RFA-CE-25-021_20241105.pdf

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

NATIONAL CENTER FOR INJURY PREVENTION AND CONTROL

Research Grants for Preventing Violence and Violence Related Injury (R01)

RFA-CE-25-021

12/02/2024

Table of Contents Section I. Funding Opportunity Description

Section II. Award Information

Section III. Eligibility Information

Section IV. Application and Submission Information

Section V. Application Review Information

Section VI. Award Administration Information

Section VII. Agency Contacts

Section VIII. Other Information

Overview

Participating Organization(s) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Components of Participating Organizations Components of Participating Organizations:

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Title Research Grants for Preventing Violence and Violence Related Injury (R01) Activity Code

Notice of Funding Opportunity Type Reissue of RFA-CE-23-004 Agency Notice of Funding Opportunity Number

RFA-CE-25-021

Assistance Listings Number(s) 93.136 Category of Funding Activity HL - Health NOFO Purpose The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) is soliciting investigator-initiated research that will help expand and advance understanding of approaches to prevent community violence and to eliminate racial and ethnic inequities in risk for community violence. This initiative is intended to support effectiveness research to evaluate innovative programs, practices, or policies to address risk for violence and inequities in risk for violence among groups experiencing a high burden of community violence.

Innovative approaches are those that have not been rigorously evaluated for effectiveness in reducing community violence. Consistent with CDC’s commitment to achieving health equity, investigation of inequities in exposure to and uptake of the selected approaches, and/or stratified analyses examining the differential impacts of the approach across populations disproportionately impacted by violence is a priority.

Funds are available to conduct studies focused on preventing all forms of community violence involving youth or young adults (ages 10-34 years), including assaults, homicides, violence between groups, and threats/use of weapons.

Key Dates Publication Date:

To receive notification of any changes to RFA-CE-25-021, return to the synopsis page of this announcement at www.grants.gov and click on the "Send Me Change Notification Emails" link.

An email address is needed for this service.

Letter of Intent Due Date:

11/01/2024 11/01/2024

Application Due Date:

12/02/2024 12/02/2024

On-time submission requires that electronic applications be error-free and made available to CDC for processing from the NIH eRA system on or before the deadline date. Applications must be submitted to and validated successfully by Grants.gov no later than 11:59 PM U.S. Eastern Time.

Applicants will use a system or platform to submit their applications through Grants.gov and eRA Commons to CDC. ASSIST, an institutional system to system (S2S) solution, or Grants.gov Workspace are options. ASSIST is a commonly used platform because it provides a validation of all requirements prior to submission and prevents errors.

For more information on accessing or using ASSIST, you can refer to the ASSIST Online Help Site at: https://era.nih.gov/erahelp/assist. Additional support is available from the NIH eRA Service desk via http://grants.nih.gov/support/index.html.

• E-mail: commons@od.nih.gov

• Phone: 301-402-7469 or (toll-free) 1-866-504-9552

• Hours: Monday - Friday, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time, excluding Federal holidays

Note: HHS/CDC grant submission procedures do not provide a grace period beyond the application due date time to correct any error or warning notices of noncompliance with application instructions that are identified by Grants.gov or eRA systems (i.e., error correction window).

Scientific Merit Review:

03/24/2025 This date is an estimate.

https://www.grants.gov/ http://grants.nih.gov/support/index.html mailto:commons@od.nih.gov

Secondary Review:

05/05/2025 This date is an estimate.

Estimated Start Date:

09/30/2025 Expiration Date:

02/01/2025 Required Application Instructions It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide except where instructed to do otherwise in this NOFO. Conformance to all requirements (both in the Application Guide and the NOFO) is required and strictly enforced. Applicants must read and follow all application instructions in the Application Guide as well as any program-specific instructions noted in Section IV. When the program-specific instructions deviate from those in the Application Guide, follow the program-specific instructions.

Note:The Research Strategy component of the Research Plan is limited to 12 pages.

Page Limitations: Pages that exceed the page limits described in this NOFO will be removed and not forwarded for peer review, potentially affecting an application's score.

Applications that do not comply with these instructions may be delayed or may not be accepted for review.

Telecommunications for the Hearing Impaired: TTY 1-888-232-6348

Executive Summary The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and NCIPC are committed to achieving the health promotion and disease prevention objectives of "Healthy People 2030" and to measuring program performance as stipulated by the Government Performance and Results Act

(GPRA).

The proposed program of research addresses the Healthy People 2030 priority area of injury and violence prevention. This is in alignment with NCIPC's performance goal to conduct a program of research to prevent injuries and violence, and to reduce their consequences.

The intent of the NCIPC extramural violence prevention research program is to:

• Build the scientific base for the prevention of violence by advancing our understanding of innovative prevention strategies.

