Applications for New Awards; Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education-Supplemental Assistance to Institutions of Higher Education (SAIHE), 16338-16342 [2021-06527]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 58 (Monday, March 29, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16338-16342]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06527]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Applications for New Awards; Fund for the Improvement of 
Postsecondary Education--Supplemental Assistance to Institutions of 
Higher Education (SAIHE)

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Education (Department) is issuing a notice 
announcing the availability of funds and the application deadline for 
new grants to institutions of higher education (institutions) under the 
Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund, Supplemental Assistance to 
Institutions of Higher Education (SAIHE), Assistance Listing Number 
(ALN) 84.425S, under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental 
Appropriations Act, 2021 (CRRSAA). The SAIHE program supports 
institutions of higher education (IHEs) with unmet needs related to 
recovery from disruptions in the finances, day-to-day operations, 
instruction, and student supports due to coronavirus.

DATES: 
    Applications Available: March 29, 2021.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 28, 2021.

ADDRESSES: For the addresses for obtaining and submitting an 
application, please refer to our Common Instructions for Applicants to 
Department of Education Discretionary Grant Programs, published in the 
Federal Register on February 12, 2018 (83 FR 6003) and available at 
www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2018-02-12/pdf/2018-02558.pdf.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Epps, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Room 2B133, Washington, DC 20202. 
Telephone: (202) 377-3711. Email: [email protected].
    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.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    Purpose of Program: The SAIHE program supports IHEs that the 
Secretary determines, after allocating funds under section 314(a) of 
the CRRSAA, have unmet needs related to coronavirus.
    Background: On December 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Response and 
Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021 (CRRSAA), division M of), 
Public Law 116-260, was signed into law. Section 314(a)(3) of CRRSAA 
provides 0.5 percent, or approximately $113.5 million, of a portion of 
the Education Stabilization Fund for part B of title VII of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (HEA), as amended, for public and private 
nonprofit institutions of higher education that the Secretary 
determines have, after allocating other funds available under CRRSAA 
HEERF, the greatest unmet needs related to coronavirus, including 
institutions with large populations of graduate students and 
institutions that did not otherwise receive an allocation under CRRSAA. 
We note that, while proprietary institutions were eligible for grants 
under CARES Act section 18004(a)(1), they are not considered an 
eligible institution under this program as eligibility is limited under 
CRRSAA section 314(a)(3) to those institutions that are eligible under 
part B of title VII of the HEA.
    Therefore, to determine the types of institutions that would be 
funded under the statutory focus of ``greatest unmet needs related to 
coronavirus,'' the Department published a notice on February 25, 
2021,\1\ that announced the Department's proposed institutional 
eligibility criteria for the SAIHE program and invited public comment.
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    \1\ https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/heerfiieligibilitymemo.pdf.
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    The Department accepted public comments from February 25, 2021 
through March 8, 2021. The Department received comments from fourteen 
entities representing institutions of higher education and trade 
organizations. Of the comments received, many of the comments supported 
funding for Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), especially those IHEs 
not included in the MSI, Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP) 
allocation tables. Additionally, while there was a positive response 
with the criteria included in the notice, many of the commentors 
further noted the importance of including institutions serving low-
income and diverse populations. Also, some of the commenters requested 
funding to support institutions serving high graduate populations. The 
Department also received comments that requested funding for 
institutions that serve high populations of students with financial 
needs, including institutions in rural areas, citing the limited 
resources and economic challenges for students. There was also a 
comment to place emphasis on trade schools, apprenticeships, and 
training programs.
    Therefore, after reviewing the comments received and discussions 
with several organizations representing institutions of higher 
education, the Department believes that the types of IHEs highlighted 
under each absolute priority capture the intent of CRRSAA 314 (a)(3). 
The groups of IHEs that the Department has categorized as meeting the 
statutory focus of having additional needs related to institutional and 
student costs associated with coronavirus are described under each 
priority. This notice establishes the eligibility requirements an 
institution must meet to be funded under one of the seven absolute 
priorities.
    Under Absolute Priority 1, the Department will provide funding to 
institutions that were not designated as eligible under the HEA, as 
amended, title III and V programs at the time that the Department 
allocated funds under CRRSAA section 314(a)(2)--Minority Serving 
Institution (MSI)/Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP)--but that

