FY 2024 Basic Center Program.pdf

Notice of Funding Opportunity

Application due June 7, 2024

Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) Runaway and Homeless Youth Program (RHY)

Basic Center Program

(BCP)

Opportunity number: HHS-2024-ACF-ACYF-CY-0133

Contents Before you begin 3

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 4

Basic information 5

Eligibility 7

Program description 9

Step 2: Get Ready to Apply 19

Get registered 20

Find the application package 20

Learn more 20

Join the webinar 21

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 22

Application contents and format 23

Step 4: Learn About Review and Award 38

Application review 39

Award notices 44

Step 5: Submit Your Application 45

Application submission and deadlines 46

Application checklist 49

Step 6: Learn What Happens After Award 50

Post-award requirements and administration 51

Contacts and Support 53

Contents 2

Before you begin If you believe you are a good candidate for this funding opportunity, secure your SAM.gov and Grants.gov registrations now. If you are already registered, make sure your registration is active and up-to-date.

SAM.gov registration (this can take several weeks) You must have an active account with SAM.gov. This includes having a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI).

See Step 2: Get Ready to Apply

Grants.gov registration (this can take several days) You must have an active Grants.gov registration. Doing so requires a Login.gov registration as well.

See Step 2: Get Ready to Apply

Apply by June 7, 2024 Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on June 7, 2024.

To help you find what you need, this NOFO uses internal links. In Adobe Reader, you can go back to where you were by pressing Alt + Left Arrow (Windows) or Command + Left Arrow (Mac) on your keyboard.

Before you begin 3 https://sam.gov/ https://grants.gov/

Jump to a step

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 1:

Review the Opportunity

In this step

Basic information 5

Eligibility 7

Program description 9

Basic information Administration for Children and Families (ACF)

Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB)

Runaway and Homeless Youth Program (RHY)

BCP provides temporary emergency shelter and counseling services to youth less than 18 years of age.

Have questions?

See Contacts and Support.

Key facts

Opportunity Name:

Basic Center Program

(BCP)

Opportunity Number:

HHS-2024-ACF-ACYF-

CY-0133

Federal Assistance Listing:

93.623

Key dates

Application deadline:

June 7, 2024

Expected award date:

August 30, 2024

Expected start date:

September 30, 2024

Informational webinar:

May 1, 2024

See deadlines.

Summary The Basic Center Program (BCP) provides up to 21 days of emergency shelter and counseling services to youth under the age of 18 who meet one or more of the following criteria:

• Have run away or left home without permission of their parents or guardians

• Have been forced to leave their home

• Cannot live safely with a parent, legal guardian, or relative

• Have no other safe alternative living arrangement

• May end up in contact with law enforcement or in the child welfare, mental health, or juvenile justice systems

When possible, and in the best interest of the youth, we encourage family reunification.

For more information about eligibility of participating youth, see 34 U.S.C, 11279(3-4).

Funding details Type: Grant

Estimated total program funding: $18,000,000

Total expected awards: 72

Minimum award amount for the first budget period (award floor): $50,000

Maximum award amount for the first budget period (award ceiling): $250,000

Funding periods: 36-month period of performance with three 12-month budget periods

Non-competing continuation awards will be offered for the second and third budget periods of the project based on the availability of funds, your satisfactory progress, and review and approval of the continuation application.

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 5

To determine satisfactory progress, we will use your semi-annual performance progress and financial reports, site visits, audit reports, and other supporting documentation.

You can review details on how satisfactory progress is determined here.

Awards are subject to federal funds availability.

You can learn more about the funds available for new awards in each state and insular areas on our website. If your state does not have funding available for the fiscal year (FY), you may still wish to apply and may receive funds based on availability and scoring. Funding amounts available for new awards are approximations at the time of publication. Actual amounts available may vary.

Special notice about available funding This opportunity is subject to Section 313(b) of the Runaway Homeless Youth (RHY) Act (34 U.S.C. 11213(b)(1) and (2)), which states that we will give priority to eligible applicants who do one or both of the following:

• Demonstrate experience providing services to runaway and homeless youth

• Request grants of less than $200,000

You must demonstrate your team’s experience providing services to runaway and homeless youth in the organizational capacity section of your project narrative.

As part of the selection process, applicants requesting less than $200,000 will be given priority over applicants requesting $200,000 or more when limited funding is available and applications have the same scores from the objective review.

For example, if two applicants score 80 in the objective review and funding is only able to support one application, then priority will be given to the applicant requesting less than $200,000.

