FR Doc 04-1727

[Federal Register: January 27, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 17)]
[Notices]
[Page 3901-3904]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27ja04-49]

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Office of Postsecondary Education; Overview Information; Minority
Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP); Notice Inviting
Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2004

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.120A.

DATES:
Applications Available: January 28, 2004.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: March 12, 2004.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: May 11, 2004.

Eligible Applicants: There are three types of MSEIP projects, each
with a different set of eligible applicants. For institutional, design,
and special projects described in 34 CFR 637.12 through 637.14,
eligible applicants include public and private nonprofit minority
institutions of higher education as defined in Section 361(1) and (2)
of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA) and described
later in this notice. For special projects described in 34 CFR
637.14(b) and (c), eligible applicants include nonprofit science-
oriented organizations, professional scientific societies, institutions
of higher education, and consortia of organizations as defined in
section 361(3) and (4) of the HEA and described later in this notice.
For cooperative projects described in 34 CFR 637.15, eligible
applicants include groups of nonprofit accredited colleges and
universities whose primary fiscal agent is an eligible minority
institution as defined in 34 CFR 637.4(b).

Note: A minority institution is defined in 34 CFR 637.4(b) as an
accredited college or university whose enrollment of a single
minority group or combination of minority groups exceeds 50 percent
of the college's or university's total enrollment.

Estimated Available Funds: Although Congress has not enacted a
final appropriation for FY 2004, the Department is inviting
applications for this competition now so that it may be prepared to
make awards following enactment of that final appropriation. Based on
the congressional action to date, we estimate $4.6 million will be
available for new awards under this program for FY 2004. The actual
level of funding, if any, depends on final congressional action.
Additional funding information is provided in the following chart.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN27JA04.000

Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice. Applicants should periodically check the MSEIP's Web site
for further information on this program. The address is: http://www.ed.gov/programs/iduesmsi/index.html

Project Period: Up to 36 months.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

Purpose of Program: The MSEIP is designed to effect long-range
improvement in science and engineering education at predominantly
minority institutions and to increase the flow of underrepresented
ethnic minorities, particularly minority women, into scientific and
technological careers.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1067-1067k.
Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General

[[Page 3902]]

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 637.

Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 apply to institutions of
higher education only.

II. Award Information

Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
Estimated Available Funds: Although Congress has not enacted a
final appropriation for FY 2004, the Department is inviting
applications for this competition now so that it may be prepared to
make awards following enactment of that final appropriation. Based on
the congressional action to date, we estimate $4.6 million will be
available for new awards under this program for FY 2004. The actual
level of funding, if any, depends on final congressional action.
Estimated Range of Awards: See chart.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: See chart.
Estimated Total Number of Awards: See chart.

Project Period: Up to 36 months.

III. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants: (a) For institutional, design, and special
projects described in 34 CFR 637.12 through 637.14, eligible applicants
include public and private nonprofit minority institutions of higher
education as defined in Section 361(1) and (2) of the HEA. Section
361(1) and (2) define such institutions as:
(1) Public and private nonprofit institutions of higher education
that:
(A) Award baccalaureate degrees; and
(B) Are minority institutions;
(2) Public or private nonprofit institutions of higher education
that:
(A) Award associates degrees; and
(B) Are minority institutions that:
(i) Have a curriculum that includes science or engineering
subjects; and
(ii) Enter into a partnership with public or private nonprofit
institutions of higher education that award baccalaureate degrees in
science and engineering;
(b) For special projects described in 34 CFR 637.14(b) and (c),
eligible applicants include nonprofit science-oriented organizations,
professional scientific societies, institutions of higher education,
and consortia of organizations. Section 361(3) and (4) of the HEA
describes these types of entities as:
(3) Nonprofit science-oriented organizations, professional
scientific societies, and institutions of higher education that award
baccalaureate degrees, that:
(A) Provide a needed service to a group of minority institutions;
or
(B) Provide in-service training for project directors, scientists,
and engineers from minority institutions; or
(4) Consortia of organizations that provide needed services to one
or more minority institutions, the membership of which may include:
(A) Institutions of higher education that have a curriculum in
science or engineering;
(B) Institutions of higher education that have a graduate or
professional program in science or engineering;
(C) Research laboratories of, or under contract with, the
Department of Energy;
(D) Private organizations that have science or engineering
facilities; or
(E) Quasi-governmental entities that have a significant scientific
or engineering mission.
(c) For cooperative projects described in 34 CFR 637.15, eligible
entitles include groups of nonprofit accredited colleges and
universities whose primary fiscal agent is an eligible minority
institution as defined in 34 CFR 637.4(b).

2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This program has no cost sharing or
matching requirements.

IV. Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request Application Package: Dr. Bennie Samuels, Ms.
Mary Payne or Ms. Carolyn Proctor, Institutional Development and
Undergraduate Education Service, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K
Street, NW., 6th floor, Washington, DC 20006-8517. Telephone: (202)
502-7777 or by e-mail: OPE_MSEIP@ed.gov
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print,
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the program contact
persons listed in this section.
2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you
must submit, are in the application package for this program.
Page Limit: We have established a mandatory page limit for the
narrative portion for each type of project application. The page limits
are as follows:
Design Project Application: The narrative portion must not exceed
the equivalent of 10 double-spaced pages.
Institutional and Cooperative Project Application: The narrative
portions must not exceed the equivalent of 20 double-spaced pages.
Special Project Application: The narrative portion must not exceed
the equivalent of 15 double-spaced pages. You must use 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, including titles
and headings. You may single space the abstract, footnotes, quotations,
references, captions, tables, and forms (including the ED Forms),
however, you must still use font size 12.
Use a font that is size 12.
We will reject your application if--
You apply these standards and exceed the page
limit; or
You apply other standards and exceed the
equivalent of the page limit.
3. Submission Dates and Times:
Applications Available: January 28, 2004.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: March 12, 2004.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: May 11, 2004.
4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order
12372 is in the application package for this program.
5. Funding Restrictions:
(a) Executive Order 13202. Applicants that apply for construction
funds under MSEIP must comply with Executive Order 13202, signed by
President Bush on February 17, 2001 and amended on April 6, 2001. This
Executive order provides that recipients of Federal Construction funds
may not ``require or prohibit bidders, offerors, contractors, or
subcontractors to enter into or adhere to agreements with one or more
labor organizations, on the same or other construction project(s)'' or
``otherwise discriminate against bidders, offerors,

[[Page 3903]]

contractors, or subcontractors for becoming or refusing to become or
remain signatories or otherwise adhere to agreements with one or more
labor organizations, on the same or other construction project(s).''
However, the Executive order does not prohibit contractors or
subcontractors from voluntarily entering into these agreements.
(b) We reference additional regulations outlining funding
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
6. Other Submission Requirements: Instructions and requirements for
the transmittal of applications by mail or by hand (including a courier
service or commercial carrier) are in the application package for this
program. Application Procedures: The Government Paperwork Elimination
Act (GPEA) of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-277) and the Federal Financial
Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (Pub. L. 106-107)
encourage us to undertake initiatives to improve our grant processes.
Enhancing the ability of individuals and entities to conduct business
with us electronically is a major part of our response to these Acts.
Therefore, we are taking steps to adopt the Internet as our chief means
of conducting transactions in order to improve services to our
customers and to simplify and expedite our business processes.
Some of the procedures in these instructions for transmitting
applications differ from those in the Education Department General
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) (34 CFR 75.102). Under the
Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553), the Department generally
offers interested parties the opportunity to comment on proposed
regulations. However, these amendments make procedural changes only and
do not establish new substantive policy. Therefore, under 5 U.S.C.
553(b)(A), the Secretary has determined that proposed rulemaking is not
required.
We are requiring that applications for grants under the MSEIP--CFDA
Number 84.120A be submitted electronically using the Electronic Grant
Application System (e-Application) available through the Department's
e-GRANTS system. The e-GRANTS system is accessible through its portal
page at: http://e-grants.ed.gov
If you are unable to submit an application through the e-GRANTS

