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Idaho Department of Commerce

The Gem Grant program supports economic development in rural Idaho communities with populations under 10,000, funding infrastructure improvements, public facilities, and projects that support business growth and job creation.

Idaho Department of Commerce

Idaho Commerce provides grants to rural Idaho communities for economic development planning, community infrastructure, downtown revitalization, and projects that improve quality of life and attract business investment.

NICHD - Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Unintentional injuries continue to be the leading cause of mortality for children and youth. Motor vehicle collision (MVC)-related injuries lead to the majority of these deaths. When children experience non-fatal injuries in MVCs, they can suffer life-long chronic disease from traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, fractures, and internal organ damage. While appropriate use of child passenger restraint systems (CRS) is a proven life-saving measure, benefits are compromised by selection of a less protective CRS, installation errors and misuse. Child passenger safety is reduced further when drivers allow children to sit in the front seat or travel unrestrained altogether. CRS deployment and education (pre-event)—targeted to specific family, community, and societal crash factors (event) as well as available triage and treatment after an MVC (post- event)—fill an important gap where caregiver education and state laws have not resulted in adherence to CRS best practices. Despite what is known about the benefits of CRS usage, limited information exists on where to deploy scarce resources in the US to increase adherence to guidelines and laws. Additionally, few studies have evaluated suboptimal child passenger safety behaviors and crash outcomes within the context of family (size, income, driver, vehicle), community (child passenger safety technician [CPST] availability, seat check utilization), and societal (Child Opportunity Index [COI], pediatric injury risk, and traffic laws) factors—as well as overall contributors and countermeasures. I aim to systematically identify factors impacting MVC injury outcomes from pre- to post-injury and inform interventions that strategically deploy effective countermeasures to areas of greatest need. First, I will use national car seat check datasets and geospatial techniques in ArcGIS Pro to identify CPST deserts and hotspots for selection of less protective CRS, installation errors, and misuse. Next, I will use national crash data to identify suboptimal CRS practice hotspots and employ a logistic regression model to detect salient family, community, and societal risk factors. Finally, I will conduct a road network distance analysis using the ArcGIS Pro Network Analysis Toolbox to identify populations at highest likelihood of poor injury outcomes due to being over 60 minutes from a children’s hospital or trauma center. I will triangulate these analyses and findings together into a virtual geodatabase from which real-time maps can be created and overlaid to identify county-level needs and subsequent intervention packages. Anticipated downstream interventions informed by this work may include deployment of CPSTs, CRS, and specific education; state-level refinement to traffic laws; and rural telehealth and triage support. Through the proposed research, I will acquire skills in data science and advanced statistical and spatiotemporal analyses to systematically identify factors, contributors, and countermeasures impacting MVC-related injury outcomes. Training in geographic information systems analysis will help launch my career in precision spatiotemporal injury intervention targeting as an independent pediatric physician-scientist.

NICHD - Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Summary Injury is the leading cause of death in children. Child injury research has traditionally examined intentional and unintentional injuries separately, but the research across these intent types indicates substantial shared etiologic risk factors, of which family poverty is among the strongest and most consistent. Family poverty may influence both injury types by increasing parent stress, reducing parent supervisory capacity, limiting access to quality schools and childcare, and increasing exposure to physical hazards such as sub-standard housing. It is likely that poverty-alleviating programs could have significant public health impacts for child injury as a whole, but there has been no empirical work examining this possibility. Further, existing evidence from other fields suggests that increases in income are not always health-promoting; it is plausible that the impacts of poverty- alleviating programs depend on other factors such as the mechanism of financial support (e.g., one-time versus staggered payments) and contextual factors that shape whether individuals can translate benefits into well-being (e.g., rurality, local availability of essential supports such as childcare). Although growing research on child abuse and neglect, risk factors for intentional injury, suggests that family financial support may be a powerful population-level prevention strategy, similar advances have not occurred in child injury as a whole. To address this gap, the overarching goal of the proposed study is to comprehensively estimate the impacts of major US poverty-alleviating programs on child injury rates. To do so, we will build a dataset comprising a complete census of fatal injuries and medically treated non-fatal injuries for over 300+ state-years, covering 60% of the US population. We will estimate program benefits with a novel benefits calculator that accounts for the complex non-linearities of program rules and the ways benefits from one program (e.g., TANF) affect eligibility and benefits for another (e.g., SNAP). These data will be made publicly available at the end of the project. This dataset will be used to address the following aims: (1) Identify effects of major poverty-alleviating programs (EITC, CTC, SSI, TANF, SNAP/WIC, UI, Medicaid/CHIP) on hospital-treated injuries and injury deaths in children (age <20 years); (2) Determine whether the effectiveness of poverty-alleviating programs for child injury prevention differs by rurality and area deprivation; and (3) Create a public repository of hospital- treated child injury data. Hybrid fixed effects models will provide strong confounding control and a rigorous basis for causal inference. The proposed research will provide the first estimates of the effects of poverty- alleviating programs on child injury, determining which programs have the greatest prevention potential. The project’s findings and data infrastructure will provide an important foundation for policy-focused prevention strategies and future child injury research.

FIC - John E. Fogarty International Center for Advanced Study in the Health Sciences

Alcohol use is a major contributor to injury burden worldwide and remains an important public health challenge in the United States (US), particularly in underserved regions with limited access to trauma and behavioral health services. Cameroon, like other Sub-Saharan African countries, is disproportionately affected by alcohol- related injuries (ARIs), with higher injury burden and alcohol consumption than neighboring countries. Similar barriers to integrating alcohol use disorder (AUD) interventions into trauma care also persist in low-resource trauma settings in the US, where workforce shortages and constrained trauma systems limit delivery of evidence-based AUD care. As involvement in an ARI significantly increases the risk of subsequent ARIs, failure to address AUD in injured patients currently represents a missed opportunity for both AUD treatment and injury prevention. The Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) model is an evidence-based intervention used in emergency departments (EDs) in high-income countries, including the US, to identify and address AUD. However, implementation of SBIRT remains inconsistent in US resource- limited trauma settings due to staffing, workflow, and infrastructure barriers. Cameroon provides a unique opportunity to evaluate scalable SBIRT implementation strategies in a severely resource-constrained trauma system where AUD services are limited but where strong trauma research infrastructure and pilot data already exist. The long-term goal of this project is to reduce the burden of ARIs by leveraging research infrastructure in Cameroon to develop scalable evidence-based models for integrating AUD interventions into trauma systems. The overall objective is to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of a Cameroon-adapted SBIRT intervention in the ED setting. We hypothesize that the adapted SBIRT intervention will significantly reduce hazardous alcohol use among trauma patients. To achieve this objective, the study will pursue three aims: 1) train ED healthcare providers on a Cameroon-adapted SBIRT program; 2) evaluate feasibility, acceptability, and fidelity of SBIRT implementation in the Cameroonian ED context; and 3) evaluate effectiveness of SBIRT implementation in reducing hazardous drinking behaviors and PEth biomarker levels. This study will leverage implementation science methods to evaluate real-world implementation and scalability of SBIRT in a resource- constrained trauma system. Findings from this work may inform scalable implementation approaches for underserved trauma settings in the US, including rural hospitals and trauma deserts with limited access to integrated AUD care, while also supporting broader implementation across low-resource settings globally.