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 6 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/fysb/grants/application-resources#_Hlk153875659 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/fysb/grant-funding/basic-center-program-estimated-fy2024-state-allocations

Eligibility Who can apply

Eligible applicants These types of entities may apply:

• Public and nonprofit private entities

• State, county, city or township, and special district governments

• Independent school districts

• Public- and state-controlled institutions of higher education

• Private institutions of higher education

• Public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities

• Nonprofits with or without a 501(c)(3) status with the Internal Revenue Service, other than institutions of higher education

• Native American tribal governments (federally recognized)

• Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments)

Public and nonprofit entities are eligible to applyunless you are part of the juvenile justice system.

For-profit organizations are not eligible. Private institutions of higher education must be non-profit entities. Applications from individuals, including sole proprietorships and foreign entities, are not eligible and will be disqualified.

Other eligibility criteria Faith-based and community organizations that meet the eligibility requirements are eligible for awards under this funding opportunity.

See initial review for disqualification factors.

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 7

Cost sharing This program requires you to contribute 10% of the project’s total cost per section 383 of the RHY Act (34 U.S.C. § 11274). You can calculate this cost-sharing requirement in one of two ways:

Method 1: Start with the federal share Calculation: Divide the amount of federal funds by 9 to get the minimum match required.

For example: Divide $250,000 by 9. This equals a match of $27,778.

Method 2: Start with the total project cost Calculation: Divide the total project cost by 10 to get the minimum match required.

For example: Divide $150,000 by 10. This equals a match of $15,000 assuming federal funds of $135,000.

Types of cost sharing You can meet your match requirement through any combination of:

• Cash contributed by your organization

• Cash contributed by partners or other third parties

• In-kind (non-cash) contributions from third parties

Cost-sharing commitments You must follow through on your promise of cost-sharing funds even if you promise more than required. We put these commitments in the Notice of Award. You’ll have to include your funds when you fill out your Federal Financial Reports.

If you don’t provide your promised amount, we may have to decrease your award amount or use other enforcement actions.

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 8

Program description Project overview The primary purpose of the Basic Center Program (BCP) is to provide temporary, emergency shelter and counseling services to youth less than 18 years of age. We award community-based organizations funding to operate short-term shelters (including group home care and host family homes) and provide counseling services to youth who have run away or are experiencing homelessness or housing instability and who are not already receiving services from the child welfare or juvenile justice systems.

Our goal is to establish and strengthen community-based projects that meet the immediate needs of youthwho have left home due to family conflict or other crisis and youth experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness.

Project requirements BCP projects receiving funding must meet the following requirements. Please show that your project meets these requirements in the project narrative section of your application.

Shelter and counseling services With our funding, you must provide youth under the age of 18 with both of the following services:

• Temporary emergency shelter for up to 21 days

• Individual, family, and group counseling, as appropriate

General requirements

• If a youth needs to stay in your shelter longer than 21 days, you can continue providing shelter, but you cannot use our funds.

• If a youth needs transportation to your shelter, you must ensure it is available and easily accessible.

• Services must be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with the lowest possible barriers to access. You must have a publicly available shelter telephone number answered by staff 24 hours a day.

• You must contact the parents, legal guardians, or other relatives of a youth as soon as feasible or when safe to do so, but no later than 72 hours after a youth enters your program.

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 9

• Your shelter must be licensed as a youth-serving facility and any shelter you refer youth to must be licensed, when such a license is required by state or local law.

• You cannot use our funds for respite care. Respite care provides parents or legal guardians with short-term, temporary relief from providing care. A parent or legal guardian cannot bring a youth to your shelter so you can provide care for them. If a youth is forced to leave home or has no safe alternative place to live, they are considered homeless and eligible for shelter funded by this program.

• Your program must be in an area where youth under the age of 18 who have run away or who are experiencing homelessness can easily access your services. This can include rural or tribal communities or areas outside of metropolitan areas.

• Youth leaving your shelter must go somewhere that is safe and appropriate.

Shelter capacity requirements

• BCP facilities must adhere to the guidance provided in RHY regulations at 45 CFR.

§ 1351.18 (c). The facilities of your BCP project must have a minimum residential capacity of four and a maximum residential capacity of 20 individuals in a single structure, except if:

◦ Local laws or regulations require a higher maximum to comply with licensure requirements for child and youth serving facilities

◦ Your facility is located within a single floor of a structure in the case of apartment buildings, in which case the floor of the structure where services are being provided must have a minimum residential capacity of four and maximum residential capacity of 20 individuals

• You may shelter youth over 18 years of age if there is a state or local law (including a regulation) allowing a higher maximum age in compliance with licensure requirements for child- and youth-serving facilities. If you provide shelter to youth 18 years or older in the same shelter facility as youth ages 17 and younger, your shelter must have separate sleeping rooms for the two age groups. You must also have a clear and detailed plan in place to ensure that minors are safe and secure when using bathrooms and showers, participating in shelter programming (such as counseling and life skills groups), and participating in recreational activities.

