For fiscal year 2001, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is offering funds for a cooperative agreement program for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Projects for Community-Based Organizations Targeting Young Men of Color Who Have Sex With Men (YMSM of Color). This program addresses the Healthy People 2010 priority area(s) of Educational and Community-Based Programs, HIV Infection, and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs).

Program Requirements

There are many activities you can implement to reach YMSM of color (ages 24 and younger) with HIV prevention messages. Your activities should focus on your plan to reach this target population, which may also include the sexual partners of YMSM and transgendered youth (ages 24 and younger). Activities are divided into two categories: Category A and Category B.

1. Recipient Activities

a. Category A: Delivery of HIV Prevention Services and Infrastructure Development

The applicant will be responsible for

(1) Involving the target population in planning, implementing, and evaluating activities and services throughout the project period.

(2) Providing mentoring (that is to say, guidance) to youth to enable them to participate in the planning process and/or other organizational functions or direct service activities. Mentors must be trained, the relationship must be for at least six months, and all activities must be monitored.

(3) Using or adapting program models supported by scientifically valid evidence of lowering risk behavior or increasing help-seeking behavior. You may also design and develop your HIV prevention program to meet local needs using a rationale based in science.

NOTE: Examples of evidence-based models can be found in the "Compendium of Effective Behavioral Interventions," (Inventory #D235) available in CD-Rom format from the CDC National Prevention Information Network (NPIN) by calling 1-800-458-5231 or at the following website www.cdc.gov/hiv/pubs/ hivcompendium.pdf and in the report, "Positive Youth Development in the United States," commissioned by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation and available at http://aspe.hhs.gov/ hsp/positiveyouthdev99/index.htm

Your program activities should address barriers to HIV prevention and should focus on issues of stigma and discrimination based on infection status, race, sexual orientation, or gender identity. The activities could address social, health service, and faith organizations and family units that can keep persons at risk from getting the services they need.

Your program should also develop leadership and/or other skills among YMSM of color to help them to effectively participate in the Community Planning process, on the Ryan White Council, or to make useful contributions to the success of CBO, health department, or other grantee activities. These activities should also help build skills to avoid HIV risk behaviors.

(4) Conducting at least one of the interventions listed below. All of your efforts must include cultural competency, sensitivity to issues of sexual and gender identity, and developmental and linguistic appropriateness.

(a) HIV counseling, testing, and referral

Provide HIV counseling, testing, and referral (CTR) services for YMSM of color(ages 24 years and younger). This may include the sexual partners of YMSM and/or transgendered youth (ages 24 years and younger). If you provide these services, you must meet certain requirements and follow set guidelines. See Attachment 3 for more information.

For example: Improve access to or provide appropriate testing sites, that will be more acceptable and accessible to the target population; and/or improve use of post-test counseling, referrals, and follow-up.

(b) Health Education and Risk Reduction

Conduct health education and risk-reduction interventions (HE/RR). These may include individual, group, or community-level interventions.

Conduct outreach activities to improve access to the target population. Provide face-to-face HIV prevention interactions, handing out condoms, brochures, and other prevention materials.

(5) Assisting high-risk clients with referral to appropriate primary HIV prevention services, and continued prevention and care services if they are infected.

(6) Monitoring, assuring quality, and evaluating your proposed program by

(a) Using approximately three to five percent of the funds awarded under this announcement for monitoring intervention activities. CDC will provide technical assistance in tracking program activities and quality.

(b) Preparing and submitting to CDC, within the first 6 months of funding, a quality assurance plan for your program.

(d) Conducting periodic client satisfaction assessments, for example, questionnaires or focus groups.

NOTE: During the first year of funding, CDC will work with CBOs to develop standardized evaluation formats and activities for grantees.

(7) Putting into place training and capacity building measures to

(a) Identify the training needs of your staff.

(b) Develop and put into place a plan to address these training needs.

(c) Work with CDC and CDC-funded capacity-building assistance programs to identify and address the capacity-building needs of your program.

(d) Find and use local resources for organizational and program development, for example, the health department, community development agencies, other CBOs, local colleges and universities, locally based foundations, Service Corps of Retired Executives (a Small Business Administration program), and the local business or industrial community.

(8) Putting into place a communication and information dissemination plan, including

(a) Marketing your prevention program and services to the target population and local community.