NIAID - National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Global resurgence of curable sexually transmitted infections (STI) is a public health concern due to their severe associated morbidities and increasing antimicrobial resistance. Inadequate diagnosis leads to under- and overtreatment, fueling HIV/STI risk, antimicrobial resistance, and adverse fertility and pregnancy outcomes. To address this critical gap, the Center for Family Health Research in Rwanda and Emory colleagues developed and validated a CT/NG diagnostic algorithm for women informed by local epidemiology as recommended by WHO. Among symptomatic women seen at our clinic, our algorithm had a sensitivity of 79-91% versus 26% using the Rwandan National Guidelines. Formative work confirms providers can be trained to use our algorithm, though microscopy capacity requires development. Our proposal aims to implement and evaluate our algorithm, including microscopy, in public HC to improve RTI diagnosis in Rwandan women. Scientific rationale for conducting this work in Rwanda. Rwanda is uniquely suited to answer these questions faster and at lower cost than the US. STI burden in our Rwandan cohort (NG 26%, CT 16%) far exceeds US primary care rates, enabling adequate power at a fraction of the domestic sample size. Rwanda’s universal syndromic management policy provides a clearly defined comparator unavailable in the heterogeneous US system. Finally, PI Wall’s decade-long CFHR partnership and existing algorithm validation means work can begin immediately with infrastructure and community trust in place. We will first conduct stakeholder interviews and needs assessments guided by an implementation science framework in 4 HC to understand perceptions, barriers, and facilitators to implementing our algorithm with microscopy (Aim 1). Based on Aim 1 findings, we will co-design training and quality assurance protocols and pilot our algorithm with microscopy using a self-controlled case series design among 310 women in 4 Rwandan HC (Aim 2). The REAIM framework will guide evaluation of algorithm with microscopy feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness (Aim 3). Study findings will be shared with high-level stakeholders throughout the study to solicit feedback to inform future studies and for public health impact. Although conducted in Rwanda, this work directly advances the health of Americans: STI prevalence in high-burden US communities approaches Rwandan levels, microscopy for RTI diagnosis is similarly underutilized in US primary care, and the validated diagnostic algorithm and implementation package developed here can be directly applied and utilized across the United States to offer expanded and enhanced care to Americans for whom comprehensive STI testing in pregnancy and primary care remains out of reach, such as in rural communities and for individuals in urban areas that do not routinely access primary or preventive health care.

NIAID - National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Global resurgence of curable sexually transmitted infections (STI) is a public health concern due to their severe associated morbidities and increasing antimicrobial resistance. Inadequate diagnosis leads to under- and overtreatment, fueling HIV/STI risk, antimicrobial resistance, and adverse fertility and pregnancy outcomes. To address this critical gap, the Center for Family Health Research in Rwanda and Emory colleagues developed and validated a CT/NG diagnostic algorithm for women informed by local epidemiology as recommended by WHO. Among symptomatic women seen at our clinic, our algorithm had a sensitivity of 79-91% versus 26% using the Rwandan National Guidelines. Formative work confirms providers can be trained to use our algorithm, though microscopy capacity requires development. Our proposal aims to implement and evaluate our algorithm, including microscopy, in public HC to improve RTI diagnosis in Rwandan women. Scientific rationale for conducting this work in Rwanda. Rwanda is uniquely suited to answer these questions faster and at lower cost than the US. STI burden in our Rwandan cohort (NG 26%, CT 16%) far exceeds US primary care rates, enabling adequate power at a fraction of the domestic sample size. Rwanda’s universal syndromic management policy provides a clearly defined comparator unavailable in the heterogeneous US system. Finally, PI Wall’s decade-long CFHR partnership and existing algorithm validation means work can begin immediately with infrastructure and community trust in place. We will first conduct stakeholder interviews and needs assessments guided by an implementation science framework in 4 HC to understand perceptions, barriers, and facilitators to implementing our algorithm with microscopy (Aim 1). Based on Aim 1 findings, we will co-design training and quality assurance protocols and pilot our algorithm with microscopy using a self-controlled case series design among 310 women in 4 Rwandan HC (Aim 2). The REAIM framework will guide evaluation of algorithm with microscopy feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness (Aim 3). Study findings will be shared with high-level stakeholders throughout the study to solicit feedback to inform future studies and for public health impact. Although conducted in Rwanda, this work directly advances the health of Americans: STI prevalence in high-burden US communities approaches Rwandan levels, microscopy for RTI diagnosis is similarly underutilized in US primary care, and the validated diagnostic algorithm and implementation package developed here can be directly applied and utilized across the United States to offer expanded and enhanced care to Americans for whom comprehensive STI testing in pregnancy and primary care remains out of reach, such as in rural communities and for individuals in urban areas that do not routinely access primary or preventive health care.

NCI - National Cancer Institute

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the US. Although lung cancer screening (LCS), using low- dose CT scan, decreases lung cancer mortality through early disease identification, fewer than 1 in 6 eligible individuals get screened, with significant differences based on demographic and socio-economic factors. LCS is a process, not just a test. The critical first steps in this process are (1) identification of high-risk individuals who are eligible for LCS, and (2) recruitment of these individuals into an LCS program. The Emergency Department (ED) setting is optimal for an intervention to promote LCS by accomplishing these steps. Individuals at high risk for lung cancer are over-represented in the ED population, including: individuals that smoke, non-White individuals, patients with lower education levels, and the under-insured. In fact, over 2.3 million high-risk people pass through EDs every year who are eligible for LCS but have never been screened. The investigators’ long-term goal is to develop a low-cost, scalable intervention that increases LCS uptake among ED patients and is deployable in any ED with a regionally referrable LCS program. The objective of the proposed randomized clinical trial is to test the efficacies of text messaging and a facilitated referral strategy to promote uptake of LCS in order to achieve this goal. Step 1 of the approach is to identify participants that are eligible for LCS. Step 2 is to randomize eligible participants, using a 2x2 design, among four study arms: (1) basic referral for LCS (i.e. verbal referral with written materials; comprising an enhanced control arm), (2) basic referral plus a subsequent series of text messages, grounded in behavioral change theory, aimed at generating intention and motivation to get screened, (3) facilitated referral for LCS (i.e. submission of a requisition to LCS program by staff), and (4) facilitated referral plus text messages. The investigators’ pilot work demonstrated the feasibility and efficacy of the proposed approach. A total of 1036 individuals eligible for LCS will be recruited from a high-volume urban ED and a low-volume rural ED, randomized among study arms, and followed-up at 120 days to assess interval LCS uptake. The Specific Aims of the proposed project are, (1) Compare LCS program uptake among study arms that receive text messages to study arms that do not, (2) Compare LCS program uptake among study arms with basic referral to study arms with facilitated referral, (3) Investigate the interaction between receipt of text messages (yes/no) and referral type (basic/facilitated), and (4) Evaluate participant feedback on (a) differential barriers to LCS across sub-groups and (b) acceptability and appropriateness of ED-based promotion of LCS. The study team is at the forefront of developing ED-based interventions to promote cancer screening. This project leverages the universal access setting of the ED to identify individuals at greatest risk for lung cancer and get them screened. A scalable ED-based intervention that increases LCS uptake would save lives.

