Three (3) Years PROPOSED COST: $1,500,000 APPROPRIATIONS AUTHORITY: "Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014" (P.L. 113-76) INTERNAL AUTHORITY: Department of the Interior; Departmental Manual; Federal Assistance Programs Series; Part 505, Chapter 2; Effective January 9th, 2008 CFDA NUMBER: 15.154; 21st Century Conservation Service Corps II. PROJECT BACKGROUND AND DESCRIPTION a. Project Background: Interior Secretary Sally Jewell first outlined DOI’s youth initiative in a speech at the National Press Club where she emphasized the need to bridge the growing disconnect between young people and the great outdoors. The goals of DOI’s youth initiative for the next three years include: Play: Interior will develop or enhance outdoor recreation partnerships in a total of 50 cities over the next four years to create new, systemic opportunities for outdoor play for more than 10 million young people. Learn: Provide educational opportunities to at least 10 million of the nation’s K-12 student population annually. In addition to welcoming students into nature’s classroom, we are developing and strengthening new online education resources, to reach more students. Serve: Engage 1 million volunteers annually on public lands, effectively tripling the numbers we have now. We know that many more people are interested in volunteering at national parks, wildlife refuges and public lands, but there are often insufficient staff resources to coordinate them. In order to achieve the volunteer goal, we will place a renewed emphasis on volunteer coordination and management. Work: To develop the next generation of lifelong conservation stewards and ensure our own skilled and diverse workforce pipeline, Interior will provide 100,000 work & training opportunities to young people within our bureaus and through public-private partnerships. As part of this effort, we aim to raise an additional $20 million to support the youth work and training opportunities. The 21CSC, launched by the Obama Administration as part of the America’s Great Outdoors program, is a national collaborative effort to put America’s youth and veterans to work protecting, restoring and enhancing America’s natural and cultural resources. Already an initial group of 100 organizations have been endorsed as model organizations that embrace the guiding principles of 21CSC. b. Project Description and objectives: DOI recognizes the need to strengthen our involvement in connecting young people to nature and preparing the next generation of outdoor leaders. It is the intent of this Agreement to provide the Y-USA with funding assistance to recruit, hire, train and manage 50 Student and Conservation Corps leaders in support of DOI’s Youth Initiative to inspire millions of young people to play, learn, serve and work outdoors. The 50 leaders will support non-profit organizations, community associations, municipalities, and other agencies that work with local government, Federal agencies and others to engage young people and their families in outdoor recreation, environmental education and conservation programs. Each of the 50 Student and Conservation Corps leaders will be assigned to a Y senior staff person who has lead responsibilities for community coordination. The lead community coordinator in each city will be funded by a private donation. Interior will fund the 50 Student and Conservation Corps leaders that support the lead coordinators. The primary objective of the Community Coordinator effort is to advance the play, learn, serve and work goals of the Department of Interior’s youth initiative thereby increasing connections to nature and engagement on public lands. Community coordinators will connect youth, families, veterans and entire communities – with particular attention to young men of color – to public lands through outdoor recreation, educational programming, service projects and employment training opportunities. Community coordinators will develop partnerships with municipalities, non-profit organizations, schools, health care providers and other stakeholders to help young people develop strong, lasting connections to nature and public lands. Community coordinators will develop leadership opportunities for the next generation of environmental stewards by increasing service opportunities engaging entire communities in partnership with public, private and nonprofit representatives. Scope of work should include the following efforts: • The Student and Conservation Corps Leader will reach out to community groups to promote programming, participation and collaboration. • The Student and Conservation Corps Leader will facilitate engagement with public land management agencies (including but not limited to DOI) and partnering organizations. • The Student and Conservation Corps Leader will develop and promote programming that connects youth and families to the outdoors to play, learn, serve and work. • The Student and Conservation Corps Leader will create relevant and sustainable programs that strengthen and increase volunteer engagement on public lands, including but not limited to lands managed by the bureaus of the Department of the Interior. • The Student and Conservation Corps Leader will seek partners to employ young adults and Post-9/11 veterans in seasonal, temporary and permanent jobs on public lands and with partner organizations. Through a partnership with the Corps Network, the 50 Student and Conservation Corps leaders will also be Americorps members. In exchange for a year of full-time service, AmeriCorps members earn a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award (equal to the maximum Pell Grant) that helps pay for college or pay back student loans. The Corps Networks members operate in all states and the District of Columbia. The Corps Network will assist Y-USA in recruiting the 50 Student and Conservation Corps leaders (via its contract with AmeriCorps) and help in placing them in the Y. c. Project Funding and Appropriations: The total estimated 3-year budget is $1,500,000 of which $1,125,000 will be obligated for Year 1 and Year 2 costs from the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014" (P.L. 113-76). This Cooperative Agreement is being entered into by the Office of the Secretary of the Interior, pursuant to the authority vested in the Office of the Secretary under 16 U.S.C. 1723 (c) Public Land Corp as well as the Take Pride in America Act, 16 U.S.C. § 4601 et seq., which authorizes the Secretary to carry out a number of activities in support of the Nation’s land and resources, including partnering with public and private organizations to promote participation in volunteer efforts through a public awareness campaign. The estimated budget is deemed reasonable and appropriate for completion of the above objectives. d. Cost Sharing: There is a mandatory 25% cost sharing requirement for this effort, which the Y-USA has satisfied by including the value of supervision, support, office space and volunteer time with their budget proposal. The Y-USA has proposed no overhead or indirect costs, and will be furnishing the value of the two Co-Principal Investigators time to the project at no cost to DOI. 2 CFR §200.306 (e) states