Foa_Content_of_HHS-2022-ACF-OCC-TP-0001 Publication Copy.pdf

Administration for Children and Families

Office of Child Care

Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5) Planning Grant

HHS-2022-ACF-OCC-TP-0001

Application Due Date: 11/07/2022

Table of Contents Executive Summary

I. Program Description

II. Federal Award Information

III. Eligibility Information

III.1. Eligible Applicants

III.2. Cost Sharing or Matching

III.3. Other

IV. Application and Submission Information

IV.1. Address to Request Application Package

IV.2. Content and Form of Application Submission

Required Forms, Assurances, and Certifications

The Project Description

The Project Budget and Budget Justification

Application Submission Options

IV.3. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and System for Award Management (SAM)

IV.4. Submission Dates and Times

Explanation of Due Dates

Acknowledgement of Received Application

IV.5. Intergovernmental Review

IV.6. Funding Restrictions

IV.7. Other Submission Requirements

V. Application Review Information

V.1. Criteria

V.2. Review and Selection Process

V.3. Anticipated Announcement and Federal Award Dates

VI. Federal Award Administration Information

VI.1. Federal Award Notices

VI.2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

VI.3. Reporting

VII. HHS Award Agency Contact(s)

VIII. Other Information

Reference Websites

Application Checklist

Funding Opportunity Title:

Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5) Planning Grant Announcement Type:

Initial Funding Opportunity Number:

HHS-2022-ACF-OCC-TP-0001

Primary CFDA Number:

93.434 Due Date for Applications:

11/07/2022 Executive Summary Notice:

Applicants are strongly encouraged to read the entire notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) carefully and observe the application formatting requirements listed in Section IV.2. Content and Form of Application Submission. For more information on applying for grants, please visit "How to Apply for a Grant" on the ACF Grants & Funding Page at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/how-apply-grant.

SAM.gov System Alert | Entity Validation Delays:

Due to high demand, SAM.gov is experiencing a considerable delay in processing entity legal business name and address validation tickets. As needed, please start the process early to avoid interruptions in application submissions. You can find SAM resources related to this process here: https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB0058422&sys_k b_id=7bb8810ddba05990060d5425f3961912&spa=1.

Grants.gov Downtime |Grants.gov Going Offline:

The Grants.gov system is being migrated to the cloud and will be unavailable to users for an extended period to allow for a successful transition. The Grants.gov Production System will be offline during the following period:

Production System will go Offline Friday September 23, 2022 at 12:01 AM ET.

Production System will go Online Thursday September 29, 2022 at 11:59 PM ET.

If you are interested in this funding opportunity, you are strongly encouraged to download it and all associated attachments from Grants.gov as soon as possible so that they will be available to you during this period. For more information on what to expect, please refer to the following URL for details: https://grantsgovprod.wordpress.com/2022/08/08/what-to-expect-during-the-grants-gov-cloud-migration-and-extended-downtime-for-september-2022/.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) jointly with the U.S. Department of Education (ED) (the Departments) are soliciting applications from states and outlying areas (hereafter referred to as "states") for a Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5) Planning Grant (formerly known as “PDG B-5 Initial Grant”). Eligible applicants include states that either:

https://www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/how-apply-grant https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB0058422&sys_kb_id=7bb8810ddba05990060d5425f3961912&spa=1 https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB0058422&sys_kb_id=7bb8810ddba05990060d5425f3961912&spa=1 https://grantsgovprod.wordpress.com/2022/08/08/what-to-expect-during-the-grants-gov-cloud-migration-and-extended-downtime-for-september-2022/ https://grantsgovprod.wordpress.com/2022/08/08/what-to-expect-during-the-grants-gov-cloud-migration-and-extended-downtime-for-september-2022/

1. Have not previously received a PDG B-5 grant award; or

2. Are current PDG B-5 Renewal Grant recipients whose 3rd year of funding ends

December 30, 2022 or April 28, 2023, and are therefore eligible to apply for a second PDG B-5 Planning Grant.

This PDG B-5 Planning Grant will fund states to develop, update, and implement a strategic plan to strengthen the state’s integrated early childhood system to prepare low-income and disadvantaged children to enter kindergarten and have a seamless, high-quality early childhood experience from birth through third grade. The strategic plan, which is informed by a statewide assessment of early childhood care and education (ECCE) needs in the state, provides a roadmap for how the recipient will increase the overall participation of children in high-quality ECCE programs. The statewide needs assessment and strategic plan should consider the changing needs of children and families created by the COVID-19 pandemic and propose and invest in the strategies that will address those needs, enhance quality of early childhood services for children in high-need communities, and support and strengthen the ECCE workforce.

