PROCEED, Inc

 "If it weren't for PROCEED, we would have closed down. The trainings changed everything.
They were never over your head. At first, I thought I would be intimidated in trainings
with other Executive Directors but then I realized that they were going though
the same challenges I was. Board members who didn't want to play an active role
left the Board - it was time to work, not just show up. The Board is now governing better,
rather than looking at the organization only on a programmatic level."

Executive Director,
Fiscal Management and Human Resources Training, 2009

Capacity Building Assistance for Agency Infrastructure Development Services and Evidence-Based Interventions (CBA for AIDS and EBIs) 

CBA for AIDS and EBIs is funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under Funding Opportunity Announcement #09-906 to provide capacity building assistance to community-based organizations throughout the United Stated and its territories under two focal areas: 1) Organizational Infrastucture and Program Sustainability (OIPS); and 2) Evidence Based Interventions (EBIs) and Public Health Strategies. Services are delivered via a "systems coordinated approach" which recognizes the relationship between an organization's infrastructure; its ability to select, implement, and evaluate HIV programs; and its success in producing and delivering quality HIV Prevention services to priority target populations.  

• Organizational Infrastructure and Program Sustainability (OIPS):
  Resource and fund development, basic and advanced grant-writing courses, fiscal management, human resource development, executive coaching, strategic planning, board development, leadership development, technology development, and so forth.
• Evidence-Based Interventions (EBIs) and Public Health Strategies: 
  PROCEED, Inc. is a CDC national training partner in the following DEBIs: VOICES/VOCES, RAPP, MIP, Safety Counts, and D-Up. Technical assistance is provided in counseling, testing, and referral (CTR); comprehensive risk and counseling services (CRCS); translational research and EBI adaptation; and program collaboration and service integration (PCSI).
• Supportive Skill Areas: 
  Group facilitation skills, motivational interviewing (MI), culturally competent adaptations, co-supervision, recruitment and retention, and many more.

Organizations eligible for free CBA services under the CBA for AIDS and EBIs program include: Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) throughout the U.S. and its territories that are directly funded by the CDC to provide HIV prevention programs and services within their communities. CBOs that are funded by state and local health departments to conduct HIV prevention activities are also eligible for free CBA services. 

To Request Capacity Building Assistance:

• CBO directly funded by CDC may submit a request for technical assistance through the CBA Request Information System (CRIS) at https://wwwn.cdc.gov/cris2009. PROCEED, Inc. recommends that organizations inform their CDC Project Officer of all requests for CBA prior to entering them into the system.  
• CBO funded by the state or local health department must contact their health department representative in order to access CRIS and submit a CBA request on their behalf.  
• Organizations or programs not funded by CDC and health department may contact PROCEED, Inc. - NCTSTA directly via e-mail or calling 1-908-351-7727.  

Embracing People in Communities (EPIC)

The EPIC Program is a training and technical assistance (T/TA) initiative aimed at assuring culturally and linguistically appropriate addiction prevention services among diverse populations throughout New Jersey. The services offered by EPIC seek to enhance the operations of grantees funded through the NJ Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) by boosting the knowledge and skill sets of management and staff to respond to the diverse needs, beliefs, behaviors, perceptions, and preferences of their respective target groups. EPIC provides group-level skills building trainings, customized one-on-one technical assistance, consultation, and resources to initiate, expand, and enhance an agency’s capacity to provide addiction prevention services to multicultural and linguistically diverse communities.

Organizations eligible for T/TA services under the EPIC program include NJ DAS-funded organizations that provide addiction prevention services through prevention block and/or strategic prevention framework (SPF) funding. The EPIC Program is funded by the State of New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS.)

Customized Capacity Development Services

NCTSTA’s customized capacity development services focus on providing cutting-edge capacity building and technical assistance to non-profit organizations, health departments, governmental organizations, and academic institutions that are seeking ways to maximize current resources, talent, and technology, in order to become more effective, efficient, and self-sustaining. 

Customized Capacity Building Services are offered on a fee-for-service basis to individuals, organizations, and entities across a wide range of disciplines, including but not limited to youth and family services, substance abuse prevention, education, HIV/AIDS, and mental health services.  We ensure that all trainings and technical assistance sessions are tailored to meet the unique needs of every organization and its constituents.  Our approach is to work closely with organizations to identify priority needs, develop a mutually agreed upon plan of action, and execute CBA services that directly address identified needs, thus leading to positive outcomes. We will work with you to develop a package that is suitable to your budget and needs.

Trainings and technical assistance areas include, but are not limited to:

Organizational Development Services
- Fiscal Management, Policies, and Procedures
- Budgeting Basics
- Board Development
- Standards for Culturally Competent Organizations
- Strategic Planning
- Human Resource Development
- Workforce Development
- Grant Writing
- Technology Development
- Continuous Quality Improvement

Program Development Services
- Community Mapping and Needs Assessment
- Group Facilitation
- Motivational Interviewing
- Adaptation of Prevention and Treatment Interventions
- Recruitment Strategies
- Program Planning and Development
- Operationalizing the Grant
- Process and Outcomes Monitoring and Evaluation
- Curriculum Development

Methods for Delivering Capacity Building Assistance

PROCEED’s CBA service delivery model reflects a flexible learning approach which  recognizes that adults learn in different ways and that learning needs and learning mechanisms change.  As such, our capacity building services are offered via multiple mechanisms to accommodate the need of our constituents.  Flexible learning includes face-to-face instruction and consultation, web-based learning, teleconferences, field practice, and peer mentoring.  Our trainings can range anywhere from two-hours for a staff in-service or webinar to a multiple-day institute for learning specific skills.

Translational Research and Program Adaptation

An important aspect to the practice of capacity building is fostering increased opportunity for partnerships and collaborations that incite collective action towards healthier communities. NCTSTA’s involvement in research translation and synthesis has resulted in the widespread availability of an HIV prevention curriculum package: the Modelo de Intervención Psicomedica (MIP). MIP is a cognitive behavioral HIV prevention intervention for active injection drug users. The intervention integrates individualized counseling and comprehensive case management to reduce HIV, STI, and viral hepatitis risk behaviors among injection drug users. Along with Behavioral Scientists from the CDC and the MIP Principal Investigator and Research Team from the Universidad Central del Caribe, Puerto Rico, PROCEED, Inc. - NCTSTA provided leadership throughout the development of the MIP Curriculum Package, resulting in the intervention’s inclusion in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Diffusion of Effective Behavioral Interventions (DEBIs), which is posted on www.effectiveinterventions.org. 

The MIP Curriculum Package is comprised of the following documents:

• MIP Trainer’s Manual, which is used to train community practitioners on MIP;

• MIP Wall Charts, which consist of a set of ten charts used to reinforce critical information and skills needed by the community practitioners that will be implementing MIP in their respective settings; 

• MIP Program Implementation Manual, which provides community practitioners with detailed guidance on how to implement MIP;

• MIP Participant Workbook, which is used to facilitate activities and interactive exercises during the MIP Training of Facilitators (TOF);

• MIP Powerpoint Workbook, which is used both as a teaching tool during the MIP TOF and as a reference tool post-training; and

• MIP Participant Mock file, which includes a completed case file for an MIP participant with all the recommended program forms completed thoroughly and accurately.

For more information on the unique collaboration leading to the development of the MIP Curriculum Package please click here to access the article.