Career Enhancement Award to Advance the Study of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in the Context of Maternal Morbidity and Mortality Research (K18 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA OD 24 001

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA OD 24 001

The NIH Career Enhancement Award to Advance the Study of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in the Context of Maternal Morbidity and Mortality Research (K18; Clinical Trial Not Allowed) is a discretionary grant opportunity designed to strengthen the research workforce at the intersection of maternal health and violence research. It sits within the NIH IMPROVE Initiative (Implementing a Maternal health and PRegnancy Outcomes Vision for Everyone), and its core purpose is to help established maternal morbidity and mortality investigators deliberately build expertise in intimate partner violence and related forms of violence so they can incorporate IPV-informed concepts, frameworks, and approaches into their ongoing or future maternal health research programs.

This K18 is aimed at experienced, independent investigators, meaning it is not primarily a mentored career development mechanism for trainees or early-career researchers. Eligible candidates can be at any faculty rank or level, as long as they are independent investigators with an existing trajectory in maternal morbidity and mortality research who now need targeted training to competently address IPV as a driver, correlate, or intervention target related to maternal outcomes. The award structure emphasizes two connected components: a research training and career development plan (to gain new skills and knowledge in IPV and related violence research) and a small-scale research project. The training element is meant to close a specific competency gap, while the small project provides a practical way to apply those newly acquired competencies, generating preliminary insights or proof-of-concept work that can be leveraged into larger, sustained research efforts.

Programmatically, the opportunity is meant to move the field beyond treating IPV as a background variable and toward integrating violence constructs, theories, and/or interventions into maternal morbidity and mortality research in a rigorous way. In practice, that could include improving measurement and conceptualization of IPV and related violence, incorporating trauma-informed or safety-centered research approaches, understanding pathways through which IPV affects pregnancy and postpartum outcomes, or adapting and evaluating IPV-related strategies in clinical and community settings that touch maternal health. Because this specific announcement states "Clinical Trial Not Allowed," applicants need to ensure that the proposed small-scale research project does not meet NIH definitions of a clinical trial, such as prospectively assigning human participants to an intervention to evaluate health-related outcomes. The project can still involve human participants and maternal health populations, but it must be structured in a way that stays outside clinical trial parameters.

Eligibility for applicant organizations is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based entities. Examples listed include state, county, city, township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; Native American tribal governments (federally recognized) and tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments); public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations (other than small businesses) as well as small businesses; and additional categories captured under "others." The announcement also explicitly highlights a wide range of institution types and community-linked organizations as eligible applicants, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions. At the same time, the geographic rules are strict: non-U.S. (non-domestic) entities and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible, and foreign components (as NIH defines them in policy) are not allowed. In other words, the work must be fully domestic in organizational footprint and project components.

Administratively, the sponsoring agency is the National Institutes of Health, and the funding opportunity number is RFA-OD-24-001. It is categorized as a grant under activity areas that include education and health (with related categories such as income security and social services reflecting the cross-cutting nature of IPV and maternal outcomes). The CFDA numbers associated with the opportunity are 93.313, 93.361, and 93.865. The original closing date shown is 2023-12-01, and the record creation date is 2023-10-03. An award ceiling and expected number of awards are not specified in the provided source fields, which typically means applicants would need to consult the full announcement for budget limits, project period details, and any institute-specific expectations.

Taken together, this opportunity is best understood as a targeted capacity-building award: it is for established maternal health outcomes researchers who want to broaden their scientific toolkit so they can address IPV more directly and correctly in maternal morbidity and mortality research. The NIH is essentially funding time, structured learning, and a bounded research effort so investigators can make a durable shift in their programs, positioning them to pursue larger future studies and to better account for IPV-related risks, mechanisms, and potential points of prevention or support within maternal health systems.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health, income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Career Enhancement Award to Advance the Study of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in the Context of Maternal Morbidity and Mortality Research (K18 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.313, 93.361, 93.865.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-10-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-12-01. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for RFA OD 24 001

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: