August 2023 DFC Reporting Announcement

If you have not done so already, we strongly encourage all DFC grant recipients to begin entering data in their required annual progress report, submitting any needed Core Measure surveys for review, and ensuring that Key Personnel information is up to date in the DFC & CARA Me system. The submission window for the August 2023 DFC Progress Report, Core Measures, Coalition Classification Tool, and Data Management Plan is scheduled from August 1 to August 15. Please review the information we have included on each of these reporting requirements. Additionally, we will host a series of webinars to prepare you for this reporting period and have included registration links below.

Core Measures

DFC coalitions are require to report new core measure data once every two years. To submit core measures with your Progress Report, coalitions must have their surveys reviewed and approved by the National Evaluation Team. If you already have an approved survey in DFC & CARA Me and your core measure questions have not changed, you do not need to submit a new survey for review. If you do not have an approved survey, please submit by July 7th to allow time for the review process before the reporting deadline.

Coalition Classification Tool (CCT)

You will be able to enter data into the Coalition Classification Tool starting on July 1st. We encourage you to gather coalition member input to complete the CCT. The questions are in the Template on the Learning Center if you would like to begin gathering perceptions of your members now. Once the CCT is open for data entry, you can begin working on it by logging into the system and navigating to "Reporting" > "Coalition Classification Tool."

Data Management Plan (DMP)

Coalitions can create and submit the required DMP now in its newly updated section. All coalitions who previously submitted a DMP within a Progress Report will still need to submit a DMP in this new submission format. Coalitions must submit their DMP and/or complete these screening questions once a year. You can work on and submit your DMP by navigating to "Reporting" > "Data Management Plan" in the system.

Upcoming Webinars

The National Evaluation Team and CDC will host a series of webinars in July to prepare you for the upcoming reporting period. To register for these webinars, please use the links below.

Other Reminders

Submit Your Survey for Review

In order to submit core measures, coalitions must first have surveys reviewed and approved. DFC and CARA grant recipients may submit surveys for review at any time. If you have an approved survey in DFC & CARA Me already, and your core measures questions have not changed, there is no need to submit a new survey for review. Survey reviews take two to four weeks, so if you have a survey that needs review, please submit it no later than July 7th to ensure your survey is reviewed in time for reporting. Submitting after this date may be too late to include core measures with the DFC 2023 Progress Report. Please only mark your survey as urgent if you plan to collect data in the next month AND can make edits to your survey.



Update Key Personnel & Contact Information



Please check your coalition information, including key personnel names, email addresses, and phone numbers in both DFC & CARA Me and in GrantSolutions GMM. You can check your Key Personnel in DFC & CARA Me by logging into the system, navigating to the Quick Links box on the top right of your screen and clicking the link "View Coalition Information." If the information does not match in the two systems or if any information is no longer accurate, please notify your Project Officer to seek approval for updates/corrections. Accurate, updated information supports ONDCP, CDC, and our team in reaching out to your coalition.

Year 1 Coalitions and Newly Hired Key Personnel

If you are a Year 1 coalition or a newly hired key personnel, please take time to access the Learning Center to see the resources available to you. Resources such as the FY2022 New Recipient Training webinar slides and recording and the FY2022 DFC New Recipient Training Welcome Checklist have been made available on DFC & CARA Me; these resources can be found by typing “New Recipient Training” into the search box in the Learning Center. In addition to exploring the Learning Center, we recommend you work on other items on the welcome checklist, such as entering your sector representatives and submitting a survey for review.

Coalition Snapshots

New snapshots have been released! Please review your snapshot. If you have any questions or think you may have submitted incorrect data, particularly for core measures, please reach out to our team to discuss the issue. You can review data submitted by your coalition from 2016 to present in DFC & CARA Me. Recent updates in key personnel and other coalition information may not be on the snapshots; if the information has been updated in DFC & CARA Me, it will be reflected in your next snapshot.

View & Submit Success Stories

ONDCP and the DFC & CARA National Evaluation Team want to acknowledge and thank DFC and CARA coalitions who have already helped to grow the Learning Center by submitting success stories. The Learning Center helps coalitions easily find evaluation-related information and share stories that will help one another. Please check out the Learning Center and read some of the stories for ideas that will help inform your own local work. To submit a Success Story, go to Learning Center > My Success Stories and select “Create Success Story.” Your Progress Report is a great place to start when thinking about accomplishments to share.

Best,

DFC & CARA National Evaluation Team

dfc_evaluators@icf.com | (877) 854-0731 (toll free)