OCDEL Opens Public Comment for Federal Grant
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NASDDDS Seeking Steering Committee Members
The National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disability Services (NASDDDS) is pleased to share this announcement from the Administration for Community Living (ACL) with our members. As you know, NASDDDS, along with NASMHPD, NADD, and other key partners, was awarded a five-year grant from ACL for a technical assistance and resource center to improve supports for individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities who also have mental health conditions.
An important part of this grant is that its work will be guided by a steering committee comprised entirely of individuals with living experience. We are excited to announce the open recruitment for Steering Committee members. The center is looking for people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (I/DD) who have mental health conditions and want to share their experiences. We are hoping to identify potential candidates from many different backgrounds with many different perspectives, so we hope that you will share this opportunity within your state.
The steering committee of 12 people will meet 4 times per year. Steering committee members and, if needed, their support staff will be paid to participate in this project.
A recruitment explainer video by NASDDDS partner Green Mountain Self-Advocates is posted on the NASDDDS YouTube channel. The three-minute video includes open captions and American Sign Language interpretation.
We are asking individuals to contact us if they are interested by March 17, 2023. More information can be found here. Thank you in advance for sharing this with your partners!
SAMHSA ACT Program Grant Opportunity: Initiative to Target Transition Age Youth & Adults
The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) has announced a grant opportunity from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) specific to Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) programs.
SAMHSA will award approximately 7 applicants up to $678,000 each. The purpose of this program is to establish or expand and maintain ACT programs for transition-aged youth and adults with a serious mental illness (SMI) or serious emotional disturbance (SED). Recipients are expected to implement an ACT program to fidelity and provide ACT services to the population of focus. With this program, SAMHSA aims to improve behavioral health outcomes for individuals by reducing rates of hospitalization, mortality, substance use, homelessness, and involvement with the criminal justice system.
Please visit here for additional information. Applications are due by April 10, 2023.
Contact Information:
Program Issues:
Dawnielle Tillman, Public Health Advisor
Center for Mental Health Services
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(240) 276-1572
Grants Management and Budget Issues:
Office of Financial Resources, Division of Grants Management
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(240) 276-1400
If you have further questions, please contact RCPA Policy Director Jim Sharp.
Governor Shapiro Delivers First Budget Address; Acting Secretary Arkoosh to Speak Regarding DHS Proposed Budget
PA Senators Present $400,000 State Grant to RCPA Member Child Guidance Resource Center
SAMHSA to Host Webinar on How To Develop a Competitive Grant Application
The Office of Financial Resources at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) will be conducting a webinar on how to develop a competitive grant application. The same webinar will be offered on two dates: February 23, 2023, and March 7, 2023, both at 2:00 pm (ET).
Webinar: How to Develop a Competitive Grant Application
The webinar will address:
- The three registration processes that need to be completed;
- Preparing to apply for a grant;
- Key components of the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO);
- Responding effectively to the evaluation criteria; and
- Resources and technical assistance that are available.
Information on how to access the webinar can be found on the Training Events web page. There is no need to register in advance. If you would like to receive the slides prior to the webinar, you can make a request electronically.
$7.2 Million Grant to Help Provide Mental Health Services to Montgomery County Students
PUBLISHED:
NORRISTOWN — The Montgomery County Intermediate Unit has been awarded a $7.2 million four-year grant by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
This highly competitive Project AWARE grant, for which the intermediate unit will receive $1.8 million a year for four years, has only been awarded to approximately 20 entities across the United States.
Project AWARE is a nationwide grant created to develop a sustainable infrastructure for school-based mental health programs and services. The intermediate unit provides programs and services to Montgomery County school districts, career and technical schools, non-public schools and other organizations. Through its direct service to students, especially those most at risk, the intermediate unit has been able to identify ways to assist students and their families to navigate mental health supports and services.
“This grant award is a major recognition for the MCIU and reflects all the hard work and accomplishments of our MCIU employees in supporting students and families across the region,” Executive Director Regina Speaker said in a press release issued by the Intermediate Unit. “We appreciate the support of Senator Robert Casey and Congresswoman Madeleine Dean and many other partners, including the Pennsylvania Department of Education, for this grant project.”
