Strengthen prevention capacity and infrastructure within funded communities to support a proposed age range of children (prenatal – 11 years of age) disproportionately impacted by substance use including family units with parents/caregivers with a history of substance use or addiction (including those currently in treatment or recovery) Increase the number of community partners implementing a systematic public health planning process (SPF) and adopting a comprehensive approach to prevention Increase the utilization of evidence-informed prevention programs, policies, and practices and the proportion of these strategies that are implemented with fidelity to the specifications of the original models Enhance protective factors and minimize risk factors in the lives of a proposed age range of children (prenatal – 11 years of age) with elevated levels of risk for future substance use and related health and behavioral health issues. Awardees will be expected to engage in the following activities in service of these four overarching goals. Task 1. Continued Development or Enhancement of a Partnership/Coalition or Early Childhood Workgroup SAMHSA has identified 12 sectors that are considered to be instrumental in the implementation of substance use prevention efforts. These 12 sectors are: (1) parents and caregivers; (2) schools; (3) young people under 18 years of age; (4) youth-serving organizations; (5) law enforcement; (6) religious/fraternal organizations; (7) businesses; (8) media; (9) civic/volunteer groups committed to volunteerism; (10) healthcare professionals and/or organizations; (11) state, local, or tribal government agencies with expertise in public health; and (12) other organizations involved in preventing substance use or use among youth. Over the course of this project, awardees will be expected to continue to develop local partnerships/coalitions or expand and enhance an existing partnership/coalition with representatives from SAMHSA’s 12 sectors. This group should meet at least quarterly (specific to the goals and objectives of PEC) for the duration of the project and be active participants in decision-making processes and in helping shape and inform the activities undertaken by the awardee. Priority should be given to securing and maintaining participation from: (1) municipal representatives; (2) the public school systems and/or pre-school facilities within the community; (3) social service and early childhood service providers; (4) substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery practitioners; (5) local or regional health department or board of health; (6) local or regional health systems such as hospital systems or healthcare providers; and (7) parents/caregivers/families with lived experience of substance use or addiction. Emphasis should be placed on recruiting/engaging partners that are already working with the priority populations identified in this RFR (children disproportionately impacted by their exposure to substance use, including parents/caregivers within family units with a parent/caregiver with lived experience of substance use or addiction) and those whose mission aligns with the goals of PEC. Awardees will be responsible for: (a) developing written meeting agendas; (b) taking minutes at all coalition/partnership/workgroup meetings; (c) developing and maintaining an active membership roster; and (d) providing documentation to the assigned BSAS Program Manager, upon request, to ensure compliance with initiative requirements. Task 2. Continued/Ongoing Assessment of Needs, Resources, and Readiness – SPF Step 1 Awardees are expected to leverage the strategic planning activities of SOR-PEC and captured in their BSAS Approved Strategic Plan to establish a baseline and continue to assess needs, resources, and readiness to guide data-informed prevention efforts with the priority populations identified in this RFR throughout the funding period. This can include: Conducting periodic interviews with key members/partners within the community and identifying or establishing sources of data to better align prevention services with the needs of the priority populations. Development and maintenance of a needs and resource assessment plan. Ongoing collection or retrieval of quantitative and qualitative data on risk and protective factors, prevention resources and infrastructure, and community readiness. Ongoing enhancement of skills or identification of partners that possess the requisite skills to assist in needs assessment data collection, management, and analysis. Ongoing data analysis and examination of patterns, relationships, and disparities. Use of needs assessment results to specify and prioritize settings, populations, and/or risk and protective factors. Identification of gaps in prevention resources and infrastructure needed to address these gaps. Assessment of community readiness and prioritization of community prevention needs and resources. Task 3. Continued/Ongoing Capacity Building to Address Identified Needs – SPF Step 2 Awardees are expected to continue to identify and mobilize resources to build on and maintain a prevention system that can identify and respond to community needs – including the acquisition of training and skills; human, fiscal, and technical capacities needed to support evidence-informed prevention efforts; recruitment, retention, maintenance and functioning of a coalition, partnership, or workgroup of diverse sector partners; and skills to mobilize key partners. This can include: Identification and prioritization of capacity building needs related to: prevention skills and professional development; knowledge of evidence-informed programs, policies, and practices; staffing, personnel, and human resources; facilities; in-kind goods and services; monetary resources; institutional resources; and/or data availability, collection, analysis, and reporting. Development and maintenance of a capacity-building action plan. Community mobilization and identification of processes to increase community awareness, understanding, and motivation to address risk and protective factors in the lives of a proposed age range of children (prenatal – 11 years of age) with elevated levels of risk for future substance use and related health and behavioral health issues. Coalition/partnership/workgroup recruitment and identifying and securing support from potential partners. Coalition development and maintenance including establishing meeting schedules and infrastructure; identifying procedures for communication, decision-making, conflict resolution, and leadership.
