How Can UVA Researchers Shape the Future?

The opportunities listed on this page represent different ways that UVA researchers can affect federal research policy. These include Requests for Input or RFIs, agency calls for input from the scientific community on policy and funding priorities; Get Involved, calls for nominations for federal advisory boards; and Appropriations & Congressionally Directed Spending Requests, which UVA presents to Members of the Virginia delegation for potential funding.

Requests for Input

Government agencies use Requests for Information (RFIs), Dear Colleague Letters, and other mechanisms to solicit feedback from stakeholders and the scientific community. Their goals can include increasing public awareness, fostering transparency, and gathering recommendations for future policies and funding priorities. Responding to these calls for input can be a valuable opportunity for faculty to showcase their expertise, increase the visibility of their research, and open new avenues for potential collaboration with funders as well as other researchers.

Researchers should be careful not to include any proprietary information in their responses, as comments are often made public by the agencies after the response period has concluded. Respondents' names may or may not be redacted in these publications, which can take various forms. Below are examples of published RFI comments:

• Department of Transportation Summary of ARPA-I RFI comments
• NIH UNITE 2022 Request for Information Report
• NIH RFI on Re-envisioning U.S. Postdoctoral Training: individual responses and Analysis of Public Comments
• Sen. Cassidy white paper on NIH in the 21st Century, summarizing RFI responses
• Comments on Bioeconomy Executive Order on Regulations.gov

Selected calls for input are listed below. More can be found on funders' websites, FederalRegister.gov, and Grants.gov.

Get Involved

Serving on federal advisory boards can be an excellent way to lend your voice as a subject matter expert, build new relationships, and grow your reputation with funding agencies. Below is a selected list of current requests for nominations. More can be found on funders' websites and FederalRegister.gov.

Become a Proposal Reviewer

Volunteering to review proposals for federal agencies is a great way to learn about the review process, see common problems with proposals, and form new relationships with colleagues and program officers. Below are some links with more information on the process of becoming a reviewer:

• Become a Dept. of Education Peer Reviewer
• Become a DOE Merit/Peer Reviewer
• Become an IMLS Peer Reviewer
• Become an NEA Panelist
• Become an NEH Panelist
• Become a Peer Reviewer at NIH
• Why You Should Volunteer to Serve as an NSF Reviewer
• NSF Video: The Art and Science of Reviewing Proposals

Appropriations & Congressionally Directed Spending Requests

Each year, UVA submits a curated packet of Appropriations and Congressionally Directed Spending requests to Congress through the Members of the Virginia delegation. These requests reflect the priorities of the University and align with federal research priorities. Ideas for requests often arise from researchers' relationships with program officers at funding agencies, and successful appropriations requests require agency support. The appropriations process typically takes about 20 months, so is best suited to long range projects. To learn more about the appropriations request process at UVA, review the below documents (behind NetBadge) and contact Julia Smith, Executive Director for Federal Relations.

• Federal Relations at UVA
• UVA Federal Funding Request Process & FAQ
• UVA FY26 Appropriations Form
• UVA FY26 Congressionally Directed Spending Request Form