Marie Cowan Promising Early Career Investigator Award

Applications open in the Council Awards System (ProposalCentral) on April 9, 2025.

To qualify for this award, you must meet the following deadlines:

• June 1, 2025 – Deadline to have an active AHA professional membership.
• June 6, 2025, 6 p.m. (CDT) – Deadline to apply for this award in the Council Awards Application System.

• The candidate must be a cardiovascular nurse
• The candidate must be a member of the Council of Cardiovascular and Stroke Nursing (CVSN) at the time of nomination.

• The candidate must be the first author of the submitted article.
• The article must be scientifically sound, timely, original, and feature a robust research design, clearly aligning with the goals of the American Heart Association and the Council on Cardiovascular and Stroke Nursing. It should be a reprint of a published, data-based, peer-reviewed article or, if unavailable, an indexed, peer-reviewed, and publicly available article.
• Candidates may be self-nominated or nominated by others.
• An Article of the Year award winner cannot reapply for an article of the year award for at least 2 years.
• An applicant may submit one paper for one article of the year award each year.

Applicants will be judged on the following criteria:

• Evidence of excellence in biobehavioral/physiologic cardiovascular nursing research.
• Evaluation of a published, data-based, peer-reviewed article or, if not available, an article that is indexed, peer reviewed, and publicly available. The article should be focused on biobehavioral/physiologic cardiovascular nursing research.
• Two required letters of nomination that outline the current and projected contributions of the applicant to biobehavioral/physiologic cardiovascular nursing research and that provide evidence that the applicant is embarking on a sustained program of productive research.

Visit the Council Awards Application System to complete an application.

A username and password previously set up through online registration at Professional Heart Daily (PHD) will be necessary to access the Application System. AHA Professional Members who are creating an online profile for the first time should make sure to register using their AHA membership identification numbers.

An active AHA Professional Membership is required of all applicants for this award. If you are joining the AHA to apply, please wait for your AHA member number to arrive from AHA Member Services via e-mail before creating an online profile and starting your application file. We suggest that new members join the AHA no later than one week prior to the application submission deadline for the member ID number to be processed and delivered in time for the application deadline. The membership number will be required on the award application form.

1. Click the link for the Council Awards Application System.
2. Sign in with your Professional Heart Daily username and password.
3. Follow these instructions to set up your profile in ProposalCentral. Setting up your ProposalCentral profile will only need to be done the first time you login to apply for an American Heart Association Council Awards. Please note that the grant maker named American Heart Association is for AHA Research Awards and is a separate log in.
4. To apply for award, follow these steps:
   • Create New Proposal: Start by selecting "Create New Proposal."
   • Filter by Grant Maker: Choose "American Heart Association Council Awards."
   • Select Program: From the Programs list, select "Scientific Sessions Cardiovascular Nursing Awards"
   • Apply Now: Click the "Apply Now" button.
   • Choose Award: Within the application, select the award.

For more detailed information on ProposalCentral, also included are additional materials on specific ProposalCentral functionality.

• How to Create an Application in ProposalCentral (PDF)
• How to Register a ProposalCentral User (PDF)
• How To Add Publications in ProposalCentral (PDF)

The winner will receive:

• $500 honorarium
• Complimentary registration to Scientific Sessions
• Complimentary council dinner ticket, and recognition and presentation of a plaque at the council dinner