[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 50 (Tuesday, March 17, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11358-11362]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-5760]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Postsecondary Education: Overview Information; 
Technological Innovation and Cooperation for Foreign Information Access 
Program Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year 
(FY) 2009

    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.337A.
    Dates: Applications Available: March 17, 2009.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 16, 2009.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 15, 2009.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    Purpose of Program: The Technological Innovation and Cooperation 
for Foreign Information Access (TICFIA) Program provides grants to 
support projects that will develop innovative techniques or programs 
using electronic technologies to collect information from foreign 
sources. The projects access, collect, organize, preserve, and widely 
disseminate information on world regions and countries other than the 
United States that address our Nation's teaching and research needs in 
international education and foreign languages.
    Priority: This notice contains one invitational priority. Under 34 
CFR 75.105(c)(1), we do not give an application that meets this 
invitational priority a competitive or absolute preference over other 
applications.
    Invitational Priority:
    This priority is:
    Projects that focus on any of the seventy-eight (78) languages on 
the U.S. Department of Education's list of Less Commonly Taught 
Languages (LCTLs), which follows:
    Akan (Twi-Fante), Albanian, Amharic, Arabic (all dialects), 
Armenian, Azeri (Azerbaijani), Balochi, Bamanakan (Bamana, Bambara, 
Mandikan, Mandingo, Maninka, Dyula), Belarusian, Bengali (Bangla), 
Berber (all languages), Bosnian, Bulgarian, Burmese, Cebuano (Visayan), 
Chechen, Chinese (Cantonese), Chinese (Gan), Chinese (Mandarin), 
Chinese (Min), Chinese (Wu), Croatian, Dari, Dinka, Georgian, Gujarati, 
Hausa, Hebrew (Modern), Hindi, Igbo, Indonesian, Japanese, Javanese, 
Kannada, Kashmiri, Kazakh, Khmer (Cambodian), Kirghiz, Korean, Kurdish 
(Kurmanji), Kurdish (Sorani), Lao, Malay (Bahasa Melayu or Malaysian), 
Malayalam, Marathi, Mongolian, Nepali, Oromo, Panjabi, Pashto, Persian 
(Farsi), Polish, Portuguese (all varieties), Quechua, Romanian, 
Russian, Serbian, Sinhala (Sinhalese), Somali, Swahili, Tagalog, Tajik, 
Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Tibetan, Tigrigna, Turkish, Turkmen, Ukrainian, 
Urdu, Uyghur/Uigur, Uzbek, Vietnamese, Wolof, Xhosa, Yoruba, and Zulu.
    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1126.
    Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 82, 
84, 85, 86, 97, 98 and 99. As there are no program-specific 
regulations, each applicant is encouraged to read the authorizing 
statute for the TICFIA Program in section 606 of Title VI, part A of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), 20 U.S.C. 1126.

    Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 79 apply to all applicants 
except Federally recognized Indian tribes.


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

    Areas of National Need: 
    In accordance with section 601(c) of the HEA, (20 U.S.C. 1121(c)), 
the Secretary has consulted with and received recommendations regarding 
national need for expertise in foreign languages and world regions from 
the head officials of a wide range of Federal agencies. The Secretary 
has taken these recommendations into account, and a list of foreign 
languages and world regions identified by the Secretary as areas of 
national need may be found on the following Web sites: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/policy.html. http://www.ed.gov/programs/iegpsticfia/legislation.html.
    Also included on these Web sites are the specific recommendations 
the Secretary received from Federal agencies.

II. Award Information

    Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
    Estimated Available Funds: We propose to allocate $1,700,000 for 
new awards for this program for FY 2009. 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: $150,000-$190,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $170,000.
    Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a 
budget exceeding $190,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. The 
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education

[[Page 11359]]

may change the maximum amount through a notice published in the Federal 
Register.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 10.

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

    Project Period: Up to 48 months.

III. Eligibility Information

    1. Eligible Applicants: (1) Institutions of higher education 
(IHEs); (2) public or nonprofit private libraries; (3) a partnership of 
an IHE and one or more of the following: (A) another IHE; (B) a 
library; or (C) a nonprofit educational organization.
    2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This program has a matching 
requirement under section 606(d) of the HEA, 20 U.S.C. 1126(d). The 
Federal share of the total cost of carrying out a program under this 
section shall not be more than 66\2/3\ percent. The non-Federal share 
of such costs may be provided either in-kind or in cash, and may 
include contributions from private sector corporations or foundations.

IV. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Request Application Package: Susanna Easton, 
International Education Programs Service, U.S. Department of Education, 
1990 K Street, NW., room 6093, Washington, DC 20006-8521. Telephone: 
(202) 502-7628; or, by e-mail: [email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call the 
Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities can obtain a copy of the application 
package in an accessible 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 
competition. Page Limit: The application narrative is where you, the 
applicant, address the selection criteria that reviewers use to 
evaluate your application. You must limit the application narrative 
[Part III] that addresses the selection criteria to 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. 
Page numbers and an identifier may be outside of the 1 
margin.
     Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) 
all text in the application narrative, except titles, headings, 
footnotes, quotations, references, captions, and all text in charts, 
tables, and graphs. These items may be single-spaced. Charts, tables, 
figures, and graphs in the application narrative count toward the page 
limit.
     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. An application submitted in any other font 
(including Times Roman and Arial Narrow) will not be accepted.
    The page limit does not apply to Part I, the Application for 
Federal Assistance face sheet (SF 424); the supplemental information 
form required by the Department of Education; Part II, the budget 
information summary form (ED Form 524); or Part IV, the assurances and 
certifications. The page limit also does not apply to a table of 
contents. If you include any attachments or appendices not specifically 
requested, these items will be counted as part of your program 
narrative [Part III] for purposes of the page limit requirement. You 
must include your complete response to the selection criteria in the 
program narrative.
    We will reject your application if you apply these standards and 
exceed the page limit.
    3. Submission Dates and Times:
    Applications Available: March 17, 2009.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 16, 2009.
    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 in paper format 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 of this notice.
    We do not consider an application that does not comply with the 
deadline requirements.
    Individuals with disabilities who need an accommodation or 
auxiliary aid in connection with the application process should contact 
the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in Section VII 
of this notice. If the Department provides an accommodation or 
auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability in connection with the 
application process, the individual's application remains subject to 
all other requirements and limitations in this notice.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 15, 2009.
    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 competition 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 Technological Innovation and 
Cooperation for Foreign Information Access (TICFIA) Program, CFDA 
number 84.337A, must be submitted electronically using the 
Governmentwide 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 TICFIA 
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 (e.g., search for 
84.337, not 84.337A).
    Please note the following:
     When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find 
information about submitting an application electronically

[[Page 11360]]

through the site, as well as the hours of operation.
     Applications received by Grants.gov are date and time 
stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted, and 
must be date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system no later than 
4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. 
Except as otherwise noted in this section, we will not accept your 
application if it is received--that is, date and time stamped by the 
Grants.gov system--after 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the 
application deadline date. We do not consider an application that does 
not comply with the deadline requirements. When we retrieve your 
application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are rejecting 
your application because it was date and time stamped by the Grants.gov 
system after 4:30:00 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 competition 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 steps in the Grants.gov registration process (see 
www.grants.gov/applicants/get_registered.jsp). These steps include (1) 
registering your organization, a multi-part process that includes 
registration with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR); (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 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 submit successfully an application via Grants.gov. In 
addition, you will need to update your CCR registration on an annual 
basis. This may take three or more business days to complete.
     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 you typically provide on the following forms: 
Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424), the Department of 
Education Supplemental Information for 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 in this paragraph 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 from Grants.gov an automatic notification of receipt that 
contains a Grants.gov tracking number. (This notification indicates 
receipt by Grants.gov only, not receipt by the Department.) The 
Department then will retrieve your application from Grants.gov and send 
a second notification to you by e-mail. This second notification 
indicates that the Department has received your application and has 
assigned your application 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 experiencing problems submitting 
your application through Grants.gov, please contact the Grants.gov 
Support Desk, toll free, at 1-800-518-4726. You must obtain a 
Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number and must keep a record of it.
    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 4:30:00 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 described elsewhere in this notice.
    If you submit an application after 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC 
time, on the application deadline date, please contact the person 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in Section VII of this 
notice and provide an explanation of the technical problem you 
experienced with Grants.gov, along with the Grants.gov Support Desk 
Case Number. 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 4:30:00 
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: The extensions to which we refer 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 application 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: Susanna Easton, 
International Education Programs Service, U.S. Department of Education,

