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**U. S. Department of Education**

**Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)**

**The Comprehensive Program**

**CFDA 84.116B**

**Fiscal Year 2006**

**Program Information and Application Materials**

**Deadline for Electronic Submission: May 26, 2006**

#  

**Table of Contents**

[Comprehensive Program at a Glance
3](#comprehensive-program-at-a-glance)

[Purpose 3](#purpose)

[Eligibility 3](#eligibility)

[Awards 3](#awards)

[Cost Sharing 3](#cost-sharing)

[Equipment/Infrastructure 3](#equipmentinfrastructure)

[Application Process and Deadlines
3](#application-process-and-deadlines)

[Authority 4](#authority)

[Application Notice 4](#application-notice)

[Contact Information 4](#contact-information)

[Web Site 4](#web-site)

[What is Expected of a FIPSE Grant?
5](#what-is-expected-of-a-fipse-grant)

[The Importance of Innovation and Significance
5](#the-importance-of-innovation-and-significance)

[The Importance of Impact 5](#the-importance-of-impact)

[The Importance of Evaluation 6](#the-importance-of-evaluation)

[The Importance of Dissemination 7](#the-importance-of-dissemination)

[Education Reform in the Context of a Changing World
7](#education-reform-in-the-context-of-a-changing-world)

[FY 2006 Agenda for Improving Postsecondary Education
9](#fy-2006-agenda-for-improving-postsecondary-education)

[Broadening Access to Quality, Affordable Higher Education
9](#broadening-access-to-quality-affordable-higher-education)

[Promoting Continuing Academic Progress from High School Through College
10](#promoting-continuing-academic-progress-from-high-school-through-college)

[Improving Teacher Preparation in Science and Mathematics
11](#improving-teacher-preparation-in-science-and-mathematics)

[Guide to Proposal Development 12](#guide-to-proposal-development)

[Understanding Funding Practices and Review Processes
12](#understanding-funding-practices-and-review-processes)

[Statement of Intent to Submit an Application
12](#statement-of-intent-to-submit-an-application)

[Before You Prepare an Application
12](#before-you-prepare-an-application)

[Cost Sharing/Institutional Support
13](#cost-sharinginstitutional-support)

[Indirect Cost Rates 13](#indirect-cost-rates)

[Recommended Proposal Outline 13](#recommended-proposal-outline)

[Review Requirements and Process 14](#review-requirements-and-process)

[Aligning Your Proposal to the Review Selection Criteria
14](#aligning-your-proposal-to-the-review-selection-criteria)

[The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) and Your Application
14](#the-government-performance-and-results-act-gpra-and-your-application)

[Selection Criteria 15](#selection-criteria)

[Application Instructions 20](#application-instructions)

[Proposal Content 20](#proposal-content)

[Electronic Application Submission Procedures
21](#electronic-application-submission-procedures)

[Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of System Unavailability
23](#application-deadline-date-extension-in-case-of-system-unavailability)

[Exception to the Electronic Submission Requirement
23](#exception-to-the-electronic-submission-requirement)

[Paperwork Burden Statement 25](#paperwork-burden-statement)

[Forms for Application Package](#__RefHeading___Toc127879639)

[Proposal Checklist](#__RefHeading___Toc127879640)

#   {#section-1 .unnumbered}

#  {#section-2 .unnumbered}

# Comprehensive Program at a Glance

# 

## Purpose

The Comprehensive Program is the primary grant competition of the U.S.
Department of Education's Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary
Education (FIPSE). The Comprehensive Program supports innovative
educational improvement projects that respond to problems of national
significance.

## Eligibility

FIPSE supports a wide range of *non‑profit* providers of educational
services. Proposals may be submitted by two‑ and four‑year colleges and
universities, both public and private, accredited or non-accredited;
graduate and professional schools; community organizations; libraries;
museums; trade and technical schools; consortia; student groups; state
and local government agencies (but not federal agencies); non-profit
corporations; and associations. Proposals may be submitted by newly
formed as well as established organizations. (Individuals and for‑profit
schools and organizations are not eligible to apply.) Other
organizations may be eligible; the list here is not exhaustive. The
beneficiaries of projects proposed to FIPSE must be U.S. organizations,
students, and faculty.

## Awards 

The Department estimates that 50-60 new Comprehensive Program awards
will be made in FY 2006 for grants of up to three years. While there is
no minimum or maximum grant award, the Department expects to award
grants ranging from \$150,000 to \$600,000 or more over a typical
three-year period. The Department may also award a few larger grants for
projects that clearly demonstrate potential for large-scale impact
involving multiple partners and wide geographic scope. These figures are
only estimates and do not bind the Department of Education to a specific
number of grants, or to the amount of any grant, unless that amount is
otherwise specified by statute or regulations.

## Cost Sharing

While there is no mandated matching requirement, the Department expects
grantees and their collaborating partners to share substantially in the
operational cost of funded projects. Most FIPSE projects are expected to
continue after the federal funding period has ended. Grantees should
therefore plan to take over the costs of sustaining program
administration and operations.

# 

## Equipment/Infrastructure

FIPSE does not expect to provide support for large equipment purchases
or for the development of computer networks or other infrastructure.
Applicants are encouraged to leverage institutional and private
resources to support these costs.

## Application Process and Deadlines

**The Comprehensive Program will employ a single-stage application and
review process in FY 2006.** Applicants are required to submit through
the Department of Education's e-Application system by May 26, 2006 a
proposal narrative consisting of 20 numbered pages, doubled-spaced,
*plus* a one-page abstract, budget, budget narrative, and appendices. A
paragraph on the topic of the proposal, Statement of Intent to Submit an
Application, is requested in advance (by May 5, 2006) to allow for
timely identification of proposal reviewers. An applicant organization
may submit more than one application if each is for a different project.
The review process is more fully described below in the section, "Guide
to Proposal Development."

## Authority

Title VII, Part B of the Higher Education Act as amended in 1998 (Public
Law 105-244), authorizes the Department of Education to make grants to
improve postsecondary education opportunities through a broad range of
reforms and innovations. Regulations are contained in the Code of
Federal Regulations, Title 34 Part 75. In addition, the Education
Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR Parts
74, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, and 85 apply.

## Application Notice

The official Application Notice is published in the *Federal Register*.
The information in this application package is intended to aid in
preparing proposals for this competition. Nothing in this application
package supersedes the information published in the *Federal Register*.

## Contact Information 

For information only; do **not** use this address to submit
applications.)

+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------+
| FIPSE                                  | Telephone: 202-502-7500     |
|                                        |                             |
| U.S. Department of Education           | Fax: 202-502-7877           |
|                                        |                             |
| 1990 K Street, N.W., 6^th^ Floor       | E-mail: FIPSE@ed.gov        |
|                                        |                             |
| Washington, DC 20006-8544              |                             |
+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------+
|                                        |                             |
+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------+

## Web Site

For information about past and current projects, successfully evaluated
projects from previous years, application information, evaluation
resources, and more, visit FIPSE's Web site at:

<http://www.ed.gov/FIPSE>

# What is Expected of a FIPSE Grant? 

## The Importance of Innovation and Significance

For over 30 years, the Comprehensive Program has supported innovative
postsecondary education reform projects. FIPSE has asked applicants to
address problems of national significance--problems that are commonly
felt at postsecondary institutions across the country--and to create
solutions to those problems that can be transferred to many additional
settings. These solutions should be new strategies that improve upon
what others in the field are already doing, or they should translate
existing strategies into different settings. Either way, an ideal FIPSE
project, while based on current research findings, creates new knowledge
and practices. It sometimes challenges conventional thinking and may
even involve significant but acceptable risks. But its most prominent
features are that it adds something new to the array of strategies
educators can draw from to improve student access and achievement, and
it demonstrates strong potential for institutionalization,
sustainability, and impact beyond the local level.

