FY24 Visiting Fellows Program

Transcript also available as a PDF.

DARYL FOX: Good afternoon, everyone, or morning. And welcome to today's webinar, “FY 2024 Visiting Fellows Program,” hosted by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. So at this time, it's my pleasure to introduce Tenzing Lahdon, Senior Policy Advisor with BJA, to begin the presentation. Tenzing?

TENZING LAHDON: Thank you, Daryl. And welcome, everyone, and thank you for joining us. I am Tenzing Lahdon, Senior Policy Advisor with Bureau of Justice Assistance, and we are going to go through a lot of information during our presentation today, so as Daryl mentioned, we will be making a recording of this webinar available to everyone after the webinar, including the PowerPoint slides. And we have a number of presenters here with us today that represent different areas of focus for the fellowship, as well as two guest speakers. So I'll introduce them prior to their part of the presentation, so just Tasha, John, Kathy, Kristina, myself, Olivia or Sunny, Courtney, and Trish. We all are with BJA and we'll be presenting to you. Next slide.

So for today's agenda, we will do a brief overview of OJP and BJA, an overview of the solicitation, followed by our guest speakers who are our current BJA Fellows. We will talk about eligibility and application requirements, as well as resources and support that are available to you. We will save 10, 15 minutes at the tail end of the webinar to answer any questions that you may have for us today. So if you have any questions, feel free to use the Q&A function at any time during this presentation. Next.

So, what is Office of Justice Programs? Office of Justice Programs provides grant funding, training, research, and statistics for our criminal justice community. OJP, Office of Justice Programs, is one of the three grant-making offices within the Department of Justice along with COPS Office and Office on Violence Against Women. And within the Office of Justice Programs, there are six bureau offices or program offices that administer various OJP grant programs. So we have National Institute of Justice, which is a research and development and evaluation agency within DOJ; Office for Victims of Crime, which supports the broader way of program and services that are really focused on helping victims; Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, which supports state, local, and communities in the effort to implement effective programs for children; Bureau of Justice Statistics, which is our primary statistical agency for Department of Justice; and SMART Office ,which provides jurisdictions with guidance regarding implementation of Adam Walsh Acts; and lastly, Bureau of Justice Assistance, and I'll go over this in more detail in the next slide.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance was created in 1984 to reduce violent crimes, create safer communities, and reform our nation's criminal justice system. BJA strengthens the nation's criminal justice system and helps America's state, local, and tribal jurisdictions reduce and prevent crimes, reduce recidivism, and promote fair and safe criminal justice system. Our Director Karhlton Moore, leads the programmatic and policy effort on providing a wide range of resources, including training and technical assistance to law enforcement course corrections, treatment, reentry, justice information sharing, and community-based partners to address chronic and emerging criminal justice challenges nationwide. Next slide.

So how does BJA support the field? We do it in three different ways. First being our investments. We put our solicitations to support the field as well as the goals and mission of the BJA. Sharing knowledge. BJA supports a number of research projects that support fields in terms of identifying what the best practices are. We equip the field with tools, resources that are needed based on changing times and trends, to build capacity and improve outcomes; and lastly, partnering, consulting, connecting, and convening with our partners in the field and collectively through our investments, research, and our engagements, we are working to create a stronger program that will impact communities and help you do the work that you guys are doing in the field. Next slide.

So next, we have our poll question. This helps us gauge where you are with your history with federal awards. So the question, I'll just quickly read and feel free to submit your responses to this poll question. “Has your organization been awarded federal grants in the past?” Options are, yes, my organization has extensive experience with federal grants; yes, though my organization does not currently have federal grants; my organization has limited experience with federal grants; and lastly, my organization is new to federal grants and is looking to learn more. So I'll just give a few seconds more to respond and then, Daryl, if you want to close the poll in maybe six seconds. All right.

So, it's everywhere and a lot of no responses, so it's okay. It's good to see a few folks responding that your organization has had federal grants. So we are hopeful that folks who are new to the federal grant process that we will be able to cover that through the solicitation but we will also be providing resources that are there to help you provide you with step-by-step guidance on how to apply for OJP or BJA grants. So thank you for responding to the poll. Next.