• You must maintain safety protocols, procedures, and policies to ensure the safety and security of youth under the age of 17.

• If your shelters are host family homes, you are exempt from the minimum number of four youth per structure requirement. However, you are required to shelter at least four youth across multiple homes.

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 10

Service provision requirements

• You must coordinate your shelter and services with the following entities:

◦ Law enforcement

◦ Healthcare and behavioral health services, including substance abuse and mental health

◦ Social services

◦ The school system

◦ Welfare personnel

• You cannot use our funds to pay the shelter costs of youth in the custody of child welfare, foster care, or juvenile justice. If you provide shelter to youth from the child welfare, foster care, or juvenile justice systems, you need a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between your program and those systems to clarify who is responsible for paying the shelter costs and services when a youth enters the program.

• You must develop a plan to work directly with foster care and correctional agencies to return youth who have run away from the custody of those systems.

Your plan must include processes for returning youth to the correctional facility they ran away from.

• You can only provide prevention services if you plan to include optional home-based services as part of your program (see optional services). These funds cannot otherwise be used for prevention.

• Your staff must be trained and ready to provide services to youth who:

◦ Have left home without permission

◦ Are experiencing homelessness

◦ Are living on the street

◦ Are in crisis

◦ Are experiencing or at risk of experiencing human trafficking (such as sex or labor trafficking) or victimization (such as sexual assault, sexual abuse, or physical abuse). Your staff must identify shelter services and other referrals for trafficked youth

• Your shelters must be safe, inclusive, and accessible for all youth, including youth of color, youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and/or questioning, intersex, asexual, Two-Spirit (LGBTQIA2s+), and other underserved populations.

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 11

Comprehensive youth-centered services model You must use a trauma-informed approach when providing services. You can learn more about the effects of trauma and utilizing a trauma-informed approach on the website of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). You must also utilize a Positive Youth Development (PYD) framework. This framework is an intentional, prosocial approach to engaging youth. You must consult with and engage young people with lived experience of homelessness and offer them opportunities to have input on program implementation. When engaging and collaborating with youth and young adults who have experienced homelessness, you are encouraged to provide compensation for their expertise, and may do so using these funds. You can learn more about the PYD framework at Youth.gov. You can learn more on Youth.gov about ways to lead in partnership with youth and young adults with lived experience.

Ensuring equity You must ensure equitable treatment of all youth receiving services funded by our programs. According to research conducted by Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago, youth of color, notably Black and Latino youth, are at greater risk of experiencing housing instability and homelessness. Roughly 11% of American Indian and Alaska Native youth and young adults are over-represented in the homeless youth population, relative to 4% of White, non-Hispanic youth. Additional data from our Runaway and Homeless Youth Homeless Management Information System (RHYHMIS) on gender identity and sexual orientation of youth served in our programs reveals about 26% of youth and young adults receiving services from the RHY Program in FY 2021 identified as LGBTQIA2S+ or being uncertain of their sexual orientation.

We are committed to addressing disparities related to disability status, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity among youth and young adults experiencing homelessness. Therefore, you must have a plan to provide safe, inclusive, and culturally responsive spaces and services for all youth, including youth facing disabilities, youth of color, youth who identify as LGBTQIA2S+, and youth from other underserved populations. Also, you must be inclusive of the language access needs of youth and their families. Also, you must be inclusive of the language access needs of youth and their families.

Outreach implementation strategy You must have an outreach implementation strategy that includes the following:

• Direct outreach: You must seek out youth from your target populations who might not be aware of your program. You must provide information about the services you offer and the benefits of those services.

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 12 https://www.cdc.gov/orr/infographics/6_principles_trauma_info.htm https://www.cdc.gov/orr/infographics/6_principles_trauma_info.htm https://www.cdc.gov/orr/infographics/6_principles_trauma_info.htm https://youth.gov/youth-topics/positive-youth-development https://youth.gov/youth-topics/positive-youth-development https://youth.gov/youth-topics/positive-youth-development/youth-adult-partnerships https://youth.gov/youth-topics/positive-youth-development/youth-adult-partnerships https://www.chapinhall.org/voices-of-youth-count-graphics/

• Education and awareness: You must tell the community about your program by developing and distributing materials about your services and benefits. Materials might include social media posts and public service announcements. You can also raise awareness of your program by working with other family- and youth-serving organizations, law enforcement, health care providers, legal services, and other stakeholders.

• Coordination: You must coordinate with the National Communication System for Runaway and Homeless Youth (that is, the National Runaway Safeline) to provide information on the resources available.

