[Federal Register: February 6, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 25)]
[Notices]
[Page 5570-5572]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr06fe02-46]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[CFDA Nos. 84.116A, 84.116B]
Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education--
Comprehensive Program (Preapplications and Applications); Notice
Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2002
Purpose of Program: To provide grants or enter into cooperative
agreements to improve postsecondary education opportunities.
Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education or
combinations of those institutions and other public and private
nonprofit institutions and agencies.
Applications Available: February 1, 2002.
Deadline for Transmittal of Preapplications: March 13, 2002.
Deadline for Transmittal of Final Applications: May 24, 2002.
Note: All applicants must submit a preapplication to be eligible
to submit a final application.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 23, 2002.
Available Funds: $9,958,000.
Estimated Range of Awards: $50,000-$275,000 per year.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $156,000 per year.
Estimated Number of Awards: 60-65.
Note: the Department in not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 36 months.
Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80,
82, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99.
Invitational Priorities
While applicants may propose any project within the scope of 20
U.S.C. 1138(a), under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1) the Secretary is particularly
interested in applications that meet one or more of the following
invitational priorities. However, an application that meets one or more
of these invitational priorities does not receive competitive or
absolute preference over other applications.
Invitational Priority 1
Projects to improve the quality of K-12 teaching through new models
of teacher preparation and through new kinds of partnerships between
schools and colleges and universities that enhance students'
preparation for, access to, and success in college.
Invitational Priority 2
Projects to promote innovative reforms in the curriculum and
instruction at the college preparation, undergraduate, and graduate/
professional levels, especially through student-centered or technology-
mediated strategies.
Invitational Priority 3
Projects designing more cost-effective ways of improving
postsecondary instruction and operations, i.e., to promote more student
learning relative to institutional resources expended.
Invitational Priority 4
Projects to support new ways of ensuring equal access to
postsecondary education, and to improve rates of retention and program
completion, especially for underrepresented students whose retention
and completion rates continue to lag behind those of other groups.
[[Page 5571]]
Methods for Applying Selection Criteria
For preapplications (preliminary applications) and final
applications, the Secretary gives equal weight to each of the selection
criteria. Within each of these criteria, the Secretary gives equal
weight to each of the factors.
Selection Criteria
In evaluating preapplications and final applications for grants
under this program competition, the Secretary uses the following
selection criteria chosen from those listed in 34 CFR 75.210.
Preapplications
In evaluating preapplications, the Secretary uses the following
selection criteria:
(a) Need for project. The Secretary reviews each proposed project
for its need, as determined by the following factors:
(1) The magnitude or severity of the problem to be addressed by the
proposed project.
(2) The magnitude of the need for the services to be provided or
the activities to be carried out by the proposed project.
(b) Significance. The Secretary reviews each proposed project for
its significance, as determined by the following factors:
(1) The potential contribution of the proposed project to increased
knowledge or understanding of educational problems, issues, or
effective strategies.
(2) The extent to which the proposed project involves the
development or demonstration of promising new strategies that build on,
or are alternatives to, existing strategies.
(3) The importance or magnitude of the results or outcomes likely
to be attained by the proposed project, especially improvements in
teaching and student achievement.
(4) The potential replicability of the proposed project or
strategies, including, as appropriate, the potential for implementation
in a variety of settings.
(c) Quality of the project design. The Secretary reviews each
proposed project for the quality of its design, as determined by the
extent to which the design of the proposed project is appropriate to,
and will successfully address, the needs of the target population or
other identified needs.
(d) Quality of the project evaluation. The Secretary reviews each
proposed project for the quality of its evaluation, as determined by
the extent to which the evaluation will provide guidance about
effective strategies suitable for replication or testing in other
settings.
Final Applications
In evaluating final applications, the Secretary uses the following
selection criteria:
(a) Need for project. The Secretary reviews each proposed project
for its need, as determined by the following factors:
(1) The magnitude or severity of the problem to be addressed by the
proposed project.
(2) The magnitude of the need for the services to be provided or
the activities to be carried out by the proposed project.
(b) Significance. The Secretary reviews each proposed project for
its significance, as determined by the following factors:
(1) The potential contribution of the proposed project to increased
knowledge or understanding of educational problems, issues, or
effective strategies.
