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Head Start News
Head Start News provides timely information for Head Start Preschool and Early Head Start programs about regulatory requirements, Office of Head Start priorities, and Notices of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) for DRS grant competitions, as well as tips, strategies, and resources to support compliance and continuous program improvement.
If you followed our DRS Updates blog before, you will want to sign up for this new blog now! When there is a forecasted or open DRS competition, we will use Head Start News to continue to share tips, strategies, and resources to help agencies in DRS, at risk of being in DRS, or those wishing to compete for the service areas to submit the most competitive application.
The Head Start News blog is published a minimum of quarterly. Subscribing also gives you access to our Monthly Round Up, where we highlight blog posts from both of our blogs, upcoming events, and newsworthy research and reflections.
8 DRS NOFOs Posted and Applications Due March 26
On January 24, 2024, eight Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFO) for Designation Renewal System (DRS) grant opportunities posted on grants.gov. Grant applications are due March 26, 2024. In addition to accessing NOFOs on grants.gov, they are downloadable from the Office of Head Start (OHS) NOFO Locator.
Status of DRS Grant Competitions and Resources for Applicants
This fall, there has been a lot of activity related to DRS on grants.gov. Currently, there are grant competitions that are about to close, newly opened competitions, and other grants that are forecasted but have not yet posted. Below is a breakdown of what we know about the status of DRS competitions. We also highlight a few new resources made available by the Office of Head Start (OHS).
DRS NOFOs Posted for Four States and Applications Due January 24, 2023
On November 10, 2022, five Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFO) for Designation Renewal System (DRS) grant opportunities posted on grants.gov. These grants were forecasted in October and were expected to post earlier this month. Applications for DRS grants are due January 24, 2023.In addition to accessing NOFOs on grants.gov, they are downloadable from the Office of Head Start (OHS) Funding Opportunities website. Service areas with grants open for competition, estimated funding amounts, and estimated numbers of awards are summarized below.
DRS Grant Competitions Delayed and New Grants Forecasted
The upcoming round of DRS was scheduled to open for competition on September 8, 2021. The forecasts for these grants were released in July and have not been updated since then. If you’re waiting for a DRS Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) to post, new activity on grants.gov may provide some insight.
Create Efficiencies with Internal Grant Writing Expertise
The next round of DRS is right around the corner, with grants competitions forecasted for September 2021. If your program plans to compete for funding through DRS, you may be determining roles and responsibilities for grant writing and submission of your agency’s proposal.For agencies that don’t have a clear grant writing process, you might need an external grant writer to facilitate the grant writing process from drafting to application submission. Foundations for Families offers this service, comprehensive grant writing.
DRS Round 10 Grant Competitions Forecasted for September 2021
The tenth round of Designation Renewal System (DRS) grant opportunities are now forecasted on grants.gov. The estimated posting date for Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) is September 8, 2021. Applications are estimated to be due on November 8, 2021.