9020 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 39 / Thursday, February 27, 1997 / Notices

Please refer to the Solicitation

Package for complete budget guidelines

and formatting instructions.

Review Process

USIA will acknowledge receipt of all

proposals and will review them for

technical eligibility. Proposals will be

deemed ineligible if they do not fully

adhere to the guidelines stated herein

and in the Solicitation Package. Eligible

proposals will be forwarded to panels of

USIA officers for advisory review. All

eligible proposals will be reviewed by

the program office, as well as the USIA

Office of African Affairs and the USIA

post overseas, where appropriate.

Proposals may be reviewed by the Office

of the General Counsel or by other

Agency elements. Funding decisions are

at the discretion of the USIA Associate

Director for Educational and Cultural

Affairs. Final technical authority for

assistance awards (grants or cooperative

agreements) resides with the USIA

grants officer.

Review Criteria

Technically eligible applications will

be competitively reviewed according to

the criteria stated below. These criteria

are not rank ordered and all carry equal

weight in the proposal evaluation:

1. Quality of the program idea:

Proposal should exhibit quality, rigor,

and appropriateness of proposed

syllabus to the academic objectives of

the Institute. Proposal should

demonstrate effective use of community

and regional resources to enhance the

cultural and educational experiences of

participants.

2. Program planning: Relevant work

plan and detailed calendar should

demonstrate substantive undertakings

and logistical capacity. Plan and

calendar should adhere to the program

overview and guidelines described

above.

3. Institutional capacity: Proposed

personnel and institutional resources

should be adequate and appropriate to

achieve a substantive academic EFL

program and effective cross-cultural

communication with African

participants. Proposals should show

evidence of strong on-site

administrative capabilities with specific

discussion of how logistical

arrangements will be undertaken.

4. Multiplier effect/impact: Proposed

program should contribute to long-term,

mutual understanding and sharing of

information about Africa among

Americans, as well as to the

understanding and knowledge of the

U.S. among the African participants.

5. Support of diversity: Proposals

should demonstrate the recipient’s

commitment to promoting the

awareness and understanding of

diversity. Program administrators

should strive for diversity among

Institute staff, university students, and

the host community who interact with

participants.

6. Ability to achieve program

objectives: Teaching objectives should

be reasonable, feasible, and flexible.

Proposals should clearly demonstrate

how the institution will meet the

program’s objectives and plan.

7. Institution’s record/ability:

Proposals should demonstrate an

institutional record of successful

exchange programs, including

responsible fiscal management and full

compliance with all reporting

requirements for past Agency grants as

determined by USIA’s Office of

Contracts. The Agency will consider the

past performance of prior recipients and

the demonstrated potential of new

applicants.

8. Follow-on activities: Proposals

should provide a plan for continued

follow-on activity (without USIA

support) which ensures that USIA

supported programs are not isolated

events.

9. Project evaluation: Proposals

should include a plan to evaluate the

Summer Institute’s success, both as the

activities unfold and at the end of the

program.

10. Cost-effectiveness: The overhead

and administrative components of the

proposal, including salaries and

honoraria, should be kept as low as

possible. All other items should be

necessary and appropriate.

11. Cost-sharing: Proposals should

maximize cost-sharing through other

private sector support as well as

institutional direct funding

contributions.

Notice

The terms and conditions published

in this RFP are binding and may not be

modified by any USIA representative.

Explanatory information provided by

the Agency that contradicts published

language will not be binding.

Issuance of the RFP does not

constitute an award commitment on the

part of the Government. The Agency

reserves the right to reduce, revise, or

increase proposal budgets in accordance

with the needs of the program and the

availability of funds. Awards made will

be subject to periodic reporting and

evaluation requirements.

Notification

Final awards cannot be made until

funds have been appropriated by

Congress, allocated and committed

through internal USIA procedures.

Dated: February 24, 1997.

Dell Pendergrast,

Deputy Associate Director for Educational

and Cultural Affairs.

[FR Doc. 97–4846 Filed 2–26–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8230–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS

AFFAIRS

Veterans’ Advisory Committee on

Rehabilitation; Notice of Availability of

Annual Report

Under Section 10(b) and Section 13 of

Public Law 92–463 (Federal Advisory

Committee Act), notice is hereby given

that the Veterans’ Advisory Committee

on Rehabilitation Annual report for

Fiscal Year 1995 has been issued.

The report summarizes activities of

the Group relative to VA’s rehabilitation

program. It is available for inspection at

two locations:

Federal Documents Section, Exchange

and Gift Division, LM 632, Library of

Congress, Washington, DC 20540

and

Department of Veterans Affairs,

Vocational Rehabilitation and

Counseling Service (28), 1800 G St.

N.W., Room 501, Washington, DC

20420

Dated February 19, 1997.

By Direction of the Secretary.

Heyward Bannister,

Committee Management Officer.

[FR Doc. 97–4827 Filed 2–26–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8320–01–M

VA Innovations in Nursing Advisory

Committee; Notice of Meeting

As required by section 10(a)(2) of the

Federal Advisory Committee Act, the

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

hereby gives notice that the second

meeting of the VA Innovations in

Nursing Advisory Committee will be

held March 3–4, 1997, in Room C7 at

VA Headquarters, 810 Vermont Avenue,

NW, Washington, DC. The March 3,

1997, session will convene at 9:00 a.m.

and adjourn at 4:30 p.m. The March 4,

1997, session will convene at 8:00 a.m.

and adjourn at 3:00 p.m.

The purpose of the committee is to

study and formulate recommendations

to the Under Secretary for Health on

how VA can generally promote and

support health care innovations in

which nurses play key leadership and

clinical roles and which promote VHA’s

reengineering efforts.