[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 207 (Thursday, October 27, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-26456]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: October 27, 1994]


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UNITED STATES INFORMATION AGENCY

 

Freedom Support Act--NIS Secondary School Initiative for School 
Linkages

ACTION: Notice--Request for proposals.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Citizen Exchanges, Division of the NIS Secondary 
School Initiative, of the United States Information Agency's Bureau of 
Educational and Cultural Affairs announces an open competition for an 
assistance award to conduct exchanges through the multiple secondary 
school linkage program with select countries of the NIS. The countries 
are Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. Public or 
private non-profit organizations meeting the provisions described in 
IRS regulation 501(c)(3) may apply either to enhance/expand existing 
linkages or to develop new school linkage programs. Both models are 
described in the guidelines section of this solicitation. Applicants 
may submit a proposal for only one of the two models. All submissions 
must contain an Educator (teacher and/or administrator) exchange 
component AND a Student exchange component. Approximately one third of 
the grants awarded will be to promote the development of new linkages. 
Organizations asking for USIA funding for previously established 
linkages must demonstrate the value of the linkages to the NIS 
Secondary School Initiative program as well as show evidence that the 
linkage is designed to outlast USIA funding.
    Overall funding and grant making authority for this program is 
contained in the Freedom Support Act (Pub. L. 102-391). These exchanges 
represent part of the activities for the NIS Secondary School 
Initiative and are subject to the availability of funding for the 
Fiscal Year 1995 program. Proposals for programs and projects must 
conform with Agency requirements and guidelines outlined in the 
Solicitation Package.

ANNOUNCEMENT NAME AND NUMBER: All communications with USIA concerning 
this announcement should refer to the above title and reference number 
E/P-95-25. This is a request for proposals for reciprocal exchanges 
based on multiple school linkages. Requests for proposals in support of 
other programs under the aegis of the NIS Secondary School Initiative 
are published separately.

DATES: Deadline for proposals: All copies must be received at the U.S. 
Information Agency by 5 p.m. Washington, D.C. time on Wednesday, 
December 21, 1994. Faxed documents will not be accepted, nor will 
documents postmarked on Wednesday, December 21, 1994 but received at a 
later date. It is the responsibility of each applicant to ensure that 
proposals are received by the above deadline. Subject to the 
availability of funding, grants will be awarded April 1, 1995 for 
exchanges to begin after August 1, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: NIS Secondary School Division, E/PY, 
Room 314, U.S. Information Agency, 301 4th Street, S.W., Washington, 
D.C. 20547, telephone: (202) 619-6299; Fax: (202) 619-5311; e-mail 
[email protected] to request a Solicitation Package, which includes more 
detailed award criteria, all application forms, and guidelines for 
preparing proposals, including specific criteria for preparation of the 
proposal budget. For specific questions or concerns regarding the 
solicitation, contact USIA Program Officer Diana Aronson. Interested 
applicants should read the complete Federal Register announcement 
before addressing inquiries to the USIA or submitting their proposals. 
Once the RFP deadline has passed, representatives of the USIA and the 
Division of NIS Secondary School Initiative may not discuss this 
competition in any way with applicants until after the Bureau proposal 
review process has been completed.

ADDRESSES: Applicants must follow all instructions given in the 
Solicitation Package and send only complete applications to: U.S. 
Information Agency Ref.: E/P-95-25, Office of Grants Management, E/XE, 
Room 336, 301 4th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20547.

supplementary information: Pursuant to the Bureau's authorizing 
legislation, programs must maintain a non-political character and 
should be balanced and representative of the diversity of American 
political, social, and cultural life. ``Diversity''should be 
interpreted in the broadest sense and encompass differences including 
but not limited to race, gender, ethnicity, religion, geographic 
location, socio-economic status, and physical challenges. Applicants 
are stongly encouraged to adhere to the advancement of this principle.
    Overview: The purpose of this program is to link a network of U.S. 
secondary schools with a network of schools in one or more NIS 
countries to serve as the basis for exchanges of Educators and Students 
during the academic year. The USIA's main objective is to foster 
interaction between American and foreign participants. Proposals should 
demonstrate how participants will interact in a way which encourages 
the exchange of ideas and promotes mutual understanding in both the 
short- and long-term. The linkages between networks of secondary 
schools in the U.S. with networks of schools in the NIS must occur 
through at least three main program components: (1) the Exchange of 
secondary school educators between the U.S. and participating NIS 
countries; (2) the exchange of secondary school students, and 14 to 17 
years of age, between the U.S. and participating NIS countries; and, 
(3) the establishment of institution-building ties between the schools 
in the networks.
    Guidelines: This solicitation is for two separate models of 
multiple secondary school linkages between networks of schools. 
Applicants must submit a proposal for only one of the two models. The 
proposal should state clearly which model is being used. In both 
models, each network, one in the U.S. and one in the NIS, should 
consist of a minimum of three schools.
    Model A is designed to enhance and expand existing linkages between 
a network of U.S. secondary schools and a network of secondary schools 
in one or more of the countries listed above. USIA funding may not be 
used to supplant existing private sector funding. Applicants must 
indicate how activities have been funded in the past and how the 
activities will be expanded with assistance from USIA. The U.S. 
recipient of the grant is responsible for recruiting/selecting/
organizing a minimum of three U.S. secondary schools to form the U.S. 
network, strengthening an existing working relationship with an 
organization or agency of government in the NIS responsible for a 
network of schools there, and linking the two networks through three 
main components of the program: Educator exchange, Student exchange, 
and Institution-building links.
    Model B is designed to encourage the development of new links 
whereby the U.S. network that does not have existing links to secondary 
schools in the NIS will be matched with an NIS network chosen by USIA. 
Proposals must rank-order participating NIS countries where the 
applicant would like to establish linkages. The U.S. recipient of the 
grant is responsible for recruiting/selecting/organizing a network 
composed of a minimum of three U.S. secondary schools, agreeing to form 
partnership with a NIS network selected by USIA, and linking the two 
networks through three main components of the program: Educator 
exchange, Student exchange, and Institution-building links.
    In some special cases, applicants who are involved in existing 
linkage activity may request that USIA select new schools and networks 
in the NIS for a proposed expanded linkage. In this case, the applicant 
should rank-order the preferred countries to be considered for linkage. 
Depending on availability of suitable matches, USIA will select the NIS 
network or school and inform applicant of the match.
    For both Model A and Model B, the U.S. recipient of the grant will: 
Design the overall plan which integrates the three components of the 
linkage, manage all travel arrangements, logistics, passports, visas, 
etc., provide competent and informed escorts for student groups, and 
distribute and account for grant funds.
    Proposals must address other essential operations of the program 
including the incorporation of a feasible plan to establish 
communication (through computer linkages and other forms of 
correspondence) and the formation of a solid working relationship 
between the partner schools before the student groups arrive in the 
host country.
    Recipients of the assistance award are responsible for ensuring the 
selection of exchange participants who are suitable for the program. 
Participants (both Educators and Students) from the U.S. and the NIS 
countries should represent a broad array of backgrounds to give greater 
understanding to the culture and society as a whole. Selection of 
individual participants from the U.S. and the NIS in the exchange 
components of the program must be merit based; the proposal should 
describe the mechanisms used for participant selection.
    Partnerships should have an existence beyond the scope of this 
initiative; that is, there should be an inherent reason for their 
linkage apart from the availability of grant funds. Competitive 
proposals demonstrate this linkage and the types of activities (follow-
on) that will continue after the grant has expired.
    Applicants should be familiar with the ``General Provisions'' of J-
1 visa regulations. The Agency will process the IAP-66 forms for travel 
to the U.S. Applicant must arrange for basic health and accident 
insurance coverage of exchange participants while they are on exchange.
    Please refer to the Program Objectives, Goals, and Implementation 
section of the Solicitation Package for greater detail regarding the 
design of the component parts as well as other program information.
    Proposed budget: Applicants must submit a comprehensive budget for 
the entire program. There must be a summary budget as well as a break-
down reflecting both the administrative budget and the program budget. 
All program costs should clearly indicate whether they cover U.S. or 
NIS participants.
    Grants awarded to eligible organizations with less than four years 
of experience in conducting international exchange programs will be 
limited to $60,000.
    Please refer to the POGI and Proposal Submission Instructions 
sections of the Solicitation Package for complete budget guidelines and 
format instructions.