Now, more into the BJA Fellows solicitation. A little bit of background on the fellowship program. BJA launched the Visiting Fellows Program in 2012. So we are going into, I guess, 12th year. The intent is to leverage state, local, and/or tribal subject matter expertise to assess areas of need and develop strategies to the policy in collaboration with BJA staff to benefit the criminal justice field. The purpose of each fellowship is to make important policy and programmatic contribution in the focus area with collaboration of and support of BJA. Fellows will collaborate with BJA and DOJ staff to provide critical outreach, data, research, and subject matter expertise to inform developments of new BJA strategies and programs to benefit the field. Next.

So, we are hoping to host up to seven Fellows from a broad range of disciplines to propose strategies related to crime and justice that will address one of the seven focus areas. We are looking for folks who are subject matter experts and self-starters who can work in a fast-paced environment. Additionally, fellows must proactively manage their planned work while collaborating with BJA staff and adjusting to the needs of the project and other work that's across BJA.

As a part of the fellowship, you will be working closely with the BJA Policy Office and fellows are expected to complete a major set of deliverables that will address critical, chronic, or emerging issues in the criminal justice field and build capacity to address one of the areas of focus that's discussed in the BJA-focused area section in the solicitation.
And, in order to enhance the knowledge building work of BJA, fellows will be expected to participate in a wide range of activities, collegial activities with BJA Director and staff. Fellows will provide regular updates to inform BJA and other DOJ staff members about issues facing the field and current practices in the focus area. And this means fellows will have opportunity to participate in high-level policy discussions and processes that involve practice. And each fellow will be expected, like as I mentioned, specific deliverables. They can include things like applied research tools, training curricula, tool kits, article publications, and also technical subject matter assistance to the field, as well as assisting BJA and enhancing our capacity and strategies and then bringing that expertise back to the field. And you can find detailed list of deliverables on page 24 to 26 of the solicitation.
The goal of the fellowship is to leverage equities and experience of the criminal justice field to address the key gaps in the field for evidence training, technical assistance, and knowledge in the seven focus areas. Next.

The seven focus areas include—so I'll just quickly read through. These are the seven focus areas that we are seeking fellows for: reducing stigma for persons with substance use and mental health disorder and criminal justice involvement; enhancing support of and reducing stigma for persons with criminal justice involvement who are in recovery; improving corrections and reintegration under the Second Chance Act; advancing strategies to prevent and respond to hate crimes; building capacity of community violence intervention leaders to enhance community safety; enhancing tribal capacity to build strong programs and access resources for programs; advancing and improving criminal justice systems using artificial intelligence. Next.

So, we have already covered some of the items that are listed here. I do want to highlight that we are looking for individuals that will be subject matter experts, bringing real world experience, as well as lived experience and knowledge to BJA that will help us enhance our ability to deliver relevant and effective tools to the field. They will support the development of researchers, practitioners, as well as BJA staff in order to collectively help advance BJA's mission. And finally, to assist and translate knowledge about critical criminal justice issues, strategies, and promote innovation. Fellowship is intended to provide professional development opportunities for fellows and build relationship between BJA and those with technical expertise in the field. And BJA offers flexible work environments that support both virtual and person in office work options. Next. All right.

Next, I would like to welcome our guest speakers, John Bae and Kristina or Kris Bryant. John is a Second Chance Fellow, John is the Director of the Opening Doors to Housing Initiative at Vera Institute of Justice. And Kris' fellowship, on the other hand, focuses on pretrial work, and Kris is a Senior Director at Rulo Strategies. I would ask both John and Kris, who are current Fellows, I would ask them to please share a little bit about your experiences as a BJA fellow and any tips you might have for prospective applicants. So I'll start with John, and then Kris.

