ANNH Part F application

^{U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION}

Office of Postsecondary Education

Washington, DC 20202

Fiscal Year 2016

APPLICATION FOR GRANTS

UNDER THE

Title III, Part F

Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Program

CFDA # 84.031R and 84.031V

Form Approved

OMB No. 1840-0810, Exp. Date: 03/31/2017

CLOSING DATE: 4/26/2016

Table of Contents

Page

Dear Applicant Letter……………………………………………………………. 2

Competition Highlights……...…………………………………………………... 4

Grants.gov Submission Procedures……………………..…………………… 7

Application Transmittal Instructions….…………………………………………. 10

Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards.......................……...................…. 12

Program Statute…………………………………………………………………... 47

Intergovernmental Review……………………………………………………….. 61

General Education Provisions Act (GEPA)……………….…...................……… 62

Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA)……………………………... 63

Instructions for Completing the Application……………..………………………. 65

Instructions for Completing the Project Narrative ……………………………….. 66

Instructions for Addressing the Priorities………………………………………….. 74

Instructions for Standard Forms……………………………………………………... 75

Program Profile..…………………………………………………………………….. 87

Application Checklist………………………………………………………………... 89

Paperwork Burden Statement………………………………………………………… 91

Dear Applicant:

Thank you for your interest in applying for a grant under the Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions (ANNH) program authorized under Title III, Part F, Section 371 (84.031R – Alaska Native and 84.031V – Native Hawaiian) of the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, as amended.

The ANNH program provides grants to Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions to assist such institutions to plan, develop, undertake, and carry out activities to improve and expand such institutions’ capacity to serve Alaska Native or Native Hawaiians.

In order to submit an application for a grant under the Title III, Part F Programs, an institution of higher education (IHE) must have been deemed an “eligible institution.” The Notice Inviting Applications for the Designation as an Eligible Institution was published in the Federal Register on November 19, 2015.

For FY 2016, there is one absolute priority, two competitive preference priorities, and one invitational priority for this program. All applicants are required to address the absolute priority. The absolute priority is: Projects that support high-need students which are designed to improve their academic outcomes; learning environments; or both. Applicants that address competitive preference priority 1 may be awarded up to one point. Applicants that address competitive priority 2 may be awarded up to three points. You may only address one CPP. These competitive preference priorities are: 1) Applications supported by evidence of effectiveness that meets the conditions set out in the definition of “evidence of promise,” and 2) Applications supported by evidence of effectiveness that meets the conditions set out in the definition of “moderate evidence of effectiveness.” The invitational priority is: Projects that support activities that strengthen Native language preservation and revitalization at our institution of higher education. There are no points associated with the invitational priority.

For FY 2016, the ANNH program received $3,588,546 in discretionary funding under Title III, Part F, Section 371 of the HEA. Applicants should refer to Title III, Part F for the allowable activities. In this competition, we will award Individual Development Grants only.

Applications for grants under the FY 2016 Title III, Part F, ANNH program grant competition must be submitted electronically using Grants.gov. A detailed description of this internet-based system is included in this application package. You are urged to acquaint yourself with the requirements of this system early. You may access Grants.gov through its portal page at: http://grants.gov.

For information (including dates and times) about how to submit your application electronically, please refer to the official Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) for New Awards for FY 2016 published in the Federal Register. The Federal Register NIA for New Awards and application instructions are included in this package.

Do not rely upon any information that is inconsistent with the guidance contained within this application package and the NIA. The NIA for the FY 2016 Title III, Part F, ANNH program is the official document, and you should not rely upon any information that is inconsistent with the guidance contained within the official document. I encourage you to read all the information contained in this package before preparing your application.

If you have questions, please contact Robyn Wood at 202-502-7437 or by email at [email protected] or Division Coordinator, Don Crews at 202-502-7574 or by email at [email protected]. We appreciate your interest in the Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Program and look forward to receiving your application.

Sincerely,

/s/

James E. Laws, Jr., Ed.D

Director

Strengthening Institutions Division

Competition Highlights

Grants.gov

1. ANNH, Part F grant applications for FY 2016 must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov at: http://grants.gov

2. Once you download the application package from Grants.gov, you will be working offline and saving data on your computer. Be sure to note where you are saving the Grants.gov file on your computer. You will need to log on to Grants.gov to upload and submit your application.

3. We urge you to consider the following three important administrative factors when applying for this grant program:

1. Register at the Grants.gov website early. The registration procedures may require 5 or more days to complete.

2. Consider submitting your application 2-3 days prior to the closing date. The time it takes to upload an application will vary depending on your application and the speed of your Internet connection. The application submission process must be complete prior to the deadline for transmittal of applications.

3. Remember to provide the DUNS number that was used when your organization registered with the System for Award Management (SAM), formerly the Central Contractor Registry (CCR).

4. Grants.gov does not allow applicants to “un-submit” or delete applications. Therefore, if you discover that changes or additions are needed once your application has been accepted and validated by the Department, you must “re-submit” the application. If the Department receives duplicate applications, we will accept and process the application with the latest “date/time received” validation.

5. Please note that you must submit your application by 4:30:00 p.m. (Washington, D.C. time) on or before the application deadline date. Late applications will not be accepted. We suggest that you submit your application several days before the deadline. The Department is required to enforce the established deadline to ensure fairness to all applicants. No changes or additions to an application will be accepted after the deadline date.

Eligibility

6. All grant applicants for the Title III, Part F, ANNH program must have received FY 2016 Designation of Eligibility. Applicants failing to be deemed eligible will not have their application entered in the review process. The Notice Inviting Applications for Designation as an Eligible Institution was published on November 19, 2015.

7. Your institution's application for a FY 2016 Title III, Part F, ANNH grant MUST be in the same name provided in the FY 2016 Designation of Eligibility application, or it will be deemed not eligible to be read.

Allowable Activities and Program Regulations

8. Authorized grant activities for the ANNH are listed in Title III, Part F, Section 371 of the HEA of 1965, as amended.

Priorities

9. There is one absolute priority (AP) under this competition. All applicants must address the absolute priority. The absolute priority is: Projects that support high-need students which are designed to improve their academic outcomes; learning environments; or both. There are no points associated with the absolute priority.

10. There are two competitive preference priorities (CPP) under this competition. CPP 1 is worth up to 1 point. CPP 2 is worth up to 3 points. Applicants that address the competitive preference priorities can receive up to three additional points. Applicants must address the CPPs in order to receive any additional points. Applicants who do not address either of the CPPs will not receive points for the CPPs. The CPPs are: 1) Applications supported by evidence of effectiveness that meets the conditions set out in the definition of “evidence of promise; and 2) Applications supported by evidence of effectiveness that meets the conditions set out in the definition of “moderate evidence of effectiveness.”

11. Institutions should include in their Abstracts whether or not they are addressing the competitive preference priorities. If addressing either priority, the Abstract should include a link to the studies referenced.

12. There is one invitational priority (IP) under this competition. The IP is: 1) “Support Activities that strengthen Native language preservation and revitalization at our institutions of higher education.” There are no points associated with the IP.

13. We are particularly interested in applications that address these priorities; however, under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1), we do not give an application that meets the invitational priority a competitive or absolute preference over other applications.

Page Limits

14. All applicants are required to adhere to the page limit for the Project Narrative portion of the application. You must limit the section of the narrative that addresses the selection criteria to no more than 50 pages. Applicants have three extra pages to address the absolute priority; three extra pages to address one of the competitive preference priorities; and two pages to address the invitational priority.

Program Profile and Abstract

15. All applicants are required to submit an ANNH Profile Form, which contains the tie-breaker information. Applicants are asked to carefully read question #4 on the Program Profile Form.

16. All applicants must provide an abstract limited to one single-spaced page. The abstract must be uploaded as a PDF file only. Complete instructions for submitting the abstract are included in the Instructions for Completing the Application Package.

17. Information on the Title III, Part F ANNH program is accessible at the Department’s Web site at: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/iduesannh/index.html.

Grants.gov Submission Procedures and Tips for Applicants

IMPORTANT – PLEASE READ FIRST

U.S. Department of Education

Grants.gov Submission Procedures and Tips for Applicants

To facilitate your use of Grants.gov, this document includes important submission procedures you need to be aware of to ensure your application is received in a timely manner and accepted by the Department of Education.

Browser Support

The latest versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE), Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Apple Safari are supported for use with Grants.gov. However, these web browsers undergo frequent changes and updates, so we recommend you have the latest version when using Grants.gov. Legacy versions of these web browsers may be functional, but you may experience issues.

For additional information or updates, please see the Grants.gov Browser information in the Applicant FAQs: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-faqs.html#browser.

ATTENTION – Adobe Forms and PDF Files Required

Applications submitted to Grants.gov for the Department of Education will be posted using Adobe forms. Therefore, applicants will need to download the latest version of Adobe Reader. Information on computer and operating system compatibility with Adobe and links to download the latest version is available on Grants.gov at this link: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/adobe-software-compatibility.html. We strongly recommend that you review these details on www.Grants.gov before completing and submitting your application. In addition, applicants should submit their application a day or two in advance of the closing date as detailed below. Also, applicants are required to upload their attachments in .pdf format only. (See details below under “Attaching Files – Additional Tips.”) If you have any questions regarding this matter, please email the Grants.gov Contact Center at [email protected] or call 1-800-518-4726.

NEW: In addition to the Adobe form application package, Grants.gov now offers a new option called Workspace for application completion and submission. Workspace allows a team of registered Grants.gov applicants to use a shared online space for completing individual forms and submitting the final application. These forms can be filled out simultaneously by different users, instead of exchanging a single PDF package file via email or a flash drive as is used when completing the traditional Adobe application package. Please go to this Grants.gov link for more information and training, etc. on using Workspace: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/workspace-overview.html.

1. REGISTER EARLY – Grants.gov registration involves many steps including registration on SAM (www.sam.gov) which may take approximately one week to complete, but could take upwards of several weeks to complete, depending upon the completeness and accuracy of the data entered into the SAM database by an applicant. You may begin working on your application while completing the registration process, but you cannot submit an application until all of the Registration steps are complete. Please note that once your SAM registration is active, it will take 24-48 hours for the information to be available in Grants.gov, and before you can submit an application through Grants.gov. For detailed information on the Registration Steps, please go to: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/register.html. [Note: Your organization will need to update its SAM registration annually.]

Primary information about SAM is available at www.sam.gov. However, to further assist you with obtaining and registering your DUNS number and TIN in SAM or updating your existing SAM account, the Department of Education has prepared a SAM.gov Tip Sheet which you can find at: http://www2.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/sam-faqs.html.

2. SUBMIT EARLY – We strongly recommend that you do not wait until the last day to submit your application. Grants.gov will put a date/time stamp on your application and then process it after it is fully uploaded. The time it takes to upload an application will vary depending on a number of factors including the size of the application and the speed of your Internet connection, and the time it takes Grants.gov to process the application will vary as well. If Grants.gov rejects your application (see step three below), you will need to resubmit successfully to Grants.gov before 4:30:00 p.m. Washington, DC time on the deadline date.

Note: To submit successfully, you must provide the DUNS number on your application that was used when you registered as an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) on Grants.gov. This DUNS number is typically the same number used when your organization registered with SAM. If you do not enter the same DUNS number on your application as the DUNS you registered with, Grants.gov will reject your application.

3. VERIFY SUBMISSION IS OK – You will want to verify that Grants.gov received your application submission on time and that it was validated successfully. To see the date/time your application was received, log in to Grants.gov and click on the Track My Application link. For a successful submission, the date/time received should be earlier than 4:30:00 p.m. Washington, DC time, on the deadline date, AND the application status should be: Validated, Received by Agency, or Agency Tracking Number Assigned. Once the Department of Education receives your application from Grants.gov, an Agency Tracking Number (PR/award number) will be assigned to your application and will be available for viewing on Grants.gov’s Track My Application link.

If the date/time received is later than 4:30:00 p.m. Washington, D.C. time, on the deadline date, your application is late. If your application has a status of “Received,” it is still awaiting validation by Grants.gov. Once validation is complete, the status will change to either “Validated” or “Rejected with Errors.” If the status is “Rejected with Errors,” your application has not been received successfully. Some of the reasons Grants.gov may reject an application can be found on the Grants.gov site: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/encountering-error-messages.html. For more detailed information on troubleshooting Adobe errors, you can review the Adobe Reader Software Tip Sheet at: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/adobe-software-compatibility.html. If you discover your application is late or has been rejected, please see the instructions below. Note: You will receive a series of confirmations both online and via e-mail about the status of your application. Please do not rely solely on e-mail to confirm whether your application has been received timely and validated successfully.

Submission Problems – What should you do?

If you have problems submitting to Grants.gov before the closing date, please contact Grants.gov Customer Support at 1-800-518-4726 or by e-mail at: [email protected] or access the Grants.gov Self-Service Knowledge Base web portal at: https://grants-portal.psc.gov/Welcome.aspx?pt=Grants.

If electronic submission is required, you must submit an electronic application before 4:30:00 p.m., unless you follow the procedures in the Federal Register notice and 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. If electronic submission is optional and you have problems that you are unable to resolve before the deadline date and time for electronic applications, please follow the transmittal instructions for hard copy applications in the Federal Register notice and get a hard copy application postmarked by midnight on the deadline date. (See the Federal Register notice for detailed instructions.)

Helpful Hints When Working with Grants.gov

Please note, once you download an application from Grants.gov, you will be working offline and saving data on your computer. Please be sure to note where you are saving the Grants.gov file on your computer. You will need to log on to Grants.gov to upload and submit the application. You must provide the DUNS number on your application that was used when you registered as an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) on Grants.gov.

Please go to http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support.html for help with Grants.gov. For additional tips related to submitting grant applications, please refer to the Grants.gov Applicant FAQs found at this Grants.gov link: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-faqs.html.

Dial-Up Internet Connections

When using a dial up connection to upload and submit your application, it can take significantly longer than when you are connected to the Internet with a high-speed connection, e.g., cable modem/DSL/T1. While times will vary depending upon the size of your application, it can take a few minutes to a few hours to complete your grant submission using a dial up connection. If you do not have access to a high-speed connection and electronic submission is required, you may want to consider following the instructions in the Federal Register notice to obtain an exception to the electronic submission requirement no later than two weeks before the application deadline date. (See the Federal Register notice for detailed instructions.)

Attaching Files – Additional Tips

Please note the following tips related to attaching files to your application, especially the requirement that applicants only include read-only, non-modifiable .PDF files in their application:

• Ensure that you attach .PDF files only for any attachments to your application, and they must be in a read-only, non-modifiable format. PDF files are the only Education approved file type accepted as detailed in the Federal Register application notice. Applicants must submit individual .PDF files only when attaching files to their application. Specifically, the Department will not accept any attachments that contain files within a file, such as PDF Portfolio files, or an interactive or fillable .PDF file. Any attachments uploaded that are not .PDF files or are password protected files will not be read.

• Grants.gov cannot process an application that includes two or more files that have the same name within a grant submission. Therefore, each file uploaded to your application package should have a unique file name.

• When attaching files, applicants should follow the guidelines established by Grants.gov on the size and content of file names. Uploaded file names must be fewer than 50 characters, and, in general, applicants should not use any special characters. However, Grants.gov does allow for the following UTF-8 characters when naming your attachments: A-Z, a-z, 0-9, underscore, hyphen, space, period, parenthesis, curly braces, square brackets, ampersand, tilde, exclamation point, comma, semi colon, apostrophe, at sign, number sign, dollar sign, percent sign, plus sign, and equal sign. Applications submitted that do not comply with the Grants.gov guidelines will be rejected at Grants.gov and not forwarded to the Department.

• Applicants should limit the size of their file attachments. Documents submitted that contain graphics and/or scanned material often greatly increase the size of the file attachments and can result in difficulties opening the files. For reference, the average discretionary grant application package with all attachments is less than 5 MB. Therefore, you may want to check the total size of your package before submission.

12/2016

Application Transmittal Instructions

ATTENTION ELECTRONIC APPLICANTS: Please note that you must follow the Application Procedures as described in the Federal Register notice announcing the grant competition.

This program requires the electronic submission of applications; specific requirements and waiver instructions can be found in the Federal Register notice.

According to the instructions found in the Federal Register notice, those requesting and qualifying for an exception to the electronic submission requirement may submit an application by mail, commercial carrier or by hand delivery.

