Edited on July 21, 2022: The deadline for this RFQ has been extended from July 22, 2022 to July 29, 2022.
We are excited to share that the Best Starts for Kids Child Care Workforce Demonstration Pilot Project RFQ is now open! This funding opportunity closes on July 29 at 2 PM PST, please submit your application by then.
Click here to view the full funding opportunity details and apply.
Note: please create a log-in to view details and access the ZoomGrants webpage.
About this opportunity
At Best Starts we want to honor the value that it takes a village to raise babies and children to be happy and thriving adults. That means all of our child care providers, who do essential work for our caretakers, babies, children, and community should see their work valued in their wages.
The Best Starts Child Care Workforce Demonstration Pilot Project (also known as the Wage Boost Pilot Project ) will provide a wage boost to low-paid child care providers who are working with infants from birth to age 12 in King County and study the impact of these wage boosts. We want to bump up the wages of child care workers while tracking the long-lasting impacts these pay increases have on sustainability for child care providers, continuity of care, and employee retention.
The Workforce Demonstration Pilot Project will be implemented in partnership with an intermediary responsible for distributing funds and collecting data. The intermediary will be identified, and project will begin in 2022, and the contract will continue through December 2025. Participating child care providers will be accepted on a rolling basis, as funding allows, and remain in the project for the duration of their employment, or through 2027, whichever comes first.
See the full RFP document, section III for more information about this opportunity!
Eligibility:
This RFQ is open to for-profit and nonprofit organizations, Community-Based Organizations, tribes, and tribal organizations and public or governmental agencies serving communities in King County, unless otherwise specified in the minimum qualifications of each role. Small nonprofits and Community-Based Organizations are encouraged to submit applications. Free application assistance (also known as technical assistance) is available to support organizations applying to this RFQ (See Section 2E and Attachment D: Technical Assistance for more information).
Minimum Qualifications
The organizations applying should have the following qualities:
- Have demonstrated standards for service delivery that are culturally and linguistically relevant to communities who identify as BIPOC, including a Racial Equity focus and supportive practices within their organization.
- Have a focus on holistic values of strengthening pathways and impact for BIPOC leadership in the child care community in King County;
- Emphasize the importance of community connection as they collaborate to create an established feedback loop with the child care community;
- Understand all child care models within King County;
- Can establish technical support abilities to support Child Care Providers with the application process to this Pilot Project, including language and technology barriers providers may face;
- Can provide linguistically appropriate services and translated documentation in the top languages preferred by King County Child Care Providers, as determined by the County;
- Can adapt to a dynamic child care landscape, including new funding, increasing costs, shifting eligibility, etc.;
- Have the infrastructure to effectively provide an ongoing salary supplement to Child Care Providers working with children aged birth through twelve;
- Will prioritize Child Care Providers in areas with limited child care access, as determined by the County, or who are serving low-income families; and/or
- Understands the current landscape of Child Care Provider wages and the potential impact of improved pay Applicant on retention and Continuity of Care.
Funding Available:
This RFQ offers up to a total of $15,500,000 in funding over three years, to stand up and administer the Best Starts for Kids Child Care Workforce Demonstration Pilot. The majority of this funding includes pass-through funds that will be paid out directly to child care providers working on different positions in the King County child care sector.
| Estimated Funding Amounts September 2022 through December 2025 |
| 2022 (Q4) | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Total |
| $500,000 | $5,000,000 | $5,000,000 | Up To $5,000,000 | $15,500,000 |
Attend our information session
We strongly encourage anyone interested in applying to attend one of the two information session to join us to learn more:
- Information Session #1: June 28, 2022, 10-11 am
- Information Session #2: June 30, 2022, 2-3 pm
Access the Zoom meeting details in VI. section C of the RFQ document. Learn more about this funding opportunity and view the full RFQ document here.
Timeline
| RFP Issued | June 7, 2022 |
| Information Session 1 | June 28, 2022, at 10 am |
| Information Session 2 | June 30, 2022, at 2 pm |
| Final day to submit questions via ZoomGrant | July 8, 2022 |
| Final day to initiate request for technical assistance | July 18, 2022 |
| RFP Application Due | July 29, 2022 (2 pm PST) |
| Responses reviewed | July 25, 2022, through August 5, 2022 |
| Interviews with applicants (if applicable) King County reserves the right to conduct interview as Needed to make award determinations. | August 2022 |
| Notice of selected and non-selected applicants | August 2022 |
| Anticipated program/contract start date | September, 2022 |
Do you have any questions?
If you have any questions about this funding opportunity, you can submit a question before June 30, 2022, through the Contact Admin tab in ZoomGrants. The response to all questions received will be posted as an RFQ amendment on ZoomGrants.
If potential proposers experience technical difficulties with ZoomGrants leading up to the due date, please email your proposal to Joanna Armstrong to avoid a late submission.
Would you like support? Access Best Starts technical assistance!
Free application support is available for organizations interested in applying for this Best Starts funding opportunity! Best Starts partnered consultants can support by: helping to determine appropriate fit between your work and this funding opportunity, providing guidance on how best to answer application questions, supporting your application development (including editing and reviewing), and supporting you in explaining your qualifications in the most clear and concise way.
If you are interested in partnering with a technical assistance consultant, learn more here.
1. Check out our funding calendar here
This calendar shares upcoming funding opportunities staggered throughout the year. Subscribe to our blog and newsletter to the right of the calendar to receive notices whenever we post a new funding opportunity.
2. Watch our latest recorded info sessions
If you were unable to make it to an open funding opportunity’s info session, check out the recordings and slideshows here.
3. Save the date for our next open house!
Mark June 29, 2022 on your calendars for our next Best Starts virtual open house! We will share registration information and session details soon. View the recordings from the latest open house on March 30, 2022 and our first virtual open house on January 12, 2022.