U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
Notice of Availability of Funds and Funding Opportunity Announcement for:
Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (“WANTO”) Technical Assistance Grant Program
ANNOUNCEMENT TYPE: Initial
Funding Opportunity Number: FOA-WB-20-XX
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 17.701
Key Dates: The closing date for receipt of applications under this Announcement is
[insert date XX days after the date of publication on Grants.gov]. We must receive applications no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Addresses: Address mailed applications to:
The U.S. Department of Labor
Employment and Training Administration, Office of Grants Management Attention: Mr. Jimmie Curtis, Grant Officer
Reference FOA-WB-20 -XX
200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room N4673
Washington, D.C. 20210
For complete application and submission information, including online application instructions, please refer to Section IV. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration is responsible for the Women’s Bureau grant award process.
I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION 2
III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION 5
2. Application Screening Criteria 8
3. Number of Applications Applicants May Submit 9
IV. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION 10
A. HOW TO OBTAIN AN APPLICATION PACKAGE 10
B. CONTENT AND FORM OF APPLICATION SUBMISSION 10
1. SF-424, “Application for Federal Assistance” 10
4. Attachments to the Project Narrative 18
C. SUBMISSION DATE, TIME, PROCESS, AND ADDRESS 20
2. Electronic Submission through Grants.gov 21
D. INTERGOVERNMENTAL REVIEW 24
2. Intellectual Property Rights 25
F. OTHER SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS 27
V. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION 27
3. Expected Outputs and Outcomes 28
6. Organizational, Administrative, and Fiscal Capacity 29
7. Past Performance – Programmatic Capability 30
8. Budget and Budget Narrative 30
B. REVIEW AND SELECTION PROCESS 31
1. Merit Review and Selection Process 31
VI. AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION 34
B. ADMISTRATIVE AND NATIONAL POLICY REQUIREMENTS 35
1. Administrative Program Requirements 35
2. Other Legal Requirements 36
3. Other Administrative Standards and Provisions 39
4. Special Program Requirements 39
1. Quarterly Financial Reports 40
2. Quarterly Performance Reports 40
B. INDUSTRY COMPETENCY MODELS AND CAREER CLUSTERS 42
IX. OMB INFORMATION COLLECTION 43
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Women’s Bureau, U.S. Department of Labor (DOL, or the Department, or we), announces the availability of approximately $2.5 million in grant funds authorized by the Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (“WANTO”) Act of 1992, Pub. L. 102-530, 29 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.; 29 U.S.C. § 13; and the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, for the WANTO Technical Assistance Grant Program.
This program aims to provide technical assistance (TA) to employers and labor unions to encourage employment of women in both apprenticeable occupations and nontraditional occupations (A/NTO), specifically in the following ways:
Developing (establishing, expanding, and/or enhancing) pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship (includes Registered Apprenticeship Programs, Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Programs, and other apprenticeship programs), or other nontraditional skills training programs designed to prepare women for careers in A/NTO;
Providing ongoing orientations or other resources for employers, unions, and workers on creating a successful environment for women in A/NTO; and/or
Setting up support groups, facilitating networks, and/or providing supportive services (as defined in section IV.E.3) for women in A/NTO to improve their retention.
Applicants may propose to provide technical assistance to support women’s participation and success in the full range of industries in which women are historically underrepresented or where women are disproportionately concentrated in the lower-wage occupations. Such industries include but are not limited to advanced manufacturing, construction, energy, health care, information technology, finance, and transportation.
To be eligible for funds under this grant program, an applicant must be a community-based organization (CBO) as defined in section III.C.1. In awarding grants, the Department will give priority to applications that meet the following criteria (the application requirements for this grant can be found in Section IV.B):
Demonstrate experience preparing women to gain employment in A/NTO;
Demonstrate experience working with the business community to prepare them to place women in A/NTO;
Have tradeswomen or women in nontraditional occupations as active members of the organization, as either employees or board members; and
Have experience delivering TA specifically as defined above, including developing (establishing, expanding and/or enhancing) pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship, or other nontraditional skills training programs designed to prepare women for careers in A/NTO; providing ongoing orientations or other resources for employers, unions, and workers on creating a successful environment for women in A/NTO; and setting up support groups, facilitating networks, and/or providing supportive services for women in A/NTO to improve their retention.
Funding in the amount of $2.5 million will be available to fund projects from $250,000 to $500,000 for a two year grant. Each grant award may allow no more than 15 percent for supportive services, as defined in section IV.E.3, to ensure participation in trainings, focus groups, and other technical assistance activities aimed at increasing and maintaining women enrolled in apprenticeships or employed in NTOs. The period of performance is 24 months.
The Department is committed to producing strong evidence on the effectiveness of its grant programs, and full participation (by grantee and any subgrantees or subcontractors) in any evaluation the Department initiates will be a condition of all grant awards.
This Announcement solicits applications for Women’s Bureau’s WANTO Technical Assistance Grant Program. The purpose of this program is to provide technical assistance (TA) to employers and labor unions to encourage employment of women in apprenticeable occupations and nontraditional occupations (A/NTO).
Apprenticeship is a proven “earn-and-learn” training model that offers workers a pathway to the middle class and helps companies recruit, develop, and retain a highly skilled workforce. Currently, more than 50,000 women are enrolled in Registered Apprenticeship Programs nationwide, pursuing earn-and-learn experiences across a diverse spectrum of occupations and industries, including work as pharmacy assistants, truck drivers, electricians, and cooks.1 The average starting wage for a fully proficient worker who completes a registered apprenticeship is about $70,000 per year,2 and apprentices who complete their training have significantly higher lifetime earnings than similar individuals who do not participate in apprenticeships.3 Moreover, research indicates that businesses enjoy a return of approximately $1.47 for every dollar invested in apprenticeship, with benefits ranging from reduced turnover to increased productivity.4
Apprenticeship programs have a long history in skilled trades such as construction. They are also increasingly found in emerging and high-growth industries like advanced manufacturing, energy, health care, and information technology. Many of these opportunities lead to careers or career ladders that provide high, family-sustaining wages and quality fringe benefits.
Women are significantly underrepresented in apprenticeship programs, and in high-growth, high-wage occupations generally. While women make up nearly half of the United States labor force,5 they compose only 13 percent of Registered Apprenticeship Program participants.6 This statistic underscores both academic research and anecdotal evidence indicating that women face significant barriers to their full and effective participation in A/NTO.
Quality pre-apprenticeship programs can play a valuable role in removing some of those barriers. Pre-apprenticeship programs are designed to prepare individuals to enter and succeed in an apprenticeship program. They typically have a documented partnership with at least one apprenticeship program and employ a variety of approaches and strategies to meet the specific needs of the populations being trained, the various employers and sponsors they serve, and the local labor market. As such, they are an important starting point toward a successful career in A/NTO, particularly for underrepresented job seekers who may not be aware of these options for obtaining good jobs with opportunity for advancement.
CBOs are well positioned to develop quality pre-apprenticeship programs that help women prepare for and succeed in A/NTO. CBOs may be well known in their local area and frequently serve as the entry point for under-skilled individuals seeking to establish a solid career path. Many workforce-oriented CBOs already provide services such as career counseling, access to support services, remedial math and language education, job- readiness skills such as critical thinking, and referral to and placement in training programs and jobs. Many also offer certificates and credentialing in conjunction with community colleges. These are the elements necessary for quality pre-apprenticeship programs as well.
Applicants should familiarize themselves with current Department guidance regarding quality pre-apprenticeship programs.7 TA provided through this grant program should reinforce DOL guidance.
Consistent with the Department’s emphasis on funding projects that reflect a broad strategy that incorporates all available resources, applicants are strongly encouraged, but are not required, to include leveraged resources in their program design. 8 These may include, but are not limited to, public sources including WIOA or other Department funding, such as apprenticeship grants and contracts, as well as private funding through foundations, CBOs, or other funding streams.
The TA provided through this grant program will prepare employers and labor unions to successfully recruit, mentor, train, and retain women in A/NTO and expand women’s employment opportunities and labor force participation. As such, this grant program will help employers meet their workforce needs while bolstering women’s economic security for themselves and their families and the overall strength of the nation’s economy.
The Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) Act of 1992, Pub. L. 102-530, 29 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.; 29 U.S.C. § 13; and the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, Pub. L. 116-94 authorizes this program.
Funding will be provided in the form of a grant.
We expect availability of approximately $2.5 million to fund approximately six grants with a minimum value of $250,000. You may apply for a ceiling amount of up to $500,000. Each grant award may allow no more than 15 percent for supportive services to ensure participation in trainings, focus groups, and other technical assistance activities aimed at increasing and maintaining women enrolled in apprenticeships or employed in NTOs. Awards made under this Announcement are subject to the availability of federal funds. In the event that additional funds become available, we reserve the right to use such funds to select additional grantees from applications submitted in response to this Announcement.
The period of performance is 24 months and an anticipated start date of October 1, 2020. This performance period includes all necessary implementation and start-up activities. Clarification: the period of performance has been extended compared to WANTO FOAs from previous years, but the funding amount per grant remains the same.
The following organizations are eligible to apply:
A.1 Eligible Entities
Only CBOs as defined in Section III.C.1 are eligible to apply for these grants. A consortium of CBOs may apply as a single applicant, provided the applicant includes a copy of the consortium agreement that specifies which entity will administer the grant.
A.2. Current and Former Grantees
Recipients of funds awarded under previous WANTO Act grant programs are eligible to apply for this funding opportunity. Former WANTO Act grantees must explain, in their “Statement of Need” (see Section IV.B.3), how their proposed TA activities are materially different from those already performed using funds awarded through a WANTO Act grant program. Though materially different, these activities can still build on past performance activities, strengthening or bolstering them, to achieve further results.
This program does not require cost sharing or matching funds. Including such funds is not one of the application screening criteria and applications that include any form of cost sharing or match will not receive additional consideration during the review process. Instead, the agency considers any resources contributed to the project beyond the funds provided by the agency as leveraged resources. Section IV.B.2 provides more information on leveraged resources.
For the purposes of this FOA, the following terms are defined for the convenience of prospective applicants:
Apprentice: A worker at least 16 years of age, except where a higher minimum age standard is otherwise fixed by law, who is employed to learn an apprenticeable occupation as provided under standards of apprenticeship.
Apprenticeable Occupations: Occupations that are specified by industry and which must meet the following criteria:
Involve skills that are customarily learned in a practical way through a structured, systematic program of on-the-job supervised learning;
Be clearly identified and commonly recognized throughout an industry;
Involve the progressive attainment of manual, mechanical, or technical skills and knowledge; and
Require related instruction to supplement the on-the-job learning.
Apprenticeship Agreement: A written agreement that contains the terms and conditions of the employment and training of the apprentice.
Community-Based Organization: A private non-profit organization (i.e., incorporated under Internal Revenue Service (IRS) §§ 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4)) (except for § 501(c)(4) organizations that engage in lobbying as described in section VI.B. of this FOA) that is representative of a community or a significant segment of a community and that has demonstrated expertise and effectiveness in the field of workforce development.
Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Program (IRAP): IRAPs are high-quality apprenticeship programs, wherein an individual obtains workplace-relevant knowledge and progressively advancing skills. IRAPs include a paid-work component and an educational component and result in an industry-recognized credential. An IRAP is developed or delivered by entities such as trade and industry groups, corporations, non-profit organizations, educational institutions, unions, and joint labor-management organizations. An IRAP is an apprenticeship program that has been recognized as a high-quality program by a Standards Recognition Entity (SRE).
National Guidelines for Apprenticeship Standards: Standards that are developed by national committees or organizations, joint or unilateral, and that are “certified” by the Department’s Office of Apprenticeship (OA). The OA Administrator, based on consultation with the OA, Division of Standards and National Industry Promotion (DSNIP), signs the documentation necessary to “certify” the National Guideline Standards as substantially conforming to the requirements of Title 29, CFR parts 29 Subpart A and 30. The purpose of National Guideline Standards is to provide policy and guidance to local affiliates of national organizations in developing local standards for approval and registration. When local affiliates develop local standards for registration, even though the local standards may be based upon the organizations’ National Guideline Standards, they must meet all the requirements of and be approved by the Registration Agency in that State.
National Program Standards: Standards that are developed and “registered” for multi-state programs. Such registration is for Federal purposes and is approved for each state covered by the National Program Standards. Apprentices are registered into these National Program Standards. The National OA is the Registration Agency for National Programs.
Non-Traditional Occupations (NTO): Those occupations where women account for less than 25 percent of all persons employed in a single occupational group.
Office of Apprenticeship (OA): The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Apprenticeship.
Pre-Apprenticeship Program: A program designed to prepare individuals to enter and succeed in an apprenticeship program, which has a documented partnership with at least one apprenticeship program and employs a variety of approaches and strategies to meet the specific needs of the populations being trained, the various employers and sponsors they serve, and the local labor market.
Registered Apprenticeship (RA): A formal employment relationship designed to promote skill training and learning on the job. “Hands on” learning takes place in conjunction with related theoretical instruction (often in a classroom setting). An apprentice who successfully completes a Registered Apprenticeship Program (completion averages three to five years) is awarded a certificate of completion of apprenticeship. A registered program is one in which any person, association, committee, business, or organization operating an apprenticeship program and in whose name the program is (or is to be) registered or approved (known as program sponsors) designs, organizes, manages, and finances apprenticeship programs under the standards developed and registered with OA or a DOL-recognized State Apprenticeship Agency, set out in 29 C.F.R. parts 29 Subpart A and 30. Program sponsors also select apprentices who are trained to meet certain predetermined occupational standards. For additional information, see https://www.doleta.gov/OA/apprenticeship.cfm.
Registered Apprenticeship Program: A program in which any person, association, committee, business, or organization operating an apprenticeship program and in whose name the program is (or is to be) registered or approved (known as program sponsors) designs, organizes, manages, and finances apprenticeship programs under the standards developed and registered with OA or a DOL-recognized State Apprenticeship Agency, set out in 29 C.F.R. parts 29 Subpart A and 30. Each program includes a plan containing all terms and conditions for the qualification, recruitment, selection, employment, and training of apprentices, as required under 29 CFR parts 29 Subpart A and 30, including such matters as the requirement for a written apprenticeship agreement; or a program with a paid, work-based learning component and a required educational or instructional component that results in the issuance of an industry-recognized credential and meets appropriate quality assurance standards.
Registered Apprenticeship Sponsor: Any person, association, committee, business, or organization operating a Registered Apprenticeship Program in whose name the program is (or is to be) registered or approved.
Registration Agency: OA or a recognized State Apprenticeship Agency that has responsibility for registering apprenticeship programs and apprentices, providing TA, conducting reviews for compliance with 29 CFR parts 29 and 30, and quality assurance assessments.
Standards Recognition Entity (SRE): An SRE is a third-party entity the Department determines is qualified to recognize apprenticeship programs as IRAPs. The types of entities that can become SREs include trade, industry, and employer groups or associations; companies and other corporate entities; educational institutions, such as universities or community colleges; state and local government agencies or entities; non-profit organizations; unions; joint labor-management organizations; certification and accreditation bodies or entities for a profession or industry; or a consortium or partnership of entities mentioned.
State Apprenticeship Agency: An agency of a state government that has responsibility and accountability for apprenticeship within the state. Only a State Apprenticeship Agency may seek recognition by OA as an agency that has been properly constituted under an acceptable law or Executive Order, and authorized by OA to register and oversee apprenticeship programs and agreements for federal purposes.
Women’s Bureau: The U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau.
You should use the checklist below as a guide when preparing your application package to ensure that the application has met all of the screening criteria. Note that this checklist is only an
aid for applicants and should not be included in the application package. We urge you to use this checklist to ensure that your application contains all required items. If your application does not meet all of the screening criteria, it will not move forward through the merit review process.
Application Requirement |
Instructions |
Complete? |
The deadline submission requirements are met |
Section IV.C |
|
Eligibility |
Section III.A |
|
If submitted through Grants.gov, the components of the application are saved in any of the specified formats and are not corrupt. (We will attempt to open the document, but will not take any additional measures in the event of problems with opening.) |
Section IV.C.2 |
|
Application for Federal funds request does not exceed the ceiling amount of $500,000 and is above the floor amount of $250,000 |
Section II.A |
|
SAM Registration |
Section IV.B.1 |
|
SF-424, Application for Federal Assistance includes a DUNS number |
Section IV.B.1 |
|
SF-424A, Budget Information Form |
Section IV.B.2 |
|
Budget Narrative |
Section IV.B.2 |
|
Project Narrative |
Section IV.B.3 |
|
Abstract |
Section IV.B.4 |
|
Project Work Plan |
Section IV.B.4 |
|
Memorandum of Understanding/Letter of Commitment |
Section IV.B.4 |
|
Consortium Agreement (where applicable) |
Section IV.B.4 |
|
We will consider only one application from each organization. If we receive multiple applications from the same organization, we will consider only the most recently received application that met the deadline. If the most recent application is disqualified for any reason, we will not replace it with an earlier application.
The intent of this FOA is to fund projects that provide TA to employers and/or labor unions to recruit, mentor, train, and employ women in A/NTO, specifically through the development of pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship, or nontraditional skills training programs.
Applicants must propose a project that focuses on developing (establishing, expanding, or enhancing) a pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship, or nontraditional skills training program designed to prepare women for careers in A/NTO, and that will assist employers and/or labor unions in the recruitment, training, and employment of women in A/NTO.
38 U.S.C. 4215 requires grantees to provide priority of service to veterans and spouses of certain veterans for the receipt of employment, training, and placement services in any job training program directly funded, in whole or in part, by DOL. The regulations implementing this priority of service are at 20 CFR Part 1010. In circumstances where a grant recipient must choose between two qualified candidates for a service, one of whom is a veteran or eligible spouse, the veterans’ priority of service provisions require that the grant recipient give the veteran or eligible spouse priority of service by first providing him or her that service. To obtain priority of service, a veteran or spouse must meet the program’s eligibility requirements. Grantees must comply with DOL guidance on veterans’ priority. ETA’s Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) No. 10-09 (issued November 10, 2009) provides guidance on implementing priority of service for veterans and eligible spouses in all qualified job training programs funded in whole or in part by DOL. TEGL No. 10-09 is available at https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=2816.
This FOA, found at www.Grants.gov and https://www.doleta.gov/grants/find_grants.cfm, contains all of the information and links to forms needed to apply for grant funding.
Applications submitted in response to this FOA must consist of four separate and distinct parts:
1. SF-424, “Application for Federal Assistance”;
2. Project Budget, composed of the SF-424A and Budget Narrative;
3. Project Narrative; and
4. Attachments to the Project Narrative.
You must ensure that the funding amount requested is consistent across all parts and subparts of the application.
You must complete the SF-424, “Application for Federal Assistance” (available at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/sf-424-family.html#sortby=1).
In the address field, fill out the nine-digit (plus hyphen) zip code. Nine-digit zip codes can be looked up on the USPS website at https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupAction!input.action.
The SF-424 must clearly identify the applicant and must be signed by an individual with authority to enter into a grant agreement. Upon confirmation of an award, the individual signing the SF-424 on behalf of the applicant is considered the Authorized Representative of the applicant. As stated in block 21 of the SF-424 form, the signature of the Authorized Representative on the SF-424 certifies that the organization is in compliance with the Assurances and Certifications form SF-424B (available at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/sf-424-family.html#sortby=1). You do not need to submit the SF-424B with the application.
In addition, subject to the provisions of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb, the applicant’s Authorized Representative’s signature in block 21 of the SF-424 form constitutes assurance by the applicant of compliance with the following requirements in accordance with the WIOA 188 rules issued by the Department at 29 CFR 38.25 which includes the following language:
As a condition to the award of financial assistance from the Department of Labor under Title I WIOA, the grant applicant assures that it has the ability to comply fully with the nondiscrimination and equal opportunity provisions of the following laws: Section 188 of the WIOA, which, as interpreted through Departmental regulations, prohibits discrimination against all individuals in the United States on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions, transgender status, and gender identity), national origin (including limited English proficiency), age, disability, political affiliation or belief, and against beneficiaries on the basis of either citizenship status or participation in any WIOA Title I—financially assisted program or activity; Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the bases of race, color and national origin; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, which prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities; The Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of age; and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs.
