[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 1 (Thursday, January 2, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 146-148]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-33317]
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UNITED STATES INFORMATION AGENCY
Community Connections
ACTION: Notice--request for proposals.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Citizen Exchanges, Russia/Eurasia Division of
the United States Information Agency's Bureau of Educational and
Cultural Affairs announces a competition for an assistance award.
Public and private non-profit organizations meeting the provisions
described in IRS regulation 26 CFR 1.501(c)(3)-1 may apply to organize
and implement community-based, professional programs for entrepreneurs,
legal professionals and government officials from Russia, Ukraine,
Moldova, Armenia, Belarus, and Georgia. The objective of Community
Connections, the successor to Business for Russia, is to enhance the
participants' skills in business and entrepreneurship, law, and local
governance. USIA is interested in proposals that provide both
professional experience and exposure to American life and culture
through internships hosted by U.S. business and local governmental and
legal institutions, and home stays with local community members. An
overall objective of Community Connections is to establish long term
lasting relationships among U.S. and international audiences. This
program is not academic in nature; rather, it is designed to provide
practical, hands-on training in American business, legal and public
sector environments which can be transferred upon an individual's
return home. The Agency welcomes innovative proposals which combine
elements of professional enrichment, job shadowing and internships
appropriate to the language ability and interests of the participants.
Overall grant-making authority for this program is contained in the
Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, Public Laws 87-
256, as amended, also known as the Fulbright-Hays Act. The purpose of
the Act is ``to enable the Government of the United States to increase
mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the
people of other countries . . .; to strengthen the ties which unite us
with other nations by demonstrating the educational and cultural
interests, developments, and achievements of the people of the United
States and other nations . . . and thus to assist in the development of
friendly, sympathetic and peaceful relations between the United States
and the other countries of the world.'' The funding authority for the
program cited above is provided through the Freedom Support Act.
Programs and projects must conform with Agency requirements and
guidelines outlined in the Solicitation Package. USIA projects and
programs are subject to the availability of funds.
ANNOUNCEMENT TITLE AND NUMBER: All communications with USIA concerning
this announcement should refer to the above title and reference number
E/PN-97-18.
DEADLINE FOR PROPOSALS: All copies must be received at the U.S.
Information Agency by 5 p.m. Washington, D.C. time on Friday, February
28, 1997. Faxed documents will not be accepted, nor will documents
postmarked February 28, 1997 but received at a later date. It is the
responsibility of each applicant to ensure that proposals are received
by the above deadline.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Office of Citizen Exchanges,
Russia/Eurasia Division, E/PN Room 216, U.S. Information Agency, 301
4th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20547, Phone: (202) 401-6884, fax:
(202) 619-4350, internet: vrector@usia.gov to request a Solicitation
Package containing more detailed award criteria, required application
forms, and standard guidelines for preparing proposals, including
specific criteria for preparation of the proposal budget.
TO DOWNLOAD A SOLICITATION PACKAGE VIA INTERNET: The Solicitation
package may be downloaded from USIA's website at http://www.usia.gov/or
from the Internet Gopher at gopher://gopher.usia.gov. Select
``Education and Cultural Exchanges'', then select ``Current Request for
Proposals (RFPs).'' Please read ``About the Following RFPs'' before
beginning to download.
Please specify USIA Program Officer Michael Weider on all inquiries
and correspondence. Interested applicants should read the complete
Federal Register announcement before sending inquiries or submitting
proposals. Once the RFP deadline has passed, Agency staff may not
discuss this competition in any way with applicants until the Bureau
proposal review process has been completed.
SUBMISSIONS: Applicants must follow all instructions given in the
Solicitation Package. The original and 12 copies of the application
should be sent to: U.S. Information Agency, Ref.: E/PN-97-18, Office of
Grants Management, E/XE, Room 326, 301 4th Street, S.W., Washington,
D.C. 20547.
DIVERSITY GUIDELINES: Pursuant to the Bureau's authorizing legislation,
programs must maintain a non-political character and should be balanced
and representative of the diversity of American political, social, and
cultural life.``Diversity'' should be interpreted in the broadest sense
and ecompass differences including, but not limited, to ethnicity,
race, gender, religion, geographic location, socio-economic status, and
physical challenges. Applicants are strongly encouraged to adhere to
the advancement of this principle both in program administration and in
program content. Please refer to the review criteria under the `Support
for Diversity' section for specific suggestions on incorporating
diversity into the total proposal.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Overview
Community Connections seeks to establish and strengthen links
between American communities and communities in Russia, Ukraine and
Moldova. Contingent upon the availability of funds, we also anticipate
expanding the program to include audiences from Armenia, Belarus and
Georgia. Community Connections will focus on business (particularly
extrepreneurship), the legal profession and its relationship to the
administration of justice, and issues of concern for local and regional
government. IN order to expand the reach and impact of Community
Connections, the program will recruit both English speaking
participants and participants with little or no English-language
skills.
[[Page 147]]
Pending availability of funds, it is anticipated that approximately
1,200 professionals will participate in this cycle of the FY 1997-
funded Community Connections program. All participants will be
recruited from the selected regions by experienced U.S. organizations
with offices in Russia and the other previously mentioned countries. It
is anticipated that approximately half of all participants will be from
Russia, one third from Ukraine, and the remainder from Moldova,
Armenia, Belarus and Georgia.
Guidelines
In order to make the most effective use of the limited financial
resources available while, at the same time, maintaining a maximum
degree of program flexibility, the Office of Citizen Exchanges asks
that interested organizations submit proposals to host no fewer than 30
participants in total. Organizations must host at least one group of
participants each from two of the three subject components of the
program. In the past, in an effort to minimize administrative expenses,
organizations have hosted no fewer than ten participants at any given
time. Programs for business people will be from four to five weeks in
length; programs for legal professionals will be from three to four
weeks in length; and programs for government officials will be from two
to three weeks in length. It is anticipated that programs will be
conducted between late summer of 1997 and late summer 1998. Care must
be taken to allow sufficient time between programs to prepare for the
following group. Organizations proposing to develop programs for
additional groups of participants beyond the minimum must demonstrate
that they have either allowed for sufficient preparatory time between
programs or have the necessary human, physical and financial resources
to handle any overlap.
Participants will be assigned to U.S. host communities by the
Office of Citizen Exchanges based on the following factors: existing
ties between the regions of origin of the participants, the locations
of the U.S. grantee organizations, the professional interests of the
participants, and the areas of strength of U.S. grantee organizations.
A proposal's cost-effectiveness, including in-kind contributions
and ability to keep administrative cost low, is a major consideration
in the review process. Cost-sharing may be in the form of allowable
direct or indirect costs. The Recipient must maintain written records
to support all allowable costs which are claimed as being its
contribution to cost participation, as well as costs to be paid by the
Federal Government. Such records are subject to audit. The basis for
determining the value of cash and in-kind contributions must be in
accordance with OMB Circular A-110 (revised subpart C.23), ``Cost-
Sharing and Matching'' and should be described in the proposal. In the
event that the Recipient does not provide the minimum amount of cost-
sharing as stipulated in the Recipient's budget, the Agency's
contribution will be reduced in proportion to the Recipient's
contribution.
Contingent upon the availability of funds from one fiscal year to
the next, USIA intends to establish long-term continuing relationships
with U.S. organizations which have demonstrated particular expertise in
the planning and administration of long standing programs of importance
to United States foreign policy, such as Community Connections.
Accordingly, USIA reserves the right to extend grant programs found to
be effective, by annual amendment for up to three additional fiscal
years (not to exceed 5 years total), to provide continued support for
this program. At USIA's discretion, organizations may be requested to
continue activities for specific audiences or to expand target
audiences within the scope of the program (e.g., an organization may be
requested to host participants from the same or another discipline--
local government, business, or legal profession--from the same or
another country included in the program) to meet the changing needs of
this program initiative.
The Fulbright-Hays Act, as amended, provides authority to establish
long-standing relationships with grantees to further U.S. foreign
policy. In recognition of the need to establish such long-term program
expertise, an incumbent grantee (which has been found to be effective)
may make reference to its current program plans/grant agreement, or
incorporate such program by reference and identify any changes,
amendments, revisions, improvements, etc. to such current program that
it would propose to implement under this solicitation.
Proposed Budget
Organizations must submit a comprehensive line item budget based on
the specific guidance in the Solicitation Package. For reference
purposes, past programs have averaged a total of $6,300 for each
participant hosted. Please use this figure as a guide when preparing
your budget.
Grants awarded to eligible organizations with less than four years
of experience in conducting international exchange programs will be
limited to $60,000.
Review Process
USIA will acknowledge receipt of all proposals and will review them
for technical eligibility. Proposals will be deemed ineligible if they
do not fully adhere to the guidelines stated herein and in the
Solicitation Package. Eligible proposals will be forwarded to panels of
USIA officers for advisory review. All eligible proposals will be
reviewed by the program office, as well as the USIA Office of Eastern
European and NIS Affairs and USIA posts in Russia, Ukraine, Moldova,
Armenia, Belarus and Georgia. Proposals may be reviewed by the Office
of the General Counsel or by other Agency elements. Funding decisions
are at the discretion of the USIA Associate Director for Educational
and Cultural Affairs. Final technical authority for assistance awards
(grants or cooperative agreements) resides with the USIA grants
officer.
Review Criteria
Technically eligible applications will be competitively reviewed
according to the criteria stated below:
1. Program planning and ability to achieve objectives: Detailed
agenda and relevant work plan should demonstrate careful and thorough
preparation to carry out substantive programs which have a high
likelihood of achieving program objectives. Agenda and plan should
adhere to the program overview and guidelines described above.
Objectives should be reasonable, feasible, and flexible.
2. Institutional capability: Organization should demonstrate
sufficient skills and experience in hosting visitors from other
countries and ability to utilize local business, legal and governmental
resources and voluntary support. Thematic expertise in project subject
matter must be demonstrated.
3. Cost-effectiveness: The overhead and administrative components
of the proposal, including salaries and honoraria, should be kept as
low as possible. All other items should be necessary and appropriate.
Proposals should also maximize cost-sharing through other private
sector support as well as institutional direct funding contributions.
4. Support of Diversity: Proposals should demonstrate the
recipient's commitment to promoting the awareness and understanding of
diversity.
[[Page 148]]
Notice
The terms and conditions published in this RFP are binding and may
not be modified by any USIA representative. Explanatory information
provided by the Agency that contradicts published language will not be
binding. Issuance of the RFP does not constitute an award commitment on
the part of the Government. The Agency reserves the right to reduce,
revise, or increase proposal budgets in accordance with the needs of
the program and the availability of funds. Awards made will be subject
to periodic reporting and evaluation requirements.
Notification
Final awards cannot be made until funds have been appropriated by
Congress, allocated and committed through internal USIA procedures.
Dated: December 24, 1996.
Dell Pendergrast,
Deputy Associate Director for Educational and Cultural Affairs.
[FR Doc. 96-33317 Filed 12-31-96 ; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8230-01-M
