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REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

RACIAL JUSTICE IMPROVEMENT PROJECT
THE ABA CRIMINAL JUSTICE SECTION
FUNDED BY THE BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE

2013 MINI-GRANT PROJECT DESCRIPTION


The American Bar Association Criminal Justice Section Racial Justice Improvement Project
(the Project), with support from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, invites local courts,
district attorney offices, police departments, public defender offices, and not-for-profit (501
c-3) organizations active in criminal justice to apply for one of four mini-grants available to
support the implementation of a local racial justice improvement task force focused on
addressing policy within the criminal justice system that contributes to the racially disparate
impact of the criminal justice system.

I. Background

A. What is The Racial Justice Improvement Project?

The Racial Justice Improvement Project is sponsored by the American Bar Association
(ABA) Criminal Justice Section with a grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

B. What are the Projects Goals and Objectives?

The goal of the Racial Justice Improvement Project is to create a pathway by which local
jurisdictions can address critical criminal justice issues that contribute to the racially disparate
impact of the criminal justice system.

The specific objectives of the Project are to:

(1) Address the racially disparate impact of the criminal justice system in four jurisdictions;
using the Racial Justice Task Force Model (the Model),
(2) Provide facilitation and informational resources to each pilot jurisdiction to implement the
Model;
(3) Evaluate the Models effectiveness in engaging community stakeholders by developing
stakeholder consensus regarding the racial justice issues that exist in each jurisdiction, a work
plan to address a specific racial justice issue(s) in each jurisdiction, effective implementation
of the work plan, and a sustainable plan for the Racial Justice Task Force beyond the pilot
period; and
(4) Develop written materials (articles, reports, tool kits, etc.) and support the projects
website to support replication in other jurisdictions.

II. Project Guidelines

A. Who is Eligible for the Grants?

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Applicant organizations should be local US courts, district attorney offices, police
departments, public defender offices, or not-for-profit (501c-3) organizations active in
criminal justice.


B. What Are the Program Requirements?

Each selected applicant will agree to create a Racial Justice Task Force (the Task Force)
comprised of the major criminal justice players in the local community or jurisdiction. The
Task Force in each jurisdiction will not only include those employed by the criminal justice
system but also community members. The Task Force should:

Incorporate stakeholder and community dialogue and engagement and provide
criminal justice stakeholders and a community representative with a place at the
stakeholder table. In so doing, those directly impacted by high crime rates as well as
by racial disparities will actively inform discussions about issues, problems, and
solutions.
Utilize a facilitated, cross-system problem-solving approach to develop action plans
and build long-term capacity at the local level to continue the work of the Task Force
beyond the pilot project. Long-term commitment from local stakeholders who are
invested in the outcome is essential for successful system-level change.

The Task Force will be responsible for facilitating the Project in two stages. During the first
stage, the Task Force will identify and analyze data to assess the racially disparate impact of
the criminal justice system in its local jurisdiction. During the second stage, the Task Force
will implement a strategy and plan of action tailored to the needs of its criminal justice system
and continue to collect data to monitor change. Each stage will last for one year of the grant
period.

The Project Consultants and ABA staff will provide ongoing technical assistance during the
course of the grant period.

Grant recipients must:

Support data identification and analysis in their jurisdiction. A basic data review will
be put into place as soon as the sites are selected to assess several factors, these factors
may include but are not limited to:
o The number of minorities released pre trial
o The number of non-minorities released pre trial
o The number of minorities who have revoked probation
o The number of non-minorities who have revoked probation
o The number of minorities arrested;
o The number of non-minorities arrested;
o The number of minorities convicted;
o The number of non-minorities convicted;
o The number of cases dismissed against minorities;
o The number of cases dismissed against non-minorities;
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o The percentage of minorities employed in the jurisdictions justice
department compared to the population as a whole (courts, public
defenders, state, and police); and
o The percentage of minorities who actually sit on a jury compared to the
population as a whole.
Attend and facilitate training programs.
o Each Task Force member must attend a one-day conference in April 2013.
The conference will be held at one of the grant sites and led by the Project
Director, other Project Consultants, and ABA staff. Project participants
will be trained to implement the curriculum developed by the ABA
Enterprise Grant and other model curricula that will be used to train the
stakeholders at each selected site.
Draft and implement a strategy and plan of action. The Task Force should identify
the racial justice issues that stakeholders perceive in their jurisdiction and create a
strategy and plan of action with specific attainable goals for the jurisdiction. This
strategy will be implemented in the jurisdiction in the second year of the grant period
and monitored by the Project Consultant and ABA staff.
Meet regularly throughout the grant period. The Project Director and other Project
Consultants will attend three meetings at each grant site per year to assess the
functioning of the Task Forces. These meetings should be used to:
o Identify and understand the racial justice issues in each jurisdiction;
o Discuss data collection strategies and results;
o Build consensus on a specific issue(s) that each jurisdiction would like to
address through the Task Force
o Build consensus as to an appropriate response or solution to the identified
issue(s);
o Map out a strategic plan to address the issue(s);
o Identify the resources needed to implement the plan;
o Begin implementation of the plan;
o Anchor leadership and the on-going commitment of local stakeholders to
continuing the work of the Task Force.
Attend a one-day conference at the conclusion of the grant period. Participants from
all four sites will have the opportunity to share experiences, insights, and solutions
from the Project and to provide feedback on the Racial Justice Task Force Model and
on the Project outcomes. The Project Director, other Project Consultants, and ABA
staff will lead this conference at one of the selected grant sites.

D. Reporting

Because a major goal of the Racial Justice Improvement Project is to identify successful
strategies that can be replicated by other communities, grant recipients will be expected to
provide the Project Director with three brief reports per year of the grant period. At the end of
the grant period, grant recipients must also provide a more extensive summary report that
identifies strategies that worked in their communities and that explains how and why these
strategies worked, with an overall summary of the reform and its implementation.
Additionally, two financial statements per year of the grant period will be required. At the
end of the grant period, a final financial statement detailing total expenditures must be
submitted.

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E. What are the Application Requirements?

The proposal must be prepared in an electronic format using this 2013 Mini-grant Application
developed by the Racial Justice Improvement Project. The completed Application may not
exceed ten pages. Attachments, such as letters and resumes, are not part of the ten page limit.

In addition to the Application Form, all applications must demonstrate that the following
individuals in the relevant jurisdiction have agreed to participate in the Project: (1) the Chief
Judge, (2) the Chief of Police or County Sheriff, (3) the District Attorney, (4) the Public
Defender, and (5) a Community Representative. Please note: a designee may be sufficient
with prior approval. Applications must include a signed letter from each of these required
participants, indicating a commitment to involvement in the Project.

Further, all applications must designate and include the resume of a Site Facilitator who will
be responsible for facilitating the Project and receiving and distributing the grant funds. The
Site Facilitator need not be an employee of the applicant organization(s). The Site Facilitator
will submit regular progress and semi-annual budget reports, serve as a liaison and share
information with the Project Director for the relevant jurisdiction, organize data identification
and analysis in his or her jurisdiction, attend and coordinate training programs, organize six
formal meetings per year of the grant period (three per year will be organized with the
assistance of the Project Director, other Project Consultants, and ABA staff), and attend a
one-day conference at the conclusion of the grant period.

Applicants are encouraged to submit two letters of support from other organizations that will
be involved in the applicants Task Force or with knowledge of the needs to be addressed by
the Project. The letters must be signed by the president, board chair, chief executive, or other
equivalent authority of the organization. Applications with letters of support from relevant
judges, court personnel, police officers, attorneys, or community leaders, who would interact
with the proposed project will be given high consideration.

F. How will Sites be Selected?

The ABA will select four applicant sites to participate in the Project based on the following
characteristics: (1) quality of the application; (2) commitment to the Project; (3) a
demonstrated racial disparity in the community; (4) diversity in the community; and (5)
region of the country (the goal of the Project is to incorporate jurisdictions from different
geographic regions of the country).

