Notices regarding the solicitation “Research and Evaluation in Safety, 

Health, and Wellness in the Criminal Justice System, Fiscal Year 

2020”

March 30, 2020: A solicitation FAQ has been added here: 

https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/nij-2020-17296. Any additional FAQs related to this 

solicitation will be added to this page as they become available.

March 27, 2020: Many of our solicitations encourage research partnerships and require 

applicants to include a strong letter of support, signed by an appropriate decision-making 

authority from each proposed partnering entity.

NIJ continues to strongly encourage prospective applicants to submit executed agreements 

necessary to carrying out the work proposed with applications if they can be obtained, but with 

an understanding of the circumstances surrounding the pandemic, NIJ will accept applications 

without them.

Applicants selected for award will be required to submit completed agreements by January 1, 

2021. Funds will be withheld until such agreements have been received.

The original solicitation document begins on the next page.
U.S. Department of Justice OMB No. 1121-0329 

Office of Justice Programs Approval Expires 11/30/2020 

National Institute of Justice 

Research and Evaluation in Safety, Health, and Wellness in the 

Criminal Justice System, Fiscal Year 2020

FY 2020 Competitive Research Grant Solicitation

CFDA No. 16.560

Grants.gov Solicitation Number: NIJ-2020-17296

Solicitation Release Date: January 30, 2020

Application Deadline: 11:59 p.m. eastern time on April 29, 2020

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), National Institute of 

Justice (NIJ) is seeking applications for funding for innovative, multidisciplinary research 

projects to develop knowledge and tools to promote the safety, health, and wellness of law 

enforcement and corrections officers.

This solicitation incorporates the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide by reference. The OJP 

Grant Application Resource Guide provides guidance to applicants on how to prepare and 

submit applications for funding to OJP. If this solicitation expressly modifies any provision in the 

OJP Grant Application Resource Guide, the applicant is to follow the guidelines in this 

solicitation as to that provision.

Eligibility (Who may apply)

In general, NIJ is authorized to make grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative 

agreements with eligible entities as listed below:

 States (including territories);

 Units of local government;

 Federally recognized Indian tribal governments that perform law enforcement functions 

(as determined by the Secretary of the Interior);

 Nonprofit and for-profit organizations (including tribal nonprofit and for-profit 

organizations); and

 Institutions of higher education (including tribal institutions of higher education).
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Foreign governments, foreign organizations, and foreign colleges and universities are not 

eligible to apply. Federal agencies are eligible to apply. (Any award made to a federal agency 

will be made as an inter-agency reimbursable agreement.)

All recipients and subrecipients (including any for-profit organization) must forgo any profit or 

management fee.

NIJ will consider applications under which two-or-more entities would carry out the federal 

award; however, only one entity may be the applicant. Any others must be proposed as 

subrecipients (subgrantees). The applicant must be the entity that would have primary 

responsibility for carrying out the award, including administering the funding and managing the 

entire project. For additional information on subawards, see the OJP Grant Application 

Resource Guide.

Contact Information

For technical assistance with submitting an application, contact the Grants.gov Customer Support 

Hotline at 1-800-518-4726 or 1-606-545-5035 (international), at 

https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support.html, or at support@grants.gov. The Grants.gov

Support Hotline operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, except on federal holidays.

An applicant that experiences unforeseen Grants.gov technical issues beyond its control that 

prevent it from submitting its application by the deadline must email the NIJ contact identified 

below within 24 hours after the application deadline to request approval to submit its 

application after the deadline. Additional information on reporting technical issues appears 

under “Experiencing Unforeseen Grants.gov Technical Issues” in the “How To Apply 

(Grants.gov)” section in the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide.

For assistance with any other requirements of this solicitation, contact the National Criminal 

Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) Response Center: toll-free at 1-800-851-3420; via TTY at 

301-240-6310 (hearing impaired only); email grants@ncjrs.gov; fax to 301-240-5830; or web 

chat at https://webcontact.ncjrs.gov/ncjchat/chat.jsp. The NCJRS Response Center hours of 

operation are 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. eastern time, Monday through Friday, and 10:00 a.m. to 

8:00 p.m. eastern time on the solicitation close date. General information on applying for NIJ 

awards can be found at https://nij.ojp.gov/funding. Answers to frequently asked questions that 

may assist applicants are posted at https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/frequently-asked-questions-aboutapplying-grants-and-cooperative-agreements.

Deadline Details

Applicants must register with Grants.gov at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/register.html

prior to submitting an application. All applications are due by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on April 29

2020.

To be considered timely, an application must be submitted by the application deadline using 

Grants.gov, and the applicant must have received a validation message from Grants.gov that 

indicates successful and timely submission. OJP urges applicants to submit applications at least 

72 hours prior to the application due date, to allow time for the applicant to receive validation 

messages or rejection notifications from Grants.gov, and to correct in a timely fashion any 

problems that may have caused a rejection notification.
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An applicant must use the Add Attachment button to attach a file to its application. Do not click 

the paperclip icon to attach files. This action will not attach the files to the application. After 

adding an attachment, select the View Attachment button to confirm you attached the correct 

file. To remove the file, select the Delete Attachment button.

OJP encourages all applicants to read this Important Notice: Applying for Grants in Grants.gov.

For additional information, see the “How to Apply (Grants.gov)” section in the OJP Grant 

Application Resource Guide.
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Contents

A. Program Description 5

Overview 5

Project-Specific Information 6

Goals, Objectives, Deliverables, and Expected Scholarly Products 13

B. Federal Award Information 16

Type of Award 17

Financial Management and System of Internal Controls 17

Budget Information 17

Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement 18

Pre-agreement Costs (also known as Pre-award Costs) 18

Limitation on Use of Award Funds for Employee Compensation; Waiver 18

Prior Approval, Planning, and Reporting of Conference/Meeting/Training Costs 18

Costs Associated with Language Assistance (if applicable) 18

C. Eligibility Information 18

D. Application and Submission Information 18

What an Application Should Include 18

How To Apply (Grants.gov) 24

E. Application Review Information 25

Review Criteria 25

Review Process 26

F. Federal Award Administration Information 28

Federal Award Notices 28

Administrative, National Policy, and Other Legal Requirements 28

Information Technology (IT) Security Clauses 28

General Information about Post-Federal Award Reporting Requirements 28

G. Federal Awarding Agency Contact(s) 29

H. Other Information 29

Freedom of Information and Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552 and 5 U.S.C. 552a) 29

Provide Feedback to OJP 29

Application Checklist 30
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NIJ-2020-17296

Research and Evaluation in Safety, Health, 

and Wellness in the Criminal Justice 

System, Fiscal Year 2020

CFDA No. 16.560

A. Program Description

Overview

With this solicitation, NIJ seeks applications for funding of multidisciplinary research projects 

addressing any of these five topics:

1. Resiliency and Recovery of Law Enforcement Agencies from Singular, Extreme 

Traumatic Events

2. Impact of Organizational Stressors on Officer Health and Wellness

3. Effects of Pre-Career Interventions and Subsequent Reminders in Modulating Mental, 

Physical, and Social Responses to Stressors in Law Enforcement Officers

4. Community Hostility, Officer Health, and Effects on Policing

5. Understanding the Increased Rate of Assaults on Law Enforcement Officers

All five topics, in varying degrees, lend themselves to a mixed-method approach involving a 

combination of the measurements of behavioral, psychological, biological, and physiological 

responses. Additionally, all five topics lend themselves to multidisciplinary research from 

behavioral science, neuroscience, operations research, and the social science communities.

This solicitation supports the U.S. Department of Justice’s priority of protecting officers and 

other public safety personnel. This solicitation also supports the following five objectives of the 

NIJ Safety, Health, and Wellness Strategic Research Plan 2016-2021 (August 2016):

 Objective I.2: Support development, and promote strategies, policies, practices, and 

technologies that enhance the safety of criminal justice personnel.

 Objective I.4: Develop policies, strategies, and technologies to promote safety in criminal 

justice interactions with the public. 

 Objective II.1: Promote research to improve the physical and mental health of individuals 

working in the criminal justice system. 

 Objective II.2: Study both trauma and suicide among criminal justice employees.

 Objective II.4: Promote science-based tools and strategies to monitor physical and 

mental health.
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Research proposed on topics outside the five topics identified in this solicitation will not be 

considered. Applications must specify which of the topics they are responding to in the 

title of their proposal.

Applications proposing research involving partnerships with criminal justice or other agencies 

must include a strong letter of support, signed by an appropriate decision-making authority from 

each proposed partnering agency. A letter of support must include the partnering agency’s 

acknowledgement that de-identified data provided through this project will be archived by the 

awardee in the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data (NACJD) at the conclusion of the 

award (please see “Goals, Objectives, Deliverables, and Expected Scholarly Products,” below). 

If selected for an award, applicants will be expected to have a formal agreement in place with 

partnering agencies by January 1, 2021. That agreement must include provisions to meet the 

data archiving requirements of the award.

In rare circumstances — for example where law prohibits the archiving of agency data —

NIJ may agree to a successful applicant creating and archiving an appropriate synthetic dataset. 

Those circumstances will be rare, decided by NIJ on a case-by-case basis, and will require 

extensive documentation and justification for exceptions to be made.

Statutory Authority: Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 

(sections 201 and 202).

Project-Specific Information

NIJ is committed to building a knowledge base focused on the safety, health, and wellness of 

individuals employed in criminal justice occupations, individuals under the supervision of the 

criminal justice system, and members of the public as they interact with the system.

Topic 1: Resiliency and Recovery of Law Enforcement Agencies from 

Singular, Extreme Traumatic Events

Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17299

Police officers constantly experience both personal and professional stressors. Examples of 

personal, or life-event stressors may include divorce, a death in the family, financial extremis, 

etc. Professional stressors include fluctuating work hours and shifts, and tense interactions with 

the public. These stressors may also include direct or indirect exposure to traumatic events, 

such as being physically assaulted, or learning of the death of a colleague.

In rare circumstances, officers are exposed to singular, extreme traumatic incidents that impact 

not only the officer, but their entire agency and the community that they serve. Such extreme 

traumatic events include mass-casualty events and natural disasters. (Natural disasters may or 

may not be a mass-casualty event.)

Recovering from extreme traumatic events is particularly challenging for police officers and their 

agencies as officers may simultaneously act as responders, be victimized by the traumatic 

event, and continually re-experience the trauma of the event. Recovery is also complicated by 

the fact that once the event is over, agencies cannot stand down, but must continue to conduct 
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policing operations. Officers will continue to be exposed to consequent professional stressors. 

In the event of a natural disaster, officers may continue to experience life-event stressors 

resulting from that disaster. Officers who are continuously exposed to such events may exhibit 

cognitive, behavioral, physical, or psychological symptoms of trauma.

NIJ is interested in proposals for research and evaluation projects to better understand how 

programs or strategies make officers: (1) more resilient to singular, extreme traumatic events;

and (2) promote recovery from them while continuing police operations during the event and at 

its conclusion. Ideally, such programs or strategies would translate effectively across different 

types of trauma. 

NIJ expects that applicants will propose the most rigorous and practical methods appropriate for 

the subject matter. Setting aside considerations of practicality, such methods, if possible, would 

involve randomized control trials (RCTs) with measurements of behavioral, psychological, 

biological, neurological, and/or physiological responses, including the use of biological markers.

Topic 2: Impact of Organizational Stressors on Officer Health and Wellness

Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17300

Research suggests that the stressors associated with the more routine aspects of law 

enforcement work, including organizational stressors, may be among the greatest sources of 

occupational stress that law enforcement officers face.1,2,3 Further, this routine work stress may 

be a stronger predictor of psychological distress and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in 

officers than the effects of exposure to traumatic events.4,5,6

Organizational stressors may include — but are not limited to — fluctuating work hours and 

shifts; lack of resources to do the work; overburdening, pervasive administrative bureaucracy; 

lack of control over one’s work and work environment, and ineffective communication. 

Interpersonal conflict with coworkers is another source of stress. Such conflicts may result from 

a number of different causes, including dysfunctional organizational politics.

7

The effects of the actions of agency leaders, managers, and supervisors — particularly as it 

relates to establishing a supportive and positive work environment — are another source of 

 

1 Violanti, J. and Aron, F., Sources of police stressors, job attitudes, and psychological distress, Psychol Rep., 1993 

Jun;72(3 Pt 1):899-904.

2 Crank, J.P. and M. Caldero, “Production of Occupational Stress in Medium-Sized Police Agencies: A Survey of Line 

Officers in Eight Municipal Departments,” Journal of Criminal Justice, Volume 19, issue 4, 1991, pp. 339-349.

3 Collins, P.A. and Gibbs, A.C.C., “Stress in police officers: a study of the origins, prevalence and severity of stressrelated symptoms within a county police force,” Occupational Medicine 2003; 53:256-264.

4 Liberman, A., et al, “Routine Occupational Stress and Psychological Distress in Police,” Policing: An Internal Journal 

of Police Strategies & Management, Volume 25 Issue 2 Dated 2002 pp. 421-439.

5 Gershon, J., “National Institute of Justice Final Report ‘Project Shields,” in Criminal Justice and Behavior 36(3):275-

289.March 2009.

6 Maguen, S., et al, “Routine Environment Stress and PTSD Symptoms in Police Officers”, Journal of Nervous and 

Mental Diseases, 2009, Oct. 197(10), pp. 754 -760.

7 Gove, T. (2011). “Perspective: Strategies for Curbing Organizational Politics.” Law Enforcement Bulletin. 

Washington, DC: Federal Bureau of Investigation.
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NIJ-2020-17296

organizational stress noted in the literature.8,9,10 Indeed, in one study a participant was reported 

to have stated, “The stress caused by the work on the street is nothing compared to the stress 

caused by the administration in this department.”11 Leadership actions (or lack thereof) are often 

manifested in other organizational stressors, such as poor communication, unchecked 

dysfunctional organizational politics, and microaggressions.

The behavioral, psychological, social, and physiological impacts on officers from stress resulting 

from leadership actions and interpersonal conflict, and the mechanisms underlying those 

impacts, are not well understood. To address this lack of knowledge, NIJ is interested in

research proposals that examine these impacts and mechanisms, and how adverse impacts 

might be mitigated.

NIJ will accept proposals for research focused on police agencies, sheriff offices, and/or 

correctional agencies. Research findings should both illuminate the health and wellness impact 

of exposure to these types of stressors, and inform strategies that mitigate them. Successful 

applicants will propose innovative and relevant research, with robust and rigorous research 

designs.

Topic 3: Effects of Pre-Career Interventions and Subsequent Reminders 

in Modulating Mental, Physical, and Social Responses to 

Stressors in Law Enforcement Officers

Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17301

Psychological distress and trauma have long-term mental, emotional, social, and physical 

effects on law enforcement officers.12,13 Stressors include critical incidents, organizational 

stress, vicarious trauma, social and personal experiences, and a range of individualized events 

impacting an individual. It may be difficult to point to one incident in an officer’s career as the 

impetus for mental and physical disorders and disabilities that manifest later in life.

Stress has both short- and long-term effects, and can be categorized as eustress, defined as 

moderate or normal psychological stress which can be beneficial, or distress. The majority of 

the research on officer stress has prioritized the study of distress and its long-term 

consequences, including poor mental, physical, and physiological outcomes. Evaluation of longterm effects of stress is especially critical as cumulative stressors are correlated with poorer 

disease prognoses and more difficult treatment courses.14

 

8 Crank and Caldero.

9 Violanti, J. and Aron, F., Sources of police stressors, job attitudes, and psychological distress, Psychol Rep., 1993 

Jun;72(3 Pt 1):899-904.

