36574 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 146 / Monday, July 30, 2018 / Notices 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Department of Education (ED), in 

accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 

3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general 

public and Federal agencies with an 

opportunity to comment on proposed, 

revised, and continuing collections of 

information. This helps the Department 

assess the impact of its information 

collection requirements and minimize 

the public’s reporting burden. It also 

helps the public understand the 

Department’s information collection 

requirements and provide the requested 

data in the desired format. ED is 

soliciting comments on the proposed 

information collection request (ICR) that 

is described below. The Department of 

Education is especially interested in 

public comment addressing the 

following issues: (1) Is this collection 

necessary to the proper functions of the 

Department; (2) will this information be 

processed and used in a timely manner; 

(3) is the estimate of burden accurate; 

(4) how might the Department enhance 

the quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information to be collected; and (5) how 

might the Department minimize the 

burden of this collection on the 

respondents, including through the use 

of information technology. Please note 

that written comments received in 

response to this notice will be 

considered public records. 

Title of Collection: Paul Douglas 

Teacher Scholarship Performance 

Report Form. 

OMB Control Number: 1840–0787. 

Type of Review: An extension of an 

existing information collection. 

Respondents/Affected Public: State, 

Local, and Tribal Governments. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Responses: 10. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Burden Hours: 120. 

Abstract: The Paul Douglas Teacher 

Scholarship program was designed to 

issue grants to the states to provide 

scholarships to outstanding secondary 

school graduates who demonstrated an 

interest in teaching careers at the 

preschool, elementary, or secondary 

level. Although the program is no longer 

funded, the annual performance report 

is necessary to monitor and evaluate the 

compliance of the remaining state 

education agencies. 

Dated: July 25, 2018. 

Kate Mullan, 

Acting Director, Information Collection 

Clearance Division, Office of the Chief Privacy 

Officer, Office of Management. 

[FR Doc. 2018–16211 Filed 7–27–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Applications for New Awards; Fund for 

the Improvement of Postsecondary 

Education—Pilot Program for 

Cybersecurity Education 

Technological Upgrades for 

Community Colleges 

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary 

Education, Department of Education. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Education 

is issuing a notice inviting applications 

for new awards for fiscal year (FY) 2018 

for the Fund for the Improvement of 

Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)—Pilot 

Program for Cybersecurity Education 

Technological Upgrades for Community 

Colleges, Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CFDA) number 84.116R. 

DATES: 

Applications Available: July 30, 2018. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: August 29, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: For the addresses for 

obtaining and submitting an 

application, please refer to our Common 

Instructions for Applicants to 

Department of Education Discretionary 

Grant Programs, published in the 

Federal Register on February 12, 2018 

(83 FR 6003) and available at 

www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2018-02-12/ 

pdf/2018-02558.pdf. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Pearson Owens, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 

Room 250–12, Washington, DC 20202. 

Telephone: (202) 453–7997. Email: 

pearson.owens@ed.gov. 

If you use a telecommunications 

device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 

telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay 

Service (FRS), toll free, at 1–800–877– 

8339. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Full Text of Announcement 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Purpose of Program: The Pilot 

Program for Cybersecurity Education 

Technological Upgrades for Community 

Colleges is designed to support projects 

at institutions of higher education 

(IHEs) that provide technological 

upgrades for cybersecurity education 

programs at community colleges. 

Priority: This notice includes one 

absolute priority. We are establishing 

this priority for the FY 2018 grant 

competition, and any subsequent year in 

which we make awards from the list of 

unfunded applications from this 

competition, in accordance with section 

437(d)(1) of the General Education 

Provisions Act (GEPA), 20 U.S.C. 

1232(d)(1). 

Absolute Priority: This priority is an 

absolute priority. Under 34 CFR 

75.105(c)(3) we consider only 

applications that meet this priority. 

This priority is: 

Collaboration. 

