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National Advisory Neurological Disorders and Stroke council (NANDSC)


Table of Contents

What is the Advisory Council?

Each type of  of the National Institutes of Health maintains a national advisory council which has two general functions: (1) to advise the Institute on policy and procedures affecting the extramural research programs and (2) to provide a second level of review for all grant and cooperative agreement applications considered by the Institute for funding. Except for fellowships, the NINDS may not award a grant unless it has been recommended for support by the National Advisory Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NANDS) Council.

The NANDS Council meets regularly three times a year: in early February, late May, and mid-September. Each meeting of the NANDS Council is about one and one half days long. A portion of this meeting is open to the public and the remainder is a closed confidential session devoted primarily to the review of applications.

In addition to application review, the NINDS Director utilizes the expertise and experience of NANDS Council members for activities such as the following:

  • Program planning
  • Concept clearance for NINDS initiatives
  • Review of Board of Scientific Counselor reports on intramural research programs
  • Review of objectives, priorities and accomplishments of the Institute's extramural program

Schedule of Upcoming Meetings

Meeting Dates Location
February 16-17, 2012* NIH, Building 31, Conference Room 10
May 24-25, 2012 NIH, Building 31, Conference Room 10
September 20-21, 2012 NIH, Building 31, Conference Room 6
January 31-February 1, 2013 NIH, Building 31, Conference Room 6
May 23-24, 2013 NIH, Building 31, Conference Room 10
September 12-13, 2013 NIH, Building 45, Conference Room E1/E2

* New Date as of 6/6/2011

Meeting Agendas

February 16-17, 2012
September 15-16, 2011
May 26-27, 2011
February 3-4, 2011
September 23, 2010
May 27, 2010
February 4-5, 2010
September 17 - 18, 2009
May 28-29, 2009
February 5-6, 2009
September 18-19, 2008
May 29-30, 2008
February 7-8, 2008
September 20-21, 2007
May 24-25, 2007
February 15-16, 2007
September 14-15, 2006
May 25-26, 2006
February 9-10, 2006

Minutes from Previous Meetings

September 15-16, 2011
May 26-27, 2011
February 3-4, 2011
September 23, 2010
May 27, 2010
February 4, 2010
September, 2009
May 2009
February 2009
September 2008
May, 2008
February, 2008
September, 2007
May, 2007
February, 2007
September, 2006
May, 2006
February, 2006
September, 2005
May, 2005
February, 2005
September, 2004
May, 2004
February, 2004
September, 2003
May, 2003
February, 2003
September, 2002
May, 2002
February, 2002
October, 2001
May, 2001
February, 2001
September, 2000
May, 2000
February, 2000
September, 1999
May, 1999
February, 1999
September, 1998
May, 1998
February, 1998

NANDSC Membership Roster

Ben A. Barres, M.D., Ph.D. (2015)
Professor and Chair, Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University School of Medicine

Thomas G. Brott, M.D. (2013)
Professor of Neurology, Mayo Clinic
James C. and Sarah K. Kennedy Dean for Research, Mayo Clinic in Florida

Emery N. Brown, M.D., Ph.D. (2012)
Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and Professor of Computational Neuroscience
Massachusetts Institute of Technology;
Warren M. Zapol Professor of Anaesthesia, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School

Robert B. Darnell, M.D., Ph.D. (2014)
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Robert and Harriet Heilbrunn Professor of Cancer Biology and Senior Physician
The Rockefeller University

Donna M. Ferriero, M.D. (2013)
Professor, Departments of Neurology and Pediatrics
University of California, San Francisco

Robert M. Friedlander, M.D. (2012)
Chairman, Department of Neurosurgery
University of Pittsburgh

David D. Ginty, Ph.D. (2015)
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Professor, Johns Hopkins University School

Paul Gross (2015)
Chairman of the Board, Hydrocephalus Association

Sharon E. Hesterlee, Ph.D. (2014)
Senior Director Research and Advocacy
Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy

David M. Holtzman, M.D. (2015)
Andrew B. and Gretchen P. Jones Professor and Chair,
Department of Neurology, Washington University School of Medicine

Katie Hood, M.B.A. (2012)
Chief Executive Officer, The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research

Geoffrey S. F., Ling M.D., Ph.D.
Ex Officio Member, Director, Division of Critical Care, Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, USUHS

Eve E. Marder, Ph.D. (2014)
Victor and Gwendolyn Beinfield Professor of Neuroscience
Head, Division of Science
Brandeis University