10 Blum, L. (2000). Force Under Pressure. How cops live and why they die. New York: Lantern. C.f. Johnson, R. 

(2015). “Police Organizational Commitment: The Influence of Supervisor Feedback and Support.” Crime and 

Delinquency 61:1155-1180.

11 Crank and Caldero.

12 Gu JK, Charles LE, Burchfiel CM, Andrew ME, Ma C, Bang KM, and Violanti JM. (2013). Associations between 

Psychological Distress and Body Mass Index among Law Enforcement Officers: The National Health Interview 

Survey 2004-2010. Safety and Health at Work, 4(1):52-62.

13 Hartley TA1, Violanti JM, Fekedulegn D, Andrew ME, Burchfiel CM. (2007). Associations between major life 

events, traumatic incidents, and depression among Buffalo police officers. International Journal of Emergency Mental 

Health, 9(1):25-35.

14 Young AT. (2012). The effectiveness of cumulative stress debriefings with law enforcement personnel. International 

Journal of Emergency Mental Health, 14(1):29-35.
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NIJ-2020-17296

Law enforcement trainees form a unique population for study in that they are exposed to 

aspects of policing during their training, but are not yet at risk for the stressors reported by more 

seasoned officers. This population provides an opportunity to gauge:

1. Stressor accumulation over the course of an officer’s career that contribute to mental 

health diseases; and

2. Interventions or programs implemented during training’s effect on the protection of 

officers from downstream susceptibility to such diseases.

Currently, there are limited longitudinal assessments of trainees’ susceptibility and resilience to 

mental health disorders using validated physiological biomarkers. Few studies (at any career 

level) follow-up past the 12-month point, limiting available data about how long the effects of 

these interventions last.15,16

Reminders have been demonstrated to potentiate memory and behavior in both human and 

animal models, as they reconsolidate and strengthen memories while delaying forgetting.17,18

Subjects are likely to remember and engage in behaviors more routinely when provided 

reminders post-training.19 Currently, there are no studies of officers that assess the efficacy of 

reminders on potentiating the benefits of mental and physical health interventions.

Under this topic area, NIJ seeks innovative research and/or evaluation proposals that address 

the following questions:

1. What types of training and/or interventions can be implemented during academy training 

to promote resilience to mental health disorders, and how may they be evaluated?

2. Do interventions during academy training promote immediate and future resilience to 

mental, emotional, social, and/or organizational trauma and stressors?

3. How long do the effects of these interventions last?

4. What is the effect of inserting reminders between assessments? 

The applicant(s) selected for funding under this solicitation topic area will be responsible for 

assessing early- and late-stage outcomes of the proposed interventions. The proposed research 

should:

 

15 Kuehl KS1, Elliot DL, MacKinnon DP, O'Rourke HP, DeFrancesco C, Miočević M, Valente M, Sleigh A, Garg B, 

McGinnis W, Kuehl H. The SHIELD (Safety & Health Improvement: Enhancing Law Enforcement Departments) 

Study: Mixed Methods Longitudinal Findings. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 58(5):492-8.

16 Wang Z1, Inslicht SS, Metzler TJ, Henn-Haase C, McCaslin SE, Tong H, Neylan TC, Marmar CR. (2010). A 

prospective study of predictors of depression symptoms in police. Psychiatry Research, 175(3):211-6.

17 Nieto, J., Uengoer, M., & Bernal-Gamboa, R. (2017). A reminder of extinction reduces relapse in an animal model 

of voluntary behavior. Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.), 24(2), 76–80.

18 Kroes, M., Dunsmoor, J. E., Lin, Q., Evans, M., & Phelps, E. A. (2017). A reminder before extinction strengthens 

episodic memory via reconsolidation but fails to disrupt generalized threat responses. Scientific reports, 7(1), 10858.

19 Fenerty, S. D., West, C., Davis, S. A., Kaplan, S. G., & Feldman, S. R. (2012). The effect of reminder systems on 

patients' adherence to treatment. Patient preference and adherence, 6, 127–135.
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1. Assess changes in validated and generalizable psychological, behavioral, physiological, 

and/or social markers of personal and professional performance — with an emphasis on 

physiological markers — that result from the intervention;

2. Indicate understanding of the significance and limitations of the markers they choose for 

the general and law enforcement populations; and

3. Identify substantively meaningful and measureable short- and long-term outcomes that 

are theoretically linked to the intervention. Measured outcomes should inform our 

understanding of how officers respond to stress, or how to prevent 

stress/trauma/suicide/etc. by offering support to law enforcement officers from the 

beginning of their careers.

Applicants under this topic area are encouraged, but not required to, propose a randomizedcontrolled and/or mixed-method approach involving a combination of the measurement of 

behavioral, psychological, biological, and physiological responses; as well as the application of 

social science and/or operations research techniques. If physiological markers are included in 

the research analysis, the applicant must provide literature review or research in order to 

demonstrate understanding of the application of those biomarkers to their research, as well as 

its limitations. Biomarkers to assess may include: imaging techniques, hormones, cortisol,

chemokines and immune activation, receptor activation, epigenetic modifications including DNA, 

RNA, and micro-RNA, or telomeres.

Topic 4: Community Hostility, Officer Health, and Effects on Policing

Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17679

Recent findings from a nationally representative survey show that law enforcement officers have 

become increasingly concerned about their physical safety in the wake of highly publicized use–

of-force incidents.20 Correspondingly, the majority of officers report being subjected to verbal 

abuse from community members, increased tensions when interacting with minority citizens 

(especially in larger police departments).One-third report that they have physically struggled or 

fought with a suspect during an arrest in the past month.

Such experiences are associated with increased callousness, social isolation, or cynicism 

toward the public, and negative feelings about the job, which may result in officers favoring 

aggressive or physically coercive tactics within particular communities.21 On the other hand, 

these experiences might also result in officers choosing not to stop and question suspicious 

individuals, make them more reluctant to use force even in situations where it is appropriate, or 

to avoid proactive enforcement activities altogether through depolicing.22,23

 

20 Morin, R., Parker, K., Stepler, R., & Mercer, A. (2017). Behind the badge: Amid protests and calls for reform, how 

police view their jobs, key issues and recent fatal encounters between blacks and police. PEW Research Center.

21 Marier, C. J., & Moule, R. K. (2019). Feeling blue: Officer perceptions of public antipathy predict police occupational 

norms. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 44(5), 836-857.

22 Oliver, W. M. (2017). Depolicing: Rhetoric or reality? Criminal Justice Policy Review, 28(5), 437-461.

23 Nix, J., Wolfe, S. E., & Campbell, B. A. (2018). Command-level police officers’ perceptions of the “war on cops” and 

de-policing. Justice Quarterly, 35(1), 33-54.
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Similarly, whereas the majority of Americans believe they understand the risks and challenges 

of police work, most officers surveyed said that the public does not accurately comprehend this 

reality. Indeed, nearly all officers reported that they are regularly frustrated and too understaffed 

to police their community adequately. To that point, although line-of-duty deaths have declined 

over the last few decades, the nonfatal injury rate for police officers has now risen to three times 

that of the average U.S. worker — with the leading cause of injury for officers being an assault 

or violent act.24 According to researchers, this “significant upward trend in assault injuries 

among U.S. law enforcement officers ... warrants further investigation.”25

Recognizing these concerns, NIJ is interested in proposals for research that investigate how 

contrasting public sentiments or antagonism toward the police, and in particular anti-police 

rhetoric or efforts to delegitimize law enforcement, can affect officer stress, health (e.g., 

assaults, mental disorders, other injuries), and job performance. Projects that examine these 

issues within high-crime, socioeconomically disadvantaged communities are encouraged. 

