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ICF provides technical assistance (TA) center services that are creative in designing evidence-based applications to meet client needs, using state-of-the-art information technology to reach target audiences, and using evaluation methods to ensure the effectiveness of our services.
Our Approach
ICF follows a strategic approach to providing TA to clients and the individuals and organizations they serve. Our approach is driven by client needs, research about best practices and effective TA delivery services, our knowledge of the field, and our record of strengthening organizational and individual capacity to achieve program success.
Our approach includes comprehensive needs assessments, TA frameworks that best responds to requester needs and goals, TA delivery, evaluations of TA activities and outcomes, and integration of TA resource development and dissemination technologies through information clearinghouses.
Our Services
ICF matches TA services to diverse recipient needs and learning styles. TA services range from broad, or universal, information dissemination to more targeted services for groups of recipients, to intensive services that help build specific capabilities to respond to particular challenges. Our delivery services include: |
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Academies
These are in-depth, curricula-based courses for increasing the knowledge and capabilities of teams of stakeholders.
Conferences
ICF provides conference management and support for a variety of clients including selecting meeting venue and location, arranging travel logistics, developing training materials, retaining conference speakers, providing summary notes, and conducting conference evaluations. In addition to conference management, staff members work to stay informed of the issues and trends in the field by attending, exhibiting and making presentations at national, regional and state conferences and meetings across the country.
Communities of Practice (CoP)
These on-line communities allow requesters, experts, and peers to exchange and generate knowledge in support of a common goal through on-line discussions, work groups, and resource sharing.
Consultant Management
ICF designed, developed, and maintains databases of consultants and evaluators who have indicated their willingness and ability to assist with TA and evaluation efforts as needed. Interested consultants are required to join the evaluator registry, which is a list of evaluators of education interventions.
Curriculum Development and Training
Experienced training staff deliver in-person or Web-based training for intensive knowledge and skill building on specific issues for larger audiences.
Planning, Delivery, Tracking, Reporting, and Evaluation
ICF has created specialized information systems and Web-based tools to track, analyze, and report on TA requests and responses, as well as to connect customers with expert resources. ICF collects data about each TA request, such as the requester, description of the request, TA goals, topics the request covers, response method, lessons learned, and outcomes. With that information, the client and ICF can assess TA success, changes in individual and organizational performance, and long-term effects.
Resources
ICF develops and disseminates TA tools and materials to expand knowledge in a wide variety of topics and functional areas.
Site Visits
Experts or peer-to-peer teams travel to the requester’s site to provide guidance and support. Additionally, requesters can travel to a peer’s site to review best practices and lessons learned.
Triage and Request Processing
ICF provides TA to requesters located throughout the world. One-on-one consultation through field, expert, or peer TA is augmented by fully staffed toll-free access call centers with standard business hours Monday through Friday.
Webinars
These events involve sharing resources (e.g., presentation slides, documents) through the Internet and teleconferencing.
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SELECTED PROJECTS |
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- Emergency Response and Crisis Management Technical Assistance Center (ERCM TA)
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools
- Head Start Technical Assistance System
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Regional Offices (III and VII) of the Administration for Children and Families
- Inspection and Technical Assistance Services
U.S. Navy, Child and Youth Programs
- National Child Care Information Center (NCCIC)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Child Care Bureau
- Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention National Training and Technical Assistance Center (OJJDP NTTAC)
U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs
- Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center (OVC TTAC)
U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs
- On-site Training, Technical Assistance, and Accreditation Assistance
U.S. Air Force, Family Member Programs
- Professional Development Program for Infant/Toddler Caregivers
West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources
- Rapid Response Technical Assistance
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Family Assistance
- Systems of Care National Technical Assistance and Evaluation Center
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children's Bureau
- Urban Partnerships for Welfare Reform
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance
- Welfare Peer Technical Assistance Network (Welfare Peer TA)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance
Emergency Response and Crisis Management Technical Assistance (ERCM TA) Center
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools
ICF operates the Emergency Response and Crisis Management Technical Assistance (ERCM TA) Center under contract with the U.S. Department of Education to support schools and school districts in disseminating guidelines for school emergency management plans and procedures. ICF works closely with the Department of Education to:
1) develop and maintain the plans in collaboration with community partners, such as local law enforcement, and public safety, health, and mental health agencies
2) provide emergency procedures for all hazards
3) develop and tailor plans based on a school’s geographic location, structure, activities, and environmental, weather, or biological risks
4) ensure the safety of the whole school community, including students, staff, and visitors with disabilities and special needs
5) incorporate the principles of the National Incident Management System (NIMS)
The ERCM TA Center provides assistance, training and produces a variety of materials:
- ERCMExpress—A newsletter providing comprehensive information on key issues in school emergency management.
- Lessons Learned—A series offering brief summaries of actual school emergencies and crises, alongside the resulting lessons learned by schools.
- Helpful Hints—A series providing a brief overview of school emergency management topics.
- http://www.ercm.org—A Web site that provides information and resources aimed at building school emergency management capacity.
Center activities include training and technical assistance, information dissemination, and guidance addressing the four phases of emergency response: prevention and mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
Head Start Technical Assistance System
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Regional Offices (III and VII) of the Administration for Children and Families
ICF provides regional management, content-specific training, and technical support to approximately 300 Head Start and Early Head Start grantees. Our technical assistance system is designed to support grantees in all facets of program operations and quality enhancements through a distinguished cadre of content experts and technical assistance specialists. To foster enhanced outcomes for children and families, the system encourages the development and maintenance of partnerships among Head Start, child care, pre-kindergarten, and other early care and education programs, offering opportunities for these programs to share strategies for implementing federal initiatives (e.g., Good Start Grow Smart) and Head Start Bureau priorities.
