[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 80 (Thursday, April 25, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20570-20572]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-10186]


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DEPARTMENT OF STATE

[Public Notice 3996]


Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Request for Grant 
Proposals: North African Educational Partnerships Program (Algeria and 
Tunisia)

SUMMARY: The Office of Global Educational Programs of the Bureau of 
Educational and Cultural Affairs announces an open competition for an 
assistance award program to support the development of programs of 
instruction and faculty training at universities in Algeria and Tunisia 
in business management, public administration, information technology, 
computer science, or other fields with significant potential to support 
the modernization of the Algerian or Tunisian economies. Accredited, 
post-secondary educational institutions meeting the provisions 
described in Internal Revenue Code section 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) may 
apply to pursue institutional or departmental objectives in partnership 
with one or more Algerian or Tunisian institutions with support from 
the North African Educational Partnerships Program.
    Proposals may include more than one partner institution within one 
of the eligible countries, but may not include more than one country. 
The means for achieving the objectives of the applicant and its 
partner(s) may include mentoring, teaching, consultation, research, 
distance education, internship training, and professional outreach to 
public sector managers or private sector entrepreneurs.

Program Information

    Overview and Project Objectives: The program is designed to assist 
North African universities to develop modern curricula and programs of 
instruction in business management, public administration, and related 
fields, to facilitate the development of business activity; and to 
improve the quality, efficiency, and integrity of management in the 
private and public sectors in the participating countries. Proposals 
emphasizing practical strategies to assist the North African faculty 
and administrators to develop new curricula, teaching methodologies and 
programs are encouraged.
    Pending availability, funds will be awarded for a period of two to 
three years to assist with the costs of exchanges, of providing 
educational materials, of increasing library holdings, and of improving 
Internet connections.
    The project should pursue these objectives through a strategy that 
coordinates the participation of junior and senior level faculty, 
administrators, or graduate students in appropriate combinations of 
teaching, mentoring, internships, in-service training, and outreach, in 
exchange visits ranging from one week to an academic year. Visits of 
one semester or more for participants from Algeria and Tunisia are 
strongly encouraged and program activities must be tied to the goals 
and objectives of the project.
    Proposals may also include English language training for selected 
participants whose existing English skills need to be strengthened or 
refreshed.
    U.S. Institution and Participant Eligibility: The lead institution 
and grant recipient must be an accredited U.S. college or university. 
Applications from community colleges, institutions serving significant 
minority populations, undergraduate liberal arts colleges, 
comprehensive universities, research universities, and combinations of 
these types of institutions are eligible. The lead U.S. organization in 
a consortium or other combination of cooperating institutions is 
responsible for submitting the application. Each application must 
document the lead organization's authority to represent all U.S. 
cooperating partners. Secondary U.S. partners may include governmental 
or non-governmental organizations at the federal, state, or local 
levels as well as non-profit service, community and professional 
organizations.
    With the exception of translators and outside evaluators, 
participation is limited to teachers, advanced graduate students, and 
administrators from the participating U.S. institution(s). All 
participants who are funded by the Bureau under the program budget and 
who represent the U.S. institution must

[[Page 20571]]

be U.S. citizens. Advanced graduate students at the U.S. institution(s) 
are eligible for support from the project as visiting instructors or 
researchers at a foreign partner institution.

North African Institution and Participant Eligibility

    In Algeria and Tunisia, participation is open to recognized 
institutions of post-secondary education, including state-supported and 
independent universities, research institutes, relevant governmental 
organizations, and private non-profit organizations with project-
related educational objectives. Except for translators and evaluators, 
participation is limited to teachers, administrators, researchers, or 
advanced students from the participating foreign institution(s). Any 
advanced student participant must either have teaching or research 
responsibilities or be preparing for such responsibilities. Foreign 
participants must be both qualified to receive U.S. J-1 visas and 
willing to travel to the U.S. under the provisions of a J-1 visa during 
the exchange visits funded by this Program. Foreign participants may 
not be U.S. citizens.
    Budget Guidelines: The Bureau anticipates awarding two or more 
grants per country, in amounts not to exceed $310,000 each, under this 
grant competition. Bureau grant guidelines require that organizations 
with less than four years experience in conducting international 
exchanges be limited to $60,000. Therefore, organizations with less 
than four years of experience in conducting international exchanges are 
ineligible to apply under this competition. Budget and budget notes 
should carefully justify the amounts requested. There must be a summary 
budget as well as a breakdown reflecting the program and administrative 
budgets including unit costs. While there is no rigid ratio of 
administrative to program costs, priority will be given to proposals 
whose administrative costs are no more than thirty per cent of the 
total requested from the Bureau. Cost sharing will be considered an 
important indicator of institutional commitment. Please refer to the 
POGI for complete budget guidelines and formatting instructions.
    Announcement Title and Number: All correspondence with the Bureau 
concerning this RFGP should reference the above title and number ECA/A/
S/U-02-16.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT: The Office of Global Educational 
Programs, ECA/A/S/U, Room 349, U.S. Department of State, 301 4th 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20547, telephone (202) 619-5289, fax (202) 
401-1433, [email protected] and [email protected] to request a 
Solicitation Package. The Solicitation Package contains detailed award 
criteria, required application forms, specific budget instructions, and 
standard guidelines for proposal preparation.
    Please read the complete Federal Register announcement before 
sending inquiries or submitting proposals. Once the RFGP deadline has 
passed, Bureau staff may not discuss this competition with applicants 
until the proposal review process has been completed.

To Download a Solicitation Package via Internet

    The entire Solicitation Package may be downloaded from the Bureau's 
website at http://exchanges.state.gov/education/RFGPs. Please read all 
information before downloading.

Deadline for Proposals

    All proposal copies must be received at the Bureau of Educational 
and Cultural Affairs by 5 p.m. Washington, DC time on June 7, 2002. 
Faxed documents will not be accepted at any time. Documents postmarked 
the due date but received on a later date will not be accepted. Each 
applicant must ensure that the proposals are received by the above 
deadline.
    Applicants must follow all instructions in the Solicitation 
Package. The original and 10 copies of the application should be sent 
to: U.S. Department of State, SA-44, Bureau of Educational and Cultural 
Affairs, Ref.: ECA/A/S/U-16-02, Program Management, ECA/EX/PM, Room 
534, 301 4th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20547.

    Applicants must also submit the ``Executive Summary'' and 
``Proposal Narrative'' sections of the proposal on a 3.5'' diskette, 
formatted for DOS. These documents must be provided in ASCII text (DOS) 
format with a maximum line length of 65 characters. The Bureau will 
transmit these files electronically to the Public Affairs section at 
the US Embassy for its review, with the goal of reducing the time it 
takes to get embassy comments for the Bureau's grants review process.

Diversity, Freedom and Democracy Guidelines

    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 
ethnicity, race, gender, religion, geographic location, socio-economic 
status, and physical challenges. Applicants are strongly encouraged to 
adhere to the advancement of this principle both in program 
administration and in program content. Please refer to the review 
criteria under the `Support for Diversity' section for specific 
suggestions on incorporating diversity into the total proposal. Public 
Law 104-319 provides that ``in carrying out programs of educational and 
cultural exchange in countries whose people do not fully enjoy freedom 
and democracy,'' the Bureau ``shall take appropriate steps to provide 
opportunities for participation in such programs to human rights and 
democracy leaders of such countries.''
    Public Law 106-113 requires that the governments of the countries 
described above do not have inappropriate influence in the selection 
process. Proposals should reflect advancement of these goals in their 
program contents, to the full extent deemed feasible.

Review Process

    The Bureau 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.
    The program office and the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. 
Embassy in Algiers and Tunis will review eligible proposals. Eligible 
proposals will be subject to compliance with Federal and Bureau 
regulations and guidelines and forwarded to Bureau grant panels for 
advisory review.
    Proposals may also be reviewed by the Office of the Legal Adviser 
or by other Department elements. Final funding decisions are at the 
discretion of the Department of State's Assistant Secretary for 
Educational and Cultural Affairs. Final technical authority for 
assistance grant awards resides with the Bureau's Grants Officer.

