Applications for New Awards; Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program, 19468-19474 [2013-07559]
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 62 / Monday, April 1, 2013 / Notices
provided to protege firms under the
Program; and
(ii) The number and dollar value of
subcontracts awarded to the protege
firm(s), broken out per protege.
DFARS Appendix I–112.2(e) requires
the protege firm to annually provide
data by October 31st on the progress
made by the protege firm in
employment, revenues, and
participation in DoD contracts during
each fiscal year of the Program
participation term and each of the two
fiscal years following the expiration of
the Program participation term. During
the Program participation term, the
firms may provide this data as part of
the mentor report required by I–112.2(a)
for the period ending September 30th.
Kortnee Stewart,
Editor, Defense Acquisition Regulations
System.
[FR Doc. 2013–07462 Filed 3–29–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5001–06–P
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Applications for New Awards; Minority
Science and Engineering Improvement
Program
Office of Postsecondary
Education, Department of Education
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
Overview Information:
Minority Science and Engineering
Improvement Program (MSEIP) .
Notice inviting applications for new
awards for fiscal year (FY) 2013.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
(CFDA) Number: 84.120A.
Applications Available: April 1,
2013.
Deadline for Transmittal of
Applications: May 31, 2013.
Deadline for Intergovernmental
Review: July 30, 2013.
DATES:
Full Text of Announcement
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I. Funding Opportunity Description
Purpose of Program: The MSEIP is
designed to effect long-range
improvement in science and
engineering education at predominantly
minority institutions and to increase the
flow of underrepresented ethnic
minorities, particularly minority
women, into scientific and
technological careers.
Priorities: This notice contains one
competitive preference priority and two
invitational priorities. The competitive
preference priority is from the notice of
final supplemental priorities and
definitions for discretionary grant
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programs, published in the Federal
Register on December 15, 2010 (75 FR
78486), and corrected on May 12, 2011
(76 FR 27637).
Competitive Preference Priority: For
FY 2013 and any subsequent year in
which we make awards from the list of
unfunded applicants from this
competition, this priority is a
competitive preference priority. Under
34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), we will award an
additional two points to an application
that meets this competitive preference
priority.
This priority is:
Competitive Preference Priority:
Increasing Postsecondary Success.
Projects that are designed to address
the following priority area:
Increasing the number and proportion
of high-need students (as defined in this
notice) who persist in and complete
college or other postsecondary
education and training.
Note: Applicants seeking to address the
competitive priority must do so in the
context of meeting all other program
requirements, including those provisions
requiring a focus on science and engineering
education in the grants funded under this
program. Applicants should also consider
how all elements of their proposed project
contribute to the priority.
Invitational Priorities: For FY 2013
and any subsequent year in which we
make awards from the list of unfunded
applicants from this competition, these
priorities are invitational priorities.
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1), we do not
give an application that meets these
invitational priorities a competitive or
absolute preference over other
applications.
These priorities are:
Invitational Priority 1: Institutionalize
Practices that have Evidence of Success.
Building institutional capacity to effect
long-range improvement in science and
engineering education through projects
that are supported by strong or moderate
evidence of effectiveness (as defined in
this notice).
Invitational Priority 2: Improve STEM
Education in the First Two Years of
College.
This invitational priority invites
applications to eliminate systemic
problems and impediments that result
in high failure and dropout rates within
the introductory years of science and
engineering programs. We invite
applications for projects that are
designed to improve student success
and retention in the first two years with
actions, including, but not limited to,
one or more of the following:
(a) Providing greater exposure to
science and engineering real-world
problems in the first two years through
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actions such as the appropriate
sequencing of courses.
(b) Introducing recent innovations
and discoveries in the first two years to
make science and engineering education
relevant. The students should
experience real developments such as
those led by nanotechnology, cell
biology, and ICT (Information and
Communication Technologies).
(c) Widespread integration of research
courses into the introductory STEM
curricula. Expand the use of scientific
research and engineering design courses
in the first two years.
(d) Increasing opportunities for
student research and design in faculty
research laboratories.
(e) Developing new curricula that
integrate scientific theory with realworld applications in scientific
problem-solving and engineering
design, in the context of global
environmental, energy, and economic
problems.
(f) Adopting pedagogy for integrative
teaching.
(g) Establishing programs to train
faculty in evidence-based teaching
practices, and catalyzing widespread
adoption of empirically validated
teaching practices.
(h) Seeking institutional and
accreditation support for changes in
curricular, pedagogical, and graduation
requirements that are necessary to
improve the first two years of STEM
coursework.
Definitions: The following 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 apply to the priorities in
this notice:
Carefully matched comparison group
design means a type of quasiexperimental study (as defined in this
notice) that attempts to approximate an
experimental study (as defined in this
notice). More specifically, it is a design
in which project participants are
matched with non-participants based on
key characteristics that are thought to be
related to the outcome. These
characteristics include, but are not
limited to:
(1) Prior test scores and other
measures of academic achievement
(preferably, the same measures that the
study will use to evaluate outcomes for
the two groups);
(2) Demographic characteristics, such
as age, disability, gender, English
proficiency, ethnicity, poverty level,
parents’ educational attainment, and
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single- or two-parent family
background;
(3) The time period in which the two
groups are studied (e.g., the two groups
are children entering kindergarten in the
same year as opposed to sequential
years); and
(4) Methods used to collect outcome
data (e.g., the same test of reading skills
administered in the same way to both
groups).
Experimental study means a study
that employs random assignment of, for
example, students, teachers, classrooms,
schools, or districts to participate in a
project being evaluated (treatment
group) or not to participate in the
project (control group). The effect of the
project is the average difference in
outcomes between the treatment and
control groups.
High-need children and high-need
students means children and students at
risk of educational failure, such as
children and students who are living in
poverty, who are English learners, who
are far below grade level or who are not
on track to becoming college- or careerready by graduation, who have left
school or college before receiving,
respectively, a regular high school
diploma or a college degree or
certificate, who are at risk of not
graduating with a diploma on time, who
are homeless, who are in foster care,
who are pregnant or parenting
teenagers, who have been incarcerated,
who are new immigrants, who are
migrant, or who have disabilities.
