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ESTABLISHED INVESTIGATOR BRIDGE FUNDING AWARD

American College of Gastroenterology (ACG)

The ACG Institute for Clinical Research and Education and the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) are proud to support established clinical gastroenterology or hepatology researchers, who have experienced a lapse in federal program funding which requires bridge support to sustain their robust research programs, and invite eligible applicants to apply for a $300,000, two-year bridge funding award, to be funded from July 1, 2027 - June 30, 2029. This award provides short-term bridge funding to sustain an investigator’s independent research program between federal grants and is only available to ACG members.

All applications must be submitted online. The grant site will open to submissions on August 31, 2026 and close on Monday, December 7, 2026, at 11:59pm (Eastern time).

The goal of the Established Investigator Bridge Funding Award is to provide short-term (up to two-year) funding to established Clinical Scientists with a proven track record of federal program funding in innovative and impactful clinical research in gastroenterology or hepatology. With the paucity of federal agencies willing to fund GI and hepatology clinical research and federal funding levels at less than 15%, intermittent gaps in federal funding are a reality in the research career of an independent Clinical Investigator. This bridge funding grant is designed to support researchers principally focused on digestive or liver diseases, and to sustain their competitive, patient-oriented research programs during such a gap in federal program funding.

This grant is designed to support research that is principally focused on digestive or liver diseases. The patient population or disease target should be principally related to the gastrointestinal tract, liver, biliary system, pancreas, or neuroenteric science, including any translational, clinical, social science, or health services research studies that pertain to managing such patients or conditions. For example, a study about microbiota would be appropriate if it pertains to a digestive disease. In contrast, a study that is principally about HIV would likely not be appropriate unless it directly relates to how HIV affects digestive health. (For questions on study relevancy, contact the grant administrator at research@gi.org.) Since its inception in 1994, the ACG Institute for Clinical Research and Education has provided over $37.2 Million in funding to over 788 recipients.

GRANT OVERVIEW A key mission of the ACG and its Institute for Clinical Research and Education is to fund innovative patient-oriented research awards. For the purposes of these awards, patient-oriented research is defined as:

1. Research conducted with human subjects

2. Research on new diagnostic and therapeutic interventions

3. Research on material of human origin, such as tissues and specimens

4. Research that is translational in nature; i.e., has direct applicability to clinical care.

Note: Studies involving animals will not be considered unless the work cannot be done in humans. If you have any questions about the eligibility of your study involving animals, it is recommended you reach out to research@gi.org, prior to applying.

Award Amount: $300,000 / 2-YEAR AWARD (150K PER YEAR)

 Award period/length of award: July 1, 2027 - June 30, 2029

AI Based Application Success Predictor

1. Direct relevance to gastroenterology or hepatology ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is the fundamental requirement.

Competitive projects should address important questions in:

Gastroenterology
Hepatology
GI diseases
Digestive health
GI endoscopy
GI healthcare delivery
GI health equity
Clinical gastroenterology

ACG's awards are specifically designed to advance clinical research related to gastroenterology and hepatology.

2. Patient-oriented research with direct clinical applicability ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

For the Clinical Research Awards, ACG emphasizes innovative patient-oriented research with direct applicability to clinical care.

Strong proposals should demonstrate potential to:

Improve diagnosis
Improve treatment
Improve patient outcomes
Improve clinical decision-making
Address important clinical problems

ACG defines patient-oriented research as research involving human subjects, new diagnostic or therapeutic interventions, human specimens, or translational work with direct clinical applicability.

3. Strong scientific rationale and innovation ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Competitive proposals should have:

A clearly defined research question
Strong scientific rationale
Original hypothesis
Innovative methodology
Appropriate endpoints
Potential to generate meaningful new knowledge

ACG specifically describes its Clinical Research Awards as supporting innovative patient-oriented research.

4. Preliminary/pilot data where required ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is particularly important for the Clinical Research Award.

The current ACG program requires pilot/preliminary data for the Clinical Research Award, while the Clinical Research Pilot Award does not require pilot data. Therefore, choosing the correct grant category based on the maturity of the project is strategically important.

5. Strong investigator and career-development potential ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

ACG places significant emphasis on developing investigators.

For example, the Junior Faculty Development Award provides three years of funding and 50% protected research time specifically for junior investigators developing independent careers in clinical gastroenterology or hepatology research.