• Encourage professionals from a wide spectrum of disciplines including epidemiology, behavioral and social sciences, medicine, biostatistics, public health, economics, urban planners, and others to conduct research that informs violence prevention efforts.

Purpose The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) is soliciting investigator-initiated research to support evaluation of innovative programs, practices, or policies to address risk for violence and inequities in risk for violence among groups experiencing a high burden of community violence. This effectiveness research https://grants.nih.gov/grants/how-to-apply-application-guide.html will help expand and advance understanding of approaches to prevent community violence and to eliminate racial and ethnic inequities in risk for community violence.

Innovative approaches are those that have not been rigorously evaluated for effectiveness in reducing community violence. Consistent with CDC’s commitment to achieving health equity, investigation of inequities in exposure to and uptake of the selected approaches and/or stratified analyses examining the differential impacts of the approach across populations disproportionately impacted by violence is a priority.

Funds are available to conduct studies focused on preventing all forms of community violence involving youth or young adults (ages 10-34 years), including assaults, homicides, violence between groups, and threats/use of weapons.

Mechanism of Support The funding mechanism for this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) will be a research grant (R-01).

Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards CDC/NCIPC intends to commit up to $3,200,000 in FY 2025 to fund up to eight (8) applications.

Awards issued under this NOFO are contingent upon availability of funds and a sufficient number of meritorious applications. Because the nature and scope of the proposed research will vary from application to application, it is also anticipated that the size and duration of each award may also vary. The total amount awarded and the number of awards will depend upon the number, quality, duration, and cost of the applications received.

Budget and Period of Performance

The maximum award amount will be $400,000 per award for the first 12-month budget period.

This includes both direct and indirect costs. An applicant may request a period performance of up to three years. The maximum total project funding amount is $1,200,000 (including both direct and indirect costs) over the expected period of performance, with a maximum of $400,000 per award per year. The period of performance for this award is expected to run from 9/30/2025 to 9/29/2028.

Application Research Strategy Length Page limits for the Research Strategy are clearly specified in Section IV. Application and Submission Information of this announcement.

Eligible Institutions/Organizations Institutions/organizations listed in Section III. Eligibility Information 1. Eligible Applicants are eligible to apply.

Eligible Project Directors/Principal Investigators (PDs/PIs) CDC does not make awards to individuals directly. Individuals with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research are invited to work with their institution/organization to develop an application for support. Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, as well as individuals with disabilities, are always encouraged to apply.

Applications in which the contact Eligible PD/PI meets NIH Early Stage Investigator (ESI) status, as verified via the NIH Determination of Investigator Status process, and whose application has a meritorious peer review score, may be considered for prioritization during the second level of review (see Section V. Application Review Information 4. Review and Selection Process). For the contact PD/PI Determination of Investigator Status:

• Prior to application submission, PD/PIs are encouraged to verify and/or enter the date of their terminal research degree or the end date of their post-graduate clinical training in their eRA Commons Profile to ensure the correct identification. NIH systems will automatically calculate the status of each investigator and display it within their eRA Commons personal profile. The ESI status of the PD/Pis on any R01 or R01 equivalent application will be flagged at time of submission. Investigators should make sure their status is correctly marked in their profile. If your status is incorrect, please contact the NIH eRA Service Desk.

Number of PDs/PIs An application may name more than one PD/PI; their names must appear on the face page of the application. However:

• One (1) principal investigator must be designated as the contact PD/PI for all correspondence related to the application.

• All PD/PIs must include their eRA Commons Identification in the Credential Field of the Senior/Key Person Profile Component of the SF-424 (R&R) Application Package.

• Institutions/organizations proposing multiple PDs/PIs must visit the Multiple Program Director/Principal Investigator Policy and submission details in the Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) Component of the SF-424 (R&R) Application Guide.

Number of Applications Eligible applicant organizations may submit more than one application to this NOFO, provided that each application is scientifically distinct. However, applicant institutions can submit only one application with the same contact PD/PI. Only one application per contact PD/PI will be funded under this announcement. If two or more applications from the same contact PD/PI are received for this NOFO, the only application that will be submitted for review will be the last application received based on the document’s time and date stamp in Grants.gov (https://www.grants.gov). The applicant must ensure that duplicate applications are withdrawn prior to the application review date.

Additionally, applicant institutions submitting applications with essentially the same proposed research to two or more CDC/ATSDR NOFOs will not be funded under more than one NOFO.

Applicant institutions submitting multiple applications with essentially the same proposed research to this announcement will not be funded more than once.

