[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 134 (Wednesday, July 15, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34365-34366]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-16744]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

National Institute of Corrections


Solicitation for a Cooperative Agreement: Subject Matter Experts 
Meetings on Organizational Culture and Performance

AGENCY: National Institute of Corrections, Department of Justice.

ACTION: Solicitation for a cooperative agreement.

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SUMMARY: The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) is soliciting 
proposals from organizations, groups, or individuals to enter into a 
cooperative agreement for a 12-month period to begin in September, 
2009. Work under this cooperative agreement will involve organizing up 
to four meetings of subject matter experts to assist NIC and the 
corrections field in ongoing work in the area of organizational culture 
and performance. Likely topics for the meetings include improving 
methods for evaluating organizational culture assessments using focus 
groups, the use of staff surveys in correctional agencies, culture 
change in correctional systems, and culture assessment and change in 
community corrections agencies.

DATES: Applications must be received by 4 p.m. (EDT) on Friday, August 
14, 2009. Selection of the successful applicant and notification of 
review results to all applicants: September 15, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Mailed applications must be sent to Director, National 
Institute of Corrections, 320 First Street, NW., Room 5007, Washington, 
DC 20534. Applicants are encouraged to use Federal Express, UPS, or 
similar service to ensure delivery by the due date.
    Hand delivered applications should be brought to 500 First Street, 
NW., Washington, DC 20534. At the front desk, call (202) 307-3106, 
extension 0 for pickup.
    Faxed or e-mailed applications will not be accepted. Electronic 
applications can be submitted via http://www.grants.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A copy of this announcement can be 
downloaded from the NIC Web site at http://www.nicic.gov/cooperativeagreements.
    All technical or programmatic questions concerning this 
announcement should be directed to Pamela Davison. She can be reached 
by calling 1-800-995-6423 ext 0484 or by e-mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The recipient of the award under this 
cooperative agreement will organize and coordinate all logistical 
details for up to four meetings of subject matter experts in various 
aspects of organizational culture and performance as it applies to 
corrections. All expenses for these meetings, expected to last up to 
two days for up to 10 people, will be provided out of the funding 
awarded under this agreement. Participants for each meeting will be 
identified by NIC, and the location of the meetings will be determined 
by NIC based on the geographic distribution of the participants, but 
will take place within the contiguous 48 States.
    The recipient of this award will assist NIC in locating an 
appropriate venue and coordinating local arrangements at the site, 
including meeting rooms, food, and beverage services. The recipient 
will also assist participants in arranging travel and lodging, and in 
reimbursing costs in conformity with Federal guidelines. Some 
participants may also be eligible to receive up to $500 per day for 
their participation. For each meeting, one or two white papers may be 
prepared by individual participants to form the basis for discussion of 
the selected topic. Additional days, up to $500 per day, may be paid to 
eligible authors of white papers. (Note that the payment of these daily 
rates are to be provided out of the funding awarded under this 
agreement.)
    With input from NIC, the recipient will prepare each meeting 
agenda, participant lists, white papers, handouts, and supplementary 
materials, duplicate them in sufficient quantities, and deliver them to 
the venue. With input from NIC, the recipient will also supply or 
arrange for a facilitator for some meetings to be paid out of the 
funding awarded under this agreement. The recipient will also provide a 
note taker for each meeting.
    Deliverables: By the end of the project, the recipient of this 
award will deliver the following products: (1) Detailed notes of the 
proceedings of each meeting, including transcriptions of any other 
written material produced during the meeting, such as the contents of 
flip charts; (2) Each of the white papers produced for the meetings, 
edited to be suitable for distribution to corrections practitioners and 
delivered in NIC's standard format; and (3) a summary report providing 
an overview of the meetings, their major themes, and any 
recommendations for the field.
    Required Expertise: Successful applicants should have the 
organizational capacity to carry out all the tasks listed above, 
including demonstrated experience in organizing meetings of the size 
and type described.

