Federal
U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
06/28/18 11:59 PM ET
Grants to USA and territories nonprofits, for-profits, state agencies, and tribal governments to improve youth mentoring programs that reduce drug abuse, delinquency, truancy, and other high-risk behaviors. Applicants are advised to create or verify the required registrations well in advance of the deadline date.
Overview:
This solicitation supports applicant organizations as they strengthen and/or expand their existing mentoring activities with active chapters or subawardees and/or other mentoring organizations. Mentoring activities include direct one-on-one, group, peer, or a combination of these types of mentoring services for at-risk and high-risk youth populations. Successful mentoring programs include matches between a mentor and one or more youth. Mentoring can take place in multiple and informal settings and in a school or program context.
Mentoring promotes positive behaviors, attitudes, and outcomes for youth and reduces risk factors associated with delinquency and juvenile justice system involvement, such as poor school attendance, school failure, and alcohol and drug abuse. It has been shown to improve academic performance and/or social or job skills, support behavioral or other personal development, and reduce consumption of alcohol and other drugs. However, one survey estimates that more than one in three young people never had an adult mentor of any kind while they were growing up. OJJDP supports the expansion of high-quality mentoring services for targeted youth across the country to help close this gap.
Program-Specific Information:
This program supports the implementation and delivery of one-on-one, group, peer, or a combination of these types of mentoring services to youth populations that are at risk and high risk for juvenile delinquency and juvenile justice system involvement through applicant mentoring organizations and their active chapters or subawardees. This program also supports one or more enhancements to both improve access to and the impact of mentoring services. For the purposes of this solicitation, mentoring programs should support a structured relationship between an adult or trained peer and one or more youth. Successful applicants should implement programs that will recognize and address the factors that can lead to or serve as a catalyst for delinquency or other problem behaviors in targeted youth, with a special emphasis on youth impacted by opioids. Expansion of mentoring activities should create new opportunities for mentees’ achievement.
This solicitation offers five program categories and applicants must designate the category for which they are applying. An organization that applies for funding in Category 1 may also be eligible to apply for Category 5, but is ineligible to apply for funds in Categories 2, 3, and 4. An organization that applies for funding in Category 2 may also apply to receive funds in Categories 3 and 4. For-profit organizations must agree to forgo any profit or management fee. Applicants in all categories must initiate mentoring services to youth who are 17 years old or younger at the time of admission to the program.
Category 1—National Mentoring Programs:
This category supports organizations with the widest reach and capacity to provide youth mentoring services across the country. Only national organizations are eligible to apply in this category. (For the definition of a national mentoring program, see the eligibility information above.) OJJDP encourages applicants to minimize their administrative costs in an effort to subaward at least 90 percent of this award to active chapters or subrecipients, located in at least 38 states, while at the same time allowing for effective subrecipient oversight.
Priority considerations for Category 1 include the following (applicants must describe how they will respond to these considerations in their application):
-Target populations. The target population should include those youth who are identified as being at risk or high risk for involvement in the juvenile justice system. OJJDP requires applicants to develop and implement a plan to serve American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth, both on and off reservations, with these grant funds. OJJDP strongly encourages applicants to target mentoring services that incorporate opportunities for youth and law enforcement engagement.
OJJDP also encourages applicants to include services for the following populations: children of parents on active military duty, children of incarcerated parents, youth with disabilities, youth with opioid/substance abuse problems, and youth in rural communities. Mentoring programs targeting these populations should highlight how the anticipated services would best support the unique needs of these populations, such as key partnerships or specialized curricula.
-At-risk and high-risk youth. For the purposes of this solicitation, OJJDP defines at-risk and high-risk youth as those youth who are most likely to become involved in the juvenile justice system because they possess certain predictive/correlative characteristics, are already involved in the juvenile justice system, and/or reside in environments that have high rates of parental incarceration, community violence, drug markets, gang concentration, and failing schools. Risk factors for juvenile delinquency are multidimensional across individual, family, community, peer, and school factors. (For additional background on risk factors for juvenile delinquency, see the OJJDP Model Programs Guide Literature Review on Risk Factors.) Applicants should fully address how the behaviors, characteristics, factors, etc. identified for at-risk youth relate to involvement in the juvenile justice system
Category 2—Multistate Mentoring Programs:
This category supports youth mentoring services provided by organizations in at least 5 states but fewer than 45 states. Only multistate organizations are eligible to apply in this category.
Priority considerations for Category 2 include the following (applicants must describe how they will respond to these considerations in their application):
-Broadest reach. Applicants should address how the proposed mentoring approach will reach a diverse and broad population of youth. OJJDP will consider the following factors in this determination: number of states where the applicant organization can show a history of providing mentoring services through subawards, number of states where the applicant organization proposes to use the awarded grant funds to provide mentoring services, number of program sites where the applicant organization can demonstrate a history of providing mentoring services through subawards, number of program sites where the applicant organization proposes to use the awarded grant funds to provide mentoring services, number of youth served, number of mentors recruited, and diversity in the youth being served.
-Target populations. The target population should include those youth who are identified as being at risk or high risk for involvement in the juvenile justice system (see above for definition of at-risk and high-risk youth). In addition, OJJDP strongly encourages applicants to target mentoring services that incorporate opportunities for youth and law enforcement engagement.
OJJDP also encourages applicants to include services for the following populations: AI/AN youth, both on and off reservations; children of parents on active military duty; children of incarcerated parents; youth with disabilities; youth with opioid/substance abuse problems; and youth in rural communities. Mentoring programs targeting these populations should highlight how the anticipated services would best support the unique needs of these populations, such as key partnerships or specialized curricula.
Category 3—Mentoring Programs for Youth Involved in the Juvenile Justice System:
This category seeks to support youth mentoring organizations that have a demonstrated partnership (via a memorandum of understanding) with a juvenile justice agency. See the eligibility section above for more information. The focus of this category is to provide mentoring services to those youth screened as being low risk to public safety by a juvenile justice agency as a part of an overall diversion approach with a goal of rehabilitation and accountability. The program is intended to be a resource for juvenile justice agency staff (i.e., probation officers) to make available to those youth on their caseload who are in need of and most appropriate for community-based supervision and/or diversion services.
Priority considerations for Category 3 include the following (applicants must describe how they will respond to these considerations in their application):
-Target population. The priority target population includes those youth who are screened as being low risk to public safety by a juvenile justice agency. Services may also be provided to youth post-adjudication as part of an alternative to detention approach authorized by the court and supportive service while on probation or community supervision. Youth returning from residential placement are not eligible for these services. OJJDP also encourages applicants to consider youth with opioid/substance abuse problems and youth in rural communities as a part of the target population.
-Demonstrated partnership. Applicant mentoring organizations must have established a formal relationship with a juvenile justice agency to be eligible for Category 3. Evidence of this formal relationship must be a fully executed memorandum of understanding between the agencies, and can be established specifically in response to this funding opportunity. However, agencies demonstrating existing relationships with a juvenile justice agency will receive priority consideration.
-Youth and law enforcement engagement. OJJDP encourages applicant organizations to provide opportunities for youth and law enforcement engagement as a part of their program model or approach. This can include using law enforcement personnel as mentors or creating activities where targeted youth have positive interactions with law enforcement personnel.
Applicants will develop and implement mentoring programs and strategies designed for youth referred to a juvenile justice agency. Applicants are expected to incorporate best practices in mentoring derived from research and related literature. Applicants are encouraged to consider a variety of mentoring approaches, such as one-on-one, group, student/peer, team, educational, and sports mentoring; professional development coaching; and other approaches best suited to meet the needs of the target population.
Category 4—Mentoring Strategies for Youth Impacted by Opioids (Project Sites):
This category supports youth mentoring organizations that have a demonstrated partnership (via a memorandum of understanding) with a public or private substance abuse treatment agency. See the eligibility section above for more information. The focus of this category is to provide mentoring services as part of a prevention, treatment, and supportive approach for those youth impacted by opioids. It is expected that mentoring organizations will develop and implement innovative mentoring approaches for this target population of youth. This may include a variety of practices, including but not limited to those informed by research on cognitive behavioral, contingency management, or any 12-step facilitation interventions and techniques. In addition, while funding may be used to support activities as part of the proposed mentoring model (i.e., recreational activities, skill-building activities for the youth focused on relapse prevention, drug prevention education, transportation, incidental costs for the mentor), it may not be used to fund direct service delivery as part of the model (i.e., mental health/substance abuse counselor, residential placement services).
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the estimated relapse rate for drug abuse treatment programs is between 40 and 60 percent. The increased stress of leaving treatment and returning to a home or community with multiple risk factors without adequate supports can contribute to relapse and additional criminal behavior.6 This category will use the impact of high- quality mentoring services to help prevent relapse and will provide training to mentors to understand the signs and symptoms of opioid abuse for those at risk of using opioids.
Priority considerations for Category 4 include the following (applicants must describe how they will respond to these considerations in their application):
-Target population. The priority target population must include those youth impacted by opioids. This includes youth who are currently using or have used opioids, youth at high risk for using opioids (i.e., presence of individual, family, and community risk factors for substance abuse), and youth with family members who are currently using or have used opioids. The goal of the mentoring and supportive services is to help prevent the youth from using opioids in the first place, ensure that youth who have used opioids are successful in their recovery efforts, and provide support and guidance to youth with family members who are currently using or have used opioids. To demonstrate how they are serving communities with highest need and targeting not only youth who are using or at high risk for using opioids but also those youth who are seriously impacted by parents or family members who are addicted to opioids, applicants could discuss how they will target those communities that have high per capita levels of primary treatment admissions for opioids
-Demonstrated partnership. Applicant mentoring organizations must have established a formal relationship with a public or private substance abuse treatment agency. Evidence of this formal relationship must be a fully executed memorandum of understanding between the agencies, and can be established specifically in response to this funding opportunity. However, agencies demonstrating existing relationships with a substance abuse treatment agency will receive priority consideration.
-Rural communities. OJJDP is interested in expanding the presence of mentoring services in rural communities. For this category, priority will be given to those applicants that target services to youth in rural communities across the country as defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on the basis of the “Standards for Delineating Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas.”
Category 5—Statewide and Regional Mentoring Initiative for Youth Impacted by Opioids.
This category will support a more broad-based approach to building mentoring program capacity in targeted regions throughout the country to help youth impacted by opioids. Only states, federally recognized tribes, and national organizations (as defined in Category 1) are eligible to apply for this category. Through this category, OJJDP is interested in supporting statewide or regional approaches to expanding mentoring services for these targeted youth. This may include states providing subgrants to mentoring organizations in particular regions (especially rural communities), tribes supporting various mentoring programs operating throughout a reservation, and national organizations funding active chapters or subrecipients in specific regions across the country (especially rural communities) with demonstrated high levels of opioid abuse. It is expected that mentoring organizations will develop and implement innovative mentoring approaches for this target population of youth. This may include a variety of practices, including but not limited to those informed by research on cognitive behavioral, contingency management, or any 12-step facilitation interventions and techniques. In addition, while funding may be used to support activities as part of the proposed mentoring model (i.e., recreational activities, skill-building activities for the youth focused on relapse prevention, drug prevention education, transportation, incidental costs for the mentor), it may not be used to fund direct service delivery as part of the model (i.e., mental health/substance abuse counselor, residential placement services).