G. What Funding is Available?

The Racial Justice Improvement Project will award grants of $12,000.00 to each selected site
in each year of the grant period, for a total of $24,000.00 to each site. These funds may be
spent as needed to support the creation of a Racial Justice Task Force. For example,
depending upon the needs of a Task Force, the funds may be spent on such things as:

Data identification and analysis
Site Facilitator;
Training expenses, including the
production of training materials;
Promotional materials to notify the
community about a Racial Justice Task
Force;
Planning meetings;
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Travel expenses to send team members
to the training conference (or other
relevant conferences/workshops);
Travel expenses to bring a
speaker/expert on Racial Justice
Improvement to a local planning
meeting, training event, or bar
association meeting.

The mini-grants are not an ongoing source of funding but are meant to start or enhance
projects that can be sustained by other resources.




H. What is the Grant Period?

A grant is for a period of two years. The grant period will begin on March 1, 2013 and end on
March 1, 2015

I. How and When to Apply?

Applications must be received by February 1, 2013 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time:

(1) Email the completed 2013 Mini-grant Application to the Racial Justice Improvement
Project Director, Salma Safidine at [email protected], AND

(2) Place in the U.S. mail a hard copy of the completed 2013 Mini-grant Application (not to
exceed 10 pages) and two letters of support, addressed to Racial Justice Improvement
Grants, ABA Criminal Justice Section, 740 15th St. NW, Washington, DC 20005.

Mini-grant recipients will be announced by February 20, 2013

J. Questions about the Mini-grants

For more information about the mini-grants, please contact the Project Director, Salma
Safiedine, at [email protected]


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CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPROVEMENT PROJECT

2013 MINI-GRANT APPLICATION FORM

I. Applicant Information

Applicant Jurisdiction:

Applicant Organization(s):

Executive Site Director
Name:
Address:
Telephone:
Fax:
Email:

Required Participant Chief Judge
Name:
Address:
Telephone:
Fax:
Email:

Required Participant Chief of Police or County Sheriff
Name:
Address:
Telephone:
Fax:
Email:

Required Participant District Attorney
Name:
Address:
Telephone:
Fax:
Email:

Required Participant Public Defender
Name:
Address:
Telephone:
Fax:
Email:





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Required Participant Community Representative
Name:
Address:
Telephone:
Fax:
Email:

II. Basic Community Information

Provide a description (one to two pages) of the current circumstances in your community for
which you are seeking funding from the Racial Justice Improvement Project.

III. Detailed Project Information

Provide brief responses to each of the following questions, addressing only the needs for
which you are seeking funding.

A. What are your objectives for participation in the Project?

B. What problems do you plan to address? Include current statistics for total
population and minority populations for your jurisdiction.

C. What are your plans to remain committed to addressing racial disparity in your
community beyond the second year of the grant period? How will you continue to
utilize the Criminal Justice Improvement Project to sustain and build upon the
work of the project?

IV. Plans to Overcome Anticipated Obstacles

Describe any obstacles you anticipate in implementing the Project and how you will
overcome these obstacles. Typical obstacles may include the following:

A. Barriers to the collection of necessary data.
B. Unwillingness of parties law enforcement, defense lawyers, prosecutors,
community members to participate because of lack of information, case type,
victims impact, or resistance to change.

V. Detailed Budget Information

Please submit a one-page budget narrative that indicates how you intend to use the mini-grant
funds, consulting item G above. If you have matching or contributing funds, please identify
the source of all matching or contributing funds. Matching or contributing funds are not
required to apply for the mini-grant.

VII. Deadline

Applications must be received by February 1, 2013, at 5:00 PM Eastern Time:

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(1) Email the completed 2013 Mini-grant Application to [email protected]
AND

(2) Place in the U.S. mail a hard copy of the completed 2013 Mini-grant Application (not to
exceed 10 pages) and two letters of support, addressed to Criminal Justice Improvement
Grants, ABA Criminal Justice Section, 740 15th St. NW, Washington, DC 20005.

Mini-grant recipients will be announced by February 20, 2013.




























These subs grants are funded in a whole through a grant from the Bureau of Justice
Assistance, Office of Justice Programs, US Department of Justice. Neither the US Department
of Justice nor any of its components operate, control, are responsible for, or necessarily
endorse the content and materials generated as a result of this sub grant agreement. (Including
any policies, services or tools provided)