[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 123 (Monday, June 28, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36695-36696]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-15288]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

National Institute of Corrections


Solicitation for a Cooperative Agreement: Meetings of the 
Institutional Corrections Research Network and Two Subject Matter 
Experts Meetings on Correctional Research

AGENCY: National Institute of Corrections, U.S. 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 an 18-month period to begin in September 
2010. Work under this cooperative agreement will involve organizing 
four meetings--two annual meetings of the Institutional Corrections 
Research Network (ICRN) and two other meetings, one focusing on the 
research needs of jails and the other on a combined research agenda for 
prisons, jails, and community corrections.
    NIC established ICRN in 2007 to promote the development of a 
stronger research infrastructure in corrections by bringing together 
agency-based researchers to discuss issues and share insights on the 
conduct of research in agencies that operate correctional institutions. 
The network members met annually from 2007-2009 to show examples of the 
research they were conducting for their agencies, identify new research 
directions, discuss how they make research relevant to their agency's 
mission, and share information and concerns about doing research in a 
correctional environment. ICRN is modeled after similar efforts 
sponsored by NIC that bring together corrections professionals from 
different sectors of corrections and by the Community Corrections 
Research Network, sponsored by the National Institute of Justice, which 
is made up of researchers working in community corrections agencies. 
ICRN represents NIC's ongoing commitment to assist correctional 
agencies as they work to become more evidence-based in their policies 
and practices, make greater use of outcome measures and performance 
standards, and incorporate data-driven approaches in their strategic 
planning and organizational development.
    While the ICRN meetings have been very helpful to its members, two 
issues have emerged from their discussions and the meetings of other 
similar groups. One is the network's relative absence of researchers 
working in jails. Under this cooperative agreement, NIC will address 
this issue by (1) making a concerted effort to recruit jail researchers 
to participate in ICRN meetings and (2) hold a separate meeting 
focusing on the research needs of jails. A second issue concerns the 
lack of cross-discipline discussions among researchers working in state 
departments of corrections, in jails or jail systems, and in different 
parts of community corrections, such as pretrial, probation, and 
parole. The final meeting to be organized under this cooperative 
agreement will bring together researchers who focus on different 
aspects of corrections to have them develop a combined research agenda 
to address the problems that are common to them all.

DATES: Applications must be received by 4 p.m. (EDT) on Friday, July 
23, 2010. Selection of the successful applicant and notification of 
review results to all applicants: September 30, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Mailed applications must be sent to Director, National 
Institute of Corrections, 320 First Street, NW., Room 5002, 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: 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 all four meetings--the two annual meetings of the 
Institutional Corrections Research Network (ICRN), plus the two other 
meetings on the research needs of jails and the combined research 
agenda for corrections. All expenses for these meetings will be 
provided out of the funding awarded under this agreement. The two ICRN 
meetings are each expected to last up to two days for up to 24 
participants. The two additional meetings are expected to last one and 
a half days for up to 10 participants. NIC will identify the 
participants for each meeting, and it will also identify the location 
of the meetings based on the geographic distribution of the 
participants. The meetings will take place in 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.
    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. 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) Each of the four 
meetings, (2) 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, (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

[[Page 36696]]

organizational capacity to carry out all the tasks listed above, 
including demonstrated experience in organizing meetings of the size 
and type described. Preference will be given to applicants with a 
record of working with similar 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 $150,000 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 criminal justice?

Budget (25%)

    Is the proposed budget realistic, sufficient in cost detail/
narrative, and representative of 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.

    Number of Awards: One
    NIC Opportunity Number: 10PEI37. 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 Corrections.
[FR Doc. 2010-15288 Filed 6-25-10; 8:45 am]
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