CSBG-DCL-2022-28 Training and Technical Assistance Resources FY 2023

The purpose of this communication is to provide an update regarding the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 training and technical assistance (T/TA) resources.

Over the last year, the Office of Community Services (OCS) has been focused on strengthening the T/TA we provide to ensure that it is effective (meaningful and relevant T/TA), pro-active (anticipatory of the needs of grant recipients), continuous (timely, ongoing T/TA that supports compliance needs as well as strategic engagement and continuous quality improvement), and innovative (out of the box thinking to best support grant recipients and families).

Programs across OCS are at different stages of aligning their T/TA efforts with these overarching goals. For CSBG, we want to continue to build a T/TA learning agenda that:

• Ensures the T/TA provided by the federal government and CSBG T/TA providers adequately and effectively targets the needs of the CSBG Network, hereafter referred to as “the Network”, in a changing environment.
• Builds in and maintains a variety of ways to collect and use information from across the Network. We will use this information to inform how T/TA needs are met and what the most pressing priorities are for the Network including, CSBG Tribes and Tribal Organizations, state lead agencies, territories, state associations, eligible entities, and T/TA providers.
• Develops knowledge and identifies best practices for results-driven strategies.
• Provides an opportunity to evaluate and demonstrate the impact of T/TA resources individually and as a whole.
• Addresses the concerns regarding the need to demonstrate results within the CSBG program.

First Steps in Strengthening the CSBG T/TA Learning Agenda at the Federal Level

Over the last few months, we have identified several opportunities to help us bring to fruition the vision outlined above.

First, we examined all our current T/TA, including our discretionary grants and contracts. We reviewed the language we included in the Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs), we analyzed what was submitted, the activities that have taken place over the years, and what has been reported on since the launch of each cooperative agreement with regards to both outputs and outcomes. Through this analysis we identified some pressing issues that are not being addressed by the current grants or contracts or the forecasts that we published in early FY 2022.

Through the comparison, we found unmet needs. For instance, we have heard from several states, eligible entities, and partners that some states face obstacles in getting CSBG funding out in a timely and efficient manner. However, identifying and assisting grant recipients in overcoming those obstacles is not in any of our current cooperative agreements nor is it in the forecasts that we have released. Similarly, we have heard that eligible entities around the country need help with better articulating and demonstrating the impact of their work. However, this is also not specifically called out in our grants or contracts.

Second, we looked at the amount of funding we allocate for T/TA grants and contracts every year. Per the CSBG Act, we are required to reserve and distribute half of our federal administrative dollars for T/TA efforts to eligible entities, or statewide or local organizations or associations, with demonstrated expertise in providing training to individuals and organizations on methods of effectively addressing the needs of low-income families and communities. Each year, we not only meet this mandate, we exceed it. For instance, since 2015, without including CARES Act funding, we have allocated over $7.7 million above our mandated threshold. However, the close examination of our practices revealed that the timelines of our multiple T/TA discretionary grants and contracts are not aligned, which hinders our ability to create a comprehensive plan. For instance, instead of identifying the most pressing needs of the field and how to use all our technical assistance resources to address those needs, we are often in a position where we have to determine what can be done for a certain amount of funding, based on what grants are sunsetting, which limits our ability to provide effective T/TA based on emerging needs and a full T/TA landscape analysis.

Action Steps to Operationalize Lessons Learned

After analyzing the lessons learned from the aforementioned steps, OCS decided to:

1. Rescind the forecasts for additional grant opportunities for FY 2023 (this does not impact any grants or contracts that were previously awarded). As many of you are aware, grant forecasts provide a preview of potential funding opportunities that we may announce in the future—they are not set in stone and can change significantly due to changes in funding, priorities, needs, opportunities, etc. And, in some cases, we do not ultimately fund what is included in the forecast. In this case, we will not fund the grants that were forecasted to: 1) ensure that the next round of CSBG T/TA grants and contracts are all on the same cycle, and 2) ensure they adequately reflect the T/TA priorities of the Network. This will allow us to conduct a full T/TA landscape analysis and utilize all the T/TA funding available to us to address the most pressing needs in the Network.
2. Extend the current RPIC grants for one year to ensure that each of our valued T/TA partners, including the National Association for State Community Services Programs (NASCSP), National Community Action Partnership (NCAP), and Community Action Partnership Legal Services, Inc. (CAPLAW), has a FY 2023 grant to provide needed T/TA while we align the timelines for all CSBG T/TA grants and contracts. Additionally, the RPICs have been asked to take the lessons they have learned in the first three years of their grant and focus this year on enhancing their results-driven T/TA activities for strengthening the Network and identifying measurable outcomes. We are excited to learn from them and be in conversation with them during this time.
3. Work with colleagues in the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) to develop and finalize a T/TA survey that will go out to the Network. The survey will help shape the forecasts we will announce later this calendar year and inform the overall T/TA efforts.
4. Re-examine what is working well and what can be improved with regards to T/TA. We will host listening sessions and roundtable discussions to help us develop and execute a T/TA plan that is effective and measurable. 

As we have been underscoring in our conversations with the Network—we cannot simply maintain the status quo, we must continue to innovate and draw on the lessons learned during this pandemic. It is imperative that we all examine our processes, policies, and activities and identify ways to strengthen them to ensure we are maximining our efforts and fully utilizing every resource we have available to us to make a concrete difference in the lives of the individuals, children, families, and communities we serve both individually and collectively.