Reentry Navigation Support and Training Assistance Center Funding Application

Summary

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) is soliciting applications from organizations to fund one centralized Reentry Navigation Support and Training Assistance Center. "The Center" will operate as a dual-impact model to reduce overdose rates by providing direct navigation services to justice-involved individuals and technical assistance to other organizations who help individuals involved with the legal system.

Overdose remains one of leading causes of death among people recently released from prison, including those on parole. Compared to the general population, fatal and non-fatal overdose rates are significantly higher for individuals recently released from incarceration and those on supervision. To break this cycle, the technical assistance center will work to help stabilize individuals impacted by the criminal justice system to reduce overdose rates by connecting people to treatment/recovery services and other community resources.

Eligible organizations include organizations serving people at risk of overdose, community-based organizations, non-profit organizations, and municipal, county, or Tribal agencies (including but not limited to health and human services (HHS), and social services).

Applicants must conduct their work in the state of Wisconsin and must be comfortable with navigators participating in overdose prevention services in public safety settings and/or working with justice-involved people.

The deadline to apply for this funding opportunity is 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 11, 2026. Questions related to this Request for Applications (RFA) must be submitted in writing to BHS funding opportunities at DHSBHSFundingOpportunities@dhs.wisconsin.gov by 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 4, 2026. A courtesy copy of the application and questions and answers (Q&A) are available on this webpage. The Q&A will be updated weekly. Applications for this funding opportunity must be submitted online through Alchemer.

Submit application for funding

Do not include personally identifiable information (PII) or protected health information (PHI) in your responses.

Background

People recently released from incarceration, including those on parole, are significantly more likely to experience an overdose compared to the general population. In 2024, people who were incarcerated or under supervision at some point in their life accounted for 52% of overdose deaths in Wisconsin. From 2014-2024, 2,005 opioid-related deaths occurred while someone was under active Wisconsin Department of Corrections (DOC) supervision and an additional 3,342 occurred post-discharge.

In the United States, over half of those incarcerated in state prisons have been diagnosed with a substance use disorder (Enich et.al., 2023). When individuals with a history of opioid use are released from incarceration, they are at a high risk of overdose and additional adverse outcomes (Enich et al., 2023). This is because people who are incarcerated without access to opioids experience a decrease in tolerance, increasing their risk of an overdose when using opioids after their release. Evidence-based interventions including medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), peer recovery support, healthcare access, and coordinated community reentry planning can significantly reduce morbidity and mortality for individuals navigating community supervision.

To prevent overdose deaths and improve health outcomes, it is necessary to establish support for individuals navigating the criminal justice system, including those on probation, parole, and extended supervision. By providing direct navigation services, professional development, and education to community organizations, the Center will ensure individuals are connected to treatment and recovery services and other wraparound supports to reduce overdose rates.

Funding opportunity

This funding opportunity seeks applications from eligible organizations to establish and operate a centralized Reentry Navigation Support and Training Assistance Center. The selected agency will implement a dual-impact strategy that combines statewide organizational capacity building with direct client stabilization services. Applicants must demonstrate their capacity to fulfill the following core program goals:

• Capacity to hire or contract reentry navigators: The selected Center must possess the administrative infrastructure to directly hire, onboard, or contract a reentry navigator. This reentry navigator can be a certified peer recovery specialist, case manager, community health worker, or an individual with lived experience who is uniquely equipped to support peers under community supervision.
• Provide reentry services that reduce the risk of overdose: The Center will deploy its navigators to deliver direct services to individuals navigating probation, parole, and extended supervision. Navigators will actively mitigate overdose risks by developing individual plans of action; facilitating direct health and wellness advocacy; managing supervision requirements; and removing barriers to essential needs.
• Collaborate with correctional facilities: The applicant must outline clear pathways to collaborate effectively with city/county jails and state correctional facilities. This includes establishing pre-release communication channels (such as secure jail electronic messaging or electronic in-reach networks) to connect with individuals upon release.
• Dual-layer data documentation system: The Center must maintain a secure, comprehensive data management system capable of tracking two distinct streams of information:
  • Technical Assistance (TA) Metrics: Logging and tracking organizational TA requests, training hours delivered, and client engagement.
  • Individual Client Data: Securely tracking direct navigation encounters, participant progress, and service outcomes without compromising client privacy.
• Sub-grantee reporting and performance templates: As the Center you will be responsible for federal reporting requirements that include unique navigator encounters, the specific distribution of peer-support and other relevant supplies by local zip codes, successful linkages to evidence-based substance use disorder (SUD) care, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), or Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD). This opportunity is funded through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Overdose Data to Action for States (OD2A-S) program.