Review Criteria

    All reviewers will use the criteria below to reach funding 
recommendations and decisions. Technically eligible applications will 
be reviewed competitively according to these criteria, which are not 
rank-ordered or weighted.
    (1) Broad and Enduring Significance of Institutional Objectives: 
Project objectives should have significant and ongoing results for the 
partner North African institutions and for their surrounding societies 
or communities by providing a deepened understanding of critical issues 
in one or more of the

[[Page 20572]]

eligible fields. Project objectives should relate clearly to 
institutional and societal needs.
    (2) Creativity and Feasibility of Strategy to Achieve Project 
Objectives: Strategies to achieve project objectives should be feasible 
and realistic within the projected budget and timeframe. These 
strategies should utilize and reinforce exchange activities creatively 
to ensure an efficient use of program resources. Relevant factors 
include: the availability of a sufficient number of faculty and/or 
administrators willing and able to participate in project activities, 
and faculty and/or administrators with Arabic or French language 
skills.
    (3) Institutional Commitment to Cooperation: Proposals should 
demonstrate significant understanding by each institution of its own 
needs and capacities and of the needs and capacities of its proposed 
partner(s), together with a strong commitment by the partner 
institutions, during and after the period of grant activity, to 
cooperate with one another in the mutual pursuit of institutional 
objectives. Proposals should describe projected benefits to the 
institutions involved as well as to wider communities of educators and 
practitioners in Algeria or Tunisia.
    (4) Project Evaluation: Proposals should outline a methodology for 
determining the degree to which a project meets its objectives, both 
while the project is underway and at its conclusion. The final project 
evaluation should include an external component and should provide 
observations about the project's influence within the participating 
institutions as well as their surrounding communities or societies, and 
observations about anticipated long-term impact on the Algerian or 
Tunisian economy.
    (5) Cost-effectiveness: Administrative and program costs should be 
reasonable and appropriate with cost sharing provided by all 
participating institutions within the context of their respective 
capacities. We view cost sharing as a reflection of institutional 
commitment to the project. While there is no rigid ratio of 
administrative to program costs, priority will be given to proposals 
whose administrative costs are less than thirty per cent of the total 
requested from ECA.
    (6) Support of Diversity: Proposals should demonstrate substantive 
support of the Bureau's policy on diversity by explaining how issues of 
diversity are included in project objectives for all institutional 
partners. Issues resulting from differences of race, ethnicity, gender, 
religion, geography, socio-economic status, or physical challenge 
should be addressed during project implementation. In addition, project 
participants and administrators should reflect the diversity within the 
societies which they represent (see the section of this document on 
``Diversity, Freedom, and Democracy Guidelines''). Proposals should 
also discuss how the various institutional partners approach diversity 
issues in their respective communities or societies.

    Authority: Overall grant making authority for this program is 
contained in the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 
1961, Public Law 87-256, as amended, also known as the Fulbright-
Hays Act. The purpose of the Act is ``to enable the Government of 
the United States to increase mutual understanding between the 
people of the United States and the people of other countries...; to 
strengthen the ties which unite us with other nations by 
demonstrating the educational and cultural interests, developments, 
and achievements of the people of the United States and other 
nations...and thus to assist in the development of friendly, 
sympathetic and peaceful relations between the United States and the 
other countries of the world.'' The funding authority for the 
program cited above is provided through the U.S. North African 
Economic Partnership.

Notice

    The terms and conditions published in this RFGP are binding and may 
not be modified by any Bureau representative. Explanatory information 
provided by the Bureau that contradicts published language will not be 
binding. Issuance of the RFGP does not constitute an award commitment 
on the part of the Government. The Bureau reserves the right to reduce, 
revise, or increase proposal budgets in accordance with the needs of 
the program and the availability of funds. Awards made will be subject 
to periodic reporting and evaluation requirements.

Notification

    Final awards cannot be made until funds have been appropriated by 
Congress, allocated and committed through internal Bureau procedures.

    Dated: April 16, 2002.
Rick A. Ruth,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Educational and 
Cultural Affairs, Department of State.
[FR Doc. 02-10186 Filed 4-24-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4710-05-P