I. Program Description Statutory Authority This grant is authorized by section 9212 of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), Public Law 114-95 (December 10, 2015), 42 U.S.C. 9831 note.

Description

Program Purpose

The purpose of this PDG B-5 Planning Grant is to strengthen the state’s integrated early childhood system to prepare low-income and disadvantaged children to enter kindergarten by investing in the early childhood workforce; identifying opportunities to expand access to high-quality early care and education programs; and supporting a comprehensive and mixed delivery system. Through this Planning Grant, states will conduct or update a statewide assessment of needs across the ECCE mixed delivery system; and develop, update, and begin to implement a strategic plan that recommends strategies to address those identified needs. Through this grant, states can pursue objectives that their needs assessment have indicated are needed to help break down barriers and improve access to higher quality early childhood services, and for those returning applicants who previously received PDG B-5 Initial and Renewal Grants, they should expand or build upon prior grant work.

The pandemic has highlighted the importance of the early childhood system and the ways it supports young children’s development and families' economic security. In the wake of the pandemic, many early childhood programs struggle to operate sustainably and to recruit and retain qualified staff. The stress that families experienced impacted children’s mental health and emotional development. Children, parents, and providers have more acute needs, further burdening an early childhood system that was strained even prior to the pandemic. Therefore, to the extent that it aligns with the needs identified through the PDG B-5 needs assessment, ACF encourages applicants to consider how grants may also be used to address the gaps in the early childhood system exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and encourages applicants to review and consider the applicability of past ACF policy guidance and strategies to support the ECCE workforce, including the Information Memorandum on Competitive Bonuses for the Head Start https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/policy/im/acf-im-hs-22-04

Workforce and guidance on Investing American Rescue Plan Act and PDG Funds to Address the Early Childhood Workforce Shortage.

States must conduct or update a statewide needs assessments and strategic plan, effectively coordinate existing programs, engage parents and providers in programs and policy, prepare children to enter kindergarten, and improve transitions across early childhood programs and from early childhood programs to the local educational agency or elementary school. This grant allows those states that have not previously developed and implemented a comprehensive, statewide, birth through 5 needs assessment to do so now. Those states that have already taken such steps, can now revise their assessment to address challenges caused by the pandemic, or focus their attention on assessing areas not previously, or sufficiently, explored. To achieve all this, states must:

Leverage existing federal, state, local, and non-governmental resources to strengthen coordination and delivery of services across programs, such as by enhancing partnerships among Head Start programs, child care providers, home visiting programs, preschool programs, early intervention services, preschool special education services, health and public health programs and systems, state and local governments, Indian tribes and tribal organizations, private entities (including faith-based organizations, community-based organizations, foundations, other non-profit entities, and schools), and local educational agencies.

Develop recommendations to improve the equitable participation of children, particularly vulnerable, underserved, or unserved children, including children who are dual language learners, and children with, or at risk for, disabilities.

Improve program quality across participating programs by aligning program standards and coordinating professional development activities across programs serving children from birth through 8 years, while maintaining access and availability of services, including through investments in the ECCE workforce compensation and professional development.

Maximize family and parental choice, and knowledge of and engagement with existing programs in the state’s mixed delivery system, easing access to services.

Invest in and support the early childhood workforce, including compensation initiatives, and developing pathways to licensure, credentialing, and degrees.

Help ECCE programs identify and access resources that can support long-term stability.

Improve school readiness for groups of children who experience the largest achievement gaps, including children of color who live in poverty, children with or at risk for developmental delays or disabilities, dual/multi-language learners, and children who are eligible for or receive social services.

Elevate and support efforts to coordinate instructional alignment and developmentally appropriate learning experiences from birth through third grade.

Program Approach

The program approach should be appropriate for the funding level and timeline of the PDG B-5 Planning Grant. The Departments encourage states to propose a program approach designed to improve services for low-income and disadvantaged children and those living in rural areas, and https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/policy/im/acf-im-hs-22-04 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ecd/policy-guidance/investing-arp-and-pdg-funds-address-early-childhood-workforce-shortage https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ecd/policy-guidance/investing-arp-and-pdg-funds-address-early-childhood-workforce-shortage to consider all available funding streams in the state to maximize the proposed program's impact.

The Departments anticipate that these Planning Grant applications will reflect changing needs that have come about as a result of the COVID-19 health crisis. States will want to consider any COVID-19 implications as it determines how best to build upon and improve its early childhood system, given the current realities within the state.

The following overarching priorities and approaches should be considered when designing your program:

Support the early childhood workforce:

o Compensation initiatives, studies, and analysis to move early childhood staff, including center-based and family child care providers, Directors, and family child care owners, to pay parity based on experience and credentials, including wages and benefits in line with elementary educators.

o Provision of ongoing practice-based mentoring, coaching, and professional development to address the needs and improve the effectiveness of the PDG B-5 workforce, as the state works on developing its proposed approaches to improving outcomes for children and families.

o Access to scholarships and other resources, including substitute pools, transportation subsidies, child care, and place-based programs, to help access credentials and degrees.

o Consideration of how best to support the career development and improve the training and experience of providers (including school-based, center-based, and family child care providers) across the mixed delivery system, including those serving infants and toddlers.

o Provision of health supports, including mental health, for the early childhood workforce.

Promote an integrated B-5 ECCE system: States should consider promoting an integrated B-5 ECCE system that reflects a mix of programs and services across their state B-5 ECCE system (see Definitions for definition of "State B-5 ECCE system."). In developing the application, the state should involve kindergarten and other systems beyond traditional early childhood programs to strengthen linkages across system partners, including schools and the health care system to support family engagement, developmental health and family well-being promotion, screening, referrals, and identifying gaps—particularly in rural areas—and improve health care access for vulnerable families. An integrated approach should also address issues faced by families as they approach the end of their eligibility for various programs and strive to minimize the loss of public assistance benefits, known as cliff effects.

Promote ECCE program sustainability: Consider strategies and approaches to support existing ECCE programs’ sustainability to maximize the supply of high-quality ECCE programs and services.

Expand meaningful community and family engagement and leadership: Meaningful engagement of and leadership by a variety of ECCE and school partners, including parents, providers, community leaders, and faith-based partners, should be prioritized in all stages of project planning and implementation, and clearly articulated in the state's approach. This should include opportunities for parents and family members, including those from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds, to meaningfully participate in shaping the approaches the state is taking.

Ensure inclusion of children with, or at risk of, disabilities: Applications should demonstrate an intentional approach and clear commitment to developing policies, dedicating resources, collecting data, implementing professional development (including training for providers working with infants and toddlers with disabilities), and supporting practices that enable children with, or at risk of, disabilities and their families to access ECCE programs that support their full participation in the least restrictive environment, and that leverages the extensive experience and knowledge of parents of children with, or at risk of, disabilities about their children’s needs.

Address suspensions, expulsions, and other exclusions: Develop and implement policies and supports for the workforce and families to eliminate suspensions and expulsions for young children, as well as all inappropriate and ineffective disciplinary practices including corporal punishment, seclusion, and inappropriate use of restraints, especially in demographic groups identified through research studies as being at elevated risk for suspensions and expulsions, and provide resources to early childhood providers and elementary schools to meet the needs of all children, including their social-emotional and behavioral needs.

Incorporate trauma-informed approaches: Incorporate trauma-informed approaches for ECCE programs and providers to buffer the impact of trauma and adverse childhood experiences, thereby increasing each child’s chances for success in early childhood, kindergarten, and the early grades.

Develop and implement coordinated application, eligibility, and enrollment systems: In partnership with other programs across the B-5 ECCE system, develop and implement coordinated outreach and enrollment systems that help families apply for and receive benefits and services across a range of programs and identify and access high-quality ECCE programs and services that best meet their needs.

Align with Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) activities: Build on and align with CCDF COVID-19 relief funding, including investments to stabilize the child care sector, strengthen the workforce by increasing wages and benefits, increasing provider payment rates to cover the cost of quality child care services, improving subsidy payment policies, building the supply of child care for underserved populations, and expanding access to child care assistance for more families.

Support effective and appropriate transition: Ensure that ECCE programs, schools and community providers have policies and processes in place to transition children between and across programs. This includes developmentally appropriate practices, effective kindergarten transitions, and instructional alignment from preschool through third grade.

Build infant-toddler care capacity: Build capacity to meet the need for high-quality infant/toddler services across the state's mixed delivery system, including center-based care, family child care, home visiting services, and early intervention (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Part C) services.

Provide services to underserved children: Increase access to critical resources for underserved children birth through age 5, including dual/multi-language learners, children experiencing homelessness, children involved with the child welfare system, children in kinship are including those being raised by grandparents, children with special health care needs, children with parents or caregivers working non-traditional hours, children of migrant and seasonal workers, children in immigrant families, children who have experienced trauma such as those who lost a caregiver during the COVID-19 pandemic, etc. to eliminate inequities in rigorous, culturally and linguistically responsive and engaging ECCE programs; and access to fully certified, experienced, and effective teachers. Address policies, practices, and procedures that contribute to significant disproportionality in early childhood programs for dual or multi-language learners based on race or ethnicity.

Program Activities

States applying for a PDG B-5 Planning Grant must articulate their plan to complete the following five key activities: Needs Assessment, Strategic Planning, Family Engagement, Workforce Support, and Improving Overall Quality. If an applicant has previously done work in these key activity areas, the state must now focus on how to sustain or go beyond/enhance what has already been done.

Activity One: Conduct or Update Comprehensive Statewide B-5 Needs Assessment Conducting or substantively updating the comprehensive statewide B-5 needs assessment. The process to update the needs assessment should involve key stakeholders impacted by the system, including families and providers from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds, in contributing to data collection, interpreting results, continuous improvement, and ensuring these activities are supported by goals in the strategic plan. The needs assessment findings must guide the rest of the proposed project, and may include the following:

Assessing the availability and quality of existing programs in the state, including such programs serving the most vulnerable or underserved populations and children in rural areas, and needs associated with the sustainability of these existing programs, including considering the impact of COVID-19 on the capacity and financial sustainability of ECCE programs.

Identifying the unduplicated number of children being served in existing programs, the unduplicated number of children awaiting service in these programs, and capacity/available slots in these programs, as feasible.

Assessing needs associated with the early childhood workforce, including considering the impact of COVID-19 on the capacity, health, financial status, and well-being of the workforce.

Clarifying and/or providing a snapshot of the current early childhood workforce, including level of degree/credential attainment, average number of years of ECCE experience, average salary for teachers and paraprofessionals by settings, and the age of children served (and as compared to other professions such as elementary school teachers), and demographic makeup of the workforce, as feasible.

Assessing needs for developing and implementing integrated or collaborative state data systems and support data sharing to strengthen and enhance information on children and family needs, facilitate enrollment, and identify the needs of providers and workforce capacity.

Assessing the extent to which health and early learning systems are working together in a coordinated manner to engage families early and equitably and meet the needs of children and families.

Applicants that choose to substantively update a previously conducted needs assessment must:

o explore additional elements not previously assessed by or identified as initial gaps related to the availability and quality of existing programs in the state with a particular emphasis on equity for traditionally underserved communities; and o include additional data to identify emerging or previously unidentified needs, such as those resulting from the COVID-19 public health emergency, as well as programs serving the most vulnerable or underserved populations and children in rural areas.

Activity Two: Develop or Update Comprehensive Statewide B-5 Strategic Plan

Developing or substantively revising and/or implementing a comprehensive statewide B-5 strategic plan that recommends coordination and quality improvement activities, based on the needs assessment findings. The strategic plan should reflect both a short- and long-term vision to address the issues identified in the needs assessment. The scope of the strategic plan should extend beyond this grant’s 1-year project period and identify how other federal, state, and local funds will support proposed activities. Specific areas of focus for updates to the strategic plan could include the following:

New opportunities to respond to critical needs/challenges of the workforce, including improved provider compensation (e.g., wages and benefits), wellness, and professional development.

Plans to expand access to ECCE programs and services for eligible children through a mixed delivery system by expanding or supporting existing programs or establishing new programs in underserved communities.

Strategies to update early childhood facilities as part of any planned ECCE program expansion, including plans to support the design, development, finance, and maintenance of facilities that can support high-quality, accessible early childhood programs.

Plans to make quality improvements in existing programs to meet the needs of children and families (e.g., increase program duration to meet the needs of working families, reduce teacher-child ratios, invest in coaching and curricular supports, etc.).

Recommendations for new partnership opportunities to improve coordination and alignment, program quality, and delivery of services.

Activity Three: Maximize Parent and Family Engagement in B-5 System

Maximizing parent and family choice and knowledge about the state's mixed delivery system of programs and providers by establishing consistent parent engagement expectations, and expanding the state's efforts to support family choice. This can be accomplished by ensuring families are provided information in ways that are accessible to them (e.g., primary language, clear language, accessible format, digital and hard copy, and through outreach partnerships to include all communities) about the variety and locations of ECCE programs and services that are available, as well as promoting and increasing efforts to involve parents and family members in policy decisions, and programmatic activities to support children’s development and their transitions from ECCE into elementary school and continued engagement through the early grades to build strong partnerships between parents and teachers to support learning at school and home. Approaches should be based on the results of the needs assessment, and could include the following:

Ensuring opportunities are provided equitably and in culturally and linguistically responsive ways for family voice and input to ensure family participation in the development of the needs assessment, strategic plan, program performance evaluation plan, and program-level decisions, including program policies and planning. This includes the following:

o including family voice in policy and program decisions affecting the mixed delivery system and engaging families to improve or develop state policies and practices that drive the early childhood system;

o providing opportunities for state leaders to learn from parents what they want and need to know and their preferences for meaningful family engagement in their young children’s care and education.

In collaboration with existing programs, sharing information with families about program quality (e.g., through inspection reports, Quality Rating and Improvement System ratings, etc.); locations and types of early childhood programs and services, including health, mental health, early intervention/early childhood special education; and family support for children from birth into kindergarten entry. This includes the following:

o informing families, including families with limited English proficiency and families who have young children with disabilities, about existing resources, services, and programs;

o improving the availability and usefulness of information for families about high-quality early childhood programs and initiatives to help families access such programs;

o ensuring family choice, such as by including parent leadership and engagement opportunities in mixed delivery systems improvements;

o increasing parents’ knowledge, skills, and resources from B-5 to promote strong parent-child relationships that are the foundation of healthy child development, focusing on implementing two-generational approaches that focus on family well-being;

o coordinating partnerships at the state or local level to ensure all parents are informed about, and connected to, other services needed, such as housing, food, training or employment programs, or income supports; and o developing or supporting a coordinated outreach and enrollment system.

Promoting nurturing parent-child interactions and family and community protective factors.

Increasing meaningful parent and family engagement in all aspects of their children’s care and education, including decision-making and goal setting for their child, and planning for transitions to elementary school and into other ECCE programs and services, including the following:

o supporting families—including those with a home language other than English, those representing historically underserved communities, families from culturally, geographically, and linguistically diverse communities—to engage as leaders; and o ensuring parents who have concerns about their child’s development or are aware of an existing disability are informed about and connected to resources that include access to high-quality inclusive programs as well as IDEA Part C and Part B services.

Developing application practices that promote family choice and access to high-quality settings by minimizing paperwork burdens on families, simplifying application processes, promoting stability and continuity of care (such as through 12-month eligibility), and increasing use of grants and contracts for program access.

Activity Four: Support the B-5 Workforce and Disseminate Best Practices Sharing best practices and identifying workforce supports and trainings among ECCE providers (including family child care providers) to leverage funding and other resources; increase collaboration, coordination, and alignment; and improve transitions that happen across all age spans in early childhood from birth through third grade. Applicants are encouraged to consider and propose systemic investments to support the ECCE workforce as well as investments to support ECCE providers at the community and/or program level. Strategies could include the following:

Improving collaborative, cross-sector professional development for early childhood providers and connections with early grade teachers, including practice-based coaching, mentoring, using data to plan classroom activities, cross-sector professional development opportunities, and other needed professional development for the early childhood workforce.

Providing interdisciplinary professional development to build shared understanding and connections across ECCE and health and human service providers that serve families with young children, as well as with education providers that will continue to support children and families as they progress into the early grades.

Providing resources and technical assistance to ECCE providers and directors to support program sustainability, reduce administrative burden, and promote shared learning.

Developing initiatives, studies, or analyses to support the recruitment into and retention of individuals into the ECCE workforce, including the following:

o increasing compensation for ECCE workers to align with educational and quality standards for teachers and paraprofessionals across early childhood settings to reach pay parity with elementary school educators with similar experience and credentials, and a living wage for all staff;

o offering hiring or retention payments to recruit new staff or address turnover;

o sharing information with providers about increased child care subsidy payment rates; and o expanding access to benefits for the ECCE workforce (e.g., paid leave, health insurance, child care, loan forgiveness, and retirement benefits).

