Applications are open. The Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families is seeking proposals to develop community-based primary support and family preservation services for African American and other disproportionately represented children and families in Minnesota’s child welfare system.
Funding: Approximately $1,000,000 annually statewide, with about 10 awards expected. The estimated maximum award is $100,000 per year, there is no minimum, the project period is 36 months, and matching or cost sharing is not required.
Deadline: October 23, 2026 at 4:00 PM Central Time. Written RFP questions are due October 16, 2026 at 4:00 PM Central Time.
Eligibility: Eligible nonprofit and for-profit responders must satisfy the RFP’s statutory owned-or-led requirement. For nonprofits, the organization must be led by a primary or majority of senior and/or executive leaders from African American or other communities disproportionately represented in Minnesota’s child welfare system. Atlas will not infer this qualification from names, photos, or other indirect information.
Eligible services: The RFP encompasses community-based child and family preservation activities and identifies physical health providers, mental and behavioral health providers, substance-use programs, disability services, youth development, early childhood, education, housing, parenting/fatherhood supports, and other health and human-service organizations as potential service providers. Technology is allowable only when directly related to eligible child-abuse-prevention or family-preservation services.
Current FAQ controls: DCYF’s current responder FAQ confirms that multi-organization collaboration and fiscal-agency arrangements are permitted, but the organization submitting the proposal is the lead agency, state grantee of record, and party responsible for financial and operational management. The FAQ also clarifies that although the RFP references a July 1, 2026 project term, the effective contract start is the date the contract is fully executed. Costs incurred before full execution are not automatically reimbursable and would require specific written authorization.
Application requirements: Proposals require an implementation/work plan, evaluation plan, budget and budget justification, UEI-related funding disclosure, and current required statements/forms. A financial and capacity review applies to grants of $50,000 or more. Submission is by email to the designated DCYF contact in the RFP.
Atlas Opportunity Score: 87/100. This is a substantial Minnesota health and human-services opportunity with explicit mental/behavioral-health and physical-health relevance, no match requirement, and multi-year funding. The principal gating issue is the narrow owned-or-led eligibility requirement.
N9+ Fit: 48/100 conditional. Technology may be funded only when it is integral to an eligible family-preservation or child-abuse-prevention service model. Atlas does not treat N9+ as a default or standalone fit for this program.
Dr. Miltie direct-applicant fit: 0/100. The current RFP is for eligible family-preservation service providers meeting the statutory owned-or-led requirement, not a general technology vendor procurement.
Official source: Minnesota DCYF RFP and application materials.