Review Process

    USIA will acknowledge receipt of all proposals and will review them 
for technical eligibility. Proposals will be deemed ineligible if they 
do not fully adhere to the guidelines stated herein and in the 
Solicitation Package. Eligible proposals will be forwarded to panels of 
USIA officers for advisory review. All eligible proposals also will be 
reviewed by the Agency contracts office, as well as the pertinent USIA 
area office and the USIA post overseas, where appropriate. Proposals 
may be reviewed by the Office of the General Counsel or by other Agency 
elements. Funding decisions are at the discretion of the USIA Associate 
Director for Educational and Cultural Affairs. Final technical 
authority for grant awards resides with the USIA grants officer.

Review Criteria

    Technically eligible applications will be competitively reviewed 
according to the criteria stated below. These criteria are not rank 
ordered and all carry equal weight in the proposal evaluation:
    1. Quality of the program idea: Proposals should exhibit 
originality, substance (particularly in academic/educational aspects), 
precision, and relevance to Agency mission.
    2. Program planning: Detailed agenda and relevant work plan should 
demonstrate substantive undertakings and logistical capacity. Agenda 
and plan should adhere to the program overview and guidelines described 
above.
    3. Ability to achieve program objectives: Objectives should be 
reasonable, feasible, and flexible. Proposals should clearly 
demonstrate how the institution will meet the program's objectives and 
plan.
    4. Multiplier effect/impact: Proposed programs should strengthen 
long-term mutual understanding, including maximum sharing of 
information and establishment of long-term individual and institutional 
linkages.
    5. Support of diversity: Proposals should demonstrate the 
recipient's commitment to promoting the awareness and understanding of 
diversity.
    6. Institutional capacity: Proposed personnel and institutional 
resources should be adequate and appropriate to achieve the program or 
project's goals.
    7. Institution's record/ability: Proposals should demonstrate an 
institutional record of successful exchange programs, including 
responsible fiscal management and full compliance with all reporting 
requirements for past Agency grants as determined by USIA's Office of 
Contracts. The Agency will consider the past performance of prior 
recipients and the demonstrated potential of new applicants.
    8. Follow-on activities: Proposals should provide a plan for 
continued follow-on activity (without USIA support) which ensures that 
USIA supported programs are not isolated events. Proposal should 
demonstrate how activity will contribute to institution-building in the 
NIS.
    9. Project evaluation: Proposals should include a plan to evaluate 
the program, both as the activities unfold and at the end. USIA 
recommends that the proposal include a draft survey questionnaire or 
other technique plus description of a methodology for use in linking 
outcomes to original project objectives. Award-receiving organizations/
institutions will be expected to submit intermediate reports after each 
project component is concluded or quarterly, whichever is less 
frequent.
    10. Cost-effectiveness: The overhead and administrative components 
of the proposal, including salaries and honoraria, should be kept as 
low as possible. All other items should be necessary and appropriate.
    11. Cost-sharing: Proposals should maximize cost-sharing through 
other private sector support as well as institutional direct funding 
contributions.
    12. Value to U.S.-partner country relations: Proposed projects will 
be reviewed by USIA's geographic area desk officer and overseas 
officers to assess the relevance to program need, potential impact, and 
significance in the partner country(ies).
    13. Selection process: Proposals should provide a specific plan to 
ensure a selection based on merit and should include detailed criteria 
for selection of U.S. and NIS teacher and administrator as well as U.S. 
and NIS student participants.

Notice

    The terms and conditions published in this RFP are binding and may 
not be modified by any USIA representative. Explanatory information 
provided by the Agency that contradicts published language will not be 
binding. Issuance of the RFP does not constitute an award commitment on 
the part of the Government. The needs of the program may require the 
award to be reduced, revised, or increased. Final awards cannot be made 
until funds have been appropriated by Congress, allocated and committed 
through internal USIA procedures.

Notification

    All applicants will be notified of the results of the review 
process on or about February 15, 1995. Awards made will be subject to 
periodic reporting and evaluation requirements.

    Dated: October 19, 1994.
John P. Loiello,
Associate Director, Educational and Cultural Affairs.
[FR Doc. 94-26456 Filed 10-26-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8230-01-M