U.S. National Science Foundation

Infrastructure systems comprise complex connections between physical components, organizational structures and operational methods that support the needs of people and communities at the local, regional, national, and global scales. Such systems form the backbone of society, providing essential services as well as ensuring public health and welfare, economic prosperity and national security, and are expected to function under all operational conditions. Meanwhile, infrastructure systems are capital intensive and vulnerable to disruptions from extreme events, including natural disasters, social crises, and malicious attacks. Disruptions in one system can have cascading impacts on others in space and over time. Moreover, short- versus long-term trade-offs, unintended consequences, and maladaptation are not often accounted for. How systems function at the &ldquo;extreme,&rdquo; which can be due to disruptors from the introduction of innovation, the convergence of technologies, sudden changes to their utilization and access, dramatic changes in operating environments, and changes to demand during crises are of particular interest. To ensure the efficiency, sustainability, resilience, and fair use of infrastructure systems, it is important to continuously improve and optimize their design, operations, system monitoring and performance assessment in dynamic, uncertain and sometime unknown environments. While functioning at extremes is of interest, the program also supports infrastructure systems research under the full range of operating conditions, across a variety of hazards, and in urban, suburban, and rural communities. The program particularly encourages interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary exploration that will open new research frontiers and significantly expand and transform relevant research communities. The program welcomes research that addresses novel system integration, user-inspired system and service design, data analytics, and socio-technical studies focused on engineering and system innovation during normal and extreme conditions. The program also values innovative research efforts focused on collecting, standardizing, and sharing large-scale databases of real-world infrastructure systems and people-infrastructure interactions during normal and extreme operating conditions, which can be instrumental in providing benchmarks for model verification and validation and for advancing future research innovation in ISP. The ISP program supports research on lifeline systems and communities that contributes to the National Science Foundation&rsquo;s role in the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) and the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program (NWIRP). Principal Investigators are encouraged to leverage NSF&rsquo;s investments in the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) experimental, computational modeling and simulation, and data resources (https://www.designsafe-ci.org/) in their research to accelerate advances needed for reducing the impacts of natural hazards on infrastructures and people. While physics-based subject-matter knowledge may be crucial in many research efforts, the program does not support research whose primary methodological contribution focuses on individual infrastructure components without a systems research perspective whose primary methodological focus is on geotechnical and structural engineering, material sciences, architectural engineering, wireless communication and sensor technology, human factors, and/or hydrologic or environmental engineering. Proposers are actively encouraged to email a one-page project summary to the ISP Program Officers before submitting a full proposal for guidance on whether the proposed research topic falls within the scope of the ISP program; this guidance should especially be requested for multi-disciplinary research proposals, and proposals for which research and/or development on the subject infrastructure(s) are also supported by other federal and/or state agencies.

U.S. National Science Foundation

Infrastructure systems comprise complex connections between physical components, organizational structures and operational methods that support the needs of people and communities at the local, regional, national, and global scales. Such systems form the backbone of society, providing essential services as well as ensuring public health and welfare, economic prosperity and national security, and are expected to function under all operational conditions. Meanwhile, infrastructure systems are capital intensive and vulnerable to disruptions from extreme events, including natural disasters, social crises, and malicious attacks. Disruptions in one system can have cascading impacts on others in space and over time. Moreover, short- versus long-term trade-offs, unintended consequences, and maladaptation are not often accounted for. How systems function at the extreme, which can be due to disruptors from the introduction of innovation, the convergence of technologies, sudden changes to their utilization and access, dramatic changes in operating environments, and changes to demand during crises are of particular interest. To ensure the efficiency, sustainability, resilience, and fair use of infrastructure systems, it is important to continuously improve and optimize their design, operations, system monitoring and performance assessment in dynamic, uncertain and sometime unknown environments. While functioning at extremes is of interest, the program also supports infrastructure systems research under the full range of operating conditions, across a variety of hazards, and in urban, suburban, and rural communities. The program particularly encourages interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary exploration that will open new research frontiers and significantly expand and transform relevant research communities. The program welcomes research that addresses novel system integration, user-inspired system and service design, data analytics, and socio-technical studies focused on engineering and system innovation during normal and extreme conditions. The program also values innovative research efforts focused on collecting, standardizing, and sharing large-scale databases of real-world infrastructure systems and people-infrastructure interactions during normal and extreme operating conditions, which can be instrumental in providing benchmarks for model verification and validation and for advancing future research innovation in ISP. The ISP program supports research on lifeline systems and communities that contributes to the National Science Foundation s role in the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) and the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program (NWIRP). Principal Investigators are encouraged to leverage NSF s investments in the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) experimental, computational modeling and simulation, and data resources (https://www.designsafe-ci.org/) in their research to accelerate advances needed for reducing the impacts of natural hazards on infrastructures and people. While physics-based subject-matter knowledge may be crucial in many research efforts, the program does not support research whose primary methodological contribution focuses on individual infrastructure components without a systems research perspective whose primary methodological focus is on geotechnical and structural engineering, material sciences, architectural engineering, wireless communication and sensor technology, human factors, and/or hydrologic or environmental engineering. Proposers are actively encouraged to email a one-page project summary to the ISP Program Officers before submitting a full proposal for guidance on whether the proposed research topic falls within the scope of the ISP program; this guidance should especially be requested for multi-disciplinary research proposals, and proposals for which research and/or development on the subject infrastructure(s) are also supported by other federal and/or state agencies.

NIGMS - National Institute of General Medical Sciences

ABSTRACT The University of Minnesota (UMN) Innovative Approaches to Trauma Care Program will provide dual mentorship-based training to surgery residents, critical care fellows, and emergency medicine fellows in a broad variety of topic areas that relate to trauma and critical care. Trauma is the number one cause of death for people under the age of 46, and deaths are more likely to occur in less severely injured patients in rural settings compared to their urban counterparts. Major gaps and pressing questions in the area of optimal trauma care include 1) evaluating the effect of prehospital care interventions on patient-centered outcomes; 2) optimizing trauma/critically ill patient monitoring (e.g., wearable sensors, AI-assisted early warning systems, and prehospital telemedicine); 3) advancing innovative, patient-centric clinical trials targeting the leading causes of death and disability post-injury; and 4) developing novel solutions to improve rural trauma care. Physician scientists are uniquely positioned to create and lead interdisciplinary teams due to their broad network of health professionals and non-physician scientists. However, physician scientists are becoming exceedingly rare, with only 1.5% of active physicians currently funded by the NIH1. Our program will provide a research focused curriculum, access to high-quality mentors and collaborators, and provision of protected time, all critical to launching early career physician scientists. Curriculum: Our two-year program will consist of four tracks including 1) Clinical Trial Innovation, 2) Rural Trauma Care, 3) Trauma and Critical Care Outcomes, and 4) Translational Preclinical Research. The trainee project topic areas will broadly include trauma care, including: early resuscitation, wound infection and prevention, hemorrhagic shock, and prehospital interventions after severe injury. By the end of the fellowship, trainees will also receive a relevant Master's degree. Co-Directors, Mentors, and Collaborators: The Co-Directors of this program are physician scientists in Surgery and Emergency Medicine and leaders of the Translational Center for Resuscitative Trauma Care, a Center at the University of Minnesota Medical School that improves trauma care through the creation of technologies and knowledge products deployable by first responders and hospital-based healthcare workers. Mentorship within our program also features nationally and internationally recognized mentors in Acute Care Surgery, Emergency Medicine, Prehospital Emergency Care, Critical Care, and Biostatistics. Moreover, we have unique training opportunities related to rural trauma care (University of Minnesota-Duluth and Minnesota Department of Health), established linkage of prehospital data to outcomes for rapid hypothesis development and testing (eso and UMN-led database), and innovative emergency care clinical trial design development and leadership (SIREN network and UMN School of Public Health). We have strong collaborations with four Minnesota Level 1 trauma Centers with a combined total of more than 15,000 trauma admissions/year with active clinical trial activity that can be leveraged by our trainees.

National Park Service

This announcement is to provide public notice of the National Park Service (NPS), intention to fund the following project with University of Alaska Fairbanks under a Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) program. CESUs are partnerships that provide research, technical assistance, and education. The project intended award is $80,458. STATUTORY AUTHORITY: Agreements Concerning Cooperative Research and Training on NPS Resources (16 U.S.C. 1a-2(j)): The Secretary may enter into agreements with public or private educational institutions, States and their political subdivisions, for the purpose of developing adequate, coordinated, cooperative research and training programs concerning the resources of the National Park System, and pursuant to such agreements, to accept from and make available to the cooperator such technical and support staff, financial assistance for mutually agreed upon research projects, supplies and equipment, facilities, and administrative services relating to cooperative research units as the Secretary deems appropriate. OVERVIEW:This project will facilitate the collection of data related to non-subsistence (i.e., sport hunter) hunter expectations, background knowledge, activities, characteristics, and experiential evaluations in western part of Noatak National Preserve. The project also is designed to document conditions in the preserve as experienced by hunters. This project serves to set a baseline of the conditions related to sport hunter activity in the preserve and their perspectives on the quality of the experience. It also serves to empirically (indirectly and directly) document the activities of sport hunters and the support services they rely upon in the region. STATEMENT OF JOINT OBJECTIVES/PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN The project consists of the following primary data collection objectives that will be conducted both in the field and via postage or digital online surveys: Collect background demographic information and motivational information on hunters. Collect descriptive data on caribou target and harvest methods or strategies used by sport hunters. Collect baseline sport hunt trip evaluation data related to the condition of the backcountry, interactions with other parties and with motorized sounds. Collect baseline measures of the level of awareness by sport hunters related to cultural norms and subsistence use in the area as well as current regulatory/management strategies and alternatives. Data can be gathered from the fall 2013 sport hunters at the Kotzebue Airport. However, gathering data from those who hunted in earlier years (i.e., 2010-2012) is contingent on receiving harvest ticket information from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Secondary data collection objectives include: Conducting interviews with sport hunters and guides. Collecting baseline spatial data (i.e., with GPS units) to answer where, when, and how sport hunters use the preserve. RECIPIENT INVOLVEMENT 1. Collaboratively undertake a study titled, Investigating Social and Spatial Aspects of Sport Hunting in Western Noatak National Preserve as described throughout this document. 2. Lead effort for approval of the survey instrument. 3. Compile all data sets in a format that allows them to be easily transferred to the sponsor agency. 4. Produce an interim, milestone report on project status and findings to management related to the research by December 2013 and a final report that includes conclusions and management recommendations by December 2014. 5. Work cooperatively with NPS staff to publish a Natural Resources Technical Report in 2014. 6. Share findings and conclusions via a verbal presentation to managers and interested parties in Kotzebue, AK in late 2014. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE INVOLVEMENT Substantial involvement on the part of the National Park Service is anticipated for the successful completion of the objectives to be funded by this award. In particular, the National Park Service will be responsible for the following: 1. Provide the names and contact information of guides and transporters operating in Noatak National Preserve. 2. Assist in obtaining harvest ticket records from Alaska Department of Fish and Game. 3. Provide coordination, via the NPS Social Scientist, between staff within NPS and between staff from other agencies interested in the project design and outcomes. 4. Work with other PIs involved in related aspects of caribou hunting research in the Noatak. 5. Provide housing support (e.g. transient housing in Kotzebue) for university researchers working on the project. 6. ensure that park specific research permits are granted and compliance is ensured. 7. Provide NPS Social Scientist who will assist with data analysis and interpretation where appropriate. 8. Provide NPS Social Scientist who will assist with presentations and communication of the results, including drafting and publication of results via NPS Natural Resources Technical Report in 2014.SINGLE-SOURCE JUSTIFICATION: Department of the Interior Policy (505 DM 2) requires a written justification which explains why competition is not practicable for each single-source award . The National Park Service did not solicit full and open competition for this award based the following criteria: Unique Qualifications, UAF faculty and research staff within the School of Natural Resources &amp; Agricultural Sciences have conducted similar hunting studies within Alaska, have the necessary contacts with ADFG needed to be successful, have the experience with working in rural AK communities, are logistically capable of deploying technicians in the field from Fairbanks, and, due to the proximity of the school to rural AK communities, can accomplish this field research with reduced costs compared to other contractors or universities.Technical contact information: Andrew Ackerman,andrew_ackerman@nps.gov, 907-455-0643. National Park Service, Alaska Region. End of FOA

Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA)

The Empower Rural Iowa initiative provides grants for broadband infrastructure, childcare expansion, housing development, and other projects that strengthen rural Iowa communities and attract new residents.

Deere Foundation

Invests in workforce development, STEM education, and community prosperity in agricultural and rural regions.

Kansas Department of Agriculture

KDA supports rural Kansas businesses and agricultural enterprises through grants for value-added agriculture, farm diversification, agri-tourism, and rural entrepreneurship development programs.

Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA)

Supports Korean and international NGOs implementing development projects in KOICA priority countries. Focuses on health, education, governance, and rural development.

Land O'Lakes Foundation

Funds agricultural education, rural community development, and hunger relief through cooperative partnerships.

National Institutes of Health

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), including all of its Institutes and Centers, plans to publish a Notice of Funding Opportunity inviting eligible colleges, universities, and nonprofit organizations to apply for the NIH Research Evaluation and Commercialization Hub (REACH) program. The REACH program helps move promising biomedical discoveries from academic research into real-world products that can improve patient care and public health. Through this opportunity, NIH plans to fund five new academic entrepreneurship hubs. These hubs will support researchers by providing early-stage funding, technical and business resources, and mentorship in product development and commercialization. The hubs will focus on high-priority technologies that align with NIH's mission. Together, the funded hubs will form a technology development consortium that will help: Identify the most promising academic biomedical technologies; Fund early product-development work, such as feasibility studies, prototypes, and proof-of-concept studies; Provide access to expertise in science, regulation, reimbursement, business, law, and project management; and Offer entrepreneurship training and hands-on commercialization experience. Public-private partnerships and non-federal matching funding will be important to the program's success. The five awardees will build on lessons learned from previous REACH hubs and support the goals of the Phase 0 Proof of Concept Partnership pilot program, as authorized by the 2011 SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act (P.L. 112-81 Section 5127) and extended through fiscal year 2031 under the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act (P.L. 119-83). The REACH program also supports federal research and development priorities, including preparing the 21st-century workforce, moving technologies from the lab to the marketplace, strengthening partnerships among government, industry, and academia, and addressing local health needs, particularly in medically underserved and/or rural areas.This is a Forecast for a Limited Competition that will invite application(s) from eligible organization(s) to apply. Please see Eligibility Section for additional information. In accordance with NIH standard peer-review processes, the application(s) will be peer-reviewed, and only meritorious application(s) will be considered.Applications are not being solicited at this time. Notice is being provided to allow potential applicants sufficient time to develop meaningful collaborations and responsive projects.

NIGMS - National Institute of General Medical Sciences

This proposal requests funding for a Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LCMS) system to support biomedical research and educational initiatives across East Tennessee State University's Academic Health Science Center. The instrument will primarily serve researchers and students in the Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy, while remaining accessible to investigators from the Colleges of Public Health and Arts and Sciences. The acquisition of this LCMS system addresses a critical infrastructure gap that emerged in 2022 when the university's previous LCMS instrument became non-functional. From 2009-2022, LCMS capabilities at ETSU facilitated significant research productivity across multiple investigative teams, resulting in over 40 peer-reviewed publications. This research spans an array of biomedical applications including: pharmacokinetic studies of therapeutic drugs and substances of abuse; development of novel drug delivery systems; quantification of endogenous biomarkers in disease states; stability studies of compounded pharmaceuticals; analysis of environmental contaminants; and investigation of lipid mediators in cardiovascular disease. This productivity has been severely hampered by the lack of this essential analytical capability since 2022. Beyond supporting faculty research programs, this instrument will provide exceptional educational opportunities for a broad spectrum of students, including PharmD, MD, PhD, MS, and undergraduate trainees. Hands-on training with sophisticated LCMS technology will equip these learners with specialized analytical skills highly valued in both academic and industrial research settings. This training represents an uncommon opportunity, particularly for undergraduate science students, enhancing their competitiveness for advanced educational programs and future employment. The strategic placement of this instrument within our shared research infrastructure will maximize its impact, supporting ongoing NIH-funded investigations in areas including pharmacokinetics, drug metabolism, natural product chemistry, biomarker discovery, and neonatal abstinence syndrome research. Additionally, the instrument will enable new collaborative research directions that align with institutional priorities in addiction science, infectious disease, and rural health disparities. In summary, this LCMS system will rejuvenate research capabilities that previously flourished at ETSU, while simultaneously enriching the educational experience of our student population in the biomedical sciences.

NIDA - National Institute on Drug Abuse

Project Summary: The rising incidences of synthetic opioids misuse and emerging psychoactive substances pose significant challenges for public health and forensic toxicology. Conventional detection methods such as liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) offer high sensitivity and specificity but are costly, require skilled operators, and are not feasible for rapid, point-of-care applications. To address these limitations, this project aims to develop a Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS)-based lateral flow assay for the rapid detection and quantification of existing and emerging illicit drugs in urine samples. This platform is designed to provide comparable analytical performance of LC-MS while reducing costs, increasing portability, and enabling drug testing in resource-limited settings such as rural health clinics, emergency departments and harm reduction centers. The proposed approach integrates three key innovations: (1) a SERS-active lateral flow cartridge that processes the urine sample – removing potential interferents while simultaneously separating drug mixtures and metabolites by Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC). Raman signals are enhanced via embedded nanoparticles in the TLC material for high-sensitivity detection. The SERS approach is a label-free technique that directly measures the unique vibrational modes of drug molecules, eliminating the need for biological elements like antibodies or aptamers. Unlike labeled methods, it has no strict shelf-life or storage requirements and can rapidly adapt to emerging drugs, for which specific biological recognition elements are unavailable; (2) a low-cost, Fourier Transform Raman (FT-Raman) instrument engineered for portability. The FT-Raman system offers several advantages over typical dispersive Raman systems: It provides higher spectral accuracy through interferometer-based calibration. Additionally, FT-Raman system uses a NIR excitation source to reduce fluorescence from biological samples. With fewer moving parts, the FT-Raman system offers more stability and requires less maintenance; (3) advanced chemometrics / machine learning algorithms for spectral analysis, enabling precise identification and quantification of drug compounds and their metabolites. Future phases will focus on prototype refinement and commercialization, targeting a per-test cost below $10 to enhance accessibility. Successful development of this technology has the potential to transform drug testing by enabling real-time, reliable, highly sensitive detection in decentralized settings, improving clinical decision- making and public health interventions.

