Priority Trends Under this Administration
This administration’s priorities are being enforced through priority points, eligibility gates, selection discretion, and post-award compliance. Applicants who treat these as “context” instead of design constraints will lose winnable grants.
The most consistent signals cut across workforce, education, housing, public health, and humanities funding. We reviewed a half dozen or so federal funding opportunities released in January and identified common themes across them.
While federal grants have always been a game where you may have had to add a program component to get priority points, those points are more and more important to consider in advance.
If you can’t get at least some priority points, and there are many to be had (6+), the opportunity is often not worth pursuing because you can’t be competitive without them.
Priority points used to be fairly straightforward: serve a specific population, add the right advisory board, bring on a particular type of partner, etc. Current priorities are potentially more challenging.
I recommend starting now to identify which of these are likely to appear in the forecasted opportunity you are waiting to open.
Priority 1: Faith-based and nontraditional institutional participation
The administration is deliberately expanding the role of faith-based, private, and charter institutions in federally funded programs.
Where it shows up
DOL (YouthBuild): Priority points for private, faith-based, and public charter school applicants or partners.
CDC (Drug-Free Communities): Religious/fraternal organizations are a required coalition sector.
HUD (CoC, ROSS): Faith-based entities explicitly named as allowable and valued partners.
DOJ (OVC): Priority consideration tied to Executive Order alignment on religious liberty.
How to respond
Name faith-based or religious partners explicitly. Do not bury them in partner lists.
If eligible, position the applicant itself as faith-based or values-driven.
Avoid defensive language. Treat participation as an asset, not a risk.
Priority 2: AI literacy and AI-aligned skills
AI is being treated as a foundational skill, not a niche innovation.
Where it shows up
DOL (YouthBuild): Priority point for integrating AI literacy into participant skill development.
EPA (Environmental Education): AI literacy named as an educational priority, tied to eligibility.
NSF (TCUP): AI, advanced computing, and related fields framed as high-priority STEM areas.
How to respond
Be concrete. Specify AI skills, use cases, delivery methods, and assessment.
Tie AI to workforce readiness, environmental problem-solving, or institutional capacity.
Avoid buzzwords. Reviewers are looking for operational detail.
Priority 3: Industrial base and national capacity (not just jobs)
Workforce programs are being used to strengthen strategic industries (according to this administration), not just to improve employability.
Where it shows up
DOL (YouthBuild): Priority point for shipbuilding and related trades.
How to respond
Name the industry explicitly (e.g., shipbuilding, advanced manufacturing).
Connect training to national or regional capacity needs.
Show employer alignment and real pathways, not just credentials.
Priority 4: Rural and place-based prioritization
Geography matters again. Rural areas are being elevated through selection discretion.
Where it shows up
CDC (DFC / ONDCP): Rural prioritization used as waiver authority and tie-breaker.
HUD (CoC): Indirect advantages through system design and geographic coverage.
How to respond
Explicitly label rural status and constraints.
Frame rural service as requiring tailored strategies, not scaled-down urban models.
Priority 5: Deregulation and “removing barriers”
Housing and community development programs are rewarding applicants who reduce friction in development and service delivery.
Where it shows up
HUD (Choice Neighborhoods Implementation): Scored points for reducing regulatory barriers.
How to respond
Identify specific regulatory or administrative barriers.
Explain how your plan shortens timelines, lowers costs, or accelerates outcomes.
Priority 6: Systems integration over standalone programs
Siloed programs are disfavored. Integrated systems are rewarded.
Where it shows up
HUD (CoC): Points for healthcare, housing, and workforce integration.
CDC (DFC): Coalition governance and cross-sector coordination are mandatory.
DOL (YouthBuild): Strong emphasis on employer, education, and workforce alignment.
How to respond
Show how systems talk to each other.
Use MOUs, data-sharing plans, and joint outcomes.
Avoid “referral-only” partnerships with no operational depth.
Priority 7: Civics, American history, and Western civilization
In humanities funding, content focus is ideological and explicit.
Where it shows up
NEH (Endowments for Advancing the Humanities): Core purpose and dominant review criteria.
How to respond
Name these fields directly. Do not substitute adjacent language.
Anchor proposals in long-term institutional capacity, not programming alone.
Priority 8: Executive Order and policy alignment
Alignment with administration policy is now a selection and compliance factor, even when not scored.
Examples of where it shows up
DOJ (OVC): Priority consideration language.
HUD (ROSS, Choice): Post-award compliance and funding conditions.
CDC (DFC): Policy alignment reviewed during selection.
How to respond
Do not ignore EO language. Acknowledge alignment explicitly.
Avoid framing that conflicts with stated federal policy positions.
Treat compliance as part of competitiveness, not an afterthought.