The grant applicant also assures, subject to RFRA, that as a recipient of WIOA Title I financial assistance [as defined at 29 CFR 38.4(zz)], it will comply with 29 CFR part 38 and all other regulations implementing the laws listed above. This assurance applies to the grant applicant's operation of the WIOA Title I-financially assisted program or activity, and to all agreements the grant applicant makes to carry out the WIOA Title I-financially assisted program or activity. The grant applicant understands that the United States has the right to seek judicial enforcement of this assurance. Note that the RFRA applies to all federal law and its implementation. If an applicant organization is a faith-based organization that makes hiring decisions on the basis of religious belief, it may be entitled to receive federal financial assistance under this grant solicitation and maintain that hiring practice. If a faith-based organization is awarded a grant, the organization will be provided with more information.
All applicants for federal grant and funding opportunities must have a DUNS number, and must supply their DUNS Number on the SF-424. The DUNS Number is a nine-digit identification number that uniquely identifies business entities. If you do not have a DUNS Number, you can get one for free through the D&B website: https://fedgov.dnb.com/webform/displayHomePage.do.
Grant recipients authorized to make subawards must meet these requirements related to DUNS Numbers:
Grant recipients must notify potential subawardees that no entity may receive a subaward unless the entity has provided its DUNS number.
Grant recipients may not make a subaward to an entity unless the entity has provided its DUNS number.
(See Appendix A to 2 CFR Part 25.)
Applicants must register with the System for Award Management (SAM) before submitting an application. Find instructions for registering with SAM at https://www.sam.gov.
A recipient must maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which it has an active federal award or an application under consideration. To remain registered in the SAM database after the initial registration, the applicant is required to review and update the registration at least every 12 months from the date of initial registration or subsequently update its information in the SAM database to ensure it is current, accurate, and complete. For purposes of this paragraph, the applicant is the entity that meets the eligibility criteria and has the legal authority to apply and to receive the award. If an applicant has not fully complied with these requirements by the time the Grant Officer is ready to make a federal award, the Grant Officer may determine that the applicant is not qualified to receive a federal award and use that determination as a basis for making a federal award to another applicant.
You must complete the SF-424A Budget Information Form (available at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/sf-424-family.html#sortby=1). In preparing the Budget Information Form, you must provide a concise narrative explanation to support the budget request, explained in detail below.
The Budget Narrative must provide a description of costs associated with each line item on the SF-424A. The Budget Narrative should also include a section describing any leveraged resources provided (as applicable) to support grant activities. Leveraged resources are all resources, both cash and in-kind, in excess of this award. Valuation of leveraged resources follows the same requirements as match. Applicants are encouraged to leverage resources to increase stakeholder investment in the project and broaden the impact of the project itself.
Each category should include the total cost for the period of performance. Use the following guidance for preparing the Budget Narrative.
Personnel: List all staff positions by title (both current and proposed) including the roles and responsibilities. For each position give the annual salary, the percentage of time devoted to the project, and the amount of each position’s salary funded by the grant.
Fringe Benefits: Provide a breakdown of the amounts and percentages that comprise fringe benefit costs such as health insurance, FICA, retirement, etc.
Travel: For grantee staff only, specify the purpose, number of staff traveling, mileage, per diem, estimated number of in-state and out-of-state trips, and other costs for each type of travel.
Equipment: Identify each item of equipment you expect to purchase that has an estimated acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit (or if your capitalization level is less than $5,000, use your capitalization level) and a useful lifetime of more than one year (see 2 CFR 200.33 for the definition of Equipment). List the item, quantity, and the unit cost per item.
Items with a unit cost of less than $5,000 are supplies, not “equipment.” In general, we do not permit the purchase of equipment during the last funded year of the grant.
Supplies: Identify categories of supplies (e.g., office supplies) in the detailed budget and list the item, quantity, and the unit cost per item. Supplies include all tangible personal property other than “equipment” (see 2 CFR 200.94 for the definition of Supplies).
Contractual: Under the Contractual line item, delineate contracts and subawards separately. Contracts are defined according to 2 CFR 200.22 as a legal instrument by which a non-federal entity purchases property or services needed to carry out the project or program under a federal award. A subaward, defined by 2 CFR 200.92, means an award provided by a pass-through entity to a subrecipient for the subrecipient to carry out part of a federal award received by the pass-through entity. It does not include payments to a contractor or payments to an individual that is a beneficiary of a federal program.
For each proposed contract and subaward, specify the purpose and activities to be provided and the estimated cost.
Construction: Construction costs are not allowed and this line must be left as zero. Minor alterations to adjust an existing space for grant activities (such as a classroom alteration) may be allowable. We do not consider this as construction and you must show the costs on other appropriate lines such as Contractual.
Other: Provide clear and specific detail, including costs, for each item so that we are able to determine whether the costs are necessary, reasonable, and allocable. List items, such as stipends or incentives, not covered elsewhere.
Indirect Costs: If you include an amount for indirect costs (through a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement or De Minimis) on the SF-424A budget form, then include one of the following:
a) If you have a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA), provide an explanation of how the indirect costs are calculated. This explanation should include which portion of each line item, along with the associated costs, are included in your cost allocation base. Also, provide a current version of the NICRA.
or
b) If you intend to claim indirect costs using the 10 percent de minimis rate, please confirm that your organization meets the requirements as described in 2 CFR 200.414(f). Clearly state that your organization has never received a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA), and your organization is not one described in 2 CFR 200, Appendix VII(D)(1)(b).
Applicants choosing to claim indirect costs using the de minimis rate must use Modified Total Direct Costs (see 2 CFR 200.68 below for definition) as their cost allocation base. Provide an explanation of which portion of each line item, along with the associated costs, are included in your cost allocation base. Note that there are various items not included in the calculation of Modified Total Direct Costs. See the definitions below to assist you in your calculation.
2 CFR 200.68 Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC) means all direct salaries and wages, applicable fringe benefits, materials and supplies, services, travel, and up to the first $25,000 of each subaward (regardless of the period of performance of the subawards under the award). MTDC excludes equipment, capital expenditures, charges for patient care, rental costs, tuition remission, scholarships and fellowships, participant support costs and the portion of each subaward in excess of $25,000. Other items may only be excluded when necessary to avoid a serious inequity in the distribution of indirect costs, and with the approval of the cognizant agency for indirect costs.
The definition of MTDC in 2 CFR 200.68 no longer allows for any subcontracts to be included in the calculation. You will also note that participant support costs are not included in modified total direct cost. Participant support costs are defined below.
2 CFR 200.75 Participant Support Cost means direct costs for items such as stipends or subsistence allowances, travel allowances, and registration fees paid to or on behalf of participants or trainees (but not employees) in connection with conferences or training projects.
See Section IV.B.4. and Section IV.E.1 for more information. Additionally, the following link contains information regarding the negotiation of Indirect Cost Rates at DOL: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/centers-offices/business-operations-center/cost-determination.
Note that the SF-424, SF-424A, and Budget Narrative must include the entire federal grant amount requested (not just one year).
Do not show leveraged resources on the SF-424 and SF-424A. You should describe leveraged resources in the Budget Narrative.
Applicants should list the same requested federal grant amount on the SF-424, SF-424A, and Budget Narrative. If minor inconsistencies are found between the budget amounts specified on the SF-424, SF-424A, and the Budget Narrative, ETA will consider the SF-424 the official funding amount requested. However, if the amount specified on the SF-424 would render the application nonresponsive, the Grant Officer will use his or her discretion to determine whether the intended funding request (and match if applicable) is within the responsive range.
The Project Narrative must demonstrate your capability to implement the grant project in accordance with the provisions of this Announcement. It provides a comprehensive framework and description of all aspects of the proposed project. It must be succinct, self-explanatory, and well-organized so that reviewers can understand the proposed project.
The Project Narrative is limited to 15 double-spaced single-sided 8.5 x 11 inch pages with Times New Roman 12 point text font and 1-inch margins. You must number the Project Narrative beginning with page number 1.
We will not read or consider any materials beyond the specified page limit in the application review process.
The following instructions provide all of the information needed to complete the Project Narrative. Carefully read and consider each section, and include all required information in your Project Narrative. The agency will evaluate the Project Narrative using the evaluation criteria identified in Section V.A. You must use the same section headers identified below for each section of the Project Narrative.
Describe in both quantitative and qualitative terms the need for technical assistance, including the nature and scope of the problem, and the consequences of not addressing the need. Incorporate demographic data and participant/beneficiary information whenever possible. In particular, be sure to describe the following:
The geographic region where the TA will be provided, and the workforce needs of the local economy (particularly with respect to A/NTO);
The need for TA to help employers and/or labor unions prepare women to enter and succeed in A/NTO; and
How the TA you propose to deliver will assist employers and/or labor unions in preparing women to enter and succeed in A/NTO.
Former WANTO Act Grantees: Also explain how your proposed TA activities are materially different from those already performed using funds awarded through a WANTO Act grant program.
Clearly identify the geographic area the project will serve. Describe specifically the following, if applicable:
The project proposes to serve a region not served in the last two years by prior WB WANTO grant recipients. A list of prior WB recipients and the regions served from 2017 through 2019 is listed in Attachment 1. A list of the states included in WB Regions is listed in Attachment 2.
The project proposes to serve in an Opportunity Zone as defined by the US Department of Treasury. A list of current Opportunity Zones and further information can be found at the following link: https://www.cdfifund.gov/Pages/Opportunity-Zones.aspx.
Clearly identify the output(s) and outcome(s) that will result from the project. Outputs are tangible products or services that result from the project. Outcomes are the positive benefits or measurable results that occur as the result of project activities or outputs. 9 Applications must specifically address each of the below in addition to any other proposed outputs and outcomes:
The number of and percentage increase in women expected to apply for, be accepted into, enroll in, and/or complete pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship, or other nontraditional skills training programs by the end of the grant period as a result of the TA you propose to provide;
Whether and to what extent products or services developed with TA provided under this grant can or will be sustained beyond the grant period;
The plan for documenting participant success stories, lessons learned, best practices, and innovative approaches; and
The systemic change anticipated as a result of the TA.
