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

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

1. 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.
2. 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., 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 to support people to participate 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 (Incentives/Disincentives): Increasing or decreasing the probability of a behavior 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: $21,250,000 is available for up to 170 awards of 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. In kind support may be used for the match.

Eligibility: Community-based coalitions addressing youth substance use that have never received a DFC grant; or have previously received a DFC grant, but experienced a lapse in funding; or have concluded the first five-year funding cycle and are applying for a second five-year funding cycle. 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. Applicants must meet all Statutory Eligibility Requirements.

Link: http://www.samhsa.gov/grants/grant-announcements/sp-15-001

This post was filed under: