2010-11403. Office of Postsecondary Education: Overview Information: Developing Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) Program; Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2010

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.031S.

DATES:

Applications Available: May 13, 2010.

Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: June 14, 2010.

Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: August 11, 2010.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

Purpose of Program: The HSI Program provides grants to assist HSIs to expand educational opportunities for, and improve the academic attainment of, Hispanic students. The HSI Program grants also enable HSIs to expand and enhance their academic offerings, program quality, and institutional stability.

Priorities: Under this competition we are particularly interested in applications that address the following priorities.

Invitational Priorities: For FY 2010, 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.

Support activities that will improve the institution's persistence and graduation rates.

Invitational Priority 2.

Work with the appropriate State agencies to develop strategies for using State longitudinal data systems to track outcomes for students attending the grantee institution, including the extent to which the students complete certificates, two-year degrees, and four-year degrees at other institutions.

Invitational Priority 3.

Develop academic programs to improve completion rates or develop innovative support programs that are designed to increase completion rates.

Invitational Priority 4.

Develop dual enrollment programs that facilitate the transition between high school and college or career pathways programs that integrate basic academic instruction with technical or professional occupational training to advance individuals, particularly adult learners, on a career path toward high-wage occupations in high-demand industries.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1101-1101d; 1103-1103g.

Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 82, 84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99. (b) The regulations for this program in 34 CFR part 606.

II. Award Information

Type of Award: Discretionary grant. Five-year Individual Development Grants and Five-year Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants will be awarded in FY 2010. Planning grants will not be awarded in FY 2010.

Estimated Available Funds: $48,254,710.

Contingent upon the availability of funds and the quality of applications, we may make additional awards in FY 2011 from the list of unfunded applicants from this competition.

Estimated Range of Awards: $537,000-$775,000.

Estimate Average Size of Awards: Individual Development Grants: $556,000. Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants: $743,000.

Maximum Awards: Individual Development Grants: $650,000. Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants: $775,000. We will not fund any application at an amount exceeding these maximum amounts for a single budget period of 12 months. We may choose not to further consider or review applications with budgets that exceed the maximum amounts specified, if we conclude, during our initial review of the application, that the proposed goals and objectives cannot be obtained with the specified maximum amount.

Estimated Number of Awards: Individual Development Grants: 48. Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants: 29.

Note:

The Department is not bound by any estimates in this notice. Applicants should periodically check the HSI Program Web site for further information. The address is: http://www.ed.gov/​programs/​idueshsi/​index.html.

Project Period: Up to 60 months.

III. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education (IHEs) that qualify as eligible HSIs are eligible to apply for new Individual Development Grants and Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants under the HSI Program. To be an eligible HSI, an IHE must—

(1) Be accredited or preaccredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association that the Secretary has determined to be a reliable authority as to the quality of education or training offered;

(2) Be legally authorized by the State in which it is located to be a junior college or to provide an educational program for which it awards a bachelor's degree;

(3) Be designated as an “eligible institution” by demonstrating that it: (A) Has an enrollment of needy students as described in 34 CFR 606.3; and (B) has low average educational and general expenditures per full-time equivalent (FTE) undergraduate student as described in 34 CFR 606.4; and

(4) Have an enrollment of undergraduate FTE students that is at least 25 percent Hispanic students at the end of the award year immediately preceding the date of application.

The HSI eligibility requirements are in 34 CFR 606.2 through 606.5 and can be accessed from the following Web site: http://www.access.gpo.gov/​nara/​cfr/​waisidx_​01/​34cfr606_​01.html.

These regulations do not reflect the changes made to the HSI Program requirements by the Third Higher Education Extension Act of 2006 or the HEOA.

Section 502(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), requires institutions applying for an HSI grant to report their undergraduate Hispanic FTE percentage at the end of the award year immediately preceding the date of application. Funds for the HSI Program are awarded each fiscal year; thus, for this program, the end of the award year refers to the end of the fiscal year prior to the application due date. The end of the fiscal year occurs on September 30 for any given year. Therefore, for purposes of making the determination described in paragraph (4), IHEs must report their undergraduate Hispanic FTE percent based on the student enrollment count closest to, but not after, September 30, 2009.