Fundamentally, FIPSE in its funding has advocated a grass roots model of
reform: start with a good idea, try it to see how it works, and then
share what you have learned with others. When this process works, the
practices originating in a FIPSE project can be transferred to many new
settings. FIPSE projects should stimulate new initiatives or complement
other work by institutions, associations, other funding sources, and
policy makers. The combined effect can be a gradual and systemic
transformation of educational practice nationally.

In the Comprehensive Program, FIPSE deems project ideas innovative if
they have not been tried before or if there is a significant challenge
in adapting them to new settings or new target populations. FIPSE takes
a national perspective when thinking about innovation. Part of the
process of preparing a grant application is learning what others are
doing and taking care not to "reinvent the wheel." Sometimes by
discovering a unique way to frame a problem, you will have taken a giant
step toward discovering an innovative solution. The description of your
project should be placed clearly in the larger, national picture,
documenting the need for the specific strategies or services you
propose. Remember that innovation is possible at all types of
institutions and in targeting all types of students. (See discussion
under the "Guide to Proposal Development" section.)

## The Importance of Impact

Innovation by itself is seldom enough. FIPSE challenges applicants to
conceive, design, and manage projects in ways that promote sustained
operations and growth, increase impact in other settings, and achieve
other lasting and widespread effects. A widely felt problem in
postsecondary education, an innovative solution, and likely impact on
the field--all three elements--are important in FIPSE's evaluation of a
proposed project. (See discussion of the selection criteria for
evaluating proposals in the "Guide to Proposal Development" section.)

Some projects have increased their impact by enlisting collaborators in
a strategic effort to broaden participation, expand resources, bring
together new kinds of expertise, and reach more deeply into relevant
professional communities. Suppose that a university applying for a FIPSE
grant were to request funding to reform the mathematics courses taught
for pre-service teachers, a project implemented locally but undertaken
in the hope that the resulting curriculum would serve as a model for
other interested institutions to adapt or replicate. Such a design would
not likely create momentum leading to change at other institutions. It
places the burden on others to learn about the reform, to initiate their
own project from scratch, and to adapt materials/strategies designed
specifically for the originating institution.

Contrast this with a project FIPSE actually funded a few years ago in
Texas. It was a statewide effort among all the public teacher education
institutions. The institutions worked together to agree upon how they
would implement national standards, and then each university worked to
change the relevant courses, in the process exchanging materials and
ideas with one another. This more collaborative model enabled educators
to multiply the effects of their individual efforts, it effected change
throughout the State system, and it enabled a much more thorough
evaluation of results.

As noted later in this section on FIPSE's expectations, applicants and
their partners must keep dissemination and evaluation in mind from the
onset of their planning. If the innovation succeeds, what other types of
institutions would be interested in adapting it? What evidence must be
gathered to "prove the concept" in a convincing way to other
institutions and to professional organizations that might be used to
encourage reform elsewhere? How can the project's products be best
packaged to ensure adaptation on other campuses? Applicants are also
encouraged to form project advisory committees that include persons
capable of assessing the project from the perspective of other campuses
or programs.

There is no single way to construct an ambitious project, and your
strategies will depend very much upon the staff and resources you have
at hand and the nature of the problem you are addressing. Nevertheless,
FIPSE suggests you consider strategies such as the following:

-   Partner with other organizations or create a consortium
    collaborating on a particular reform idea.

-   Partner with the private sector, especially publishers, technology
    companies, and other organizations that have marketing expertise,
    resources to distribute products, etc.

-   Tackle bigger units (i.e., instead of departments, think
    institutional reform, system reform, etc.) and a greater range of
    associated issues.

-   Enlist additional institutions to expand later implementation and
    pilot testing phases of the project.

-   Work to expand reform efforts already initiated by associations,
    state systems, foundations, etc.

-   Create portable products and helpful materials.

-   Conduct training workshops to help others implement your ideas.

-   Use the Internet not just to post materials but also to create
    communities of professionals collaboratively working to implement
    and test new reform ideas.

-   Form an advisory board of experts, including potential adapters from
    institutions other than current partners, to advise project staff on
    implementation and dissemination issues.

Previous experience with FIPSE projects demonstrates that it is
frequently better to increase participation early as a means to gather
the additional resources and support you will need to sustain project
growth after the end of FIPSE funding.

## The Importance of Evaluation

All applicants to FIPSE should plan to conduct a project evaluation as
part of the grant activities. This evaluation should focus primarily on
determining learning outcomes, especially as measured by student
performance and achievement, and not merely opinion surveys or
self-reports. The evaluation should also include assessment of other
outcomes, particularly if the project aims to change organizational
structures, create cost-efficiencies, or achieve other ends not
specifically represented by learning. The evaluation design of projects
focused on cost-efficiencies must include cost analysis, for example. In
general, your evaluation plan should be closely linked to the clear,
measurable, performance objectives of the project. Quantitative and
qualitative data related to these objectives are the results by which
the success of your project will be judged. (See the discussion of
review selection criteria in the "Guide to Proposal Development"
section.)

The project evaluation should have a multi-faceted design and be
conducted by an individual (or organization) independent of the project
team and its partners. However, your evaluator should collaborate with
the project team in the evaluation design and work alongside the team
throughout the length of the project. The evaluator should be someone
with experience in program evaluation and good educational research
skills, such as those commonly found in social science disciplines and
schools of education. This person may be required to craft new
instruments or learning assessments, in addition to using or adapting
existing ones. The evaluator should help you compile both formative data
that you can use in improving your project and also summative results
that can help you and others gauge your project's ultimate success.

You (and your collaborators) must be seriously committed to gathering
the best evaluation data possible. Evaluation is an important tool that
will help guide you in your work. Additionally, it is important for
persuading the postsecondary education community about the importance of
your innovation. Applicants are encouraged to allocate at least10% of
the federal budget request for evaluation activities.

Finally, your evaluation plan must include measures of 1) the extent to
which your project is being replicated, i.e., adopted or adapted by
others; and 2) the manner in which your project is being
institutionalized and continued after grant funding. These two results
serve as indicators of FIPSE's success as a federal grant program. (See
the discussion of the Government Performance and Results Act under the
review selection criteria in the "Guide to Proposal Development"
section.)

## The Importance of Dissemination

Dissemination for FIPSE is not simply the process of spreading the word
about a new model practice, though this is an important first step.
Rather, we consider it a more proactive process designed to influence
the actual adaptation or transfer of a project to new settings. (Hence,
some might find that "diffusion," "project transfer," or other words
more closely match the meaning we intend.) By their very nature, the
success of some grants will depend heavily upon the success of their
dissemination activities, but even early pilot projects should involve
dissemination as well. Upon identifying an innovation, applicants should
think about what it will take for a project to be transferred to new
settings. Who needs to hear about the project? What will convince others
to implement or adapt the project idea? What barriers will they face and
what kinds of help might they need to address the barriers? Applicants
should conceive their projects from the beginning with such questions in
mind and include activities aimed at building momentum for the process
of dissemination.

In short, FIPSE expects that grants will be designed to include
appropriate strategies to promote sustainability and scale-up at their
originating institution(s) and dissemination to other settings. Although
FIPSE provides seed funding, it is anticipated that funded projects will
build enough momentum both to sustain themselves and to continue growing
and influencing postsecondary practice even after the end of the FIPSE
support.

Another indication of FIPSE's interest in dissemination is its
willingness to support grants explicitly directed at dissemination of
proven educational reforms, whether developed under a previous FIPSE
grant or other initiatives. By funding such projects, we hope to
accelerate the pace of change at other institutions. In such instances,
applicants will be expected to provide evaluation data offering solid
evidence of improved learning or other important outcomes. The current
priorities specifically invite proposals to disseminate proven methods
for improving access to high quality, affordable higher education. (See
the access priority in the "FY 2006 Agenda for Improving Postsecondary
Education" section.)

