FastTrack GenIC Submission Form - Feedback to Inform OPRE Outreach and Communications Efforts

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 0970-0401)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Feedback to Inform the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation’s Outreach and Communications Efforts

PURPOSE: The purpose of this information collection is to gather feedback from experts and stakeholders to inform the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation’s (OPRE) strategic communications planning in order to improve OPRE’s ability to share research findings with its stakeholders. OPRE will seek feedback on stakeholders’ experience accessing OPRE research findings through digital and traditional media (including website, social media, earned media, newsletters, conferences, and research products). Insights from experts and stakeholders will help OPRE better understand how to:

• Increase awareness of OPRE, its organizational activities, and the evidence and insights it generates;

• Increase interaction with OPRE and the evidence and insights it generates among a growing community of stakeholders and intermediaries; and

• Increase use of the evidence and insights generated by OPRE to improve human services programs and policies.

Feedback will be synthesized and integrated into OPRE’s communications plans in order to improve OPRE’s offerings to and interactions with stakeholders.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: There are five categories of respondents who are the focus of this request:

1. State and local human services program administrators. e.g., State Human Services directors, state and county TANF directors, county administrators, city administrators.

2. State and local policymakers. e.g., elected officials in state legislative/executive branches and their staff; elected officials in local legislative/executive branches.

3. Intermediary Organizations. e.g.:

   1. Membership organizations or organizations that synthesize and communicate social science research/national organizations that work with appointed and elected officials or their staff at the federal, state, and local levels positioned to use OPRE research to create and inform policy and/or practice such as the National Head Start Association, APHSA, NGA, NCSL, NAWRS, National Association of Counties, National League of Cities, National Association of Social Workers, National Association of State Child Care Administrators, National Indian Child Welfare Association, Child Care Aware.

   2. Technical Assistance (TA) Providers such as the National Head Start Technical Assistance Centers, National Child Care Information and Technical Assistance Center (sponsored by the Office of Child Care, ACF), Child Welfare Gateway

4. Researchers. e.g., researchers at independent or university-affiliated organizations who use or contribute to OPRE research such as MDRC, Urban Institute, Child Trends, Chapin Hall, Mathematica, NORC, Weststat, MEF Associates, James Bell Associates, Abt Associates; think tanks such as Pew Charitable Trusts, Brookings Institution; academic centers/research labs and teams at universities such as the National Center for Children in Poverty, Duke Center for Child and Family Policy, National Poverty Center; research associations such as APPAM, SRCD, Society for Research on Adolescence; Society for Social Work Research; National Council on Family Relations; and federal research offices in the executive branch.

5. Communications experts/media relations experts at any of the social science research organizations or entities identified above.

TYPE OF COLLECTION:

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[ ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software [ ] Small Discussion Group

[ X] Focus Group [ ] Other: ______________________

CERTIFICATION:

I certify the following to be true:

1. The collection is voluntary.

2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.

3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

4. The primary purpose of the results is not for public dissemination.

5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions.

6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.

Name and affiliation:__ Emily Schmitt, Deputy Director, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation , Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation________________________________

To assist review, please provide answers to the following questions:

Personally Identifiable Information:

1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [ ] Yes [X] No

2. If Yes, will any information that is collected be included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [X] No

3. If Yes, has an up-to-date System of Records Notice (SORN) been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [ ] Yes [X] No

BURDEN HOURS

Information Collection	Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	No. of Responses per Respondent	Estimated Time per Response	Burden Hours
State and local human services program administrators – Focus Group	Individuals	12	1	90 minutes	18hrs
State and local policymakers – Focus Group	Individuals	12	1	90 minutes	18hrs
Intermediary Organizations – Focus Group	Individuals	12	1	90 minutes	18hrs
Researchers – Focus Group	Individuals	12	1	90 minutes	18hrs
Communications/media relations experts – Focus Group	Individuals	12	1	90 minutes	18hrs
Totals		60	1	90 minutes	90hrs

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is $5,639.26

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents

1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe? [ ] Yes [X] No

If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)? If the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them?

We will use a chain-referral sampling method for this project in which key participants provide referrals for additional respondents to recruit, to the extent possible, within each of the respondent categories identified above. We have been working to identify organizations, entities, and individuals who align with the respondent categories identified above. We will ask identified participants for recommendations for additional respondents who they recommend we contact, for example state/local policymakers, program administrator, and communications/media relations experts.

Administration of the Instrument

1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)

[ ] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ ] Telephone

[ ] In-person

[ ] Mail

[ X ] Other, Explain

We will first contact participants by email to communicate the purpose of this project and to invite their participation in one of two virtual focus groups. We will then facilitate data collection through two virtual focus groups for each group of respondents (a total of 12 focus groups).

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [ X ] Yes [ ] No

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