IDPH: Center for Minority Health Services

The Illinois Department of Public Health’s Center for Minority Health Services (CMHS) is requesting applications for the COVID Peer Educator program from community-based organizations (CBO) to hire and work with Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) Certified Peer Educators. The Peer Educators will provide COVID and health education to persons in the County Jail system and individuals recently release. The CBO must have capacity to provide additional training on COVID-19 to the Certified Peer Educators that provide services in the identified County Jails. CMHS will work with CBO to develop relevant COVID-19 materials and resources to help the Peer Educator promote Covid-19 awareness and prevention and other health related topics to their peers. The goal is to use previously incarcerated peers as trusted messengers to inform and provide resources to recently released individuals from the county correctional facilities and individuals in the county system and empower them to obtain optimal health and well-being. This program will provide paid positions to the peer educators. There is a need to use trusted community members to deliver lifesaving messages and promote behavior change to disenfranchised groups, especially those from racially and ethnic minority groups. Applicants must demonstrate how their existing Peer Educator program will achieve the following criteria: 1. Develop training that will help strengthen communities to fight COVID-19 by addressing health disparities. 2. Develop educational materials that will encourage newly released individuals from the county correctional facility to participate in COVID-19 prevention behaviors, that include vaccination, masking, hand washing, and social distancing in certain settings. In addition, the peer educator will provide information on COVID-19 vaccines and treatment options. 3. Establish a process through which the peer educators can provide community resources and referrals to necessary services to reduce the health inequities faced by those in the county jail system. The COVID Peer Educator program requires the grantee to have a working agreement with local county jails and strong partnership/work relationship with IDOC Certified Peer Educators. The grantee must also have the capacity to provide additional COVID-19 prevention and education training to the peer educator. The peer educator must not be in the prison system and be preferably linguistically, racially, and ethnically representative of the targeted population. They must also work as liaisons between recently released individuals and community services (healthcare, housing, food, etc.). In addition, the grantee must have multi-sector partnerships and collaboration to ensure access to necessary resources and wraparound services are provided to the targeted population and work towards closing the health disparities gap. Successful applicants must: 1. Provide training and technical assistance to support the peer educators. 2. Oversee peer educators work in the community and in county jail. 3. Identify and document the process for evaluating the program. 4. Provide monthly activity reporting for program areas and budget via EGrAMS. 5. Have existing agreements with the county jail system in one or more of the identified Illinois counties. 6. Manage peer educator stipends/salaries. 7. Have experience hiring Illinois Department of Corrections released peer educators. 8. Establish referrals to primary care and other fundamental resources. 9. Demonstrate knowledge and experience in creating community collaboration to increase the use of community resources among the targeted population. 10. Demonstrate ability to work in the priority counties specified by this grant.

317(K)(2) OF PHSA 42USC 247B(K)(2)

20 ILCS 2310/2310-25

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The goal is to use previously incarcerated peers as trusted messengers to inform and provide resources to recently released individuals from the county correctional facilities and individuals in the county system and empower them to obtain optimal health and well-being.

Yes

March 15, 2022 - May 31, 2023

Nonprofit Organizations;

Legally recognized community-based organizations can apply for this grant. Applications from individual persons will not be considered. This grant will require that the lead agency distributes peer educator stipends.

This grant will serve persons in the county jail system and individuals recently released. These services must be rendered in at least one of the 44 identified counties listed in the Notice of Funding Opportunity.

Project Grants

Education

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Applicants will utilize the IDPH EGRAMS database to submit their grant application. Each applicant must be in good standing with the Grant Accountability & Transparency Act Unit operating under the Governor’s Office of Management & Budget - https://omb.illinois.gov. Successful applicants will have completed the GATA Pre-Qualification information and the Fiscal and Administrative Risk Assessment (Internal Controls Questionnaire – ICQ).

Applicants will utilize the IDPH EGRAMS database to submit their grant application. Each applicant must be in good standing with the Grant Accountability & Transparency Act Unit operating under the Governor’s Office of Management & Budget - https://omb.illinois.gov. Successful applicants will have completed the GATA Pre-Qualification information and the Fiscal and Administrative Risk Assessment (Internal Controls Questionnaire – ICQ).

Grantee must provide services in the identified Illinois Counties found in the NOFO.

The successful applicant will receive notification via Egrams of the award once all of the applications in E-grams are reviewed and scored.

Applications must be submitted by 5:00 pm CST on June 16, 2022

14 days

For merit based reviews, only the evaluation process is subject to appeal. Competitive grant appeals are limited to the evaluation process. Evaluation scores or award decisions may not be protested.

One year program funded by COVID Health Equity grant.

No Matching Required

This grant is only available in the 44 identified counties in the NOFO. It should serve persons in the county jail system and recently released.

Reimbursements, Work Plans & Metrics are reported monthly in EGrAMS.

Article XV Audit Requirements: Audits Grantee shall be subject to the audit requirements contained in the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996 (31 USC 7501-7507) and Subpart F of 2 CFR Part 200, and the audit rules and policies set forth by the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget. See 30 ILCS 708/65(c); 44 Ill. Admin. Code 7000.90.

Records Retention. Grantee shall maintain for three (3) years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report, adequate books, all financial records and, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other records pertinent to this Award, adequate to comply with 2 CFR 200.333, unless a different retention period is specified in 2 CFR 200.333 or 44 Ill. Admin. Code §§ 7000.430(a) and (b). If any litigation, claim or audit is started before the expiration of the retention period, the records must be retained until all litigation, claims or audit exceptions involving the records have been resolved and final action taken.

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This is a single grant of $200,000 over the term of the grant.

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535 West Jefferson Springfield, Illinois 62761

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https://dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/diseases-and-conditions/hiv-aids/corrections-initiative.html

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4/29/2022

FY 2023 : $200,000