If you want to apply for a grant and be considered for funding, you must meet the following deadline requirements:

Applications Submitted Electronically:

You must submit your grant application through the Internet using the software provided on Grants.gov Web site (http://grants.gov) by 4:30:00 p.m. (Washington, D.C. time) on or before the deadline date.

If you submit your application through the Internet via the Grants.gov Web site, you will receive an automatic acknowledgement when we receive your application.

For more information on using Grants.gov, please refer to the “Notice Inviting Applications” that was published in the Federal Register or visit http://grants.gov.

Submission of Paper Applications by Mail:

If you submit your application in paper format by mail (through the U.S. Postal Service or a commercial carrier), 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 Numbers 84.031R&V)

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.

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 Numbers 84.031R&V)

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.

Late Applications

If your application is late, we will notify you that we will not consider the application.

Notice Inviting Applications

4000-01-U

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Applications for New Awards; Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Program

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice.

Overview Information:

Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions (ANNH) Program.

Notice inviting applications for new awards for fiscal year (FY) 2016.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Numbers: 84.031R and 84.031V.

Dates:

Applications Available: February 26, 2016.

Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 26, 2016.

Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 27, 2016.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

Purpose of Program: The ANNH Program provides grants to eligible institutions of higher education (IHEs) that have an undergraduate enrollment of at least 20 percent Alaska Native or 10 percent Native Hawaiian students to allow such institutions to plan, develop, undertake, and carry out activities to improve and expand their capacity to serve Alaska Native and Native Hawaiians. Examples of authorized activities for the ANNH Program are in section 317(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA).

Priorities: This notice contains one absolute priority, two competitive preference priorities, and one invitational priority. The absolute priority is from the Department’s notice of final supplemental priorities and definitions for discretionary grant programs (Supplemental Priorities), published in the Federal Register on December 10, 2014 (79 FR 73425). In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(ii), the competitive preference priorities are from 34 CFR 75.226.

Absolute Priority: For FY 2016 and any subsequent year in which we make awards from the list of unfunded applications from this competition, this priority is an absolute priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that meet this priority.

This priority is:

Supporting High-Need Students.

(a) Projects that are designed to improve:

(i) Academic outcomes;

(ii) Learning environments; or

(iii) Both,

(b) For one or more of the following groups of students:

(i) High-need students.

(ii) Students with disabilities.

(iii) English learners.

(iv) Disconnected youth or migrant youth.

(v) Low-skilled adults.

Competitive Preference Priorities: For FY 2016 and any subsequent year in which we make awards from the list of unfunded applications from this competition, these priorities are competitive preference priorities. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), we award one additional point to an application that meets Competitive Preference Priority 1 and three additional points to an application that meets Competitive Preference Priority 2. Applicants may address only one of the competitive preference priorities and must clearly indicate in their application which competitive preference priority they are addressing. Applicants that apply under Competitive Preference Priority 2, but whose applications do not meet the moderate evidence of effectiveness standard, may still be considered under Competitive Preference Priority 1 to determine whether their applications meet the evidence of promise standard.

In assessing the relevance of the research cited to the proposed project, the Secretary will consider, among other factors, the portion of the requested funds that will be dedicated to the evidence-based strategies or activities. 

These priorities are:

Competitive Preference Priority 1 (One additional point) Applications supported by evidence of effectiveness that meets the conditions set out in the definition of “evidence of promise.”

Competitive Preference Priority 2 (Three additional points) Applications supported by evidence of effectiveness that meets the conditions set out in the definition of “moderate evidence of effectiveness.”

Invitational Priority: For FY 2016 and any subsequent year in which we make awards from the list of unfunded applications from this competition, this priority is an 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.

This priority is:

Projects that support activities that strengthen Native language preservation and revitalization.

Definitions: The following definitions are from 34 CFR 77.1 and the Supplemental Priorities.

Disconnected youth means low-income individuals, ages 14-24, who are homeless, are in foster care, are involved in the justice system, or are not working or not enrolled in (or at risk of dropping out of) an educational institution.

Evidence of promise means there is empirical evidence to support the theoretical linkage(s) between at least one critical component and at least one relevant outcome presented in the logic model for the proposed process, product, strategy, or practice. Specifically, evidence of promise means the conditions in both paragraphs (i) and (ii) of this definition are met:

(i) There is at least one study that is a--

(A) Correlational study with statistical controls for selection bias;

(B) Quasi-experimental design study that meets the What Works Clearinghouse Evidence Standards with reservations; or

(C) Randomized controlled trial that meets the What Works Clearinghouse Evidence Standards with or without reservations.

(ii) The study referenced in paragraph (i) of this definition found a statistically significant or substantively important (defined as a difference of 0.25 standard deviations or larger) favorable association between at least one critical component and one relevant outcome presented in the logic model for the proposed process, product, strategy, or practice.

High-minority school means a school as that term is defined by a local educational agency (LEA), which must define the term in a manner consistent with its State's Teacher Equity Plan, as required by section 1111(b)(8)(C) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended. The applicant must provide the definition(s) of high-minority schools used in its application.

High-need students means students who are at risk of educational failure or otherwise in need of special assistance and support, such as students who are living in poverty, who attend high-minority schools, who are far below grade level, who have left school before receiving a regular high school diploma, who are at risk of not graduating with a diploma on time, who are homeless, who are in foster care, who have been incarcerated, who have disabilities, or who are English learners.

Large sample means an analytic sample of 350 or more students (or other single analysis units), or 50 or more groups (such as classrooms or schools) that contain 10 or more students (or other single analysis units).

Logic model (also referred to as theory of action) means a well-specified conceptual framework that identifies key components of the proposed process, product, strategy, or practice (i.e., the active “ingredients” that are hypothesized to be critical to achieving the relevant outcomes) and describes the relationships among the key components and outcomes, theoretically and operationally.

Low-skilled adult means an adult with low literacy and numeracy skills.

Moderate evidence of effectiveness means one of the following conditions is met:

(i) There is at least one study of the effectiveness of the process, product, strategy, or practice being proposed that meets the What Works Clearinghouse Evidence Standards without reservations, found a statistically significant favorable impact on a relevant outcome (with no statistically significant and overriding unfavorable impacts on that outcome for relevant populations in the study or in other studies of the intervention reviewed by and reported on by the What Works Clearinghouse), and includes a sample that overlaps with the populations or settings proposed to receive the process, product, strategy, or practice.

(ii) There is at least one study of the effectiveness of the process, product, strategy, or practice being proposed that meets the What Works Clearinghouse Evidence Standards with reservations, found a statistically significant favorable impact on a relevant outcome (with no statistically significant and overriding unfavorable impacts on that outcome for relevant populations in the study or in other studies of the intervention reviewed by and reported on by the What Works Clearinghouse), includes a sample that overlaps with the populations or settings proposed to receive the process, product, strategy, or practice, and includes a large sample and a multi-site sample. Note: Multiple studies can cumulatively meet the large and multi-site sample requirements as long as each study meets the other requirements in this paragraph.

Multi-site sample means more than one site, where site can be defined as an LEA, locality, or State.

Quasi-experimental design study means a study using a design that attempts to approximate an experimental design by identifying a comparison group that is similar to the treatment group in important respects. These studies, depending on design and implementation, can meet What Works Clearinghouse Evidence Standards with reservations (but not What Works Clearinghouse Evidence Standards without reservations).

Randomized controlled trial means a study that employs random assignment of, for example, students, teachers, classrooms, schools, or districts to receive the intervention being evaluated (the treatment group) or not to receive the intervention (the control group). The estimated effectiveness of the intervention is the difference between the average outcome for the treatment group and for the control group. These studies, depending on design and implementation, can meet What Works Clearinghouse Evidence Standards without reservations.

Regular high school diploma means the standard high school diploma that is awarded to students in the State and that is fully aligned with the State's academic content standards or a higher diploma and does not include a General Education Development (GED) credential, certificate of attendance, or any alternative award.

Relevant outcome means the student outcome(s) (or the ultimate outcome if not related to students) the proposed process, product, strategy, or practice is designed to improve; consistent with the specific goals of a program.

State means any of the 50 States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

What Works Clearinghouse Evidence Standards means the standards set forth in the What Works Clearinghouse Procedures and Standards Handbook (Version 3.0, March 2014), which can be found at the following link: http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/DocumentSum.aspx?sid=19.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1059d.

Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General Administrative Regulations in 34 CFR parts 75, 77, 79, 82, 84, 86, 97, 98, and 99. (b) The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Guidelines to Agencies on Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension (Nonprocurement) in 2 CFR part 180, as adopted and amended as regulations of the Department in 2 CFR part 3485. (c) The Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards in 2 CFR part 200, as adopted and amended in 2 CFR part 3474. (d) The Supplemental Priorities.

II. Award Information

Type of Award: Discretionary grants.

Estimated Available Funds: $3,588,546.

Contingent upon the availability of funds and the quality of applications, we may make additional awards in FY 2017 from the list of unfunded applications from this competition.

Estimated Range of Awards: $400,000-$500,000.

Estimated Average Size of Awards: $450,000 per year.

Maximum Award: $500,000 per year.

We will reject any application that proposes a budget exceeding $500,000 for a single budget period of 12 months.

Estimated Number of Awards: 7-8.

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

Project Period: Up to 60 months.

III. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants: (a) An IHE is eligible to receive funds under the ANNH Program if it qualifies as an Alaska Native or Native Hawaiian-Serving Institution. At the time of application, an Alaska Native-Serving Institution must have an enrollment of undergraduate students that is at least 20 percent Alaska Native (34 CFR 607.2(e)); and a Native Hawaiian-Serving Institution must have an enrollment of undergraduate students that is at least 10 percent Native Hawaiian (34 CFR 607.2(f)).

At the time of submission of their applications, applicants must certify their total undergraduate headcount enrollment and that either 20 percent of the IHE’s enrollment is Alaska Native or 10 percent is Native Hawaiian. An assurance form, which is included in the application materials for this competition, must be signed by an official for the applicant and submitted.

To qualify as an eligible institution under the ANNH Program, an institution must also be–-

(i) Accredited or preaccredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association that the Secretary has determined to be a reliable authority as to the quality of education or training offered;

(ii) Legally authorized by the State in which it is located to be a junior college or to provide an educational program for which it awards a bachelor's degree; and

(iii) Designated as an “eligible institution” by demonstrating that it: (1) has an enrollment of needy students as described in 34 CFR 607.3; and (2) has low average educational and general expenditures per full-time equivalent (FTE) undergraduate student, as described in 34 CFR 607.4.

Note: The notice announcing the FY 2016 process for designation of eligible institutions, and inviting applications for waiver of eligibility requirements, was published in the Federal Register on November 19, 2015 (80 FR 72422). Only institutions that the Department determines are eligible, or are granted a waiver, may apply for a grant in this program.

2. a. Cost Sharing or Matching: This program does not require cost sharing or matching.

b. Supplement-Not-Supplant: This program involves supplement-not-supplant funding requirements.

IV. Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request Application Package: Robyn Wood or Don Crews, Office of Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 7E311, Washington, DC 20202. You may contact these individuals at the following email addresses or telephone numbers:

[email protected]; (202) 502-7437

[email protected]; (202) 502-7574

If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-800-877-8339.

You can obtain an application via the Internet using the following address: www.Grants.gov.

Individuals with disabilities can obtain a copy of the application package in an accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc) by contacting one of the program contact people 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, the absolute priority, the competitive preference priorities, and the invitational priority that reviewers use to evaluate your application.  We have established mandatory page limits.  You must limit the section of the application narrative that addresses:

• The selection criteria to no more than 50 pages.

• The absolute priority to no more than three pages.

• A competitive preference priority, to no more than three pages, if you address one.

• The invitational priority to no more than two pages, if you address it.

Accordingly, under no circumstances may the application narrative exceed 58 pages.  Include a separate heading for each priority that you address.

For the purpose of determining compliance with the page limits, each page on which there are words will be counted as one full page. Applicants must use 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 within the 1" margins.

• Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) all text in the application narrative, except titles, headings, footnotes, quotations, references, and captions and all text in charts, tables, figures, and graphs. These items may be single-spaced. Charts, tables, figures, and graphs in the application narrative count toward the page limits.

• 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, graphs, footnotes, and endnotes.

• Use one of the following fonts: Times New Roman, Courier, Courier New, or Arial. An application submitted in any other font (including Times Roman or Arial Narrow) will not be accepted.

The page limit does not apply to the Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424); the Supplemental Information for SF 424 Form; the Budget Information Summary Form (ED Form 524) and Budget Narrative; and the assurances and certifications. The page limit also does not apply to the table of contents, the one-page abstract, the resumes, the bibliography, the letters of support, program profile, or the studies. If you include any attachments or appendices, these items will be counted as part of the application narrative for purposes of the page-limit requirement. You must include your complete response to the selection criteria and priorities in the application narrative.

We will reject your application if you exceed the page limits.

3. Submission Dates and Times:

Applications Available: February 26, 2016.

Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 26, 2016.

Applications for grants under this competition 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 Other Submission Requirements in section IV 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 one of the program contact persons 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 27, 2016.

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 the regulations outlining funding restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.

6. Data Universal Numbering System Number, Taxpayer Identification Number, and System for Award Management: To do business with the Department of Education, you must--

a. Have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number and a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN);

b. Register both your DUNS number and TIN with the System for Award Management (SAM) (formerly the Central Contractor Registry), the Government’s primary registrant database;

c. Provide your DUNS number and TIN on your application; and

d. Maintain an active SAM registration with current information while your application is under review by the Department and, if you are awarded a grant, during the project period.

You can obtain a DUNS number from Dun and Bradstreet at the following Web site: http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform. A DUNS number can be created within one to two business days.

If you are a corporate entity, agency, institution, or organization, you can obtain a TIN from the Internal Revenue Service. If you are an individual, you can obtain a TIN from the Internal Revenue Service or the Social Security Administration. If you need a new TIN, please allow two to five weeks for your TIN to become active.

The SAM registration process can take approximately seven business days, but may take upwards of several weeks, depending on the completeness and accuracy of the data you enter into the SAM database. Thus, if you think you might want to apply for Federal financial assistance under a program administered by the Department, please allow sufficient time to obtain and register your DUNS number and TIN. We strongly recommend that you register early.

Note: Once your SAM registration is active, it may be 24 to 48 hours before you can access the information in, and submit an application through, Grants.gov.

If you are currently registered with SAM, you may not need to make any changes. However, please make certain that the TIN associated with your DUNS number is correct. Also note that you will need to update your registration annually. This may take three or more business days.

Information about SAM is available at www.SAM.gov. To further assist you with obtaining and registering your DUNS number and TIN in SAM or updating your existing SAM account, we have prepared a SAM.gov Tip Sheet, which you can find at: www2.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/sam-faqs.html.

In addition, if you are submitting your application via Grants.gov, you must (1) be designated by your organization as an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR); and (2) register yourself with Grants.gov as an AOR. Details on these steps are outlined at the following Grants.gov Web page: www.grants.gov/web/grants/register.html.

7. 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 Alaska Native-Serving Institutions Program (CFDA number 84.031N) and the Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Program (CFDA number 84.031W) must be submitted electronically using the Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site at 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 email 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 ANNH Program at www.Grants.gov. You must search for the downloadable application package for this program by the CFDA number. Do not include the CFDA number’s alpha suffix in your search (e.g., search for 84.031, not 84.031R or 84.031V).

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 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 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 under News and Events on the Department’s G5 system home page at www.G5.gov. In addition, for specific guidance and procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov, please refer to the Grants.gov Web site at: www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/apply-for-grants.html.

• 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: the 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 upload any narrative sections and all other attachments to your application as files in a read-only, non-modifiable Portable Document Format (PDF). Do not upload an interactive or fillable PDF file. If you upload a file type other than a read-only, non-modifiable PDF (e.g., Word, Excel, WordPerfect, etc.) or submit a password-protected file, we will not review that material. Please note that this could result in your application not being considered for funding because the material in question--for example, the project narrative--is critical to a meaningful review of your proposal.  For that reason it is important to allow yourself adequate time to upload all material as PDF files.  The Department will not convert material from other formats to PDF. 

• 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. Grants.gov will also notify you automatically by email if your application met all the Grants.gov validation requirements or if there were any errors (such as submission of your application by someone other than a registered Authorized Organization Representative, or inclusion of an attachment with a file name that contains special characters). You will be given an opportunity to correct any errors and resubmit, but you must still meet the deadline for submission of applications.

