Communities Aligned in Early Development and Education (CAEDE) FY22
Grant Opportunity
The Children’s Cabinet announces the release of the Communities Aligned in Early Development & Education (CAEDE) Request for Proposals for state fiscal year 2022. The purpose of this grant opportunity is to expand access to full-day, full-year early childhood care and education services for at-risk children in Wyandotte County ages birth up to kindergarten entry to improve school readiness and health.
The Children’s Cabinet is interested in supporting evidence-based, data-driven best practices and program models that provide direct services to at-risk children and families. Proposals need to support activities and services that are community-based, community-informed, community-driven, and grounded in a public-private partnership framework.
CAEDE FY22 applications will be submitted through the Kansas CommonApp platform.
Who is eligible to apply for funding?
This award is limited to projects serving Wyandotte County. Eligible applicants should be experienced in providing service delivery models that yield positive outcomes to children from birth up to kindergarten entry and their families meeting at least one of the at-risk criteria, with a commitment to evidence-based, data-driven practices. Applicants should include within their proposal a community-informed, community-driven collaborative approach with partners from the private sector. Eligible applicants may include:
- 501©(3) organizations
- County and city governments
- Unified School Districts (USDs)
Application Deadline: May 7, 2021
Timeline
Release of Request for Proposal (RFP) and Application opens: April 19, 2021
Application closes May 7, 2021, 5:00PM
Apply Using the Kansas CommonApp
April 19, 2021 through May 7, 2021, 5:00PM
Assistance
RFP questions may be submitted:
April 19, 2021 through April 30, 2021
Kansas CommonApp Help Desk available:
April 19, 2021 through May 7, 2021
Recorded Webinars for Reference
All In For Kansas Kids Alignment
Children and families who participate in high-quality early childhood care and education programming are more likely to have better educational outcomes, graduate high school, earn a higher lifetime salary, have higher levels of employment, and contribute to the vibrancy of their community.
High-quality early learning opportunities are particularly beneficial for children whose early experiences otherwise put them at risk. Applicants are encouraged to keep the needs assessment themes and All In For Kansas Kids goals in mind to design a local system that holistically meets the needs of young children and families.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a word limit on any portion of the application?
The project abstract is the only section with a word limit.
What is a “promising practice?”
The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse is a good reference. Per their definition, Promising Practices refer to programs that include measurable results and report successful outcomes, however, there is not yet enough research evidence to prove that this program or process will be effective across a wide range of settings and people. For a link to the scientific rating scale used to evaluate each practice based on available research- https://www.cebc4cw.org/ratings/scientific-rating-scale/ .
What is meant by “outreach strategies?”
Outreach strategies are the ways you communicate or connect with target audiences or populations to inform them about your programs, services, eligibility, enrollment opportunities, etc.
For the Timeline, is it acceptable to attach a chart or what do you suggest as the best format for this?
The portal is not set up to except an attachment for this section. Applicants can provide the Timeline however they deem best in the section provided, but a bulleted list or paragraph is acceptable.
Could you please provide a bit more information about what you are looking for in the "Additional Budget Documentation" part of the budget for the cost areas identified? How it is different from the information submitted in the budget justification portion of the budget narrative?
This is optional. If there are details about budget items that need to be further described or explained, an applicant could upload appropriate documentation. For most applicants this will not be necessary.
Will other classroom observation platforms be entertained for in-home providers? (In-home providers usually have a range of ages that don’t fit easily into Infant/Toddler/PreK distinctions)?
The Cabinet has been using CLASS with in-home providers. Applicants can suggest their desire to use an alternative but the Cabinet will make a final decision on what funded programs will have to use.
How do I add additional rows in the Budget Template?
Select and right click on the cell. This opens up a menu where you will select “Insert”, and then “Insert Above/Below Row”.
Regarding the Common Measures: are all of the listed evaluations necessary, or can we use one to evaluate our programs?
Common Measures are to be collected as they align with each applicant’s program components and services. Pages 9-10 of the RFP outline each Common Measures, and an explanation of what types of programs will be required to collect the measure. For example, on page 10 – “Home Observation for the Measurement of the Environment (HOME) Inventory: Used with home visitation and case management programs…”
Do we need to buy each of the Common Measures programs? Or are they provided to us? If we need to purchase them, can we include the costs in our budgeting?
The cost of the materials for the measures should be included in your budgets. The Children’s Cabinet covers training costs for everything except The Keys to Interactive Parenting Scale (KIPS) since that is self-directed. Home Observation for the Measurement of the Home (HOME) Inventory, Ages and Stages Questionnaire’s (ASQs) and Deveraux Early Childhood Assessment (DECA) do not require training, but you may include that optional training in your budget.
Regarding the reporting requirements, is there a specific way information needs to be relayed? It says the information will come in the Award Letter, but I wanted to see how things are preferred.
Awarded applicants will be provided with reporting forms and templates after the award is finalized, which will include a monthly transaction report for financial reimbursements, a quarterly progress report that will gather data collection and service delivery information, and data reporting for the common measures (demographic information on children and caregivers/parents, measures, etc).