2026 Employment and Career Development Services RFP

Before applying, please carefully review the full RFP for information on funding availability, eligibility, program requirements, evaluation criteria and key deadlines.

• Letter of Intent to Apply
• RFP Guidelines: Employment and Career Development Services RFP
• RFP Application Instructions
• RFP Application:
  • Application Part 1- Organization Narrative
  • Application Part 2- Program Narrative(s)
  • Application Part 3- Budget Workbook
  • Budget Narrative- Joint/Multi-Agency Applications Only
  • Appendix A: Employment and Career Development Equity Priority Areas Map
  • Appendix B: Employment Program Framework
  • Fiscal Agent form (if applicable) 
• Application Checklist Joint/Multi-Agency
• Application Checklist Single Agency 

Applicants are required to attend an RFP workshop or schedule a conversation with City staff Yolanda Shelton-Morris or Dominic Davis about their proposals by June 29, 2026, by 4:30 PM to be eligible to apply. 

Applicants seeking to be considered for funding in the 2026 Employment RFP process must submit a Letter of Intent by July 10, by 4:30 PM, to be eligible to apply. Please submit letter to CDDapplications@cityofmadison.com.

• Letter of Intent to Apply

Please keep these important dates in mind when preparing to submit your application.

• RFP Published: June 18, 2026
• RFP Application Workshops: 
  • Youth Employment, Wanda Fullmore, Young Adult Employment and Adult Employment Workshop: June 23, 2026, at 9:00 AM or June 25, 2026, at 3:00 PM
  • Southwest Madison Employment Center/Financial Empowerment Center Workshop: July 8, 2026, at 11:00 AM
• Deadline to meet with CDD staff if unable to attend workshop: June 29th, 2026, by 4:30 PM
• Deadline for submitting Letter of Intent: July 10, 2026, by 4:30 PM
• Deadline for Submission of Proposals: August 3, 2026, by 4:30 PM
• Community Resources Committee- Agency Presentations: August/September 2026
• Community Resources Committee- Finalize Funding Recommendations: September 23, 2026
• Common Council- Funding recommendations Introduced: October 20, 2026
• Finance Committee Approval: October 26, 2026
• Common Council Approval: November 24, 2026
• Anticipated Contract Effective Date: January 1, 2026

These dates are for planning purposes. They represent the City's desired timeline for implementing this process. All dates are tentative, non-binding, and subject to change, with notice.

Application Forms (using naming format described below):

• Application Part 1- Organization Narrative
• Application Part 2- Program Narrative(s)
• Application Part 3- Budget Workbook
• Budget Narrative- Joint/Multi-Agency Applications Only
• Fiscal Agent form (if applicable) 

Application Form Naming Format:

Please follow the file naming format provided below for all submitted materials.

• Program Name_Your Agency’s name_Program Type_Document Type_Applicant Type
• Example: Pathway to Internships Program_GED Prep Agency _Young Adult Employment_Organizational Narrative_JOINT/MULTI PARTNER 

Deadline: August 3, 2026, by 4:30 PM CST

Late or incomplete applications will not be considered. Please submit your application well before the deadline. No grace period will be granted.

Submission Instructions:

All proposals must be submitted electronically via email to CDDApplications@cityofmadison.com. Please include Employment RFP in the email subject line and submit separate emails for each application program proposal. Therefore, if your agency plans to apply for more than one program, we would expect to see a separate email for each program with all of the required materials listed below.

Please include the following required submittals:

• Application Part 1- Organization Narrative 
• Application Part 2- Program Narrative(s)
• Application Part 3- Budget Workbook (including all organization and program information, Excel preferred)
• Budget Narrative- Joint/Multi-Agency Applications Only (one or more for Joint/Multi-Agency applicants only)
• Fiscal Agent form (if applicable)
• Memorandum of Understanding if needed (If you need a template, please reach out to staff)

Applications will NOT be accepted from entities that have not:

1) Submitted a Letter of Intent by the deadline; and

2) Attended a workshop or consulted with staff about their proposals by the deadline.

You will receive a confirmation email once you have submitted your application(s) if submitted before 3:00pm on August 3, 2026. These email notifications are not auto-generated, so allow some time for a person to receive and process your application. If you do not receive a notification within 2 hours, it means that your application did not get delivered.

Reminder, we highly encourage applicants to take the time and opportunity to reach out to their Alders in the communities that your proposed program serves in before final council recommendations. Please use the Council Members page to find Alder(s) that represent the neighborhoods that you serve. 

Applications received will be posted after the submission deadline.