JOHN BAE: Thanks so much, Tenzing. And hello, everyone, it's great to see you all. My name is John Bae. I am one of three Second Chance Fellows here at the Bureau of Justice Assistance. I want to start by talking about what brought me to this fellowship. And so, my professional experience, it encompassed or covered a lot of things. I started providing direct service for formerly incarcerated college students in New York. I had the opportunity to be a training and technical assistance provider working on college and prison issues, and housing issues, worked on advocacy and philanthropy. And I felt that the missing thing in my experience was government, and I really wanted to get under the hood of government to see how an agency like BJA operates and functions. And I wanted to see that because I feel like in order for us to see or realize the change that we want to see, we're going to need to understand different ways or different modes of change, or different levels of change, and I wanted to gain that type of insight and experience through this fellowship. So for my fellowship, what I did was I created a reentry blueprint wanting to lift up the voices of formerly incarcerated people and criminal justice reform discussions. And also as funding entities like BJA is, I wanted these agencies to consider those with lived experience, organizations that are really grassroots, and taking through their reform strategies. So I was able to meet with different organizations and highlight them in the blueprint that I developed that Daryl just put in the chat, and was able to just educate different stakeholders on the issues in the blueprint.

I also had the opportunity to work with the brilliance behind OJP and BJA, collaborate on interagency activities. Tasha Aikens, who is on the call, we collaborated on a reentry simulation at the Department of Health and Human Services, also put one out for the Department of Housing and Urban Development. And I also had the opportunity to collaborate with HUD as they were thinking through some policy issues that are critical to formerly incarcerated people. I really gained insights like I wanted, and I also developed a network and relationships with folks, including other Fellows, and really developed a sense of camaraderie. The one tip that I have for folks as they're considering applying is really just to keep an open mind, right? And I think once you are in this position or once you get the fellowship, there's a world of possibilities and ideas to consider, and may not be able to get to it all but focus on the one or two things that really rise to the surface for you and make the best out of this fellowship. So I know there's a lot to cover, so I'll be here throughout the entirety of the webinar and can answer any questions that may come up. And I'll pass it over back to you, Tenzing.

KRISTINA BRYANT: Thank you. It's my turn, John. Hi, I'm Kris Bryant. And you're going to find some similarities in the comments that John made and that I would highlight for you which is telling in our experiences and what we found to be worthwhile to share with you. I will note that from an experienced point of view, I think John's fellowship and some of the other Fellows that I have interacted with, their fellowship aligned very perfectly with some of the portfolios that were in place, which I think, it gave them a very clear lane. Pretrial, which is the area of my fellowship, doesn't have such a clear lane. So I have had the opportunity to work across multiple portfolios, multiple areas of work that BJA has interest in, and try to find that space for pretrial, for pretrial to have a voice, and for pretrial to find funding that continues to advance their work.

So, when Tenzing asked us to speak, she kind of asked us from the beginning like, "Why did you apply?" and just to share that since that's the space you're in at this point. And the reasons I decided to apply in the area of pretrial is that the time in the fellowship has given me an opportunity to truly study pretrial. You're able to build in some of that time into your fellowship, and that was not something I had had time to do in my previous work. I wanted to be in a position where I had the opportunity to impact the field in a different way that I was already doing, and the fellowship has allowed me to do that. I'm about a year in, I'm a little bit less in than John, John's a little further along than I am. It has allowed me to grow the network of connections, which John mentioned. Beyond that, it's given me exposures to multiple systems across the United States that I would not have had exposure to, allowing me to see different advances in pretrial that I had not seen before. And again, similar to John, I had experience at the local, state, and even the national level, but I had not had experience at the federal level. So one of the interest areas for me was to join a federal organization and get a better understanding of how decisions are made, what drives the interest of BJA, and the funding, and how they make those decisions. So those were some of the reasons I applied, and I have not looked back, it has been a great opportunity.

From an operations and an outcome standpoint for my pretrial fellowship, I think these fellowships benefit both the individual, as well as BJA, being invited to the table across different projects that are going on or bodies of work that are going on, and being able, again, to give a voice to pretrial and be listening, actively listening, for where I can represent the work that's going on in pretrial. I think Fellows tend to come from a position where they're a little bit closer to the field. We've not necessarily been in the policy work for too, too long and we have maybe a little bit of sense or our fingers are a little bit closer to the work that's been going on, and that benefits us, it benefits BJA, it benefits the work that's going on.

