Understanding Suicide Risk and Protective Factors among Black Youth (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA MH 22 140

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA MH 22 140

The grant opportunity "Understanding Suicide Risk and Protective Factors among Black Youth (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" (RFA-MH-22-140) is a National Institutes of Health funding announcement led by the National Institute of Mental Health. It sits under NIMH's Suicide Prevention Transformational Project Strategic Plan and is meant to strengthen the research base on why suicide risk has been rising among Black youth and what factors help protect against suicidal thoughts and behaviors. The overall focus is on building clearer, evidence-based understanding of both risk factors and protective factors that can later be translated into practical prevention strategies, programs, or services. Because this is an R01 and clinical trials are not allowed, the emphasis is on observational, mechanistic, epidemiologic, developmental, or other non-interventional research that advances knowledge rather than testing an intervention as a clinical trial.

The core purpose of the funding is to support studies that can better identify, measure, and explain the contributors to suicide risk among Black youth, especially factors linked to the recent increases seen in this population. In parallel, the announcement highlights the importance of protective factors, meaning individual, family, school, community, cultural, and structural conditions that reduce risk or buffer the effects of stressors. A key idea behind the opportunity is that identifying modifiable protective factors can set the stage for future prevention efforts, even if this particular announcement is not designed to fund clinical trial testing of an intervention. Projects may reasonably be expected to use rigorous methods to clarify pathways and contexts of risk and resilience, and to produce findings that can inform the design of future, targeted suicide prevention approaches for Black youth.

In terms of who can apply, eligibility is broad and spans many types of U.S.-based organizations and government entities. Eligible applicants 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 that are federally recognized; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education in those nonprofit categories); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The announcement also explicitly calls out additional eligible groups such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs). It also notes that eligible agencies of the federal government, faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions may apply, reinforcing the intent to encourage proposals from organizations that are closely connected to the communities most affected.

Restrictions on foreign involvement are clear. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are also not eligible. In addition, foreign components, as NIH defines them in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are not allowed. In practice, that means applicants should plan for the project to be fully domestic in terms of the applying organization and the supported components of the work.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant under the health funding activity category, listed under CFDA numbers 93.242 and 93.307. The opportunity was created on March 22, 2022, and the original closing date listed is June 20, 2023. The source information provided does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, so applicants would typically need to consult the full notice in NIH systems for budget expectations, project period norms, and any additional application requirements tied to the R01 mechanism.

Taken together, the announcement is designed to accelerate high-quality, non-clinical-trial research that explains why suicide risk is increasing for Black youth and what protective influences can be strengthened. It encourages participation from a wide range of institutions, including community-rooted and minority-serving organizations, with the goal of producing knowledge that is directly relevant to prevention planning and future intervention development.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Understanding Suicide Risk and Protective Factors among Black Youth (R01 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): 93.242, 93.307.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2022-03-22.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-06-20. (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.

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