Application for Grants under the Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs

U.S. Department of Education

OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION

Washington, DC 20006

www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/trio/index.html

FY 2014

APPLICATION FOR GRANTS

UNDER THE

TRAINING PROGRAM FOR FEDERAL TRIO PROGRAMS

CFDA NUMBER: 84.103A

FORM APPROVED

OMB No. 1840-0814, Expiration Date: XXX

DATED MATERIAL – OPEN IMMEDIATELY

CLOSING DATE: XXX, 2014

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Dear Applicant Letter

Competition Highlights

Introduction

Grants.gov Submission Procedures and Tips for Applicants

Application Transmittal Instructions

Absolute Priorities

Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards

Authorizing Legislation

Training Program Regulations

Expectations of Successful Applicants

Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs

Supplemental Information

Training Program Profile Form

INSTRUCTIONS

Instructions for Completing the Application Package

Instructions for Project Narrative – Selection Criteria

Competitive Preference Priorities

Instructions for Standard Forms

Instructions for the SF- 424

Instructions for Department of Education Suppemental Information for SF-424

Definitions for Department of Education Supplemental Information For SF 424

Instructions for ED 524

Instructions for Budget Summary Form & Itemized Budget

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

Survey Instructions on Ensuring Equal Opportunity for Applicants

General Education Provisions Act (GEPA)

Government Performance And Results Act (GPRA)

Application Checklist

Paperwork Burden Statement

Dear Applicant:

Thank you for your interest in applying for a grant under the fiscal year (FY) 2014 Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs (Training Program) competition. The Training Program provides grants to institutions of higher education and other public and private nonprofit institutions and organizations to enable the staff and leadership personnel employed in, participating in, or preparing for employment in projects funded under the Federal TRIO Programs to receive training in topics relevant to their responsibilities.

This letter highlights a few items in the FY 2014 application package that will be important to you in applying for a grant under this program. The “Competition Highlights” section notes some of the requirements for applying for a grant under the FY 2014 Training Program competition. You should review the entire application package carefully before preparing and submitting your application. Information on the Training Program is accessible at the U.S. Department of Education (Department) Web site at:

http://www2.ed.gov/programs/triotrain/index.html

In the FY 2014 competition, there are five absolute priorities. We will only consider an application that addresses one of these absolute priorities. Additionally, there are two competitive preference priorities: 1. Increasing Postsecondary Success and 2. Improving productivity. Please note that applicants addressing either of these two priorities, if applicable, may earn up to five competitive preference points for each priority. Further, the points awarded under each priority by the non-Federal reviewers (reviewers) will be based on the degree to which the applicant proposes to meet the priorities. The Department strongly encourages applicants to address any or all priorities allowed under the absolute priority. For additional information about the absolute and competitive preference priorities, refer to the Federal Register Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards (Notice) for FY 2014. The Notice is included in this application package.

Applications for FY 2014 grants under the Training Program must be submitted electronically using the Grants.gov system. An applicant who is unable to submit an application through the Grants.gov system must submit a written request for a waiver of the electronic submission requirement at least two weeks before the deadline date. Additional information about Grants.gov submission requirements can be found in the Competition Highlights, the Notice published in the Federal Register, and in the transmittal instructions, which are included in this package. Grants.gov is accessible through its portal page at http://www.Grants.gov.

As a result of the enactment of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) of 2008, which amended the Higher Education Act of 1965, the Department conducted a negotiated rulemaking process to develop regulations to implement the changes required by the HEOA. The final regulations for the Training and other Federal TRIO Programs were published in the Federal Register on October 26, 2010.

Also, it is imperative that your application includes a strong evaluation plan. The reviewers are instructed to look closely at the potential of Training Program applicants to successfully reach their individual project goals, which are driven by the performance measures for the Training Program (see the Notice for information on the performance measures). The evaluation plan should not only include formative and summative measures, but also address the use of appropriate controls and techniques that provide for independent evaluation. The evaluation plan should shape the development of the project from the beginning of the grant period and provide benchmarks for the monitoring of progress and measurement of that progress throughout the grant award period. You should pay close attention to the information provided in the Instructions for the Program Narrative section of this application regarding the development of your evaluation activity.

For information (including dates and times) about how to submit your application electronically, please refer to the official Notice published in the Federal Register, and included in this application booklet.

You are reminded that the Notice published in the Federal Register is the official document, and that you should not rely upon any information that is inconsistent with the guidance contained within the official document.

Thank you for your interest in the Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs. We look forward to receiving your application.

Sincerely,

Linda Byrd-Johnson, Ph.D.

Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary
Higher Education Programs

COMPETITION HIGHLIGHTS

1. Training Program applications for FY 2014 must be submitted electronically using Grants.gov. You are urged to acquaint yourself with the requirements of Grants.gov early as the registration procedures may require 5 or more days to complete. A more thorough discussion is included later in this application package. Grants.gov is accessible through its portal page at: http://www.Grants.gov. The requirements for obtaining an exception to the electronic submission have changed and are included in the Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards (Notice) for FY 2014. If you think you may need an exception, you are urged to review the requirements promptly.

2. It is important to know that the Grants.gov site works differently than the Department’s e-Application system, used in past competitions. Grants.gov does not allow applicants to “un-submit” applications. Therefore, if you discover that changes or additions are needed once your application has been accepted and validated by the Department, you must “re-submit” the application. You should know that if the Department receives duplicate applications, we will accept and process the application with the latest “date/time received” validation.

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

4. Electronic submission of applications is required; therefore, you must submit an electronic application unless you follow the procedures outlined in the Notice for FY 2014 and qualify for one of the exceptions to the electronic submission requirement.

5. Applicants are required to adhere to the page limit specified in the Application Narrative Instruction portion of the application. The Notice contains specific information governing page limits and formatting instructions. The total page limit for the project narrative portion of the application for the FY 2014 Training Program competition is 50 pages. However, those addressing the competitive preference priorities may include up to four additional pages for each priority addressed (a total of 8 pages if both priorities are addressed), in a separate section of the application submission to discuss how the application meets the competitive preference priorities.

6. All attachments must be in .PDF format. Other types of files will not be accepted. Please note, once you download an application from Grants.gov, you will be working offline and saving data on your computer. It is important to note where you are saving the Grants.gov file on your computer. You will need to log on to Grants.gov to upload and submit the application (this is different from e-Application, where you may have previously worked online and saved data to the Department’s database). You must provide the DUNS number that was used when your organization registered with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR).

For Grants.gov related questions and assistance, please contact:

Support Desk e-Mail: support@Grants.gov

Support Desk Telephone: (800) 518-4726

Contact Telephone Hours: 24 hours, 7 days a week, except Federal holidays

Online Web Site: http://www.Grants.gov

Also, refer to the “Submission Procedures and Tips for Applicants” section found in this application booklet.

You are reminded that the Notice published in the Federal Register is the official document, and that you should not rely upon any information that is inconsistent with the guidelines contained within the official document.

7. In consultation with the TRIO community, the Department has already determined the need for training in various topics and identified them as absolute priorities. Thus, it is not necessary for applicants to respond to the “Need” selection criterion in their applications. Each eligible application will receive 25 points for the “Need” selection criterion.

8. There are five absolute priorities for the FY 2014 competition. These priorities were chosen from the authorizing legislation and the regulations governing the Training Program and were further developed to respond to the articulated training needs of personnel employed in Federal TRIO Programs’ projects and are the same priorities used in the FY 2012 competition.

Note: Applicants should indicate the absolute priority number under which they are applying on the Application for Federal Assistance Form (SF 424) -- in Box 15, “Descriptive Title of Applicant’s Project.” Example: Absolute Priority #1. This will ensure that the reviewers clearly know under which priority an application should be considered.

9. In the FY 2014 competition, the Department has established two competitive preference priorities. They are:

Competitive Preference Priority 1: Increasing Postsecondary Success (up to 5 additional points). Projects that are designed to increase the rates at which high-need students enroll in and complete high-quality secondary or postsecondary career and technical courses or programs of study designed to lead to a degree, credential, or certificate by providing training to TRIO staff on strategies on how to connect low-income students to the school that is right for them.

Competitive Preference Priority 2: Improving Productivity (up to 5 additional points). Projects that are designed to significantly increase efficiency in the use of time, staff, money, or other resources while improving student learning or other educational outcomes (i.e., outcome per unit of resource). Such projects may include innovative and sustainable uses of technology, modification of school schedules and teacher compensation systems, use of open educational resources, or other strategies.

The competitive preference priorities are explained in detail in the Notice of final supplemental priorities and definitions for discretionary grant programs published in the Federal Register on December 15, 2010 (75 FR 78486) and corrected on May 12, 2011(76 FR 27637), as well as in this application package. You are urged to carefully review this information.

Applicants must address the competitive preference priorities in a separate section of the application submission to receive up to an additional five points for each priority addressed for a maximum of ten points based on the extent to which the application contains substantive information regarding the priorities. Applicants may include up to four additional pages for each priority addressed.

As you develop your application, we ask you to consider carefully the specific

content of the trainings that you will provide through your curriculum and the expertise and knowledge expected of the trainers. We will look for high quality trainings that include opportunities for the participants to gain knowledge, skills, and resources that support the goals of the specific priority. While we are not requiring that you provide on-line training, we encourage applicants to consider including on-line training sessions. As appropriate for the specific priority, trainers should have knowledge and expertise in serving students with backgrounds similar to TRIO-eligible students as well as success in training adults. You will find more information on the selection criteria and application review process in this packet and in the Notice.

Note: If you receive a Training Program grant, you will be required to submit your training materials for our review. See the “Expectations of Successful Applicants” section in this package for more information.

In accordance with the Higher Education Act (HEA), as amended by the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) of 2008, all successful applicants funded under the FY 2014 Training competition will receive two-year (24-month) grant awards.

Applicants may submit no more than one Training Program application per Absolute Priority.

All applicants must complete the Part III-A Training Program Profile form. The

Training Program Profile form contains three standardized objectives. All applicants are required to propose the percentage or number--as indicted on the form -- at which each of these objectives will be met. Applicants may not modify, amend or delete any of these objectives. Instructions for submitting the form are included in the Instructions for Completing the Application Package.

All applicants must provide a one-page abstract. The abstract should briefly describe the training to be provided, the competitive preference priorities addressed, the services that will be provided and the activities to be conducted during the two-year performance period. Complete instructions for submitting the abstract are included in the “Instructions for Completing the Application Package” of this application. The abstract must be uploaded into the ED Abstract Form section in Grants.gov.

Information on the Training Program is accessible at the Department’s website at:

http://www2.ed.gov/programs/triotrain/index.html.

INTRODUCTION

TRAINING PROGRAM

AUTHORIZATION

Title IV, Part A, Subpart 2, Section 402G of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA).

PROGRAM REGULATIONS

34 CFR part 642 Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs

PURPOSE

Provides Federal financial assistance to train the staff and leadership personnel employed in, or preparing for employment in, Federal TRIO Program projects.

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

The following are eligible to apply for a grant to carry out a Training Program project:

1. Institutions of higher education.

2. Public and private nonprofit agencies and organizations.

ACTIVITIES FUNDED UNDER THIS PROGRAM

1. A Training Program project trains the staff and leadership personnel of Federal TRIO Program projects to enable them to more effectively operate those projects.

2. A Training Program project may include on-site training, on-line training, conferences, internships, seminars, workshops, and the publication of manuals designed to improve the operations of Federal TRIO Program projects.

3. Each year, one or more Training Program projects must provide at least one training session on each requisite topic listed within a specific priority that is tailored to the needs of TRIO staff with less than two years of TRIO project experience.

4. Each year, one or more Training Program projects must offer training covering the following topics:

(1) The legislative and regulatory requirements for operating projects funded under the Federal TRIO Programs.

(2) Assisting students to receive adequate student financial aid from programs authorized under Title IV of the HEA, as well as from other programs.

(3) The design and operation of model Federal TRIO Program projects.

(4) The use of appropriate educational technology in the operation of TRIO Program projects.

(5) Strategies for recruiting and serving hard to reach populations, including students who are limited English proficient, students from groups traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, students who are individuals with disabilities, students who are homeless children and youth, students who are foster care youth, or other disconnected students.

***Updated 11/2013***

IMPORTANT – PLEASE READ FIRST

U.S. Department of Education

Grants.gov Submission Procedures and Tips for Applicants

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

ATTENTION – Adobe Forms and PDF Files Required

Applications submitted to Grants.gov for the Department of Education will be posted using Adobe forms. Therefore, applicants will need to download the latest version of Adobe reader (at least Adobe Reader 10.1.14). (Please note that in early 2013, Grants.gov discovered an issue with the newest version of Adobe Reader XI but it was subsequently resolved.) Information on computer and operating system compatibility with Adobe and links to download the latest version is available on Grants.gov at this link: compatibility table. We strongly recommend that you review these details on www.Grants.gov before completing and submitting your application. In addition, applicants should submit their application a day or two in advance of the closing date as detailed below. Also, applicants are required to upload their attachments in .pdf format only. (See details below under “Attaching Files – Additional Tips.”) If you have any questions regarding this matter please email the Grants.gov Contact Center at support@grants.gov or call 1-800-518-4726.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Submission Problems – What should you do?

If you have problems submitting to Grants.gov before the closing date, please contact Grants.gov Customer Support at 1-800-518-4726 or http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/about/contact-us.html, or access the Grants.gov Self-Service web portal at: https://grants-portal.psc.gov/Welcome.aspx?pt=Grants

If electronic submission is optional and you have problems that you are unable to resolve before the deadline date and time for electronic applications, please follow the transmittal instructions for hard copy applications in the Federal Register notice and get a hard copy application postmarked by midnight on the deadline date.

If electronic submission is required, you must submit an electronic application before 4:30:00 p.m., unless you follow the procedures in the Federal Register notice and qualify for one of the exceptions to the electronic submission requirement and submit, no later than two weeks before the application deadline date, a written statement to the Department that you qualify for one of these exceptions. (See the Federal Register notice for detailed instructions.)

Helpful Hints When Working with Grants.gov

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

Please go to http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/about/contact-us.html for help with Grants.gov. For additional tips related to submitting grant applications, please refer to the Grants.gov Submit Application FAQs found on the Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-resources.html.

Dial-Up Internet Connections

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

MAC Users

For MAC compatibility information, review the Operating System Platform Compatibility Table at the following Grants.gov link: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support/technical-support/recommended-software.html. If electronic submission is required and you are concerned about your ability to submit electronically as a non-windows user, please follow instructions in the Federal Register notice to obtain an exception to the electronic submission requirement no later than two weeks before the application deadline date. (See the Federal Register notice for detailed instructions.)

Attaching Files – Additional Tips

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

1. Ensure that you attach .PDF files only for any attachments to your application, and they must be in a read-only, non-modifiable format. PDF files are the only Education approved file type accepted as detailed in the Federal Register application notice. Applicants must submit individual .PDF files only when attaching files to their application. Specifically, the Department will not accept any attachments that contain files within a file, such as PDF Portfolio files, or an interactive or fillable .PDF file. Any attachments uploaded that are not .PDF files or are password protected files will not be read. If you need assistance converting your files to a .pdf format, please refer to the following Grants.gov webpage with links to conversion programs under the heading of additional resources: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support/technical-support/software/pdf-conversion-software.html

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

3. When attaching files, applicants should follow the guidelines established by Grants.gov on the size and content of file names. Uploaded files must be less than 50 characters in the file name, contain no spaces, no special characters (example: -, &, *, %, /, #, \) including periods (.), blank spaces and accent marks. Applications submitted that do not comply with the Grants.gov guidelines will be rejected at Grants.gov and not forwarded to the Department.

