National Gains Center Regional Forum

SOLICITATION FOR APPLICATIONS

Training Opportunity:

“How Being Trauma-Informed Improves Criminal Justice System Responses”

PLEASE COMPLETE THIS APPLICATION IN ITS ENTIRETY TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE ACCURATE BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON YOUR COMMUNITY AND THAT THE APPROPRIATE LEVEL OF COMMITMENT AMONG COMMUNITY-BASED AGENCIES IS DEMONSTRATED.

INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

PLEASE RETURN THIS APPLICATION VIA POSTAL MAIL OR E-MAIL BY JANUARY 14, 2013:

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center Policy Research Associates, Inc. 345 Delaware Avenue Delmar, NY 12054 Attn: Arin Starzyk, Training Coordinator

Phone: 800.311.4246 E-mail: [email protected] OVERVIEW

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center for Behavioral Health and Justice Transformation, operated by Policy Research Associates, Inc. (PRA), is known nationally for its work in regard to people with behavioral health needs involved in the criminal justice system. The GAINS Center is soliciting applications from communities interested in receiving the training How Being Trauma-Informed Improves Criminal Justice System Responses. The purpose of this solicitation is to offer free technical assistance to up to eight communities nationwide who are prepared for and interested in expanding their training efforts to create a trauma-informed system.

The solicitation is for two separate applications:

1) Communities seeking to receive on-site training from the SAMHSA’s GAINS Center on How Being Trauma- Informed Improves Criminal Justice System Responses. This training would be available for up to 35 participants, and is 3 ½ - 4 hours in duration.

2) Communities/regions/states seeking to have SAMHSA’s GAINS Center conduct a train-the-trainer (TTT) event on How Being Trauma-Informed Improves Criminal Justice System Responses. This option requires applicants to specifically address and demonstrate their readiness to implement trauma-informed principles/practices within the organization/community/region/state via their responses to the questions on pages 3 and 4 of this solicitation. This TTT would be available for up to 20 trainers, and is 2 days in length.

PURPOSE & BACKGROUND

There is growing recognition that trauma can play a significant role in criminal justice involvement. Trauma has been identified as a key issue warranting attention, training, and education by the SAMHSA’s GAINS Center Expert Panel. Although prevalence estimates vary, there is consensus that high percentages of justice-involved women and men have experienced serious trauma throughout their lifetime. The reverberating effects of traumatic experiences can challenge a person’s capacity for recovery and pose significant barriers to accessing services, often resulting in an increased risk of coming into contact with the criminal justice system.

As a central component of our efforts to assist communities in moving toward a trauma-informed continuum of services to improve outcomes for individuals who have experienced trauma, The GAINS Center has developed a half-day training specifically tailored to assist criminal justice professionals in developing trauma-informed responses to justice-involved men and women.

The primary goals of the training are to (1) Increase understanding of trauma, (2) Create an awareness of the impact of trauma on behavior, and (3) Develop trauma-informed responses. Achieving these goals will decrease recidivism, increase safety, and promote and support recovery of justice-involved men and women by linking them to appropriate treatment and support services.

SITE SELECTION

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center for Behavioral Health and Justice Transformation will offer this training free of charge to up to eight selected communities between February 2013 and September 2013. There are no fees for registration, tuition, or materials associated with these trainings. The GAINS Center will pay all costs associated with pre- and post-training coordination, conference calls, and trainer time and travel.

Communities selected for these training deliveries and train-the-trainer events must be able to provide facilities to comfortably accommodate event participants. Further details will be provided to communities selected to participate.

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 2 TARGET AUDIENCE/TRAINING PARTICIPANTS

The target audiences for this training are community-based criminal justice system professionals, including police, community corrections (probation, parole, and pre-trial services officers), court personnel, and other human service providers. Participants can be assembled from within a county, region, or state, and can also be gathered from outside of the community of the training site.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

It is required that each community submitting an application for consideration identify leaders within their community that support this project and are dedicated to allocating staff time to participate in the training activities. Support must be illustrated by a written letter of support or commitment from community partners. This may include administrators from the following local agencies:

. Probation department

. Law enforcement

. Court (may include Judge)

All applications for consideration must be received by January 14, 2013. Selected communities will be notified on or before January 31, 2013.

