Forum Replies Created
-
AuthorPosts
-
June 17, 2026 at 3:53 pm in reply to: June Grants Administration Open Mic – June 24th, 2pm-3pm ET #16726Melissa LenaKeymaster
Reminder: Grants Administration Open Mic next week – Weds. 6/24, 2pm-3pm ET
———————————-
Dear HRA Members,The next Grants Administration Learning Community Open Mic will be Wednesday, June 24th from 2-3 pm ET.Topic: Administering the Peer Review ProcessAs we discussed at the May open mic, the increase in application volume continues to pose unique challenges to our member organizations. To build upon that conversation, this session will focus on successfully managing the scientific review process. Join us as we dive into the following topics:-
How do you recruit and onboard reviewers, and do you offer any incentives or compensation?
-
Does your organization have any guidelines or best practices for assigning reviews to ensure appropriate expertise and avoid overburdening reviewers?
-
What strategies have you developed to handle unexpected issues, such as unresponsive reviewers?
-
How do you manage review meetings so they run smoothly? Please describe your review procedure at the meeting for evaluating each application.
To see upcoming open mics, visit the 2026 Grants Administration Learning Community Events Schedule.Pending continued member interest, the Grants Admin Community will plan to hold recurring monthly webinars in an open mic-style format—unless there is a topic that lends itself to an invited expert speaker(s)—around two or three pre-planned topics based on common listserv questions and per member request to spark candid discussion. These webinars are not limited to the scheduled topics, and will unfold as the conversation dictates, offering common problems and potential (ideally evidence-based) solutions.Please see and add to the running list of topics here.Lastly, we’d like to share the revised HRA Grants Administration Handbook for your awareness and reference. We encourage sharing this with other staff in your organization who may find it helpful. Please feel free to send us your feedback if you have any comments or additional content you may want to include. Please note you must log in to the HRA website to access the handbook.Kind regards,
MelissaMelissa Lena | Operations ManagerHealth Research Allianceshe/her/hersMelissa LenaKeymasterReminder: The June CEO Roundtable is happening tomorrow on June 17th, 12pm-1pm ET.
Register once on Zoom for the full series of 2026 meetings.
HRA hosts monthly roundtables giving CEOs (including Presidents, Executive Directors, etc.) of HRA Member organizations the opportunity to network and learn from their peers. Previous roundtable discussions have covered strategic planning and human resource issues such as remote and hybrid work, compensation, and expanding programs under increasing expense constraints, as well as fostering strategic partnerships.
If you have any topics that you would like to discuss at the Roundtable, please add them to our list here.Hope you can join us!
Melissa LenaKeymasterThe recording and additional resources from the webinar – Science Without the Wait: A Preprint Primer for the Open Science Community – are now available: https://healthra.org/resources/science-without-the-wait-a-preprint-primer-for-the-open-science-community-may-14-2026/
May 28, 2026 at 9:25 am in reply to: Webinar – DEI Learning Community Open Mic – May 28th, 3-4pm ET #16693Melissa LenaKeymasterThis is a reminder that the DEI Learning Community will be hosting an Open Mic webinar this afternoon – Thursday, May 28th from 3pm-4pm ET.
As the NIH moves away from traditional score-based paylines toward a “unified funding strategy,” nonprofit biomedical funders may see some similarities to their own holistic approaches to grantmaking. Yet the NIH’s shift is happening in a moment of intense legal and political pressure on DEI in research funding and of questionable transparency in funding decisions.
In this open mic session, members of the HRA DEI Learning Community will discuss whether discretion in funding decisions protect or threaten equity. How do we measure and defend the impact of inclusive grantmaking when “priorities” can shift? And what can nonprofit funders learn (or unlearn) from how federal agencies are navigating this tension? We invite our community to share how their organizations are thinking about funding decision frameworks in light of these developments.
Please note this webinar will not be recorded.
May 27, 2026 at 5:18 pm in reply to: Upcoming Program Evaluation Community webinar – Translating Results into Action #16691Melissa LenaKeymasterThe Program Evaluation Community Summer Webinar: Translating Results into Action event page with Zoom registration link can be found here:
https://healthra.org/events/program-evaluation-community-summer-webinar-translating-results-into-action-june-25-2026/May 27, 2026 at 12:30 pm in reply to: Webinar – DEI Learning Community Open Mic – May 28th, 3-4pm ET #16683Melissa LenaKeymasterThis is a reminder that the DEI Learning Community will be hosting an Open Mic webinar tomorrow – Thursday, May 28th from 3pm-4pm ET.
As the NIH moves away from traditional score-based paylines toward a “unified funding strategy,” nonprofit biomedical funders may see some similarities to their own holistic approaches to grantmaking. Yet the NIH’s shift is happening in a moment of intense legal and political pressure on DEI in research funding and of questionable transparency in funding decisions.
