Forensic Technology Center of Excellence, Fiscal Year 2021

The Department of Justice is committed to advancing work that promotes civil rights, increases access to justice, supports crime victims, protects the public from crime and evolving threats, and builds trust between law enforcement and the community.

With this solicitation, NIJ seeks proposals from qualified applicants to establish and operate a Forensic Technology Center of Excellence (FTCOE) to support NIJ’s research, development, testing, and evaluation (RDT&E) process and technology transition activities in all areas of forensic science. The FTCOE should focus on specific efforts to include, but not be limited to:

Providing scientific and technical support to NIJ’s forensic science research, development, and technology transition efforts.
Facilitating demonstration, testing, evaluation, transfer, and adoption of appropriate technology into practice by crime laboratories, medical examiner/coroner offices, law enforcement, and other criminal justice agencies and forensic science service providers.
Providing technology transition assistance, knowledge transfer, and support to forensic science researchers and practitioners.
Developing and providing access to resources for research dissemination, education, and evidence-based best practices in the forensic science and criminal justice communities.
Working closely with NIJ program managers to assess and communicate the impact of forensic science RDT&E, evidence-based best practices, and systems-based approaches for the criminal justice system.
Develop national forensic science library services to identify, curate, and make available scholarly literature relevant to the forensic science research and practitioner community.