OJJDP FY 17 Community Level Youth Violence Prevention Research and Evaluation Program | OJJDP 2017 10946

Opportunity Information: Apply for OJJDP 2017 10946

The OJJDP FY 17 Community Level Youth Violence Prevention Research and Evaluation Program is a Department of Justice grant opportunity, administered by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), focused on building strong evidence about what works to prevent and reduce youth violence at the community level. The central aim is to fund methodologically rigorous research and evaluation that can directly inform real-world programs, policies, and strategies aligned with DOJ priorities. Rather than supporting general services or loosely defined initiatives, the solicitation emphasizes studies that produce practical, actionable findings for communities trying to address youth violence, including gun and gang-related violence, and youth exposure to violence.

A major priority in this opportunity is “field-initiated” research, meaning applicants are expected to bring forward their own well-developed research questions and study designs, grounded in on-the-ground community realities. OJJDP is looking for projects that can generate credible evidence about prevention and control strategies used in neighborhoods, cities, or other local settings where youth violence occurs. The solicitation specifically encourages research that examines dissemination and implementation, in other words, how proven youth violence prevention strategies are adopted, delivered with fidelity, adapted appropriately, scaled, and sustained over time in community contexts. This includes studying approaches that make adoption more efficient and effective, which often involves understanding local capacity, partnerships, training models, implementation supports, and the conditions that help programs survive beyond initial funding.

In addition to implementation-focused research, the program also encourages rigorous evaluations of community-based violence prevention programs that already have a fully developed and documented program model but have not yet undergone high-quality evaluation. The emphasis on a “fully developed and documented” model signals that OJJDP wants to evaluate interventions that are clearly defined (for example, with written materials, core components, intended outcomes, and a logic model or theory of change), rather than pilots that are still being invented as they are delivered. Importantly, OJJDP is not only interested in whether these programs work, but also in how well they work relative to their costs. The solicitation explicitly encourages effectiveness research that includes cost-effectiveness analysis, reflecting an interest in evidence that can guide real budgeting and decision-making for communities and governments.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary grant program in the Law, Justice and Legal Services category (CFDA 16.818). The funding instrument is a grant, with an award ceiling of $500,000 per award and an expected total of two awards. The opportunity was posted on December 8, 2016, with an original application deadline of February 7, 2017. Because the expected number of awards is small and the focus is on methodological rigor, applicants would typically need to present strong evaluation designs, clear analytic plans, feasible data collection strategies, and a compelling explanation of how results will be useful for community-level violence prevention efforts.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of organizations that might be positioned to carry out or partner on rigorous research and evaluation. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city or township governments; public and private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; nonprofit organizations (including both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3) entities, excluding higher education institutions in that category); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other entities as described in the solicitation’s additional eligibility details. In practice, this breadth supports the kind of multi-sector collaboration often needed for community violence research, such as partnerships between universities, local governments, community-based organizations, and service providers.

Overall, the opportunity is designed to strengthen the evidence base for community-level youth violence prevention by funding carefully designed studies that answer practical questions: which community-based strategies reduce youth violence and exposure to violence, what it takes to implement research-tested approaches effectively in real settings, what supports long-term sustainability, and what outcomes are achieved relative to costs. The end goal is to produce findings that communities and policymakers can use to make smarter, evidence-informed decisions about preventing and reducing youth violence.

• 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 Community Level Youth Violence Prevention Research and Evaluation Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.818.
• This funding opportunity was created on Dec 08, 2016.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 07, 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 $500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), 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, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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