Current research has shown that organizational support, police culture, and new technologies 

might also interact with, or augment, officer perceptions, and so should be taken into account 

during any evaluation.26,27

Topic 5: Understanding the Increased Rate of Assaults on Law 

Enforcement Officers

Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17792

The FBI’s Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA) Program annually collects 

data from agencies across the United States on the line-of-duty deaths of, and assaults on, 

sworn officers. (These data are archived in the Inter-University Consortium of Political and 

Social Research [ICPSR] data depository.) LEOKA data indicate that the annual rate of officers 

being reported feloniously killed has remained essentially constant at roughly .01 per 100 

officers between 2000 and 2018 (excluding the officers who died at the World Trade Center). In 

contrast, LEOKA data indicate that the rate of reported assaults on officers during this period 

was not constant. It trended down from an annual rate of 12.9 per 100 in 2000 to 9.0 in 2014; 

with an accelerating rate of decline. That downward trend reversed in 2015 with assaults on 

officers now trending up. LEOKA data indicate a rate of 10.8 assaults per 100 officers in 2018. 

This is roughly the rate last reported in 2008. Moreover, it indicates that although this increase is 

neither uniform, nor constant from year-to-year, it is a broad-based trend.

Under this topic area, NIJ seeks investigator-initiated proposals for research projects to 

understand this increase in the rate of assaults on officers. NIJ is interested in understanding 

what variables may have the greatest correlation with these assaults. Moreover, NIJ is 

interested in understanding what underlies that association — why those particular variables 

and not others? Further, NIJ is interested in understanding how those variables may (or may 

not) vary between jurisdictions, and the factors effecting such variations. NIJ’s objective under 

 

24 White, M. D., Dario, L. M., & Shjarback, J. A. (2019). Assessing dangerousness in policing: An analysis of officer 

deaths in the United States, 1970–2016. Criminology & Public Policy, 18(1), 11-35.

25 Tiesman, H. M., Gwilliam, M., Konda, S., Rojek, J., & Marsh, S. (2018). Nonfatal injuries to law enforcement 

officers: A rise in assaults. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 54(4), 503-509.

26 Adams, I., & Mastracci, S. (2019). Police body-worn cameras: Effects on officers’ burnout and perceived 

organizational support. Police Quarterly, 22(1), 5-30.

27 Ingram, J. R., Terrill, W., & Paoline, E. A. (2018). Police culture and officer behavior: Application of a multilevel 

framework. Criminology, 56(4), 780-811.
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this topic area is to understand what changes in policy, practice, and/or training may serve to 

reverse this trend.

Randomized Controlled Trial

Randomized controlled trial (RCT) studies are a powerful, much-needed tool for building 

scientific evidence about what works. Therefore, where feasible and appropriate, studies 

employing RCT methods to assess the effectiveness of programs and practices will be given 

higher priority consideration. RCT applications with strong designs measuring outcomes of selfevident policy importance are strongly encouraged. A strong RCT design should include low 

sample attrition, sufficient sample size, close adherence to random assignment, valid outcome 

measures, and statistical analyses. Taking RCT costs into consideration, applicants may want 

to consider studies using privacy-protected administrative data that are already being collected, 

or implementing an intervention into a program already funded.

New Investigator/Early Career Opportunity

NIJ is interested in supporting researchers who are early in their careers and new to NIJ’s 

research grant portfolios, specifically non-tenured assistant professors, or equivalent full-time 

staff scientist positions in a research institution, who propose research on topics relevant to 

NIJ’s Office of Research, Evaluation and Technology (ORET). To that end, NIJ may, in 

appropriate circumstances, give special consideration in award decisions to applications 

proposing such researchers as principal investigators. To qualify, the proposed PI must at the 

time of application submission:

 Hold a non-tenured assistant professor appointment at an accredited institution of higher 

education in the United States or an equivalent full-time staff scientist position at a 

research institution; and 

 Have completed a terminal degree or post-graduate clinical training within the ten (10) 

years prior to September 30, 2020, and 

 Have never previously received NIJ funding as a PI on a research project with the 

exception of Graduate Research Fellows or Data Resources Program grantees.

If seeking to be considered for the New Investigator/Early Career Opportunity, the applicant 

should identify that they are submitting a New Investigator/Early Career proposal on the title 

page of the application.

Additional guidance

 Applications must specify which of the topics they are responding to in the title of their 

proposal.

 Applicants are strongly encouraged to consider the benefit of collaborating with law 

enforcement agencies to provide a fuller understanding of the challenges and 

operational contexts within which their officers operate. Each partnering 

agency/organization/individual must provide a signed letter of commitment clarifying 

information, staff, and other resource access. NIJ anticipates that applicants will have, at 
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a minimum, letters of support from the collaborating police departments. If selected for 

an award, applicants will be expected to have a formal agreement in place with 

partnering agencies by January 1, 2021.

 Applicants should be thorough in describing their intended methodology to include, but 

not be limited to: the appropriateness of sample sizes and comparison groups; the 

usage of technology, if applicable, and its function within the study, and its impact on the 

results; and potential risks and risk mitigation strategies of the intended methodology.

 Each research team member (staff, contractor, consultant, agency partner, etc.) must be 

identified with a clearly specified role and projected level of effort, regardless of 

compensation. 

 Any potential conflict of interest must be addressed if any research team member may 

benefit financially from, or is/was involved in the development of what is being 

researched. 

 Where possible, the research proposed must result in knowledge and tools that have 

potential value to other jurisdictions, to obtain a national impact.

Applications that propose incentives must be responsive to NIJ’s policy on participant support 

costs (see page 22 for more information).

Goals, Objectives, Deliverables, and Expected Scholarly Products

The ultimate goal of this solicitation is to advance NIJ’s efforts to better ensure the safety, 

health, and wellness of law enforcement and correctional officers, and all individuals that come 

into contact with the criminal justice system. 

Final Research Report. Any recipient of an award under this solicitation will be expected to 

submit a final research report. Additional information on the final research report requirement 

can be found on the Research, Development, and Evaluation Grant Award Requirements page 

on the NIJ website. The Final Research Report will undergo review for public archive on the 

National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS).

Required Data Sets and Associated Files and Documentation. Any recipient of an award under 

this solicitation will be expected to submit to the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data 

(NACJD) all data sets that result in whole or in part from the work funded by the award, along 

with associated files and any documentation necessary for future efforts by others to reproduce 

the project’s findings and/or to extend the scientific value of the data set through secondary 

analysis.

For more information, see Program Narrative in Section D. Application and Submission 

Information.

In addition to these deliverables (and the required reports and data on performance measures 

described in Section F. Federal Award Administration Information), NIJ expects scholarly 

products to result from each award under this solicitation, taking the form of one or more 

published, peer-reviewed, scientific journal articles, and/or (if appropriate) law review journal 
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NIJ-2020-17296

articles, book chapter(s) or book(s) in the academic press, technological prototypes, patented 

inventions, or similar scientific products.

NIJ expects that there will be an equal effort to make the research findings accessible to 

practitioner and policymaker audiences through articles in trade publications, the development 

of training manuals, policy briefs, conferences, webinars, and articles for newspapers or 

magazines.

Technology Prototype: An exemplar of any algorithm, method, software development kit, and 

training data set resulting from research and development activities funded under this 

solicitation will be delivered to NIJ at the end of the award for third-party evaluation, along with 

detailed implementation instructions. Documentation must include descriptions of algorithmic 

development and approaches to data collection.

The Goals, Objectives, Deliverables, and Expected Scholarly Products are directly related to the 

performance measures that demonstrate the results of the work completed.

Performance Measures

OJP will require each successful applicant to submit regular performance data that demonstrate 

the results of the work carried out under the award (see “General Information about PostFederal Award Reporting Requirements” in Section F. Federal Award Administration 

Information).

Applicants should visit OJP’s performance measurement page at www.ojp.gov/performance for 

an overview of performance measurement activities at OJP.