• Youth engagement and collaboration: You must engage youth with lived experience to help you locate other youth and design individualized approaches to meet youths’ needs. Including youth with lived experience ensures that your education and awareness strategies are grounded in youth voices and collaboration.

• Gateway services: When necessary, you must provide youth with food, drink, clothing, personal safety information (for example, national youth hotlines and local hotlines), transportation, and hygiene products to prevent malnutrition and ill health and to ensure they are successful in your program.

You must also have the ability to identify youth who are at risk of or are victims of trafficking or commercial sexual exploitation, sex abuse, and other forms of victimization and provide information to those youth (such as the National Suicide Hotline, National Runaway Safeline, National Human Trafficking Hotline, and National Domestic Violence Hotline).

Screening and assessment You must have a standard way to determine a youth’s eligibility to receive shelter and services as well as to identify their needs to make sure services are appropriate. Your screening and assessment tools should also help you determine whether the youth’s participation in your program poses any risks to the health and safety of other youth in the program.

Your screening and assessment tools should evaluate, at a minimum, the following factors for each youth:

• Physical health

• Potential for victimization

• Behavioral health

• Connection to family

• Safety

• Access to resources

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 13 https://www.1800runaway.org/

• Issues of neglect or abuse

• Other risk and protective factors that impact their well-being and potential for sustainable living

If you offer optional street-based services, your screening and assessment process must start when you engage a young person on the street, during intake, or at the drop-in center.

You should work with your local Continuum of Care (CoC) to ensure referrals are coordinated and that youth are informed about community resources that they have access to, including permanent housing resources and family resources if applicable.

You can find more information about supporting youth who have experienced or are at risk of experiencing sexual trafficking, labor trafficking, or domestic violence through the National Human Trafficking Hotline and the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

You can learn more about screening and assessment tools that may be helpful through the National Clearinghouse on Homeless Youth and Families.

Case management You must provide youth in your program with the following case management services:

• Individualized service or treatment plan: You must plan for services or treatment strategies based on both your screening and assessment tools and input from the youth receiving services.

• Harm reduction: You should discuss safety planning with youth to reduce the risk of exploitation, human trafficking, sexual assault, substance use and misuse, and any other harm associated with street life.

• Service coordination plan: You must have an appropriate and accessible service referral strategy based on the results of the screening and assessments completed at program entry. Services should be coordinated with entities including, but not limited to, the following:

◦ Social services

◦ Law enforcement

◦ Educational services

◦ Vocational and employment training services

◦ Welfare

◦ Legal services

◦ Organizations that provide support or services to those who have experienced trafficking or are at risk of experiencing trafficking

◦ Mental and behavioral health care providers

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 14 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/otip/victim-assistance/national-human-trafficking-hotline https://www.thehotline.org/ https://rhyclearinghouse.acf.hhs.gov/resources/screening-tool

◦ Health care programs (including health insurance options)

◦ Affordable childcare and child education programs

• Education service plan: You must coordinate with McKinney-Vento school district liaisons, designated under Section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)), to ensure youth are provided information about educational services available to them.

Aftercare You must continue to provide services for three months after the youth has left your shelter. You must develop an aftercare strategy with each youth within three days of beginning shelter and services. The strategy must include a plan for permanent placement, and it must include the youth’s input about the support and services they need to achieve their personal goals.

Optional services You may decide to provide optional services as part of your funded program. Optional services are in addition to the basic program requirements detailed above.

Street-based services Street-based services are provided to youth who have run away or are experiencing homelessness in areas where they congregate. Street-based services help youth make healthy personal choices about where they live and how they behave.

If you plan to provide street-based services, you must do the following:

• Describe your strategy for conducting face-to-face outreach during scheduled hours at locations where youth congregate

• Specify the number of full-time equivalent outreach workers you need and the frequency of their outreach

• Explain how you communicate with youth about services you can provide

• Supply basic need packs for youth

• Have safety protocols for youth and outreach staff

Home-based services Home-based servicesprevent youth from running away or otherwise experiencing homelessness. These services may be offered in a youth’s home and may include intensive individual and family counseling and training relating to life skills and parenting.

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 15

If you provide home-based services, you must explain what services you offer, who delivers them, and for how long. You must also explain your individual and family counseling methods and the life skills training you use.

Drug abuse education and prevention services Drug abuse education and prevention servicesprevent or reduce the use of drugs among youth. These services may include the following:

• Individual, family, group, and peer counseling

• Drop-in services

• Assistance in rural areas (including the development of community support groups)

• Information and training related to the illicit use of drugs

• Activities to improve the availability of local drug abuse prevention services

You must have criteria to determine eligibility for these services and detail what services will be provided, where, by whom, and for how long. Your services must use evidence-based or evidence-informed models, curricula, and practices.