Propose methods that the project will use to address the stated outputs and outcomes, including those mentioned in IV.B.3.c “Expected Outputs and Outcomes” above and VI.C.2 “Quarterly Reporting” below. Outline a plan of action that describes the scope and detail of how the project will accomplish the proposed work and include timelines for completion of work. Account for all functions or activities identified in the application. Cite factors that might accelerate or decelerate the work and state the reason for taking the proposed approach rather than other approaches. Identify any potential barriers and describe how the project will be able to overcome those barriers. Be sure to address the following:
Describe the full nature and scope of each type of TA you propose to provide, including the frequency of delivery;
Describe how you will collaborate with the appropriate or applicable federal and state agencies to ensure your TA is provided in accordance with federal and state law, policy, guidance, and regulations;
Identify key partners to promote sustainability of the TA after the project concludes.
Note: Applicants must provide letters of commitment from employers and/or labor unions to which they propose to provide TA.
Describe the measures, methods, techniques, and tools that will be used to evaluate the project to determine whether (1) the project achieved its anticipated outcomes and (2) to what extent those outcomes can be attributed to the project. Include details on how project participants will participate in evaluation activities. Describe how the data will be used to inform program delivery and document the “lessons learned,” both positive and negative, from the project that will be useful to people interested in replicating the project, if it proves successful. Where applicable to their project goals and objectives, applicants should describe a plan to report on the outcome and output indicators listed in the VI.C.2 (Quarterly Performance Report) section.
Provide information on the applicant organization’s current mission, structure, staffing, and relevant experience. Describe how these factors contribute to the ability of the organization to conduct the program requirements and meet program expectations. Include information about any organization(s) under contract with the applicant that will have a significant role in implementing the project. Describe the fiscal and administrative controls in place to properly manage federal funds. Include the organization’s capability to sustain some or all project activities after Federal financial assistance has ended. In this section, also discuss the organization’s experience and capability in the below areas:
Experience preparing women to gain employment in A/NTO;
Experience working with the business community to prepare them to place women in A/NTO;
Experience delivering TA such as establishing, expanding and/or enhancing pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship, or other nontraditional skills training programs designed to prepare women for careers in A/NTO; providing ongoing orientations for employers, unions, and workers on creating a successful environment for women in A/NTO; and setting up support groups, facilitating networks, and/or providing supportive services for women in A/NTO to improve their retention;
Has tradeswomen or women in nontraditional occupations as active members of the organization, as either employees or board members.
If you have received federally and/or non-federally funded assistance agreements (assistance agreements include federal grants and cooperative agreements) similar in size, scope, and relevance to the proposed project that have been completed within the last five years of the closing date of this Announcement, please submit a list of no more than three such agreements and include a grantor contact name and telephone number for each. For each agreement, provide two significant performance goals and the outcomes of those goals in order to demonstrate if and how the applicant successfully completed and managed each agreement. The outcomes must clearly demonstrate in numerical form if, in fact, the goals were met or exceeded. In evaluating applicants under these factors in Section V, we will consider the information you provided and may also consider relevant information from other sources, including information from our files and from current/prior grantors (e.g., to verify and/or supplement the information you provided).
If you have not received any federally and/or non-federally funded assistance agreements or have received fewer than three agreements, then you must describe and document past accomplishments achieved operating a comparable program. Explain how your experience operating a comparable program prepared you to undertake the complexities of operating the proposed project. Describe how long the comparable program has been in operation, and include a grantor or third party contact name and telephone number for each, as applicable.
The Budget and Budget Narrative will be used to evaluate this section. Please see Section IV.B.2 for information on the requirements. The Budget and Budget Narrative do not count against the page limit requirements for the Project Narrative.
In addition to the Project Narrative, you must submit attachments. All attachments must be clearly labeled. We will exclude only those attachments listed below from the page limit. The Budget and Budget Justification do not count against the page limit requirements for the Project Narrative.
You must not include additional materials such as resumés or general letters of support. You must submit your application in one package because documents received separately will be tracked separately and will not be attached to the application for review.
Save all files with descriptive file names of 50 characters or fewer and use only standard characters in file names: A-Z, a-z, 0-9, and underscore (_). File names may not include special characters (e.g., &,–,*,%,/,#), periods (.), blank spaces or accent marks, and must be unique (e.g., no other attachment may have the same file name). You may use an underscore (example: My_Attached_File.pdf) to separate a file name.
You must submit an up to two-page abstract summarizing the proposed project including, but not limited to, the scope of the project and proposed outcomes. Omission of the abstract will not result in your application being disqualified; the lack of the required information in the abstract, however, may impact scoring. See III.C.1 for a list of items that will result in the disqualification of your application. The abstract must include the following:
the applicant’s name;
the project title;
a description of the area to be served;
the number of participants to be served;
the funding level requested;
the total cost-per-participant;
a statement of whether the applicant received other ETA grant(s), and if so, a list of other ETA grant(s) funded; and
a brief summary of the proposed project including, but not limited to, the scope of the project and proposed outcomes.
(2) Memorandum of Understanding / Letter of Commitment
Applicants must provide letters of commitment from entities to which they propose to provide
TA.
(3) Project Work Plan
Applicants must provide a project work plan detailing how and when you will implement your project. State your project goal, describe the strategies and/or tactics you will use to achieve this goal, identify specific and measurable objectives, list activities you will undertake to achieve these objectives, and provide the estimated cost of each activity with a separate break-out of WANTO funds and outside funds (if applicable). Be sure to address plans for reaching the population of interest. Lastly, identify any outcomes you propose to measure, including those required by the FOA as detailed in the Reporting Section VI.C.
(4) Consortium Agreement (if applicable)
Applicants applying on behalf of a CBO consortium must include a copy of the consortium agreement that specifies which entity will administer the grant. A breakdown in the responsibilities of each CBO should also be included to ensure that the applicant covers all aspects of the proposed TA (see Section III.A).
We request the following attachments, but their omission will not cause us to disqualify the application. Furthermore, the omission of the attachment will impact scoring unless otherwise noted.
If you are requesting indirect costs based on a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement approved by your federal Cognizant Agency, then attach the most recently approved Agreement. (For more information, see Section IV.B.2. and Section IV.E.1.) This attachment does not impact scoring of the application.
When submitting in grants.gov, this document must be uploaded as an attachment to the application package and specifically labeled “NICRA.”
All applicants are requested to submit Funding Opportunity Announcement Financial System Assessment Information. See Section V.B.2 for a sample template and additional instructions. This attachment does not impact the scoring of the application.
We must receive your application by [insert date XX days after the date of publication on Grants.gov]. You must submit your application either electronically on https://www.grants.gov or in hard copy by mail or in hard copy by hand delivery (including overnight delivery) no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date.
Applicants are encouraged to submit their application before the closing date to minimize the risk of late receipt. We will not review applications received after 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date. We will not accept applications sent by e-mail, telegram, or facsimile (FAX).
All applications submitted in hardcopy by mail or hand delivery (including overnight delivery) must be received at the designated place by the specified closing date and time. Applicants submitting applications in hard copy by mail or hand delivery must submit a copy-ready version free of bindings, staples, or protruding tabs to ease in the reproduction of the application by DOL. Applicants submitting applications in hard copy must also include in the hard copy submission an identical electronic copy of the application on compact disc (CD) or flash drive. If we identify discrepancies between the hard copy submission and CD/flash drive copy, we will consider the application on the CD/flash drive as the official submission for evaluation purposes. Failure to provide identical applications in hardcopy and CD/flash drive format may have an impact on the overall evaluation.
If an application is submitted both by hard copy and through https://www.grants.gov, a letter must accompany the hard-copy application stating which application to review. If no letter accompanies the hard copy, we will review the copy submitted through https://www.grants.gov.
We will grant no exceptions to the mailing and delivery requirements set forth in this notice. Further, we will not accept documents submitted separately from the application, before or after the deadline, as part of the application.
Address mailed applications as follows:
U.S. Department of Labor
Employment and Training Administration
Office of Grants Management
Attention: Jimmie Curtis, Grant Officer
Reference FOA-WB-20-XX
200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room N4716
Washington, D.C. 20210
Please note that mail decontamination procedures may delay mail delivery in the Washington, D.C. area. We will receive hand-delivered applications at the above address at the 3rd Street Visitor Entrance. All overnight delivery submissions will be considered to be hand-delivered and must be received at the designated place by the specified closing date and time.
Applicants submitting applications through Grants.gov must ensure successful submission no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date. Grants.gov will subsequently validate the application.
The process can be complicated and time-consuming. You are strongly advised to initiate the process as soon as possible and to plan for time to resolve technical problems. Note that validation does not mean that your application has been accepted as complete or has been accepted for review by the agency. Rather, grants.gov only verifies the submission of certain parts of an application.
Read through the registration process carefully before registering. These steps may take as long as four weeks to complete, and this time should be factored into plans for timely electronic submission in order to avoid unexpected delays that could result in the rejection of an application.
Applicants must follow the online instructions for registration at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration.html. We recommend that you prepare the information requested before beginning the registration process. Reviewing and assembling required information before beginning the registration process will alleviate last-minute searches for required information and save time.
An application submitted through Grants.gov constitutes a submission as an electronically signed application. The registration and account creation with Grants.gov, with E-Biz Point of Contact (POC) approval, establishes an Agency Organizational Representative (AOR). When an application is submitted through Grants.gov, the name of the AOR who submitted the application is inserted into the signature line of the application, serving as the electronic signature. The E-Biz POC must authorize the individual who is able to make legally binding commitments on behalf of your organization as the AOR; this step is often missed and it is crucial for valid submissions.
Grants.gov applicants can apply online using Workspace. Workspace is a shared online environment where members of a grant team may simultaneously access and edit different webforms within an application. For a complete workspace overview, refer to https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/workspace-overview.html.
For access to complete instructions on how to apply for opportunities, refer to
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/apply-for-grants.html.
When a registered applicant submits an application with Grants.gov, an electronic time stamp is generated within the system when the application is successfully received by Grants.gov. Grants.gov will send the applicant AOR an email acknowledgement of receipt and a tracking number (GRANTXXXXXXXX) with the successful transmission of the application, serving as proof of timely submission. The applicant will receive two email messages to provide the status of the application’s progress through the system.
