[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 30 (Thursday, February 13, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6848-6850]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-3664]


      
      

[[Page 6847]]

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Part III





Department of Justice





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Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention



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Funding Availability for Evaluation of Youth Substance Use Prevention 
Program; Notice

  Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 30 / Thursday, February 13, 1997 / 
Notices  

[[Page 6848]]



DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
[OJP(OJJDP)-1114]
RIN 1121-ZA61


Notice of Funding Availability for Evaluation of Youth Substance 
Use Prevention Program

AGENCY: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office 
of Justice Programs, Justice.

ACTION: Notice of funding availability.

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SUMMARY: To conduct a formative evaluation that documents the 
effectiveness of youth-led substance abuse prevention programs to be 
funded by the President's Crime Prevention Council (the Council) and 
administered by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
Prevention (OJJDP). The purpose of the evaluation is to provide a 
better understanding of the processes by which youth-led prevention 
programs are developed and implemented, and their effects on youth 
participants.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATIONCONTACT: For further information call Eric 
Peterson, Program Manager, Research and Program Development Division, 
202-307-5929 or send an email inquiry to [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background:

    The President's Crime Prevention Council ``Ounce of Prevention 
Program'' was established in 1994 through the Violent Crime Control and 
Law Enforcement Act, Title III, Subtitle A (Pub. L. 103-322, 42 U.S.C. 
13741-44). The Ounce of Prevention Program supports the coordination 
and integration of programs, initiatives, and service delivery for 
summer and after-school education and recreation programs; mentoring, 
tutoring, and other programs involving participation by adult role 
models; programs assisting and promoting employability and job 
placement; and prevention and treatment programs to reduce substance 
abuse, child abuse, and adolescent pregnancy, including outreach 
programs for at-risk families.
    To address the significant problems of drug and alcohol use among 
youth, the Council developed its Fiscal Year 1996 grant program to 
support community-based, youth-led and grassroots organizations that 
significantly and substantially involve youth in preventing and 
combating drug and alcohol use among youth. It is believed that 
traditional, adult-managed substance abuse prevention programs 
typically do not address youth-specific problems. The Council believes 
that at-risk youth will respond more favorably to substance abuse 
prevention programs if other young people from the same community play 
substantial and meaningful roles in the management and operation of 
such programs. The President's Crime Prevention Council and OJJDP will 
award up to 12 one-year grants to non-profit youth-led/youth-involved 
organizations to support activities designed to combat youth drug and 
alcohol use.
    Organizations funded under this program will work to design, 
enhance, or expand substance use prevention services that target youth 
and that are provided by or substantially involve other young people 
between the ages of 12 and 21 in the design, implementation, and 
delivery of program services. The Youth Substance Use Prevention 
Program will accomplish the following objectives:
     Increase collaboration between community-based, youth-
serving and youth-led groups and law enforcement, schools, houses of 
worship, and government in combating youth drug and alcohol use.
     Assist and empower youth to help solve problems that 
affect them.
     Promote personal growth and social responsibility among 
young people.
    In support of the Council, OJJDP will fund an evaluation of the 
Youth Substance Use Program.
    Goals: The goals of this evaluation are to build the local program 
grantees' capacity for designing, implementing, and interpreting 
evaluations; to determine whether youth-led delinquency and substance 
use prevention activities have more of an impact on youth than adult-
led prevention; and to define the critical elements of implementing a 
successful youth-led prevention activity. The evaluation should address 
the following research questions:
    1. What effects do these youth-led prevention activities and 
services have on youth participants who receive program services? How 
do they compare with the effects of adult-led prevention activities and 
services?
    2. What are the key elements of organizing and implementing 
effective youth-led prevention activities and services?
    Objectives: The objectives of this evaluation are:
    1. To conduct an evaluability assessment of up to 12 local program 
grantees, including a cross-site evaluation, and select a sample of 
programs for the evaluation.
    2. To provide assistance to local program grantees on refining 
program goals and objectives; articulating logical relationships 
between youth substance use problems, prevention activities and 
services; and tracking and measuring success.
    3. To describe the key organizational components and processes 
involved in implementing youth-led prevention activities and services.
    4. To document the prevention activities and services provided by 
the youth.
    5. To compare the effects of youth-led prevention services on youth 
with those of adult-led services.
    Program Strategy: Applicants must provide a clear discussion of the 
research questions for the evaluation. The evaluation grantee will be 
required to conduct an evaluability assessment of up to 12 local 
program grantees, recommending for participation in the national 
evaluation grantee programs from which lessons can be learned. As part 
of the assessment, the evaluation grantee will be responsible for 
working with the local grantee programs to develop program logic models 
and identify outcome measures and data collection methods, tailored to 
each grantee's program design, which will serve as a basis for the 
overall evaluation strategy. The evaluation grantee also will be 
responsible for developing data collection instruments, coordinating 
the data collection with the program grantees, gathering the data 
collected by the grantees, and conducting analyses that will answer the 
questions associated with the goals and objectives stated earlier. 
Applicants should describe how they will use existing self-evaluation 
materials, such as Prevention Plus III, to assist local program 
grantees in data collection. Applicants should provide a description of 
how they will make comparisons with adult-led prevention services.
    OJJDP and the Council recognize that it will be difficult for 
applicants to propose a detailed evaluation design in the absence of 
more information about the specific approaches to be implemented by the 
local communities. For that reason, the evaluation grantee will be 
expected to develop a detailed evaluation plan during the first 60 days 
after the grant award, based on more detailed information about the 
local grantees' programs. It is intended that the evaluation of this 
program will be accomplished through a partnership effort among the 
grantees, OJJDP, the Council, and the evaluation grantee.

