The Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services has issued a Request for Proposal for child care grants for state fiscal year 2000. A total of $3.8 million in grants will be made available this fiscal year in several different categories. Funding comes from the federal Child Care and Development Fund.

There are a series of categories listed in the RFP. To apply for grant funding in several of the categories, an application must be returned to SRS by November 19. In several other categories, applicants can apply up until September, 2000, when a new grant funding announcement will be made.

Eligible applicants must be public or non-profit agencies or private employers seeking to establish child care for employees.

As the RFP indicates, there were several changes this year. A major change is that in every category, applicants must include information on how the grant will improve health and safety for children served. They must also show how they are working toward accreditation with the National Academy of Early Childhood Program, a division of the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Information on how to work toward accreditation or other information about the RFP can be obtained by contacting Jane Weiler, 915 Harrison, Docking State Office Building, 681-W, Topeka, KS., 66612 or call 785-296-3349.

The RFP was sent to over 900 agencies across the state, including all school districts, all county health departments, and to the regional offices of the Kansas Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agency, who then provide it to local child care providers in their area.

Grant applications due by November 19 are in the following categories:

*Family Child Care Home Networks -- This is a new category of grants aimed specifically at six counties where there is a severe child care shortage. In this pilot program, grants of up to $50,000 each would go to an agency that creates a family child care home network in the combined counties of Elk/Chautauqua, or Finney/Kearney, or Osborne/Jewell counties. The goal of the grant would be to hire a staff person to recruit, train, mentor and maintain 15 providers within their designated counties.

*Systems Building Projects B The goal of this grant is to create a child care system that works well locally and could be duplicated in other parts of the region or state. Examples include a system that provides child care for children in non-traditional hours, such as weekends or night shift hours. Another example would be the development of a local training system for relative care givers that could be duplicated in other parts of the state.

*Provider Training B For training, recruitment and retention of child care providers.

*Quality Enhancement B For existing child care programs to improve the quality. There is a cap of $25,000 for this category, which could include equipment or improvements to meet licensing requirements.

The other categories of child care grants have no immediate deadline and applicants can send in an application any time through September, 2000. These categories include:

*Center-based establishment or expansion B This category includes school-age programs.

*Employer-sponsored child care

*Local advisory groups

All applications will be screened for completeness and conformity to RFP guidelines. Review will be conducted by a panel of local and state reviewers. Final approval of all recommendations for funding will be made by the Secretary of SRS. Funding should be available to successful grantees by March, 2000 for those responding to categories with the November 19 deadline. Those submitting applications with no immediate deadline should expect to hear results within 60 days of submission.

The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunities Act created the Child Care and Development Fund. A percentage of these funds are to be set aside for quality activities. The categories within the RFP are in response to federal regulations on the use of CCDF funds.

Page Last Updated: May 29, 2001