[[Page 16339]]

were subsequently designated as eligible for FY 2021.
    Under Absolute Priority 2, the Department will provide funding to 
institutions that were eligible to receive funding under CRRSAA section 
314(a)(1) (public and nonprofit IHEs participating in the title IV 
program) but did not receive an award because they did not report 
student data in the 2018/19 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data 
System (IPEDS) data collection, which was the data used in calculating 
the formula awards for CRRSAA section 314(a)(1).
    Under Absolute Priority 3, the Department will provide funding to 
institutions that were eligible to receive funding under section 
18004(a)(1) of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act 
(CARES Act), but did not receive an award because the applicant did not 
apply by the deadline, resulting from unsuccessful attempts to apply, 
or because the applicant failed to submit a complete application under 
the correct grants.gov funding opportunity number. The Department will 
not accept applications from IHEs that we cannot verify have previously 
attempted to apply through grants.gov for a section 18004(a)(1) grant.
    Under Absolute Priority 4, the Department will fund branch campuses 
designated as eligible under titles III and V of the HEA (according to 
the FY 2021 Eligibility Matrix) but were not funded through CRRSAA 
section 314(a)(2) either directly or through their parent institutions 
because the Department did not have the requisite data to calculate 
their allocations.
    Under Absolute Priority 5, the Department seeks to fund 
institutions that can demonstrate that, because their institution 
merged after December 27, 2020 (the date CRRSAA was enacted) or had a 
recent change in HEA title IV Program Participation Agreement (PPA) 
effective date resulting in the institution being underfunded due to 
the formula methodology used to calculate allocations under CRRSAA 
section 314(a)(1).
    Under Absolute Priority 6, the Department invites applications from 
community colleges and institutions of higher education located in 
rural settings that serve a high percentage of low-income students and 
have experienced significant enrollment declines, indicating 
particularly acute institutional needs. According to the Pell Institute 
for the Study of Opportunity of Higher Education, ``the lowest income 
students in the United States face great obstacles paying for college 
and the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic may compound the uncertainty 
such students face. . .''.\2\ Under this priority, the Department has 
set two minimum thresholds for these institutions, both of which must 
be met: (1) Fifty percent or more of undergraduate students enrolled in 
Fall 2018 were Pell Grant recipients (this will ensure that funds 
awarded under this priority are targeted to institutions that serve a 
high percent of low-income students); and (2) a 4.5 percent or more 
decline in student enrollment (this will help to identify the IHEs that 
should be considered as having unmet need). According to recent 
reports,\3\ several IHEs are experiencing significant declines in 
enrollment because of the pandemic; this is especially true at rural 
community colleges. According to a recently published report by the 
Association of Community College Trustees, ``Strengthening Rural 
Community College: Innovations and Opportunities,'' the coronavirus has 
exacerbated some of the social and economic challenges facing many 
rural communities, negatively impacting rural community colleges \4\ 
and the students they serve. Therefore, the Department is also using 
this priority to target rural community colleges. Through this 
priority, the Department seeks to make awards to IHEs that meet the 
criteria set forth in absolute priority 6 to get additional financial 
aid to students to support their continued engagement and reengagement 
in postsecondary education.
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    \2\ https://pellinstitute.org/indicators/reports_2020.shtml.
    \3\ https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/Covid19-TransferMobilityProgress-FinalFall2020.pdf.
    \4\ Rush-Marlowe, R. (2021). Strengthening Rural Community 
Colleges: Innovations and Opportunities. Washington, DC Association 
of Community College Trustees. This paper may only be reproduced or 
disseminated, in whole or in part, with proper attribution and 
within terms of this Creative Commons license for noncommercial use: 
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/us/.
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    Finally, the Department is establishing priority 7, to provide 
additional support to institutions with high percentages of graduate 
students. Congress specified in CRRSAA section 314(a)(3) that, in 
allocating funds to institutions with the greatest unmet need due to 
the coronavirus, the Department should consider institutions with large 
populations of graduate students. Accordingly, under this priority, the 
Department is awarding funds to eligible institutions for which 
graduate students are 90 percent or more of their student population. 
This threshold of 90 percent reflects the Department's goal of 
targeting funds to institutions with large graduate populations since 
the weighting of the main CRRSSA formula toward Pell recipients meant 
that these institutions did not receive particularly large awards 
relative to the size of their student body. However, because some 
standalone graduate schools may have small undergraduate offerings, we 
have chosen 90 percent as a threshold to ensure we do not exclude a 
college that is primarily a graduate institution with a limited amount 
of non-graduate programs.
    Priorities: This notice contains seven absolute priorities. We are 
establishing these priorities for fiscal year (FY) 2021 grant 
competitions and any subsequent year in which we make awards from the 
list of unfunded applications from this competition, in accordance with 
section 437(d)(1) of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA), 20 
U.S.C. 1232(d)(1).
    Absolute Priorities: These priorities are absolute priorities. 
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that meet one 
of these priorities.
    The Secretary intends to award grants under each of the absolute 
priorities. Applicants must clearly identify the specific absolute 
priority that the proposed project addresses in the SAIHE Program 
Profile Information Form. Each applicant may submit only one 
application under this competition that addresses one absolute 
priority.
    In selecting grantees across Absolute Priorities 1-7, the 
Department will fund each applicant according to the absolute priority 
for which it is applying. The allocation formula used for allocating 
funds will be specific to each priority. Depending on the number of 
applications received for each of the priorities, the Department may 
prioritize one priority over another and may reduce funding across all 
priorities to fund the maximum number of applicants.
    In calculating award amounts under each priority, the Department 
will apply the following:
    For Absolute Priorities 1 and 4, the funds will be allocated based 
on the formula methodology that was used to calculate CRRSAA section 
314(a)(2) MSI/SIP allocations (available at https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/heerfiia2methodology.pdf).
    For Absolute Priorities 2 and 5, the funds will be allocated based 
on the formula methodology that was used for CRRSAA section 314(a)(1) 
(available at https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/314a1methodologyheerfii.pdf), while incorporating the data provided in 
the SAIHE Program Profile Information Form under these absolute 
priorities. In addition to the formula for