## Education Reform in the Context of a Changing World

If you embark upon a funded grant project starting in the fall of 2006,
keep in mind that the project may not reach full maturity and achieve
significant impact nationally for six to eight years. Changes such as
the dramatic rise of information technology, the increasing diversity of
postsecondary learners, the renewed demand for accountability, or the
rise of competition among postsecondary providers are powerful enough to
shape the immediate future of postsecondary education. We urge you to
anticipate these dynamic forces of change and to develop bold new
project ideas. These projects should aim to reshape the postsecondary
education system so that its practices, values, and results are not
simply the product of evolutionary drift. FIPSE urges the field to
develop education reform proposals in the context of a changing world.

Traditionally, FIPSE has defined its grant programs as learner-centered,
meaning that we have focused on educational improvements that promise to
benefit learners. Included in our definition have been those programs
that have focused on the development of faculty or the improvement of
teaching. FIPSE now aims to expand its focus by shifting from learners
to learning more broadly and by supporting educational improvements that
result in improved learning. What do postsecondary institutions look
like when they are committed to learning? How are they organized or
structured? What are the implications for teaching, curriculum,
credentialing, and many other postsecondary functions?

When applying for funding, faculty and all other applicants should keep
in mind that their ultimate purpose is to support learning and that
their traditional ways of approaching this task may need to be
revisited, rethought, or revitalized in order to be responsive to the
larger forces influencing postsecondary education.

# FY 2006 Agenda for Improving Postsecondary Education

FIPSE's Agenda for Improving Postsecondary Education supports the
national movement for education reform, as well as FIPSE's traditional
mission of improving the quality of postsecondary education and
providing equal educational opportunity. All proposed projects should
demonstrate both the innovation and potential impact discussed in the
previous section.

Emerging today are problems of national significance that challenge
postsecondary education. Some have been identified in discussions of the
Secretary of Education's Commission on the Future of Higher Education,
in the *No Child Left Behind Act*, and in recent reports such as the
National Academies' *Rising Above the Gathering Storm.* The FY 2006
Comprehensive Program announces three invitational priorities in
response to areas of particular national need.

FIPES invites proposals in all areas that address postsecondary
education. The three invitational priorities for the current competition
are described below, but you may choose to focus on a topic not
specifically mentioned, and you may choose to address more than one
topic in a single project.

## 

## Broadening Access to Quality, Affordable Higher Education

**[Invitational Priority A]{.underline}: Developing innovative
instructional and administrative efficiencies to broaden access to high
quality and affordable higher education.**

FIPSE seeks proposals that broaden educational opportunities to groups
that historically have not had equal access to postsecondary education.
Opportunities for access and education should break down the boundaries
and burdens of race, class, poverty, disability, and geography. Although
progress has been made over the years to increase participation and
graduation levels for all individuals, large gaps still exist between
low-income and middle- and high-income students, between minority and
non-minority students, and between students with disabilities and their
non-disabled peers. Access and retention of students who are older,
working, or caring for children also require special attention.
Applications offering solutions requiring collaboration and shared
resources, such as initiatives proposed by states, institutional and
professional associations, university systems, and consortia, are
especially welcomed.

FIPSE encourages applicants to propose new ways of ensuring access to
postsecondary education -- providing services of high quality that meet
students' needs and contribute to successful completion of academic
programs. An important element of ensuring access is to keep education
affordable, so proposals are invited that combine high quality education
with deliberate attention to containing costs to students and their
families. Examples of strategies to control costs include reform of
general education offerings, sharing of resources among institutions
connected by geography or mission, use of pedagogies that make students
less dependent on faculty for their progress, reduction of credits
required for a degree, and creative use of educational technologies, but
many other strategies are possible.

Many institutions have had success with distance education programs or
other technology-mediated reforms designed to improve access. FIPSE is
not interested in supporting conventional uses of instructional
technology, including projects focusing on the now common offering of
online courses. Instead we seek new, innovative applications,
particularly those that encourage collaboration in the development and
use of technologies among institutions and systems, with the expectation
that economies of scale will make investments in technology, curriculum
and materials development, and faculty and staff more cost‑effective.

Applications addressing this priority must carefully identify indicators
of access and measures of financial impact. The difficulties of
measuring educational outcomes and costs are well known, and FIPSE does
not intend to set unrealistic standards of rigor. However, applicants
need to define what they will count as evidence of improved access and
instructional outcomes and what they will include in a cost analysis to
demonstrate that costs to students were held constant or decreased.
Baseline data on current costs should be gathered before such reforms
are implemented through a FIPSE project.

Some models for access and cost containment have already been proven
effective. FIPSE is interested in supporting dissemination of those
reforms to other institutions that wish to adopt or adapt them. Proposed
dissemination projects should --

-   Involve an innovation that is nationally significant;

-   Show thorough evaluation results, with strong empirical evidence of
    the method's success at the originating institution(s);

-   Have potential for adaptation elsewhere, with proposed adapters
    ready to collaborate;

-   Present a dissemination plan that transfers both knowledge and
    strategies, developing sustainable liaisons with adapting sites and
    assisting in the implementation of new project demonstrations; and

-   Impact significant numbers of learners.

## Promoting Continuing Academic Progress from High School Through College 

**[Invitational Priority B]{.underline}: Aligning curriculum on a state
or multi-state level between high schools and colleges, and between
two-year and four-year postsecondary programs, to ensure continuing
academic progress and transferability of credits.**

FIPSE is especially interested in proposals that create policies and
organizational structures to foster curricular coordination between high
schools and postsecondary institutions, so that high school graduates
will be well prepared to enter postsecondary institutions and to meet
the challenges of higher education coursework. Also of interest are
innovative approaches for improving articulation between two-year and
four-year postsecondary institutions. Both areas address FIPSE's
overarching concern with access and educational quality.

Students with the least experience navigating higher education -- those
for whom access, retention, and completion pose the greatest challenge
-- are the ones affected most negatively by the lack of alignment from
high school through college. Deliberate articulation of curriculum from
one educational level to another helps students avoid gaps, repetitions,
and arbitrary shifts in nomenclature and perspective that often hamper
students\' progress as they move from school to postsecondary
institutions, and from two‑year to four-year institutions. FIPSE invites
proposals to address these problems that will go *beyond* local
partnerships. Of interest are models representing collaboration across a
state (or a significant portion thereof) or a multi-state region.

Achieving alignment between high schools and colleges requires reform in
many different practices at the high school and college level. FIPSE
welcomes proposals offering comprehensive approaches to effect change in
one or more of these practices. Examples would include strategies to
improve alignment of high school offerings and college general education
requirements and to improve alignment of high school content standards
with college placement tests.

A majority of college entrants now begin at community colleges, which
makes community colleges important gateways to further postsecondary
education. However, many of these students neither complete their
general education requirements nor graduate from the community colleges
they first enter. Alignment of curriculum to ensure continuing academic
progress and transferability of credits for the growing number of
students who drop in and out of postsecondary education is critical if
they are to reap the benefits of earning an associate or a baccalaureate
degree. FIPSE encourages proposals to coordinate two-year colleges\'
academic programs and support services with those of four‑year colleges.
Possible responses to this challenge would include reduction of
duplicate course offerings among institutions, strategies to ease the
transfer of credit among institutions, and reformulation of four-year
college core or general education programs to articulate with two-year
college programs at the state or multi-state level.