In this open mic session, members of the HRA DEI Learning Community will discuss whether discretion in funding decisions protect or threaten equity. How do we measure and defend the impact of inclusive grantmaking when “priorities” can shift? And what can nonprofit funders learn (or unlearn) from how federal agencies are navigating this tension? We invite our community to share how their organizations are thinking about funding decision frameworks in light of these developments.
Please note this webinar will not be recorded.
May 22, 2026 at 11:25 am in reply to: Seeking volunteers! – Fall 2026 HRA Members Meeting Program Committee #16681Melissa LenaKeymaster
Dear HRA members,
We are still seeking volunteers to join the Program Committee that is responsible for planning the agenda for the Fall 2026 HRA Members Meeting being held October 14th-15th at the University of California – Irvine and sponsored by Arthritis National Research Foundation. Serving on the Program Committee is a great opportunity to network with other members of the HRA community and have your voice heard by directly shaping the content and format of the Members Meeting!
Our first meeting will be in early June. The Program Committee meets approximately every other week until the Fall meeting. You do not need to attend the in-person meeting in order to serve on the committee.
Please submit this form to volunteer;
and email any questions to [email protected]We hope you’ll join us!
Kind regards,
MelissaMelissa Lena | Operations ManagerHealth Research Allianceshe/her/hersMay 20, 2026 at 11:54 am in reply to: Seeking volunteers! – Fall 2026 HRA Members Meeting Program Committee #16668Melissa LenaKeymasterDear HRA members,
We are still seeking volunteers to join the Program Committee that is responsible for planning the agenda for the Fall 2026 HRA Members Meeting being held October 14th-15th at the University of California – Irvine and sponsored by Arthritis National Research Foundation. Serving on the Program Committee is a great opportunity to network with other members of the HRA community and have your voice heard by directly shaping the content and format of the Members Meeting!
The Program Committee meets approximately every other week, from late Spring until the Fall meeting. You do not need to attend the in-person meeting in order to serve on the committee.
Please submit this form to volunteer;
and email any questions to [email protected]We hope you’ll join us!
Kind regards,
MelissaMelissa Lena | Operations ManagerHealth Research Allianceshe/her/hersMelissa LenaKeymasterDear Attendees,
Please be advised that today’s CEO Forum (May 20th) has been cancelled.
We sincerely apologize for the short notice and any disruption this causes to your day. We are currently working on a rescheduled date and will share those details with you as soon as they are finalized.
Thank you for your understanding and flexibility.
Thank you,
HRAMelissa LenaKeymasterReminder: HRA Members Survey deadline extended to May 29th – take the survey at http://www.surveymonkey.com/r/HRA26MS
———————————
Hello HRA Members,To ensure we capture as much data as possible, we are extending the deadline for the 2026 HRA Member Survey to Friday, May 29th.
The data collected is vital for understanding the current state of nonprofit grantmaking, and we want to make sure every voice is heard.
Important Reminders
-
Finish Your Draft: If you have already started the survey, please remember to click the “Submit” button on the final page. Our dashboard shows several “in-progress” entries that haven’t been finalized yet!
-
Win a Prize: Completing the survey (with your email address in the last field) enters you into a drawing for a $100 gift card.
-
Save & Return: You can still save your progress and return later as long as you use the same device and browser.
Please take about 30 minutes to complete and submit the survey here by the new deadline of May 29th.
We appreciate your participation and look forward to sharing the results with you!
Kind regards,
MelissaMelissa Lena | Operations ManagerHealth Research Allianceshe/her/hersMelissa LenaKeymasterReminder: The May CEO Roundtable is tomorrow – Register once on Zoom for the full series of 2026 meetings.
——————
The May CEO Roundtable is happening on May 20th, 12pm-1pm ET.
Register once on Zoom for the full series of 2026 meetings.
HRA hosts monthly roundtables giving CEOs (including Presidents, Executive Directors, etc.) of HRA Member organizations the opportunity to network and learn from their peers. Previous roundtable discussions have covered strategic planning and human resource issues such as remote and hybrid work, compensation, and expanding programs under increasing expense constraints, as well as fostering strategic partnerships.
If you have any topics that you would like to discuss at the Roundtable, please add them to our list here.Hope you can join us!
May 14, 2026 at 12:22 pm in reply to: Webinar – Grants Administration Learning Community – May 21st, 2pm-3pm ET #16650Melissa LenaKeymasterReminder: Grants Administration Learning Community Open Mic is next week – Register Now
———————————————
Dear HRA Members,
The next Grants Administration Learning Community Open Mic will be Thursday, May 21st, 2pm–3pm ET.
