Circles of Care for American Indian/Alaska Natives (AI/AN)

For program and eligibility questions:
Brooke Sims
240.276.1861
CirclesofCare@samhsa.hhs.gov

For fiscal and budget questions:
240.276.1940
NOFOBudget.CMHS@samhsa.hhs.gov

For grant review process and application status questions contact:
Casey Graff
Casey.Graff@samhsa.hhs.gov

Grants.gov contact center:
800.518.4726
support@grants.gov
Self-service knowledge base

System for award management (SAM):
866.606.8220
Federal service desk

The Circles of Care for American Indian/Alaska Natives (Circles of Care) program is offering funding for American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) organizations to plan and design a family-driven, community-based, and youth-guided system of care (SOC). A SOC is defined as a coordinated network of effective mental health and essential supportive services organized to address and meet the varied needs of children, youth, and young adults (birth through age 25), and their families. Recipients are expected to strengthen tribal capacity to promote the mental health and well-being of AI/AN children, youth, young adults, and their families.

Required activities:

• Identify and convene a tribal community board
• Conduct a community strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis
• Conduct a Gathering of Native Americans (GONA)/Gathering of Alaskan Natives (GOAN)
• Develop cross-system partnerships
• Develop a written blueprint to develop SOC

Activities that are allowed but not required include:

• Outreach and education on mental health and related issues including suicide prevention, crisis intervention, substance use prevention strategies, overdose prevention and response, or the SOC approach
• Implementing community engagement activities within AI/AN tribes including skirt-making, sweat lodges, and drum-making to help address mental health challenges of children, youth, young adults, and their families
• Engaging the affected community during the design phase and consulting the community as the program develops

Eligible applicants:

• Federally recognized American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) Tribes
• Tribal organizations
• Urban Indian Organizations
• Consortia of Tribes and/or tribal organizations

Award ceiling: $350,000 per year
Project period: Up to 3 years
Estimated number of awards: 20
Estimated total program funding: $6,863,777

Links to the full announcement, application instructions, and the online application process are available through grants.gov.