Background: The National Science 

Foundation’s Advanced Technological 

Education (ATE) Program has awarded 

large grants to three community colleges 

to operate centers that support the 

improvement of cybersecurity education 

at community colleges around the 

Nation. Those centers are the National 

CyberWatch Center, based at Prince 

George’s Community College (Largo, 

MD); the CyberWatch West Center, 

based at Whatcom Community College 

(Bellingham, WA); and the Center for 

Systems Security and Information 

Assurance (CSSIA), based at Moraine 

Valley Community College (Palos Hills, 

IL). Those centers coordinate a large 

network of affiliated institutions, 

including more than 100 community 

colleges. 

Priority: To build on the experience 

and ongoing initiatives of the ATE 

Program, this priority requires 

applicants to collaborate with an ATE 

Program center. An eligible applicant 

must propose to lead a project to 

provide technological upgrades for 

cybersecurity education programs at 

community colleges that leverages the 

expertise of the National Science 

Foundation’s ATE Program. 

Each eligible applicant must include 

a signed statement by an authorized 

official from at least one of the three 

ATE Program centers: The National 

CyberWatch Center, the CyberWatch 

West Center, or CSSIA. The signed 

statement must certify that the center or 

centers will provide technical assistance 

or other aid to the applicant’s project. 

Note: It is not required for a community 

college to have an existing relationship with 

an ATE Program center to meet this absolute 

priority. 

Definition: We are establishing the 

following definition under section 

437(d)(1) of GEPA for FY 2018 and any 

subsequent year in which we make 

awards from the list of unfunded 

applications from this competition. 

Community college means an 

institution that meets the definition in 

section 312(f) of the Higher Education 

Act of 1965, as amended (HEA) (20 

U.S.C. 1058(f)); or an institution of 

higher education (as defined in section 

101 of the HEA (20 U.S.C. 1001)) that 

awards degrees and certificates, more 

than 50 percent of which are not 

bachelor’s degrees (or an equivalent) or 

master’s, professional, or other 

advanced degrees. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 146 / Monday, July 30, 2018 / Notices 36575 

Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking: 

Under the Administrative Procedure Act 

(5 U.S.C. 553), the Department generally 

offers interested parties the opportunity 

to comment on proposed priorities and 

definitions. Section 437(d)(1) of GEPA, 

however, allows the Secretary to exempt 

from rulemaking requirements 

regulations governing the first grant 

competition under a new or 

substantially revised program authority. 

This is the first grant competition for 

this program under 20 U.S.C. 1138– 

1138d and therefore qualifies for this 

exemption. In order to ensure timely 

grant awards, the Secretary has decided 

to forgo public comment on the priority 

and definition under section 437(d)(1) 

of GEPA. The priority and definition 

will apply to the FY 2018 grant 

competition and any subsequent year in 

which we make awards from the list of 

unfunded applications from this 

competition. 

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1138– 

1138d. 

Applicable Regulations: (a) The 

Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations in 34 CFR 

parts 75, 77, 79, 81, 82, 84, 86, 97, 98, 

and 99. (b) The Office of Management 

and Budget Guidelines to Agencies on 

Governmentwide Debarment and 

Suspension (Nonprocurement) in 2 CFR 

part 180, as adopted and amended as 

regulations of the Department in 2 CFR 

part 3485. (c) The Uniform 

Administrative Requirements, Cost 

Principles, and Audit Requirements for 

Federal Awards in 2 CFR part 200, as 

adopted and amended as regulations of 

the Department in 2 CFR part 3474. 

II. Award Information 

Type of Award: Discretionary grants. 

Estimated Available Funds: $990,000. 

Estimated Range of Awards: $25,000– 

$100,000 for a 24-month budget period. 

Estimated Average Size of Awards: 

$99,000. 

Maximum Award: We will not make 

an award exceeding $100,000 for a 

single budget period of 24 months. 

Estimated Number of Awards: 10. 

Note: The Department is not bound by any 

estimates in this notice. 

Project Period: Up to 24 months. 

III. Eligibility Information 

1. Eligible Applicants: Community 

colleges that include a signed statement 

from at least one of the ATE Program 

centers certifying that the center or 

centers will provide technical assistance 

or other aid to the applicant’s project. 