I would note that it has definitely provided me opportunities for professional growth through the, again, the exposure of what's going on at BJA, but those exposures that they have allowed me to represent pretrial in BJA. There had been some tangible deliverables and I'll mention what some of those are, but what I would say most importantly about that is that it's been flexible. They've allowed me take time to really consider what is useful to the field, and then if I am able to come back with reasonable deliverables that are responsive to the field, and what I was learning during those interviews, they're open to those adjustments in your fellowship so that you're doing things that are timely and actually reflective of what the field needs. Some of the tangible deliverables I am working on have to do with the pretrial phase, particularly in rural communities, was an interest of mine, looking at regional solutions, looking at data associated in our agencies that do not have big data systems already in place. I wanted to have an opportunity, and I've been given the opportunities to elevate the voice around support services and peer recovery coaches specifically in pretrial. Lastly, I've been given opportunities to present at conferences or those conferences are coming up where I get to talk to pretrial professionals and help them see where there is funding available for them across the BJA portfolios. Tenzing, I have one last statement before I turn it over to you, and that is just to say that this has been, for me, an exceptional experience so far, and it has pretty much exceeded my expectations to date of what I had laid out in a fellowship and what I've been able to accomplish. Thank you, Tenzing.

TENZING LAHDON: Thank you, John, and thank you, Kris. Thank you so much for sharing your experience. And hopefully, after hearing their experience, people are encouraged to apply for this very unique fellowship opportunity where you would be able to work side by side with folks who work in and out every single day on different policy areas and different impacting the field. And I would definitely say it's a very unique opportunity for you to be able, and then this dedicated emerging period that I'll talk a little bit more. But thank you, John and Kris. All right.

Next is Eligibility and Application Requirements. This slide provides award information. So under Category 1, Agency Sponsored Individual Fellowship. We are expecting to make up to four awards with a maximum award amount of up to $350,000 for the entire performance period of 24 months, and the start date for the award will be October 1st, 2024. Under Category 2, Partner Agency Fellowship Program, we are expecting to make up to three awards with a maximum award amount of $500,000 for the entire performance period of 36 months, and the start date for the award will be October 1st, 2024.

In terms of eligibility for Category 1, the following entities are eligible to apply: city, county, state, tribal government, public, state, private institutions of higher education, nonprofit, for-profit, small businesses, Native American tribal organizations, et cetera. And they are listed on page four and five in the solicitation. So, please look at that page carefully to make sure that you are one of the eligible applicants. Next.

Category 1 is for applicants proposing to host an individual from or associated with their organization. They can apply under any of the several focus areas. Fellows applying under Category 1 will be required to complete a dedicated immersion period of 9 to 12 months, which means working 75 percent to 100 percent of their time working with BJA. And Fellows will be expected to work closely with BJA's team to which they are assigned, participating in key meetings, activities, Kris mentioned conferences. I know some of the Fellows are actively helping and planning our conferences that we put out too, so some of those activities. They will accomplish this through the combination of telework and travel to Washington, D.C. as needed, to participate in key meetings and events. The total fellowship, including the pre- and post-work and the dedicated immersion period, will last up to 24 months, which is the project period for the Category 1. And your application must include a plan with milestones and deliverables, and should also include a plan for mentorship and professional development for the Fellows.

In terms of eligibility for Category 2, the following entities are eligible to apply: public, state, private institutions of higher education, nonprofit, for-profit, Native American tribal organizations. And these are listed on page five of the solicitation. So, please take a closer look at that. Next.

Category 2 is different from Category 1, as eligible applicants under Category 2 can support multiple fellows through a structured fellowship program. For example, eligible applicants can choose to focus on building capacity for community violence intervention leaders to enhance community safety. The CVIPI focus area, or community violence intervention focus area. And they can propose to support two or three experienced practitioner from different communities throughout the country. So that's just once example. The application must include a plan on managing the subawards, including the timeline with milestones and deliverables, and also, should include a professional development plan. The Fellows will have an option to complete the dedicated immersion period of 6 to 9 months, working 75 to 100 percent of their time with BJA's Policy Office team. So you can see in Category 2, dedicated immersion period is an option, and it's for the reduced timeframe of 6 to 9 months. All right. Next.

