[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 57 (Friday, March 23, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17095-17097]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-7016]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

National Institute of Corrections


Solicitation for a Cooperative Agreement--Development of a Core 
Correctional Practices Curriculum

AGENCY: National Institute of Corrections, U.S. Department of Justice.

ACTION: Solicitation for a Cooperative Agreement.

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SUMMARY: The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) is soliciting 
proposals from organizations, groups, or individuals to enter into a 
cooperative agreement for a nine-month project period for the 
development of a competency-based and performance-driven curriculum 
that will provide corrections professionals with the knowledge and 
skills to facilitate effective changes in individual offender's 
behavior. The curriculum will be on two levels: (1) Training line staff 
who work with offenders under correctional supervision and (2) training 
those who train line staff who work with offenders.

DATES: Applications must be received by 4 p.m. EST on Monday, April 9, 
2012.

ADDRESSES: Applicants are encouraged to submit their proposals 
electronically via http://www.grants.gov. Mailed applications must be 
sent to: Director, National Institute of Corrections, 320 First Street 
NW., Room 5002, Washington, DC 20534. If submitted in hard copy, there 
must be an original and three unbound copies of the full proposal. The 
original should have the applicant's signature in blue ink. Applicants 
are encouraged to use Federal Express, UPS, or similar service to 
ensure delivery by the due date.
    Faxed applications will not be accepted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A copy of this announcement can be 
downloaded from the NIC Web site at www.nicic.gov. All technical or 
programmatic questions concerning this announcement should be directed 
to Bernie Iszler, Correctional Program Specialist, National Institute 
of Corrections. She can be reached by calling 303-338-6618 or by email 
at [email protected]. All questions, answers, and additional information 
related to this solicitation will be linked to its announcement on the 
NIC Web site at http://nicic.gov/cooperativeagreements during the time 
this solicitation remains open.
    Related Solicitation: NIC is issuing two separate, but closely 
related solicitations in March 2012: This one and a second one titled 
``Curriculum Development for MET, ECCP, and ICMS Training Project''. 
Two separate awards will be made through these two solicitations. 
Applicants may submit proposals under both of these solicitations, but 
the two awards will be made independently of one another and each 
project will be managed separately.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    For many years, NIC has been committed to promoting risk reduction 
through the use of evidence-based policies and practices. More 
specifically, for corrections line staff, NIC has developed and 
supported Thinking for a Change, a synthesized cognitive behavioral 
offender group intervention (see http://nicic.gov/Library/025057); 
created several iterations of training on interpersonal communications 
skills (see http://

[[Page 17096]]