Interrupted time series design means
a type of quasi-experimental study (as
defined in this notice) in which the
outcome of interest is measured
multiple times before and after the
treatment for program participants only.
If the program had an impact, the
outcomes after treatment will have a
different slope or level from those before
treatment. That is, the series should
show an ‘‘interruption’’ of the prior
situation at the time when the program
was implemented. Adding a comparison
group time series, such as schools not
participating in the program or schools
participating in the program in a
different geographic area, substantially
increases the reliability of the findings.1
1 A single subject or single case design is an
adaptation of an interrupted time series design that
relies on the comparison of treatment effects on a
single subject or group of single subjects. There is
little confidence that findings based on this design
would be the same for other members of the
population. In some single subject designs,
treatment reversal or multiple baseline designs are
used to increase internal validity. In a treatment
reversal design, after a pretreatment or baseline
outcome measurement is compared with a post
treatment measure, the treatment would then be
stopped for a period of time; a second baseline
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Moderate evidence means evidence
from previous studies whose designs
can support causal conclusions (i.e.,
studies with high internal validity) but
have limited generalizability (i.e.,
moderate external validity), or studies
with high external validity but moderate
internal validity. The following would
constitute moderate evidence:
(1) At least one well-designed and
well-implemented (as defined in this
notice) experimental or quasiexperimental study (as defined in this
notice) supporting the effectiveness of
the practice, strategy, or program, with
small sample sizes or other conditions
of implementation or analysis that limit
generalizability;
(2) At least one well-designed and
well-implemented (as defined in this
notice) experimental or quasiexperimental study (as defined in this
notice) that does not demonstrate
equivalence between the intervention
and comparison groups at program entry
but that has no other major flaws related
to internal validity; or
(3) Correlational research with strong
statistical controls for selection bias and
for discerning the influence of internal
factors.
Quasi-experimental study means an
evaluation design that attempts to
approximate an experimental study (as
defined in this notice) and can support
causal conclusions (i.e., minimizes
threats to internal validity, such as
selection bias, or allows them to be
modeled). Well-designed and wellimplemented (as defined in this notice)
quasi-experimental studies include
carefully matched comparison group
designs (as defined in this notice),
interrupted time series designs (as
defined in this notice), or regression
discontinuity designs (as defined in this
notice).
Regression discontinuity design study
means, in part, a quasi-experimental
study (as defined in this notice) design
that closely approximates an
experimental study (as defined in this
notice). In a regression discontinuity
design, participants are assigned to a
treatment or comparison group based on
a numerical rating or score of a variable
unrelated to the treatment such as the
rating of an application for funding.
Another example would be assignment
of eligible students, teachers,
measure of the outcome would be taken, followed
by a second application of the treatment or a
different treatment. A multiple baseline design
addresses concerns about the effects of normal
development, timing of the treatment, and amount
of the treatment with treatment-reversal designs by
using a varying time schedule for introduction of
the treatment and/or treatments of different lengths
or intensity.
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classrooms, or schools above a certain
score (‘‘cut score’’) to the treatment
group and assignment of those below
the score to the comparison group.
Strong evidence means evidence from
previous studies whose designs can
support causal conclusions (i.e., studies
with high internal validity), and studies
that in total include enough of the range
of participants and settings to support
scaling up to the State, regional, or
national level (i.e., studies with high
external validity). The following are
examples of strong evidence:
(1) More than one well-designed and
well-implemented (as defined in this
notice) experimental study (as defined
in this notice) or well-designed and
well-implemented (as defined in this
notice) quasi-experimental study (as
defined in this notice) that supports the
effectiveness of the practice, strategy, or
program; or
(2) One large, well-designed and wellimplemented (as defined in this notice)
randomized controlled, multisite trial
that supports the effectiveness of the
practice, strategy, or program.
Well-designed and well-implemented
means, with respect to an experimental
or quasi-experimental study (as defined
in this notice), that the study meets the
What Works Clearinghouse evidence
standards, with or without reservations
(see https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/
references/idocviewer/
doc.aspx?docid=19&tocid=1 and in
particular the description of ‘‘Reasons
for Not Meeting Standards’’ at https://
ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/references/
idocviewer/
Doc.aspx?docId=19&tocId=4#reasons).
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1067–
1067k.
Applicable Regulations: (a) The
Education Department General
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in
34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 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 637; (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.
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Estimated Available Funds: The
Administration has requested
$8,992,686 for this program for FY 2013,
of which it intends to allocate
$2,906,074 for this competition. The
actual level of funding, if any, depends
on final congressional action. However,
we are inviting applications to allow
enough time to complete the grant
process if Congress appropriates funds
for this program.
Contingent upon the availability of
funds and the quality of applications,
we may make additional awards in FY
2014 from the list of unfunded
applications from this competition.
Estimated Range of Awards:
Institutional Project Grants: $150,000–
$250,000. Special Project Grants:
$100,000–$250,000. Cooperative Project
Grants: $250,000–$300,000.
Estimated Average Size of Awards:
Institutional Project Grants: $200,000.
Special Project Grants: $175,000.
Cooperative Project Grants: $275,000.
Maximum Awards: Institutional
Project Grants: $250,000. Special Project
Grants: $250,000. Cooperative Project
Grants: $300,000. We may choose not to
further consider or review applications
with budgets that exceed the maximum
award. We may choose not to further
consider or review applications with the
budget for a single budget period of 12
months exceeding the maximum award.
The Assistant Secretary for
Postsecondary Education may change
the maximum amounts through a notice
published in the Federal Register.
Estimated Number of Awards:
Institutional Project Grants: 10; Special
Project Grants: 1; Cooperative Project
Grants: 1.
Project Period: Up to 36 months.
III. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants: The eligibility
of an applicant is dependent on the type
of MSEIP grant. There are four types of
MSEIP grants:
Institutional projects, special projects,
cooperative, and design.
Institutional project grants are grants
that support the implementation of a
comprehensive science improvement
plan, which may include any
combination of activities for improving
the preparation of minority students for
careers in science.
There are two types of special projects
grants. There are special projects grants
for which minority institutions are
eligible. These special projects grants
support activities that: (1) Improve
quality training in science and
engineering at minority institutions; or
(2) enhance the minority institutions’
general scientific research capabilities.
There are also special projects grants for
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which all applicants are eligible. These
special projects grants support activities
that: (1) Provide a needed service to a
group of eligible minority institutions;
or (2) provide in-service training for
project directors, scientists, and
engineers from eligible minority
institutions.
Cooperative project grants assist
groups of nonprofit accredited colleges
and universities to work together to
conduct a science improvement
program.
Design project grants assist minority
institutions that do not have their own
appropriate resources or personnel to
plan and develop long-range science
improvement programs. We will not
award design project grants in the FY
2013 competition.
(a) For institutional project grants,
eligible applicants are limited to:
(1) Public and private nonprofit
institutions of higher education that (i)
Award baccalaureate degrees; and (ii)
are minority institutions;
(2) Public or private nonprofit
institutions of higher education that (i)
Award associate degrees; and (ii) are
minority institutions that (A) Have a
curriculum that includes science or
engineering subjects; and (B) enter into
a partnership with public or private
nonprofit institutions of higher
education that award baccalaureate
degrees in science and engineering.
(b) For special projects grants for
which minority institutions are eligible,
eligible applicants are described in
paragraph (a).
(c) For special projects grants for
which all applicants are eligible, eligible
applicants include those described in
paragraph (a), and
(1) Nonprofit science-oriented
organizations, professional scientific
societies, and institutions of higher
education that award baccalaureate
degrees that: (i) Provide a needed
service to a group of minority
institutions; or (ii) provide in-service
training to project directors, scientists,
and engineers from minority
institutions; or
(2) A consortia of organizations, that
provide needed services to one or more
minority institutions, the membership
of which may include—(i) Institutions
of higher education which have a
curriculum in science or engineering;
(ii) institutions of higher education that
have a graduate or professional program
in science or engineering; (iii) research
laboratories of, or under contract with,
the Department of Energy, the
Department of Defense or the National
Institutes of Health; (iv) relevant offices
of the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration, National Oceanic and
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Atmospheric Administration, National
Science Foundation and National
Institute of Standards and Technology;
(v) quasi-governmental entities that
have a significant scientific or
engineering mission; or (vi) institutions
of higher education that have Statesponsored centers for research in
science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics.
(d) For cooperative projects grants,
eligible applicants are groups of
nonprofit accredited colleges and
universities whose primary fiscal agent
is an eligible minority institution as
defined in 34 CFR 637.4(b).
Note: As defined in 34 CFR 637.4(b),
‘‘minority institution’’ means an accredited
college or university whose enrollment of a
single minority group or a combination of
minority groups exceeds 50 percent of the
total enrollment.
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: You can obtain an application
via the Internet at Grants.gov. If you do
not have access to the Internet, please
contact Krish Mathur, U.S. Department
of Education, 1990 K Street NW.,
Washington, DC 20006–8517.
Telephone: (202) 502–7512.
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 computer disc)
by contacting the program contact
persons 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
competition. Page Limit: The
application narrative (Part III of the
application) is where you, the applicant,
address the selection criteria that
reviewers use to evaluate your
application. We have established a
mandatory page limit for the application
narrative of each type of MSEIP grant
project as follows:
Institutional project grants: 40 pages;
Special projects grant application: 35
pages;
Cooperative project grant application:
50 pages.
You must limit the application
narrative (Part III) to these established
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page limits, using the following
standards:
• A ‘‘page’’ is 8.5″ × 11″, on one side
only, with 1″ margins at the top, bottom,
and both sides. Page numbers and a
document identifier may be within the
1″ margin.
• Double space (no more than three
lines per vertical inch) all text in the
application narrative, except titles,
headings, footnotes, quotations,
references, captions, and all text in
charts, tables, and graphs. These items
may be single spaced; however, they
will count toward the page limit.
• Use a font that is either 12 point or
larger, or no smaller than 10 pitch
(characters per inch). However, you may
use a 10 point font in charts, tables,
figures, and graphs.
• Use one of the following fonts:
Times New Roman, Courier, Courier
New, or Arial. An application submitted
in any other font (including Times
Roman or Arial Narrow) will not be
accepted.
If you use some but not all of the
allowable space on a page, it will be
counted as a full page in determining
compliance with the page limit.
The page limit does not apply to Part
I, the cover sheet; Part II, the budget
section, including the budget
justification; Part IV, the one-page
abstract, the table of contents, the
MSEIP Eligibility Certification Form,
required letter(s) of commitment,
evidence of partnerships, or the
assurances and certifications. If you
include any attachments or appendices
not specifically requested, these items
will be counted as part of the program
narrative (Part III) for purposes of the
page limit requirement. You must
include your complete responses to the
selection criteria in the program
narrative.
We will reject your application if you
exceed the page limit. We will also
reject your application if you fail to
provide the MSEIP Eligibility
Certification Form.
3. Submission Dates and Times:
Applications Available: April 1, 2013.
Deadline for Transmittal of
Applications: May 31, 2013.
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.
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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: July 30, 2013.
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
competition.
5. Funding Restrictions: We reference
regulations outlining funding
restrictions in the Applicable
Regulations section of this notice.
6. Data Universal Numbering System
Number, Taxpayer Identification
Number, Central Contractor Registry,
and System for Award Management: To
do business with the Department of
Education, you must—
a. Have a Data Universal Numbering
System (DUNS) number and a Taxpayer
Identification Number (TIN);
b. Register both your DUNS number
and TIN with the Central Contractor
Registry (CCR)—and, after July 24, 2012,
with the System for Award Management
(SAM)—the Government’s primary
registrant database;
c. Provide your DUNS number and
TIN on your application; and
d. Maintain an active CCR or SAM
registration with current information
while your application is under review
by the Department and, if you are
awarded a grant, during the project
period.
