U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Postsecondary Education
Washington, DC 20202
Fiscal Year 2017
APPLICATION FOR GRANTS
UNDER THE
STRENGTHENING INSTITUTIONS
PROGRAM
CFDA # 84.031F
Form Approved
OMB No. 1840 - 0114, Expiration Date: 04/30/2018
CLOSING DATE: April 17, 2017
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Table of Contents
Dear Applicant Letter 2
Competition Highlights 4
Grants.gov Submission Procedures and Tips for Applicants 13
Notice Inviting Applications 16
Application Transmittal Instructions 54
Program Statute 56
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs 62
General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) Section 427 63
Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) 64
Instructions for Completing the Application 66
Project Narrative Instructions 68
Absolute Priority Narrative 77
Instructions for Standard Forms 78
Instructions for the SF-424 79
Instructions for U.S. Department of Education 82
Definitions for U.S. Department of Education 84
Notice for All Applicants 88
Instructions for Completion of SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities 90
Supplemental Information and Instructions 92
84.031F Strengthening Institutions Program Profile 93
Application Checklist 95
Paperwork Burden Statement 96
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Dear Applicant Letter
Dear Applicant:
Thank you for your interest in applying for a new grant under the fiscal year (FY) 2017 Title III Part F, Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP) grant competition (Catalog of Federal and Domestic Assistance [CFDA] number 84.031F). This letter highlights specific elements in the SIP competition application package. As you formulate your application, please review these requirements and carefully and thoroughly review the entire application package.
In order to receive a grant under the Title III, Part A program, an institution of higher education (IHE) must have been deemed an “eligible institution.” The notice announcing the FY 2017 process for designation of eligible institutions, and inviting applications for a waiver of eligibility requirements, was published in the Federal Register on November 25, 2016.
The FY 2017 grant competition offers IHEs two distinct application options. Under the standard CFDA number, 84.031A, applicants do not need to address any priorities. Under the 84.031F CFDA number, applicants must address the Absolute Priority (AP) and also may address a Competitive Preference Priority (CPP). Applicants may apply to both 84.031A and 84.031F. However, they can receive only one award.
The CFDA 84.031F application booklet includes an AP. Continuing the Department’s efforts to fund what works, the AP is: Moderate Evidence of Effectiveness. Only projects that are supported by Moderate Evidence, as defined in 34 CFR 77.1 and included in the SIP FY 2017 competition Federal Register notice, will be considered for funding in this competition. Applicants who do not address the AP or who fail to demonstrate Moderate Evidence will not be funded.
There are no points associated with the Absolute Priority. Following a peer review of the selection criteria and the Moderate Evidence relevance narrative by three non-Federal evaluators, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) will determine whether the submitted studies meet the Moderate Evidence standards. High scoring applicants whose applications fall within the established funding range and who demonstrate that their projects reflect Moderate Evidence may be funded. For additional information about the AP, please refer to the Federal Register Notice Inviting Applications (Notice) for New Awards in FY 2017. The Notice is included in this application package.
In both FY 2017 SIP competitions (84.031A and 84.031F) only Individual Development Grants will be awarded; no Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants will be awarded.
Applications for FY 2017 grants under the SIP Program must be submitted electronically using Grants.gov at: http://www.grants.gov. At least two weeks before the deadline date an applicant who is unable to submit using Grants.gov must submit a written request to waive the electronic submission requirement. In order to submit a paper application, an applicant must have received approval for a non-electronic submission. Additional information about Grants.gov submission requirements can be found in the Competition Highlights, the Notice published in the Federal Register, and the transmittal instructions that are included in this Application Package.
If you have any questions or require additional information, please contact Nalini Lamba-Nieves at or by telephone at 202-453-7953 or contact Jymece Seward at or by telephone at 202-453-6138.
The document published in the Federal Register (Notice) is the official document. You should not rely upon any information that is inconsistent with the guidance contained within the official document.