Application Type

NEW

https://grants.nih.gov/policy/early-investigators/index.htm https://grants.nih.gov/policy/early-investigators/index.htm#dis https://grants.nih.gov/support/index.html https://www.grants.gov

Special Date(s) A pre-application webinar call will be conducted on 10/08/0204 to address questions from prospective applicants regarding NOFO RFA-CE-24-021. The call will begin at 1:00pm Eastern Standard Time (EST) and end at 1:50pm Eastern Standard Time (EST), or sooner if all questions are addressed. Questions and answers from the discussion will be included in an amended NOFO approximately 3 weeks after the call.

Participant Access Information:

• Call Date: October 8, 2024

• Call Start Time: 1:00pm Eastern Standard Time (EST)

• Call End Time: 1:50pm Eastern Standard Time (EST)

• Call Leader: Tamara Crawford, Scientific Program Official

• Webinar Link:

https://cdc.zoomgov.com/j/1610803109?pwd=ME1PUUw4ZElFeWRFaGNHKzAyV2tB dz09

• Webinar ID: 161 080 3109

• Passcode: 6+!QCgQE

• Call-In Numbers:

o +1 646 828 7666 US (New York) o +1 646 964 1167 US (US Spanish Line) o +1 669 254 5252 US (San Jose) o +1 551 285 1373 US (New Jersey) o +1 415 449 4000 US (US Spanish Line) o +1 669 216 1590 US (San Jose)

• Dial- In Passcode: 44971123

Passcode: 44971123 Application Materials See Section IV.1 for application materials.

Hearing Impaired Telecommunications for the hearing impaired are available at: TTY: 1-888-232-6348.

Section I. Funding Opportunity Description

Statutory Authority Section 301 (a) [42 U.S.C. 241(a)] of the Public Health Service Act, and Section 391 (a) [42 U.S.C. 280 b (a)] of the Public Health Service Act, as amended.

1. Background and Purpose Community violence is a critical public health issue that has significant short- and long-term negative impacts on individuals of all ages, families, and communities. Community violence happens between unrelated people, who may or may not know each other, generally outside the home. Examples include assaults or fights among groups and shootings in public places, such as streets or parks.

https://cdc.zoomgov.com/j/1610803109?pwd=ME1PUUw4ZElFeWRFaGNHKzAyV2tBdz09 https://cdc.zoomgov.com/j/1610803109?pwd=ME1PUUw4ZElFeWRFaGNHKzAyV2tBdz09

Multiple data sources suggest that community violence increased in recent years. The overall homicide rate (30%) and the firearm homicide rate (35%) rose substantially between 2019 and

2020.1 The firearm homicide rate increased another 8% in 2021,2 and declined slightly in 2022, but there were still 5,000 more firearm homicides in 2022 than in 2019.3 These data raise significant concerns about high levels of community violence and the critical need for public health strategies to prevent it.

The impact of violence extends beyond deaths and many more people suffer nonfatal injuries due to violence. There are approximately 800,000 visits to U.S. emergency departments by young people ages 10-34 each year are for injuries resulting from violence.4 People hospitalized with violence-related injuries often experience long-term consequences, including physical disabilities and mental health conditions, including symptoms of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic-stress disorder (PTSD).5-8

Experiencing violence is also associated with increased risk of substance use and developing chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease.9,10 Living in a community experiencing violence may prevent people from engaging in healthy behaviors, such as walking, using parks and recreational spaces, and accessing healthy food outlets.11,12 Homicides in 2022 were estimated to result in more than $265 million in medical costs associated with the fatal event alone, and over $295 billion in combined costs taking into account the value of statistical life.4 This can limit community and business growth and prosperity; strain education, justice, and medical systems; and slow community progress impacting access to life opportunities for members of the community, including educational attainment and employment.

America’s youth are especially vulnerable to violence and are disproportionately impacted.

Violence is a leading cause of death and nonfatal injuries among adolescents and young adults – in 2021 people 15 to 34 years old had the highest rates of homicide.4 In 2021, 18% of youth attending high school in the U.S. reported being involved in a physical fight in the past 12 months, and 4% reported carrying a weapon on school property in the past 30 days.13 Youth can be victims, perpetrators, and/or witnesses of violence. People exposed to violence during childhood or youth, or to other adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), are at increased risk of having short-term and chronic physical and mental health conditions, substance use disorders, behavioral difficulties, and social consequences.9,10 It is important for violence prevention approaches to start early in childhood and to continue into young adulthood.

Violence occurs across the country and disproportionately affects some racial/ethnic groups and communities. For example, in 2022 among people ages 15-24 years, homicide rates were substantially higher among non-Hispanic Black (65.8/100,000), and Hispanic (11.8/100,000) people compared with rates among non-Hispanic White (3.2/100,000) and non-Hispanic Asian (1.6/100,000) people.3 Structural racism, including differential access to goods, services, and opportunities by race influenced by policies and institutional practices, is related to inequities in risk for community violence.14 Racial discrimination has a negative impact on mental and physical health15 and can influence social determinants of health, which are the conditions where people live, work, and play.16,17

References

1. Kegler SR, Simon TR, Zwald ML, et al. Vital Signs: Changes in firearm homicide and suicide rates — United States, 2019–2020. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2022;71:656–663. http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7119e1e.

