Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund-Historically Black Colleges and Universities CFDA Number 84.425J | ED GRANTS 043020 001

Opportunity Information: Apply for ED GRANTS 043020 001

The Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Historically Black Colleges and Universities program (CFDA 84.425J) is a mandatory federal grant opportunity administered by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education, created under the CARES Act to help institutions respond to the disruptions and financial impacts caused by COVID-19. This particular stream, 84.425J, is aimed specifically at eligible Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) under section 18004(a)(2) of the CARES Act. Funding is awarded as a grant to institutions (not to individual students applying directly to the Department), and it is intended to support urgent needs tied to the pandemic, including maintaining continuity of instruction and addressing institution- and student-level challenges created by COVID-19.

Eligibility is limited to institutions of higher education that meet the program definitions and that qualify under the Department's HEERF formula allocations for the HBCU set-aside. The eligible applicant types listed include public and state-controlled institutions of higher education and private institutions of higher education, provided they meet the requirements to be considered eligible HBCUs for this funding stream. Practically, institutions are expected to confirm eligibility by checking the Department's published formula allocation information on the HEERF/CARES Act website. The opportunity sits alongside several closely related HEERF funding streams, including 84.425E (student aid portion under section 18004(a)(1)), 84.425F (institutional portion under section 18004(a)(1)), and other minority-serving or targeted programs under sections 18004(a)(2) and 18004(a)(3), such as 84.425K (Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities), 84.425L (Minority Serving Institutions), 84.425M (Strengthening Institutions Program), and 84.425N (Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education, FIPSE). The notice referenced in the opportunity describes application deadlines for institutions that did not apply during the initial window to receive their allocations.

A key administrative point in this opportunity is that the Department set and then reopened application transmission deadlines for institutions that had not initially submitted materials to receive their allocations. The original notice established a deadline for transmittal of applications of August 1, 2020 for institutions seeking HEERF funds under sections 18004(a)(1), 18004(a)(2), and 18004(a)(3). A later Federal Register notice dated 9/4/2020 reopened the period for transmittal of applications for all eligible applicants through September 30, 2020. In other words, institutions that missed the earlier submission window were given an additional chance to transmit the required application information and obtain the funds that were allocated to them under the applicable HEERF authority, including the HBCU program (84.425J). The funding opportunity is identified on Grants.gov as ED-GRANTS-043020-001, created on April 30, 2020, and it is categorized as a mandatory grant in the education activity area.

The Department also clarifies an important student-facing aspect of HEERF that often causes confusion: students do not apply for these funds directly from the U.S. Department of Education. Instead, students must work through their own institution. Each institution is responsible for designing its own process for distributing any student grant assistance it provides under HEERF, including deciding how to determine which students receive grants, how individual award amounts are calculated, and what instructions or application steps (if any) students must follow at that campus. This places the operational and compliance responsibility on the institution to manage distribution decisions and communications in line with federal guidance and the conditions attached to the funding.

For additional details, the Department directs institutions and stakeholders to the central HEERF/CARES Act information page, especially the "Formula Allocations" section, which is where eligibility and allocation amounts are posted. The opportunity notice also provides a direct program contact at the Department of Education (Lauren Kennedy) and the HEERF email inbox for questions. Finally, the notice ties the application process to existing, approved federal information collections under OMB control numbers 1801-0005, 1840-0842, and 1840-0843, signaling that institutions must use the Department-approved forms and reporting structures associated with those collections when transmitting their applications and related certifications.

• The Department of Education in the education sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund-Historically Black Colleges and Universities CFDA Number 84.425J" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 84.425.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2020-04-30.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-01-11. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

Apply for ED GRANTS 043020 001

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