[[Page 11361]]

1990 K Street, NW., room 6093, 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 following address: 
U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, Attention: 
(CFDA Number 84.337A), LBJ Basement Level 1, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., 
Washington, DC 20202-4260.
    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.
    (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.
    (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: 
(CFDA Number 84.337A) 550 12th Street, SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center 
Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-4260.
    The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily 
between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30:00 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--
    (1) You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by the 
Department--in Item 11 of the SF 424 the CFDA number, including suffix 
letter, if any, of the competition under which you are submitting your 
application; and
    (2) The Application Control Center will mail to you a notification 
of receipt of your grant application. If you do not receive this 
notification 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: For FY 2009, applications will be randomly divided and 
reviewed by separate panels of foreign language and area studies and 
international studies experts. A rank order from highest to lowest 
score will be developed and used for funding purposes.
    2. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are 
from EDGAR (34 CFR 75.209 and 75.210) and are as follows: (a) Meeting 
the purpose of the authorizing statute (15 points), (b) Need for 
project (10 points), (c) Significance (14 points), (d) Quality of the 
project design (12 points), (e) Quality of key personnel (8 points), 
(f) Quality of project services (4 points), (g) Adequacy of resources 
(12 points), (h) Quality of the management plan (10 points), and (i) 
Quality of the project evaluation (15 points).

    Note: Applicants should address these selection criteria only in 
the context of the program requirements in section 606 of the HEA.

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 notify you informally, also.
    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 of 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 directed by the Secretary 
under 34 CFR 75.118. Grantees are required to use the electronic data 
instrument International Resource Information System (IRIS) to complete 
the final report. The Secretary may also require more frequent 
performance reports under 34 CFR 75.720(c). For specific requirements 
on reporting, please go to: http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/appforms/appforms.html.
    4. Performance Measure: Under the Government Performance and 
Results Act of 1993 (GPRA), the Department will use the following 
measure to evaluate the success of this program: Percentage 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 IRIS will be the source of data for this measure. 
Reporting screens for institutions can be viewed at: http://www.ieps-iris.org/iris/pdfs/TICFIA.pdf.

VII. Agency Contact

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Susanna Easton, International 
Education Programs Service, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K 
Street, NW., room 6069, Washington, DC 20006-8521. Telephone: (202) 
502-7628 or by e-mail: [email protected].
    If you use a TDD, call the FRS, toll free, at 1-800-877-8339.

VIII. Other Information

    Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this 
document and a copy of the application package in an accessible format 
(e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) on 
request to the program contact person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT in Section VII of this notice.
    Electronic Access to This Document: You can 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.

[[Page 11362]]

    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.

    Delegation of Authority: The Secretary of Education has delegated 
authority to Daniel T. Madzelan, Director, Forecasting and Policy 
Analysis for the Office of Postsecondary Education to perform the 
functions of the Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.

    Dated: March 12, 2009.
Daniel T. Madzelan,
Director, Forecasting and Policy Analysis.
[FR Doc. E9-5760 Filed 3-16-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P