(2) The extent to which the proposed project involves the
development or demonstration of promising new strategies that build on,
or are alternatives to, existing strategies.
(3) The importance or magnitude of the results or outcomes likely
to be attained by the proposed project, especially improvements in
teaching and student achievement.
(4) The potential replicability of the proposed project or
strategies, including, as appropriate, the potential for implementation
in a variety of settings.
(c) Quality of the project design. The Secretary reviews each
proposed project for the quality of its design, as determined by the
following factors:
(1) The extent to which the design of the proposed project is
appropriate to, and will successfully address the needs of, the target
population or other identified needs.
(2) The extent to which the goals, objectives, and outcomes to be
achieved by the proposed project are clearly specified and measurable.
(3) The extent to which the design for implementing and evaluating
the proposed project will result in information to guide possible
replication of project activities or strategies, including information
about the effectiveness of the approach or strategies employed by the
project.
(d) Quality of the project evaluation. The Secretary reviews each
proposed project for the quality of its evaluation, as determined by
the following factors:
(1) The extent to which the evaluation will provide guidance about
effective strategies suitable for replication or testing in other
settings.
(2) The extent to which the methods of evaluation are thorough,
feasible, and appropriate to the goals, objectives, and outcomes of the
proposed project.
(3) The extent to which the methods of evaluation include the use
of objective performance measures that are clearly related to the
intended outcomes of the project and will produce quantitative and
qualitative data to the extent possible.
(e) Quality of the management plan. The Secretary reviews each
proposed project for the quality of its management plan, as determined
by the plan's adequacy to achieve the objectives of the proposed
project on time and within budget, including clearly defined
responsibilities, timelines, and milestones for accomplishing project
tasks.
(f) Quality of project personnel. The Secretary reviews each
proposed project for the quality of project personnel who will carry
out the proposed project, as determined by the following factors:
(1) The extent to which the applicant encourages applications for
employment from persons who are members of groups that have
traditionally been underrepresented based on race, color, national
origin, gender, age, or disability.
(2) The qualifications, including relevant training and experience,
of key project personnel.
(g) Adequacy of resources. The Secretary reviews each proposed
project for the adequacy of its resources, as determined by the
following factors:
(1) The extent to which the budget is adequate to support the
proposed project.
(2) The extent to which the costs are reasonable in relation to the
objectives, design, and potential significance of the proposed project.
(3) The relevance and demonstrated commitment of each partner in
the proposed project to the implementation and success of the project.
(4) The adequacy of support, including facilities, equipment,
supplies, and other resources, from the applicant organization or the
lead applicant organization.
(5) The potential for continued support of the project after
Federal funding ends, including, as appropriate, the demonstrated
commitment of appropriate entities to such support.
For Applications Contact: Education Publications Center (ED Pubs),
P.O. Box 1398, Jessup MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll free): 1-877-433-
7827. FAX: (301) 470-1244. If you use a telecommunications device for
the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free): 1-877-567-7734.
[[Page 5572]]
You may also contact ED Pubs at its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/
pubs/edpubs.html. Or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address:
edpubs@inet.ed.gov.
If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify
this competition as follows: CDFA number 84.116A.
Note: Application text and forms are available on the FIPSE web
site (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Fund for the Improvement of
Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20006-8544. Telephone: (202) 502-7500. The
application text and forms may be obtained from the Internet address:
http://www.ed.gov/FIPSE/.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the contact listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT.
Individuals with disabilities also may obtain a copy of the
application package in an alternative format. However, the Department
is not able to reproduce in alternative format the standard forms
included in the application package.
Electronic Access to This Document
You may view this document, as well as all other Department of
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe
portable Document Format (PDF) on the internet at the following site:
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/.
To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S.
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in
the Washington, DC area at (202) 512-1530.
Note: the official version of this document is the document
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www/
access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html.
Program authority: 20 U.S.C. 1138-1138d.
Dated: January 31, 2002.
Kenneth W. Tolo,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Planning and Innovation,
Office of Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 02-2762 Filed 1-31-02; 4:58 pm]
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