nicic.gov/Training/NICWBT18 and http://nicic.gov/Library/020035); and 
supported the dissemination of information on motivational interviewing 
(see http://nicic.gov/MotivationalInterviewing).
    In addition, recent work in training probation officers on how to 
combine the risk-need-responsivity model of offender rehabilitation 
with ``techniques of influence'' (structured skills, intervention 
techniques, and behaviors) has resulted in positive outcomes for 
individual interventions with offenders (see http://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/res/cor/rep/_fl/2010-01-rnr-eng.pdf).
    Several curricula for individual offender interventions have been 
developed that use combinations of cognitive-behavioral techniques, 
motivational interviewing, cognitive restructuring, relationship 
building, and role clarification. These include the Strategic Training 
Initiative in Community Supervision (STICS) by Public Safety Canada; 
Effective Practices in Community Supervision (EPICS) by the University 
of Cincinnati Corrections Institute; Strategic Techniques Aimed at 
Reducing Rearrest (STARR) by the Administrative Office of the United 
States Courts, Office of Probation and Pretrial Services; Effective 
Practices in Correctional Settings II (EPICS II) by Christopher T. 
Lowenkamp, Charles R. Robinson, & Melanie S. Lowenkamp; and Working 
with Involuntary Clients by Chris Trotter. Because each of these 
intervention tools have been created for frontline corrections staff to 
use in affecting offender change, NIC sees the current environment as a 
moment of opportunity to create a curriculum for an individual 
intervention strategy that uses adult learning research (see NIC ITIP 
Toolkit http://nicic.gov/Library/024773) and leverages a blend of 
delivery platforms (synchronous, asynchronous, and classroom) to teach 
corrections professionals how to train, implement, and coach frontline 
staff in effective core correctional practices.
    Scope of Work: Tasks to be performed under this cooperative 
agreement include the following:
    (1) The creation of two curricula: one that will be training for 
staff and a second one that will be training for trainers. Both 
curricula will have two levels. The level 1 curriculum will be for case 
managers, probation officers, parole officers, and other corrections 
staff who have case management time with offenders. The level 2 
curriculum will be for corrections officers, line staff, and others who 
interact with offenders regularly but do not have case management 
duties. In effect, level 2 will be for corrections staff who directly 
supervise offenders. The curriculum will be based on the Effective 
Practices in Correctional Settings II (EPICS-II) by Christopher T. 
Lowenkamp, Charles R. Robinson, & Melanie S. Lowenkamp and Strategic 
Techniques Aimed at Reducing Rearrest (STARR) by the Administrative 
Office of the US Courts, Office of Probation and Pretrial Services 
(permission has been obtained for use of the curricula), and 
``Interpersonal Communications in the Correctional Setting: IPC'' by 
the National Institute of Corrections (NIC accession 020035).
    The curriculum developed by the awardee should allow for the use of 
blended elements, including classroom or individual instruction, e-
courses, and virtual instructor-led training as well as coaching/
feedback. A blended process could include the following elements: (A) 
Agency and facilitator/trainer/coach readiness survey: virtual 
instructor-led training (VILT), and a WebEx. (B) Orientation: VILT, 
expectations, outline, and an agency plan (practices, recordings, job 
coaching, job aids). (C) Background information: e-course, theory, 
history, and research (adult learning and evidence-based practices). 
(D) Model-skill steps: recorded sessions, Participant workbook, and a 
blog/forum discussion. (E) Guided practice with scenarios: VILT and a 
question guide. (F) Demos/tryouts: instructor-led training where size 
of groups could vary, and coaching of agency trainers/coaches.
    (2) The creation of a Core Correctional Practices Training for 
Trainers curriculum.
    (3) The delivery of the CCP training and CCP training for trainers 
to a pilot site to be identified by NIC, evaluation of the pilot 
training, and revisions to curricula after pilot site delivery.
    (4) Participation in organizational planning meetings with NIC 
staff and subject matter experts. Awardee expenses for these meetings 
are limited to the awardee's own project team's costs of travel, 
lodging and meals, incidental expenses, and compensation. Awardees 
should plan on at least one 2-day meeting to take place at the NIC 
National Corrections Academy in Aurora, Colorado. Participation in 
other planning and coordination meetings will take place as necessary 
throughout the life of the project through teleconferences and WebEx 
meetings.
    (5) The delivery of a full report on the project together with all 
the materials developed during the project and in a design and format 
appropriate for public dissemination. A draft of these materials must 
be submitted prior to the end of the project and follow NIC's 
requirements for documents or other media.
    Specific Requirements: Documents or other media that are produced 
under this award must follow these guidelines: Prior to the preparation 
of the final draft of any document or other media, the awardee must 
consult with NIC's writer/editor concerning the acceptable formats for 
manuscript submissions and the technical specifications for electronic 
media. For all awards in which a document will be a deliverable, the 
awardee must follow the guidelines listed herein, as well as follow the 
Guidelines for Preparing and Submitting Manuscripts for Publication as 
found in the ``General Guidelines for Cooperative Agreements,'' which 
can be found on our Web site at www.nicic.gov/cooperativeagreements.
    All final documents and other media submitted for posting on the 
NIC Web site must meet the federal government's requirement for 
accessibility (508 PDF or HTML file). The awardee must provide 
descriptive text interpreting all graphics, photos, graphs, and/or 
multimedia to be included with or distributed alongside the materials 
and must provide transcripts for all applicable audio/visual works.
    Application Requirements: Applications should be concisely written, 
typed double spaced and reference the project by the ``NIC Opportunity 
Number'' and title in this announcement. The package must include a 
cover letter that identifies the audit agency responsible for the 
applicant's financial accounts as well as the audit period or fiscal 
year that the applicant operates under (e.g., July 1 through June 30); 
a program narrative not to exceed 30 pages in response to the statement 
of work; and a budget narrative explaining projected costs. Applicants 
may submit a description of the project team's qualifications and 
expertise relevant to the project but should not attach lengthy 
resumes. Large attachments to the proposal describing the organization 
are discouraged.
    The following forms must also be included: OMB Standard Form 424, 
Application for Federal Assistance; OMB Standard Form 424A, Budget 
information--Non-Construction Programs; OMB Standard Form 424B, 
Assurances--Non-Construction Programs (these forms are available at 
http://www.grants.gov) and DOJ/NIC Certification Regarding Lobbying; 
Debarment, Suspension and Other Responsibility Matters; and the Drug-
Free Workplace Requirements available at http://nicic.gov/Downloads/General/certif-frm.pdf. Failure to supply all

