The Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities (TCDD) is seeking applications from individuals interested in serving on panels that review grant proposals. Throughout Texas, TCDD provides grant funding for disability-related projects designed to build community capacity, promote self-advocacy, pilot innovative ideas, or demonstrate a promising practice that can be replicated on a broader scale. Review panel members are an important part of ensuring successful TCDD funding initiatives.

How It Works

When TCDD makes grant funds available, we issue a Request for Applications (RFA). Qualified proposals are reviewed by an independent grant review panel. Members of the review panel evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of proposals, participate in a group review panel meeting, and ultimately develop group recommendations to the Council about funding. Grant review panels generally consist of three to five people. Review panel members may include:

• people with disabilities;
• family members of people with disabilities;
• professionals in the disability field; and
• others who have expertise around a certain topic but may not have as much familiarity with disability issues.

  TCDD strives to assemble grant review panels that are as diverse as possible so that multiple points of view are considered in the discussion. Having previous experience in reviewing documents is a plus. Grant review panels usually review between five and 15 proposals. Grant review panel members independently review and make notes about the strengths and weaknesses of grant proposals using a review guide. Then, panel members meet via teleconference to discuss proposals and develop recommendations for the Council.

Qualifications

TCDD requires that all review panel members must be their own guardians and reside in Texas. With reasonable accommodation, panel members must be able to:

• understand and accept TCDD’s mission to create change so that all people with disabilities are fully included in their communities and exercise control over their own lives;
• review and understand the proposals and the RFAs;
• identify and communicate the strengths and weaknesses of proposals; and
• work cooperatively in a group to reach a consensus.

  There is no minimum level of education necessary to apply. TCDD maintains a database of accepted individuals interested in evaluating grant proposals for the Council. Not every person in the database will serve on a grant review panel — TCDD works to ensure each panel is as diverse as possible. However, panel members are typically selected only from those individuals in the database.

Compensation

• $40 for each proposal reviewed independently
• $75 for a half-day meeting or $150 for a full-day meeting
• Travel and per diem if necessary to participate in the meeting

Learn More and Apply

For more information about this opportunity, please see the Grants Review Panel page on the TCDD website. If you are interested in sharing your expertise and serving on a grant review panel, please visit the Review Panel Application to submit your application. If you are selected, you will be added to TCDD’s database and contacted at a future date.