## 

## Improving Teacher Preparation in Science and Mathematics

**[Invitational Priority C]{.underline}: Increasing the number and
improving the preparation of pre- and in-service science and mathematics
teachers through career change programs and/or programs that combine a
bachelor\'s degree in science or math with a bachelor\'s degree in
education and/or teacher certification. Particularly encouraged are
collaborative projects involving K-12 educators, college departments of
science and mathematics, private sector partnerships, and teacher
education programs.**

This priority recognizes that improved capacity in mathematics and
science education in the United States is necessary if the nation is to
remain competitive economically and if a high quality of life and
national security are to be preserved. Congress chartered the National
Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the
Institute of Medicine (collectively known as the National Academies) in
1863 to advise the government on matters of science and technology. The
Academies' recent report, *Rising Above the Gathering Storm:*
*Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future,*
documented the need for improvements in science education at the
secondary and postsecondary level. Among its recommended action steps
was improved teacher preparation in science and mathematics.

FIPSE therefore invites proposals for new models for the preparation and
continued development of science and mathematics teachers. This priority
draws special attention to the need to integrate undergraduate programs
leading to bachelor's degrees in science and mathematics with concurrent
teacher certification. Past FIPSE projects directed at this goal have
included both curriculum reform at universities that traditionally
graduate large numbers of teachers and efforts to help professionals in
other fields take up second careers in teaching. Applicants are
encouraged to propose new variations on these approaches to improve
pre-service teacher preparation in science and mathematics. In addition,
FIPSE seeks new professional development models in science and
mathematics education to ensure that current teachers have mastery of
the content they are teaching. FIPSE is interested in strengthening the
continuum of pre-service through in-service education of teachers such
that classroom teachers have the skills, support, and environment they
need to find their profession rewarding rather than overwhelming.
Programs proposed for both pre- and in-service teachers are expected to
hold promise for widespread impact and build on partnerships between
college departments of science and mathematics, schools of education,
and elementary and secondary schools.

**NOTE:** FIPSE is one among many government agencies interested in
improving teacher preparation in science and mathematics. Applicants
proposing projects under this Comprehensive Program priority may be
involved in complementary projects funded through other sources --
local, state, or federal. If the project proposed to FIPSE under this
priority will be one part of a larger initiative, please indicate in
your application narrative how the FIPSE project fits within the larger
effort. Provide in an appendix to your application a very brief
description of other projects (e.g., a state-funded Title II, Part B
Mathematics and Science Partnerships project) related to your proposal
to FIPSE.

# Guide to Proposal Development[^1]

# 

This discussion is intended to help you conceive and write a strong
proposal by alerting you to the ways in which it will be read and judged
and by providing you instructions on how to submit an application. We
recognize that some of the questions or issues raised here may not
pertain to your particular project, and the following remarks are not
intended to oblige you to organize your proposal around direct responses
to all of them.

Applicants who applied to the Comprehensive Program in the past are
accustomed to a two-stage review process, involving a short preliminary
proposal and a longer more detailed final proposal. **The FY 2006
Comprehensive Program competition will have only a single stage.** **All
applicants must submit a proposal consisting of a 20-page narrative
(pages numbered and double-spaced), *plus* a one-page abstract, a
budget, a budget narrative, and appendices.** Applications must be
submitted electronically via the Electronic Grant Application System
(e-Application) available through the Department of Education's e-Grants
system.

# 

## Understanding Funding Practices and Review Processes

# 

### Statement of Intent to Submit an Application

In order to allow for the timely selection of appropriate external
reviewers in this competition, applicants are encouraged to submit a
brief Statement of Intent to Submit an Application by May 5, 2006. This
statement should include 1) the name, mailing address, telephone number,
and e-mail address of the proposed project director, 2) the name of the
applicant institution, and 3) no more than one paragraph on the topic
and/or invitational priority you intend to address. Please e-mail this
statement to: <FIPSE@ed.gov>.

### Before You Prepare an Application

FIPSE takes a national perspective in its grant-making. Both the
importance of a project and its degree of innovation are therefore
judged in relation to the needs of the postsecondary community as a
whole, rather than solely in relation to the needs of the applicant's
own campus or organization. Applicants are advised to describe the
problem or opportunity they wish to address in both its local and
national contexts. Is it common to a number of other postsecondary
institutions besides your own? Does it affect a substantial number of
students at those institutions? If it affects a relatively small number,
is the problem so serious that it jeopardizes their ability to succeed
in postsecondary education, or the opportunity so great that it can
transform their learning?

Model programs addressing many common issues of postsecondary reform
already exist. Some have been developed with the support of FIPSE or
other funding agencies; many others have been implemented without any
outside grant support. Applicants are encouraged to begin their search
for solutions by examining what others have already done to address the
issue or problem of concern, and to adapt appropriate current models
wherever possible. (Please tell us if your project is an improvement and
extension of an earlier project.) It is when your research indicates
that there are few or no appropriate models, or that current models can
be substantially improved, that you should consider an application to
FIPSE.

FIPSE's Web site at <http://www.ed.gov/FIPSE> contains information on
resources that would be useful to a prospective applicant in developing
a proposal. One of these is *Lessons Learned*, an occasional FIPSE
publication, containing descriptions and results of many well-evaluated
FIPSE projects. The Web site also has descriptions of projects FIPSE has
funded since 1994 (see [www.fipse.aed.org](http://www.fipse.aed.org/)),
evaluation information and suggestions, material on other competitions,
and funding advice from FIPSE program officers. For assistance on
proposal writing, see
<http://www.ed.gov/programs/fipsecomp/2005-ta-materials.html>).

Prospective applicants should note that, although we do not review draft
proposals, FIPSE program officers are happy to discuss project ideas by
telephone or in person. Call the FIPSE office to set up an appointment
at 202-502-7500.

### Cost Sharing/Institutional Support

The Comprehensive Program does not mandate any particular rate for cost
sharing or matching funds. However, the applicant institution and any
partners should significantly support the project both philosophically
and financially. Because FIPSE applicants are often seeking support that
will develop or strengthen their own programs or capacities, we expect
the host institution and its partners to contribute substantial
resources, in some cases even matching or exceeding the federal request.
This will not always be the case, however, as individual circumstances
and the resources available to participating institutions may vary.

### Indirect Cost Rates

FIPSE does not specify a particular indirect cost rate because the rate
proposed is taken as an indication of institutional commitment, and this
may vary from project to project and institution to institution. Some of
our applicants request no indirect costs at all. As a reference point,
however, FIPSE staff generally use the U.S. Department of Education rate
for training grants (8% of total direct costs) as a standard for judging
the degree of institutional support. Applicants requesting reimbursement
of indirect costs must complete the "Indirect Cost Information" section
of the required Budget Summary Form (ED 524).

### Recommended Proposal Outline

There is no standard or required outline for writing your proposal
narrative; however, it is **not** generally recommended that you
organize your whole proposal in sections separately detailing your
response to each of the review criteria. Rather, you should aim to write
a clear, naturally flowing essay that is interesting, easy to read, and
visually appealing. You will need to provide information that helps
reviewers understand what you are proposing, why it is important, how
your project will be implemented, and how it will be evaluated.

Many applicants tend to follow an outline such as the following:

-   Briefly describe the problem or need you intend to address,
    connecting it to larger changes affecting postsecondary education.

-   Explain the way in which your proposed solution is a testable model
    for improvement on existing practice nationally or an innovative
    approach whose results could be significant to postsecondary
    education.

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-   Explain what exactly you propose to do about this problem. (Note: if
    you are submitting an application for a grant disseminating a proven
    reform, you will additionally want to describe the prior work and
    evaluation results upon which you are building.)

-   Explain the work plan and, as appropriate, each participant's role
    in completing the project.

-   Clearly state the primary objectives and outcomes of the project and
    describe how you plan to evaluate whether you have achieved them.

-   Describe your strategies for dissemination and for expanding the
    scope of your pilot project's impact on postsecondary reform
    nationally.