[[Page 16340]]

Absolute Priority 5, the Department will take into account any funds 
already received under CRRSAA section 314(a)(1) by the institution.
    For Absolute Priority 3, the funds will be allocated based on the 
amount an applicant would have received based on the formula 
methodology for CARES Act section 18004(a)(1) (available at https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/heerf90percentformulaallocationexplanation.pdf).
    For Absolute Priority 6, awards for applicants under this absolute 
priority will be based on the number of Pell Grant recipients the 
institution serves. The per Pell recipient amount will be established 
after the Department receives all the applications under this priority.
    For Absolute Priority 7, the Department will use the number of 
graduate students enrolled at the institution as reported on the SAIHE 
Program Profile Information Form to calculate the allocation.
    Note: Those institutions that are applying under absolute priority 
1 or 4, should ensure that they have completed the FY 2021 eligibility 
process under parts A and F of title III and title V of the HEA, as 
published in a notice in the Federal Register on March 4, 2021 (86 FR 
12665).
    These priorities are:

Absolute Priority 1--Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) and 
Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP) Institutions That Did Not 
Receive CRRSAA Section 314(a)(2) Award

    An institution that meets the eligibility requirements in FY 2021 
for HEA Title III and Title V for any of the MSI programs or SIP and 
did not receive any funds under CRRSAA section 314(a)(2) of the CRRSAA 
(ALNs 84.425J, 84.425K, 84.425L, or 84.425M) because it was not 
eligible in FY 2020 and have not otherwise received funding under 
CRRSAA section 314(a)(2). An IHE must demonstrate that it meets the 
eligibility requirements for FY 2021 for HEA Title III or Title V as 
published in a notice in the Federal Register on March 4, 2021 (86 FR 
12665) by completing Section 5 of the Program Profile Information Form 
for this absolute priority.

Absolute Priority 2--Institutions of Higher Education Eligible Under 
Section 314(a)(1) of the CRRSAA That Did Not Receive CRRSAA Section 
314(a)(1) Award

    An institution that did not receive funds under the CRRSAA section 
314(a)(1) student aid portion or section 314(a)(1) institutional 
portion (HEERF II) programs (ALNs 84.425E and 84.425F) because it was 
not included in the IPEDS data collection that was used to allocate 
awards, but otherwise is eligible, Title IV-participating IHE on or 
after December 27, 2020 as indicated by their PPA effective date. An 
institution funded under this absolute priority must expend their SAIHE 
funds in the same manner as required under the CRRSAA (HEERF II) 
section 314(a)(1) program (i.e., institutions must spend at least the 
amount received under the CARES Act section 18004(a)(1) student portion 
for financial aid grants to students, or, if not funded under the CARES 
Act, must spend at least 50 percent of funds on grants to students). An 
IHE must complete Section 5 of the Program Profile Information Form for 
this absolute priority.

