OJJDP FY 17 Racial and Ethnic Disparity Training and Technical Assistance | OJJDP 2017 10948

Opportunity Information: Apply for OJJDP 2017 10948

The OJJDP FY 17 Racial and Ethnic Disparity Training and Technical Assistance opportunity is a discretionary Department of Justice grant (Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention) designed to strengthen national efforts to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in the juvenile justice system, historically referred to in OJJDP language as disproportionate minority contact (DMC). The central purpose is to support a major OJJDP initiative by creating and operating a dedicated Technical Assistance Center to End Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Juvenile Justice System. This center is meant to serve as a practical, hands-on hub that helps jurisdictions move from recognizing disparities to implementing concrete strategies that measurably reduce them across key decision points in the system.

A major feature of the project is the delivery of tailored education, training, technical assistance, and usable resources to a wide range of recipients, including state, local, and tribal governments as well as private organizations that support juvenile justice work. Rather than offering generic guidance, the center is expected to respond to the specific needs of jurisdictions, helping them diagnose where disparities occur (for example, at arrest, referral, detention, petitioning, adjudication, disposition, or confinement) and then assisting them in selecting and implementing interventions that fit their local context. In practice, this implies direct support such as coaching, structured training curricula, toolkits, planning support, and implementation assistance that can be adapted to different system sizes and governance structures.

The solicitation also emphasizes the identification, application, and spread of promising and evidence-based strategies. This includes approaches grounded in sound theory and/or those with demonstrated, measurable success in reducing DMC. In other words, the center is expected to go beyond awareness-raising and actively help jurisdictions choose interventions with credible support, implement them with fidelity, and track outcomes. Another explicit requirement is that supported strategies be culturally and gender-sensitive, reflecting the reality that disparities can intersect with culture, identity, and gender and may require approaches that are responsive to those differences rather than one-size-fits-all reforms.

In addition to providing technical guidance, the project includes an important funding component. Under OJJDP direction, the technical assistance effort will provide funding resources to state, local, and/or tribal governments to help them promulgate and implement evidence-based approaches to reduce DMC at multiple contact points throughout the juvenile justice system. This positions the awardee not only as a trainer and advisor, but also as an entity that helps seed and support on-the-ground implementation in jurisdictions, aligning local action with OJJDP priorities and encouraging real-world adoption of proven or well-supported practices.

A further expectation is knowledge development and field-wide dissemination. The Technical Assistance Center will document best practices, including community-driven solutions that show measurable results, and then disseminate and train others on those practices. This reflects a broader goal of building shared capacity across the juvenile justice field by capturing what works in diverse communities, translating it into replicable lessons, and accelerating adoption elsewhere. The emphasis on community-driven solutions highlights that effective disparity-reduction strategies may come from partnerships with impacted communities, not only from system-led reforms, and that those approaches should be elevated when results can be demonstrated.

Administratively, this opportunity was offered as a cooperative agreement, meaning OJJDP anticipated substantial ongoing involvement in guiding the project. The funding opportunity number is OJJDP 2017 10948 under CFDA 16.540 (Law, Justice and Legal Services). The posting date was December 19, 2016, with an original closing date of February 23, 2017. The award ceiling was $1,000,000, with one expected award, indicating OJJDP intended to select a single organization to operate this national-level technical assistance center. Eligibility was broad, including nonprofits (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3), excluding institutions of higher education), for-profit organizations other than small businesses, small businesses, and other eligible entities as further clarified in the solicitation’s additional eligibility information.

• The Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention in the law, justice and legal services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "OJJDP FY 17 Racial and Ethnic Disparity Training and Technical Assistance" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.540.
• This funding opportunity was created on Dec 19, 2016.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 23, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for OJJDP 2017 10948

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