Recovery Act Rural Law Enforcement Training and Technical Assistance Project

Principal Investigator: John H. Lacey
Sponsor: Department of Justice
(2/1/2010 - 7/31/2011)

Proposal Abstract
Strategic Applications for Society (SAI) contracts with the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE)  under the Recovery Act Rural Law Enforcement Training and Technical Assistance Project, award number 2009-SD-B9-K004.  Under this contract, PIRE will develop and evaluate innovations related to rural interdiction strategies, focusing on methamphetamine production, distribution and use and conduct work associated with four of the six project goals:   --Assess extent of methamphetamine issues in each rural state designated to participate in the project.   --Conduct a National Rural Methamphetamine Summit. --Provide training and technical assistance (TTA) and distance learning. --Effectively Monitor and Evaluate Rural State Meth Initiative. State Assessments (Phase 1) Working with SAI, PIRE will create a protocol for reviewing methamphetamine issues in each rural state.  PIRE will also participate in on-site rural state assessments.  Based on the assessment information, PIRE will work with the SAI site and state team leads as they work to develop rural state training and technical plans. National Rural Methamphetamine Summit (Phase 2) PIRE will assist SAI in identifying speakers and developing a summit agenda.  PIRE will also conduct a summit evaluation. In providing this support to SAI, PIRE will draw from its knowledge on the 2007 National Roadside Survey (NRS) project and the Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) program developed and implemented through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to develop summit content. Provide TTA & Distance Learning (Phase 3) PIRE will facilitate the provision of technical assistance to states based on state assessments, state TTA plans, and discussions at the national summit.  PIRE will conduct CD/DVD dissemination follow-up; specifically, survey CD/DVD recipients to determine client satisfaction with the training product. Monitoring and Evaluation (Phase 4) Working with SAI, PIRE will develop a cross-state monitoring matrix identifying common data-points, barriers, and training and technical assistance goals.  Working in consultation with the grantor and SAI, PIRE will develop a process evaluation plan for documenting the manner in which participating states adopt and implement new methamphetamine prevention, deterrence, and treatment innovations.   Potential strategies to include in the process evaluation are focus groups and structured surveys.