2. Simon TR, Kegler SR, Zwald ML, et al. Notes from the Field: Increases in firearm homicide and suicide rates — United States, 2020–2021. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2022;71:1286–1287. http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7140a4

3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics.

National Vital Statistics System, Provisional Mortality on CDC WONDER Online Database. http://wonder.cdc.gov/mcd-icd10-provisional.html. Accessed on 2/8/2024.

4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Website. Accessed on 5/23/2024.

https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/fatal/index.html.

5. Herrera-Escobar JP, de Jager E, McCarty JC, et al. Patient-reported outcomes at 6 to 12 months among survivors of firearm injury in the United States. Ann Surg.

2021;274(6):e1247-e1251. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/SLA.0000000000003797

6. Vella MA, Warshauer A, Tortorello G, et al. Long-term functional, psychological, emotional, and social outcomes in survivors of firearm injuries. JAMA Surg.

2020;155(1):51-59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamasurg.2019.4533

7. Cunningham RM, Carter PM, Ranney M, et al. Violent reinjury and mortality among youth seeking emergency department care for assault-related injury: A 2-year prospective cohort study. JAMA Pediatr. 2015;169(1):63-70.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2014.1900

8. Miliauskas CR, Faus DP, da Cruz VL, do Nascimento Vallaperde JGR, Junger W, Lopes CS. Community violence and internalizing mental health symptoms in adolescents: A systematic review. BMC Psychiatry. 2022;22(1):253. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888- 022-03873-8

9. Gilbert LK, Breiding MJ, Merrick MT, et al. Childhood adversity and adult chronic disease: An update from ten states and the District of Columbia, 2010. Am J Prev Med.

2015;48(3):345-349. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2014.09.006

10. Merrick MT, Ford DC, Ports KA, et al. Vital Signs: Estimated proportion of adult health problems attributable to adverse childhood experiences and implications for prevention - 25 States, 2015-2017. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2019;68(44):999-1005.

http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6844e1

11. Payton Foh E, Brown RR, Denzongpa K, Echeverria S. Legacies of environmental injustice on neighborhood violence, poverty and active living in an African American community. Ethn Dis. 2021;31(3):425-432. http://dx.doi.org/10.18865/ed.31.3.425

12. Richardson AS, Troxel WM, Ghosh-Dastidar MB, et al. One size doesn't fit all: Cross-sectional associations between neighborhood walkability, crime and physical activity depends on age and sex of residents. BMC Public Health 2017;17(1):97.

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-016-3959-z

13. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 1991-2021 High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data. Available at https://nccd.cdc.gov/Youthonline/App/Default.aspx.

Accessed on 5/23/2024.

http://wonder.cdc.gov/mcd-icd10-provisional.html https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/fatal/index.html https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-022-03873-8 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-022-03873-8 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2014.09.006 http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6844e1 https://doi.org/10.18865%2Fed.31.3.425

14. Armstead TL, Wilkins N, Nation M. Structural and social determinants of inequities in violence risk: A review of indicators. J Community Psychol. 2021;49(4):878-906.

https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.22232

15. Cave L, Cooper MN, Zubrick SR, Shepherd CCJ. Racial discrimination and child and adolescent health in longitudinal studies: A systematic review. Soc Sci Med. 2020 Feb 27;

250:112864. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2020.112864

16. Bailey ZD, Krieger N, Agénor M, Graves J, Linos N, Bassett MT. Structural racism and health inequities in the USA: Evidence and interventions. The Lancet.

2017;389(10077):1453-1463. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)30569-X

17. Paradies Y, Ben J, Denson N, et al. Racism as a determinant of health: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One. 2015;10(9): e0138511.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0138511

Healthy People 2030 and other National Strategic Priorities This research addresses the "Healthy People 2030" focus areas of injury and violence prevention.

Specifically, this NOFO supports:

• Healthy People 2030 Injury and Violence Prevention (IVP) area: IVP-09 Reduce homicides, IVP-10 Reduce nonfatal physical assault injuries, IVP-11 Reduce physical fighting among adolescents, IVP-12 Reduce weapon carrying by adolescents, IVP-13 Reduce firearm-related deaths, and IVP-14 Reduce nonfatal firearm-related injuries.

• Healthy People 2030 Adolescent Health (AH) area: AH-10 Reduce rate of minors and young adults committing violent crimes, and AH-R11 Reduce the rate of adolescent and young adult victimization from violent crimes.