Note:

The Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA) amended section 503(b) of the HEA to include, among the authorized activities under the HSI Program, activities to improve student services, including innovative and customized instruction courses designed to help retain students and move the students into core courses; articulation agreements and student support programs designed to facilitate the transfer of students from 2-year to 4-year institutions; and providing education, counseling services, and financial information designed to improve the financial and economic literacy of students or their families. The list of authorized activities in section 503(b) was also amended to use the term “distance education technologies” in place of “distance learning academic instruction capabilities.” Applicants may include these activities in their proposals.

For this competition, the Notice Inviting Applications for Designation as Eligible Institutions for FY 2010 was published in the Federal Register on December 7, 2009 (74 FR 64059) and the deadline for application was January 6, 2010. Only institutions that submitted the required application and received designation through that process are eligible to submit an application for this competition.

Relationship Between HSI and Title III, Part A Programs

Note 1:

A grantee under the HSI Program, which is authorized by Title V of the HEA, may not receive a grant under any HEA, Title III, Part A Program. The Title III, Part A Programs include: the Strengthening Institutions Program; the American Indian Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Program; the Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Programs; the Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions Program; and the Native American-Serving Non-Tribal Institutions Program. Further, a current HSI Program grantee may not give up its HSI grant in order to receive a grant under any Title III, Part A Program.

Note 2:

An HSI that does not fall within the limitation described in Note 1 may apply for a FY 2010 grant under all Title III, Part A Programs for which it is eligible, as well as under the HSI Program. However, a successful applicant may receive only one grant.

Note 3:

An eligible HSI that submits more than one application may only be awarded one Individual Development Grant or one Cooperative Arrangement Development Grant in a fiscal year. Furthermore, we will not award a second Individual Development Grant to an otherwise eligible HSI for the same award year as the HSI's existing Individual Development Grant as described in 34 CFR 606.9(3)(b)(1).

Note 4:

An eligible HSI that submits a Cooperative Arrangement Development Grant with a partnering branch campus that is a part of the same institution will not be awarded a grant.

Note 5:

Applicants must provide, as an attachment to the application, the documentation that the IHE relied upon in determining that at least 25 percent of the IHE's undergraduate FTE students are Hispanic, as defined in section 502(a)(4) of the HEA. The Department will cross-reference for verification, data reported to the Department's Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), the IHE's State-reported enrollment data, and the institutional annual report. If there are any differences in the percentages reported in IPEDS and the percentages reported in the grant application, the IHE should explain the differences as a part of its eligibility documentation.

2. Cost Sharing or Matching: There are no cost sharing or matching requirements unless the grantee uses a portion of its grant for establishing or improving an endowment fund. If a grantee uses a portion of its grant for endowment fund purposes, it must match those grant funds with non-Federal funds. (20 U.S.C. 1101b(c)(2)).

IV. Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request Application Package: Carnisia M. Proctor, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., Room 6060, Washington, DC 20006-8513. Telephone: [phone] or by e-mail: [e-mail].

If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), 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 diskette) by contacting the program contact person listed in this section.

2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you must submit, are in the application package for this program.

Page Limits: 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 mandatory page limits for both the Individual Development Grant and the Cooperative Arrangement Development Grant applications. You must limit the section of the narrative that addresses the selection criteria to no more than 50 pages for the Individual Development Grant application and 70 pages for the Cooperative Arrangement Development Grant application, 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.
• 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. Charts, tables, figures, and graphs in the application narrative count toward the page limit.
• Use a font that is either 12 point or larger or no smaller than 10 pitch (characters per inch).
• Use one of the following fonts: Times New Roman, Courier, Courier New, or Arial. An application submitted in any other font (including Times Roman or Arial Narrow) will not be accepted.

The page limit does not apply to Part I, the Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424); the Department of Education Supplemental Information form (SF 424); Part II, Budget Information—Non-Construction Programs (ED 524); Part IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page project abstract, program activity budget detail form and supporting narrative, and the five-year plan. However, the page limit does apply to all of the application narrative section (Part III), including the budget narrative of the selection criteria. If you include any attachments or appendices not specifically requested in the application package, these items will be counted as part of your application narrative (Part III) for purposes of the page limit requirement. You must include your complete response to the selection criteria in the application narrative.

Note:

The narrative response to the budget selection criteria is not the same as the activity detail budget form and supporting narrative. The supporting narrative for the activity detail budget form details the requested budget items line by line.

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

3. Submission Dates and Times:

Applications Available: May 13, 2010.

Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: June 14, 2010.

Applications for grants under this program must be submitted electronically using the Electronic Grant Application System (e-Application) accessible through the Department's e-Grants site. 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. 6.

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: August 11, 2010.

4. Intergovernmental Review: This competition 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. 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 HSI Program CFDA Number 84.031S must be submitted electronically using e-Application, accessible through the Department's e-Grants Web site at: http://e-grants.ed.gov.

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.

While completing your electronic application, you will be entering data online that will be saved into a database. You may not e-mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us.

Please note the following:

• You must complete the electronic submission of your grant application by 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. E-Application will not accept an application for this program after 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline date to begin the application process.
• The hours of operation of the e-Grants Web site are 6:00 a.m. Monday until 7:00 p.m. Wednesday; and 6:00 a.m. Thursday until 8:00 p.m. Sunday, Washington, DC time. Please note that, because of maintenance, the system is unavailable between 8:00 p.m. on Sundays and 6:00 a.m. on Mondays, and between 7:00 p.m. on Wednesdays and 6:00 a.m. on Thursdays, Washington, DC time. Any modifications to these hours are posted on the e-Grants Web site.
• 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 form SF 424, Budget Information—Non-Construction Programs (ED 524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. You must attach any narrative sections of your application as files in a .DOC (document), .RTF (rich text), or .PDF (Portable Document) format. If you upload a file type other than the three file types specified in this paragraph or submit a password protected file, we will not review that material.
• Your electronic application must comply with any page limit requirements described in this notice.
• Prior to submitting your electronic application, you may wish to print a copy of it for your records.
• After you electronically submit your application, you will receive an automatic acknowledgment that will include a PR/Award number (an identifying number unique to your application).
• Within three working days after submitting your electronic application, fax a signed copy of the SF 424 to the Application Control Center after following these steps:

(1) Print SF 424 from e-Application.

(2) The applicant's Authorizing Representative must sign this form.

(3) Place the PR/Award number in the upper right hand corner of the hard-copy signature page of the SF 424.

(4) Fax the signed SF 424 to the Application Control Center at [phone].

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

Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of e-Application Unavailability: If you are prevented from electronically submitting your application on the application deadline date because e-Application is unavailable, we will grant you an extension of one business day to enable you to transmit your application electronically, by mail, or by hand delivery. We will grant this extension if—

(1) You are a registered user of e-Application and you have initiated an electronic application for this competition; and

(2)(a) E-Application is unavailable for 60 minutes or more between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date; or

(b) E-Application is unavailable for any period of time between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date.

We must acknowledge and confirm these periods of unavailability before granting you an extension. To request this extension or to confirm our acknowledgment of any system unavailability, you may contact either (1) the person listed elsewhere in this notice under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT (see VII. Agency Contact) or (2) the e-Grants help desk at 1-888-336-8930. If e-Application is unavailable due to technical problems with the system and, therefore, the application deadline is extended, an e-mail will be sent to all registered users who have initiated an e-Application. Extensions referred to in this section apply only to the unavailability of e-Application.

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 e-Application because—

• You do not have access to the Internet; or
• You do not have the capacity to upload large documents to e-Application; 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 prevents 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: Carnisia M. Proctor, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., Room 6060, Washington, DC 20006-8513. FAX: [phone].

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 84.031S), LBJ Basement Level 1, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260.

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

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

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

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

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

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

(1) A private metered postmark.

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

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

Note:

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

c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery.

If you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, you (or a courier service) may deliver your paper application to the Department by hand. You must deliver the original and two copies of your application, by hand, on or before the application deadline date, to the Department at the following address: U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number 84.031S), 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 grant notification within 15 business days from the application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of Education Application Control Center at [phone].

V. Application Review Information

1. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are in 34 CFR 606.22. In addition to these selection criteria, we evaluate an applicant's performance under a previous development grant under 34 CFR 606.24.

2. Review and Selection Process: Additional factors we consider in selecting an application for an award are as follows:

(A) Applicants must provide, as an attachment to the application, the documentation the IHE relied upon in determining that at least 25 percent of the IHE's undergraduate FTE students are Hispanic.

Note:

The 25 percent requirement applies only to undergraduate Hispanic students and is calculated based upon FTE students as defined in Section 502(a)(4) of the HEA. Instructions for formatting and submitting the verification documentation to e-Application are in the application package for this competition.

(B) Tiebreaker for Development Grants. In tie-breaking situations for development grants described in 34 CFR 606.23(b), the HSI Program regulations require that we award one additional point to an application from an IHE that has an endowment fund of which the current market value, per FTE enrolled student, is less than the average current market value of the endowment funds, per FTE enrolled student, at comparable institutions that offer similar instruction. We also award one additional point to an application from an IHE that had expenditures for library materials per FTE enrolled student that are less than the average expenditures for library materials per FTE enrolled student at comparable institutions that offer similar instruction.

For the purpose of these funding considerations, we use 2007-2008 data.

If a tie remains after applying the tiebreaker mechanism above, priority will be given (a) for Individual Development Grants, to applicants that addressed the statutory priority found in section 521(d) of the HEA, as amended; and (b) for Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants, to applicants in accordance with section 524(b) of the HEA, under which the Secretary determines that the cooperative arrangement is geographically and economically sound or will benefit the applicant HSI.

If a tie still remains after applying the additional point(s), and the relevant statutory priority, we will determine the ranking of applicants based on the lowest endowment values per FTE enrolled student.

VI. Award Administration Information

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

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

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

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

3. Reporting: 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, 34 CFR 75.720, and 34 CFR 606.31.

4. Performance Measures: The Secretary has established the following key performance measures for assessing the effectiveness of the HSI Program:

1. The percentage change, over the five-year grant period, of the number of full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students enrolled at HSIs.

2. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students who were in their first year of postsecondary enrollment in the previous year and are enrolled in the current year at the same Hispanic-serving institution.

3. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students who were in their first year of postsecondary enrollment in the previous year and are enrolled in the current year at the same four-year Hispanic-serving institution.

4. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students who were in their first year of postsecondary enrollment in the previous year and are enrolled in the current year at the same two-year Hispanic-serving institution.

5. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students enrolled at four-year HSIs graduating within six years of enrollment.

6. The percentage of first-time, full-time degree-seeking undergraduate students enrolled at two-year HSIs graduating within three years of enrollment.

7. Federal cost per undergraduate and graduate degree at institutions in the HSI Program.

VII. Agency Contact

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Carnisia M. Proctor, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., Room 6060, Washington, DC 20006-8513. Telephone: [phone] or by e-mail: [e-mail].

If you use TDD, 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 computer diskette) on request to the program contact person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in section VII of this notice.

Electronic Access to this Document: 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) on the Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/​news/​fedregister. To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at this site.

Note:

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 on GPO Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/​nara/​index.html.

Delegation of Authority: The Secretary of Education has delegated authority to Daniel T. Madzelan, Director, Forecasting and Policy Analysis for the Office of Postsecondary Education, to perform the functions and duties of the Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.

Dated: May 7, 2010.

Daniel T. Madzelan,

Director, Forecasting and Policy Analysis.