2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This 

program does not require cost sharing or 

matching. 

3. Subgrantees: Under 34 CFR 

75.708(b) and (c) a grantee under this 

competition may award subgrants—to 

directly carry out project activities 

described in its application—to the 

following types of entities: Public or 

private entitites that provide technology 

or infrastructure services. The grantee 

may only award subgrants to entities it 

has identified in an approved 

application. 

IV. Application and Submission 

Information 

1. Application Submission 

Instructions: For information on how to 

submit an application please refer to our 

Common Instructions for Applicants to 

Department of Education Discretionary 

Grant Programs, published in the 

Federal Register on February 12, 2018 

(83 FR 6003), and available at 

www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2018-02-12/ 

pdf/2018-02558.pdf. 

2. Intergovernmental Review: This 

competition is subject to Executive 

Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 

CFR part 79. 

However, under 34 CFR 79.8(a), we 

waive intergovernmental review in 

order to make awards by the end of FY 

2018. 

3. Funding Restrictions: We reference 

regulations outlining funding 

restrictions in the Applicable 

Regulations section of this notice. 

Note: Hardware to be provided to 

individual students, such as laptops, tablets, 

or smartphones, is not an allowable cost 

under this competition. 

4. Recommended Page Limit: The 

application narrative is where you, the 

applicant, address the selection criteria 

that reviewers use to evaluate your 

application. We recommend that you (1) 

limit the application narrative to no 

more than 12 pages and (2) use the 

following standards: 

• A ‘‘page’’ is 8.5′′ x 11′′, on one side 

only, with 1′′ margins at the top, bottom, 

and both sides. 

• Double space all text in the 

application narrative, including titles, 

headings, footnotes, quotations, 

references, and captions. 

• Use a readable 12-point font such as 

Times New Roman, Courier, Courier 

New, or Arial. 

The recommended page limit does not 

apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II, 

the budget section, including the 

narrative budget justification; Part IV, 

the assurances and certifications; or the 

one-page abstract, the resumes, the 

bibliography, or the letter of support. 

V. Application Review Information 

1. Selection Criteria: The selection 

criteria for this competition are from 34 

CFR 75.210. The maximum score for all 

of the selection criteria is 48 points. The 

maximum score for each criterion is 

included in parentheses following the 

title of the specific selection criterion. 

Each criterion also includes the factors 

that reviewers will consider in 

determining the extent to which an 

applicant meets the criterion. 

The selection criteria are as follows: 

A. Need for Project (up to 20 points). 

The Secretary considers the need for 

the proposed project. In determining the 

need for the proposed project, the 

Secretary considers the following 

factors: 

(1) The magnitude or severity of the 

problem to be addressed by the 

proposed project. 

(2) The extent to which specific gaps 

or weaknesses in services, 

infrastructure, or opportunities have 

been identified and will be addressed by 

the proposed project, including the 

nature and magnitude of those gaps or 

weaknesses. 

B. Quality of the Project Design (up to 

12 points). 

The Secretary considers the quality of 

the design of the proposed project. In 

determining the quality of the design of 

the proposed project, the Secretary 

considers the following factors: 

(1) The extent to which the goals, 

objectives, and outcomes to be achieved 

by the proposed project are clearly 

specified and measurable. 

(2) 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. 

(3) 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. 

C. Adequacy of Resources (up to 12 

points). 

The Secretary considers the adequacy 

of resources for the proposed project. In 

determining the adequacy of resources 

for the proposed project, the Secretary 

considers the following factors: 

(1) The relevance and demonstrated 

commitment of each partner in the 

proposed project to the implementation 

and success of the project. 

(2) The extent to which the costs are 

reasonable in relation to the objectives, 

design, and potential significance of the 

proposed project. 

D. Quality of the Project Evaluation 

Plan (up to 4 points). 

The Secretary considers the quality of 

the evaluation to be conducted of the 

proposed project. In determining the 

quality of the evaluation, the Secretary 

considers the following factors: 

(1) The extent to which the methods 

of evaluation are thorough, feasible, and 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES
36576 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 146 / Monday, July 30, 2018 / Notices 

appropriate to the goals, objectives, and 

outcomes of the proposed project. 