4. Applicants should limit the size of their file attachments. Documents submitted that contain graphics and/or scanned material often greatly increase the size of the file attachments and can result in difficulties opening the files. For reference, the average discretionary grant application package totals 1 to 2 MB. Therefore, you may want to check the total size of your package before submission.

*Please note that the Central Contractor Registry (CCR) was replaced by the System for Award Management (SAM) effective July 30, 2012. For more information on the migration of CCR data to SAM, grant applicants should read this information located on Grants.gov:

http://grants-gov.blogspot.com/2012/07/information-about-pending-migration.html#!/2012/07/information-about-pending-migration.html

11/2013

APPLICATION TRANSMITTAL INSTRUCTIONS

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

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

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

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

Applications Submitted Electronically

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

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

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

Submission of Paper Applications by Mail:

If you submit your application in paper format by mail (through the U.S. Postal Service or a commercial carrier), you must mail the original and two copies of your application, on or before the application deadline date, to the Department at the following address:

U.S. Department of Education

Application Control Center

Attention: CFDA Number 84.103A

LBJ Basement Level 1

400 Maryland Avenue, SW

Washington, DC 20202-4260

You must show proof of mailing consisting of one of the following:

(1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark.

(2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the U.S. Postal Service.

(3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial carrier.

(4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education.

If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:

1. A private metered postmark.

2. A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.

An applicant should note that the U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated postmark. Before relying on this method, an applicant should check with its local post office.

Special Note: Due to potential disruption to normal mail delivery, the Department encourages you to consider using an alternative delivery method (for example, a commercial carrier, such as Federal Express or United Postal Service; U.S. Postal Service Express Mail; or a courier service to transmit your application for this competition to the Department. If you use an alternative delivery method, please obtain the appropriate proof of mailing under “Applications Delivered by Mail”, and then follow the instructions for “Applications Delivered by Hand”.

Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery:

If you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, you (or a courier service) may deliver your paper application to the Department by hand. You must deliver the original and two copies of your application by hand, on or before the application deadline date, to the Department at the following address:

U.S. Department of Education

Application Control Center

Attention: CFDA Number 84.103A

550 12th Street, SW.

Room 7041, Potomac Center Plaza

Washington, DC 20202-4260

Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you mail or hand deliver

your application to the Department—

1. You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by the Department--in Item 11 of the SF 424 the CFDA number, including suffix letter, if any, of the competition under which you are submitting your application; and

2. The Application Control Center will mail to you a notification of receipt of your grant application. If you do not receive this notification within 15 business days from the application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of Education Application Control Center at (202) 245-6288.

Application Control Center Hours of Operation

The Application Control Center accepts application deliveries daily between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. (Washington, D.C. time) except Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays.

Grant Application Receipt from the Application Control Center

If you send your application by mail or if you or your courier delivers it by hand, the Application Control Center will mail a Grant Application Receipt Acknowledgement to you.

If you do not receive the notification of application receipt within 15 days from the mailing of the application, you should call the U.S. Department of Education Application Control Center at (202) 245-6288.

Late Applications

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

Absolute Priorities for FY 2014

The Department will fund projects under the Training Program that provide training for the staff and leadership personnel employed in, participating in, or preparing for employment in projects funded under the Federal TRIO Programs. The Secretary has identified the content of the trainings to be held under the following five absolute priorities for this competition.

Applicants should indicate the priority number under which they are applying in Box 15, “Descriptive Title of Applicant’s Project,” of the SF 424. Example: “Priority #1.” This will ensure that the reviewers clearly know under which priority an application should be considered.

Note:

1. Applicants must identify and provide the position requirements and qualifications of experts who have proven knowledge and expertise in serving TRIO-eligible students, and in training adults.

2. Applicants must show evidence of having researched and identified training methods for adults that have had proven success.

3. Applicants must demonstrate how they will provide at least one training session on each topic within a specific priority for TRIO project staff and leadership personnel with less than two years TRIO experience, annually.

4. Applicants must demonstrate how they will meet the objectives set forth in the Part III-A Training Program Profile form.

Absolute Priority #1

Recordkeeping; reporting of student and project performance; and the rigorous evaluation of project performance in order to design and operate a model TRIO project.

Trainings conducted under this priority must emphasize and support the importance of using project data to improve project performance. Applicants must explain how they will assist participants to develop procedures to: collect data that will meet the program-specific standardized objectives; analyze the data; report the data to the Department; evaluate the project through the data; and use the information gained from the data to improve the project’s success in meeting its program-specific objectives.

Recordkeeping and Reporting

• Applicants must have a working knowledge of the program-specific objectives for every TRIO Program in order to assist participants with identifying effective ways to collect, record and analyze the data that will serve to meet these objectives.

• The trainings must provide TRIO personnel with effective strategies for reporting student and project performance to the Department.

• Applicants must have a working knowledge of the Department’s performance reporting requirements for each TRIO program.

Rigorous Evaluation

• The trainings must provide TRIO personnel with information and resources on how to conduct a rigorous formative and summative evaluation in order to improve the performance of the project staff and the project as a whole.

Absolute Priority #2

Budget management; and the legislative and regulatory requirements for operation of the Federal TRIO Programs.

Applicants must understand how the TRIO legislation, regulations, OMB Circulars, and Departmental policies should shape a TRIO project’s budget and program management practices. Trainings conducted under this priority must provide participants with an understanding of the connection between program management and operation and the legislative and regulatory requirements governing the TRIO projects.

Budget Management

• Applicants must emphasize how to develop and improve budget management through internal controls and financial management with special emphasis placed on the relevant OMB Circulars. Trainings must cover the checks and balances designed to ensure that grant funds are used only for eligible expenses and that no one person controls the authorization and disbursement of grant funds. Trainings must also cover the conflict of interest provisions and the grantee’s obligations as a fiduciary agent.

Legislative and Regulatory Requirements

• Applicants must have a working knowledge of the legislation and regulations that govern the TRIO Programs, including the Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR), OMB Circulars, and policy statements issued by the Department. Applicants should propose trainings that will provide participants with examples of practical applications of the governing rules for each TRIO program and the TRIO programs as a whole. Emphasis should be placed on:

• Providing a history of the legislative purpose of TRIO programs in order to highlight the importance of adherence to the authorizing legislation and regulations;

• Determining student/participant eligibility;

• Understanding the difference between allowable and non-allowable costs;

• Learning how to prevent and resolve audit disputes; and

• Examining ways to coordinate TRIO projects with other programs for disadvantaged students.

• Applicants may propose to conduct trainings for institutional teams in order to assist them in understanding the legislation and regulations governing the TRIO programs. Team trainings should ensure that institutional representatives from other departments at the host institutions and agencies, along with the TRIO project directors and staff, understand the expectations, rights, and responsibilities of the institutions and agencies that agree to sponsor TRIO grants.

Absolute Priority #3

Assessment of student needs; proven retention and graduation strategies; and the use of educational technology in order to design and operate a model TRIO project.

Applicants must propose trainings that will provide TRIO personnel with proven strategies for assessing students’ needs, retaining students, and for supporting them through graduation at the secondary and postsecondary levels. Trainings must include substantive information on the use of educational technology as a project strategy to serve TRIO students and meet the goals of retention and graduation.

Needs Assessment

• Trainings must teach the participants how to assess the needs of their student project participants, and how to tailor counseling and support to the specific needs of these students.

Retention and Graduation Strategies

• Applicants must emphasize the importance of strategies that take into account the diverse cultural backgrounds of TRIO student/participants, and the trainings must take into consideration the diverse needs of these students.

• Applicants must show that the identified strategies have proven results in supporting TRIO projects with demonstrated growth in student/participants’ retention and graduation rates.

Educational Technology

• Applicants must address different ways that TRIO personnel can use technology to both manage their projects and provide services to students, with an emphasis on services that utilize educational technology.

• Applicants must have a proven track record of providing training in educational technology and the proven ability to tailor trainings to participants’ varied skill levels and knowledge.

Absolute Priority #4

Student financial aid; college and university admissions policies and procedures; and improving the financial literacy and economic literacy of students, including – basic personal income, household money management, financial planning skills, and basic economic decision making skills.

Applicants must address how they will train TRIO project staff and leadership personnel to understand and obtain the information and skills needed to assist student participants in obtaining adequate student financial aid. Applicants must demonstrate their understanding of college and university entrance requirements – including the requirements for student transfer from 2-year to 4-year institutions and for entrance into graduate school. Applicants must provide evidence that they have experience in developing strategies to improve the financial and economic literacy of students. The Department is especially interested in applicants that have proven experience and knowledge regarding how to meet the needs of, and how to help create opportunities for, non-traditional students.

Student Financial Aid

• Trainings under this priority must give particular attention to how projects can work with financial aid offices to provide students sufficient financial assistance to meet their full financial need while limiting the students’ loan burden to a manageable level.

• Applicants must be able to train participants on the appropriate use of the grant aid provision in the Student Support Services Program.

Admissions Policies and Procedures

• Trainings must demonstrate proven strategies to provide TRIO project personnel a working knowledge and understanding of the variety of college and university admissions policies and procedures. The trainings must also provide information and skills that will allow TRIO project personnel to access the policies and procedures of different institutions, and also allow them to best help TRIO students navigate these diverse processes.

• Applicants must provide evidence that they have proven strategies to enable TRIO staff and leadership personnel to provide student participants with assistance in applying for and gaining admission to college and universities – including transfer from a 2-year to a 4-year institution of higher education, and admission to graduate school.

• Applicants should give attention to how projects can help a student interested in enrolling in a graduate program to secure graduate fellowships or assistantships.

Financial and Economic Student Literacy

• Applicants should demonstrate how they will provide TRIO project personnel with proven methodologies for improving the TRIO student participants’ financial and economic literacy.

• Applicants should show that they have a proven track record in providing training in personal financial management, including basic personal income, household money management, financial planning skills and basic economic decision-making skills.

Absolute Priority #5

Strategies for recruiting and serving hard to reach populations, including students who are limited English proficient, students from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, students who are individuals with disabilities, students who are homeless children and youths, students who are foster care youth, or other disconnected students.

Applicants must propose trainings that will provide TRIO project personnel with proven strategies for recruiting and serving students from hard to reach populations. Trainings must include substantive information on developing outreach programs to recruit these students and methodologies for serving these students.

Recruitment

• Applicants must provide TRIO staff and leadership personnel with proven strategies to develop programs to recruit hard to reach student populations.

• Applicants must show that they have a proven track record of providing training on effective strategies for recruiting hard to reach populations for educational services.

Service

• Applicants must have a working knowledge and proven track record of methodologies and strategies designed to provide educational services to hard-to- reach student populations.

• Applicants must provide evidence that they have proven strategies to enable TRIO staff and leadership personnel to provide services designed specifically for students from hard to reach populations.

Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards

4000-01-U

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Applications for New Awards; Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs.

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice.

Overview Information:

Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs (Training Program)

Notice inviting applications for new awards for fiscal year (FY) 2014.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.103A.

Dates:

Applications Available: [INSERT DATE OF PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER].

Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: [INSERT DATE 30 DAYS AFTER DATE OF PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER].

Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: [INSERT DATE 90 DAYS AFTER DATE OF PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER].

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

Purpose of Program: The Training Program provides grants to train the staff and leadership personnel employed in, participating in, or preparing for employment in, projects funded under the Federal TRIO Programs to improve the operation of these projects.

Priorities: This notice contains five absolute priorities and two competitive preference priorities. In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(iv) and 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(ii), the absolute priorities are from section 402G(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), and the regulations for this program (34 CFR 642.24). The competitive preference priorities are from the Department’s notice of final supplemental priorities and definitions for discretionary grant programs, published in the Federal Register on December 15, 2010 (75 FR 78486), and corrected on May 12, 2011 (76 FR 27637).

Note: Each year, the Training Program projects must offer training covering every topic listed within the applicable priority or priorities. And, each year, one or more Training Program projects must provide training for new project directors. Each applicant must identify in its application how it will meet this requirement as provided in 34 CFR 642.11.

Absolute Priorities: For FY 2014 and any subsequent year in which the Department makes awards from the list of unfunded applicants from this competition, these priorities are absolute priorities. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that meet these priorities. Each application must address one of these absolute priorities. An applicant must submit a separate application for each absolute priority it proposes to address.

These priorities are:

Absolute Priority 1. Training to improve: reporting student and project performance; and the rigorous evaluation of project performance in order to design and operate a model TRIO project.

Number of expected awards: 1.

Maximum award amount: $TBD.

Absolute Priority 2. Training on: budget management, and the statutory and regulatory requirements for operation of projects funded under the Federal TRIO Programs.

Number of expected awards: 1.

Maximum award amount: $TBD.

Absolute Priority 3. Training on: assessment of student needs; retention and graduation strategies, including both secondary and postsecondary retention and graduation strategies; and the use of appropriate educational technology in the operation of projects funded under the Federal TRIO programs

Number of expected awards: 1.

Maximum award amount: $TBD.

Absolute Priority 4. Training on: assisting students in receiving adequate financial aid from programs assisted under title IV of the HEA and from other programs; college and university admissions policies and procedures; and proven strategies to improve the financial literacy and economic literacy of students, including topics such as basic personal finance information, household money management and financial planning skills, and basic economic decision making skills.

Number of expected awards: 1.

Maximum award amount: $TBD.

Absolute Priority 5. Training on: strategies for recruiting and serving hard to reach populations--including students who are limited English proficient, students from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, students who are individuals with disabilities, students who are homeless children and youths (as this term is defined in Section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a), students who are foster care youth, or other disconnected students.

Number of expected awards: 1.

Maximum award amount: $TBD.

Competitive Preference Priorities:

For FY 2014 and any subsequent year in which the Department makes awards from the list of unfunded applicants from this competition, these priorities are competitive preference priorities. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), we award up to an additional five points to an application that meets Competitive Preference Priority 1,and up to an additional five points to an application that meets Competitive Preference Priority 2 depending on how well the application meets each of these priorities. The maximum competitive preference points an application can receive under this competition is 10. An applicant submitting an application under Absolute Priorities 1,2,3, and 5 may apply using only Competitive Preference Priority 2. An applicant submitting an application under Absolute Priority 4 may apply using both Competitive Preference Priorities.

These priorities are:

Competitive Preference Priority 1-- Increasing Postsecondary Success (up to 5 additional points).

Background:

Meeting the President's goal of restoring the United States to first in the world in the percentage of citizens holding college degrees or other postsecondary credentials will require significantly increasing the number of high-need students who graduate from high school prepared to succeed in higher education and careers and who have access to college or rigorous postsecondary career or technical training leading to a degree or certificate. It will also require increasing the rates at which young people and adults enroll in, persist in, and complete college or other postsecondary training. This priority is designed to support efforts to reach the President's goal.

The Department is using Competitive Preference Priority 1 – Increasing Postsecondary Success because of the critical importance of connecting more low-income students to the school that is right for them and ensuring more students graduate. Many low-income students do not apply to or attend schools where they are most likely to succeed, often because they are not fully aware of their options available to them.