[[Page 34366]]

Preference will also be given to applicants with a record of working 
with similar subject matter expert groups in criminal justice.
    Application Requirements: Applications should be concisely written, 
typed double spaced and reference the ``NIC Opportunity Number'' and 
Title provided in this announcement. Please limit the program narrative 
text to 20 double spaced, numbered pages. The application package must 
include: a cover letter that identifies the audit agency responsible 
for the applicant's financial accounts as well as the audit period or 
fiscal year that the applicant operates under (e.g., July 1 through 
June 30), a program narrative responding to the requirements in this 
announcement, a description of the qualifications of the applicant(s), 
an outline explaining projected costs, and the following forms: OMB 
Standard Form 424, Application for Federal Assistance, OMB Standard 
Form 424A, Budget Information--Non Construction Programs, OMB Standard 
Form 424B, Assurances--Non Construction Programs (these forms are 
available at http://www.grants.gov) and DOJ/NIC Certification Regarding 
Lobbying; Debarment, Suspension and Other Responsibility Matters; and 
Drug-Free Workplace Requirements (available at http://www.nicic.org/Downloads/PDF/certif-frm.pdf).
    Applications may be submitted in hard copy, or electronically via 
http://www.grants.gov. If submitted in hard copy, there must be one, 
unbound original plus three copies of the full proposal (program and 
budget narratives, application forms and assurances). The original 
should have the applicant's signature in blue ink.

    Authority: Public Law 93-415.

    Funds Available: Up to $100,000 is available for this project, 
subject to available funding, but preference will be given to 
applicants who provide the most cost efficient solutions in 
accomplishing the scope of work. Determination will be made based on 
best value to the Government, not necessarily the lowest bid. Funds may 
only be used for the activities that are directly related to the 
project.
    Eligibility of Applicants: An eligible applicant is any public or 
private agency, educational institution, organization, individual or 
team with expertise in the described areas.
    This project will be a collaborative venture with the NIC Research 
and Evaluation Division.
    Review Considerations: Applications received under this 
announcement will be subject to the NIC Review Process. The criteria 
for the evaluation of each application will be as follows:

Organizational (75%)

    Does the applicant have the necessary capacity and staff with the 
skills, knowledge, and expertise to demonstrate a high level of 
competency to carry out the tasks? Are the proposed project management 
and staffing plans realistic and sufficient to complete the project? 
Has the organization had past experience in organizing similar events 
in the criminal justice area?

Budget (25%)

    Is the proposed budget realistic, provide sufficient cost detail/
narrative, and represent good value relative to the anticipated 
results? Is there evidence that the applicant has proposed the most 
cost effective way of performing the work? Are there any innovative 
strategies proposed to contain costs?

    Note: NIC will not award a cooperative agreement to an applicant 
who does not have a Dun and Bradstreet Database Universal Number 
(DUNS) and is not registered in the Central Contractor Registry 
(CCR).

    A DUNS number can be received at no cost by calling the dedicated 
toll-free DUNS number request line at 1-800-333-0505 (if you are a sole 
proprietor, you would dial 1-866-705-5711 and select option 1).
    Registration in the CCR can be done online at the CCR Web site: 
http://www.ccr.gov. A CCR Handbook and work sheet can also be reviewed 
at the Web site.
    Publications produced under this award must follow the ``Guidelines 
for Preparing and Submitting Manuscripts for Publication'' as found in 
the General Guidelines for Cooperative Agreements which will be 
included in the award package.
    Number of Awards: One.
    NIC Opportunity Number: 09PEI30. This number should appear as a 
reference line in the cover letter, where the opportunity number is 
requested on the Standard Form 424, and outside of the envelope in 
which the application is sent.
    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 16.602. Executive 
Order 12372: This program is not subject to the provisions of Executive 
Order 12372.

Morris L. Thigpen,
Director, National Institute of Correction.
[FR Doc. E9-16744 Filed 7-14-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-36-P