Absolute Priority 3--Applicants for Assistance Under Section 
18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act That Did Not Receive CARES Act Section 
18004(a)(1) Award

    A public or private non-profit institution that was eligible to 
receive funding under CARES Act (HEERF I) section 18004(a)(1) and did 
not receive funding under one or both of the CARES Act (HEERF I) 
section 18004(a)(1) student aid portion or section 18004(a)(1) 
institutional portion programs (ALNs 84.425E and 84.425F) due to 
missing the application deadline, which resulted from an unsuccessful 
previous attempt to apply for funding, an incomplete application, or an 
application submitted under an incorrect funding opportunity number. An 
institution funded under this category must expend the SAIHE award in 
the same manner as required under CARES Act (HEERF I) section 
18004(a)(1) programs. An IHE must complete Section 5 of the Program 
Profile Information Form for this absolute priority.

Absolute Priority 4--Minority Serving Institution Branch Campuses That 
Did Not Receive CRRSAA Section 314(a)(2) Award

    An institution that is a branch campus that was designated through 
the FY 2021 Titles II and V Eligibility process \5\ as meeting MSI or 
SIP criteria but did not, either independently or through the parent 
institution, receive CRRSAA section 314(a)(2) funding, and the parent 
institution did not qualify under Absolute Priority 1. An IHE must 
complete Section 5 of the Program Profile Information Form for this 
absolute priority.
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    \5\ https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/idues/eligibility.html.
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Absolute Priority 5--Institutions of Higher Education That Merged After 
CRRSAA, or Whose PPA Effective Date Resulted in the Institution Being 
Underfunded due to the Formula Methodology Used for Allocation Under 
CRRSAA Section 314(a)(1)

    An institution that received a CRRSAA section 314(a)(1) allocation 
that did not reflect the institution's total student enrollment or Pell 
recipients because of either (1) an institutional merger that was not 
captured in its CRRSAA section 314(a)(1) allocation or (2) had a recent 
change in HEA title IV Program Participation Agreement (PPA) effective 
date resulting in the institution being underfunded due to the formula 
methodology used to calculate allocations under CRRSAA section 
314(a)(1). An institution funded under this priority must use at least 
50 percent of SAIHE award for financial aid grants to students. An IHE 
must complete Section 5 of the Program Profile Information Form for 
this absolute priority.

Absolute Priority 6--Institutions of Higher Education That Serve a High 
Percent of Students With Financial Need and Have Experienced Declining 
Enrollment

    Institutions that--
    (a) Have--
    (1) Experienced a decrease in student enrollment of 4.5 percent or 
more between Fall 2019 and Fall 2020; and
    (2) Had a total student undergraduate enrollment in Fall 2019 of 
which 50 percent or more are Pell Grant recipients; and
    (b) Are one or both of--
    (1) A community college (as defined in this notice); or
    (2) Located in a rural campus setting.
    Note: The following campus settings will be considered rural: Town-
Fringe, Town-Distant, Town-Remote, Rural Fringe, Rural-Distant, Rural-
Remote, as defined by the National Center for Education Statistics 
(NCES) College Navigator search tool. Applicants may look up individual 
campus locale settings at: https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/.
    An institution funded under this priority must use the funds 
awarded for financial aid grants to students, including students 
needing financial assistance to reenroll.
    In making awards under this priority, the Department will give 
priority to eligible applicants in the following order: Tier 1: 
Community colleges in rural locale settings; Tier 2: Community colleges 
not in rural locale settings; and Tier 3: Other public and private

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nonprofit institutions of higher education in rural locale settings. 
Depending on the funds available for this absolute priority, some 
applicants may not be funded based on tier rankings. An IHE must 
complete Section 5 of the Program Profile Information Form for this 
absolute priority.

