FR Doc 05-8998
[Federal Register: May 5, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 86)]
[Notices]
[Page 23849-23852]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr05my05-45]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services Overview
Information; National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation
Research (NIDRR)--Disability Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRP);
Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2005
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.133A-4.
Dates: Applications Available: May 5, 2005. Deadline for
Transmittal of Applications: July 5, 2005.
Eligible Applicants: States; public or private agencies, including
for-profit agencies; public or private organizations, including for-
profit organizations; institutions of higher education; and Indian
tribes and tribal organizations.
Estimated Available Funds: $1,000,000.
Estimated Range of Awards: $475,000-$500,000.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $487,500.
Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a
budget exceeding $500,000 for a single budget period of 12 months.
Note: The maximum amount includes direct and indirect costs.
Estimated Number of Awards: 2.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
Full Text of Announcement
I. Funding Opportunity Description
Purpose of Program: The purpose of this program is to plan and
conduct research, demonstration projects, training, and related
activities that help to maximize the full inclusion and integration of
individuals with disabilities into society and to improve the
effectiveness of services authorized under the Rehabilitation Act of
1973, as amended (Act).
Under the DRRP program, we define a development activity as using
knowledge and understanding gained from research to create materials,
devices, systems, or methods beneficial to the target population,
including design and development of prototypes and processes (34 CFR
350.16). We define a dissemination activity as the systematic
distribution of information or knowledge through a variety of ways to
potential users or beneficiaries (34 CFR 350.18). We define a technical
assistance activity as the provision of expertise or information for
use in problem-solving (34 CFR 350.19).
Priorities: These priorities are from the notice of final
priorities for this program published elsewhere in this issue of the
Federal Register.
These priorities are:
Priority 1--International Exchange of Information and Experts on
Disability and Rehabilitation Research; and
Priority 2--Innovative Knowledge Dissemination (KDU) for Disability
and Professional Organizations and Stakeholders.
General requirements for all projects funded under one of these
priorities and specific requirements for each priority are in the
notice of final priorities for this program, published elsewhere in
this issue of the Federal Register. Applicants must select and focus
research on one of these priorities. Applicants are allowed to submit
more than one application as long as each application addresses only
one priority.
Absolute Priorities: For FY 2005 these priorities are absolute
priorities. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only applications
that meet one of these priorities.
Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 762(g) and 764(a).
Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 80, 81,
82, 85, 86, and 97; (b) the regulations for this program in 34 CFR part
350; and (c) the notice of final priorities for this program, published
elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.
Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 apply to institutions of
higher education only.
II. Award Information
Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
Estimated Available Funds: $1,000,000.
Estimated Range of Awards: $475,000-$500,000.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $487,500.
Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a
budget exceeding $500,000 for a single budget period of 12 months.
Note: The maximum amount includes direct and indirect costs.
Estimated Number of Awards: 2.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
III. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants: States; public or private agencies,
including for-profit agencies; public or private organizations,
including for-profit organizations; institutions of higher education;
and Indian tribes and tribal organizations.
2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This program does not involve cost
sharing or matching.
IV. Application and Submission Information
1. Address to Request Application Package: You may obtain an
application package via Internet or from the Education Publications
Center (ED Pubs). To obtain a copy via Internet use the following
address:
http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/grantapps/index.html.
To obtain a copy from ED Pubs, write or call the following:
Education Publications Center, 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): 1-877-576-7734.
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: CFDA Number 84.133A-4.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print,
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the program
[[Page 23850]]
contact person listed under For Further Information Contact section VII
of this notice.
2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you
must submit, are in the application package for this competition.
Page Limit: The application narrative (Part III of the application)
is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that
reviewers use to evaluate your application. We recommend that you limit
Part III to the equivalent of no more than 75 pages, using the
following standards:
A ``page'' is 8.5'' x 11'', on one side only, with 1''
margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch)
all text in the application narrative, including titles, headings,
footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as all text in
charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
Use a font that is either 12 point or larger or no smaller
than 10 pitch (characters per inch).
