[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 123 (Thursday, June 26, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38098-38102]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-16145]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

National Institute of Corrections


Solicitation for a Cooperative Agreement--Leading and Sustaining 
Change

AGENCY: National Institute of Corrections, Department of Justice.

ACTION: Solicitation for a cooperative agreement.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Justice (DOJ), National Institute of 
Corrections (NIC), announces the availability of

[[Page 38099]]

funds in FY 2003 for a cooperative agreement to fund the project 
``Leading and Sustaining Change.'' NIC will award a one year 
cooperative agreement to assist state prisons by developing change 
leadership competency in key leaders and by providing professional 
change advisors/consultation to those leaders so they are able to 
change the culture of their institutions from a negative to a positive 
prison culture.
    A total of $100,000 is reserved for the project during fiscal years 
2003. There will be $100,000 available in FY 2004 upon satisfactory 
performance. The current application is only for the FY 2003 funds.
    A cooperative agreement is a form of assistance relationship where 
the National Institute of Corrections is substantially involved during 
the performance of the award. The recipient of the award will be 
selected through the competitive solicitation process.

DATES: Applications must be received by 4 p.m. Eastern Daylight Savings 
Time on July 30, 2003.

ADDRESSES/APPLICATION PROCEDURES: Applications must be submitted in six 
copies to the Director, National Institute of Corrections, 320 First 
Street, NW., Room 5007, Washington, DC 20534. At least one copy of the 
application must have the applicant's original signature in blue ink. A 
cover letter must identify the responsible audit agency for the 
applicant's financial accounts.
    Applicants are encouraged to use Federal Express, UPS, or similar 
service to ensure delivery by due date as the mail at the National 
Institute of Corrections is still being delayed due to decontamination 
procedures. Applications mailed or submitted by express delivery should 
be sent to: National Institute of Corrections, 320 First Street, NW., 
Room 5007, Washington, DC 20534, Attn: Director. Hand delivered 
applications can be brought to 500 First Street, NW., Washington, DC 
20534. At the front desk, call (202) 307-3106 extension 0 for pickup. 
Faxed or e-mailed applications will not be accepted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A copy of this announcement and 
applications forms can be downloaded from the NIC Web site at http://www.nicic.org. Hard copies of the announcement can be obtained by 
calling Rita Rippetoe (800) 995-6423, extension 44222 or by e-mail via 
[email protected].
    All technical and or programmatic questions concerning this 
announcement should be directed to Evelyn Bush at the above address or 
by calling (800) 995-6423, extension 40376 0r (202) 514-0376 or by e-
mail via [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: None.
    Background: The NIC Prisons Division has responded to many 
technical assistance requests from prisons over the past several years 
that have been focused on problems such as excessive use of force, 
staff sexual misconduct, high rates of violence and prison 
disturbances. Through these efforts, NIC has learned that the 
presenting problems were often symptomatic of an underlying problem 
within the prison culture. These dysfunctional prison cultures were 
guiding staff behavior away from their legitimate missions and putting 
institutions in jeopardy of vulnerability to lawsuit, violence, 
injuries and abuse.
    One of the growing problems was in the area of staff sexual 
misconduct complaints. beginning in 1996, the Prisons Division 
initiated a program focuses on addressing staff sexual misconduct. 
Throughout this work, consistent themes emerged underscoring the 
