Deadline: 13-Jun-23
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) seeks applications for the BJA Visiting Fellows Program.
With this solicitation, the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) seeks to invest in current and future leaders in the criminal justice field to advance priority national policy issues and offer cross-developmental opportunities for Department of Justice (DOJ) staff and criminal justice practitioners and researchers.
The purpose of each fellowship is to make important policy and programmatic contributions in a criminal justice focus area. Fellows will collaborate with BJA and DOJ staff members to provide critical outreach, data, research, and subject matter expertise to inform the development of new BJA strategies, policies, and programs to benefit the field.
The fellowship is intended to provide professional development opportunities for the fellow and
build relationships between BJA and those with technical expertise in the field. BJA offers a
flexible work environment that supports both virtual and in-person work options. Fellows will
complete a “residency” at BJA during which they will be integrated into a BJA Policy Office team
for 9 to 12 months and devote 75 to 100 percent of their time to BJA. Fellows will be expected to
work closely with the BJA team to which they are assigned, participating in key meetings and
activities. They will accomplish this through a combination of telework and travel to Washington,
D.C., as needed, to participate in key meetings and events.
Objectives
- An applicant should address the objectives that are relevant to their proposed program/project in the Goals, Objectives, Deliverables, and Timeline web-based form. Objectives include:
- Work with BJA to assess the technical assistance, training, and capacity-building needs in the focus areas
- Bring real world and lived experience and knowledge to BJA that enhances staff’s ability to deliver relevant and effective tools to the field.
- Support the development of criminal justice practitioners, researchers, and BJA/OJP staff members to advance BJA’s mission.
- Assist and translate knowledge about critical criminal justice issues and strategies and promote innovation.
Focus Area
- BJA will host up to eight fellows in the following focus areas to build capacity to address gaps and emerging issues in the criminal justice field:
- Researcher–Practitioner Partnership Fellowship to Reduce Substance Userelated Crime and Overdose: The fellow will support strategies to enhance researcher–practitioner partnerships designed to reduce substance use-related crime and overdose as part of the Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Use Disorder Program (COSSUP).
- Enhancing Support of and Reducing Stigma for Persons with Criminal Justice Involvement Who Are in Recovery Fellowship: BJA is seeking up to three fellows with lived experience and knowledge of substance use recovery as well as criminal justice involvement at one or more intercept points of the criminal justice system.
- Improving Corrections and Reintegration under the Second Chance Act Fellowship: The fellow will possess significant reentry policy and practice experience and have substantial expertise as a policy advocate, legal or social services provider, or academic focusing on the successful reintegration of people returning home to their communities after incarceration.
- Enhancing the Upholding the Rule of Law and Preventing Wrongful Conviction Program Fellowship: This fellow must have expertise and experience in representing individuals who have been wrongfully convicted. The fellow will initiate a project to engage the field and assess needs, risks, and innovations to enhance this program and improve the integrity of the criminal justice process.
- Advancing Strategies to Prevent and Respond to Hate Crimes Fellowship: BJA has developed a comprehensive suite of programs designed to support law enforcement, prosecutors, community-based organizations, and civil rights organizations in their efforts to prevent and address the alarming increase in hate crimes.
- Enhancing Strategies for Addressing Violent Crime in Tribal Communities: The fellow will work with BJA staff and will support the BJA-funded Tribal Training and Technical Assistance Program in the Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS).
Funding Information
- Anticipated Number of Awards: 8
- Anticipated Maximum Dollar Amount of Awards: $350,000
- Period of Performance Start Date: 10/1/23
- Period of Performance Duration (Months): 24
- Anticipated Total Amount to be Awarded Under Solicitation: $2,750,000
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligible Applicants:
- City or township governments
- County governments
- For profit organizations other than small businesses
- Native American tribal governments (federally recognized)
- Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments)
- Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Private institutions of higher education
- Public and state controlled institutions of higher education
- Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
- State governments
- Eligible applicants are limited to state, tribal, or local governments, organizations, or academic institutions seeking to provide federal-level experience for one of their staff members who serves a key role in their agency. Organizations seeking to place an employee or representative as a fellow under this program will not have programmatic oversight of that staff person for those activities conducted as part of the fellowship.
- For the purposes of this solicitation, “state” means any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
- All persons serving in the fellowship positions must be U.S. citizens at the time of application. The person seeking to complete the fellowship must have all of the expertise needed to conduct the proposed activities in the fellowship, including at least 5 years of policy or criminal justice experience in the relevant area of practice or research, working in a policy or applied criminal justice setting (such as a criminal justice agency, law enforcement, criminal court, prosecutor, corrections, or partner agency such as a social service provider), or an agency or office with responsibility for criminal justice and public policy (such as a Governor’s office, mayor’s office, or other important policy setting pertinent to criminal justice).
- This solicitation will prioritize people with lived experience such as individuals directly impacted by the justice system who can bring the insights of their experience to inform and enhance systems, research, policies, practices, and programs that aim to address the six focus areas.
- Researchers should apply only if they have the expertise and specific skills in developing
models and applied research tools for the field, implementing evidence-based practices, collecting and analyzing of data, and measuring and evaluating performance management.
- Fellows should be self-starters who can effectively manage the work outlined in this Visiting Fellows Program solicitation. Applicants must demonstrate the administrative capacity, particularly fiscal administrative capacity, to manage an agreement or award, as well as demonstrate the knowledge and skills of the person proposed to serve in the fellowship and successfully execute the proposed fellowship activities.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.