Yale Pepper Center Seeks Letters of Intent For Aging Research 2026 - 2027

The Yale Pepper Older Americans Independence Center (OAIC) is soliciting letters of intent from full-time Yale faculty members with interests and expertise relevant to aging research for the Research Education Core (REC) and Pilot Exploratory Study Core (PESC) awards.

This award provides $45,000 in direct costs per year for two years ($90,000 maximum) to support salary and/or research activities for junior faculty. Proposals must align with the Yale Pepper Center theme.

REC Award Eligibility and Requirements

• Must hold a full-time Yale faculty appointment within 5 years of initial hire
  • Candidates who are in their final year of training are eligible to apply if a faculty appointment offer is in place and is not contingent on funding

• Must have a minimum of:
  • 75% protected time for research (50% for surgeons or procedural specialists such as interventional cardiologists/radiologists)
• The career development plan must support the goal of becoming an independently funded investigator
• Research may be basic, translational, epidemiological, or clinical provided it is consistent with the Pepper Center’s theme
• Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Must commit to participation in the Yale Pepper seminars and didactic sessions

This award provides up to $40,000 in direct costs for one year to support pilot projects that will inform future grant applications. Projects must aim to advance the Pepper Center theme.

PESC Award Eligibility and Requirements

• Must hold a full-time Yale faculty appointment or provide documentation confirming transition to a full-time faculty role by the beginning of the award period (July 1, 2027)
• Research may be basic, translational, epidemiological, or clinical provided it is consistent with the Pepper Center’s theme
• Although senior investigators may apply, the Yale Pepper Center prioritizes funding for more junior investigators
• The Yale Pepper Center also prioritizes investigators who have not previously received a PESC award

1. Cover page (form provided)
2. Letter of Intent (3 pages for REC, 2 pages for PESC):
   1. Specific aims and hypotheses
   2. Research strategy (Significance, Innovation, Approach)
   3. One paragraph on how the proposed project fits within the Yale Pepper Center theme (see below)
   4. Plans for future funding
   5. Timeline
   6. For REC Award Applicants Only: Include a 1-page description of career goals, development plans and proposed mentor(s) with qualifications.
3. Budget and Justification (no page limit):
   1. REC Awards:
      1. Funding for two years with a maximum of $45,000 (direct costs) per year for a total of $90,000 (direct costs)
      2. Budget may be allocated to salary, project expenses, a $2,500 cap for publication costs, and education
         1. Budget cannot be used for travel to scientific meetings, administrative support, or computers
         2. Second year funding is contingent upon successful completion of the year 1 objectives and deliverables
   2. PESC Awards:
      1. Funding for one year with a maximum of $40,000 (direct costs)
      2. Budget may be allocated to salary, project expenses, and
         supplies/equipment
      3. Budget cannot be used for travel to scientific meetings, administrative support, publication costs or computers
4. NIH Biosketch (5-page limit in SciENcv format):
   1. Applicant
   2. Mentors (for REC applicants only)

• Send all materials via email to: poa@yale.edu
• Deadline: Monday, Oct. 5, 2026, by 5:00 p.m. EST

The unifying theme of the Yale Pepper Center is the investigation of multifactorial geriatric health conditions. This theme encompasses (1) single health conditions with multiple contributing factors or with multiple relevant outcome domains and (2) multiple conditions occurring simultaneously. A defining criterion for Yale Pepper Center support is that, regardless of the condition or type of research, the work acknowledges and accounts for the multiple factors determining health in older adults.

The conceptual underpinning of this theme is that both single conditions and multiple coexisting conditions are determined by the co-occurrence of multiple predisposing and precipitating factors; these conditions and factors, in turn, affect the individual in a range of health outcomes. The predisposing factors may be at the genetic, molecular, physiologic, impairment, disease, or socio-demographic levels, while the precipitating factors may include behavioral, environmental, social, medical, psychological, and/or other triggers. The Yale theme requires designs and models (e.g., molecular, animal, and statistical) that inform the study of multiple, simultaneously interactive, factors and outcomes. It is not sufficient to merely state that the condition is multifactorial—your approach must clearly demonstrate how it is multifactorial, including how your design, methods, or models capture complex interactions.

As a related subtheme, the Yale Pepper Center also aims to advance the science of clinical decision-making in the face of trade-offs and multiple competing outcomes. This includes developing strategies to elicit older persons’ health outcome priorities. The scope of work to be supported by the Yale Pepper Center encompasses basic, translational, epidemiological, clinical trial, health services, informatics, and gerontologic biostatistics research.

Please note: The Yale Pepper Center does not support research that falls within the scope of the Yale Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. This includes research with a focus on disrupted cell biology in AD, involving evaluation of biospecimens, cell biology, human imaging studies, and genetic studies.

Applications will be evaluated on:

• Significance, innovation, and quality of the approach
• Likelihood of leading to independent funding
• Strength and qualifications of the investigator (and mentor, if applicable)

Contact the Yale Pepper Center leadership for guidance:

• Terri Fried, MD or Andrew Cohen, MD, DPhil (patient-oriented research)
• Al Shaw, MD, PhD (biology of aging)

For general questions regarding submissions, contact poa@yale.edu.