importance of the institutional environment. This ``environment'' or 
``culture'' emerged as the single most important factor influencing the 
underlying, presenting issue.
    Correctional agencies have a ``formal'' culture, exemplified by 
mission statements, policies, procedures, codes of conduct, etc. which 
provide staff with the guiding rules for working in that agency. Those 
``rules'' are affirmed through staff recognition ceremonies, 
promotions, awards, ribbons of distinction and other rituals. However, 
within every organization there are day-to-day events and situations 
which are not covered by policy. An ``informal'' culture emerges to 
give staff guidance about ``the way things are really done here.'' The 
kind of support staff receive, the manner in which stress response 
behaviors are handled, the amount of trust and pride which are 
characteristic of the workforce are all dependent on the informal 
culture.
    Staff attitudes and behaviors, and whether they support the formal 
culture or encourage deviant alternatives, will define the culture of 
any correctional institution. When the formal and informal cultures are 
complementary, a positive prison culture will prevail and such 
environments are sometimes referred to as healthy or ``hope-based'' 
cultures. However, when the formal and informal cultures are 
contradictory, then the environment becomes negative, unhealthy and is 
often referred to as a ``fear-based'' culture. Staff may feel 
disconnected from the institution based on a number of factors, 
including time on the job, age, race, gender, education background, and 
``old school vs. new school'' mentality. A fear-based institutional 
culture can be characterized by cliches, selective sharing of critical 
information, abuse of power and position, codes of silence, and even 
intimidation, among other factors. This negative prison culture 
permeates the environment, impacting both staff and inmates, and can be 
seen as the backdrop to a host of prison problems ranging from poor 
staff morale to abuse of inmates and high rates of inmate violence.
    Based on information gathered from the Mission Change and Staff 
Sexual Misconduct projects over the past few years, NIC recognized that 
there are several elements of changing a prison's culture which are 
necessary in order to accomplish a change in the culture, not just the 
climate of the prison. There needs to be an assessment of the current 
culture and an understanding of the dynamics which are driving this 
culture. From a comprehensive assessment, an initial plan of action can 
be developed which will chart the course for changing the prison 
culture. NIC worked for several years to develop, test and implement 
the prison culture. NIC worked for several years to develop, test and 
implement the Organizational Culture Assessment Protocol--Prisons 
(described on a following page). NIC also recognized that there are 
some needs that a number of prisons might have in common and so began 
developing several responses which could be implemented in a prison if 
they were warranted. Strategic Planning and Management assistance as 
well as training in Promoting a Positive Prison Culture and Effective 
Supervising a Multi-generational Workforce are still being developed 
but are nearing the point where they can be implemented in a prison.
    This solicitation will build on those previous works and become a 
part of the assistance that NIC will offer to prisons attempting to 
change their prison to a positive, hope-based culture. The warden will 
need to take the lead in accomplishing any culture change in a prison. 
Most wardens come from backgrounds where operational skills are 
prominent and they have developed leadership abilities throughout their 
careers. However, being an effective leader and being an effective 
Change Leader are not the same set of skills and abilities. The warden 
will need to understand the key elements of organizational change, who 
to lead and inspire staff through a change process, how various roles 
will perceive the

[[Page 38100]]

value of the change, and many other elements of change leadership. 
Developing the capacity of wardens and other critical staff to lead the 
change process will be one of the primary objectives of this 
solicitation.
    Organizational changes is complicated--doing it inside a prison 
with a fear-based culture is even more complicated. Recognizing that 
there are expert professionals who understand organizational change on 
a deep level, NIC will work collaboratively with them to provide 
guidance to the leaders of all the institutions in the Institutional 
Culture Initiative. They will work with the wardens and other changes 
leaders for a period of potentially several years in order to 
accomplish the changing of a prison's culture. They will recommend 
actions which can be taken, training which can be provided, 
developmental opportunities where they are required, organizational 
changes if they are desired. They will identify the type of change an 
institution is going through (developmental, transitional or 
transformational) and target the change strategies to most effectively 
work in that type of change process. The Change Advisers will recommend 
NIC assistance and Department of Corrections resources as needed to 
successfully accomplish a culture change. They will also be able to 
assess an institution's Readiness for Change and will be in a position 
to identify the Lessons Learned about changing prison culture which can 
add to the knowledge base on the corrections profession.
    The projects which are currently part of the Institutional Culture 
Initiative include:
    1. Institutional Culture Assessment: A validated organizational 
culture assessment was adapted for use in a prison. The organizational 
Culture Assessment Instrument-Prisons (OCAI-P) has been developed in a 
Protocol (OCAP-P) which as been applied in 12 state prisons. The report 
describes the overall culture, unique features and the institution's 
strengths and weaknesses, as well as suggestions for improvement and 
change. NIC is committed to assisting these prisons to use their 
assessment information to change the culture of the prison from the 
previous state to a desired positive prison culture.
    2. Strategic, Planning, Management and Response: A cooperative 
agreement was awarded in September 2002 to review Strategic Planing 
models being used by state departments of corrections and other public 
sector agencies to select one Strategic Planning model that would be of 
greatest benefit to state departments of corrections and state prisons. 
The selected mode, which is 50% completed, will be fully developed with 
all relevant materials that would be required for implementation in an 
opening correctional agency. The model will be tested as part of a 
supplemental cooperative agreement. This cooperative agreement will 
also develop a training program and train twelve correctional 
professionals to facilitate use of the model in selected sites to 
improve prison culture.
    3. Promoting a Positive Prison Culture Program (PPPC): The purpose 
of this two day Program is to introduce all levels of correctional 
staff in one institution to the concepts of organizational culture and 
its influences on achievement of the prison's mission. The curriculum 
is being developed and will be complete in August 2003. The objectives 
of the PPPC program are for participants to be able to:
    [sbull] Differentiate between climate and culture;
    [sbull] Explain the relationships among and between the formal and 
informal culture;
    [sbull] Identify their roles and responsibilities in developing, 
changing and sustaining culture;
    [sbull] Define the current culture and create a picture of their 
future; and
    [sbull] Understand and explain how mission, values, beliefs, and 
assumptions are interrelated and how they can contribute to or detract 
from the prison's mission.
    It will be available to be utilized at prisons involved in this 
part at the Change Advisor's recommendation.
    4. Multi-generational Workforce: A two-day training program, to be 
piloted in September 2003, that will assist correctional staff in 
examining the changing values and demographic shifts that are impacting 
the workforce and hence, the environmental. Failure to recognize the 
different values and attributes of the changing workforce can result in 
an underlying dysfunctional culture issue.
    Leading and Sustaining Change will be an additional component of 
the Institutional Culture Initiative. Working with prisons already 
involved in the Institutional Culture Initiative, it will provide 
correctional wardens and other key staff with the assistance needed to 
develop the capacity for change leadership and will provide a Change 
Advisor to assist in the culture change process.
    Purpose: The National Institute of Corrections is seeking 
applications for a cooperative agreement to assist state prisons by 
developing change leadership competency in key leaders and by providing 
professional change advisors/consultation to those leaders so that they 
are able to change the culture of their institutions from a negative to 
a positive prison culture.

Scope of Project

    1. Develop competencies for Change Leadership at the level of state 
prison warden and for key persons above and below them in the 
correctional chain of command. Development of this competency can 
include training, developmental opportunities, team activities, 
coaching, and/or any other strategy the applicant proposes. The 
applicant should address how to develop a leadership culture in the 
prison. The applicant should provide a sound rationale for their 
proposed plan.
    2. Provide professional Change Coaches/Consultants/Advisers to work 
with state prison wardens who are engaged in changing the culture of 
their institution. The Change Advisers (the term which will be used 
throughout the RFP) should plan to begin working upon award of this 
cooperative agreement with four to six state prisons which have had an 
Institutional Culture Assessment conducted.
    3. Identify available instruments which can assess an institution's 
Readiness of Change, with a supported recommendation from the applicant 
regarding the instruments which would be most appropriate in which 
situations. The applicant must propose individuals as part of the 
project team or as consultants who are qualified to administer the 
proposed instruments.
    4. The selected applicant will be required to attend a preliminary 
meeting for the purpose of getting an overview of the current NIC work 
in the Institutional Culture Initiative as well as a refinement of the 
project work plan. The applicant is also required to attend two (2) 
coordinating meetings each year with all the other project staff from 
the Institutional Culture Initiative. The applicant can determine how 
many project staff, in addition to the Project Director, should 
participate in these meetings. The cost for attendance at these 
meetings must be reflected in the budget.
    5. Document the process of changing each project institution's 
culture for the purpose of ultimately producing a Guide to Changing 
Prison Culture, which incorporates a Lessons Learned summary to 
understanding culture change in prisons.
    6. Prepare a Final Report which includes a Case Study to date of 
each prison which is in the process of changing their culture.