Lastly, applicants applying for the Category 2 can only apply under one of the three listed focus areas, so it's enhancing support of and reducing stigma for persons with criminal justice involvement who are in recovery fellowship; building capacity of CVI leaders to enhance community safety fellowship; and lastly, enhancing tribal capacity to build strong programs and access resources for programs fellowship. So, next we are going to dive into the seven areas of focus for BJA fellows. Next slide.

The first one here is Reducing Stigma for Persons with Substance Use and Mental Health Disorders and Criminal Justice Involvement Fellowship. So, you will be working with Justice and Behavioral Health Team, supporting BJA's Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Use Programs, whenever you are focusing under use and substance use-related crime and overdose issues. The Fellow will focus on identifying and documenting COSSUP-funded promising and emerging practices that leverage data, research to enhance responses to the crime associated with substance use disorders and drug overdoses and fatalities. The Fellow will work in coordination with BJA staff, the grantees, and the training and technical assistance partners to scan the field for promising and effective research partnerships with local practitioner that advances our understanding of strategies to reduce overdose and substance use disorder and related crime. The Fellows will apply their expertise in organizational change to develop data-driven strategies and tools for assessing change and stigma within the criminal justice agencies. Next.

You will hear from Tasha Aikens, Policy Advisor with BJA, about Improving Corrections and Reintegration under the Second Chance Act Fellowship. So, Tasha, I'll pass it to you.

TASHA AIKENS: Thank you, Tenzing. Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Tasha Aikens. As Tenzing mentioned, I am a Policy Advisor. And I'll be discussing some of the requirements for the program. The Fellow will possess significant reentry policy and practice experience and have a substantial expertise as a policy advocate, legal or social services provider, or academic focusing on the successful reintegration of individuals returning to their communities after incarceration. The Fellow must be an individual who was formerly incarcerated and will bring invaluable perspective of the justice system and community reintegration to this role. Next slide, please.

BJA strongly encourages applicants to submit innovative proposals to complement BJA's current national efforts related to promoting successful reintegration of the incarcerated population and reducing recidivism, and/or assist BJA in identifying and defining new and emerging reentry challenges, as well as efficient and effective methods to address them. The individual must also have opportunities to provide strategic guidance related to corrections and reentry to OJP leadership, as well as the BJA Director, and to inform federal interagency policy efforts to remove barriers to successful reintegration. The Fellow will also work with the BJA's Corrections, Reentry, and Justice Reform Team. Next, I will turn it over to Sunny, who will discuss Advancing Strategies to Prevent and Respond to Hate Crimes Fellowship. Sunny, you're on.

OLIVIA SCHNITZER: Okay. Thank you so much, Tasha. So just very quickly, so one of the focus areas for this year's Fellows Program is a Fellow who can offer subject matter expertise in Advancing Strategies to Prevent and Respond to Hate Crimes. BJA has a growing portfolio of hate crimes grantees, this includes the Emmett Till Cold Case program, focusing on unsolved racially motivated homicides that occurred prior to 1980; The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Program, which focuses on hate crimes that have occurred in the current day, and supports state, local, and tribal law enforcement and prosecution agencies in their work to do to prevent and respond to hate crimes; and the new community-based approaches to prevent and address hate crimes. And this really supports community-based and civil rights organizations in their work to facilitate community healing, community dialogue, prevention efforts, reconciliation efforts, and overall, community resiliency against hate speech, hate incidents, and hate crimes. So the selected Fellow will support the growing portfolio that I just mentioned, and will really be looking into ways to really address some of the key issues facing the field, such as victim underreporting, under-identification in law enforcement agencies, and gaps in services. The selected Fellow will work with BJA staff and the training and technical assistance providers to conduct scans of existing promising practices, work with grantees on their efforts in the field, and generally, support the work of BJA's growing hate crimes portfolio. The Fellow will work with BJA's Courts, Communities, and Strategic Partnerships Team. All right. Next slide.

