Saturday, June 7, 2008

Apply Now to Participate in the Spirit-Works Initiative Collaborative Contingent on ACF CBAE Grant Award

In all curriculum and standards, the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACF) Grant focus of Community-Based Abstinence Education (CBAE) is critical to the success of program offerings and its adherence as a program requirement. Three important things must be universally applied in the context of unique and creative program applications and activities.
They are:

1. Purpose - Community-Based Abstinence Education (CBAE) Programs educate young people and create an environment in communities that support teen decisions to postpone sexual activity until marriage.

2. Success - Programs are tailored to the unique cultural and environmental needs of the target population to be served. The plan must develop staff cultural competence and adjust programs to meet the needs of youth and their families who come from a diversity of backgrounds.

3. Community-Based Abstinence Education Program (CBAE) Themes - For the purposes of this program, community-based abstinence education means an educational or motivational program that:
(A) Has as its exclusive purpose, teaching the social, psychological, and health gains to be realized by abstaining from sexual activity;
(B) Teaches abstinence from sexual activity outside marriage as the expected standard for all school age children;
(C) Teaches that abstinence from sexual activity is the only certain way to avoid out-of-wedlock pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and other associated health problems;
(D) Teaches that a mutually faithful monogamous relationship in the context of marriage is the expected standard of human sexual activity;
(E) Teaches that sexual activity outside of the context of marriage is likely to have harmful psychological and physical effects;
(F) Teaches that bearing children out-of-wedlock is likely to have harmful consequences for the child, the child's parents, and society;
(G) Teaches young people how to reject sexual advances and how alcohol and drug use increases vulnerability to sexual advances; and
(H) Teaches the importance of attaining self-sufficiency before engaging in sexual activity.

Participants who are selected to serve with Spirit-Works to build a better world using CBAE programs/projects will make a positive ongoing impact in the lives of youth and families one life at a time and in the church, schools and communities where they live.

Your church, school or community organization must submit via email to spirit.works@yahoo.com 1) program organization plan (organization chart, program components and their implemention strategies, i.e., curriculum, standards and activities), 2) abstinence education curriculum samples that meet ACF CBAE definition and standards, 3) explanation of how the curriculum relates to each ACF CBAE themes criteria established above and in the other postings on this blog connect for your project/program, 4) your line item budget and justification narrative (program expenditure and associated ACF CBAE projected cost, 5) objectives and need for assistance, 6) program progress and financial reports (begins 90 days after and every 30 days during the grant period), and 7) Evaluation will be performed for compliance in project description and summaries of reported findings (Evaluator selected by ACF).

Points will be applied as follows to determine which participants will be selected for the Spirit-Works ACF CBAE Programs.

Evaluation Criteria Points
Budget/Justification 15
Organization 15
Objectives and Need for Assistance 9
Evaluation 25
Approach 36

The participants desiring to be part of the collaborative that meet the ACF CBAE Criteria with the highest points will be selected to participate with the Spirit-Works Initiative where all other considerations are comparable, i.e., program/project requirement, association to themes, and dynamics/requirements for the participants selected.

Your request for paticipation (as outlined above) with Spirit-Works to provide CBAE under the ACF Grant must be submitted no later than August 8, 2008 for review. No submission will be accepted if not received on or before August 8, 2008 via email to spirit.works@yahoo.com. If Spirit-Works is selected to receive the ACF CBAE Grant, participants who are selected as a Spirit-Works participants in this collaborative effort will be notified by email of the grant award with amount and any additional terms/conditions, effective date, and budget period requirements. If Spirit-Works is selected for the ACF CBAE Grant Award, the start date specified in the grant announcement is September 30, 2008.