In addition, communities selected to serve as training sites must agree to participate in the following aspects of the project:

. Pre-training planning conference call(s) with GAINS Center staff

. Provide space to host training – space must be able to comfortably accommodate:

o Up to a total of 38 people (35 training participants and up to 3 GAINS Center staff) for the training delivery, or

o Up to a total of 23 people (20 trainers and up to 3 GAINS Center staff) for the TTT

. Receipt of trauma-training curriculum

Communities selected to serve as train-the-trainer (TTT) sites must agree to all of the items above, in addition to:

. Selecting up to 20 potential trainers with the following characteristics:

o Has worked as a criminal justice professional, behavioral health professional in a CJ setting and/or with CJ clients, or an experienced training provider with a similar audience/subject matter for at least 3 years (cross-training is recommended)

o Has delivered a minimum of 15 hours of training or professional education

. Providing proof of the above qualifications for at least 10 trainers (can include resumes, CVs, bios, etc.)

. Conducting a brief survey of skills for each potential trainer utilizing an instrument provided by the GAINS Center

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 3 . Demonstrating capacity to provide follow-up support to trainers post-TTT

. Agreeing to the condition that trainers are required to deliver the training program subsequent to the TTT

. Providing details regarding future training dates, locations, and audiences to the GAINS Center

. Participating in a post-training follow up call with the GAINS Center after several trainers have delivered the training

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 4 Trauma-Informed Criminal Justice Responses

TRAINING SITE APPLICATION

PLEASE COMPLETE THE APPLICATION BELOW.

ONLY COMPLETE APPLICATIONS WILL BE CONSIDERED FOR SITE SELECTION.

Jurisdiction: ______

Population: ______

Training Requested: Training Delivery Train-the-Trainer (TTT)

NAME OF PERSON COMPLETING THIS FORM

TITLE:

ADDRESS:

PHONE:

EMAIL:

. Please describe any previous training criminal justice professionals in your community have received that specifically focused on the special needs of men or women with mental illness, substance use disorders, and/or histories of trauma.

. Please describe special crisis intervention procedures employed for women and men in crisis (e.g. use of non-invasive, non-threatening de-escalation techniques for general use and to avoid re-traumatizing procedures).

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 5 . Does your community currently have plans to enhance existing policies or services for this population? Please describe.

. What specific goals do you hope to achieve by participating in the training?

. Why is it important for your jurisdiction to receive this training now?

. Please describe current screening and assessment methods that identify trauma or gender-specific issues. (If applicable, attach a copy of current screening and assessment forms to your application).

. Does your community have programs that offer gender and trauma-specific services? If so, please describe.

. Please describe any formal or informal community linkages to behavioral health providers that offer gender-specific or trauma-specific treatment services.

. For TTT applicants: Please demonstrate your capacity to provide follow-up support to trainers post-TTT by describing your infrastructure, resources, and follow-up plan.

. For TTT applicants: Please identify and provide qualifications for at least two individuals that serve as a representative sample of your potential trainers. Credentials for these individuals should meet the requirements outlined in the “Application Requirements” section for TTT communities.

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 6 PLEASE IDENTIFY THE LEAD AGENCIES/ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE AGREED TO SEND STAFF TO PARTICIPATE IN THE TRAINING HOW BEING TRAUMA-INFORMED IMPROVES CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM RESPONSES.

IF YOU HAVE ADDITIONAL AGENCIES OR ORGANIZATIONS THAT PLAN TO ATTEND, PLEASE IDENTIFY THEM USING THE “OTHER” CATEGORY. IF THERE ARE MULTIPLE AGENCIES OF THE SAME TYPE, PLEASE COPY THE CORRESPONDING TABLE(S) AND INCLUDE THIS INFORMATION FOR EACH AGENCY SEPARATELY.

Please identify a primary contact for your jurisdiction. Please ensure the primary contact is someone who will be accessible to the participants and to PRA staff for pre- and post-training activities.

PRIMARY CONTACT FOR THIS APPLICATION

Primary Contact Name: ______

Role/Position: ______

Agency: ______

Address: ______

City/State/Zip: ______

Phone: ______

Fax: ______

E-mail: ______

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 7 COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS AGENCY

Agency Name: Address:

LEAD CONTACT

Name: Agency: Address: City, State, Zip: Phone: Fax: Email:

LAW ENFORCEMENT

LEAD CONTACT

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 8 COURT

LEAD CONTACT

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 9 Thank you! SAMHSA’s GAINS Center sincerely appreciates your interest in this initiative.

PLEASE RETURN THIS APPLICATION VIA POSTAL MAIL OR E-MAIL BY JANUARY 14, 2013:

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center Policy Research Associates, Inc. 345 Delaware Avenue Delmar, NY 12054 Attn: Arin Starzyk, Training Coordinator

Phone: 800.311.4246 E-mail: [email protected]

Late submissions will not be accepted or reviewed. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

All applicants will receive notification regarding the status of their application on or before January 31, 2013. Notification will be distributed via email.

SAMHSA’s GAINS Center | Trauma-Informed Care Training Application Solicitation Page 10