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Specific Requirements

    1. Although the Warden will be the primary Change Leader at the 
institution, the applicant should identify what positions above and 
below the warden level would benefit by developing competency in change 
leadership. The applicant should clearly identify what developmental 
activities would be appropriate for which levels of correctional staff.
    2. Applicants must purpose one or more professional Change Advisers 
who will be a significant part of the Project Team. The background and 
experience of the Change Adviser(s) are critical to successfully 
competing for this award. Therefore the Change Advisers must meet the 
following requirements:
    [sbull] All Change Advisers who will work on this project must be 
identified in the application and must meet the requirements identified 
in this RFP. All Change Advisers must submit a statement of their 
intent to work on this project and the time they are willing to commit.
    [sbull] All Change Advisers must have extensive experience in 
guiding multiple organizations/agencies through a significant change 
process and these must be identified in their resume or biographical 
statement.
    [sbull] As part of this cooperative agreement application, all 
persons identified as Change Advisers must submit one (1) Case Study of 
an organizational change process they guided (the actual name of the 
organziation may be changed for the case study but actual names must be 
included in the resume). The Case Study must include, at a minimum: the 
presenting organizational problem(s); how they were identified; how the 
Change Adviser was brought into the organization and what their 
original charge/mission was; the role they played in the organizational 
change process and whether their role changed during the time they were 
involved; the strategies used in effecting organizational change and 
the Change Adviser's role in them; interventions which were implemented 
and their impact; the time frame for the Change Adviser's involvement 
in the change process compared to the duration of the change process 
itself; the total amount of time the Change adviser committed to the 
organization going through organizational change; the Change Advisers 
relationship with the CEO of the organization; the amount of face time 
the Change Adviser spent with the CEO; whether there were behaviors 
that the CEO changed as a result of working with the Change Adviser. 
There is no expectation that the Case Study will involve a correctional 
institution.
    3. In developing the competencies for change leadership, the 
applicant should specifically address the role of first line 
supervisors in the change process and how they would be included in the 
process of changing the prison culture.
    4. The applicant should discuss Developmental, Transitional and 
Transformational Change in relation to prisons changing their culture. 
Applicants must address the implications for the change leader in 
evaluating the type of change and how they would identify appropriate 
strategies targeted to the type of change.
    5. The Change Adviser should plan to be brought in early to the 
Institutional Culture Assessment process for all those institutions 
which are assessed after this cooperative agreement is awarded and they 
will fully participate in the development of the Action Plan. For those 
institutions which have already had a Culture Assessment conducted and 
Action Plan developed, the Change Adviser will review the plan and 
begin working with the institution Change Leaders. The costs of the 
assessment and all work connected with the assessment are contained in 
another cooperative agreement. The applicant will have full access to 
all of the assessment data on each prison which is part of the 
Institutional Culture Initiative.
    6. Technical Assistance will be provided by NIC to accomplish as 
much of the recommended work as is possible. The institutions 
themselves and the departments of corrections will also be asked to 
fund some of the work needed to change the prison culture. This 
cooperative agreement is not intended to fund the interventions which 
might be required to change the culture other than what is identified 
in the scope of the project.
    7. The application must clearly identify the relationship among 
change advisers and other project staff. The applicant will assure that 
the project team offers technical expertise in the required areas to 
fulfill this solicitation.
    8. The applicant must identify specific strategic for working 
collaboratively with NIC and with the other contractors managing the 
various components of the Institutional Culture Initiative to provide 
the most effective assistance to state prisons in changing their 
culture.
    9. The applicant must include professional Change Advisers and 
experienced correctional professionals on their project team. These 
persons can be project staff or consultants. The correctional 
experience must be at the state prison level and at least one team 
member/consultant must have worked in a management position in a state 
prison, preferably as a warden. Although anyone who has worked in an 
administrative position within a department of corrections could say 
they have participated in accomplishing change, that experience will 
not be sufficient for meeting the requirements of a professional Change 
Adviser. All proposed project staff and consultants will need to be 
individually approved by NIC prior to working in any of the prisons in 
the culture change project.
    10. There is a limited amount of funds for this work. The applicant 
should consider the amount of time that will need to be spent on-site 
at the institutions versus coaching/consulting that can effectively be 
conducted electronically or work that can be done with groups of prison 
staff. Costs for all travel must be included in this application.
    11. The applicant can recommend any additional programs/components 
that might strengthen and improve the Institutional Culture Initiative, 
based on their work with the project sites.
    12. It is anticipated that there will be $100,000 available in FY 
2004, based on satisfactory performance by the awardee, to continue the 
work with the original sites and to add additional prisons to the 
project work. If a training program is proposed as part of the 
competency in developing Change Leadership, the applicant may provide a 
rationale for developing the training program/curriculum in this fiscal 
year 2003 cooperative agreement and funding the implementation of the 
program from the fiscal year 2004 funds.
    13. The person designated as project director is required to be the 
person who will manage the project on a day-to-day basis and who has 
full decision-making authority to work with the NIC project manager. 
This person must have enough time dedicated to the project to assure 
they are available to direct step by step activities of the project and 
to be available for collaboration with the NIC project manager. The 
position of the project director must be described in this paragraph.
    Application Requirements: Applications must be submitted using OMB 
Standard Form 424, Federal Assistance, and attachments. The 
applications should be concisely written, typed double-spaced, and 
referenced to the project by the number and title given in this 
cooperative agreement announcement.
    The narrative portion of this cooperative agreement application 
should include, at a minimum:

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    [sbull] A brief paragraph that indicates the applicant's 
understanding of the purpose of this cooperative agreement;
    [sbull] One or more paragraphs to detail the applicant's 
understanding of the need for this project in the correctional arena;
    [sbull] A brief paragraph that summarizes the project goals and 
objectives;
    [sbull] A clear description of the methodology that will be used to 
complete the project and achieve its goals;
    [sbull] A clearly developed Project Plan which demonstrates how the 
various goals and objectives of the project will be achieved through 
its various activities so as to produce the required results;
    [sbull] A chart of measurable project milestones and time lines for 
the completion of each milestones;
    [sbull] A description of the qualifications of the applicant 
organization and each project staff;
    [sbull] A description of the staffing plan for the project, 
including the role of each project staff: The time commitment for each, 
the relationship among the staff (who reports to whom), and a statement 
from individual staff that they will be available to work on this 
project;
    [sbull] A budget that details all costs for the project, shows 
consideration for all contingencies for this project, and notes a 
commitment to work within the budget proposed (budget should be divided 
into object class categories as shown on application Standard Form 
424A). A budget narrative must be included which explains how all costs 
were determined.
    Authority: Public Law 93-415.
    Funds Available: The award will be limited to a maximum of 
$100,000.00 (direct and indirect costs) in fiscal year 2003. An 
additional award of $100,000 may be available with satisfactory 
performance. Funds may only be used for the activities that are linked 
to the desired outcome of the project. No funds are transferred to 
state or local governments. This project will be a collaborative 
venture with the NIC Prisons Division. NIC retains the right to select 
the applicants for participation.
    Eligibility of Applicants:
An eligible applicant is any state or general unit of local government, 
private agency, educational institution, organization, individuals or 
team with expertise in the requested areas.
    Review Considerations: Applicants received under this announcement 
will be subjected to 3 to 5 member Peer Review Process.
    Number of Awards: One (1).
    NIC Application Number: 03P24. This number should appear as a 
reference line in the cover letter and also in box 11 of Standard Form 
424 and on the outside of the envelope in which the application is 
sent.
    Executive Order 12372: This program is not subject to the 
provisions of Executive Order 12372.
    The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number is: 16.601, 
Title: Training and Staff Development.

Morris L. Thigpen,
Director, National Institute of Corrections.
[FR Doc. 03-16145 Filed 6-25-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-36-M