You can obtain a DUNS number from
Dun and Bradstreet. 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 or SAM registration process
may take five or more business days to
complete. If you are currently registered
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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
registration annually. This may take
three or more business days to
complete. Information about SAM is
available at SAM.gov.
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
competition 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
MSEIP, CFDA Number 84.120A, must
be submitted electronically using the
Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site
at www.Grants.gov. Through this site,
you will be able to download a copy of
the application package, complete it
offline, and then upload and submit
your application. You may not email an
electronic copy of a grant application to
us.
We will reject your application if you
submit it in paper format unless, as
described elsewhere in this section, you
qualify for one of the exceptions to the
electronic submission requirement and
submit, no later than two weeks before
the application deadline date, a written
statement to the Department that you
qualify for one of these exceptions.
Further information regarding
calculation of the date that is two weeks
before the application deadline date is
provided later in this section under
Exception to Electronic Submission
Requirement.
You may access the electronic grant
application for the MSEIP at
www.Grants.gov. You must search for
the downloadable application package
for this competition by the CFDA
number. Do not include the CFDA
number’s alpha suffix in your search
(e.g., search for 84.120, not 84.120A).
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
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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 competition
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) read-only, nonmodifiable format. Do not upload an
interactive or fillable PDF file. If you
upload a file type other than a readonly, non-modifiable PDF or submit a
password-protected file, we will not
review that material. Additional,
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detailed information on how to attach
files is in the application instructions.
• 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 email.
This second notification indicates that
the Department has received your
application and has assigned your
application a PR/Award number (an EDspecified 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
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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: Krish Mathur, U.S.
Department of Education, 1990 K Street
NW., room 6032, Washington, DC
20006–8517. Fax: (202) 502–7877.
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 84.120A),
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.
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(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 84.120A),
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.
pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper
Applications: If you mail or hand deliver
your application to the Department—
(1) You must indicate on the envelope
and—if not provided by the Department—in
Item 11 of the SF 424 the CFDA number,
including suffix letter, if any, of the
competition under which you are submitting
your application; and
(2) The Application Control Center will
mail to you a notification of receipt of your
grant application. If you do not receive this
notification within 15 business days from the
application deadline date, you should call
the U.S. Department of Education
Application Control Center at (202) 245–
6288.
V. Application Review Information
1. Selection Criteria: The selection
criteria for this program are from 34 CFR
637.32(a) through (j). Applicants must
address each of the selection criteria.
The total weight of the selection criteria
is 100 points; the weight of each
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15:34 Mar 29, 2013
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criterion is noted in parentheses. Please
see the application package for detailed
explanation of these criteria. The
selection criteria are as follows:
(a) Identification of need for the
project (Total 5 points).
(b) Plan of operation (Total 20 points).
(c) Quality of key personnel (Total 5
points).
(d) Budget and cost effectiveness
(Total 10 points).
(e) Evaluation plan (Total 15 points).
(f) Adequacy of resources (Total 5
points).
(g) Potential institutional impact of
the project (Total 15 points).
(h) Institutional commitment to the
project (Total 5 points).
(i) Expected Outcomes (Total 10
points).
(j) Scientific and educational value of
the proposed project (Total 10 points).
2. Review and Selection Process: We
remind potential applicants that in
reviewing applications in any
discretionary grant competition, the
Secretary may consider, under 34 CFR
75.217(d)(3), the past performance of the
applicant in carrying out a previous
award, such as the applicant’s use of
funds, achievement of project
objectives, and compliance with grant
conditions. The Secretary may also
consider whether the applicant failed to
submit a timely performance report or
submitted a report of unacceptable
quality.
In addition, in making a competitive
grant award, the Secretary also requires
various assurances including those
applicable to Federal civil rights laws
that prohibit discrimination in programs
or activities receiving Federal financial
assistance from the Department of
Education (34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4,
108.8, and 110.23).
Tiebreaker for Institutional, Special
Project, and Cooperative Grants. If there
are insufficient funds for all
applications with the same total scores,
applications will receive preference in
the following manner. The Secretary
gives priority to applicants which have
not previously received funding from
the program and to previous grantees
with a proven record of success, as well
as to applications that contribute to
achieving balance among funded
projects with respect to: (1) Geographic
region; (2) Academic discipline; and (3)
Project type.
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
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19473
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 in
this notice and include these and other
specific conditions in the GAN. The
GAN also incorporates your approved
application as part of your binding
commitments under the grant.
3. Reporting: (a) If you apply for a
grant under this competition, you must
ensure that you have in place the
necessary processes and systems to
comply with the reporting requirements
in 2 CFR part 170 should you receive
funding under the competition. This
does not apply if you have an exception
under 2 CFR 170.110(b).
(b) At the end of your project period,
you must submit a final performance
report, including financial information,
as directed by the Secretary. If you
receive a 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). Please see the application
package for details of annual and final
reporting requirements. For specific
requirements on reporting, please go to
https://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/
appforms/appforms.html.
4. Performance Measures: The
Secretary has established the following
key performance measures for assessing
the effectiveness of the MSEIP: (1) The
percentage of change in the number of
full-time, degree-seeking minority
undergraduate students at the grantee’s
institution enrolled in the fields of
engineering or physical or biological
sciences, compared to the average
minority enrollment in the same fields
in the three-year period immediately
prior to the beginning of the current
grant; (2) the percentage of minority
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students enrolled at four-year minorityserving institutions in the fields of
engineering or physical or biological
sciences who graduate within six years
of enrollment. Please see the application
package for details of data collection
and reporting requirements for these
measures.
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:
pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Krish Mathur, U.S. Department of
Education, 1990 K Street, NW., room
6155, Washington, DC 20006–8517 by
telephone: (202) 502 7512, or by email:
Krish.mathur@ed.gov.
If you use a TDD or a TTY, call the
FRS, toll free, at 1–800–877–8339.