Competitive Preference Priority 1:

Projects that are designed to increase the rates at which high-need students enroll in and complete high-quality secondary or postsecondary career and technical courses or programs of study designed to lead to a degree, credential, or certificate by providing training to TRIO staff on strategies on how to connect low-income students to the school that is right for them.

Competitive Preference Priority 2--Improving Productivity (Up to 5 additional points).

Background:

The Department is using Competitive Preference Priority 2--Improving Productivity because it believes that it is more important than ever to support TRIO projects that are designed to significantly increase efficiency in the use of resources while improving student outcomes. A key performance measure for the Training Program is its cost effectiveness, based on the number of TRIO project personnel receiving training each year. Furthermore, cost per participant is considered in all TRIO programs. Applicants proposing projects designed to offer increased opportunities to provide high-quality training for more individuals--that is, decrease their cost per participant while improving participant outcomes will be more likely to perform well on this efficiency measure.

The Department continues to emphasize productivity in all TRIO programs for 2014. Accordingly, both new and existing grantees will need assistance learning about, selecting, and implementing strategies that can help them be more productive while improving student outcomes. As such, we are interested in Training Program projects that propose to work with TRIO projects to adopt productivity improving strategies.

Competitive Preference Priority 2:

Projects that are designed to significantly increase efficiency in the use of time, staff, money, or other resources while improving student learning or other educational outcomes (i.e., outcome per unit of resource). Such projects may include innovative and sustainable uses of technology, modification of school schedules and teacher compensation systems, use of open educational resources (as defined in this notice), or other strategies.

Note 1: The types of projects identified above are suggestions for ways to improve productivity. The Department recognizes that some of these examples, such as modification of teacher compensation systems, may not be relevant within the context of a particular application. Therefore, applicants addressing this priority might want to consider explaining how they will provide training opportunities to the same or an increased number of individuals at a lower cost per participant while improving the quality of their training support. Applicants might also want to consider describing how they will achieve this productivity by increasing efficiency in the use of resources.

Maximum number of applications: In accordance with 34 CFR 642.7, each application must clearly identify the specific absolute priority for which a grant is requested and must address each of the topics listed under that specific absolute priority. An application for a grant under a specific absolute priority must address only that absolute priority. A grantee who wants to apply under more than one absolute priority must submit separate applications for each absolute priority. If an applicant submits more than one application for the same absolute priority, we will accept only the application with the latest “date/time received” validation and we will reject all other applications the applicant submits for that priority.

For example, an application for a grant under Absolute Priority 1 must address only training described under that priority.

Definitions:

These definitions are from the notice of final supplemental priorities and definitions for discretionary grant programs, published in the Federal Register on December 15, 2010 (75 FR 78486), and corrected on May 12, 2011 (76 FR 27637), and they apply to the competitive preference priorities in this competition.

Graduation rate means a four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate consistent with 34 CFR 200.19(b)(1) and may also include an extended-year adjusted cohort graduation rate consistent with 34 CFR 200.19(b)(1)(v) if the State in which the proposed project is implemented has been approved by the Secretary to use such a rate under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA).

Open educational resources means teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use or repurposing by others.

Persistently lowest-achieving schools means, as determined by the State: (i) Any Title I school in improvement, corrective action, or restructuring that (a) is among the lowest-achieving five percent of Title I schools in improvement, corrective action, or restructuring or the lowest-achieving five Title I schools in improvement, corrective action, or restructuring in the State, whichever number of schools is greater; or (b) is a high school that has had a graduation rate as defined in 34 CFR 200.19(b) that is less than 60 percent over a number of years; and (ii) any secondary school that is eligible for, but does not receive, Title I funds that: (a) Is among the lowest-achieving five percent of secondary schools or the lowest-achieving five secondary schools in the State that are eligible for, but do not receive, Title I funds, whichever number of schools is greater; or (b) is a high school that has had a graduation rate as defined in 34 CFR 200.19(b) that is less than 60 percent over a number of years.

To identify the persistently lowest achieving schools, a State must take into account both: (i) The academic achievement of the “all students” group in a school in terms of proficiency on the State’s assessments under Section 1111(b) (3) of the ESEA in reading/language arts and mathematics combined; and (ii) the school’s lack of progress on those assessments over a number of years in the “all students” group.

Privacy requirements means the requirements of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), 20 U.S.C. 1232g, and its implementing regulations in 34 CFR part 99, the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a, as well as all applicable Federal, State, and local requirements regarding privacy.

Student achievement means--

(a) For tested grades and subjects: (1) A student’s score on the State’s assessments under the ESEA; and, as appropriate, (2) other measures of student learning, such as those described in paragraph (b) of this definition, provided they are rigorous and comparable across schools.

(b) For non-tested grades and subjects: alternative measures of student learning and performance, such as student scores on pre-tests and end-of-course tests; student performance on English language proficiency assessments; and other measures of student achievement that are rigorous and comparable across schools.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a-11 and 1070a-17.

Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 82, 84, 86, 97, 98 and 99. (b) The Education Department suspension and debarment regulations in 2 CFR part 3485. (c) The regulations for this program in 34 CFR part 642. (d) The notice of final supplemental priorities and definitions for discretionary grant programs, published in the Federal Register on December 15, 2010 (75 FR 78486), and corrected on May 12, 2011 (76 FR 27637).

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

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

II. Award Information

Type of Award: Discretionary grants.

Estimated Available Funds: $1.4 million.

Contingent upon the availability of funds and the quality of applications, we may make additional awards in FY 2014 from the list of unfunded applicants from this competition.

Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a budget exceeding the maximum award amount for the applicable priority, listed as follows, for a single budget period of 12 months:

• Absolute Priority 1: $TBD.

• Absolute Priority 2: $TBD.

• Absolute Priority 3: $TBD.

• Absolute Priority 4: $TBD.

• Absolute Priority 5: $TBD.

The Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education may change the maximum award amount through a notice published in the Federal Register.

Estimated Number of Awards: 5.

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

Project Period: Up to 24 months.

III. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education and other public and private nonprofit institutions and organizations.

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

IV. Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request Application Package: Suzanne Ulmer, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., room 7000, Washington, DC 20006-8510. Telephone: (202) 502-7600 or by e-mail: TRIO@ed.gov.

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

Individuals with disabilities can obtain a copy of the application package in an accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc) by contacting the program contact person listed in this section.

2. Content and Form of Application Submission:

Requirements concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you must submit, are in the application package for this program.

Page Limit: The application narrative is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that reviewers use to evaluate your application. You must limit the application narrative (Part III) to no more than 50 pages. However, any application addressing the competitive preference priorities may include up to four additional pages for each priority addressed in a separate section of the application submission to discuss how the application meets the competitive preference priority or priorities. These additional pages cannot be used for or transferred to the project narrative. Partial pages will count as a full page toward the page limit. For purposes of determining compliance with the page limit, each page on which there are words will be counted as one full page. Applicants must use the following standards:

• A “page” is 8.5" x 11", on one side only, with 1" margins at the top, bottom, and both sides. Page numbers and an identifier may be within the 1" margin.

• Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) all text in the project narrative, including titles, headings, footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as all text in figures and graphs. Text in charts and tables may be single-spaced. You should also include a table of contents in the project narrative, which will not be counted against the 50-page limit.

• Use a font that is either 12 point or larger, or no smaller than 10 pitch (characters per inch).

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

The page limit does not apply to Part I--the Application for Federal Assistance face sheet (SF 424); Part II--the Budget Information Summary form (ED Form 524); Part III-A--the Program Profile form; Part III-B--the one-page Project Abstract form; and Part IV--the Assurances and Certifications. If you include any attachments or appendices, these items will be counted as part of Part III--the Project Narrative for purposes of the page limit requirement. You must include your complete response to the selection criteria and priorities in Part III--The Project Narrative.

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

3. Submission Dates and Times:

Applications Available: [INSERT DATE OF PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER].

Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: [INSERT DATE 30 DAYS AFTER DATE OF PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER].

Applications for grants under this program must be submitted electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov). For information (including dates and times) about how to submit your application electronically, or in paper format by mail or hand delivery if you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, please refer to section IV. 7. Other Submission Requirements of this notice.

We do not consider an application that does not comply with the deadline requirements.

Individuals with disabilities who need an accommodation or auxiliary aid in connection with the application process should contact the person listed under For Further Information Contact in section VII of this notice. If the Department provides an accommodation or auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability in connection with the application process, the individual’s application remains subject to all other requirements and limitations in this notice.

Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: [INSERT DATE 90 DAYS AFTER DATE OF PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER]. 4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order 12372 is in the application package for this program.

5. Funding Restrictions: We specify unallowable costs in 34 CFR part 642.31. We reference additional regulations outlining funding restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.

6. Data Universal Numbering System Number, Taxpayer Identification Number, and Central Contractor Registry: To do business with the Department of Education, you must--

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

b. Register both your DUNS number and TIN with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR), the Government's primary registrant database;

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

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

You can obtain a DUNS number from Dun and Bradstreet. A DUNS number can be created within one business day.

If you are a corporate entity, agency, institution, or organization, you can obtain a TIN from the Internal Revenue Service. If you are an individual, you can obtain a TIN from the Internal Revenue Service or the Social Security Administration. If you need a new TIN, please allow 2-5 weeks for your TIN to become active.

The CCR registration process may take five or more business days to complete. If you are currently registered with the CCR, you may not need to make any changes. However, please make certain that the TIN associated with your DUNS number is correct. Also note that you will need to update your CCR registration on an annual basis. This may take three or more business days to complete.

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

7. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under this program must be submitted electronically unless you qualify for an exception to this requirement in accordance with the instructions in this section.

a. Electronic Submission of Applications.

Applications for grants under the Training Program--CFDA Number 84.103A must be submitted electronically using the Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site at www.Grants.gov. Through this site, you will be able to download a copy of the application package, complete it offline, and then upload and submit your application. You may not e-mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us.

We will reject your application if you submit it in paper format unless, as described elsewhere in this section, you qualify for one of the exceptions to the electronic submission requirement and submit, no later than two weeks before the application deadline date, a written statement to the Department that you qualify for one of these exceptions. Further information regarding calculation of the date that is two weeks before the application deadline date is provided later in this section under Exception to Electronic Submission Requirement.

You may access the electronic grant application for the Training Program at www.Grants.gov. You must search for the downloadable application package for this program by the CFDA number. Do not include the CFDA number’s alpha suffix in your search (e.g., search for 84.103, not 84.103A).

Please note the following:

• When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find information about submitting an application electronically through the site, as well as the hours of operation.

• Applications received by Grants.gov are date and time stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted and must be date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system no later than 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. Except as otherwise noted in this section, we will not accept your application if it is received--that is, date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system--after 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. We do not consider an application that does not comply with the deadline requirements. When we retrieve your application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are rejecting your application because it was date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system after 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date.

• The amount of time it can take to upload an application will vary depending on a variety of factors, including the size of the application and the speed of your Internet connection. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline date to begin the submission process through Grants.gov.

• You should review and follow the Education Submission Procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov that are included in the application package for this program to ensure that you submit your application in a timely manner to the Grants.gov system. You can also find the Education Submission Procedures pertaining to Grants.gov under News and Events on the Department’s G5 system home page at www.G5.gov.

• You will not receive additional point value because you submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you if you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, as described elsewhere in this section, and submit your application in paper format.

• You must submit all documents electronically, including all information you typically provide on the following forms: the Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424), the Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF 424, Budget Information--Non-Construction Programs (ED 524), and all necessary assurances and certifications.

• You must upload any narrative sections and all other attachments to your application as files in a PDF (Portable Document Format) read-only, non-modifiable format. Do not upload an interactive or fillable PDF file. If you upload a file type other than a read-only, non-modifiable PDF or submit a password-protected file, we will not review that material.

• Your electronic application must comply with any page-limit requirements described in this notice.

• After you electronically submit your application, you will receive from Grants.gov an automatic notification of receipt that contains a Grants.gov tracking number. (This notification indicates receipt by Grants.gov only, not receipt by the Department.) The Department then will retrieve your application from Grants.gov and send a second notification to you by e-mail. This second notification indicates that the Department has received your application and has assigned your application a PR/Award number (an ED-specified identifying number unique to your application).

• We may request that you provide us original signatures on forms at a later date.

Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of Technical Issues with the Grants.gov System: If you are experiencing problems submitting your application through Grants.gov, please contact the Grants.gov Support Desk, toll free, at 1-800-518-4726. You must obtain a Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number and must keep a record of it.

If you are prevented from electronically submitting your application on the application deadline date because of technical problems with the Grants.gov system, we will grant you an extension until 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, the following business day to enable you to transmit your application electronically or by hand delivery. You also may mail your application by following the mailing instructions described elsewhere in this notice.

If you submit an application after 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date, please contact the person listed under For Further Information Contact in section VII of this notice and provide an explanation of the technical problem you experienced with Grants.gov, along with the Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number. We will accept your application if we can confirm that a technical problem occurred with the Grants.gov system and that that problem affected your ability to submit your application by 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. The Department will contact you after a determination is made on whether your application will be accepted.

Note: The extensions to which we refer in this section apply only to the unavailability of, or technical problems with, the Grants.gov system. We will not grant you an extension if you failed to fully register to submit your application to Grants.gov before the application deadline date and time, or if the technical problem you experienced is unrelated to the Grants.gov system.

Exception to Electronic Submission Requirement: You qualify for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, and may submit your application in paper format, if you are unable to submit an application through the Grants.gov system because––

• You do not have access to the Internet; or

• You do not have the capacity to upload large documents to the Grants.gov system;

and

• No later than two weeks before the application

deadline date (14 calendar days; or, if the fourteenth calendar day before the application deadline date falls on a Federal holiday, the next business day following the Federal holiday), you mail or fax a written statement to the Department, explaining which of the two grounds for an exception prevent you from using the Internet to submit your application.

If you mail your written statement to the Department, it must be postmarked no later than two weeks before the application deadline date. If you fax your written statement to the Department, we must receive the faxed statement no later than two weeks before the application deadline date.

Address and mail or fax your statement to: Eileen Bland, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., room 7000, Washington, DC 20006–8510. FAX: (202) 502-7857.

Your paper application must be submitted in accordance with the mail or hand delivery instructions described in this notice.

b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail.

If you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, you may mail (through the U.S. Postal Service or a commercial carrier) your application to the Department. You must mail the original and two copies of your application, on or before the application deadline date, to the Department at the following address:

U.S. Department of Education

Application Control Center

Attention: (CFDA Number 84.103A)

LBJ Basement Level 1

400 Maryland Avenue, SW.

Washington, DC 20202-4260

You must show proof of mailing consisting of one of the following:

(1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark.

(2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the U.S. Postal Service.

(3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial carrier.

(4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education.

If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:

(1) A private metered postmark.

(2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.

If your application is postmarked after the application deadline date, we will not consider your application.

Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated postmark. Before relying on this method, you should check with your local post office.

c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery.

If you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, you (or a courier service) may deliver your paper application to the Department by hand. You must deliver the original and two copies of your application by hand, on or before the application deadline date, to the Department at the following address:

U.S. Department of Education

Application Control Center

Attention: (CFDA Number 84.103A)

550 12th Street, SW.

Room 7041, Potomac Center Plaza

Washington, DC 20202-4260

The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, except Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays.

Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you mail or hand deliver your application to the

Department--

(1) You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by the Department--in Item 11 of the SF 424 the CFDA number, including suffix letter, if any, of the competition under which you are submitting your application; and

(2) The Application Control Center will mail to you a notification of receipt of your grant application. If you do not receive this notification within 15 business days from the application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of Education Application Control Center at (202) 245-6288.

Note: Applicants must include in the one-page abstract submitted with the application a statement indicating which competitive preference priorities they have addressed. The priorities addressed in the application must also be listed on the Training Program Profile Sheet.

V. Application Review Information

1. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are in 34 CFR 642.21 and are listed in the application package.

2. Review and Selection Process: A panel of non-Federal reviewers will review each application in accordance with the selection criteria in 34 CFR 642.21. The individual scores of the reviewers will be added and the sum divided by the number of reviewers to determine the peer review score received in the review process. Additionally, in accordance with 34 CFR 642.22, the Secretary will award prior experience points to eligible applicants by evaluating the applicant’s current performance under its expiring Training program grant. Pursuant to 34 CFR 642.22(b)(1), prior experience points, if any, will be added to the application’s averaged peer review score to determine the total score for each application.

Under Section 402A(c)(3) of the HEA, the Secretary is not required to make awards under the Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs in the order of the scores received by the application in the peer review process and adjusted for prior experience.

In the event a tie score exists, the Secretary will select for funding the applicant that has the greatest capacity to provide training to eligible participants in all regions of the Nation in order to assure accessibility to the greatest number of prospective training participants, consistent with 34 CFR 642.20(e).

3. Special Conditions: Under 34 CFR 74.14 and 80.12, the Secretary may impose special conditions on a grant if the applicant or grantee is not financially stable; has a history of unsatisfactory performance; has a financial or other management system that does not meet the standards in 34 CFR parts 74 or 80, as applicable; has not fulfilled the conditions of a prior grant; or, is otherwise not responsible.

VI. Award Administration Information

1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award Notification (GAN). We may notify you informally, also.

If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, we notify you.

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify administrative and national policy requirements in the application package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.

We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also incorporates your approved application as part of your binding commitments under the grant.

3. Reporting: (a) If you apply for a grant under this competition, you must ensure that you have in place the necessary processes and systems to comply with the reporting requirements in 2 CFR part 170 should you receive funding under the competition. This does not apply if you have an exception under 2 CFR 170.110.

(b) At the end of your project period, you must submit a final performance report, including financial information, as directed by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an annual performance report that provides the most current performance and financial expenditure information as directed by the Secretary under 34 CFR 75.118. The Secretary may also require more frequent performance reports under 34 CFR 75.720(c). For specific requirements on reporting, please go to

http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/appforms/appforms.html.

4. Performance Measures: The success of the Training Program is measured by its cost-effectiveness based on the number of TRIO project personnel receiving training each year; the percentage of Training Program participants that, each year, evaluate the training as benefiting them in increasing their qualifications and skills in meeting the needs of disadvantaged students; and the percentage of Training Program participants that, each year, evaluate the trainings as benefiting them in increasing their knowledge and understanding of the Federal TRIO Programs. All grantees will be required to submit an annual performance report documenting their success in training personnel working on TRIO-funded projects, including the average cost per trainee and the trainees’ evaluations of the effectiveness of the training provided. The success of the Training Program also is assessed on the quantitative and qualitative outcomes of the training projects based on project evaluation results.

5. Continuation Awards: In making a continuation award, the Secretary may consider, under 34 CFR 75.253, the extent to which a grantee has made “substantial progress toward meeting the objectives in its approved application.” This consideration includes the review of a grantee’s progress in meeting the targets and projected outcomes in its approved application, and whether the grantee has expended funds in a manner that is consistent with its approved application and budget. In making a continuation grant, the Secretary also considers whether the grantee is operating in compliance with the assurances in its approved application, including those applicable to Federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination in programs or activities receiving Federal financial assistance from the Department (34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23).

VII. Agency Contacts

For Further Information Contact: Suzanne Ulmer, or if unavailable, contact Eileen S. Bland, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., room 7000, Washington, DC 20006-8510. Telephone: (202) 502-7600 or by e-mail: TRIO@ed.gov

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

VIII. Other Information

Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this document and a copy of the application package in an accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc) on request to one of the program contact persons listed under For Further Information Contact in section VII of this notice.

Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations is available via the Federal Digital System at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you can view this document, as well as other documents of this Department published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). To use PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at this site.

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

Dated:

______________________

Brenda Dann-Messier,

Acting Assistant Secretary for

Postsecondary Education.

AUTHORIZING LEGISLATION

The Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs is authorized by the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, as amended by the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) of 2008. An electronic version of the HEOA’s amendments to the HEA may be found at the Department’s website at the following address: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/trio/statute-trio-gu.pdf

Please note that the official compilation of Federal law is the United States Code which is available from the Government Printing Office.

The Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008

Title IV Student Assistance

Subpart 2—Federal Early Outreach and Student Services Programs

CHAPTER 1—FEDERAL TRIO PROGRAMS Sec. 403 (U.S. Code 1070a)

(a) GRANTS AND CONTRACTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary shall, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, carry out a program of making grants and contracts designed to identify qualified individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, to prepare them for a program of postsecondary education, to provide support services for such students who are pursuing programs of postsecondary education, to motivate and prepare students for doctoral programs, and to train individuals serving or preparing for service in programs and projects so designed.

(b) RECIPIENTS, DURATION, AND SIZE.—

(1) RECIPIENTS.— For the purposes described in subsection (a), the Secretary is authorized, without regard to section 3709 of the Revised Statutes (41 U.S.C. 5), to make grants to, and contracts with, institutions of higher education, public and private agencies and organizations, including community-based organizations with experience in serving disadvantaged youth, combinations of such institutions, agencies and organizations, and secondary schools, for planning, developing, or carrying out one or more of the services assisted under this chapter.

(2) DURATION.— Grants or contracts made under this chapter shall be awarded for a period of 5 years, except that—

(A) in order to synchronize the awarding of grants for programs under this chapter, the Secretary may, under such terms as are consistent with the purposes of this chapter, provide a one-time, limited extension of the length of such an award;

(B) grants made under section 402G shall be awarded for a period of 2 years; and

(C) grants under section 402H shall be awarded for a period determined by the Secretary.

(3) MINIMUM GRANTS. -- Unless the institution or agency requests a smaller amount, an individual grant authorized under this chapter shall be awarded in an amount that is not less than $200,000, except that an individual grant authorized under section 402G shall be awarded in an amount that is not less than $170,000.

(c)PROCEDURES FOR AWARDING GRANTS AND CONTRACTS.—

(1) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS. — An eligible entity that desires to

receive a grant or contract under this chapter shall submit an application

to the Secretary in such manner and form, and containing such information

and assurances, as the Secretary may reasonably require.

(2) CONSIDERATIONS. --

(A) PRIOR EXPERIENCE. -- In making grants under this chapter, the Secretary shall consider each applicant’s prior experience of ``high quality service delivery, as determined under subsection (f), under the particular

program for which funds are sought. The level of consideration given the

factor of prior experience shall not vary from the level of consideration

given such factor during fiscal years 1994 through 1997, except that grants

made under section 402H shall not be given prior experience

consideration.

`` (B) PARTICIPANT NEED.--In making grants under this chapter, the

Secretary shall consider the number, percentages, and needs of

eligible participants in the area, institution of higher education, or

secondary school to be served to aid such participants in preparing

for, enrolling in, or succeeding in postsecondary education, as

appropriate to the particular program for which the eligible entity is

applying.

(3) ORDER OF AWARDS; PROGRAM FRAUD. —

(A) Except with respect to grants made under sections 402G and 402H and

as provided in subparagraph the Secretary shall award grants and

contracts under this chapter in the order of the scores received by the

application for such grant or contract in the peer review process required

under paragraph (4) and adjusted for prior experience in accordance with

paragraph (2) of this subsection.

(B) The Secretary shall not provide assistance to a program otherwise

eligible for assistance under this chapter, if the Secretary has determined

that such program has involved the fraudulent use of funds under this

chapter.

(4) PEER REVIEW PROCESS.—

(A) The Secretary shall ensure that, to the extent practicable, members of

groups underrepresented in higher education, including African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, and Native American Pacific Islanders (including Native Hawaiians), are represented as readers of applications submitted under this chapter. The Secretary shall also ensure that persons from urban and rural backgrounds are represented as readers.

(B) The Secretary shall ensure that each application submitted under this

chapter is read by at least three readers who are not employees of the Federal Government (other than as readers of applications).

(5) NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS FOR GRANTS AND CONTRACTS. —

The Secretary shall not limit the number of applications submitted by an

entity under any program authorized under this chapter if the additional

applications describe programs serving different populations or different

campuses.

(6) COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROGRAMS FOR DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS. —

The Secretary shall encourage coordination of programs assisted under

this chapter with other programs for disadvantaged students operated by

the sponsoring institution or agency, regardless of the funding source of

such programs. The Secretary shall not limit an entity’s eligibility to receive

funds under this chapter because such entity sponsors a program similar to

the program to be assisted under this chapter, regardless of the funding

source of such program. The Secretary shall permit the Director of a

program receiving funds under this chapter to administer one or more

additional programs for disadvantaged students operated by the

sponsoring institution or agency, regardless of the funding sources of such

programs. The Secretary shall, as appropriate, require each applicant for

funds under the programs authorized by this chapter to identify and

make available services under such program, including mentoring,

tutoring, and other services provided by such program, to foster

care youth (including youth in foster are and youth who have left

foster care after reaching age 13) or to homeless children and

youths as defined in section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless

Assistance Act.

(7) APPLICATION STATUS.—The Secretary shall inform each entity

operating programs under this chapter regarding the status of their

application for continued funding at least 8 months prior to the expiration of

the grant or contract. The Secretary, in the case of an entity that is

continuing to operate a successful program under this chapter, shall ensure

that the startup date for a new grant or contract for such program

immediately follows the termination of the preceding grant or contract so

that no interruption of funding occurs for such successful reapplicants. The

Secretary shall inform each entity requesting assistance under this chapter

for a new program regarding the status of their application at least 8

months prior to the proposed startup date of such program.

(8) REVIEW AND NOTIFICATION BY THE SECRETARY—

(A) GUIDANCE.-- Not later than 180 days after

the date of enactment of the Higher Education Opportunity Act, the

Secretary shall issue Non regulatory guidance regarding the rights

and responsibilities of applicants with respect to the application and

evaluation process for programs and projects assisted under this

chapter, including applicant access to peer review comments. The

guidance shall describe the procedures for the submission,

processing, and scoring of applications for grants under this

chapter, including --

1. the responsibility of applicants to submit materials in a timely manner and in accordance with the processes established by the Secretary under the authority of the General Education Provisions Act;

`` (ii) steps the Secretary will take to ensure that the materials

submitted by applicants are processed in a proper and timely manner;

(iii) steps the Secretary will take to ensure that prior experience points for high quality service delivery are awarded in an accurate and transparent manner;

(iv) steps the Secretary will take to ensure the quality and integrity of the peer review process, including assurances that peer reviewers will consider applications for grants under this chapter in

a thorough and complete manner consistent with applicable Federal law; and

(v) steps the Secretary will take to ensure that the final score of an

application, including prior experience points for high quality service delivery and points awarded through the peer review process, is determined in an accurate and transparent manner.

(B) UPDATED GUIDANCE. -- Not later than 45 days before the date of the commencement of each competition for a grant under this chapter that is held after the expiration of the 180-day period described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall update and publish the guidance described in such subparagraph.

(C) REVIEW.--

1. IN GENERAL--With respect to any competition for a grant under this chapter, an applicant may request a review by the Secretary if the applicant—

   1. administrative, or scoring error made by the Department, an agent of the Department, or a peer reviewer, with respect to the scoring or has evidence of a specific technical, processing of a submitted application; and

   2. has otherwise met all of the requirements for submission of the application.

2. TECHNICAL OR ADMINISTRATIVE ERROR.—In the case of evidence of a technical or administrative error listed in clause (i)(I), the Secretary shall review such evidence and provide a timely response to the applicant. If the Secretary determines that a technical or administrative error was made by the Department or an agent of the Department, the application of the applicant shall be reconsidered in the peer review process for the applicable grant competition.

3. SCORING ERROR.--In the case of evidence of a scoring error listed in clause (i)(I), when the error relates to either prior experience points for high quality service delivery or to the final score of an application, the Secretary shall—

(I) review such evidence and provide a timely response to the applicant; and

(II) if the Secretary determines that a scoring error was made by the Department or a peer reviewer, adjust the prior experience points or final score of the application appropriately and quickly so as not to interfere with the timely awarding of grants for the applicable grant competition.

(iv) ERROR IN PEER REVIEW PROCESS.

(I) REFERRAL TO SECONDARY REVIEW. In the case of a peer review process error listed in clause (i)(I), if the Secretary determines that points were withheld for criteria not required in Federal statute, regulation, or guidance governing a program assisted under this chapter or the application for a grant for such program, or determines that information pertaining to selection criteria was wrongly determined missing from an application by a peer reviewer, then the Secretary shall refer the application to a secondary review panel.

(II) TIMELY REVIEW; REPLACEMENT SCORE.--The secondary review panel described in subclause (I) shall conduct a secondary review in a timely fashion, and the score resulting from the secondary review shall replace the score from the initial peer review.

(III) COMPOSITION OF SECONDARY REVIEW PANEL.--The secondary review panel shall be composed of reviewers each of whom—

(aa) did not review the application in the original peer review;

(bb) is a member of the cohort of peer reviewers for the grant program that is the subject of such secondary review; and

(cc) to extent practicable, has conducted peer reviews in not less than two previous competitions for the grant program that is the subject of such secondary review.

(IV) FINAL SCORE.--The final peer review score of an application subject to a secondary review under this clause shall be adjusted appropriately and quickly using the score awarded by the secondary review panel, so as not to interfere with the timely awarding of grants for the applicable grant competition.

(V) QUALIFICATION FOR SECONDARY REVIEW.--To qualify for a secondary review under this clause, an applicant shall have evidence of a scoring error and demonstrate that—

(aa) points were withheld for criteria not required in statute, regulation, or guidance governing the Federal TRIO programs or the application for a grant for such programs; or

(bb) information pertaining to selection criteria was wrongly determined to be missing from the application.

(v) FINALITY.--

(I) GENERAL.--A determination by the Secretary under clause (i),(ii), or (iii) shall not be reviewable by any officer or employee of the Department.

(II) SCORING.--The score awarded by a secondary review panel under clause (iv) shall not be reviewable by any officer or employee

of the Department other than the Secretary.

(vi) FUNDING OF APPLICATIONS WITH CERTAIN ADJUSTED SCORES.--To the extent feasible based on the availability of appropriations, the Secretary shall fund applications with scores that are adjusted upward under clauses (ii), (iii), and (iv) to equal or exceed the minimum cut off score for the applicable grant competition.

(d) OUTREACH.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct outreach activities to

ensure that entities eligible for assistance under this chapter submit

applications proposing programs that serve geographic areas and eligible

populations which have been underserved by the programs assisted under

this chapter.

(2) NOTICE.—In carrying out the provisions of paragraph(1), the Secretary

shall notify the entities described in subsection (b) of the availability of

assistance under this subsection not less than 120 days prior to the

deadline for submission of applications under this chapter and shall consult

national, State, and regional organizations about candidates for notification.

(3) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary shall provide technical

training to applicants for projects and programs authorized under this

chapter. The Secretary shall give priority to serving programs and projects

that serve geographic areas and eligible populations which have been

underserved by the programs assisted under this chapter. Technical

training activities shall include the provision of information on

authorizing legislation, goals and objectives of the program, required

activities, eligibility requirements, the application process and application

deadlines, and assistance in the development of program proposals and

the completion of program applications. Such training shall be furnished at

conferences, seminars, and workshops to be conducted at not less than 10

sites throughout the United States to ensure that all areas of the United

States with large concentrations of eligible participants are served.

(4) SPECIAL RULE.—The Secretary may contract with eligible entities to

conduct the outreach activities described in this subsection.

(e) DOCUMENTATION OF STATUS AS A LOW-INCOME

INDIVIDUAL.—

(1) Except in the case of an independent student, as defined in section 480(d),

documentation of an individual’s status pursuant to subsection (h)(4) shall be made

by providing the Secretary with—

(A) A signed statement from the individual’s parent or legal guardian;

(B) Verification from another governmental source;

(C) A signed financial aid application; or

(D) A signed United States or Puerto Rico income tax return.

(2) In the case of an independent student, as defined in section 480(d),

documentation of an individual’s status pursuant to subsection (h)(4) shall

be made by providing the Secretary with—

(A) A signed statement from the individual;

(B) Verification from another governmental source;

(C) A signed financial aid application; or

(D) A signed United States or Puerto Rico income tax return.

(3) Notwithstanding this subsection and subsection (h)(4), individuals who

are foster care youth (including youth in foster care and youth who have left

foster care after reaching age 13), * or homeless children and youths as defined in

section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, shall be eligible to participate in programs under sections 402B, 402C, 402D, and402F.

`*appears to be a typographical error -- that the Congress intended to include youth who left foster care after reaching age 18.

(f) OUTCOME CRITERIA.—

(1) USE FOR PRIOR EXPERIENCE DETERMINATION.—For competitions for grants under this chapter that begin on or after January 1, 2009, the Secretary shall determine

an eligible entity's prior experience of high quality service delivery, as required under subsection (c)(2), based on the outcome criteria described in paragraphs (2) and (3).

(2) DISAGGREGATION OF RELEVANT DATA.--The outcome criteria under this subsection shall be disaggregated by low-income students, first generation college

students, and individuals with disabilities, in the schools and institutions of higher education served by the program to be evaluated.

(3) CONTENTS OF OUTCOME CRITERIA. --The outcome criteria under this subsection shall measure, annually and for longer periods, the quality and effectiveness

of programs authorized under this chapter and shall include the following:

(A) For programs authorized under section 402B, the extent to which the

eligible entity met or exceeded the entity's objectives established in the

entity's application for such program regarding—

(i) the delivery of service to a total number of students served

by the program;

(ii) the continued secondary school enrollment of such student;

(iii) the graduation of such students from secondary school with

a regular secondary school diploma in the standard number of years;

(iv) the completion by such students of a rigorous secondary school

program of study that will make such students eligible for programs

such as the Academic Competitiveness Grants Program;

(v) the enrollment of such students in an institution of higher

education; and

(vi) to the extent practicable, the postsecondary education

completion of such students.

(B) For programs authorized under section 402C, the extent to which the eligible entity met or exceeded the entity's objectives for such program regarding—

(i) the delivery of service to a total number of students served by the

program, as agreed upon by the entity and the Secretary for the period;

(ii) such students school performance, as measured by the grade

point average or its equivalent;

(iii) such students academic performance, as measured by standardized

tests, including tests required by the students State;

(iv) the retention in, and graduation from, secondary school of such

students;

(v) the completion by such students of a rigorous secondary school

program of study that will make such students eligible for programs

such as the Academic Competitiveness Grants Program;

(vi) the enrollment of such students in an institution of higher

education; and

(vii) to the extent practicable, the postsecondary education completion

of such students.

(C) For programs authorized under section 402D—

(i) the extent to which the eligible entity met or exceeded the entity’s

objectives regarding the retention in postsecondary education of the students served by the program;

(ii)(I) in the case of an entity that is an institution of higher education

offering a baccalaureate degree, the extent to which the entity met or

exceeded the entity's objectives regarding the percentage of such students completion of the degree programs in which such students were enrolled; or

(II) in the case of an entity that is an institution of higher education that does not offer a baccalaureate degree, the extent to which such students met or exceeded the entity's objectives regarding—

(aa) the completion of a degree or certificate by such students; and

(bb) the transfer of such students to institutions of higher education that offer baccalaureate degrees;

(iii) the extent to which the entity met or exceeded the entity's objectives

regarding the delivery of service to a total number of students, as agreed

upon by the entity and the Secretary for the period; and

(iv) the extent to which the entity met or exceeded the entity's objectives

regarding the students served under the program who remain in good academic standing.

(D) For programs authorized under section 402E, the extent to which the entity met or exceeded the entity's objectives for such program regarding—

(i) the delivery of service to a total number of students served by the

program, as agreed upon by the entity and the Secretary for the period;

(ii) the provision of appropriate scholarly and research activities for the students served by the program;

(iii) the acceptance and enrollment of such students in graduate programs;

and

(iv) the continued enrollment of such students in graduate study and the

attainment of doctoral degrees by former program participants.

(E) For programs authorized under section 402F, the extent to which the entity met or exceeded the entity's objectives for such program regarding—

(i) the enrollment of students without a secondary school diploma

or its recognized equivalent, who were served by the program, in

programs leading to such diploma or equivalent;

(ii) the enrollment of secondary school graduates who were served

by the program in programs of postsecondary education;

(iii) the delivery of service to a total number of students served by

the program, as agreed upon by the entity and the Secretary for the

period; and

(iv) the provision of assistance to students served by the program

in completing financial aid applications and college admission

applications.

(4) MEASUREMENT OF PROGRESS...-- In order to determine the extent to

which each outcome criterion described in paragraph (2) or (3) is met or exceeded, the Secretary shall compare the agreed upon target for the criterion, as established in the eligible entity's application approved by the Secretary, with the results for the criterion, measured as of the last day of the applicable time period

for the determination for the outcome criterion.

(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. — For the purpose of making grants and

contracts under this chapter, there are authorized to be appropriated $900,000,000 for fiscal year 2009 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the five succeeding fiscal years. Of

the amount appropriated under this chapter, the Secretary may use no more than one half of 1 percent of such amount to obtain additional qualified readers and additional staff to review applications, to increase the level of oversight monitoring, to support impact studies, program

assessments and reviews, and to provide technical assistance to potential applicants and current grantees. In expending these funds, the Secretary shall give priority to the additional administrative requirements provided in the Higher Education Amendments of 1992, to outreach activities, and to obtaining additional readers.

(h) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this chapter:

(1) FIRST GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENT.—The term ‘‘first generation

college student’’ means—

(A) An individual both of whose parents did not complete a baccalaureate

degree; or

(B) In the case of any individual who regularly resided with and received

support from only one parent, an individual whose only such parent did not complete a baccalaureate degree.

(2) LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘low-income individual’’ means

an individual from a family whose taxable income for the preceding year did not

exceed 150 percent of an amount equal to the poverty level determined by using

criteria of poverty established by the Bureau of the Census.

(3) DIFFERENT CAMPUS.--The term `different campus' means a site of an

institution of higher education that—

(A) is geographically apart from the main campus of the institution;

(B) is permanent in nature; and

(C) offers courses in educational programs leading to a degree, certificate,

or other recognized educational credential.

(4) DIFFERENT POPULATION.--The term `different population' means a group

of individuals that an eligible entity desires to serve through an application for a

grant under this chapter, and that –

(A) is separate and distinct from any other population that the

entity has applied for a grant under this chapter to serve; or

(B) while sharing some of the same needs as another population that the eligible entity has applied for a grant under this chapter to serve, has distinct needs for specialized services.

(5) VETERAN ELIGIBILITY.—No veteran shall be deemed ineligible to participate

in any program under this chapter by reason of such individual’s age who—

(A) served on active duty for a period of more than 180 days, and was discharged or released there from under conditions other than dishonorable;

(B) served on active duty, and was discharged or released there from

because of a service connected disability;

(C) was a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces called to

active duty for a period of more than 30 days; or

(D) was a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces who served on active duty in support of a contingency operation (as that term is defined in section 101(a)(13) of title 10, United States Code) on or after September 11, 2001.

* * *

Sec. 403G HIGHER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965 20 U.S.C. 1070a–17

STAFF DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES.

(a) SECRETARY’S AUTHORITY.—For the purpose of improving the operation of the programs and projects authorized by this chapter, the Secretary is authorized to make grants

to institutions of higher education and other public and private nonprofit institutions and organizations to provide training for staff and leadership personnel employed in,

participating in, or preparing for employment in, such programs and projects.

(b) CONTENTS OF TRAINING PROGRAMS.—Such training shall include conferences,

internships, seminars, workshops, and the publication of manuals designed to improve the operation of such programs and projects and shall be carried out in the various regions of

the Nation in order to ensure that the training opportunities are appropriate to meet the

needs in the local areas being served by such programs and projects. Such training shall

be offered annually for new directors of projects funded under this chapter as well as annually

on the following topics and other topics chosen by the Secretary:

(1) Legislative and regulatory requirements for the operation of programs funded

under this chapter.

(2) Assisting students in receiving adequate financial aid from programs assisted

under this title and other programs.

(3) The design and operation of model programs for projects funded under this

chapter.

(4) The use of appropriate educational technology in the operation of projects

assisted under this chapter.

(5) Strategies for recruiting and serving hard to reach populations, including students

who are limited English proficient, students from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, students with disabilities, students who

are homeless children and youths (as such term is defined in section 725 of the

McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a)), students who are in foster care or are aging out of the foster care system, or other disconnected students.

(c) CONSULTATION.—Grants for the purposes of this section shall be made only after consultation with regional and State professional associations of persons having special knowledge with respect to the needs and problems of such programs and projects.

TRAINING PROGRAM REGULATIONS

TITLE 34—EDUCATION

CHAPTER VI—OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION,

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

PART 642—TRAINING PROGRAM FOR FEDERAL TRIO PROGRAMS

Section Contents

Subpart A—General

§ 642.1   What is the Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs?
§ 642.2   Who are eligible applicants?
§ 642.3   Who are eligible participants?
§ 642.4   How long is a project period?
§ 642.5   What regulations apply?
§ 642.6   What definitions apply?
§ 642.7   How many applications may an eligible applicant submit?

Subpart B—What Types of Projects and Activities Does the Secretary Assist Under This Program?

§ 642.10   What types of projects does the Secretary assist?
§ 642.11   What activities does the Secretary assist?
§ 642.12   What activities may a project conduct?

Subpart C—How Does the Secretary Make a Grant?

§ 642.20   How does the Secretary evaluate an application for a new award?
§ 642.21   What selection criteria does the Secretary use?
§ 642.22   How does the Secretary evaluate prior experience?
§ 642.23   How does the Secretary ensure geographic distribution of awards?
§ 642.24   What are the Secretary's priorities for funding?
§ 642.25   What is the review process for unsuccessful applicants?
§ 642.26   How does the Secretary set the amount of a grant?

Subpart D—What Conditions Must Be Met by a Grantee?

§ 642.30   What are allowable costs?
§ 642.31   What are unallowable costs?

Authority:   20 U.S.C. 1070a–11 and 1070a–17, unless otherwise noted.

Source:   47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982, unless otherwise noted.

Subpart A—General

§ 642.1   What is the Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs?

The Training Program for Federal TRIO programs, referred to in these regulations as the Training program, provides Federal financial assistance to train the leadership personnel and staff employed in, or preparing for employment in, Federal TRIO program projects.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–17)

[75 FR 65771, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.2   Who are eligible applicants?

The following are eligible to apply for a grant to carry out a Training Program project:

(a) Institutions of higher education.

(b) Public and private nonprofit agencies and organizations.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–17)

[47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982, as amended at 58 FR 51519, Oct. 1, 1993]

§ 642.3   Who are eligible participants?

The following are eligible for training under this program:

(a) Leadership personnel and full and part-time staff members of projects funded under the Federal TRIO Programs.

(b) Individuals preparing for employment as leadership personnel or staff in projects funded under the Federal TRIO Programs.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–17)

[47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982, as amended at 58 FR 51519, Oct. 1, 1993; 75 FR 65771, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.4   How long is a project period?

A project period under the Training program is two years.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–11(b))

[75 FR 65771, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.5   What regulations apply?

The following regulations apply to the Training Program:

(a) The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75 (except for §§75.215 through 75.221), 77, 79, 80, 82, 84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99.

(b) The regulations in this part 642.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–11 and 1070–17)

[47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982, as amended at 58 FR 51519, Oct. 1, 1993. Redesignated and amended at 75 FR 65771, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.6   What definitions apply?

(a) Definitions in EDGAR. The following terms used in this part are defined in 34 CFR part 77:

Applicant

Application

Award

Budget

EDGAR

Equipment

Facilities

Fiscal year

Grant

Grantee

Nonprofit

Private

Project

Project period

Public

Secretary

State

Supplies

(b) Definitions that apply to this part.

Act means the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.

Federal TRIO programs means those programs authorized under section 402A of the Act: the Upward Bound, Talent Search, Student Support Services, Educational Opportunity Centers, and Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement programs.

Foster care youth means youth who are in foster care or who are aging out of the foster care system.

Homeless children and youth means persons defined in section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a).

Individual with a disability means a person who has a disability, as that term is defined in section 12102 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq. ).

Institution of higher education means an educational institution as defined in sections 101 and 102 of the Act.

Leadership personnel means project directors, coordinators, and other individuals involved with the supervision and direction of projects funded under the Federal TRIO programs.

Veteran means a person who—

(1) Served on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces of the United States for a period of more than 180 days and was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable;

(2) Served on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces of the United States and was discharged or released because of a service connected disability;

(3) Was a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States and was called to active duty for a period of more than 30 days; or

(4) Was a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States who served on active duty in support of a contingency operation (as that term is defined in section 101(a)(13) of title 10, United States Code) on or after September 11, 2001.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq., 1070a–11, 1070(b), 1088, and 1141)

[47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982, as amended at 54 FR 7737, Feb. 22, 1989; 57 FR 9005, Mar. 13, 1992; 58 FR 51519, Oct. 1, 1993; 75 FR 65771, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.7   How many applications may an eligible applicant submit?

An applicant may submit more than one application for Training grants as long as each application describes a project that addresses a different absolute priority from §642.24 that is designated in the  Federal Register  Notice inviting applications.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1221e–3)

[75 FR 65771, Oct. 26, 2010]

Subpart B—What Types of Projects and Activities Does the Secretary Assist Under This Program?

Source:   75 FR 65771, Oct. 26, 2010, unless otherwise noted.

§ 642.10   What types of projects does the Secretary assist?

The Secretary assists projects that train the leadership personnel and staff of projects funded under the Federal TRIO Programs to enable them to operate those projects more effectively.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–17)

§ 642.11   What activities does the Secretary assist?

(a) Each year, one or more Training Program projects must provide training for new project directors.