The first email will contain a tracking number and will confirm receipt of the application by Grants.gov.
The second email will indicate the application has either been successfully validated or has been rejected due to errors.
Grants.gov will reject applications if the applicant’s registration in SAM is expired. Only applications that have been successfully submitted by the deadline and later successfully validated will be considered. It is your responsibility to ensure a timely submission. While it is not required that an application be successfully validated before the deadline for submission, it is prudent to reserve time before the deadline in case it is necessary to resubmit an application that has not been successfully validated. Therefore, enough time should be allotted for submission (24-48 hours) and, if applicable, additional time to address errors and receive validation upon resubmission (an additional two business days for each ensuing submission). It is important to note that if enough time is not allotted and a rejection notice is received after the due date and time, DOL will not consider the application.
To ensure consideration, the components of the application must be saved as .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .rtf or .pdf files. If submitted in any other format, the applicant bears the risk that compatibility or other issues will prevent DOL from considering the application. We will attempt to open the document, but will not take any additional measures in the event of problems with opening.
We strongly advise applicants to use the various tools and documents, including FAQs, which are available on the “Applicant Resources” page at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-faqs.html.
We encourage new prospective applicants to view the online tutorial, “Grant Applications 101: A Plain English Guide to ETA Competitive Grants,” available through WorkforceGPS at https://strategies.workforcegps.org/resources/2014/08/11/16/32/applying-for-eta-competitive-grants-a-web-based-toolkit-for-prospective-applicants-438?p=1.
To receive updated information about critical issues, new tips for users, and other time-sensitive updates as information is available, you may subscribe to “Grants.gov Updates” at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/manage-subscriptions.html.
If you encounter a problem with Grants.gov and do not find an answer in any of the other resources, contact one of the following:
call 1-800-518-4726 or 606-545-5035 to speak to a Customer Support Representative or
email [email protected].
The Grants.gov Contact Center is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week but closed on federal holidays. If you are experiencing difficulties with your submission, it is best to call the Grants.gov Support Center and get a ticket number.
Late Applications
For applications submitted on Grants.gov, we will consider only applications successfully submitted no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date and then successfully validated. You take a significant risk by waiting to the last day to submit through Grants.gov.
We will not consider any hard copy application received after the exact date and time specified for receipt at the office designated in this notice, unless we receive it before awards are made, it was properly addressed, and it was (a) sent by U.S. Postal Service mail, postmarked not later than the fifth calendar day before the date specified for receipt of applications (e.g., an application required to be received by the 20th of the month must be postmarked by the 15th of that month); or (b) sent by professional overnight delivery service to the addressee not later than one working day before the date specified for receipt of applications. ‘‘Postmarked’’ means a printed, stamped, or otherwise placed impression (exclusive of a postage meter machine impression) that is readily identifiable, without further action, as having been supplied or affixed on the date of mailing by an employee of the U.S. Postal Service. Therefore, you should request the postal clerk to place a legible hand cancellation ‘‘bull’s eye’’ postmark on both the receipt and the package. Failure to adhere to these instructions will be a basis for a determination that the application was not filed timely and will not be considered. Evidence of timely submission by a professional overnight delivery service must be demonstrated by equally reliable evidence created by the delivery service provider indicating the time and place of receipt.
This funding opportunity is not subject to Executive Order 12372, “Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.”
All proposed project costs must be necessary and reasonable and in accordance with federal guidelines. Determinations of allowable costs will be made in accordance with the Cost Principles, now found in the Office of Management and Budget’s Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance), codified at 2 CFR Part 200 and at 2 CFR Part 2900 (Uniform Guidance-DOL specific). Disallowed costs are those charges to a grant that the grantor agency or its representative determines not to be allowed in accordance with the Cost Principles or other conditions contained in the grant. Applicants, whether successful or not, will not be entitled to reimbursement of pre-award costs.
As specified in the Uniform Guidance Cost Principles, indirect costs are those that have been incurred for common or joint objectives and cannot be readily identified with a particular final cost objective. An indirect cost rate is required when an organization operates under more than one grant or other activity, whether federally-assisted or not. You have two options to claim reimbursement of indirect costs.
Option 1: You may use a NICRA or Cost Allocation Plan (CAP) supplied by the federal Cognizant Agency. If you do not have a NICRA/CAP or have a pending NICRA/CAP, and in either case choose to include estimated indirect costs in your budget, at the time of award the Grant Officer will release funds in the amount of 10 percent of salaries and wages to support indirect costs. Within 90 days of award, you are required to submit an acceptable indirect cost proposal or CAP to your federal Cognizant Agency to obtain a provisional indirect cost rate. (See Section IV.B.4. for more information on NICRA submission requirements.)
Option 2: Any organization that has never received a negotiated indirect cost rate, with the exceptions noted at 2 CFR 200.414(f) in the Cost Principles, may elect to charge a de minimis rate of 10 percent of modified total direct costs (see 2 CFR 200.68 for definition), which may be used indefinitely. If you choose this option, this methodology must be used consistently for all federal awards until such time as you choose to negotiate for an indirect cost rate, for which you may apply at any time. (See 2 CFR 200.414(f) for more information on use of the de minimis rate.)
Pursuant to 2 CFR 2900.13, to ensure that the federal investment of DOL funds has as broad an impact as possible and to encourage innovation in the development of new learning materials, the grantee will be required to license to the public all work created with the support of the grant under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY) license. Work that must be licensed under the CC BY includes both new content created with the grant funds and modifications made to pre-existing, grantee-owned content using grant funds.
This license allows subsequent users to copy, distribute, transmit, and adapt the copyrighted work and requires such users to attribute the work in the manner specified by the grantee. Notice of the license shall be affixed to the work. For general information on CC BY, please visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0.
Instructions for marking your work with CC BY can be found at https://wiki.creativecommons.org/Marking_your_work_with_a_CC_license.
Questions about CC BY as it applies to this specific funding opportunity should be submitted to the ETA Grants Management Specialist specified in Section VII.
Only work that is developed by the recipient in whole or in part with grant funds is required to be licensed under the CC BY license. Pre-existing copyrighted materials licensed to or purchased by the grantee from third parties, including modifications of such materials, remain subject to the intellectual property rights the grantee receives under the terms of the particular license or purchase. In addition, works created by the grantee without grant funds do not fall under the CC BY licensing requirement.
The purpose of the CC BY licensing requirement is to ensure that materials developed with funds provided by these grants result in work that can be freely reused and improved by others. When purchasing or licensing consumable or reusable materials, the grantee is expected to respect all applicable federal laws and regulations, including those pertaining to the copyright and accessibility provisions of the Federal Rehabilitation Act.
Separate from the CC BY license to the public, the Federal Government reserves a paid-up, nonexclusive, and irrevocable license to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use, and to authorize others to use for federal purposes (i) the copyright in all products developed under the grant, including a subaward or contract under the grant or subaward; and (ii) any rights of copyright to which the recipient, subrecipient, or a contractor purchases ownership under an award (including, but not limited to, curricula, training models, technical assistance products, and any related materials). Such uses include, but are not limited to, the right to modify and distribute such products worldwide by any means, electronically or otherwise. The grantee may not use federal funds to pay any royalty or license fee for use of a copyrighted work, or the cost of acquiring by purchase a copyright in a work, where the Department has a license or rights of free use in such work. If revenues are generated through selling products developed with grant funds, including intellectual property, DOL treats such revenues as program income. Such program income is added to the grant and must be expended for allowable grant activities.
If applicable, the following standard ETA disclaimer needs to be on all products developed in whole or in part with grant funds.
“This workforce product was funded by a grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Women’s Bureau. The product was created by the grantee and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Labor. The U.S. Department of Labor makes no guarantees, warranties, or assurances of any kind, express or implied, with respect to such information, including any information on linked sites and including, but not limited to, accuracy of the information or its completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued availability, or ownership. This product is copyrighted by the institution that created it.”
Grantees may spend no more than 15 percent for supportive services to ensure the participation of prospective women apprentices, currently enrolled women apprentices, and women employed, or aspiring to be employed, in NTOs in trainings, focus groups, and other technical assistance activities intended to assist labor unions and employers with increasing and retaining women in apprenticeships and NTOs. Examples of supportive services may include allowances for childcare, housing, and/or transportation to ensure participation at technical assistance events (e.g., outreach sessions, orientation sessions, support groups, and pre-apprenticeable/nontraditional occupations skills training); job-related equipment and gear to the extent it is provided as a consequence of a technical assistance event (e.g., a training session on work-related equipment that improves women workers’ ability to be employed or retained in a A/NTO); or job-related training tuition costs to the extent the training is provided as technical assistance to an employer or labor union. In offering supportive services, grantees should also provide counseling and resource referral so that participants are aware of services and funding sources that could provide the supports needed for women to be successful in apprenticeship and NTOs in the long term. These include programs such as the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), Head Start and Early Head Start, as well as sources of funding potentially available under WIOA and other statutes the Department administers. Additionally, when connecting women interested in apprenticeship and NTOs with program sponsors and employers, grantees should aim to refer women workers to sponsors and employers that offer similar supportive services that could bolster the success of women in apprenticeship and NTOs.
Withdrawal of Applications: You may withdraw an application by written notice to the Grant Officer at any time before an award is made.
We have instituted procedures for assessing the technical merit of applications to provide for an objective review of applications and to assist you in understanding the standards against which your application will be judged. The evaluation criteria are based on the information required in the application as described in Sections IV.B.2. (Project Budget) and IV.B.3. (Project Narrative). Reviewers will award points based on the evaluation criteria described below.
Criterion |
Points (maximum) |
|
10 total
|
|
|
|
3 total |
|
|
|
|
(See Section IV.B.3.c) Expected Outcomes and Outputs) |
22 total |
|
|
|
20 total |
|
|
|
10 total |
|
|
|
15 total |
|
|
(See Section IV.B.3.g) Past Performance – Programmatic Capability) |
15 total |
|
|
|
5 total |
|
|
TOTAL |
100 |
|
|
(up to 10 points)
Points will be awarded based on the extent to which the application achieves the following:
Demonstrates a comprehensive understanding of the need for technical assistance to employers and/or labor unions in preparing women to enter and succeed in A/NTO and the consequences of not addressing this need, based on the quantitative and qualitative information provided; and
Clearly describes how the proposed TA will meet this need.