Topic: Managing the Pre-Award Phase
As many of our member organizations gear up to launch new funding cycles, we are dedicating this session to the critical mechanics of the pre-award phase. With application numbers on the rise across the board as we’ve heard from the spring members meeting, this is a timely opportunity to discuss pre-award related topics.
Join us as we answer the following questions through small breakout groups:
- How is your organization handling the surge in application numbers. Is your organization doing anything differently? What is the ratio for applications
- (LOIs/full applications) to personnel?
- If your organization is using the previous version of the NIH biosketch template, how is your organization aligning with NIH’s transition to SciENcv?
Has your organization considered or begun using AI in any of its application process? Does your organization’s grants management system (if you use one) have any AI tools and have you found them beneficial?
Click here to register on Zoom.
To see upcoming open mics, click here for the 2026 Grants Administration Learning Community Events Schedule.
Pending continued member interest, the Grants Admin Community will plan to hold recurring monthly webinars in an open mic-style format—unless there is a topic that lends itself to an invited expert speaker(s)—around two or three pre-planned topics based on common listserv questions and per member request to spark candid discussion. These webinars are not limited to the scheduled topics, and will unfold as the conversation dictates, offering common problems and potential (ideally evidence-based) solutions.
Please see and add to the running list of topics here.
Lastly, we’d like to share the link to the revised HRA Grants Administration Handbook for your awareness and reference. We encourage sharing this to other staff in your organization who may find it helpful. Please feel free to send us your feedback if you have any comments or additional content you may want to include. Log in to the HRA site is required to access the handbook.
Thank you,
MelissaMelissa Lena | Operations ManagerHealth Research Allianceshe/her/hersMelissa LenaKeymasterReminder: Register for tomorrow’s “Getting The Most Out Of Your HRA Membership” webinar
————————————
Dear HRA Members,On Wednesday, May 13th at 1-1:30pm ET, HRA will host the Getting the Most Out of Your HRA Membership webinar.
Please join Health Research Alliance (HRA) staff to learn more about activities and resources available to HRA members! These sessions are for new member organizations, new staff at existing members, or ANYONE who wants to learn about HRA’s many activities. Please register yourself or encourage your team to register to learn more about how HRA can help your organization advance your mission.
We host these webinars quarterly, and the remaining 2026 dates are:
- May 13th at 1-1:30pm ET
- July 22nd at 1-1:30pm ET
- November 5th at 1-1:30pm ET
Click here for more information and the registration link.
Thank you,
MelissaMelissa Lena | Operations ManagerHealth Research Allianceshe/her/hersMay 8, 2026 at 11:27 am in reply to: Webinar – Impact of Federal Policy Changes – May 11th, 1-2pm ET #16632Melissa LenaKeymasterReminder: Register for Monday’s Federal Policy webinar
——————————————
Hello, HRA Members,
We will be hosting a webinar titled Continuing the Discussion: Impact of Federal Policy Changes on the Biomedical Workforce on Monday, May 11th from 1pm-2pm ET.
This follow-up webinar builds on the HRA November Members Meeting session, Navigating Shifts: Impact of Federal Policy Changes on the Biomedical Workforce, bringing back cross-sector leaders to continue the conversation. As federal priorities, funding, and regulations evolve, their effects on biomedical research, and the workforce behind it, are becoming increasingly significant, particularly for early career pathways and workforce development programs. This session will offer deeper insight into emerging trends, real-time challenges, and actionable strategies to help nonprofit research funders and stakeholders navigate uncertainty, strengthen talent pipelines, and sustain long-term impact in a rapidly changing research environment.
Please note: this webinar will not be recorded.
Click here for more information and the registration link.
Kind regards,
MelissaMelissa Lena | Operations ManagerHealth Research Allianceshe/her/hersMay 7, 2026 at 9:24 am in reply to: Webinar – Science Without the Wait: A Preprint Primer – May 14th, 2-3pm ET #16628Melissa LenaKeymasterReminder: Please register for next week’s Open Science Learning Community webinar
————————————-
Hello, HRA Members,
The Open Science Learning Community will be hosting a webinar titled Science Without the Wait: A Preprint Primer for the Open Science Community on Thursday, May 14th from 2pm-3pm ET.
Preprints are changing the pace and culture of scientific communication. But what exactly are they, who’s using them, and what do good policies for them look like? This webinar brings together three expert perspectives — from ASAPbio, OpenRxiv, and Creative Commons — to give Health Research Alliance members a grounded, engaging discussion on preprints and their evolving policy landscape. Come to learn. Stay to ask anything. This is sure to be an engaging discussion!
Click here for more information and the registration link.
Kind regards,
MelissaMelissa Lena | Operations ManagerHealth Research Allianceshe/her/hers -
-
AuthorPosts