Overview of SAMHSA’s Trauma-Informed Re-Entry for Recovery Challenge
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is the agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that leads public health efforts to advance the behavioral health of the nation. SAMHSA’s Office of Recovery is conducting the Trauma-Informed Re-Entry for Recovery Challenge. The purpose of this challenge will be to identify and highlight innovative trauma-informed behavioral health practices (addressing substance use, mental health, and trauma) that effectively support successful re-entry of people who have been incarcerated during their critical period of initial return to their communities.
For justice-involved adults leaving correctional facilities, experiences of trauma and resource loss have the potential to disrupt re-entry success and complicate a time in the individual’s life that is often already characterized by instability and chaos. This Challenge aims to highlight the transformative impact of trauma-informed practice on justice-involved populations struggling with mental health and/or substance use conditions during the critical period of returning home. By promoting trauma-informed practices, this project aspires to break down societal stigma surrounding mental health conditions and substance use, fostering understanding and support for justice-involved individuals on their journey to wellness.
As justice involved incarcerated populations transition back into the community, it is crucial to provide trauma-informed services that can prevent reincarceration, mental health crisis, and substance use overdoses, a nationwide public health emergency as declared in the 2018 SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act signed by President Trump on October 24, 2018. SAMHSA anticipates that responses to the Trauma-Informed Re-Entry Challenge will inform SAMHSA’s support of President Trump’s Executive Orders including the February 13, 2025, Executive Order to Establish the President’s Make America Healthy Again Commission.
Incorporating a trauma-informed approach into reentry services and community supervision can be an important way to better engage participants and involve them in the reentry planning process. Creating and promoting a trauma-informed approach to services can minimize risks of recurrence of substance use, mental health conditions, and return to incarceration.
A range of organizations may have important roles in addressing the needs of justice-involved populations. Challenge entries will be accepted from a wide variety of applicants including nonprofit Community Based Organizations such as peer-run organizations, recovery community organizations, faith-based organizations and houses of worship, territory and tribal organizations. State, local, territory and tribal governments are eligible to apply. Challenge entries will be accepted from a wide variety of applicants including nonprofit Community Based Organizations such as peer-run organizations, recovery community organizations, faith-based organizations and houses of worship, territory and tribal organizations. State, local, territory and tribal governments are eligible to apply. Challenge winners will be entities providing innovative trauma-informed solutions during community re-entry that demonstrate how their supports lead to success of justice-involved individuals as they re-enter communities after incarceration. The innovative solutions may briefly describe the highlights of the transformative impact of trauma-informed practices on justice-involved populations struggling with mental health and/or substance use conditions during the critical period of returning home.
Challenge winners will be entities providing innovative trauma-informed solutions during community re-entry that demonstrate how their supports lead to success of justice-involved individuals as they re-enter communities after incarceration. The innovative solutions may briefly describe the highlights of the transformative impact of trauma-informed practices on justice-involved populations struggling with mental health and/or substance use conditions during the critical period of returning home.
This challenge allows participants to share their innovative practices to help individuals with justice-involved lived experience re-enter their community and access trauma-informed behavioral health service (mental health promotion, substance misuse prevention, and treatments and supports that foster recovery). SAMHSA will use this Challenge to highlight CBOs providing services and supports to justice-involved individuals in the community across the behavioral health continuum of care.
The Challenge fund has $500,000 available for up to ten awards through this competition. The awards will be dedicated to the innovative winning strategies that address mental health, substance use treatment, and co-occurring conditions. The Challenge prize for each winner is $50,000 plus multiple opportunities for recognition on SAMHSA’s website and digital platforms.
Challenge Details
Between 1977 and 2005, the incarcerated population in the United States increased by 400 percent (Hartney and Vuong 2009), highlighting a critical issue within the criminal justice system. This rapid increase has been correlated with experiences of trauma, as many individuals have been exposed to adverse childhood experiences, including exposure to violence. As individuals re-enter their communities, there is an urgent need for trauma-informed behavioral health services to reduce recidivism and improve public health and safety. By increasing justice-involved individuals’ access to trauma-informed services in behavioral health care, we can increase successful re-entry and recovery in justice-involved populations.
The proposed SAMHSA Trauma-Informed Re-Entry for Recovery Challenge is designed to identify and highlight innovative and efficacious trauma-informed mental health and substance use services. Identifying these innovative practices promote the expansion of these critical supports. These services are vital for assisting individuals who have been incarcerated and returning to the community, particularly those with mental health and substance use challenges.
SAMHSA defines a trauma-informed approach as a program, organization, or system that realizes the widespread impact of trauma and understands potential paths for recovery; recognizes the signs and symptoms of trauma in clients, families, staff, and others involved with the system; and responds by fully integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures, and practices, and seeks to actively resist re-traumatization.
Through this Challenge, SAMHSA’s Office of Recovery, in partnership with the Center for Mental Health Services and Center for Substance Use Treatment, aims to identify and highlight innovative trauma-informed practices that effectively address substance use, mental health, and trauma in anticipation of criminal justice re-entry. During this critical period of returning to the community it is vital to gain a better understanding, from the community perspective, of the barriers to accessing trauma-informed re-entry support services; identify and implement innovative strategies to improve recovery outcomes for justice-involved community members with mental health and/or substance conditions; capitalize on the success and effectiveness of these strategies and how each is assessed and measured.
Focus of the Trauma-Informed Re-Entry Challenge
The Trauma-Informed Re-Entry Challenge addresses the following questions:
1. [Understanding of barriers] (20 points)
What challenges do justice-involved incarcerated populations face in successfully returning to the community and accessing trauma informed, recovery-oriented behavioral health services?
(Please provide any data or other evidence of the specific needs within the communities being served. This may include a review of needs at individual, familial, community and systems levels.)
2. [Describing Innovative Strategies and Implementation] (30 points)
What innovative trauma-informed practices have you used to assist individuals to successfully return to their communities after incarceration?
(You may consider the following questions to help write your response, but you do not need to address every question: How did these practices address the barriers and needs described in Question 1? How did you tailor these practices to the communities you serve? How did you implement and finance these practices?)
3. [Showing Success] (30 points)
How do you know your practices are successful? How do you measure your success?
(You may consider the following questions to help write your response, but you do not need to address every question: What aspects of these practices make them effective in serving justice involved individuals during community re-entry? How did you measure the impact of these practices? How do you know these practices have increased recovery including access to behavioral health services and community integration?) Please provide a thorough and complete review of any data and evidence – both quantitative and qualitative – to indicate the outcomes of your program.
4. [Incorporating trauma-informed principles] (20 points)
How do you incorporate trauma-informed care into your approaches? (You may consider the following questions to help write your response, but you do not need to address every question. How do you incorporate: Safety so that your organization, staff, and clients feel physically and psychologically safe? Trustworthiness and transparency so that operational decisions are transparent as a way to build and maintain trust with clients and staff? Support from peers who have also experienced trauma Collaboration and mutuality so that everyone in an organization, from clerical staff to administrators, has a role in providing trauma-informed care? Empowerment, voice, and choice: Building on individuals’ strengths and experiences and empowering them to self-advocate as well as determine their own plan of action?)
Awards:- $500,000
Deadline:- 14-04-2025
