Face Forward-Serving Juvenile Offenders Grants
Grant: Face Forward-Serving Juvenile Offenders Grants
Agency: U.S. Department of Labor
Division: Employment and Training Administration
Deadline: The deadline was May 10, 2013.
Description: The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is seeking proposals for projects which improve the long-term labor market prospects of both court involved youth and juvenile offenders. These “Face Forward” type efforts should convey the idea of youth leaving their past transgressions behind and looking forward towards a promising future.
In order to achieve these goals, the ETA divides the Face Forward grants into four program components, all of which must be addressed to the submitted proposal. These components include:
- Diversion Strategies – These activities are expected to divert youthful offenders from the juvenile justice system. The goal is to redirect youth away from formal processing in the juvenile justice system, while still holding them accountable for their actions.
- Expungement Strategies – These activities focus on expunging the records of juvenile offenders.
- Education and Training Activities – These activities should be directly related to increasing employment outcomes, and may include case management, educational attainment, mentoring and workforce development.
- Collaborations – Grantees are required to form collaborations with the Juvenile Justice System, American Job Centers, or local Workforce Investment Boards (WIBs) and local nonprofit legal service providers. Additional collaborations with community organizations are encouraged for a strong proposal.
Applicants should review the program notice for a full listing of acceptable program activities. Examples of such activities and services include:
- Basic skills instruction and remedial education.
- GED Preparation.
- Leadership and personal development activities that develop cognitive and soft skills.
- Vocational skills training.
- Assistance with career development and further education.
Fit for Public Broadcasting: Stations are eligible to apply for this program directly, but may be more suited as partners. In addition to the required collaborations necessary for this program, the DOL encourages applicants to partner with additional organizations in their community, or area being served. The DOL is particularly interested in alternative education services as a means to help participants obtain their high school diploma or state equivalent, a crucial component of improving long-term labor market prospects. Stations with a history in GED preparation and workforce training will find a natural fit here, and are encouraged to partner on this grant.
Eligibility: Any nonprofit organization, unit of state or local government, or select Indian and Native American entities is eligible to apply. All proposed projects must serve areas with high-poverty and high-crime rates. High-poverty communities include those with poverty rates of at least 30 percent, and high-crime communities include those where the felony crime rate of the target area is higher than the felony crime rate of the overall community.
Grant recipients should be located in or have an existing staff presence in the high-poverty; high-crime area to be served. A single application may be submitted to serve multiple sites; however, applicants should demonstrate they have an existing organization presence in each of the identified geographic areas to be served.
Anticipated Funding: Approximately $26 million is expected to be available and distributed across 26 grants for up to $1 million each. Each grant will have a project period of 39 months.
How to Apply: Applications must be submitted electronically via Grants.gov. Online Submission requires registration, a process that usually takes three to five business days but can take as long as four weeks. Be sure to visit Grants.gov and begin registering well in advance of the grant deadline.
Resources:
Program notice
DOL ETA website
