MERA Award (Merit and/or ERA Award)
Funding Amount
Not stated
Deadline
Deadline not published
Grant Type
Foundation
Can we apply?
Check your organization against each line. Taken from the listing; confirm with the funder's guidelines.
Other requirements
- Family Providers: STAR 2, 3, or 4 family child care providers
- Center/Group Providers: STAR 2 center/group providers (Merit Award up to 3 times maximum)
- Center/Group Providers: STAR 3 & 4 center/group providers (ERA Award)
- Pennsylvania early learning and child care programs
Overview
Program: Keystone STARS (an initiative of the Office of Child Development and Early Learning - OCDEL)
Purpose: Provide merit and/or expansion-related financial awards to early learning providers at various STAR levels engaged in continuous quality improvement.
Eligible Provider Types
- Family Providers: STAR 2, 3, or 4 family child care providers
- Center/Group Providers: STAR 2 center/group providers (Merit Award up to 3 times maximum)
- Center/Group Providers: STAR 3 & 4 center/group providers (ERA Award)
Award Types
- Merit Award: For qualifying STAR 2 center/group providers (maximum 3 awards)
- ERA Award: For STAR 3 & 4 center/group providers
Contact Information
Quality Coach: Contact your Quality Coach to determine your eligibility
How to Apply
How to Apply
- Determine Eligibility: Contact your Quality Coach to confirm you meet eligibility requirements
- Award Type: Identify whether you qualify for Merit Award or ERA Award based on your STAR level
- Application Process: Specific application steps to be discussed with Quality Coach
Note: Detailed application procedures should be discussed with your assigned Quality Coach.
What Community Services for Children Inc actually gave
Source: IRS Form 990, 2025
- Grants in 2025
- 210
- Total given
- $1.87M
- Median grant
- $6,500
- Range
- $5,500–$95K
- By dollars: Pennsylvania 95%, Oregon 4%, Florida 1%. Top recipient cities: Allentown, PA; Reading, PA; Scranton, PA.
- 0% of grants with a stated purpose were for general or operating support.
- 8% of recipients were new grantees, not repeat recipients.
Example grants
Lehigh Valley Childrens Centers Inc · Allentown, PA
Continuous quality improvement award
$95K
Kuehg Corp Kindercare Education LLC · Lake Oswego, OR
Continuous quality improvement award
$66K
River Crossing Young Mens Christian Asso · Doylestown, PA
Continuous quality improvement award
$44K
Child Development Council of Nepa Inc · Wilkes Barre, PA
Continuous quality improvement award
$35K
Life Span Day Care Inc · Quakertown, PA
Continuous quality improvement award
$26K
Focus Areas & Funding Uses
Fields of Work
- Child care
- Capacity building
Categories
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