For an overview of significant competition elements, we encourage applicants to review the application package “Competition Highlights” section.
We appreciate your interest in the Strengthening Institutions Program and look forward to receiving your application.
Sincerely,
/s/
Linda Byrd-Johnson., Ph.D.
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for
Higher Education Programs and
Senior Director, Student Service
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Competition Highlights
New in 2017:
· Two competitions: Applicants can apply for both but get funding for one. Additional details can be found in this section.
· No Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants will be awarded in this competition.
84.031A / 84.031FNo Absolute Priority or evidence requirement. / Moderate Evidence of Effectiveness as Absolute Priority.
No Competitive Preference Priority. / Competitive Preference Priority—student success in remedial education (3 points).
Strong Theory/Logic Model criterion (10 points). / Strong Theory/Logic Model criterion (10 points).
No additional requirement on evaluation. / Additional sub-criterion on evaluations that meet WWC standards (5 points).
Maximum points: 100 / Maximum possible points: 108
Maximum pages: 50 / Maximum possible pages: 60
Grants.gov:
1. Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP) grant applications for FY 2017 must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov at: http://www.grants.gov.
2. Please note that the Grants.gov site is different from the Department’s e-Application system used in past competitions. Once you download the application package from Grants.gov, you will be working offline and saving data on your computer. Be sure to note where you are saving the Grants.gov file on your computer. You will need to log on to Grants.gov to upload and submit your application.
3. We urge you to consider the following three important administrative factors when applying for this grant program:
i. Register at the Grants.gov website early. The registration procedures may require five (5) or more days to complete.
ii. Consider submitting your application 2-3 days prior to the closing date. The time it takes to upload an application will vary depending on your application and the speed of your Internet connection. The application submission process must be complete prior to the deadline for transmittal of applications.
iii. Remember to provide the DUNS number that was used when your organization registered with the System for Award Management (SAM), formerly the Central Contractor Registry (CCR).
4. Grants.gov does not allow applicants to “un-submit” or delete applications. Therefore, if you discover that changes or additions are needed once your application has been accepted and validated by the Department, you must “re-submit” the application. If the Department receives duplicate applications, we will accept and process the application with the latest “date/time received” validation.
5. Please note that you must submit your application by 4:30:00 p.m. (Washington, D.C. time) on or before the application deadline date. Late applications will not be accepted. We suggest that you submit your application several days before the deadline. The Department is required to enforce the established deadline to ensure fairness to all applicants. No changes or additions to an application will be accepted after the deadline date.
6. All Grants.gov attachments must be in PDF format. PDFs cannot be password protected. No Word documents will be accepted. If you attach a Word document or a password-protected PDF, your application will be rejected and will not be read.
Eligibility:
1. Applicants who are not deemed eligible institutions will not have their applications reviewed.
2. The Department has recently instituted the Eligibility Matrix (EM) process. With the EM, the Department now uses applicants’ Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) data to determine eligibility. Applicants who are deemed not eligible may submit an application and waiver request to have their eligibility re-reviewed. The Federal Register Notice announcing the opening of the eligibility and waiver request period was published November 25, 2016. The deadline for waiver applications was January 9, 2017.
3. Your institution's application for a FY 2017 Title III, SIP grant MUST be in the same name that appears in the FY 2017 Eligibility Matrix, or it will be deemed not eligible to be read.
Title III A & F, and Title V:
1. The 84.031F competition is not a separate funding stream (a.k.a.—mandatory funds). The letter “F” simply differentiates applications that meet evidence requirements from those that do not (84.031A). Therefore, the statutory limitation on institutions not having simultaneous Title V and Title III Part A grants is applicable (Section 505 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended).
2. The statutory limitation does not apply to partner institutions in cooperative arrangement development grants. Provided an institution does not already have a Title V grant, a partner institution in a cooperative arrangement development grant, may apply for Title III, Part A funds. However, if an institution received a Title V grant, that institution will not be able to apply for a Title III, Part A grant until the Title V grant ends. The only exception to this is if the institution is a partner (not the lead) in a cooperative arrangement development grant. For example, an institution could be a partner (not the lead) in a Title V grant and still apply for and receive a Title III, Part A individual development grant.