VIII. Other Information
Accessible Format: Individuals with
disabilities can obtain this document
and a copy of the application package in
an accessible format (e.g., braille, large
print, audiotape, or compact disc) on
request to the program contact persons
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT in 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 all
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 the site. You may also
access documents of the Department
published in the Federal Register by
using the article search feature at
VerDate Mar<15>2010
15:34 Mar 29, 2013
Jkt 229001
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically,
through the advanced search feature at
this site, you can limit your search to
documents published by the
Department.
Dated: March 27, 2013.
David A. Bergeron,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary
Education.
[FR Doc. 2013–07559 Filed 3–29–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
Combined Notice of Filings
Take notice that the Commission has
received the following Natural Gas
Pipeline Rate and Refund Report filings:
Filings Instituting Proceedings
Docket Numbers: RP13–702–000.
Applicants: Egan Hub Storage, LLC.
Description: Termination of Contract
310527 to be effective 4/25/2013.
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5038.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Docket Numbers: RP13–703–000.
Applicants: Bison Pipeline LLC.
Description: Bison Pipeline LLC
Company Use Gas Annual Report.
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5052.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Docket Numbers: RP13–704–000.
Applicants: Natural Gas Pipeline
Company of America.
Description: Renaissance Trading
Negotiated Rate to be effective 4/1/2013.
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5071.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Docket Numbers: RP13–705–000.
Applicants: Natural Gas Pipeline
Company of America.
Description: Negotiated Rate—EDF to
be effective 4/1/2013.
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5073.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Docket Numbers: RP13–706–000.
Applicants: Kern River Gas
Transmission Company
Description: 2013 Automation of IT
Contracts to be effective 4/25/2013.
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5114.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Docket Numbers: RP13–707–000.
Applicants: Dominion Transmission,
Inc.
Description: DTI—March 25, 2013
Negotiated Rate Agreements to be
effective 3/26/2013.
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Sfmt 9990
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5135.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Docket Numbers: RP13–708–000.
Applicants: Iroquois Gas
Transmission System, L.P.
Description: 03/25/13 Negotiated
Rates—BG Energy Merchants, LLC
(HUB) 6040–89 to be effective 4/15/
2013.
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5145.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Docket Numbers: RP13–709–000.
Applicants: Iroquois Gas
Transmission System, L.P.
Description: 03/25/13 Negotiated
Rates—JP Morgan Ventures Energy
Corp. (HUB) 6025–89 to be effective 4/
15/2013.
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5146.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Docket Numbers: RP13–710–000.
Applicants: El Paso Natural Gas
Company, L.L.C.
Description: Request for Waiver and
Extension of Previous Waiver of El Paso
Natural Gas Company, L.L.C.
Filed Date: 3/25/13.
Accession Number: 20130325–5187.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/8/13.
Any person desiring to intervene or
protest in any of the above proceedings
must file in accordance with Rules 211
and 214 of the Commission’s
Regulations (18 CFR 385.211 and
385.214) on or before 5:00 p.m. Eastern
time on the specified comment date.
Protests may be considered, but
intervention is necessary to become a
party to the proceeding.
The filings are accessible in the
Commission’s eLibrary system by
clicking on the links or querying the
docket number.
eFiling is encouraged. More detailed
information relating to filing
requirements, interventions, protests,
and service can be found at: https://
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling/filingreq.pdf. For other information, call (866)
208–3676 (toll free). For TTY, call (202)
502–8659.
Dated: March 26, 2013.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013–07490 Filed 3–29–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
E:\FR\FM\01APN1.SGM
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 62 (Monday, April 1, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19468-19474]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-07559]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Applications for New Awards; Minority Science and Engineering
Improvement Program
AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Overview Information:
Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) .
Notice inviting applications for new awards for fiscal year (FY)
2013.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.120A.
DATES: Applications Available: April 1, 2013.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 31, 2013.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 30, 2013.
Full Text of Announcement
I. Funding Opportunity Description
Purpose of Program: The MSEIP is designed to effect long-range
improvement in science and engineering education at predominantly
minority institutions and to increase the flow of underrepresented
ethnic minorities, particularly minority women, into scientific and
technological careers.
Priorities: This notice contains one competitive preference
priority and two invitational priorities. The competitive preference
priority is 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).
Competitive Preference Priority: For FY 2013 and any subsequent
year in which we make awards from the list of unfunded applicants from
this competition, this priority is a competitive preference priority.
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), we will award an additional two points to
an application that meets this competitive preference priority.
This priority is:
Competitive Preference Priority: Increasing Postsecondary Success.
Projects that are designed to address the following priority area:
Increasing the number and proportion of high-need students (as
defined in this notice) who persist in and complete college or other
postsecondary education and training.
Note: Applicants seeking to address the competitive priority
must do so in the context of meeting all other program requirements,
including those provisions requiring a focus on science and
engineering education in the grants funded under this program.
Applicants should also consider how all elements of their proposed
project contribute to the priority.
Invitational Priorities: For FY 2013 and any subsequent year in
which we make awards from the list of unfunded applicants from this
competition, these priorities are invitational priorities. Under 34 CFR
75.105(c)(1), we do not give an application that meets these
invitational priorities a competitive or absolute preference over other
applications.
These priorities are:
Invitational Priority 1: Institutionalize Practices that have
Evidence of Success. Building institutional capacity to effect long-
range improvement in science and engineering education through projects
that are supported by strong or moderate evidence of effectiveness (as
defined in this notice).
Invitational Priority 2: Improve STEM Education in the First Two
Years of College.
This invitational priority invites applications to eliminate
systemic problems and impediments that result in high failure and
dropout rates within the introductory years of science and engineering
programs. We invite applications for projects that are designed to
improve student success and retention in the first two years with
actions, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following:
(a) Providing greater exposure to science and engineering real-
world problems in the first two years through actions such as the
appropriate sequencing of courses.
(b) Introducing recent innovations and discoveries in the first two
years to make science and engineering education relevant. The students
should experience real developments such as those led by
nanotechnology, cell biology, and ICT (Information and Communication
Technologies).
(c) Widespread integration of research courses into the
introductory STEM curricula. Expand the use of scientific research and
engineering design courses in the first two years.