Testing for sexually transmitted diseases If you offer testing for sexually transmitted diseases and infections (STDs and STIs), testing must be provided upon request and based on established eligibility criteria.

If you plan to offer testing for STDs and STIs, you should describe the following:

• The individuals or entities responsible for coordinating and providing the testing services

• The accessibility of the services

• The confidentiality of youth seeking services and of testing results

Performance standards You are required to collect data demonstrating your ability to meet program performance standards. Your program should improve the following four outcomes for youth:

• Social and emotional well-being: Youth will connect to trauma-informed providers to assist with any issues they face relating to physical health, substance abuse, mental health, personal safety (such as potential trafficking situations), and sexual risk behaviors.

• Permanent connections: Youth will experience positive ongoing attachments to their families, communities, schools, and other social networks.

• Education or employment: Youth will connect to school or vocational training programs, improve job search skills, or obtain employment.

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 16

• Safe and stable housing: After leaving your program, youth will transition to safe and stable housing that appropriately matches their level of need. Housing options may include moving in with family, other permanent supportive housing, rapid re-housing, residential treatment centers, or substance abuse treatment facilities.

• You will report performance data through the RHYHMIS quarterly. To access RHYHMIS, you will work with a local CoC Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) lead. More detailed information about performance standards and reporting requirements can be found on our website.

Training and technical assistance If you accept an award, you must agree to work cooperatively with the technical assistance provider. Training and technical assistance is free from the Runaway and Homeless Youth Training, Technical Assistance, and Capacity Building Center (RHYTTAC). Services include but are not limited to the following:

• Regionally based technical assistance clinics

• Training sessions

• E-learning

• Webinars

• National grantee training

You must send at least one person to the annual in-person RHY National Grantee Training and regional trainings. You will also participate in learning collaboratives and cohort-based peer engagement activities. More information is available from RHYTTAC.

Funding policies and limitations We do not allow the following costs under this NOFO:

• Construction

• Purchase of real property

• Major renovation (that exceeds 15% of the grant amount awarded)

• Fundraising (including campaigns, endowments, gifts, and similar expenses)

• Proposal and pre-award costs

• Distribution of sterile needles or syringes

• Abortions (see Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Public Law 117-328, Div. H, tit. V, §§ 506-507 for exceptions)

• Any treatment or referral to treatment that aims to change someone’s sexual orientation

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 17 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/fysb/grants/application-resources http://www.rhyttac.net./

See 45 CFR 75.420 – 75.475 for information on costs that are always unallowable or have restrictions.

Indirect costs Indirect costs are those for a common or joint purpose across more than one project and that cannot be easily separated by project.

To charge indirect costs you can select one of two methods:

Method 1 – Approved rate. You currently have an indirect cost rate approved by your cognizant federal agency.

Method 2 – De minimis rate. Per 45 CFR 75.414(f), if you have never received a negotiated indirect cost rate, you may elect to charge a de minimis rate. If you are awaiting approval of an indirect cost proposal, you may also use the de minimis rate. If you choose this method, costs included in the indirect cost pool must not be charged as direct costs.

This rate is 10% of modified total direct costs (MTDC). See 45 CFR 75.2 for the definition of MTDC. You can use this rate indefinitely.

Learn more at 45 CFR 75.414, Indirect Costs.

Subawards The prime recipient must maintain a substantive role in the project. We define a substantive role as conducting funded activities and providing services that are necessary and integral to completing the project. Monitoring your subrecipient’s activities alone is not a substantive role. See 45 CFR 75.352 for information on subrecipient monitoring.

We do not fund awards where the role of the applicant is primarily to serve as a conduit for passing funds to other organizations unless that arrangement is authorized by statute.

Subrecipients must meet the eligibility requirements of this NOFO.

Additional information on subawards can be found on our website.

Statutory authority This program is authorized by title III, part A, section 311 of the RHY Act (34 U.S.C.

11211).

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 1: Review the Opportunity 18 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/subtitle-A/subchapter-A/part-75/subpart-E/subject-group-ECFR5d90ba314caea08 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/part-75#p-75.414(f) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/part-75#p-75.2(Modified%20Total%20Direct%20Cost) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/section-75.414 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/section-75.352 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/fysb/grants/application-resources#_Hlk153875659

Step 2:

Get Ready to Apply

In this step

Get registered 20

Find the application package 20

Learn more 20

Join the webinar 21

Get registered SAM.gov Your entity must have an active registration with SAM.gov. This includes having a Unique Entity Identifier. SAM.gov registration can take several weeks. Begin that process today.