4. If an IHE applies for both, 84.031A and 84.031F, and scores within funding range for both, preference will be given to the 84.031F, moderate evidence application. If selected for a SIP award, an IHE can only receive funding for one award under this program.
Priorities:
1. Absolute Priority (Mandatory)
· The Absolute Priority (AP) is: Moderate Evidence of Effectiveness. Applicants that do not address the AP will not be considered for funding.
· To meet the AP, applicants must:
Ø attach a maximum of two studies they believe will meet the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) criteria for moderate evidence of effectiveness,
Ø include a narrative (up to 3 pages) detailing the relevance of the chosen study/studies to one activity in the grant application and if there are any variations.
· The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) will review the studies to determine moderate evidence of effectiveness and the panel of three non-federal reviewers will determine relevance. To be considered for funding, both conditions must be met.
· Applicants who attach more than two studies will only have the first two studies reviewed (in the order they appear in the application). Should those not meet the WWC standards of moderate evidence, the applicant will not be considered for funding.
2. Competitive Preference Priority (Optional):
· The Competitive Preference Priority (CPP) is optional. Applicants are not required to address it. Those who choose to address it have the possibility of earning an additional three (3) points to their application’s total score.
· The CPP is defined as: Projects that provide tutoring, counseling, and student service programs designed to improve academic success, including innovative, customized, instruction courses designed to help retain students and move the students rapidly into core courses and through program completion, which may include remedial education and English language instruction.
· To meet the CPP, applicants must:
Ø include a narrative (up to 2 pages) identifying the activity/activities they deem meet the CPP and how the activities will achieve the goal of the CPP: to improve student academic success in remedial courses.
Logic Models:
1. This year, there is an additional criterion where applicants address Strong Theory/Logic Models, worth 10 points.
2. Think of a logic model as a visual representation of the assumptions and theory of actions of your program. When logical relationships are built on theory and evidence, you can explore outputs, outcomes, and impact. These logical relationships are built into the program or service and you can more effectively evaluate the program and assess the outcomes and impact.
3. You can find information on Logic Models at:
o http://relpacific.mcrel.org/resources/elm-app/
o http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED544779.pdf or,
o https://www.wkkf.org/resource-directory/resource/2006/02/wk-kellogg-foundation-logic-model-development-guide
Evaluation:
1. In an effort to strengthen evaluations and better measure the impact of using evidence studies to model interventions, the Evaluation criterion has an additional sub-criterion. The purpose of the sub-criterion is to measure whether or not the evaluation methods employed by applicants will meet the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) evidence standards with reservations. With the additional sub-criterion, the total worth of the Evaluation section is now 20 points, an increase of five (5) points from last year.
2. To meet What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) evidence standards, a project evaluation needs to study the impact of a project component (i.e., an intervention) on a relevant outcome utilizing either an experimental design or quasi-experimental design. Well-implemented experimental studies, such as randomized controlled trials with low sample attrition, can meet What Works Clearinghouse Standards without Reservations. High-attrition randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental design studies that establish the equivalence of the intervention group and the comparison group in key baseline characteristics can meet What Works Clearinghouse Standards with Reservations. For more information, see https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/projects/evaluationTA.asp and https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/handbooks.
3. Resources for evaluation can be found in the Project Narrative Instructions section of this booklet.
Allowable Activities & Program Regulations:
1. Authorized grant activities for SIP are listed in Title III, Part A, Section 311 of the Higher Education Act, as amended (HEA); however, Section 301 of the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA) modified the authorized grant activities for SIP. Please review these modifications prior to preparing your SIP application.
2. Applicants should also review the program regulations (34 CFR 607.10 and 607.30) for guidance on which activities and costs are allowable. For example, you may not use your grant funds to: