Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA HL 14 031
Apply for RFA HL 14 031
- The National Institutes of Health in the education environment food and nutrition health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Development of an NIH Data Discovery Index Coordination Consortium (U24)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.113 Environmental Health 93.172 Human Genome Research 93.173 Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders 93.273 Alcohol Research Programs 93.279 Drug Abuse and Addiction Research Programs 93.286 Discovery and Applied Research for Technological Innovations to Improve Human Health 93.307 Minority Health and Health Disparities Research 93.310 Trans NIH Research Support 93.393 Cancer Cause and Prevention Research 93.837 Cardiovascular Diseases Research 93.846 Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Research 93.847 Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases Extramural Research 93.853 Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders 93.855 Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research 93.856 Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Research 93.879 Medical Library Assistance.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jan 2, 2014 and posted on Dec 13, 2013.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 6, 2014. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $3,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $2,000,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: For profit organizations other than small businesses County governments Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Special district governments Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) Public and State controlled institutions of higher education City or township governments Private institutions of higher education Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) State governments Independent school districts Small businesses Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments).
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs) Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government Faith based or Community based Organizations Hispanic serving Institutions Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized) Regional Organizations Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) U.S. Territory or Possession Non domestic (non U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are not eligible to apply. Non domestic (non U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible to apply. Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.
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Opportunity Summary:
This NIH funding opportunity (RFA-HL-14-031) supports the creation of a single, coordinated consortium to jump-start development of an NIH Data Discovery Index (DDI), a resource meant to make biomedical datasets easier to find, access, and cite. The DDI concept sits within NIH's Big Data to Knowledge (BD2K) initiative and responds directly to recommendations from the NIH Advisory Committee to the Director's Data and Informatics Working Group, which called for improving data sharing through central and federated data catalogues. In practical terms, the goal is to reduce the common friction points that keep biomedical data fragmented across repositories, institutions, and projects by creating a workable approach for indexing data in a way that supports broad discovery and reuse.
The award mechanism is a U24 Cooperative Agreement, meaning NIH expects to be substantially involved in the project through ongoing collaboration rather than acting only as a funder. The funded organization will serve as the NIH Data Discovery Index Coordination Consortium (DDICC). The DDICC is expected to function as an organizing and coordinating hub that brings together stakeholders across the biomedical data ecosystem, including data producers, repositories, tool developers, standards groups, librarians/information specialists, and end users such as researchers. A major emphasis is community engagement: the consortium is not only building early components of an index but also creating alignment around shared expectations for how biomedical datasets should be described, located, accessed, and referenced.
The scope of work centers on coordination and early development activities rather than building a fully mature production platform immediately. Key responsibilities include conducting outreach to relevant communities, managing communications with stakeholders, and standing up and coordinating task forces to tackle core questions that affect data discovery at NIH scale. Those questions explicitly include access (how users actually get to the data, under what conditions, and with what permissions), discoverability (how data and metadata are structured so they can be found across many sources), and citation (how datasets are referenced reliably and consistently so they can be credited, tracked, and reused). The task forces are intended to study these issues in a structured way and translate conclusions into practical models, recommendations, and pilots that can be tested and validated.
A distinctive component of the DDICC role is the ability to fund small pilot projects. These pilots are meant to test ideas quickly, explore competing approaches, and generate real evidence about what works for indexing and discovery across diverse biomedical data types. Rather than assuming a one-size-fits-all solution, the pilots can help address variation in data formats, repository practices, metadata quality, access controls, and domain-specific needs (for example, genomics versus imaging versus clinical or epidemiological datasets). The expectation is that the DDICC will use these pilots to refine an actionable, working concept for how an NIH DDI could operate, including what information should be indexed and how links to data sources should be handled in both centralized and federated models.
The opportunity also requires the consortium to assemble a user interface (a website) that communicates results of development and testing. This is less about a polished end-user search engine from day one and more about providing a visible, usable place where the community can see what is being built, review outputs from task forces and pilots, and engage in feedback loops. In other words, the website is part of the coordination strategy: it helps make the work transparent, supports adoption, and gives stakeholders a common reference point as standards, prototype services, and implementation guidance evolve.
Administratively, NIH anticipated making one award under this FOA. The estimated total funding amount listed is $3,000,000, with an award ceiling of $2,000,000. There is no cost sharing or matching requirement. The opportunity was posted December 13, 2013, with an application closing date of March 6, 2014, and an archive date of April 6, 2014. While the FOA is archived (meaning it is no longer accepting applications), the description outlines a model NIH has used for community-driven infrastructure planning around data discovery and reuse.