The application should demonstrate the applicant’s understanding of the performance data 

reporting requirements for this grant program and detail how the applicant will gather the 

required data should it receive funding.

Please note that applicants are not required to submit performance data with the application. 

Performance measures information is included as an alert that successful applicants will be 

required to submit performance data as part of the reporting requirements under an award.
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Objective Performance Measure(s) Data Recipient Provides

Conduct research in 

science, technology, 

engineering, and/or 

mathematics having 

clear implications for 

criminal justice policy 

and practice in the 

United States.

Conduct research in 

social and behavioral 

sciences having clear 

implications for 

criminal justice policy 

and practice in the 

United States.

1. Relevance to the needs of the field as 

measured by whether the project’s 

substantive scope did not deviate from 

the funded project or any subsequent 

agency-approved modifications to the 

scope.

2. Quality of the research as demonstrated 

by the scholarly products that result in 

whole or in part from work funded under 

the NIJ award, such as published, peerreviewed, scientific journal articles, 

and/or (as appropriate for the funded 

project) law review journal articles, book 

chapter(s) or book(s) in the academic 

press, technological prototypes, patented 

inventions, or similar scientific products.

3. Quality of management as measured by 

such factors as whether significant 

project milestones were achieved, 

reporting and other deadlines were met, 

and costs remained within approved 

limits.

4. Number of technologies fielded as a 

result (in whole or in part) of work funded 

under the NIJ award.

1. Quarterly financial reports, 

semi-annual and final 

progress reports, and 

products of the work 

performed under the NIJ 

award (including, at 

minimum, a final research 

report).

If applicable, an annual audit 

report.

2. List of citation(s) to all 

scholarly products that 

resulted in whole or in part 

from work funded under the 

NIJ award.

3. If applicable, each data set 

that resulted in whole or in 

part from work funded under 

the NIJ award.

4. Description of all 

technologies fielded as a 

result (in whole or in part) of 

work funded under the NIJ 

award.

Evaluation Research

If an application includes an evaluation research component (or consists entirely of evaluation 

research), the application is expected to propose the most rigorous evaluation design 

appropriate for the research questions to be addressed. If the primary purpose of the evaluation 

is to determine the effectiveness or impact of an intervention (e.g., program, practice, or policy), 

the most rigorous evaluation designs may include random selection and assignment of 

participants (or other appropriate units of analysis) to experimental and control conditions. In 

cases where randomization is not feasible, applicants should propose a strong quasiexperimental design that can address the risk of selection bias.

Applications that include evaluation research should consider the feasibility of including 

cost/benefit analysis. In cases where evaluations find that interventions have produced the 

intended benefit, cost/benefit analysis provides valuable and practical information for 

practitioners and policymakers that aids decision making.

Evaluation research projects may also address a wide range of research questions beyond 

those focused on the effectiveness or impact of an intervention. Different research designs may 

be more appropriate for different research questions and at different stages of program 

development. The intervention strategies, setting, other contextual factors, and resources 

should be taken into account when selecting an evaluation design. In all cases, applications are 
16

NIJ-2020-17296

expected to propose the most rigorous evaluation design appropriate for the research questions 

to be addressed.

Applicants are encouraged to review evidence rating criteria at

https://www.crimesolutions.gov/about_starttofinish.aspx for further information on high-quality 

evaluation design elements.

B. Federal Award Information

Maximum number of awards NIJ expects to make: To be determined by the 

merit of applications

submitted to this solicitation 

and advanced to peer 

review, and available 

funding.

Estimated maximum dollar amount for each award: To be determined by the 

funding requested in

awarded applications, and 

available funding.

Total amount anticipated to be awarded under solicitation: $4,000,000

Period of performance start date: January 1, 2021

Period of performance duration: To be determined by the 

period of performance of 

awarded applications. 

Successful applicants will be 

expected to complete the 

work proposed within a fiveyear period of performance.

To allow time for (among other things) any necessary post-award review and financial clearance 

by OJP of the proposed budget and for any associated responses or other action(s) that may be 

required of the recipient, applicants should propose an award start date of January 1, 2021.

If the applicant is proposing a project that reasonably could be conducted in discrete phases, 

with each phase resulting in completion of one or more significant, defined milestones, then NIJ 

strongly recommends that the applicant structure the application — specifically including the 

narrative, expected scholarly products, timelines/milestones, and budget detail worksheet and 

budget narrative — to clearly define each phase. (This is particularly the case if the applicant 

proposes a project that will exceed — in cost or the length of the period of performance — the 

amount or length of time anticipated for an individual award (or awards) under this solicitation.) 

Given limitations on the availability to NIJ of funds for awards for research, development, and 

evaluation, this information will assist NIJ in considering whether partial funding of applications 

would be productive. (If, in FY 2020, NIJ elects to fund only certain phases of a proposed 

project, the expected scholarly products from the partial-funding award may, in some cases, 

vary from those described above.)
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NIJ-2020-17296

NIJ may, in certain cases, provide additional funding in future years to awards made under this 

solicitation, through continuation awards. OJP will consider, among other factors, OJP’s 

strategic priorities, a recipient’s overall management of the award, and progress of award 

funded work, when making continuation award decisions.

Under this solicitation, any particular applicant entity may submit more than one application, as 

long as each application proposes a different project in response to the solicitation. Also, an 

entity may be proposed as a subrecipient (“subgrantee”) in more than one application.

NIJ may elect to fund applications submitted under this FY 2020 solicitation in future fiscal 

years, dependent on, among other considerations, the merit of the applications and on the 

availability of appropriations.

All awards are subject to the availability of appropriated funds and to any modifications or 

additional requirements that may be imposed by law.

Type of Award

NIJ expects to make awards under this solicitation as grants. See the “Administrative, National 

Policy, and Other Legal Requirements” section of the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide

for additional information. Any funds provided to another federal agency will be made as an 

inter-agency reimbursable agreement.

Please note: Any recipient of an award under this solicitation will be required to comply with 

DOJ regulations on confidentiality and protection of human subjects. See “Requirements related 

to Research” under “Overview of Legal Requirements Generally Applicable to OJP Grants and 

Cooperative Agreements – FY 2020 Awards” in the OJP Funding Resource Center.

Financial Management and System of Internal Controls

Award recipients and subrecipients (including recipients or subrecipients that are pass-through 

entities) must, as described in the Part 200 Uniform Requirements28 as set out at 2 C.F.R. 

200.303, comply with standards for financial and program management. See OJP Grant 

Application Resource Guide for additional information.

Budget Information

What will not be funded:

 Applications primarily to purchase equipment, materials, or supplies. (A budget may 

include these items if they are necessary to conduct research, development, 

demonstration, evaluation, or analysis.)

 Applications that are not responsive to this specific solicitation.

 

28 The "Part 200 Uniform Requirements” means the DOJ regulation at 2 C.F.R Part 2800, which adopts (with certain 

modifications) the provisions of 2 C.F.R. Part 200.
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NIJ-2020-17296

Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement

See “Cofunding” paragraph under item 4 (“Budget Information and Associated Documentation”) 

under “What an Application Should Include” in Section D. Application and Submission 

Information.

Please see the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide for information on the following:

 Pre-agreement Costs (also known as Pre-award Costs)

 Limitation on Use of Award Funds for Employee Compensation; Waiver

 Prior Approval, Planning, and Reporting of Conference/Meeting/Training Costs

 Costs Associated with Language Assistance (if applicable)

C. Eligibility Information

For eligibility information, see title page.

For information on cost sharing or match requirements, see “What an Application Should 

Include” in Section D. Application and Submission Information.

D. Application and Submission Information

What an Application Should Include

This solicitation expressly modifies the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide by not 

incorporating the “Disclosure of Process Related to Executive Compensation” provisions in the 

“Application Attachments” section of the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide.

The following application elements MUST be included in the application submission for an 

application to meet the basic minimum requirements (BMR) to advance to peer review and 

receive consideration for funding: Program Narrative, Budget Detail Worksheet (including 

Budget Narrative), and resumes/curriculum vitae of key personnel. (For purposes of this 

solicitation, “key personnel” means the principal investigator, and any and all co-principal 

investigators.)

See the “Application Elements and Formatting Instructions” section of the OJP Grant Application 

Resource Guide for information on what happens to an application that does not contain all the 

specified elements, or that is nonresponsive to the scope of the solicitation.

1. Application for Federal Assistance (Standard Form (SF)-424)

The SF-424 is a required standard form used as a cover sheet for submission of preapplications, applications, and related information. See the OJP Grant Application Resource 

Guide for additional information on completing the SF-424.
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Intergovernmental Review: This solicitation ("funding opportunity") is not subject to 

Executive Order 12372. (In completing the SF-424, an applicant is to answer question 19 by 

selecting the response that the “Program is not covered by E.O. 12372.”)

2. Project Abstract

The project abstract is a very important part of the application, and serves as an introduction 

to the proposed project. NIJ uses the project abstract for a number of purposes, including 

assignment of the application to an appropriate review panel. If the application is funded, the 

project abstract typically will become public information and be used to describe the project.

Applications should include a high quality project abstract that summarizes the proposed 

project in no more than 400 words. Project abstracts should be:

 Written for a general public audience.

 Submitted as a separate attachment with “Project Abstract” as part of its file name.

 Single-spaced, using a standard 12-point Times New Roman font with 1-inch 

margins.

As a separate attachment, the project abstract will not count against the page limit for the 

program narrative.

Project abstracts should follow the detailed template (including the detailed instructions as to 

content) available on the NIJ webpage.

3. Program Narrative

The program narrative section of the application should not exceed 30 double-spaced pages 

in 12-point font with 1-inch margins. If included in the main body of the program narrative, 

tables, charts, figures, and other illustrations count toward the 30-page limit for the narrative 

section. The project abstract, table of contents, appendices, and government forms do not 

count toward the 30-page limit.

If the program narrative fails to comply with these length-related restrictions, NIJ may 

negatively consider such noncompliance in peer review and in final award decisions.
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NIJ-2020-17296

The following sections should be included as part of the program narrative.

29

Program Narrative Guidelines:

a. Title Page (not counted against the 30-page program narrative limit)

The title page should include the title of the project, submission date, funding opportunity 

number, and the name and complete contact information (that is, address, telephone 

number, and e-mail address) for both the applicant and the principal investigator.

b. Resubmit Response (if applicable) (not counted against the 30-page program narrative 

limit)

If an applicant is resubmitting an application presented previously to NIJ, but not funded, 

the applicant should indicate this. A statement should be provided, no more than two 

pages, addressing: (1) the title, submission date, and NIJ-assigned application number 

of the previous application, and (2) a brief summary of revisions to the application, 

including responses to previous feedback received from NIJ.

c. Table of Contents and Figures (not counted against 30-page program narrative limit)

d. Main Body

The main body of the program narrative should describe the proposed project in depth. 

The following sections should be included as part of the program narrative:

 Statement of the Problem and Research Questions. The statement of the problem 

should address the need for research in this area. Applicants should discuss current 

gaps in data, research, and knowledge, including those for particular justice sectors, 

for certain populations, and to answer questions relevant to current policy and 

practice needs and public interests. As part of this discussion, applicants should 

present a review of previous literature and discuss previous research related to these 

problems.

This section should also identify the proposed research questions and discuss the 

purpose, goals, and objectives of the proposed project.

 Project Design and Implementation. Applicants should provide a detailed description 

of the strategies to implement this research project and address the research 

questions. Design elements should follow directly from the research project’s goals 

and objectives and address the program-specific information noted on page 6. 

Applicants should describe the research methodology in detail and demonstrate the 

validity and usefulness of the data they will collect. Applicants should consider the 

rigor and soundness of the methodology and analytical and technical approaches for 

 

29 As noted earlier, if the proposed program or project reasonably could be conducted in discrete phases, with each 

phase resulting in completion of one or more significant, defined milestones, then NIJ strongly recommends that the 

applicant structure the application – specifically including the narrative, expected scholarly products, 

timelines/milestones, and budget detail worksheet and budget narrative – to set out each phase clearly. (In 

appropriate cases, the expected scholarly product(s) from a particular phase may vary from those described above.) 

See generally “Goals, Objectives, Deliverables, and Expected Scholarly Products” under “Program-Specific 

Information,” above.
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the proposed research and address the feasibility of the proposed project and 

potential challenges or problems in carrying out the activities.

 Potential Impact. Applicants should describe the potential impact of the research and 

how it may inform or improve criminal or juvenile justice-related policy, practice, or 

theory in the United States.

The discussion of impact should include a discussion of the deliverables, including 

planned scholarly products indicated in the project-specific information on page 13

and a plan for dissemination to appropriate audiences. Applicants should identify 

plans to produce or make available to broader interested practitioners and policy 

makers in a form that is designed to be readily accessible and useful to them.

 Capabilities/Competencies. This section should describe the experience and 

capability of the applicant organization, key staff, and any proposed subgrantees 

(including consultants) that the applicant will use to implement and manage this effort 

and the federal funds under this award, highlighting any previous experience 

implementing projects of similar scope, design, and magnitude. Applicants should 

address:

o Experience and capacity to work with the proposed data sources in the conduct 

of similar research efforts.

o Experience and capacity to design and implement rigorous research and data 

analysis projects.

o Experience producing and disseminating meaningful deliverables.

Applicants should also outline the management plan and organization that connects to 

the goals and objectives of the project.

e. Appendices (not counted against the 30-page program narrative limit) include:

 Bibliography/references.

 Any tools/instruments, questionnaires, tables/charts/graphs, or maps pertaining to 

the proposed project that are supplemental to such items included in the main body 

of the narrative.

 Curriculum vitae or resume of the principal investigator and any and all co-principal 

investigators. In addition, curriculum vitae, resume, or biographical sketches of all 

other individuals (regardless of “investigator” status) who will be significantly involved 

in substantive aspects of the proposed project (including, for example, individuals 

such as statisticians used to conduct proposed data analysis).

 To assist OJP in assessing actual or apparent conflicts of interest (including such 

conflicts on the part of prospective reviewers of the application, a complete list of the 

individuals named or otherwise identified anywhere in the application (including in 

the budget or in any other attachment) who will or may work (or advise or consult) on 

the proposed research, development, or evaluation project. This applies to all such 
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NIJ-2020-17296

individuals, including, for example, individuals who are or would be employees of the 

applicant or employees of any proposed subrecipient entity, any individuals who 

themselves may be a subrecipient, and individuals who may (or will) work without

compensation (such as advisory board members). This appendix to the program 

narrative is to include, for each listed individual: name, title, employer, any other 

potentially-pertinent organizational affiliation(s), and the individual's proposed roles 

and responsibilities in carrying out the proposed project. If the application identifies 

any specific entities or organizations (other than the applicant) that will or may work 

(or advise or consult) on the proposed project, without also naming any associated 

individuals, the name of each such organization also should be included on this list.

Applicants should use the “Proposed Project Staff, Affiliation, and Roles” form

available on the NIJ webpage to prepare this list.

If the application (including the budget) identifies any proposed non-competitive 

agreements that are or may be considered procurement "contracts" (rather than 

subawards) for purposes of federal grants administrative requirements the applicant 

also must list the entities with which the applicant proposes to contract. Applicants 

should provide this list as a separate sheet entitled "Proposed non-competitive 

procurement contracts."

For information on distinctions — for purposes of federal grants administrative 

requirements — between subawards and procurement contracts under awards, see 

“Budget Information and Associated Documentation,” below.

 Proposed project timeline and expected milestones.

