poster presentations relating to the funded project, the SPARTAN logo must be displayed.
• A progress report must be submitted at the end of the first year, in order to obtain funding for year 2.
• A post activity report must be submitted via email to SPARTAN within 6 months of completion of the entire funding period.
• The study results/progress should be presented at the annual SPARTAN meeting.
• Written progress reports provided to SPARTAN are mandatory for applicants’ continued participation in future SPARTAN grant competitions.

No-cost extensions
No-cost extensions may be requested by emailing the SPARTAN Executive Director with an attached progress report no later than 60 days prior to the end of the funding period. They will be considered at the discretion of the SPARTAN Board of Directors in conjunction with the Research Committee.