The page limit does not apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II,
the budget section, including the narrative budget justification; Part
IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page abstract, the
resumes, the bibliography, or the letters of support. However, you must
include all of the application narrative in Part III.
The application package will provide instructions for completing
all components to be included in the application. Each application must
include a cover sheet (ED Standard Form 424); budget requirements (ED
Form 524) and narrative justification; other required forms; an
abstract, Human Subjects narrative, Part III narrative; resumes of
staff; and other related materials, if applicable.
3. Submission Dates and Times:
Applications Available: May 5, 2005.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 5, 2005.
Applications for grants under this competition may be submitted
electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov), or in
paper format by mail or hand delivery. For information (including dates
and times) about how to submit your application electronically, or by
mail or hand delivery, please refer to section IV. 6. Other Submission
Requirements in this notice.
We do not consider an application that does not comply with the
deadline requirements.
4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is not subject to
Executive Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79.
5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
6. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under
this competition may be submitted electronically or in paper format by
mail or hand delivery.
a. Electronic Submission of Applications.
We have been accepting applications electronically through the
Department's e-Application system since FY 2000. In order to expand on
those efforts and comply with the President's Management Agenda, we are
continuing to participate as a partner in the new government wide
Grants.gov Apply site in FY 2005. Disability Rehabilitation Research
Projects--CFDA Number 84.133A-4 is one of the programs included in this
project.
If you choose to submit your application electronically, you must
use the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov). Through this site, you will
be able to download a copy of the application package, complete it
offline, and then upload and submit your application. You may not e-
mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us. We request your
participation in Grants.gov.
You may access the electronic grant application for Disability
Rehabilitation Research Projects at:
http://www.grants.gov. You must
search for the downloadable application package for this program by the
CFDA number. Do not include the CFDA number's alpha suffix in your
search.
Please note the following:
Your participation in Grants.gov is voluntary.
When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find
information about submitting an application electronically through the
site, as well as the hours of operation.
Applications received by Grants.gov are time and date
stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted with a
date/time received by the Grants.gov system no later than 4:30 p.m.,
Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. We will not
consider your application if it was received by the Grants.gov system
later than 4:30 p.m. on the application deadline date. When we retrieve
your application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are
rejecting your application because it was submitted after 4:30 p.m. on
the application deadline date.
If you experience technical difficulties on the
application deadline date and are unable to meet the 4:30 p.m.,
Washington, DC time, deadline, print out your application and follow
the instructions in this notice for the submission of paper
applications by mail or hand delivery.
The amount of time it can take to upload an application
will vary depending on a variety of factors including the size of the
application and the speed of your Internet connection. Therefore, we
strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline
date to begin the application process through Grants.gov.
You should review and follow the Education Submission
Procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov that are
included in the application package for this competition to ensure that
your application is submitted timely to the Grants.gov system.
To use Grants.gov, you, as the applicant, must have a D-U-
N-S Number and register in the Central Contractor Registry (CCR). You
should allow a minimum of five business days to complete the CCR
registration.
You will not receive additional point value because you
submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you
if you submit your application in paper format.
You may submit all documents electronically, including all
information typically included on the Application for Federal Education
Assistance (ED 424), Budget Information--Non-Construction Programs (ED
524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. Any narrative
sections of your application should be attached as files in a .DOC
(document), .RTF (rich text) or .PDF (Portable Document) format.
Your electronic application must comply with any page
limit requirements described in this notice.
After you electronically submit your application, you will
receive an automatic acknowledgement from Grants.gov that contains a
Grants.gov tracking number. The Department will retrieve your
application from Grants.gov and send you a second confirmation by e-
mail that will include a PR/Award number (an ED-specified identifying
number unique to your application).
We may request that you provide us original signatures on
forms at a later date.
b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail.
