What’s New in Federal Grants: Opportunities Supporting Native American Libraries, Community Programming, and More – Grants.gov Community Blog

Native American Library Services Enhancement Grant

• Institute of Museum and Library Services
• Current Closing Date for Applications: May 1, 2019 
• Native American Enhancement grants are competitive grants available to carry out activities, described in 20 U.S.C. 9141, that advance the programs and services of eligible Native American libraries

Burma Leadership Activity

• Agency for International Development, Burma USAID – Rangoon
• Current Closing Date for Applications: April 22, 2019
• The United States Agency for International Development (USAID/Burma) is seeking applications for a Cooperative Agreement from qualified US and non-US organizations to implement the Burma Leadership Activity in which USAID seeks to provide no more than $19 million in total USAID funding over a 5-year period. The Burma Leadership Activity is a scholarship program for promising young individuals in Burma to improve technical competencies and leadership. The scholarship program will also prepare participants to promote respect for ethnic and religious diversity

Planning Grants for Engineering Research Centers (ERC)

• National Science Foundation
• Current Closing Date for Applications: June 3, 2019
• The ERC program is placing greater emphasis on research that leads to societal impact, including convergent approaches, engaging stakeholder communities, and strengthening team formation, in response to the NASEM study recommendations. The ERC program intends to support planning activities leading to convergent research team formation and capacity-building within the engineering community

FY19 High Priority-Commercial Motor Vehicle Grant Program (HP-CMV)

• Department of Transportation, DOT/Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
• Current Closing Date for Applications: April 16, 2019
• The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announces the Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 High Priority-Commercial Motor Vehicle (HP-CMV) program Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to solicit applications from eligible entities to support the HP-CMV program activities. As the lead government agency responsible for the regulation and safety oversight of commercial motor vehicles (CMV), FMCSA may award HP-CMV funds to support innovative and impactful projects that advance its mission to reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities involving large trucks and buses. Funding is available for the support of enforcement projects that improve safety and compliance with FMCSA’s regulations for projects that are national in scope, increase public awareness and education, demonstrate new technologies, and reduce the number/rate of CMV crashes

Forecast: National Volunteer Care Corps

• Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living
• Estimated Application Due Date: June 7, 2019
• The Administration for Community Living/Administration on Aging (ACL/AoA) is making this competitive grant opportunity available to eligible entities for the purpose of testing and supporting models of local programming designed to place volunteers in communities to assist family caregivers and/or assists older adults and individuals with disabilities in maintaining independence by providing non-medical care.

What’s New in Federal Grants: Opportunities Supporting Space Science, Youth Mentoring, and More – Grants.gov Community Blog

ROSES 2018: Planetary Mission Concept Studies

• National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA Headquarters
• Current Closing Date for Applications: May 21, 2019
• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Science Mission Directorate (SMD) announces the release of its annual NASA Research Announcement (NRA), Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences (ROSES)– 2018. ROSES is an omnibus NRA, with many individual program elements, each with its own due dates and topics. All together these cover the wide range of basic and applied supporting research and technology in space and Earth sciences supported by SMD. Awards will be made as grants, cooperative agreements, contracts, and inter- or intra-agency transfers, depending on the nature of the work proposed, the proposing organization, and/or program requirements

OJJDP FY 19 Mentoring Opportunities for Youth Initiative

• Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention
• Current Closing Date for Applications: April 22, 2019
• The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) supports a wide range of mentoring initiatives aimed at preventing and reducing juvenile delinquency. This multi-category solicitation supports youth mentoring services (1:1, group or peer) provided by National and Multi-State mentoring organizations as well as mentoring for specific populations

OJJDP FY 19 Juvenile Justice Emergency Planning and Demonstration Program

• Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention
• Current Closing Date for Applications: April 22, 2019
• The purpose of the Juvenile Justice Emergency Planning Demonstration Program is to support implementation of the principles outlined in the Emergency Planning for Juvenile Justice Residential Facilities by developing, improving, and/or implementing emergency planning activities for state, tribal, county, and local juvenile justice residential facilities

Pilot Services Research Grants Not Involving Clinical Trials

• Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health
• Current Closing Date for Applications: January 7, 2022
• The purpose of this funding announcement is to encourage pilot research that is not an immediate precursor to testing a service intervention but is consistent with NIMH priorities for services research. While NIMH now requires use of an experimental therapeutics model for all intervention studies, there is recognition that some mission-relevant areas of services research do not involve clinical trials.

As announced in this guide notice, NIH now administers two programs using the R15 activity code. The Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA) targeting
undergraduate-focused institutions and the Research Enhancement Award Program
(REAP) targeting graduate schools of arts and
sciences and health professional schools that grant baccalaureate or advanced
degrees. Both programs aim to expose students to research and strengthen
the research environment of schools that have not been major recipients of NIH
support.