Inspection and Technical Assistance Services
U.S. Navy, Child and Youth Programs
ICF works within three Navy Regions (Southwest, Northeast, and Europe) to conduct on-site inspections and provide technical assistance to support the Navy’s Child and Youth Programs in meeting U.S. Department of Defense and Navy certification inspection standards. In collaboration with the Department of the Navy, our staff conducts thorough, objective inspections; assists in the development of a detailed strategic action plan; and provides targeted on-site training and technical assistance to facilitate program compliance and achieve program objectives.
National Child Care Information Center (NCCIC)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Child Care Bureau
ICF provides oversight to NCCIC, a national clearinghouse and technical assistance center that offers comprehensive child care information resources and technical assistance services to Child Care and Development Fund grantees, other early care and education stakeholders, and the public. NCCIC supports the early education field through a variety of services, such as responding to more than 7,000 requests for information annually, providing a nationwide network of technical assistance specialists in each Administration for Children and Families region, and housing a library containing more than 17,000 items, most of which can be accessed through the NCCIC Web site.
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention National Training and Technical Assistance Center (OJJDP NTTAC)
U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs
ICF is assisting OJJDP to reposition its T&TA investments and enhance itsbenefits to the juvenile justice field, in an effort to reduce youth crime and improve the juvenile justice system. ICF also is working with the new OJJDP NTTAC contracting officer's technical representative to create a Juvenile Justice Affinity Network (JJAN) to be a catalyst for ongoing collaboration, assisting OJJDP with education and communication to the juvenile justice field about available T&TA resources and services, serving as a resource for identifying emerging needs, and assisting OJJDP in translating knowledge to practice.
Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center (OVC TTAC)
U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs
ICF provides TA to the victim services field, including TA to build capacity for responding to mass violence, terrorism, and community disaster, and TA for the Victim Assistance in Indian Country program and national and state victim assistance academies. ICF uses communities of practice, mentoring, and academies to improve areas such as program development, implementation, and management; needs assessment and evaluation; strategic planning; and service development and utilization management. For more information about OVC TTAC, visit http://www.ovcttac.org/.
On-site Training, Technical Assistance, and Accreditation Assistance
U.S. Air Force, Family Member Programs
ICF provides on-site training, program observations, and accreditation assistance for Air Force child development programs at bases around the world. In one- or two-week training sessions, our professional teams assist the programs in formulating goals, developing timelines, and monitoring progress toward goal achievement, then follow up with intensive consultation. We also serve as a continuous resource for programs as they move through the stages of the accreditation process.
Professional Development Program for Infant/Toddler Caregivers
West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources
On behalf of West Virginia’s Department of Health and Human Resources, ICF developed a comprehensive professional development program for caregivers of infants and toddlers. The program was designed to standardize and enhance training in all of West Virginia’s early childhood program settings to improve the quality of infant and toddler care statewide. The training program included modules for caregivers, train-the-trainer modules, and modules for program leaders and administrators. We also developed a performance measurement model and tools to help programs achieve continuous quality improvement.
Rapid Response Technical Assistance
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Family Assistance
This project provides the Office of Family Assistance with the capability to obtain short-term products and services of immediate importance to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Welfare to Work (WtW) programs. This project provides logistical, management, and consultant support services to the ten ACF Regional Offices working with states, communities, and localities involved in the operation of the TANF and WtW programs.
Systems of Care National Technical Assistance and Evaluation Center
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children's Bureau
The Children's Bureau (CB) funded nine demonstration grants to improve child welfare outcomes through systems of care. Grantees include states, cities, counties, and agencies representing federally recognized Native American Tribes. Concurrently, the CB awarded ICF a contract to serve as the National Technical Assistance and Evaluation Center (the Center) for the systems of care grant cluster. The purpose of the Center is to provide technical assistance to grantees on all aspects of program development and implementation, on the design and implementation of local program evaluations with an emphasis on how they are used to measure system change and program improvement, and to design and conduct a cross-site evaluation of the grant cluster, including process and impact evaluation components.
Urban Partnerships for Welfare Reform
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance
The Administration for Children and Families’ (ACF) Office of Family Assistance (OFA) designed the Urban Partnerships Initiative to establish effective collaboration between community partners, state and local governments, faith-based organizations, and local businesses to jointly support low-income families on the road to self-sufficiency. ICF supports the initiative by convening National Academies with key stakeholders from urban areas with high Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) caseloads to collaborate on best practices for moving families off public assistance and into stable employment. The Urban Partnerships Initiative provides intensive technical assistance to urban communities to identify and remove barriers to collaboration between systems and by developing strategic plans to address the needs identified by the stakeholders during the academy sessions through targeted site visits, data collection, and assessment.
Welfare Peer Technical Assistance Network (Welfare Peer TA)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance
ICF provides peer-to-peer technical assistance to public agencies and private organizations operating the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. Sponsored by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Family Assistance (OFA), Welfare Peer TA bridges gaps between research and practice, highlights promising practices and service innovations, and fosters strong peer-to-peer relationships that promote improved service delivery to families in need. ICF provides services such as national needs assessments, communities of practice, roundtable events, site visits, and product development and dissemination. To date, Welfare Peer TA has reached every state in the U.S. with at least one TA intervention and responded to more than 150 requests over the life of the project. |
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