The safety of children is everyone's responsibility and we can't expect families to support each other if they don't have everything they need.
The purpose of the Iowa Child Abuse Prevention Program (ICAPP) is to prevent child maltreatment before it occurs. The program includes a single contract with a statewide non-profit organization to provide Administrative Support Services to HHS, as outlined in Iowa Code (235A.1). The program also includes multiple local service contracts throughout the state through grants to Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) Councils.
Councils
For State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2021-2025, 43 Community-Based Organizations or “Councils” serving 44 of Iowa’s 99 counties, were awarded a total of 50 unique service contracts under ICAPP. For the first time, the procurement of services under ICAPP was combined with the procurement of services under the federal CBCAP (Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention) grant. Previously these two funding opportunities were implemented separately. The merger will help to maximize funding and reduce duplication.
Services
Services funded under the program are especially geared toward families who with one or more support opportunities, such as young parents, families at or near poverty level, families parenting a child with a disability, families with young children (0-5 years), and families with a history of abuse/neglect, mental illness, substance abuse, or domestic violence. Funds were awarded through local Councils for the following types of services:
Community Development - public awareness and community needs assessments
Home Visitation Services - voluntary evidence-based home-visiting models
Parent Development - parent support, education, and leadership
Resilient Communities- projects to build community capacity
Sexual Abuse Prevention - healthy sexual development, and adult/child focused instruction
The Child Abuse Prevention Program Advisory Council reviewed all proposal scores, along with comments provided by an independent team of evaluators, before making the final award recommendations to the legacy DHS Adult, Child and Family Services (ACFS) Administrator.
ICAPP Contracts
According to Iowa Code (235A.1), “funds for the programs or projects shall be applied for and received by a community-based volunteer coalition or council.” Therefore, local CAP Councils are the only eligible recipient of funds. CAP Councils look different in nearly every community. Some councils cover a single county, whereas others cover larger regions. In addition, CAP councils may be a stand-alone volunteer non-profit organization, a coalition housed under an umbrella organization (private or public), or a less formal collaborative attached to another local decision making body, such as Decategorization boards, Community Partnerships for Protecting Children (CPPC) sites, or Early Childhood Iowa (ECI) boards. If you would like to know who is currently designated as the CAP council in your county, please contact the ICAPP Program Administration:
During the most recent competitive procurement, local CAP councils were able to apply for funding for a maximum of three different projects in their respective communities. The categories for funding included:
Community Development—public awareness/education, needs assessment, or community engagement around the topic of child maltreatment
Parent Development—parent support, education, or leadership
Home Visitation—programs following a nationally recognized evidence-based home visitation model
Crisis Child Care Services—short term child care services for families at risk of maltreatment
Sexual Abuse Prevention—adult and child focused instruction
Grantees can find all contract reporting/billing forms on the ICAPP Administrator’s Grantee Dashboard at: http://pcaiowa.org/grantees/
Grantees funded for Parent Development and Home Visitation services are also contractually required to utilize Iowa’s Family Support Statewide Database (FSSD). This web-based system, Data Application and Integration Solutions for the Early Years (DAISEY) can be accessed here: http://daiseyiowa.daiseysolutions.org/
Current Contractors
There are currently 37 different CAP Councils/CPPC Sites funded, including:
Preparing a statewide Needs Assessment and Strategic Plan as it relates to the prevention of child maltreatment in Iowa,
Drafting and assisting with a competitive RFP for local services,
Monitoring and reviewing all local ICAPP service contracts,
Providing training and technical assistance to local prevention councils and subcontracted service providers,
Conducting research as it relates to the prevention of child maltreatment, and
Evaluating the various local services funded by the program.
Current Contractor
The ICAPP Administrative contract was procured through a competitive RFP and awarded to Prevent Child Abuse Iowa beginning in SFY 2024. The contract was effective July 1, 2023 for an initial two-year contract term with the ability to extend the contract for four additional one-year terms. The projected contract end date, including all potential renewals, is 6/30/2029.
Payment is negotiated within the contract, based on estimated contractor costs to meet deliverables. Contract incentive payments are dependent upon contractor’s compliance with identified Performance Measures.
Prevent Child Abuse Iowa creates reports that are presented to HHS. The reports below can be accessed on Prevent Child Abuse Iowa's website.
