(a)  The State Department of Education shall establish a competitive grant process for private, nonprofit organizations that are registered with the Secretary of State to submit a grant application for the development, administration, and implementation of the Pupil Athletic Access and Safety Program.

(b)  No later than May 1, 2002, the department, or its administering contracting entity, shall request and review proposals submitted by entities eligible for grants pursuant to this chapter. By June 1, 2002, the department, or its administering contracting entity, shall select a proposal for each of the two regions for receipt of a grant. The selected proposal shall meet the criteria set forth in this chapter and shall be selected on the basis of its ability to provide the best, most feasible service to the largest number of schools and pupils in the pilot area.

(c)  Proposals shall include all of the following:

(1)  A description of the program goals.

(2)  A list of measurable objectives for the purpose of evaluation by the department, or its administering contracting entity.

(3)  A list of public secondary schools selected for participation, and the criteria used for selection of those schools.

(4)  A list of professional participants with curriculum vitae and résumés attached. Athletic trainers who are proposed to participate in the program shall be certified by the National Athletic Trainers Association.

(5)  A method of ensuring medical quality for the program.

(6)  The method that will be used to gather and submit data to the department, or its administering contracting entity.

(7)  A clear description of the experience, expertise, and other qualifications of the private, nonprofit organization.

(8)  A proposed budget for expenditure of the grant, including a proposed fundraising plan to raise the dollar-for-dollar match as required in this chapter.

(d)  The department, or its administering contracting entity, upon making a selection pursuant to this chapter, shall fund the grant no later than August 1, 2002.

(e)  (1)  The department may expend up to 10 percent of the funds appropriated for the purposes of this chapter for the costs associated with administration of the competitive grant process, medical quality assurance and program oversight, data collection, and evaluation of the pilot project. No additional funds may be used for administration, oversight, or implementation of this program.

(2)  The department may contract with a nonprofit statewide organization that specializes in administration of high school interscholastic athletic programs to function as the department’s administering agency for the program. If the department enters into a contract pursuant to this paragraph, the funds provided for administrative costs as set forth in paragraph (1) shall be expended, pursuant to the contract, by the nonprofit organization in its administration of this program on behalf of the department. The administering contracting entity shall be responsible for all aspects of the program, including the establishment of the competitive grant process, the selection of grantees and awarding of grants, program administration, monitoring, and evaluation, and the report required pursuant to Section 116095.

(f)  The department, or its administering contracting entity, shall monitor and evaluate the program to ensure the performance and effectiveness of the program, including the following:

(1)  Success in obtaining stated goals.

(2)  Success in the pupil mentoring and scholarship programs.

(3)  Reduction in injuries that occur during practice sessions and during actual athletic competitions.

(4)  Reduction in recurring injury incidents.

(g)  For the purpose of evaluating the programs, the department, or its administering contracting entity, shall, to the extent feasible, compare available data relating to injuries that occurred during practice sessions and official competitions in the school year prior to the existence of the pilot program, with comparable data collected in the second year of the pilot program.

If data regarding injuries has not been collected prior to the establishment of the pilot program, then data submitted by each grantee during the first six months of the program shall be used as baseline data to compare against data collected in the second year.

(h)  In order to be eligible to receive funds pursuant to this chapter, a pilot project shall receive matching private funds equal to the public funds received.

(Added by Stats. 2001, Ch. 553, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2002.)