(2) 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. 

2. Review and Selection Process: We 

remind potential applicants that in 

reviewing applications in any 

discretionary grant competition, the 

Secretary may consider, under 34 CFR 

75.217(d)(3), the past performance of the 

applicant in carrying out a previous 

award, such as the applicant’s use of 

funds, achievement of project 

objectives, and compliance with grant 

conditions. The Secretary may also 

consider whether the applicant failed to 

submit a timely performance report or 

submitted a report of unacceptable 

quality. 

In addition, in making a competitive 

grant award, the Secretary requires 

various assurances, including those 

applicable to Federal civil rights laws 

that prohibit discrimination in programs 

or activities receiving Federal financial 

assistance from the Department (34 CFR 

100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23). 

For this competition, a panel of 

internal reviewers will read, prepare a 

written evaluation of, and score all 

eligible applications using the selection 

criteria provided in this notice. The 

individual scores of the reviewers will 

be added and the sum divided by the 

number of reviewers to determine the 

peer review score. The Department may 

use more than one tier of reviews in 

evaluating grantees. The Department 

prepares a rank order of applications 

based solely on the evaluation of their 

quality according to the selection 

criteria. 

In the event there are two or more 

applications with the same final score in 

the rank order listing, and there are 

insufficient funds to fully support these 

applications, the Department will apply 

a tiebreaker by awarding funds to the 

applicant with the largest number of 

students enrolled in cybersecurity 

education programs in the applicant’s 

most recent academic year. 

3. Risk Assessment and Specific 

Conditions: Consistent with 2 CFR 

200.205, before awarding grants under 

this competition the Department 

conducts a review of the risks posed by 

applicants. Under 2 CFR 3474.10, the 

Secretary may impose specific 

conditions and, in appropriate 

circumstances, high-risk conditions on a 

grant if the applicant or grantee is not 

financially stable; has a history of 

unsatisfactory performance; has a 

financial or other management system 

that does not meet the standards in 2 

CFR part 200, subpart D; has not 

fulfilled the conditions of a prior grant; 

or is otherwise not responsible. 

4. Integrity and Performance System: 

If you are selected under this 

competition to receive an award that 

over the course of the project period 

may exceed the simplified acquisition 

threshold (currently $150,000), under 2 

CFR 200.205(a)(2) we must make a 

judgment about your integrity, business 

ethics, and record of performance under 

Federal awards—that is, the risk posed 

by you as an applicant—before we make 

an award. In doing so, we must consider 

any information about you that is in the 

integrity and performance system 

(currently referred to as the Federal 

Awardee Performance and Integrity 

Information System (FAPIIS)), 

accessible through the System for 

Award Management. You may review 

and comment on any information about 

yourself that a Federal agency 

previously entered and that is currently 

in FAPIIS. 

Please note that, if the total value of 

your currently active grants, cooperative 

agreements, and procurement contracts 

from the Federal Government exceeds 

$10,000,000, the reporting requirements 

in 2 CFR part 200, Appendix XII, 

require you to report certain integrity 

information to FAPIIS semiannually. 

Please review the requirements in 2 CFR 

part 200, Appendix XII, if this grant 

plus all the other Federal funds you 

receive exceed $10,000,000. 

VI. Award Administration Information 

1. Award Notices: If your application 

is successful, we notify your U.S. 

Representative and U.S. Senators and 

send you a Grant Award Notification 

(GAN); or we may send you an email 

containing a link to access an electronic 

version of your GAN. We may notify 

you informally, also. 

If your application is not evaluated or 

not selected for funding, we notify you. 

2. Administrative and National Policy 

Requirements: We identify 

administrative and national policy 

requirements in the application package 

and reference these and other 

requirements in the Applicable 

Regulations section of this notice. 

We reference the regulations outlining 

the terms and conditions of an award in 

the Applicable Regulations section of 

this notice and include these and other 

specific conditions in the GAN. The 

GAN also incorporates your approved 

application as part of your binding 

commitments under the grant. 

3. Open Licensing Requirements: 

Unless an exception applies, if you are 

awarded a grant under this competition, 

you will be required to openly license 

to the public grant deliverables created 

in whole, or in part, with Department 

grant funds. When the deliverable 

consists of modifications to pre-existing 

works, the license extends only to those 

modifications that can be separately 

identified and only to the extent that 

open licensing is permitted under the 

terms of any licenses or other legal 

restrictions on the use of pre-existing 

works. Additionally, a grantee or 

subgrantee that is awarded competitive 

grant funds must have a plan to 

disseminate these public grant 

deliverables. This dissemination plan 

can be developed and submitted after 

your application has been reviewed and 

selected for funding. For additional 

information on the open licensing 

requirements please refer to 2 CFR 

3474.20. 

4. Reporting: (a) If you apply for a 

grant under this competition, you must 

ensure that you have in place the 

necessary processes and systems to 

comply with the reporting requirements 

in 2 CFR part 170 should you receive 

funding under the competition. This 

does not apply if you have an exception 

under 2 CFR 170.110(b). 

(b) At the end of your project period, 

you must submit a final performance 

report, including financial information, 

as directed by the Secretary. If you 

receive a multiyear award, you must 

submit an annual performance report 

that provides the most current 

performance and financial expenditure 

information as directed by the Secretary 

under 34 CFR 75.118. The Secretary 

may also require more frequent 

performance reports under 34 CFR 

75.720(c). For specific requirements on 

reporting, please go to www.ed.gov/ 

fund/grant/apply/appforms/ 

appforms.html. 

5. Performance Measure: The 

Department will use the following 

performance measure in assessing the 

performance of the Pilot Program for 

Cybersecurity Education Technological 

Upgrades for Community Colleges 

grants: 

The number of students who enrolled 

in courses supported by the 

technological upgrades developed 

through the grant in the year following 

completion of the project. 

VII. Other Information 

Accessible Format: Individuals with 

disabilities can obtain this document 

and a copy of the application package in 

an accessible format (e.g., Braille, large 

print, audiotape, or compact disc) on 

request to the program contact person 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 146 / Monday, July 30, 2018 / Notices 36577 

1Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of 

Labor, The Economics Daily, College tuition and 

fees increase 63 percent since January 2006 (https:// 

www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2016/college-tuition-andfees-increase-63-percent-since-january-2006.htm). 

2National Center of Education Statistics, 2017 

Digest of Education Statistics, (https://nces.ed.gov/ 

programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_

330.40.asp?current=yes). 

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

The official version of this document is 

the document published in the Federal 

Register. You may access the official 

edition of the Federal Register and the 

Code of Federal Regulations via the 

Federal Digital System at: www.gpo.gov/ 

fdsys. At this site you can view this 

document, as well as all other 

documents of this Department 

published in the Federal Register, in 

text or Portable Document Format 

(PDF). To use PDF you must have 

Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is 

available free at the site. 

You may also access documents of the 

Department published in the Federal 

Register by using the article search 

feature at: www.federalregister.gov. 

Specifically, through the advanced 

search feature at this site, you can limit 

your search to documents published by 

the Department. 

Dated: July 24, 2018. 

Diane Auer Jones, 

Principal Deputy Under Secretary Delegated 

To Perform the Duties of Under Secretary 

and Assistant Secretary, Office of 

Postsecondary Education. 

[FR Doc. 2018–16259 Filed 7–27–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Applications for New Awards; Fund for 

the Improvement of Postsecondary 

Education—Open Textbooks Pilot 

Program 

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary 

Education, Department of Education. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Education 

is issuing a notice inviting applications 

for new awards for fiscal year (FY) 2018 

for the Open Textbooks Pilot program 

conducted under the Fund for the 

Improvement of Postsecondary 

Education (FIPSE), Catalog of Federal 

Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number 

84.116T. 

DATES: 

Applications Available: July 30, 2018. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: August 29, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: For the addresses for 

obtaining and submitting an 

application, please refer to our Common 

Instructions for Applicants to 

Department of Education Discretionary 

Grant Programs, published in the 

Federal Register on February 12, 2018 

(83 FR 6003) and available at 

www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2018-02-12/ 

pdf/2018-02558.pdf. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Stacey Slijepcevic, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 

Room 268–32, Washington, DC 20202. 

Telephone: (202) 453–6150. Email: 

stacey.slijepcevic@ed.gov. 

If you use a telecommunications 

device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 

telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay 

Service (FRS), toll free, at 1–800–877– 

8339. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Full Text of Announcement 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Purpose of Program: The Open 

Textbooks Pilot program supports 

projects at institutions of higher 

education (IHEs) that create new open 

textbooks (as defined in this notice) or 

expand their use of open textbooks 

while maintaining or improving 

instruction and student learning 

outcomes. Applicants are encouraged to 

develop projects that demonstrate the 

greatest potential to achieve the highest 

level of savings for students through 

sustainable, expanded use of open 

textbooks in high-enrollment courses (as 

defined in this notice) or in programs 

that prepare individuals for in-demand 

fields. 

Background: The growth in college 

textbook costs is a key component of the 

overall increase in the cost of attending 

college. The cost of college textbooks 

increased 88 percent between 2006 and 

2016.1 In the 2016–17 academic year, 

the average college student budget for 

books and supplies was $1,263 for 

students attending 4-year institutions 

and $1,458 for students attending 2-year 

institutions.2 Increasing textbook costs 

introduce an additional barrier to 

college access and completion, 

particularly for low-income students. In 

recent years, the development of open 

textbooks has emerged as a potential 

solution to increasing college textbook 

costs. While open textbooks often 

support general education or 

introductory courses, the Department 

seeks to promote degree completion by 

supporting the development of open 

textbooks for courses at different levels 

within an academic program. Therefore, 

this pilot program emphasizes the 

expansion of the use of existing open 

textbooks developed for general 

education or introductory courses, and 

the development of open textbooks for 

several required courses in one or more 

high-enrollment majors to ensure that 

students will benefit from cost savings 

throughout their programs. 

There is also a shortage of open 

textbooks to support instruction in 

career and technical education, where it 

is equally important to help students 

reduce costs. Technical textbooks are 

among the more expensive books that 

students must purchase, and they often 

must be updated frequently to keep pace 

with changing technologies, which adds 

to the costs associated with these books. 

Because of the frequent updates, 

students are prevented from relying on 

lower-cost used books. To ensure that 

students in career and technical 

education programs have access to lowcost textbooks that are up-to-date, the 

Department encourages the 

development of open textbooks that 

would support students enrolled in 

high-enrollment programs (as defined in 

this notice) for career and technical 

education associate degrees, or career 

and technical education associate 

degree programs designed to meet the 

needs of in-demand occupations and 

industries (as defined in this notice. 

Priorities: This notice includes three 

absolute priorities and one competitive 

preference priority. 

We are establishing these priorities for 

the FY 2018 grant competition and any 

subsequent year in which we make 

awards from the list of unfunded 

applications from this competition in 

accordance with section 437(d)(1) of the 

General Education Provisions Act 

(GEPA), 20 U.S.C. 1232(d)(1). 

Absolute Priorities: These priorities 

are absolute priorities. Under 34 CFR 

75.105(c)(3) we consider only 

applications that meet all three of these 

priorities. 

These priorities are: 

Absolute Priority 1—Improving 

Collaboration and Dissemination 

Through Consortia Arrangements. 

An eligible applicant must propose to 

lead and carry out a consortium project 

that leverages the expertise and 

resources of at least three IHEs, 

including the lead applicant, and that 

engages employers or workforce 

stakeholders (as defined in this notice) 

and/or nonprofit or community 

organizations, as appropriate, to 

participate in the project. These entities 

are described below under Eligible 

Applicants. Applicants must explain 

how the members of the consortium will 

work in partnership to develop and 

implement open textbooks that: (a) 

Reduce the cost of college for large 

numbers of students by reducing 

textbook costs and (b) contain content 


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