### Review Requirements and Process

Applicants will submit through the Department of Education's
e-Application system a proposal consisting of a narrative not exceeding
20 numbered pages, double‑spaced (no more than three lines per vertical
inch), *plus* a one-page abstract, budget, budget narrative, and
appendices. Only the following fonts may be used:

-   Times New Roman

-   Courier

-   Courier New

-   Arial

Applications submitted in any other font (including Times Roman and
Arial Narrow) will not be accepted. To ensure all applicants the same
opportunity to present their ideas, applicants are required to conform
to the page limit noted above, use minimum 1-inch margins on all four
sides of the page, and avoid font sizes smaller than 12 point. Make sure
your line spacing is set for double-spacing and not 1.5 lines.
Applications that do not conform to these requirements will not be
reviewed.

In addition to the 20-page proposal narrative, abstract, budget, and
budget narrative, include in the application package an appendix
containing the following items. Include *only* these items in the
appendix:

-   Project evaluation chart (required)

-   Narrative summaries (maximum one page each) of the qualifications of
    key project personnel -- project director, co-director, and
    evaluator (required)

-   Response to Section 427 of the Department of Education\'s General
    Education Provisions Act (GEPA) (required)

-   Very short description(s) of project(s) that will complement and
    operate in conjunction with the project proposed to FIPSE (if
    applicable)

-   Letters of support from partners and other project beneficiaries (if
    applicable)

Your application package should give external reviewers and the FIPSE
staff a concrete understanding of the problem you are addressing and the
solutions you propose, including a description of how you will evaluate
the results. Use clear, direct language and avoid jargon, clichés, and
acronyms whenever possible. As noted above, explain how your project
strategy differs from and improves upon current practice at your
institution and elsewhere in the nation.

Proposals will be read by at least two outside reviewers, identified
each year from among faculty, administrators, or other professionals
across the country that have specialized knowledge on your topic.
Additional experts may review proposals when technical questions arise.
Members of the FIPSE staff then carefully read and discuss the proposals
and the external reviews. Project directors may be telephoned to clarify
information about their projects. Staff may also contact others who know
the applicant\'s work and plans, or those who will be affected by the
project.

## Aligning Your Proposal to the Review Selection Criteria

### The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) and Your Application

The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993 is a statute
that requires all federal agencies to manage their activities with
attention to the consequences of those activities. Each agency clearly
states what it intends to accomplish, identifies the resources required,
and regularly reports its progress to the Congress. In doing so, GPRA is
improving accountability for the expenditures of public funds, improving
Congressional decision-making with more thorough and objective
information on the effectiveness of federal programs, and promoting a
new government focus on results, cost-effectiveness, service delivery,
and customer satisfaction.

The success of FIPSE's Comprehensive Program depends upon 1) the
percentage of projects that are adopted in full or in part, or whose
materials are used by other institutions and 2) the percentage of
projects with a high likelihood of sustainability beyond federal
funding, based on the project officer's determination. These two results
constitute FIPSE's indicators of the success of our program.

If funded, you will be asked to collect and report data from your
project on steps taken toward these goals. Consequently, applicants to
FIPSE's Comprehensive Program are advised to include these two outcomes
in conceptualizing the design, implementation, and evaluation of the
proposed project. Consideration of FIPSE's two performance outcomes is
an important part of many of the review criteria discussed below. Thus,
it is important to the success of your application that you include
these objectives. Their measure should be a part of the project
evaluation plan, along with measures of objectives specific to your
project.

### Selection Criteria 

Our intent in this section is to help applicants understand how the
selection criteria are applied during the proposal review process. FIPSE
does not group proposals rigidly by types of activities, sectors of
postsecondary education, or other fixed categories. Instead, in our
desire to identify the most significant issues and feasible plans, we
compare each proposal to all others, using the criteria described below.

Each selection criterion is presented in bold type and followed by a
discussion of how it applies to the competition. The external readers
and staff reviewers of your proposal use these criteria to guide their
reviews, so it is in your interest to be familiar with them. The overall
assessment of a proposal is based on the extent to which it
satisfactorily addresses all the selection criteria.

Proposals will be considered in light of the following five criteria and
their factors, all weighted equally:

1)  **The need for the project, as determined by the following
    factors:**

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a.  a\) the magnitude or severity of the problem addressed by the
    project; and

    b\) the magnitude of the need for the services to be provided or the
    activities to be carried out by the project.

You should describe the nature and magnitude of the problem or
opportunity you wish to address *in both its local* *setting and a
national context*. The previous section of this booklet, "FY 2006 Agenda
for Improving Postsecondary Education," identifies some areas of needed
reform, but you may choose to focus on a topic not specifically
mentioned in these guidelines, or you may choose to address more than
one topic in a single project.

How central is the problem you have identified to your institution\'s
vitality or the effectiveness of your educational services? Does the
same problem affect other institutions around the country? Have attempts
to remedy the situation been made by you or by others in the past, and
with what results? What will be the local and national consequences of a
successful completion of your project? Are other institutions or
organizations likely to benefit or learn from your experience in ways
that would enable them to improve their own programs and services?

In short, the need or problem should be widely felt, and *the need for
your particular response* should be clear. Your strategies should be
carefully designed to address the central causes of the problem you are
addressing based on your own research and experience and on previous
experiments by others. Scatter‑shot approaches to vaguely‑defined
problems make poor prospects for funding.

2)  **The significance of the project, as determined by the following
    factors:**

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a)  the potential contribution of the proposed project to increased
    knowledge or understanding of educational problems, issues, or
    effective strategies;

b)  the extent to which the proposed project involves the development or
    demonstration of promising new strategies that build on, or are
    alternatives to, existing strategies;

c)  the importance or magnitude of the results likely to be attained by
    the proposed project; and

d)  the potential replicability of the proposed project, including its
    potential for implementation in a variety of settings.

It is not adequate merely to address an important problem; it is also
crucial that your proposal offer a solution to that problem that is
*innovative*. Furthermore, it must be a solution that has far-reaching
potential for large-scale implementation and for replicability or impact
(one of the GPRA indicators discussed above).

Reviewers will appreciate any evidence you can include to illustrate how
your project differs from and improves upon previous efforts. Describe
the potential contribution of your project to demonstrating effective,
new reform strategies and the likely utility of the products (such as
information, materials, processes, or techniques) that will result from
it for other institutions. It is the applicant\'s responsibility to set
a context within which reviewers can assess the project\'s importance to
postsecondary education reform.

FIPSE seeks to make the most of its limited funds by supporting projects
that can become models for others in postsecondary education. Applicants
should discuss the potential of the proposed project for implementation
elsewhere. Keep in mind that, if adopting or adapting your project
activities is heavily dependent on external funding, it will be very
difficult for other institutions to replicate them, and this may reduce
the potential impact of your project.

3)  **The quality of the project\'s design, as determined by the
    following factors:**

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a)  the extent to which the design of the proposed project is
    appropriate to, and will successfully address, the needs of the
    target population or other identified needs;

b)  the extent to which the goals, objectives, and outcomes to be
    achieved by the proposed project are clearly specified and
    measurable;

c)  the extent to which the design for implementing and evaluating the
    proposed project will result in information to guide possible
    replication of project activities or strategies, including
    information about the effectiveness of the approach or strategies
    employed by the project; and

d)  the extent to which the proposed project is designed to build
    capacity and yield results that will extend beyond the period of
    federal financial assistance.

Your narrative should offer reviewers a clear description of who will do
what, when, where, why, and with what anticipated results. The
project\'s goals and objectives must be clearly identified and
measurable. Responsibilities, timelines, and milestones for
accomplishing project tasks must also be specified. Briefly outline the
qualifications of key personnel, including the project director,
co-director, evaluator, and major consultants or subcontractors, in the
appendix to your proposal. Please note that standard curriculum vitae
are not appropriate for this purpose. What is needed is a brief (one
page maximum) narrative summary of each individual\'s background, with a
special focus on those experiences related to the topic of your
application. (Vitae for key personnel will be requested from successful
applicants after awards are announced.)

