Henry M. Jackson Foundation: Research Guide

The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc. (HJF) is a congressionally chartered 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation based in Bethesda, Maryland. Established to facilitate military medical research, HJF serves as an administrative bridge connecting military investigators, the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS), federal agencies, academic institutions, and industry.

This operational guide details HJF’s statutory authority, eligibility models, subaward administration under the Uniform Guidance, and compliance requirements for principal investigators and institutional administrators.

What it is and who runs it

Congress authorized the foundation in May 1983 under Public Law 98-36 (codified at 10 U.S. Code § 178). Enacted as the Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Congress renamed it five months later in honor of Senator Henry M. “Scoop” Jackson (1941–1983).

Under 10 U.S.C. § 178(a), HJF is established as a private nonprofit corporation under Maryland law and “shall not for any purpose be an agency or instrumentality of the United States Government.” This non-governmental designation allows HJF to recruit civilian scientific personnel, execute industry partnerships, and administer sponsored projects without federal procurement constraints.

Governance is vested in a Council of Directors defined under 10 U.S.C. § 178(c). The Council includes ex officio members—the Chairmen and ranking minority members of the Senate and House Armed Services Committees (or committee designees) and the Dean of USUHS—alongside six appointed civilian directors serving four-year terms.

The Council appoints an Executive Director / CEO responsible for operational management. HJF is led by President and CEO Joseph Caravalho, Jr., M.D., Major General, U.S. Army (Ret.), supported by fourteen vice presidents and senior directors. Domestic programs are complemented by international subsidiaries, including HJF Medical Research International (HJFMRI) and CAMRIS International, LLC.

Disambiguation: HJF (Advancement of Military Medicine) is entirely independent of the Seattle-based Henry M. Jackson Foundation, an unrelated philanthropic foundation focused on public policy and international affairs.

Eligibility (summary, with the official source)

As described on the official HJF portal and in 10 U.S.C. § 178 on 2026-11-07, eligibility to administer programs through HJF requires alignment with defense health missions:

Military and Federal Investigators: Faculty, clinicians, and researchers at USUHS, military treatment facilities, and Department of Defense (DoD) laboratories manage sponsored projects through HJF under statutory cooperative arrangements.
Academic Institutions: Civilian universities and academic medical centers participate as sub-recipients or consortium partners on prime awards and cooperative agreements.
Industry Collaborators: Biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and device firms engage HJF through collaborative research agreements, clinical trials, and joint proposals.
International Partners: Global health entities collaborate with HJF subsidiaries on infectious disease surveillance and international clinical trials.

Investigators do not apply to HJF for internal grants; eligibility requires participation in projects funded by external defense or federal sponsors.

What it funds or requires

As described on the official HJF portal on 2026-11-07, HJF manages more than 700 research grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements. It does not distribute philanthropic endowments; it administers externally funded programs across major military medicine portfolios:

Combat Casualty Care and Surgery: Polytrauma intervention, battlefield resuscitation, hemorrhage control, and tissue regeneration.
Infectious Diseases: Vaccine evaluation, tropical medicine, pathogen surveillance, and military countermeasure deployment.
Brain Health and Neurotrauma: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) biomarkers, psychological resilience, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Precision Medicine and Force Health: Comparative whole-genome sequencing, environmental threat monitoring, and physical performance optimization.
Rehabilitation and Biodefense: Pain mitigation, sensory trauma recovery, advanced prosthetics, and chemical, biological, and radiological defense countermeasures.

Administrative and compliance requirements include:

Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200): Federal subawards require pre-award risk evaluations, budget justifications, and invoice oversight.
Sub-Recipient vs. Contractor Determinations: HJF’s Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) classifies partners under 2 CFR 200. Sub-recipients conduct substantive portions of the Statement of Work (SOW), retain intellectual property rights, and assign co-investigators with programmatic authority. Contractors provide routine commercial services.
Regulatory Compliance: Protocols must clear Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) or Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees (IACUCs), alongside secondary DoD human research protection approvals. Projects must also adhere to security policies such as the DARPA Countering Foreign Influence Program.