(b) Each year, one or more Training Program projects must offer training covering the following topics:

(1) The legislative and regulatory requirements for operating projects funded under the Federal TRIO programs.

(2) Assisting students to receive adequate financial aid from programs assisted under title IV of the Act and from other programs.

(3) The design and operation of model programs for projects funded under the Federal TRIO programs.

(4) The use of appropriate educational technology in the operation of projects funded under the Federal TRIO programs.

(5) Strategies for recruiting and serving hard to reach populations, including students who are limited English proficient, students from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, students who are individuals with disabilities, students who are homeless children and youths, students who are foster care youth, or other disconnected students.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–17)

§ 642.12   What activities may a project conduct?

A Training program project may include on-site training, on-line training, conferences, internships, seminars, workshops, and the publication of manuals designed to improve the operations of Federal TRIO program projects.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–17(b))

Subpart C—How Does the Secretary Make a Grant?

Source:   Redesignated at 75 FR 65772, Oct. 26, 2010, unless otherwise noted.

§ 642.20   How does the Secretary evaluate an application for a new award?

(a) The Secretary evaluates an application on the basis of the criteria in §642.21.

(1) The Secretary awards up to 75 points for these criteria.

(2) The maximum possible score for each complete criterion is indicated in the parentheses next to the heading of that criterion.

(b) In addition, for an applicant who is conducting a Training program in the fiscal year immediately prior to the fiscal year for which the applicant is applying, the Secretary evaluates the applicant's prior experience (PE) of high quality service delivery, as provided in §642.22, based on the applicant's performance during the first project year of that expiring Training program grant.

(c) The Secretary selects applications for funding within each specific absolute priority established for the competition in rank order on the basis of the score received by the application in the peer review process.

(d) Within each specific absolute priority, if there are insufficient funds to fund all applications at the next peer review score, the Secretary adds the PE points awarded under §642.22 to the peer review score to determine an adjusted total score for those applications. The Secretary makes awards at the next peer review score to the applications that have the highest total adjusted score.

(e) In the event a tie score still exists, the Secretary will select for funding the applicant that has the greatest capacity to provide training to eligible participants in all regions of the Nation, consistent with §642.23.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070d, 1070d-1d)

[47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982.Redesignated and amended at 75 FR 65772, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.21   What selection criteria does the Secretary use?

The Secretary uses the criteria in paragraphs (a) through (f) of this section to evaluate applications:

(a) Plan of operation. (20 points) (1) The Secretary reviews each application for information that shows the quality of the plan of operation for the project.

(2) The Secretary looks for information that shows—

(i) High quality in the design of the project;

(ii) An effective plan of management that insures proper and efficient administration of the project;

(iii) A clear description of how the objectives of the project relate to the purpose of the program;

(iv) The way the applicant plans to use its resources and personnel to achieve each objective; and

(v) A clear description of how the applicant will provide equal access and treatment for eligible project participants who are members of groups that have been traditionally underrepresented, such as—

(A) Members of racial or ethnic minority groups;

(B) Women;

(C) Individuals with disabilities; and

(D) The elderly.

(b) Quality of key personnel. (20 points) (1) The Secretary reviews each application for information that shows the qualifications of the key personnel the applicant plans to use on the project.

(2) The Secretary looks for information that shows—

(i) The qualifications of the project director;

(ii) The qualifications of each of the other key personnel to be used in the project;

(iii) The time that each person referred to in paragraphs (b)(2)(i) and (ii) of this section plans to commit to the project; and

(iv) The extent to which the applicant, as part of its nondiscriminatory employment practices, encourages applications for employment from persons who are members of groups that have been traditionally underrepresented, such as—

(A) Members of racial or ethnic minority groups;

(B) Women;

(C) Individuals with disabilities; and

(D) The elderly.

(3) To determine the qualifications of a person, the Secretary considers evidence of past experience and training, in fields related to the objectives of the project, as well as other information that the applicant provides.

(c) Budget and cost effectiveness. (10 points) (1) The Secretary reviews each application for information that shows that the project has an adequate budget and is cost effective.

(2) The Secretary looks for information that shows—

(i) The budget for the project is adequate to support the project activities; and

(ii) Costs are reasonable in relation to the objectives of the project.

(d) Evaluation plan. (10 points) (1) The Secretary reviews each application for information that shows the quality of the evaluation plan for the project.

(2) The Secretary looks for information that shows methods of evaluation that are appropriate for the project and, to the extent possible, are objective and produce data that are quantifiable.

(e) Adequacy of resources. (15 points)

(1) The Secretary reviews each application for information that shows that the applicant plans to devote adequate resources to the project.

(2) The Secretary looks for information that shows—

(i) The facilities that the applicant plans to use are adequate; and

(ii) The equipment and supplies that the applicant plans to use are adequate.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 1840—NEW1)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–11 and 1070a–17)

[47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982, as amended at 58 FR 51519, Oct. 1, 1993. Redesignated and amended at 75 FR 65772, Oct. 26, 2010]

Effective Date Note:   At 58 FR 51519, Oct. 1, 1993 in §642.31, paragraph (f)(2)(i) was amended by removing “Special Programs” and adding “Federal TRIO Programs” in their place, and (f)(2)(iii) was revised. This section contains information collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.

§ 642.22   How does the Secretary evaluate prior experience?

(a) In the case of an application described in §642.20(b), the Secretary—

(1) Evaluates the applicant's performance under its expiring Training program grant;

(2) To determine the number of PE points to be awarded, uses the approved project objectives for the applicant's expiring Training program grant and the information the applicant submitted in its annual performance report (APR); and

(3) May adjust a calculated PE score or decide not to award PE points if other information such as audit reports, site visit reports, and project evaluation reports indicate the APR data used to calculate PE are incorrect.

(b)(1) The Secretary may add from 1 to 15 points to the point score obtained on the basis of the selection criteria in §642.21, based on the applicant's success in meeting the administrative requirements and programmatic objectives of paragraph (e) of this section.

(2) The maximum possible score for each criterion is indicated in the parentheses preceding the criterion.

(c) The Secretary awards no PE points for a given year to an applicant that does not serve at least 90 percent of the approved number of participants. For purposes of this section, the approved number of participants is the total number of participants the project would serve as agreed upon by the grantee and the Secretary.

(d) For the criterion specified in paragraph (e)(1) of this section (Number of participants), the Secretary awards no PE points if the applicant did not serve at least the approved number of participants.

(e) The Secretary evaluates the applicant's PE on the basis of the following criteria:

(1) (4 points) Number of participants. Whether the applicant provided training to no less than the approved number of participants.

(2) Training objectives. Whether the applicant met or exceeded its objectives for:

(i) (4 points) Assisting the participants in developing increased qualifications and skills to meet the needs of disadvantaged students.

(ii) (4 points) Providing the participants with an increased knowledge and understanding of the Federal TRIO programs.

(3) (3 points) Administrative requirements. Whether the applicant met all the administrative requirements under the terms of the expiring grant, including recordkeeping, reporting, and financial accountability.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 1894–0003)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–11)

[Redesignated and amended at 75 FR 65772, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.23   How does the Secretary ensure geographic distribution of awards?

The Secretary, to the greatest extent possible, awards grants for Training Program projects that will be carried out in all of the regions of the Nation in order to assure accessibility to prospective training participants.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–17)

[Redesignated at 75 FR 65772, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.24   What are the Secretary's priorities for funding?

(a) The Secretary, after consultation with regional and State professional associations of persons having special knowledge with respect to the training of Special Programs personnel, may select one or more of the following subjects as training priorities:

(1) Basic skills instruction in reading, mathematics, written and oral communication, and study skills.

(2) Counseling.

(3) Assessment of student needs.

(4) Academic tests and testing.

(5) College and university admissions policies and procedures.

(6) Cultural enrichment programs.

(7) Career planning.

(8) Tutorial programs.

(9) Retention and graduation strategies.

(10) Strategies for preparing students for doctoral studies.

(11) Project evaluation.

(12) Budget management.

(13) Personnel management.

(14) Reporting student and project performance.

(15) Coordinating project activities with other available resources and activities.

(16) General project management for new directors.

(17) Statutory and regulatory requirements for the operation of projects funded under the Federal TRIO programs.

(18) Assisting students in receiving adequate financial aid from programs assisted under title IV of the Act and from other programs.

(19) The design and operation of model programs for projects funded under the Federal TRIO programs.

(20) The use of appropriate educational technology in the operation of projects funded under the Federal TRIO programs.

(21) Strategies for recruiting and serving hard to reach populations, including students who are limited English proficient, students from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, students who are individuals with disabilities, students who are homeless children and youths, students who are foster care youth, or other disconnected students.

(b) The Secretary annually funds training on the subjects listed in paragraphs (a)(17), (a)(18), (a)(19), (a)(20), and (a)(21) of this section.

(c) The Secretary designates one or more of the training priorities from paragraph (a) of this section in the  Federal Register  Notice inviting applications for the competition.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–11 and 1070a–17)

[Redesignated and amended at 75 FR 65773, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.25   What is the review process for unsuccessful applicants?

(a) Technical or administrative error for applications not reviewed. (1) An applicant whose grant application was not evaluated during the competition may request that the Secretary review the application if—

(i) The applicant has met all of the application submission requirements included in the  Federal Register  notice inviting applications and the other published application materials for the competition; and

(ii) The applicant provides evidence demonstrating that the Department or an agent of the Department made a technical or administrative error in the processing of the submitted application.

(2) A technical or administrative error in the processing of an application includes—

(i) A problem with the system for the electronic submission of applications that was not addressed in accordance with the procedures included in the  Federal Register  notice inviting applications for the competition;

(ii) An error in determining an applicant's eligibility for funding consideration, which may include, but is not limited to—

(A) An incorrect conclusion that the application was submitted by an ineligible applicant;

(B) An incorrect conclusion that the application exceeded the published page limit;

(C) An incorrect conclusion that the applicant requested funding greater than the published maximum award; or

(D) An incorrect conclusion that the application was missing critical sections of the application; and

(iii) Any other mishandling of the application that resulted in an otherwise eligible application not being reviewed during the competition.

(3)(i) If the Secretary determines that the Department or the Department's agent made a technical or administrative error, the Secretary has the application evaluated and scored.

(ii) If the total score assigned the application would have resulted in funding of the application during the competition and the program has funds available, the Secretary funds the application prior to the re-ranking of applications based on the second peer review of applications described in paragraph (c) of this section.

(b) Administrative or scoring error for applications that were reviewed. (1) An applicant that was not selected for funding during a competition may request that the Secretary conduct a second review of the application if—

(i) The applicant provides evidence demonstrating that the Department, an agent of the Department, or a peer reviewer made an administrative or scoring error in the review of its application; and

(ii) The final score assigned to the application is within the funding band described in paragraph (d) of this section.

(2) An administrative error relates to either the PE points or the scores assigned to the application by the peer reviewers.

(i) For PE points, an administrative error includes mathematical errors made by the Department or the Department's agent in the calculation of the PE points or a failure to correctly add the earned PE points to the peer reviewer score.

(ii) For the peer review score, an administrative error is applying the wrong peer reviewer scores to an application.

(3)(i) A scoring error relates only to the peer review process and includes errors caused by a reviewer who, in assigning points—

(A) Uses criteria not required by the applicable law or program regulations, the  Federal Register  notice inviting applications, the other published application materials for the competition, or guidance provided to the peer reviewers by the Secretary; or

(B) Does not consider relevant information included in the appropriate section of the application.

(ii) The term “scoring error” does not include—

(A) A peer reviewer's appropriate use of his or her professional judgment in evaluating and scoring an application;

(B) Any situation in which the applicant did not include information needed to evaluate its response to a specific selection criterion in the appropriate section of the application as stipulated in the  Federal Register  notice inviting applications or the other published application materials for the competition; or

(C) Any error by the applicant.

(c) Procedures for the second review. (1) To ensure the timely awarding of grants under the competition, the Secretary sets aside a percentage of the funds allotted for the competition to be awarded after the second review is completed.

(2) After the competition, the Secretary makes new awards in rank order as described in §642.20 based on the available funds for the competition minus the funds set aside for the second review.

(3) After the Secretary issues a notification of grant award to successful applicants, the Secretary notifies each unsuccessful applicant in writing as to the status of its application and the funding band for the second review and provides copies of the peer reviewers' evaluations of the applicant's application and the applicant's PE score, if applicable.

(4) An applicant that was not selected for funding following the competition as described in paragraph (c)(2) of this section and whose application received a score within the funding band as described in paragraph (d) of this section, may request a second review if the applicant demonstrates that the Department, the Department's agent, or a peer reviewer made an administrative or scoring error as provided in paragraph (b) of this section.

(5) An applicant whose application was not funded after the first review as described in paragraph (c)(2) of this section and whose application received a score within the funding band as described in paragraph (d) of this section has at least 15 calendar days after receiving notification that its application was not funded in which to submit a written request for a second review in accordance with the instructions and due date provided in the Secretary's written notification.

(6) An applicant's written request for a second review must be received by the Department or submitted electronically to a designated e-mail or Web address by the due date and time established by the Secretary.

(7) If the Secretary determines that the Department or the Department's agent made an administrative error that relates to the PE points awarded, as described in paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section, the Secretary adjusts the applicant's PE score to reflect the correct number of PE points. If the adjusted score assigned to the application would have resulted in funding of the application during the competition and the program has funds available, the Secretary funds the application prior to the re-ranking of applications based on the second peer review of applications described in paragraph (c)(9) of this section.

(8) If the Secretary determines that the Department, the Department's agent or the peer reviewer made an administrative error that relates to the peer reviewers' score(s), as described in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section, the Secretary adjusts the applicant's peer reviewers' score(s) to correct the error. If the adjusted score assigned to the application would have resulted in funding of the application during the competition and the program has funds available, the Secretary funds the application prior to the re-ranking of applications based on the second peer review of applications described in paragraph (c)(9) of this section.

(9) If the Secretary determines that a peer reviewer made a scoring error, as described in paragraph (b)(3) of this section, the Secretary convenes a second panel of peer reviewers in accordance with the requirements in section 402A(c)(8)(C)(iv)(III) of the HEA.

(10) The average of the peer reviewers' scores from the second peer review are used in the second ranking of applications. The average score obtained from the second peer review panel is the final peer reviewer score for the application and will be used even if the second review results in a lower score for the application than that obtained in the initial review.

(11) For applications in the funding band, the Secretary funds these applications in rank order based on adjusted scores and the available funds that have been set aside for the second review of applications.

(d) Process for establishing a funding band. (1) For each competition, the Secretary establishes a funding band for the second review of applications.

(2) The Secretary establishes the funding band for each competition based on the amount of funds the Secretary has set aside for the second review of applications.

(3) The funding band is composed of those applications—

(i) With a rank-order score before the second review that is below the lowest score of applications funded after the first review; and

(ii) That would be funded if the Secretary had 150 percent of the funds that were set aside for the second review of applications for the competition.

(e) Final decision. (1) The Secretary's determination of whether the applicant has met the requirements for a second review and the Secretary's decision on re-scoring of an application are final and not subject to further appeal or challenge.

(2) An application that scored below the established funding band for the competition is not eligible for a second review.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 1840–NEW1)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–11)

[75 FR 65773, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.26   How does the Secretary set the amount of a grant?

(a) The Secretary sets the amount of a grant on the basis of—

(1) 34 CFR 75.232 and 75.233, for a new grant; and

(2) 34 CFR 75.253, for the second year of a project period.

