National Research Center for Promoting Work and Strong Families
Closed Posted
- Opportunity number
- HHS-2026-ACF-OFA-PG-0059
- Agency
-
Administration for Children and Families
Department of Health and Human Services
- Applications due
- Award size
- $2,700,000 to $2,900,000
Opportunity facts
- Assistance listings
- Funding instrument
- Cooperative Agreement
- Category
-
- Income Security and Social Services
- Eligible applicants
-
- Tribal Organizations (Not Federally Recognized)
- Higher Education Inst. (Private)
- State Governments
- Independent School Districts
- 501(c)(3) Nonprofits
- Unrestricted
- County Governments
- Tribal Governments (Federally Recognized)
- Special District Governments
- Non-501(c)(3) Nonprofits
- For Profit Organizations
- Small Businesses
- Public or Indian Housing Auth.
- City/Township Governments
- Other
- Higher Education Inst. (Public)
- Points of contact
-
- Amelia Popham amelia.popham@acf.hhs.gov (202) 401-5322
Opportunity details come from Grants.gov. Updated .
About this opportunity
The Administration for Children and Families is forecasting a solicitation for a National Research Center for Promoting Work and Strong Families cooperative agreement with an application due date of August 31, 2026; only one award is anticipated, with a five-year project period and Year 1 funding of $2,900,000.
Eligible applicants include unrestricted categories: higher education institutions (public and private), state and county governments, city and township governments, tribal governments (federally and non-federally recognized), special district governments, public or Indian housing authorities, independent school districts, 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3) nonprofits, for-profit organizations, small businesses, and other entities. Individuals, federal entities, and foreign entities are ineligible. Applicants must demonstrate organizational capacity to manage federal cooperative agreements, track expenses by funding source, and maintain substantive roles in project implementation.
Funding derives from four statutory authorities: Social Security Act section 413 ($1,900,000), Social Security Act section 1110 ($200,000 with 1% cost-sharing requirement), Public Health Service Act section 304 ($600,000), and the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act ($200,000). Award amounts range from $2,700,000 to $2,900,000 for the first budget period.
The Center executes three core activities: a fellowship program supporting 8–12 fellows per year in residence at ACF and other HHS offices providing policy-relevant research expertise on work, family stability, and human services; an extramural research grant program administering competitive funding for timely, actionable research aligned with ACF priorities including the dignity of work, economic self-sufficiency, family stability through marriage and responsible fatherhood, child care, and reduced public assistance dependency; and knowledge building and communication through in-person and virtual convenings and policy-focused materials accessible to federal, state, tribal, and local policymakers.
Activities must align with ACF's statutory authorities and may not support diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEI/DEIA) activities. Merit review allocates 110 total points across purpose and need (10 points), response and approach (35 points), expected outcomes (15 points), resources and capabilities (25 points), support requested (15 points), and ACF priority alignment (10 points). Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov.
The opportunity is assigned to CFDA 93.575 (Child Care and Development Block Grant), 93.647 (Social Services Research and Demonstration), 93.239 (Policy Research and Evaluation Grants), and 93.595 (Welfare Reform Research, Evaluations and National Studies).
Synopsis
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) anticipates soliciting applications for a National Research Center for Promoting Work and Strong Families.The Center aims to improve the effectiveness of federal and state policies that promote the dignity of work, economic self-sufficiency, and family stability through marriage, responsible fatherhood, child care, and reduced dependency on public assistance. The Center will support rigorous, policy-relevant research and build stronger connections between researchers and policymakers in human services programs.The Center will carry out three core activities to achieve its goals:Fellowship program: Support in-residence fellows placed within ACF and other HHS offices to provide policy-relevant research expertise on work, earnings, family stability, child care, and human services programs.Extramural research grants: Oversee a competitive grant program to fund timely, actionable research aligned with ACF priorities. These priorities include: promoting the dignity of work, economic self-sufficiency, and family stability.Knowledge building and communication: Host in-person and virtual events. Produce policy-focused materials to make sure that research findings are accessible and actionable for federal, state, tribal, and local policymakers.The Center will emphasize research that promotes the dignity of work as a means to economic self-sufficiency and strong and stable families. This research will ideally help identify redundancies across government welfare programs and make sure that taxpayer dollars are used efficiently to help individuals and families rely less on public assistance. Activities must align with ACF"s statutory authorities and may not support diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEI/DEIA) activities, consistent with General Policies in this NOFO.ACF anticipates making one cooperative agreement award for a five-year project period. Activities must align with the statutory authorities supporting this NOFO. The recipient must be able to show, and ACF must be able to monitor, that funds appropriated were spent on activities that can be directly attributed to those required and allowed by each funding source.
Files
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| HHS-2026-ACF-OFA-PG-0059.pdf |
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