Building State Capacity for Preventing Youth Substance Use and Violence

(CFDA # 84.184W)

Grant Application ProcessInformational Webinar #1

May 12, 2010

TOPICS• Overview/Purpose• Activities • Roles and Responsibilities• Grant Writing Tips• Application Requirements• Preparing/organizing the application• Application submission procedures• Next Steps

• Important Dates

PROGRAM PURPOSE

Provide financial assistance to SEAs to build and sustain capacity and prevent youth substance use and violence and support collaboration between SEAs and other State Agencies that are involved in efforts to prevent these problems.

Funds must be used to enhance capacity of State agencies to support local educational agencies (LEAs) in their efforts to create and sustain a safe and drug-free school climate environment.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILIITES

ED’s Role

Provide financial assistance to help SEAs increase their capacity and maintain a state prevention infrastructure.

Assist SEAs with strategic planning during this transition process.

SEA’s Role

Help LEAs to establish partnerships

Help LEAs seek other sources of support

Enhance LEAs prevention strategies to ensure a positive school environment.

GRANT WRITING TIPS

• Read the application package in its entirety before starting to write. Be sure you are an eligible applicant and your proposed project address the absolute priority.

• Allow plenty of time to prepare your proposal carefully and thoughtfully.

• Follow the formatting instructions carefully and precisely.

GRANT WRITING TIPS

• Project Abstract (one page maximum).• Structure your narrative according to the selection

criteria. • Program Narrative (up to 25 pages double-spaced, font

size 11).• Be clear, concise, and specific in your responses to the

selection criteria.• Justify your funding request in accordance to the

project activities. Note: All costs must be necessary and reasonable to carry out your proposed project.

GRANT WRITING TIPS

• Check your budget figures for consistency.• Proofread your proposal.• Use the checklist (in the back of the application).• Submit your proposal by the deadline date. • Have a fresh set of eyes read your proposal before

submission.• Make sure that all of the required forms are

completed, signed, and submitted.

ABSOLUTE PRIORITY (84.184W)This priority is: Grants to build SEA capacity to prevent youth substance use and violence and support collaboration between the SEA and other State agencies that are involved in efforts to prevent these problems. To meet this priority, funds must be used to enhance the capacity of State agencies to support LEAs in their efforts to create and sustain a safe and drug-free school environment.

Grantees may carry out technical assistance and training, program support services, data analysis, coordination of activities, and information dissemination, as well as other activities that enhance the capacity of State agencies to support local school-based efforts to create safe and drug-free environments for their students.

Also as part of this priority, grantees must produce a plan for sustaining their State’s infrastructure to support the implementation of effective drug and violence prevention activities at the State and local levels after the grant support provided by this program has ended.

The plan must identify and address key elements of the State’s strategy, including, but not limited to: (1) the State’s strategic goals for preventing youth drug use and violence, (2) planned continued collaboration with other State agencies and relevant non-governmental organizations with expertise in preventing youth drug use and violence, including school and community prevention efforts, (3) the State’s systematic needs assessment process, which must include an assessment of available resources at the State and local levels to address the State’s needs with regard to preventing youth drug use and violence; and (4) a statement, based on the needs assessment, of the State’s performance measures, that will help State agencies, as well as schools and communities, assess progress in preventing youth drug use and violence.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTSTo be eligible for a grant under this program, an applicant must include in its

application:

1. A description of how the applicant will use funds to enhance the capacity of State agencies to support LEAs in their efforts to create and sustain safe and drug-free learning environments for their students;

2. A description of how the applicant will plan and coordinate substance abuse and violence prevention services with the Single State Agency for Substance Abuse Services or other State agencies that are involved in efforts to prevent youth substance abuse and violence. The application must include a letter signed by the SEA and all participating State agencies indicating their agreement to conduct the activities proposed in the application and specifying the roles and responsibilities of each party;

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS3. A description of the process the applicant will use to develop the required

plan to create or enhance, and sustain, a State infrastructure designed to support effective efforts to prevent youth drug use and violence;

4. A description of how the applicant will use funds to sustain their prevention efforts, identifying relevant sources of funding and other types of support, after the end of the grant period;

5. A description of how the applicant will identify possible overlap and

duplication of services, and more efficient uses of resources; and

6. A description of the process the applicant will use to identify gaps and weaknesses in the existing infrastructure.

AGREEMENT LETTERApplicants are required to include an agreement letter in their application that

outlines their agreement to conduct the activities in the application and specifying the roles and responsibilities of the participants that contains:

The signatures of: The authorized representative(s) for the SEA, and The authorized representative(s) for the Single State Agency for

Substance Abuse Services or other similar State Agencies that are involved in efforts to prevent youth substance use and violence.

Note: Applications that do not include an agreement letter will be deemed ineligible

and will not be considered for funding.

SELECTION CRITERIA (84.184W)

Need for project (20 points)

Quality of the project design (50 points)

Quality of project services (20 points)

Quality of management plan (10 points)

SELECTION CRITERIA

The following selection criteria will be used to evaluate applications for grants under this competition:

Need for project (20 points)

1. The extent to which specific gaps or weaknesses in services, infrastructure, or opportunities have been identified and will be addressed by the proposed project, including the nature and magnitude of those gaps or weaknesses. (10 points)

2. The magnitude of the need for the services to be provided or the activities to be carried out by the proposed project. (10 points)

SELECTION CRITERIAQuality of the project design (50 points)

1. The extent to which the goals, objectives, and outcomes to be achieved by the proposed project are clearly specified and measurable. (10 points)

2. The extent to which the proposed project is designed to build capacity and yield results that will extend beyond the period of Federal financial assistance. (20 points)

3. The extent to which the proposed project will establish linkages with other appropriate agencies and organizations providing services to the target population. (20)

SELECTION CRITERIA

Quality of Project Services (20 points)

1. The extent to which the training or professional development services to be provided by the proposed project are of sufficient quality, intensity, and duration to lead to improvements in practice among the recipients of those services. (10 points)

2. The extent to which the services to be provided by the proposed project involve the collaboration of appropriate partners for maximizing the effectiveness of project services. (10 points)

SELECTION CRITERIAQuality of management plan (10 points)

The adequacy of the management plan to achieve the objectives of the proposed project on time and within budget, including clearly defined responsibilities, timelines, and milestones for accomplishing project tasks.

(10 points)

OTHER APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) statement

• Section 427 of GEPA requires each applicant for funding to

include in its application a description of the steps the applicant proposes to take to ensure equitable access to, and participation in, federally assisted programs for students, teachers, and other program beneficiaries with special needs. Applicants must include information in their applications to address this provision. Refer to pages 50-51 for additional information.

Executive Order 12372 Applicants must submit a copy of their application to their State Single Point of Contact for

review and include a copy of the transmittal letter in the application. On the Application for Federal Assistance (Standard Form 424), you must check box (a) in item 19 and provide the date on which you made your application available for review. Note that ED is prohibited from making an award to an entity that has not provided an opportunity for its State to review the application. The only exceptions to this requirement are applicants from States that have chosen not to participate or have indicated they do not wish to review applications from this competition. In either of these cases, applicants should check box (b). Do not check box (c) since this grant program is covered by Executive Order 12372. For more information about this requirement, see the Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs section in this application package. (refer to pages 26 and 50)

What is required from an applicant whose State Single Point of Contact indicates that they are not reviewing applications for this grant competition?

Applicants should include a copy of such a response from the State Single Point of Contact in their application package submitted to ED and check the appropriate line on the SF 424 form.

PREPARING YOUR APPLICATIONAll applicants should adhere to the following formatting guidelines:

Use 1-inch margins. If you submit your application in paper format by mail or hand delivery, your application must be printed on 8 1/2” by 11” paper, single-sided.

Use consistent font no smaller than 11-point type throughout your document. You may use boldface type, underlining, and italics; however, do not use colored text.

For the project narrative, your application should consist of the number and text of each selection criterion followed by the narrative. The text of the selection criterion, if included, does not count against any page limitation.

Place a page number at the bottom right of each page beginning with 1, and number your pages consecutively throughout your document, beginning with the Abstract and ending with the Appendices. Note: Do not paginate any of the forms.

If you submit your proposal via e-Application, you will use your own word-processing software to complete the application for this grant competition.

GPRA MEASUREThe Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA) is a straightforward statute that requires all federal agencies to manage their activities with attention to the consequences of those activities. Each agency is to state clearly what it intends to accomplish, identify the resources required, and periodically report its progress to the U.S. Congress. GPRA is intended to contribute to improvements in accountability for the expenditures of public funds; enhance congressional decision-making through more objective information on the effectiveness of federal programs; and promote a new government focus on results, service delivery, and customer satisfaction.

As required by GPRA, the Department of Education (ED) has developed a strategic plan that reflects organizational and integrates those with our mission and program authorities. We have also developed GPRA measures for the individual programs we administer, including Building State Capacity for Preventing Youth Substance Use and Violence. The GPRA performance measure for this program is:

The percentage of grantees that submit a high-quality plan to create and sustain an effective infrastructure to support the implementation of effective drug and violence prevention activities. A high-quality plan must include, at a minimum, the four key elements described in the absolute priority of this application.

This measure constitutes the Department’s indicator of success for this program. Consequently, applicants should give careful consideration to this outcome in conceptualizing the design, implementation, and evaluation of their proposed project.

ORGANIZING THE APPLICATION

D-U-N-S Number Instructions• All applicants must obtain and use a D-U-N-S Number, and all applicants applying through e-Grants

must be registered. Information on how to obtain a D-U-N-S Number is included below. The D-U-N-S Number used on the application must be the same number that you used to register with the Central Contractor Registry. If the numbers are not the same, e-Application will reject the application.

• The D-U-N-S Number is a unique nine-digit number that does not convey any information about the recipient. A built-in check digit helps to ensure the accuracy of the D-U-N-S Number. The ninth digit of each number is the check digit, which is mathematically related to the other digits. It lets computer systems determine if a D-U-N-S Number has been entered correctly.

• You can obtain a D-U-N-S Number at no charge by calling 800/333-0505 or by completing the D-U-N-S Number Request Form, available online at www.dnb.com/US/duns_update/index.html. Dun & Bradstreet, a global information provider, has assigned D-U-N-S Numbers to more than 43 million companies worldwide. Customer service is available on Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) at 888/814-1435.

ORGANIZING THE APPLICATIONWe recommend that applicants organize the information in their application in the

following order. Please number all pages consecutively to make review and evaluation easier. Note that applications submitted electronically must follow the format given in the e-Application system. The system will organize the information automatically. (Please refer to pages 47-49 for detail information)

1) Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424)2) Table of Contents3) Program Abstract4) Project Narrative5) Budget Form (ED Form 524):6) Budget Narrative7) Appendices and Forms8) Assurances and Certifications

APPLICATION SUBMISSION PROCEDURES

Application deadline requirements:

Application must be received on or before June 7, 2010. No Exceptions!

Applications can be submitted electronically through http://e-grants.ed.gov; in paper format by mail; or hand delivered. If you are a new user, you will need to register to use e-Application.

Please refer to pages 8-11 for complete application transmittal instructions.

Applications cannot be submitted by e-mail or facsimile.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

• OSDFS staff members will screen applications to ensure that all program eligibility requirements are met and that all required forms are included.

• Compliant proposals will be assigned to a three-person panel of independent reviewers and will receive a score from 0 to 100, depending upon how well it addresses the selection criteria.

IMPORTANT KEY DATES • Webinar #1 - discuss application requirements May 12• Webinar #2 - discuss applications and required forms May 26• Grant applications received by deadline June 7• Applications screened for Completeness June 8-18 • Ineligible letters will be mailed June 21-24• Application Peer Reviewed June 30-July 16• Budget Review/Slate Prep July 19-30• Slate forwarded to Exec. Secretary August 2-17• Commitment August 18• Congressional Notification August 19-25• Unsuccessful Applicants will be notified August (TBA)• Successful Applicants will be notified August (TBA)• Project Period August 27

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

CONTACT INFORMATION

Christine F. Pinckney Email: Christine.Pinckney@ed.gov

(202) 245-7894 (direct) (202) 245-7166 (fax)