(b) The Secretary uses the available funds to set the amount of the grant at the lesser of—

(1) 170,000; or

(2) The amount requested by the applicant.

[75 FR 65774, Oct. 26, 2010]

Subpart D—What Conditions Must Be Met by a Grantee?

Source:   Redesignated at 75 FR 65772, Oct. 26, 2010, unless otherwise noted.

§ 642.30   What are allowable costs?

Allowable project costs may include the following costs reasonably related to carrying out a Training Program project:

(a) Rental of space, if space is not available at a sponsoring institution and if the space is not owned by a sponsoring institution.

(b) Printing.

(c) Postage.

(d) Purchase or rental of equipment.

(e) Consumable supplies.

(f) Transportation costs for participants and training staff.

(g) Lodging and subsistence costs for participants and training staff.

(h) Transportation costs, lodging and subsistence costs and fees for consultants, if any.

(i) Honorariums for speakers who are not members of the staff or consultants to the project.

(j) Other costs that are specifically approved in advance and in writing by the Secretary.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–11 and 1070a–17)

[47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982. Redesignated and amended at 75 FR 65774, Oct. 26, 2010]

§ 642.31   What are unallowable costs?

Costs that may not be charged against a grant under this program include the following:

(a) Research not directly related to the evaluation or improvement of the project.

(b) Construction, renovation, or remodeling of any facilities.

(c) Stipends, tuition fees, and other direct financial assistance to trainees other than those participating in internships.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a–11 and 1070a–17)

[47 FR 17788, Apr. 23, 1982. Redesignated and amended at 75 FR 65774, Oct. 26, 2010]

Expectations of Successful Applicants

• Project Directors’ Meeting

All successful applicants will be required to attend a Training Program Project Directors’ Meeting in Washington, D.C. in the fall of 2014. The reason for this meeting will be to clarify the purpose of the trainings under each priority and the expectations that the Department has of its grantees. In the budget section of the application, the applicants should include funds for travel to Washington, D.C. to attend this one-day meeting.

• Coordinating Trainings

Successful applicants will be asked to coordinate the dates and locations of the training to be provided with the Lead Training Program Specialist to ensure that training sessions do not overlap and are located and scheduled at times and places that will allow as many participants as possible to attend. Additionally, any necessary changes to the dates or locations must be approved by the Lead Training Program Specialist.

• Training for new TRIO project staff

Each year, each successful applicant must provide at least one training session on each topic listed within the specific priority for which the grant was awarded that is tailored to the needs of TRIO project personnel with less than two years of TRIO project experience.

• Training Materials

FY 2014 Training Program grantees will be asked to share their training materials with the Department at the end of each project year.

• Reporting Requirements

Each successful applicant must agree to collect data and maintain records over the course of the grant period. The Department has established the following performance indicators for the Training Program through which the success of the program is measured: (1) the cost-effectiveness, based on the number of TRIO project personnel receiving training each year; (2) the percentage of Training Program participants that, each year, evaluate the training as benefiting them in increasing their qualifications and skills in meeting the needs of disadvantaged students; and (3) the percentage of Training Program participants that, each year, evaluate the trainings as benefiting them in increasing their knowledge and understanding of the Federal TRIO Programs.

As part of the annual performance report, grantees must report the number of participants they served as well as the names of the participants’ projects and institutions. The Department will collect this and other grant information annually, or twice during the grant period of Training Program grantees.

Additionally, EDGAR, 34 CFR section 74.25, requires grantees to communicate with and obtain approval from the Lead Training Program Specialist when they seek a change in key personnel, the objectives of the project, or the scope of the project, including changes in dates or locations of training sessions. In general, when uncertain, it is always best to communicate with the Lead Training Program Specialist to verify compliance and appropriate grant management.

INTERGOVERNMENTAL REVIEW OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS EXECUTIVE ORDER 12372

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

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

Further information about the State Single Point of Contact process and a list of names by State can be found at:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants_spoc

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

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

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

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION

The following supplements the information provided in the “Dear Applicant” letter and the Notice.

1. Estimated Funding

• Estimated Available Funds for New Awards: $1,400,000

• Estimated Range of Awards: $225,000 - $325,000

• Estimated Average Size of Awards: $265,000

• Estimated Number of New Awards: 5

The Department is not bound by these estimates.

2. Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs

Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs was issued to foster an intergovernmental partnership and to strengthen federalism by relying on state and local processes for the coordination and review of proposed Federal financial assistance.

Applicants must contact the appropriate State Single Point of Contact to find out about, and to comply with, the State’s process under Executive Order 12372. A listing of the Single Point of Contact for each State may be viewed at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/OMB/grants/spoc.html.

3. Length of New Award

Applicants for new awards may apply for two years (24 months) of funding.

4. Training Program Assurances

All applications must comply with the Training Program legislative and regulatory requirements. The assurances are included in the application package and

must be signed by a certifying official and uploaded into the Other Attachments Form in Grants.gov. By submitting a Training Program application, an applicant certifies that it has read the assurances and will fully comply with the requirements.

5. Training Program Profile

All applicants must provide the information requested on this form. The Training Program Profile form contains standardized objectives. Applicants are required to propose the percentage at which each of the standardized objectives will be attained. On the Training Program Profile form, you must fill in the blanks indicating the percentage level of achievement for each of the objectives. You may not modify, amend or delete any of these objectives.

Applicants must copy and paste the Training Program Profile form into a separate document, or otherwise recreate the page exactly as it appears. Complete the form, save it to your computer and attach it to the Other Attachments Form as a .pdf document only. Do not modify or amend the language on the form in any way.

6. Evaluation of Applications for Awards

A panel of three non-federal reviewers will review each application in accordance with the selection criteria and competitive preference priorities. Each reviewer will prepare a written evaluation of the information presented in the project narrative section of the application. Each reviewer will also prepare a written evaluation of the information presented and assign points for any or all of the competitive preference priorities addressed in a separate section of the application submission.

All applications for grants under the Training Program will be evaluated as new submissions according to the selection criteria listed in the program regulations (34 CFR 642).

7. Selection Criteria

The selection criteria in 34 CFR, Part 642, as amended by the final regulations published on October 26, 2010, are used to evaluate applications.

8. Applicant Funding

Applicants should pay close attention to the “Maximum Award” section of the Notice. The Department will reject any application that proposes a budget exceeding the maximum amount specified for the specific project type as indicated in the Notice.

9. Prior Experience

In accordance with 34 CFR 642.22, the Secretary will award prior experience points to applicants that have conducted a TRIO Training Program project during these fiscal years: 2011-2012, 2012-2013 and 2013-2014. Based on the applicant’s documented experience set forth in the annual performance reports, up to 15 prior experience points will be added to the application’s averaged reviewer score to determine the total score for each application and the total score will be used in funding decisions as described in the Notice.

10. Selection of Grantees

The Secretary will select applications for funding in rank order, based on the applications’ total score for the selection criteria and competitive preference priorities plus, if applicable, any points earned for prior experience, pursuant to 34 CFR sections 642.22. If there are insufficient funds for all applications with the same total scores, the Secretary will choose among the tied applications so as to serve geographical areas that have been underserved by the Training Program.

The Department’s Office of Legislation and Congressional Affairs will inform the Congress regarding applications approved for new Training Program grants. Successful applicants will receive award notices by mail shortly after the Congress is notified. No funding information will be released before the Congress is notified.

11. Expectations of Successful Grantees

Please see the section titled Expectations of Successful Grantees in this application package.

12. Notice to Unsuccessful Applicants

Unsuccessful applicants will be notified in writing following the notice to successful applicants.

13. Second Review Process

To implement the legislative requirements for a second review of unsuccessful applications, the Department has a two-slate process. After the peer review of applications and the awarding of PE points, as applicable, the Department will rank all the applications. The Department then will establish a funding band to determine the percentage of the total funds allotted for the competition that will be set aside for the second review. The determination of the percentage of funds to be reserved for the second review and the applications to be included in the funding band will be based on the distribution of application scores. The funding band will include all of the applications with a rank-order score that is 1) below the lowest score of applications funded after the first review and 2) that would be funded if the Secretary had 150 percent of the funds that were set aside for the second review. 

Only applicants whose applications scored within the funding band will be eligible for the second review. In addition, those applicants deemed eligible for the second review will have to provide evidence demonstrating that the Department, an agent of the Department, or a peer reviewer made an administrative or scoring error (as defined in the regulations) in the review of its application. The guidelines and criteria for the second review process are included in the Training Program Regulations (34 CFR 642.25).

14. Annual Performance Report Requirements

If you receive a FY 2014 new grant award, you will be required to submit annual performance reports (APR) during the two-year funding cycle. This APR collects data about funded projects to enable program specialists to determine if a grantee is making substantial progress toward meeting approved project objectives.

15. Contact Information

For Training Program-related questions and assistance, please contact:

Program Specialist: Suzanne Ulmer

Address: Federal TRIO Programs

U.S. Department of Education

1990 K Street, N.W., Room 7000

Washington, D.C. 20006-8510

Telephone: (202) 502-7789

Fax: (202) 502-7857

E-mail Address: suzanne.ulmer@ed.gov

or

Division Director: Katie Blanding

Address: Federal TRIO Programs

U.S. Department of Education

1990 K Street, N.W., Suite 7000

Washington, D.C. 20006-8510

Telephone: (202) 217-7049

Fax: (202) 502-7857

E-mail Address: eileen.bland@ed.gov

For Grants.gov-related questions and assistance, please contact:

Support Desk: Grants.gov Support Desk

Telephone: (800) 518-4726

Hours: 24 hours, 7 days a week, except Federal holidays

Email: support@grants.gov

Training Program Profile

Instructions: All applicants must complete this form and attach it to the Other Attachments Form in the application package in Grants.gov (as a .pdf document).

DO NOT MODIFY THE CONTENTS OF THIS FORM.

Absolute Priority Number for which you are applying for a grant: Priority #__________

_____Competitive Preference Priority 1: Increasing Postsecondary Success

_____Competitive Preference Priority 2: Improving Productivity

Institution/Organization (Legal Name)

______________________________________________________________________

Address where the project will be located/headquartered:

Street: __________________________________________________________

City: ___________________________________________________________

State: _________ Zip Code: __________

ONLY applicants who received funding in project year 2012-2013, as part of Training Program grants awarded in FY 2012, must provide the award number(s) for the corresponding priority for which they are applying for a grant. That award number is located in Item 5 of the Grant Award Notification. (Applicants that have not received an award under the specific priority for which they are applying for a grant under the FY 2014 competition should leave this blank.)

P103A12__________________

Annual Program Objectives: Please fill in the proposed number or percent – as indicated - for each objective.

Note: These same objectives must be used in the Part III Project Narrative section of your application, and may not be revised or rewritten in your narrative discussion of the proposed objectives or the proposed evaluation.

Total number of Training Program participants to be trained each year: ___________

____________% of Training Participants that, each year, evaluated the training as benefiting them in increasing their qualifications and skills in meeting the needs of disadvantaged students.

____________% of Training Participants that, each year, evaluated the training as benefiting them in increasing their knowledge and understanding of the Federal TRIO Programs.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMPLETING THE APPLICATION PACKAGE

The Training Program application consists of the following four parts:

Part I: SF 424 Form -- Application for Federal Assistance and Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF 424

Note: Please do not attach any narratives, supporting files, or application components to the SF 424 Form. Although the form accepts attachments, the Department only will review the SF 424 and the specific items listed below.

Part II: ED Form 524

Department of Education Budget Information Non-Construction Programs

Part III-A: Program Profile Form

Part III-B: One-page Project Abstract

Part III: Project Narrative

Selection Criteria

Part III: The Competitive Preference Priorities Narrative

* All attachments must be in .PDF format. Other types of files will not be accepted.

The Project Narrative Selection Criteria is where you will attach your Part III – Project Narrative response to the selection criteria that will be used to evaluate your submission for this competition. This section has a strict page limit of 50 pages, excluding a Table of Contents and Abstract. However, those addressing the competitive preference priorities may include up to four additional pages for each priority addressed (a total of 8 pages if both priorities are addressed), in a separate section of the application submission to discuss how the application meets the competitive preference priorities. Please see the Notice for detailed information on page limits. You should include a Table of Contents for your application as the first page of this section. The Table of Contents will not count against the 50 pages you are allowed for your response to the selection criteria. You will also include your budget narrative in this section as a part of the selection criteria, which does count as part of the 50-page limit.

The Part III-A Training Program Profile Form should be attached to the Other Attachments Form in the application package in Grants.gov (as a .pdf document). You may not change the wording of the standard or “standardized” objectives.

The Part III-B Project Abstract should be a one-page abstract. You will attach this abstract to the Project Narrative – Abstract link. This one-page abstract, which may be single-spaced, will not count against the 50 pages you are allowed for your response to the selection criteria.

Part IV: Assurances, Certifications, and Survey Form -- Applicants must complete the following assurances and certifications included in

the application package:

• ED GEPA 427 Form

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

• Certifications Regarding Lobbying (ED Form 80-0013)

• Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (SF-LLL)

• Survey on Ensuring Equal Opportunity for Applicants

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROJECT NARRATIVE – SELECTION CRITERIA

Applications will be evaluated according to the specific selection criteria specified in the Notice and this package. Applicants must address the selection criteria in the Project Narrative, which is limited to 50 pages – as detailed in the Notice.

The Secretary evaluates an application on the basis of the broad criteria in 34 CFR section 642.31 of the Training Program regulations. The Project Narrative should provide, in detail, the information that addresses each selection criterion. To facilitate the review of the application, you should provide responses to each of the following selection criteria in the order shown below.

Note: The maximum possible score for each category of the selection criteria is indicated in parenthesis.

1. NEED (25 points)

Only applicants that address one of the five

absolute priorities will be considered eligible and

receive points for meeting the Need criterion.

2. PROJECT DESIGN

1. Plan of Operation (34 CFR 642.31(a)) (20 points)

2. Evaluation Plan (34 CFR 642.31(d)) (10 points)

3. RESOURCES

A. Adequacy of Resources (34 CFR 642.31(e)) (15 points)

B. Quality of Key Personnel (34 CFR 642.31(b)) (20 points)

4. BUDGET (34 CFR 642.31(c)) (10 points)

Total Maximum Score for Selection Criteria 100 points

The following guidance may assist you in addressing each of the selection criteria:

Need: In consultation with the TRIO community, the Department has already determined the need for training in various topics, as discussed in the section on absolute priorities. Thus, it is not necessary for applicants to respond to the “Need” selection criterion in their applications. Each eligible application will be awarded 25 points in the evaluation process for the “Need” selection criterion.

Plan of Operation: This part of the application should provide information on who, what, when and how the project will provide services to meet its goals and objectives. See the discussion on the absolute priorities for more information on addressing this criterion.

Evaluation Plan: A strong evaluation plan should be included and should be used, as appropriate, to shape the development of the project from the beginning of the grant period. The evaluation plan should include benchmarks to monitor progress toward meeting specific project objectives based on the program’s performance indicators. Specifically, the plan should identify the individual or organization that has agreed to serve as evaluator for the project and describe the qualifications of the evaluator. The plan should describe the evaluation design, indicating: (1) what types of data will be collected; (2) when various types of data will be collected; (3) what methods will be used; (4) what instruments will be developed and when; (5) how the data will be analyzed; (6) when reports and outcomes will be available; and (7) how the applicant will use the information collected through evaluation to monitor progress of the funded project and to provide accountability information both about success at the initial training site and effective strategies for replication in other settings. Applicants are encouraged to devote an appropriate level of resources to project evaluation. The use of an outside evaluator is not required.

