NOFO FAQs MP-CPI-22-001 FINAL 05.17.22.pdf

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs) for

Demonstrating Effective Policies to Promote Black Youth Mental Health

MP-CPI-22-001

A. ELIGIBILITY

1. What applicants are eligible and how will they be defined for this funding opportunity?

Any public or private nonprofit entity located in a State (which includes one of the 50 United States, District of Columbia, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, Republic of Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands) is eligible to apply for an award under this announcement. Faith-based organizations and American Indian/Alaskan Native/Native American (AI/AN/NA) organizations that are public or non-profit private entities are eligible to apply.

Community based organizations that are public or non-profit private entities are eligible to apply.

Examples of eligible organizations include (NOFO pages 12-13):

• State Governments

• U.S. territories

• County Governments

• City or township governments

• Special district governments

• Independent school districts

• Public and State controlled institutions of higher education

• Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)

• Public Housing authorities/Indian housing authorities

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

• Nonprofits having 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education

• Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education

• Private nonprofit institutions of higher education

2. Can a nonprofit that files a 501 c 3 990ez tax form apply for this grant?

a. Yes

3. Are eligible communities just those with high proportions of racial and ethnic minorities? Who will decide?

a. All eligible entities that submit applications will advance through the screening process, and those with eligible applications, will advance to objective review. Your problem statement and the data you present to support the need of your community and other required elements (see G.

APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION on pages 34-37) are vital in determining how well your application does in the merit review process.

b. The Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health will provide recommendations for funding to the Grants Management Officer to conduct risk analysis. In providing these recommendations, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health will take into consideration the following additional factor:

• Equitable geographic distribution of projects.

Grants and Acquisitions Management (GAM) Division will evaluate, in accordance with 45 C.F.R. § 75.205, each application recommended for funding by the program official indicated in Review and Selection Process for risks before issuing an award. This evaluation may incorporate results of the evaluation of eligibility or the quality of an application. Upon completion of risk analysis and concurrence of the Grants Management Officer, OASH will issue Notices of Award. No award decision is final until a Notice of Award is issued. All award decisions, including the level of funding if an award is made, are final and you may not appeal.

4. Are For-Profit organizations eligible to participate in this funding opportunity?

a. No. Only public or private nonprofit entities (see NOFO page 13).

B. PREPARING TO APPLY

1. What is the deadline for submitting an application in response to this funding opportunity?

a. Applications are due June 22, 2022 by 6 p.m. Eastern Time. To receive consideration, you must submit your application electronically via Grants.gov no later than this due date and time (see NOFO page 1 & 6).

2. How can I stay up to date on any updates or changes to the notice of funding opportunity (NOFO), additional information and resources, and other developments?

a. The best way to stay up to date is to subscribe to this NOFO on grants.gov.

Please go to www.grants.gov and click the “Search Grants” tab in the upper left of the screen.

b. On the next screen, look for the “BASIC SEARCH CRITERIA” fields under SEARCH GRANTS header in the upper left corner. Enter “MP-CPI-22-001” in the Opportunity Number field and click the SEARCH button.

c. Click on the link under the Opportunity Number header. You will see a red “Subscribe” icon in the right corner. You then be prompted to either enter your username and password or establish one, after which you’ll be able to subscribe and get alerts.

3. Who should I contact if I still have questions about the NOFO? Questions about developing my application?

a. Who to contact will depend on the nature of your question? For programmatic questions, such as developing elements of your application, contact Paul Rodriguez at Paul.Rodriguez@hhs.gov. Please CC: Duane Barlow on your email

b. Contact Duane Barlow at Duane.Barlow@hhs.gov for financial and grants-related questions. Please CC: Paul Rodriguez on your email (NOFO PAGE 48-49)

4. Who should I contact if I have issues with the grants.gov portal or the electronic application process?

a. Please contact Grants.gov Applicant Support:

Email: support@grants.gov Telephone: 800-518-4726 (NOFO page 49)

5. What registrations are needed to apply to this funding announcement?

a. Besides your registration at www.grants.gov, you will need a Dun and Bradstreet

(D&B) Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number to apply for a grant through www.grants.gov. You will also need to register your organization with the System for Award Management (SAM); please see page 29-30 of NOFO for more information.

b. A step-by-step description of the requirements for registering your organization to be able to apply for this and other funding announcements , along with the expected time for each step, can be found here:

https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration.html

6. How do I register my organization on SAM.gov? What if my registration is expired?

a. Please refer to pages 29-30 of the NOFO. Your organization must register online in SAM (https://www.sam.gov/SAM/). Grants.gov may reject submissions from http://www.grants.gov/ mailto:Paul.Rodriguez@hhs.gov mailto:Duane.Barlow@hhs.gov http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration.html applicants with nonexistent or expired SAM Registrations. A completed registration in SAM may be required prior to receiving any award based on your application.

b. Further helpful information and helpful tips are also available through the following quick start guide:

https://www.sam.gov/SAM/transcript/Quick_Guide_for_Grants_Registrations.p df (PDF, 111 KB).

c. We recommend beginning your registration process immediately as delays in processing have been reported. Under normal operating conditions we recommend allowing at least up to 10 business days after you submit your registration for it to become active in SAM. This timeframe may be longer if SAM flags the information you provide for manual validation or there are delays in the required submission of a notarized letter by mail. You will receive an email alerting you when your registration is active.

