RFP: Join JFF’s Cohort of Fair Chance to Advance State Action Networks 

Aligning Systems and Building Clear Pathways From Incarceration to Careers 

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Program Overview

Interested in applying? 
Across the United States, more than 70 million people live with a history of arrest, conviction, or incarceration. They face barriers that severely limit their access to education and employment and undermine their opportunities for economic mobility—which in turn curb the potential for regional and national economic growth. 

Jobs for the Future’s Center for Justice & Economic Advancement has launched the Fair Chance to Advance (FC2A) initiative to dismantle these barriers and create broader pathways to economic advancement for people with histories of incarceration by improving alignment of systems and funding mechanisms at the state level.

A key strategic pillar of the FC2A initiative is to give coalitions of leaders from select states opportunities to accelerate the creation of fair chance ecosystems as members of FC2A State Action Networks. The states in these networks will receive support, including grant funding and technical assistance, over a period of up to four years to design and implement coordinated policies and practices that create clear pathways to quality jobs for people who are or have been incarcerated. 

With this request for proposals, made possible by the support of Ascendium Education Group, JFF is inviting states to apply to be part of the inaugural cohort of FC2A State Action Networks.

The statewide coalitions must include leaders from the state’s corrections, postsecondary education, and workforce development systems or agencies; policymakers; and leaders whose lives have been impacted by interactions with the criminal justice system. States are also strongly encouraged to include reentry services professionals, leaders of community organizations, and employers. The four states that are selected to be part of the inaugural cohort will receive supports in the form of subgrants, data tools, and technical assistance from JFF and our partners at the Coleridge Initiative, and they will have opportunities to come together for meetings and activities. 

Proposals are due October 14, 2025. States selected to participate will be notified in late November 2025. State Action Networks will open with a planning phase that begins in February 2026. To learn more, click here to listen to a recorded information session.

FC2A is grounded in the belief that transformational change happens when public systems are aligned, community voices are centered, and data is used strategically. Through FC2A, JFF and Coleridge will help participating states build lasting infrastructure for collaboration, reform policy and practice, and create conditions that ensure that every person with a history of incarceration has a fair chance to advance.

Membership in the State Action Networks will enable participants to:

  • Align education, workforce, and corrections systems to better serve people with histories of incarceration
  • Build and sustain cross-sector partnerships that accelerate fair chance policy and practice
  • Improve data-sharing and decision-making to support education and career pathways
  • Drive adoption of fair chance hiring practices among employers statewide
  • Remove longstanding barriers that prevent people with records of incarceration from accessing quality jobs

By participating in this initiative, states have opportunities to transform siloed systems into a coordinated, data-driven ecosystem that expands access to education, employment, and economic mobility for people with records—advancing opportunity, reducing harm, and strengthening the workforce.

What We Offer

Participating State Action Networks will receive:

  • Phase 1 grants of up to $300,000 over a period of up to 24 months to support planning, network infrastructure, and coordination efforts
  • Phase 2 grants of up to $1.8 million to implement coordinated strategies and reforms over the remainder of the four-year period, contingent upon successful completion of Phase 1 milestones
  • Free technical assistance and network coordination services (valued at approximately $1.8 million per state) from JFF and the Coleridge Initiative
  • State-specific services and supports, including needs assessments, asset mapping, data dashboards, and evaluation
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RFP Timeline

  • RFP Opens: August 5, 2025
  • Release of Recorded Information Session: August 5, 2025
  • Letter of Intent Due: August 26, 2025
  • Proposal Deadline: October 14, 2025
  • Finalist Interviews: November 5-19, 2025
  • Award Notifications: Late November 2025
  • Grantee Contracts Executed: December 2025 to January 2026

 

Award Timeline

Phase 1 (Planning): Up to 24 months, beginning February 2026
Phase 2 (Implementation): 24–36 months following Phase 1 completion, through February 2030

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible, proposals must demonstrate:

Existing Cross-Sector Collaboration and Relationships

Evidence of existing working relationships and commitments to collaboration between corrections, postsecondary education and training providers, the state higher education system, community-based organizations, policymakers, and/or employer-oriented actors in the state.

