Funding is available for organizations and professionals to be trained in and implement evidence-based services to help children stay with their families safely

North Dakota Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced $350,000 of Title IV-E Prevention Services Grant funds are available for agencies and professionals to become trained in and implement approved, evidence-based Title IV-E prevention services.

Approved services focus on behavioral health and in-home parent skill-based programs supporting family stability and preventing children from entering foster care. Applications for the Title IV-E Prevention Services Grant will be accepted until all funds are allocated or March 31, 2025, whichever comes first.

"These grants will help increase services that keep children safe and prevent out-of-home placements as part of our key priority to support strong, stable families," said Children and Family Services Director Cory Pedersen. "Investing in evidence-based prevention services has shown to reduce child abuse and neglect."

HHS is offering both agency and individual grants to enable entities to become trained in and implement evidence-based practices and become approved Title IV-E prevention services providers as identified in the state's Title IV-E Prevention Services Plan, by the Family First Prevention Services Act.

The state has nine approved services and programs that include Family Check-Up, Healthy Families, Parents as Teachers, Nurse-Family Partnership, Homebuilders, Brief Strategic Family Therapy, Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, Multisystemic Therapy and Functional Family Therapy.

To qualify for the grant, an individual service provider or agency must intend to be trained and implement at least one evidence-based service identified in the ND Title IV-E Prevention Services Plan, in at least one North Dakota Community. Grant funds will be awarded to assist with the costs associated with the training and implementation of the approved ND Title IV-E prevention service. Grant awards are available for:

• One staff not to exceed $17,000
• Two staff not to exceed $34,000
• Three or more staff not to exceed $45,000

Applications may be submitted any time before March 31, 2025, and will be reviewed as they are received. Additional information and the grant application are available at hhs.nd.gov/cfs/title-iv-e-prevention-services.