7. Can you explain the page limits? What does or does not count for which limits?

a. Your project narrative is limited to 40 pages and does not include your Project

Abstract Summary. Since your project narrative plus appendices cannot exceed 80 pages, that leaves 40 pages for your appendices. The appendices should include the items described on pages 27-28 of the NOFO and listed here:

Supplemental Information/Supporting Documentation for Work Plan Project Population(s) of Focus Memorandums of Agreement and/or Letters of Commitment from

Partners, Subrecipient Organizations, and Agencies Organizational Chart Curriculum Vitae/Résumé for Key Project Personnel and Position

Descriptions Logic Model

b. You must submit these appendices as a single electronic file uploaded to the Attachments section of your Grants.gov application.

c. The SF-424, SF-424A, SF-424B, SF-LLL, Project Abstract Summary, and Budget Narrative (including budget tables) do not count towards your 40-or 80-page limit.

8. Are applicants required to submit memorandums of agreement (MOAs) and Letters of Commitment (LOCs)?

a. Refer to pages 27-28 in the NOFO. If available at the time of submission, signed MOAs or signed LOCs may be submitted for each partner (or one signed MOA with all partners) and include specific roles, responsibilities, resources, and contributions of partner(s) to the project.

b. If the applicant is unable to submit signed MOAs, the applicant may submit an unsigned MOA(s).

https://www.sam.gov/SAM/transcript/Quick_Guide_for_Grants_Registrations.pdf https://www.sam.gov/SAM/transcript/Quick_Guide_for_Grants_Registrations.pdf

c. Fully executed MOAs and finalized tribal resolutions will be required following the issuance of any award made under this announcement if not received prior to award. If you are not providing these documents with your application, please indicate the anticipated date that you will have fully executed documents available for submission.

9. Are applicants required to submit detailed budgets for Sub-Awardees/Subrecipient as part of the application?

a. Yes. Refer to page 20-22 in the NOFO. Subrecipient/contract and consultant activities must be described in sufficient detail to describe accurately the project effort that each will conduct.

C. APPLICATION REVIEW

1. How will my application be reviewed?

a. Refer to page 37 of the NOFO. An independent review panel will evaluate eligible applications according to criteria outlined in the notice of funding opportunity. In addition to the independent review, Federal staff will review each application for programmatic, budgetary, and grants management compliance. The Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health provides recommendations for funding to the Grants Management Officer to conduct risk analysis. Upon completion of the risk analysis and concurrence of the Grants Management Officer, HHS/OASH issues Notices of Award.

2. Are applications from rural areas and states considered or rated equally in the competitive review process?

a. Refer to pages 34-37 of the NOFO. All eligible entities that advance to the independent review panel will be evaluated based on the quality of their response, the data presented, and other required elements.

3. The salary limitations are only for staff paid for by grant correct?

a. You should not budget award funds to pay the salary of an individual at a rate more than Federal Executive Pay Limitation ($203,700.00USD). This salary rate limitation also applies to subawards/subcontracts under an HHS/OASH award (page 31 of the NOFO).

4. Are budgets scored as part of the review process?

a. Yes. Budgets will be scored by merit review panels. Also, Federal staff will review budgets for compliance with regulatory requirements (NOFO page 37).

5. Can we appeal if we are not selected?

a. Refer to page 39 of NOFO. All award decisions, including the level of funding if an award is made, are final and you may not appeal.

D. PROGRAM

1. What is the population of focus for this initiative? Does this preclude serving any college age youth? If so, do you have any similar opportunities for college age, black youth that you may be able to share with us?

a. Refer to page 1 of the NOFO. This initiative focuses on Black youth ages 10 -17, who are African American OR from the continent of Africa, the Caribbean, and other parts of the world with African ancestry who are living in the United States.

b. OMH does not currently have any other related competitive initiatives with college age Black youth as the population of focus. We recommend that you sign up at www.grants.gov and at www.minorityhealth.hhs.gov so that you may receive updates relative to other potential funding opportunities.

