OpportunityTitle: National Technical Assistance and Demonstration Center on Preparing Youth with Disabilities for Employment
AdditionalInformationOnEligibility: III. Eligibility Information   A.  Eligible Applicants  Eligible applicants are consortia made up of a minimum of three entities that may include a combination of any of the following: public/private non-profits or for-profit organizations including faith-based organizations, and universities and colleges. Among the consortia partners, there must be demonstrated experience and expertise in developing policy, conducting research and evaluation, disseminating information and providing technical assistance on issues important to increasing employment opportunities for youth with disabilities.  The required expertise also should include, but need not be limited to:  &amp;#61607; Education and career planning for transitioning youth;  &amp;#61607; Comprehensive transition services delivery; strategies for systems change;  &amp;#61607; Family involvement;  &amp;#61607; Professional development strategies for youth service professionals;  &amp;#61607; Youth development and leadership; and  &amp;#61607; Transportation, health and other related employment support services.   Consortia partners must bring different transition expertise either by representing a specific stakeholder group (i.e., parents, youth, educators, policymakers) and/or a different system (e.g., juvenile justice, education, workforce development, etc.).  There must be a member of the consortium designated as the lead grant recipient responsible for overall grant management and serving as the fiscal agent.  All applications must clearly identify the lead grant recipient as well as all other members of the consortium and specify what expertise each member brings to the consortium.         According to section 18 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, an organization, as described in section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, that engages in lobbying activities will not be eligible for the receipt of Federal funds constituting an award, grant, or loan.  See 2 U.S.C. 1611; 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(4).  Funding restrictions apply.  See Section IV(5).
Description: Summary: The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL or Department), Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) announces the availability of up to $1.1 million to fund a cooperative agreement to manage and operate the National Technical Assistance and Demonstration Center on Preparing Youth with Disabilities for Employment (Center). The Center will continue to build upon the work of ODEP&#146;s previously funded youth technical assistance center, the National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth (NCWD/Y). The Center will provide technical assistance, training, and information to Workforce Investment Act (WIA)-funded youth programs and current and former DOL grantees, and future PROMISE grantees, to aid them in integrating evidence-based effective practices for improving transition results for young people with disabilities enrolled in these programs. The Center will use the Guideposts for Success (described below) as a transition framework and recognize that youth, families, educators, workforce professionals and other stakeholders must work together to increase employment expectations for youth with disabilities. The Center will build capacity within and across both generic and disability-specific youth service delivery systems to improve employment and post-secondary education outcomes for youth with disabilities. To accomplish this goal the Center will focus on the following three areas: &#61607; Career Exploration, Management and Planning: providing technical assistance around strategies to improve pathways to further education and careers for youth with disabilities; &#61607; Youth Development and Leadership: increasing the knowledge and leadership skills of youth receiving services from a variety of systems, enabling youth to become engaged stakeholders and skilled contributors to youth serving systems; &#61607; Professional Development: working to increase the capacity of youth-serving systems to provide quality training to staff, which will result in improved services and better outcomes for all youth, including those with disabilities. The Center will work in collaboration with federal, state and local agencies across multiple systems including education, workforce, juvenile justice, foster care, transportation, mental health, vocational rehabilitation and others on effective practices and other issues related to the transition of youth. To improve outcomes for youth ages 12 to 24, the Center will utilize social media and other electronic tools to influence its target audience of youth as they transition to adulthood and the people who support them, including their peers, families, educators, workforce professionals, and policymakers. The Center will maintain an accessible Web site containing online resources and publications and will conduct trainings both in person and electronically (web-based and telephonic). The Center will conduct outreach and establish and maintain effective working relationships and collaborations with a broad range of entities with the goal of sharing knowledge and promoting the adoption and implementation of policies and effective practices that improve transition outcomes. The Center will contribute to ODEP&#146;s annual performance measures through the development of policies and effective practices, the dissemination of this information, and the promotion of their adoption and implementation. Funding of up to $1.1 million will be awarded through a competitive process for a 12-month period of performance, with the possibility of up to 4 option years of funding depending on the availability of funds and satisfactory performance. This solicitation provides background information, describes the application submission requirements, outlines the process that eligible entities must use to apply for funds covered by this solicitation, and outlines the evaluation criteria used as a basis for selecting the grantee.
GrantorContactEmailDescription: mitchell.cassandra@dol.gov
GrantorContactText: Cassandra Mitchell &lt;br/&gt;Grants Management Specialist &lt;br/&gt;Phone 202-693-4570