[Federal Register: December 15, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 240)]
[Notices]
[Page 74299-74302]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr15de05-43]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[Docket No.: 030602141-5302-31]
Financial Assistance To Administer NOAA's Educational Partnership
Program (EPP) With Minority Serving Institutions (MSI), Graduate
Sciences Program
AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of criteria to administer the EPP/MSI Graduate Sciences
Program; and notice of availability of funds and solicitation for
proposals for these funds.
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SUMMARY: The purpose of this document is to advise the public that
NOAA's Educational Partnership Program is soliciting not-for-profit
organizations to administer its EPP Graduate Sciences Program. The goal
of the Graduate Sciences Program is to provide college graduates who
have received at least a Bachelor's degree in mathematics, science,
economics, law, and engineering, entry-level employment and hands-on
research and work experience at NOAA. The program's objective is to
increase the number of students who undertake course work and graduate
with degrees in the targeted areas integral to NOAA's mission.
The goal of the NOAA EPP/MSI Graduate Sciences Program (GSP) is
aimed primarily at increasing opportunities and available programs for
students in NOAA related fields to pursue research and graduate level
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educational training in atmospheric, environmental, and oceanic
sciences at Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) when possible. All
students are competitively selected for positions in NOAA offices and
facilities.
Participants must be U.S. citizens, have a Bachelor's degree in
mathematics, science, law, or engineering, and have, and maintain, a
minimum G.P.A. of 3.0 or higher prior to and for the duration of their
training. Prior to acceptance into the program, students must be
enrolled in an accredited graduate school and obtain a letter of
recommendation by a school official. This two-year program provides for
formal periods of work, study, and structured classroom training
programs in meteorology, hydrology, cartography, oceanography, ecology,
remote sensing technology, environmental science and planning, marine
science, fisheries biology, computer science, and environmental law.
GSP pays for tuition, books, lab fees, campus housing allowance, travel
expenses, and salary during 16 weeks of NOAA work experience per year
at a NOAA research facility. NOAA scientists are assigned as mentors to
graduate scientists during the training period.
The progress of the students is monitored throughout the academic
year and during the intermittent career work experiences. Under the
program, graduate students are required to present their research at
conferences, scientific meetings and workshops, education and science
forums, etc. The program requires that students participate in an
orientation program at NOAA Headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, at
the beginning of their appointment.
DATES: Applications must be received by NOAA Educational Partnership
Program (EPP) no later than 2 p.m. (eastern standard time), February
13, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Applications submitted in response to this announcement are
strongly encouraged to submit through the Grants.gov Web site.
Electronic access to the full funding opportunity announcement for this
program is available via the Grants.gov Web site: http://www.grants.gov.
The announcement will also be available at the NOAA EPP
Web site http://epp.noaa.gov or by contacting the program official
identified below. Applicants must comply with all requirements
contained in the full funding opportunity announcement. Paper
applications (a signed original and two copies) may also be submitted
to the Educational Partnership Program at the following address: NOAA/
EPP, 1315 East West Highway, Room 10703, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910.
No facsimile applications will be accepted. Institutions are encouraged
to submit Letters of Intent to NOAA/EPP within 30 days of this
announcement to aid in planning the review processes.
Letters of Intent may be submitted via e-mail to
Chantell.Haskins@noaa.gov. Information should include a general
description of the program administration proposal.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chantell Haskins, Program Manager at
(301) 713-9437 ext. 125 or Chantell.Haskins@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
NOAA is committed to recruiting and retaining individuals from
underrepresented communities as part of its workforce. The agency
established EPP to provide financial assistance to train students in
NOAA-related sciences and to conduct hands-on research related to the
ongoing mission of the agency. Therefore, the agency established a
program aimed at partnering with MSIs that train and graduate students
in the areas of atmospheric, oceanic and environmental sciences,
fisheries sciences, and management, and remote sensing technology.
