Home Visitor Services (Number: OPE-HVS-5)

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families

Home Visitor Services (Number: OPE-HVS-5)

AGENCY: Office of Policy and Evaluation (OPE), ACF, DHHS.

ACTION: Announcement of the availability of funds and request for

applications to provide research assistance for the Home Visitor

Services Demonstration.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Policy and Evaluation of the Administration for

Children and Families (ACF) announces the availability of Federal

funding to provide research assistance for the Home Visitor Services

Demonstration. Funding under this announcement is authorized by section

1110 of the Social Security Act governing Social Services Research and

Demonstration activities (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

93.647).

DATES: The closing date for submission of applications is June 9, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Application receipt point: Applications may be mailed to the

Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children

and Families, Division of Discretionary Grants, 370 L'Enfant Promenade

SW., MS 6C-62 OFM/DDG, Washington, DC 20447; Attn: Mrs. Shirley Parker;

Reference: Announcement Number OPE-HVS-5. Hand delivered applications

are accepted during the normal working hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.,

Monday through Friday, on or prior to the established closing date at:

Administration for Children and Families, Division of Discretionary

Grants, 6th Floor, ACF Guard Station, 901 D Street SW., Washington, DC

20447.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Administration for Children and

Families, Office of Policy and Evaluation, 370 L'Enfant Promenade SW.,

Washington, DC 20447; Attn: Nancye Campbell, telephone (202) 401-760.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Office of Policy and Evaluation of the

Administration for Children and Families announces that competing

applications are being accepted for Federal financial assistance to

provide research assistance for the Home Visitor Services (HVS)

Demonstration. A single award will be made under this announcement. The

recipient will receive an initial financial award for 12 months and be

eligible to apply on a non-competitive basis for a continuation award

of 12 months duration. The recipient will also be expected to enter

into a cooperative agreement with ACF.

This program announcement consists of four parts. Part I provides

background information about the HVS demonstration. Part II describes

the activities supported by this announcement and application

requirements. Part III describes the application review process. Part

IV provides information and instructions for the submission of

applications.

Part I--Introduction

ACF has entered into a partnership with the Henry J. Kaiser Family

Foundation to develop and assess a demonstration of home visiting

services for teenage parents on AFDC who are required to participate in

the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) program. Through

a separate [[Page 18104]] competitive process, ACF provided funding

support for five state welfare agencies to plan, implement and conduct

the demonstrations. Such funding support was only available to the

single state agency responsible for the administration of the AFDC

program as required by section 1115 of the Social Security Act.

The Kaiser Foundation has awarded a grant to the University of

Pennsylvania to provide background analysis, project design assistance,

and research assistance for the HVS initiative. However, the research

assistance which can be provided through the Kaiser grant is

insufficient.

Background on the Demonstrations: The Assistant Secretary for

Children and Families sent a letter to the all state welfare directors

announcing the availability of funds for demonstration grants to

conduct the HVS demonstration. In the September of 1994 ACF awarded

planning and development grants and waivers to five states (Illinois,

Maryland, Ohio, Oregon, and Texas) to enable them to begin the design

and development of a demonstration to incorporate home visiting

services into their JOBS program for teenage parents and to participate

in the demonstration. Based on performance during the feasibility

(planning and development) phase, up to three states will be selected

to continue full demonstration operation for an additional 24-month

period.

The central goals of the HVS initiative are to help young AFDC

families achieve economic self-sufficiency and to add to current

knowledge regarding the effectiveness of strategies designed to improve

the social, personal, health, and economic outcomes among teenage

parents and their children. To achieve these goals, home visits by

paraprofessionals will be included as a part of the JOBS program in

demonstration sites and the interventions effect on a range of outcomes

will be measured.

It is expected that the home visitors will establish a close

relationship with the teens and their children while they are also

providing them with instruction and supportive guidance in four areas:

parenting; family planning; obtaining appropriate health care; and

accessing community resources and supports. In addition to the

provision of direct services in the four areas mentioned, the home

visitors will also be a link between the teen and the JOBS program and

welfare agency. Through the relationships developed through regular,

weekly visits to provide the instruction and guidance in the four key

areas discussed above, it is also expected that the visitors will be

able to identify potential problems early and bring appropriate

attention to the problems or otherwise help the young mother resolve

the problem as it relates to participation in JOBS or other areas.

