Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) On Employment Among People Who are Blind or Have Low Vision

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Administration for Community Living’s National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), has announced a funding opportunity for a new Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) on Employment Among People Who are Blind or Have Low Vision. The primary goal of this RRTC is to improve employment outcomes for individuals who are blind or have low vision through research, training, technical assistance, and dissemination activities. The RRTC program is authorized under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended.

This funding opportunity seeks proposals that address key research areas related to employment outcomes for individuals who are blind or have low vision, including the use of technology, individual and environmental factors affecting employment, effective interventions, and the impact of government policies. The research should focus on people who are blind or have low vision either as a general group or within specific subpopulations such as individuals with vision loss due to traumatic brain injury, deafblindness, or Long COVID. Proposals should also consider barriers such as web inaccessibility and employer biases.

Applicants are required to conduct at least one research project at the intervention efficacy or scale-up evaluation stage. Additionally, the funded RRTC must serve as a national resource center by engaging stakeholders, disseminating research findings, and providing technical assistance to individuals with blindness or low vision, employers, service providers, and policymakers. The center must also collaborate with federal agencies, disability employment researchers, and knowledge translation grantees to enhance the impact of its work.

The total funding available for this opportunity is $925,000 per budget period, with an expected project period of 60 months divided into five 12-month budget periods. Only one award is anticipated. Eligible applicants include states, public or private agencies, public or private organizations, institutions of higher education, and tribal entities. Foreign entities are not eligible to apply. Cost sharing or matching is not required, though voluntary contributions may be proposed.

Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov by March 31, 2025. A letter of intent is requested by February 6, 2025, to help facilitate the review process. An informational conference call is scheduled for January 27, 2025, where interested applicants can receive technical assistance. Successful applicants will be notified before the project start date of September 1, 2025.

Evaluation criteria include the importance of the problem, design of research, training, and dissemination activities, technical assistance plans, project staff qualifications, plan of operation, and adequacy of resources. Applications will be reviewed by an independent peer panel, and the final funding decision will be made by the ACL Administrator.

For further inquiries, applicants may contact Courtney Ward-Sutton at courtney.ward-sutton@acl.hhs.gov or (202) 240-3164.