 Human Subjects Protection paperwork (documentation and forms related to 

Institutional Review Board [IRB] review). See https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/humansubjects-and-privacy-protection. Note: Final IRB approval is not required at the time 

an application is submitted.

 Privacy Certificate (for further guidance go to 

https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/confidentiality-and-privacy-protections and 

https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/model-privacy-certificate).

 List of any previous and current NIJ awards to the applicant and investigator(s), 

including the NIJ-assigned award numbers and a brief description of any scholarly 

products that resulted in whole or in part from work funded under the NIJ award(s). 

(See “Goals, Objectives, Deliverables, and Expected Scholarly Products” under 

“Program-Specific Information,” above, for definition of “scholarly products.”) 

 List of other agencies, organizations, or funding sources to which this application has 

been submitted (if applicable).

 Applicants proposing to use incentives or stipends payments as part of their research 

project design, must submit an incentive or stipend approval request, as a separate 

document, according to the requirements set forth at 

https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/participant-support-costs-and-incentives-social-scienceresearch.
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 Data archiving plan. Applicants should anticipate that NIJ will require (through 

special award conditions, that data sets resulting in whole or in part from projects 

funded under this solicitation be submitted for archiving with the NACJD. See

https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/data-archiving-plans-nij-funding-applicants.

Applications should include as an appendix a brief plan — labeled “Data Archiving 

Plan” — to comply with data archiving requirements. The plan should provide brief 

details about proposed data management and archiving, including submission to NIJ 

(through NACJD) of all files and documentation necessary to allow for future 

efforts by others to reproduce the project’s findings and/or to extend the scientific 

value of the data set through secondary analysis. Pertinent files and documentation 

include, among other things, qualitative and quantitative data produced, 

instrumentation and data collection forms, codebook(s), any specialized 

programming code necessary to reproduce all constructed measures and the original 

data analysis, description of necessary de-identification procedures, and (when 

required) a copy of the privacy certificate and informed consent protocols.

The plan should be one or two pages in length and include the level of effort 

associated with meeting archiving requirements.

Note that recipients are strongly encouraged to submit required data sets at least 90 

days before the end of the period of performance.

 Letters of cooperation/support or administrative agreements from organizations 

collaborating in the project, such as law enforcement and correctional agencies (if 

applicable).

Please see the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide for information on the following:

4. Budget Information and Associated Documentation in the Budget Preparation and 

Submission Information section.

The following paragraph (on “Cofunding”) expressly modifies the “Cost Sharing or Matching 

Requirement” provisions in the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide. The applicant is to 

follow the guidance in the following paragraph instead of the guidance stated under the 

“Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement” heading in the OJP Grant Application Resource 

Guide.

Cofunding: An award made by NIJ under this solicitation may account for up to 100 percent 

of the total cost of the project. The application should indicate whether it is feasible for the 

applicant to contribute cash, facilities, or services as non-federal support for the project. The 

application should identify generally any such contributions that the applicant expects to 

make and the proposed budget should indicate in detail which items, if any, will be 

supported with non-federal contributions.

For additional match information, see the “Cost Sharing or Match Requirement” section 

under Section B. Federal Award Information.
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5. Indirect Cost Rate Agreement

6. Tribal Authorizing Resolution (if applicable)

7. Financial Management and System of Internal Controls Questionnaire (including 

applicant disclosure of high-risk status)

8. Disclosure of Lobbying Activities

9. Applicant Disclosure of Pending Applications

10. Applicant Disclosure and Justification – DOJ High-Risk Grantees30 (if applicable)

11. Research and Evaluation Independence and Integrity

How To Apply (Grants.gov)

Applicants must register in and submit applications through Grants.gov, a primary source to find 

federal funding opportunities and apply for funding. Find information on how to apply in 

response to this solicitation in the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide.

Registration and Submission Steps

Applicants will need the following identifying information when searching for the funding 

opportunity on Grants.gov.

 Assistance Listing 16.560, National Institute of Justice Research, Evaluation, and 

Development Project Grants.

 Funding Opportunity Number NIJ-2020-17296.

If applying to a solicitation with multiple Competition IDs, select the appropriate Competition ID 

for the intended purpose area of the application.

 Topic 1: Resiliency and Recovery of Law Enforcement Agencies from Singular, Extreme 

Traumatic Events

o Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17299

 Topic 2: Impact of Organizational Stressors on Officer Health and Wellness

o Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17300

 Topic 3: Effects of Pre-Career Interventions and Subsequent Reminders in Modulating 

Mental, Physical, and Social Responses to Stressors in Law Enforcement Officers

o Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17301

 Topic 4: Community Hostility, Officer Health, and Effects on Policing

o Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17679

 

30 A “DOJ High-Risk Grantee” is a recipient that has received a DOJ High-Risk designation based on a documented 

history of unsatisfactory performance, financial instability, management system or other internal control deficiencies, 

or noncompliance with award terms and conditions on prior awards, or that is otherwise not responsible.
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 Topic 5: Understanding the Increased Rate of Assaults on Law Enforcement Officers

o Competition ID: NIJ-2020-17792

For information on each registration and submission step, see the OJP Grant Application 

Resource Guide.

E. Application Review Information

Review Criteria

Applications that meet basic minimum requirements will be evaluated by peer reviewers using 

the following review criteria.

Statement of the Problem and Research Questions (Understanding of the problem, research 

questions, and their importance) – 10%

1. Demonstrated understanding of the problem.

2. Demonstrated importance of research questions, goals and objectives, including 

alignment with the aims of the solicitation.

3. Demonstrated awareness of the state of current research.

Project Design and Implementation (Quality and technical merit) – 50%

1. Soundness of methods and analytic and technical approach to addressing the stated 

aim(s) of the proposed project.

2. Feasibility of proposed project.

3. Awareness of potential pitfalls of proposed project design and feasibility of proposed 

actions to minimize and/or mitigate them.

4. Feasibility of completing the deliverables noted in the solicitation.

Potential Impact – 30%

Potential for a significant scientific or technical advance(s) that will improve criminal/juvenile 

justice in the United States, such as:

 Potential for significantly improved understanding of the stated criminal/juvenile justice 

problem.

 Potential for innovative solution to address (all or a significant part of) the stated 

criminal/juvenile justice problem.

Capabilities/Competencies (Capabilities, demonstrated productivity, and experience of the 

applicant organization and proposed project staff) – 10%
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NIJ-2020-17296

1. Qualifications and experience of proposed project staff (that is, the principal investigator, 

any and all co-principal investigators, and all other individuals (and organizations) 

identified in the application (regardless of “investigator” status) who will be significantly 

involved in substantive aspects of the proposed project).

2. Demonstrated ability of the applicant organization to implement the proposed strategies 

and manage the effort.

3. Relationship between the capabilities/competencies of the proposed project staff 

(including the applicant organization) and the scope and strategies of the proposed 

project.

Plan for Dissemination to Broader Audiences (if applicable to the proposed project)

Peer reviewers may comment — in the context of scientific and technical merit — on strength 

and feasibility the proposed plan (if any) to produce or to make available to broader interested 

audiences, such as criminal/juvenile justice practitioners or policymakers, summary information 

from the planned scholarly products of the project.

Budget

In addition, peer reviewers will consider and may comment on the following additional items in 

the context of scientific and technical merit.

1. Total cost of the project relative to the perceived benefit (cost effectiveness).

2. Appropriateness of the budget relative to the level of effort.

3. Use of existing resources to conserve costs.

4. Alignment of the proposed budget with proposed project activities.

Review Process

OJP is committed to ensuring a fair and open process for making awards. NIJ reviews the 

application to make sure that the information presented is reasonable, understandable, 

measurable, achievable, and consistent with the solicitation.

The following five paragraphs in this solicitation expressly modify the “Application Review 

Information” provisions in the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide. An applicant is to follow 

the guidance in these five paragraphs instead of the guidance stated under the “Application 

Review Information” heading in the Guide.

