PALSS: Building Stronger Community Systems to Prevent Childhood Adversity
Official title: CE25-025 - Preventing ACES with Linkages and Stronger Systems (PALSS)
Funded at National Opinion Research Center · NIH-11423394 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A national team will study a Mississippi program that strengthens local supports to help families and reduce child abuse and risky outcomes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | National Opinion Research Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chicago, United States) |
| Project start | September 30, 2025 |
| Project end | September 29, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $449,880 |
| NIH project number | 5U01CE003748-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11423394 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Not applicable to a specific patient group; the study evaluates a community-level prevention program that affects families and children in Mississippi.
✕Less likely to help
Residents not in the LINK program or Mississippi counties with no implementation may see no direct benefit.
What this research studies
This project partners NORC at the University of Chicago and George Washington University to use mixed methods and equity-focused evaluation to see how well LINK improves county-level prevention efforts. Researchers will examine how the program strengthens community capacity, coordinates services, and adapts to local contexts. They will measure changes in child abuse and domestic violence rates at the county level and explore how community capacity mediates outcomes. The work aims to identify what parts of LINK work best and how implementation varies across Mississippi counties.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, communities could adopt or adapt LINK-like approaches to prevent ACEs and promote healthier, safer environments for children.
How similar studies have gone: Previous community-level prevention research supports the value of systems-strengthening approaches, but this project seeks to understand LINK’s specific impact and implementation variations.
Where this research is happening
-
National Opinion Research Center
Chicago, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hargreaves, Margaret — National Opinion Research Center
- Study coordinator: Hargreaves, Margaret
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.