Since approximately 40% of minority students receive their
undergraduate degrees at MSIs, direct collaboration with MSIs is an
effective way to increase the number of students from under-represented
communities trained and graduated in NOAA-related sciences.
With such a limited pool of potential minority employees trained in
NOAA-related sciences, it is important that NOAA seek new ways to make
students aware of the mission of the agency and to support activities
that increase opportunities for students trained in NOAA-related
sciences.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Educational Partnership Program (EPP) with Minority Serving
Institutions (MSIs) is a competitive program designed to develop and/or
enhance the collaboration between NOAA and the MSI community to
increase the number of students who pursue coursework and graduate with
degrees in NOAA-related sciences. The program is designed to improve
NOAA's outreach and recruitment efforts of under-represented
individuals in the scientific mission-related occupational fields,
i.e., fishery biology, environmental law, meteorology, cartography,
oceanography, hydrology, computer science, ecology, environmental
economics, and engineering. The program requires graduate student's
participation in research projects that will promote in-depth knowledge
and understanding of NOAA sciences in their academic institutions. For
the purposes of this announcement, MSIs are defined as Historically
Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribal
Colleges and Universities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving
Institutions as defined by the Department of Education and the most
recent list can be found on the NOAA EPP Web site at http://epp.noaa.gov
.
Electronic Access
Applicants can access, download, and submit electronic grant
applications, including the full funding opportunity announcement, for
NOAA programs at the Grants.gov Web site: http://www.grants.gov The announcement will also be available at the NOAA EPP Web site http://.
epp.noaa.gov or by contacting the program official identified above.
The closing date will be the same as for paper submissions noted in
this announcement. NOAA strongly recommends that you do not wait until
the application deadline date to begin the application process through
Grants.gov. If Internet access is unavailable, hard copies of proposals
will also be accepted--a signed original and two copies--at time of
submission. The project description (including relevant results from
prior training programs) should not exceed 15 pages. Page limits are
inclusive of figures, and other visual materials, but are exclusive of
references, milestone charts, letters of collaboration from unfounded
collaborators, letters of endorsement, and curriculum vitae which may
not exceed 2 pages for each principal, program administrator/
coordinator. This includes color or high-resolution graphics, unusually
sized materials, or otherwise unusual materials submitted as part of
the proposal. For color graphics, submit either color originals or
color copies. Facsimile transmissions and electronic mail submission of
full proposals will not be accepted.
Funding Availability
Subject to appropriations, this solicitation announces that funding
at a maximum of $350,000 will be available for program administration
of the Graduate Sciences Program over a two-year period. The proposal
is limited to a total of $350,000 for a maximum of two years and one
proposal will be funded. Up to 18% of $350,000 is
[[Page 74301]]
allowed for administrative overhead and at least 82% of $350,000 is for
student support. It is anticipated that the funding instrument will be
a cooperative agreement since NOAA will be substantially involved in
identifying NOAA facilities to place students during the two summer
internships, and with collaboration, participation, or intervention in
project performance.
Authorities: 15 U.S.C. 1540, 49 U.S.C. 44720, 33 U.S.C. 883d, 33
U.S.C. 1442, 16 U.S.C. 1854(e), 16 U.S.C. 661, 16 U.S.C. 753(a), 16
U.S.C. 1451 et seq., 16 U.S.C. 1431, 33 U.S.C. 883a and Executive
Orders 12876, 12900, 13021, 13336, and 13339.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance: 11.481--Educational
Partnership Program with Minority Serving Institutions.
Eligibility: Proposals will only be accepted from non-profit
organizations.
Cost Sharing Requirements: None.
Intergovernmental Review: Applications under this program are not
subject to Executive Order 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal
Programs.''
Evaluation and Selection Procedures: Once an application is
received by NOAA, an initial administrative review is conducted to
determine compliance with requirements and completeness of the
application. The initial administrative review will be based on:
1. Eligibility--Proposals will only be accepted and reviewed from
not-for-profit organizations (as defined in Section IIIA of the full
funding opportunity announcement);
2. Submission date--Proposals will only be accepted and reviewed if
they are received in the NOAA EPP office by the designated deadline;
3. Project cost--Proposals will only be accepted and reviewed if
the administrative overhead costs are no more than 18% of the total
award.
Each application that meets the requirements and is complete will
be evaluated and scored individually in accordance with the assigned
weights of the evaluation criteria by an independent peer review panel.
Each peer panel reviewer will score proposals on a scale of five to
one, where scores represent respectively: Excellent (5), Very Good (4),
Good (3), Fair (2), Poor (1).
Each peer review panel will be comprised of 3 to 5 individuals,
having expertise in the program management of student fellowship,
scholarship, or internship programs in the areas of science and
technology. The individual peer review panelist scores shall be
averaged for each application and presented to the Program Officer. No
consensus advice will be given by the independent peer to the review
panel. The Program Officer will neither vote nor score proposals as
part of the independent peer review panel nor participate in discussion
of the merits of the proposal. Those proposals receiving an average
panel score of ``Good,'' ``Fair,'' or ``Poor'' will not be given
further consideration, and applicants will be notified of non-
selection. For the proposals rated by the panel as either ``Excellent''
or ``Very Good,'' the Program Officer will (a) rank the proposals by
average panel ratings, and/or by applying the project selection factors
listed below; (b) determine the total duration of funding for the
selected proposal; and (c) determine the amount of funds available for
the selected proposal subject to the availability of fiscal year funds.
A recommendation for funding is then forwarded to the selecting
official, the Director, NOAA Office of Education, for the final funding
decision. In making the final selection, the Director will award to the
highest scoring applicant unless the selected proposal is justified to
be selected out of rank order based on the selection factors listed
below. Investigators may be asked to modify objectives, work plans or
budgets, and provide supplemental information required by the agency
prior to the award. When a decision has been made (whether an award or
declination), verbatim anonymous copies of reviews and summaries of
review panel deliberations, if any, will be made available to the
applicant upon applicant request. Declined applications will be held in
the NOAA EPP for the required 3 years in accordance with the current
retention requirements, and then destroyed.
Evaluation Criteria: Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of
the following evaluation criteria at the indicated weights:
(1) Importance and/or relevance and applicability of proposed
project to the program goals. This ascertains whether there is
intrinsic value in the proposed work and/or relevance to NOAA, Federal,
regional, state, or local activities.
(2) Technical/scientific merit: This assesses whether the approach
is technically sound and/or innovative, if the methods are appropriate,
and whether there are clear project goals and objectives.
(3) Overall qualifications of applicants: This ascertains whether
the applicant possesses the necessary education, experience, training,
facilities, and administrative resources to accomplish the project.
(4) Project costs: The Budget is evaluated to determine if it is
realistic and commensurate with the project needs and time-frame.
(5) Outreach and education: NOAA assesses whether this project
provides a focused and effective education and outreach strategy
regarding NOAA's mission to protect the Nation's natural resources.
Selection Factors: The merit review ratings shall provide a rank
order to the Selecting Official for final funding recommendation. A
program officer may first make a recommendation to the Selecting
Official applying the selection factors below. The Selecting Official
shall award in the rank order unless the proposal is justified to be
selected out of rank order based upon numbers 1, 4, 5 and 6 of the
following factors:
1. Availability of funding.
2. Balance/distribution of funds:
a. Geographically
b. By type of institutions
c. By type of partners
d. By research areas
e. By project types
3. Whether this project duplicates other projects funded or
considered for funding by NOAA or other federal agencies.
4. Program priorities and policy factors set forth in sections I.A.
and B. and IV.B. of the Full Funding Opportunity.
5. Applicant's prior award performance.
6. Partnerships and/or Participation of targeted groups.
7. Adequacy of information necessary for NOAA to make a NEPA
determination and draft necessary documentation before recommendations
for funding are made to the Grants Officer.
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
NOAA must analyze the potential environmental impacts, as required
by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), for applicant projects
or proposals which are seeking NOAA federal funding opportunities.
Detailed information on NOAA compliance with NEPA can be found at the
following NOAA NEPA Web site: http://www.nepa.noaa.gov/, including our NOAA Administrative Order 216-6 for NEPA, http://www.nepa.noaa.gov/
NAO216--6--TOC.pdf, and the Council on Environmental Quality
implementation regulations, http://ceq.eh.doe.gov/nepa/regs/ceq/toc_ceq.htm.
Consequently, as part of an applicant's package, and under
their description of their program activities, applicants are required
to provide detailed information on the activities to
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be conducted, locations, sites, species and habitat to be affected,
possible construction activities, and any environmental concerns that
may exist (e.g., the use and disposal of hazardous or toxic chemicals,
introduction of non-indigenous species, impacts to endangered and
threatened species, aquaculture projects, and impacts to coral reef
systems). In addition to providing specific information that will serve
as the basis for any required impact analyses, applicants may also be
requested to assist NOAA in drafting of an environmental assessment, if
NOAA determines an assessment is required. Applicants will also be
required to cooperate with NOAA in identifying feasible measures to
reduce or avoid any identified adverse environmental impacts of their
proposal. The failure to do so shall be grounds for the denial of an
application. In some cases if additional information is required after
application is selected, funds can be withheld by the Grants Officer
under a special award condition requiring the recipient to submit
additional environmental compliance information sufficient to enable
NOAA to make an assessment on any impacts that a project may have on
the environment.
Pre-Award Notification Requirements for Grants and Cooperative
Agreements
The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for
Grants and Cooperative Agreements contained in the Federal Register
notice of December 30, 2004 (69 FR 78389) are applicable to this
solicitation.
Limitation of Liability
Funding for the program administration listed in this notice is
contingent upon availability of Fiscal Year 2006 appropriations.
Applicants are hereby given notice that funds have not yet been
appropriated for the Graduate Sciences Program. In no event will NOAA
or the Department of Commerce accept responsibility for proposal
preparation costs if these programs fail to receive funding or are
cancelled because of other agency priorities. Publication of this
announcement does not oblige NOAA to award any specific project or to
obligate any available funds. Recipients and sub-recipients are subject
to all Federal laws and agency policies, regulations and procedures
applicable to Federal financial assistance awards.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This notification involves collection-of-information requirements
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act. The use of Standard Forms 424,
424A, 424B, and SF-LLL and CD-346 has been approved by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) under control numbers 0348-0043, 0348-0044,
0348-0040 and 0348-0046 and 0605-0001. Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, no person is required to respond to, nor shall any
person be subject to a penalty for failure to comply with, a collection
of information subject to the requirements of the PRA unless that
collection of information displays a currently valid OMB control
number.
Executive Order 12866
It has been determined that this notice is not significant for
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
Executive Order 13132 (Federalism)
It has been determined that this notice does not contain policies
with Federalism implications as that term is defined in Executive Order
13132.
Administrative Procedure Act/Regulatory Flexibility Act
Prior notice and an opportunity for public comment are not required
by the Administrative procedure Act or any other law for rules
concerning public property, loans, grants, benefits, and contracts (5
U.S.C. 553(a)(2)). Because notice and opportunity for comments are not
required pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553 or any other law, the analytical
requirements of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.)
are inapplicable. Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis has not
been prepared, and none has been prepared. It has been determined that
this notice does not contain policies with Federalism implications as
that term is defined in Executive Order 13132.
Mark Brown,
Chief Financial Officer, NOAA Oceanic and Atmospheric Research.
[FR Doc. E5-7396 Filed 12-14-05; 8:45 am]
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