Priority considerations for Category 5 include the following (applicants must describe how they will respond to these considerations in their application):
-Target population. The priority target population must include those youth impacted by opioids. This includes youth who are currently using or have used opioids, youth at high risk for using opioids (i.e., presence of individual, family, and community risk factors for substance abuse), and youth with family members who are currently using or have used opioids. The goal of the mentoring and supportive services is to help prevent the youth from using opioids in the first place, ensure that youth who have used opioids are successful in their recovery efforts, and provide support and guidance to youth with family members who are currently using or have used opioids. To demonstrate how they are serving communities with highest need and targeting not only youth who are using or at high risk for using opioids but also those youth who are seriously impacted by parents or family members who are addicted to opioids, applicants could discuss how they will target those communities that have high per capita levels of primary treatment admissions for opioids
-Rural communities. OJJDP is interested in expanding the presence of mentoring services in rural communities. For this category, priority will be given to those applicants that target services to youth in rural communities across the country as defined by OMB on the basis of the “Standards for Delineating Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas.”
Goals, Objectives, and Deliverables:
The program’s goal is to improve outcomes, such as improved academic performance and reduced school dropout rates, for at-risk and high-risk youth, and reduce negative outcomes (including juvenile delinquency, substance use, and gang participation) through mentoring. To achieve this goal, objectives focus on supporting eligible programs to (1) provide quality mentoring services tailored to the needs of the identified at-risk and high-risk youth target population and (2) align grantees’ mentoring programs with research and evidence on effective mentoring practices.
OJJDP has identified the following program objectives:
1. Provide mentoring services tailored to the needs of the identified at-risk and high-risk youth target populations. Applicants under all categories should describe the proposed target population(s) and how they are at risk and high risk. Successful applicants should implement programs that recognize and address the factors that can lead to or serve as a catalyst for delinquency or other problem behaviors in at-risk youth (e.g., lack of education or employment opportunities, high-crime neighborhoods, lack of parental supervision). Applicants should:
a. Clearly define the target population(s).
b. Identify the risk factors and service needs associated with the target population(s).
c. Explain how the proposed mentoring approach will appropriately respond to the unique needs of the target population(s) in a way that is likely to promote positive outcomes.
2. Develop and implement program design enhancements that further align with research and evidence on effective mentoring approaches. Applicants should be responsive to the following areas:
a. Address each of the six core standards of practice areas listed in Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring, as highlighted on OJJDP’s National Mentoring Resource Center website, to explain the current mentoring approach being used by the mentoring organizations. These six core standards of practice are:
-Recruitment.
-Screening.
-Training.
-Matching and initiation.
-Monitoring and support.
-Closure.
b. Identify and implement program design enhancements in one or more of the six core standards of practice to integrate additional evidence-based practices. This may include implementing changes to better align with the benchmarks identified in Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring; integrating findings from the programs, practices, and resources highlighted on the "What Works in Mentoring" section of the OJJDP National Mentoring Resource Center; or applying other similar types of research. Applicants should clearly identify the source of the research evidence they are using as the basis for the enhancement.
c. Address how the applicant will further promote family engagement as part of the program design or approach. Research indicates that mechanisms that support and involve parents in mentoring programs increase the chances for positive outcomes in the mentoring relationship.9 This includes but is not limited to discussing how families will be engaged in an orientation process, receiving program information, understanding expectations, assisting with any substance abuse treatment recommendations, and participating in specific activities that the mentoring organization hosts or that provide additional outreach to parents. Parents include both official and unofficial caretakers.
Evidence-Based Programs or Practices:
OJP strongly emphasizes the use of data and evidence in policymaking and program development in criminal justice, juvenile justice, and crime victim services. OJP is committed to:
-Improving the quantity and quality of evidence OJP generates.
-Integrating evidence into program, practice, and policy decisions within OJP and the field.
-Improving the translation of evidence into practice.
