RFP+BIPOC+Consultant+-+Reissued.pdf

REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS

on behalf of the

North Dakota Juvenile Justice State Advisory Group

Purpose

The North Dakota Juvenile Justice State Advisory Group (SAG) seeks to contract with a consultant to help address the over-representation of Black, Indigenous and other people of color (BIPOC) youth in North Dakota’s juvenile justice system.

Background

The SAG was established pursuant to the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (JJDP) Act, one of the most successful standard-setting statutes that recognizes the value of citizen-driven efforts to prevent delinquency. Membership of the SAG is appointed by the Governor based on composition requirements set by the Act. The SAG is responsible for addressing the needs of at-risk youth, preventing juvenile justice system involvement, and strengthening North Dakota’s juvenile justice system.

The SAG has developed a 3-year strategic plan as well as a Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities Plan, as required pursuant to federal statute. Both plans include data and objectives related to addressing the over-representation of BIPOC youth in the juvenile justice system. More information can be found at: www.ndaco.org/SAG.

More recently, the SAG has taken on a greater commitment to prevent youth, and particularly youth representing North Dakota’s BIPOC population, from becoming involved in the juvenile justice system. Based on recommendations from a statewide workgroup, the following strategic priorities have been established:

Youth and family engagement activities to pilot mediation, credible messengers, and culturally-aligned prevention services for youth and families at risk of law enforcement contact;

Reducing barriers to preventative service delivery for BIPOC youth, including, knowledge of available services, lack of transportation, and limited funding; and

Engaging BIPOC leaders and service providers to guide the development of policies, training, funding, and capacity-building that is designed to prevent BIPOC youth from justice involvement and improve community-based services access, quality, and outcomes.

Scope of Work & Desired Deliverables

The consultant will collaborate with BIPOC communities, service providers, and public agencies to develop and support the implementation of an action plan for policy, practice and funding as it relates to juvenile justice diversion and community-based prevention services. The primary focus of the work will be in Burleigh County given the proportion of indigenous population with juvenile justice system involvement; however, it is intended that the work will include all BIPOC youth and that the deliverables may have implications statewide.

The action plan should advance the strategic priorities above and include actionable recommendations related to policy, practice and funding changes to present to the SAG and other agencies and/or committees, as applicable. The action plan should be informed by an:

Understanding and application of best practices for reducing the overrepresentation of BIPOC youth in the juvenile justice system;

Systems thinking approach to identify root causes of overrepresentation;

Evaluation of existing intervention and prevention services and programs;

Determination of whether best practices are present and active with juvenile justice system stakeholders;

The following activities, although not meant to be all inclusive, have been identified for the development of the action plan:

Facilitating a set of strategic planning sessions with the BIPOC community including youth-serving community-based providers and community leaders;

Conducting surveys and focus group sessions with BIPOC youth and families, youth-serving agencies, and system stakeholders;

Engaging with BIPOC youth and families with lived experience in the juvenile justice system to obtain their feedback on community-based prevention strategies and areas for improvement;

Collaborating with each of the system stakeholders (i.e. schools, service providers, law enforcement, juvenile court, etc.) to garner feedback on issues, data collection and analysis, and existing services and programs; and

Conducting a gap and barrier analysis related to effective youth prevention and intervention services, particularly for BIPOC youth.

The action plan should include recommendations for:

o Identifying and sharing funding and capacity-building opportunities for expanding and strengthening prevention services;

o Addressing barriers to service access and engagement;

o Pilot programs that would address identified gaps in services for BIPOC youth and families;

o Sharing information about available community-based prevention services and supports, particularly those targeting the BIPOC community;

o The application of key principles for service providers to effectively match youth to appropriate services;

o Working with public and private agencies on applying evidenced-based measures to evaluate the effectiveness of their services, particularly for BIPOC youth;

o Training for public and private agencies, including but not limited to schools, service providers, law enforcement, and juvenile court, on cultural competence and equity research and best practices; and o Improving cultural competence for both public and private agencies through policy improvements, training, hiring, community outreach events, pilot programs, and/or initiatives.

