The web-based National Information and Reporting System (NIRS) is the national, web-based data reporting and retrieval system for the AUCD Network.
NIRS is a collective effort by the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD), its member programs, and their federal partners.
NIRS enables Network members to manage data on their training programs, projects, activities, and products, and helps them comply with Federal reporting requirements. The data gathered in NIRS also enables AUCD to develop composite snapshots of the UCEDD and LEND programs.
NIRS is a useful tool for accessing and promoting the important work of university-based centers and programs on disabilities and special health care needs to a wide array of constituents, including people with disabilities and/or their families, local communities, states, service providers, funding agencies, policy makers, and other partners. Finally, NIRS supports the data management, program evaluation, long-range planning, and information sharing efforts of individual UCEDD and LEND Programs.
Benefits of NIRS
- No cost is associated with using NIRS and storing data for multiple years. Other applications may charge to maintain historical data. We do not for NIRS.
- NIRS was built from the specifications of the federal funder. This means that information is already in the format the federal funder desires when it appears in your federal reporting.
- AUCD coordinates with federal funders to decrease duplication of data entry.
- NIRS' pre-build reports provide quantitative and qualitative data that can be used immediately for reporting to Federal agencies.
- NIRS is accessible throughout the year with technical assistance support.
- Ownership and storage of historical data at your program.
- Leveraging AUCD Network expertise.
- Program/Center data is prominently promoted in NIRS Public Search for Products and Projects on the AUCD website.
- Online AUCD Network Members section.
NIRS Technical Assistance
by Email
Requests may be submitted to NIRS Help Desk at [email protected].
by Phone
If you need assistance please call 301-588-8252.
NIRS Data Coordinators Listserv
Subscribe to the list to receive the latest information on topics relevant to NIRS.
This is a members-only discussion list hosted by AUCD. To join this list, individuals must be Network members who managing center's data in NIRS and/or staff of AUCD. The list is for members to post information and discuss topics relevant to NIRS.
Centers enter their data directly into this national database; the database allows Network members to manage their own Center data while enabling AUCD to present a picture of the Network's activities using aggregate data. NIRS is designed to describe the outputs and outcomes of the Network, provide the public with access to the projects and products of the Network, and assist the following Centers comply with their federal (and other) reporting requirements:
- University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD)
- Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) Programs
- Leadership Education in Adolescent Health (LEAH) Programs
- Pediatric Pulmonary Centers (PPC)
- Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics (DBP) Programs
UCEDDs receive their core funding from the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AIDD) and the LEND, LEAH, and PPC Programs receive their core funding from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB).
UCEDD and LEND Network-wide data collection dates back to 1987. In 1987, amendments to the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act (DD Act) included a provision requiring ongoing collection of comparative data that would reflect the national impact of the UCEDD Network. A plan was proposed and endorsed at the October 1987 Annual Meeting (AUCD was known at that time as the American Association of University Affiliated Programs) for implementing the Network's first national data collection standards.
