U.S. Department of Education details 2026 Comprehensive Centers competition: deadline, funding and application rules
June 16, 2026 | U.S. Department of Education
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Dr. Michelle Daily, group leader for the Comprehensive Centers Program in the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, outlined eligibility, review processes, submission rules and estimated funding for the Comprehensive Centers Program 2026 Grand Competition during a Department of Education pre‑application webinar.
"The Department is accepting applications through June 30th, 2026 for proposals to establish Comprehensive Centers under separate application notices and instructions," Dr. Daily said, and she reiterated that the ANI posted to grants.gov is the official notice applicants must follow.
Why it matters: the competition funds national and regional centers and content centers that provide technical assistance and capacity building for school systems. The Department said Congress appropriated $50,000,000 for the program in fiscal year 2026, about $47.5 million of which may be used for new awards, and estimated first‑budget period awards would range from $750,000 to $6.5 million for projects of up to 60 months.
Application and eligibility details: Dr. Daily said eligibility is established under Section 203B of the Education Technical Assistance Act (ETAA) of 2002 and that eligible applicants include research organizations, institutions of higher education, agencies, partnerships or individuals with demonstrated capacity; consortia may apply under 34 CFR Part 75, Subpart C. The Department emphasized that required standard forms include the SF‑424 and the ED Supplement for SF‑424 and that applicants should complete SF‑424 first so grants.gov will populate program identifiers on other forms.
Project narrative and page limits: Dr. Daily said the Project Narrative is the primary component and advised applicants to be concise: "the Department recommends applicants limit their application narrative to the equivalent of no more than 75 pages." She added that reviewers will be instructed to read and score only the first 75 pages, so material beyond that limit may not be scored.
Budget and cost guidance: Applicants must submit budget information using the ED 524 non‑construction form and include a Budget Narrative that justifies requested federal funds. On indirect costs, Dr. Daily said applicants should indicate an approved indirect cost rate on line 10 of ED‑524B; applicants without an approved rate may use a de minimis indirect cost rate of up to 15 percent. She also said that, for tie‑breaking among equally scored applications, the Secretary may select an applicant with the lower effective indirect cost rate as shown on the form.
Submission process and technical requirements: Applications must be submitted electronically through grants.gov Workspace; applicants must be registered in SAMS.gov and grants.gov and provide a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) matching the Authorized Organization Representative registration. All documents must be submitted as flattened, read‑only PDF files (file names under 50 characters, no special characters). Password‑protected or non‑PDF attachments may not be processed and could make an application ineligible. Applicants should verify submission via grants.gov "Track My Application" and confirm the status reads "validated" before the deadline; the Department stressed the receipt time must be earlier than 11:59:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on June 30, 2026.
Review and award timeline: The Department described a two‑step review—an initial eligibility screen followed by peer review by non‑federal subject‑matter experts who score applications by selection criteria. Reviewer scores are averaged and competitive preference points applied to form a rank order list; funding recommendations and special terms are developed before a slate is submitted to the Secretary. The Department said it intends to create 19 funding slates (one National Center, one per regional center and slates for content center types) and that, if awards are made, decisions would be announced in September 2026.
Resources and contacts: Dr. Daily advised applicants to rely on the ANI posted on grants.gov as the official application notice and to use the Application Checklist in the ANI to avoid incomplete submissions. The Department will publish FAQs and maintain program webpages with resources and pre‑application webinars; questions about the competition or requests for accessible copies of the ANI should be sent to oese.comprehensivecenters@ed.gov.
Next steps: Prospective applicants should confirm SAMS.gov and grants.gov registration, assemble required forms (SF‑424, ED supplements, ED‑524B budget forms), prepare a concise project narrative within the recommended 75‑page equivalent, and submit completed applications via grants.gov Workspace before 11:59:59 p.m. EDT on June 30, 2026. Award notifications, if made, are expected in September 2026.
"The Department is accepting applications through June 30th, 2026 for proposals to establish Comprehensive Centers under separate application notices and instructions," Dr. Daily said, and she reiterated that the ANI posted to grants.gov is the official notice applicants must follow.
Why it matters: the competition funds national and regional centers and content centers that provide technical assistance and capacity building for school systems. The Department said Congress appropriated $50,000,000 for the program in fiscal year 2026, about $47.5 million of which may be used for new awards, and estimated first‑budget period awards would range from $750,000 to $6.5 million for projects of up to 60 months.
Application and eligibility details: Dr. Daily said eligibility is established under Section 203B of the Education Technical Assistance Act (ETAA) of 2002 and that eligible applicants include research organizations, institutions of higher education, agencies, partnerships or individuals with demonstrated capacity; consortia may apply under 34 CFR Part 75, Subpart C. The Department emphasized that required standard forms include the SF‑424 and the ED Supplement for SF‑424 and that applicants should complete SF‑424 first so grants.gov will populate program identifiers on other forms.
Project narrative and page limits: Dr. Daily said the Project Narrative is the primary component and advised applicants to be concise: "the Department recommends applicants limit their application narrative to the equivalent of no more than 75 pages." She added that reviewers will be instructed to read and score only the first 75 pages, so material beyond that limit may not be scored.
Budget and cost guidance: Applicants must submit budget information using the ED 524 non‑construction form and include a Budget Narrative that justifies requested federal funds. On indirect costs, Dr. Daily said applicants should indicate an approved indirect cost rate on line 10 of ED‑524B; applicants without an approved rate may use a de minimis indirect cost rate of up to 15 percent. She also said that, for tie‑breaking among equally scored applications, the Secretary may select an applicant with the lower effective indirect cost rate as shown on the form.
Submission process and technical requirements: Applications must be submitted electronically through grants.gov Workspace; applicants must be registered in SAMS.gov and grants.gov and provide a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) matching the Authorized Organization Representative registration. All documents must be submitted as flattened, read‑only PDF files (file names under 50 characters, no special characters). Password‑protected or non‑PDF attachments may not be processed and could make an application ineligible. Applicants should verify submission via grants.gov "Track My Application" and confirm the status reads "validated" before the deadline; the Department stressed the receipt time must be earlier than 11:59:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on June 30, 2026.
Review and award timeline: The Department described a two‑step review—an initial eligibility screen followed by peer review by non‑federal subject‑matter experts who score applications by selection criteria. Reviewer scores are averaged and competitive preference points applied to form a rank order list; funding recommendations and special terms are developed before a slate is submitted to the Secretary. The Department said it intends to create 19 funding slates (one National Center, one per regional center and slates for content center types) and that, if awards are made, decisions would be announced in September 2026.
Resources and contacts: Dr. Daily advised applicants to rely on the ANI posted on grants.gov as the official application notice and to use the Application Checklist in the ANI to avoid incomplete submissions. The Department will publish FAQs and maintain program webpages with resources and pre‑application webinars; questions about the competition or requests for accessible copies of the ANI should be sent to oese.comprehensivecenters@ed.gov.
Next steps: Prospective applicants should confirm SAMS.gov and grants.gov registration, assemble required forms (SF‑424, ED supplements, ED‑524B budget forms), prepare a concise project narrative within the recommended 75‑page equivalent, and submit completed applications via grants.gov Workspace before 11:59:59 p.m. EDT on June 30, 2026. Award notifications, if made, are expected in September 2026.
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