It is anticipated that the deliverables could be accomplished through a combination of in-person and virtual work.

It is expected that the consultant will support the SAG in accomplishing the goals and objectives in its 2025-27 Three-Year Strategic Plan and its Reducing Racial & Ethnic Disparities Plan. Attendance (in person or virtual) at quarterly meetings of the SAG is required to update members on contract activities and progress of the action plan.

A contract for this work has already been initiated with a consultant that is focusing primarily on the Cass County area. It is expected that the consultant contracted under this Request for Proposal will work collaboratively with that consultant to share ideas and ensure alignment of the work to the extent possible.

Qualifications

The consultant must demonstrate cultural credibility and trust with BIPOC youth and families through lived experience, established community partnerships, or a proven history of working collaboratively with communities most impacted by juvenile justice system involvement. Applicants must have the capability to build and maintain authentic relationships with BIPOC youth and families, and ensure their voices are meaningfully incorporated into the action plan.

Ideally the consultant would have the following expertise to support the deliverables:

Experience or an established approach to working with BIPOC communities on issues related to juvenile justice, child welfare, youth behavioral health, education, and/or youth development;

Knowledge of North Dakota community service providers, community leaders and members, and juvenile justice system stakeholders;

Familiarity with juvenile justice and youth development research and best practices, including effective program models such as mentoring, restorative practices, credible messengers, family and cognitive behavioral therapy, and positive youth development programming;

Experience working with public/private agencies on policy, practice, and/or funding improvements, including policy reviews, training, strategic planning, and meeting facilitation;

Strong collaboration, communication, and relationship management skills; and Ability to build relationships with system partners in North Dakota, including but not limited to schools, social services, law enforcement, and the juvenile court.

Preference will be given to individuals that identify as BIPOC. In addition, the SAG is seeking applications from individuals or organizations not currently providing services to youth in order to avoid a conflict of interest.

Funding and Project Period

Compensation for consultants cannot exceed the federally approved threshold of $650 per day or $81.25 per hour. An 8-hour day may include preparation, evaluation, and travel time in addition to the time required for actual work performance. Travel and subsistence costs are allowable and will be reimbursed at state rates. The SAG welcomes proposals up to $80,000 for a 24-month project period (October 1, 2025 – September 30, 2027) for the work outlined above. Grant continuations are possible and will be considered based on progress of the deliverables and implementation of the action plan.

Dual compensation is not allowed (i.e. an individual may not receive compensation from two sources for work performed during a single period of time even if the services performed benefit both sources). Contractors will be screened for suspension and debarment from receiving federal funds, and will be required to have a criminal background check.

Proposal Specifications

Proposals must include the following.

1. Application Cover Page

Applicants should complete and submit the application cover page found at:

www.ndaco.org/jjfunding. All applicants for federal funds must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) from the federal System for Award Management (SAM) in their application. A SAM UEI is a unique 12-character alpha- numeric value assigned to all entities (public and private companies, individuals, institutions, or organizations) who register to do business with the federal government in SAM. Contractors are required to complete a one-time process to provide basic information relevant to their organizations. The identifier is used for tracking purposes and to validate address and point of contact information for subrecipients of federal funds. First-time SAM registrants can request UEIs by visiting SAM.gov | Duns - Sam UEI and then clicking the green “Get Started” button. Registrations should be elected as viewable in the SAM Public Search in order to verify eligibility to receive federal funds.

2. Program Narrative

The program narrative should be submitted as an attachment. The attached document should be single-spaced, using a 12-point Arial font, have no more than 1-inch margins, and not exceed seven pages. The program narrative must include the following items:

a) Organizational Background and Experience

Provide a brief overview of the organization or consultant, including relevant qualifications and history of related work. Detail demonstrated knowledge or experience in juvenile justice, diversion, or prevention services. Provide information on experience with community engagement, participatory planning, and collaborating with public and private agencies.