Once your application is successfully validated by Grants.gov, the Department will retrieve your application from Grants.gov and send you an email with a unique PR/Award number for your application.

These emails do not mean that your application is without any disqualifying errors. While your application may have been successfully validated by Grants.gov, it must also meet the Department’s application requirements as specified in this notice and in the application instructions. Disqualifying errors could include, for instance, failure to upload attachments in a read-only, non-modifiable PDF; failure to submit a required part of the application; or failure to meet applicant eligibility requirements. It is your responsibility to ensure that your submitted application has met all of the Department’s requirements.

• 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 one of the program contact people 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 the problem affected your ability to submit your application by 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. We will contact you after we determine 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 prevents 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: Robyn Wood, Office of Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 7E311, Washington, DC 20202. Fax: (202) 205-0063.

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 84.031R or 84.031V)

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.

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.

We will not consider applications postmarked after the application deadline date.

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 84.031R or 84.031V)

550 12th Street, SW.

Room 7039, 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. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are from 34 CFR 607.22(a) through (g). We will award up to 100 points to an application under the selection criteria; the total possible points for each criterion are noted in parentheses.

a. Quality of the applicant’s comprehensive development plan. (Maximum 25 points). The extent to which--

1. The strengths, weaknesses, and significant problems of the institution's academic programs, institutional management, and fiscal stability are clearly and comprehensively analyzed and result from a process that involved major constituencies of the institution;

2. The goals for the institution's academic programs, institutional management, and fiscal stability are realistic and based on comprehensive analysis;

3. The objectives stated in the plan are measurable, related to institutional goals, and, if achieved, will contribute to the growth and self-sufficiency of the institution; and

4. The plan clearly and comprehensively describes the methods and resources the institution will use to institutionalize practice and improvements developed under the proposed project, including, in particular, how operational costs for personnel, maintenance, and upgrades of equipment will be paid with institutional resources.

b. Quality of activity objectives. (Maximum 15 points). The extent to which the objectives for each activity are--

1. Realistic and defined in terms of measurable results; and

2. Directly related to the problems to be solved and to the goals of the comprehensive development plan.

c. Quality of implementation strategy. (Maximum 20 points). The extent to which--

1. The implementation strategy for each activity is comprehensive;

2. The rationale for the implementation strategy for each activity is clearly described and is supported by the results of relevant studies or projects; and

3. The timetable for each activity is realistic and likely to be attained.

d. Quality of key personnel. (Maximum 7 points). The extent to which--

1. The past experience and training of key professional personnel are directly related to the stated activity objectives; and

2. The time commitment of key personnel is realistic.

e. Quality of project management plan. (Maximum 10 points). The extent to which--

1. Procedures for managing the project are likely to ensure efficient and effective project implementation; and

2. The project coordinator and activity directors have sufficient authority to conduct the project effectively, including access to the president or chief executive officer.

f. Quality of evaluation plan. (Maximum 15 points). The extent to which--

1. The data elements and the data collection procedures are clearly described and appropriate to measure the attainment of activity objectives and to measure the success of the project in achieving the goals of the comprehensive development plan; and

2. The data analysis procedures are clearly described and are likely to produce formative and summative results on attaining activity objectives and measuring the success of the project on achieving the goals of the comprehensive development plan.

g. Budget. (Maximum 8 points). The extent to which the proposed costs are necessary and reasonable in relation to the project's objectives and scope.

2. Review and Selection Process: Awards will be made in rank order according to the average score received from a panel of three readers.

We remind potential applicants that in reviewing applications in any discretionary grant competition, the Secretary may consider, under 34 CFR 75.217(d)(3), the past performance of the applicant in carrying out a previous award, such as the applicant’s use of funds, achievement of project objectives, and compliance with grant conditions. The Secretary may also consider whether the applicant failed to submit a timely performance report or submitted a report of unacceptable quality.

In addition, in making a competitive grant award, the Secretary requires various assurances including those applicable to Federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination in programs or activities receiving Federal financial assistance from the Department of Education (34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23).

3. Tie-breaker for Development Grants. To resolve ties in the reader scores of applications for grants, the Department will award one additional point to an application from an IHE that has an endowment fund for which the current market value, per Full Time Equivalent (FTE) enrolled student, is less than the average current market value of the endowment funds, per FTE enrolled student at comparable institutions that offer similar instruction. In addition, to resolve ties in the reader scores of applications for grants, the Department will award one additional point to an application from an IHE that has expenditures for library materials per FTE enrolled student that are less than the average expenditures for library materials per FTE enrolled student at comparable institutions that offer similar instruction. We also will add one additional point to an application from an IHE that proposes to carry out one or more of the following activities--

(a) Faculty development;

(b) Funds and administrative management;

(c) Development and improvement of academic programs;

(d) Acquisition of equipment for use in strengthening management and academic programs;

(e) Joint use of facilities; and

(f) Student services.

For the purpose of these funding considerations, we will use the most recent complete data available (e.g., for FY 2016, we will use 2013–2014 data).

If a tie remains after applying the tie-breaker mechanism above, priority will be given to applicants that have the lowest endowment values per FTE enrolled student.

4. Risk Assessment and Special Conditions: Consistent with 2 CFR 200.205, before awarding grants under this competition the Department conducts a review of the risks posed by applicants. Under 2 CFR 3474.10, the Secretary may impose special conditions and, in appropriate circumstances, high-risk conditions on a grant if the applicant or grantee is not financially stable; has a history of unsatisfactory performance; has a financial or other management system that does not meet the standards in 2 CFR part 200, subpart D; has not fulfilled the conditions of a prior grant; or is otherwise not responsible.

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); or we may send you an email containing a link to access an electronic version of your 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 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: (a) If you apply for a grant under this competition, you must ensure that you have in place the necessary processes and systems to comply with the reporting requirements in 2 CFR part 170 should you receive funding under the competition. This does not apply if you have an exception under 2 CFR 170.110(b).

(b) 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 multiyear 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. The Secretary may also require more frequent performance reports under 34 CFR 75.720(c). For specific requirements on reporting, please go to www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/appforms/appforms.html.

(c) Under 34 CFR 75.250(b), the Secretary may provide a grantee with additional funding for data collection analysis and reporting. In this case the Secretary establishes a data collection period.

4. Performance Measures: The Secretary has established the following key performance measures for assessing the effectiveness of the ANNH Program:

(a) The percentage change, over the five-year period, of the number of full-time degree-seeking undergraduates enrolled at ANNHs. Note that this is a long-term measure, which will be used to periodically gauge performance;

(b) The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students at four-year ANNHs who were in their first year of postsecondary enrollment in the previous year and are enrolled in the current year at the same ANNH;

(c) The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students at two-year ANNHs who were in their first year of postsecondary enrollment in the previous year and are enrolled in the current year at the same ANNH;

(d) The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students enrolled at four-year ANNHs who graduate within six years of enrollment; and

(e) The percentage of first-time, full-time degree seeking undergraduate students enrolled at two-year ANNHs who graduate within three years of enrollment.

5. Continuation Awards: In making a continuation award under 34 CFR 75.253, the Secretary considers, among other things: whether a grantee has made substantial progress in achieving the goals and objectives of the project; whether the grantee has expended funds in a manner that is consistent with its approved application and budget; and, if the Secretary has established performance measurement requirements, the performance targets in the grantee’s approved application.

In making a continuation award, the Secretary also considers whether the grantee is operating in compliance with the assurances in its approved application, including those applicable to Federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination in programs or activities receiving Federal financial assistance from the Department (34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23).

VII. Agency Contacts

For Further Information Contact: Robyn Wood or Don Crews, Office of Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Mary1and Avenue, SW., room 7E311, Washington, DC 20202. You may contact these individuals at the following email addresses or telephone numbers:

[email protected]; (202) 502-7437

[email protected]; (202) 502-7574

If you use a TDD or a TTY, 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 compact disc) on request to the program contact persons listed under For Further Information Contact in this notice.

Electronic Access to This Document: 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 via the Federal Digital System at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you can view this document, as well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal Register, in text or PDF. To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the site.

You may also access documents of the Department published in the Federal Register by using the article search feature at: www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published by the Department.

Dated: February 23, 2016

/s/

_____________________________

Lynn B. Mahaffie,

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Planning, and Innovation, Delegated the duties of the Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.

Program Statute

HIGHER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965, AS AMENDED

TITLE III---INSTITUTIONAL AID

 SEC. 301. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

(a) FINDINGS. --The Congress finds that--

(1) there are a significant number of institutions of higher education serving high percentages of minority students and students from low-income backgrounds, that face problems that threaten their ability to survive;

(2) the problems relate to the management and fiscal operations of certain institutions of higher education, as well as to an inability to engage in long-range planning and development activities, including endowment building;

(3) in order to be competitive and provide a high-quality education for all, institutions of higher education should improve their technological capacity and make effective use of technology;

(4) the title III program prior to 1985 did not always meet the specific development needs of historically Black colleges and universities and other institutions with large concentrations of minority, low-income students;

(5) the solution of the problems of these institutions would enable them to become viable, fiscally stable and independent, thriving institutions of higher education;

(6) providing assistance to eligible institutions will enhance the role of such institutions in providing access and quality education to low-income and minority students;

(7) these institutions play an important role in the American system of higher education, and there is a strong national interest in assisting them in solving their problems and in stabilizing their management and fiscal operations, and in becoming financially independent; and

(8) there is a particular national interest in aiding those institutions of higher education that have historically served students who have been denied access to postsecondary education because of race or national origin and whose participation in the American system of higher education is in the Nation’s interest so that equality of access and quality of postsecondary education opportunities may be enhanced for all students.

(b) PURPOSE. --It is the purpose of this title to assist such institutions in equalizing educational opportunity through a program of Federal assistance.

TITLE III - PART F

SEC. 371.

 (a) Eligible institution

An institution of higher education is eligible to receive funds from the amounts made available under this section if such institution is—

(1) a part B institution (as defined in section 1061 of this title);

(2) a Hispanic-serving institution (as defined in section 1101a of this title);

(3) a Tribal College or University (as defined in section 1059c of this title);

(4) an Alaska Native-serving institution or a Native Hawaiian-serving institution (as defined in section 1059d (b) of this title);

(5) a Predominantly Black Institution (as defined in subsection (c));

(6) an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution (as defined in subsection (c)); or

(7) a Native American-serving nontribal institution (as defined in subsection (c)).

(b) New investment of funds

(1) In general

(A) Provision of funds

There shall be available to the Secretary to carry out this section, from funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $255,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2019. The authority to award grants under this section shall expire at the end of fiscal year 2019.

(B) Availability

Funds made available under subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year shall remain available for the next succeeding fiscal year.

(2) Allocation and allotment

(A) In general

Of the amounts made available under paragraph (1) for each fiscal year—

(i) $100,000,000 shall be available for allocation under subparagraph (B);

(ii) $100,000,000 shall be available for allocation under subparagraph (C); and

(iii) $55,000,000 shall be available for allocation under subparagraph (D).

(B) HSI STEM and articulation programs

The amount made available for allocation under this subparagraph by subparagraph (A)(i) for any fiscal year shall be available for Hispanic-serving Institutions  ^[1] for activities described in section 1101b of this title, with a priority given to applications that propose—

(i) to increase the number of Hispanic and other low income students attaining degrees in the fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics; and

(ii) to develop model transfer and articulation agreements between 2-year Hispanic-serving institutions and 4-year institutions in such fields.

(C) Allocation and allotment HBCUS and PBIS

From the amount made available for allocation under this subparagraph by subparagraph (A)(ii) for any fiscal year—

(i) 85 percent shall be available to eligible institutions described in subsection (a)(1) and shall be made available as grants under section 1062 of this title and allotted among such institutions under section 1063 of this title, treating such amount, plus the amount appropriated for such fiscal year in a regular or supplemental appropriation Act to carry out part B of this subchapter, as the amount appropriated to carry out part B of this subchapter for purposes of allotments under section 1063 of this title, for use by such institutions with a priority for—

(I) activities described in paragraphs (1), (2), (4), (5), and (10) of section 1062 (a) of this title; and

(II) other activities, consistent with the institution’s comprehensive plan and designed to increase the institution’s capacity to prepare students for careers in the physical or natural sciences, mathematics, computer science or information technology or sciences, engineering, language instruction in the less-commonly taught languages or international affairs, or nursing or allied health professions; and

(ii) 15 percent shall be available to eligible institutions described in subsection (a)(5) and shall be available for a competitive grant program to award 25 grants of $600,000 annually for programs in any of the following areas:

(I) science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM);

(II) health education;

(III) internationalization or globalization;

(IV) teacher preparation; or

(V) improving educational outcomes of African American males.

(D) Allocation and allotment to other minority-serving institutions

From the amount made available for allocation under this subparagraph by subparagraph (A)(iii) for any fiscal year—

(i) $30,000,000 for such fiscal year shall be available to eligible institutions described in subsection (a)(3) and shall be made available as grants under section 1059c of this title, treating such $30,000,000 as part of the amount appropriated for such fiscal year in a regular or supplemental appropriation Act to carry out such section, and using such $30,000,000 for purposes described in subsection (c) of such section;

(ii) $15,000,000 for such fiscal year shall be available to eligible institutions described in subsection (a)(4) and shall be made available as grants under section 1059d of this title, treating such $15,000,000 as part of the amount appropriated for such fiscal year in a regular or supplemental appropriation Act to carry out such section and using such $15,000,000 for purposes described in subsection (c) of such section;

(iii) $5,000,000 for such fiscal year shall be available to eligible institutions described in subsection (a)(6) for activities described in section 1057 (c) of this title; and

(iv) $5,000,000 for such fiscal year shall be available to eligible institutions described in subsection (a)(7)—

(I) to plan, develop, undertake, and carry out activities to improve and expand such institutions’ capacity to serve Native Americans, which may include—

(aa) the purchase, rental, or lease of scientific or laboratory equipment for educational purposes, including instructional and research purposes;

(bb) renovation and improvement in classroom, library, laboratory, and other instructional facilities;

(cc) support of faculty exchanges, faculty development, and faculty fellowships to assist faculty in attaining advanced degrees in the faculty’s field of instruction;

(dd) curriculum development and academic instruction;

(ee) the purchase of library books, periodicals, microfilm, and other educational materials;

(ff) funds and administrative management, and acquisition of equipment for use in strengthening funds management;

(gg) the joint use of facilities such as laboratories and libraries; and

(hh) academic tutoring and counseling programs and student support services; and

(II) to which the Secretary, to the extent possible and consistent with a competitive process under which such grants are awarded, allocates funds under this clause to ensure maximum and equitable distribution among all such eligible institutions.

(c) Definitions

(1) Asian American

The term “Asian American” has the meaning given the term “Asian” in the Office of Management and Budget’s Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity as published on October 30, 1997 (62 Fed. Reg. 58789).

(2) Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution

The term “Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution” means an institution of higher education that—

(A) is an eligible institution under section 1058 (b) of this title; and

(B) at the time of application, has an enrollment of undergraduate students that is at least 10 percent Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander students.

(3) Enrollment of needy students

The term “enrollment of needy students” means the enrollment at an institution of higher education with respect to which not less than 50 percent of the undergraduate students enrolled in an academic program leading to a degree—

(A) in the second fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which the determination is made, were Federal Pell Grant recipients for such year;

(B) come from families that receive benefits under a means-tested Federal benefit program (as defined in paragraph (5));

(C) attended a public or nonprofit private secondary school—

(i) that is in the school district of a local educational agency that was eligible for assistance under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 [20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.] for any year during which the student attended such secondary school; and

(ii) which for the purpose of this paragraph and for that year was determined by the Secretary (pursuant to regulations and after consultation with the State educational agency of the State in which the school is located) to be a school in which the enrollment of children counted under a measure of poverty described in section 1113(a)(5) of such Act [20 U.S.C. 6313 (a)(5)] exceeds 30 percent of the total enrollment of such school; or

(D) are first-generation college students (as that term is defined in section 1070a–11 (h) of this title), and a majority of such first-generation college students are low-income individuals.

(4) Low-income individual

The term “low-income individual” has the meaning given such term in section 1070a–11 (h) of this title.

