Children and Youth with Special Health Needs (CYSHN)
Programs
- Birth Defects Monitoring and Analysis
- Early Hearing Detection and Intervention
- Follow Along Program
- Longitudinal Follow-up for Newborn Screening Conditions
Related Sites
Contact Info
Request for Proposals: Minnesota Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Outreach, Prevention, and Support Grant
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) implemented funding for outreach, prevention, and support of FASD since 1998 under Minn. Stat §145.9266 and later under Minn. Stat §145.267 as well. The Minnesota Department of Health’s (MDH) Children and Youth with Special Health Needs (CYSHN) section is seeking proposals from qualified organizations to provide equitable, culturally and linguistically inclusive services that prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) and support children with FASD and their caregivers/families. Qualified organizations must demonstrate an ability to reach audiences across the state of Minnesota.
Eligible Applicants
Per Minn. Stat §145.267, the applicant must be a statewide organization that focuses solely on prevention and intervention of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. The applicant must be capable of making subgrants and contracts available to eligible regional collaboratives, community organizations, and coalitions in rural and urban areas of the state. For more information, please see Minn. Stat §145.267.
RFP and Application Materials
Applicants must submit the following attachments and fill out all forms listed for the application to be considered complete.
- MN Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Outreach, Prevention, and Support RFP (PDF)
- Project Narrative (instructions on RFP page 14)
- Form A: Face Sheet (Word)
- Form B: Work Plan (Excel)
- Form C: Budget Justification (Word)
- Form D: Budget Summary (Word)
- Form E: Due Diligence (PDF)
- Form F: Indirect Cost Questionnaire (Non-CHB applicants only) (Word)
- Applicant Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form (PDF)
Important Dates
Date | Item |
---|---|
February 22, 2024 | Request for Proposals (RFP) released |
March 3, 2024 | RFP question submission deadline at 5:00pm CST Subject line: MN Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Outreach, Prevention, and Support RFP Question |
March 5, 2024 | All questions and answers will be posted |
March 23, 2024 | Application submission deadline at 5:00pm CST |
July 1, 2024 | Expected project start date |
June 30, 2029 | Expected project end date |
Funding
MDH will make one grant award with one organization for the entire funding available during the five-year period (7/1/2024 to 6/30/2029). Funding available for the first two years of the five-year grant cycle is $3,222,000. The amount of money available at any point is subject to any changes made by the state legislature.
Funding | Estimate |
---|---|
Estimated Amount of Grant Annually | $3,222,000 |
Estimated Amount for 5 Year Cycle | ~$16,110,000 |
Number of Awards | 1 |
Questions and Answers
Applicants may email Karmen Dippmann at health.cyshn@state.mn.us for questions about the application. Please submit questions no later than March 3, 2024 at 5:00PM CST and include the subject line: MN Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Outreach, Prevention, and Support RFP Question. All questions and answers will be posted on this page by March 5, 2024.
Q1. Can you provide more detail on what type of expenses are direct versus indirect?
Per the Minnesota Department of Health Grants Office, The term “direct costs” refers to a category of costs. Direct costs include costs for activities, goods or services that benefit and can be traced to a specific project (often included in budget and invoice line items such as “Salary/Fringe”, “Supplies”, “Contractual”, etc). MDH prefers that, as much as possible, grant funds support direct costs that correspond with program activities (as opposed to direct costs that correspond with administrative activities, as described in definition 3, “Administrative Costs”).
Examples of direct costs that correspond with program activities:
- Hypodermic needles used to conduct grant-funded STD tests.
- Space rental costs for grant-funded event or workshop.
- Mileage and lodging for staff who traveled for work on a grant-funded project.
- Wages and benefits for staff time tracked as having been worked on a grant-funded project.
The term “indirect costs” refers to a category of costs. Indirect costs include costs for activities, goods or services that benefit more than one project and cannot be traced to a specific program. These costs are often allocated across an entire agency/organization and multiple programs. In accordance with federal and state requirements, MDH enacts limits on the amount of indirect costs that can be billed to each grant so that, as much as possible, grant funds instead support direct costs that are related to programmatic activities.
Examples of indirect costs:
- A portion of the total cost of the organization’s annual audit.
- A portion of the organization’s total depreciation costs.
- A portion of the total cost of the organization’s security system.
Administrative costs are a type of cost as opposed to a category. Administrative costs are those for activities, goods or services that correspond with administrative functions of an organization. Sometimes administrative costs benefit and can be traced to a specific project and, in those cases, are categorized as direct costs. Other times administrative costs benefit more than one project and cannot be traced to a specific program. In those cases, they are categorized as indirect costs. MDH asks all grantees to minimize administrative costs so that, as much as possible, grant funds instead support direct costs that are related to program activities.
Examples of administrative costs categorized as direct costs:
- A portion of the organization’s monthly printer/copier lease and maintenance fees, calculated by tracking how many jobs were coded to the grant program and applying a percentage based on usage.
- A portion of the organization’s administrative support, accounting or human resources, calculated by tracking time spent by staff on the grant program.
- A portion of the organization’s occupancy costs, calculated by applying a square footage cost total to the amount of physical space used for grant program management and activities.
- Examples of administrative costs categorized as indirect costs:
- A portion of the organization’s monthly printer/copier lease and maintenance fees, when an internal system does not allow service to be tracked by project.
- A portion of the organization’s administrative support, accounting or human resources, when an internal system does not allow time to be tracked by project.
- A portion of the organization’s occupancy costs, when it is not feasible or reasonable to calculate by project.
Q2. Can we include out-of-state conferences that are considered core to our work in our budget, and if so, can you please provide guidance regarding the out-of-state travel?
Budgeting for out-of-state conferences that are relevant or necessary to the work of FASD are allowable, pending grant manager approval. Applicants can apply for the grant with budgeting that accounts for out-of-state conferences. Any budgeting for travel should fall under the “Travel” category of the budget. Other fees incurred with attending conferences in- or out-of-state would typically fall under the “Other” category.
Q3. Collaborating with national stakeholders may require out-of-state travel or small subcontracts to out-of-state individuals or organizations. To what extent can we include this in our budget?
Upon grant manager approval, out-of-state travel or subgrants to confer/consult with National FASD leaders and experts is allowable. Applicants can apply for the grant with budgeting that accounts for this travel or subcontracts/subgrants.