Funding Opportunities

National Victimization Statistical Support Program

Deadline: June 3, 2011

The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) seeks an agent to implement the National Victimization Statistical Support Program (NVSSP) project. The NVSSP is designed to provide scientific and technical support for statistical and methodological research, statistical analyses, documentation, and dissemination in support of BJS's efforts related to the redesign of its National Criminal Victimization Survey (NCVS); enhance BJS's statistical reporting program from the NCVS and other federal data on criminal victimization; and supports BJS efforts to use the NCVS to inform its future decisions about the design and content of its victimization statistics program. Through this project, BJS seeks to expand its capacity to conduct analyses of the NCVS and other criminal victimization data and create technical documentation related to the survey's collection process as a means of increasing the breadth of substantive issues that it addresses with the NCVS, both in the short-run and longer-term. Click here for more information.

Children's Cancer Research Fund Invites Applications for Clinical Pediatric Research Grants
Deadline: June 17, 2011
(From the Philanthropy News Digest)
The Los Angeles-based Children's Cancer Research Fund was established in 1987 to provide support on a national level for clinical research in the field of childhood cancer. The fund's annual research grant program is focused on the diagnosis, treatment, and side effects of therapy of childhood cancer. The purpose of the grant program is to support investigators at the postdoctoral level (M.D. or Ph.D.) working on innovative pilot clinical studies that have the potential to develop new insights into clinical aspects of childhood cancer. Applications by senior fellows and junior faculty investigators are particularly encouraged. Applications from well-funded senior investigators will not be considered. Click here for more information.

NIMHD Health Disparities Research (R01)
Deadline: June 14, 2011
The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to solicit innovative research that can directly and demonstrably contribute to the elimination of health disparities. Research aims may include, but are not limited to, biological mechanisms; behavioral strategies; lifestyle factors; environmental, structural, and economic factors; cultural and family influences; delivery system interventions; medical procedures and regimens (including alternative therapy), and medical assistive devices and health information technologies. Projects may involve primary data collection or secondary analysis of existing datasets. Click here for more information.

Therapeutic Effects of Horses on Humans
Deadline: May 15, 2011
(From the Philanthropy News Digest)
The Horses and Humans Research Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to facilitating universal understanding and appreciation of the significant influence of horses on humans, is accepting grant proposals for research into the therapeutic effects of horses on humans. The foundation's broad research agenda includes basic research as well as clinical studies that ultimately impact the physical and mental health and quality of life for people with disabilities who are involved with equine-assisted activities/therapies. Click here for more information.

Early Career Work and Family Scholars Program
Deadline: July 31, 2011
The new Work and Family Researchers Network is seeking applicants for its 2011-2012 Early Career Work and Family Scholars program.  The goal of the Early Career Work and Family Scholars program is to provide supports for recent doctoral recipients and facilitate their teaching and research scholarship.   By offering resources and consultation, the program is designed to help promising young scholars move into tenured appointments and secure senior level positions, as well as connect them to the work-family community of scholars.  To date, 30 scholars in their early career stages have benefited from resources provided through this program sponsored by the former Sloan Network.  The Work and Family Researchers Network will provide 15 new awards in 2011-2012, and will later recruit an additional 15 scholars to participate in 2013-2014. Click here for more information.

AGESW Gerontological Pre-Dissertation Initiative
Deadline: May 1, 2011
The Association for Gerontology Education in Social Work (AGESW) is pleased to invite applications for the second cohort of the AGESW Gerontological Pre-Dissertation Initiative. Ten doctoral students who have completed at least the first year of doctoral studies will be selected. The goal of this program is to support dissertation and career development in gerontological social work research and education. Recipients will receive more than ten hours of programming delivered by nationally recognized experts in gerontological social work research and teaching designed to prepare participants for an academic career in gerontological social work. The program will be delivered at the 2011 Gerontological Society of America (GSA) conference in Boston, Massachusetts from November 18-22, 2011. Awardees will be selected by the AGESW Pre-Dissertation Advisory Council.  Applicants should submit their completed application as one pdf file and email it to Joyce McDaniel. Visit the website for application.

Publication Addresses Children's Exposure to Violence

The U.S. Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services have jointly released "Evidence-Based Practices for Children Exposed to Violence: A Selection from Federal Databases." This publication summarizes findings from federal reviews of research studies and program evaluations to help communities improve outcomes for children exposed to violence. Click here for the full report.

Second Chance Homes Finds Promising Practices and Calls for Rigorous Evaluation

(From Child Trends)
Parenting at any age is challenging, but teen mothers face additional hurdles - poverty, limited education, unstable living arrangements - that place them and their children at risk of poor outcomes.  For example, teen mothers are less likely to finish high school, and their children, on average, are less likely to complete high school, and have poorer health ratings than do children born to older mothers. Child Trends examined Second Chance Homes, an approach that offers shelter and services for adolescent mothers and their children, including parenting support and educational and vocational assistance. This review, Second Chance Homes: A Resource for Teen Mothers, describes this model, including its diverse private and public funding mix, and highlights some positive aspects for participants and their children.  The review also notes the lack of rigorous evaluations of the program to date and argues that such evaluations could help build the evidence base for the practices and programs that seem to be working in the Second Chance Homes program. Click here for the full report.

Annual Health Check-Up Highlights Healthiest and Least Healthy Counties in Every State
(From Rural Assistance Center Health Update)
The University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute has released the County Health Rankings that allows people in more than 3,000 counties and the District of Columbia to compare the overall health of their counties against other counties in their state, and also compare their performance on specific health factors against national benchmarks of top-performing counties. Click here for more information.