Directly or indirectly, learners should be the principal beneficiaries
of your project. Our focus on the learner means that FIPSE is especially
interested in evaluation plans that assess projects in terms of their
consequences for student learning. FIPSE does not support basic
research; rather, its focus is on implementation of projects that
demonstrate and test new approaches to postsecondary education.

All proposed projects should include plans for disseminating their
approaches to learning so that others may adapt these approaches in
their own settings. There are many ways of informing others of a
project\'s results and of helping others make use of your experience. In
reviewing plans for dissemination or adaptation, we ask whether the
methods proposed are appropriate for the project in question, whether
they improve upon methods used elsewhere, and what will be the scale and
impact of the results.

Some projects are themselves efforts to disseminate proven approaches to
reform. If the central purpose of your project is dissemination, please
review the discussion under "What Is Expected of a FIPSE Grant?" earlier
in this application package**.**

Philosophically, FIPSE grants are intended to provide seed capital for
the initial development or expansion of innovative projects, not for
ongoing support of existing program operations. Grants will generally be
used to support programs or activities that are intended to continue
after a grant ends. When this is the case, your proposal should have a
clear and convincing plan for long‑term continuation that includes
explicit commitments from those who will be responsible for sustaining
the activity. In the case of dissemination grants, it is expected that
the innovation disseminated will be institutionalized at the receiving
sites. The originating site is not expected to sustain dissemination
activities after the grant ends.

**4) The quality of the project evaluation, as determined by the
following additional factors:**

a)  the extent to which the evaluation will provide guidance about
    effective strategies suitable for replication or testing in other
    settings;

b)  the extent to which the methods of evaluation are thorough,
    feasible, and appropriate to the goals, objectives, and outcomes of
    the proposed project; and

c)  the extent to which the methods of evaluation include the use of
    objective performance measures that are clearly related to the
    intended outcomes of the project and will produce quantitative and
    qualitative data to the extent possible.

Evaluation should be an important part of your project planning. Include
in your proposal a description of how you intend to document the
activities and results of your project. Formative evaluation can help
you manage your project more effectively, and a strong summative
evaluation, especially if it documents the project\'s effects on the
learner, can turn a successful project into a national model for
improvement in postsecondary education. As you develop your evaluation
plan, place yourself in the position of recipient of your final
evaluation report. What would count as solid quantitative and
qualitative evidence that your project had succeeded or failed? It may
be difficult, within the term of the grant, to assess accomplishment of
long‑range objectives, but you should be able to identify some
short‑term indicators. Bear in mind that the goals of local
institutionalization and wider impact may well elude you unless you can
provide solid evidence that your project is achieving its aims.
Developing such evidence should not be put off until the last stages of
a project. It must be a consideration from the design stage onward.

Before a project can become a model, its proponents must be able to
prove that it has achieved its aims in its original setting. That is why
a solid evaluation plan, one that focuses as much as possible on
precisely how the project has improved educational outcomes, is an
essential component of FIPSE projects. **Include in the appendix to your
application a two-column chart, the first column listing for each year
of the project the major goals and objectives, and the second column
listing what evaluation measures will be used to show attainment of that
goal or objective.** A third column may be added to show
responsibilities, timelines, and milestones.

Evaluation plans must include as objectives the two FIPSE performance
indicators discussed above in the section on the Government Performance
and Results Act (GPRA). The plans must also include measures of the two
indicators: 1) *replication* (the extent to which a project is being
adopted in full or in part by others, or its materials are being used by
other institutions) and 2) *sustainability* (the likelihood that a
project will be continued and institutionalized beyond federal funding).

FIPSE provides a bibliography of books and articles on program
evaluation to assist you with evaluation design. These references
clarify formative and summative evaluation. They address evidence,
measurement, and sampling questions as well as data collection and
analysis. They also discuss the immediate and long‑range outcomes you
can expect based on your project objectives. The evaluation bibliography
as well as a PowerPoint presentation on FIPSE evaluations is available
on FIPSE\'s Web site at [www.ed.gov/FIPSE](http://www.ed.gov/FIPSE).

**5) The adequacy of resources for the proposed project, as determined
by the following factors:**

a)  the extent to which costs are reasonable in relation to the
    objectives, design, and potential significance of the proposed
    project;

b)  the demonstrated commitment of each partner in the proposed project
    to the implementation and success of the project; and

c)  the potential for continued support of the project after federal
    funding ends, including the demonstrated commitment of appropriate
    entities to such support.

A detailed budget and justification attached to your proposal should
itemize the support you request from FIPSE and the support you expect to
obtain from sources other than FIPSE. It must be clear from the proposal
narrative how your budget request relates to the attainment of your
goals and objectives.

FIPSE is especially interested in projects designed to be
cost‑effective, to increase the likelihood that successful efforts may
be continued beyond the period of a FIPSE grant, and to be replicated by
others. But cost‑effectiveness must not imply insufficient resources to
accomplish the project\'s goals and objectives. Costs should be
allocated, and will be judged, in relation to the scope of the project
and the requirements for achieving its objectives.

It is important to provide evidence that the plans you propose have the
support of those who will authorize them, those who will carry them out,
and those who will be affected by them. Your proposal may include, in an
appendix, letters of specific commitment and support from senior
administrators of the host institution, any partners in the project,
other key constituents, and, if desired, national experts on the issues
addressed in the proposal. Applicants are advised that the quality of
letters of support is important, not their quantity.

When planning for long‑term institutionalization, it is often desirable
to create a project budget in which there is increasing reliance on
institutional resources and gradually decreasing FIPSE support during
the life of the grant.

Since issues of cost are almost always critical for institutionalization
and continuation after grant funding ends, proposals requiring grant
dollars for student financial aid or equipment are rarely competitive.
Instead, FIPSE expects that projects requiring such funds will acquire
the money or in-kind contributions from other sources. Grants cannot be
used for the purchase of real property or for construction. See the
sections above about institutional support and cost sharing.

# 

# 

#  

# Application Instructions

Applicants will submit a proposal consisting of a 20-page narrative
(double‑spaced and numbered), a budget, a budget narrative, and other
required forms using the Department of Education's e-Application system
on or before May 26, 2006. **The announced closing date and procedures
for guaranteeing timely submission will be strictly observed.**

## Proposal Content

Proposals should be concise and clearly written, and should include the
following:

1 *Title Page*: Complete Form ED 40‑514. Please include a brief abstract
of your project in the space provided. Additional instructions are found
in the Title Page Instructions.

2\. *Abstract*: Attach a one‑page, doubled‑spaced abstract following the
Title Page (this is in addition to the short abstract requested on the
Title Page itself). The one-page abstract should identify the problem or
opportunity being addressed, the proposed project activities, and their
intended outcomes. It should also include a concise summary of what is
innovative and significant about the project.

3\. *Proposal Narrative*: Please review the selection criteria and the
general recommendations for your proposal outline in the "Guide to
Proposal Development." Your narrative should be limited to **no more
than 20 double‑spaced, numbered pages**, or approximately 5,000 words,
and you should use one of the fonts specified above with a font size no
smaller than 12 point. Although FIPSE does not prescribe a standard
outline for all applicants, you should refer to the recommended general
outline. Also be mindful that your proposal will be evaluated on the
section criteria for proposals as described in the "Guide to Proposal
Development" section. If someone other than the named project director
was the principal writer of the proposal, please include his or her
name, title, and affiliation at the end of the narrative.

