Full Posting Challenge.gov Template

2022 REACH Lark Award

Full Posting Challenge.gov Template

Section 1: Challenge Description

1.A - General Overview

Health disparities remain a pervasive issue amongst people from racial and ethnic minority communities across the United States. The Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) program has demonstrated success in addressing health equity and reducing health disparities by working with people from racial and ethnic minority groups and carrying out culturally tailored interventions. REACH is administered by CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity (DNPAO) in the National Center for Chronic Disease and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP).

The biennial REACH Lark Award, which was established in 2019 and first awarded in 2020, honors extraordinary individuals, organizations, or community coalitions associated with the REACH program for advancing the science and practice of improving health equity to eliminate health disparities at the national, state, or local levels.  

Applicants will be asked to describe how the nominee assisted with and carried out culturally tailored interventions that achieve health equity, reduce health disparities, and increase community engagement to address preventable risk factors (tobacco use, poor nutrition, physical inactivity, and inadequate access to clinical services) in populations/groups disproportionately affected by chronic disease; specifically, African American/Black, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Hispanic or Latino, and Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander persons. To compete for this award, individuals and organizations may be nominated by others or self-nominate. 

1.B - Key Dates

Submission Start: January 5, 2022, 12:00 AM ET

Submission End: March 3, 2022, 11:59 PM ET

Section 2: Prizes

2.C – Non-monetary Prizes (if applicable)

A maximum of two applicants (one individual and one organization/community coalition) associated with the REACH program will receive the 2022 REACH Lark Award. Recipients of the REACH Lark Award will receive a plaque. The recipient may be invited to meetings by CDC. Attendance at such events is not required as a condition of accepting the prize. No cash prize will be awarded. 

Section 3: Rules

3.A – Rules

1. Applicants will be asked to submit an application form (add link to form).

2. To compete for this award, individuals and organizations may be nominated by others or self-nominate. The applicant refers to each individual or organization/community coalition who submits and application or nomination. The nominee refers to each individual or organization/community coalition who is nominated, including both self-nominated nominees and those nominated by a separate applicant.

3. By participating, the applicant represents, warrants, and agrees that the entry contains accurate information. If an applicant is nominating an individual or organization/ community coalition (eg.,not self-nominating), the applicant must provide acknowledgement in writing that the nominee consents to being nominated.

4. Applicants and nominees must agree to recognition if selected as an awardee, and agree to participate in an interview with CDC staff to inform a success story that describes the intervention(s) that promoted health equity.

1. The awardee may be recognized on CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity website or the CDC website generally.

2. Applicants and nominees who are not selected for the award may be asked for permission for CDC to share information about successful interventions that promoted health equity on CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity website, or the CDC website, and attributed to the applicant or nominee. CDC will obtain approval from the applicant and/or nominee before sharing information about the applicant/nominee publicly.

1. Individuals and organizations agree to assume any and all risks related to participating in the award process. Individuals or organizations also agree to waive claims against the federal government and its related entities, except in the case of willful misconduct, when participating in the award process, including claims for injury, death, damage, or loss of property, money, or profits, and including those risks caused by negligence or other causes.

5. No cash prize will be awarded. The selected nomination will receive a plaque and recognition.

3.B – Eligibility Requirements

The REACH Lark Award is open to the public. To be eligible for this award, nominees must meet the following eligibility requirements:

1. Complete the application form under the rules promulgated by HHS/CDC.

2. Comply with all the requirements under this section and satisfy one of the following requirements:

1. Be a currently- or previously-funded CDC REACH recipient that has not previously received the REACH Lark Award in any year.

2. Be a technical assistance provider to past or current REACH recipients. Learn about DNPAO REACH recipients.

3. Be a partner organization or coalition members that has collaborated with current or previously funded REACH recipients. 

3. Not previously a REACH Lark Award recipient in any year

4. Be a U.S. citizen or legal resident 18 years of age or older.

1. Private entities must be incorporated in and maintain a primary place of business in the United States.

2. Individuals, whether nominated singly or in a group, must be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States.

3. The United States means a state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any other territory or possession of the United States.

5. Not be a current employee of or contractor within CDC.

In addition, a federal entity or federal employee acting within the scope of their employment are not eligible to apply and/or to be nominated for this award.

