FDPIR Tribal Leaders, Managers, Staff (State/Local/ Tribal Government)

OMB Control Number: 0584-XXXX

Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX

ATTACHMENT I2: FDPIR LETTER #2 –

TO FDPIR DIRECTOR FROM USDA AT START OF IN-DEPTH OUTREACH/RECRUITMENT

(USDA/FNS letterhead etc…)

(date)

Dear (FDPIR Director),

As you know, the Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is sponsoring a national study called the Study of the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR). This study will provide current, nationally representative information on FDPIR participants and will provide updated information on local program operations across the nation. The study is needed to help FNS identify ways to make the program more beneficial to participants. It is scheduled to be conducted during the summer and fall of 2013 in 25 selected reservations and Tribal areas across the country. [Name of Tribe] was selected from among all federally-recognized Tribes participating in the FDPIR program to be part of the data collection activities for this study.

The Urban Institute, a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, DC, is leading the study and will be assisted by NORC at the University of Chicago (NORC), an independent, nonprofit research organization founded in 1941, and Support Services International, Inc. (SSI), a Native American owned research firm in Silver Spring, MD. The researchers are about to begin outreach activities with Tribes selected for the study sample. This includes learning about and following any procedures required to obtain Tribal permission to conduct the study on your reservation/tribal area, providing clear and detailed information to you about the study, and working with you to prepare for and schedule data collection.

Researchers from the Urban Institute and NORC will be contacting you directly to make specific arrangements for data collection activities. They will also seek your guidance on the proper way to carry out data collection activities on your (reservation/Tribal area). I know the research team will do everything possible to make this effort as burden-free as possible for you and your staff.

There are three steps to the data collection.

1. Case record review.  Researchers will contact you for a list of all FDPIR participating households in a specific month. From that list they will randomly select cases for the case record review. The purpose of the case record review is to obtain information that will help describe current program participants and their characteristics. This will include household composition, income sources, and other available resources or benefits. About 32 FDPIR household records will be reviewed at the FDPIR office for each Tribe, with about twice as many at the two largest Tribes. NORC staff will work with you to conduct the case reviews, making sure to respect Tribal procedures. The researchers will use participant information from the records. All information drawn from the case record reviews will be carefully protected and participants’ privacy will be ensured. Households selected for the case record review will be part of the survey sample.

2. Survey of FDPIR participating households. For each FDPIR household selected for the case record review, a 40-minute interview will be conducted. Most of the interviews will be conducted by telephone and the remaining in person. Selected households will receive a letter and information about the study in advance. The letter and materials will include a toll free number for any questions they may have. Each participating household will receive an incentive worth $25. NORC field interviewers will conduct the participant survey and work closely with you and Tribal leaders during this process.

3. Program Tribal Visits. Tribal visits will be conducted with 17 of the 25 participating Tribes. Tribal visits include interviews with Tribal leaders, FDPIR program staff and other individuals. The interviews present an opportunity to gain information on the issues that surround FDPIR and households' nutrition needs. The Tribal visits will include: (a) interviews with FDPIR program administrators, staff and Tribal Leaders; (b) visits to FDPIR programs to observe facilities related to client enrollment, warehouses, and/or food ordering staff; and (c) discussion groups with program participants and low-income non-participants. The Urban Institute and SSI will conduct the site visits.

Please see the enclosed brochure for additional information. Also, please feel free to call or email me with any questions you may have. I can be reached at Laura.Castro@fns.usda.gov or 703-305-2694.

Laura Castro, Director

Food Distribution Division

Enclosures

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-XXXX. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 3 minutes per response, including the time to review instructions, search existing data resources, gather the data needed, and complete and review the information collection.

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