4\. *Budget summary and detailed budget*: Use the one-page budget
summary form (ED 524) to present a complete budget overview for a
project performance period *not to exceed three years*. In addition,
provide a detailed, line-item budget for each year of the project (using
the budget categories shown on the budget summary form) and a separate
narrative budget justification. The narrative should explain: (1) the
basis for estimating the costs of professional personnel salaries and
wages, including annual salary or hourly wage rate and percentage of
staff time; employee benefits per person, including rates and percentage
of staff time; employee travel per person/per trip; consultants and
subcontracts, including non-employee travel; materials and supplies;
other costs, including printing, telephone expenses, and equipment
rental; and indirect costs; (2) how the major cost items relate to the
proposed activities; and (3) the costs of evaluation. *Your detailed
budget must also include a detailed breakdown of institutional and other
support for the project in addition to the federal funds requested.*

In each year of your budget request, please include funds for the
project director, project evaluator, and possibly another individual
representing your project to attend the annual FIPSE Project Directors'
Meeting each fall. (The project director is required to attend this
meeting.) The meeting is usually held in Washington, D.C. for three
days. Estimate an annual registration fee of \$750 per attendee.

5\. *Appendices*: Provide a brief summary (maximum one page per
individual) of the background and experience of key project staff as
they relate to the specific project activities you are proposing. Also
include in the appendix a two-column chart, with one column listing for
each year of the project the major goals and objectives, and the other
column listing how attainment of each goal or objective will be
evaluated. (It must be clear from the proposal narrative how your budget
request relates to attainment of these goals and objectives.) A third
requirement in the appendices is a response to Section 427 of GEPA. (See
item 7. below.) Letters of support and commitment from appropriate
officials at the sponsoring institution and project partners may be
included in the appendices. If applicable, include a description of
projects that will complement and operate in conjunction with the
project proposed to FIPSE. Do not attach any other appendices or
information, and be aware that it is not advisable to mention crucial
information only in the appendices and not in the proposal narrative.
Appendices must be submitted as part of your application package, not
separately, to be included in the review process.

6\. *Assurances and Certifications*: When your institutional
representative signs the Title Page, the applicant is certifying that it
will comply with the assurances and certifications.

# 

7\. *Section 427 of GEPA*: Section 427 of the Department of Education\'s
General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) requires each applicant for
funds (other than an individual person) to include in its application a
description of the steps the applicant proposes to take to ensure
equitable access to, and participation in, its federally-assisted
program for students, teachers, and other program beneficiaries with
special needs. This provision allows applicants discretion in developing
the required description. The statute highlights six types of barriers
that can impede equitable access or participation: gender, race,
national origin, color, disability, or age. Based on local
circumstances, you should determine whether these or other barriers
might prevent your students, teachers, etc. from participation in the
federally funded project or activity.

You are required to provide a description of steps to be taken to
overcome these barriers. It need not be lengthy, and you need only
address those barriers that are applicable to your circumstances. In
addition, the information may be provided in a separate narrative and,
if appropriate, may be discussed in connection with related topics in
your application narrative.

8\. *Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs (Executive Order
12372)**:*** This competition is subject to the requirements of
Executive Order 12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs, and
the regulations in 34 CFR 79. The objective of the order is to foster a
federal and state intergovernmental coordination and review of proposed
Federal financial assistance. Applicants are directed to the appropriate
state single point of contact to comply with the State's procedures
under this Executive Order. A list of these contacts is available at:

<http://www.sheeo.org/agencies.asp>.

## Electronic Application Submission Procedures 

Note: 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 the proposed rulemaking is not
required.

Applications for grants under the FY 2006 Comprehensive Program must be
submitted electronically unless you qualify for an exception to this
requirement as described below. Applications must be submitted using
e-Application available through the Department's e-Grants system, which
is accessible through the e-Grants portal page at:
[http://e-grants.ed.gov](http://e-grants.ed.gov/)[.]{.underline}

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.

You must complete the electronic submission of your grant application by
4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. The
e-Application system will not accept an application for the
Comprehensive Program after 4:30 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 regular 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 midnight
Saturday, Washington, DC time. Please note that the system is
unavailable on Sundays, and between 7:00 p.m. on Wednesdays and 6:00
a.m. on Thursdays, Washington, DC time, for maintenance. 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 the
Comprehensive Program Title Page (Form ED 40-514), assurances and
certifications, the Budget Summary Form and narrative detail, and
appendices. 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 above or submit a password protected file, we will not
review that material.

Your electronic application must not exceed the 20-page limit (not
including appendices, a one-page abstract, budget, and budget narrative)
and must adhere to the formatting requirements described above in the
"Guide to Proposal Development."

Prior to submitting your electronic application, you may wish to print a
copy of it for your records.

If you have any difficulties understanding the e-Application system or
submitting your application technically, please call the technical help
phone number at the bottom of the e-Application computer screen, not the
Comprehensive Program contact person named elsewhere.

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), P116B06 followed by 4
digits. Do NOT deliver a hard copy application to Application Control
Center in addition to your electronic application. Your confirmation,
with the PR number, assures you that the electronic application has been
received.

If after you submit your application you find a mistake, you may *before
the application closing date* un-submit your application and edit it.
After the application deadline no corrections can be made.

Within three working days after submitting your electronic application,
fax a signed copy of the Comprehensive Program Title Page (ED 40-514) to
the Application Control Center following these steps:

\(1\) Print the Comprehensive Program Title Page (ED 40-514) from
e-Application.

\(2\) Have the applicant's Authorizing Representative sign the Title
Page. .

\(3\) Place the PR/Award number in the upper right hand corner of the
hard-copy Title Page, in the item labeled "Application Number."

\(4\) Fax the signed Comprehensive Program Title Page to the Application
Control Center at 202-245-6272.

When your institutional representative signs the Title Page, the
applicant is certifying that it will comply with the assurances and
certifications contained in the application package.

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

**You may access the electronic grant application for the FIPSE
Comprehensive Program at:**

[**http://e-grants.ed.gov**](http://e-grants.ed.gov/)

### Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of System Unavailability

If you are prevented from electronically 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 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) 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
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
acknowledgment of any system unavailability, contact the e-Grants help
desk at 1-888-336-8930. If the system is down 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 the
Department's e-Application system.

### Exception to the Electronic Submission Requirement

Your application will be rejected if you submit it in paper format
unless you qualify for one of the exceptions to the electronic
submission requirement [and]{.underline} 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. Information
regarding calculation of the date that is two weeks before the
application deadline date is provided later in this section.

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 the e-Application system because----

• You do not have access to the Internet; or

• You do not have the capacity to upload large documents to the
Department's e-Application system;

[and]{.underline}

• 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
prevent 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: Cassandra Courtney, FIPSE
Comprehensive Program Coordinator, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K
Street, NW, Washington, DC 20006-8544. FAX: 202-502-7877.

Your paper application must conform to the same format requirements
(page limits, font types and size, margins, etc.) as an electronically
submitted application. It must be submitted in accordance with the mail
or hand delivery instructions described below:

[Submission of Paper Applications by Mail]{.underline}.

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 applicable following
address:

[By mail through the U.S. Postal Service]{.underline}:

U.S. Department of Education

Application Control Center

Attention: (CFDA Number 84.116B)

400 Maryland Avenue, SW.

Washington, DC 20202-4260

[By mail through a commercial carrier]{.underline}:

U.S. Department of Education

Application Control Center -- Stop 4260

Attention: (CFDA Number 84.116B)

7100 Old Landover Road

Landover, MD 20785-1506

Regardless of which address you use, 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, or

(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, or

\(2\) 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]{.underline}: 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.

[Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery]{.underline}.

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 84.116B)

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 p.m., Washington, DC time, except Saturdays, Sundays,
and federal holidays.

