Reported worsening of youth mental health and rising sexually transmitted infection (STI) rates highlight the need for greater research focus on the intersection of youth mental and sexual health wellness. Recent events like the COVID-19 pandemic have further increased concerns of worsening mental health among youth. LGBTQ+ youth are particularly vulnerable to poorer mental health. Specifically, LGBTQ+ youth have higher risk of substance use, depression, and suicide than their peers and may have associated higher risk for STI and HIV exposure. 1,2 Further, within California, 18% of new HIV infections are reported in 13-24 year olds and only 13% of Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) users are within this age group. 3 The compounding biological, social, and societal pressures during the transitional phases of adolescences and young adulthood make this an important time for intervention. Through this call for applications, the California HIV/AIDS Research Program (CHRP) aims to fund up to $3.15 million of research on integrated mental and sexual health wellbeing interventions for LGBTQ+ youth in California.
Recognizing that mental health can affect HIV prevention and treatment behaviors, this funding mechanism aligns to CHRP’s strategic directions of:
- A complexity science approach that appreciates the dynamic, interconnected relationships between biological, personal, social, and structural determinants of HIV infection risk and associated morbidity, and
- Adopts a syndemics approach to health and disease that addresses common HIV-co-morbidities.
Award Amount and Details
Budgets may not exceed $200,000 direct cost per year and $600,000 direct costs over the entire grant period.
Deadlines and Date Information
April 1, 2022 Call for Applications Released
April 21, 2022 Applicant Webinar
May 19, 2022 Letters of Intent Due
July 21, 2022 Full Applications Due
November 10, 2022 Notification of Peer Review Outcome
February 1, 2023 Award Start Date
Eligibility Information
Principal Investigators from non-profit research, academic, or community-based institutions located in California are eligible to apply. Principal Investigators must commit at least 1.2 person-months (10% FTE) effort per year to the project. Current recipients of CHRP research funding are eligible to apply for funding under this initiative. US citizenship is not a requirement.
Applicants who do not yet hold “principal investigator” status at their institution may apply for this funding mechanism as a principal investigator if they include assurance from their institution that such status would be granted if the application were selected for funding.