Peer reviewers will review the applications submitted under this solicitation that meet basic 

minimum requirements. For purposes of assessing whether an application meets basic 

minimum requirements and should proceed to further consideration, OJP screens applications 

for compliance with those requirements. Although specific requirements may vary, the following 

are common requirements applicable to all solicitations for funding under OJP programs:

 The application must be submitted by an eligible type of applicant.
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NIJ-2020-17296

 The application must request funding within programmatic funding constraints (if 

applicable).

 The application must be responsive to the scope of the solicitation.

 The application must include all items necessary to meet the basic minimum 

requirements.

 The application, if submitted by an applicant that is a DOJ High-Risk Grantee,

31 or is 

designated “high-risk” by a federal grant-making agency outside of DOJ, must not have 

been determined by the Director to pose a substantial risk of program implementation 

failure, based on 1) the applicant’s lack of sufficient progress in addressing required 

corrective actions necessary for removal of the DOJ High-Risk Grantee (or non-DOJ 

high-risk) designation, 2) the nature and severity of the issues leading to or 

accompanying the DOJ High-Risk Grantee (or non-DOJ high-risk) designation, and/or 3) 

the applicant’s expected ability to manage grant funds and achieve grant goals and 

objectives.

For a list of the application elements that MUST be included in the application submission in 

order for an application to meet the basic minimum requirements, see “What an Application 

Should Include” under Section D. Application and Submission Information.

Peer review panels will evaluate, score, and rate applications that meet basic minimum 

requirements. NIJ may use internal peer reviewers, external peer reviewers, or a combination, 

to assess applications on technical merit using the solicitation’s review criteria. An internal 

reviewer is a current DOJ employee who is well-versed or has expertise in the subject matter of 

this solicitation. An external peer reviewer is an expert in the subject matter of a given 

solicitation who is not a current DOJ employee. Peer reviewers’ ratings and any resulting 

recommendations are advisory only, but are considered carefully.

Other important considerations for NIJ include geographic diversity, strategic priorities, available 

funding, the planned scholarly products, and the extent to which the Budget Detail Worksheet 

and Budget Narrative accurately explain project costs that are reasonable, necessary, and 

otherwise allowable under federal law and applicable federal cost principles.

Pursuant to the Part 200 Uniform Requirements, before award decisions are made, OJP also 

reviews information related to the degree of risk posed by the applicant. Among other things to 

help assess whether an applicant that has one or more prior federal awards has a satisfactory 

record with respect to performance, integrity, and business ethics, OJP checks whether the 

applicant is listed in SAM as excluded from receiving a federal award.

In addition, if OJP anticipates that an award will exceed $250,000 in federal funds, OJP also 

must review and consider any information above the applicant that appears in the non-public 

segment of the integrity and performance system accessible through SAM (currently, the 

Federal Awardee Performance Integrity Information System, FAPIIS).

Important note on FAPIIS: An applicant, at its option, may review and comment on any 

information about itself that currently appears in FAPIIS and was entered by a federal awarding 

 

31 See “Applicant Disclosure and Justification – DOJ High-Risk Grantees” under “What an Application Should 

Include,” above, for a definition of “DOJ High-Risk Grantee.”
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agency. OJP will consider any such comments by the applicant, in addition to the other 

information in FAPIIS, in its assessment of the risk posed by the applicant.

All final award decisions will be made by Director of the National Institute of Justice, who may 

take into account not only peer review ratings and NIJ recommendations, but also other factors 

as indicated in this section.

F. Federal Award Administration Information

Please see the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide for information on the following:

 Federal Award Notices

 Administrative, National Policy, and Other Legal Requirements

OJP strongly encourages prospective applicants to review information on post-award 

legal requirements and common OJP award conditions prior to submitting an 

application. 

If selected for funding, in addition to implementing the funded project consistent with the 

OJP-approved application, the recipient must comply with all award conditions, and all 

applicable requirements of federal statutes and regulations (including applicable 

requirements referred to in the assurances and certifications executed in connection with 

award acceptance). 

For additional information on these legal requirements, see the “Administrative, National 

Policy, and Other Legal Requirements” section in the OJP Grant Application Resource 

Guide.

 Information Technology (IT) Security Clauses

 General Information about Post-Federal Award Reporting Requirements

In addition to the deliverables described in Section A. Program Description, any recipient 

of an award under this solicitation will be required to submit certain reports and data.

Required reports. Recipients typically must submit quarterly financial reports, semiannual progress reports, final financial and progress reports, and, if applicable, an 

annual audit report in accordance with the Part 200 Uniform Requirements or specific 

award conditions. Applicants should anticipate that progress reports will be required to 

follow the non-budgetary components of the Research Performance Progress Report 

(RPPR) template/format. General information on RPPRs may be found at 

www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/rppr/. Future awards and fund drawdowns may be withheld 

if reports are delinquent. (In appropriate cases, OJP may require additional reports.)

See the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide for additional information on specific 

post-award reporting requirements, including performance measures data.
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G. Federal Awarding Agency Contact(s)

For questions directed to the Federal Awarding Agency, see NCJRS contact information on 

page 2.

For contact information for Grants.gov, see page 2.

H. Other Information

Please see the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide for information on the following:

 Freedom of Information and Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552 and 5 U.S.C. 552a)

 Provide Feedback to OJP
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Application Checklist

Research and Evaluation in Safety, Health, and Wellness in the Criminal 

Justice System, Fiscal Year 2020

This application checklist has been created as an aid in developing an application.

What an Applicant Should Do:

Prior to Registering in Grants.gov:

 Acquire a DUNS Number (see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Acquire or renew registration with SAM (see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

To Register with Grants.gov:

 Acquire AOR and Grants.gov username/password

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Acquire AOR confirmation from the E-Biz POC (see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

To Find Funding Opportunity:

 Search for the Funding Opportunity on Grants.gov (see page 24)

 Select the correct Competition ID (see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Access Funding Opportunity and Application Package

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Sign up for Grants.gov email notifications (optional)

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Read Important Notice: Applying for Grants in Grants.gov

 Read OJP policy and guidance on conference approval, planning, and reporting available at

ojp.gov/financialguide/DOJ/PostawardRequirements/chapter3.10a.htm

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

After Application Submission, Receive Grants.gov Email Notifications That:

 (1) application has been received,

 (2) application has either been successfully validated or rejected with errors

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

If No Grants.gov Receipt, and Validation or Error Notifications are Received:

 Contact NIJ regarding technical difficulties

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

Overview of Post-Award Legal Requirements:

 Review the “Overview of Legal Requirements Generally Applicable to OJP Grants and 

Cooperative Agreements – FY 2020 Awards” in the OJP Funding Resource Center.

Scope Requirement:

 The federal amount requested is within the allowable limit(s).

Eligibility Requirement: See cover page.
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What an Application Should Include:

The following items are critical application elements required to pass basic minimum requirements 

review. An application that OJP determines does not include the application elements that must 

be included in the application submission in order for the application to meet the basic minimum 

requirements, will neither proceed to peer review, nor receive further consideration.

 Program Narrative (see page 19)

 Budget Detail Worksheet (including Budget Narrative) (see OJP Grant Application 

Resource Guide)

 Resumes/curriculum vitae of key personnel (see page 21)

 Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424) (see page 18)

 Project Abstract (see page 19)

 Program Narrative (see page 19)

 Budget Detail Worksheet (including Narrative)

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (if applicable) (see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Tribal Authorizing Resolution (if applicable) (see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Financial Management and System of Internal Controls Questionnaire

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (SF-LLL) (see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Applicant Disclosure of Pending Applications (see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Applicant Disclosure and Justification – DOJ High-Risk Grantees (if applicable)

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

Additional Attachments:

 Research and Evaluation Independence and Integrity

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)

 Request and Justification for Employee Compensation; Waiver (if applicable)

(see OJP Grant Application Resource Guide)