The projects funded under this NOFO will help address multiple cross-cutting and topic specific research priorities in the NCIPC Research Priorities. The objectives in this NOFO also address the NCIPC priorities of reducing youth violence and preventing adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), which includes multiple forms of violence impacting children and youth. More information about the NCIPC research priorities is available at: https://www.cdc.gov/injury-violence-prevention/programs/research-priorities.html

Public Health Impact Violence is a significant public health problem and a leading cause of death among young people. Additionally, each year more than 1 million people require treatment in emergency departments for violence-related injuries (https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/fatal/index.html).

Exposure to violence can increase risk for future violence as well as other, negative long-term health and life opportunity consequences, including depression and anxiety, substance use, chronic diseases (such as diabetes and heart disease), educational attainment, and stable employment.

Community violence is an increasing problem that disproportionately affects young people, particularly racial and ethnic minority individuals, families, and communities. NCIPC is committed to preventing violence and addressing inequities in risk for violence. The results from the research funded under this announcement will have direct benefits to communities seeking to implement evidence-based approaches to reduce community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in risk for community violence.

Relevant Work https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.22232 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2020.112864 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0138511 https://www.cdc.gov/injury-violence-prevention/programs/research-priorities.html https://www.cdc.gov/injury-violence-prevention/programs/research-priorities.html https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/fatal/index.html

For 30 years, NCIPC has been the nation’s leading public health authority on violence and injury prevention. CDC’s approach involves three elements: a focus on prevention, a science-driven approach to identify risks and patterns, and multidisciplinary collaboration to address the problem and keep people safe and healthy.

• Descriptions of CDC’s violence prevention initiatives are available on NCIPC’s website athttps://www.cdc.gov/violence-prevention/

• Information about CDC’s National Violent Death Reporting System is available at https://www.cdc.gov/nvdrs/about/index.html.

• Information about CDC’s Mission for violence prevention is available at https://www.cdc.gov/injury/divisions-offices/about-division-of-violence-prevention.html

• CDC’s definition of youth violence is available at https://www.cdc.gov/youth-violence/about/.

• CDC’s definition of community violence is available at https://www.cdc.gov/community-violence/about/index.html.

• Information about Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), including resources, data, and prevention information is available at https://www.cdc.gov/aces/about/.

CDC has released a suite of prevention resources to help communities make use of the best available evidence for violence prevention. These prevention resources describe general prevention strategies and provide examples of specific approaches along with information about the evidence for these approaches.

The resources are available at: https://www.cdc.gov/violence-prevention/php/resources-for-action/.

2. Approach For NOFO RFA-CE-25-021, applicants are expected to submit proposals that evaluate the effectiveness of programs, practices, or policies to prevent community violence and reduce racial and ethnic inequities in risk for community violence, specifically among those aged 10-34 years.

Applicants may propose research under one or more objectives. Applicants are expected to clearly indicate in the Abstract section of the application the objective, or objectives, that the research application intends to address.

Community violence happens between unrelated individuals, who may or may not know each other, generally outside the home. Examples include assaults or fights among groups and shootings in public places, such as schools and on the streets. For this NOFO, “community” is a population with shared characteristics or social ties within a geographically defined area (e.g., neighborhood, block, hospital or school catchment area, police jurisdiction, or city).

Applicants should propose evaluations of approaches that are new or previously implemented in communities but have not been rigorously evaluated for effectiveness in reducing community violence and inequities in risk for community violence. Prevention programs, practices, or policies to be evaluated are expected to be theoretically justified, such as with the inclusion of a conceptual model or theory of change, with proposed mediators, for how the prevention approach will reduce community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in risk for community violence. The selected prevention approach, when possible, should also be supported with epidemiological and/or behavioral research.

https://www.cdc.gov/violence-prevention/ https://www.cdc.gov/nvdrs/about/index.html https://www.cdc.gov/injury/divisions-offices/about-division-of-violence-prevention.html https://www.cdc.gov/youth-violence/about/ https://www.cdc.gov/youth-violence/about/ https://www.cdc.gov/community-violence/about/index.html https://www.cdc.gov/community-violence/about/index.html https://www.cdc.gov/aces/about/ https://www.cdc.gov/violence-prevention/php/resources-for-action/ https://www.cdc.gov/violence-prevention/php/resources-for-action/

Mediating factors help explain the mechanism or process through which an exposure to the intervention leads to reductions in community violence. Recipients are expected to assess intervention processes and mediators as appropriate. Examples of process data include:

• Intervention or policy implementation fidelity data

• Intervention exposure data

• Changes in risk and protective factors specific to the proposed intervention

Applicants are encouraged to assess effects on multiple community violence outcomes, including severe outcomes such as fatal and nonfatal assaults with weapons. Examples of violence outcome and impact data sources include:

• Vital statistics

• Police records

• Child welfare reports

• School records

• Injury-related hospital or emergency department data

• Relevant self-reported behaviors

Applicants are encouraged to include effects on multiple community violence outcomes including severe outcomes such as fatal and nonfatal assaults with weapons. In addition, examples of measures of social and structural conditions associated with violence that are also encouraged to be included are:

• Neighborhood poverty

• Limited access to high-quality education

• High rates of unemployment and lack of employment that provides livable wages

• Weak social connectedness

The use of multiple data sources to improve validity and reliability of each outcome is also encouraged.

This NOFO is intended to support rigorous research designs. Rigorous designs are those that use experimental (i.e., randomized controlled trials) or quasi-experimental designs (e.g., designs involving matched comparison groups, designs using propensity-score matching, instrumental variable methods, regression point displacement, regression discontinuity, pragmatic clinical trial, or time series designs). Randomized trials are not feasible for some prevention strategies (e.g., policy evaluations) and alternative quasi-experimental designs are appropriate and acceptable. Rigorous designs should include data analytic plans that are appropriate for that design and the prevention strategy, hypotheses, and data collection measures. Data analytic plans should also anticipate and evaluate the effects of threats to the internal and external validity of the specified research design.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to propose mixed-method approaches that include community members in the formation of the research questions, design of the study, and interpretation of findings. Additional qualitative analyses may explore the equity implications of quantitative findings regarding an approach’s impact on violence outcomes. For example, applicants with community partners may propose to conduct in-depth interviews or focus groups to further explore how the selected approach may work to close or widen existing inequities in violence burden across populations. Researchers may also engage community members through other participatory research processes that help guide research activities through the life of the study. Recognizing diverse knowledge systems and using culturally centered approaches to information gathering can be important to strengthening data collection activities. This can include employing methods, metrics, and indicators that are seen as appropriate and useful by the residents of the community.

As a public health agency, CDC focuses on public health responses to violence prevention.

While a violence prevention strategy may collaborate with law enforcement agencies, applications proposing to evaluate approaches that are solely under the influence or control of the criminal justice system (i.e., policing, arrest, trial, sentencing, incarceration, mandated intervention and treatment approaches), do not meet the scientific intent of this NOFO. However, rigorous evaluations of policies at the local- or jurisdiction-level, such as restorative justice policies, or rigorous evaluations of policies that may lead to student disengagement (e.g., harsh disciplinary policies) will be considered. It should be noted that the focus of this announcement is not on school-based programs or curricula.

The intent of this NOFO is to evaluate approaches to prevent community violence. This NOFO will not support applications that propose to evaluate strategies that respond to violence after it occurs, such as treatment and rehabilitation approaches (e.g., mental health treatment, physical rehabilitation) or medical care (e.g., treatment of physical injuries) rather than focus on preventing violence from occurring. Research proposals proposing to evaluate response strategies focused solely on treating injuries or to help victims recover do not meet the scientific intent of this NOFO. If an applicant is proposing a therapeutic approach to prevent community violence, then it is critical to explain how the approach is innovative, how it addresses the objective(s) of this NOFO, and how it substantially adds to what is already known about how the approach can prevent future violence.

Prevention planning systems (e.g., Communities That Care [CTC], and Promoting School- Community University Partnerships to Enhance Resilience [PROSPER Partnership Model]) use data to understand local needs and select specific prevention approaches to meet those needs.

Applications that propose to evaluate prevention planning systems rather than specific programs, policies, or practices do not meet the scientific intent of this NOFO.

This NOFO will not support applications that propose to evaluate the following approaches that have already been rigorously evaluated: universal school-based violence prevention curricula, or parenting/family relationship programs for reducing youth violence.

Protection of Human Subjects and Personally Identifiable Information The Research Strategy section of the application is expected to clearly describe the type, source, access to, and protections of the data and human subjects participating in the study. Access to non-publicly available, previously collected data must be clearly described in the Research Strategy and documented with a signed Data Sharing Agreement or Letter of Support. Access to publicly available, previously collected data must be clearly described in the Research Strategy.

Protection of previously collected data includes, but is not limited to, protection of personally identifiable information from loss and/or misuse.

The application is expected to identify each performance site that will be conducting human subjects research and include the FWA number for the applicant institution and each performance site. Research conducted with more than one institution will be expected to use a single Institutional Review Board (sIRB) to conduct the ethical review required by HHS regulations. See Section IV. Application and Submission Information, 10 Funding Restrictions, Human Subjects for details.

Objectives/Outcomes The intent of this NOFO is to build the evidence base for prevention programs, practices, or policies that are effective in reducing community violence as well as approaches that reduce racial and ethnic inequities in risk for community violence.

Funding is available to conduct such studies focused on preventing all forms of community violence experienced by those aged 10-34, including assaults, homicides, violence between groups, and threats/use of weapons.

