CFF LEAPP-ACE CF Fellowship (Advanced Practice Providers)

CFF LEAPP-ACE CF Fellowship

Supports fellowship pathways for cystic fibrosis researchers advancing translational patient-focused studies.

⚠ This may reflect a past cycle — verify the current call on the funder's site.

The LEAPP-ACE CF Fellowship — Leveraging Engagement of Advanced Practice Providers to Achieve Clinical Excellence — is a Cystic Fibrosis Foundation program that funds Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants building specialized expertise in pediatric or adult CF care. The award provides up to $61,280 in Year 1 and up to $14,820 in Year 2, plus a 12% indirect cost allowance, across an 18-month fellowship period. The most recent application deadline was June 17, 2026; future cycles are expected annually. Applications are submitted through awards.cff.org, and the program is administered by the Foundation's Grants and Contracts Management and Administration office.

LEAPP-ACE is specifically designed for Advanced Practice Providers — Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants — at U.S. accredited academic medical centers or CF care programs. MD/DO physicians are not eligible for this mechanism and should instead apply to the Clinical Fellowship Awards. For-profit institutions are ineligible. The 12% indirect cost allowance distinguishes LEAPP-ACE from the Foundation's physician fellowship tracks, which carry no indirect costs. Eligible candidates must be working within a CF care team and pursuing structured clinical education under the supervision of an experienced CF physician mentor.

The program responds to a recognized workforce need: CF care centers increasingly depend on APPs to manage complex, multi-system patient loads alongside physicians, and specialized CF training for NPs and PAs is limited outside of this fellowship. Competitive applicants will document clear mentorship arrangements, access to a sufficient CF patient population in both pediatric and adult care settings, and a defined curriculum covering CFTR biology, modulator management, pulmonary complications, GI and nutritional issues, and psychosocial care. Review is conducted by the Physician-Scientist Training Programs Committee; notifications follow within four to eight months of the deadline.