Opportunity Information: Apply for NIJ 2015 3995
Apply for NIJ 2015 3995
- The National Institute of Justice in the law, justice and legal services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NIJ FY 15 Research on Sentinel Events and Criminal Justice System Errors" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.560 National Institute of Justice Research, Evaluation, and Development Project Grants.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jan 23, 2015 and posted on Jan 13, 2015.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 17, 2015. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $1,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $600,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Special district governments County governments Private institutions of higher education Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments) Small businesses Independent school districts Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) Individuals Public and State controlled institutions of higher education State governments Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities City or township governments Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education For profit organizations other than small businesses.
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Opportunity Summary:
The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) funding opportunity titled "NIJ FY 15 Research on Sentinel Events and Criminal Justice System Errors" (Funding Opportunity Number NIJ 2015 3995) supports research that examines serious failures and "near misses" in the criminal justice system as signals of deeper, often hidden, system weaknesses. The central idea behind the solicitation is that major negative outcomes in complex systems rarely stem from a single mistake or one bad decision. Instead, they tend to emerge from multiple, interacting errors across policies, practices, communication, supervision, technology, training, and organizational culture. NIJ frames outcomes such as wrongful convictions, mistaken prison releases, and revictimization as "sentinel events" because they are significant harms that point to underlying vulnerabilities in the broader process. The goal is to fund research that shows how carefully studying these events, including cases where disaster was narrowly avoided, can lead to practical improvements that reduce future errors and strengthen overall justice system performance.
This solicitation is designed to build knowledge about how the sentinel event concept can be applied in justice settings to understand why breakdowns occur, how they spread across different parts of the system, and what kinds of interventions might prevent repeat failures. NIJ is interested in both basic research that advances theory and understanding, and applied studies that test or evaluate approaches in real-world contexts, including evaluations of programs or practices that attempt to identify, analyze, and learn from sentinel events. In practice, this could include developing methods for sentinel event reviews, studying organizational learning after errors, assessing barriers to transparent error reporting, or evaluating structured review processes intended to uncover root causes and system-wide contributing factors.
The opportunity is a discretionary grant under CFDA 16.560 (National Institute of Justice Research, Evaluation, and Development Project Grants). NIJ anticipated making 2 awards, with an estimated total funding amount of $1,000,000. Individual awards could range from an award floor of $1,000 up to an award ceiling of $600,000. No cost sharing or matching is required, which lowers the barrier for organizations that may not have non-federal funds available to contribute.
Eligibility is broad and includes many types of organizations and applicants: state, county, city or township, and special district governments; public and private institutions of higher education; public and independent school districts; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) entities); for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profit entities); and individuals. The solicitation was posted January 13, 2015, created January 23, 2015, and closed March 17, 2015, with an archive date of April 16, 2015. For access issues related to the full announcement, NIJ listed NIJSEI@usdoj.gov as the program support contact.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1) What is the name of this funding opportunity?
The opportunity is titled "NIJ FY 15 Research on Sentinel Events and Criminal Justice System Errors."
2) What is the funding opportunity number?
The funding opportunity number is NIJ 2015 3995.
3) Who is offering this grant?
The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) is offering this funding opportunity.
4) What is the main purpose of this solicitation?
The purpose is to support research that examines serious failures and "near misses" in the criminal justice system as warning signals of deeper system weaknesses, with the goal of learning from these events to reduce future errors and improve overall justice system performance.
5) What does NIJ mean by "sentinel events" in the justice system?
NIJ uses the term "sentinel events" to describe major negative outcomes in the criminal justice process that represent significant harms and point to underlying vulnerabilities in the broader system.
6) What are examples of sentinel events mentioned in the opportunity?
Examples listed include wrongful convictions, mistaken prison releases, and revictimization.
7) Why does NIJ focus on "near misses" as well as serious failures?
The solicitation highlights that studying cases where a disaster was narrowly avoided can reveal hidden weaknesses in policies, practices, communication, supervision, technology, training, and organizational culture, and can help prevent repeat failures.
8) What is the central idea behind the research NIJ wants to fund?
The central idea is that major negative outcomes in complex systems rarely come from a single mistake or one bad decision. Instead, they tend to arise from multiple interacting errors across different parts of the system.
9) What types of research does NIJ want under this solicitation?
NIJ is interested in both basic research (advancing theory and understanding) and applied research (testing or evaluating approaches in real-world settings), including evaluations of programs or practices designed to identify, analyze, and learn from sentinel events.
10) What are some example project activities that fit this solicitation?
Examples mentioned include developing methods for sentinel event reviews, studying organizational learning after errors, assessing barriers to transparent error reporting, and evaluating structured review processes intended to uncover root causes and system-wide contributing factors.
11) What kind of grant is this?
This is a discretionary grant.
12) What is the CFDA number and program name associated with this opportunity?
The opportunity is under CFDA 16.560, "National Institute of Justice Research, Evaluation, and Development Project Grants."
13) How many awards did NIJ expect to make?
NIJ anticipated making 2 awards.
14) What was the estimated total funding amount for this solicitation?
The estimated total funding amount was $1,000,000.
15) What is the minimum and maximum award size?
The award floor was $1,000 and the award ceiling was $600,000.
16) Is cost sharing or matching required?
No. The solicitation states that no cost sharing or matching is required.
17) Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is broad. Eligible applicants include state, county, city or township, and special district governments; public and private institutions of higher education; public and independent school districts; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) entities); for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profit entities); and individuals.
18) Are for-profit entities allowed to apply?
Yes. The eligibility list explicitly includes for-profit organizations, including small businesses and other for-profit entities.
19) Are individuals eligible to apply?
Yes. Individuals are explicitly listed as eligible applicants.
20) Are tribal governments and tribal organizations eligible?
Yes. Federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations are included in the eligibility list.
21) When was this solicitation posted and when did it close?
The solicitation was posted on January 13, 2015, and it closed on March 17, 2015.
22) What are the created date and archive date for this opportunity?
The created date was January 23, 2015, and the archive date was April 16, 2015.
23) Who should applicants contact if they have trouble accessing the full announcement?
For access issues related to the full announcement, NIJ listed NIJSEI@usdoj.gov as the program support contact.
24) What kinds of system factors does NIJ highlight as contributing to errors?
The opportunity describes errors as potentially arising from multiple, interacting issues across policies, practices, communication, supervision, technology, training, and organizational culture.
25) What is NIJ ultimately trying to achieve by funding this research?
NIJ aims to build knowledge about how sentinel event concepts can be applied in justice settings, understand how breakdowns occur and spread across the system, and identify interventions that can prevent repeat failures and strengthen justice system performance.
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