system, you may submit a written request for a waiver of the electronic
submission requirement. In your request, you should explain the reason
or reasons that prevent you from using the Internet to submit your
application. Address your request to: Ms. Sandra Steed, U.S. Department
of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., 6th Floor, Washington, DC 20006-8517.
Please submit your request no later than two weeks before the
application deadline date.
If, within two weeks of the application deadline date, you are
unable to submit an application electronically, you must submit a paper
application by the application deadline date in accordance with the
transmittal instructions in the application package. The paper
application must include a written request for a waiver documenting the
reasons that prevented you from using the Internet to submit your
application.
Pilot Project for Electronic Submission of Applications: We are
continuing to expand our pilot project for electronic submission of
applications to include additional formula grant programs and
additional discretionary grant competitions. The MSEIP--CFDA 84.120A is
one of the programs included in the pilot project. If you are an
applicant under the MSEIP, you must submit your application to us in
electronic format or receive a waiver.
The pilot project involves the use of e-Application. If you use e-
Application, you will be entering data online while completing your
application. You may not e-mail an electronic copy of a grant
application to us. The data you enter online will be saved into a
database. We shall continue to evaluate the success of e-Application
and solicit suggestions for its improvement.
If you participate in e-Application, please note the following:
When you enter the e-Application system, you
will find information about its hours of operation. We strongly
recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline date to
initiate an e-Application package.
You will not receive any additional point value
because you submit a grant application in electronic format, nor will
we penalize you if you submit an application in paper format.
You must submit all documents electronically
including the Application for Federal Assistance under MSEIP (OMB 1840-
0109), Budget Information Non-Construction Programs (ED 524), and all
necessary assurances and certifications.
Your e-Application must comply with any page
limit requirements described in this notice.
After you electronically submit your
application, you will receive an automatic acknowledgement, which 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 Application for
Federal Assistance MSEIP, OMB 1840-0109, to the Application Control
Center after following these steps:
1. Print the OMB 1840-0109, from e-Application.
2. The institution'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 OMB 1840-0109.
4. Fax the signed OMB 1840-0109 to the Application Control Center
at (202) 260-1349.
We may request that you give us original
signatures on other forms at a later date.
Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of System
Unavailability: If you are prevented from submitting your application
on the application deadline date because the e-Application system is
unavailable, we will grant you an extension of one business day in
order to transmit your application electronically, by mail, or by hand
delivery. We will grant this extension if--
1. You are a registered user of the e-Application system and you
have initiated an e-Application for this competition; and
2. (a) The e-Application system 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) The e-Application system is unavailable for any period of time
during the last hour of operation (that is, for any period of time
between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 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 acknowledgement of any system unavailability, you may
contact either (1) the persons 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.
You may access the electronic grant application for the MSEIP at
http://e-grants.ed.gov
Projects funded under MSEIP that include construction activity will

be provided a copy of this Executive Order and will be asked to certify
that they will adhere to it.

[[Page 3904]]

V. Application Review Information

Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are in
34 CFR 637.32.

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 Notice
(GAN). We may also notify you informally.
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 specified by the Secretary in
34 CFR 75.118 and 34 CFR 75.720.

VII. Agency Contact

For Further Information Contact: Dr. Bennie Samuels, Ms. Mary
Payne, or Ms. Carolyn Proctor, Institutional Development and
Undergraduate Education Services, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K
Street, NW., 6th floor, Washington, DC 20006-8517. Telephone: (202)
502-7777, or by e-mail: OPE_MSEIP@ed.gov
If you use a telecommunication device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the program contact persons listed in this
section.

VIII. Other Information

Electronic Access to This Document: You may 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/index.html
To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available

free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S.
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in
the Washington, DC area at (202) 512-1530.

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

Dated: January 22, 2004.
Sally L. Stroup,
Assistant Secretary, Office of Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 04-1727 Filed 1-26-04; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000-01-P