Department of Health and Human Services

MATERNAL, INFANT AND EARLY CHILDHOOD HOMEVISITING GRANT PROGRAM - 11 SHS AUGUSTA ME 04333-0011 MARYANN HARAKALL 207-557-2470 © 207-287-4743 (F) MARYANN.HARAKALL@MAINE.GOV MATERNAL, INFANT AND EARLY CHILDHOOD HOME VISITING GRANT ANNOTATION: THIS PROJECT WILL PROVIDE THE PARENTS AS TEACHERS EVIDENCED-BASED PROGRAM TO ANY FAMILY IN MAINE WHO ACCEPTS THE SERVICES. THERE WILL BE ELEVEN LOCAL IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES STATEWIDE TO PROVIDE SERVICES TO FAMILIES AND TO CONNECT FAMILIES TO ADDITIONAL SERVICES WHEN NEEDED. THE OVERALL GOAL IS TO IMPROVE MATERNAL, INFANT, CHILD AND FAMILY PHYSICAL AND RELATIONAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING FOR FAMILIES IN MAINE. TO ACHIEVE THIS, MAINE’S MIECHV PROGRAM WILL CONTINUE TO RECRUIT FAMILIES TO PARTICIPATE, ACTIVELY ENGAGE IN CONTINUOUS QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS AND IMPLEMENT HEALTH EQUITY ACTIVITIES. PROBLEM: MAINE IS A RURAL STATE AND ALL COMMUNITIES WITHIN THE STATE ARE AT RISK OF HAVING FAMILIES WHO ARE AT RISK FOR POOR MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH OUTCOMES. PURPOSE: MAINE’S MIECHV PROGRAM PROVIDES EFFECTIVE DELIVERY AND ONGOING IMPROVEMENT OF MAINE’S STATEWIDE HOME VISITING SERVICES WITH FIDELITY TO THE PARENTS AS TEACHERS (PAT) EVIDENCE-BASED MODEL, AS PART OF A COORDINATED STATEWIDE EARLY CHILDHOOD SYSTEM. THE GOAL OF THIS PROJECT IS TO IMPLEMENT A COMPREHENSIVE AND INCLUSIVE STATEWIDE SYSTEM TO IMPROVE THE PHYSICAL AND RELATIONAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF MAINE’S MOST VULNERABLE CHILDREN AND FAMILIES. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES: GOAL 1. IMPROVE MATERNAL, INFANT, CHILD AND FAMILY PHYSICAL AND RELATIONAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING FOR PARTICIPATING FAMILIES. OBJECTIVE 1.A. ENGAGE ELIGIBLE FAMILIES WITH PAT EVIDENCE-BASED HOME VISITING SERVICES BY MAINTAINING MAINE FAMILIES ENROLLMENT LEVELS AS A PERCENTAGE OF POINT-IN-TIME CAPACITY. OBJECTIVE 1.B. RETAIN VULNERABLE FAMILIES WITH PAT BY MAINTAINING OR INCREASING RETENTION OF ELIGIBLE FAMILIES. OBJECTIVE 1.C. EXPLORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS TO AUTHENTICALLY ENGAGE IN ADVISORY AND COLLABORATIVE ROLES TO CREATE MORE INCLUSIVE AND EQUITABLE SYSTEMS. GOAL 2. MAINTAIN AND CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE STATEWIDE DELIVERY OF EVIDENCE-BASED PAT SERVICES BY MAINE FAMILIES WITH FIDELITY AND HIGH QUALITY. OBJECTIVE 2.A. SUPPORT CONTINUED FIDELITY AND QUALITY OF PAT DELIVERY BY MAINTAINING AND STRENGTHENING STATE-LEVEL SYSTEMS OF SUPPORTS FOR LIAS INCLUDING PERFORMANCE-BASED CONTRACTING, OVERSIGHT, TRAININGS, POLICIES, DATA SYSTEMS, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, CONTINUOUS QUALITY IMPROVEMENT (CQI) MONITORING, SUPPORTED THROUGH STATE-LEVEL CQI PROCESS. OBJECTIVE 2.B. SUPPORT LIA’S ABILITY TO MAINTAIN MAXIMUM STAFFING CAPACITY BY EXPLORING ADDITIONAL SYSTEM-WIDE STRATEGIES AND MONITORING THE IMPACT OF NEW HIRING QUALIFICATIONS FOR MAINE FAMILIES STAFF. GOAL 3. DEVELOP AND IMPROVE HEALTH EQUITY PRACTICES AROUND DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION, AND ACCESSIBILITY. OBJECTIVE 3.A. MAINTAIN A STAFF DEMOGRAPHIC DATASET TO COMPARE WITH PARTICIPANT DEMOGRAPHIC DATA AND MONITOR FOR STAFF DIVERSIFICATION WITHIN THE SYSTEM. OBJECTIVE 3.B. MAINTAIN STATEWIDE DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION AND ACCESSIBILITY WORKGROUP. OBJECTIVE 3.C. IDENTIFY FUNDING SUPPORT TO IDENTIFY HEALTH DISPARITIES IN MIECHV PERFORMANCE MEASURE DATA AND FAMILY ENGAGEMENT. APPROACH: PARENTS AS TEACHERS ALL MAINE COMMUNITIES WILL BE SERVED WITH THIS GRANT. THE PROPOSED CASELOAD FOR THE FY 2024 AWARD PERIOD, IS 1,202 FOR EACH YEAR OF THE PERFORMANCE PERIOD.

Department of Health and Human Services

MATERNAL, INFANT AND EARLY CHILDHOOD HOMEVISITING GRANT PROGRAM - ABSTRACT PROJECT TITLE: ALABAMA’S MATERNAL, INFANT, AND EARLY CHILDHOOD HOME VISITING (MIECHV) PROGRAM PURPOSE: THIS PROJECT SUPPORTS NATIONAL EFFORTS TO ENSURE HIGH-QUALITY, COMPREHENSIVE EARLY CHILDHOOD SUPPORT STATEWIDE FOR FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN FROM BIRTH TO KINDERGARTEN ENTRY. ALABAMA’S FIRST TEACHER HOME VISITING PROGRAM WILL IMPLEMENT THE PARENTS AS TEACHERS AND NURSE-FAMILY PARTNERSHIP MODELS THROUGH 14 LOCAL IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES (LIAS). MATCHING FEDERAL FUNDS WILL BE USED TO STRENGTHEN SERVICE DELIVERY. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES: GOAL 1: INCREASE ENROLLMENT IN MIECHV PROGRAMS TO EXPAND EFFECTIVE HOME VISITING. OBJECTIVE 1.1: MAINTAIN SERVICE PROVISION IN COUNTIES SERVED AS OF FY 2024. GOAL 2: IMPROVE MATERNAL AND NEWBORN HEALTH. OBJECTIVE 2.1: MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE FY2022 OUTCOMES IN MIECHV BENCHMARK 1 (HRSA-DEFINED). GOAL 3: PREVENT CHILD INJURIES, ABUSE, NEGLECT, AND REDUCE EMERGENCY VISITS. OBJECTIVE 3.1: MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE FY2022 OUTCOMES IN BENCHMARK 2. GOAL 4: ENHANCE SCHOOL READINESS AND ACHIEVEMENT. OBJECTIVE 4.1: MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE FY2022 OUTCOMES IN BENCHMARK 3. GOAL 5: REDUCE INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE. OBJECTIVE 5.1: MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE FY2022 OUTCOMES IN BENCHMARK 4. GOAL 6: SUPPORT FAMILY ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY. OBJECTIVE 6.1: MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE FY2022 OUTCOMES IN BENCHMARK 5. GOAL 7: IMPROVE COORDINATION AND REFERRALS TO COMMUNITY RESOURCES. OBJECTIVE 7.1: MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE FY2022 OUTCOMES IN BENCHMARK 6. GOAL 8: SUPPORT COMPREHENSIVE EVALUATION OF PROJECT OUTCOMES. OBJECTIVE 8.1: MONITOR SITE PERFORMANCE USING ALABAMA'S COMMON BENCHMARKS; PROVIDE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. OBJECTIVE 8.2: DEVELOP METHODS TO LINK FIRST TEACHER DATA WITH OTHER EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAMS TO EVALUATE SCHOOL READINESS. OBJECTIVE 8.3: INTEGRATE HOME VISITING DATA WITH K-12 DATA TO ASSESS EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCE. GOAL 9: PROMOTE BEST PRACTICES AND IMPROVED SERVICE DELIVERY. OBJECTIVE 9.1: LIAS WILL ENGAGE IN CONTINUOUS QUALITY IMPROVEMENT (CQI) PROJECTS. APPROACH: THE PROGRAM WILL SERVE A PROPOSED CASELOAD OF 1,395 FAMILIES ANNUALLY, ACROSS 39 OF ALABAMA’S 67 COUNTIES, INCLUDING JEFFERSON, MONTGOMERY, MOBILE, AND SEVERAL RURAL COUNTIES. SERVICES ARE DELIVERED BY 14 LIAS RECEIVING FUNDS DURING THE PERFORMANCE PERIOD. ALABAMA’S FTHV PROGRAM DOES NOT PLAN TO EXPAND GEOGRAPHIC COVERAGE AT THIS TIME. INSTEAD, IT WILL USE FEDERAL MATCHING FUNDS TO INCREASE PER-FAMILY SUPPORT FOR THE PARENTS AS TEACHERS MODEL FROM $4,200 TO $5,000. THIS INCREASE WILL ALLOW FOR STRONGER SERVICE DELIVERY, ENHANCED STAFF SUPPORT, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AND IMPROVED OUTCOMES FOR FAMILIES. THE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES WILL HELP ENSURE PROGRAM SUSTAINABILITY AND FOSTER LONG-TERM IMPACT IN KEY EARLY CHILDHOOD INDICATORS.

Department of Health and Human Services

MATERNAL, INFANT AND EARLY CHILDHOOD HOMEVISITING GRANT PROGRAM - ADDRESS 401 S CLINTON STREET, CHICAGO, IL 60607 PROJECT DIRECTOR LORI ORR PHONE 312-919-3426 E-MAIL LORI.A.ORR@ILLINOIS.GOV WEBSITE: WWW.IGROWILLINOIS.ORG FUNDS REQUESTED $13,126,310 PURPOSE THE PURPOSE OF IL MIECHV IS TO IMPROVE CHILD AND FAMILY OUTCOMES IN AT-RISK COMMUNITIES, WITH AN EMPHASIS ON SERVING FAMILIES EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS, PREGNANT AND PARENTING YOUTH IN CHILD WELFARE CARE, FAMILIES WITH SUBSTANCE USE ISSUES. IL MIECHV COMMUNITIES INCLUDE URBAN SITES WITH CONCENTRATED POVERTY, SUBURBS WITH FAST-GROWING POPULATIONS, AND RURAL COUNTIES WHERE ISOLATION AND LACK OF TRANSPORTATION EXACERBATE CONDITIONS FOR PRIORITY POPULATIONS. IL MIECHV SUPPORTS THREE EVIDENCE-BASED MODELS: HEALTHY FAMILIES AMERICA, PARENTS AS TEACHERS, AND FAMILY CONNECTS (AS A COORDINATED INTAKE STRATEGY IN SELECTED COMMUNITIES). IL MIECHV IMPLEMENTS EVIDENCE-BASED HV SERVICES AND STRENGTHENS CROSS-SYSTEMS PARTNERSHIPS TO SUPPORT COMPREHENSIVE, COORDINATED SERVICES FOR FAMILIES. MATCHING FUNDS ARE ANTICIPATED TO SUPPORT EXPANSION OF HOME VISITING SERVICES IN SELECTED COMMUNITIES IDENTIFIED IN ILLINOIS’ 2020 NEEDS ASSESSMENT, BECAUSE OF THE ILLINOIS COMPETITIVE HV NOFO WHICH WAS RELEASED IN APRIL 2025. IN ADDITION, COMMUNITY READINESS AND CAPACITY-BUILDING ACTIVITIES WILL CONTINUE IN SUBURBAN COOK COUNTY AND IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS. GOAL(S) AND OBJECTIVES GOAL 1 PROVIDE COMPREHENSIVE HOME VISITING SERVICES TO ELIGIBLE FAMILIES LIVING IN COMMUNITIES THAT FACE BARRIERS TO ACHIEVING POSITIVE MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH OUTCOMES.1.1 COORDINATED SYSTEM OF SUPPORTS;1.2 CAPACITY-BUILDING FOR AT-RISK COMMUNITIES. GOAL 2 STRENGTHEN PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES THAT ADDRESS PREVENTIVE AND PRIMARY CARE SERVICES FOR PREGNANT WOMEN, INFANTS AND CHILDREN UNDER TITLE V OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ACT. 2.1 COLLABORATION AND ALIGNMENT WITH THE TITLE V PROGRAM;2.2 GROW & RETAIN THE HV WORKFORCE; 2.3 INCREASE FAMILY ENGAGEMENT - PROGRAM LEVEL;2.4 COMPREHENSIVE COST MODEL TOOL; 2.5 DATA TO IMPROVE FAMILY OUTCOMES AND SERVICES;2.6 FEEDBACK ON PRIORITIES AND STRATEGIES. GOAL 3 IMPROVE COORDINATION OF SERVICES WITHIN COMMUNITIES IDENTIFIED IN THE APPROVED STATEWIDE NEEDS ASSESSMENT AS AT RISK FOR POOR MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH OUTCOMES. 3.1 CI PROGRAMS WILL ANALYZE DATA TO IMPROVE COORDINATION AND FAMILY OUTCOMES; 3.2 REFINE ACTION PLAN FOR A STATEWIDE COORDINATED INTAKE SYSTEM FOR HV; 3.3 IMPROVE HOW PRIORITY POPULATIONS ARE SYSTEMATICALLY CONNECTED TO HV; 3.4 STRENGTHEN SYSTEMS CONNECTIONS BETWEEN HV AND SDOH. APPROACH MAJOR METHODS AND ACTIVITIES INCLUDE ONGOING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, QUALITY ASSESSMENT, CQI AND MONITORING; CAPACITY-BUILDING; ALIGNMENT WITH TITLE V; SUPPORTING LOCAL IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES (LIAS) WITH FAMILY ENGAGEMENT; UTILIZING A COMPREHENSIVE COST MODEL FOR HIGH QUALITY HV SERVICES; BUILDING COMMUNITY READINESS IN NEW COMMUNITIES, AND COORDINATING REFERRALS BETWEEN HV AND CHILD WELFARE, FAMILY CASE MANAGEMENT, AND UNIVERSAL NEWBORN SUPPORTS. CASELOAD TOTAL PROPOSED CASELOAD OF MIECHV FAMILY SLOTS FOR EACH FFY: 829. MIECHV COMMUNITIES IL WILL CONTINUE TO SERVE THE FOLLOWING AT-RISK COUNTIES: COOK: DUPAGE; KANE; KANKAKEE, MACON, PEORIA, ST.CLAIR, STEPHENSON, VERMILION, AND WINNEBAGO COUNTIES. PENDING THE OUTCOME OF THE NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY, WE MAY EXPAND SERVICES IN ONE OR MORE COUNTIES IDENTIFIED IN ILLINOIS’ 2020 NEEDS ASSESSMENT.LIAS IL WILL CONTINUE TO CONTRACT WITH 18 LIAS THAT SERVE A TOTAL OF 10 COUNTIES. DEPENDING ON THE OUTCOME OF A PENDING NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY, ADDITIONAL LIAS MAY BE ADDED. MATCHING FUNDS IL MIECHV PLANS TO USE FEDERAL MATCHING FUNDS TO CONTINUE COMMUNITY READINESS AND CAPACITY BUILDING IN SOUTH SUBURBAN COOK COUNTY (CHICAGO AREA) AND IN CASS-MORGAN COUNTIES (IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS). DEPENDING ON THE OUTCOME OF A PENDING NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY, WE MAY ADD SERVICES IN ONE OR MORE COUNTIES IDENTIFIED IN THE 2020 NEEDS ASSESSMENT.THE SOURCE OF NON-FEDERAL FUNDS IS STATE GENERAL REVENUE FUNDING.

