Instrument 2: Administrator, staff, and partner topic guide

THE PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT OF 1995

This collection of information is voluntary and will be used to provide the Administration for Children and Families with information to help refine and guide SRAE program development. Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 60 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB number and expiration date for this collection are OMB #: XXXX-XXXX, Exp: XX/XX/20XX. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Melissa Thomas at mthomas@mathematica-mpr.com.

Instrument 2: Administrator, staff, and partner Topic Guide

Note to reviewers: This guide includes a universe of topics relevant to a range of potential studies that will be planned under the SRAE National Evaluation 2.0. The topic guide will be tailored to reflect each specific study, the relevant research questions, and appropriate respondents. The tailored topic guides and study-specific questions will be submitted in a GenIC package under this umbrella approval.

MODERATOR NOTE: Based on the specific study and its research questions, use this topic guide to identify relevant topics that then will be tailored for the study. To do this, first, identify topics where we have not already collected information. Then, use the identified topics to develop study-specific questions for interviews.

This guide includes topics that may be relevant for a range of staff and partner roles, including:

• Program leaders and administrators: Individuals responsible for the overall direction and management of the program with a high-level understanding of the program’s mission.

• Program supervisors: Those who oversee program implementation, provide support to the frontline staff, and provide information to program leaders and administrators.

• Facilitators or other frontline staff: Staff responsible for serving youth and families enrolled in the program. Often these staff are responsible for delivering the SRAE program.

• Partners: Staff at organizations that work with the grant recipient to facilitate implementation of the SRAE program through youth recruitment or program delivery.

INTRODUCTION AND CONSENT

Moderator and co-moderator introductions

Thank you for taking the time to speak with us today. We are from Mathematica, an independent research firm, and we are here to learn about your experiences with Sexual Risk Avoidance Education (SRAE) programming. My name is [name] and my colleague is [name].

Explanation of project and purpose of discussion

We are speaking today on behalf of the Sexual Risk Avoidance Education National Evaluation, which we refer to as “SRAENE”. SRAENE is a study sponsored by the Administration for Children and Families within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

We will be speaking today about [purpose of study]. Before we start, I want to let you know that your participation in this interview is voluntary, and you may stop at any time.

Providing information is voluntary, and all individual responses that are collected will be kept private to the extent permitted by law. We expect this discussion to take up to 75 minutes. There are no right or wrong answers. We value the information you will share with us and want to make sure we capture it all by recording it. If you do not agree to the recording, you can still participate, and we will not record it, but we have someone who will take notes. Only the team that is working on the study will have access to them. We will destroy the recording and the transcription at the end of the study. We will not use your name in any of our reporting.

Do you consent to participate in this interview? Do we also have your permission to record the discussion?

Do you have any questions before we get started?

Please note: An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB number for this information collection is XXXX-XXXX and the expiration date is XX/XX/20XX.

1. Topics to cover in interviews

Construct	Topic
What are the characteristics of youth who receive the SRAE programming?
Youth characteristics	Description of youth who participate in the SRAE program. Description of the needs and protective factors of youth who participate in the SRAE program.
Eligibility requirements	Criteria for youth to be selected for and invited to participate in SRAE program.
What are the components of the planned SRAE programming? Are the program components implemented consistently and with fidelity?
SRAE program description	Description of SRAE program, including any named curriculum and other services, resources, or experiences the program includes. Frequency, format, length, location, and timing of SRAE program. How and why provider selected the curriculum and other program offerings. Whether the provider implemented any other curricula or offered other services, resources, or experiences that they decided to discontinue or replace and why they decided to discontinue or replace them.
Curriculum and activity adaptations	Whether provider adapts curriculum content, activities, or facilitation strategies for the SRAE program. How and why provider adapts curriculum content, activities, or facilitation strategies, if they do so. Adaptations or improvements staff would recommend to further improve the SRAE program (for example, changes to make it more relevant, helpful, or engaging for youth).
Communication around goals, expectations, and implementation plans	How leadership staff communicate SRAE program goals, expectations, and implementation plans to facilitators and other staff. How staff communicate SRAE program goals, expectations and implementation plans to partners How facilitators communicate program goals and expectations to youth How facilitators learn about SRAE program goals, expectations, and implementation plans. Staff responsible for ensuring SRAE program is implemented as planned.
Fidelity to implementation plans and curriculum as written	Plan for providing content, activities, or facilitation strategies specified in SRAE program (for the entire program or specific components or strategies). Process for tracking whether facilitator delivers content, activities, or program components and uses intended strategies. Extent to which actual SRAE program implementation aligns with planned program implementation.
To what extent are youth engaged in the SRAE programming? How do youth experience the program content and activities?
Relevance of SRAE content, lessons, activities, or program components	Whether the SRAE program is relevant for youth Description of content and activities that are the most and least relevant. Whether the SRAE program meets the needs of youth
Program attendance and completion	Attendance requirements, and whether attendance varies across SRAE program sessions and potential contributors to variation. Definition of SRAE program completion and number of youth, on average, that complete the program; factors that contribute to observed completion trends. Challenges youth experience with attending the SRAE program. Strategies to boost program attendance and completion.
Youth engagement	Whether youth are engaged in the SRAE program, and whether youth vary in their engagement by content or activities. Topics or activities youth find most/least helpful or interesting. Strategies facilitators use to engage youth in the SRAE program and build rapport with youth.
Facilitator – youth relationship	Extent to which facilitators feel connected to the youth Strategies facilitators use to treat youth fairly and with respect Strategies facilitators use to be relatable to youth Strategies facilitators use to establish a relationship with youth
SRAE program satisfaction	Extent to which facilitators think youth enjoyed the program Program components or activities facilitators think youth seem to respond to the most Program components or activities facilitators think youth seem to respond to the least Suggestions of how to improve the program or make it better How well the facilitator was able to deliver information How well the facilitator was able to answer questions
Feelings of safety and connectedness	Extent to which facilitators think youth felt safe during program sessions, what contributed to that sense of safety, and barriers to having a sense of safety Extent to which facilitators think youth felt connected to other students during program sessions, what contributed to feeling connected, and barriers to feeling connected with other students Extent to which facilitators think youth felt comfortable asking questions, what contributed to this comfort and barriers to feeling comfortable asking questions Extent to which youth felt comfortable participating, what contributed to this comfort, and barriers to participation Extent to which the facilitator sets the mood or tone of the class and what they do to set the mood or tone Content/lessons/activities make youth uncomfortable
What successes and challenges do program staff experience delivering the SRAE program and its specific components?
Challenges and barriers for program delivery and strategies to address them	Challenges and barriers to implementing SRAE programming as planned and how staff have addressed them. Communication process for raising and addressing implementation challenges. Decision-making authority to address implementation barriers.
Successes and promising practices for program delivery	Successes or things that have gone particularly well with program implementation, including specific program components. Successes related to ensuring program meets the needs of youth. Promising practices that would be helpful to share with other staff or organizations working with youth who might experience similar challenges or barriers. Lessons learned from program implementation that could inform future implementation.
What partnerships do providers rely upon to deliver SRAE programming? What successes and challenges do programs experience when working with partners?
Partnership types and roles and responsibilities	Types of organizations program providers form partnerships with, and rationale for partnerships. Roles and responsibilities of each partner. Length of partnerships. Description of process of establishing and maintaining partnerships, including staff involved.
Partner organization experience	Prior experience implementing sexual risk avoidance education and adolescent pregnancy prevention programming and working with youth. Other relevant experience or relationships partners have that are relevant to the SRAE program.
Successes and challenges for partnerships	Whether any partnerships are critical for the SRAE program to be successful (that is, implemented as plan, received well by youth, and so on). Successes or things that went particularly well when providers and partner organizations first started working together, and contributors to this success. Successes or things that went particularly well with any providers and partner organizations, after the partnership was established, and contributors to this success. Challenges and barriers when providers and partner organizations first started working together, and how staff have addressed them. Challenges and barriers with any provider and partner organizations, after the partnership was established, and how staff have addressed them. Lessons learned that might be helpful for other SRAE providers forming partnerships for their SRAE program
How are staff responsible for SRAE program delivery identified and trained? What ongoing support do they receive?
Staff background and experience	Staff roles and responsibilities related to SRAE program delivery. Length of time in position. Prior experience implementing sexual risk avoidance education and adolescent pregnancy prevention programming and working with youth. Other experience relevant to the SRAE program.
Staff training and support	Types of training and support staff receive. Extent to which staff are satisfied with training. Extent to which facilitators are prepared to deliver SRAE program. Suggestions for how to improve trainings in the future.
Staff retention	Turnover rates among staff involved in SRAE program implementation, and contributors to turnover. Strategies for retaining staff.
Successes and challenges related to staffing	Successes or things that have gone well for staff involved in programming, and contributors to these successes. Challenges and barriers staff face implementing programming with youth in different settings, and how and how staff have addressed them.

1