The home visits will be targeted to teen parents who are applying

for AFDC for the first time or who have their first child while on

AFDC, and who are required, through waiver authority, to participate in

education, training or employment activities under JOBS. The home

visitors will be ``housed'' in two types of JOBS settings: the program

staffed by the welfare agency and a program staffed by a service

provider in the community (e.g., a community-based organization). While

participation in the JOBS program and with the home visiting component

is mandatory, considerable sensitivity to the concerns of the teens or

other family members to having someone come into their home will be

required. Therefore, the meetings between the teen and the visitor can

occur at any suitable location. The curriculum to be used by the sites

to address the key areas is being developed under the guidance of the

University of Pennsylvania research team.

The welfare agencies which were considered for the demonstration

grants were ones which proposed to operate the demonstration in sites

which have an adequate caseload to identify approximately 425 new AFDC

teen parent cases over a 12-month period and in which the JOBS program

currently provides a comprehensive set of services targeted to teen

parents. The community provider programs considered were ones in the

same site which provide a comprehensive set of services in a single

location and can enroll and serve at least 75 new teen parent cases.

Specifically, in addition to the provision of appropriate education,

training or employment activities, a comprehensive program is expected

to provide: assistance with child care and transportation, specialized

case management, and additional services targeted to teen parents such

as parenting or life skills development. The selected sites were

required to document their ability and willingness to randomly assign

new teen parent cases to: (1) The current welfare-agency staffed JOBS

program for teen parents, which will serve as the control group; (2)

The welfare-agency staffed JOBS program with home visitors; and (3) The

provider staffed JOBS program with home visitors.

In order to be considered as a site, the welfare agency was

required to document their willingness and ability to collect and

provide the data necessary to support research analyses related to

process, impacts, and costs which will be conducted by the University

of Pennsylvania researchers through the Kaiser grant as well as that

which will be conducted through this expanded effort.

Part II--Project Design

Purpose: The purpose of the research assistance is, through

technical support and impact, process, and cost analyses, to inform the

public, including states, regarding the difference the addition of an

intervention of regular home visits makes to teenage parents and,

through them, to the lives of their children. This assistance is being

sought because the extent of the research assistance to be provided

through the grant from the Kaiser Foundation to the University of

Pennsylvania for the initiative is not sufficient to address the

complete scope of the planned effort. ACF is interested in (1)

Expanding the knowledge base to include information about more sites

and about the differential impacts of the two treatment groups: the

intervention administered through the welfare agency, and the

intervention administered through a provider agency (e.g., a community-

based organization) and (2) Providing technical support to the sites

regarding implementation and evaluation issues. The extent of the

research assistance currently provided for through the Kaiser grant is

limited to analyses of process, impacts, and costs in two sites with a

single treatment group and a control group.

The primary measures to be used to assess program impact include,

but are not limited to:

Participation in education or employment-related

activities under JOBS;

High school/GED completion;

Employment and earnings;

Public assistance use;

Repeat pregnancies and births;

Immunizations for young children;

Health status of mothers and children;

Parent-child relationships.

The recipient will perform data collection and initial analyses

that focus on the differential costs, processes, and impacts between

the two treatment streams (i.e., welfare agency staffed setting and

provider agency staffed setting) in all the sites. The analyses and

technical support are expected to improve the available knowledge on

how to help teenage parents who receive public assistance move toward

economic self-sufficiency and provide safe and appropriate environments

for their children. The results of the HVS [[Page 18105]] initiative

are intended to assist States, other government agencies, and community

organizations in improving and enhancing their employment and social

service delivery systems for teen parents and their children.

Eligible Applicants: Organizations eligible to apply for financial

assistance under this announcement include States, for-profit

organizations, and public or private nonprofit organizations. Any non-

profit organization submitting an application must submit proof of its

non-profit status in its application at the time of submission. The

non-profit agency can accomplish this by providing a copy of the

applicant's listing in the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) most recent

list of tax-exempt organizations described in Section 501(c)(3) of the

IRS code or by providing a copy of the currently valid IRS tax

exemption certificate, and by providing a copy of the articles of

incorporation bearing the seal of the State in which the corporation or

association is domiciled. Applications from nonprofit organizations

that do not include the documentation will be rejected and receive no

further consideration.

