[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 62 (Wednesday, April 1, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15836-15837]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-8525]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No. 84.116P]


Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)-- 
Special Focus Competition: Disseminating Proven Reforms Notice inviting 
Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 1998

    Purpose of Program: To provide grants or enter into cooperative 
agreements to improve postsecondary education opportunities by focusing 
on problem areas or improvement approaches in postsecondary education.
    Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education, combinations 
of those institutions, and other public and private nonprofit 
educational institutions and agencies.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: June 5, 1998.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: August 4, 1998.
    Applications Available: April 2, 1998.
    Available Funds: $1,280,000.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $120,000-$180,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $160,000.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 8.
    Project Period: 27 months.

    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this 
notice.

Applicable Regulations

    The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) 
in 34 CFR Parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 82, 85 and 86.

Priority

Invitational Priority

    The Secretary is particularly interested in applications that meet 
the following invitational priority. However, an application that meets 
this invitational priority does not receive competitive or absolute 
preference over other applications (34 CFR 75.105(c)(1)).
    Invitational Priority: Institutions with innovative postsecondary 
education programs that became fully institutionalized between 1988 and 
1997 are invited to apply for funds to disseminate their practices to 
other campuses.

Methods for Applying Selection Criteria

    The Secretary gives equal weight to the listed criteria. Within 
each of the criteria, the Secretary gives equal weight to each of the 
factors.

Selection Criteria

    In evaluating applications for grants under this competition, the 
Secretary uses the following selection criteria chosen from those 
listed in 34 CFR 75.210:
    (a) The need for the proposed project, as determined by--
    (1) The magnitude or severity of the problem addressed by the 
proposed project; and
    (2) The magnitude of the need for the services to be provided or 
the activities to be carried out by the proposed project.
    (b) The significance of the proposed project, as determined by--
    (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; and
    (4) The potential replicability of the proposed project or 
strategies, including, as appropriate, the potential for implementation 
in a variety of settings.
    (c) The quality of the design of the proposed project, as 
determined by--
    (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; 
and
    (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) The quality of the management plan for the proposed project, as 
determined by the adequacy of the management plan to achieve the 
objectives of the proposed project on time and within budget, including 
clearly defined responsibilities, timelines, and milestones for 
accomplishing project tasks.
    (e) The quality of the personnel who will carry out the proposed 
project, as determined by--
    (1) The qualifications, including relevant training and experience, 
of key project personnel; and
    (2) 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.
    (f) The quality of the evaluation to be conducted of the proposed 
project, as determined by--
    (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; and
    (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.
    (g) The adequacy of resources for the proposed project, as 
determined by--
    (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,

[[Page 15837]]

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; and
    (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 OR INFORMATION CONTACT: Fund for the Improvement of 
Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U.S. Department of Education, 600 
Independence Avenue, S.W., Room 3100, ROB-3, Washington, D.C. 20202-
5175. You may also request applications by calling 202-358-3041 (voice 
mail) or submitting the name of the competition and your name and 
postal address to [email protected] (e-mail). Applications are also listed 
on the FIPSE Web Site <http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/FIPSE> For 
additional program information call Beverly Baker at the FIPSE office 
(202-708-5750) between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Eastern 
time, Monday through Friday. Individuals who use a telecommunications 
device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay 
Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., 
Eastern time, Monday through Friday.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an 
alternate format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer 
diskette) on request to the contact person listed in the preceding 
paragraph.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application 
package in an alternate format, also, by contacting that person. 
However, the Department is not able to reproduce in an alternate format 
the standard forms included in the application package.

Electronic Access to This Document

    Anyone may view this document, as well as all other Department of 
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or 
portable document format (pdf) on the World Wide Web at either of the 
following sites: http://ocfo.ed.gov/fedreg.htm http://www.ed.gov/
news.html
To use the pdf you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader Program with 
Search, which is available free at either of the previous sites. If you 
have questions about using the pdf, call the U.S. Government Printing 
Office toll free at 1-888-293-6498.
    Anyone may also view these documents in text copy only on an 
electronic bulletin board of the Department. Telephone: (202) 219-1511 
or, toll free, 1-800-222-4922. The documents are located under Option 
G--Files/Announcements, Bulletins and Press Releases.

    Note: The official version of a document is the document 
published in the Federal Register.

    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1135-1135a-11.

    Dated: March 27, 1998.
David A. Longanecker,
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 98-8525 Filed 3-31-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P