National Youth Leadership Initiative

 Authorizing Statutes and Governing Regulations Applicable to this Funding Opportunity:  The authority for this opportunity is 21 U.S.C. 1534(a)(1)(B) and applicable appropriations statutes providing funding to ONDCP for this purpose.  The Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards are applicable to the government and applicants, grant applications, and grant awards to non-Federal entities.  See, 2 CFR Part 200, et seq., as adopted in full by ONDCP via 2 CFR Part 3603, et seq.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) coordinates a government-wide public health and safety approach to reduce drug use and its consequences in the United States. 

Preventing drug use before it starts is a fundamental element of the DFC program. Findings from the 2016 DFC National Evaluation indicate that from first to most recent report, youth in DFC communities report not using alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and (illicit) prescription drugs in the past 30-days. ONDCP would like to enhance the efforts of the Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program by engaging youth to become involved in coalition work and become substance abuse prevention leaders within their communities.

  DFC-funded community coalitions are required to work with various sectors of their community to identify local drug problems and implement comprehensive strategies to create community-level change. The contributions of community coalitions constitute a critical part of the Nation’s drug prevention infrastructure. DFC-funded community coalitions are a catalyst for creating local change where drug problems manifest.ONDCP expects to award one Federal cooperative agreement under the National Youth Leadership Initiative (NYLI), for a two year period, beginning approximately June 2018. The successful non-Federal entity (NFE) receiving award must equip youth and their adult advisors with the essential knowledge and skills needed to make significant community-level change. Implementation of the National Youth Leadership Initiative must follow a youth-led, adult-guided approach that follows the best practices in youth development, empowering young people to be vocal and visible as they work to impact a broad range of public health issues where they live, learn, and play.