If the applicant is a former WANTO Act grantee, points will also be awarded based on whether and the extent to which the proposed TA activities are materially different from those already performed using funds awarded through a WANTO Act grant program, providing information as stated in IV.B(3)(1). All past and current WANTO grantees after 2006 are listed in Attachment 1 for reference.
(up to 3 points)
Up to 1 point will be awarded if the application demonstrates that it proposes to serve in a region not served in the last two years by prior WB WANTO grant recipients. A list of prior WB recipients and the regions served from 2017 through 2019 are listed in Attachment 1. A list of the states included in WB Regions is listed in Attachment 2.
In addition, up to 2 points will be awarded for applications proposing to serve in an Opportunity Zone as defined by the US Department of Treasury. These points will be awarded even if the region has been served by prior WB WANTO grant recipients. A list of current Opportunity Zones and further information can be found at the following link:
https://www.cdfifund.gov/Pages/Opportunity-Zones.aspx
Points will be awarded based on the extent to which the expected outputs and outcomes are realistic, clear, and consistent with the expressed TA need (11 points). Points will also be awarded based on the extent to which the expected outcomes align with those outcomes/outputs listed in section IV.B.(3) and as listed below (11 points).
The number of and percentage increase in women expected to apply for, be accepted into, enroll in, and/or complete pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship, or other nontraditional skills training programs by the end of the grant period as a result of the TA you propose to provide (3 points);
Whether and to what extent products or services developed with TA provided under this grant can or will be sustained beyond the grant period (3 points);
The plan for documenting participant success stories, lessons learned, best practices, and innovative approaches(3 points); and
The systemic change anticipated as a result of the TA (2 points).
(up to 20 points)
Points will be awarded based on the following criteria:
• The extent to which the application demonstrates a coherent and feasible approach for successfully addressing the identified outputs and outcomes, including those mentioned in IV.B.3.c “Expected Outputs and Outcomes” above and VI.C.2 “Quarterly Reporting” below, and includes reasonable timelines for completion of work (10 points);
• The feasibility of the justification for the approach, including the likelihood of success, and addressing any factors that might accelerate or decelerate the required work (5 points); and
A clear and convincing assessment identifying potential barriers that may impact the project’s success (5 points).
(up to 10 points)
Points will be awarded based on the following criteria:
• A clear and detailed description of the measures, methods, techniques, and tools proposed and how they will be effectively used to evaluate progress towards achieving the project results (5 points); and
• The extent to which there is convincing evidence that the measures will be able to assess (1) the extent to which the project outcomes have been met and (2) the extent to which these can be attributed to the project (5 points).
(up to 15 points)
Points will be awarded based on the following criteria:
The extent to which the organization demonstrates the capacity to carry out the proposed project, the level of qualifications and experience of personnel to fulfill the needs and requirements of the proposed project, and evidence of strong fiscal and administrative controls to properly manage Federal funds (5 points);
Demonstrated capability of the organization to sustain project activities after Federal financial assistance ends (5 points); and
A comprehensive description detailing the extent to which the
applicant has the following
(5
points):
Experience preparing women to gain employment in apprenticeable occupations or other nontraditional occupations;
Experience working with the business community to prepare them to place women in A/NTO;
Experience delivering TA such as establishing, expanding, and/or enhancing pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship, or other nontraditional skills training programs designed to prepare women for careers in A/NTO; providing ongoing orientations for employers, unions, and workers on creating a successful environment for women in A/NTO; and setting up support groups, facilitating networks, and/or providing supportive services for women in A/NTO to improve their retention;
Tradeswomen or women in nontraditional occupations as active members of the organization, as either employees or board members.
(up to 5 points)
Points will be awarded based on the extent to which the budget is realistic, logically and clearly demonstrating its alignment based on the activities outlined in the project narrative (3 points). Please see Section IV.B.2 for information on requirements related to the budget and budget justification.
The feasibility of the budget is shown by the extent to which the budget narrative provides a clear description of costs associated with each line item and shows that costs are necessary and reasonable to implement the program (2 points).
We have instituted procedures for assessing the technical merit of applications to provide for an objective review of applications and to assist you in understanding the standards against which your application will be judged. The evaluation criteria are based on the information required in the application as described in Sections IV.B.2. (Project Budget) and IV.B.3. (Project Narrative). Reviewers will award points based on the evaluation criteria described below.
Section IV.B.3 (Project Narrative) of this FOA has several “section headers” (e.g. IV.B.3.a), Statement of Need). Each of these “section headers” of the Project Narrative may include one or more “criteria,” and each “criterion” includes one or more “rating factors,” which provide detailed specifications for the content and quality of the response to that criterion. Each of the rating factors have specific point values assigned. These point values are the number of points possible for the application to earn for the rating factor.
A technical merit review panel will carefully evaluate applications against the selection criteria to determine the merit of applications. These criteria are based on the policy goals, priorities, and emphases set forth in this FOA. Up to 100 points may be awarded to an applicant, depending on the quality of the responses provided. The final scores (which may include the mathematical normalization of review panels) will serve as the primary basis for selection of applications for funding. The panel results are advisory in nature and not binding on the Grant Officer. The Grant Officer reserves the right to make selections based solely on the final scores or to take into consideration other relevant factors when applicable. Such factors may include the geographic distribution of funds, and/or other relevant factors. The Grant Officer may consider any information that comes to their attention.
The government may elect to award the grant(s) with or without discussion with the applicant. Should a grant be awarded without discussion, the award will be based on the applicant’s signature on the SF-424, including electronic signature via E-Authentication on https://www.grants.gov, which constitutes a binding offer by the applicant.
Prior to making an award, ETA will review information available through various sources, including its own records and any OMB-designated repository of government-wide eligibility qualification or financial integrity information, such as Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS), Dun and Bradstreet, and “Do Not Pay.” Additionally, ETA will comply with the requirements of 2 CFR Part 180 codified at 2 CFR Part 2998 (Non-procurement Debarment and Suspension). This risk evaluation may incorporate results of the evaluation of the applicant’s eligibility (application screening) or the quality of its application (merit review). If ETA determines that an award will be made, special conditions that correspond to the degree of risk assessed may be applied to the award. Criteria to be evaluated include the following:
Financial stability;
Quality of management systems and ability to meet the management standards prescribed in the Uniform Grant Guidance;
History of performance. The applicant’s record in managing awards, cooperative agreements, or procurement awards, if it is a prior recipient of such federal awards, including timeliness of compliance with applicable reporting requirements and, if applicable, the extent to which any previously awarded amounts will be expended prior to future awards;
Reports and findings from audits performed under Subpart F – Audit Requirements of the Uniform Grant Guidance or the reports and findings of any other available audits and monitoring reports containing findings, issues of non-compliance, or questioned costs;
The applicant’s ability to effectively implement statutory, regulatory, and other requirements imposed on recipients.
NOTE: As part of ETA’s Risk Review process, the Grant Officer will determine
If the applicant had any restriction on spending for any ETA grant due to adverse monitoring findings; or
If the applicant received a High Risk determination in accordance with TEGL 23-15.
Depending on the severity of the findings and whether the findings were resolved, the Grant Officer may, at their discretion, elect not to fund the applicant for a grant award regardless of the applicant’s score in the competition.
All applicants are requested to submit the following information as an attachment to their application (suggested template below) for ETA to assess the applicant’s Financial System. This information will be taken into account as one component of ETA’s Risk Review Process. Applicants may use the suggested template or answer the questions in a separate attachment. It is unlikely that an organization will be able to manage a federal grant without the following system/processes in place. Applicants are expected to have these in place before applying for a grant with ETA.
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR -EMPLOYMENT AND
TRAINING ADMINISTRATION (ETA) |
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SECTION A: PURPOSE |
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The
financial responsibility of grantees must be such that the grantee
can properly discharge the public trust which accompanies the
authority to expend public funds. Adequate administrative and
financial systems including the accounting systems should meet the
following criteria as contained in 2 CFR 200 and 2 CFR 2900. |
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SECTION B: GENERAL |
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1. Complete the following items: |
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a. When was the organization founded/incorporated (month, day, year) |
b. Principal officers |
Titles |
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c. Employer Identification Number: |
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d.
Number of Employees |
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2. Is
the organization or institution affiliated with any other
organization: Yes No |
3.
Total Sales/Revenues in most recent accounting period. (12
months) |
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SECTION C: ACCOUNTING SYSTEM |
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1. Has any Government Agency rendered an official written opinion concerning the adequacy of the accounting system for the collection, identification and allocation of costs under Federal contracts/grants? Yes No |
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a. If yes, provide name, and address of Agency performing review: |
b. Attach a copy of the latest review and any subsequent correspondence, clearance documents, etc. |
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Note: If review occurred within the past three years, omit questions 2-8 of this Section and Section D. |
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2. Which of the following best describes the accounting system: |
State administered |
Internally Developed |
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Web-based |
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3. Does the accounting system identify the receipt and expenditure of program funds separately for each contract/grant? |
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Yes |
No |
Not Sure |
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4. Does the accounting system provide for the recording of expenditures for each grant/contract by the component project and budget cost categories shown in the approved budget? |
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Yes |
No |
Not Sure |
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5. Are time distribution records maintained for an employee when his/her effort can be specifically identified to a particular cost objective? |
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Yes |
No |
Not Sure |
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6. If the organization proposes an overhead rate, does the accounting system provide for the segregation of direct and indirect expenses? |
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Yes |
No |
Not Sure |
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7.
Does the organization have an approved indirect cost rate or cost
allocation plan? |
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Yes |
No |
Not Sure |
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8.
Does the accounting/financial system include budgetary controls to
preclude incurring obligations in excess of: |
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9. Does the organization or institution have an internal control structure that would provide reasonable assurance that the grant funds, assets, and systems are safeguarded? |
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Yes |
No |
Not Sure |
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SECTION D: FINANCIAL STABILITY |
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1. Is
there any legal matter or an ongoing financial concern that may
impact the organization's ability to manage and administer the
grant? Yes No |
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SECTION E: FINANCIAL STATEMENTS |
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1. Did an independent certified public accountant (CPA) ever examine the financial statements? Yes No |
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2. If
an independent CPA review was performed please attach a copy of
their latest report and any management letters issued.