(d) Increasing opportunities for student research and design in
faculty research laboratories.
(e) Developing new curricula that integrate scientific theory with
real-world applications in scientific problem-solving and engineering
design, in the context of global environmental, energy, and economic
problems.
(f) Adopting pedagogy for integrative teaching.
(g) Establishing programs to train faculty in evidence-based
teaching practices, and catalyzing widespread adoption of empirically
validated teaching practices.
(h) Seeking institutional and accreditation support for changes in
curricular, pedagogical, and graduation requirements that are necessary
to improve the first two years of STEM coursework.
Definitions: The following 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 apply to the
priorities in this notice:
Carefully matched comparison group design means a type of quasi-
experimental study (as defined in this notice) that attempts to
approximate an experimental study (as defined in this notice). More
specifically, it is a design in which project participants are matched
with non-participants based on key characteristics that are thought to
be related to the outcome. These characteristics include, but are not
limited to:
(1) Prior test scores and other measures of academic achievement
(preferably, the same measures that the study will use to evaluate
outcomes for the two groups);
(2) Demographic characteristics, such as age, disability, gender,
English proficiency, ethnicity, poverty level, parents' educational
attainment, and
[[Page 19469]]
single- or two-parent family background;
(3) The time period in which the two groups are studied (e.g., the
two groups are children entering kindergarten in the same year as
opposed to sequential years); and
(4) Methods used to collect outcome data (e.g., the same test of
reading skills administered in the same way to both groups).
Experimental study means a study that employs random assignment of,
for example, students, teachers, classrooms, schools, or districts to
participate in a project being evaluated (treatment group) or not to
participate in the project (control group). The effect of the project
is the average difference in outcomes between the treatment and control
groups.
High-need children and high-need students means children and
students at risk of educational failure, such as children and students
who are living in poverty, who are English learners, who are far below
grade level or who are not on track to becoming college- or career-
ready by graduation, who have left school or college before receiving,
respectively, a regular high school diploma or a college degree or
certificate, who are at risk of not graduating with a diploma on time,
who are homeless, who are in foster care, who are pregnant or parenting
teenagers, who have been incarcerated, who are new immigrants, who are
migrant, or who have disabilities.
Interrupted time series design means a type of quasi-experimental
study (as defined in this notice) in which the outcome of interest is
measured multiple times before and after the treatment for program
participants only. If the program had an impact, the outcomes after
treatment will have a different slope or level from those before
treatment. That is, the series should show an ``interruption'' of the
prior situation at the time when the program was implemented. Adding a
comparison group time series, such as schools not participating in the
program or schools participating in the program in a different
geographic area, substantially increases the reliability of the
findings.\1\
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\1\ A single subject or single case design is an adaptation of
an interrupted time series design that relies on the comparison of
treatment effects on a single subject or group of single subjects.
There is little confidence that findings based on this design would
be the same for other members of the population. In some single
subject designs, treatment reversal or multiple baseline designs are
used to increase internal validity. In a treatment reversal design,
after a pretreatment or baseline outcome measurement is compared
with a post treatment measure, the treatment would then be stopped
for a period of time; a second baseline measure of the outcome would
be taken, followed by a second application of the treatment or a
different treatment. A multiple baseline design addresses concerns
about the effects of normal development, timing of the treatment,
and amount of the treatment with treatment-reversal designs by using
a varying time schedule for introduction of the treatment and/or
treatments of different lengths or intensity.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Moderate evidence means evidence from previous studies whose
designs can support causal conclusions (i.e., studies with high
internal validity) but have limited generalizability (i.e., moderate
external validity), or studies with high external validity but moderate
internal validity. The following would constitute moderate evidence:
(1) At least one well-designed and well-implemented (as defined in
this notice) experimental or quasi-experimental study (as defined in
this notice) supporting the effectiveness of the practice, strategy, or
program, with small sample sizes or other conditions of implementation
or analysis that limit generalizability;
(2) At least one well-designed and well-implemented (as defined in
this notice) experimental or quasi-experimental study (as defined in
this notice) that does not demonstrate equivalence between the
intervention and comparison groups at program entry but that has no
other major flaws related to internal validity; or
(3) Correlational research with strong statistical controls for
selection bias and for discerning the influence of internal factors.
Quasi-experimental study means an evaluation design that attempts
to approximate an experimental study (as defined in this notice) and
can support causal conclusions (i.e., minimizes threats to internal
validity, such as selection bias, or allows them to be modeled). Well-
designed and well-implemented (as defined in this notice) quasi-
experimental studies include carefully matched comparison group designs
(as defined in this notice), interrupted time series designs (as
defined in this notice), or regression discontinuity designs (as
defined in this notice).
Regression discontinuity design study means, in part, a quasi-
experimental study (as defined in this notice) design that closely
approximates an experimental study (as defined in this notice). In a
regression discontinuity design, participants are assigned to a
treatment or comparison group based on a numerical rating or score of a
variable unrelated to the treatment such as the rating of an
application for funding. Another example would be assignment of
eligible students, teachers, classrooms, or schools above a certain
score (``cut score'') to the treatment group and assignment of those
below the score to the comparison group.
Strong evidence means evidence from previous studies whose designs
can support causal conclusions (i.e., studies with high internal
validity), and studies that in total include enough of the range of
participants and settings to support scaling up to the State, regional,
or national level (i.e., studies with high external validity). The
following are examples of strong evidence:
(1) More than one well-designed and well-implemented (as defined in
this notice) experimental study (as defined in this notice) or well-
designed and well-implemented (as defined in this notice) quasi-
experimental study (as defined in this notice) that supports the
effectiveness of the practice, strategy, or program; or
(2) One large, well-designed and well-implemented (as defined in
this notice) randomized controlled, multisite trial that supports the
effectiveness of the practice, strategy, or program.
Well-designed and well-implemented means, with respect to an
experimental or quasi-experimental study (as defined in this notice),
that the study meets the What Works Clearinghouse evidence standards,
with or without reservations (see https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/references/idocviewer/doc.aspx?docid=19&tocid=1 and in particular the
description of ``Reasons for Not Meeting Standards'' at https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/references/idocviewer/Doc.aspx?docId=19&tocId=4#reasons).
