Department of Health and Human Services: Drug-Free Communities Support Program

The Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program has two goals:

• Establish and strengthen collaboration among communities, public and private non-profit agencies; as well as federal, state, local, and tribal governments to support the efforts of community coalitions working to prevent and reduce substance use among youth.
• Reduce substance use among youth and, over time, reduce substance abuse among adults by addressing the factors in a community that increase the risk of substance abuse and promoting the factors that minimize the risk of substance abuse.

Grants will support established community-based youth substance use prevention coalitions capable of effecting community-level change. Coalitions receiving DFC funds are expected to work with leaders in their communities to identify and address local youth substance use problems and create sustainable community-level change through the use of the Seven Strategies for Community Change, including:

1. Provide information: Educational presentations, workshops or seminars, and data or media presentations (e.g., Pubic Service Announcements (PSAs), brochures, town halls, forums, web communication).
2. Enhance skills: Workshops, seminars, or activities designed to increase the skills of participants, members, and staff (e.g., training and technical assistance, parenting classes, strategic planning retreats, model programs in schools).
3. Provide support: Creating opportunities for participation in activities that reduce risk or enhance protection (e.g., alternative activities, mentoring, referrals for service, support groups, youth clubs).
4. Enhance access/reduce barriers: Improving systems/processes to increase the ease, ability, and opportunity to utilize those systems and services (e.g., assuring transportation, housing, education, safety, and cultural sensitivity) in prevention initiatives. Reduce access/enhance barriers: Improving systems/processes to decrease the ease, ability, and opportunity for youth to access substances (e.g., raising the price of single-serve cans of alcohol, implementing retail alcohol/tobacco compliance checks).
5. Change consequences: Increasing or decreasing the probability of a behavior (incentives/disincentives) by altering the consequences for performing that behavior (e.g., increasing taxes, citations, and fines; revocation/loss of driver’s license).
6. Change physical design: Changing the physical design of the environment to reduce risk or enhance protection (e.g., re-routing foot/car traffic, adjusting park hours, alcohol/tobacco outlet density).
7. Modify/change policies: Formal change in written procedures, by-laws, proclamations, rules, or laws (e.g., workplace initiatives, law enforcement procedures and practices, public policy actions, systems change).

Amount: $8,750,000 is available to fund up to 70 awards with grants ranging up to $125,000 per year for up to five years. Applicants in their first cycle of funding (year one to five) are required to have a 100% match. Cash or in-kind support may be used for the match.

Eligibility: Community-based coalitions addressing youth substance use that have never received a DFC grant. A coalition is defined as a community-based formal arrangement for cooperation and collaboration among groups or sectors of a community in which each group retains its identity, but all agree to work together toward a common goal of building a safe, healthy, and drug-free community.

Link: https://www.samhsa.gov/grants/grant-announcements/sp-17-001

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