Eligibility is broad across U.S.-based organizations. Eligible applicants include for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), small businesses, nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)), public and private institutions of higher education, and a range of government entities (state, county, city/township, special district). Tribal governments and tribal organizations are included, and there are explicit inclusions for organizations serving historically underrepresented groups (such as HBCUs, Hispanic-serving institutions, AANAPISIs, TCCUs, and Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian-serving institutions), as well as faith-based and community-based organizations and U.S. territories/possessions. Foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, though non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations may participate, and foreign components are allowed as defined by the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
The FOA is issued by the National Institutes of Health and maps to multiple CFDA program numbers spanning environmental health, genomics, cancer, cardiovascular research, neuroscience, infectious disease, minority health disparities, and more, reflecting NIH-wide interest in making biomedical datasets more discoverable and reusable across domains. The full announcement was made available through NIH's grants site (RFA-HL-14-031), and NIH provided standard contact support through the NIH Office of Extramural Research webmaster for access or linking issues.
Overall, this opportunity is best understood as an NIH-backed coordination and early-implementation effort designed to bring order to biomedical data discovery at scale. The central deliverable is not just technology, but a functioning consortium that can convene the community, test real approaches through pilots, and produce a credible, validated path toward an NIH Data Discovery Index that supports discovery, access, and citation across the biomedical research landscape.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the funding opportunity RFA-HL-14-031 about?
RFA-HL-14-031 is an NIH funding opportunity that supported the creation of a single, coordinated consortium to jump-start development of an NIH Data Discovery Index (DDI). The DDI is intended to make biomedical datasets easier to find, access, and cite across repositories, institutions, and research projects.
What is the NIH Data Discovery Index (DDI)?
The NIH Data Discovery Index (DDI) is a proposed resource for improving dataset discovery and reuse in biomedicine. Its purpose is to reduce fragmentation by indexing datasets in ways that support broad discovery, clearer access pathways, and consistent citation.
How does this opportunity relate to NIH BD2K (Big Data to Knowledge)?
The DDI concept sits within NIH's Big Data to Knowledge (BD2K) initiative. This opportunity was designed as an early, community-driven infrastructure effort aligned with BD2K goals around making biomedical data more discoverable and reusable.
What motivated NIH to create this opportunity?
The opportunity responds directly to recommendations from the NIH Advisory Committee to the Director's Data and Informatics Working Group. Those recommendations emphasized improving data sharing through central and federated data catalogues and reducing common barriers that keep data distributed and hard to reuse.
What award mechanism is used (and what does U24 mean)?
The award mechanism is a U24 Cooperative Agreement. This means NIH expected substantial involvement in the project through ongoing collaboration, rather than acting only as a passive funder.
What is the DDICC?
The funded organization would serve as the NIH Data Discovery Index Coordination Consortium (DDICC). The DDICC is expected to function as an organizing and coordinating hub for the work needed to launch early DDI development and align stakeholder expectations.
How many awards did NIH expect to make under this FOA?
NIH anticipated making one award under this funding opportunity.
What is the main purpose of creating a single, coordinated consortium?
The purpose is to provide a central coordination point that can convene diverse stakeholders, run structured task forces, test approaches through pilots, and produce credible, validated recommendations and early implementations for how an NIH-scale DDI could work.
Is this opportunity focused on building a full production data discovery platform immediately?
No. The scope emphasizes coordination and early development activities, not delivering a fully mature production platform right away. The emphasis is on organizing stakeholders, running task forces, conducting pilots, and producing practical models and recommendations that can be validated.
Who are the key stakeholders the DDICC is expected to bring together?
The DDICC is expected to engage a broad cross-section of the biomedical data ecosystem, including data producers, data repositories, tool developers, standards groups, librarians and information specialists, and end users such as researchers.
What role does community engagement play in this project?
Community engagement is a major emphasis. The consortium is expected not only to build early components of an index, but also to create alignment around shared expectations for describing, locating, accessing, and referencing biomedical datasets.
What are the core topic areas the DDICC task forces are expected to address?
The FOA explicitly calls out task forces to address: access (how users obtain data and under what conditions/permissions), discoverability (how data and metadata should be structured so they can be found across sources), and citation (how datasets are referenced reliably and consistently for credit, tracking, and reuse).
