Clinical Practice Research Institute (CPRI)

Applying to CPRI

This program is on hold for 2025. The next application round will tentatively open in 2026.

Eligibility Requirements
Program Requirements
How to Apply

Purpose

The Clinical Practice Research Institute (CPRI) supports the planning and preparation of a U.S. federal research grant proposal that focuses on clinical practice research in CSD. CPRI welcomes researchers who are new to clinical practice research as well as experienced clinical researchers who are ready to scale up their clinical investigations.

Through the program, ASHA works with accepted applicants to provide two forms of support:

Help identifying and recruiting any consultants needed to help the awardee plan and prepare a research grant proposal —the consultants would provide their expertise in appropriate methodology or funding mechanisms. Consultants agree to provide remote consultation and attend virtual grant planning meeting(s) along with the awardee and key personnel. The consultants will participate in grant planning only and are not to be written into the grant as key personnel.
Allocate a $500 honorarium for each consultant to acknowledge their time and expertise.

The goal of participation in CPRI is to complete and submit a U.S. federal research grant proposal within 12 months of the initial grant planning meeting.

CPRI is part of ASHA's Academic & Research Mentoring (ARM) Network. The ARM Network offers programs for those who are considering, launching, and advancing academic-research careers in communication sciences and disorders (CSD). ASHA measures the impact of these programs by collecting participant outcomes data, including more detailed funding outcomes of ARM Network grant writing program participants.

Clinical Practice Research and Its Importance

Clinical practice research specifically addresses issues concerned with methods and approaches used in service delivery and their outcomes. It is distinct from research aimed primarily at understanding the mechanisms underlying normal processing or disorders. Specifically, clinical practice research includes areas such as epidemiology, prevention, assessment, diagnosis, intervention, outcomes measurement, knowledge translation, and implementation science.

Clinical practice research is needed to support evidence-based practice in CSD. The discipline has a critical need for an expanded and strengthened evidence base to (a) inform federal and state regulatory policies and administrative decisions about funding services for those with communication disorders and (b) advance clinical practice. The purpose of CPRI is to accelerate the generation of this needed research.

ASHA's Strategic Objectives recognize the pressing need to advance both implementation science and interprofessional education and interprofessional collaborative practice (IPE/IPP) in CSD. CPRI applications that focus on one or both of these areas are particularly encouraged.

Eligibility Requirements

The applicant must meet the following eligibility requirements:

Hold a research doctoral degree (e.g., PhD or equivalent)
Have secured extramural research funding, not including loan repayment awards, scholarships, personnel preparation grants, or community service grants
As a principal investigator, have applied for U.S. federal research funding
- Eligible funding includes a research grant from a federal agency (e.g., National Institutes of Health, Institute of Education Sciences, or Department of Veterans Affairs). This includes a research grant such as an R03, R21, or R01; a fellowship; career development award; or minority supplement.
- The following funding types are not eligible: National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) awards, loan repayment awards, scholarships, personnel preparation grants, small business innovation research grants (SBIR), community service grants, or any proposal for which your role is co-investigator, or any role other than PI or co-PI.
Be eligible to apply as the principal investigator (PI) or co-principal investigator (co-PI) for research funds from a U.S. federal agency
Be an ASHA member (with or without certification)

To be eligible, the research grant submitted with the CPRI application must focus on a topic relevant to epidemiology, prevention, assessment, diagnosis, intervention, outcomes measurement, knowledge translation, and/or implementation science through single-subject experimental designs as well as large clinical trials.

Preference will be given to applicants who have not previously been CPRI awardees. Individuals cannot be CPRI awardees more than twice.

Researchers who have not yet secured extramural research funding or have not yet applied for federal research funding might be eligible for ASHA's Pathways or Lessons for Success programs.

View past participants of CPRI.

Program Requirements

Each awardee must complete the following tasks:

Schedule, plan, and meet remotely with the identified consultant(s) to plan and prepare your grant proposal. Key personnel should also be included in these meetings, as appropriate. Based on the application and selection timeline, the initial grant planning meeting can occur as early as mid-August, depending on consultant availability. The total number of meetings will be determined by the awardee and their consultant(s).
Submit to ASHA a Grant and Consultation Plan, an Interim Report, and a Final Report.
Submit a U.S. federal research grant proposal within 12 months of the first virtual meeting with consultants.

How to Apply

The program is on hold for 2025. The next application period will tentatively open in April 2026.

An individual PI or co-PIs can apply. If applying as co-PIs, apply jointly by submitting all materials in one application. Designate one PI who will complete a single application.

The following information will be requested in the online application form:

Mentor, publication, and grant history. If applying as co-PIs, the application requires this information for each PI.
Key grant personnel, if already identified
Consultant needs
Initial grant planning meeting details

Additionally, applicants will need to upload the following application materials. Page limits do not include references. Pages should be 12-point font and single-spaced with one-inch margins. All application materials must be uploaded as PDFs.

Draft of your Grant Proposal (limit 6 pages)
The draft of the grant proposal must include the following two sections:

- Background and Significance
  - Provide an overview of the area of investigation that includes
    - a summary of prior work in the area,
    - the state of the science,
    - a rationale for why the approach being proposed is appropriate, and
    - the preferred next step to address the specific clinical question that motivated the proposal.
  - Explicitly describe the relevance of the proposed investigation to its theoretical foundations and potential theoretical implications.
  - Convey why the proposed area of study and the specific questions that would be addressed are important topics to investigate.
  - Address challenges, opportunities, and the potential impact of the research.
  - Specific aims are not required for this application process but can be included in this section if the applicant wishes to include them.
- Approach. Provide at least an outline that includes the
  - experimental design,
  - targeted participants, and
  - hypothesized results.

Personal Narrative (limit 2 pages)
If applying as a co-PIs, the application requires a personal narrative from each PI.

Delineate the applicant's long-term career and research goals.
Describe how the proposed project would contribute to the applicant's long-term program of research.
Describe prior research and/or educational efforts intended to enhance the applicant's readiness to conduct the proposed project.