Statewide Family Network Grant

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2009 Statewide Family Network grants. The purpose of this program is to enhance State capacity and infrastructure to be more oriented to the needs of children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances and their families. The Statewide Family Network Program builds on the work of the Child, Adolescent and Services Systems Program (CASSP), which helped to establish a child and family focus in programs serving children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances around the country. Today, nearly every State has active family organizations dedicated to promoting systems of care that are responsive to the needs of children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances and their families. Although significant progress has been made, further support will ensure self-sufficient, empowered networks that will effectively participate in State and local mental health services planning and health care reform activities related to improving community-based services for children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances and their families. The purpose of the Statewide Family Network grant program is to enhance State capacity and infrastructure to be more oriented to the needs of children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances and their families. Statewide Family Network Grants is one of SAMHSA’s infrastructure grant programs. SAMHSA’s Infrastructure Grants support an array of activities to help the grantee build a solid foundation for delivering and sustaining effective mental health service. SAMHSA recognizes that each applicant will start from a unique point in developing infrastructure and will serve populations/communities with specific needs. Awardees may pursue diverse strategies and methods to achieve their infrastructure development and capacity expansion goals. Successful applicants will provide a coherent and detailed conceptual “roadmap” of the process by which they have assessed or intend to assess service system needs and plan/implement infrastructure development strategies that meet those needs. The plan put forward in the grant application must show the linkages among needs, the proposed infrastructure development strategy, and increased system capacity that will enhance and sustain effective programs and services. As of April 2008, approximately 1.64 million men and women have been deployed to serve in Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) in support of the Global War on Terror. Individuals returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are at increased risk for suffering post-traumatic stress and other related disorders. Experts estimate that up to one-third of returning veterans will need mental health and/or substance abuse treatment and related services. In addition, the family members of returning veterans have an increased need for related support services. To address these concerns, SAMHSA strongly encourages all applicants to consider the unique needs of returning veterans and their families in developing their proposed project. The Statewide Family Network program and its grantees include outreach to returning veterans and their families who have children with a serious emotional disturbance. Statewide Family Network grants are authorized under 520A of the Public Health Service Act, as amended. This announcement addresses Healthy People 2010 focus area(s) 18 (Mental Health and Mental Disorders) and 26 (Substance Abuse).