In March, the Office of Head Start (OHS) hosted a webinar to preview the release the Head Start Grant Application Instructions with Guidance, Version 3.01. (If you missed the webinar, there is another chance to learn more. Register here for the April 4th webinar.) Since all Head Start/Early Head Start grantees must submit either a continuation or baseline application annually, the upcoming changes are important to understand.
The information described in this blog post was gathered from the March 2024 webinar held by OHS.
In last month’s webinar, OHS described three important factors informing the revisions to the Application Instructions: clarifications, OHS priorities, and equity. You may remember that OHS also stressed the foundational importance of the OHS priorities when presenting to conference attendees at the January 2024 NHSA Winter Leadership Institute.
One of the first questions you might be wondering is, when do the updated Application Instructions go into effect? Grant recipients submitting applications for Fiscal Year 2025 must use the Head Start Grant Application Instructions with Guidance, Version 3.01. Version 3.0 will remain in effect for grant recipients submitting an application for Fiscal Year 2024. This means that the first grant recipients that will use Version 3.01 of the Application Instructions are those for which funding guidance letters are sent in April 2024, with the annual grant application due July 2024, and for which a Notice of Award will be issued in October 2024.
As far as what the changes entail, there are many throughout the Application Instructions, some more substantive than others. Clarifications are embedded in each section (e.g., guidance on shortened budget periods, program goals, delegate and/or partnership contracts). Additional questions were also added to the Application Instructions. Per OHS, as presented in the March 2024 webinar, questions were added in the following areas.
- Steps taken to prioritize equity in selection criteria
- Locally Designed Options requests
- Use of the training and technical assistance funds in the budget narrative and clarification to include budget cost categories
- Staff compensation
- Internal controls
- Explanation when there are no updates or changes to service delivery in a continuation application
While the updated instructions are not yet available on ECLKC, they are expected to post to HSES soon. When they are available, and particularly if you’re among the first groups that will be required to use Version 3.1, we encourage you to familiarize yourself with the changes. Some of the new questions may require planning to address.
For example, within Sub-Section C: Governance, Organizational, and Management Structure, OHS added the following question related to staff compensation: Describe your program’s approach to establishing pay scales, determining adequate compensation rates, and wage comparability with neighboring ECE and elementary school staff, including how salaries improve or exacerbate existing disparities between different demographic groups (see ACF-IM-22-09).
If your agency does not currently have a pay scale, or does not have a current wage comparability study (or a plan to conduct one), it could be challenging to respond to this question. We recommend gathering information about the changes made in Head Start Grant Application Instructions with Guidance, Version 3.01 and identifying areas that you may need to address ahead of time.
We encourage you to explore Foundations for Families’ Consulting Services. If your program needs assistance preparing for or writing a baseline or continuation application, please be in touch. Our team of consultants will work with your program to determine a process, timeline, and approach that is the best fit for your needs.
Thank you.
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