[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 12 (Tuesday, January 20, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2702-2706]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-1139]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Postsecondary Education; Overview Information; 
Strengthening Institutions, American Indian Tribally Controlled 
Colleges and Universities, and Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-
Serving Institutions; Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for 
Fiscal Year (FY) 2004

    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Numbers: 84.031A, 
84.031T, 84.031N and 84.031W.

Dates: Applications Available: January 16, 2004.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: February 27, 2004.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: April 27, 2004.
    Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education that qualify 
as eligible institutions under the Strengthening Institutions (SIP), 
American Indian Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCU), 
and Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions (ANNH) 
Programs may apply for grants under this notice. These programs are 
known collectively as the Title III, Part A Programs. To qualify as an 
eligible institution under any Title III, Part A Program, an 
institution must, among other requirements, be accredited or 
preaccredited, have a high enrollment of needy students, and have 
Educational and General (E&G) expenditures per full-time equivalent 
(FTE) undergraduate student that are low in comparison with the average 
E&G expenditures per FTE undergraduate student of institutions that 
offer similar instruction. The eligibility requirements are set forth 
in a Notice Inviting Applications for Designation as Eligible 
Institutions for Fiscal Year 2004 that was published in the Federal 
Register on December 9, 2003 (68 FR 68614) and in program regulations 
contained in 34 CFR 607.2 through 607.5. The regulations may be 
accessed by visiting the following Department of Education Web site: 
http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.

Relationship Between Title III, Part A and Hispanic Serving Institution 
Programs

    Notes: 1. A grantee under the Developing Hispanic-Serving 
Institutions (HSI) Program, authorized under Title V of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), may not receive a grant 
under any Title III, Part A Program. Further, a current Developing 
HSI Program grantee may not give up its grant under the Developing 
HSI Program in order to receive a grant under any Title III, Part A 
Program.
    2. An institution that does not fall within the limitation 
described in Note 1 may apply for a FY 2004 grant under all Title 
III, Part A Programs for which it is eligible, as well as under the 
Developing HSI Program. However, a successful applicant may receive 
only one grant.
    Estimated Available Funds: Although Congress has not enacted a 
final appropriation for FY 2004, the Department is inviting 
applications for this competition now so that it may be prepared to 
make awards following final action on the Department's 
appropriations bill. Based on the Congressional action to date, we 
estimate $5.0 million for new awards under the ANNH Program, $15.541 
million for new awards under the TCCU Program and $20.023 million 
for new awards under the SIP.


    For specific funding information, see the chart in the Award 
Information section of this notice.
    Estimated Range of Awards: See chart.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: See chart.
    Estimated Number of Awards: See chart.


    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this 
notice. Applicants should periodically check the Title III, Part A 
Web

[[Page 2703]]

site for further information on these programs. The address is: 
http://www.ed.gov/programs/iduestitle3a/index.html.


    Project Period: 60 months for individual development grants, 60 
months for cooperative arrangement grants, 12 months for planning 
grants and 12 months for construction grants.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    Purpose of Program: The SIP, TCCU, and ANNH Programs are all 
authorized under Title III, Part A of the HEA. Each provides grants to 
eligible institutions of higher education to enable them to improve 
their academic quality, institutional management, and fiscal stability, 
and increase their self-sufficiency.
    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1057-1059d.
    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 82, 
84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99. (b) The regulations for this program in 34 
CFR part 607.

II. Award Information

    Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
    Estimated Available Funds: Although Congress has not enacted a 
final appropriation for FY 2004, the Department is inviting 
applications for this competition now so that it may be prepared to 
make awards following final action on the Department's appropriations 
bill. Based on the Congressional action to date we estimate $5.0 
million for new awards under the ANNH Program, $15.541 million for new 
awards under the TCCU Program and $20.023 million for new awards under 
the SIP.
    Estimated Range of Awards: See chart.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: See chart.
    Estimated Number of Awards: See chart.