2. What do you mean by three separate settings?

a. Refer to page 10 of the NOFO. OMH expects the recipients to identify three discrete/different systems or environments where Black youth and families are engaged and/or live.

b. For example, you MAY include one school setting, one youth development/recreation/sports setting, and one faith-based setting

3. Is this grant considered research or program funds?

a. Refer to page 1 and page 9 of the NOFO. This competitive grant is a policy demonstration. Recipients are expected to demonstrate the effectiveness of general health and wellness policies in improving Black youth mental health.

4. Can you share if there is a specific policy framework that HHS already has in mind for this program to execute or are we open to share details of our own framework and plan? Also, are there parameters for evaluations of the policy framework to ensure we are able to adequately execute on the implemented strategy?

a. OMH expects recipients to utilize the OMH-developed policy assessment framework to review, identify, and analyze existing policies that could be tested for potential crossover effect to promote mental health in Black youth, including those at risk for suicide is in Section K.3. of the NOFO, page 53). Refer to page 19 of the NOFO for the Evaluation Plan requirements.

http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.minorityhealth.hhs.gov/

5. Are charter school management organizations with 501c3 status eligible applicants? If so, will 3 different school sites be sufficient to meet the 3-site implementation requirement?

a. Any public or private nonprofit entity located in a State is eligible to apply for an award under this announcement.

b. OMH expects the recipients to identify three different systems or environments where Black youth and families are engaged and/or live. School would be considered one system/environment; therefore, two other separate systems would need to be considered as other policy demonstration sites.

6. What is the role of the multi-sector Advisory Council?

a. Refer to page 9 of the NOFO. The role of the multi-sector Advisory Council is to participate in the identification and of general health and wellness policies, assessment of policies through the OMH-Funded Assessment Framework & Protocol, selection of the Three high-impact policies from the results of the assessment and THREE implementation settings, and dissemination of the findings from the project.

b. Given the role of the advisory council, it is important that it includes a broad range of representatives from health, education, child welfare, faith-based, sports and recreation, housing, human services, and individuals with relevant lived experience.

7. What are high-impact policies?

a. High-impact policies are innovative, culturally effective policies that address critical public health problems and are found to have a significant impact on the health and mental health outcomes of the population of focus (CDC).

8. Is the expectation for the same policy to be implemented in all 3 settings, instead of 1 setting per 1 policy?

a. Using the results from the policy assessment and an evidence-based selection process, recipients are expected to select from one to three policies for implementation in three discrete settings. This may include ONE policy across the three settings, or THREE different policies based WHICH policy is most appropriate for implementation/demonstration in 1 setting, either because of what the policy covers or based on the community context (NOFO page 10).

9. Should identified policy be federal or state level? Are applicants allowed to evaluate an existing policy that may impact black youth? or is the expectation that we develop and implement a new policy?

a. Refer to pages 1 and 10 of the NOFO. Projects are to demonstrate the effectiveness of general health and wellness policies in improving Black youth mental health using an ecological perspective that recognizes the influences and systems that operate at multi-levels of society, such as family, education, health care, economic, and legal. A key step is to evaluate to what extent policies at each ecological level interrupt or promote the safety and stability of Black youth mental health.

b. Recipients are expected to use the OMH-developed policy assessment framework to review, identify, and analyze existing policies that could be tested for potential crossover effect to promote mental health in Black youth, including those at risk for suicide.

10. What is the Disparity Impact Statement (DIS) expectation? What is the purpose of the

DIS?

a. Refer to page 11 of the NOFO. A DIS is not a required part of your application.

Only those receiving awards are expected to complete a DIS after the project has started. The DIS should identify sub-populations at highest risk for health disparities for its focus population. The DIS will provide the contextual and measurement framework for ongoing monitoring and determining the impact of the project activities on outcomes and the overarching goal of advancing health equity.

b. A Disparity Impact Statement refers to the demographic, cultural, and linguistic data that identify the population(s) in which health disparities exist and the quality improvement plan designed to address the noted disparities.

11. What is CLAS?

a. Refer to page 62 of the NOFO. The National Standards for Culturally and

Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) in Health and Health Care are a set of 15 action steps that provide guidance for providing health care and services that are responsive to diverse cultural health beliefs and practices, preferred languages, health literacy and other communication needs.

b. Additional information can be found here:

https://thinkculturalhealth.hhs.gov/clas.

12. What do you mean by sustainability plan?

a. Refer to page 11 of the NOFO. OMH expects the recipients to develop a plan to sustain the project after the award ends.

b. The plan should include the identification of key individuals and/or organization(s) whose support will be required to sustain activities; and financial, staff and supervisory, and material resources.

https://thinkculturalhealth.hhs.gov/clas

c. The plan should also identify existing collaborative partnerships with organizations that might embed the project within their routine operations or provide other support for sustaining the project efforts.