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here for brief guidance.Background on Corporation for National and Community Service
The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) is a federal
agency that improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic
engagement through service and volunteering. For more than 15 years, CNCS’s
programs, Senior Corps, AmeriCorps and, more recently, the Social Innovation
Fund have helped to engage millions of citizens in meeting community and
national challenges through service and volunteerism.
On April 21, 2009, President Obama signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve
America Act, the most sweeping expansion of national service in a
generation. This landmark law not only expands service opportunities, but
also focuses national service on key outcomes, builds the capacity of
individuals, nonprofits, and communities to succeed, and encourages
innovative approaches to solving problems. In line with the Serve America
Act, CNCS’s programs will provide human and other resources to community-
and faith-based groups to empower them to meet local and national needs with
an emphasis on six Focus Areas: Disaster Services, Education, Environmental
Stewardship, Healthy Futures, Economic Opportunity, and Veterans and
Military Families. CNCS makes grants to organizations that use citizen
service as a strategy to meet critical national and community needs, foster
an ethic of civic responsibility, and strengthen the ties that bind us
together as a nation. Each year CNCS seeks qualified individuals to serve as
External Peer Reviewers and Panel Coordinators in evaluating applications
submitted to CNCS for its grant review process.
What is a Peer Review?
CNCS engages persons with expertise from various fields to read
applications and provide an analysis and rating of the quality of each grant
application based upon published selection criteria. The opinion of External
Peer Reviewers is considered by CNCS in making funding decisions and to
provide feedback to applicants.
What are the responsibilities of Reviewers?
The primary responsibilities of Reviewers are to participate in the
provided orientations and trainings, and to read, and provided an appraisal
of applications. This is done utilizing worksheets, forms and documents
prepared for the review, as well as participating in conference calls with
fellow panel members, when applicable. Reviewers are often accountable to
the guidance of a Panel Coordinator or a Staff Liaison throughout the
review, thus a high-level of responsiveness and the ability to work well
with others is required.
What are the responsibilities of Panel Coordinators?
A Panel Coordinator’s primary responsibilities are to guide and support
the work of the Reviewers on his or her panel; to ensure the Reviewers
produce thoughtful, fair, well-documented appraisals of all applications, to
ensure that panelists are held accountable to the review schedule and
standards, and to manage the writing responsibilities. Panel Coordinators
also help resolve any conflicts among the panelists. Panel Coordinators
participate in the provided orientations, trainings, and panel conference
calls; and complete various forms for documentation during the review.
Become a Senior Corps Peer Reviewer
CNCS is seeking interested and qualified individuals to serve as a Peer
Reviewer of grant applications submitted for the Senior Corps RSVP
Re-Competition in Fall 2012. Peer Reviewers will read and assess the merit
of individual applications based on established criteria.
Learn more
What are the qualifications of Reviewers and Facilitators?
We seek a diverse group of people with expertise (a minimum of 5 years)
in a variety of relevant areas and ability to objectively assess the quality
of grant applications. Both Reviewers and Panel Coordinators are held to
high-standards of writing (a writing sample may be requested), and the
paramount responsibility of preserving the integrity of the review (by
omitting or reporting potential bias, or conflicts of interest).
Reviewers should be comfortable reading a large volume of material in a
defined period of time and be capable of providing in-depth individual
analysis, and/or participating in small group discussions about the
applications. Panel Coordinators should have substantial skills managing
individual and group activities and experience facilitating small groups.
Panel Coordinators also need to be comfortable reading a large volume of
material in a short period.
Current Reviewers include practitioners, educators,
administrators/managers, analysts, researchers, funders, entrepreneurs,
evaluators, and board members. Their expertise should include at least 5
years in one of the relevant areas such as national service, volunteer
management, education, literacy and tutoring, human services, nonprofit
management, grant making, philanthropy, program evaluation, public health
and health services, disaster preparedness and response, and the environment
and clean energy. In line with the agency’s Strategic Plan and in order to
address the needs of several specialized programs, CNCS is particularly
looking for individuals with backgrounds in the agency Focus Areas:
Education, Environmental Stewardship, Economic Opportunity, Disaster
Services, and Veterans and Military Families.
Some of the places Reviewers work or volunteer in are: community or
faith-based organizations, national organizations, national or community
foundations, national and local non-profits, municipal, state or federal
agencies, higher education, or elementary, middle and high schools.
CNCS conducts its external peer reviews using its online/web-based *eGrants*
system. Reviewers and Panel Coordinators must have access to a phone,
computer and the internet throughout the review period.
Reviewers and Panel Coordinators are selected for competitions based on
education and experience specific to a review. Once you have completed an
application in eGrants, and your background is appropriate for a
competition, a CNCS representative contacts you by e-mail to check on your
availability to participate in that review. We often have more peer review
applicants than we may need for a year, but we will maintain your
application in our database for future reviews.
What is the time commitment for participating in a review?
CNCS’s peer review process is a time-intensive and time-sensitive
activity. The components of a review and an estimate for the amount of time
each item takes are as follows:
- Orientation conference calls and review of instructions for each
review: 2 to 4 hours
- 5 to 7 hours per application reviewed (reading, completing all
documents, entering assessments into eGrants, participating in panel
discussions, and reviewing and certifying final forms)
- The time commitment ranges from 30 hours over a five day period to
60 hours over a fifteen day period.
What are other benefits of being a peer reviewer or facilitator?
Participating in a review is an excellent professional development
opportunity, as well as a chance to serve. CNCS provides extensive training
and preparation as well as individual support for each review. You will be
exposed to new and innovative ideas in your field and engaged in the
grant-making process of a major funder of service and volunteerism while
meeting and networking with other experts in your profession. The review
experience also provides an in-depth look at the work and efforts of a grant
evaluation process; this provides perspective and skills that are applicable
in other professional endeavors.
Most Reviewers and Panel Coordinators, with the exception of federal
employees, receive a modest honorarium for their participation in the
grant review. CNCS for some reviews may seek individuals to serve as
External Reviewers on a voluntary basis.
Is there a deadline?
We invite Panel Coordinator and Reviewer applicants to complete the
on-line Peer Reviewer Application in eGrants at any time. CNCS staff
regularly review submitted applications and determine if your experiences
match the expertise needed for specific reviews. You may want to
review the funding notices
to get a sense of when Reviewers might be needed.
If I work or serve in a CNCS-funded program or my organization is
applying for CNCS funds, may I serve as a Reviewer or Panel Coordinator?
You may not serve as a Reviewer or Panel Coordinator in the type of
program for which you work or serve. For instance, if you are part of an
organization that is seeking an AmeriCorps National grant, you may not be
eligible to review AmeriCorps State applications. However, you may review
for a Senior Corps program or other competition. Inquire with CNCS staff to
be sure, as each potential conflict of interest is determined on its own
merits.
What happens next?
If you would like to be considered for an External Peer Reviewer or Panel
Coordinator, complete the Peer Reviewer Application found at
https://egrants.cns.gov/espan/main/newaccount.jsp. If you already have a
profile, please select ‘Already have an eGrants account? Proceed to Login’.
Please do not create a new profile if you already have one in eGrants as
this may cause a delay in the processing of your account. Again, if your
education and expertise align with a particular competition, a CNCS
representative will contact you by e-mail to check on your availability.
Who do I contact if I have a question?
If you have specific questions about the content of the peer reviewer
application, or additional questions about the peer review experience,
please e-mail us at
PeerReviewers@cns.gov.
PLEASE NOTE:
As of FY2011, the names of all participating External Reviewers and
Panel Coordinators
for CNCS grant competitions may be made public after the close of the review.
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