    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this 
notice. Applicants should periodically check the TitleIII, Part A 
Web site for further information on these programs. The address is: 
http://www.ed.gov/programs/iduestitle3a/index.html.

    Project Period: 60 months for individual development grants, 60 
months for cooperative arrangement grants, 12 months for planning 
grants and 12 months for construction grants.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN20JA04.000

III. Eligibility Information

    Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education that qualify 
as eligible institutions under the SIP, TCCU, and ANNH programs may 
apply for grants under this notice. These programs are known 
collectively as the Title III, Part A Programs. To qualify as an 
eligible institution under any Title III, Part A Program, an 
institution must, among other requirements, be accredited or 
preaccredited, have a high enrollment of needy students, and have E&G 
expenditures per FTE undergraduate student that are low in comparison 
with the average E&G expenditures per FTE undergraduate student of 
institutions that offer similar instruction. The eligibility 
requirements are set forth in a Notice Inviting Applications for 
Designation as Eligible Institutions for

[[Page 2704]]

Fiscal Year 2004 that was published in the Federal Register on December 
9, 2003 (68 FR 68614), and in program regulations contained in 34 CFR 
607.2 through 607.5. The regulations may be accessed by visiting the 
following Department of Education Web site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.


    Notes: 1. A grantee under the Developing HSI Program, authorized 
under Title V of the HEA, may not receive a grant under any Title 
III, Part A Program. Further, a current Developing HSI Program 
grantee may not give up its grant under the Developing HSI Program 
in order to receive a grant under any Title III, Part A Program.
    2. An institution that does not fall within the limitation 
described in Note 1 may apply for a FY 2004 grant under all Title 
III, Part A Programs for which it is eligible, as well as under the 
Developing HSI Program. However, a successful applicant may receive 
only one grant.


    1. Cost Sharing or Matching: There are no cost sharing or matching 
requirements in any Title III, Part A Programs unless a grantee under 
the SIP or TCCU Program uses a portion of its grant for establishing or 
improving an endowment fund. If it does, it must match with non-Federal 
funds the amount of grant funds used for this purpose. 20 U.S.C. 
1057(d)(2) and 1059c (c)(3)(B).

IV. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Request Application Package: Louis J. Venuto, U.S. 
Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., 6th Floor, Washington, DC 
20006-8513. Telephone: (202) 502-7777 or via Internet: 
[email protected].
    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 a copy of the application 
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, 
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the contact person 
listed in this section. However, the Department is not able to 
reproduce in an alternative format the standard forms included in the 
application package.
    2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements 
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you 
must submit, are in the application package for this program.
    Page Limit: We have established mandatory page limits for the 
applications to be submitted under this notice. You must limit your 
entire application to the equivalent of no more than 80 pages for an 
individual development grant under the SIP; 80 pages for an individual 
development grant under ANNH; 80 pages for an individual development 
grant and a construction and renovation grant under the TCCU Program; 
100 pages for the cooperative arrangement development grant under the 
Title III, Part A Programs and 30 pages for the planning grant under 
the Title III, Part A Programs, using the following standards:
    [sbull] A ``page'' is 8.5'' x 11'', on one side only, with 1'' 
margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
    [sbull] Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) 
all text in the application narrative, including titles and headings. 
You may single space abstracts, footnotes, quotations, references, 
captions, tables and forms (including the ED Forms), however, you must 
still use font size 12.
    [sbull] Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or no smaller 
than 10 pitch (characters per inch). The page limit applies to all 
parts of the application.
    We will reject your application if--
    [sbull] You apply these standards and exceed the page limit; or
    [sbull] You apply other standards and exceed the equivalent of the 
page limit.
    3. Submission Dates and Times:
    Applications Available: January 16, 2004.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: February 27, 2004.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: April 27, 2004.
    4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive 
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about 
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order 
12372 is in the application package for this program.
    5. Funding Restrictions: We specify unallowable costs in 34 CFR 
607.10. We reference additional regulations outlining funding 
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
    6. Other Submission Requirements: Instructions and requirements for 
the transmittal of applications by mail or by hand (including a courier 
service or commercial carrier) are in the application package for this 
program.
    Application Procedures: The Government Paperwork Elimination Act 
(GPEA) of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-277) and the Federal Financial Assistance 
Management Improvement Act of 1999 (Pub. L. 106-107) encourage us to 
undertake initiatives to improve our grant processes. Enhancing the 
ability of individuals and entities to conduct business with us 
electronically is a major part of our response to these Acts. 
Therefore, we are taking steps to adopt the Internet as our chief means 
of conducting transactions in order to improve services to our 
customers and to simplify and expedite our business processes.
    Some of the procedures in these instructions for transmitting 
applications differ from those in the Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) (34 CFR 75.102). Under the 
Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the Department generally 
offers interested parties the opportunity to comment on proposed 
regulations. However, these amendments make procedural changes only and 
do not establish new substantive policy. Therefore, under 5 U.S.C. 
553(b)(A), the Secretary has determined that proposed rulemaking is not 
required.
    We are requiring that applications for grants for FY 2004 under 
Title III, Part A Programs--CFDA Numbers 84.031A, 84.031N, 84.031T and 
84.031W be submitted electronically using the Electronic Grant 
Application System (e-Application) available through the Department's 
e-GRANTS system. The e-GRANTS system is accessible through its portal 
page at: http://e-grants.ed.gov.
    If you are unable to submit an application through the e-GRANTS 
system, you may submit a written request for a waiver of the electronic 
submission requirement. In your request, you should explain the reason 
or reasons that prevent you from using the Internet to submit the 
application. Address your request to: Louis J. Venuto, U.S. Department 
of Education, 1990 K. Street, NW., 6th Floor, room 6071, Washington, DC 
20006-8513. Please submit your request no later than two weeks before 
the application deadline date.
    If, within two weeks of the application deadline date, you are 
unable to submit an application electronically, you must submit a paper 
application by the application deadline date in accordance with the 
transmittal instructions in the application package. The paper 
application must include a written request for a waiver documenting the 
reasons that prevented you from using the Internet to submit your 
application.
Pilot Project for Electronic Submission of Applications
    We are continuing to expand our pilot project for electronic 
submission of applications to include additional formula grant programs 
and additional discretionary grant competitions. The Title III, Part A 
Programs--CFDA

[[Page 2705]]

Numbers 84.031A, 84.031N, 84.031T, and 84.031W are included in the 
pilot project. If you are an applicant under Title III, Part A 
Programs, you must submit your application to us in electronic format 
or receive a waiver.
    The pilot project involves the use of e-Application. If you use e-
Application, you will be entering data online while completing your 
application. You may not e-mail a soft copy of a grant application to 
us. The data you enter online will be saved into a database. We shall 
continue to evaluate the success of e-Application and solicit 
suggestions for its improvement.
    If you participate in e-Application, please note the following:
    [sbull] When you enter the e-Application system, you will find 
information about its hours of operation. We strongly recommend that 
you do not wait until the application deadline date to initiate an e-
Application package.
    [sbull] You will not receive additional point value because you 
submit a grant application in electronic format, nor will we penalize 
you if you submit an application in paper format.
    [sbull] You must submit all documents electronically, including the 
Application for Federal Education Assistance (ED 424), Budget 
Information--Non-Construction Programs (ED 524, and all necessary 
assurances and certifications.
    [sbull] Your e-Application must comply with any page limit 
requirements described in this notice.
    [sbull] After you electronically submit your application, you will 
receive an automatic acknowledgement, which will include a PR/Award 
number (an identifying number unique to your application).
    [sbull] Within three working days after submitting your electronic 
application, fax a signed copy of the Application for Federal Education 
Assistance (ED 424) to the Application Control Center after following 
these steps:
    1. Print ED 424 from e-Application.
    2. The institution's Authorizing Representative must sign this 
form.
    3. Place the PR/Award number in the upper right hand corner of the 
hard copy signature page of the ED 424.
    4. Fax the signed ED 424 to the Application Control Center at (202) 
260-1349.
    [sbull] We may request that you give us original signatures on 
other forms at a later date.
    Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of System 
Unavailability: If you are prevented from submitting your application 
on the application deadline date because the e-Application system is 
unavailable, we will grant you an extension of one business day in 
order to transmit your application electronically, by mail, or by hand 
delivery. We will grant this extension if--
    1. You are a registered user of e-Application and you have 
initiated an e-Application for this competition; and
    2. (a) The e-Application system must be unavailable for 60 minutes 
or more between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Washington, DC 
time, on the application deadline date; or
    (b) The e-Application system must be unavailable for any period of 
time during the last hour of operation (that is, for any period of time 
between 3:30 and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time) on the application 
deadline date.
    We must acknowledge and confirm these periods of unavailability 
before granting you an extension. To request this extension or to 
confirm our acknowledgement of any system unavailability, you may 
contact either (1) the person listed elsewhere in this notice under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT (see VII. Agency Contact) or (2) the e-
GRANTS help desk at 1-888-336-8930.
    You may access the electronic grant application for Title III, Part 
A Programs at: http://e-grants.ed.gov.

V. Application Review Information

    1. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for these programs 
are in 34 CFR 607.21 and 607.22.
    2. Review and Selection Process: Additional factors we consider in 
selecting an application for an award are the tie-breaking situations 
described in 34 CFR 607.23. The Title III, Part A Program regulations 
require that we award one additional point to an application from an 
institution of higher education (IHE) that has an endowment fund for 
which the 2000-2001 market value per FTE student was less than the 
comparable average per FTE student at a similar type IHE. We also award 
one additional point to an application from an IHE that had 
expenditures for library materials in 2000-2001 per FTE student that 
were less than the comparable average per FTE student at a similar type 
IHE.
    For the purpose of these funding considerations, an applicant must 
demonstrate that the market value of its endowment fund per FTE student 
and library expenditures per FTE student, were less than the average 
expenditure per FTE student when calculated using the data submitted by 
applicants for the year 2000-2001.
    If a tie remains, after applying the additional point(s) we will 
determine the ranking of applicants based on the lowest combined 
library expenditures per FTE student and endowment values per FTE 
student.

VI. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your 
U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award 
Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally.
    If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, 
we notify you.
    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify 
administrative and national policy requirements in the application 
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable 
Regulations section of this notice.
    We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of 
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and 
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also 
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding 
commitments under the grant.
    3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a 
final performance report, including financial information, as directed 
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an 
annual performance report that provides the most current performance 
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in 
34 CFR 75.118 and 607.31.
    4. Performance Measures: The Secretary has established the 
following key performance measures for assessing the effectiveness of 
the Title III, Part A Programs: (1) The percentage of Title III, Part A 
project goals relating to the improvement of academic quality that are 
met or exceeded will increase or be maintained over time. (2) The 
percentage of Title III, Part A goals relating to the improvement of 
student services and student outcomes that are met or exceeded will 
increase or be maintained over time. (3) The percentage of Title III, 
Part A project goals relating to the improvement of institutional 
management and fiscal stability that are met or exceeded will increase 
or be maintained over time.

VII. Agency Contact

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Louis J. Venuto, U.S. Department of 
Education, 1990 K Street, NW., 6th Floor, Washington, DC 20006-8513. 
Telephone: (202) 502-7777 or by email: [email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call

[[Page 2706]]

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 program contact person listed in this 
section.
    VIII. Other Information
    Electronic Access to This Document: You may view this document, as 
well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal 
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the 
Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.
    To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available 
free at 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.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.


    Dated: January 14, 2004.
Sally L. Stroup,
Assistant Secretary, Office of Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 04-1139 Filed 1-14-04; 3:00 pm]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P