ACF is interested in providing financial support for this effort to

an organization with staff with (1) experience in executing multi-site

social experiments, (2) an understanding of the demographics and

experiences of welfare dependent teenaged parents who are required to

participate in activities designed to increase economic self-

sufficiency and improve family planning skills, (3) experience in doing

research involving waivers of federal AFDC and JOBS policies, and (4)

experience in working directly with and obtaining relevant data (e.g.,

welfare data, participation data, earnings) from multiple state welfare

programs.

Minimum Requirements for Project Design: In order to compete

successfully in response to this announcement, the applicant should

develop and submit a plan which:

Includes an outline of a research design which takes into

account specific features of the funded demonstration, the research

objectives, and the components and services that comprise the JOBS

programs which will be a part of the study. The outline should include

proposed hypotheses to be addressed.

Describes how a differential impact analysis will

determine the effects of the different demonstration service delivery

systems on participants and their children. The information to be

included in this analysis should include impacts on participation in

education and training activities, welfare use, employment and

earnings, repeat pregnancies and births, and parenting abilities, as

well as others to be suggested by the applicant.

Describes how a cost analysis will be conducted. The

information to be included in the analysis should include program

costs, support service costs, and welfare costs, as well as indirect

costs, if appropriate, and other variables to be suggested by the

applicant.

Includes a description of the final report due at the end

of this project period. This report is intended to inform State income

maintenance and social service departments of the usefulness of

different service delivery systems for the HVS intervention and to

further general knowledge about serving teenage parents within the JOBS

program.

Includes the recipient's approach for working efficiently

and effectively with the selected sites to provide technical support

regarding implementation issues, random assignment implementation and

monitoring, and evaluation data collection requirements. The technical

support should focus on strengthening the sites' ability to deliver the

services as prescribed by Federal guidelines in the context of their

unique program models and their ability to meet the needs of the

research effort (e.g., data collection and reporting, implementation

and maintenance of random assignment) while also attempting to minimize

the burden on the sites to meet those research needs.

Includes financial support for HVS in addition to Federal

funding to ensure uninterrupted research activities over the

demonstration period. Applicants should provide evidence of funding

commitments from organizations such as private foundations.

Also, the recipient must be prepared to enter into a cooperative

agreement with ACF which will outline the terms of ACF's involvement in

the HVS demonstration as well as the responsibilities of the recipient.

The cooperative agreement: (a) Will provide that ACF retain authority

for review of the ongoing policy design decisions in the demonstration;

(b) Will provide that ACF approve the continuation of waivers and grant

awards to any site in the demonstration; (c) will provide that ACF

receive and review written guidelines or directives provided to the

sites; (d) require ACF approval of the technical support and research

design to be employed; and (e) will provide for ACF review of reports

(other than quarterly progress reports) before publication.

Project Duration: This announcement is soliciting applications for

project periods up to 2 years. Awards, on a competitive basis, will be

for a one-year budget period, although project periods may be for 2

years. Applications for continuation grants funded under these awards

beyond the one-year budget period but within the 2-year project period

will be entertained in the subsequent year on a non-competitive basis,

subject to availability of funds, satisfactory progress of the grantee,

and a determination that continued funding would be in the best

interest of the Government.

Federal Share of the Project: The maximum Federal share of the

project is not to exceed $250,000 for the first budget period or

$300,000 for the total two-year project period, subject to the

availability of funds.

Matching Requirement: Grantees must provide at least five percent

of the total approved cost of the project. The total approved cost of

the project is the sum of the ACF share and the non-Federal share. The

non-Federal share may be met by cash or in-kind contributions, although

applicants are encouraged to meet their match requirements through cash

contributions. Therefore, a project requesting $300,000 in Federal

funds must include a match of at least $15,789 (5% total project cost).

Anticipated number of Projects to be Funded: One project will be

funded under this announcement.

Part III--The Review Process

A. Review Process and Funding Decisions

Timely applications from eligible applicants will be reviewed and

scored competitively. After a determination has been made that the

minimum requirements, as set forth in this announcement, have been met,

reviewers will use the evaluation criteria listed below to review and

score the application.