Adequacy of Resources: This section should provide information that shows that the proposed budget will provide the resources necessary to successfully carry out the proposed trainings. Applicants should demonstrate here how the proposed resources would enable them to carry out the planned training sessions in the most cost-effective manner possible.

Quality of Key Personnel: The minimum qualifications must be identified for all project personnel positions. The minimum educational qualifications should include the type of degree required and the acceptable field(s) of study for each key position. The type and minimum amount of work-related experience should also be described for each position. Potential staff for the project must have documented knowledge and expertise in serving TRIO-eligible students as well as documented knowledge and expertise in training adults. Applicants should not give the qualifications of specific people that they plan to employ, but should give the qualifications required for the positions.

Budget: In response to this criterion, applicants must provide a detailed, itemized budget (ED Form 524) and a detailed budget narrative only for the first-year budget period. The budget narrative is to be included in the Project Narrative. Additional budget instructions are cited in the instructions entitled “First Year Budget and Budget Summary Form (ED Form 524) Instructions” on the following pages.

COMPETITIVE PREFERENCE PRIORITIES FOR FY 2014

The President has set a clear goal for our education system: By 2020, the United States will once again lead the world in college completion. The Department views the Training Program as a critical component in the effort to improve the quality of student outcomes, by providing training to service providers, so that more students are well prepared for college and careers. In order to more strategically align Training with overarching reform strategies for postsecondary completion, the Department is announcing two competitive preference priorities for this competition. The two priorities are from the Department’s Notice of final supplemental priorities and definitions for discretionary grant programs, published in the Federal Register on December 15, 2010 and corrected on May 12, 2011 (75 FR 78486).

Competitive Preference Priority 1: Increasing Postsecondary Success (up to 5 additional points). Projects that are designed to increase the rates at which high-need students enroll in and complete high-quality secondary or postsecondary career and technical courses or programs of study designed to lead to a degree, credential, or certificate by providing training to TRIO staff on strategies on how to connect low-income students to the school that is right for them.

The Department is using Competitive Preference Priority 1 – Increasing Postsecondary Success because of the critical importance of connecting more low-income students to the school that is right for them and ensuring more students graduate. Many low-income students do not apply to or attend schools where they are most likely to succeed, often because they are not fully aware of their options available to them.

Competitive Preference Priority 2: Improving Productivity (up to 5 additional points). Projects that are designed to significantly increase efficiency in the use of time, staff, money, or other resources while improving student learning or other educational outcomes (i.e., outcome per unit of resource). Such projects may include innovative and sustainable uses of technology, modification of school schedules and teacher compensation systems, use of open educational resources, or other strategies.

The Department is using Competitive Preference Priority 2--Improving Productivity because it believes that it is more important than ever to support TRIO projects that are designed to significantly increase efficiency in the use of resources while improving student outcomes. A key performance measure for the Training Program is its cost effectiveness, based on the number of TRIO project personnel receiving training each year. Furthermore, cost per participant is considered in all TRIO programs. Applicants proposing projects designed to offer increased opportunities to provide high-quality training for more individuals--that is, decrease their cost per participant while improving participant outcomes will be more likely to perform well on this efficiency measure.

Additionally, existing grantees will need assistance learning about, selecting, and implementing strategies that can help them be more productive while improving student outcomes. As such, we are interested in projects that propose to work with projects to adopt productivity improving strategies.

Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), we award up to an additional five points to an application that meets Competitive Preference Priority 1 and up to an additional five points to an application that meets Competitive Preference Priority 2 depending on how well the application meets each of these priorities. The maximum competitive preference points an application can receive under this competition is 10. An applicant submitting an application under Absolute Priorities 1, 2, 3, and 5 may apply using only competitive Preference Priority 2. An applicant submitting an application under Absolute Priority 4 may apply using both Competitive Preference Priorities.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR STANDARD FORMS

● Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424)

● Department of Education Supplemental Form for the SF 424

● Department of Education Budget Summary Form (ED 524)

● Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (SF-LLL)

● Survey Instructions on Ensuring Equal Opportunity for Applicants

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE BUDGET SUMMARY

AND ITEMIZED LINE ITEM BUDGET

NOTE: Applicants must submit: (1) budget information that categorizes the requested funds (ED Form 524), AND (2) a detailed budget narrative for the first 12-month budget period.

The budget summary is to be included on the Budget Information – Non-Construction Programs (ED Form 524).

The budget narrative, for the first 12-month budget period only, is to be included in the Program Narrative (limited to 50 pages and attached to the Program Narrative Attachment Form) as part of the Budget selection criterion.

This section requests information on the applicant’s financial plan for carrying out the project.

The federal and any non-federal shares are to be included on the Budget Information – Non-Construction Programs (ED Form 524), and in the Budget selection criterion discussion in the Program Narrative.

The Department is requesting that you complete the Budget Information – Non-Construction Programs (ED Form 524) for ONLY the 2014-2015 year. Please provide a comprehensive and detailed budget narrative for the first 12-month budget period, only. Applicants should place an asterisk next to all budget items that relate to the costs associated with the announced Competitive Preference Priorities for FY 2014.

It is not necessary to provide a budget summary for the total grant period requested. The funding level for the first year is stipulated based on the Maximum Award Section of the Notice, and the Department will determine the funding levels for the subsequent years of the grant award.

The Budget Information-Section A – Budget Summary – Non-Construction Programs (ED Form 524) and the Budget Narrative must include all costs that are allowable, reasonable and necessary for carrying out the objectives of the Training Program. Among the costs that may be supported with grant funds are:

1. Personnel: On line 1 (ED Form 524), enter only the project personnel salaries and wages. [Fees and expenses for consultants should be included on line 8.] The budget should include the total commitment of time and the total salary to be charged to the project for each key staff member. You should provide a breakdown of project personnel that includes: the position titles; the percent of time and number of months committed to the project for each key staff member; the salary for each key staff member; and the total salary costs to be charged to the grant.

2. Fringe Benefits: On line 2 (ED Form 524), enter the amount of fringe benefits. The institution or agency’s normal fringe benefit contribution may be charged to the program. Leave this blank if fringe benefits applicable to direct salaries and wages are treated as part of the indirect costs. In the budget, include an explanation and appropriate justification if the institution or agency’s normal fringe benefit contribution exceeds 20 percent of salaries.

3. Travel: On line 3 (ED Form 524), provide the costs for project personnel. [Consultants’ travel should be included on line 8.] In the budget, you should detail the proposed travel costs -- for each trip explain the purpose and objective of the travel and provide the number of persons traveling. Transportation costs should not exceed tourist class airfare. For automobile mileage, the established institution or agency rate should be used. Reimbursement is allowed for taxicab, bus, train, or limousine transportation. Per diem at the established institution or agency rate is permitted when an individual is away from home overnight on official project business (see OMB Circular A-21, J.48.c - Commercial Air Travel). No foreign travel will be authorized under the grant.

The Federal TRIO Programs have developed the following guidelines for recommending approval of travel. All travel must be related to the project’s overall purpose and proposed activities.

Project Director’s Travel – Per Year

One National Conference;

One Regional Meeting;

One State Meeting; and

Travel for participation in one professional staff development training opportunity under the TRIO Training Program.

Full-time Professional Staff Travel – Per Year

One National, Regional, or State Meeting; and

Travel for participation in one professional staff development training opportunity under the TRIO Training Program.

4. Equipment: On line 4 (ED Form 524), indicate the cost of equipment -- non-expendable personal property, which has a usefulness of greater than one year and an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit. [Consistent with an applicant’s policy, a lower dollar amount may be used to define equipment.] In the budget, explain why the requested equipment is necessary to carry out project activities, and include a list of all equipment in the following format: item, quantity, cost per unit, and total cost.

5. Supplies: On line 5 (ED Form 524), include the costs of all tangible personal property that was not included as “equipment” on line 4. In the budget, provide an itemized list of the supplies.

6. Contractual: Not applicable. Leave blank.

7. Construction: Not applicable. Leave blank.

8. Other: On line 8 (ED Form 524), indicate all direct costs not covered on lines 1 through 5. The costs/fees for consultants and consultants’ travel should be included here. Examples of “other” costs are: equipment rental, required fees, communication costs, rental of space, utilities, custodial services, and printing costs. In the budget, provide a breakdown of all direct costs not clearly covered by other budget categories.

Consultants: If the project proposes to use consultants, identify the consultants who will work on the project, the scope of work to be performed by each consultant, and justify why project personnel cannot perform this work. Also, provide a detailed breakdown of the costs (daily fees to be paid, estimated number of days of services, and all travel expenses, including per diem). Cost allowances for consultant fees, honoraria, per diem, and travel should not exceed amounts permitted by comparable institutional or agency policies.

9. Total Direct Costs: On line 9 (ED Form 524), provide the total direct costs requested – the sum of lines 1 through 8.

10. Indirect Costs: On line 10 (ED Form 524), provide the amount of indirect costs that you propose to charge against the grant.

All grants awarded under the Training Program (84.103A) are designated as training grants. The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) limits reimbursement to grantees for indirect costs they incur under training grants to the grantee’s actual indirect costs as determined by the grantee’s negotiated indirect cost agreement or a maximum of 8 percent of a modified total direct cost base, whichever is less. (NOTE: This limitation does not apply to State agencies, or local governments, or federally recognized Indian tribal governments. [§75.562(c) (2)]

A modified total direct cost base is defined as total direct costs, less stipends, tuition and related fees, and capital expenditures of $5,000 or more per unit. Therefore, calculations of indirect costs may not include cost of equipment, stipends, tuition and related fees, room and board and summer non-residential meals associated with the Training Program.

Grantees charging indirect costs to a Department grant are required to have a negotiated rate with their cognizant agency (i.e., either the Federal agency from which it has received the most direct funding that is subject to indirect cost support, or a particular agency specifically assigned cognizance by the Office of Management and Budget). Although applicants are not required to submit with their application a copy of their indirect cost agreement to claim the 8 percent rate for funding received in this program, they are required to have documentation available for audit that shows that their negotiated indirect cost rate is at least 8 percent [§75.563(d)]. In the event that they receive an award under this program, applicants without a negotiated indirect cost rate with its cognizant agency should seek to identify that agency and contact it to obtain an approved rate as soon as possible after award notification.

Applicants should be aware that amounts representing the difference between the 8 percent rate and a greater indirect cost rate negotiated with a cognizant agency may not be charged to direct cost categories, used to satisfy matching or cost-sharing requirements, or charged to another Federal award. [§75.563(c) (3)]

11. Training Stipends: Not applicable. Leave blank.

12. Total Costs: On line 12 (ED Form 524), provide the total amount that you are requesting – the sum of lines 9 and 10. Note: This amount should also be the same as that shown in 18g on the application face sheet (SF 424) and on the detailed budget narrative in Part III.

GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE AND RESULTS ACT (GPRA)

What is GPRA?

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

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

As required by GPRA, the Department of Education has prepared a strategic plan for 20014-2018. This plan reflects the Department’s priorities and integrates them with its mission and program authorities and describes how the Department will work to improve education for all children and adults in the U.S. The Department’s goals, as listed in the plan, are:

Goal 1: Postsecondary Education, Career and Technical Education, and Adult Education.

Increase college access, affordability, quality, and completion by improving postsecondary

education and lifelong learning opportunities for youths and adults.

Goal 2: Elementary and Secondary Education.

Improve the elementary and secondary education system’s ability to consistently deliver

excellent instruction aligned with rigorous academic standards while providing effective

support services to close achievement and opportunity gaps, and ensure all students

graduate high school college- and career-ready.

Goal 3: Early Learning.

Improve the health, social-emotional, and cognitive outcomes for all children from birth

through 3rd grade, so that all children, particularly those with high needs, are on track for

graduating from high school college- and career-ready.

Goal 4: Equity.

Increase educational opportunities for and reduce discrimination against underserved

students so that all students are well-positioned to succeed .

Goal 5: Continuous Improvement of the U.S. Education System.

Enhance the education system’s ability to continuously improve through better and more

widespread use of data, research and evaluation, evidence, transparency, innovation, and

technology.

Goal 6: U.S Department of Education Capacity.

Improve the organizational capacities of the Department to implement this strategic plan.

What are the performance indicators for the Training Program?

The performance indicators for the Training Program are part of the Department’s plan for meeting Goal 3. The Training Program is part of the Federal TRIO Programs. The overarching goal of the Federal TRIO Programs is “to increase the percentage of low-income and first generation college students who successfully pursue postsecondary education opportunities.

The performance indicators for the Training Programs are: 1) the cost-effectiveness, based on the number of TRIO project personnel receiving training each year; (2) the percentage of Training participants that, each year, evaluate the training as benefiting them in increasing their qualifications and skills in meeting the needs of disadvantaged students; and (3) the percentage of Training participants that, each year, evaluated the trainings as benefiting them in increasing their knowledge and understanding of the Federal TRIO Programs.

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

An applicant that receives a grant award will be required to submit annual performance reports as a condition of the award. The reports will document the extent to which project goals and objectives are met.

APPLICATION CHECKLIST

Use This Checklist While Preparing Your Application Package: All items listed on this checklist are required.

 Part I - Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424)

 Part I - Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF 424

 Part II - Department of Education Budget Summary Information – Non-Construction Programs (ED Form 524) – Sections A & B

 Part III - Program Narrative -The total page limit for the project narrative portion of the application for the FY 2014 Training Program competition is 50 pages. However, those addressing the competitive preference priorities may include up to four additional pages for each priority addressed (a total of 8 pages if both priorities are addressed) in a separate section of the application submission to discuss how the application meets the competitive preference priorities. Attach the Program Narrative document to the Program Narrative Attachment Form in the Grants.gov application.

 Part III - Other Attachments –Attach the following documents to the Other Attachments Form in the Grants.gov application.

Training Program Profile

Training Program Assurances

Competitive Preference Priorities Narrative

 Part III - ED Abstract - one-page limit - Attach this document to the ED Abstract Form in the Grants.gov application. This one-page abstract, which may be single-spaced, will not count against the 50 pages you are allowed for your response to the selection criteria.

 Part IV - Assurances, Certifications, and Survey

 GEPA Section 427 Requirement
 Assurances – Non-Construction Programs (SF 424B)

 Lobbying Form (Formerly ED Form 80-0013)
 Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (SF LLL)
 Survey on Ensuring Equal Opportunity for Applicants

NOTE: Please do not attach any narratives, supporting files, or application components to the Standard Form (SF 424). Although this form accepts attachments, the Department of Education will only review materials/files attached to the Grants.gov Attachment Forms listed above.

Paperwork Burden Statement

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number.  Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 36.6 hours per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.  The obligation to respond to this collection is required to obtain or retain benefit (Title IV, Part A, Subpart 2, Section 402G of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA) and 34 CFR part 642 Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs). Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to regulations.gov during the public comment period for this collection of information.  If you have specific questions about the form please contact Office of Student Service, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW, room 7000, Washington, DC 20006-8510. Telephone: (202) 502-7600 or by e-mail: TRIO@ed.gov.

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