What is meant by “access” in the context of the DDI work?
Access refers to how users actually get to the data, under what conditions, and with what permissions. This includes practical considerations around connecting discovery to appropriate access mechanisms.
What is meant by “discoverability” in the context of the DDI work?
Discoverability refers to how datasets and metadata are described and structured so they can be found across many sources, including different repositories and institutional systems.
What is meant by “citation” in the context of the DDI work?
Citation refers to how datasets are referenced reliably and consistently so they can be credited, tracked, and reused. The goal is to make dataset references dependable across the ecosystem.
What kinds of outputs are expected from the task forces?
The task forces are intended to study issues in a structured way and translate conclusions into practical models, recommendations, and pilots that can be tested and validated.
Does the DDICC have the ability to fund pilot projects?
Yes. A distinctive component of the DDICC role is the ability to fund small pilot projects to test ideas quickly, explore competing approaches, and generate evidence about what works for indexing and discovery.
What is the purpose of the small pilot projects?
Pilots are meant to refine a workable concept for how an NIH DDI could operate by testing real approaches across diverse biomedical data types and operating conditions (such as varying formats, metadata quality, and access controls).
Why are pilots important for biomedical data discovery?
The FOA highlights that biomedical data varies widely (for example, genomics vs imaging vs clinical or epidemiological data). Pilots help avoid assuming a one-size-fits-all approach and instead evaluate what works across diverse domains and repository practices.
What models of indexing does the FOA mention?
The FOA discusses both centralized and federated models. Part of the expected work is to refine what information should be indexed and how links to underlying data sources should be handled across these approaches.
Is a website required as part of the consortium’s work?
Yes. The opportunity requires the consortium to assemble a user interface (a website) that communicates results of development and testing and provides a visible place for the community to review outputs and engage in feedback.
Is the required website expected to be a polished search engine from day one?
No. The website is framed as a coordination and transparency tool rather than a fully polished end-user search engine immediately. It is intended to show what is being built, share outputs from task forces and pilots, and support ongoing community feedback.
How much funding was associated with this FOA?
The estimated total funding amount listed is $3,000,000, and the award ceiling is $2,000,000.
Is there a cost sharing or matching requirement?
No. The FOA states there is no cost sharing or matching requirement.
What were the key dates for this opportunity?
The opportunity was posted on December 13, 2013. The application closing date was March 6, 2014, and the archive date was April 6, 2014.
Is this FOA still accepting applications?
No. The FOA is archived, meaning it is no longer accepting applications.
Who issued this funding opportunity?
The funding opportunity was issued by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Where could applicants find the full announcement?
The full announcement was made available through NIH's grants site under the identifier RFA-HL-14-031.
What types of organizations were eligible to apply?
Eligibility is broad across U.S.-based organizations, including for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), small businesses, nonprofits (501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)), public and private institutions of higher education, and government entities (state, county, city/township, special district).
Are tribal governments and tribal organizations eligible?
Yes. Tribal governments and tribal organizations are included among eligible applicants.
Are organizations serving historically underrepresented groups included in the eligible applicant types?
Yes. The FOA explicitly includes organizations such as HBCUs, Hispanic-serving institutions, AANAPISIs, TCCUs, and Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian-serving institutions.
Are faith-based and community-based organizations eligible?
Yes. The FOA explicitly includes faith-based and community-based organizations.
Are U.S. territories and possessions eligible?
Yes. The FOA includes U.S. territories and possessions among eligible applicants.
Are foreign institutions eligible to apply?
No. Foreign institutions are not eligible to apply under this FOA.
Can non-U.S. components participate in the project?
Yes. Non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations may participate, and foreign components are allowed as defined by the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
What NIH program areas does this FOA map to?
The FOA maps to multiple CFDA program numbers spanning many NIH interest areas (including environmental health, genomics, cancer, cardiovascular research, neuroscience, infectious disease, minority health disparities, and more), reflecting NIH-wide interest in improving data discovery and reuse.
What kind of support did NIH provide for access or linking issues?
NIH provided standard contact support through the NIH Office of Extramural Research webmaster for access or linking issues related to the announcement.
What is the central deliverable emphasized by this opportunity?
The central deliverable is not only technology. The FOA emphasizes a functioning consortium that can convene the community, run pilots, and produce a credible, validated path toward an NIH Data Discovery Index supporting discovery, access, and citation across biomedical research.
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