Kevin St. P. McNaught, Ph.D. (2015)
Vice President for Medical and Scientific Programs,
Tourette Syndrome Association

Robert E. Pacifici, Ph.D. (2014)
Chief Scientific Officer, Drug Discovery and Development
CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation

Louis J. Ptácek, M.D. (2012)
Director, Division of Neurogenetics
John C. Coleman Distinguished Professorship in Neurodegenerative Diseases
Professor, Department of Neurology
University of California, San Francisco

Robert L. Ruff, M.D., Ph.D.
Ex Officio Member, Acting Director, Rehabilitation R&D Service, Veterans Affairs Central Office

Amita Sehgal, Ph.D. (2014)
John Herr Musser Professor of Neuroscience
Co-Director, Comprehensive Neuroscience Center
University of Pennsylvania Medical School

Barbara G. Vickrey, M.D., M.P.H. (2013)
Professor and Vice Chair, Department of Neurology
University of California, Los Angeles

Kimberly S. Zellmer, J.D. (2013)
Attorney, Zellmer Law Firm, LLC
1st, Vice President, Batten Disease and Support Association

Council General Recommendations

The Institute staff may take the following actions without Council review. Council may request information on these actions at any time.

  1. Transfer of Research Grant for Investigator Who Moves to a New Institution

    Make research grant awards equal to the anticipated direct cost committed support for continuing work under the same principal investigator when he or she moves from one institution to another. Approval will not be automatic; NINDS staff may consult with the appropriate study section or Council as necessary.

  2. Approval of New Principal Investigator or Program Director

    Approve a new or interim principal investigator or program director to continue an active grant.

  3. Extension of Project Period Dates

    Take necessary action on extensions of project period end dates without additional funds.

  4. Authority to Restore Year(s)

    Make awards that appropriately restore years deleted by an initial review group.

  5. Scientific Review and Evaluation Awards

    Take final action in awarding supplements to the chairpersons of the NINDS research and training review committees in an amount necessary to carry out the functions of the committees.

The Institute may take the following actions without Council review, but will document actions and present them to Council annually for its information.

  1. Awards for Orderly Termination or Interim Support

    Make appropriate awards for orderly termination or interim support of competing continuation applications that were either not recommended for further consideration (NRFC) or recommended with a priority score too poor for payment. This procedure is to be used in those cases where sudden termination of the grant would cause a serious loss of scientific material or impose a hardship to already employed personnel. In such cases, (1) the award usually should be for a period of less than twelve months, (2) careful review should be given to the need for salaries and consumable supplies, (3) usually no funds should be provided for additional equipment or travel, and (4) in the case of training grants, stipend support should be provided for completion of training for those trainees already appointed.

  2. Awards for Interim Period Due to a Deferral

    Make an award for an appropriate amount and period of time when a recommendation of deferral on a competing continuation application results in a loss of continuity of the active research or training program.

  3. Authority to Increase Grant Award Ceilings

    Make supplemental awards or adjustments when additional funds are necessary above the amount previously recommended to carry out the scientific, administrative and fiscal intent of the grant as previously awarded, with the following limitations.

    1. Council approval is not required for supplements under the NIH programs to promote reentry into biomedical and behavioral research careers and to increase involvement in biomedical research of underrepresented minorities and individuals with disabilities.
    2. Supplements up to $50,000 direct costs per year may be made to research grants, career awards, cooperative agreements, and training grants.
    3. Supplements up to $100,000 direct costs per year may be made to program projects, center grants, and grants of $1 million or more direct costs per year (e.g., large clinical trials, large-scale epidemiological studies).
  4. Authority to Obtain Expedited Council Approval and Issue Expedited Awards

    NINDS may obtain expedited council approval in order to allow issuance of awards, where possible, in advance of the formal council meeting. Applications eligible for expedited council review include research project grants (R01s, R03s, R15s, and R21s), research program projects and specialized center grants (P01s, P20s, P30s, and P50s), and cooperative agreements (U01s and U54s) from domestic institutions that fall within the approved payline. (Applications that must be considered by the full Council are ineligible for this expedited process, including clinical trials and other applications that exceed $1,000,000 direct costs per year, applications in response to an RFA, applications in response to a PAS beyond the payline, applications with a human subjects or animal welfare concern, and applications from foreign institutions.) Approximately eight weeks before the council meeting, eligible applications for which percentiles are available will be brought to the attention of a subset of Council members. With the approval of these Council members, NINDS may issue expedited awards for those applications for which all administrative requirements have been satisfactorily met.

Last updated January 31, 2012