Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRP) Program: Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) National Network Collaborative Research Project | HHS 2022 ACL NIDILRR DPAD 0036

Opportunity Information: Apply for HHS 2022 ACL NIDILRR DPAD 0036

The Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRP) Program: Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) National Network Collaborative Research Project is a discretionary federal grant opportunity from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Community Living (ACL), through the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR). It is structured as a single-award research grant intended to create and operate an ADA-focused research collaborative that is anchored in the existing ADA National Network infrastructure. The core purpose is to fund one DRRP project that produces rigorous, nationally significant research that improves understanding of ADA implementation and compliance, with findings that can inform policy, practice, and technical assistance efforts across the country.

A defining feature of this opportunity is that the funded DRRP must function as the NIDILRR ADA Research Collaborative and must include active collaboration among three or more NIDILRR-funded ADA National Network Regional Centers. In practical terms, this means applicants need to build a multi-center partnership where the regional centers are not just advisors but engaged partners in shaping the research agenda, contributing to study design and execution, helping access data or field sites, and supporting dissemination that reaches stakeholders who rely on ADA guidance. The emphasis on collaboration reflects the ADA National Network's role in providing technical assistance and training on ADA requirements, and the grant is designed to leverage that reach and on-the-ground perspective to generate stronger, more applicable research.

The research scope is intentionally broad, as long as it is directly connected to ADA implementation and compliance and generates new knowledge of national significance. The opportunity allows projects to focus on one or more areas of the ADA, including (but not limited to) studies tied to specific ADA titles, ADA issues within specific industries, or ADA issues particularly relevant to people with certain types of disabilities. This leaves room for many possible research directions, such as examining barriers to compliance, evaluating the effectiveness of compliance strategies, analyzing how ADA requirements are applied in real-world settings, or identifying emerging challenges in sectors like healthcare, education, transportation, hospitality, retail, or digital services. The key expectation is that the work moves beyond local or purely descriptive efforts and instead produces findings that are generalizable or otherwise meaningful at the national level.

Administrative details frame the size and competitiveness of the opportunity. The funding opportunity number is HHS 2022 ACL NIDILRR DPAD 0036, listed under CFDA 93.433, and categorized under Science and Technology and other Research and Development. The agency anticipated making one award, with an award ceiling of $500,000. Applications were required to be submitted electronically by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the due date (originally March 21, 2022), indicating a standard federal grants submission process with firm deadlines and electronic submission requirements.

Eligibility is broad and spans many sectors, which signals that NIDILRR is open to strong research teams regardless of organizational type, as long as they can meet the collaboration requirement with ADA National Network Regional Centers and deliver high-quality research. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; public/Indian housing authorities; certain Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments, as specified); nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education in those nonprofit categories); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other entities as further clarified in the opportunity materials. This wide eligibility range makes it possible for the lead applicant to be a university, nonprofit research organization, government entity, or even a for-profit research firm, provided the project is built around meaningful partnership with at least three NIDILRR-funded ADA National Network Regional Centers.

Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a targeted, single-project investment to strengthen the national evidence base around how the ADA is carried out in practice. By requiring a collaborative structure tied to multiple ADA National Network Regional Centers, the grant prioritizes research that is informed by real-world compliance questions and positioned for broad dissemination and uptake, with the ultimate goal of improving ADA implementation outcomes for people with disabilities nationwide.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRP) Program: Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) National Network Collaborative Research Project" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.433.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jan 19, 2022.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 21, 2022 Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 1159 p.m., ET, on the listed application due date.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, 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 (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for HHS 2022 ACL NIDILRR DPAD 0036

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