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Glenn Foundation For Medical Research Inc

Annual Giving
$11.1M
Grant Range
$80K - $0.6M
Decision Time
5mo

Glenn Foundation For Medical Research Inc

Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: $11,085,664 (FY 2024)
  • Total Assets: $180,933,206
  • Success Rate: Not publicly disclosed
  • Decision Time: 4-6 months (varies by program)
  • Grant Range: $80,000 - $555,000 per award
  • Geographic Focus: United States (U.S.-based institutions only)

Contact Details

Official Website: https://glennfoundation.org

Program Administration (AFAR): grants@afar.org

Foundation Address: PO Box 2690, Edmond, OK 73083-2690

Telephone: 405-348-8987

Overview

The Glenn Foundation For Medical Research Inc was founded by Paul F. Glenn in 1965 with a singular mission: to extend the healthy years of life through research on mechanisms of biology that govern normal human aging and its related physiological decline, with the objective of translating research into interventions that will extend healthspan with lifespan. Originally established in New York and later reincorporated in Arizona in 1992, the foundation now operates from Oklahoma with assets exceeding $180 million and distributes approximately $11 million annually in charitable grants. The foundation primarily carries out its mission through the Paul F. Glenn Centers for the Biology of Aging Research (a consortium of seven distinguished research universities), Glenn Awards for Research in the Biological Mechanisms of Aging, and various grant programs administered in partnership with the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR). The foundation is a member of the Health Research Alliance and maintains a strategic focus on supporting early-career investigators and pioneering aging research across U.S. academic institutions.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

1. Glenn Foundation Discovery Award

  • Amount: $555,000 over three years ($185,000 annually, maximum 8% indirect costs)
  • Number: Up to 2 awards per cycle
  • Application: Letter of Intent deadline February 18, 2026; rolling acceptance of full applications from invited candidates
  • Target: Established investigators with R01-level funding whose expertise can advance aging biology, including those new to the field

2. GFMR Grants for Junior Faculty

  • Amount: Up to $160,000 over 1-2 years (maximum 8% indirect costs)
  • Number: Approximately 10 grants awarded annually
  • Application: Letter of Intent deadline December 15, 2025; rolling basis for invited full applications
  • Target: Early-career faculty (MDs and PhDs) within 10 years of postdoctoral training start

3. GFMR Postdoctoral Fellowships in Aging Research

  • Amount: $80,000 for one year (minimum $62,652 for salary)
  • Number: Up to 12 fellowships awarded annually
  • Application: Letter of Intent deadline January 27, 2026; rolling basis for invited full applications
  • Target: Postdoctoral fellows at all levels conducting basic aging or translational research

4. Glenn Center Awards

  • Amount: $4,000,000 over 4-5.5 years
  • Target: Major research universities establishing comprehensive aging research centers
  • Application: Invitation only; no public application process

5. Glenn Awards

  • Status: Suspended since 2019, intended to resume in the future
  • Nature: Unsolicited funds to researchers investigating biology of aging, selected by anonymous scientific advisory committee

Priority Areas

The Glenn Foundation focuses exclusively on the basic mechanisms of aging and healthspan extension, supporting research that:

  • Investigates biological mechanisms governing normal human aging and physiological decline
  • Explores translational findings with direct benefits to human aging and healthspan
  • Advances understanding of how basic aging processes may lead to age-related conditions
  • Pursues pioneering discoveries rather than incremental advances
  • Welcomes interdisciplinary approaches from researchers whose expertise applies to aging biology, even if they haven't previously worked in the field

What They Don't Fund

  • Disease-specific research unless explicitly approached from the perspective of basic aging processes
  • Projects characterizing aging as a disease rather than a biological process
  • Research at for-profit institutions
  • International institutions (non-U.S. based)
  • Alzheimer's disease-specific research (explicitly excluded from Junior Faculty program)
  • Research by investigators affiliated with Paul F. Glenn Centers (for postdoctoral fellowships)
  • Applications from senior faculty beyond eligibility criteria
  • Projects requiring more than 8% indirect/overhead costs

Governance and Leadership

Executive Leadership

  • Paul F. Glenn - Founder (served on Advisory Council of National Institute on Aging; founding member of American Aging Association, AFAR, and Buck Institute for Research on Aging Board)
  • K. Leonard Judson - Chief Executive Officer
  • Mark R. Collins - President
  • Kevin Lee, Ph.D. - Senior Scientific & Programmatic Advisor

Scientific Advisory Board

  • Dena Dubal, M.D., Ph.D. - University of California San Francisco
  • Malene Hansen, Ph.D. - Buck Institute for Research on Aging
  • Heinrich (Henri) Jasper, Ph.D. - Genentech, Inc.
  • Randy Schekman, Ph.D. - University of California Berkeley
  • Meng Wang, Ph.D. - Howard Hughes Medical Institute / Janelia Research Campus

Glenn Centers Consortium

The foundation supports seven distinguished research universities:

  • Stanford University School of Medicine
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • Princeton University
  • Albert Einstein College of Medicine
  • University of Michigan
  • Harvard University
  • Salk Institute

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

All Glenn Foundation grant programs are administered through AFAR (American Federation for Aging Research) and follow a two-stage application process:

Stage 1: Letter of Intent (LOI)

  • Required for all programs
  • Submitted online through AFAR portal
  • Requires Institutional Commitment Form submitted via email to afarapplication@afar.org
  • Must include all figures/graphs as instructed
  • Strict deadlines with no extensions

Stage 2: Full Application (by invitation only)

  • Only LOI applicants selected for advancement receive invitation
  • Detailed research proposal and supporting documents required
  • Original signatures required
  • Late submissions not accepted

Application Portals:

Decision Timeline

Discovery Award:

  • LOI Deadline: February 18, 2026
  • LOI Review Results: Early May 2026
  • Full Application Due: Mid-June 2026
  • Award Start: July 1, 2026
  • Total Timeline: ~4.5 months from LOI to decision

Junior Faculty Grants:

  • LOI Deadline: December 15, 2025
  • LOI Review Results: Mid-March 2026
  • Full Application Due: Late April 2026
  • Award Announcement: Mid-June 2026
  • Total Timeline: ~6 months from LOI to decision

Postdoctoral Fellowships:

  • LOI Deadline: January 27, 2026
  • LOI Review Results: Early April 2026
  • Full Application Due: Late May 2026
  • Award Announcements: Late June 2026
  • Award Start: July 1, 2026
  • Total Timeline: ~5 months from LOI to decision

Notification Methods: Email notification to applicants; public announcements through AFAR press releases

Success Rates

Specific success rates are not publicly disclosed. However, the foundation awards:

  • 2 Discovery Awards per cycle (from undisclosed applicant pool)
  • Approximately 10 Junior Faculty grants per cycle
  • Up to 12 Postdoctoral Fellowships per cycle

The foundation distributed $11,085,664 in total charitable disbursements in FY 2024, supporting approximately $2.25 million annually through the three main AFAR-administered programs.

Reapplication Policy

Postdoctoral Fellowships: Former GFMR postdoctoral fellowship awardees are not eligible to reapply for the standard fellowship but may be eligible for Continuation Awards if they remain in postdoctoral positions.

Discovery Award: Former AFAR Research Grant for Junior Faculty awardees may apply; however, former Glenn Foundation Breakthrough in Gerontology (BIG) awardees may NOT apply.

General Policy: AFAR does not provide reviewer critiques to applicants at any review level. The foundation does not explicitly prohibit unsuccessful applicants from reapplying in subsequent cycles, but no public guidance is available on waiting periods or application improvements. For specific reapplication questions, contact grants@afar.org.

Application Success Factors

Review Criteria (Directly from Foundation Guidelines)

Applications are evaluated on:

  1. Qualifications and research record of the applicant - Strong independent publication record beyond postdoctoral level required
  2. Quality, creativity, promise and feasibility of proposed research leading to improved understanding of basic aging processes
  3. Translational potential and relevance to human aging and healthspan
  4. Excellence of the research environment
  5. For early-career awards: Likelihood of advancing the applicant's aging research career

Program-Specific Guidance

Discovery Award explicitly states it "does not substitute for the R01 funding mechanism, but supports new, rather than incremental, research projects in established laboratories." The foundation seeks "principal investigators who may not have previously worked in the area of aging, but whose research and expertise are applicable to understanding the biological mechanisms of normal aging."

Postdoctoral Fellowship applicants should "describe the overall project but indicate the scope of the work that is being proposed for the year to be funded by a Fellowship if awarded."

Recent Funded Projects (Examples from 2024 Awardees)

  • Aidan Gilchrist, PhD (Junior Faculty): Microenvironmental regulation of metabolism in hematopoietic stem cell aging
  • Longhua Guo, PhD (Junior Faculty): Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of extreme longevity and global tissue rejuvenation
  • Changyang Linghu, PhD (Junior Faculty): Spatiotemporally scalable recording of single-cell gene expression histories across aging brain
  • Ya-Chieh Hsu, PhD (Discovery Award, 2023): Research on biological aging mechanisms at Harvard University

Common Restrictions to Note

  • Applicants with more than 5 years of postdoctoral training must provide justification for extended training period
  • Fellows may not hold concurrent funding for the same research project
  • Deadlines are firm: "we do not give extensions on the deadline for ANY reason"
  • Only manuscripts already accepted for publication may be included
  • Institutional Commitment Forms must confirm dedicated research space and independent investigator status

Contact for Eligibility Questions

"Questions about eligibility and suitability of research project can be addressed to grants@afar.org"

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Focus on basic aging mechanisms, not diseases - The foundation explicitly prioritizes understanding fundamental biology of aging over disease-specific research; frame age-related disease projects from the perspective of underlying aging processes
  • Welcome interdisciplinary expertise - The Discovery Award actively seeks researchers new to aging biology; if you have relevant expertise from other fields, emphasize how it applies to aging mechanisms
  • Emphasize novelty over incrementalism - The foundation supports "new, rather than incremental" research; highlight pioneering discoveries and translational potential to extend healthspan
  • Plan for two-stage process with strict deadlines - LOIs are mandatory first steps with no extensions; late submissions are categorically rejected; build in time for institutional commitment forms
  • Leverage AFAR partnership - All programs administered through AFAR; contact grants@afar.org early with eligibility or project suitability questions rather than risking ineligible applications
  • Attend required conferences - Awardees must attend Glenn Foundation/AFAR Grantee Conferences in years 2-3; demonstrate commitment to the aging research community
  • Target appropriate career stage carefully - Junior Faculty grants require Assistant Professor rank or below with no major extramural funding; Discovery Awards require established R01-level funding; ensure you meet specific criteria before investing effort

References

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