National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect

This acquisition is for commercial operation and maintenance support services for the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect (NDACAN) database. The ACF is the agency within HHS that is responsible for Federal programs that promote the economic and social well-being of families, children, individuals, and communities. A core mission of the CB, within ACF, is to prevent child abuse and neglect and ensure that children who are victims receive treatment and care. Data collection and analysis, and the research knowledge that results, is integral to making important policy decisions, raising awareness, and effecting change. There are many datasets related to child abuse and neglect; some are large, national in scope, and legislatively mandated; other data collection efforts are on a smaller scale through discretionary grants or privately funded research evaluation projects. The NDACAN serves as a central repository for these datasets and makes them available for secondary analysis to researchers throughout the country. Providing analytic support, connecting the child maltreatment research community, and providing a critical point of access to micro-level data for analysis is a critical function that fosters the continued growth of research-based knowledge on the incidence, causes, consequences, and prevention of child maltreatment, and other child welfare-related topics. The goal is to promote the expansion of a knowledge base leading to greater safety, permanency, and well-being for America s children.
This requirement shall continue the operation of the NDACAN and to continue the processing, housing, and dissemination of high-quality data sets, and related activities to increase the knowledge base in the child welfare field. Specific activities to be undertaken include: maintaining and expanding the existing archive of data sets; promoting the use of the data sets among researchers through a variety of training, technical assistance, dissemination and marketing activities; maintaining and updating a digital library of research publications using datasets in the archive; conducting ad hoc analyses of selected data sets within the archive for CB staff and other requestors; and continuing operation of a listserv of child welfare researchers around the country to promote the exchange of ideas and information that will help the field to move forward.