TENZING LAHDON: Next, we have our newer focus area, Advancing and Improving the Criminal Justice System Using Artificial Intelligence Fellowship. As I mentioned, this is one of our newer fellowship this year. The Fellow will assist BJA in exploring the impact of AI-related issues either in a broad area or more targeted for law enforcement, courts, prosecution, defense, and/or corrections. Some examples of the activities can include, but are not limited to, managing AI's impact on evidence, discovery, and criminal justice processes; contemplating ways to account for biases, completeness, and accuracy in AI tools; and supporting state, tribal, and local criminal justice agencies to become better consumers of AI products. And depending on the topic, the selected Fellow could be placed anywhere across the different policy divisions or within the Policy Office. Interested applicants can apply for this fellowship opportunity under Category 1.

Next, we have Enhancing Support of and Reducing Stigma for Persons with Criminal Justice Involvement Who Are in Recovery Fellowship. And I'm happy to introduce Courtney Stewart, Policy Advisor with BJA.

COURTNEY STEWART: Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Courtney Stewart, and I'm a BJA Policy Advisor and I oversee the Veterans Treatment Court and the Community Courts Program. Now this category, Enhancing Support of and Reducing Stigma for Persons with Criminal Justice Involvement Who Are in Recovery Fellowship, BJA is seeking Fellows with lived experience and knowledge of substance use recovery and the criminal justice system. BJA is seeking Fellows that will support BJA's Adult Treatment Court and Veterans Treatment Court Programs. And the Fellow will work with BJA's Courts, Community, and Strategic Partnership Team. Next slide, please.

Activities can include building and fostering relationships with treatment and recovery national organizations, using data-driven strategies to identify gaps in treatment court services, analyzing data to explore barriers, and enhance access for underserved and historically marginalized populations; developing resources and tools that can leverage peer recovery strategies to overcome stigma, strengthen prosocial attitudes and enhance active coping strategies, especially during post-program transition; and to promote peer-to-peer engagement in treatment courts. Next slide.

TENZING LAHDON: Thank you, Courtney, so much. And next we have Building Capacity of Community Violence Intervention Leaders to Enhance Community Safety Fellowship, and I would like to introduce Kathy Browning, who's a Senior Policy Advisor here at BJA.

KATHERINE BROWNING: Hi. Thank you, Tenzing. As some of you may know, OJP and BJA have had a substantial investment over the last three years in CVI strategies through our Community Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative. So CVIPI is what we refer to that. One of the issues that we've not been able to focus as much on as we'd like is the area of workforce development of CVI practitioners. We do have separate solicitation out now looking for a TTA to provide services around wellness and workforce development. But we're really looking here for a Fellow to assist us in how we can better support the workforce and professionalize the field. There are a number of different issues around the development of career paths for CVI workers, strengthening job skills like computer skills and program management, and the development of training curriculum for outreach workers. We're looking for a Fellow that would bring your experience and knowledge to support a wide range of work that we're doing in this area, while you would be in the division that I'm in, the Courts, Community, and Strategic Partnership Team. We have a cross-agency working group that includes OJJDP, OVC, NIJ, and the Office of the Assistant Attorney General, so you would have the opportunity to work with a large group of individuals. And we're looking for someone who has at least five years of experience as a trusted credible messenger working at the local level on CVI initiatives. At this time, I will turn it over to my colleague Trish Thackston.

M. PATRICIA THACKSTON: Thank you, Kathy. If we can go to the next slide. Oh, no, I'm sorry, we're on the correct slide. I apologize. So I am going to talk about our category around Enhancing Tribal Capacity to Build Strong Programs and Access Resources. This Fellow will work with BJA and our Tribal Justice and Court Leaders to explore barriers and build approaches to help tribal nations access BJA resources. The Fellow will work with BJA's Courts, Communities, and Strategic Partnerships Team. The Fellow will develop a plan with BJA staff to conduct outreach and listening sessions with tribal justice leaders, both Native Americans in the lower 48 and Alaskan Natives. And the Fellow will recommend and develop new training and technical assistance tools, and build capacity to access tribal-focused and other funding available to federally recognized tribes. BJA has a very strong focus at this time on trying to effectively increase the accessibility of our funding to tribal communities. So this Fellow will have an important role in helping us to bring that outside-the-beltway perspective and expertise to making sure that we're able to do this really effectively. And interested applicants can apply for this particular opportunity in both Categories 1 and 2. I don't know if I have another slide here, but if we can go to the next slide. Okay. And I don't. Thank you. Let me pass it to Tenzing.

