REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS: New EXCITE Opportunity

REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS

EXCITE: Design Phase

ELIGIBILITY: Non-competitive phase available to ALL Land-grant universities (LGUs) (1862, 1890, 1994) by completing a simple online application. Submit only one application per institution.

AWARD AMOUNT: $10,000

TIMELINE:

• Application Open: September 22, 2022
• Application Deadline: November 1, 2022, November 30, 2022, 11:59 PM PST11:59 PM PST
• Award Period: October 1, 2022 - March 15, 2023

APPLICATION ACCESS: The deadline for receipt of the application is November 1, 2022, 11:59pm PT.
Applications should be completed through Extension Foundation here: https://registry.extension.org/222228253316853.  Applications received after this date will NOT be considered. For additional information, questions, or clarifications, please contact EXCITE@extension.org.

Extension Collaboration on Immunization Teaching and Engagement (EXCITE) is a nationwide local response by U.S. Cooperative Extension made possible through an interagency agreement between USDA-NIFA and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and a cooperative agreement with the Extension Foundation. EXCITE embeds partners to strengthen immunization education with a special focus on adult vaccination confidence around COVID and other adult immunizations. Over 11 million adults in rural and isolated populations have been reached.

Cooperative Extension’s partnership with the CDC initiated by the ECOP Health Innovation Task Force is happy to release EXCITE Phase 3. The long-term goal of this partnership is to strengthen Immunization Education with a special focus on adult vaccination confidence around adult immunizations. EXCITE will address COVID-19 vaccine confidence in LGU Extension communities and advance the work of EXCITE 1 and 2 for adult immunization education in local communities.  (https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/adults/index.html)

EXCITE will be in two phases: The Design phase (6 months), which is the subject of this RFA, and the Implementation phase (18 months, through December 2024), which will be competitive funding with a forthcoming additional RFA due March 15, 2023. The Implementation phase expects to fund up to 53 LGUs.

The overall objectives of the EXCITE project are to increase COVID-19 and other adult immunizations through (1) Increasing partnerships with local Departments of Public health with special emphasis placed on those at the local level. Other potential partners include Federally Qualified Health Centers and Rural Health Clinics, or other types of partners that can provide adult immunization in prioritized communities (2) Increasing positive perception of public health partners and vaccine providers of the value of collaboration with Extension (3) Changing attitudes and beliefs within LGUs about adult immunization that will lead the organization to become an asset model focused on building early adoption and innovation leaders in adult immunization education (4) Assessing best practices for adult immunization in rural communities through a National Convening and three selected pilot projects.

The objective of this Design phase is to assist institutions to prepare for the Implementation phase with competitive proposals and/or proposals that could be used for other funding opportunities. With the support of the EXCITE Program team, including CDC partners, the Design phase will include workshops on the identification of priority populations, implementation of rapid community assessments of vaccine confidence for identified populations, partnership development, selection of best practices for delivery methods, and training in the use of the LGU vaccine confidence tool kit. Upon completion of the Design phase, you will be prepared to apply for the EXCITE Implementation phase. The Design phase is a non-competitive phase available to all 111 LGUs in the amount of $10,000 each.

The competitive Implementation phase will implement the plans for adult immunization education and vaccination developed during the Design phase at the local level and directed to identified rural and medically-underserved communities and address COVID-19 Vaccine confidence in their LGU. You do not have to participate in the Design phase in order to apply for the Implementation phase.