Absolute Priority 7--Institutions With a Large Graduate Student 
Population

    A public or private non-profit institution in which graduate 
students make up 90 percent or more of total enrollment. An institution 
funded under this priority must use funds awarded for financial aid 
grants to graduate students with financial need associated with the 
coronavirus (e.g., loss of employment, decreased wages, childcare). An 
IHE must complete Section 5 of the Program Profile Information Form for 
this absolute priority.
    Definitions: For fiscal year (FY) 2021 grant competitions and any 
subsequent year in which we make awards from the list of unfunded 
applications from this competition, we are establishing the definition 
of ``community college'' and ``Minority Serving Institution,'' in 
accordance with section 437(d)(1) of GEPA, 20 U.S.C. 1232(d)(1).
    Community college means an institution that meets the definition in 
section 312(f) of the HEA (20 U.S.C. 1058(f)) or an IHE (as defined in 
section 101 of the HEA) that awards degrees and certificates, more than 
50 percent of which are not bachelor's degrees (or an equivalent) or 
master's, professional, or other advanced degrees.
    Minority-Serving Institution means an institution that is eligible 
to receive assistance under sections 316 through 320 of part A of title 
III, under part B of title III, or under title V of the HEA.
    Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking: Under the Administrative Procedure 
Act (5 U.S.C. 553), the Department generally offers interested parties 
the opportunity to comment on proposed priorities and definitions. 
Section 437(d)(1) of GEPA, however, allows the Secretary to exempt from 
rulemaking requirements regulations governing the first grant 
competition under a new or substantially revised program authority. 
This is the first grant competition for this program under section 
314(a)(3) of CRRSAA, and therefore qualifies for this exemption. To 
ensure timely grant awards, the Secretary has decided to forgo public 
comment on the priorities and definitions under section 437(d)(1) of 
GEPA.
    Program Authority: The Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental 
Appropriations Act, 2021 (CRRSAA), Division M of Public Law 116-260.
    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations in 34 CFR parts 75, 77, 79, 81, 82, 84, 86, 
97, 98, and 99. (b) The Office of Management and Budget Guidelines to 
Agencies on Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension (Nonprocurement) in 
2 CFR part 180, as adopted and amended as regulations of the Department 
in 2 CFR part 3485. (c) The Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost 
Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards in 2 CFR part 
200, as adopted and amended as regulations of the Department in 2 CFR 
part 3474.

II. Award Information

    Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
    Estimated Available Funds: $113,485,680.
    Estimated Range of Awards: The range of awards will depend on the 
absolute priority for which an institution is applying. See the 
Absolute Priorities section of this notice for more information. For 
any of the absolute priorities included in this notice, should the 
Department receive more applications than it has available funding 
under CRRSAA section 314(a)(3), the Department reserves the right to 
make ratable reductions for any of the allocations under any of the 
absolute priorities. For Absolute Priority 6, the Department may not 
fund all eligible applications, and will prioritized by tier.
    Project Period: Up to 12 months.
    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this notice.

III. Eligibility Information

    1. Eligible Applicants: Eligible applicants are IHEs as defined in 
section 101 of the HEA (20 U.S.C. 1001), that are public or private 
non-profit IHEs and meet the criteria under the absolute priority for 
which they are applying. With the exception of Absolute Priority 4, 
institutional eligibility is based on the six-digit OPEID.
    2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This program does not require cost 
sharing or matching.
    3. Subgrantees: Subgrants are not allowed under this program.
    4. Uses of Funds: Unless noted otherwise in this notice, in 
accordance with section 314(c) of the CRRSAA, grantees may use these 
grant funds for their institutional costs to defray expenses associated 
with coronavirus (including lost revenue, reimbursement for expenses 
already incurred, technology costs associated with a transition to 
distance education, faculty and staff trainings, and payroll); carry 
out student support activities authorized by the HEA that address needs 
related to coronavirus; and make additional financial grants to 
students, which may be used for any component of the student's cost of 
attendance or for emergency costs that arise due to coronavirus, such 
as tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health care), 
or child care.

IV. Application and Submission Information

    1. Application Submission Instructions: For information on how to 
submit an application please refer to our Common Instructions for 
Applicants to Department of Education Discretionary Grant Programs, 
published in the Federal Register on February 12, 2018 (83 FR 6003), 
and available at www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2018-02-12/pdf/2018-02558.pdf.
    2. Intergovernmental Review: This competition is subject to 
Executive Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. However, 
under 34 CFR 79.8(a), we waive intergovernmental review in order to 
make awards in a timely manner.
    3. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding 
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice. 
Additionally, no funds received by an IHE under this section shall be 
used to fund contractors for the provision of pre-enrollment 
recruitment activities; marketing or recruitment; endowments; capital 
outlays associated with facilities related to athletics, sectarian 
instruction, or religious worship; senior administrator or executive 
salaries, benefits, bonuses, contracts, incentives; stock buybacks, 
shareholder dividends, capital distributions, and stock options; or any 
other cash or other benefit for a senior administrator or executive.
    4. Recommended Page Limit: There is a 10-page recommended page 
limit. The application for this program includes the Standard form 424, 
the Certificate and Agreement, and the SAIHE Program Profile. If you 
wish to include any additional documents, those documents should be 
included under the other attachments form. The project narrative form 
in grants.gov is where you, the applicant, will include the Certificate 
and Agreement for this program and the SAIHE Program Profile.
    5. Program Profile: Applicants must complete the program profile 
and submit under the program narrative form in grants.gov.

V. Application Review Information

    1. Review and Selection Process: We remind potential applicants 
that in reviewing applications in any

[[Page 16342]]

discretionary grant competition, the Secretary may consider, under 34 
CFR 75.217(d)(3), the past performance of the applicant in carrying out 
a previous award, such as the applicant's use of funds, achievement of 
project objectives, and compliance with grant conditions. The Secretary 
may also consider whether the applicant failed to submit a timely 
performance report or submitted a report of unacceptable quality.
    In addition, in making a competitive grant award, the Secretary 
requires various assurances, including those applicable to Federal 
civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination in programs or 
activities receiving Federal financial assistance from the Department 
(34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23).
    For this competition, the Department has waived the peer review 
process for this program. Department staff will review eligible 
applications using the absolute priority criteria provided in this 
notice.
    2. Risk Assessment and Specific Conditions: Consistent with 2 CFR 
200.206, before awarding grants under this competition the Department 
conducts a review of the risks posed by applicants. Under 2 CFR 
200.208, the Secretary may impose specific conditions and, under 2 CFR 
3474.10, in appropriate circumstances, high-risk conditions on a grant 
if the applicant or grantee is not financially stable; has a history of 
unsatisfactory performance; has a financial or other management system 
that does not meet the standards in 2 CFR part 200, subpart D; has not 
fulfilled the conditions of a prior grant; or is otherwise not 
responsible.
    4. Integrity and Performance System: If you are selected under this 
competition to receive an award that over the course of the project 
period may exceed the simplified acquisition threshold (currently 
$250,000), under 2 CFR 200.206(a)(2) we must make a judgment about your 
integrity, business ethics, and record of performance under Federal 
awards--that is, the risk posed by you as an applicant--before we make 
an award. In doing so, we must consider any information about you that 
is in the integrity and performance system (currently referred to as 
the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System 
(FAPIIS)), accessible through the System for Award Management. You may 
review and comment on any information about yourself that a Federal 
agency previously entered and that is currently in FAPIIS.
    Please note that, if the total value of your currently active 
grants, cooperative agreements, and procurement contracts from the 
Federal Government exceeds $10,000,000, the reporting requirements in 2 
CFR part 200, Appendix XII, require you to report certain integrity 
information to FAPIIS semiannually. Please review the requirements in 2 
CFR part 200, Appendix XII, if this grant plus all the other Federal 
funds you receive exceed $10,000,000.

VI. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, the 
individuals listed as the Authorizing Representative and Director will 
receive a Grant Award Notification (GAN); or we may send you an email 
containing a link to access an electronic version of your GAN.
    If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, 
we will notify you.
    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify 
administrative and national policy requirements in the application 
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable 
Regulations section of this notice.
    We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of 
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and 
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also 
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding 
commitments under the grant.
    3. Reporting: Reporting requirements are specified in each 
program's Certification and Agreement or Supplemental Agreement.
    (b) At the end of your project period, you must submit a final 
performance report, including financial information, as directed by the 
Secretary. If you receive a multiyear award, you must submit an annual 
performance report that provides the most current performance and 
financial expenditure information as directed by the Secretary under 34 
CFR 75.118. The Secretary may also require more frequent performance 
reports under 34 CFR 75.720(c).

VII. Other Information

    Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities 
can obtain this document and a copy of the application package in an 
accessible format. The Department will provide the requestor with an 
accessible format that may include Rich Text Format (RTF) or text 
format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3 file, braille, large print, 
audiotape, or compact disc, or other accessible format.
    Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this 
document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may 
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of 
Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. 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 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.

Michelle Asha Cooper,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 2021-06527 Filed 3-26-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P