Enclosed N / A |
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3. If an independent CPA was engaged to perform a review and no report was issued, please provide details and an explanation below: |
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SECTION F: ADDITIONAL INFORMATION |
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1. Use this space for any additional information (indicate section and item numbers if a continuation) |
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All award notifications will be posted on the ETA Homepage at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/. Applicants selected for award will be contacted directly before the grant’s execution. Non-selected applicants will be notified by mail or email and may request a written debriefing on the significant weaknesses of their application.
Selection of an organization as a recipient does not constitute approval of the grant application as submitted. Before the actual grant is awarded, we may enter into negotiations about such items as program components, staffing and funding levels, and administrative systems in place to support grant implementation. If the negotiations do not result in a mutually acceptable submission, the Grant Officer reserves the right to terminate the negotiations and decline to fund the application. We reserve the right not to fund any application related to this FOA.
All grantees will be subject to all applicable federal laws and regulations, including the OMB Uniform Guidance, and the terms and conditions of the award. The grant(s) awarded under this FOA will be subject to the following administrative standards and provisions.
Non-Profit Organizations, Educational Institutions, For-profit entities and State, Local, and Indian Tribal Governments – 2 CFR Part 200 (Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards) and 2 CFR 2900 (DOL’s Supplement to 2 CFR Part 200).
All entities must comply with 29 CFR Part 93 (New Restrictions on Lobbying), 29 CFR Part 94 (Governmentwide Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace (Financial Assistance)), 2 CFR Part 180 (OMB Guidance to Agencies on Government-wide Debarment and Suspension (Non-procurement)), and, where applicable, 2 CFR Part 200 (Audit Requirements).
29 CFR Part 2, subpart D—Equal Treatment in Department of Labor Programs for Religious Organizations; Protection of Religious Liberty of Department of Labor Social Service Providers and Beneficiaries.
29 CFR Part 31—Nondiscrimination in Federally Assisted Programs of the Department of Labor—Effectuation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
29 CFR Part 32—Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Handicap in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance.
29 CFR Part 35—Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Age in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance from the Department of Labor.
29 CFR Part 36—Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance.
29 CFR Part 38 – Implementation of the Nondiscrimination and Equal Opportunity Provisions of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.
29 CFR Parts 29 and 30—Labor Standards for the Registration of Apprenticeship Programs, and Equal Employment Opportunity in Apprenticeship and Training, as applicable.
The Department of Labor will follow the procedures outlined in the Department’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regulations (29 CFR Part 70). If DOL receives a FOIA request for your application, the procedures in DOL’s FOIA regulations for responding to requests for commercial/business information submitted to the government will be followed, as well as all FOIA exemptions and procedures. See generally 5 U.S.C. § 552; 29 CFR Part 70.
Standard Grant Terms and Conditions of Award—see the following link: https://www.doleta.gov/grants/resources.cfm.
The Department notes that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb, applies to all federal law and its implementation. If an applicant organization is a faith-based organization that makes hiring decisions on the basis of religious belief, it may be entitled to receive federal financial assistance under this grant solicitation and maintain that hiring practice. If a faith-based organization is awarded a grant, the organization will be provided with more information.
In accordance with Section 18 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-65) (2 U.S.C. § 1611), non-profit entities incorporated under Internal Revenue Service Code section 501(c) (4) that engage in lobbying activities are not eligible to receive federal funds and grants. No activity, including awareness-raising and advocacy activities, may include fundraising for, or lobbying of, U.S. federal, state, or local governments (see 2 CFR 200.450 for more information).
You must ensure that you have the necessary processes and systems in place to comply with the reporting requirements of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Pub. Law 109-282, as amended by section 6202 of Pub. Law 110-252, and the Strengthening Transparency and Accountability in Federal Spending Act of 2008), as follows.
Except for those excepted from the Transparency Act under subparagraphs 1, 2, and 3 below, you must ensure that you have the necessary processes and systems in place to comply with the subaward and executive total compensation reporting requirements of the Transparency Act, should they receive funding.
Upon award, you will receive detailed information on the reporting requirements of the Transparency Act, as described in 2 CFR Part 170, Appendix A, which can be found at https://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/pdf/2010-22705.pdf.
The following types of awards are not subject to the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act.
Federal awards to individuals who apply for or receive federal awards as natural persons (e.g., unrelated to any business or non-profit organization he or she may own or operate in his or her name);
Federal awards to entities that had a gross income, from all sources, of less than $300,000 in the entities' previous tax year; and
Federal awards, if the required reporting would disclose classified information.
Applicants submitting applications in response to this FOA must recognize that confidentiality of PII and other sensitive data is of paramount importance to the Department of Labor and must be observed except where disclosure is allowed by the prior written approval of the Grant Officer or by court order. By submitting an application, you are assuring that all data exchanges conducted through or during the course of performance of this grant will be conducted in a manner consistent with applicable federal law and TEGL 39-11 (issued June 28, 2012). All such activity conducted by ETA and/or recipient(s) will be performed in a manner consistent with applicable state and federal laws.
By submitting a grant application, you agree to take all necessary steps to protect such confidentiality by complying with the following provisions that are applicable in governing their handling of confidential information:
You must ensure that PII and sensitive data developed, obtained, or otherwise associated with DOL/ETA funded grants is securely transmitted.
To ensure that such PII is not transmitted to unauthorized users, all PII and other sensitive data transmitted via e-mail or stored on CDs, DVDs, thumb drives, etc., must be encrypted using a Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2 compliant and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) validated cryptographic module. You must not e-mail unencrypted sensitive PII to any entity, including ETA or contractors.
You must take the steps necessary to ensure the privacy of all PII obtained from participants and/or other individuals and to protect such information from unauthorized disclosure. You must maintain such PII in accordance with the ETA standards for information security described in TEGL NO. 39-11 and any updates to such standards we provide to you. Grantees who wish to obtain more information on data security should contact their Federal Project Officer.
You must ensure that any PII used during the performance of your grant has been obtained in conformity with applicable federal and state laws governing the confidentiality of information.
You further acknowledge that all PII data obtained through your ETA grant must be stored in an area that is physically safe from access by unauthorized persons at all times and the data will be processed using recipient-issued equipment, managed information technology (IT) services, and designated locations approved by ETA. Accessing, processing, and storing of ETA grant PII data on personally owned equipment, at off-site locations (e.g., employee’s home), and non-recipient managed IT services (e.g., Yahoo mail), is strictly prohibited unless approved by ETA.
Your employees and other personnel who will have access to sensitive/confidential/proprietary/private data must be advised of the confidential nature of the information, the safeguards required to protect the information, and that there are civil and criminal sanctions for noncompliance with such safeguards that are contained in federal and state laws.
You must have policies and procedures in place under which your employees and other personnel, before being granted access to PII, acknowledge their understanding of the confidential nature of the data and the safeguards with which they must comply in their handling of such data, as well as the fact that they may be liable to civil and criminal sanctions for improper disclosure.
You must not extract information from data supplied by ETA for any purpose not stated in the grant agreement.
Access to any PII created by the ETA grant must be restricted to only those employees of the grant recipient who need it in their official capacity to perform duties in connection with the scope of work in the grant agreement.
All PII data must be processed in a manner that will protect the confidentiality of the records/documents and is designed to prevent unauthorized persons from retrieving such records by computer, remote terminal, or any other means. Data may be downloaded to, or maintained on, mobile or portable devices only if the data are encrypted using NIST validated software products based on FIPS 140-2 encryption. In addition, wage data may be accessed only from secure locations.
PII data obtained by the recipient through a request from ETA must not be disclosed to anyone but the individual requestor, except as permitted by the Grant Officer or by court order.
You must permit ETA to make onsite inspections during regular business hours for the purpose of conducting audits and/or conducting other investigations to assure that you are complying with the confidentiality requirements described above. In accordance with this responsibility, you must make records applicable to this Agreement available to authorized persons for the purpose of inspection, review, and/or audit.
You must retain data received from ETA only for the period of time required to use it for assessment and other purposes, or to satisfy applicable federal records retention requirements, if any. Thereafter, you agree that all data will be destroyed, including the degaussing of magnetic tape files and deletion of electronic data.
You must follow federal guidelines on record retention, which require that you maintain all records pertaining to grant activities for a period of at least three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report. See 2 CFR 200.333-.337 for more specific information, including information about the start of the record retention period for awards that are renewed quarterly or annually, and when the records must be retained for more than three years.
You must abide by the following definitions of contract, contractor, subaward, and subrecipient.
Contract: Contract means a legal instrument by which a non-federal entity (defined as a state or local government, Indian tribe, institution of higher education (IHE), non-profit organization, for-profit entity, foreign public entity, or a foreign organization that carries out a federal award as a recipient or subrecipient) purchases property or services needed to carry out the project or program under a federal award. The term as used in this FOA does not include a legal instrument, even if the non-federal entity considers it a contract, when the substance of the transaction meets the definition of a federal award or subaward (see definition of Subaward below).
Contractor: Contractor means an entity that receives a contract as defined above in Contract.
Subaward: Subaward means an award provided by a pass-through entity (defined as a non-federal entity that provides a subaward to a subrecipient to carry out part of a federal program) to a subrecipient for the subrecipient to carry out part of a federal award received by the pass-through entity. It does not include payments to a contractor or payments to an individual that is a beneficiary of a federal program. A subaward may be provided through any form of legal agreement, including an agreement that the pass-through entity considers a contract.
Subrecipient: Subrecipient means a non-federal entity that receives a subaward from a pass-through entity to carry out part of a federal program, but does not include an individual that is a beneficiary of such program. A subrecipient may also be a recipient of other federal awards directly from a federal awarding agency.
You must follow the provisions at 2 CFR 200.330-.332 regarding subrecipient monitoring and management. Also see 2 CFR 200.308(c)(6) regarding prior approval requirements for subawards. When awarding subawards, you are required to comply with provisions on government-wide suspension and debarment found at 2 CFR Part 180 and codified at 2 CFR Part 2998.
Any entity that receives an award under this Announcement must close its grant with ETA at the end of the final year of the grant. Information about this process may be found in ETA’s Grant Closeout FAQ located at https://www.doleta.gov/grants/docs/GCFAQ.pdf.
Except as specifically provided in this FOA, our acceptance of an application and an award of federal funds to sponsor any programs(s) does not provide a waiver of any grant requirements and/or procedures. For example, the OMB Uniform Guidance requires that an entity’s procurement procedures ensure that all procurement transactions are conducted, as much as practical, to provide full and open competition. If an application identifies a specific entity to provide goods or services, the award does not provide the justification or basis to sole-source the procurement (i.e., avoid competition).
As a condition of grant award, grantees are required to participate in an evaluation, if undertaken by DOL. The evaluation may include an implementation assessment across grantees, an impact and/or outcomes analysis of all or selected sites within or across grantees, and a benefit/cost analysis or assessment of return on investment. Conducting an impact analysis could involve random assignment (which involves random assignment of eligible participants into a treatment group that would receive program services or enhanced program services, or into control group(s) that would receive no program services or program services that are not enhanced). We may require applicants to collect data elements to aid the evaluation. As a part of the evaluation, as a condition of award, grantees must agree to (1) make records available to the evaluation contractor on participants, employers, and funding; (2) provide access to program operating personnel, participants, and operational and financial records, and any other relevant documents to calculate program costs and benefits; (3) in the case of an impact analysis, facilitate the assignment by lottery of participants to program services, including the possible increased recruitment of potential participants; and (4) follow evaluation procedures as specified by the evaluation contractor under the direction of DOL.
Please note that applicants will be held to outcomes provided, and failure to meet those outcomes may result in technical assistance or other intervention by ETA, and may also have a significant impact on decisions about future grants with ETA.
You must meet DOL reporting requirements. Specifically, you must submit the reports and documents listed below to DOL electronically.
A Quarterly Financial Status Report (ETA 9130) is required until such time as all funds have been expended or the grant period has expired. Quarterly reports are due 45 days after the end of each calendar-year quarter. On the final Financial Status Report, you must include any subaward amounts so we can calculate final indirect costs, if applicable. You must use DOL’s Online Electronic Reporting System and information and instructions will be provided to grantees. For other guidance on ETA’s financial reporting, reference TEGL 02-16 and our webpage at https://www.doleta.gov/grants/financial_reporting.cfm.
The grantee must submit a quarterly performance report within 45 days after the end of each calendar-year quarter. The report must include quarterly information on interim indicators and performance goals. The last quarterly progress report will serve as the grant’s Final Performance Report. This report must provide both quarterly and cumulative information on the grant performance. Submission requirements will be provided to grantees upon award. We will also provide you with guidance about the data and other information that is required to be collected and reported on either a regular basis or special request basis. Where applicable to project goals and objectives, grantees will be asked to report on the following indicators in addition to any other outputs and outcomes discussed in their proposal:
The number of and percentage increase in women who apply for, are accepted into, enroll in, and/or complete pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship, or other nontraditional skills training programs as a result of the TA you provide;
Number of new pre-apprenticeship programs with a focus on women that were instituted as a result of WANTO funding;
Number of women who accessed employment supportive services, if offered, as a result of WANTO funding;
Number of women who secure a job with a higher wage as a result of TA you provide;
Number of employers and/or labor unions that receive TA that assists them in recruiting, training, and employing women in apprenticeable and/or nontraditional occupations.
Promising practices or innovative approaches to increasing women’s participation and retention in pre-apprenticeship or apprenticeship programs that are developed using WANTO funding; and
Promising innovations to employer hiring practices or work environment (which increase women’s participation and retention in apprenticeship programs), that are developed using WANTO funding.
The final quarterly report must contain an update on whether the grantee met the Expected Outputs and Outcomes discussed in IV.B.3.c and a detailed explanation if they did not meet these goals.
For further information about this FOA, please contact Marc Purvis, Grants Management Specialist, Office of Grants Management, at (202) 693-3204. Applicants should e-mail all technical questions to Purvis.Marc@dol.gov and must specifically reference FOA-ETA-20-XX, and along with question(s), include a contact name, fax, and phone number. This Announcement is available on the ETA website at https://www.doleta.gov/grants and at https://www.grants.gov.
DOL maintains a number of web-based resources that may be of assistance to applicants. These include the CareerOneStop portal (https://www.careeronestop.org), which provides national and state career information on occupations; the Occupational Information Network (O*NET) Online (https://online.onetcenter.org), which provides occupational competency profiles; and America's Service Locator (https://www.servicelocator.org), which provides a directory of our nation's American Job Centers (formerly known as One-Stop Career Centers).
ETA supports an Industry Competency Model Initiative to promote an understanding of the skill sets and competencies that are essential to an educated and skilled workforce. A competency model is a collection of competencies that, taken together, define successful performance in a particular work setting. Competency models serve as a starting point for the design and implementation of workforce and talent development programs. To learn about the industry-validated models, visit the Competency Model Clearinghouse (CMC) at https://www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel. The CMC site also provides tools to build or customize industry models, as well as tools to build career ladders and career lattices for specific regional economies.
We encourage you to view the information on workforce resources gathered through consultations with federal agency partners, industry stakeholders, educators, and local practitioners, and made available on WorkforceGPS at https://workforcegps.org.
We encourage you to view the online tutorial, “Grant Applications 101: A Plain English Guide to ETA Competitive Grants,” available through WorkforceGPS at https://strategies.workforcegps.org/resources/2014/08/11/16/32/applying-for-eta-competitive-grants-a-web-based-toolkit-for-prospective-applicants-438?p=1.
We created Workforce System Strategies to make it easier for the public workforce system and its partners to identify effective strategies and support improved customer outcomes. The collection highlights strategies informed by a wide range of evidence, such as experimental studies and implementation evaluations, as well as supporting resources, such as toolkits. We encourage you to review these resources by visiting https://strategies.workforcegps.org.
We created a technical assistance portal at https://www.workforcegps.org/resources/browse?id=b8dd0aa1ecfb4b2282d6cd30c7248790 that contains online training and resources for fiscal and administrative issues. Online trainings available include, but are not limited to, Introduction to Grant Applications and Forms, Indirect Costs, Cost Principles, and Accrual Accounting.
SkillsCommons (https://www.skillscommons.org) offers an online library of curriculum and related training resources to obtain industry-recognized credentials in manufacturing, IT, healthcare, energy, and other industries. The website contains thousands of Open Educational Resources (OER) for job-driven workforce development, which were produced by grantees funded through DOL’s Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) program. Community colleges and other training providers across the nation can reuse, revise, redistribute, and reorganize the OER on SkillsCommons for institutional, industry, and individual use.
OMB Information Collection No 1225-0086, Expires July 31, 2022.
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 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.
Send comments about the burden estimated or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the U.S. Department of Labor, to the attention of the Departmental Clearance Officer, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Room N1301, Washington, D.C. 20210. Comments may also be emailed to [email protected].
PLEASE DO NOT RETURN YOUR GRANT APPLICATION TO THIS ADDRESS. SEND ONLY COMMENTS ABOUT THE BURDEN CAUSED BY THE COLLECTION OF INFORMATION TO THIS ADDRESS. SEND YOUR GRANT APPLICATION TO THE SPONSORING AGENCY AS SPECIFIED EARLIER IN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.
This information is being collected for the purpose of awarding a grant. DOL will use the information collected through this “Funding Opportunity Announcement” to ensure that grants are awarded to the applicants best suited to perform the functions of the grant. This information is required to be considered for this grant.
Signed ____________, 2020, in Washington, D.C. by:
Jimmie Curtis
Grant Officer, Employment and Training Administration
Attachment 1 – Past and current WANTO grantees
2007
- Apprenticeship and Non-Traditional Employment for Women
- Hard-Hatted Women
- Playa Vista Job Opportunities and Business Services
2008
- Action for Boston Community Development, Inc.
- Wider Opportunities for Women
- Women in Non Traditional Employment Roles
2010
- Chicago Women in Trades
- Nontraditional Employment for Women
- Pennsylvania Women Work
- State Emergency Response Systems Inc.
- United Communities Against Poverty Inc.
- YWCA of Greater Cincinnati
2012
- Action for Boston Community Development, Inc.
- Chicago Women in the Trades
- Goodwill of North Georgia, Inc.
- Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc.
- West Virginia Women Work, Inc.
- Women in Non Traditional Employment Roles
2014
- Chicago Women in the Trades
- Nontraditional Employment for Women
- Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc.
2016
- Chicago Women in the Trades
- Nontraditional Employment for Women
- Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc.
2017
- Aroostook County Action Program, Inc. (R1)
- Career Training Institute (R8)
- Full Employment Council, Inc. (R7)
- West Virginia Women Work, Inc. (R3)
2018
- Aroostook County Action Program, Inc. (R1)
- Community Services Agency Metro Washington AFL-CIO (R3)
- Chicago Women in Trades (R5)
- Vermont Works for Women (R1)
2019
- Chicago Women in Trades (R5)
- Hampton Roads Workforce Council (R3)
- Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership Inc. (R5)
Attachment 2 – WB Regions
Region 1: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont
Region 2: New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands
Region 3: Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia
Region 4: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, N. Carolina, S. Carolina, Tennessee
Region 5: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin
Region 6: Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas
Region 7: Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska
Region 8: Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming
Region 9: Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada
Region 10: Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington
1 “Providing Career Opportunities to Women,” March 2018, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship.
2 U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship.
3 An Effectiveness Assessment and Cost-Benefit Analysis of Registered Apprenticeship in 10 States. Mathematica Policy Research, July 2012.
4 U.S. Department of Labor American Apprenticeship Grants Fact Sheet, 2015.
5 “Employment status of the civilian population by sex and age: September 2019.” Employment Situation, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor.
6 U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship.
7 U.S. Department of Labor, Training and Employment Notice No. 13-12 (Nov. 30, 2012): Defining a Quality Pre-Apprenticeship Program and Related Tools and Resources.
8 See Section III.B for the definition of leveraged resources.
9 For example, if a community college receives a grant to address a need for more workers in all health-related fields, an output of the project is the creation of three additional courses in health-related fields whereas an outcome of the project is a five percent increase in graduates in health-related fields.
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Author | Stowers, Samantha A - ETA |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2021-01-14 |