In addition ACF may refer applications to other Federal or non-

Federal funding sources when it is determined to be in the best

interest of the Federal Government or the applicant. It may also

solicit comments from ACF Regional Office staff, other Federal

agencies, interested foundations and national organizations. These

comments along with those of the reviewers will be considered by ACF in

making the funding decision.

In making a funding decision, ACF may give preference to

applications which reflect experience in working directly with multiple

state welfare agencies which provide specialized services, including

case management and employment-related services, to [[Page 18106]] teen

parents since such experience on the part of a recipient has the

potential to substantially improve the theory and practice of designing

service delivery systems for teenaged parents and their children on

AFDC.

B. Evaluation Criteria

Using the evaluation criteria below, reviewers will review and

score each application. Applicants should insure that they address each

minimum requirement listed above.

Reviewers will determine the strengths and weaknesses of each

application in terms of the appropriate evaluation criteria listed

below, provide comments, and assign numerical scores. The point value

following each criterion heading indicates the maximum numerical weight

that each criterion may be given in the review process.

Review Criteria

(1) Organizational Experience (10 points) The application should

provide evidence of organizational experience in providing research

assistance for social experiments.

(2) Staff Skills and Responsibilities (25 points) The application

should provide evidence of staff experience (a) providing research

assistance for social experiments involving multiple state AFDC and

employment and training programs, particularly direct involvement with

data collection through the State's public assistance, JOBS, and

Unemployment Insurance data systems (include a list of published

studies of these programs); (b) providing research assistance for

multi-site experiments by state welfare agencies which provide case

management and employment-related services for teen parents receiving

AFDC; and (c) providing research assistance for demonstrations

involving private foundations and Federal agencies. Applicants should

list each consultant or other key individuals who will work on the

project along with a short description of the nature of their

contribution. Summarize the background and experience of the project

director and key project staff. Applicants are encouraged to discuss

staff experience in working with teenaged parents and programs which

serve them.

(3) Knowledge of Teenage Parents Who Are AFDC Recipients (15

points) The application should provide evidence of the applicant's

understanding of the demographics and experiences of teenaged parents

on AFDC. Evidence of this understanding should include (a) familiarity

with how teen parents interact with state welfare agency programs,

including AFDC and JOBS; and (b) knowledge of teen parents'

participation in programs designed to improve their educational

attainment and employability and affect other life course decisions

such as repeat pregnancy and living arrangements.

(4) Approach and Project Design (35 points) The application should

include: (a) An outline of a research design which takes into account

specific features of the planned demonstration, the research

objectives, and the components and services that comprise the

``program'' being studied including proposed hypotheses to be

addressed; (b) a description of how a differential impact analysis will

determine the effects of the demonstration on participants and their

children; (c) a description of how a cost analysis will be conducted;

and (d) the applicant's approach for providing guidance and assistance

to State/local JOBS/HVS staff on the research study and meeting the

needs of the research objectives.

(5) Public--Private Partnerships (10 points) In order to maximize

the potential of using a limited Federal investment to further

knowledge about the policies and practice of working with disadvantaged

teenage parents, the application should provide evidence of commitments

of non-Federal resources to the HVS study, including resources provided

from other entities beyond the applicant organization. This criterion

will be evaluated based on the amount of the non-Federal resources and

the firmness of the commitment of the resources.

(6) Budget Appropriateness (5 points) The application should

demonstrate that the project's costs are reasonable in view of the

anticipated results and benefits. Applicants may refer to the budget

information presented in the Standard Forms 424 and 424A.

Part IV--Instructions for the Submission of Applications

This part contains information and general instructions for

submitting applications in response to this announcement. Application

forms with instructions may be obtained by contacting: Nancye Campbell,

Office of Policy and Evaluation, Administration for Children and

Families, 370 L'Enfant Promenade SW., Washington, DC. 20447; telephone

(202) 401-5760; fax (202) 205-3598.

Applicants requesting financial assistance for a non-construction

project must file the Standard Form 424B, ``Assurances: Non-

Construction Programs.'' Applicants must sign and return the Standard

Form 424B with their applications. Applicants must provide a

certification concerning Lobbying. Prior to receiving an award in

excess of $100,000, applicants shall furnish an executed copy of the

lobbying certification. Applicants must sign and return the

certification with their applications.

Applicants must make the appropriate certification of their

compliance with the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and with Part C--

Environmental Tobacco Smoke, of Public Law 103-27. By signing and

submitting the applications, applicants are providing the

certifications and need not mail back the certifications with the

applications.

Applicants must make the appropriate certification that they are

not presently debarred, suspended or otherwise ineligible for award. By

signing and submitting the applications, applicants are providing the

certification and need not mail back the certification with the

applications.

A. Required Notification of the State Single Point of Contact

This program announcement is covered under Executive Order 12372,

``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs,'' and 45 CFR part 100,

``Intergovernmental Review of Department of Health and Human Services

Program and Activities.'' Under the Order, States may design their own

processes for reviewing and commenting on proposed Federal assistance

under covered programs.

All States and Territories except Alabama, Alaska, Colorado,

Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Montana,

Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Virginia, Pennsylvania,

Washington, American Samoa and Palau have elected to participate in the

Executive Order process and have established Single Points of Contact

(SPOCs), listed at the end of this announcement. Applicants from these

nineteen jurisdictions need take no action regarding E.O. 12372.

Applicants for projects to be administered by Federally-recognized

Indian Tribes are also exempt from the requirements of E.O. 12372.

Otherwise, applicants should contact their SPOCs as soon as possible to

alert them of the prospective applications and receive any necessary

instructions. Applicants must submit any required material to the SPOCs

as soon as possible so that the program office can obtain and review

SPOC comments as part of the award process. It is imperative that the

applicant submit all required materials, if any, to the SPOC and

indicate the date [[Page 18107]] of this submittal (or the date of

contact if no submittal is required) on the Standard Form 424, item

16a.

Under 45 CFR 100.8(a)(2), a SPOC has 60 days from the application

deadline to comment on proposed new or competing continuation awards.

SPOCs are encouraged to eliminate the submission of routine

endorsements as official recommendations. Additionally, SPOCs are

requested to clearly differentiate between mere advisory comments and

those official State process recommendations which may trigger the

``accommodate or explain'' rule.

When comments are submitted directly to ACF, they should be

addressed to: Department of Health and Human Services, Administration

for Children and Families, Division of Discretionary Grants, 370

L'Enfant Promenade SW., Washington, DC. 20447; Attn: Mrs. Shirley

Parker; Reference: OPE-HVS-5.

B. Deadline for Submittal of Applications

The closing date for submittal of applications under this program

announcement is found at the beginning of this announcement under the

heading DATES. Applications may be mailed to the Department of Health

and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Division

of Discretionary Grants, 370 L'Enfant Promenade SW., MS 6C-62 OFM/DDG,

Washington, DC 20447; ATTN: Mrs. Shirley Parker; Reference: OPE-HVS-5.

Hand delivered applications are accepted during the normal working

hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, on or prior to the

established closing date at: Administration for Children and Families,

Division of Discretionary Grants, 6th Floor, ACF Guard Station, 901 D

Street SW., Washington, DC 20447; Reference: OPE-HVS-5. Applications

shall be considered as meeting the announced deadline if they are

received on or before the deadline date at the place specified above.

Late Applications: Applications which do not meet the criteria

under Deadline for Submittal of Applications are considered late

applications. ACF shall notify each late applicant that its application

will not be considered in the competition under this announcement.

Extension of Deadlines: ACF reserves the right to extend the

deadline for all applicants due to acts of God, such as floods,

hurricanes, or earthquakes; or if there is widespread disruption of the

mail. However, if ACF does not extend the deadline for all applicants,

it may not waive or extend the deadline for any applicants.

C. Submitting the Application

Each application package must include a signed original and two

copies of the complete application. Each copy should be stapled

securely. All pages of the narrative (including charts, tables, maps,

exhibits, etc.) must be sequentially numbered. In order to facilitate

handling, please do not use covers, binders, or tabs.

Applicant should include a self-addressed, stamped acknowledgment

card. All applicants will be notified automatically about the receipt

of their application.

Dated: April 3, 1995.

Howard Rolston,

Director, Office of Policy and Evaluation.

[FR Doc. 95-8757 Filed 4-7-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4184-01-P