The grant project will: expand suicide awareness training opportunities for students(K-12), implement a universal mental health screener to be utilized by school district or nonpublic school staff members and create an electronic data system to connect school mental health practitioners (e.g. psychologists, social workers and counselors) with community-based mental health providers that have immediate availability to support students in all levels of care (outpatient therapy to inpatient psychiatric care).
The MCIU is partnering with two other intermediate units on this project — Luzerne and Carbon-Lehigh County Intermediate Units — to proactively address students’ mental health needs.
RCPA recommends members in the Montgomery County region engage with the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit and local school districts for planning and discussions on how your continuum of services may benefit student mental health in the schools.
If you have further questions, please contact RCPA Children’s Mental Health Director Jim Sharp.
DDAP Makes $4 Million in Grant Funding Available to Serve BIPOC Communities
The Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) is making available $4 million in grant funding for organizations to establish or expand substance use disorder (SUD) services, community outreach and education to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities.
In 2020, overdose death rates increased 39 percent for black Pennsylvanians, compared to 2019. In 2021, black Pennsylvanians died from an overdose at a rate that was nearly two times higher than white Pennsylvanians.
Grants up to $400,000 each will be awarded for a 12-month period beginning July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024. Funds can be applied toward a range of activities, including construction and building infrastructure, staffing, and evidence-based programming.
Eligible applicants include organizations that provide services, outreach, and/or education to BIPOC communities in any of the following areas:
- Harm reduction;
- Access to low-barrier medications for opioid use disorder and SUD treatment;
- Recovery and peer supports; and
- Reentry supports.
Funding for these grants is provided from the opioid settlement funding that the General Assembly appropriated to DDAP.
Download the Grant Initiative Funding Application.
DDAP Makes $4 Million in Grant Funding Available for Regional Recovery Hubs
The Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) today announced the availability of more than $4 million in grant funding for the establishment of regional recovery hubs to enhance recovery supports and promote recovery within communities across Pennsylvania.
The nine regional recovery hubs throughout Pennsylvania will be designed to work to embed, expand, and promote a recovery-oriented system of care in each region using a hub and spoke model. Each regional “hub” will support community-driven services that will serve as spokes. Each hub will provide technical assistance and collaborate with a variety of community entities, sectors, and systems to enhance a recovery-supportive community and facilitate recovery support service delivery.
For more information, read the Grant Initiative Funding Application or visit DDAP’s Funding and Grants Process web page.
DDAP Awards Nearly $19 Million to Assist Practitioners With Student Loan Repayment
The Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) joined RCPA-member University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) to announce that DDAP is awarding nearly $19 million in grant funding through its substance use disorder (SUD) loan repayment program. This program is aimed at aiding SUD treatment and case management professionals with repaying their outstanding qualifying educational loans.
More than 280 SUD practitioners, including case managers, counselors, licensed social workers, physician assistants, and registered nurses, were awarded the funding to go toward repaying their student loans. Of the total grant recipients, six are current UPMC employees, each receiving grants of up to $100,000 per person.
“We are thrilled that the administration is investing into helping and boosting the behavioral health care workforce,” said Noreen Fredrick, vice president of ambulatory and community behavioral health services for UPMC Western Behavioral Health and RCPA’s Chairperson-Elect. “Behavioral health workers have been at the forefront of addressing substance use disorders and saving lives. There are many ways in which UPMC is advocating for our employees, and programs like this will certainly help ease the heavy loan burden many clinicians obtain to do this important work.”
High rates of turnover and shortages of health care professionals have placed increased pressure on employee recruitment and retention, as well as access to care for Pennsylvania residents seeking SUD treatment and supports. Through this SUD loan repayment program, DDAP will provide loan repayment opportunities as an incentive to retain SUD practitioners willing to continue providing services within the commonwealth.
Candidates who were selected were required to demonstrate a minimum of two prior years of experience in the SUD field as well as agree to a service commitment of two additional years.
This funding opportunity is made possible from the Opioid Settlement Fund (McKinsey) and Pennsylvania’s Medical Marijuana Program Fund.
“The Wolf Administration remains committed to strengthening the drug and alcohol treatment and case management system across Pennsylvania and this loan repayment program is just one more example of that commitment,” said Secretary Jen Smith. “Easing the burden of student debt is paramount to helping incentivize SUD professionals to remain in this field, which in turn will benefit some of our loved ones, friends and neighbors who need SUD services most.”
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