Please note: an Applicant Webinar recording will be posted on or about 2/21/2024. Please refer to RFP Section 1.3 Applicant Webinar for additional information.

OCFS has released this RFP to solicit competitive applications for eligible not-for-profit organizations to apply for the creation, development, and/or continuation of quality after-school programs in partnership with local schools and/or school districts as part of the NYS LEAPS initiative. As NYS recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, schools and community organizations continue to see wide-ranging concerns from students and parents regarding student social, emotional, and mental health. NYS LEAPS is a key part of building quality out-of-school-time services and supports for students and their families.

For the purposes of this funding opportunity, OCFS has identified high-needs school districts as having at least 50% of the student population classified as economically disadvantaged on Attachment 10 – Eligible School Districts to Serve for LEAPS. The New York State Education Department (NYSED) (data.nysed.gov) defines economically disadvantaged students as those who participate in, or whose family participates in, economic assistance programs such as the free or reduced-price lunch programs, Social Security Insurance (SSI), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Foster Care, Refugee Assistance (cash or medical assistance), Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP), Safety Net Assistance (SNA), Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), or Family Assistance: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). If one student in a family is identified as low income, all students from that household (economic unit) may also be identified as low income.

Submission of Proposals

Application submission for this RFP will occur in two steps (specific information regarding these steps is located in RFP Section 5.4 Proposal Content and RFP Section 5.5 Proposal Submittal Process):

• First, applicants will complete an online application form via this link: https://forms.office.com/g/h25zbjbZrk as instructed in RFP Section 5.5 Proposal Submittal Process. Applicants will automatically receive a confirmation email from funding@ocfs.ny.gov after they submit their completed application form.
  
  
• Second, applicants should reply to the confirmation email to attach and submit all supporting documents outlined in RFP Section 5.4 Proposal Content to complete their submission process. All required documents must be submitted to funding@ocfs.ny.gov or the application submission will be considered incomplete.
  
  
• Please use Attachment 12 – Submission Checklist to ensure all required documents are completed and submitted to OCFS via email.

Please refer to the RFP document on the "Documents" tab for additional information and submission requirements.