[[Page 6849]]

    Products: The evaluation grantee is required to prepare four 
products:
    1. A final evaluation design, including the results of the 
evaluability assessment, not later than 60 days following the award of 
the grant.
    2. A draft outline of the structure for the final report not later 
than six months after the award of the grant.
    3. A final evaluation report, not later than 30 days following the 
end of the project year, detailing the results of the study. The report 
must include a full discussion of the evaluation objectives, study 
findings, and recommendations for program implementation.
    4. An executive summary of the final evaluation report suitable for 
widespread distribution.
    Eligibility Requirements: OJJDP invites applications from public 
and private agencies, organizations, institutions, and individuals. 
Applicants must demonstrate technical knowledge of evaluation methods 
and tools; their practical knowledge of substance use prevention among 
juveniles; and their skills for assisting those who must develop and 
make decisions about program directions. Private, for-profit 
organizations must agree to waive any profit or fee. Joint applications 
from two or more eligible applicants are welcome, as long as one is 
designated primary applicant and any others co-applicant.
    Selection Criteria: Applicants will be evaluated and ranked by a 
peer review panel according to the criteria outlined below.

Problem(s) To Be Addressed (20 Points)

    Applicants must include a clear and concise statement of their 
understanding of youth substance use prevention, youth-led prevention 
programs, community-based prevention, and evaluation methods. They 
should also discuss the methodological problems associated with this 
type of evaluation and how the proposed effort overcomes these 
potential problems.

Project Design (35 Points)

    Applicants must present a clear research design for the conduct of 
an evaluability assessment and a formative process and outcome 
evaluation that meet the goals and objectives in this solicitation. The 
research design should also include a workplan for the conduct of these 
tasks. The research design and workplan must be sound, feasible, and 
capable of achieving the objectives set forth in this solicitation. The 
applicant should describe as completely as possible the research 
products and how they will be disseminated.

