Office of Research update: March 2026

March 9, 2026

Browse the calendar of upcoming research events and learn about ways to support your work in the March update from the Office of Research.

External Awards Received

Principal Investigator: Cayman Novak
Project Title: Building Tomorrow's Biomedical Scientists: An Undergraduate Research Program in Bioengineering
Sponsor: Glenn W Bailey Charitable Trust
Award amount: $25,000

This project launches a new undergraduate research training program focused on Mechanobiology, a field that integrates mechanical and bioengineering principles to understand how cells respond to physical forces in their environment.

Announcements

Reminder of Updated PEERRS Requirements for Researchers

Due to new federal regulations, additional requirements have been added under the university’s Program for the Education and Evaluation of Responsible Research and Scholarship (PEERRS). Most notably:

Anyone (faculty, student or staff) named on a proposal submitted for external funding must complete the Research Security Training module prior to proposal submission and in order for any award to be processed.
All personnel on an externally funded award are required to complete the DOJ Bulk Sensitive Data Regulations Training and Research Administration modules.
Anyone engaged in U-M research or scholarship activity — regardless of internal or external support — must complete the Responsible Conduct of Research & Scholarship (RCRS) training.

Questions regarding PEERRS requirements should be directed to [email protected].

Delayed Implementation of NIH Common Forms Requirements

NIH has extended the implementation of the common forms requirements for Biographical Sketches and Current and Pending (Other) Support using SciENcv to May 2026. These forms are required for each individual identified as senior/key personnel on a federally funded research project and other individuals as outlined in sponsor guidelines. Find resources below for help with preparing your supplementary documents for NIH proposals after May 2026.

Research Events

2026 UM-Dearborn – UM-Flint Collaborative Research Mixers

The Offices of Research at the University of Michigan–Dearborn and the University of Michigan–Flint invite faculty to participate in two cross-campus collaborative research mixers designed to foster new partnerships and spark future proposal development.

This initiative will culminate in a joint seed funding opportunity for collaborative teams, with awards of up to $30,000.

The mixers will include brief presentations from previous awardees and structured networking opportunities to connect faculty across campuses. Attendance at both mixers is strongly encouraged. Faculty must attend at least one mixer to be eligible for funding. Application details and deadlines will be announced during the events.

Mixer Dates:

Monday, March 23, 2026 – UM-Dearborn | 10:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m.
Tuesday, April 7, 2026 – UM-Flint | 10:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m.

RSVP by Thursday, March 12 |REGISTER

Building Industry Partnerships Webinar Series

The OVPR is hosting a webinar series for U-M researchers focused on building effective industry partnerships in response to evolving federal funding trends (including NSF, DOE, and ARPA agencies). The series will explore why and how to engage industry partners to demonstrate research impact, technology readiness, and translational potential.

Time: Noon–1:30 p.m.
Format: Virtual - Calendar invites will be sent upon registration.

Webinar Dates & Topics:

March 26: Industry Engagement for Faculty: From Early Signals to Funded Partnerships — Strategies for meaningful industry engagement across the research lifecycle while maintaining academic incentives and research integrity.
April 9: Building Industry Partnerships that Last: Whom to Talk to, What to Ask — How to identify the right industry partners, structure early conversations, and build collaborations that endure.

IRB On-the-Road: Drop-In Sessions for UM-Dearborn

Elizabeth Molina, the UM-Dearborn Health and Services and Behavioral Sciences Institutional Review Board (IRB-HSBS) liaison, will continue offering IRB On-the-Road drop-in sessions during the Winter 2026 semester. These sessions provide UM-Dearborn faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students with an opportunity to ask questions and receive guidance on IRB processes and requirements prior to proposal or application submission.

Schedule: Session Dates (Winter 2026):

March 18, 2026 | 2–3:30 p.m.
April 15, 2026 | 2–3:30 p.m.

Format: Zoom Room - access the room and wait to be invited by the host

Generative AI Tutorials: Generative AI for Visualization

Michigan Institute for Data & AI in Society (MIDAS) is hosting a 2025–2026 Generative AI tutorial series designed to help researchers across all disciplines explore when, why and how to integrate generative AI tools into their research workflows.

The sessions cover practical applications such as administrative tasks, literature review and synthesis, data analysis, visualization, coding, writing, and presentations. No prior experience with generative AI tools is required. Participants should bring their own laptop. Sessions are open to all U-M researchers, and recordings will be available for those unable to attend in person.

Upcoming Session

March 19, 2026, 2-3:30 p.m. – Generative AI Agents
Presenters: Joseph Osumeje and Nazreen Pallikkavaliyaveetil

Contact: Questions may be directed to Kelly Psilidis, MIDAS Faculty Training Program Manager, at [email protected].

NSF CAREER Seminar Series @ Ann Arbor Engineering

The UM-Ann Arbor College of Engineering Research Development team continues the 2026 NSF CAREER Seminar Series. Dearborn faculty are invited to participate.

March 18, 2026 | 10–11:30 a.m. (In-person, Johnson Rooms on Lurie Engineering Center's third floor)
Education Plan & Broader Impacts

Designing integrated education plans
Developing innovative, broader impacts
Campus and community partnership strategies

April 13, 2026 | 1–3 p.m. (In-person, Johnson Rooms on Lurie Engineering Center's third floor)
Resource Fair for Partnerships & Outreach

Meet campus and community organizations
Networking to strengthen broader impact plans

Week of May 11, 2026 (Tentative – All Day)
Review Panel: Insider’s Perspective

Feedback from former NSF program officers
Annotated proposal excerpts
Panel Q&A

Registration is required for all Seminar Series sessions.

Dearborn faculty attending at least one core session will be eligible for individualized support and writing groups hosted by the UM-Dearborn Research Development team.