Building a statewide ECCE workforce infrastructure that ensures providers are professionally prepared and well-supported by strengthening career pathways and professional development opportunities to build a pipeline of effective early educators (including those who serve infants and toddlers), maintain the diversity of the workforce, and provide more equitable access to qualified teachers for children across settings and ages. Strategies include the following:

o offering scholarships and financial support to address barriers to credential and degree attainment (e.g., tuition, fees, books, transportation, child care, substitutes, credential/licensing fees, etc.);

o partnering with Institutions of Higher Education (IHE) and other entities to develop articulation agreements, aligned credentials (including stackable trainings, credit for prior learning and microcredentials), and degree programs;

o building innovative pathways for non-traditional students and incumbent early educators that consider practical skills and knowledge gained in the field, allows for coursework to be completed on the job site, Registered Apprenticeship programs or other practice-based learning that lead towards a credential or degree;

and o promoting staff wellness (e.g., policies that guarantee breaks during the work day, providing mentoring, coaching, and mental health consultation for ECCE staff and providers).

Expanding supports for providers and educators to enable sharing of best practices and professional development to successfully implement inclusive and high-quality programming that does not use suspension and expulsion or inappropriate discipline practices, addresses trauma and supports children’s behavioral health needs, and meets the unique needs of underserved populations as they transition from infant and toddler care through preschool and into the early grades (such as children with disabilities, children with special health care needs, dual language learners, children experiencing homelessness, children in foster care, etc.), such as through:

o family child care networks, shared services models, or other hub models that provide comprehensive services or referrals;

o substitute pools or other business supports; and o coaching, mentoring, or other practice-based or interdisciplinary professional development that allows for coordination and alignment across sectors.

Supporting the development of strong early childhood systems to facilitate transitions and referrals across programs, including health care, social services, nutrition programs, home visiting, and other early childhood programs.

Activity Five: Support Program Quality Improvement Upon completion of Activities One and Two (Needs Assessment and Strategic Plan), applicants can propose to improve the overall quality of early childhood programs and services in the state, including by investing in and enhancing educational opportunities for children. Note: Recipients must develop or update their needs assessment and strategic plans before beginning to spend funds on Activity Five. In addition to efforts to support the ECCE workforce (captured in

Activity Four) to ensure the ECCE workforce has the skills to implement high-quality practices, program quality improvement strategies may include the following:

Initiatives designed to increase access to high-quality, inclusive care, especially in traditionally underserved communities, and for infants and toddlers and children with disabilities or at risk of a disability.

Developing and implementing evidence-based practices that ensure inclusion of all children, especially children at risk of, or with, disabilities; special health care needs; or developmental or behavioral health needs.

Promoting partnerships across programs, including Head Start, Early Head Start, child care (including family child care), state preschool, early intervention, and early childhood special education and schools to expand access to full-day and full-year high quality services.

Developing and implementing equitable and culturally responsive practices for all children, families, and providers, including children who are dual or multi-language learners and their families, dual or multi-lingual providers, and individuals from historically marginalized communities, and ensuring continuity from early learning settings into the early grades, supporting home language and parent engagement in language instruction.

Improving developmental, social-emotional, and other learning opportunities for children B-5.

Enhancing and aligning program standards, curriculum, coaching, and assessment of child outcomes across programs.

Supporting enhanced monitoring and quality improvement systems across the state.

Reducing the administrative burden on ECCE providers, with a focus on family child care providers, teachers, and program administrators.

Strengthening systems needed for data sharing and use, monitoring and quality improvement, accountability, effective governance, communication, and decision-making.

Program Requirements

Recipients are required to allocate 5 to 7 percent of the total amount of their grant award during this planning grant year to plan, develop, and begin to implement their program performance evaluation plan. These funds should be used for such necessary activities as developing or enhancing a data system to collect, house, and use data on the populations served, and to monitor the implementation of services, the cost of providing services, and coordination across service partners.

All funds made available for the purpose of implementing the PDG B-5 Planning Grant activities must be used to supplement, and not supplant, existing federal funding investments in the state.

As a condition of acceptance of an award under this NOFO, all recipients are required to participate fully in sponsored evaluations by the Departments and adhere to all evaluation protocols established by the Departments to be carried out by its designee contractors.

Recipients are required to budget for travel costs to send at least four individuals to Washington, DC, to attend a 3-day PDG B-5 recipient meeting during the 1-year project period.