Specific organization and principal investigator eligibility requirements are outlined
in the funding opportunity announcements posted for each R15 program.
Institutions must verify their eligibility at the time of application, as NIH
no longer maintains the list of institutions ineligible for R15 grants.

To help you navigate these changes, please see the following
resources:

• Open Mike blog
• NIH Research Enhancement Award (R15) webpage
• Need Help Determining Organization Funding Levels for R15 Eligibility?
• Sample Provost Letters Certifying Eligibility
• R15 Frequently Asked Questions

In November, NIH announced the publication of new funding opportunities specifically for Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans (BESH) (see Open Mike Blog).

Need help determining if your research fits within the scope of a BESH funding opportunity announcement (FOA)? Check-out these new resources:

• New FAQs
• Table comparing Funding Opportunity Types by Clinical Trial Allowability
• Guidance for Determining if a Study Falls Within a BESH FOA

We have also updated our Clinical Trial Case Studies to include examples of Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans (see Cases #9, #14, #40, #41). Want to narrow down the list of Case Studies? Try the keyword filter to sort and view Case Studies by study type.

Note that participation in funding opportunities for Basic Experimental Studies with Humans will vary by NIH Institute and Center (IC). Many ICs will continue to accept Basic Experimental Studies with Humans through existing FOAs that accept clinical trials (FOAs designated as Clinical Trial Required or Clinical Trial Optional). It is important to check with a Program Officer to determine the most appropriate FOA for your application.

The FY19 Defense Appropriation provides $7.5 million (M) to the Department of Defense Autism Research Program (ARP) to provide support for research of exceptional scientific merit and innovation with high impact that focuses on autism spectrum disorders (ASD). As directed by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, the Defense Health Agency J9, Research and Development Directorate, manages the Defense Health Program Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation appropriation. The managing agent for the anticipated Program Announcements/Funding Opportunities is the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) at the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (USAMRMC).

The ARP is providing the information in this pre-announcement to allow investigators time to plan and develop applications.  FY19 ARP Program Announcements and General Application Instructions for the following award mechanisms are anticipated to be posted on the Grants.gov website in March 2019.  Pre-application and application deadlines will be available when the Program Announcements are released.  This pre-announcement should not be construed as an obligation by the government.

Clinical Trial Award

-Investigators at or above the level of Associate Professor (or equivalent), or

-Nested Early-Career Investigator Option: Investigators at or above the level of Associate Professor (or equivalent) may collaborate on a single application with a young investigator (at the level of postdoctoral fellow up to early-career independent faculty) who meets the following criteria at the application submission deadline date:

-Must be in a current postdoctoral training position or have completed postdoctoral training by the application deadline

-Is no more than 7 years from the receipt of a terminal degree

-Has the freedom to commit at least 50% time to the project

-Supports research with the potential to have a major impact on the treatment and/or management of ASD.

-Preliminary data relevant to the proposed clinical trial are required.

-Pre-application is required; application submission is by invitation only.

-Nested Early-Career Investigator Option: Supports the development of young investigators pursuing or wishing to pursue a career in ASD clinical trial research.

-Maximum funding of $1,000,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs)

-Maximum period of performance is 4 years

–Nested Early-Career Investigator Option:

-Maximum funding of $1,155,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs)

-Maximum period of performance is 4 years

Clinical Translational Research Award

-Investigators at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent)

-Supports early-phase, proof-of-principle clinical trials with the potential to have a major impact on the treatment and/or management of ASD.

-Preliminary data relevant to the proposed project are required.

-Pre-application is required; application submission is by invitation only.

-Maximum funding of $500,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs)

-Maximum period of performance is 3 years

Idea Development Award

-Investigators at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent), or

-Multiple PI Option: 
– Up to two investigators may collaborate on a single application, each of whom will be recognized as a Principal Investigator and receive a separate award. 

-Supports the development of innovative, high-impact ideas that advance the understanding of ASD and ultimately lead to improved outcomes.  Preliminary data relevant to the proposed project are required.

-Pre-application is required; application submission is by invitation only.

-Clinical trials or applications including a clinical trial aim are not allowed.

-Maximum funding of $500,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs)

-Maximum period of performance is 3 years

A pre-application is required and must be submitted through the electronic Biomedical Research Application Portal (eBRAP) at https://eBRAP.org prior to the pre-application deadline.  All applications must conform to the final Program Announcements and General Application Instructions that will be available for electronic downloading from the Grants.gov website.  The application package containing the required forms for each award mechanism will also be found on Grants.gov.  A listing of all CDMRP and other USAMRMC extramural funding opportunities can be obtained on the Grants.gov website by performing a basic search using CFDA Number 12.420. 

Submission deadlines are not available until the Program Announcements are released.  For email notification when Program Announcements are released, subscribe to program-specific news and updates under “Email Subscriptions” on the eBRAP homepage at https://eBRAP.org.  For more information about the ARP or other CDMRP-administered programs, please visit the CDMRP website (https://cdmrp.army.mil).