Frequently
Asked
Questions:
Submission Requirements
- Have there been any changes to the Application Instructions and NOFO?
Yes. Several revisions were made to the original posting of this funding opportunity. These revisions were announced and reposted on June 12th, 2008. If you downloaded the documents prior to that date please revisit our Web site (http://www.nationalservice.gov) to access the revised documents and download again. All changes that were made to the NOFO (Notice) are highlighted in yellow.
- Did the Notice revisions affect the deadline?
Yes, the new deadline is Thursday, July 10, 2008 at 5:00pm Eastern. Submissions after that day and time will not be reviewed.
- I did not submit a letter of intent. Can I still apply for this grant?
Yes, you may still apply for this competition.
eGrants
- Whom do I contact if I am having trouble submitting my application in eGrants?
In the event you are prevented from completing and submitting your application by the deadline because the eGrants system is unavailable or you are having technical eGrants submission issues, you must contact the eGrants Helpdesk at 888-677-7849 or email at egrantshelp@cns.gov , prior to the 5:00 p.m. ET on July 10, 2008, to explain your technical issue and receive an eGrants ticket number. The eGrants Help Desk is staffed Monday – Friday 8:00 am to 6:00 pm Eastern.
- Are there Helpful Hints that I should take into account when applying through eGrants?
- We suggest that you prepare and save your application as a word processing document prior to inputting it into eGrants.
- Use only uppercase letters for all section headings and other information you would like to highlight in your narrative. Bold face, bullets, underlines, or other types of formatting, charts, diagrams, and tables will not copy into eGrants. Do not use any of these in your application.
- Remember to follow the character limits. We use character limits rather than page limits because of the structure of eGrants. Characters include letters, punctuation, and spaces in the document. Your word processing software can provide a character count.
- Does the character-limit in eGrants include spaces?
Yes.
- Is there a way we can put up an organizational chart in eGrants?
No. eGrants will accept only text.
Eligibility
- Are individuals eligible to apply?
Individuals are NOT eligible to apply for this funding opportunity. This was an item of clarification from the original posting in Grants.gov.
- Can you clarify eligibility of “commercial entities” applying?
Commercial entities are eligible, however the Corporation does not pay a for-profit fee as part of a budget submission .
Application Questions
- The first page of the NOFO (Notice) document has a link to the electronic version of the funding Notice. However, this link directs me to a Notice about an “Expanding Research Cooperative Agreement”; is the “Expanding Research…” link the correct one?
It is not the correct link. Please note, the link on Page 1 of the NOFO incorrectly links you to an electronic version of another Notice. Please use http://www.nationalservice.gov/ to access the electronic version of this Notice.
- Will there be another Technical Assistance (TA) call?
There will be a second TA call held for this competition, designed to answer additional questions. Please see the bottom of this page for more information.
- How do you reconcile the difference in Selection Criteria between the Application Instructions and the NOFO for Program Development and Organization?
If there are any inconsistencies between the Application Instructions and the NOFO (Notice), the Notice takes precedence.
- In the Application Instructions there is a request for staff consultant expertise; what form do you want to see that in?
Due to character limitations a concise, narrative form is suggested.
- The Special Instructions section in the Notice is noted as “not required”. However, there is a section in the eGrants application for that field that has a character limit of 6,000 characters. Can we still use that space for something else?
It was correctly noted that the Special Instructions section is not required for this funding opportunity. Applicants should enter “not applicable” in this field. Otherwise, this field should be left blank. Any text input into this field will not be reviewed.
Budget Clarification
- What budget information do you need for years 2-5?
No budget information is required for years 2-5. A budget proposal for year one is all that is required for this submission.
- Are there possibilities of awarding a cooperative agreement across several different areas/Categories? If so, what should the proposal look like?
The Notice asks for a separate application for each Category in which you are applying with an appropriate budget for that Category. The Corporation will make decisions about the number of awards after the review process for each Category is complete.