Provide as an attachment a finished product from a similar project that could serve as an example of demonstrated qualifications.

b) Approach and Methodology

Describe how a comprehensive action plan will be developed that includes recommendations for policy, practice and funding. Detail how the activities listed in the scope of work will be carried out, including:

Community Engagement o Strategies for building and maintaining authentic relationships with BIPOC youth and families, and ensuring their voices are incorporated into the action plan;

o Methods for facilitating strategic planning sessions with BIPOC communities, youth-serving providers, and leaders; and o Approaches for conducting surveys, focus groups, and listening sessions with BIPOC youth, families, and system stakeholders.

Stakeholder Collaboration o Strategies for engaging system stakeholders (law enforcement, courts, probation, schools, social services, etc.) and facilitating meetings to garner input and feedback.

Data and Systems Analysis o Use of systems thinking approach to identify root causes of disparity;

o Plan for evaluating existing intervention and prevention services; and o Gap and barrier analysis methods, particularly for BIPOC youth.

c) Deliverables and Timeline

Provide a proposed timeline of activities and deliverables.

d) Capacity and Staffing

Identify key staff and any subcontractors, their qualifications, and their roles. Describe relevant experience with BIPOC communities and culturally responsive engagement. Discuss capability and experience with collecting and analyzing data, writing reports, and presenting information.

3. Budget Worksheet and Narrative

Provide a total cost of the scope of the work utilizing the budget worksheet and narrative found at: www.ndaco.org/jjfunding. A brief narrative should be provided with each budget item explaining the purpose of the item. Detailed costs calculations should be shown to demonstrate the amounts being requested. Any travel expenses (mileage/meals/hotel) should be based on state per diem rates. For information on allowable expenses, please refer to the DOJ Grants Financial Guide found at:

https://www.ojp.gov/funding/financialguidedoj/overview.

4. Resume and References

A resume should be included with the application along with names and contact information for up three references who can speak to experience and qualifications.

Submission Process and Award Information

Notification of an intent to apply should be submitted to Lisa Jahner via email at ljahner@ndaco.org no later than Friday, October 24, 2025.

Proposals should be emailed no later than 5:00 pm on Wednesday, November 12, 2025 to: jjsag@ndaco.org.

The following matrix will be used to evaluate proposals:

Criteria Description Points

1. Organizational Background & Experience

Demonstrated qualifications and history of related work; experience with juvenile justice, diversion, prevention, and community engagement.

Details ability to conduct participatory planning and collaboration. An example of a finished work product is provided.

2. Approach & Methodology

Clarity of proposed approach for developing the action plan; strategies for authentic community engagement, stakeholder collaboration, systems thinking, evaluation of services, and gap/barrier analysis.

3. Deliverables & Timeline

Feasibility and completeness of proposed deliverables; clarity of timeline with realistic milestones; alignment with SAG priorities and ability to support statewide implications.

4. Capacity & Staffing

Qualifications of key staff/subcontractors; experience with BIPOC communities; capability to carry out authentic engagement, strategic planning, data analysis, reporting, and meeting facilitation.

5. Budget & Narrative

Reasonableness of cost; alignment of budget with scope of work; clear justification and calculation of expenses.

6. Cultural Credibility & Community Trust

Demonstrated ability to build and maintain authentic relationships with BIPOC youth and families; evidence of established partnerships, or history of successful collaboration.

7. References & Past Performance

Resume(s) demonstrate relevant qualifications and experience; strength of references and/or examples of similar completed projects;

demonstrated ability to deliver high-quality, culturally relevant work.

Contractors will be required to submit monthly progress and financial reports.

Any questions should be directed to Lisa Jahner at (701) 425-0821 or via email at ljahner@ndaco.org.