OJP considers programs and practices to be evidence-based when their effectiveness has been demonstrated by causal evidence, generally obtained through one or more outcome evaluations. Causal evidence documents a relationship between an activity or intervention (including technology) and its intended outcome, including measuring the direction and size of a change, and the extent to which a change may be attributed to the activity or intervention. Causal evidence depends on the use of scientific methods to rule out, to the extent possible, alternative explanations for the documented change. The strength of causal evidence, based on the factors described above, will influence the degree to which OJP considers a program or practice to be evidence-based.
The OJP CrimeSolutions.gov website and the OJJDP Model Programs Guide website are two resources that applicants may use to find information about evidence-based programs in criminal justice, juvenile justice, and crime victim services.
Information Regarding Potential Evaluation of Programs and Activities:
The Department of Justice has prioritized the use of evidence-based programming and deems it critical to continue to build and expand the evidence informing criminal and juvenile justice programs to reach the highest level of rigor possible. Therefore, applicants should note that OJP may conduct or support an evaluation of the programs and activities funded under this solicitation. Recipients and subrecipients will be expected to cooperate with program-related assessments or evaluation efforts, including through the collection and provision of information or data requested by OJP (or its designee) for the assessment or evaluation of any activities and/or outcomes of those activities funded under this solicitation. The information or data requested may be in addition to any other financial or performance data already required under this program.
GrantWatch ID#: 155068
$63,000,000
OJJDP pans to make up to five awards under Category 1; up to twelve awards under Category 2; up to nine awards under Category 3; up to nine awards under Category 4; and up to six awards under Category 5.
For all award categories, the requested award amount should cover the entire proposed period of performance and be based on the cost of implementing the proposed program. Based on the availability of funding, OJJDP may request that an applicant selected for funding reduce their proposed budget.
Category 2: Applicants that meet the minimum requirement of having active chapters or subawardees in at least five states may request as much as $2 million, and those applicants that demonstrate the broadest reach (as detailed above) may request as much as $4 million.
Category 3: An applicant may request as much as $500,000.
Category 4: An applicant may request as much as $500,000.
Category 5: An applicant may request as much as $1,250,000.
Under all categories, an applicant may request a period of performance of as long as 3 years.
OJJDP expects to award grant funds under this solicitation no later than September 30, 2018.
Category 1—National Mentoring Programs:
Eligible applicants are limited to national organizations, defined as organizations that have active chapters or subawardees in at least 45 states. Applicants must include a list of active chapters or subawardees and the states where they are located as an attachment to their application. For the purposes of this solicitation, 2 or more independent organizations that form a collaborative to meet the 45-state requirement do not satisfy OJJDP’s definition of a national organization. The organization’s national headquarters must submit the application. OJJDP encourages applicants to minimize their administrative costs in an effort to subaward at least 90 percent of this award to active chapters or subrecipients, located in at least 38 states, while at the same time allowing for effective subrecipient oversight.
Category 2—Multistate Mentoring Programs:
Eligible applicants are limited to multistate organizations, defined as organizations that have operated an established mentoring program for at least 3 years and have active chapters or subawardees in at least 5 states but fewer than 45 states. Applicants must include a list of active chapters or subawardees and the states where they are located as an attachment to their application. For the purposes of this solicitation, two or more independent organizations that form a collaborative to meet the five-state requirement do not satisfy OJJDP's definition of a multistate organization. The organization’s headquarters must submit the application.
Category 3—Mentoring Programs for Youth Involved in the Juvenile Justice System:
Eligible applicants are limited to private organizations (nonprofit organizations and for-profit organizations, including tribal nonprofit and for-profit organizations). Joint applications from two or more eligible applicants are welcome; however, one applicant must be clearly indicated as the primary applicant (for correspondence, award, and management purposes) and the others indicated as coapplicants.
To be eligible in Category 3, applicants must at the time of application:
-Have operated an established mentoring program for at least 1 year.
-Have a demonstrated partnership (via a memorandum of understanding) with a public agency legally responsible for handling juvenile crime and delinquency in a state, tribe, city, or county (hereafter referred to as juvenile justice agency).