Post-Award State Reporting Requirement

ACF's Office of Child Care (OCC) is currently seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for information collection under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) on the PDG B-5 Planning Grant final report. Recipients must submit a final report not later than 6 months after the end of the grant period. This report will include, but is not limited to, the following:

1. How, and to what extent, the grant funds were utilized for activities described in the state's application, and any other activities for which funds were used to meet the purposes of this NOFO.

2. Strategies undertaken at the state level and, if applicable, local or program level, to implement recommendations in the state's strategic plan.

3. Any new partnerships among Head Start providers; state and local governments; Indian tribes and tribal organizations; and private entities, both faith-based and community-based, and how these partnerships improve coordination and delivery of services.

4. If applicable, the degree to which the state used information from the report required under section 13 of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014 to inform activities under this NOFO, and how this information was useful in coordinating, and collaborating among, programs and funding sources.

5. The extent to which activities funded by the Planning Grant led to the blending, braiding, or layering of other public and private funding.

6. How information about available existing programs for children from birth through kindergarten entry was disseminated to parents and families and how involvement of parents and family was improved.

7. Other state-determined and voluntarily provided information to share best practices regarding early childhood education programs and the coordination of such programs.

Note: Consistent with the PRA of 1995, (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521), under this NOFO, OCC will not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information covered by such Act, unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

Early Childhood Workforce Technical Assistance (TA) Peer Learning Initiative and Community of Practice

In order to address workforce recruitment and retention by exploring possible solutions to systemic barriers, the Departments are offering the opportunity for PDG B-5 Planning Grant recipients to join an Early Childhood Workforce TA Peer Learning Initiative and Community of Practice. If interested in participating in this workforce-related peer learning community of practice, applicants are encouraged to allocate some portion of PDG B-5 funds for one or more Full-time Equivalent Employees (FTEs) to support this ongoing work. Opting to participate or not to participate in this community of practice will not affect eligibility, application scoring, or the selection process, as this item will not be reviewed or scored by the peer reviewers.

The peer learning initiative will provide TA to a peer group of PDG B-5 grant recipients, as well as to individual states in support of the development and implementation of a compensation or workforce development initiative. Focus areas/issues for the group will be determined collaboratively by group participants with support from the TA provider, and may include the following:

Designing and implementing a monthly salary supplement as well as a tiered supplement scale related to experience and credentials.

Tying increased child care subsidy reimbursement to compensation (salaries, paid time off, retirement fund.)

Expanding or newly implementing scholarship and wage supplement programs, including providing tailored supports (advising and mentoring, job-embedded coaching, technology access and skills support, transportation, child care, credential application fee waivers, and scholarships) to ensure persistence and degree or credential attainment.

Exploring ways to create benefit pools (insurance, retirement, etc.) for early care and education providers, teachers, and staff.

Developing and implementing a cross sector local community collaborative to increase the workforce capacity, with a focus on multilingual teachers, staff with experience working with children with disabilities, place-based learning opportunities, ensuring job placement and adequate compensation.

Creating a prior learning and competency-based review process yielding credit toward a credential or degree for incumbent teachers as well as incoming teachers with less education and experience.

Providing credit towards a credential or degree for participation in coaching and other job embedded professional learning, such as Registered Apprenticeships.

Providing micro-credential opportunities for those entering the field with a non-related degree or to provide focus on teacher leadership, including instructional coaching, using data to inform and plan team meetings, and leading virtual communities of practice.

Providing counseling and support services to early childhood providers to help them identify and implement a plan to earn a degree or credential.

Providing credit bearing online and e-Learning courses in multiple languages and free of charge.

Establishing compensation standards related to employee/staff benefits, including vacation time, health insurance, etc.

Definitions

The following definitions apply for the purpose of the PDG B-5 Planning Grants.

Child with a disability — This term means --

(A) a child with a disability, as defined in section 602(3) of IDEA; and

(B) an infant or toddler with a disability, as defined in section 632(5) of such Act.

Dual/multi language learners (DLLs)—This term refers to children who are learning two (or more) languages at the same time or learning a second language while continuing to develop their first language. Children who are DLLs come from homes where a language other than English (LOTE) is spoken. For some, both a LOTE and English may be spoken at home.

Children who are DLLs are a very diverse group by many measures and have varying levels of proficiency in their home language and in English. The term "dual language learners" may encompass or overlap substantially with other terms frequently used, such as Limited English Proficient (LEP), bilingual, English Language Learner (ELL), English learner (EL), and children who speak a LOTE. The broader DLL population also includes children from many different backgrounds, including children who speak heritage languages, such as children from American/Indian Alaska Native (AIAN) or Native Hawaiian communities.

ECCE programs—This term has been updated to incorporate and reflect the definition of the term “early childhood education program,” which is defined in section 103 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1003) as (A) a Head Start program or an Early Head Start program carried out under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.), including a migrant or seasonal Head Start program, an American Indian/Alaska Native Head Start program, or a Head Start program or an Early Head Start program that also receives state funding; (B) a state licensed or regulated child care program; or (C) a program that— (i) serves children from birth through age 6 that addresses the children’s cognitive (including language, early literacy, and early mathematics), social, emotional, and physical development; and (ii) is— (I) a state pre-kindergarten program; (II) a program authorized under section 619 or part C of the IDEA; or (III) a program operated by a local educational agency.

Early childhood homelessness—PDG B-5 follows the definition of homeless children established in section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Education Assistance Act. The term homeless children and youths means individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence (within the meaning of section 103(a)(1)); and includes—(i) children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster care placement; (ii) children and youths who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings (within the meaning of section 103(a)(2)(C)); (iii) children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and (iv) migratory children (as such term is defined in section 1309 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965).

Elementary school—The term “elementary school,” as defined by section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801), means a non-profit institutional day or residential school, including a public elementary charter school that provides elementary education, as determined under State law.

Evidence-based—This term is defined by section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). The term “evidence-based” means an activity, strategy, or intervention that demonstrates a statistically significant effect on improving student outcomes or other relevant outcomes based on— (I) strong evidence from at least 1 well-designed and well- implemented experimental study; (II) moderate evidence from at least 1 well-designed and well- implemented quasi-experimental study; or (III) promising evidence from at least 1 well-designed and well-implemented correlational study with statistical controls for selection bias.

Existing program—The term “existing program,” as defined by the section 9212(b)(4) of the ESSA (42 U.S.C. 9831 note), means a Federal, State, local, or privately funded ECCE program that-

(A) was operating in the State on the day before the date of enactment of this Act; or

(B) began operating in the State at any time on or after the date of enactment of this Act through funds that were not provided by a grant under this section.

Family and community protective factors—Protective factors are conditions or attributes of individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that reduce or eliminate risk and promote healthy development and well-being of children and families. These factors ensure that infants, toddlers, and young children are functioning well across all settings, including home, early care and education, and in their communities.

Family engagement—This term is intended to identify a collaborative and strengths-based process through which early childhood professionals, families, and children build positive and goal-oriented relationships. It is a shared responsibility of families and staff that requires mutual respect for the roles and strengths each has to offer. Family engagement focuses on culturally and linguistically responsive relationship-building with key family members in a child’s life.

These people include pregnant women and expectant families, mothers, fathers, grandparents, and other adult caregivers. It requires making a commitment to create and sustain an ongoing partnership that supports family well-being. It honors and supports the parent-child relationships that are central to a child’s healthy development, school readiness, and well-being. Family engagement also seeks ongoing opportunities to obtain parent perspective by involving parents and other family members in conversations, assessment, planning, and implementation in all areas impacting families.

IDEA Part C and Part B—This term refers to the IDEA, which makes available a free, appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services to those children. Infants and toddlers, birth through age 2, with disabilities and their families receive early intervention services under IDEA Part C. Children and youth, ages 3 through 21, receive special education and related services under IDEA Part B.

Local educational agency—The term ‘‘local educational agency,’’ as defined by section 8101 of ESEA of 1965 (20 U.S.C 7801), means a public board of education or other public authority legally constituted within a State for either administrative control or direction of, or to perform a service function for, public elementary schools or secondary schools in a city, county, township, school district, or other political subdivision of a State, or of or for a combination of school districts or counties that is recognized in a State as an administrative agency for its public elementary schools or secondary schools. The term includes: any other public institution or agency having administrative control and direction of a public elementary school or secondary school; an elementary school or secondary school funded by the Bureau of Indian Education

(BIE) but only to the extent that including the school makes the school eligible for programs for which specific eligibility is not provided to the school in another provision of law and the school does not have a student population that is smaller than the student population of the local educational agency receiving assistance under this Act with the smallest student population, except that the school shall not be subject to the jurisdiction of any State educational agency other than BIE; educational service agencies and consortia of those agencies; the State educational agency in a State in which the…