Implementation Science and Learning Health Systems Symposium: Catalysts for Enhancing Real-World Health Impacts

This symposium explores how implementation science can be integrated into learning health systems to improve care delivery and measurable outcomes. Keynote speakers and panelists will address translating evidence into practice and enhancing health research impact.

Date: Wednesday, March 11, 2026
Time: 8:30 a.m.–2 p.m.
Location: North Campus Research Complex & Livestream
REGISTER

Workshop II: Building Arts & Health Research Teams

This workshop supports interdisciplinary collaboration at the intersection of arts and health sciences and positions teams for future ARIA and external funding opportunities.

Date: March 20, 2026
Time: 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Location: Michigan League – Henderson Room
REGISTER

Guggenheim Fellowship Faculty Information Session

This session provides insight into the Guggenheim application and review process, featuring a panel of recent awardees.

Date: March 23, 2026
Time: 3–4:30 p.m.
REGISTER

March 26 Research Development Programming (Virtual)

Industry Engagement for Faculty: From Early Signals to Funded Partnerships
Re-Imagining Broader Impacts in Grant Writing
Communicating the Value of Your Research
REGISTER

2026 AI in Research Symposium

This two-day symposium convenes academic and industry leaders to examine AI’s role in transforming research across disciplines.

Dates: March 30–31, 2026
Location: Rackham Amphitheatre
REGISTER

Research Cores Spotlight: Central Biorepository

Did you know that, as a researcher at U-M, you have access to over 850,000 human biospecimens securely managed by the Central Biorepository (CBR)?

The CBR facilitates discovery and improves healthcare outcomes by providing high-quality, highly annotated human biospecimens donated for basic, clinical and translational research. This state-of-the-art facility is accredited by the College of American Pathologists Biorepository Accreditation Program, with automated processes and impeccable quality assurance. The CBR receives biospecimens and data from university investigators and consortium collaborators across the spectrum of biomedical research. Michigan Medicine patients have consented to broad use of their donated biospecimens and affiliated electronic health record data. The CBR supports 47 research studies and distributes more than 25,000 research biospecimens annually.

Check out the Research Areas Supported webpage to learn more about the numerous biospecimens available and how to access them. Looking to work with the CBR to store your samples and develop a biorepository? Check out the detailed resources and processes available on the Pre-onboarding Considerations webpage.

For a list of Research Core Facilities on campus, please visit the U-M Cores Website. To get involved or learn more about U-M Research Cores and the OVPR Research Cores Office, please use this RCO contact form.

Internal Funding Opportunities

MIDAS Propelling Original Data Science (PODS) Grants

The Michigan Institute for Data & AI in Society (MIDAS) has launched its 2026 Propelling Original Data Science (PODS) Grants, supporting innovative research that advances data science and artificial intelligence across disciplines. PODS grants empower U-M faculty to develop cutting-edge research in data science, build interdisciplinary collaborations, and position projects for future external funding opportunities. The program is designed to support projects that strengthen research methodology, enable robust and reproducible data- and AI-enabled workflows, and expand the frontier of research.

Projects may focus on areas such as:

Data science and AI methodology for research
Translating methodologies into usable research tools
AI-enabled expansion of research frontiers
Emerging research directions and community formation

Faculty from all three U-M campuses are eligible to apply. Principal Investigators and Co-PIs must be MIDAS affiliates, which is a low-barrier process open to any U-M faculty member or research scientist. MIDAS Affiliate Application: https://midas.umich.edu/people/apply-to-be-an-affiliate/

Funding Amount: $30,000 – $70,000 (cost-sharing for grants over $30,000 required)

Key Dates:

Letter of Intent Deadline: April 3, 2026
Full Proposal Deadline: May 15, 2026

Apply and learn more: https://myumi.ch/A1pky
Questions: [email protected]

ARIA Call for Proposals

The Arts Research Incubation & Acceleration (ARIA) Faculty Research Funding Program, a joint effort funded by the U-M Arts Initiative and OVPR, seeks to elevate and expand arts research and creative practice across U-M’s campuses and schools. The program will support projects centered in the arts that ask creative questions and move toward new ideas and knowledge; invite new forms of collaboration and interaction both within and beyond the arts; and that imagine new approaches to problems and ideas in the arts and society.

Applications are particularly encouraged from interdisciplinary research teams structured to provide mutual benefit to those in the arts and in other research sectors, and from individuals working in creative practice to imagine new horizons of artistic possibility. Faculty applying for individual projects are eligible for up to $25,000, and research teams are eligible for up to $50,000.

Proposals Due Date: March 11, 5 p.m.

Research Commons

Research Commons is the central hub for internal funding opportunities at the University of Michigan. Faculty can search and filter campus-wide programs by area, category, and eligibility to identify opportunities aligned with their research goals.

Through Research Commons, faculty can:

Access campus-wide internal funding programs
View limited submission competitions and internal deadlines
Track sponsor deadlines and eligibility criteria
Submit internal applications and declarations of intent
Explore rolling and recurring funding opportunities

Current offerings include conference travel funds, pilot and feasibility grants, seed funding programs, cost share requests, postdoctoral awards, and large-scale limited submission competitions.

Researchers are encouraged to review the platform regularly for updated deadlines and newly posted opportunities.

Explore all currently open U-M internal funding programs at: researchcommons.umich.edu

Limited Submissions and Internal Opportunities

The Limited Submissions internal competitions are coordinated by the U-M Office of the Vice President for Research and the Medical School. To see a list of currently open opportunities, visit the following webpages:

OVPR Limited Submissions Webpage (InfoReady)
Medical School Limited Submissions Homepage

Visit the OVPR's Research Commons for all internal funding and limited submission opportunities in one place. See the U-M Limited Submissions Standard Practice Guide Polices here.