- How do we reflect efficiencies of scale in an application?
Submit an individual proposal for each Category and suggest what the advantages would be for selecting your organization in more than one Category.
- What would be the percentage of administrative overhead allowed in the budget?
The Corporation allows indirect costs to be charged in accordance with an established indirect cost rate. Provide a detailed budget with breakouts of direct and indirect costs. In addition, if you have a negotiated indirect cost rate from other federal grants, you should use that indirect cost rate and provide information about the agency that approved the rate. There are no set limits. However, this funding opportunity is competitive and our selections will be based on the most effective use of our dollars.
- Please confirm what the match requirements are for each of the eight Categories?
Disability Inclusion (Category 6) is the only Category with a match requirement. The match requirement for Category 6 is 25%.
- Why is Category 6 the only Category with a cost match requirement?
This is mandated by statute. Awards to be made under Category 6 – Disability Inclusion, are authorized under Sec. 129(d)(5)(C) of the National and Community Service Act of 1990, as amended (42 U.S.C. 12581(d)(5)(C)). Under that authority, the grants are available to pay for the “Federal share described in section 121(e)” of the disability inclusion program. 42 U.S.C. 12572(e). Under section 121(e), the federal share of the disability inclusion award cannot exceed 75%. That corresponds to a 25% matching requirement under the award.
- Is this a cost-reimbursable funding program?
Yes.
Category-Specific Questions
- Can an applicant solely bid for a particular program (Learn and Serve America) or do you need to address all three programs in the Categories?
This information was adjusted for clarity in the Revised Notice.
- Regarding Category One (C1): What should the applicants be budgeting for staff regarding the VISTA PSOs and VISTA Supervisor training?
For the approximately 40 VISTA PSOs and 30 Supervisor trainings an applicant should budget for its staff travel, meals and lodging for trainers. For these trainings that are held nationwide, the Corporation will handle participant registration, travel, meals and lodging.
- Category Six (C6) suggests face-to-face meetings, but there is no mention of the number of meetings and where these meetings will take place?
Your proposal should recommend suggested training topics as well as a proposal for the number of trainings. These face-to-face meetings will be held for Corporation grantees that operate throughout the United States, territories and Indian Nations. While exact locations may not be known at this point, a rationale for suggested locations of the trainings may be presented.
- Regarding Category Seven (C7), are the special projects pre-defined or will they be defined during funding time?
Additional projects/activities will be identified during the term of the agreement.
- Are there any documents to refer to in terms of desired outcomes in each Category?
The Resource Center provides the best picture of past and current work.
Web-based & Online Resource
- What is the difference between the Resource Center and the National Service Learning Clearinghouse?
These are two different Web presences. The National Service Learning Clearinghouse is exclusively devoted to supporting the Learn and Serve America program while The Resource Center supports all Corporation programs.
- Is Web online learning synchronous, asynchronous, or both?
The Web online learning is both.
- In the proposal do we need to create a new set of courses for the Resource Center, or similar courses?
New eCourses may be developed using the existing LMS available through the Resource Center. However, with the limited funds available, we are anticipating updating or modifying eCourses that have already been created.
- If we have other technologies to propose is that allowable for the Resource Center site?
Yes.
- Are you requiring a 3rd party tech support (i.e., Webinar, Moodle)? What is the requirement for infrastructure?
No, we are not requiring third-party tech support. Currently tech support is housed through the Resource Center. In addition, Webinar software is provided through the Resource Center. However, it is advisable to propose staff members that are familiar with the technology needed for delivery of content.
- Is a particular type of courseware required?
Applications are not limited to a particular courseware.
Other
- Where can we find a list of current CNCS Providers?
Current providers can be found in the Resource Center under ‘T & TA Resources’.
- Are there any Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) measures (related to Senior Corps)?
Please refer to our Web site using the following links for more information:
http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/role_impact/performance.asp
http://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/2009_budget_justification.pdf |
Forms
