[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 95 (Tuesday, May 18, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26975-26977]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-12439]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
[Program Announcement 99139]
Grants for Minority Health Statistics Dissertation Research
Notice of Availability of Funds
A. Purpose
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announces the
availability of fiscal year (FY) 99 funds for a dissertation research
grants program for the Minority Health Statistics Grants Program of the
National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), CDC. This program
addresses the Healthy People 2000'' priority area, Surveillance and
Data Systems.
The purpose of the Minority Health Statistics Grants Program is to
make awards for (1) the conduct of special surveys or studies on the
health of racial and ethnic populations or subpopulations; (2) analysis
of data on ethnic and racial populations and subpopulations; and (3)
research on improving methods for developing statistics on ethnic and
racial populations and subpopulations.
B. Eligible Applicants
Eligible applicants may be public or private nonprofit institutions
that will administer the grant on behalf of the proposed Principal
Investigator (doctoral candidate). Examples of public and private
nonprofit organizations include universities, colleges, research
institutions, hospitals, and other public and private nonprofit
organizations, State and local governments or their bona fide agents,
and federally recognized Indian tribal governments, Indian tribes, or
Indian tribal organizations.
The proposed Principal Investigator must be a registered doctoral
candidate in resident or nonresident status. All requirements for the
doctoral degree other than the dissertation must be completed by the
time of the award. Students seeking a doctorate in any relevant
research discipline are eligible.
An applicant institution may be either the degree-granting
institution or another non-profit institution with which the proposed
Principal Investigator is professionally affiliated.
Note: Public Law 104-65 states that an organization described in
section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that engages
in lobbying activities is not eligible to receive Federal funds
constituting an award, grant, cooperative agreement, contract, loan,
or any other form.
C. Availability of Funds
Approximately $150,000 is available in FY 1999 to fund
approximately 5 awards. It is expected that the average award will be
$20,000 ranging from $15,000 to $30,000. It is expected that the awards
will begin on or about September 30, 1999. The awards will be made for
a 12-month budget period within a project period of up to 2 years.
Funding estimates are subject to change.
D. Use of Funds
The total costs must not exceed $30,000 for the entire project
period. An application that exceeds this amount will be returned to the
applicant. No supplemental funds will be awarded.
Funding support may only be requested for the amount of time
necessary to complete the dissertation within the authorized project
period.
Allowable costs include: the investigator's salary and direct
project expenses such as travel, data processing, and supplies. Fees
for maintaining matriculation or other fees imposed on those preparing
dissertations are allowable costs, provided the fees are required of
all students of similar standing, regardless of the source of funding.
Applicants are expected to work full time on the project. Any level of
effort that is less than full time must be fully justified.
Indirect costs under this grant program are limited to eight
percent of direct costs, excluding tuition and related fees and
expenditures for equipment. Indirect costs will be awarded at the
actual indirect cost rate for the institution, if the rate is less than
eight percent.
E. Funding Preference
Three factors influence the final funding decisions on applications
for support of dissertations: (1) result of the initial review; (2) the
potential of the applicant to contribute to the field; and (3) the
availability of funds.
F. Program Requirements
Responsibility for the planning, direction, and execution of the
proposed project will be solely that of the proposed Principal
Investigator (the doctoral candidate).
1. The dissertation must examine and/or develop some aspect of
statistical research on racial and ethnic populations or
subpopulations. It should focus on one or more of the following
research program areas: community-based research, methods and theory
development, health promotion and data standards development, and data
analysis and dissemination.
2. The dissertation must be officially accepted by the faculty
committee or university official responsible for the candidate's
dissertation and must be signed by the responsible officials.
3. Prior to submission of the application, the dissertation
proposal must be approved by the dissertation faculty committee and
certified by the faculty advisor. This information must be verified in
a letter of certification from the chairperson and submitted with the
grant application.
4. Applications from doctoral students who are women, members of
minority groups, persons with disability, students of Historically
Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, and
other predominately minority and minority serving institutions are
encouraged.
5. The proposed investigator who receives support for dissertation
research under a grant may not at the same time receive support under a
predoctoral training grant or fellowship awarded by any other agency,
or component, of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
G. Application Content
Letter of Intent (LOI)
The LOI should identify program announcement number 99139, and the
name of the principal investigator. The LOI does not influence review
or funding decisions, but it will enable CDC to plan the review more
efficiently. The LOI should be submitted on or before June 15, 1999, to
the Grants Management Specialist identified in the ``Where to Obtain
Additional Information'' section of this announcement.
Application
Use the information in the Program Requirements, Other
Requirements, and Evaluation Criteria sections to develop the
application content. Your application will be evaluated on the
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criteria listed, so it is important to follow them in laying out your
program plan. The narrative should be double-spaced, printed on one
side, with one inch margins, and unreduced font. Applications will be
eligible for support only during the review cycle for which they are
submitted. No application can be submitted more than once even in
revised form.
Applicants must follow the instructions in the research grant
application PHS Form 398 in preparing the application with the
following information/changes:
1. The Doctoral candidate should be identified as the Principal
Investigator.
2. A questionnaire may be included as an appendix if it is
essential to evaluate the proposal. A list of literature cited is
required and may be included in the appendix. No other material should
be provided in an appendix.
3. A letter from the faculty committee or the university official
directly responsible for supervising the dissertation research must be
submitted with the grant application. The letter must certify that (a)
the committee has approved the formal proposal for the dissertation,
(b) the grant application represents the dissertation proposal, and (c)
the applicant will complete all requirements for the doctoral degree
except the dissertation by the anticipated date of the grant award.