To register, go to SAM.gov Entity Registration and click Get Started. From the same page, you can also click on the Entity Registration Checklist for the information you will need to register.

Grants.gov You must also have an active account with Grants.gov. You can see step-by step instructions at the Grants.gov Quick Start Guide for Applicants.

Need Help? See Contacts and Support.

Find the application package The application package has all the forms you need to apply. You can find it online. Go to Search Grants at Grants.gov and search for opportunity number HHS-2024-ACF- ACYF-CY-0133. Then, click the “Package” tab.

If you can’t use Grants.gov to download application materials, you may request them from the Grants Management Contact.

If you are also unable to apply through Grants.gov, see exemptions for paper submissions.

Learn more Visit Applying for an ACF Grant Award on the ACF Grants Page.

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 2: Get Ready to Apply 20 https://sam.gov/content/entity-registration http://grants.gov/applicants/applicant-registration http://www.grants.gov/quick-start-guide/applicants https://grants.gov/search-grants https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html https://www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/how-apply-grant

Join the webinar The Family and Youth Services Bureau’s Runaway and Homeless Youth Program will conduct a pre-application webinar for the Basic Center Program. Details are as follows:

Date: May 1, 2024 Time: 1 to 2 p.m. ET

Join the webinar in YouTube.

The goals of the session are to:

• Orient potential applicants to the new FY 24 notice of funding opportunity announcement.

• Provide an overview of the Runaway and Homeless Youth Basic Center Program.

• Address eligibility requirements, application processes, and timelines.

• Respond to questions submitted in advance of the webinar.

Joining and participating is voluntary. Participants may remain anonymous. Opting not to participate in the session will not affect eligibility, application scoring, or the award selection process.

If you aren’t able to attend, you can access the recording and transcript on the Runaway and Homeless Youth Program’s training, technical assistance, and capacity building website after the session has concluded.

In the event of a discrepancy between the presentation and/or materials and the NOFO, the NOFO takes precedence.

Please submit your questions on this NOFO in advance. You may submit questions anonymously.

Due date for submitting questions: April 12, 2024

Only questions submitted in advance and by the due date will be considered for answering during the session.

1. Review 2. Get ready 3. Prepare 4. Learn 5. Submit 6. Award Contacts

Step 2: Get Ready to Apply 21 https://youtube.com/live/FdqZ2Pg3zlk?feature=share https://www.rhyttac.net/ https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforms.gle%2F84Whp2FAih8st78H9&data=05%7C02%7CTimothy.Joyce%40acf.hhs.gov%7C04631269dc77407fc5e008dc4f1f5aa3%7Cd58addea50534a808499ba4d944910df%7C0%7C0%7C638472243296615575%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=nClqiKe02GGX9JB8kNDZu0%2FiW187LGwTsdujTtAhv3k%3D&reserved=0

Step 3:

Prepare Your Application

In this step

Application contents and format 23

Application contents and format Application components You will submit two files plus the standard forms in the application package.

File One: Project Narrative Attachment Form The Project Narrative Form must include following items:

• Table of contents

• Project summary, one page

• Project narrative

• Line-item budget and budget narrative

File Two: Other Attachments Form Includes all attachments.

Other required forms Includes other required forms.

Required format Page limit for File One and File Two combined: 85 pages.

File Format: Portable Document File (PDF) is recommended, but not required. ACF supports the following file formats when you attach files to the Project Narrative Attachment Form and the Other Attachments Form:

• Adobe PDF – Portable Document Format (.pdf)

• Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx)

• Microsoft Excel (.xls or .xlsx)

• Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt)

• Image Formats (.JPG, .GIF, .TIFF, or .BMP only)

Paper Size: 8 ½ inches x 11 inches

Margins: 1 inch all around

Language: English

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 23

If possible, include page numbers

Do not include external links to information you want reviewers to assess.

Fonts Font: Times New Roman

Size: 12-point font

Footnotes and text in tables and graphics may be 10-point.

Spacing Table of contents: Must be single-spaced

Project summary: Must be single-spaced

Project narrative: Must be double-spaced

Line-item budget and budget narrative: Can be single-spaced

Attachments: As needed

Tables and footnotes throughout: Can be single-spaced

Table of contents At the beginning of File One, insert a table of contents that guides a reader through the contents of both files in your application. If possible, include links to the relevant content in File One.

Project summary Provide a one-page summary of the project description. Do not cross-reference to other parts of the application. The summary must include:

• At the top, the project title, applicant name, address, phone numbers, email addresses, and any website URL

• A brief description of the project, including the needs and population you will address and your proposed services

Project narrative The project narrative is where you address all your proposed activities. It is a critical section of your application, which we evaluate and rank against other applications using the merit review criteria. Remember that substance and measurable outcomes are more important than length. We are particularly interested in project narratives that convey strategies for achieving intended performance.

