The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) is offering the Behavioral Interventions Scholars grant to support dissertation research by advanced graduate students.

Applicants will be required to submit a letter of support from the graduate student’s mentor, acting as the project’s Principal Investigator, that approves the application and provides a description of how the mentor will regularly monitor the student’s work. Applications that do not include this letter will be disqualified from review and funding. Applications from individuals (including sole proprietorships) and foreign entities are not eligible and will be disqualified from competitive review and funding under this funding opportunity. Faith-based and community organizations that meet the eligibility requirements are eligible to receive awards under this funding opportunity. Faith-based organizations may apply for this award on the same basis as any other organization, as set forth at and, subject to the protections and requirements of 45 CFR Part 87 and 42 U.S.C. 2000bb et seq., ACF will not, in the selection of recipients, discriminate against an organization on the basis of the organization’s religious character, affiliation, or exercise.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) anticipates soliciting applications for Behavioral Interventions Scholars grants to support dissertation research by advanced graduate students who are using approaches grounded in behavioral science or behavioral economics to examine specific research questions of relevance to social services programs and policies. These grants are meant to build capacity in the research field to apply a behavioral science or behavioral economics lens to issues facing poor and vulnerable families in the United States, and to foster mentoring relationships between faculty members and high-quality doctoral students. Applicants will be required to demonstrate how their research is grounded in behavioral economics/behavioral science and the applicability of their research to practice or policy serving low-income children, adults, and families, especially those that seek to improve their well-being. Specific topics of interest may be delineated in the full Notice of Funding Opportunity. For information about OPRE, please go to https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre. For information about related work ongoing within OPRE, please go to https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/behavioral-interventions-to-advance-self-sufficiency-bias-research-portfolio.

Applicants will be required to submit a letter of support from the graduate student’s mentor, acting as the project’s Principal Investigator, that approves the application and provides a description of how the mentor will regularly monitor the student’s work. Applications that do not include this letter will be disqualified from review and funding. Applications from individuals (including sole proprietorships) and foreign entities are not eligible and will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity announcement. Faith-based and community organizations that meet the eligibility requirements are eligible to receive awards under this funding opportunity. Faith-based organizations may apply for this award on the same basis as any other organization, as set forth at and, subject to the protections and requirements of 45 CFR Part 87 and 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb et seq., ACF will not, in the selection of recipients, discriminate against an organization on the basis of the organization’s religious character, affiliation, or exercise.