Baltimore Health Equity Impact Grant -Request For Proposals

Please use the provided templates:

• Cover Page
• Budget Form
• Faculty Advisor Checklist (for Student Applications)

Additional Materials:

• UHI's Guiding Principles & Best Practices for Community Engagement
• Sample Questionnaire to determine if your project requires an IRB approval

All proposals need to include the following:

• Cover Page: Use the provided template above.
• Abstract: Provide a brief summary of the project. The abstract should not exceed 200 words.
• Project Narrative: The project narrative should not exceed 1800 words. The requested format is as follows:
  • Introduction: a brief overview highlighting the identified need or problem, your qualifications to address it, the project's significance in relation to grant guidelines, and a clear alignment with of funding priorities.
  • Specific aims: Including a clear statement of the research questions for research proposals, and a clear statement of project goals for program development. Specific aims should highlight the promotion of health equity in Baltimore City.
  • Methods: Focusing on research methods for research projects and implementation plan for program development.
  • Dissemination plan: Outline the plan for sharing research findings and/or highlighting program successes and lessons learned.
• Community Impact: Provide a brief description of how the proposed work will advance health equity in Baltimore City. The community impact statement should not exceed 450 words and needs to include:
  • Geographic location: Indicate the specific Baltimore City community neighborhood(s) that this project will impact.
  • Partnerships: Describe how the proposed work will enhance university-community partnerships and support future activities to promote health equity.
• Proposed Budget: Use the provided template above. Include direct costs only, i.e., those costs that can be identified specifically with the project. Indirect costs are not permitted. At least 50% of the budget must be used to support the expenses of the community-based organization.
• Budget Justification: Provide a narrative that clearly describes each cost element and explain how each cost contributes to meeting the project’s objectives/goals. Be sure to list all additional funding sources for this project. If any part of this project is currently funded or is pending funding by another source, list the funding organization, total support amount, and dates of support. The budget justification should not exceed 600 words.

Biographical Sketches or brief resumes of Hopkins and Community Partners: Upload one file with biographical sketches or brief resumes for all persons contributing to the project. At least two biographical sketches/resumes must be included (one for the community partner and one for the university partner). Each biographical sketch/resume should be two pages or less and include: name, current contact information, and professional experience.

Johns Hopkins Partner Eligibility:

For student-community projects, all undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctorate students at the Johns Hopkins University are eligible to apply. The student must remain enrolled for the duration of the project. All student awardees are required to participate in quarterly grantee training sessions, and if they are unable due to a schedule conflict, they will meet individually with the UHI grants team at least twice during the grant cycle. All student applicants must submit a signed faculty advisor checklist (see document list above).

For faculty projects, those who are eligible include scientists, research scientists, research associate faculty members, assistant professors, associate professors, and full professors at all schools of the Johns Hopkins University.

PLEASE NOTE: An individual can only receive one UHI Baltimore Health Equity Impact Grant (formerly, Small Grant) Award of each level during their career at the Johns Hopkins University.

Community Partner Eligibility:

All projects require at least one collaborating community-based organization in Baltimore and an individual identified within that organization who is a partner in the project.

Prior to submitting your proposal, please verify that both the Johns Hopkins and community partners are able to remain involved throughout the course of the project. A change in partner status may lead to the forfeiture of funding.

Applications will be reviewed by a team of non-UHI Johns Hopkins faculty and staff, along with Baltimore community residents and leaders. Detailed reviews of individual applications will not be provided; rather, feedback will be limited to notification of grant award.

Review Considerations

Primary review consideration: Funded proposals will be those that will most successfully advance health equity and well-being of the residents of Baltimore in the following UHI priority areas: cross-sectoral partnerships to address health equity and social determinants of health in employment, education, housing, and food access, leadership development, capacity-building in Baltimore’s community-based organizations, trauma and trauma-informed care, social disparities, race, and racism.

Funded proposals must show clear evidence that the collaborating community-based organization has been involved with the development of the proposed plan and explain how they will be involved for the duration of the project.

Additional Review Considerations:

• Those demonstrating they uphold the UHI's best practices for community engagement.
• Those demonstrating implications for urban health locally, nationally, and internationally (e.g., how might the community and/or policymakers use the results of the project to improve the health of urban residents), including a plan for disseminating the results of the project.
• Those demonstrating a potential to attract sustainable funding from other sources or to spark additional partnerships and projects that will build on the results of the project (should be outlined in the proposal).

It is anticipated that the award announcement will be made in early June 2025.

Funding Specifications and Restrictions

Funding can be requested to support all activities justified in the budget. Awards are for a 12-month continuous budget. A one-time no-cost extension for up to one year may be granted by a written request with justification accompanied by a brief progress report.

Funding for Salary Support

Salary support for Johns Hopkins faculty, staff, and students should be listed in the Personnel section of the budget form; salary for new hires is not allowed. Funding for community collaborators should be made through alternative mechanisms (not payroll) and should be listed in the Consultant Costs section of the budget form.

Award Administration Information

Award notices will be issued by the administrative offices of the UHI.

Grant funds will be administered through the Johns Hopkins partner’s home department. The UHI staff will work cooperatively with the department to transfer funds internally to simplify the process.  Before submitting the proposal, it is required that the Johns Hopkins partner applicant meets with their home department to review their proposal and seeks approval for the budget and funds management. 

At least 50% of the budget must support the community-based organization’s expenses. The Johns Hopkins partner’s home department oversees fund administration, including payroll, vendor setup, invoice payments, reimbursements, and tracking incentives. If a direct payment to the community partner is needed, work with JHU financial staff to set them up as a vendor right away.

UHI recognizes systemic challenges in paying community partners at JHU. Best practices for timely payments will be shared during the grant Terms and Conditions meeting (see date above). Contact us for guidance.

Meeting to Review Awarded Grant’s Terms & Conditions

Both Johns Hopkins and community primary partners, along with Johns Hopkins Student's Faculty Advisor, are required to attend a meeting to discuss the terms and conditions of the UHI grant and best practices for community engagement. This meeting will also provide an opportunity to address any questions. It is scheduled to take place with all 2025 Baltimore Health Equity Impact Grant recipients in early June 2025.

Quarterly Grantee Training Sessions

The goal of UHI’s Baltimore Health Equity Impact Grants training sessions is to foster co-learning, reflection, and the collaborative creation of innovative solutions to address the challenges of implementing academic-community partnered projects that promote equity in Baltimore. Participation is required for all student awardees and their community partners. Faculty advisors of student awardees are also encouraged to participate, along with all faculty awardees and their community partners.

Reporting Requirements

All UHI Baltimore Health Equity Impact Grants Award recipients will be required to provide two reports. An interim progress report is due mid-way of the project (or six months after the start date, whichever comes sooner). A final report of their project is due one month after the project’s end date. A final financial report may also be requested.

In addition, we ask that all program development grant final reports include a statement of lessons learned, and the research grant final reports provide evidence of submitting a manuscript for publication. Applicants must agree to credit the UHI for any products and publications that result from the grant funding (e.g., “This project was supported through a grant from the Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute”).

A brief awardee presentation discussing the impact UHI funding has had on their communities and highlighting the benefits of collaborative multi-sector partnerships may be requested by the UHI.

Marketing and Communications

1. When posting about the project on social media, tag the UHI social media accounts where applicable.
2. Acknowledge the UHI program in products, productions, and publications resulting from this funding and share a copy with the UHI.

Questions & Answers Information Session

We will host a virtual Q&A Session for anyone interested in submitting a proposal for this funding opportunity on Monday, March 31, 2025, from noon to 1:00 pm. To attend, please sign up here.

You can view the recording from the 2022 grant cycle on our website here. 

Q: If I am a Johns Hopkins faculty member affiliated with more than one Johns Hopkins school, what should be listed in the proposal?

A: For the purposes of this funding opportunity, as your primary affiliation, please indicate your home school and department that will provide grant funds administration and oversight.

Q: Am I allowed to be listed as the Johns Hopkins faculty partner on more than one proposal for this funding opportunity?

A: Yes, you are allowed to be listed as the JHU faculty partner on more than one grant proposal. However, if selected, only one project would be awarded with funding.

Q: What community business structures are eligible to apply?

A: The second statement under eligibility clarifies that collaborations must include at least one community-based organization (CBO) and at least one Johns Hopkins faculty or student. For this opportunity, we define CBOs as non-profits and local groups or coalitions serving the community. In most cases, CBOs exclude corporations (e.g., LLCs), but grassroots businesses, co-ops, or social enterprises that fit the mold can be considered.

To determine nomination eligibility, consider the following: 

1. Is there a CBO partner engaged in the project?
2. Is there a Johns Hopkins faculty/student partner involved?
3. If a local business is the CBO partner, does it offer other community-based services and partner often with other nonprofits?

Q: Are programs/organizations located in Baltimore County able to apply?

A: The focus of the Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute is specific and limited to organizations serving and located in Baltimore City, so regretfully, a program located in Baltimore County and serving county residents is not eligible for this funding opportunity.

Tips for Writing a Strong Application

Please consider the following:

• Does the project have a clearly stated goal?
• Are the proposed methods likely to achieve the project’s goals?
• Can the level of award realistically accomplish the work proposed?
• Is the dissemination plan clearly presented?
• Is there local support to use the information gleaned from the project?
• Are the implications for programs and/or policy articulated?
• Does the project have potential to attract sustainable funding from other sources?
• Does the proposed budget reflect significant participation from both partners?

A: To get started, please register here. The UHI uses this platform for several of its programs and initiatives. An individual only needs to register once in order to submit a proposal for a grant for one of our funding opportunities, nominate a program for an award, etc. Single Sign-On (SSO) is available for Johns Hopkins affiliates. For more information, please visit this InfoReady webpage.

A: Notifications will be sent to the email address entered in the “Primary Community Partner Email” field. If you wish to notify additional recipients, you can enter their email addresses, separated by commas, at the end of the page before submitting it.

A: If you are unable to submit the application or save it as a draft, please check the following:

• Make sure you have activated the application by ticking the acknowledgment checkmark stating, “By submitting this nomination, I verify that we have worked in partnership on the nominated program for at least two years.” This action will enable the “Save as Draft” and “Submit Application” buttons.
• Ensure that all required fields, marked with an asterisk (*), are completed and that you have not exceeded any word or character limits.

A: Yes, please use the proxy functionality. To collaborate on the proposal, please add all people as proxies and choose one team member to be the main submitter. For more information, please visit this InfoReady webpage.