Chapter 1: The Technical Assistance Process
Resources for Technical Assistance

Anything of value costs something—money, time, or other resources—and obtaining technical assistance involves such an exchange. If staff spend time looking for information or talking with personnel from other programs, their time cannot be spent on other important program tasks. If a consultant is needed, that person must be compensated for his or her time and expenses.

There are several possible sources of funding and other resources needed for technical assistance, including the following:

• Agency budgets and staff that can be used to gather information or pay for consultant services.

• Volunteers, such as student interns or other program volunteers, who can perform information-gathering tasks or who can relieve staff of routine duties so staff can work on special projects.

• Grants, donations, and other forms of external funding for particular projects.

• State juvenile justice agency, juvenile justice specialist, and/or State advisory group.

• OJJDP and its various grantees and contractors.

• Other State and Federal agencies.

The Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (JJDP) Act of 1974, as amended (Public Law 93-415), was designed to combine Federal leadership, State planning, and community-based services for juvenile justice. It channels funds—through State formula grants—that help support a wide variety of juvenile justice programs and services, a juvenile justice specialist, and a juvenile justice advisory group in each State. These agencies may receive technical assistance from OJJDP to help them comply with the core requirements of the JJDP Act. In turn, these State agencies may be able to provide or fund some technical assistance for jurisdictions and programs within the State.

OJJDP also awards grants and contracts to various organizations to conduct research, develop and deliver training programs, and perform other special services. Three recipients are particularly noteworthy for jurisdictions and programs seeking technical assistance:

• The National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) compiles and disseminates documents and other information about all aspects of juvenile justice. It can conduct searches for materials on special topics. NCJRS can be accessed by phone (1-800-638-8736) or through its Web site (www.ncjrs.org).

• The Juvenile Justice Resource Center (JJRC) maintains a pool of consultants with a broad range of expertise in juvenile justice, delinquency prevention, and child protection. Those interested in consulting should have a unique area of expertise, such as tribal youth, disproportionate minority confinement, mental health, or gender. JJRC also provides OJJDP with conference and meeting support. JJRC can be accessed by phone (1-800-638-8736) or through its Web site (http://ojjdp.ncjrs.org/).

• OJJDP's National Training and Technical Assistance Center (NTTAC) compiles and disseminates information specific to training and technical assistance. It has limited funds for providing jurisdictions and programs with consultants or other technical assistance services. It also may be able to facilitate technical assistance by matching and brokering assistance for programs or jurisdictions from various OJJDP grantees and contractors. NTTAC can be reached by calling (1-800-830-4031).

Jurisdictional Teams In some instances, for certain conditions, problems, or issues, the National Training and Technical Assistance Center (NTTAC) may be able to facilitate a multidisciplinary team that will provide needed technical assistance for a jurisdiction or program. Such a team is composed of expert consultants identified by NTTAC who can provide assistance regarding significant concerns related to juvenile corrections. The consultants usually are drawn from OJJDP's pool of funded grantees and contractors and may be designated to serve on appropriate teams. Funding for technical assistance teams may be derived from special grants, the recipient jurisdiction's or program's budget, and/or NTTAC. Consultants appointed to serve on a jurisdictional team have valuable expertise about certain juvenile corrections issues, have materials and other resources readily available, and are experienced in addressing the technical assistance needs of local jurisdictions to help them provide effective and appropriate services to juveniles.

OJJDP and other Federal agencies are increasingly networking and pooling resources to address problems related to youth. In addition to OJJDP, there are four other bureaus and seven program offices within the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs:

• American Indian & Alaska Native Affairs Desk.

• Bureau of Justice Assistance.

• Bureau of Justice Statistics.

• Corrections Program Office.

• Drug Courts Program Office.

• Executive Office for Weed and Seed.

• National Institute of Justice.

• Office for State and Local Domestic Preparedness Support.

• Office for Victims of Crime.

• Office of the Police Corps and Law Enforcement Education.

• Violence Against Women Office.

Some of the Federal agencies that may have initiatives of interest to juvenile corrections programs include the following:

• Corporation for National and Community Service.

• Department of Education.

• Department of Health and Human Services.

• Administration on Children, Youth and Families.

• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

• Department of Housing and Urban Development, which sponsors prevention and prosocial programs in Federal housing projects.

• Department of Labor.

• Immigration and Naturalization Service.

• Office of National Drug Control Policy.