Funding amount: Initial award amount is $75,000. Based on successful project performance, an additional $150,000 will be awarded for the following project year (FY28).

Number of awards: 1

Expected grant cycles:
Year 1 (FY27): March 1, 2027 – August 31, 2027 (initial award)
Year 2 (FY28): September 1, 2027–August 31, 2028 (contract renewal)

Intended outcomes​​​​​

Short-term outcomes

• Increased use of navigators to link people involved in the criminal legal system to care and services
• Increased access to overdose prevention education and services, including increased distribution of naloxone
• Increased availability of and decreased barriers to care/services especially for those disproportionately affected by overdose and those previously underserved by overdose prevention programs and the healthcare system
• Increased awareness of the drug overdose epidemic, overdose prevention efforts, and evidence-based approaches

Intermediate outcomes

• Increased linkages to care post release and engagement of care in correctional settings
• Expanded utilization of evidence-based approaches to prevent and respond to overdoses

Long-term outcomes

• Increased uptake of evidence-based treatment and retention with long-term recovery supports, with a primary focus on opioid and stimulant use disorders
• Decreased fatal and nonfatal overdoses

Program requirements

• Use reentry navigators to connect individuals being released from incarceration to overdose prevention services and link people to care (evidence-based treatment for SUD such as MOUD, CBT, contingency management) and other social services.
• Ensure people who use drugs who are involved in the criminal legal system have access to overdose prevention and reversal tools, treatment options, and drug checking supplies.
• Establish referral networks in the community including housing, transportation, and medical care partners.
• Build referral pathways and warm handoffs between key systems and acute care settings.
• Provide trauma-responsive case management.
• Support people who use drugs to address barriers and connect them to resources.
• Develop, implement, and/or utilize a client data collection system.
• Participate in collaborative meetings with other DHS-funded navigators to build relationships, trouble-shoot challenges, brainstorm pivots, and celebrate successes.
• Collaborate with awarded applicants from the Reentry Navigator Program funded by the Division of Public Health.
• Develop and distribute educational resources as needed.
• Establish support and referral networks.

Reporting requirements

A combination of quantitative and qualitative data will be required annually for federal evaluation purposes including the number of technical assistance requests received and fulfilled, number of referrals to services, number of overdose prevention service encounters and location of encounters, and number of naloxone doses distributed within zip codes. In addition, grantees will need to report on their work to expand the reach of overdose prevention services, overall program accomplishments, and other relevant metrics resulting from awarded funds. DHS will work with the awarded agency to collect and report required metrics.

In addition to program and reporting requirements, organizations receiving this award will be expected to work with DHS to:

• Create a specific statement of work with deliverables
• Engage in regular coordination and communication with DHS partners to facilitate collaboration, assess resources, and eliminate repetition amongst navigators across the state
• Document all encounters, referrals, outcomes, and other program indicators
• Identify and provide reporting metrics for project evaluation
• Modify program implementation as necessary.

Eligibility

Eligible applicants are organizations serving people at risk of overdose, community-based organizations, non-profit organizations, and/or municipal, county, or Tribal agencies (including, but not limited to health and human services, and social services). Eligible organizations will practice inclusion and may not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, age, disability, or national origin in their staffing policies, use of volunteers, or provision of services.

Funding terms and conditions

• This application is for an initial award period from March 1, 2027 - August 31, 2027. Contracts will be awarded annually with the possibility of one contract renewal based on the availability of funds, and the ability of the grantee to meet all contractual objectives.
• A second year of funding may be awarded based on the availability of funds and grantee performance.
• DHS reserves the right to increase or decrease award levels and scope of individual contracts during the contract period, and/or reconfigure the program model at any time during the funding cycle based on the conditions noted above or a lack of adequate performance on the part of the grantee.
• Should additional funding become available, DHS reserves the right to use the results of this competitive application process to fund additional applicants that applied but were not selected.
• DHS will negotiate the terms of the award, including the award amount, with the selected applicant(s) prior to entering into a contract.
• If contract negotiations cannot be concluded successfully with a recommended applicant, DHS may terminate contract negotiations with that applicant.
• The contracts resulting from this request for applications will be between DHS and the awarded applicant(s).
• Grantees using subcontractors will be responsible for ensuring subcontractors abide by all terms and conditions of the grant.
• There is no match requirement for this grant.
• The selected applicant must follow all reporting requirements as defined by DHS. Quarterly reporting requirements will include a summary of expenditures, number of overdose prevention supplies distributed, types of referrals provided, and an account of program accomplishments or other relevant metrics resulting from awarded funds.