[[Page 17097]]

required forms with the application package will result in 
disqualification of the application from consideration.

    Authority: Public Law 93-415

    Funds Available: NIC is seeking the applicant's best ideas 
regarding accomplishment of the scope of work and the related costs for 
achieving the goals of this solicitation. Funding is set at $64,000.00. 
Funds may be used only for the activities that are linked to the 
desired outcome of the project.
    Eligibility of Applicants: An eligible applicant is any public or 
private agency, educational institution, organization, individual, or 
team with expertise in the described areas.

Review Considerations

    Applications received under this announcement will be subject to 
the NIC review process. Proposals that fail to provide sufficient 
information to have them evaluated under the criteria below may be 
judged non-responsive and disqualified. The criteria for the evaluation 
of each application will be as follows:

Progammatic (40%)

    Are all of the five project tasks adequately discussed? Is there a 
clear statement of how each task will be accomplished, including major 
sub-tasks, the strategies to be employed, required staffing, and other 
required resources? Are there any innovative approaches, techniques, or 
design aspects proposed that will enhance the project?

Organizational (35%)

    Does the proposed project staff possess the skills, knowledge, and 
expertise necessary to complete the tasks listed under the scope of 
work? Does the applicant organization, group, or individual have the 
organizational capacity to achieve all five project tasks? Are the 
proposed project management and staffing plans realistic and sufficient 
to complete the project within the project time frame?

Project Management/Administration (25%)

    Does the applicant identify reasonable objectives, milestones, and 
measures to track progress? If the applicant proposes consultants and/
or partnerships, is there a reasonable justification for their 
inclusion in the project and a clear structure to ensure effective 
coordination? Is the proposed budget realistic, does it provide a 
sufficient cost detail/narrative, and does it represent good value 
relative to the anticipated results?

    Note:  NIC will NOT award a cooperative agreement to an 
applicant who does not have a Dun and Bradstreet Database Universal 
Number (DUNS) and is not registered in the Central Contractor 
Registry (CCR).

    A DUNS number can be received at no cost by calling the dedicated 
toll-free DUNS number request line at 1-800-333-0505 (if you are a sole 
proprietor, you would dial 1-866-705-5711 and select option 1).
    Registration in the CRR can be done online at the CCR Web site: 
http://www.bpn.gov/ccr. A CCR Handbook and worksheet can also be 
reviewed at the Web site.
    Number of Awards: One.
    NIC Opportunity Number: 12AC05. This number should appear as a 
reference line in the cover letter, where indicated on Standard Form 
424, and outside of the envelope in which the application is sent.
    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 16.601.
    Executive Order 12372: This project is not subject to the 
provisions of Executive Order 12372.

Morris L. Thigpen,
Director, National Institute of Corrections.
[FR Doc. 2012-7016 Filed 3-22-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-36-P