The people of the State of Idaho recognize the need for training in science and technology. They further realize the importance of biomedical research to the State's economy and the overall quality of their lives. The NIH BRIN Program offers the State of Idaho an opportunity to build its infrastructure network, and to align biomedical research in Idaho with its importance to the citizens of the State. The design of the Idaho BRIN Program centers around three cores: an Administrative Core, a Bioinformatics Core and a Research Core. In the five months since the BRIN grant was awarded to the State of Idaho, there has developed a collaborative link between the faculty of Idaho's three universities that is unprecedented. Working cooperatively we have already made significant progress in each of the cores. Our proposal for supplementary funding has two principal objectives. First, we will extend the network that now consists of the University of Idaho (UI), Idaho State University (ISU) and Boise State University (BSU) to include the six undergraduate colleges in Idaho. The goal is to provide research opportunities for students and faculty from these colleges, and to create a pipeline for the best undergraduate students into Idaho's graduate programs. The second objective of the supplement request is to direct research infrastructure funds in proportion to their likelihood of generating new NIH support. Thus a three-tier system is proposed for the support of initiatives by BRIN. Tier 1 consists of those initiatives that are most likely to achieve success in receiving NIH grant support within 12 - 18 months. Tier 2 is directed at those programs designed for an intermediate return on investment within 2 - 4 years. Tier 3 programs consist of a long-term investment yielding dividends 4 to 10 years into the future. Support for all three tiers is requested in the Supplement, but funds are apportioned according to their likelihood of generating new NIH funding in the short-term. Taken together, the initial BRIN grant has enabled Idaho to develop an unprecedented network among its universities, using resources judiciously to improve research infrastructure. The supplement will allow us to extend the network and create greater opportunities for research while retaining a clear focus on the primary goal of BRIN: to increase NIH support in Idaho. The UI, BSU and ISU working cooperatively envision a time when we will be receiving much more NIH research funding, and support from infrastructure programs such as BRIN will no longer be necessary.
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