[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 25 (Wednesday, February 6, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5570-5572]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-2762]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA Nos. 84.116A, 84.116B]


Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education--
Comprehensive Program (Preapplications and Applications); Notice 
Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2002

    Purpose of Program: To provide grants or enter into cooperative 
agreements to improve postsecondary education opportunities.
    Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education or 
combinations of those institutions and other public and private 
nonprofit institutions and agencies.
    Applications Available: February 1, 2002.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Preapplications: March 13, 2002.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Final Applications: May 24, 2002.

    Note: All applicants must submit a preapplication to be eligible 
to submit a final application.

    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 23, 2002.
    Available Funds: $9,958,000.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $50,000-$275,000 per year.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $156,000 per year.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 60-65.

    Note: the Department in 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.

Invitational Priorities

    While applicants may propose any project within the scope of 20 
U.S.C. 1138(a), under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1) the Secretary is particularly 
interested in applications that meet one or more of the following 
invitational priorities. However, an application that meets one or more 
of these invitational priorities does not receive competitive or 
absolute preference over other applications.

Invitational Priority 1

    Projects to improve the quality of K-12 teaching through new models 
of teacher preparation and through new kinds of partnerships between 
schools and colleges and universities that enhance students' 
preparation for, access to, and success in college.

Invitational Priority 2

    Projects to promote innovative reforms in the curriculum and 
instruction at the college preparation, undergraduate, and graduate/
professional levels, especially through student-centered or technology-
mediated strategies.

Invitational Priority 3

    Projects designing more cost-effective ways of improving 
postsecondary instruction and operations, i.e., to promote more student 
learning relative to institutional resources expended.

Invitational Priority 4

    Projects to support new ways of ensuring equal access to 
postsecondary education, and to improve rates of retention and program 
completion, especially for underrepresented students whose retention 
and completion rates continue to lag behind those of other groups.

[[Page 5571]]

Methods for Applying Selection Criteria

    For preapplications (preliminary applications) and final 
applications, the Secretary gives equal weight to each of the selection 
criteria. Within each of these criteria, the Secretary gives equal 
weight to each of the factors.

Selection Criteria

    In evaluating preapplications and final applications for grants 
under this program competition, the Secretary uses the following 
selection criteria chosen from those listed in 34 CFR 75.210.

Preapplications

    In evaluating preapplications, the Secretary uses the following 
selection criteria:
    (a) Need for project. The Secretary reviews each proposed project 
for its need, as determined by the following factors:
    (1) The magnitude or severity of the problem to be addressed by the 
proposed project.
    (2) The magnitude of the need for the services to be provided or 
the activities to be carried out by the proposed project.
    (b) Significance. The Secretary reviews each proposed project for 
its significance, as determined by the following factors:
    (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.
    (4) The potential replicability of the proposed project or 
strategies, including, as appropriate, the potential for implementation 
in a variety of settings.
    (c) Quality of the project design. The Secretary reviews each 
proposed project for the quality of its design, as determined by 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.
    (d) Quality of the project evaluation. The Secretary reviews each 
proposed project for the quality of its evaluation, as determined by 
the extent to which the evaluation will provide guidance about 
effective strategies suitable for replication or testing in other 
settings.

Final Applications

    In evaluating final applications, the Secretary uses the following 
selection criteria:
    (a) Need for project. The Secretary reviews each proposed project 
for its need, as determined by the following factors:
    (1) The magnitude or severity of the problem to be addressed by the 
proposed project.
    (2) The magnitude of the need for the services to be provided or 
the activities to be carried out by the proposed project.
    (b) Significance. The Secretary reviews each proposed project for 
its significance, as determined by the following factors:
    (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.
    (4) The potential replicability of the proposed project or 
strategies, including, as appropriate, the potential for implementation 
in a variety of settings.
    (c) Quality of the project design. The Secretary reviews each 
proposed project for the quality of its design, as determined by the 
following factors:
    (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.
    (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) Quality of the project evaluation. The Secretary reviews each 
proposed project for the quality of its evaluation, as determined by 
the following factors:
    (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.
    (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.
    (e) Quality of the management plan. The Secretary reviews each 
proposed project for the quality of its management plan, as determined 
by the plan's adequacy to achieve the objectives of the proposed 
project on time and within budget, including clearly defined 
responsibilities, timelines, and milestones for accomplishing project 
tasks.
    (f) Quality of project personnel. The Secretary reviews each 
proposed project for the quality of project personnel who will carry 
out the proposed project, as determined by the following factors:
    (1) 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.
    (2) The qualifications, including relevant training and experience, 
of key project personnel.
    (g) Adequacy of resources. The Secretary reviews each proposed 
project for the adequacy of its resources, as determined by the 
following factors:
    (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, 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.
    (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 Contact: Education Publications Center (ED Pubs), 
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): 1-877-567-7734.

[[Page 5572]]

    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: 
[email protected].
    If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify 
this competition as follows: CDFA number 84.116A.

    Note: Application text and forms are available on the FIPSE web 
site (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Fund for the Improvement of 
Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K 
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20006-8544. Telephone: (202) 502-7500. The 
application text and forms may be obtained from the Internet address: 
http://www.ed.gov/FIPSE/.
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) 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 contact listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Individuals with disabilities also may obtain a copy of the 
application package in an alternative format. However, the Department 
is not able to reproduce in alternative 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 the following site: 
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/.
    To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available 
free 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/
access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html.


    Program authority: 20 U.S.C. 1138-1138d.

    Dated: January 31, 2002.
Kenneth W. Tolo,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Planning and Innovation, 
Office of Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 02-2762 Filed 1-31-02; 4:58 pm]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P