The following research objectives are the focus of this announcement:

• Objective One: Effectiveness research to evaluate innovative approaches with the potential for immediate or near immediate benefits (i.e., within 6 months) for reducing community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in risk for community violence.

There is an urgent need to build the menu of violence prevention strategies that can have proximate benefits for participants and their communities. Some prevention strategies, such as street outreach programs, mentoring programs, hospital-community partnerships, and youth employment/apprenticeship and other after-school programs can quickly alter risk for violence when implemented well and reach the intended participants. Applicants should explain why the proposed approach is innovative and describe the process and theoretical or empirical support for the potential for immediate or near immediate (i.e., within 6 months after implementation) benefits for reducing the risk for community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in risk for community violence within 6 months after implementation.

• Objective Two: Effectiveness research to evaluate innovative place-based prevention approaches for reducing community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in risk for community violence.

Place-based prevention approaches can be designed to create or enhance protective environments and to reduce the risks associated with physical spaces and how they are used.

Examples include vacant building remediation and reductions in alcohol outlet density. These and other place-based community violence prevention approaches are grounded in the principles of Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED). Additional rigorous evaluation of approaches that can reduce opportunities for violence and enhance positive social interactions for young people and others in the community are needed. For example, the health equity aspects of some CPTED approaches and the role of civic engagement and participatory community development have limited evaluations.

Applicants should explain why the proposed place-based approach is innovative and describe the process and theoretical or empirical support for potential benefits for reducing community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in risk for community violence.

• Objective Three: Effectiveness research to evaluate approaches that improve the social or structural conditions that contribute to community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in risk for community violence.

Social and structural determinants of health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age (e.g., concentrated poverty, structural racism, high rates of unemployment, weak social connectedness, limited access to high-quality education). These determinants are associated with health inequities and modifiable differences in health status seen across population groups. Potential research in response to this NOFO includes studies to assess the effectiveness of strategies that address social or structural determinants of health that are empirically or theoretically associated with community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in the risk for community violence.

The focus could include, but is not limited to, the following:

• Economic strategies (e.g., microfinance programs, cash transfer payments, access to banking institutions, individual development accounts, food security programs, livable wages or other employment and wage policies)

• Housing development strategies (e.g., Low Income Housing Tax Credits, Inclusionary Zoning, tenant-based housing subsidies), and other efforts to improve the physical, social, and economic characteristics of neighborhoods, schools and other settings (e.g., employment opportunities, transportation policies)

• Strategies that improve educational experiences and attainment for youth at greatest risk (e.g., restorative justice school disciplinary policies, increased/equitable school funding policies)

• Studies to assess the effectiveness of social and cultural norm change strategies addressing cultural values and beliefs (e.g., innovative social media and other communication strategies to enhance protective norms, behaviors, and social conditions)

• Studies to assess the effectiveness of strategies focused on reducing the level and concentration of community risk factors (e.g., limited access to affordable and quality childcare, limited access to housing, employment, etc., following incarceration)

The prevention strategies listed above are examples and are not an exhaustive list. Applicants should describe how the prevention approach proposed has the potential to reduce community violence and racial/ethnic inequities in risk for community violence across the population subgroups that are the focus of the study. Applicants should propose evaluations of approaches that are new or previously implemented in communities but have not been rigorously evaluated for effectiveness in reducing community violence.

For Objective 3, a distinction is made between community-based prevention strategies and strategies to address health inequities and modifiable differences in health status seen across population groups. Community-based prevention strategies are implemented in a community setting but address change in individual-, peer- or family-level factors (e.g., attitudes, knowledge, etc.). In contrast, strategies of interest under Objective 3 focus on improving the social and structural community conditions that contribute to health inequities across population groups.

Applications submitted under Objective 3 are expected to address the social or structural conditions that contribute to health inequities in rates of violence across population groups.

Applications submitted under Objective 3 proposing to evaluate community-based strategies that are implemented in community settings but address change in individual-, peer- or family-level factors (e.g., attitudes, knowledge, parent-child relationships, parental monitoring, family environment, associations with peers at risk of violence, etc.) rather than social or structural community conditions do not meet the scientific intent of this

NOFO.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to engage the community in the research process. This can include strong partnerships with community members with lived experience who participate throughout the project (e.g., developing study methods, collecting data, interpreting results, and disseminating findings).

Applicants are encouraged to consider using approaches that are trauma-informed (i.e., healing centered, realizing the impact of trauma, integrating knowledge about trauma into practices, and avoiding re-traumatization).

The primary focus and outcome of interest should be reductions in rates of community violence.

Applicants are also encouraged to test for reductions in other types of violence and other adverse experiences among youth associated with community violence. Examples include intimate partner violence (including data violence), sexual violence, child abuse and neglect, and witnessing violence in the home or community.