Department of Health and Human Services

MATERNAL, INFANT AND EARLY CHILDHOOD HOMEVISITING GRANT PROGRAM - ADDRESS: 401 S. CLINTON STREET, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60607 PROJECT DIRECTOR: LORI ORR PHONE: (312) 919-3426 E-MAIL: LORI.A.ORR@ILLINOIS.GOV WEBSITE: WWW.IGROWILLINOIS.ORG FUNDS REQUESTED: $ 11,942,559 ANNOTATION: ILLINOIS MIECHV (IL) AIMS TO IMPROVE CHILD AND FAMILY OUTCOMES BY IMPLEMENTING EVIDENCE-BASED HOME VISITING (HV) MODELS IN AT-RISK COMMUNITIES, AND BY STRENGTHENING CROSS-SYSTEMS PARTNERSHIPS TO SUPPORT COMPREHENSIVE, COORDINATED SERVICES. IL COMMUNITIES INCLUDE URBAN SITES WITH CONCENTRATED POVERTY, SUBURBS WITH FAST-GROWING MIGRANT POPULATIONS, AND RURAL COUNTIES WHERE ISOLATION AND LACK OF TRANSPORTATION EXACERBATE CONDITIONS FOR PRIORITY POPULATIONS. KEY ACTIVITIES INCLUDE ONGOING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, QUALITY ASSESSMENT, CQI AND MONITORING; CAPACITY-BUILDING; ALIGNMENT WITH TITLE V; SUPPORTING LOCAL IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES (LIAS) WITH FAMILY ENGAGEMENT; DEVELOPING AND UTILIZING A COMPREHENSIVE COST MODEL FOR HIGH QUALITY HV SERVICES; AND COORDINATING REFERRALS BETWEEN HV AND CHILD WELFARE, FAMILY CASE MANAGEMENT, AND UNIVERSAL NEWBORN SUPPORTS. PROBLEM: ILLINOIS MATERNAL AND CHILD OUTCOMES ARE CONCERNING. FOR EXAMPLE, THE LATEST MATERNAL MORTALITY REPORT SHOWS THAT BLACK WOMEN ARE TWICE AS LIKELY AS WHITE WOMEN TO DIE FROM A PREGNANCY-RELATED CONDITION, AND 91% OF ALL PREGNANCY-RELATED DEATHS ARE PREVENTABLE. AND EACH YEAR, MORE THAN 35,000 CHILDREN ARE IMPACTED BY SUBSTANTIATED REPORTS OF CHILD ABUSE OR NEGLECT. IN 2022-23, 81% OF IL MIECHV FAMILIES EARNED LOW INCOMES, 24% HAD LOW STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT, 15% HAD A CHILD WITH DEVELOPMENTAL ISSUES, 15% HAD TOBACCO USE IN THE HOME, 14% HAD CHILD WELFARE INVOLVEMENT, AND 6% HAD SUBSTANCE USE CONCERNS. PURPOSE: THE PURPOSE OF IL MIECHV IS TO IMPROVE CHILD AND FAMILY OUTCOMES IN AT-RISK COMMUNITIES, BY IMPLEMENTING EVIDENCE-BASED HV SERVICES AND BY STRENGTHENING CROSS-SYSTEMS PARTNERSHIPS TO SUPPORT COMPREHENSIVE, COORDINATED SERVICES FOR FAMILIES. GOAL(S) AND OBJECTIVES: GOAL 1: IDENTIFY AND PROVIDE COMPREHENSIVE HV SERVICES TO ELIGIBLE FAMILIES LIVING IN COMMUNITIES THAT FACE BARRIERS TO ACHIEVING POSITIVE MCH OUTCOMES. 1.1 COORDINATED SYSTEM OF SUPPORTS;1.2 CAPACITY-BUILDING RESOURCES FOR AT-RISK COMMUNITIES. GOAL 2: STRENGTHEN AND IMPROVE PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES THAT ADDRESS TITLE V PREVENTIVE AND PRIMARY CARE SERVICES FOR PREGNANT PEOPLE, INFANTS AND CHILDREN.2.1 COLLABORATION AND ALIGNMENT WITH THE TITLE V PROGRAM; 2.2 GROW & RETAIN THE HV WORKFORCE; 2.3 INCREASE FAMILY ENGAGEMENT - PROGRAM LEVEL.;2.4 COMPREHENSIVE COST MODEL TOOL; 2.5 DATA TO IMPROVE FAMILY OUTCOMES AND SERVICES; 2.6 FEEDBACK ON PRIORITIES AND STRATEGIES. GOAL 3: IMPROVE COORDINATION OF SERVICES WITHIN ‘AT-RISK COMMUNITIES’ IDENTIFIED IN THE APPROVED NEEDS ASSESSMENT. 3.1 CI PROGRAMS WILL ANALYZE DATA TO IMPROVE COORDINATION AND FAMILY OUTCOMES; 3.2 IMPLEMENT ACTION PLAN FOR CREATING A STATEWIDE COORDINATED INTAKE SYSTEM FOR HV; 3.3 IMPROVE HOW PRIORITY POPULATIONS ARE SYSTEMATICALLY CONNECTED TO HV; 3.4 STRENGTHEN SYSTEMS CONNECTIONS BETWEEN HV AND SDOH. APPROACH: EVIDENCE-BASED MODELS: IL SUPPORTS THREE EVIDENCE-BASED MODELS: HEALTHY FAMILIES AMERICA, PARENTS AS TEACHERS, AND FAMILY CONNECTS - USED AS A COORDINATED INTAKE STRATEGY IN SELECTED COMMUNITIES. COMMUNITIES: IL WILL CONTINUE TO SERVE THE FOLLOWING AT-RISK COMMUNITIES: CICERO; CHICAGO SOUTHSIDE CLUSTER; CHICAGO WEST SIDE; EAST ST LOUIS; ELGIN; ROCKFORD; AND STEPHENSON, PEORIA, KANKAKEE, MACON, AND VERMILION COUNTIES. DEPENDING ON THE RESULTS OF A PENDING NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY, WE MAY ADD ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING AT-RISK COUNTIES: CASS; COLES; DOUGLAS; DUPAGE; LAKE; MORGAN; MOULTRIE; ROCK ISLAND. TARGET POPULATIONS INCLUDE FAMILIES EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS, PREGNANT AND PARENTING YOUTH IN CHILD WELFARE CARE, DUAL LANGUAGE LEARNERS, AND FAMILIES WITH SUBSTANCE USE ISSUES. TOTAL PROPOSED CASELOAD OF MIECHV FAMILY SLOTS FOR EACH FFY: 836.