Application or compliance steps

Collaborative proposal development and administration follow a structured lifecycle:

Teaming and Opportunity Review: Investigators identify funding opportunities (e.g., CDMRP, DHA Omnibus IV, NIH, BARDA, MTEC) and engage HJF to establish teaming structures.
Scope of Work and Budget Formulation: Investigators coordinate with HJF proposal specialists to establish a compliant Statement of Work (SOW), budget narrative, and indirect cost rates.
Subaward Risk Evaluation: HJF subaward administrators review partner single-audit reports and internal controls under 2 CFR 200 prior to award finalization.
Proposal Submission: HJF acts as the authorized organizational representative (AOR) to submit packages through federal portals (e.g., Grants.gov, eBRAP).
Award Negotiation: OSP negotiates award terms, protects investigator intellectual property, and establishes project accounting codes.
Program Operations: HJF manages personnel recruitment, scientific equipment acquisition, and vendor disbursements.
Technology Transition: HJF’s technology transfer office evaluates patentable findings and coordinates licensing.
Award Closeout: Upon project completion, HJF reconciles financial ledgers, submits final technical reports, and archives records.

Typical timeline phases (no calendar dates as facts)

Program progression adheres to standard milestones:

Proposal Phase (4 to 8 weeks before deadline): Assembling technical narratives, subaward packages, and institutional certifications.
Review Phase (3 to 6 months post-submission): Sponsor peer review, programmatic scoring, and just-in-time responses.
Onboarding Phase (30 to 60 days following selection): Finalizing prime contracts, executing subawards, and setting up billing accounts.
Performance Phase (Typically 1 to 5 years): Conducting protocol experiments, submitting milestones, and managing financial burn rates.
Closeout Phase (90 to 120 days post-expiration): Submitting final reports, completing equipment disposition, and de-obligating balances.

Common mistakes

Investigators should avoid several recurring administrative errors:

Treating HJF as a Grantmaking Body: Submitting unsolicited funding requests directly to HJF expecting foundation gift funds.
Misidentifying Sub-Recipients as Vendors: Using commercial purchase orders for collaborators who perform programmatic SOW tasks.
Omitting Secondary DoD Review: Relying solely on university IRB approval without securing mandatory DoD human research protection clearance.
Submitting Late Pre-Award Packages: Engaging OSP days before federal submission windows close, compromising institutional compliance.
Unclear Intellectual Property Agreements: Failing to establish IP and data rights among partners prior to commencing work.

Related programs (table)

The table below summarizes HJF alongside defense health research organizations and funding structures:

Program or Organization	Model	Focus in Military Health	Key Distinguishing Feature
Henry M. Jackson Foundation (HJF)	501(c)(3) authorized by 10 U.S.C. § 178	Research administration, subaward management, and scientific staffing	Congressionally chartered bridge between USUHS/DoD and civilian partners
Uniformed Services University (USUHS)	Federal health sciences university	Education and direct scientific defense research	Federal institution conducting cooperative programs with HJF
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP)	DoD funding management office	Peer-reviewed competitive grant programs	Research sponsor awarding grants managed by institutions like HJF
Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC)	Biomedical consortium under OTAs	Prototype translation and clinical maturation	Other Transaction Authority consortium with HJF participation
Geneva Foundation	Independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit	Military medical research administration	Private non-statutory research management organization
DARPA Biological Technologies Office	DoD advanced research agency	High-risk biological defense capabilities	Federal research funding agency rather than an administrative partner

FAQ

What is the Henry M. Jackson Foundation?

The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc. (HJF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization chartered by Congress under 10 U.S. Code § 178 to advance military medical research.

Is HJF a federal government agency?

No. Statute 10 U.S.C. § 178(a) explicitly establishes that HJF “shall not for any purpose be an agency or instrumentality of the United States Government.”

Does HJF award independent grants to researchers?

No. HJF does not provide internal foundation grants. It administers sponsored grants, federal contracts, and cooperative agreements funded by government and private entities.

How does HJF distinguish sub-recipients from contractors?

Under 2 CFR 200, sub-recipients carry out substantive portions of the research SOW, exercise programmatic decision-making, and retain IP rights. Contractors deliver routine commercial goods or services.

How does HJF differ from the Henry M. Jackson Foundation in Seattle?

HJF in Maryland is dedicated to military medical research under 10 U.S.C. § 178. The Seattle organization is an independent public policy foundation focusing on international relations and environmental policy.

Sources

U.S. Congress. 10 U.S. Code § 178: The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. Legal Information Institute. https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/10/178 (as described on the official page on 2026-11-07).
Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. About HJF. https://www.hjf.org/about (as described on the official page on 2026-11-07).
Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. Research Administration and Subawards. https://www.hjf.org/research-administration (as described on the official page on 2026-11-07).
Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. Partner with Us: Vehicles and Consortia. https://www.hjf.org/partner-us (as described on the official page on 2026-11-07).
Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. Research Solutions. https://www.hjf.org/services (as described on the official page on 2026-11-07).
Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. Areas of Research. https://www.hjf.org/areas-research (as described on the official page on 2026-11-07).