(5) Means-tested Federal benefit program

The term “means-tested Federal benefit program” means a program of the Federal Government, other than a program under subchapter IV of this chapter and part C of subchapter I of chapter 34 of title 42, in which eligibility for the programs’ benefits or the amount of such benefits are determined on the basis of income or resources of the individual or family seeking the benefit.

(6) Native American

The term “Native American” means an individual who is of a tribe, people, or culture that is indigenous to the United States.

(7) Native American Pacific Islander

The term “Native American Pacific Islander” means any descendant of the aboriginal people of any island in the Pacific Ocean that is a territory or possession of the United States.

(8) Native American-serving nontribal institution

The term “Native American-serving nontribal institution” means an institution of higher education that—

(A) at the time of application—

(i) has an enrollment of undergraduate students that is not less than 10 percent Native American students; and

(ii) is not a Tribal College or University (as defined in section 1059c of this title); and

(B) submits to the Secretary such enrollment data as may be necessary to demonstrate that the institution is described in subparagraph (A), along with such other information and data as the Secretary may by regulation require.

(9) Predominantly Black institution

The term “Predominantly Black institution” means an institution of higher education that—

(A) has an enrollment of needy students as defined by paragraph (3);

(B) has an average educational and general expenditure which is low, per full-time equivalent undergraduate student in comparison with the average educational and general expenditure per full-time equivalent undergraduate student of institutions of higher education that offer similar instruction, except that the Secretary may apply the waiver requirements described in section 1068a (b) of this title to this subparagraph in the same manner as the Secretary applies the waiver requirements to section 1058 (b)(1)(B) of this title;

(C) has an enrollment of undergraduate students—

(i) that is at least 40 percent Black American students;

(ii) that is at least 1,000 undergraduate students;

(iii) of which not less than 50 percent of the undergraduate students enrolled at the institution are low-income individuals or first-generation college students (as that term is defined in section 1070a–11 (h) of this title); and

(iv) of which not less than 50 percent of the undergraduate students are enrolled in an educational program leading to a bachelor’s or associate’s degree that the institution is licensed to award by the State in which the institution is located;

(D) is legally authorized to provide, and provides within the State, an educational program for which the institution of higher education awards a bachelor’s degree, or in the case of a junior or community college, an associate’s degree;

(E) is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association determined by the Secretary to be a reliable authority as to the quality of training offered, or is, according to such an agency or association, making reasonable progress toward accreditation; and

(F) is not receiving assistance under—

(i) part B;

(ii) part A of subchapter V; or

(iii) an annual authorization of appropriations under the Act of March 2, 1867 (14 Stat. 438; 20 U.S.C. 123).

SEC. 313. DURATION OF GRANT.

(a) AWARD PERIOD.--The Secretary may award a grant to an eligible institution under this part for 5 years.

(b) LIMITATIONS.--In awarding grants under this part the Secretary shall give priority to applicants who are not already receiving a grant under this part, except that for the purpose of this subsection a grant under subsection (c) and a grant under section 394(a)(1) shall not be considered a grant under this part.

(c) PLANNING GRANTS.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), the Secretary may award a grant to an eligible institution under this part for a period of one year for the purpose of preparation of plans and applications for a grant under this part.

 

SEC. 314. APPLICATIONS.

Each eligible institution desiring to receive assistance under this part shall submit an application in accordance with the requirements of section 391.

 

SEC. 315. GOALS FOR FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT AND ACADEMIC PROGRAM.

(a) GOALS.-- Any application for a grant under this part shall describe measurable goals for the institution’s financial management and academic programs, and include a plan of how the applicant intends to achieve those goals.

(b) CONTINUATION REQUIREMENTS. -- Any continuation application shall demonstrate the progress made toward achievement of the goals described pursuant to subsection (a).

SEC. 317. ALASKA NATIVE AND NATIVE HAWAIIAN-SERVING INSTITUTIONS.

(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. -- The Secretary shall provide grants and related assistance to Alaska Native-serving institutions and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions to enable such institutions to improve and expand their capacity to serve Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians.

(b) DEFINITIONS.-- For the purpose of this section--(1) the term “Alaska Native” has the meaning given the term in section 9308 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965;

(2) the term “Alaska Native-serving institution” means an institution of higher education that--

(A) is an eligible institution under section 312(b); and (B) at the time of application, has an enrollment of undergraduate students that is at least 20 percent Alaska Native students;

(3) the term “Native Hawaiian” has the meaning given the term in section 9212 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965; and

(4) the term “Native Hawaiian-serving institution” means an institution of higher education which--

(A) is an eligible institution under section 312(b); and (B) at the time of application, has an enrollment of undergraduate students that is at least 10 percent Native Hawaiian students.

(c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.--

(1) TYPES OF ACTIVITIES AUTHORIZED.-- Grants awarded under this section shall be used by Alaska Native-serving institutions and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions to assist such institutions to plan, develop, undertake, and carry out activities to improve and expand such institutions’ capacity to serve Alaska Natives or Native Hawaiians.

(2) EXAMPLES OF AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES. -- Such programs may include--

(A) purchase, rental, or lease of scientific or laboratory equipment for educational purposes, including instructional and research purposes;

(B) renovation and improvement in classroom, library, laboratory, and other instructional facilities;

(C) support of faculty exchanges, and faculty development and faculty fellowships to assist in attaining advanced degrees in the faculty’s field of instruction;

(D) curriculum development and academic instruction;

(E) purchase of library books, periodicals, microfilm, and other educational materials;

(F) funds and administrative management, and acquisition of equipment for use in strengthening funds management;

(G) joint use of facilities such as laboratories and libraries;

and

(H) academic tutoring and counseling programs and student support services.

(d) APPLICATION PROCESS.--

(1) INSTITUTIONAL ELIGIBILITY.-- Each Alaska Native-serving institution and Native Hawaiian-serving institution desiring to receive assistance under this section shall submit to the Secretary such enrollment data as may be necessary to demonstrate that the institution is an Alaska Native-serving institution

or a Native Hawaiian-serving institution as defined in subsection (b), along with such other information and data as the Secretary may by regulation require.

(2) APPLICATIONS.-- Any institution which is determined by the Secretary to be an Alaska Native-serving institution or a Native Hawaiian-serving institution may submit an application for assistance under this section to the Secretary. Such application shall include--

(A) a 5-year plan for improving the assistance provided by the Alaska Native-serving institution or the Native Hawaiian-serving institution to Alaska Native or Native Hawaiian students; and

(B) such other information and assurance as the Secretary may require.

(e) SPECIAL RULE.-- For the purposes of this section, no Alaska Native-serving institution or Native Hawaiian-serving institution which is eligible for and receives funds under this section may concurrently receive other funds under this part or part B.

  

PART F--GENERAL PROVISIONS

 

SEC. 391. APPLICATIONS FOR ASSISTANCE.

(a) APPLICATIONS.--(1) APPLICATIONS REQUIRED.-- Any institution which is eligible for assistance under this title shall submit to the Secretary an application for assistance at such time, in such form, and containing such information, as may be necessary to enable the Secretary to evaluate the institution’s need for the assistance. Subject to the availability of appropriations to carry out this title, the Secretary may approve an application for assistance under this title only if the Secretary determines that--

(A) the application meets the requirements of subsection (b);

(B) the applicant is eligible for assistance in accordance with the part of this title under which the assistance is sought; and

(C) the applicant’s performance goals are sufficiently rigorous as to meet the purposes of this title and the performance objectives and indicators for this title established by the Secretary pursuant to the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 and the amendments made by such Act.

(2) PRELIMINARY APPLICATIONS.-- In carrying out paragraph (1), the Secretary may develop a preliminary application for use by eligible institutions applying under part A prior to the submission of the principal application.

(b) CONTENTS.-- An institution, in its application for a grant, shall--

(1) set forth, or describe how the institution (other than an institution applying under part C, D or E) will develop, a comprehensive development plan to strengthen the institution’s academic quality and institutional management, and otherwise provide for institutional self-sufficiency and growth (including measurable objectives for the institution and the Secretary to use in monitoring the effectiveness of activities under this title);

(2) set forth policies and procedures to ensure that Federal funds made available under this title for any fiscal year will be used to supplement and, to the extent practical, increase the funds that would otherwise be made available for the purposes of section 311(b) or 323, and in no case supplant those funds;

(3) set forth policies and procedures for evaluating the effectiveness in accomplishing the purpose of the activities for which a grant is sought under this title;

(4) provide for such fiscal control and fund accounting procedures as may be necessary to ensure proper disbursement of and accounting for funds made available to the applicant under this title;

(5) provide (A) for making such reports, in such form and containing such information, as the Secretary may require to carry out the functions under this title, including not less than one report annually setting forth the institution’s progress toward achieving the objectives for which the funds were awarded, and (B) for keeping such records and affording such access thereto, as the Secretary may find necessary to assure the correctness and verification of such reports;

(6) provide that the institution will comply with the limitations set forth in section 357, except that for purposes of section 316, paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 396 shall not apply;

(7) describe in a comprehensive manner any proposed project for which funds are sought under the application and include--

(A) a description of the various components of the proposed project, including the estimated time required to complete each such component;

(B) in the case of any development project which consists of several components (as described by the applicant pursuant to subparagraph (A)), a statement identifying those components which, if separately funded, would be sound investments of Federal funds and those components which would be sound investments of Federal funds only if funded under this title in conjunction with other parts of the development project (as specified by the applicant);

(C) an evaluation by the applicant of the priority given any proposed project for which funds are sought in relation to any other projects for which funds are sought by the applicant under this title, and a similar evaluation regarding priorities among the components of any single proposed project (as described by the applicant pursuant to subparagraph (A));

(D) a detailed budget showing the manner in which funds for any proposed project would be spent by the applicant; and

(E) a detailed description of any activity which involves the expenditure of more than $25,000, as identified in the budget referred to in subparagraph (E); and

(8) include such other information as the Secretary may prescribe.

(c) PRIORITY CRITERIA PUBLICATION REQUIRED.-- The Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register, pursuant to chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, all policies and procedures required to exercise the authority set forth in subsection (a). No other criteria, policies, or procedures shall apply.

(d) ELIGIBILITY DATA.-- The Secretary shall use the most recent and relevant data concerning the number and percentage of students receiving need-based assistance under title IV of this Act in making eligibility determinations under section 312 and shall advance the base-year forward following each annual grant cycle.

Sec. 392. (20 U.S.C. 1068a) WAIVER AUTHORITY AND REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

(a) WAIVER REQUIREMENTS; NEED-BASED ASSISTANCE STUDENTS.--

The Secretary may waive the requirements set forth in section 312(b)(1)(A) in the case of an institution--

(1) which is extensively subsidized by the State in which it is located and charges low or no tuition;

(2) which serves a substantial number of low-income students as a percentage of its total student population;

(3) which is contributing substantially to increasing higher education opportunities for educationally disadvantaged, underrepresented, or minority students, who are low-income individuals;

(4) which is substantially increasing higher educational opportunities for individuals in rural or other isolated areas which are unserved by postsecondary institutions;

(5) located on or near an Indian reservation or a substantial population of Indians, if the Secretary determines that the waiver will substantially increase higher education opportunities appropriate to the needs of American Indians;

(6) that is a tribally controlled college or university as defined in section 2 of the Tribally Controlled College or University Assistance Act of 1978; or

(7) wherever located, if the Secretary determines that the waiver will substantially increase higher education opportunities appropriate to the needs of Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans, or Pacific Islanders, including Native Hawaiians.

(b) WAIVER DETERMINATIONS; EXPENDITURES.-- (1) The Secretary may waive the requirements set forth in section 312(b)(1)(B) if the Secretary determines, based on persuasive evidence submitted by the institution, that the institution’s failure to meet that criterion is due to factors which, when used in the determination of compliance with such criterion, distort such determination, and that the institution’s designation as an eligible institution under part A is otherwise consistent with the purposes of such parts.

(2) The Secretary shall submit to the Congress every other year a report concerning the institutions which, although not satisfying the criterion contained in section 312(b)(1)(B), have been determined to be eligible institutions under part A institutions which enroll significant numbers of Black American, Hispanic, Native American, Asian American, or Native Hawaiian students under part A, as the case may be. Such report shall--

(A) identify the factors referred to in paragraph (1) which were considered by the Secretary as factors that distorted the determination of compliance with subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section 312(b)(1); and

(B) contain a list of each institution determined to be an eligible institution under part A including a statement of the reasons for each such determination.

(3) The Secretary may waive the requirement set forth in section 312(b)(1)(E) in the case of an institution located on or near an Indian reservation or a substantial population of Indians, if the Secretary determines that the waiver will substantially increase higher education opportunities appropriate to the needs of American Indians.

SEC. 393. APPLICATION REVIEW PROCESS.

(a) REVIEW PANEL.--(1) All applications submitted under this title by institutions of higher education shall be read by a panel of readers composed of individuals selected by the Secretary. The Secretary shall assure that no individual assigned under this section to review any application has any conflict of interest with regard to the application which might impair the impartiality with which the individual conducts the review under this section.

(2) The Secretary shall take care to assure that representatives of historically and predominantly Black colleges, Hispanic institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and institutions with substantial numbers of Hispanics, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and Native American Pacific Islanders (including Native Hawaiians) are included as readers.

(3) All readers selected by the Secretary shall receive thorough instruction from the Secretary regarding the evaluation process for applications submitted under this title and consistent with the provisions of this title, including--

(A) explanations and examples of the types of activities referred to in section 311(b) that should receive special consideration for grants awarded under part A and of the types of activities referred to in section 323 that should receive special consideration for grants awarded under part B;

(B) an enumeration of the factors to be used to determine the quality of applications submitted under this title; and

(C) an enumeration of the factors to be used to determine whether a grant should be awarded for a project under this title, the amount of any such grant, and the duration of any such grant.

(b) RECOMMENDATIONS OF PANEL.-- In awarding grants under this title, the Secretary shall take into consideration the recommendations of the panel made under subsection (a).

(c) NOTIFICATION.-- Not later than June 30 of each year, the Secretary shall notify each institution of higher education making an application under this title of--

(1) the scores given the applicant by the panel pursuant to this section;

(2) the recommendations of the panel with respect to such application; and

(3) the reasons for the decision of the Secretary in awarding or refusing to award a grant under this title, and any modifications, if any, in the recommendations of the panel made by the Secretary.

(d) EXCLUSION.-- The provisions of this section shall not apply to applications submitted under part D.

 

SEC. 394. COOPERATIVE ARRANGEMENTS.

(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.-- The Secretary may make grants to encourage cooperative arrangements

(1) with funds available to carry out part A, between institutions eligible for assistance under part A and between such institutions and institutions not receiving assistance under this title; or

(2) with funds available to carry out part B, between institutions eligible for assistance under part B and institutions not receiving assistance under this title; for the activities described in section 311(b) or section 323, as the case may be, so that the resources of the cooperating institutions might be combined and shared to achieve the purposes of such parts and avoid costly duplicative efforts and to enhance the development of part A and part B eligible institutions.

(b) PRIORITY. -- The Secretary shall give priority to grants for the purposes described under subsection (a) whenever the Secretary determines that the cooperative arrangement is geographically and economically sound or will benefit the applicant institution.

(c) DURATION. -- Grants to institutions having a cooperative arrangement may be made under this section for a period as determined under section 313 or section 323.

SEC. 395. ASSISTANCE TO INSTITUTIONS UNDER OTHER PROGRAMS.

(a) ASSISTANCE ELIGIBILITY.-- Each institution which the Secretary determines to be an institution eligible under part A or an institution eligible under part B may be eligible for waivers in accordance with subsection (b).

(b) WAIVER APPLICABILITY.-- (1) Subject to, and in accordance with, regulations promulgated for the purpose of this section, in the case of any application by an institution referred to in subsection (a) for assistance under any programs specified in paragraph (2), the Secretary is authorized, if such application is otherwise approvable, to waive any requirement for a non-Federal share of the cost of the program or project, or, to the extent not inconsistent with other law, to give, or require to be given, priority consideration of the application in relation to applications from other institutions.

(2) The provisions of this section shall apply to any program authorized by part D or title IV of this Act.

(c) LIMITATION. -- The Secretary shall not waive, under sub-section (b), the non-Federal share requirement for any program for applications which, if approved, would require the expenditure of more than 10 percent of the appropriations for the program for any fiscal year.

 

SEC. 396. LIMITATIONS.

The funds appropriated under section 360 may not be used--

(1) for a school or department of divinity or any religious worship or sectarian activity;

(2) for an activity that is inconsistent with a State plan for desegregation of higher education applicable to such institution;

(3) for an activity that is inconsistent with a State plan of higher education applicable to such institution; or

(4) for purposes other than the purposes set forth in the approved application under which the funds were made available to the institution.

 

SEC. 397. PENALTIES.

Whoever, being an officer, director, agent, or employee of, or connected in any capacity with, any recipient of Federal financial assistance or grant pursuant to this title embezzles, willfully misapplies, steals, or obtains by fraud any of the funds which are the subject of such grant or assistance, shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned for not more than 2 years, or both.

 

SEC. 398. CONTINUATION AWARDS

The Secretary shall make continuation awards under this title for the second and succeeding years of a grant only after determining that the recipient is making satisfactory progress in carrying out the grant.

 

SEC. 399. AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.

(a) AUTHORIZATIONS.--

(1) PART A.--(A) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part A, $135,000,000 (other than section 316) for fiscal year 1999, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(B) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 316, $10,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(C) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 317, $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(2) PART B.--(A) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part B (other than section 326), $135,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(B) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 326, $35,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(3) PART C.-- There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part C, $10,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(4) PART D.-- (A) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part D (other than section 345(7), but including section 347), $110,000 for fiscal year 1999, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(B) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 345(7), such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 1999 and each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(5) PART E.-- There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part E, $10,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.

(b) USE OF MULTIPLE YEAR AWARDS.-- In the event of a multiple year award to any institution under this title, the Secretary shall make funds available for such award from funds appropriated for this title for the fiscal year in which such funds are to be used by the recipient.

HIGHER EDUCATION OPPORTUNITY ACT OF 2008, P.L. 110-315

TITLE III—INSTITUTIONAL AID

SEC. 302. DEFINITIONS; ELIGIBILITY.

Section 312 (20 U.S.C. 1058) is amended—

(1) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by striking “subsection (c) of this section” and inserting “subsection (d)”;

(2) in subsection (d)(2), by striking “subdivision” and inserting “paragraph”;

(3) by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (h); and

(4) by inserting after subsection (f) the following:

“(g) LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUAL.—For the purpose of this part, the term ‘low-income individual’ means an individual from a family whose taxable income for the preceding year did not exceed 150 percent of an amount equal to the poverty level determined by using criteria of poverty established by the Bureau of the Census.”

SEC. 304. ALASKA NATIVE AND NATIVE HAWAIIAN-SERVING INSTITUTIONS.

Section 317(c)(2) (20 U.S.C. 1059d(c)(2)) is amended--

(1) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``and'' after the semicolon;

(2) in subparagraph (H), by striking the period and inserting ``; and''; and

(3) by adding at the end the following:

``(I) education or counseling services designed to improve the financial literacy and economic literacy of students or the students' families.''

SEC. 317. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

Section 391 (20 U.S.C. 1068) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``(e) Technical Assistance.--The Secretary, directly or by grant or contract, may provide technical assistance to eligible institutions to prepare the institutions to qualify, apply for, and maintain a grant, under this title.''.

SEC. 318. WAIVER AUTHORITY.

Section 392 (20 U.S.C. 1068a) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``(c) Waiver Authority With Respect to Institutions Located in an Area Affected by a Gulf Hurricane Disaster.--

``(1) Waiver authority.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, unless enacted with specific reference to this section, for any affected institution that was receiving assistance under this title at the time of a Gulf hurricane disaster, the Secretary shall, for each of the fiscal years 2009 through 2011 (and may, for each of the fiscal years 2013 and 2013)--

``(A) waive--

``(i) the eligibility data requirements set forth in section 391(d);

``(ii) the wait-out period set forth in section 313(d);

``(iii) the allotment requirements under section 324; and

``(iv) the use of the funding formula developed pursuant to section 326(f)(3);

``(B) waive or modify any statutory or regulatory provision to ensure that affected institutions that were receiving assistance under this title at the time of a

Gulf hurricane disaster are not adversely affected by any formula calculation for fiscal year 2009 or for any of the four succeeding fiscal years, as necessary; and

``(C) make available to each affected institution an amount that is not less than the amount made available to such institution under this title for fiscal year

2006, except that for any fiscal year for which the funds appropriated for payments under this title are less than the appropriated level for fiscal year 2006,

the amount made available to such institutions shall be ratably reduced among the institutions receiving funds under this title.

``(2) Definitions.--In this subsection:

``(A) Affected institution.--The term `affected institution' means an institution of higher education that--

``(i) is--``(I) a part A institution (which term shall have the meaning given the

term `eligible institution' under section 312(b)); or (II) a part B institution, as such term is defined in section 322(2), or as identified in section 326(e);

``(ii) is located in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster; and

``(iii) is able to demonstrate that, as a result of the impact of a Gulf hurricane disaster, the institution--(I) incurred physical damage; (II) has pursued collateral source compensation from insurance, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Small Business Administration, as appropriate; and (III) was not able to fully reopen in existing facilities or to fully reopen to the pre-hurricane enrollment levels during the 30-day period beginning on August 29, 2005.

``(B) Area affected by a gulf hurricane disaster; gulf hurricane disaster.--The terms `area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster' and `Gulf hurricane disaster'

have the meanings given such terms in section 209 of the Higher Education Hurricane Relief Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-148, 119 Stat. 2809).''.

SEC. 319. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

Section 399(a) (20 U.S.C. 1068h(a)) is amended to read as follows:

``(a) Authorizations.--

``(1) Part a.--(A) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part A (other than sections 316 through 320), $135,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(B) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 316, $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(C) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 317, $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(D) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 318, $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2009 and each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(E) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 319, $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(F) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 320, $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(2) Part b.--(A) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part B (other than section 326), $375,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(B) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 326, $125,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(3) Part c.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part C, $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(4) Part d.--(A) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part D (other than section 345(9), but including section 347), $185,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(B) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 345(9) such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2009 and each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(5) Part e.--(A) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out subpart 1 of part E, $12,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years.

``(B) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out subpart 2 of part E, such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2009 and each of the five succeeding fiscal years.''.

SEC. 320. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.

Title III (20 U.S.C. 1051 et seq.) is further amended—

(1) in section 342(5) (20 U.S.C. 1066a(5))--

(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting a comma after ``344(b)''; and

(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``equipment technology,,'' and inserting ``equipment, technology,'';
(2) in section 343(e) (20 U.S.C. 1066b(e)), by inserting ``Sale of Qualified Bonds.--'' before ``Notwithstanding'';

(3) in the matter preceding clause (i) of section 365(9)(A) (20 U.S.C. 1067k(9)(A)), by striking ``support'' and inserting ``supports'';

(4) in section 391(b)(7)(E) (20 U.S.C. 1068(b)(7)(E)), by striking ``subparagraph (E)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (D)'';

(5) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) of section 392(b)(2) (20 U.S.C. 1068a(b)(2)), by striking ``eligible institutions under part A institutions'' and inserting ``eligible institutions under part A''; and

(6) in the matter preceding paragraph (1) of section 396 (20 U.S.C. 1068e), by striking ``360'' and inserting ``399''.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 12372

Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs

This program falls under the rubric of Executive Order 12372 (Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs) and the regulations in 34 CFR Part 79. One of the objectives of the Executive Order is to strengthen federalism--or the distribution of responsibility between localities, States, and the Federal government--by fostering intergovernmental partnerships. This idea includes supporting processes that State or local governments have devised for coordinating and reviewing proposed Federal financial grant applications.

The process for doing this requires grant applicants to contact State Single Points of Contact for information on how this works. Multi-state applicants should follow procedures specific to each state.

Further information about the State Single Point of Contact process and a list of names by State can be found at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants_spoc.

Absent specific State review programs, applicants may submit comments directly to the Department. All recommendations and comments must be mailed or hand-delivered by the date indicated in the actual application notice to the following address: The Secretary, EO 12372--CFDA# [commenter must insert number--including suffix letter, if any], U.S. Department of Education, room 7E200, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202.

Proof of mailing will be determined on the same basis as applications (see 34 CFR §75.102). Recommendations or comments may be hand-delivered until 4:30 p.m. (Eastern Time) on the closing date indicated in this notice.

Important note: The above address is not the same address as the one to which the applicant submits its completed applications. Do not send applications to the above address.

General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) Section 427

Section 427 requires each applicant to include in its application a description of the steps the applicant proposes to take to ensure equitable access to, and participation in, its federally-assisted program for students, teachers, and other program beneficiaries with special needs.

This section allows applicants discretion in developing the required description. The statute highlights six barriers that can impede equitable access or participation that you may address: gender, race, national origin, color disability, or age.

A general statement of an applicant’s nondiscriminatory hiring policy is not sufficient to meet this requirement. Applicants must identify potential barriers and explain steps they will take to overcome these barriers.

*Notes:

• Applicants are required to address this provision by attaching a statement to the ED GEPA 427 Form that must be downloaded from Grants.gov.

• All applicants must include information in their applications to address this provision in order to receive funding under this program.

Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA)

What is GPRA?

The Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA) is a straightforward statute that requires all federal agencies to manage their activities with attention to the consequences of those activities. Each agency is to clearly state what it intends to accomplish, identify the resources required, and periodically report their progress to the Congress. In so doing, it is expected that the GPRA will contribute to improvements in accountability for the expenditures of public funds, improve Congressional decision-making through more objective information on the effectiveness of federal programs, and promote a new government focus on results, service delivery, and customer satisfaction.

How has the Department of Education Responded to the GPRA Requirements?

As required by GPRA, the Department of Education has prepared a strategic plan for 2014-2018. This plan reflects the Department’s priorities and integrates them with its mission and program authorities and describes how the Department will work to improve education for all children and adults in the U.S. The Department’s goals, as listed in the plan, are:

1. Postsecondary Education, Career and Technical Education, and Adult Education. Increase college access, quality, and completion by improving higher education and lifelong learning opportunities for youth and adults.

2. Elementary and Secondary. Prepare all elementary and secondary students for college and career by improving the education system’s ability to consistently deliver excellent classroom instruction with rigorous academic standards while providing effective support services.

3. Early Learning. Improve the health, social-emotional, and cognitive outcomes for all children from birth through 3rd grade, so that all children, particularly those with high needs, are on track for graduating from high school college- and career-ready.

4. Equity. Ensure effective educational opportunities for all students regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, age, sex, disability, language, and socioeconomic status.

5. Continuous Improvement of the U.S. Education System. Enhance the education system’s ability to continuously improve through better and more widespread use of data, research and evaluation, transparency, innovation, and technology.

6. U.S. Department of Education Capacity. Improve the organizational capacities of the Department to implement this Strategic Plan.

What are the performance indicators for the Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institution (ANNH) Program?

The specific performance indicators for ANNH are as follows:

1. The number of full-time degree-seeking undergraduates enrolled at ANNH institutions.

Note that this is a long-term measure, which will be used periodically to gauge performance, beginning in FY 2009.

2. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students at 4-year ANNH institutions who were in their first year of postsecondary enrollment in the previous year and are enrolled in the current year at the same ANNH institution.

3. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students at 2-year ANNH institutions who were in their first year of postsecondary enrollment in the previous year and are enrolled in the current year at the same ANNH institution.

4. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students enrolled at 4-year ANNH institutions graduating within six years of enrollment.

5. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students enrolled at 2-year ANNH institutions who graduate within three years of enrollment.

6. The cost per successful program outcome: federal cost per undergraduate and graduate degree at ANNH institutions.

How does the Department of Education determine whether performance goals have been met?

An applicant that receives a grant award will be required to submit annual progress reports and a final report as a condition of the award. The reports will document the extent to which project goals and objectives are met. Data submitted annually by the institution to the Department of Education’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) will document the extent to which program goals and objectives are met.

The most recent version of a currently approved annual performance report can be viewed at https://apr.ed.gov.

Instructions for Completing the Application

The ANNH application consists of the following sections. These sections are organized in the same manner that the submitted application should be organized. Remember to upload all forms and sections and follow carefully the Grants.gov application instructions. The parts are as follows:

424 Forms

• Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424)

• Department of Education Supplemental Information form for SF 424

Note: Applicants must complete the SF 424 form first because the information you provide here is automatically inserted into other sections of the Grants.gov application package.

U.S. Department of Education Budget Summary Forms:

• ED 524 (Section A and Section B)

The “U.S. Department of Education Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs” is where applicants provide budget information for Section A – Budget Summary U.S. Department of Education Funds and Section B – Budget Summary Non-Federal Funds. Applicants should include costs for all project years. Note: Section C – Budget Narrative should be included in the “Budget Narrative Attachment Form.”

Assurances for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424B)

Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (SF-LLL)

GEPA Section 427 Form

ED Abstract Form: Attach your one-page project abstract that will provide an overview of the proposed project.

Project Narrative Attachment Form: The project narrative should include narrative responses to the selection criteria. Please include a Table of Contents as the first page of the application narrative. You must limit the project narrative to no more than 50 pages. The Project Narrative should be consecutively numbered.

Budget Narrative Attachment Form: The budget narrative should include a detailed line item budget to justify costs are reasonable and necessary to accomplish the proposed project objectives. Note: The selection criterion also requires a budget section that you will respond to as a part of your project narrative (selection criteria).

Other Attachments Form:

• ANNH Program Profile Form

Included in this application is an ANNH Profile Form. This form is mandatory, and should be attached to the Other Attachments Form in Grants.gov.

• Mandatory Other Attachment (Absolute Priority)

• Optional Other Attachment (Competitive and Invitational Priorities)

Instructions for Completing the Project Narrative

The project narrative must be attached to the “Project Narrative Attachment Form” in Grants.gov.

Before preparing the Project Narrative, applicants should review the program statute, program regulations, the Federal Register Notice, the Dear Applicant Letter, and the Competition Highlights for specific guidance and requirements.

The Secretary evaluates an application according to the program specific criteria in 34 CFR 607.22. The Project Narrative should provide in detail the responses to each selection criterion. The maximum possible score for each category of selection criterion is indicated in parenthesis. For ease of reading by the reviewers, applicants should follow the sequence of the criteria as provided below. Applications should be written in a concise and clear manner. You must limit the section of the narrative that addresses the selection criteria to no more than 50 pages.

Applicants MUST address each of the following ANNH selection criteria:

1. Quality of Comprehensive Development Plan (25 points)

2. Quality of Activity Objectives (15 points)

3. Quality of Implementation Strategy (20 points)

4. Quality of Key Personnel ( 7 points)

5. Quality of Project Management Plan (10 points)

6. Quality of Evaluation Plan (15 points)

7. Quality of Budget ( 8 points)

_________

Total Maximum Score for Selection Criteria 100 points

The following guidance may assist you in addressing the questions that will be used to evaluate your responses to the selection criteria:

(a) Quality of Comprehensive Development Plan

(Maximum: 25 points).

(1) The strengths, weaknesses, and significant problems of the institution’s academic programs, institutional management, and fiscal stability are clearly and comprehensively analyzed and result from a process that involved major constituencies of the institution.

Content: Separately describe and analyze your institution's strengths, weaknesses, and significant problems in the following three areas as they relate to each proposed activity:

1. Academic programs,

2. Institutional management, and

3. Fiscal stability.

We are considering “weaknesses” and “significant problems” to be one and the same. Use the grant funds to address some of these weaknesses and problems. Here are some guidelines for stating the problems:

• State what is “too high” or what is “too low.” For example, the percentage of freshmen students who fail four courses is too high. When you state the problem this way, the objectives become obvious. Such as, “to decrease, from 42 percent to 30 percent, the percentage of freshmen students who fail four courses.”

• Avoid problem statements that declare the problem as "the lack of" or "the need for" the very solution you are proposing for funding. Such as, “the problem with our academic programs is a lack of or need for student services outside the classroom. Thus, we propose an activity to establish those student services." This type of statement usually contains circular reasoning.

• Provide summaries of or excerpts from recent data, reports, evaluations or studies that demonstrate that you have objectively and thoroughly analyzed your institution’s main problems.

• Describe the process you used to formulate the above information.

• Provide evidence of the extent and nature of the faculty, staff, students, community, industry, and other major constituents' involvement in this process. You may rely on previously written information, such as a self-study for accreditation, as long as your process for developing the information involved the major constituencies' representatives and reflects your institution's current situation.

(2) The goals for the institution’s academic programs, institutional management, and fiscal stability are realistic and based on comprehensive analysis.

Content: Based on a comprehensive analysis of your institution's strengths, weaknesses, and significant problems, separately state the institutional goals as they relate to each proposed activity you plan to address using Title III, Part F, ANNH Program funds.

(3) The objectives stated in the plan are measurable, related to institutional goals, and if achieved, will contribute to the growth and self-sufficiency of the institution.

Content: Focusing only on the institutional objectives that are specifically related to your proposed Title III, Part F, ANNH Program activities, separately provide measurable objectives for how you will reach each of the goals as you discussed in #2. Achieving the objectives outlined should contribute to the growth and self-sufficiency of the institution.

Describe in measurable terms how objectives are related to the goals of the institution. The description should include details on the following:

Specific Tasks

Institutionalize personnel, programs, and services.

Methods Involved

Operational funding budgeted and allocated to sustain improvements.

Tangible Results

Program, services, and personnel fully institutionalized.

(4) The plan clearly and comprehensively describes the methods and resources the institution will use to institutionalize practices and improvements developed under the proposed project, including, in particular, how operational costs for personnel, maintenance, and upgrades of equipment will be paid with institutional resources.

Content: In this section, separately describe the following for each proposed activity:

The methods your institution will use to integrate practices and improvements developed into its operations and, if appropriate, continue them after the grant ends. For example, provide specifics on how your institution will obtain approval from appropriate internal and/or external governance authorities to conduct new or revised curricula and use new intervention strategies. What will the time period be for these actions?

Provide the resources you will need to institutionalize newly developed practices and improvements and, most importantly, how you will fund them. In particular, discuss how your institution will fund operational costs such as personnel, maintenance, and upgraded equipment. For example, one way to ensure that positions continue after the grant ends is for your institution to pay a percentage of the salary during the grant and increase that percentage during years two, three, four, and five.

(b) Quality of Activity Objectives (Maximum: 15 Points).

(1) The extent to which the objectives for each activity are realistic and defined in terms of measurable results.

Content: State your annual objectives, separately for each activity, which, when combined with their performance indicator(s), are measurable and realistic (not too high, not too low). Connect each objective to the problem or weakness it should address, as you described in the CDP. In addition:

• DO NOT identify process objectives such as: "To establish a college-wide committee”, whose measurement is: "We formed a committee." Identify processes or tasks under the Implementation Strategy as discussed next.

• DO use words such as "to increase" or "to decrease" since you are more likely to be describing a genuine, outcome objective.

• DO NOT begin your objective with words such as "to provide," "to develop," or "to establish." This heightens the likelihood you may be describing a process or task rather than an outcome objective.

• DO provide a realistic number of objectives and performance indicators for each proposed activity and for each year you are requesting funds for that activity.

(2) The extent to which the objectives for each activity are directly related to the problems to be solved and to the goals of the comprehensive development plan.

Content: Separately describe how meeting the objectives of each proposed activity will address a problem identified in the CDP and affect your institution's ability to address its goals for its academic programs, institutional management, or fiscal stability.

If you need funds for more than one activity, you may propose different start and end dates and vary the duration of each. For example, you may need only three years to develop a new curriculum but five years to develop a new management information system. Any proposed activity should address a critical problem that the CDP describes as hindering institutional growth and self-sufficiency.

(c) Quality of Implementation Strategy (Maximum: 20 Points).

(1) The extent to which the implementation strategy for each activity is comprehensive.

(2) The extent to which the rationale for the implementation strategy for each activity is clearly described and is supported by the results of relevant studies or projects.

Content: For each proposed activity, explain why you chose a specific method for implementing that activity. Include how you determined that method to be most effective, indicating relevant studies or projects that you reviewed and experts that you consulted.

(3) The timetable for each activity is realistic and likely to be attained.

• Chart an implementation strategy to meet your objectives for each year you are requesting funds and for each activity.

• Use time frames that are realistic for completing a task. Chart each of the five years using the budget period of October 1 to September 30.

• Describe in a comprehensive, sequential and clear manner who will do what and how they will do it to meet the objectives of each activity.

• Identify, by title, the primary participants who will carry out the tasks to meet the objectives. Describe how the personnel will perform the tasks and the results you expect from them.

(d) Quality of Key Personnel (Maximum: 7 Points).

(1) The extent to which the experience and training of key professional personnel are directly related to the stated activity objectives.

(2) The extent to which the time commitment of key personnel is realistic.

Content: For each proposed activity, list, by title and name (if available) which positions are being proposed using Title III funds and describe the qualifications you require of that position and the amount of time each person will allot to the proposed activity.

If you want to use a consultant, explain why a consultant is more advantageous than using the institution’s personnel.

(e) Quality of Project Management Plan (Maximum: 10 Points).

(1) The extent to which procedures for managing the project are likely to ensure efficient and effective project implementation.

(2) The extent to which project coordinator and activity directors have sufficient authority to conduct the project effectively, including access to the president or chief executive officer.

For the Title III, Part F, ANNH Program coordinator’s position, provide the following:

• Under “Quality of Key Personnel,” be sure to include the coordinator's required qualifications (education, experience, training) and the specific duties of the position. Directly relate the duties to the stated purposes and objectives of the project.

• Indicate how much time the Title III, Part F, coordinator will commit to the project. Make the time commitment realistic, not too high nor too low, relative to the tasks the individual will perform.

Note: Your Title III, Part F coordinator’s time commitment to a project may vary considerably from that in another project or another institution’s project. One project focused on developing a management information system, for example, may have a coordinator who is the director of technology in the ordinary hierarchy of the college. He or she may allot 10 percent time to coordinate the project for which the college will pay. On the other hand, a new coordinator of a faculty development project may be an instructional developer with a 50 percent time or 100 percent time commitment paid for with Title III, Part F, funds. Carefully think through the management structure and time commitment that will work best at your institution and specify the reasons for your choice.

• Describe the procedures the project coordinator (project director) will use to manage and monitor the project's progress such as how information will be provided to key administrators so they can integrate project activities with related, on-going institutional activities.

• Describe the project coordinator's (project director) administrative authority over the activity director(s) who is normally responsible for accomplishing a specific activity's objectives. Also, describe the administrative authority of the activity director(s) over subordinates.

• Chart the lines of authority of the project coordinator to key institutional decision makers, including the president.

(f) Quality of Evaluation Plan (Maximum: 15 Points).

(1) The extent to which the data elements and the data collection procedures are clearly described and appropriate to measure the attainment of activity objectives and to measure the success of the project in achieving the goals of the comprehensive development plan.

Content: For each proposed activity, describe the data collection procedures the institution will use to identify the data elements, objectives, and goals identified in the CDP. Include measure attainment of each proposed activity. Include procedures for analyzing and using both formative and summative data.

(2) The extent to which the data analysis procedures are clearly described and are likely to produce formative and summative results on attaining activity objectives and measuring the success of the project on achieving the goals of the comprehensive development plan.

Content: For each proposed activity, describe in detail the project's evaluation plan, including who, what, when and how. Define the baseline indicators of progress that you will use.

The detailed evaluation plan should:

• Produce a valid assessment of your implementation strategies;

• Result in annual, quantifiable evidence of the extent to which you attained your objectives for each activity and your goals for which funding is requested;

• Include the data elements and collection procedures that you will use; and

• Describe procedures for analyzing and using both formative and summative data.

All applicants must submit a plan to conduct a project evaluation as part of their grant activities. The planned evaluation should be systematic in assessing the worth of a project and useful in guiding project objectives and focus primarily on determining the outcomes and impacts of the project relative to those objectives. The evaluation should also serve to strengthen the management of the project and lead to better knowledge of what works in producing the desired outcomes.

An individual or organization, independent of the project team (and all of its partners), but not necessarily external to the grantee institution, should execute the project evaluation plan. This independent evaluator should assist in the initial preparation of the evaluation plan and be willing to work alongside the project team throughout the duration of the project. The evaluator should possess good evaluation skills commonly found among practitioners of the American Evaluation Association. Helpful Web sites to consult when preparing an evaluation plan include:

• Department of Education’s Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/fipse/evaluate.html

• National Science Foundation: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2004/nsf04016/nsf04016_4.htm

• Kellogg Foundation: http://www.wkkf.org/default.aspx?tabid=75&CID=281&NID=61&LanguageID=0 (for their evaluation handbook)

• Academic Competitiveness Council http://hub.mspnet.org/search/?action=true&search_text=evaluation

The project director and team should be committed to gathering the best evaluation data possible for formative and summative purposes. Projects should collect baseline data before the project starts as a basis for measuring progress.

A summary of the evaluation report must be included in the final performance report submitted by the project to the Department of Education. The report, which also includes fiscal and management performance information, is due within 90 days after expiration of the award. The evaluation report should be included as an appendix to the final performance report as well as available upon request. (Please see 34 CFR 75.217 for information on how project performance may affect future funding).

For the Title III, ANNH Program, the evaluation plan should produce a valid assessment of the implementation strategies. It should also result in annual, quantifiable evidence of the attainment of objectives for each activity and of the goals in the CDP.

(g) Budget (Maximum: 8 Points).

The extent to which the proposed costs are necessary and reasonable in relation to the project’s objectives and scope.

Content: Review the program regulations (34 CFR 607.10 and 607.30) for guidance on which activities and costs are allowable. For example, you may not use your grant funds to:

- Recruit students;

- Carry out activities that are operational rather than developmental;

- Carry out student activities such as entertainment, cultural or social enrichment programs, student publications, social clubs or associations;

- Pay for organized fund raising and;

- Cover indirect costs.

Prepare a separate, detailed, budget narrative for each proposed activity for each year you are requesting grant funds. Demonstrate and justify that all costs are reasonable in today’s market and necessary to accomplish your activity objectives. Please pay particular attention in your justification to those (per item) costs exceeding $25,000, excluding salaries and fringe benefits. For each activity, provide itemized costs (in dollars), and a narrative justification to support your request for:

• Personnel

• Fringe Benefits

• Travel

• Equipment

• Supplies

• Contractual

• Construction

• Other

• Total

You must provide details so we can determine if the costs are allowable, necessary and reasonable.

NOTE: The Title III, Part F, ANNH Program, CFDA 84.031 R&V, does not reimburse grantees for indirect costs they incur in carrying out a project funded under this program. Therefore, applicants should not show any dollar amounts for indirect costs on either line 10 of the application budget form (ED 524) or in their budget narrative. Applicants should also be aware that un-reimbursed indirect costs under grants of this program may not be charged as direct cost items in the same award, used to satisfy matching or cost-sharing requirements, or charged to another Federal award.

Note: Check all combined totals for the proposed activity budgets and compare it to the total on the ED 524. The totals must match.

U. S. Department of Education Budget Information Non-Construction Programs (Section A - Budget Summary U.S. Department of Education Funds and Section B – Budget Summary Non-Federal Funds (ED 524 form)).

First, carefully read the instructions contained in this document. Then, using the Department of Education Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs (ED524) form, prepare a budget for the entire project that totals all the costs for each year of the grant.

Instructions for Addressing Priorities

Absolute Priority

• Absolute Priority (Applicant must address. Zero points): Projects that support high-need students which are designed to improve their academic outcomes; learning environments; or both.

You have up to three additional pages to address this priority.

Competitive Preference Priorities

• Competitive Preference Priority 1 (Maximum 1 point): Applications supported by evidence of effectiveness that meets the conditions set out in the definition of “evidence of promise.”

• Competitive Preference Priority 2 (Maximum 3 points): Applications supported by evidence of effectiveness that meets the conditions set out in the definition of “moderate evidence of effectiveness.”

Applicants seeking to address CPP 1 or 2 should identify up to two citations for studies that meet the definition of the applicable evidence standard for the selected priority. The Department will review the studies cited by the applicants to determine if they meet the requirements for Evidence of Promise or Moderate Evidence of Effectiveness.

Cited studies may include those already listed in the Department's What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) Reviewed Studies Database (see http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/ReviewedStudies.aspx) or those that are not included in that database. Studies listed in the WWC Reviewed Studies Database do not necessarily satisfy any or all of the criteria needed to meet either the Evidence of Promise standard or the Moderate Evidence of Effectiveness standard, as defined in the notice, and therefore it is important that applicants themselves ascertain the suitability of a study for an evidence priority.

Points will only be awarded if the submitted studies are determined to meet the particular evidence standard, and if a determination is made that the research cited is relevant to the proposed projects. Applicants addressing Competitive Preference Priorities 1 or 2 should clearly demonstrate the relevance of the cited studies to proposed project activities. Applicants should also clearly demonstrate how the proposed project activities align with the cited study with sufficient fidelity. Where modifications to the cited intervention will be made to account for student or institutional/organizational characteristics, resource limitations, or other special factors, the applicant should provide a justification or basis for the modifications in the narrative response to the priority.

You have up to three additional pages to address the CPP of your choice. An applicant must include all supporting evidence in PDF format. This PDF information must be attached as a separate document in the Other Attachments Form in Grants.gov, with the title: CPP 1 - Evidence Studies or CPP 2 – Evidence Studies. If the Department determines that an applicant has provided insufficient information, the applicant will not have an opportunity to provide additional information. Applicants should specify in their narrative responses to these priorities the findings within the studies cited as evidence in support of their strategies and ensure that the citation(s) and link(s) are from an available source.

Invitational Priority

• Invitational Priority (Zero Points): Projects that support activities that strengthen Native language preservation and revitalization.

You have up to two pages to address this priority.

Instructions for Standard Forms

● Instructions for the SF-424

● Instructions for the Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF-424

● Definitions for Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF-424

● Instructions for ED 524

● Instructions for General Education Provisions Act (GEPA)

● Instructions for Completion of SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SF-424

This is a standard form required for use as a cover sheet for submission of pre-applications and applications and related information under discretionary programs. Some of the items are required and some are optional at the discretion of the applicant or the federal agency (agency). Required fields on the form are identified with an asterisk (*) and are also specified as “Required” in the instructions below. In addition to these instructions, applicants must consult agency instructions to determine other specific requirements.

Item	Entry:	Item:	Entry:
1.	Type of Submission: (Required) Select one type of submission in accordance with agency instructions. Pre-application Application Changed/Corrected Application – Check if this submission is to change or correct a previously submitted application. Unless requested by the agency, applicants may not use this form to submit changes after the closing date.	10.	Name Of Federal Agency: (Required) Enter the name of the federal agency from which assistance is being requested with this application.
		11.	Catalog Of Federal Domestic Assistance Number/Title: Enter the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number and title of the program under which assistance is requested, as found in the program announcement, if applicable.
2.	Type of Application: (Required) Select one type of application in accordance with agency instructions. New – An application that is being submitted to an agency for the first time. Continuation - An extension for an additional funding/budget period for a project with a projected completion date. This can include renewals. Revision - Any change in the federal government’s financial obligation or contingent liability from an existing obligation. If a revision, enter the appropriate letter(s). More than one may be selected. If "Other" is selected, please specify in text box provided. Increase Award D. Decrease Duration Decrease Award E. Other (specify) Increase Duration	12.	Funding Opportunity Number/Title: (Required) Enter the Funding Opportunity Number (FON) and title of the opportunity under which assistance is requested, as found in the program announcement.
		13.	Competition Identification Number/Title: Enter the competition identification number and title of the competition under which assistance is requested, if applicable.
		14.	Areas Affected By Project: This data element is intended for use only by programs for which the area(s) affected are likely to be different than the place(s) of performance reported on the SF-424 Project/Performance Site Location(s) Form. Add attachment to enter additional areas, if needed.
3.	Date Received: Leave this field blank. This date will be assigned by the Federal agency.	15.	Descriptive Title of Applicant’s Project: (Required) Enter a brief descriptive title of the project. If appropriate, attach a map showing project location (e.g., construction or real property projects). For pre-applications, attach a summary description of the project.
4.	Applicant Identifier: Enter the entity identifier assigned buy the Federal agency, if any, or the applicant’s control number if applicable.
5a.	Federal Entity Identifier: Enter the number assigned to your organization by the federal agency, if any.	16.	Congressional Districts Of: 16a. (Required) Enter the applicant’s congressional district. 16b. Enter all district(s) affected by the program or project. Enter in the format: 2 characters state abbreviation – 3 characters district number, e.g., CA-005 for California 5th district, CA-012 for California 12 district, NC-103 for North Carolina’s 103 district. If all congressional districts in a state are affected, enter “all” for the district number, e.g., MD-all for all congressional districts in Maryland. If nationwide, i.e. all districts within all states are affected, enter US-all. If the program/project is outside the US, enter 00-000. This optional data element is intended for use only by programs for which the area(s) affected are likely to be different than place(s) of performance reported on the SF-424 Project/Performance Site Location(s) Form. Attach an additional list of program/project congressional districts, if needed.
5b.	Federal Award Identifier: For new applications, enter NA. For a continuation or revision to an existing award, enter the previously assigned federal award identifier number. If a changed/corrected application, enter the federal identifier in accordance with agency instructions.
6.	Date Received by State: Leave this field blank. This date will be assigned by the state, if applicable.
7.	State Application Identifier: Leave this field blank. This identifier will be assigned by the state, if applicable.
8.	Applicant Information: Enter the following in accordance with agency instructions:
	a. Legal Name: (Required) Enter the legal name of applicant that will undertake the assistance activity. This is the organization that has registered with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR). Information on registering with CCR may be obtained by visiting www.Grants.gov.	17.	Proposed Project Start and End Dates: (Required) Enter the proposed start date and end date of the project.
	b. Employer/Taxpayer Number (EIN/TIN): (Required) Enter the employer or taxpayer identification number (EIN or TIN) as assigned by the Internal Revenue Service. If your organization is not in the US, enter 44-4444444.	18.	Estimated Funding: (Required) Enter the amount requested, or to be contributed during the first funding/budget period by each contributor. Value of in-kind contributions should be included on appropriate lines, as applicable. If the action will result in a dollar change to an existing award, indicate only the amount of the change. For decreases, enclose the amounts in parentheses.

	c. Organizational DUNS: (Required) Enter the organization’s DUNS or DUNS+4 number received from Dun and Bradstreet. Information on obtaining a DUNS number may be obtained by visiting www.Grants.gov.		19.	Is Application Subject to Review by State Under Executive Order 12372 Process? (Required) Applicants should contact the State Single Point of Contact (SPOC) for Federal Executive Order 12372 to determine whether the application is subject to the State intergovernmental review process. Select the appropriate box. If “a.” is selected, enter the date the application was submitted to the State.
	d. Address: Enter address: Street 1 (Required); city (Required); County/Parish, State (Required if country is US), Province, Country (Required), 9-digit zip/postal code (Required if country US).		20.	Is the Applicant Delinquent on any Federal Debt? (Required) Select the appropriate box. This question applies to the applicant organization, not the person who signs as the authorized representative. Categories of federal debt include; but, may not be limited to: delinquent audit disallowances, loans and taxes. If yes, include an explanation in an attachment.
	e. Organizational Unit: Enter the name of the primary organizational unit, department or division that will undertake the assistance activity.		21.	Authorized Representative: To be signed and dated by the authorized representative of the applicant organization. Enter the first and last name (Required); prefix, middle name, suffix. Enter title, telephone number, email (Required); and fax number. A copy of the governing body’s authorization for you to sign this application as the official representative must be on file in the applicant’s office. (Certain federal agencies may require that this authorization be submitted as part of the application.)
	f. Name and contact information of person to be contacted on matters involving this application: Enter the first and last name (Required); prefix, middle name, suffix, title. Enter organizational affiliation if affiliated with an organization other than that in 7.a. Telephone number and email (Required); fax number.
9.	Type of Applicant: (Required) Select up to three applicant type(s) in accordance with agency instructions.
	State Government County Government City or Township Government Special District Government Regional Organization U.S. Territory or Possession Independent School District Public/State Controlled Institution of Higher Education Indian/Native American Tribal Government (Federally Recognized) Indian/Native American Tribal Government (Other than Federally Recognized) Indian/Native American Tribally Designated Organization Public/Indian Housing Authority	Nonprofit Private Institution of Higher Education Individual For-Profit Organization (Other than Small Business) Small Business Hispanic-serving Institution Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Non-US Entity Other (specify)

U.S Department of Education note: As of spring, 2010, the FON discussed in Block 12 of the instructions can be found via the following URL: http://www.grants.gov/applicants/find_grant_opportunities.jsp.]

Instructions for U.S. Department of Education

Supplemental Information for the SF-424

1. Project Director. Name, address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address of the person to be contacted on matters involving this application. Items marked with an asterisk (*) are mandatory.

2. Novice Applicant. Check “Yes” if you meet the definition for novice applicants specified in the regulations in 34 CFR 75.225 and included on the attached page entitled “Definitions for U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424”). By checking “Yes” the applicant certifies that it meets these novice applicant requirements. Check “No” if you do not meet the definition for novice applicants.

This novice applicant information will be used by ED to: 1) determine the amount and type of technical assistance that a novice might need, if funded, and 2) determine novice applicant eligibility in discretionary grant competitions that give special consideration to novice applications. Certain ED discretionary grant programs give special consideration to novice applications, either by establishing a special competition for novice applicants or by giving competitive preference to novice applicants under the procedures in 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2). If special consideration is being given to novice applications under a particular discretionary grant competition, the application notice for the competition published in the Federal Register will specify this information

3. Human Subjects Research. (See I. A. “Definitions” in attached page entitled “Definitions for U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424.”)

3a. If Not Human Subjects Research. Check “No” if research activities involving human subjects are not planned at any time during the proposed project period. The remaining parts of Item 3 are then not applicable.

3a. If Human Subjects Research. Check “Yes” if research activities involving human subjects are planned at any time during the proposed project period, either at the applicant organization or at any other performance site or collaborating institution. Check “Yes” even if the research is exempt from the regulations for the protection of human subjects. (See I. B. “Exemptions” in attached page entitled “Definitions for U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF-424.”)

3b. If Human Subjects Research is Exempt from the Human Subjects Regulations. Check “Yes” if all the research activities proposed are designated to be exempt from the regulations. Check the exemption number(s) corresponding to one or more of the six exemption categories listed in I. B. “Exemptions.” In addition, follow the instructions in II. A. “Exempt Research Narrative” in the attached page entitled “Definitions for U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424.”

3b. If Human Subjects Research is Not Exempt from Human Subjects Regulations. Check “No” if some or all of the planned research activities are covered (not exempt). In addition, follow the instructions in II. B. “Nonexempt Research Narrative” in the attached page entitled “Definitions for U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424.”

3b. Human Subjects Assurance Number. If the applicant has an approved Federal Wide Assurance (FWA) on file with the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, that covers the specific activity, insert the number in the space provided. (A list of current FWAs is available at:  http://ohrp.cit.nih.gov/search/search.aspx?styp=bsc) If the applicant does not have an approved assurance on file with OHRP, enter “None.” In this case, the applicant, by signature on the SF-424, is declaring that it will comply with 34 CFR 97 and proceed to obtain the human subjects assurance upon request by the designated ED official. If the application is recommended/selected for funding, the designated ED official will request that the applicant obtain the assurance within 30 days after the specific formal request.

3c. If applicable, please attach your “Exempt Research” or “Nonexempt Research” narrative to your submission of the U.S Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424 form as instructed in item II, “Instructions for Exempt and Nonexempt Human Subjects Research Narratives” in the attached page entitled “Definitions for U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424.”

Note about Institutional Review Board Approval. ED does not require certification of Institutional Review Board approval with the application. However, if an application that involves non-exempt human subjects research is recommended/selected for funding, the designated ED official will request that the applicant obtain and send the certification to ED within 30 days after the formal request.

No covered human subjects research can be conducted until the study has ED clearance for protection of human subjects in research.

Public Burden Statement:

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 20 minutes per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. The obligation to respond to this collection is required to obtain or retain benefit (20 USC 3474 General Education Provisions Act). Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20210-4537 or email [email protected] and reference the OMB Control Number 1894-0007. Note: Please do not return the completed ED SF 424 Supplemental Form to this address.

Definitions for U.S. Department of Education

Supplemental Information for the SF-424

Definitions:

Novice Applicant (See 34 CFR 75.225)

For discretionary grant programs, novice applicant means any applicant for a grant from ED that—

• Has never received a grant or subgrant under the program from which it seeks funding;

• Has never been a member of a group application, submitted in accordance with 34 CFR 75.127-75.129, that received a grant under the program from which it seeks funding; and

• Has not had an active discretionary grant from the Federal government in the five years before the deadline date for applications under the program. For the purposes of this requirement, a grant is active until the end of the grant’s project or funding period, including any extensions of those periods that extend the grantee’s authority to obligate funds.

In the case of a group application submitted in accordance with 34 CFR 75.127-75.129, a group includes only parties that meet the requirements listed above.

PROTECTION OF HUMAN SUBJECTS IN RESEARCH

I. Definitions and Exemptions

A. Definitions.

A research activity involves human subjects if the activity is research, as defined in the Department’s regulations, and the research activity will involve use of human subjects, as defined in the regulations.

—Research

The ED Regulations for the Protection of Human Subjects, Title 34, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 97, define research as “a systematic investigation, including research development, testing and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge. Activities which meet this definition constitute research whether or not they are conducted or supported under a program that is considered research for other purposes. For example, some demonstration and service programs may include research activities.

—Human Subject

The regulations define human subject as “a living individual about whom an investigator (whether professional or student) conducting research obtains (1) data through intervention or interaction with the individual, or (2) identifiable private information.” (1) If an activity involves obtaining information about a living person by manipulating that person or that person’s environment, as might occur when a new instructional technique is tested, or by communicating or interacting with the individual, as occurs with surveys and interviews, the definition of human subject is met. (2) If an activity involves obtaining private information about a living person in such a way that the information can be directly or indirectly linked to that individual), the definition of human subject is met [Private information includes information about behavior that occurs in a context in which an individual can reasonably expect that no observation or recording is taking place, and information which has been provided for specific purposes by an individual and which the individual can reasonably expect will not be made public (for example, a school health record).]

B. Exemptions.

Research activities in which the only involvement of human subjects will be in one or more of the following six categories of exemptions are not covered by the regulations:

(1) Research conducted in established or commonly accepted educational settings, involving normal educational practices, such as (a) research on regular and special education instructional strategies, or (b) research on the effectiveness of or the comparison among instructional techniques, curricula, or classroom management methods. If an educational practice is being introduced to the site and is not widely used for similar populations, it is not covered by this exemption.

(2) Research involving the use of educational tests (cognitive, diagnostic, aptitude, achievement), survey procedures, interview procedures or observation of public behavior, unless: (a) information obtained is recorded in such a manner that human subjects can be identified, directly or through identifiers linked to the subjects; and (b) any disclosure of the human subjects’ responses outside the research could reasonably place the subjects at risk of criminal or civil liability or be damaging to the subjects’ financial standing, employability, or reputation. If the subjects are children, exemption 2 applies only to research involving educational tests and observations of public behavior when the investigator(s) do not participate in the activities being observed.

Exemption 2 does not apply if children are surveyed or interviewed or if the research involves observation of public behavior and the investigator(s) participate in the activities being observed. [Children are defined as persons who have not attained the legal age for consent to treatments or procedures involved in the research, under the applicable law or jurisdiction in which the research will be conducted.]

(3) Research involving the use of educational tests (cognitive, diagnostic, aptitude, achievement), survey procedures, interview procedures or observation of public behavior that is not exempt under section (2) above, if the human subjects are elected or appointed public officials or candidates for public office; or federal statute(s) require(s) without exception that the confidentiality of the personally identifiable information will be maintained throughout the research and thereafter.

(4) Research involving the collection or study of existing data, documents, records, pathological specimens, or diagnostic specimens, if these sources are publicly available or if the information is recorded by the investigator in a manner that subjects cannot be identified, directly or through identifiers linked to the subjects. [This exemption applies only to retrospective studies using data collected before the initiation of the research.]

(5) Research and demonstration projects which are conducted by or subject to the approval of department or agency heads, and which are designed to study, evaluate, or otherwise examine: (a) public benefit or service programs; (b) procedures for obtaining benefits or services under those programs; (c) possible changes in or alternatives to those programs or procedures; or (d) possible changes in methods or levels of payment for benefits or services under those programs. [The standards of this exemption are rarely met because it was designed to apply only to specific research conducted by the Social Security Administration and some Federal welfare benefits programs.]

(6) Taste and food quality evaluation and consumer acceptance studies, (a) if wholesome foods without additives are consumed or (b) if a food is consumed that contains a food ingredient at or below the level and for a use found to be safe, or agricultural chemical or environmental contaminant at or below the level found to be safe, by the Food and Drug Administration or approved by the Environmental Protection Agency or the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

II. Instructions for Exempt and Nonexempt Human Subjects Research Narratives

If the applicant marked “Yes” for Item 3.b. of the U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF 424, the applicant must attach a human subjects “exempt research” or “nonexempt research” narrative to the U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424 form. If you have multiple projects and need to provide more than one narrative, be sure to label each set of responses as to the project they address.

A. Exempt Research Narrative.

If you marked “Yes” for item 3.b. and designated exemption numbers(s), attach the “exempt research” narrative to the U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424. The narrative must contain sufficient information about the involvement of human subjects in the proposed research to allow a determination by ED that the designated exemption(s) are appropriate. The narrative must be succinct.

B. Nonexempt Research Narrative.

If you marked “No” for item 3.b. you must attach the “nonexempt research” narrative to the U.S. Department of Education Supplemental Information for the SF-424. The narrative must address the following seven points. Although no specific page limitation applies to this section of the application, be succinct.

(1) Human Subjects Involvement and Characteristics: Provide a detailed description of the proposed involvement of human subjects. Describe the characteristics of the subject population, including their anticipated number, age range, and health status. Identify the criteria for inclusion or exclusion of any subpopulation. Explain the rationale for the involvement of special classes of subjects, such as children, children with disabilities, adults with disabilities, persons with mental disabilities, pregnant women, prisoners, institutionalized individuals, or others who are likely to be vulnerable

(2) Sources of Materials: Identify the sources of research material obtained from individually identifiable living human subjects in the form of specimens, records, or data. Indicate whether the material or data will be obtained specifically for research purposes or whether use will be made of existing specimens, records, or data.

(3) Recruitment and Informed Consent: Describe plans for the recruitment of subjects and the consent procedures to be followed. Include the circumstances under which consent will be sought and obtained, who will seek it, the nature of the information to be provided to prospective subjects, and the method of documenting consent. State if the Institutional Review Board (IRB) has authorized a modification or waiver of the elements of consent or the requirement for documentation of consent.

(4) Potential Risks: Describe potential risks (physical, psychological, social, legal, or other) and assess their likelihood and seriousness. Where appropriate, describe alternative treatments and procedures that might be advantageous to the subjects.

(5) Protection Against Risk: Describe the procedures for protecting against or minimizing potential risks, including risks to confidentiality, and assess their likely effectiveness. Where appropriate, discuss provisions for ensuring necessary medical or professional intervention in the event of adverse effects to the subjects. Also, where appropriate, describe the provisions for monitoring the data collected to ensure the safety of the subjects.

(6) Importance of the Knowledge to be Gained: Discuss the importance of the knowledge gained or to be gained as a result of the proposed research. Discuss why the risks to subjects are reasonable in relation to the anticipated benefits to subjects and in relation to the importance of the knowledge that may reasonably be expected to result.

(7) Collaborating Site(s): If research involving human subjects will take place at collaborating site(s) or other performance site(s), name the sites and briefly describe their involvement or role in the research.

Copies of the Department of Education’s Regulations for the Protection of Human Subjects, 34 CFR Part 97 and other pertinent materials on the protection of human subjects in research are available from the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, U.S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C. 20202-4331, telephone: (202) 245-8090, and on the U.S. Department of Education’s Protection of Human Subjects in Research Web Site: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocfo/humansub.html

NOTE: The State Applicant Identifier on the SF-424 is for State Use only. Please complete it on the SF-424 in the upper right corner of the form (if applicable).

_{Instructions for ED 524}

General Inst ructions

This form is used to apply to individual U.S. Department of Education (ED) discretionary grant programs. Unless directed otherwise, provide the same budget information for each year of the multi-year funding request. Pay attention to applicable program specific instructions, if

attached. You may access the Education Department General

Administrative Regulations, 34 CFR 74 – 86 and 97-99, on ED’s

website at :

ht t p://www.ed.gov/policy/fund/reg/edgarReg/edgar.html

You must consult with your Business Office prior to submitting this form.