If you submit your application in paper format by mail (through the
U.S. Postal Service or a commercial carrier),
[[Page 23851]]
you must mail the original and two copies of your application, on or
before the application deadline date, to the Department at the
applicable following address:
By mail through the U.S. Postal Service: U.S. Department of
Education, Application Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number 84.133A-
4), 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260 or
By mail through a commercial carrier: U.S. Department of Education,
Application Control Center--Stop 4260, Attention: (CFDA Number 84.133A-
4), 7100 Old Landover Road, Landover, MD 20785-1506.
Regardless of which address you use, you must show proof of mailing
consisting of one of the following:
(1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark,
(2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the
U.S. Postal Service,
(3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial
carrier, or
(4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the
U.S. Department of Education.
If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do
not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:
(1) A private metered postmark, or
(2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.
If your application is postmarked after the application deadline
date, we will not consider your application.
Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated
postmark. Before relying on this method, you should check with your
local post office.
c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery.
If you submit your application in paper format by hand delivery,
you (or a courier service) must deliver the original and two copies of
your application by hand, on or before the application deadline date,
to the Department at the following address: U.S. Department of
Education, Application Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number 84.133A-
4), 550 12th Street, SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington,
DC 20202-4260.
The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily
between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, except Saturdays,
Sundays and Federal holidays.
Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you mail
or hand deliver your application to the Department:
(1) You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by the
Department--in Item 4 of the ED 424 the CFDA number--and suffix letter,
if any--of the competition under which you are submitting your
application.
(2) The Application Control Center will mail a grant application
receipt acknowledgment to you. If you do not receive the grant
application receipt acknowledgment within 15 business days from the
application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of
Education Application Control Center at (202) 245-6288.
V. Application Review Information
Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this competition are
from 34 CFR 75.210 of EDGAR and are listed in the application package.
VI. Award Administration Information
1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your
U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award
Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally.
If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding,
we notify you.
2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify
administrative and national policy requirements in the application
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable
Regulations section of this notice.
We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding
commitments under the grant.
3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a
final performance report, including financial information, as directed
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an
annual performance report that provides the most current performance
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in
34 CFR 75.118.
Note: NIDRR will provide information by letter to grantees on
how and when to submit the report.
4. Performance Measures: To evaluate the overall success of its
research program, NIDRR assesses the quality of its funded projects
through review of grantee performance and products. Each year, NIDRR
examines, through expert peer review, a portion of its grantees to
determine:
The extent to which they promote the effective use of
scientific-based knowledge, technologies, and applications to inform
disability and rehabilitation policy, improve practice, and enhance the
lives of individuals with disabilities; and
The percentage of non-academic and consumer-oriented
dissemination products and services, nominated by grantees to be their
best outputs based on NIDRR-funded research and related activities,
that are judged by an expert panel to demonstrate ``good to excellent''
utility and have potential to advance knowledge, change/improve policy
or practice, and enhance choice and self-determination for individuals
with disabilities.
NIDRR uses information submitted by grantees as part of their
Annual Performance Reports (APRs) for these reviews. NIDRR also
determines, using information submitted as part of the APR, the number
of publications in refereed journals that are based on NIDRR-funded
research and development activities.
Department of Education program performance reports, which include
information on NIDRR programs, are available on the Department of
Education Web site:
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OUS/PES/planning.html.
Updates on the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993
(GPRA) indicators, revisions and methods appear in the NIDRR Program
Review Web site:
http://www.neweditions.net/pr/ commonfiles/ pmconcepts.htm.
Grantees should consult these sites, on a regular basis, to obtain
details and explanations on how NIDRR programs contribute to the
advancement of the Department's long-term and annual performance goals.
VII. Agency Contact
For Further Information Contact: Donna Nangle, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 6030, Potomac Center Plaza,
Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 245-7462 or by e-mail:
donna.nangle@ed.gov.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) 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 program contact person listed in this
section.
VIII. Other Information
Electronic Access to This Document: You may view this document, as
well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal
Register, in
[[Page 23852]]
text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the
following site:
http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.
To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at 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.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.
Dated: April 29, 2005.
John H. Hager,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 05-8998 Filed 5-4-05; 8:45 am]
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