4. The application must identify all members of the faculty
committee by listing the names on Form BB. A brief biographical sketch
for each should be provided as explained in form 398, page FF.
5. Applicants should give human subjects protection and gender and
minority representation by addressing the applicability and method of
confidentiality and compliance.
6. The project description in the application must describe the
scientific significance of the work, including its relationship to
other current research, and the design of the project in sufficient
detail to permit evaluation. It should also present and interpret
progress to date if the research is already underway.
7. A detailed budget must be provided identifying the items for
which funds are requested and their estimated costs. A budget
justification explaining the necessity of these expenses for the
research should also be included.
8. Statements of ``Current and Pending Support'' for both the
student and the dissertation advisor must be identified on form GG.
H. Submission and Deadline
Letter of Intent (LOI)
On or before June 15, 1999, submit the LOI to the Grants Management
Specialist identified in the ``Where to Obtain Additional Information''
section of this announcement.
Application
Submit the original and five copies of PHS-398 (OMB Number 0925-
0001) (adhere to the instructions on the Errata Instruction Sheet for
PHS 398). Forms are available at the following Internet address:
www.cdc.gov/...Forms, or in the application kit. On or before July 15,
1999, submit the application to the Grants Management Specialist
identified in the ``Where to Obtain Additional Information'' section of
this announcement.
Deadline: Applications shall be considered as meeting the deadline
if they are either: (a) Received on or before the deadline date; or (b)
Sent on or before the deadline date and received in time for orderly
processing. (Applicants must request a legibly dated U.S. Postal
Service postmark or obtain a legibly dated receipt from a commercial
carrier or U.S. Postal Service. Private metered postmarks shall not be
acceptable as proof of timely mailing.)
Late Applications: Applications which do not meet the criteria in
(a) or (b) above are considered late applications, will not be
considered, and will be returned to the applicant.
I. Evaluation Criteria
Proposals are judged on the basis of their scientific merit, the
theoretical importance of the research question and the appropriateness
of the proposed data and methodology to be used in addressing the
question.
Each application will be evaluated individually against the
following criteria by an objective review panel appointed by CDC.
1. Significance and originality of the research.
2. Knowledge of research relevant to the topic.
3. Appropriateness of methods and data, including a description and
justification of the analytic techniques that will be employed and a
discussion of the methodological problems that might be encountered.
4. Availability and adequacy of data.
5. Organization of the project.
6. Adequacy of facilities and resources.
7. Human subjects involvement and protection (when appropriate).
8. Representation of women and minorities (when appropriate).
9. Appropriateness of the budget.
In evaluating applications and making recommendations reviewers
assess the applicant's potential for making significant contributions
to the field of minority health statistics research.
J. Other Requirements
Technical Reporting Requirements
The dissertation constitutes the final report of the grant. Three
copies of the dissertation shall be submitted to the CDC.
Provide CDC with original plus two copies of--
1. The annual progress reports, no more than 30 days after the end
of the budget period;
2. The financial status report, no more than 90 days after the end
of the budget period; and
3. The final financial status and performance reports, no more than
90 days after the end of the project period.
Send all reports to the Grants Management Specialist identified in
the ``Where to Obtain Additional Information'' section of this
announcement.
The following additional requirements are applicable to this
program. For a complete description of each, see Attachment I. included
in the application kit.
AR-1 Human Subjects Requirements
AR-2 Requirements for Inclusion of Women and Racial and Ethnic
Minorities in Research
AR-4 HIV/AIDS Confidentiality Provisions
AR-9 Paperwork Reduction Act Requirements
AR-10 Smoke-Free Workplace Requirements
AR-11 Healthy People 2000
AR-12 Lobbying Restrictions
K. Authority and Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number
This program is authorized under section 306(m) of the Public
Health Service Act [42 U.S.C. section 242k(m)], as amended. The Catalog
of Federal Domestic Assistance number is 93.283.
L. Where To Obtain Additional Information
You can download a copy of this program announcement and the PHS
Form 398 from the CDC home page Internet site: http://www.cdc.gov
double click on ``funding'.
To receive additional written information call 1-888-GRANTS4 (1-
888-472-6874). You will be asked to leave your name, address, and phone
number and will need to refer to Program Announcement 99131. You
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will receive a complete program description, information on application
procedures, and application forms. CDC will not send application kits
by facsimile or express mail.
Please Refer To Announcement number 99139 When Requesting
Information and Submitting an Application.
If you have questions after reviewing the contents of all the
documents, business management technical assistance may be obtained by
contacting: Victoria Sepe, Grants Management Specialist, Grants
Management Branch, Procurement and Grants Office, Announcement 99139,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2920 Brandywine Road,
Room 3000, Atlanta, GA 30341, telephone (770) 488-2721, Email address:
[email protected]
For program technical assistance, contact: Audrey L. Burwell, M.S.,
Minority Health Statistics Grants, Program Director, National Center
for Health Statistics, CDC, 6525 Belcrest Road, Room 1100, Hyattsville,
MD 20782, Telephone: (301) 436-7062, extension 127, Email:
[email protected], Program Website: www.cdc.gov/nchswww/about/grants/
grants.htm
Dated: May 12, 1999.
John L. Williams,
Director, Procurement and Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC).
[FR Doc. 99-12439 Filed 5-17-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P