Competitive applicants demonstrate:

Strong academic potential
Relevant research experience
Publications or prior research accomplishments
Clear independent research trajectory
Commitment to gastroenterology/hepatology research

6. Strong mentorship and protected research time ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Mentorship is especially important for:

Fellows
Residents
Junior faculty
Medical students

For trainee awards, an appropriate ACG-member mentor is required. The Junior Faculty Development Award also provides substantial protected research time and career-development support.

7. Health equity and addressing healthcare disparities ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Leonidas Berry Health Equity Research Award specifically supports research producing actionable science that can reduce health and healthcare disparities.

Competitive projects should address issues affecting underserved or underrepresented populations, including:

Racial/ethnic minorities
Women
LGBTQ+ populations
Healthcare access
Differences in disease management
Inequities in healthcare delivery

Importantly, ACG states that simply studying a disease is insufficient for this award; the project should generate actionable and meaningful data related to health equity.

8. Strong methodology, feasibility, and appropriate study design ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Successful proposals should provide:

Clear aims
Appropriate study population
Valid methodology
Appropriate statistical analysis
Realistic timeline
Feasible recruitment/data collection
Clearly defined outcomes

Animal research is generally not appropriate for ACG Clinical Research Awards unless the research cannot be conducted in humans and has a clear translational connection to clinical care.

9. Potential for career advancement and future funding ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

ACG's career-development and bridge-funding programs are particularly focused on sustaining and advancing independent research careers.

For example, the Established Investigator Bridge Funding Award is designed to provide temporary support between federal grants and requires evidence of a recently completed federal clinical/translational GI or hepatology grant and an ongoing application for renewed federal funding.

Thus, a strong application should show how the project will:

Generate preliminary data
Support future NIH/federal funding
Establish independence
Expand an existing research program

10. ACG membership and exact eligibility fit ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is a critical eligibility factor, not merely a quality factor.

For the current ACG Clinical Research Awards, the PI generally must be an ACG member in good standing at the time of application. Different awards have different requirements regarding:

Career stage
U.S./Canadian/international status
Physician vs. PhD eligibility
Fellowship/residency status
Mentorship
Prior funding

For example, the current Clinical Research Award is open to U.S., Canadian, and international ACG members, while the Medical Student and Resident awards have U.S./Canada restrictions.

Specialties

Gastroenterology

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must meet all the following criteria:

• ACG Member at time of application

• U.S. or Canadian based physician or equivalent (e.g., MD, DO, MBBS)

• Established Investigator definition:

• Between 8-15 years out of fellowship or terminal training program at time of application (fellowship or terminal training completed between 2011 and 2018 to be eligible to apply for the 2027 grant cycle).

• Evidence of successful federal funding.

• Full-time faculty position as part of the gastroenterology or hepatology department at a university, medical school or other healthcare institution at time of application.

• Evidence of recently concluded federal clinical or translational research award as the PI within the last 3 years in gastroenterology or hepatology, such as NIH R01 (or NIH R01-equivalent), K-award, or VA Merit Award. National Science Award, Department of Defense and CIHR multi-year project grant awards of equivalency will be considered.

• Evidence of ongoing application for renewal for federal funding (provide institutional evidence of application to a federal agency [i.e., eRA commons routing information] or letter of intent from institutional grant awards office.

• Able to guarantee 30% protected research time for entirety of the grant period for clinical research related to gastroenterology or hepatology. A letter from the Division Chief or Department Chair must certify that the award will provide 30% protected time to the recipient, regardless of the amount budgeted for salary, in accordance with the terms of the award

 The following are not eligible for this award: • Fellows-in-training.

• Early career faculty.

• Projects that support laboratory or animal research projects.

• Award overlap: ACG does not provide duplicate funding. The same science may not be used in applications for two ACG grant types (for example: applying to both the Bridge Funding Award and Clinical Research Award with the same science).

• ACG limits funding for a PI to one grant in a single award cycle. If a given investigator submits projects in two or more RFA categories and more than one is deemed worthy of funding, the larger grant will be funded.

• If the applicant was awarded an ACG research award within the last three (3) years, they cannot apply for the same grant category in which they were awarded. They may apply for a different grant category, as the College is not trying to limit progression of research (pilot award to CRA or JR Faculty Award), but rather the same investigators being funded repeatedly.

Eligible Countries:

Canada

United States

Sponsor Details

Sponsor Institute/Organizations: American College of Gastroenterology (ACG)

Sponsor Type: Corporate/Non-Profit

Address: 11333 Woodglen Drive, Suite 100, Rockville, MD 20852

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