Sect ion A - Budget Summary

U.S. Department of Education Funds

All applicants must complete Sect ion A and provide a break -down by the applicable budget categories shown in lines 1 -11.

Lines 1-11, columns (a)-(e): For each project year for which funding is requested, show the total amount requested for each applicable budget category.

Lines 1-11, column (f): Show the multi-year total for each budget

category. If funding is requested for only one project year, leave t his

column blank.

Line 12, columns (a)-(e): Show the total budget request for each project year for which funding is requested.

Line 12, column (f): Show the total amount requested for all project years. If funding is requested for only one year, leave this space blank.

Indirect Cost Information: If you are requesting reimbursement for indirect costs on line 10, this information is to be completed by your Business Office. (1): Indicate whether or not your organization has an Indirect Cost Rat e Agreement that was approved by the Federal government.

If you checked “no,” ED generally will authorize grantees to use a

temporary rate of 10 percent of budgeted salaries and wages subject to the following limitations:

(a) The grantee must submit an indirect cost proposal to its

cognizant agency within 90 days after ED issues a grant award notification; and

(b) If after the 90-day period, the grantee has not submitted an indirect cost proposal to its cognizant agency, the grantee may not

charge its grant for indirect costs until it has negotiated an indirect cost rat e agreement with its cognizant agency.

(2): If you checked “yes” in (1), indicate in (2) t he

beginning and ending dates covered by the Indirect Cost Rate

Agreement. In addition, indicate whether ED, another Federal agency (Other) or St ate agency issued the approved agreement. If you check “Other,” specify the name of the Federal or other agency that issued

the approved agreement.

(3): If you are applying for a grant under a Restricted Rate

Program (34 CFR 75.563 or 76.563), indicate whether you are using a restricted indirect cost rate that is included on your approved Indirect Cost Rat e Agreement or whet her you are using a restricted indirect cost rat e that complies with 34 CFR 76.564(c)(2). Note: St at e or Local government agencies may not use the provision for a restricted indirect cost rate specified in 34 CFR 76.564(c)(2). Check only one response. Leave blank, if this item is not applicable.

Sect ion B - Budget Summary Non-Federal Funds

If you are required to provide or volunteer to provide cost -sharing or matching funds or other non-Federal resources t o t he project, these should be shown for each applicable budget category on lines 1 -11 of Sect ion B.

Lines 1-11, columns (a)-(e): For each project year, for which

matching funds or other contributions are provided, show the total contribution for each applicable budget category.

Lines 1-11, column (f): Show the multi-year total for each budget

category. If non-Federal contributions are provided for only one year, leave this column blank.

Line 12, columns (a)-(e): Show the total matching or other contribution for each project year.

Line 12, column (f): Show the total amount to be contributed for all years of the multi-year project. If non-Federal contributions are provided for only one year, leave this space blank.

Sect ion C - Budget Narrative [At t ach separate sheet (s)]

P ay at tent ion to applicable program specific instruct ions, if at t ached.

1. Provide an itemized budget breakdown, and justification by project year, for each budget category listed in Sect ions A and B. For grant projects that will be divided it o t wo or more separately budgeted major activities or sub-projects, show for each budget category of a project year the breakdown of the specific expenses attributable to each sub-project or activity.

2. For non-Federal funds or resources listed in Sect ion B that are used to meet a cost-sharing or matching requirement or provided as a voluntary cost-sharing or matching commitment, you must include:

a. The specific costs or contributions by budget category;

b. The source of the costs or contributions; and

c. In the case of third-party in-kind contributions, a description of how the value was determined for the donated or contributed goods or services.

[P lease review ED’s general cost sharing and matching

regulations, which include specific limitations, in 34 CFR 74.23,

applicable to non-governmental entities, and 80.24, applicable to governments, and the applicable Office of Management and Budget (OMB) cost principles for your entity type regarding donations, capital asset s, depreciation and use allowances. OMB cost principle circulars are available on OMB’s website at:

ht t p://www.whit ehouse.gov/omb/circulars/index.html]

3. If applicable to this program, provide the rate and base on which fringe benefits are calculated.

4. If you are requesting reimbursement for indirect costs on line

10, this information is to be completed by your Business Office. Specify the estimated amount of the base to which the indirect cost rat e is applied and the total indirect expense. Depending on the grant program to which you are applying and/or your approved Indirect Cost Rate Agreement, some direct cost budget categories in your grant application budget may not be included in the base and multiplied by your indirect cost rate. For example, you must multiply the indirect cost rates of “Training grant s" (34 CFR 75.562) and grants under programs wit h

“Supplement not Supplant” requirements ("Restricted Rat e" programs) by a “modified total direct cost” (MTDC) base (34

CFR 75.563 or 7 6.563). P lease indicate which costs are

included and which costs are excluded from the base to which the indirect cost rate is applied.

When calculating indirect costs (line 10) for "Training grants" or grant s under "Restricted Rat e" programs, you must refer t o t he information and examples on ED’s website at :

ht t p://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/appforms/appforms.html.

You may also contact (202) 377-3838 for additional information regarding calculating indirect cost rates or general indirect cost rat e information.

5. Provide other explanations or comments you deem necessary.

Paperwork Burden Statement

According t o t he Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond t o a collection of information unless such collect ion displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 1894-0008. T he

time required to complete this information collection is estimated t o

vary from 13 to 22 hours per response, with an average of 17.5 hours per response, including the time to review instructions, search existing data sources, gat her the data needed, and complete and review the information collection. If you have any comments concerning the accuracy of the time estimate(s) or suggest ions for improving t h is form, please write to: U.S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C. 20202-4537. If you have comments or concerns regarding t he

stat us of your individual submission of this form, writ e directly t o

(insert program office), U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland

Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20202.

OMB Control No. 1894-0005 (Exp. 03/31/2017)

NOTICE TO ALL APPLICANTS

The purpose of this enclosure is to inform you about a new provision in the Department of Education's General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) that applies to applicants for new grant awards under Department programs. This provision is Section 427 of GEPA, enacted as part of the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994 (Public Law (P.L.) 103-382).

To Whom Does This Provision Apply?

Section 427 of GEPA affects applicants for new grant awards under this program. ALL APPLICANTS FOR NEW AWARDS MUST INCLUDE INFORMATION IN THEIR APPLICATIONS TO ADDRESS THIS NEW PROVISION IN ORDER TO RECEIVE FUNDING UNDER THIS PROGRAM.

(If this program is a State-formula grant program, a State needs to provide this description only for projects or activities that it carries out with funds reserved for State-level uses. In addition, local school districts or other eligible applicants that apply to the State for funding need to provide this description in their applications to the State for funding. The State would be responsible for ensuring that the school district or other local entity has submitted a sufficient section 427 statement as described below.)

What Does This Provision Require?

Section 427 requires each applicant for funds (other than an individual person) to include in its application a description of the steps the applicant proposes to take to ensure equitable access to, and participation in, its Federally-assisted program for students, teachers, and other program beneficiaries with special needs. This provision allows applicants discretion in developing the required description. The statute highlights six types of barriers that can impede equitable access or participation: gender, race, national origin, color, disability, or age. Based on local circumstances, you should determine whether these or other barriers may prevent your students, teachers, etc. from such access or participation in, the Federally-funded project or activity. The description in your application of steps to be taken to overcome these barriers need not be lengthy; you may provide a clear and succinct description of how you plan to address those barriers that are applicable to your circumstances. In addition, the information may be provided in a single narrative, or, if appropriate, may be discussed in connection with related topics in the application.

Section 427 is not intended to duplicate the requirements of civil rights statutes, but rather to ensure that, in designing their projects, applicants for Federal funds address equity concerns that may affect the ability of certain potential beneficiaries to fully participate in the project and to achieve to high standards. Consistent with program requirements and its approved application, an applicant may use the Federal funds awarded to it to eliminate barriers it identifies.

What are Examples of How an Applicant Might Satisfy the Requirement of This Provision?

The following examples may help illustrate how an applicant may comply with Section 427.

1. An applicant that proposes to carry out an adult literacy project serving, among others, adults with limited English proficiency, might describe in its application how it intends to distribute a brochure about the proposed project to such potential participants in their native language.

2. An applicant that proposes to develop instructional materials for classroom use might describe how it will make the materials available on audio tape or in braille for students who are blind.

3. An applicant that proposes to carry out a model science program for secondary students and is concerned that girls may be less likely than boys to enroll in the course, might indicate how it intends to conduct "outreach" efforts to girls, to encourage their enrollment.

4. An applicant that proposes a project to increase school safety might describe the special efforts it will take to address concern of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students, and efforts to reach out to and involve the families of LGBT students

We recognize that many applicants may already be implementing effective steps to ensure equity of access and participation in their grant programs, and we appreciate your cooperation in responding to the requirements of this provision.

Estimated Burden Statement for GEPA Requirements

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1.5 hours per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. The obligation to respond to this collection is required to obtain or retain benefit (Public Law 103-382. Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20210-4537 or email [email protected] and reference the OMB Control Number 1894-0005.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMPLETION OF SF-LLL, DISCLOSURE OF LOBBYING ACTIVITIES

This disclosure form shall be completed by the reporting entity, whether subawardee or prime Federal recipient, at the initiation or receipt of a covered Federal action, or a material change to a previous filing, pursuant to title 31 U.S.C. section 1352. The filing of a form is required for each payment or agreement to make payment to any lobbying entity for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employeeof any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employeeof Congress, or an employeeof a Member of Congress in connection with a covered Federalaction. Completeall items that apply for both the initial filing and material change report. Refer to the implementing guidance published by the Office of Management and Budget for additional information.

1. Identify the type of covered Federal action for which lobbying activity is and/or has been secured to influence the outcome of a covered Federal action.

2. Identify the status of the covered Federal action.

3. Identify the appropriateclassification of this report. If this is a followup report caused by a material change to the information previously reported, enter the year and quarter in which the change occurred. Enter the date of the last previously submitted report by this reporting entity for this covered Federal action.

4. Enter the full name, address, city, State and zip code of the reporting entity. Include Congressional District, if known. Check the appropriateclassification of the reporting entity that designates if it is, or expects to be, a prime or subaward recipient. Identify the tier of the subawardee, e.g., the first subawardee of the prime is the 1st tier. Subawards include but are not limited to subcontracts, subgrants and contract awards under grants.

5. If the organization filing the report in item 4 checks "Subawardee," then enter the full name, address, city, State and zip code of the prime Federal recipient. Include Congressional District, if known.

6. Enter the name of the Federal agency making the award or loan commitment. Include at least one organizationallevel below agency name, if known. For example, Department of Transportation, United States Coast Guard.

7. Enter the Federal program name or description for the covered Federal action (item 1). If known, enter the full Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number for grants, cooperative agreements, loans, and loan commitments.

8. Enter the most appropriate Federal identifying number available for the Federal action identified in item 1 (e.g., Request for Proposal (RFP) number; Invitation for Bid (IFB) number; grant announcement number; the contract, grant, or loan award number; the application/proposal control number assigned by the Federal agency). Include prefixes, e.g., "RFP-DE-90-001."

9. For a covered Federal action where there has been an award or loan commitment by the Federal agency, enter the Federal amount of the award/loan commitment for the prime entity identified in item 4 or 5.

10. (a) Enter the full name, address, city, State and zip code of the lobbying registrant under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 engaged by the reporting entity identified in item 4 to influence the covered Federal action.

(b) Enter the full names of the individual(s) performing services, and include full address if different from 10 (a). Enter Last Name, First Name, and Middle Initial (MI).

11. The certifying official shall sign and date the form, print his/her name, title, and telephone number.

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act, as amended, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB Control Number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is OMB No. 0348-0046. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 10 minutes per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project (0348-0046), Washington, DC 20503.

84.031R&V Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Program Profile

INSTRUCTIONS: ALL applicants must complete these pages. The completed pages must be attached to the “Other Attachments Form” in the application package in the Grants.gov system (as a .PDF document). DO NOT MODIFY OR AMEND THESE PAGES.

OPE ID #___________

1. INSTITUTION (Legal Name):

_____________________________________________________________________

2. Are you applying as a Branch Campus? _____YES _____NO

3. ADDRESS (Applicants must indicate the address where the project will be located):

Project Address: _______________________________________________________

City: _____________________________________State: ______Zip: _____________

4. Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Certification:

� By checking this box (or placing an “X” beside it), the applicant certifies pursuant to the statutory requirements governing the Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Program, authorized under Title III, Part A, Section 317 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA) by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA) that:

The named institution of higher education, at the time of application, has an enrollment of undergraduate students that is at least twenty percent (20%) Alaska Native (84.031R) or ten percent (10%) Native Hawaiian (84.031V). The term “Alaska Native” means a citizen of the United States who is a person of one-fourth degree or more Alaska Indian (including Tsimshian Indians not enrolled in the Metlaktla Indian Community) Eskimo, or Aleut blood, or combination thereof. The term includes any Native as so defined either or both of whose adoptive parents are not Natives. It also includes, in the absence of proof of a minimum blood quantum, any citizen of the United States who is regarded as an Alaska Native by the Native village or Native group of which he claims to be a member and whose father or mother is (or, if deceased, was) regarded as Native by any village or group. Any decision of the Secretary regarding eligibility for enrollment shall be final. (See 43 U.S. Code §1602-Definitions) The term “Native Hawaiian” means any individual who is—

(A) a citizen of the United States; and

(B) a descendant of the aboriginal people who, prior to 1778, occupied and exercised sovereignty in the area that now comprises the State of Hawaii, as evidenced by—

(i) genealogical records;

(ii) Kupuna (elders) or Kamaaina (long-term community residents) verification; or

(iii) certified birth records. (See 20 U.S. Code §7517 – Definitions)

5. COOPERATIVE ARRANGEMENT FOR PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS: The applicant institution must provide for each Participating Institution: the Institution Name, DUNS Number, Location (City and State). NOT APPLICABLE FOR FY 2016.

6. Tie-Breaker Information

If the selection process ends in a tie and funds are not sufficient to fund all institutions, we will use the information provided here to determine who will receive a grant. In accordance with Section 607.23(b), the Secretary will award up to three (3) additional points based on the information provided here.

Content: On a separate page, provide the following information:

TOTAL 2013-2014 FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT (FTE) STUDENTS=___________

1. Total market value of endowment fund at the end of 2013-2014 $__________

B. Total expenditures for library materials during 2013-2014 $__________

C. Check activities applicant proposes to carry out in application:

a. Faculty development ____________

b. Funds and administrative management ____________

c. Development and improvement of academic ____________

programs

d. Acquisition of equipment for use in strengthening ____________

management and academic programs

e. Joint use of facilities ____________

f. Student services ____________

Application Checklist

Use This Checklist While Preparing Your Application Package. All items listed on this checklist are required except as noted. Applications that do not adhere to this checklist will not be read.

 Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424)

 Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF 424

 Department of Education Budget Information Non-Construction Programs Form

(ED 524)

 Abstract (Use ED Abstract Form)

 Project Narrative (Use Project Narrative Attachment Form)

 Budget Narrative (Use Budget Narrative Attachment Form)

 Other Attachments (Use Other Attachments Form)

• ANNH Program Profile

• Absolute Priority

  • Narrative for the Absolute Priority narrative titled: “Projects that support high-need students which are designed to improve their academic outcomes; learning environments; or both.”

• Competitive Preference Priorities – Optional (May only choose one CPP)

  • Narrative for Competitive Preference Priority 1 narrative, titled: “Competitive Preference Priority 1: Evidence of Promise”

  • Narrative for the Competitive Preference Priority 2 narrative titled: “Competitive Preference Priority 2: Moderate Evidence of Effectiveness”

• Invitational Priority – Optional

  • Narrative for the Invitational Priority titled: “Projects that support activities that strengthen Native language preservation and revitalization.”

• Narrative addressing GEPA 427 (Use ED GEPA 427 Form)

 Assurances and Certifications

 Assurances for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424B)

 Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (SF-LLL)

 Grants.gov Lobbying Form (formerly ED 80-0013 form)

Paperwork Burden Statement

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number.  Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 160 hours per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.  The obligation to respond to this collection is required to obtain or retain benefit (Title III, Part F, Section 371 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended by the HEOA). Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to regulations.gov during the public comment period for this collection of information.  If you have specific questions about the form, instrument or survey, please contact: Robyn Wood, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions program at 202-453-7744.

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