Scaling Up Evidence-Based Services to Promote Competitive Integrated Employment Among People with Disabilities | HHS 2023 ACL NIDILRR DPEM 0001

Opportunity Information: Apply for HHS 2023 ACL NIDILRR DPEM 0001

This funding opportunity, titled "Scaling Up Evidence-Based Services to Promote Competitive Integrated Employment Among People with Disabilities" (Funding Opportunity Number HHS 2023 ACL NIDILRR DPEM 0001; CFDA 93.433), is a discretionary research grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living (ACL), through NIDILRR. It sits within the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category and is structured as a Disability and Rehabilitation Research Project (DRRP). The overall intent of DRRPs under the Rehabilitation Act is to strengthen the effectiveness of rehabilitation-related services by producing new knowledge and developing better methods, procedures, and technologies that improve real-life outcomes for people with disabilities, including health and function, community living, and especially employment. A key emphasis throughout is improving outcomes for people with disabilities who have the greatest support needs, meaning the project should not only demonstrate benefits in ideal conditions but also be relevant for individuals who often face the biggest barriers to successful employment.

Under this specific DRRP priority, the funded organization is expected to conduct research that expands and solidifies the evidence base for an employment service or intervention that helps people with disabilities obtain and keep competitive integrated employment. Competitive integrated employment generally refers to regular jobs in typical workplaces where people with disabilities work alongside non-disabled coworkers, are paid at competitive wages, and have similar opportunities for advancement and workplace inclusion. The grant is not meant to invent a brand-new intervention from scratch; instead, it requires the applicant to select an existing employment service or intervention that already has some credible evidence showing it works (evidence of efficacy). The research must then take the next step by either strengthening the evidence through more rigorous evaluation, replication, or broader testing, or by bringing the intervention to scale in real-world conditions. In practice, that "scaling up" focus signals that NIDILRR is looking for research that addresses implementation in routine service settings, such as how to deliver the intervention consistently, how to support adoption by agencies and employers, how it performs across different communities, and what it takes for the approach to remain effective when expanded beyond a small pilot.

NIDILRR planned to make a single award under this opportunity in FY 2023, which makes the competition particularly selective and suggests they are seeking a strong, well-justified project with a clear pathway to meaningful impact. The award ceiling is $900,000, and the project period is 60 months, divided into five 12-month budget periods. That five-year runway is designed to support work that typically takes time to do well, such as partnering with service systems, recruiting and following participants, collecting outcome data, evaluating fidelity and implementation quality, refining training and technical assistance materials, and producing findings that can guide policy and practice. Applications were due June 26, 2023, with electronic submissions required by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the deadline date, and the opportunity was originally posted on April 26, 2023.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of organizations that can realistically carry out applied research and systems-facing evaluation work. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; special district governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education, where specified); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other entities as described in the opportunity's additional eligibility information. Taken together, this list signals that NIDILRR is open to proposals led by universities, public agencies, nonprofits, and private-sector partners, which fits the real-world scaling emphasis where interventions often require collaboration among researchers, service providers, employers, workforce systems, and disability community stakeholders.

In short, this grant opportunity is aimed at moving beyond "we think this works" toward "we know this works at scale, in typical service settings, for people with significant support needs." The expectation is a research-driven effort that tests and strengthens an already-promising employment intervention, generates practical evidence about effectiveness and implementation, and helps position the intervention for broader adoption so more people with disabilities can access competitive integrated jobs.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Scaling Up Evidence-Based Services to Promote Competitive Integrated Employment Among People with Disabilities" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.433.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 26, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 26, 2023 Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 1159 p.m., ET, on the listed application due date.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $900,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for HHS 2023 ACL NIDILRR DPEM 0001

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