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1067-1067k.
Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 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 637; (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.
[[Page 19470]]
Estimated Available Funds: The Administration has requested
$8,992,686 for this program for FY 2013, of which it intends to
allocate $2,906,074 for this competition. The actual level of funding,
if any, depends on final congressional action. However, we are inviting
applications to allow enough time to complete the grant process if
Congress appropriates funds for this program.
Contingent upon the availability of funds and the quality of
applications, we may make additional awards in FY 2014 from the list of
unfunded applications from this competition.
Estimated Range of Awards: Institutional Project Grants: $150,000-
$250,000. Special Project Grants: $100,000-$250,000. Cooperative
Project Grants: $250,000-$300,000.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: Institutional Project Grants:
$200,000. Special Project Grants: $175,000. Cooperative Project Grants:
$275,000.
Maximum Awards: Institutional Project Grants: $250,000. Special
Project Grants: $250,000. Cooperative Project Grants: $300,000. We may
choose not to further consider or review applications with budgets that
exceed the maximum award. We may choose not to further consider or
review applications with the budget for a single budget period of 12
months exceeding the maximum award. The Assistant Secretary for
Postsecondary Education may change the maximum amounts through a notice
published in the Federal Register.
Estimated Number of Awards: Institutional Project Grants: 10;
Special Project Grants: 1; Cooperative Project Grants: 1.
Project Period: Up to 36 months.
III. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants: The eligibility of an applicant is
dependent on the type of MSEIP grant. There are four types of MSEIP
grants:
Institutional projects, special projects, cooperative, and design.
Institutional project grants are grants that support the
implementation of a comprehensive science improvement plan, which may
include any combination of activities for improving the preparation of
minority students for careers in science.
There are two types of special projects grants. There are special
projects grants for which minority institutions are eligible. These
special projects grants support activities that: (1) Improve quality
training in science and engineering at minority institutions; or (2)
enhance the minority institutions' general scientific research
capabilities. There are also special projects grants for which all
applicants are eligible. These special projects grants support
activities that: (1) Provide a needed service to a group of eligible
minority institutions; or (2) provide in-service training for project
directors, scientists, and engineers from eligible minority
institutions.
Cooperative project grants assist groups of nonprofit accredited
colleges and universities to work together to conduct a science
improvement program.
Design project grants assist minority institutions that do not have
their own appropriate resources or personnel to plan and develop long-
range science improvement programs. We will not award design project
grants in the FY 2013 competition.
(a) For institutional project grants, eligible applicants are
limited to:
(1) Public and private nonprofit institutions of higher education
that (i) Award baccalaureate degrees; and (ii) are minority
institutions;
(2) Public or private nonprofit institutions of higher education
that (i) Award associate degrees; and (ii) are minority institutions
that (A) Have a curriculum that includes science or engineering
subjects; and (B) enter into a partnership with public or private
nonprofit institutions of higher education that award baccalaureate
degrees in science and engineering.
(b) For special projects grants for which minority institutions are
eligible, eligible applicants are described in paragraph (a).
(c) For special projects grants for which all applicants are
eligible, eligible applicants include those described in paragraph (a),
and
(1) Nonprofit science-oriented organizations, professional
scientific societies, and institutions of higher education that award
baccalaureate degrees that: (i) Provide a needed service to a group of
minority institutions; or (ii) provide in-service training to project
directors, scientists, and engineers from minority institutions; or
(2) A consortia of organizations, that provide needed services to
one or more minority institutions, the membership of which may
include--(i) Institutions of higher education which have a curriculum
in science or engineering; (ii) institutions of higher education that
have a graduate or professional program in science or engineering;
(iii) research laboratories of, or under contract with, the Department
of Energy, the Department of Defense or the National Institutes of
Health; (iv) relevant offices of the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
National Science Foundation and National Institute of Standards and
Technology; (v) quasi-governmental entities that have a significant
scientific or engineering mission; or (vi) institutions of higher
education that have State-sponsored centers for research in science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics.
(d) For cooperative projects grants, eligible applicants are groups
of nonprofit accredited colleges and universities whose primary fiscal
agent is an eligible minority institution as defined in 34 CFR
637.4(b).
Note: As defined in 34 CFR 637.4(b), ``minority institution''
means an accredited college or university whose enrollment of a
single minority group or a combination of minority groups exceeds 50
percent of the total enrollment.
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: You can obtain an
application via the Internet at Grants.gov. If you do not have access
to the Internet, please contact Krish Mathur, U.S. Department of
Education, 1990 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20006-8517. Telephone:
(202) 502-7512.
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 computer disc) by contacting the program contact persons 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 competition. Page
Limit: The application narrative (Part III of the application) is where
you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that reviewers use
to evaluate your application. We have established a mandatory page
limit for the application narrative of each type of MSEIP grant project
as follows:
Institutional project grants: 40 pages;
Special projects grant application: 35 pages;
Cooperative project grant application: 50 pages.
You must limit the application narrative (Part III) to these
established
[[Page 19471]]
page limits, using 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 a document
identifier may be within the 1'' margin.
Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch)
all text in the application narrative, except titles, headings,
footnotes, quotations, references, captions, and all text in charts,
tables, and graphs. These items may be single spaced; however, they
will count toward the page limit.
Use a font that is either 12 point or larger, or no
smaller than 10 pitch (characters per inch). However, you may use a 10
point font in charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
Use one of the following fonts: Times New Roman, Courier,
Courier New, or Arial. An application submitted in any other font
(including Times Roman or Arial Narrow) will not be accepted.
If you use some but not all of the allowable space on a page, it
will be counted as a full page in determining compliance with the page
limit.
The page limit does not apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II,
the budget section, including the budget justification; Part IV, the
one-page abstract, the table of contents, the MSEIP Eligibility
Certification Form, required letter(s) of commitment, evidence of
partnerships, or the assurances and certifications. If you include any
attachments or appendices not specifically requested, these items will
be counted as part of the program narrative (Part III) for purposes of
the page limit requirement. You must include your complete responses to
the selection criteria in the program narrative.
We will reject your application if you exceed the page limit. We
will also reject your application if you fail to provide the MSEIP
Eligibility Certification Form.
3. Submission Dates and Times:
Applications Available: April 1, 2013.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 31, 2013.
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: July 30, 2013.
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 competition.
5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
6. Data Universal Numbering System Number, Taxpayer Identification
Number, Central Contractor Registry, and System for Award Management:
To do business with the Department of Education, you must--
a. Have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number and a
Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN);
b. Register both your DUNS number and TIN with the Central
Contractor Registry (CCR)--and, after July 24, 2012, with the System
for Award Management (SAM)--the Government's primary registrant
database;
c. Provide your DUNS number and TIN on your application; and
d. Maintain an active CCR or SAM registration with current
information while your application is under review by the Department
and, if you are awarded a grant, during the project period.
You can obtain a DUNS number from Dun and Bradstreet. 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 or SAM 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 registration annually. This may take three or more
business days to complete. Information about SAM is available at
SAM.gov.
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 competition 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 MSEIP, CFDA Number 84.120A, must
be submitted electronically using the Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply
site at www.Grants.gov. Through this site, you will be able to download
a copy of the application package, complete it offline, and then upload
and submit your application. You may not email an electronic copy of a
grant application to us.
We will reject your application if you submit it in paper format
unless, as described elsewhere in this section, you qualify for one of
the exceptions to the electronic submission requirement and submit, no
later than two weeks before the application deadline date, a written
statement to the Department that you qualify for one of these
exceptions. Further information regarding calculation of the date that
is two weeks before the application deadline date is provided later in
this section under Exception to Electronic Submission Requirement.
You may access the electronic grant application for the MSEIP at
www.Grants.gov. You must search for the downloadable application
package for this competition by the CFDA number. Do not include the
CFDA number's alpha suffix in your search (e.g., search for 84.120, not
84.120A).
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
[[Page 19472]]
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 competition 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)
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. Additional, detailed information on how to attach
files is in the application instructions.
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 email. 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: Krish Mathur, U.S.
Department of Education, 1990 K Street NW., room 6032, Washington, DC
20006-8517. Fax: (202) 502-7877.
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 84.120A), 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.
[[Page 19473]]
(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 84.120A), 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.
V. Application Review Information
1. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are
from 34 CFR 637.32(a) through (j). Applicants must address each of the
selection criteria. The total weight of the selection criteria is 100
points; the weight of each criterion is noted in parentheses. Please
see the application package for detailed explanation of these criteria.
The selection criteria are as follows:
(a) Identification of need for the project (Total 5 points).
(b) Plan of operation (Total 20 points).
(c) Quality of key personnel (Total 5 points).
(d) Budget and cost effectiveness (Total 10 points).
(e) Evaluation plan (Total 15 points).
(f) Adequacy of resources (Total 5 points).
(g) Potential institutional impact of the project (Total 15
points).
(h) Institutional commitment to the project (Total 5 points).
(i) Expected Outcomes (Total 10 points).
(j) Scientific and educational value of the proposed project (Total
10 points).
2. Review and Selection Process: We remind potential applicants
that in reviewing applications in any discretionary grant competition,
the Secretary may consider, under 34 CFR 75.217(d)(3), the past
performance of the applicant in carrying out a previous award, such as
the applicant's use of funds, achievement of project objectives, and
compliance with grant conditions. The Secretary may also consider
whether the applicant failed to submit a timely performance report or
submitted a report of unacceptable quality.
In addition, in making a competitive grant award, the Secretary
also requires various assurances including those applicable to Federal
civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination in programs or
activities receiving Federal financial assistance from the Department
of Education (34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23).
Tiebreaker for Institutional, Special Project, and Cooperative
Grants. If there are insufficient funds for all applications with the
same total scores, applications will receive preference in the
following manner. The Secretary gives priority to applicants which have
not previously received funding from the program and to previous
grantees with a proven record of success, as well as to applications
that contribute to achieving balance among funded projects with respect
to: (1) Geographic region; (2) Academic discipline; and (3) Project
type.
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 in this notice and
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding
commitments under the grant.
3. Reporting: (a) If you apply for a grant under this competition,
you must ensure that you have in place the necessary processes and
systems to comply with the reporting requirements in 2 CFR part 170
should you receive funding under the competition. This does not apply
if you have an exception under 2 CFR 170.110(b).
(b) At the end of your project period, you must submit a final
performance report, including financial information, as directed by the
Secretary. If you receive a 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). Please see the application package for
details of annual and final reporting requirements. For specific
requirements on reporting, please go to https://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/appforms/appforms.html.
4. Performance Measures: The Secretary has established the
following key performance measures for assessing the effectiveness of
the MSEIP: (1) The percentage of change in the number of full-time,
degree-seeking minority undergraduate students at the grantee's
institution enrolled in the fields of engineering or physical or
biological sciences, compared to the average minority enrollment in the
same fields in the three-year period immediately prior to the beginning
of the current grant; (2) the percentage of minority
[[Page 19474]]
students enrolled at four-year minority-serving institutions in the
fields of engineering or physical or biological sciences who graduate
within six years of enrollment. Please see the application package for
details of data collection and reporting requirements for these
measures.
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: Krish Mathur, U.S. Department of
Education, 1990 K Street, NW., room 6155, Washington, DC 20006-8517 by
telephone: (202) 502 7512, or by email: Krish.mathur@ed.gov.
If you use a TDD or a TTY, call the FRS, toll free, at 1-800-877-
8339.
VIII. Other Information
Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this
document and a copy of the application package in an accessible format
(e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc) on request to
the program contact persons listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT in 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 all 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 the
site. You may also access documents of the Department published in the
Federal Register by using the article search feature at
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published
by the Department.
Dated: March 27, 2013.
David A. Bergeron,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 2013-07559 Filed 3-29-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P