Category 4—Mentoring Strategies for Youth Impacted by Opioids (Project Sites):
Eligible applicants are limited to private organizations (nonprofit organizations and for-profit organizations, including tribal nonprofit and for-profit organizations). Joint applications from two or more eligible applicants are welcome; however, one applicant must be clearly indicated as the primary applicant (for correspondence, award, and management purposes) and the others indicated as coapplicants.
To be eligible in Category 4, applicants must at the time of application:
-Have operated an established mentoring program for at least 1 year.
-Have a demonstrated partnership (via a memorandum of understanding) with a public or private substance abuse treatment agency.
Category 5—Statewide and Regional Mentoring Initiative for Youth Impacted by Opioids:
Eligible applicants are limited to national organizations (as defined in Category 1), states (including territories), and federally recognized tribal governments as determined by the Secretary of the Interior.
All recipients and subrecipients (including any for-profit organization) must forgo any profit or management fee.
Eligible applicants must provide mentoring services to youth who are 17 years old or younger at the time of admission to the program.
An organization that applies for funding in Category 1 may also be eligible to apply for Category 5, but is ineligible to apply for funds in Categories 2, 3, and 4. An organization that applies for funding in Category 2 may also apply to receive funds in Categories 3 and 4.
Applicants must acquire a unique entity identifier (currently, a DUNS number). Obtaining a DUNS number is a free, one-time activity. A DUNS number is usually received within 1-2 business days.
Applicants must acquire or maintain registration with SAM. Each applicant must update or renew its SAM registration at least annually to maintain an active status. SAM registration and renewal can take as long as 10 business days to complete (2 more weeks to acquire an EIN).
Applicants must register with Grants.gov prior to submitting an application.
An application cannot be successfully submitted in Grants.gov until Grants.gov receives the SAM registration information. Once the SAM registration/renewal is complete, the information transfer from SAM to Grants.gov can take as long as 48 hours. OJP recommends that the applicant register or renew registration with SAM as early as possible.
All applications are due by 11:59 p.m. eastern time (ET) on June 28, 2018.
To be considered timely, an application must be submitted by the application deadline using Grants.gov, and the applicant must have received a validation message from Grants.gov that indicates successful and timely submission.
OJP urges applicants to submit applications at least 72 hours prior to the application due date to allow time for the applicant to receive validation messages or rejection notifications from Grants.gov, and to correct in a timely fashion any problems that may have caused a rejection notification.
Applicants receiving an award will be notified by September 30, 2018.
View this opportunity on Grants.gov:
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=OJJDP-2018-13523
Before starting your grant application, please review the funding source's website listed below for updates/changes/addendums/conferences/LOIs.
Grants.gov Customer Support Hotline:
Phone: 800-518-4726 / 606-545-5035
Web: https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support.html
Email: support@grants.gov
National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) Response Center:
Toll-free: 1-800-851-3420
TTY: 301-240-6310 (hearing impaired only)
Fax: 301-240-5830
Web Chat: https://webcontact.ncjrs.gov/ncjchat/chat.jsp
Email: grants@ncjrs.gov
16.726
OJJDP-2018-13523
USA: Alabama; Alaska; Arizona; Arkansas; California; Colorado; Connecticut; Delaware; Florida; Georgia; Hawaii; Idaho; Illinois; Indiana; Iowa; Kansas; Kentucky; Louisiana; Maine; Maryland; Massachusetts; Michigan; Minnesota; Mississippi; Missouri; Montana; Nebraska; Nevada; New Hampshire; New Jersey; New Mexico; New York City; New York; North Carolina; North Dakota; Ohio; Oklahoma; Oregon; Pennsylvania; Rhode Island; South Carolina; South Dakota; Tennessee; Texas; Utah; Vermont; Virginia; Washington, DC; Washington; West Virginia; Wisconsin; Wyoming
USA Territories: Guam (USA) Puerto Rico (USA) Virgin Islands (USA) Northern Mariana Islands (USA)
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