Applicants are encouraged to measure any unintended or harmful consequences of the prevention approach and differential effects of the approach on subpopulations, if applicable.

Applicants are also encouraged to include cost measures to inform economic evaluations.

The three objectives are not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, some approaches (e.g., inclusionary zoning laws, access to affordable housing) might address social and structural conditions and enhance safety of physical spaces.

Applicants are asked to clearly indicate in the application's Abstract which Objective(s) the research proposal intends to address.

Data collection, acquisition, and analysis.

Applicants must identify and describe appropriate data sources and provide evidence of their ability to acquire and/or collect data of sufficient quantity and quality to conduct the proposed research within the period of performance. Applications should clearly describe and justify:

• Sampling methods

• Sample size

• Power estimates

• Data collection methods for the primary outcome(s)

• Other proposed secondary measures and subgroup analyses

The timeline for data acquisition must be specified. This includes access to data previously collected and primary data collection. Numerous data sources can be used for the outcome data, and multiple data sources are encouraged. Examples of data and data sources include:

• Injury-related hospital or emergency department data

• Police and law enforcement data

• Relevant self-reported behaviors

• Administrative data from relevant agencies and survey data collected prior to or in the context of the evaluation

Appropriate data sources will vary by the proposed research approach and outcome measures.

The inclusion of risk and protective factors (e.g., neighborhood poverty, educational attainment, employment opportunities, etc.) for the forms of violence studied is highly encouraged.

Population of Focus Applicants should focus on populations at highest risk for experiencing community violence.

Community violence affects people across the lifespan and in all communities. However, some subgroups are at substantially greater risk. For example, homicide is a leading cause of death among adolescents and young adults and young people are disproportionately impacted by nonfatal community violence.

When feasible, applicants are also encouraged to use data (e.g., local/contextual or program data) to identify other populations at high risk for experiencing community violence in their jurisdiction, including, but not limited to, people with disabilities, sexual and gender minorities, individuals returning home after incarceration, sex workers, and individuals experiencing homelessness who live in areas with high rates of social disadvantage.

This NOFO, including funding and eligibility, is not limited based on, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy) or other constitutionally protected statuses.

Collaboration/Partnerships For all applications, it is anticipated that the applicant organization and the principal investigator (PI) will provide the necessary scientific and technical leadership to carry out the proposed research for the duration of the project. The Research Strategy section of the application, along with the SF-424 Research and Related Budget, should reflect the organization's leadership and engagement for the full period of performance. The applicant organization must not act merely as a "pass through" to fund another entity to conduct most of the research or to provide the essential scientific or technical leadership needed to complete the project.

NCIPC recognizes the importance of understanding the role of community conditions and community-centered research to complete the proposed work. Applicants are strongly encouraged to seek and include the meaningful involvement of communities, including state and/or local health departments, local governmental agencies, businesses, and community-based organizations in the development and conduct of the proposed research and in the translation and dissemination of research results. Including partnerships with community members who have lived experiences with violence is also strongly encouraged.

Partnerships between the applicant institution and outside entities may be necessary or advantageous to complete the proposed work. The application must clearly describe roles and responsibilities of each partnering entity. This includes demonstration of the applicant’s access to planned data sources and study populations, and all partnerships necessary to complete the proposed project.

The Research Strategy section of the application must clearly describe the nature and extent of the proposed partnership for the proposed research, including:

• Roles and responsibilities of the Principal Investigator(s)

• Roles and responsibilities of the outside entities or partner agencies

• Existing working relationship between Principal Investigator(s) and outside entities or partner agencies

• Plans for the proposed research

• Nature and extent of the involvement to be provided by the applicant institution and outside entity

• How the partnership will ensure implementation and sustainability of the proposed evaluation.

Each partnering entity's roles and responsibilities must be validated with a signed Data Sharing Agreement, Letter of Support (LOS), or Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). These documents must detail the partner's commitment to resources, time, and personnel for the proposed research. Applications lacking a signed Data Sharing Agreement, Letter of Support, or Memorandum of Understanding from each partner may not be recommended for funding (refer to Section V. Application Review Information, 4. Review and Selection Process).

This NOFO aims for diversity among applicant institutions, research investigators, and partnering organizations to ensure research experiences and outcomes benefit all segments of the population and social ecology. Applicant organizations from or conducting research in collaboration or partnership with institutions that have a demonstrated record of or historical commitment to serving underrepresented students, including racial and ethnic minorities, individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds and individuals with disabilities may be considered during the second level of review (see Section V. Application Review Information, 4. Review and Selection Process). Applicants may indicate this in the Research Strategy of their application.

This NOFO encourages the inclusion of early-stage investigators as members of the SF-424 Senior/Key Personnel research team to help build experience and expertise in violence prevention research.