Limited Competition: John Lewis NIMHD Research Endowment Program (S21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)

The Limited Competition: John Lewis NIMHD Research Endowment Program (S21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed), opportunity number RFA-MD-28-001, is a forecasted federal discretionary grant opportunity from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through the National Institutes of Health. The opportunity is associated with Assistance Listing 93.307, Minority Health and Health Disparities Research, and is categorized as a Health funding activity. The program is authorized under section 464z-3(h) of the Public Health Service Act. It is structured as a limited competition and is expected to make six awards. The purpose of the John Lewis NIMHD Research Endowment Program is to strengthen research infrastructure and training capacity at eligible institutions of higher education in order to facilitate health disparities research. The program identifies four strategic objectives. These are improving institutional physical infrastructure and acquiring research equipment, developing research-enabling technical expertise, expanding academic science programs relevant to scientific research, and supporting merit-based recruitment of highly accomplished researchers for open faculty positions. The program expressly states that it does not directly support research projects. Estimated total program funding is 12000000, with an award ceiling of 2000000. No award floor is provided in the forecast. Cost sharing or matching is not required. Because the opportunity is currently a forecast, the source does not provide additional funding details such as a period of performance, indirect cost limitations, subaward restrictions, or a minimum award amount. The estimated award date is June 30, 2028, and the estimated project start date is also June 30, 2028. Eligible applicants are public and state controlled institutions of higher education and private institutions of higher education, subject to additional statutory restrictions. Applicants must be eligible public or private institutions of higher education that have current or former HRSA Centers of Excellence awards under Section 736 of the Public Health Service Act and current or former NIMHD Centers of Excellence awards under Section 464z-4 of the Public Health Service Act. In addition, an eligible institution must have an endowment equal to or less than 50 percent of the national median of endowment funds at institutions conducting similar biomedical research and training of health professionals. The opportunity is currently forecasted rather than open for applications. The estimated posting date is March 25, 2027, and the estimated application due date is May 25, 2027. The provided forecast does not identify a letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, notice of intent, or other pre-application gating requirement. It also does not provide application questions, required proposal components, required uploads, or detailed submission mechanics beyond identifying the future opportunity through Grants.gov. Applicants should therefore rely on the subsequently posted solicitation for complete application instructions and requirements. Applications will be evaluated through NIH standard peer-review processes. The forecast states that applications will be peer-reviewed and that only meritorious applications will be considered for funding. No more detailed scoring factors or evaluation criteria are provided in the forecast. The opportunity was forecasted and last updated on September 8, 2026. The estimated application deadline is May 25, 2027, the estimated award date is June 30, 2028, and the estimated project start date is June 30, 2028. No recurring or annual application cycle is stated. The grantor contact identified in the forecast is the NIMHD DCHPS Scientific Team, which directs applicants to make contact by email at NIMHDDCHPSSciTeam@mail.nih.gov. No individual grantor contact name or telephone number is provided. Because this is a forecasted limited competition, prospective applicants should pay particular attention to the statutory institutional eligibility requirements and the program objectives concerning research infrastructure, research-enabling expertise, academic science programs, and recruitment when the complete application materials become available.

Confirm that the institution satisfies all limited-competition eligibility requirements and align the application with the stated objectives for physical research infrastructure and equipment, research-enabling technical expertise, academic science programs, and merit-based faculty recruitment. Do not frame the request as direct support for a research project. NIH standard peer review will be used, and only meritorious applications will be considered for funding.