Management and Organizational Capability (35 Points)

    The application should include a discussion of how the grantee will 
coordinate and manage this evaluation to achieve the evaluation 
objectives. Applicants' management structure and staffing must be 
adequate and appropriate for the successful implementation of the 
project. Applicants must identify responsible individuals, their time 
commitment, and major tasks. Key staff should have significant 
experience with multi-site evaluation/research of community-based 
initiatives, youth substance use prevention, and/or juvenile or related 
criminal justice programs. They must demonstrate the ability to work 
effectively with practitioners in data collection and analysis issues 
and other requirements of the project. Staff resumes should be attached 
as part of the appendices. Applicants must demonstrate the 
organization's ability to conduct the project successfully. 
Organizational experience with evaluation of community-based prevention 
initiatives is recommended.

Budget (10 Points)

    Applicants must provide a proposed budget that is complete, 
detailed, reasonable, and allowable, and cost effective in relation to 
the activities to be undertaken.
    Format: The narrative must not exceed 25 pages in length (excluding 
forms, assurances, and appendices) and must be submitted on 8\1/2\- by 
11-inch paper, double-spaced on one side of the paper in a standard 12 
point font.
    Award Period: This project will be funded for an 18 month budget 
and project period.
    Award Amount: Up to $180,000 is available to support one evaluation 
grant.
    Application Instructions and Contact: To apply for this grant, 
applicants must complete an Application Kit which includes detailed 
instructions, forms, checklists, worksheets, and application forms. To 
have the Application Kit or a copy of this Notice of Funding 
Availability (NOFA) faxed to you, call OJJDP's Juvenile Justice 
Clearinghouse at 1-800-638-8739, select option #2 for automated 
ordering services, then select option #2 again for OJJDP Clearinghouse 
documents, then select fax on demand, then select document #9023 for 
the Application Kit and/or document #9022 for the Evaluation NOFA.
    To have the Application Kit or the Evaluation NOFA mailed to you, 
call 1-800-638-8736, select option #3 for publication ordering, then 
request publication #SL0001888 for the Application Kit and/or 
publication #SL000187 for the Evaluation NOFA.
    An Application Kit or the Evaluation NOFA may be obtained 
electronically by accessing OJJDP's bulletin board at 301-738-8895 (set 
modem at 9600 Baud and 8-N-1) or by accessing OJJDP's world wide web 
site at http://www.ncjrs.org/ojjhome.html.
    Application Submission and Deadline: All required forms and 
documentation must be submitted by the application deadline to the 
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, c/o Juvenile 
Justice Resource Center, 1600 Research Boulevard, Mail Stop 2K, 
Rockville, MD 20850, 301-251-5535.

    Note: In the lower left-hand corner of the envelope, you must 
clearly write ``Substance Use Prevention Program Evaluation.''

    All applications must be received, not postmarked, by the 
submission deadline.
    The deadline date for submission of an application is on or before 
5:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on April 25, 1997.
    Applicants are responsible for ensuring that the original and five 
copies of the application package are received at the OJJDP address by 
that deadline date. No facsimiles are allowed.
    Contact: For further information call Eric Peterson, Program 
Manager, Research and Program Development Division, 202-307-5929 or 
send an email inquiry to [email protected].

    Dated: February 10, 1997.
Shay Bilchik,
Administrator, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

References

Kaye, G. and T. Wolff (eds.) From the Ground Up: A Workbook on 
Coalition Building and Community Development. Amherst, MA: AHEC/
Community Partners, Spring 1995.
Kumpfer, K., G. H. Shur, J. G. Ross, K. K. Bunnell, J. J. Librett, 
and A. R. Millward. Measurements in Prevention: A Manual on 
Selecting and Using Instruments to Evaluate Prevention Programs. 
CSAP Technical Report No. 8. Rockville, MD: Center for Substance 
Abuse Prevention, 1993.
Linney, J. A. and A. Wandersman. Prevention Plus III: Assessing 
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention Programs at the School and 
Community Level. Rockville, MD: Office of Substance Abuse 
Prevention, 1991.

[[Page 6850]]

Muraskin, L.D. Understanding Evaluation: The Way to Better 
Prevention Programs. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, 
1993.

[FR Doc. 97-3664 Filed 2-12-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-18-P