Training in Grantsmanship

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Elevate your research career with TIGRR

The Training in Grantsmanship for Rehabilitation Research (TIGRR) Program has resulted in many junior investigators receiving National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other NIH-level research funding.

The centerpiece of the TIGRR Program is the one-on-one mentorship that maximizes the chance of success. TIGRR participants are not “attendees” that pay a fee and show up. They are mentees selected by our review committee from the many applications we receive each year, which makes TIGRR so distinctive. The selected mentees will come prepared to work on a grant proposal for submission to the NIH, Veterans Administration (VA), and National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR).

About the workshop

This four-day workshop provides the expertise and support to be successful at the national level in obtaining research grant support. The target audience for this workshop includes:

  • Junior and mid-level faculty in all rehabilitation research disciplines, many of whom are on the cusp of success in NIH-funded or similar research but could benefit from expert mentorship in grant development
  • Post-doctoral fellows transitioning to a faculty position
  • Mid-level faculty making a change in research focus

Expert guidance and support

We bring together a nationally recognized group of mentors and consultants as faculty, including representatives of federal funding agencies. Through lectures and individual consultation, the workshop provides guidance in:

  • Grant writing
  • Clinical trial design
  • Biostatistics
  • Collaboration
  • Grantsmanship
  • Budgeting
  • Career development

Post-workshop opportunities

Following the annual workshop, mentees can participate in post-workshop peer review panels offered in in March, May, and July.

Ongoing support

TIGRR mentors pay particular attention to preparing mentees for the workshop and following up with mentees and their home institution mentorship team after the workshop to maximize the chance of success and develop a cadre of well-trained rehabilitation researchers whose expertise will foster better rehabilitation research design.

Applying for the workshop

Applications accepted

July 1 – August 14, 2025 (closes at midnight Pacific Time)

Workshop dates

January 5-9, 2026

Apply for the TIGRR Workshop
More About the Workshop

Co-principal investigators of TIGRR

Edelle (Edee) Field-Fote, PT, Ph.D., FAPTA

Dr. Field-Fote has 20+ years of funded research spanning the breadth of basic science and clinical rehabilitation studies. Her research has been funded by the NIH since 1997, and other current studies in her lab are funded by the Department of Defense (DoD), and the NIDILRR. Dr. Field-Fote is a member of the NIH National Advisory Board on Medical Rehabilitation Research and is a past chair of the NIH Musculoskeletal and Rehabilitation Research Study Section. She directs the Spinal Cord Injury Research Laboratory at Shepherd Center and has academic appointments at Emory and Georgia Institute of Technology. Dr. Field-Fote has served as a mentor to junior faculty, post-doctoral trainees, and Ph.D. students for over two decades, and has been a mentor in the intensive grant writing workshop (TIGRR, ERRIS) since 2008.

Jennifer Stevens-Lapsley, PT, Ph.D., FAPTA

Dr. Stevens-Lapsley has over 20 years of rehabilitation research experience, from exploring gene therapies in rodent models to implementing pragmatic clinical trials. Her research has been continuously funded since 2008 by the NIH, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), and VA totaling ~$20 million dollars. She is focused on identifying, integrating, and advancing innovative evidence-based medicine solutions for older adult rehabilitation through highly effective research methods and partnerships. She is a Professor and Director of the Rehabilitation Science Ph.D. Program at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Center, and she is also the Associate Director for Research for the Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center within the Eastern Colorado VA Healthcare System.

Acknowledgements

The TIGRR Workshop is funded by NIH/NICHD grant number R25HD074546.

We thank the American Council of Academic Physical Therapy and other supporting agencies for their continued support of the TIGRR Workshop.