Opportunity Information: Apply for HHS 2021 ACF ACYF CF 1903
Family Connection Grants: Building the Evidence for Kinship Navigator Programs is a discretionary federal funding opportunity from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Children s Bureau (ACYF/CB). It is offered as a cooperative agreement, which generally means the federal agency expects to be actively involved with the recipient during implementation rather than simply issuing a hands-off grant. The project period is 36 months, and the overall aim is to strengthen the evidence base for Kinship Navigator (KN) programs by both operating a KN program and conducting a rigorous evaluation that can demonstrate measurable effects.
At its core, the opportunity is about improving support for kinship caregivers, meaning relatives or close family friends who step in to raise children and youth. The funded project is expected to run a Kinship Navigator program that helps these caregivers learn about, locate, and actually use services and supports that meet the needs of the children in their care as well as the caregivers own needs. The program model is intended to function as a navigation hub, connecting families to concrete resources and guiding them through what can be a confusing mix of child welfare, benefits, legal, educational, behavioral health, and community-based services.
A key feature of this grant is that the award decision is tied heavily to evaluation readiness and the ability to produce strong, defensible evidence of impact. The selected grantee must be prepared to implement a rigorous local evaluation designed to generate significant findings on effectiveness. The evaluation must focus on at least one of the specified target outcomes: child safety, child permanency, child well-being or adult well-being, access to services, referral to services, and/or satisfaction with services. In practical terms, applicants need to show they can recruit and serve an appropriate population, collect high-quality data, and use an evaluation design capable of attributing changes in outcomes to the KN program rather than to outside factors.
This opportunity is also tied directly to Title IV-E requirements for Kinship Navigator programs under the Social Security Act. Funded programs must meet the statutory requirements in section 427(a)(1) of the Act and must operate in line with practice standards recognized by the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse, specifically the promising, supported, or well-supported designations. Applicants are directed to Children s Bureau Program Instruction 18-11 for detailed guidance on what it takes to participate in the Title IV-E KN Program, signaling that compliance and alignment with federal program rules are not optional and will shape both program design and documentation.
The funding structure includes a cost-sharing match that increases over time, reflecting the authorizing legislation in section 427(d) of the Act. For years 1 and 2 of the project, the grantee must contribute at least 25 percent of the total approved project cost from non-federal sources. In year 3, the required non-federal share increases to 50 percent, meaning the federal share declines in the final year. In addition, there is a limit on how the match can be met: no more than 50 percent of the non-federal share may be provided as in-kind contributions, as required by section 427(e). This structure effectively requires applicants to plan for increasing financial responsibility over the grant period and to have reliable funding partners, cash match capacity, or sustainable financing strategies lined up early.
Eligibility is broad across public and private entities that commonly operate or partner on child and family service systems. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city or township governments; federally recognized tribal governments; other tribal organizations; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (excluding higher education institutions in those nonprofit categories); and private institutions of higher education. The activity category is Income Security and Social Services, and the CFDA number listed is 93.605, placing it within ACF s portfolio of child welfare and family support initiatives.
The opportunity, identified as HHS 2021 ACF ACYF CF 1903, was posted March 31, 2021, with an application deadline of June 1, 2021 (11:59 p.m. ET for electronic submissions). The award ceiling is $600,000, and only one award was expected, making it a highly competitive, single-recipient investment aimed at producing a clear evaluation story that can inform broader replication and future Title IV-E Kinship Navigator implementation. In summary, this FOA funds one organization to run a compliant, evidence-aligned Kinship Navigator program while producing rigorous local evaluation results focused on specific child and family outcomes, with increasing matching requirements that push the project toward sustainability by year three.Apply for HHS 2021 ACF ACYF CF 1903
- The Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families - ACYF/CB in the income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Family Connection Grants: Building the Evidence for Kinship Navigator Programs" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.605.
- This funding opportunity was created on Mar 31, 2021.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 01, 2021 Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 1159 p.m., ET, on the listed application due date.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $600,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the Family Connection Grants: Building the Evidence for Kinship Navigator Programs opportunity?
This is a discretionary federal funding opportunity from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Children s Bureau (ACYF/CB). The overall purpose is to strengthen the evidence base for Kinship Navigator (KN) programs by funding one recipient to both operate a KN program and conduct a rigorous evaluation that can demonstrate measurable effects.
What type of award is this?
The award is offered as a cooperative agreement. That generally means the federal agency expects to be actively involved with the recipient during implementation, rather than issuing a hands-off grant.
How long is the project period?
The project period is 36 months.
What is a Kinship Navigator (KN) program in the context of this funding?
In this opportunity, a Kinship Navigator program is designed to help kinship caregivers learn about, locate, and use services and supports that meet the needs of the children and youth in their care, as well as the caregivers own needs. The model is intended to function as a navigation hub, connecting families to concrete resources and guiding them through child welfare, benefits, legal, educational, behavioral health, and community-based systems.
Who are kinship caregivers?
Kinship caregivers are relatives or close family friends who step in to raise children and youth.
What are the main expectations for the funded project?
The funded project is expected to (1) operate a Kinship Navigator program and (2) conduct a rigorous local evaluation designed to generate significant findings on program effectiveness, with measurable outcomes.
Why is evaluation such a central part of this grant?
A key feature of this funding is that award decisions are tied heavily to evaluation readiness and the ability to produce strong, defensible evidence of impact. The selected grantee must be prepared to implement a rigorous evaluation design capable of attributing changes in outcomes to the KN program rather than to outside factors.
What outcomes can the evaluation focus on?
The evaluation must focus on at least one of the specified target outcomes: child safety, child permanency, child well-being or adult well-being, access to services, referral to services, and/or satisfaction with services.
What does it mean to be ready for a rigorous evaluation under this opportunity?
Based on the opportunity description, applicants are expected to show they can recruit and serve an appropriate population, collect high-quality data, and implement an evaluation design capable of producing credible findings about the effects of the Kinship Navigator program.
How is this opportunity connected to Title IV-E Kinship Navigator requirements?
This opportunity is tied directly to Title IV-E requirements for Kinship Navigator programs under the Social Security Act. Funded programs must meet the statutory requirements in section 427(a)(1) of the Act and must operate in line with practice standards recognized by the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse, specifically the promising, supported, or well-supported designations.
Do funded programs have to align with Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse practice standards?
Yes. The funded Kinship Navigator program must operate in line with practice standards recognized by the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse and be associated with the promising, supported, or well-supported designations described in the opportunity.
What federal guidance is referenced for Title IV-E Kinship Navigator participation?
Applicants are directed to Children s Bureau Program Instruction 18-11 for detailed guidance on what it takes to participate in the Title IV-E Kinship Navigator Program.
What is the cost-sharing (match) requirement for this grant?
The funding structure includes a cost-sharing match that increases over time. For years 1 and 2 of the project, the grantee must contribute at least 25 percent of the total approved project cost from non-federal sources. In year 3, the required non-federal share increases to 50 percent.
Does the required match increase during the project?
Yes. The non-federal share is at least 25 percent in years 1 and 2 and increases to 50 percent in year 3, meaning the federal share declines in the final year.
Can in-kind contributions be used to meet the match requirement?
Yes, but with limits. No more than 50 percent of the non-federal share may be provided as in-kind contributions, as required by section 427(e) of the Act.
What does the match structure imply for project planning?
The increasing match requirement effectively requires applicants to plan for increasing financial responsibility over the 36-month period and to have reliable funding partners, cash match capacity, or sustainable financing strategies in place early.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility includes a broad range of public and private entities: state, county, and city or township governments; federally recognized tribal governments; other tribal organizations; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (excluding higher education institutions in those nonprofit categories); and private institutions of higher education.
Are tribal entities eligible?
Yes. Federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations are listed as eligible applicants.
Are nonprofits eligible?
Yes. Nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status are eligible, with the stated exclusion that higher education institutions are excluded from those nonprofit categories.
Are higher education institutions eligible?
Private institutions of higher education are listed as eligible. The description also notes an exclusion for higher education institutions in the nonprofit categories (nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status), which indicates eligibility depends on how the institution is categorized.
What is the activity category and CFDA number for this opportunity?
The activity category is Income Security and Social Services. The CFDA number listed is 93.605.
What is the opportunity number (FOA identifier)?
The opportunity is identified as HHS 2021 ACF ACYF CF 1903.
When was the opportunity posted and what was the application deadline?
It was posted March 31, 2021. The application deadline was June 1, 2021, with an electronic submission deadline of 11:59 p.m. ET.
What is the maximum award amount (award ceiling)?
The award ceiling is $600,000.
How many awards were expected?
Only one award was expected, making it a single-recipient, highly competitive investment.
What makes this opportunity especially competitive based on the description provided?
Based on the provided details, competitiveness is driven by two main factors: only one award was expected, and the award decision is tied heavily to evaluation readiness and the ability to deliver rigorous, defensible evidence of impact while also operating a compliant, evidence-aligned Kinship Navigator program.
What is the bottom-line goal of the funded project?
The project is intended to run a compliant Kinship Navigator program and produce rigorous local evaluation results focused on specified child and family outcomes, strengthening the evidence base to inform broader replication and future Title IV-E Kinship Navigator implementation.
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