(b) Share lessons learned and successful program models.

(c) Ensuring Internet and e-mail communication for your organization and key program staff during the first year of funding.

NOTE: You must attend at least one CDC-sponsored meeting of funded agencies. If you sponsor any conferences using CDC funds, you must follow CDC policies for getting approval.

(9) Begin to gather information to help develop and implement a plan for obtaining additional resources from non-CDC sources to further support the program run through this cooperative agreement and to improve the chance that it will continue after the end of the project period.

NOTE: Local organizations and agencies, such as community development agencies, colleges, and universities, often have information about funding and other types of assistance.

We encourage you to work with other organizations in the community by

(a) Establishing ongoing collaborations with health departments, community planning groups, academic and research institutions, health care providers, or other local resources in designing, implementing, and evaluating interventions.

(b) Participating in the HIV prevention community planning process. Participation may include going to meetings; if selected, serving as a member of the group; reviewing and commenting on plans; and becoming familiar with and using information from the community planning process, such as the epidemiologic profile, needs assessment data, and intervention strategies. If selected for funding, an overview of project activities should be presented to your jurisdiction's community planning group.

Category B: Strategic Alliances for the Delivery of HIV Prevention Services

Organizations funded under Category B will also be responsible for the activities listed under Category A.

(1) During the first two years of funding, you will have to

(a) Work to establish dynamic partnerships with other organizations to ensure that a full range of services are available to the target population.

(b) Establish or continue to support this project with a full-time staff position with the responsibility, authority, professional training, and experience needed to lead and coordinate the program activities of the coalition;

(c) Establish or continue to support a coalition including representatives from the health department, local service providers (including CDC-funded CBOs), and affected community members to design, develop, and implement a comprehensive plan for a linked network of HIV prevention services. You should

(d) Identify key community and opinion leaders and ask them to be a part of the coalition process;

(e) Establish and/or continue to clearly keep track of linkages with local HIV prevention community planning groups, Ryan White CARE Act planning councils, and the State and local health departments;

(f) Establish and/or continue linkages with those local and community-based organizations that provide services to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS, STDs, tuberculosis (TB), and substance abuse. The applicant should also look at including public hospitals, neighborhood and mental health clinics, managed care groups that provide services to persons who receive Medicaid, and Women, Infants, and Children's programs, among others.

Note: The term "coalition," for this announcement, means a group of organizations working together, where each organization has a clearly defined activity assigned to them from the overall program plan. All groups share program responsibilities, but the organization applying for funds must take the lead and perform most of the program activities. The lead organization must meet all requirements above.

Each member of the coalition should sign a formal memoranda of agreement (MOA) (see Attachment 5) that addresses a way to track referrals and ensure appropriate routine sharing of information about your program=s activities and progress. You will also need to give details on the role and what each coalition member will bring to the project. The terms and length of time for the agreement, as confirmed by the MOA, signed by the applicant and each coalition member, must be stated. The documents must be signed by those who have the authority to represent the organization, for example, president, chief executive officer, or executive director.

(g) Develop a community needs assessment for YMSM of color (ages 24 years and younger), in the target area. This may include the sexual partners of YMSM and/or transgendered youth (ages 24 years and younger). This should include reviewing epidemiologic and other data, reviewing the State and local HIV prevention comprehensive plans and other planning documents that can help in the development, and finding out what community assets there are and what gaps in service.

NOTE: Useful background information can be found in the document entitled, PMI: Constructing a Teen HIV Risk Profile (NPIN Inventory #D269). Contact NPIN for this document at 1-800-458-5231.

(h) Develop a detailed plan for creating and maintaining a linked network of services for the targeted community, based on the community needs assessment. This network may include, but not be limited to, HIV, STD, TB, and substance abuse prevention, treatment, and care services; mental health services; primary care services; social services; and family planning services. Your plan must describe in detail all linkages that will exist within the network.

(2) In years 3 through 5, the applicant should

(a) Coordinate and participate in the full implementation of the plan;

(b) Serve as liaison among members of the coalition and provide management oversight, facilitate program implementation and operations, and maintain effective working relationships;

(c) Conduct an evaluation of system outcomes using both quantitative and qualitative data, for example, an assessment of the changes in access to care for the target population as a result of the coalition's activities.

For the full announcement, go to

http://www.cdc.gov/od/pgo/funding/01163.htm

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