The Partnerships in Prevention Science Institute at Iowa State University is based on activity funded by the National Institutes of Health grants in the early 1990s since which time it has evolved into an extensive program of research on interventions designed to build family and youth competencies. 

The portfolio includes a number of studies funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), the National Institute of Mental Health, and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, as well as smaller investigations supported by foundations and other agencies. In 2002, a $21 million grant was received from NIDA to test PROSPER, a community-university partnership model for the diffusion of empirically-supported youth and family programs.