1. An HHS employee who wishes to submit an application shall not work on their applications or submissions during assigned duty hours.

2. Federal grantees may not use federal funds to develop COMPETES Act challenge applications for this award.

3. Federal contractors may not use federal funds from a contract to develop COMPETES Act challenge applications or to fund efforts in support of a COMPETES Act challenge submission.

4. An individual or organization shall not be deemed ineligible because the individual or organization used federal facilities or consulted with federal employees during a competition if the facilities and employees are made available to all individuals and entities participating in the competition on an equitable basis.

3.C – Terms & Conditions

HHS/CDC reserves the right to cancel, suspend, or modify the REACH Lark Award, or any part of it, for any reason, at HHS/CDC's sole discretion.

Applying for this award constitutes an applicants' full and unconditional agreement to abide by the Challenge's Official Rules.

Section 4: Judging Criteria

4.A – Judging Panel

The Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity's (DNPAO's) Office of Policy Partnerships and Communication (OPPC) will select three to five judges based on their knowledge of the REACH program, the science and practice of achieving health equity, and the elimination of health disparities at the national, state, or local levels. Judges may include REACH program senior advisors, other CDC employees, or nonfederal individuals from outside the agency. Participating as a previous REACH Lark Award judge does not disqualify an individual or organization from being an award recipient for the 2022 challenge.

4.B – Judging Criteria

DNPAO Policy Office will facilitate a panel of three to five experts to review the applications and select up to two award recipients (one individual and one organization or community coalition) from all eligible entries based on the following:

• The extent to which the problem/challenge is clearly identified. (5 points)

• The extent to which the strategies/solutions are described, including:

  • The nominee’s role in the strategies/solutions. (20 points)

  • The nominee's work addresses one or more of the following preventable risk factors: tobacco use, poor nutrition, physical inactivity, and inadequate access to clinical services that are related to chronic diseases such as hypertension, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and obesity. (10 points)

  • The extent to which the nominee's work aligns with the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion's (NCCDPHP's) goals of achieving health equity by addressing social determinants of health. Examples of social determinants health include, but are not limited to the built environment, community-clinical linkages, food and nutrition security, social connectedness, and tobacco-free policies. (15 points)

  • The extent to which the solutions are culturally-tailored, evidence or practice-based, and designed specifically to reduce health inequities for populations/groups disproportionately affected by chronic disease or related risk factors. (15 points)

  • The extent to which the nominee has actively and effectively engaged community members and partners across different sectors, such as, but not limited to transportation, healthcare, agriculture, emergency food systems, faith-based organizations. (15 points)

• The impact of the nominee’s work in addressing preventable risk factors in populations/groups disproportionately affected by chronic disease. (20 points)

Judges will use the point system identified in the judging criteria above to select the winner.

Section 5: How to Enter

5.A – Entry Instructions

Individuals and entities must submit an application form to compete for this award. Please see judging criteria for information about how applications will be scored.

If you have questions, send an email to the challenge manager using the information under Point of Contact. Use the words "REACH Lark Award" in the subject line.

5.B – Submission URL or Email

Request Form

Posting Field	Challenge Details
Posting Type  (select desired type)	Full Posting  Listing Only
Challenge Title	The 2022 Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) Lark Galloway Gilliam Award for Advancing Health Equity (REACH Lark Award)
Tagline	Recognizing advances in the science and practice of improving health equity associated with CDC’s REACH Program
Agency	Department of Health and Human Services - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Partner Agencies  (If applicable)
Total Cash Prize Offered  (optional)	None
Challenge Type   (select all that apply)	Nomination
Submission Period Start	Date: January 5, 2022 Time (ET): 12:00AM
Submission Period End	Date: March 2, 2022 Time (ET): 11:59PM
Fiscal Year(s)	2022
Legal Authority	America COMPETES Act  Agency specific prize authority  Procurement Authority  Other Transaction Authority  Grants and cooperative agreements  Other
Challenge Manager Name
Challenge Manager Email
Challenge Point of Contact Email	Kristy Mugavero - [email protected]
Social Media Profiles   (optional, but recommended)	Facebook Profile “@” Handle:  Twitter “@” Handle: @CDC_DNPAO  Challenge “#” Hashtags: