STRANAHAN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION GRANT PROGRAM

SPRING 2027 PROVEN PD & INNOVATION RFP

AT A GLANCE

Purpose: Multi-year support for organizations developing, testing, or evaluating professional development models for early childhood educators and leaders
Award range: $100,000–$500,000 (total)
Term: 18 months to three years
Anticipated awards: Up to six awards
Support: Project-based
LOIs due: December 4, 2026, by noon Eastern Time
How to apply: Online through the Foundation’s grants portal
Questions: grants@stranahanfoundation.org   

BEFORE YOU GET STARTED

This opportunity may be a good fit if you:

  • Are a U.S.-based nonprofit organization, fiscally sponsored organization, governmental entity, or higher education institution.
  • Have a model or approach designed to impact classroom educators and leaders in birth-to-5 early education settings.
  • Have a model or approach with a clear logic model that fits one of our four 2027 priorities (see below).
  • Have created or owned the model you are proposing to develop, test, or adapt.
  • Have a strong track record of working with educators, communities, and families to design and improve programs.
  • Serve providers whose student populations have significant economic need. At least 60% of the children impacted by the project must come from families that fall at or below 200% of the federal poverty level or 50% of the area median income. This is not a requirement for our state-based priority.
  • Can describe what you want to learn and how you’ll measure progress.
  • Do not have an active grant with the Foundation as of January 1, 2027.

This opportunity is probably not a fit if you are:

  • Proposing work that serves early childhood professionals outside the United States.
  • Proposing work that serves primarily educators currently employed or who would ultimately be employed by your organization. This is what our Provider cycle is for!
  • Using a model that focuses primarily on serving parents and home visitors.
  • Seeking funding for ongoing professional development programming or routine operations.
  • Seeking funding for scholarships or tuition assistance.
  • Seeking to provide larger incentives to encourage participation.

Not sure whether your organization or project fits after reviewing the full RFP? Please review the FAQ below or email us before starting your application.

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR THIS CYCLE

We are not looking to fund every kind of promising or proven professional development model or approach. For this funding cycle, we are focused on a small number of areas where we see important opportunities for learning and impact.

Our 2027 Priorities -

PRIORITY A | Affordable and Scalable Instructional Coaching
Instructional coaching can provide educators with individualized, ongoing support to strengthen their teaching practice. However, high-quality coaching can be expensive and time-intensive, making it difficult to reach more educators.

We are interested in supporting organizations that are testing, improving, or expanding coaching models that preserve personalized, relationship-based support while reaching more educators at a manageable cost. Approaches could include different coaching formats, tools, staffing models, or strategies to maintain coaching quality as the model grows.

Key things to note about this priority:

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) may support coaching but cannot be its sole provider; meaningful human interaction must remain central.
  • Coaching must be the central focus of the proposed model, rather than one component of a broader program. We are flexible regarding the specific topic or focus of the coaching content.
  • A network-based approach alone is not sufficient unless it meaningfully innovates how coaching is delivered or scaled.
  • Evaluation is essential. Projects should include a plan to assess the coaching model’s effectiveness, quality, reach, and cost.

Priority B | Innovative Pathways to Degree Attainment
Early educators can face significant barriers to earning associate, bachelor’s, or master’s degrees, which open opportunities for higher compensation and improve professional practice. We are interested in supporting organizations that develop or improve pathways that help early educators earn degrees by making the process more accessible, relevant, and achievable.

Approaches could include flexible learning options, recognition of prior learning and experience, connections between coursework and classroom practice, wraparound supports, or partnerships with employers and community-based organizations.

Key things to note about this priority:

  • Projects should address barriers that prevent educators from completing degrees, rather than simply providing access to coursework.
  • We are not interested in standalone scholarship programs or online degree programs without meaningful additional strategies to improve degree completion.

Priority C | Reinvestment for Recent Grantees
Organizations that the foundation has previously supported in piloting innovative professional development approaches or adapting proven models may have opportunities to strengthen their work based on what they have learned. Foundation reinvestment could support improvements to implementation, more rigorous evaluation, or adaptation for broader adoption.

Key things to note about this priority:

  • This opportunity is for past Foundation grantees who received funding since 2020. Your organization must not have an active grant with the Foundation as of January 1, 2027.
  • We are not interested in funding a continuation of previously funded activities without a meaningful next step.
  • Projects should build on lessons learned and focus on improving, testing, evaluating, or preparing the model for broader adoption.

Priority D | State-based strategies to strengthen ECE Quality and Workforce Systems
Quality improvement, professional development, credentials, career pathways, and compensation are often addressed separately, even though they influence one another. State-level efforts can help align these systems more effectively, strengthen implementation, create clearer pathways for educator advancement, and support higher-quality teaching and learning.

We are interested in supporting state-level initiatives that connect and strengthen at least two of these areas to improve ECE teaching and learning. Projects could, for example, align professional development and credentials with career pathways, connect quality improvement expectations with educator competencies and compensation, or better integrate career advancement and compensation structures.

Key things to note about this priority:

  • Projects must address at least two connected areas of the ECE quality and workforce system, rather than focus on one area in isolation.
  • State agencies are expected to play a meaningful role in shaping or advancing the work, either directly or in partnership with a state-level intermediary. State-level intermediaries are organizations that operate at the state level to connect, manage, or coordinate programs between state agencies and local providers.
  • Projects must have a clear connection to state-level priorities or systems.
  • We are interested in systems-level change, not simply projects that deliver professional development or other services within a state.
  • Applicants should identify the specific system challenge they aim to address, the changes they hope to achieve, and how the work could be evaluated, implemented, or sustained beyond the grant period.
  • This is the only priority eligible for grants above $300,000 and would not be expected to meet the 60% low-income threshold.

WHAT STRATEGY BEST FITS YOUR MODEL?

Your model and project should fit within one of the following two strategies: Innovation and Proven PD.

To learn more about these strategies and eligible projects within them, click here.

WHAT MATTERS TO US

First and foremost, we want to understand whether your proposed work is a strong fit for this opportunity. Among organizations and projects that meet the basic requirements, we will give additional consideration to proposals that demonstrate:

  • A clear understanding of inequities: An understanding of how factors such as race, ethnicity, language, income, and geography can affect access to high-quality early childhood education and opportunities for career advancement.
  • Leadership connected to community: Leadership reflective of the communities most impacted by disparities in early childhood outcomes.
  • A genuine learning mindset: You are using feedback, stakeholder input, data, and past learning experiences to shape what you propose.
  • Impact beyond the grant: A clear plan for how this time-limited funding will help strengthen or expand the organization’s impact beyond the grant period.
  • A practical approach to evaluation: A clear plan for measuring whether what was planned is happening, whether it is working, and what you are learning. We are interested in thoughtful plans, not perfect ones.

EVALUATION - TELL US WHAT YOU WANT TO LEARN

We want evaluation to be useful to you—not simply something you do for the Foundation. You do not need a complicated evaluation design (unless you are asking for rigorous evaluation funding). However, we expect you to be able to answer three key questions:

  • Did we do what we planned?
  • What is working, and what should we change?
  • What changed as a result, and how do we know if we are on the right track?

For more details on what we’d expect regarding evaluation tools and metrics, click here.

WHO CAN APPLY

This funding opportunity is open to U.S.-based:

  • Nonprofit organizations
  • Fiscally sponsored organizations
  • Governmental entities
  • Public and private higher education institutions

Organizations must also:

  • Be serving educators outside their organization: Projects whose primary beneficiaries are staff employed or who will be employed at the applicant organization are a better fit for our fall Provider cycle.
  • Prioritize low-income families: At least 60% of the children impacted by the proposed project must come from low-income families. We define low income as family income below 200% of the federal poverty level or 50% of the area median household income.
  • Have relevant experience: Demonstrate a strong track record of working with educators, communities, and families to design and improve programs that support positive outcomes for young children.
  • Have the capacity and expertise to do the work: Must have the staffing, leadership, and organizational capacity to carry out the proposed project and use data to improve quality over time.
  • Not have an active grant with the Foundation as of January 1, 2027.

FUNDING AVAILABLE

Organizations may request up to the amounts listed below over a three-year period:

  • $500,000 total for system change projects (priority D). System change projects must involve multiple partners, including state, local, or federal early education departments as active partners in the work.
  • $300,000 total for provider or educator-focused projects (priorities A-C).

Applicants selected to move forward as semi-finalists will be asked to submit a detailed project budget.

We anticipate awarding up to six grants this cycle.

WHAT WE WILL NOT FUND

We will not consider proposals that request funding for:

  • Projects serving early childhood professionals outside of the United States.
  • Ongoing professional development programming and operations.
  • Scholarships or tuition assistance. However, it can be part of your larger project budget.
  • Large incentives, such as one-time bonuses or salary increases. Stipends for participation in evaluation activities are eligible.

If you have a question about whether a particular expense is eligible, please ask us rather than trying to interpret the restriction yourself.

HOW THE APPLICATION PROCESS WORKS

This is a four-stage process: 

  • Stage 1|LOI: Help us understand who you are, what you are proposing, and whether there is enough alignment to invite you to the next stage. Keep it clear and concise. Bullets are welcome. We are not looking for polished prose or long responses.
  • Stage 2|Abbreviated Proposal: If invited to continue, you'll provide more details about the model or approach, proposed project, implementation plan, evaluation, and your request and budget.
  • Stage 3|Supplemental Information: A smaller group of finalists will be asked for additional organizational, board, financial, and project-team information.
  • Stage 4|Conversation: Finalists will also participate in a 90–120-minute virtual conversation with Foundation staff and others involved in the review. The conversation is an opportunity for us to clarify questions, hear directly from your team, and better understand the opportunity and risks associated with the proposed work.

For a list of anticipated questions for Stage 1 & 2, please click here.

A NOTE ABOUT YOUR TIME

We know applying for funding takes time away from the work you’re already doing. For that reason:

  • Keep responses concise. We would rather read a clear list of bullets than several pages of beautiful prose.
  • Use plain language: Your materials will be reviewed by people who care deeply about the field but are not experts, educators, researchers, or professional development practitioners.
  • Don’t over-polish. We are interested in your thinking, not your ability to write perfect applications.
  • Focus on what matters. Tell us what you're doing, why it matters, what you hope to learn, and how you will know whether you're making progress.
  • Don’t create work just for this application. If these areas are not already on your roadmap, don’t start them now. Where possible, we hope you can use materials and information you already have to complete the application.
  • Word counts are suggestions, not requirements. We mention word counts just to give you a sense of how detailed we want the answers to be. Don’t worry about making your responses fit this number, and the system won’t cut you off if you go over.
  • You can use AI to help refine your proposal, but it should not be used to develop your model. Ultimately, your team is responsible for what is being proposed.

HOW WE'LL MAKE DECISIONS

Foundation staff, an Early Childhood Consultant, and the Early Childhood Committee will review LOIs and full proposals using defined criteria.

At each stage, we will focus on the information we need to decide whether to advance the proposal. Here are the things we will be looking at in the first stage.

CYCLE TIMELINE

  • December 4, 2026: Preliminary Screening LOIs are due via the online portal by noon Eastern​. 
  • December 18, 2026: Applicants will be notified if their proposal is advanced to Stage 2. 
  • January 28, 2027: Abbreviated proposals are due via the online portal by noon Eastern. 
  • February 15, 2027: Semi-finalists will be notified if their proposal is advanced to Stages 3 & 4. 
  • March 3, 2027: Supplemental information due via the online portal by noon Eastern.  
  • Late March – April 2027: 90-minute to two-hour virtual site visits will be held with finalists.
  • May – June 2027: Award notifications.

All applications must be submitted through the designated application system by the applicable deadline. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

We encourage you to submit materials well before the deadline.

WHAT TO EXPECT AFTER A GRANT IS AWARDED

We see these grants as learning partnerships. We want to stay connected to your work, learn alongside you, and understand what is—and isn't—working.

  •  Reporting: Generally, we will ask you to report on your progress and financials once each year.  Metrics are our way of creating a shared understanding of what success looks like, keeping reporting manageable, and learning when things aren’t going as planned. You do not need everything to go according to plan. In fact, we value honest reflection about what changed, what didn't work, and what you learned.
  •  Staying Connected: We expect to have virtual conversations with grantees during the grant period and may visit a subset of grantees in person. The first planned conversation will be six months into your grant to get a quick update. We may also ask you to join a virtual grantee roundtable with other organizations working on similar challenges.

WE’RE HERE TO HELP

We want this process to be useful and straightforward.

  • Frequently asked questions 
    Here is a list of our most commonly asked questions. We will try to update this throughout the LOI submission period.

  • Email Individual Questions (November 9-30)
    You can email questions about this funding opportunity, your proposed project, and the application process to: grants@stranahanfoundation.org. Please review the FAQ before emailing. It is updated regularly with new information. 

Please note that our staff are in the Eastern Time Zone and will be unavailable from November 25 to 27.

READY TO APPLY?

Before you begin, ask yourself:

  • Does our work fit one of the four priorities?
  • Is our model or approach at a stage where it would fit within the Foundation’s two strategies?
  • Do we meet the eligibility requirements?
  • Can we clearly explain the problem we're addressing and why our approach makes sense?
  • Do we know what we want to learn—and how we'll know whether we're making progress?

If the answer is yes, we'd like to hear from you. START YOUR APPLICATION HERE.

If you cannot answer yes to these questions, please review the relevant section of this RFP or contact us before applying.

RESOURCES:

Logic Model

Adult learning:

Evaluation:

Other: