The Fair Start for Kids Act, passed by the Washington State Legislature in 2021, directs DCYF to distribute funds to support inclusive and culturally and linguistically specific early learning and early childhood and parent support programs across the state. Early Childhood Equity Grants are intended to serve as a step toward making Washington’s early learning system (which serves all children and all providers, without regards to race, color, or national origin) more equitable.
The Early Childhood Equity Grant helps support culturally responsive programming so that children have access to diverse care that meets their needs.
Who can apply for the Early Childhood Equity Grant?
During the application period, eligibility is open to:
- Licensed, certified, or certified for payment only child care providers with an open license in good standing.
- License-exempt Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) providers serving children receiving state subsidies.
- Licensed ECEAP sites
- ECEAP contractors
- Play and Learn Group Host Organizations recognized by Child Care Aware of Washington (CCA of WA) and currently receiving funding and/or direct programming support from CCA of WA to actively provide direct and virtual education and materials to parents and FFN caregivers. This is the result of a contractual agreement between CCA of WA and the State of Washington and applies to Play and Learn Groups.
You may receive an Early Childhood Equity Grant once every two years.
If you are a licensed, certified, or certified for payment only provider with more than one location, you must submit a separate application for each licensed site. You cannot submit one application for multiple sites. Grants are awarded to individual licensed locations, not a larger organization.
If you are an ECEAP Contractor, you may submit a single application with information on all sites included in your project.
If you are an unlicensed ECEAP site or subcontractor, you may not apply for this grant.
If you are both licensed and serving ECEAP slots, you may apply as a licensed site through the Provider Portal. Licensed sites cannot receive Early Childhood Equity Grant Funding from both their contractor and directly from DCYF.
If you are a Play and Learn Group Host Organization, submit a single application with information on all sites included in your project.
