Funding
Network member organizations in Region 5 are eligible to apply. Only one award per Network member organization will be made during the current grant year. Awards will be available on an ongoing basis until funds are depleted. Payment will be made to the applicant’s host institution.
To receive funding, applicant’s institution must invoice the University of Washington (UW) no later than March 18, 2024. In order to invoice the UW, the institution must be registered as a UW supplier (for information on registering, contact Region 5 Grants Manager Lisa Guerrero via email: guerrl@uw.edu)
Description of Award
The Network of the National Library of Medicine (NNLM) Region 5, under cooperative agreement with the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), announces the availability of funding through Professional Development Awards to increase knowledge, skills and competencies of NNLM network members on areas related to NLM priorities.
Meetings, conferences, workshops, classes, or other trainings are eligible when focusing on topics of health literacy; health equity; diversity, equity and inclusion; outreach and engagement; citizen science; data science; public health; emergency preparedness; evidence-based medicine, and organizational effectiveness.
Specifically, the NNLM Region 5 Professional Development Award seeks to:
- Enable individuals at member institutions to expand professional knowledge through continuing education to increase knowledge, skills and competencies that enhance services to healthcare providers and/or consumers seeking health information.
This funding is not available for the Medical Library Association Annual Meeting and is limited to events held in the United States.
The University of Washington Health Sciences Library (HSL) in Seattle, Washington is the designated Regional Medical Library (RML) for NNLM Region 5 serving Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and U.S. Territories and Freely Associated States in the Pacific.
The mission of the NNLM is to provide U.S. researchers, health professionals, public health workforce, educators, and the public with equal access to biomedical and health information resources and data.
The NNLM Region 5 commits to prioritizing support for underrepresented populations through meaningful engagement, which requires the support from all of our regional members and partners. Underrepresented populations are determined to be those experiencing health disparities as a result of their: race and ethnicity; biological sex, gender identity or expression, and sexual orientation; cognitive and physical abilities; religious background or identification; socio-economic status (past and current); education level, health literacy, and linguistic needs; geographic location including underrepresented populations from medically underserved areas; or other factors or demographics that create unequal access to the highest level of health (please refer to the January 2019 Special Supplement by the American Journal of Public Health about health disparities research for more information).
- Professional development opportunities such as classes, conferences or workshops for individual NNLM members. This can include:
- Introduce students to the health sciences, trusted National Library of Medicine (NLM) resources, and develop their professional skills.
- Prepare individuals for a leadership position in a hospital or academic health sciences library.
- Host a reading club with learning outcomes focusing on health information access issues that can be used to improve library programming that are more impactful to your underrepresented communities.
- Costs associated with arranging for an expert speaker to give a talk, workshop, class or lecture.
- Educational activities that relate to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and aim to prepare professionals to better serve underserved, minority and underrepresented communities.
Applicants must be from institutions that are members of NNLM Region 5. Membership is free and open to institutions interested in improving equitable access to health information. To verify your membership, find out your NNLM ID or to apply for membership, contact Assistant Director Emily Hamstra via email: ehamstra@uw.edu.
Preference will be given to NNLM member organizations that have not yet received an NNLM Region 5 Professional Development award during the current grant year (May 1, 2023-April 30, 2024).
Application Instructions
System Requirements
IMPORTANT: You will need to submit your application online. You must complete this application in one sitting. There is no save function. Please gather all the information in these instructions before submitting your application for funding in the NNLM online application system:
- Confirm that your institution is a NNLM Member with a NNLM Member record.
- Not sure if your institution is a Member or has a Member record? Contact Emily Hamstra, Region 5 Assistant Director at ehamstra@uw.edu If your institution is not a NNLM Member, submit an application for Membership at least 3 weeks prior to the funding deadline. A Member record is required to successfully submit an application.
- Confirm that you (the applicant) have an NNLM User Account. Here is a step by step guide to setting up a new user account.
- You must be logged in to your NNLM account to successfully submit an application.
- If you are submitting an application on behalf of the Project Lead, the Project Lead must also have an NNLM account prior to submission.
- Confirm that your NNLM account is connected to the NNLM Member record for your institution.
- To connect, fill in the “Organization” field on your NNLM account using the autocomplete function. When correctly filled, you will see a 5-digit NNLM ID in parenthesis beside the institution name.
- If you are submitting an application on behalf of the Project Lead, the Project Lead must also be connected to the NNLM Member record for your institution prior to submission.
Please note: you cannot successfully submit an application without these components. If you have questions about these or any other system requirements, please contact Emily Hamstra, Region 5 Assistant Director at: ehamstra@uw.edu in advance of your application submission.
Online Application Overview
It is recommended that you use the following outline to draft your proposal, and then submit online.
- Lead Organization: Select the institution that will lead and receive funding to conduct the proposed project.
- If the drop-down list appears blank, confirm that your NNLM account is connected to the NNLM Member record for your institution. (See System Requirements above)
- Project Lead: If you are the Project Lead, select your own name from the drop-down list. If you are submitting this application on behalf of the Project Lead, select their name from the drop-down list.
- If the name of the Project Lead does not appear in the drop-down list, confirm that their NNLM account is connected to the NNLM Member record for the institution. (See System Requirements above)
- Institution Tax ID: Enter the 9-digit tax identification number for your institution
- Institution DUNS Number: Please confirm your organization’s DUNS number. If you do not have a DUNS number, apply for one as soon as possible. You must have an organization DUNS number in order to complete and submit your application.
- Have you/your institution previously received NNLM funding in the current grant cycle? Select Yes, No, or I don’t know.
- Amount Requested: The amount specified should not exceed the $1500 limit established by NNLM Region 5. This field will accept numbers only. Enter the amount to the nearest whole dollar.
- Program/Event Name: Describe the project with an external audience in mind. Funded projects are displayed on the NNLM website and are provided by NLM in response to data calls from NIH, HHS, OMB, Congress, and the White House.
- Program/Event Summary: Provide a one-paragraph description that summarizes the proposed project. Funded projects are displayed on the NNLM website and are provided by NLM in response to requests from NIH, HHS, OMB, Congress, and the White House.
- Proposed Start and End Dates for the Project: Select the appropriate dates. Contact the NNLM Region 5 office at nnlm@uw.edu if your project will extend beyond April 30, 2022.
- Significance/Objectives: Describe the relevance of course/conference/event to support a highly trained workforce for biomedical and health information resources and data, improve health literacy, and increase health equity through information, the value of the course/conference/event to the applicant’s institution and plans for using what is learned, or what others will learn. Include a clear evaluation plan to measure the success of the project.
- Professional Development URL. Enter the URL for the Exhibit, Conference, or Professional Development you would like to attend or hold, if available.
Maximum award is up to $1,500. Awards are cost-reimbursable and are issued to the institution, not the individual.
This award is intended to cover the costs of professional development and eligible activities include:
- individual class, conference or workshop attendance
- the costs associated with arranging for an expert speaker to give a talk, workshop, class or lecture; and
- educational activities that relate to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and aim to prepare professionals to better serve underserved, minority and underrepresented communities.
IMPORTANT: The budget needs to be filled out in the online application system. Budget fields will accept numbers only. Enter each amount to the nearest whole dollar. If a budget line is not applicable for your project, you may leave it blank. Additionally, proposals must include a budget table and complete a narrative justification for budget items, explaining the purpose of each item in the project. Once completed, the budget table can be uploaded in the attachments section of the online application. The budget estimate should be categorized by the following, as they apply:
- Fees: Any fees associated with the educational activity/program or event
- Travel (Air fare, mileage, etc.)
- Hotel (rate x # of nights)
- Per Diem: Costs associated with meals and incidental expenses.
- Other (ground transportation, parking, etc.)
• Indirect Costs (IDC) or Facilities and Administrative (F&A) Costs: Apply at your institution’s non-research rate (or, if your institution has no negotiated rate, a 10% Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC) can be applied if you wish to claim it). Indirect Costs need to be factored into your overall budget. The total budget cannot exceed the limit defined by the RML/Office you are applying to, including Indirect Costs.
- Non-allowable expenses: Furniture is not allowed and food is not allowed.
Identify specific demographic(s) this project plans to reach/benefit. If no specific demographic(s) are targeted, leave this field blank. (Do NOT identify demographics which MAY participate in or benefit from this project).
You are required to acknowledge the following statements before submitting an application:
- You will share the information gained with colleagues in your institution/RML/Office, as required by the Request for Proposal.
- You will submit regular, interim & final reports, as requested by the funding agency & stipulated in the Request for Proposal.
- Any web-based resources developed for this project will ensure accessibility to the greatest possible number of people.
Choose Yes to indicate your acknowledgement.
You will need to apply online using the button at the top of this page that says "Apply for this Grant." You must be logged in with your NNLM account to begin the application and submission process.
Need Assistance?
Kathryn Vela, Executive Director, nnlm@uw.edu.
Additional Information
Section 508 requires that all website content be accessible to people with disabilities. This applies to web applications, web pages and all attached files on the intranet, as well as internet. The National Library of Medicine is a part of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Recipients of National Library of Medicine funding through the NNLM must meet all requirements under Section 508. Information on 508 Compliance.
Recipients of this award will be required to complete a form that collects information to evaluate your activities. In addition, within 30 days of completion of the activity, award recipients are required to submit an article for the NNLM Region 5 blog describing the event, benefits obtained, and plans for incorporating and/or disseminating new knowledge gained.
Any resource developed with project funds must include an acknowledgment of NIH grant support and a disclaimer stating the following:
“Developed resources reported in this [publications, press releases, internet sites] are supported by the National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH) under cooperative agreement number UG4LM013725 with the University of Washington. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health."
Application Review and Scoring Criteria
Applications will be reviewed by: NNLM Region 5 staff.
IMPORTANT: On the online application form, in the "Significance/Objectives" text box, you must address these three criteria in order for your application to be considered.
Reviewers will score applications based on the following categories and criteria.
1. SIGNIFICANCE (45 points)
- Degree of relevance of course/conference/event to support a highly trained workforce for biomedical and health information resources and data, improve health literacy, and increase health equity through information. (15 points); value of the course/conference/event to the applicant’s institution (15 points); plans for using what is learned, or what others will learn (15 points).
2. EVALUATION: (15 points)
- There is a clear evaluation plan to measure the success of the project.
3. IMPACT SCORE (20 points)
- Excellent application. Meets NNLM goals
- Has strong potential
- Limited impact or there are concerns about the proposed plan.
- The project will not sufficiently advance the goals of NNLM.
- Application does not fit in the NNLM mission.