Early Head Start Expansion and Early Head Start - Child Care Partnership Grants in Multiple States

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Administration for Children and Families Office of Head Start, forecasts a competitive discretionary grant opportunity titled Early Head Start Expansion and Early Head Start - Child Care Partnership Grants in Multiple States. The opportunity is associated with Assistance Listing 93.600, Head Start, and falls within the federal funding activity category of Income Security and Social Services. The Office of Head Start administers the opportunity as part of the Administration for Children and Families mission to promote the economic and social well-being of children, families, and communities. The opportunity is currently forecasted, and the identified service areas remain subject to change until the Notice of Funding Opportunity is published. The purpose of the funding opportunity is to provide high-quality, comprehensive services to pregnant women, low-income infants and toddlers, and their families. Funding may support the expansion of Early Head Start services or the establishment or operation of Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships. The opportunity reflects the Office of Head Start commitment to expanding access to high-quality, comprehensive early childhood services intended to strengthen family stability and community prosperity. Approximately $7.7 million in federal funding is expected to be awarded across multiple communities in Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia. Estimated total program funding is $7,772,312, with four awards expected. The stated award floor is $1,232,123 and the stated award ceiling is $4,964,843. Cost sharing or matching is explicitly required, although the forecast does not provide the required matching percentage, ratio, or dollar amount. The available forecast also does not provide detailed allowable-cost rules, indirect cost limitations, subaward limitations, or other spending restrictions. Those requirements therefore cannot be determined from the currently available source and may be provided when the full Notice of Funding Opportunity is published. Eligible applicants include public or private nonprofit agencies, including community-based and faith-based organizations, and for-profit agencies that are eligible pursuant to section 645A(d) of the Head Start Act. Eligibility is limited to organizations capable of providing Early Head Start services to children and families. Entities currently operating Head Start programs are eligible to operate Early Head Start programs. The listed eligible applicant types include state governments, county governments, city or township governments, federally recognized Native American tribal governments, independent school districts, public housing authorities or Indian housing authorities, public and state controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status other than institutions of higher education, small businesses, and other for-profit organizations. Individuals, sole proprietorships, and foreign entities are expressly ineligible. Faith-based and community organizations meeting the applicable eligibility requirements may receive awards. The opportunity is forecasted to be posted on October 14, 2026, which is treated as the expected application opening date based on the information currently available. The estimated application deadline is December 15, 2026. Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on that date. The forecast does not identify a letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, notice of intent, or other pre-application gating requirement. It also does not provide application questions, required uploads, evaluation criteria, scoring criteria, or detailed submission mechanics beyond the requirement for electronic submission by the deadline. These details may become available with publication of the Notice of Funding Opportunity. The estimated award date is July 30, 2027, and the estimated project start date is August 2, 2027. No recurring or annually repeated application cycle is stated, so the opportunity is treated as non-recurring based strictly on the available forecast. Applicants seeking additional information may contact the Office of Head Start Operations Center at OHSgrants@koniag-gs.com or (888) 242-0684. The named grantor contact is Nicole Stoakley. Because this is a forecast rather than the final Notice of Funding Opportunity, applicants should recognize that the service areas and other forecasted details may change before the official opportunity is published.

Demonstrate capacity to provide high-quality, comprehensive Early Head Start services to pregnant women, low-income infants and toddlers, and their families. Align the proposed approach with expanding access to comprehensive early childhood services and strengthening family stability and community prosperity.