Engagement of People With Lived Experience

Evidence of past commitments to working with leaders and advisors who have lived experience of arrest, incarceration, or other interactions with the criminal justice system.

Commitment to All Learners

Evidence of commitment to ensuring that all people who are or have been incarcerated have access to opportunities no matter what charges they faced or how much time they served and regardless of their demographic identity or socioeconomic status.

Commitment to Learner Choice

Evidence of commitment to aligning academic and career pathways offered in carceral facilities and in community settings to the interests and aspirations of students.

Reentry Partnerships

Evidence of existing coordination and partnerships between corrections agencies, institutions of higher education, providers of services to people returning to their communities, housing providers, and/or community-based organizations to adequately support learners as they continue their academic and career pathways after release.

Capacity for Research and Evaluation

A willingness and ability to track short-term impact and outcomes over the life of the FC2A initiative, as well as the capacity (or evidence of progress toward the capacity) to integrate statewide data systems that track educational and employment outcomes.

Mitigating Career Barriers

Evidence within the state of shared commitment to advocating for the removal of policy barriers that automatically disqualify people from jobs or professions based on their records, without considering the degree to which the charges individuals were convicted of are relevant to the roles or professions they’re pursuing.

View the full list of state readiness crieria:

Expectations of Participating States

Selected grantee states must:

  • Participate in monthly virtual meetings and periodic in-person gatherings
  • Form and maintain a steering committee and four subcommittees focusing on these topics: data, policy, postsecondary education and training, and workforce development
  • Engage an advisory board, established in partnership with JFF, made of up individuals whose lives have been directly impacted by incarceration
  • Complete required Phase 1 deliverables, including:
    • A network charter
    • A state-specific logic model and evaluation plan
    • Cross-agency data-sharing agreements
    • A comprehensive Phase 2 implementation plan and budget
  • Coordinate with JFF, Coleridge, and a third-party evaluator

Learn More About the Initiative

 

Join us for office hours on:

  • August 19, 2:30-4 p.m. ET
  • September 11, 1:30-3 p.m. ET 
  • October 6, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. ET

Registration for these sessions is coming soon!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Who is eligible to apply?

A collaborative proposal must be submitted on behalf of a state by a coalition that includes specific mandatory stakeholders: representatives of the state’s public agencies or systems for corrections, postsecondary education, and workforce development and the officers overseeing data for these agencies; state leaders and policymakers; and leaders whose lives have been impacted by incarceration. States are strongly encouraged to also include reentry services professionals, leaders of community organizations, and employers.

2. How many states will be selected?

Four states will be selected for this initial FC2A cohort, with an aim for geographic and contextual diversity.

3. What is the funding structure?

In Phase 1, subgrant funding of up to $300,000 is available for planning and coordination. States that complete the required Phase 1 deliverables can unlock up to $1.8 million in Phase 2 subgrant funding for implementation.

4. What kind of support will JFF provide?

JFF and the Coleridge Initiative will offer technical assistance, data tools, evaluation support, network facilitation, and invitations to national meetings, activities, and learning events.

5. Do proposals need to include every stakeholder group listed?

Proposals must include all mandatory stakeholders. While additional stakeholder engagement is not required at the proposal stage, JFF will prioritize proposals that proactively include commitments from additional FC2A stakeholder groups. Following state grantee selection, JFF will work with selected states to build a comprehensive network representative of all eight FC2A stakeholder groups.

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Join the Movement

Fair Chance to Advance is more than this RFP for State Action Networks. It’s a growing national movement to align and transform education, workforce, and employment systems so that people with histories of incarceration have a real chance to thrive. We invite you to connect with us and join a broad coalition of leaders working to build pathways from incarceration to careers.

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