Funding application

Section 1: Applicant contact information

All applications must be submitted using this online submission format. A courtesy copy of the application is available on the DHS website along with the funding announcement. It is recommended that applicants use a word processing program to complete the sections of the application to ensure word limits are observed for each question and pasted into the online submission format. A response is required for all questions with *.

• Organization name*
• Organization address*
• Name of person we can contact regarding this application*
• Email address of person we can contact regarding this application*
• Confirm email address of person we can contact regarding this application*
• Phone number of person we can contact regarding this application*
  Please enter your phone number in the following format 123-867-5309 or 123 867 5309.

Section 2: Organizational capacity (40 points)

1. Has your agency ever provided technical assistance to other organizations or individuals who work with people who use(d) drugs and are legal-involved? * Yes/No
   1. If yes, describe your agency's efforts providing technical assistance and services to support people recently released from jail or on supervision, including information about the program's reach and impact. (300 words).*
   2. If no, describe your agency’s capacity to provide technical assistance to organizations or individuals who work with or provide services to people recently released from jail or on supervision. (300 words).*
2. Describe your organization's experience with providing services that prevent overdose to legal-involved individuals. (300 words).*
3. Provide a description of your current staffing model. Highlight any experience individuals on your team have working with parole, probation, extended supervision, or personal experience navigating those systems. (300 words).*
4. Describe your organization's experiences providing legal services for individuals who are at an increased risk of overdose. (300 words).*

Section 3: Program narrative (50 points)

1. How will your program minimize common barriers for individuals accessing substance use disorder treatment, people entering and leaving incarceration (including temporary holds) and navigating the legal system? Be sure to identify the potential barrier and how your program plan works to minimize, address, or eliminate the barrier for participants (500-words).*
2. Describe the reach of your proposed program. How will your program engage with carceral settings statewide, including the populations and facilities you intend to serve and the approach you will use to establish and sustain those connections (500 words).*
3. Explain how your program will link people to supportive services (MOUD, overdose prevention, community reintegration, system navigation) to mitigate the risk of overdose and improve overall health and wellbeing. Include in your response any services specifically geared towards individuals with a history of stimulant use (500 words).*
4. Describe how you will prioritize and evaluate TA requests to meet the needs of your community partners and/or clients (300 words). *

Section 4: Provisional budget and budget justification (10 points)

Budget may not exceed $75,000 for the March 1, 2027 – Aug 31, 2027 performance period.

Make sure your budget includes funding needed for the work itself, subcontracts with partner agencies, as well as associated administrative costs, including accounting services, and agency operating costs. For each line item include a brief justification for the amounts you entered. This should include how you arrived at the total dollar amount requested for the expense. Example: Personnel: $10,000; Personnel justification: Personnel is calculated based on a 0.20 FTE program coordinator at $24.04/hour = $10,000.

Four-month provisional budget*

Responses must be currency. Whole numbers only.

________Personnel

________Fringe

________Operations

________Supplies

________Contractual services

________Other

________Indirect

• Personnel justification: Describe your personnel expenses for this project. If none, mark N/A.*
• Fringe justification: Describe your fringe expenses. If none, mark N/A.*
• Operations justification: Describe your operational costs (internet, phone, administrative expenses, etc.) for this project If none, mark N/A.*
• Supplies justification: Describe your supply costs for this project. If none, mark N/A.*
• Contractual services justification: Describe any contractual partners you will fund (training provider, school district, etc.) for this project If none, mark N/A.*
• Other justification: Describe any other costs associated with this project. If none, mark N/A.*
• Indirect cost justification: Describe your indirect cost rate (if applicable) for this project. If none, mark N/A.*

Section 5: Letters of commitment and/or support

Letters of support from project partners are encouraged but not required. We encourage all applicants to combine letters of support/commitment into one PDF for upload. You may upload up to five files. If you experience any difficulties uploading letters of commitment/support, please contact BHS funding opportunities at DHSBHSFundingOpportunities@dhs.wisconsin.gov.

• Up to 5 files will be accepted.
• Allowed file types: png, gif, jpg, jpeg, doc, xls, docx, xlsx, pdf, txt, mov, mp3, or mp4.
• Max file size: 500 KB