TENZING LAHDON: Thank you, Trish. Thank you, Trish. So what an application should include. There are many pieces, such as SF-424, abstract narrative, budget details, narrative, and the cost rate, and other things. So I would highly encourage you to use Application Checklist. That's on page 33 of the solicitation to help you guide through the application submission process, and to make sure that you're not missing any of the required pieces in your application, and there's How to Apply section on page 17, so please look at that as well.

The most important thing is [that] applications are screened to ensure they meet Basic Minimum Requirements prior to application going into the peer review process. So some of the things that are part of that are making sure that you are one of the eligible applicants who can apply for this grant, making sure that you include Proposal Abstract, Proposal or Program Narrative, detailed Budget Worksheet, Letter of Support, and then resume of the proposed Fellow. And then [the] Abstract should not be more than 400 words. And then it should include things like applicant name, proposed Fellow's name, category for which you are applying, focus area in which the applicant is applying, total fund requested, and other pieces. And there's more detail on page 20 to 21.

There is Project Narrative, must include four sections: Description of Issue, Project Design and Implementation, Capability and Competency, and Plan for Collecting Data. And in the interest of time, I'm just going to go a little faster here because we want to have some time for Q&A. So [the] narrative should not exceed 15 pages and there is a weighted score for each of these sections under Project Narrative. They are on page 29, so you can see the Project Design and Implementation carries a bigger chunk. So you might want to strategize and put more effort and time into really detailing that Project Design and Implementation in your application. And the Budget and Budget Worksheet, our peer reviewers are also evaluating to make sure they are complete, cost-effective, and allowable. For example, an expense in a budget line item should be reasonable, whether that item is something that you could allocate to the award, and then rather it's necessary for the project. Next slide.

These are some of the additional items, so a Timeline for Category 1. Make sure it's for the full 24 months. For Category 2, it's 36 months. And that it outlines goals, objects, and summary of activities, resumes, letter of support, and other things that are listed here. Next slide.

So, we really urge you all to submit your application in Grants.gov and JustGrants prior to the due date to allow for sufficient time to correct any errors, and resubmit by the submission deadline, and please remember there are two deadlines. So the step one is to submit SF-424 and SF-LLL form in Grants.gov by the deadline of July 24th. And the step two is to submit the full application in JustGrants by the deadline of July 31st, 8:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Next.

And we will go over application resources in the next few slides. What you see on your screen is OJP Grant Application Resource Guide that provides you guidance in preparing and submitting applications for OJP funding and it goes through step-by-step processes on how to submit an application. Next slide.

Here, we have JustGrants Learning System. So as you're moving forward with submitting your application through JustGrants, towards various resources that can support you in submitting your application to the JustGrants system. Next slide.

So, if you are looking to submit an application, again, if you have any issue with Grants.gov, that's the customer hotline number to call. You can also email them. And then, for JustGrants technical assistance support, the customer support number and the timing, and the email address are listed here. They are also listed on page five of the solicitation. Next slide.

And these are just your different ways you can connect to us. You can subscribe and get latest information on our open solicitations. Next slide.

Here are ways to stay connected with us. We are on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, so feel free to subscribe. And we are doing some of the great things, then you want to be connected to that. So next slide.

So, if you have any questions about the solicitation or solicitation requirement programming, please contact OJP Response Center email address. You can call that number that's listed here. And we might not get to all the questions that came in through Q&A today, so please use that email address or phone call to get your questions in and we will be responding to all your questions through that as well. Next slide.

Once again, the deadline, step one, in Grants.gov, July 24th. Step two, deadline to submit full application at Grants.gov by July 31st 8:59 [p.m.] Eastern Standard Time. Next slide.

And here's just contact information for Grants.gov and JustGrants, as well as OJP Response Center. Once again, we are recording this webinar, we will be providing the PowerPoint slides to all folks who are registered, as well as on our website. Next.

So now, we are opening it up for any questions that came in. All right. So let's see. I see a few questions around whether the fellowship is in D.C. or it's remote. So the dedicated immersion period is the time when we are expecting you to be working 75% to 100% of the time, it does not need to be in D.C. We allow for hybrid and flexible work environment.

So, how often you need to come to D.C. is negotiable, like we want to make sure you are there for any key meetings that are happening in D.C. or any conferences that we might want you to attend. So we are flexible and you would work closely with your assigned policy point of contact in setting up your deliverables at the front end, list of deliverables that meet your expectation but also BJA's expectation. And then, you will work collaboratively throughout the project period on those. So yes, it's hybrid.

"And how much time someone would be physically in D.C. versus remote?" It's something that you can plan on, it's virtual and hybrid, like I said, so it depends on what your fellowship vision looks like and also what the BJA Policy Advisor needs are. But most of the time, we have Fellows right now who are coming in for meetings, key meetings, and we have Fellows who are in Washington State, California, Idaho, so, they come in only as needed be. So they're not here for long period of time. Okay.

"So what's the difference between applicants and those referred as Fellows?" So I think that's a really good question. So you would see in solicitation, there are eligible organizations, so our hope is that they would identify Fellows or folks who they would recommend and support their applications to serve as a Fellow. So applicants will serve as a fiscal agent. So for example, XYZ organization applies on behalf of John and then, the XYZ organization would be our prime grantee but the Fellows would be the people that they are recommending as Fellow who might be associated with that organization or currently are working in that organization. So it can be either someone they are affiliated with or associated with, or our staff member that they want to recommend to work as a Fellow at BJA.

"For those who are not located and/or near D.C., I assume any travel or housing accommodation should be paid out of proposed funds?" Yes, so when you are submitting budget for your budget, it should include approximate travel to D.C., hotel for one or two days at the per diem that we use the GSA per diem rates for hotel, and meals, and stuff, so just planning using those and that should be part of your budget. So there's no additional funding except that should be included in your budget that you submit along with your application.

“Does the fellowship offer benefits such as health insurance or this is covered by sponsoring agency?" This would be covered by sponsoring agency and sponsoring agency can include those health benefits and other costs in the budget, like under fringe benefits or you can have personnel costs, you can have fringe benefits, the agency adding that at cost rate associated with the program activities, they can include that, too, travel, and other pieces.

"If one organization applies for two different people, can two different people be selected?" So if you're applying under Category 1, it has to be individual application submission for each person you're applying to be Fellow. Under Category 2, an organization can propose two different fellows to be supported and then, they can be both selected. Because under Category 2, we are selecting the organization and then, they would have multiple Fellows under that organization. So anything—I feel like I have responded and…

DARYL FOX: And you covered it, just make…

TENZING LAHDON: Yeah.

DARYL FOX: The time commitment in the D.C. area, I think is one of the common questions.

TENZING LAHDON: Yeah. And you would work closely with your policy point of contact. We are very flexible in terms of how often you need to come. Sometimes, we have seen people are really interested in having that immersion and then, being in D.C., so the prime applicants who's applying for the Fellow should have that conversation in terms of do you want to be in D.C. for the full length of six to nine months, or that dedicated immersion timeframe? If they really want to be in office every day, then that's, if there are associated costs related to housing and other things, then it should be included in the budget. And I would say D.C. is expensive. So okay.

And there were a few questions around if they can get slides and recording. So I think Daryl had mentioned it but we are recording this webinar and we will be providing a copy of this recorded webinar along with PowerPoint to people who registered for this, as well as we'll be posting this on the website. Okay. All right.

So, I think we are at 1:00, so I'll pass it back to Daryl. But before I do, I want to thank everyone for joining us today. And thanks to all our presenters. And thank you, especially, Daryl, for helping us with the webinar. And folks, if you have any other questions or anything is not clear or we didn't get to, please email those to OJP Response Center at [email protected], and we will get back to you on your questions. And thank you, everyone, for being on this webinar today. So Daryl, I'll pass it back to you.

DARYL FOX: Wonderful. Thanks, Tenzing. So on behalf of the Bureau of Justice Assistance and all of our panelists, we want to thank you for joining today's webinar. This will end today's presentation.