[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 180 (Monday, September 18, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54629-54632]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-15487]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Postsecondary Education; Overview Information; 
Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad Program; Notice Inviting 
Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2007

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.021A

    Dates:
    Applications Available: September 18, 2006.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: November 2, 2006.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: January 2, 2007.
    Eligible Applicants: (1) Institutions of higher education, (2) 
State departments of education, (3) private nonprofit educational 
organizations, and (4) consortia of these entities.
    Estimated Available Funds: The Administration has requested 
$2,223,000 for new awards for this program for FY 2007. The actual 
level of funding, if any, depends on final congressional action. 
However, we are inviting applications to allow enough time to complete 
the grant process if Congress appropriates funds for this program.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $50,000--$90,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $74,000.
    Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a 
budget exceeding $90,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. The 
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education may change the maximum 
amount through a notice published in the Federal Register.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 30.


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


    Project Period: Up to 12 months.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    Purpose of Program: The Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad (GPA) 
Program supports overseas projects in training, research, and 
curriculum development in modern foreign languages and area studies for 
groups of teachers, students, and faculty engaged in a common endeavor. 
Projects may include short-term seminars, curriculum development, or 
group research or study.
    Priorities: In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(ii), these 
priorities are from the regulations for this program (34 CFR 664.32).
    Absolute Priority: For FY 2007 this priority is an absolute 
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only applications that 
meet this priority.
    This priority is:
    Specific geographic regions of the world: A group project funded 
under this priority must focus on one or more of the following 
geographic regions of the world: Africa, East Asia, South Asia, 
Southeast Asia and the Pacific, the Western Hemisphere (Central and 
South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean), East Central Europe and 
Eurasia, and the Near East.
    Within this absolute priority, we are establishing the following 
competitive preference and invitational priorities.
    Competitive Preference Priority I: For FY 2007 this priority is a 
competitive preference priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), 
664.30(b), and 664.31(g) we award an additional five (5) points to an 
application that meets this priority.
    This priority is:
    Applications that propose short-term projects abroad in the 
countries in which the following critical languages are spoken: Arabic, 
Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, as well as Indic, Iranian, and 
Turkic language families.
    Competitive Preference Priority II: For FY 2007 this priority is a 
competitive preference priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), 
664.30(b), and 664.31(g) we award up to an additional five (5) points 
to an application, depending on how well the application meets this 
priority.
    This priority is:
    Short-term seminars that develop and improve foreign language and 
area studies at elementary and secondary schools.
    Invitational Priority: For FY 2007 this priority is an invitational 
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105-(c)(1) we do not give an application that 
meets this priority a competitive or absolute preference over other 
applications.
    This priority is:
    Group Study projects that provide opportunities for undergraduate 
students to study in a foreign country for either a semester or a full 
academic year; under this invitational priority, we encourage 
applicants to provide opportunities to students from across the United 
States.
    Program Authority: 22 U.S.C. 2452.
    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 
81, 82, 84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99.
    (b) The regulations for this program in 34 CFR part 664.


    Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 apply to institutions of 
higher education only.

II. Award Information

    Type of Award: Discretionary grants. As part of its FY 2007 budget 
request, the Administration proposed to continue to allow funds to be 
used to support the participation of individuals who plan to apply 
their language skills and knowledge of countries vital to the United 
States national security in fields outside teaching, including 
government, the professions, or international development. Therefore, 
institutions may propose projects for visits and study in foreign 
countries by individuals in these fields, in addition to those planning 
a teaching career. However, authority to use funds for participants 
outside of the field of teaching depends on final Congressional action. 
Applicants will be given an opportunity to amend their applications if 
such authority is not provided.
    Estimated Available Funds: The Administration has requested 
$2,223,000 for this program for FY 2007. The actual level of funding, 
if any, depends on final congressional action. However, we are inviting 
applications to allow enough time to complete the grant process if 
Congress appropriates funds for this program.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $50,000-$90,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $74,000.
    Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a 
budget exceeding $90,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. The 
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education may change the maximum 
amount through a notice published in the Federal Register.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 30.


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


    Project Period: Up to 12 months.

III. Eligibility Information

    1. Eligible Applicants: (1) Institutions of higher education, (2) 
State departments of education, (3) private nonprofit educational 
organizations, and (4) consortia of these entities.
    2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This program does not involve cost 
sharing or matching.

[[Page 54630]]

IV. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Request Application Package: Dr. Lungching Chiao or 
Ms. Michelle Guilfoil, International Education Programs Service, U.S. 
Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., 6th floor, Washington, DC 
20006-8521. Telephone: (202) 502-7624 or (202) 502-7625 or by e-mail: 
[email protected] or [email protected]
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) 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 program contact 
person listed in this section.
    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: The application narrative is where you, the applicant, address 
the selection criteria that reviewers use to evaluate your application. 
You must limit Part III to the equivalent of no more than 40 pages, 
using the following standards:
     A ``page'' is 8.5'' x 11'', on one side only, with 1'' 
margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
     Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) 
all text in the application narrative, including titles, headings, 
footnotes, quotations, references, and captions. However, you may 
single space all text in charts, tables, figures and graphs.
     Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or no smaller 
than 10 pitch (characters per inch). However, you may use a 10-point 
font in charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
     Use one of the following fonts: Times New Roman, Courier, 
Courier New, or Arial. Applications submitted in any other font 
(including Times Roman, Arial Narrow) will not be accepted.
    The page limit does not apply to the cover sheet; the budget 
section, including the narrative budget justification; the assurances 
and certifications; the one-page abstract; or the appendices. However, 
you must include your complete response to the selection criteria in 
the application narrative.
    We will reject your application if--
     You apply these standards and exceed the page limit; or
     You apply other standards and exceed the equivalent of the 
page limit.
    3. Submission Dates and Times: Applications Available: September 
18, 2006. Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: November 2, 2006.
    Applications for grants under this program must be submitted 
electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov). For 
information (including dates and times) about how to submit your 
application electronically or by mail or hand delivery if you qualify 
for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, please refer 
to section IV. 6. Other Submission Requirements in this notice.
    We do not consider an application that does not comply with the 
deadline requirements.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: January 2, 2007.
    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 reference regulations outlining funding 
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
    6. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under 
this program must be submitted electronically unless you qualify for an 
exception to this requirement in accordance with the instructions in 
this section.
    a. Electronic Submission of Applications.
    Applications for grants under the Fulbright-Hays Group Projects 
Abroad program must be submitted electronically using the Grants.gov 
Apply site at: http://www.grants.gov. Through this site, you will be 
able to download a copy of the application package, complete it 
offline, and then upload and submit your application. You may not e-
mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us.
    We will reject your application if you submit it in paper format 
unless, as described elsewhere in this section, you qualify for one of 
the exceptions to the electronic submission requirement and submit, no 
later than two weeks before the application deadline date, a written 
statement to the Department that you qualify for one of these 
exceptions. Further information regarding calculation of the date that 
is two weeks before the application deadline date is provided later in 
this section under Exception to Electronic Submission Requirement.
    You may access the electronic grant application for The Fulbright-
Hays Group Projects Abroad program at: http://www.grants.gov/. You must 
search for the downloadable application package for this competition by 
the CFDA number. Do not include the CFDA number's alpha suffix in your 
search.
    Please note the following:
     When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find 
information about submitting an application electronically through the 
site, as well as the hours of operation.
     Applications received by Grants.gov are time and date 
stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted, and 
must be date/time stamped by the Grants.gov system no later than 4:30 
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. Except as 
otherwise noted in this section, we will not consider your application 
if it is date/time stamped by the Grants.gov system later than 4:30 
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. When we 
retrieve your application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are 
rejecting your application because it was date/time stamped by the 
Grants.gov system after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the 
application deadline date.
     The amount of time it can take to upload an application 
will vary depending on a variety of factors including the size of the 
application and the speed of your Internet connection. Therefore, we 
strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline 
date to begin the submission process through Grants.gov.
     You should review and follow the Education Submission 
Procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov that are 
included in the application package for this program to ensure that you 
submit your application in a timely manner to the Grants.gov system. 
You can also find the Education Submission Procedures pertaining to 
Grants.gov at: http://e-Grants.ed.gov/help/GrantsgovSubmissionProcedures.pdf
     To submit your application via Grants.gov, you must 
complete all the steps in the Grants.gov registration process (see 
http://www.grants.gov/applicants/get_registered.jsp). These steps 
include (1) Registering your organization, (2) registering yourself as 
an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR), and (3) getting 
authorized as an AOR by your organization. Details on these steps are 
outlined in the Grants.gov 3-Step Registration Guide (see http://

[[Page 54631]]

www.grants.gov/Section910/grants.govRegistrationBrochure.pdf). You also 
must provide on your application the same D-U-N-S Number used with this 
registration. Please note that the registration process may take five 
or more business days to complete, and you must have completed all 
registration steps to allow you to successfully submit an application 
via Grants.gov.
     You will not receive additional point value because you 
submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you 
if you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission 
requirement, as described elsewhere in this section, and submit your 
application in paper format.
     You must submit all documents electronically, including 
all information typically included on the Application for Federal 
Assistance (SF 424), Budget Information--Non-Construction Programs (ED 
524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. You must attach 
any narrative sections of your application as files in a .DOC 
(document), .RTF (rich text), or .PDF (Portable Document) format. If 
you upload a file type other than the three file types specified above 
or submit a password protected file, we will not review that material.
     Your electronic application must comply with any page 
limit requirements described in this notice.
     After you electronically submit your application, you will 
receive an automatic acknowledgement from Grants.gov that contains a 
Grants.gov tracking number. The Department will retrieve your 
application from Grants.gov and send you a second confirmation by e-
mail that will include a PR/Award number (an ED-specified identifying 
number unique to your application).
     We may request that you provide us original signatures on 
forms at a later date. Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of 
Technical Issues with the Grants.gov System: If you are prevented from 
electronically submitting your application on the application deadline 
date because of technical problems with the Grants.gov system, we will 
grant you an extension until 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, the 
following business day to enable you to transmit your application 
electronically, or by hand delivery. You also may mail your application 
by following the mailing instructions as described elsewhere in this 
notice. If you submit an application after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC 
time, on the deadline date, please contact the person listed elsewhere 
in this notice under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, and provide an 
explanation of the technical problem you experienced with Grants.gov, 
along with the Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number (if available). We 
will accept your application if we can confirm that a technical problem 
occurred with the Grants.gov system and that that problem affected your 
ability to submit your application by 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, 
on the application deadline date. The Department will contact you after 
a determination is made on whether your application will be accepted.


    Note: Extensions referred to in this section apply only to the 
unavailability of or technical problems with the Grants.gov system. 
We will not grant you an extension if you failed to fully register 
to submit your application to Grants.gov before the deadline date 
and time or if the technical problem you experienced is unrelated to 
the Grants.gov system.


    Exception to Electronic Submission Requirement: You qualify for an 
exception to the electronic submission requirement, and may submit your 
application in paper format, if you are unable to submit an application 
through the Grants.gov system because--
     You do not have access to the Internet; or
     You do not have the capacity to upload large documents to 
the Grants.gov system; and
     No later than two weeks before the application deadline 
date (14 calendar days or, if the fourteenth calendar day before the 
application deadline date falls on a Federal holiday, the next business 
day following the Federal holiday), you mail or fax a written statement 
to the Department, explaining which of the two grounds for an exception 
prevent you from using the Internet to submit your application. If you 
mail your written statement to the Department, it must be postmarked no 
later than two weeks before the application deadline date. If you fax 
your written statement to the Department, we must receive the faxed 
statement no later than two weeks before the application deadline date.
    Address and mail or fax your statement to: Dr. Lungching Chiao, 
U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., 6th Floor, 
Washington, DC 20006-8521. FAX: (202) 502-7860.
    Your paper application must be submitted in accordance with the 
mail or hand delivery instructions described in this notice.
    b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail.
    If you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission 
requirement, you may mail (through the U.S. Postal Service or a 
commercial carrier) your application to the Department. You must mail 
the original and two copies of your application, on or before the 
application deadline date, to the Department at the applicable 
following address:
    By mail through the U.S. Postal Service: U.S. Department of 
Education, Application Control Center, Attention: 84.021A, 400 Maryland 
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260, or
    By mail through a commercial carrier: U.S. Department of Education, 
Application Control Center--Stop 4260, Attention: 84.021A, 7100 Old 
Landover Road, Landover, MD 20785-1506.
    Regardless of which address you use, you must show proof of mailing 
consisting of one of the following:
    (1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark,
    (2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the 
U.S. Postal Service,
    (3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial 
carrier, or
    (4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the 
U.S. Department of Education.
    If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do 
not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:
    (1) A private metered postmark, or
    (2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.
    If your application is postmarked after the application deadline 
date, we will not consider your application.


    Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated 
postmark. Before relying on this method, you should check with your 
local post office.


    c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery.
    If you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission 
requirement, you (or a courier service) may deliver your paper 
application to the Department by hand. You must deliver the original 
and two copies of your application by hand, on or before the 
application deadline date, to the Department at the following address: 
U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, Attention: 
84.021A, 550 12th Street, SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center Plaza, 
Washington, DC 20202-4260.
    The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily 
between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, except Saturdays, 
Sundays and Federal holidays.
    Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you mail 
or hand deliver your application to the Department:

[[Page 54632]]

    (1) You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by the 
Department--in Item 11 of the SF 424 the CFDA number--and suffix 
letter, if any--of the competition under which you are submitting your 
application.
    (2) The Application Control Center will mail a grant application 
receipt acknowledgment to you. If you do not receive the grant 
application receipt acknowledgment within 15 business days from the 
application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of 
Education Application Control Center at (202) 245-6288.

V. Application Review Information

    1. General: Applications are divided into seven categories based on 
the world area focus of their projects, as described in the absolute 
priority listed in this notice. Language and area studies experts in 
seven discrete world area-based panels will review each application. 
Each panel reviews, scores, and ranks its applications separately from 
the applications assigned to the other world area panels. However, all 
applications will be ranked from the highest to the lowest score for 
funding purposes.
    2. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are 
from 34 CFR 664.31 and are as follows: (a) Plan of operation (20 
points), (b) quality of key personnel (10 points), (c) budget and cost 
effectiveness (10 points), (d) evaluation plan (20 points), (e) 
adequacy of resources (5 points), (f) impact of the project on the 
development of the study of modern foreign languages and area studies 
in American education (15 points), (g) relevance to the institution's 
educational goals and relationship to program development (5 points), 
(h) need for overseas experiences to achieve project objectives and the 
effectiveness with which relevant host country resources will be 
utilized (10 points), and (i) the extent to which the proposed project 
addresses the competitive preference priorities (10 points).

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. Grantees are required to use the electronic data 
instrument Evaluation of Exchange, Language, International, and Area 
Studies (EELIAS) system to complete the final report.
    4. Performance Measures: The objective of the GPA program is to 
meet the nation's security and economic needs through the development 
of a national security capacity in foreign languages, and area and 
international studies. Under the Government Performance and Results 
Act, the Department will use the following measure to evaluate the 
success of the program in meeting this objective. GPA Performance 
Measure: Percent of projects judged to be successful by the program 
officer, based on a review of information provided in annual 
performance reports. The information provided by grantees in their 
performance reports submitted via the electronic Evaluation of 
Exchange, Language, International, and Area Studies system will be the 
source of data for this measure.

VII. Agency Contacts

    For Further Information Contact: Dr. Lungching Chiao or Ms. 
Michelle Guilfoil, International Education Programs Service, U.S. 
Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., 6th floor, Washington, DC 
20006-8521. Telephone: (202) 502-7624 or (202) 502-7625 or by e-mail: 
[email protected] or [email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) 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: September 13, 2006.
James F. Manning,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. E6-15487 Filed 9-15-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P