The Service to Science Initiative

Service to Science (STS) is a national initiative to enhance the evaluation capacity of innovative programs and practices that address critical substance abuse prevention or mental health needs. STS consists of a combination of training events and customized technical assistance aimed at providing participants with the education, tools and follow-up technical assistance programs needed to evaluate their efforts with increasing levels of methodological rigor.

Over the past four and one-half years, more than 70 programs from the Northeast region of the United States have participated in the STS Initiative. These programs have operated in such diverse settings as community-based organizations, schools, and health clinics. Although the primary target population of these programs has been children and adolescents, we encourage the participation of programs devoted to improving the well-being of populations across the lifespan.

Benefits of Service to Science Participation

There are many benefits to STS participation. Selected programs have the opportunity to:

• Receive tailored technical assistance from CSAP/Northeast CAPT focusing on issues of program design and results-oriented evaluation.

• Leverage participation in STS to apply for inclusion in the Federal National Registry of Effective Programs and Practices (NREPP). Pioneered by CSAP, NREPP encompasses programs dealing with violence and suicide prevention; HIV/AIDS prevention; mental illness prevention; and cancer prevention; as well as substance abuse prevention. Further information on NREPP can be found at
  http://nrepp.samhsa.gov.

• Leverage participation in STS to apply for other funding with a presumably stronger program and evaluation design.

• Become eligible to apply for the Exemplary Substance Abuse Prevention Program Awards for Innovative Programs sponsored by the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD).

• Become eligible to apply for Evaluation Capacity-Building subcontracts through CSAP. Since 2006, 22 programs from the Northeast region received approximately $30,000 each to expand their evaluation efforts.

• Develop action plans designed to enhance program evaluation methodologies.

• Network with other professionals in the prevention field who are interested in improving their evaluation efforts.
  

For more information about STS, visit the following pages:
STS Approach
Application Process
Current and Past Participants
Technical Assistance Providers

or contact us:

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SAMHSA | NCADI | National Mental Health Information Center | USA.gov Page last updated: 03/23/2009