that Volunteer services furnished by third-party professional and technical personnel, consultants, and other skilled and unskilled labor may be counted as cost sharing or matching if the service is an integral part of an approved project or program. Rates for third-party volunteer services must be consistent with those paid for similar work by the non-Federal entity. III. PROGRAM PARTICIPATION: a. Evaluation and relevance: In December 2014, DOI solicited a proposal from the Y- USA to manage a Youth Initiative Community Coordinator position in select communities for the Office of the Secretary. An evaluation and budget analysis of the proposal was performed and a recommendation was made to accept the Y-USA’s proposal. This recommendation considered both the capacity for the Y-USA to successfully manage the initiative and the overall cost to DOI. The Y-USA of the USA is a national non-profit organization focused on youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. Today, the Y serves more than 10,000 neighborhoods across the U.S. engaging 9 million youth and 13 million adults each year. As one of our nation’s leading nonprofit organizations committed to helping people and communities to learn, grow and thrive, their impact is both far-reaching and intimate—from offering child care programs and swimming lessons to providing camping experiences and environmental education programs. By nurturing the potential of every child and teen, improving the nation’s health and well- being, and supporting and serving families and communities, the Y ensures that everyone has the opportunity to become healthier, more confident, connected and secure. They are guided by four core values: caring, honesty, respect and responsibility. b. Public Purpose: The Y-USA and DOI have a history of partnership and collaboration. Y-USA has worked with DOI to educate over 800,000 families on practical ways to incorporate ways to plan and learn outdoors. In the April of 2014, the Department of the Interior signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Y-USA and the National League of Cities to assist in advance the Department’s goal of seeding and supporting efforts that bring the four pillars (Play, Learn, Serve and Work) alive for millions of children, young adults and veterans in communities across the country. Through this agreement, the YMCA will expose diverse groups of young people from various ethnic and socio economic backgrounds to outdoor programming and connect local Ys to play-learn-serve-work opportunities with Interior and its various bureaus. c. Substantial Involvement: There will be substantial involvement of the Department and its bureaus in this project and in the activities that the Y will conduct. The Department will be: • Providing program assistance in supporting the ongoing work of the urban teams throughout the year, including the possible designation of local contact personnel. • Providing program consultation assistance through the DOI Office of the Secretary (“OS”) in Washington D.C. to outline and guide the work of the Community Coordinator, assist in creating and maintaining partnerships with other national/regional organizations, and to provide strategic development advice. • Promoting this new national collaboration with Y-USA throughout its bureaus. • Providing opportunities to enrich Y-USA program offerings on DOI managed lands. • Collaborating with Y-USA in support of cultivating philanthropic opportunities with foundations and other organizations whose missions are to engage youth in the outdoors. • Expanding access to local educational, interpretive, facility management and employment pathways resources, as available, to enhance Y-USA educational and youth career development programs. • Encouraging DOI bureaus to develop relationships with local Y-USAs, and provide opportunities to engage directly with them or connect at a distance using technology. • Providing opportunities for Y-USAs to participate in DOI volunteer and educational programs. • Encouraging DOI bureaus to work with Y-USAs in providing opportunities for internships and youth employment. • Sharing in the publicity and marketing of this Collaboration and special initiative that mutually benefit all Parties. • Working in conjunction with the Y-USA to seek out joint funding opportunities. IV. EXPLANATION AND JUSTIFICATION FOR A SINGLE SOURCE AWARD: a. Identification: The Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act (31 U.S.C. § 6304 and 6305) prescribes the use of a grant or a cooperative agreement as the legal instrument for a Federal agency to use when entering into a relationship whose principal purpose is to provide United States Government assistance. A Cooperative Agreement is required to be used when the purpose of the relationship between the executive agency and the other recipient is to transfer something of value to the recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by U.S. law and substantial involvement is contemplated between the executive agency and the other recipient (31 U.S.C. § 6305). A Statement of Substantial Involvement describe above will be included as part of the formal agreement. b. Justification: This cooperative agreement will be entered into with the Y-USA on a noncompetitive basis under the authority of, and in accordance with the criteria set forth in Chapter 2.14 (B) (4) of the Department of the Interior Departmental Manual; Federal Assistance Programs Series; Part 505, Chapter 2. This Departmental Manual sets forth the criteria in which an assistance award can be made without competition. In this instance, the conditions under (4) Unique Qualifications, are satisfied. This section describes “unique qualifications” based upon a variety of demonstrable factors such as location, property ownership, voluntary support capacity, cost sharing ability, if applicable, technical expertise, or other such unique qualifications. The Y-USA has the experience, staff, systems and support currently in place to effectively support nationwide Community Coordinator placements in partnership with DOI and share the cost of operating these programs. Additionally, the Y-USA entered into an MOU with the Department of the Interior in support of the Youth Initiative and has significant experience managing federal funds and reporting requirements along with having detailed knowledge of grant requirements and provisions specifically issued by The Corporation for Community and National Service. Determination and Approvals: The undersigned has determined, based on the above findings, that: (1) this cooperative agreement, entered into with the Y-USA for the management of the Youth Initiative Community Coordinators, will promote a public purpose; (2) the work contemplated by this agreement will require substantial involvement between the DOI and Y-USA; and the application submitted by the Y-USA meets the criteria set forth in the DOI Departmental Manual; Federal Assistance Programs Series; Part 505, Chapter 2.14, for award of a Single Source Award. Therefore, in accordance with 31 U.S.C. § 6305 and Departmental Manual, Part 505, Chapter 2, the award of this cooperative agreement to the Y-USA is justified.