Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Data Analysis Center (U24) | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the ECHO Data Analysis Center (DAC) opportunity (RFA-OD-16-005)?

The ECHO Data Analysis Center (DAC) opportunity (RFA-OD-16-005) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding opportunity to establish a single, program-wide hub for data management and analytics for the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program. It is designed to fund the infrastructure and expertise needed to make ECHO function as an integrated, multi-cohort research program.

What type of NIH award mechanism is this?

This opportunity is a cooperative agreement under the U24 activity code. A cooperative agreement typically involves substantial programmatic interaction with NIH compared to standard grants.

What is the main purpose of the DAC within ECHO?

The DAC is intended to build and operate the central data repository for ECHO and deliver the primary data analysis functions that cut across shared ECHO activities. Its role is to make program-wide data usable for consistent, coordinated, cross-cohort analyses.

Is this FOA funding individual research projects or an infrastructure hub?

This FOA funds an infrastructure and analytics hub, not isolated individual research projects. The focus is on the shared data systems, harmonized measures, and coordinated analytic capabilities needed to support ECHO as a unified program.

How many DAC awards does NIH expect to make under this FOA?

NIH anticipated making one award (Expected Awards: 1), reflecting the intent to create a single centralized DAC serving the entire ECHO program.

Why does ECHO need a single centralized DAC?

ECHO is built around combining and comparing data from multiple prospective longitudinal cohorts. A single centralized DAC supports consistent data practices, shared repository functions, harmonized measures, and coordinated analyses, which helps ensure that combined analyses are comparable and reproducible across cohorts.

What is ECHO as a research initiative?

ECHO is an NIH-wide initiative focused on understanding how environmental exposures across early development influence childrens health outcomes over time. It emphasizes longitudinal effects of exposures during prenatal, perinatal, and postnatal periods.

What does "environmental exposures" mean in the ECHO context?

In ECHO, "environmental exposures" is defined broadly and can include physical, chemical, biological, behavioral, and social factors that may influence child health and development.

What kinds of studies does ECHO rely on?

ECHO relies on multiple prospective longitudinal studies built from existing (extant) cohorts. These cohorts are expected to collaborate on standardizing and collecting core data elements so analyses can be conducted across cohorts at scale.

What are the central data repository responsibilities of the DAC?

The DAC is responsible for creating and maintaining the shared repository where ECHO data are deposited, curated, and prepared for common analyses across the program.

What data management functions are implied for the DAC?

Based on the description, the DAC role implies secure data intake, quality control, data harmonization across differing cohort instruments, documentation and metadata standards, and reproducible analysis pipelines that can be applied consistently across sites and studies.

Why is data harmonization a core part of the DAC role?

ECHO aims to compare and pool data from diverse cohorts that may have collected similar concepts using different instruments or measures. Harmonization is needed to align variables, address differences in measurement, and support consistent cross-cohort analytic strategies.

Does the DAC only store data, or does it also perform analyses?

The DAC is described as delivering the primary data analysis functions that cut across shared ECHO activities. It is positioned to conduct or support statistical and methodological work enabling cross-cohort research, not just store data.

What does the FOA suggest about statistical and methodological responsibilities?

The DAC is inherently methodological in this program, with responsibilities that can include aligning variables collected in different ways, managing missingness and measurement differences, and supporting agreed-upon analytic strategies used consistently across cohorts.

How is ECHO governed, and why does that matter for the DAC?

ECHO is overseen by a Steering Committee of investigators working alongside an NIH Program Director, with additional input from an External Scientific Board. This collaborative oversight model matters because the DAC is expected to operate in close coordination with NIH leadership and other ECHO components as part of a cooperative agreement.

Is the DAC described as a service center or a collaborative program component?

The DAC is described as part of the decision-making and implementation fabric of ECHO. It is not framed as a standalone service center; it is expected to coordinate closely with program leadership and other ECHO components to enable shared priorities, common measures, and cross-cutting analyses.

When was this opportunity posted and when did it close?

The opportunity was posted on December 7, 2015, and the application closing date was April 15, 2016.

Who is the sponsoring agency for this funding opportunity?

The sponsor is the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the National Institutes of Health (NIH), listed as HHS-NIH11.

How is this opportunity categorized in terms of funding type?

It is categorized as discretionary funding.

What kinds of organizations are eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad and includes various levels of government, public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (with or without 501(c)(3) status), for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), small businesses, tribal governments and tribal organizations, and other applicants as described in the full announcement.

Is this FOA connected to other ECHO-related funding announcements?

Yes. The DAC FOA is one of seven related ECHO funding announcements that collectively build the broader program infrastructure and research components.

What other components were planned alongside the DAC in the broader ECHO set of announcements?

Alongside the DAC, NIH planned separate awards for Pediatric Cohorts (new research questions in existing pediatric cohorts), a Coordinating Center, a Patient Reported Outcomes (PRO) Core, an IDeA States National Pediatric Clinical Research Network Data Coordination and Operating Center, IDeA States Pediatric Clinical Research Network Sites, and supplements linked to the Childrens Health Exposure Analysis Resource (CHEAR).

What is the significance of including the IDeA States network in the broader ECHO effort?

The inclusion of the IDeA States network reflects a connected effort to reduce access gaps for rural children by leveraging research infrastructure in IDeA states, helping ensure ECHO-related clinical research capacity is not limited to large academic hubs.

Why are multiple CFDA numbers associated with this FOA?

The FOA is associated with a wide set of CFDA numbers, reflecting the multi-institute, cross-cutting nature of ECHO and the range of NIH institutes and centers that can be involved in supporting research tied to child health, environmental health, and related outcomes.

What is the overall goal of funding the DAC for ECHO?

The overall goal is to make ECHO operational at scale by housing and governing the shared data repository, enabling harmonization of core data elements across many existing cohorts, and providing analytic capacity to answer major questions about how early-life environmental exposures influence pediatric health outcomes over the long term within a coordinated NIH-led collaborative framework.