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. The funds are distributed through the Early Childhood Equity Grant program.
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?
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/Early ECEAP sites
- ECEAP/Early ECEAP contractors
- Play and Learn Group Host Organizations recognized by Child Care Aware of Washington (CCA of WA) and currently receive 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.
Eligible applicants can receive an Early Childhood Equity Grant once every two years.
For licensed, certified, certified for payment only, and license-exempt FFN providers: grants are awarded to a specific licensed facility/site, not a larger organization. Providers with multiple licensed locations will need to submit a separate application for each licensed site that qualifies to apply for a grant.
Unlicensed ECEAP sites may not apply for this grant. ECEAP/Early ECEAP Contractors may submit a single application with information on all sites included in their project.
Facilities that are both licensed and serving ECEAP slots may apply on their own. Licensed sites cannot receive Early Childhood Equity Grant Funding from both their contractor and directly from DCYF.
Play and Learn Group Host Organizations should submit a single application per host organization, with information on all sites included in their project.
How much funding can providers request?
Award amounts vary by provider type. DCYF accepts requests within the following ranges based on provider type:
| Provider Type | Minimum Award | Maximum Award |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed/certified/certified for payment only providers | $5,000 | $100,000 |
| Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) providers | $100 | $2,000 |
| Play and Learn Host Organizations | $5,000 | $30,000 |
| ECEAP/Early ECEAP contractors | $5,000 | $100,000 |
How does a provider apply for a grant?
Licensed providers and Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) providers will log in to the WA Compass Provider Portal, navigate to the Grant Information tab, select Current Grants, and select the DCYF Early Childhood Equity Grant application. The provider will answer a series of questions and then submit the application.
For ECEAP contractors and Play and Learn Host Organizations, we have provided the application in two different formats - choose the format that works best for you:
Please email the completed form to DCYF.childcaregrants@dcyf.wa.gov. The deadline to apply is 5 p.m. on May 27, 2025.
Please note that this round of the Early Childhood Equity Grant uses remaining funds not yet awarded from this current fiscal year (FY25).
What happened in previous rounds of the Early Childhood Equity Grant?
A summary of each previous round is available in the resources sidebar.
Where can I get help?
Resources on this Page
DCYF has resources available on this page, including an application preview guide. They are available in the “Resources” box, which may be on the right side of the page or at the bottom depending on how you are accessing the page.
Please note: There are resources on this page that are for previous rounds of the grant. Guidelines and information change between rounds. Please make sure you are accessing the 2025-2026 version of any documents if you are looking for information about the current round of the grant.
Other Questions
If you have questions about topics specific to the grant, email dcyf.childcaregrants@dcyf.wa.gov.
If you need technical assistance, including language access, guidance on preparing for and accessing the application, or have questions on spending and saving receipts, please contact the Imagine Institute at 206-492-5249 or TA@imaginewa.org.