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--on the application Title Page the CFDA number (84.116B) for
the Comprehensive Program.

\(2\) The Application Control Center will mail a grant application
receipt acknowledgment to you. If you do not receive the grant
application receipt acknowledgment within 15 business days from the
application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of
Education Application Control Center at 202-245-6288.

## Paperwork Burden Statement

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are
required to respond to a collection of information unless such
collection displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control
number for this information collection is 1840-0514. The time required
to complete this information collection is estimated to average 25 hours
per response, including the time to review instructions, search existing
data resources, gather the data needed, and complete and review the
information collection. If you have any comments concerning the accuracy
of the time estimate(s) or suggestions for improving this form, please
write to: Joseph Schubart, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland
Avenue, S.W., Room 9133, Washington, D.C. 20202-4700. If you have
comments or concerns regarding the status of your individual submission
of this form, write directly to: Cassandra H. Courtney, FIPSE
Comprehensive Program Coordinator, Room 6166,1990 K St., N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20006-8544.

Form No: ED 40-514

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc127879639 .anchor}**TITLE PAGE** OMB NO.:
1840-0514

Form Expires : 7/31/2006

**THE COMPREHENSIVE PROGRAM**

**FUND FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION**

**CFDA Number 84.116B** 1. Application Number:

2\. D-U-N-S Number:

.

Employer Identification No.:

3\. Project Director: (Name and Mailing Address) 4. Institutional
Information

Highest Degree Awarded: Type:

\_\_\_\_\_ Two-year \_\_\_\_\_ Public

\_\_\_\_\_ Four-Year \_\_\_\_\_ Private

\_\_\_\_\_ Graduate

\_\_\_\_\_ Doctorate

Telephone: \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ \_\_\_\_\_
Non-degree granting

Fax: \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

E-mail: \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

5\. Federal Funds Requested: 6. Duration of Project:

1st Year \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Starting Date
\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

2nd Year (if applicable) \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Ending Date
\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

3rd Year (if applicable \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Total No. of Months
\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

[Total Amount]{.underline}: \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

7\. Proposal Title:

8\. Brief Abstract of Proposal: (**DO NOT LEAVE THIS BLANK**)

9\. Legal Applicant: (Name and Mailing Address) 10. Population Directly
Benefiting from the Project:

> 11\. Congressional District of the Applicant Institution:

12\. Certification by Authorizing Official

The applicant certifies to the best of his/her knowledge and belief that
the data in this application are true and correct, that the filing of
the application has been duly authorized by the governing body of the
applicant, and that the applicant will comply with the attached
assurances if assistance is approved.

\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

Print Name Title Phone

\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

Signature Date

Instructions for Completing Title Page (Form ED 40‑514)

.

**Item 1.** **Application Number:**. An application PR number will be
assigned to your proposal by the Application Control Center.

**Item 2.** **D-U-N-S Number:** The D-U-N-S Number is assigned to
organizations by Dun & Bradstreet. If you do not know your D-U-N-S
Number, call the toll-free telephone number maintained by Dun &
Bradstreet: 800-333-0505 (Monday - Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Eastern
time). **Employer Identification Number:** Enter the 9-digit number
assigned to your organization for reporting to the Internal Revenue
Service. It is also called the Federal Identification Number and can be
obtained from your business office. If you do not have one, your
business office should contact the Internal Revenue Service. NOTE: No
grant can be awarded without these two numbers.

**Item 3. Project** **Director:** Enter the name and complete mailing
address of the designated Project Director. If no one has been selected,
so indicate and enter the name of the person who can be contacted to
discuss the programmatic aspects of the project. *NOTE: The name and
address listed here will be used to mail proposal status notifications.
Do not forget to include the telephone number and e-mail address. Both
this address and the Legal Applicant address (Item 9) should be fully
completed.*

**Item 4.** **Institutional Information:** Check the appropriate spaces
to indicate both the type of control and the highest degree level
granted by the applicant institution or organization.

**Item 5.** **Federal Funds Requested:** Enter the amount of federal
funds being requested from FIPSE in the first, second, and third years
of the project. Under \"Total Amount\" enter the cumulative amount
requested for the life of the project. *Your request here and on the
separate Budget Summary Form (ED 524) may be for [no more than three
years]{.underline}.*

**Item 6.** **Duration of Project:** Enter the beginning date of the
project. Enter the ending date and the total number of months covered.
Comprehensive Program projects may be funded for *one, two, or three*
years.

**Item 7.** **Proposal Title:** Self‑explanatory.

**Item 8.** **Brief Abstract of Proposal:** This description should be
concise (a few sentences) and confined to the space provided, but in no
case should you leave this space blank.

**Item 9. Legal Applicant:** Enter the name and complete mailing address
of the nonprofit institution or agency which will serve as the legal
applicant (fiscal agent). When more than one institution or agency is
involved, enter the name of the one which will be responsible for budget
control. *Official notifications of grant awards are sent to this
address*. Remember to complete this section fully.

**Item 10. Population Directly Benefiting from the Project:** Please be
specific and include both the approximate number to be benefited and
their general characteristics (e.g. "200 non-traditional students").

**Item 11. Congressional District of the Applicant Institution**:
Self-explanatory.

**Item 12. Certification by Authorizing Official:** Enter the name,
title, and phone number of the official who has the authority both to
commit the organization to accept federal funding and to execute the
proposed project. Submit the original ink‑signed copy of the authorizing
official\'s signature.

**FORMS TO BE INCLUDED HERE:**

1.  Budget Information Form (ED 524)

2.  Assurances (Standard Form 424B)

3.  Certification Regarding Lobbying (ED 80-0013)

4.  Survey on Ensuring Equal Opportunity for Applicants (for non-profit
    applicants)

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc127879640 .anchor}**USE THIS CHECKLIST TO PREPARE
YOUR APPLICATION PACKAGE**

**[3-Weeks before the Application Deadline:]{.underline}**

\_\_\_\_\_ The Statement of Intent to Submit an Application was mailed
to FIPSE three weeks before the

application deadline. (See instructions under "Guide to Proposal
Development--The Review

Process."

**[On or Before the Application Deadline:]{.underline}**

**\_\_\_\_\_**Title Page has been completed according to the
instructions in this booklet.

\_\_\_\_\_The submitted application package includes

\[ \] The Title Page

\[ \] One-page abstract of the proposed project

> \[ \] Proposal narrative, not to exceed twenty (20) double-spaced,
> numbered pages formatted as

described in the "Guide to Proposal Development--Review Requirements and
Process."

\[ \] Completed Budget Summary Form (ED 524)

> \[ \] Budget detail and narrative

\[ \] Partner contact information (if applicable)

> \[ \] Appendices including:

-   A project evaluation chart,

-   Key project personnel summaries,

-   Response to Section 427 of GEPA (equitable access statement),

-   Any information on projects complementing the funding request to
    FIPSE, and

-   Any letters of support.

\[ \] Completed Survey on Ensuring Equal Opportunity for Applicants

> (applicable only to private nonprofit organizations other than private
> colleges and universities)
>
> \[ \] Certification pages and assurances page

**[Within 3 Working Days After Submitting Your
Application]{.underline}**

\_\_\_\_\_Title Page has been signed and dated by an authorized
official, and the signed original has

been faxed to the Application Control Center at 202-245-6272.

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  *Proposals must be submitted by 4:30 p.m. on May 26, 2006* using
  e-Application, which is available through the Department's e-Grants
  system at:
  [http://e-grants.ed.gov](http://e-grants.ed.gov/)[.]{.underline}

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

[^1]: ¹This program information is intended to aid applicants in
    applying for assistance under this competition. Nothing in this
    application package is intended to impose any paperwork, application
    content, reporting, or grantee performance requirement beyond those
    specifically imposed under the statute and regulations governing the
    competition.