SOI 1275 New York Statewide Fatherhood Engagement Initiative

Background The New York State Office of Children & Family Services (OCFS) announces a Solicitation of Interest (SOI) for qualified entities to participate in the New York Statewide Fatherhood Engagement Initiative. Please refer to the SOI document's Eligibility Criteria section for additional information. Consistent with Governor Kathy Hochul's commitment to strengthening families, expanding access to affordable child care, promoting positive youth development, and increasing opportunity for all New Yorkers, OCFS continues to invest in strategies that strengthen the role of fathers and father figures in the lives of children and families. Through this initiative, OCFS seeks to provide targeted, non-personnel financial support to community-based organizations that help fathers and father figures build stronger relationships with their children while increasing access to services and resources that promote family stability, child well-being, and long-term success. The purpose of this solicitation is to invite any eligible and interested entities that believe they satisfy the requirements of this program to inform OCFS by submitting an application. To be considered responsive, your organization's application should be received no later than the deadline specified on the first page of this announcement. OCFS intends to fund multiple qualified organizations based on the criteria outlined in this announcement. Please refer to the SOI document's How to Respond section for additional information and submission requirements. Scope of Work The New York Statewide Fatherhood Engagement Initiative is designed to strengthen the relationship between fathers or father figures and their children while improving outcomes for children, youth, and families. Proposed activities should support responsible fatherhood, healthy parenting, positive youth development, family stability, and increased awareness of available community resources, including child care and other family support services, where appropriate. Programs may serve fathers and father figures involved with child welfare, child support, family support services, workforce development, juvenile justice, or other family-serving systems, as appropriate to the applicant's mission and community needs. Projects should demonstrate how proposed activities support measurable improvements in father engagement, parenting knowledge, family stability, awareness of child care and family resources, and positive youth development, as appropriate to the proposed project. Please refer to the SOI document's Scope of Work section for additional information and submission requirements. Eligibility Criteria Eligible applicants must satisfy the following criteria to be eligible to apply: Be authorized to do business in the State of New York. Be a Not-for-Profit Organization and must be prequalified in the New York State Financial System (SFS), if not exempt, at the time of application. Have at least one year of experience administering a program that was financially supported by governmental funds. Have a fatherhood engagement program serving children and families in New York State that has been existence for at least one year, at the time of application submission. Please refer to the SOI document's Prequalification Process section for additional information regarding the prequalification process. Please see the SOI document located on the "Documents" tab for additional information and submission requirements. Business enterprises awarded an identical or substantially similar procurement contract within the past five years: None. Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOB) SDVOB Goal: 0.00% Minority / Women Business Enterprise contracting goals (MWBE) MBE Goal: 0.00% WBE Goal: 0.00% Disadvantaged Business Enterprise contracting goals (DBE) DBE Goal: 0.00%