As a part of its Supplemental FY26 Budget Guidance, the County Board directed the County Manager to utilize up to $550,000 of one-time funding for a Notice of Funding Availability for community service providers to provide free after-school programming at:
- One or more secondary schools that qualify for free and reduced lunch under the community eligible standard used by Arlington Public Schools
- Arlington Mill Community Center – the available space at Arlington Mill includes two classrooms with capacity for 25 youth in each classroom with possible linkages to existing programming at Arlington Mill.
The pilot program(s) should begin during the first semester of the 2025-26 school year and cover two school years to ensure an appropriate evaluation period and consistent service delivery, in support of the County & APS focus on after-school programming. To see what has been accomplished to date, please reference pages 31-32 from the County Manager’s proposed budget message.
After-School Programming Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) Application
PDF of the Application(PDF, 277KB)
- 501(c)(3) organization
- Arlington County business license, if applicable, and current on appropriate County taxes
- Must be serving students attending a secondary school that qualifies for free and reduced lunch under the community eligible standard used by Arlington Public Schools (e.g., Kenmore Middle School, Wakefield High School)
- Must be able to comply with County and APS insurance requirements
- Wednesday, July 9, 2025 - Notice of Funding Availability released
- Tuesday, July 15, 2025, 12:30 p.m. - Virtual information session
View the information session here
Slides for the information session(PDF, 668KB)
- Sunday, August 17, 2025, 11:59 p.m. - Application closes
- October 2025 - County Board approves awards and grant agreement
All proposals will be evaluated by a review panel consisting of staff from Arlington County Government and Arlington Public Schools. Reviewers will independently score each proposal using the rubric included at the end of the application. Per the rubric, each question is worth up to five points, and final scores will equal the sum total of the individual scores for each question. Using their independent scores as the basis for discussion, reviewers will discuss proposals and develop a funding recommendation to submit to the County Board for approval.
Award Process
County Board Approval. It is anticipated that awards will be considered and approved at the October County Board meeting.
Grantee Orientation and Kick-off. All grantees will be expected to meet with County and APS staff to understand the grant award process. This orientation and kick-off will include the following:
- Process Review. All grantees will review the funding disbursement and reporting process with County staff.
- Procedure Review. All grantees must provide an adequate overview of their safety and security procedures, including insurance coverage. These procedures should include, at a minimum, the implementation of background checks and fingerprinting for all involved personnel, intake forms, document storage, overview of safety training(s), arrival and dismissal procedures, and emergency procedures. County and APS staff must approve of the safety and security procedures before funding may be disbursed, or any programming commences. Documentation of procedures must be submitted within two weeks of the grant award.
- Facility Use Agreement. County and APS staff will work with grantee to secure space designated for the program. Grantee is required to sign any facility use agreement between grantee and appropriate party.
- Grant Agreement. After County Board approval, all grantees will be expected to sign a grant agreement and complete vendor registration with the County.
Funding Disbursement. The award will be disbursed upfront each semester. At the close of each semester, grantees must report on their expenditures for the past semester. Subsequent funding disbursements will be contingent on a successful review of the past semester’s reporting. Successful review will require reasonable properly documented expenses aligned with the program budget, including supporting documentation (receipts, invoices, payroll reports, etc.).
Reporting. Grantees will be expected to submit programmatic and financial reports at the end of each semester of the school year. A site visit will be incorporated into the reporting each semester.
- The County anticipates that this grant will be awarded to one or two applicants.
- The award decision, including the grantee organization(s) and funding amount(s), will be made publicly available once the County Board approves the final award determinations. Submitted applications will not be posted publicly but is subject to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (“VFOIA”).
- The County reserves the right to reject any and all applications and/or cancel this grant at any time.
- Arlington County does not discriminate against faith-based organizations, but programs must be provided to any eligible participant without regarding to religious affiliation and the eligible program must be secular.
- All funding decisions are final and are not subject to review, appeal, or protest.
Information session recording
Information session slides(PDF, 668KB)
Does the programming have to take place at the schools?
We anticipate that the programming would take place at a school or at Arlington Mill Community Center
What schools are eligible under the community eligible standard used by Arlington Public Schools?
Kenmore Middle School, Wakefield High School
What hours should we plan for?
Programming should begin at the end of school (roughly 2:30-3:15, depending on your location). While programs may last as late as 6 pm, proposals with shorter hours will be considered. The number of hours should align with the budget request.
How many days per week should programming be offered?
The County's goal is to fill as many gaps in programming as possible with this funding so that all youth have access to engaging after-school options. Therefore, as many as five days per week is possible. The review panel may piece together proposals to create the most comprehensive after-school programming options. Proposals with fewer days will be considered, and the number of days should align with the budget request.
Should we plan for summer programming and other out-of-school-time programming?
Proposals may include programming offered through the summer of 2027. It would be helpful if the budget request broke out the budget for summer or other extra offerings so that the review panel could consider partial funding.
Can I submit a proposal with another organization?
Yes, the County welcomes collaborative approaches! Within the Submittable platform, one organization will have to "own" the application, although individuals from a partnering organization may be added to the application as collaborators.