[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 13 (Thursday, January 20, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3225-3226]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-1286]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No. 84.116J]


Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)--
Special Focus Competition: Higher Education Collaboration between the 
United States and the European Community; Notice Inviting Application 
for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2000

    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 or 
combinations of

[[Page 3226]]

institutions and other public and private nonprofit educational 
institutions and agencies.
    Deadline For Transmittal of Applications: March 17, 2000
    Deadline For Intergovernmental Review: May 26, 2000
    Applications Available: January 14, 2000
    Available Funds: $600,000 in fiscal year 2000; $1,800,000 over 
three years.
    Estimated Range Of Awards: $160,000-$175,000 total for up to three 
years.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $50,000 in fiscal year 2000; 
$160,000 total for up to three years.
    Estimated Number Of Awards: 10-12


    Note:
    The Department is 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.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  Under the Special Focus Competition, we 
will award grants or enter into cooperative agreements that focus on 
problem areas or improvement approaches in postsecondary education. We 
have included an invitational priority to encourage proposals designed 
to support the formation of educational consortia of institutions in 
the U.S. and the European Union to encourage cooperation in the 
coordination of curricula, the exchange of students and the opening of 
educational opportunities between the U.S. and the European Union. The 
invitational priority is issued in cooperation with the European Union. 
European institutions participating in any consortium proposal 
responding to the invitational priority may apply to the European 
Commission's Directorate General for Education and Culture for 
additional funding under a separate European competition.

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: Projects that support consortia of 
institutions of higher education that promote institutional cooperation 
and student mobility between the United States and the member states of 
the European Union.

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 program 
competition, the Secretary uses the following selection criteria chosen 
from those listed in 34 CFR 75.210.
    1. The quality of the design of the proposed project, as determined 
by--
    a. The extent to which the goals, objectives, and outcomes to be 
achieved by the proposed project are clearly specified and measurable; 
and
    b. 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 significance of the proposed project, as determined by--
    a. 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;
    b. The likely utility of the products (such as information, 
materials, processes, or techniques) that will result from the proposed 
project, including the potential for their being used in a variety of 
other settings; and
    c. The importance or magnitude of the results or outcomes likely to 
be attained by the proposed project, especially improvements in 
teaching and student achievement.
    3. The adequacy of resources, as determined by--
    a. The extent to which the costs are reasonable in relation to the 
objectives, design, and potential significance of the proposed project;
    b. The potential for continued support of the project after Federal 
funding ends, including, as appropriate, the demonstrated commitment of 
appropriate entities to such support; and
    c. The relevance and demonstrated commitment of each partner in the 
proposed project to the implementation and success of the project.

FOR APPLICATIONS OR INFORMATION CONTACT: U.S. Department of Education 
Publications Center (ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398, 
tel 877-433-7827, fax 301-470-1244, e-mail: [email protected]; web: 
http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html.
    Identify the US/EC competition as CFDA number 84.116J. Copies of 
the application materials may also be obtained from the Fund for the 
Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U.S. Department of 
Education, 1990 K Street, NW, 8th floor, Washington, D.C. 20006-8544, 
telephone 202-502-7500. You may request application forms from FIPSE by 
submitting the name of the competition (US/EC) and your name and postal 
address to [email protected]. Applications are available on the FIPSE web 
site at http://www.ed.gov/FIPSE.
    Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) 
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-
8339. For additional program information call Cindy Fischer at the 
FIPSE office (202-502-7500) between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 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

    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 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 (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in 
Washington, DC at (202) 512-1530.

    Note:  The official version of a 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. 1135-1135a-3.

    Dated: January 13, 2000.
A. Lee Fritschler,
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 00-1286 Filed 1-14-00; 8:46 am]
BILLIING CODE 4001-01-P