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 24

In it, you must:

• Explain how the project will meet the purpose of the funding opportunity, as described in the program description section.

• Make sure your narrative is clear, concise, and complete.

• Use cross-referencing rather than repetition.

• Be sure to include any required supporting documents noted. You generally provide these in your attachments.

• Use the headings and order of the sections that follow.

Geographic location Provide the precise physical location of your project and boundaries of the area you will serve. If you will include any subrecipients in your project that will serve the geographic areas, include their locations as well.

Need for assistance Identify the problems you plan to solve. These problems could be physical, economic, social, financial, institutional, etc. To do so:

• Demonstrate the need, including the nature and scope of the problem.

• You may provide supporting documentation, such as letters of support and testimonials, in an application appendix.

• Include any relevant data based on planning studies or needs assessments. You may refer to them in the endnotes or footnotes.

• Use demographic data and participant or beneficiary information where you can.

Approach Outline your action plan. Describe the scope and detail of how you will accomplish your proposed project. Account for all functions or activities you identify in your application.

Explain potential obstacles and challenges to accomplishing your project goals. Explain the strategies you will use to address them.

This section of your application should show how you will meet all of the project requirements listed above. Use the subheadings and order of the sections below to detail your approach.

You can refer to the project requirements section of this NOFO for more details on each of these categories.

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 25

Shelter and counseling services You must explain the shelter model you will use. The shelter model description must include:

• The number of youth under the age of 18 that your project will serve in a single structure, or within a single floor of a structure in the case of apartment buildings, for not more than 21 days with FYSB funding. 34 U.S.C. Subtitle I, Chapter 111 §11212(b) requires a minimum residential capacity of four and a maximum residential capacity of 20 youth in a single structure, or within a single floor of a structure in the case of apartment buildings (except where the applicant assures that the state where the center or locally controlled facility is located has a state or local law or regulation that requires a higher maximum to comply with licensure requirements for child- and youth-serving facilities).

• If you shelter youth 18 and over in the same facility as youth 17 and under, you must describe how you will provide and maintain separate sleeping rooms. You must also provide a detailed plan for ensuring the safety and security of minors for use of bathrooms and showers, shelter programming (such as counseling and life skills groups), and recreational activities.

• You must provide proof that all operating shelters, including host family homes and any shelters you regularly refer clients to, have evidence of current licensure in the states or localities with licensure requirements.

• You must ensure that project funding is not used for providing respite care.

• You must ensure 24-hour accessibility 7 days a week with minimal barriers to entry, as well as a publicly available shelter telephone number answered by staff on a 24-hour-a-day basis. You must also ensure transportation to the shelter is available and easily accessible for youth.

• You must ensure that contact is made with parents, legal guardians, or other relatives of each youth as soon as feasible, or when safe to do so, but no later than 72 hours after the youth enters the program.

• If applicable, you must create an MOU between your program and child welfare if your project is serving youth who run away from foster care or child welfare.

• You must describe any optional services you plan to support or tell us that you will not support optional services.

• You must ensure staff are prepared and trained to interact with youth who have run away, are homeless, are living on the streets, or are in crisis, as well as youth experiencing or at risk of experiencing human trafficking.

• You should tell us about your partners, including partnerships with CoCs who also support youth, and if you coordinate with those partners to ensure youth have access to all the community’s resources.

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 26

Comprehensive youth-centered service model You must explain how your project will use a youth-centered services model. The description must include, at a minimum:

• How you will use a trauma-informed approach when providing services to youth

• How you will utilize the PYD framework to consult and engage youth with lived homelessness experience in program implementation and provide them with opportunities

Ensuring equity You must explain how your project and organization will ensure equity for the diverse population of young people you will serve. The description must include, at a minimum:

• How your program will work to provide safe, inclusive, and culturally responsive spaces and services and address disparities faced by youth in your community because of their ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability status

• How you will support language access needs for all youth and families to be served in your program

• Staffing practices that ensure diversity of staff and leadership that reflect the background and/or experiences of the youth your organization serves

• Staff development and training practices that ensure staff and leadership are prepared to implement culturally responsive and culturally specific services

Outreach implementation strategy You must explain how your project will implement an outreach strategy to engage youth and educate them on services available through your program. The description must include, at a minimum:

• Outreach activities that will be utilized to locate youth who have run away or youth at risk of running away or becoming homeless and provide information about available services and benefits

• How you will keep the community informed about your project through social media, public service announcements, and collaboration with other youth and family serving organizations

• How you will coordinate with the national communication system (National Runaway Safeline) to provide resources to youth at risk of experiencing homelessness

• How you will work with youth with lived experience to ensure your project includes individualized outreach, engagement, and awareness approaches that meet youth’s needs and that are grounded in youth voices

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 27

Gateway services You must explain how your project will meet youth’s basic needs. The explanation must include, at a minimum:

• How you will provide youth with food, drink, clothing, transportation, personal safety information (such as national youth hotlines and local hotlines), resource guides, and hygiene products

• How you will identify youth who are at risk of or who are victims of trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation, sex abuse, and other forms of victimization and provide those youth with resources such as national hotline numbers

Screening and assessment You must explain how your project will determine a youth’s eligibility for services through screening and assessment tools. Your tools should evaluate, at a minimum, the following factors for each youth:

• Suitability for the program

• Physical and behavioral health

• Safety

• Potential victimization

• Connection to family

• Access to resources

• Neglect or abuse

• Identification, assistance, and referral for delivery of appropriate services

Harm reduction You must describe your program’s approach to harm reduction. Explain how your program will educate youth about safety plans and identifying ways to reduce risk of sexual exploitation, human trafficking, sexual assault, substance use and misuse, and any other harm associated with street life.

Case management You must explain how your program will provide case management services. You must include, at a minimum:

• A description of how your program will work with youth to plan for individualized services and treatment strategies

• Your project’s referral strategy to ensure that appropriate system of care services are accessible

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 28

• A description of your project’s educational strategies for ensuring coordination with McKinney-Vento school district liaisons and for the provision of educational services available to youth

Aftercare You must explain how your project will prepare youth for transitioning from your project and how you will provide aftercare services for a period of three months after project exit. The description must include, at a minimum:

• How your project will develop a written transition plan with each youth that meets their needs and supports safe and stable living

• How your project will ensure youth have access to important documents and paperwork, as needed (such as birth certificates, social security cards, driver’s licenses or state identification cards, medical records, and credit reports)

• How your project will conduct aftercare services for each youth who exits your program for at least three months

• How your project will develop an aftercare strategy that outlines how you will maintain contact to ensure each youth’s ongoing safety and documents the following:

◦ Services, referrals, and counseling offered related to healthcare and insurance coverage

◦ Youth’s housing status, educational services, and rates of participation in and completion of the services

◦ Evidence of regular contact (including all attempts to contact) for a period of three months and how, if applicable, services beyond three months will be documented

◦ Assistance in obtaining appropriate educational, vocational, training, or employment services (including coordination with McKinney-Vento school district liaisons, designated under the McKinney-Vento Act)

◦ Supportive services to assist in job advancement or post-secondary education and training

◦ Support in improving social and emotional well-being and permanent connections

Optional services Optional services are in addition to the basic program requirements and include street-based services, home-based services, drug abuse education and prevention services, and testing for sexually transmitted diseases. If you provide these services, you must have criteria to determine eligibility for these services and detail what services will be

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 29 provided, where, by whom, and for how long. Your project must also use evidence-based or evidence-informed models, curricula, and practices.

If you provide street-based services, you must do the following:

• Describe your strategy for conducting face-to-face outreach during scheduled hours at locations where youth congregate

• Specify the number of full-time equivalent outreach workers you need and the frequency of their outreach

• Explain how you communicate with youth about services you can provide

• Supply basic need packs for youth

• Have safety protocols for youth and outreach staff

If you provide home-based services, you must do the following:

• Explain what services you offer, who delivers them, and for how long

• Explain your individual and family counseling methods and the life skills training you use

If you provide drug abuse education and prevention services, they may include:

• Individual, family, group, and peer counseling

• Drop-in services

• Assistance in rural areas (including the development of community support groups)

• Information and training related to the illicit use of drugs

• Activities to improve the availability of local drug abuse prevention services

If you offer testing for STDs and STIs, testing must be provided upon request and based on established eligibility criteria. You should also describe the following:

• The individuals or entities responsible for coordinating and providing the testing services

• The accessibility of the services

• The confidentiality of youth seeking services and of testing results

Performance standards You must explain how your project will collect data and use program performance standards as measures of successful outcomes for youth. Projects are responsible for enhancing the four core outcomes, which are:

• Social and emotional well-being

• Permanent connections

Step 3: Prepare Your Application 30

• Education or employment

• Safe and stable housing

Training Provide a description of your plan to send at least one key staff person to attend the annual National RHY Grantee Training, the annual regional training, and any other required training or technical assistance sponsored by the division of RHY.

Organizational capacity Provide the following information for your full project team including the…