Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 8 / Thursday, January 12, 1995 / Notices 3029

Duration: Applications will be

accepted for projects from at least 21

days to no more than 30 days duration.

Programs should be completed by

September 30, 1995.

Guidelines: Preference will be given

to organizations with demonstrated

expertise in the proposed workshop/

seminar fields.

Previous experience with conducting

scholarly seminars in the People’s

Republic of China and/or current

working relations with Chinese

educational institutions will be

considered a plus. A substantive history

of organizing subject-specific programs

led by acknowledged experts in the field

who also have considerable teaching

experience is highly advantageous.

Proposals should present a very clearly

designed program plan that shows

specific objectives and that

demonstrates the likelihood of

substantive follow-through. Be specific

as to what issues the workshop/seminar

will address and who the intended

audience is. In the context of the

intended audience(s), please describe

clearly the proposed approach, e.g.,

didactic, participatory, etc., and

resource materials to be used.

Proposed Budget

Organizations must submit a

comprehensive line item budget based

on the specific guidance in the

Solicitation Package. Project awards to

U.S. institutions can be made in a range

of amounts but will not exceed $75,000.

The Agency reserves the right to reduce,

revise or increase budgets. For

organizations with less than four years

of experience in international exchange

activities, total grants will be limited to

a maximum of $60,000 from USIA, and

total proposed budgets should not

exceed this amount.

Please Note: Applicants must submit

a comprehensive budget for the entire

program. There must be a summary

budget as well as a breakdown reflecting

both the administrative budget and the

program budget. For better

understanding or further clarification,

applicants may provide a separate subbudget for each program component,

phase, location, or activity in order to

facilitate USIA decisions on funding.

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 established

herein and in the Solicitation Package.

Eligible proposals will be forwarded to

panels of USIA officers for advisory

review. All eligible proposals will also

be reviewed by the Agency’s Office of

East Asian and Pacific Affairs, the USIS

section of the American Embassy in

Beijing, and the Agency contracts

offices. Proposals may also be reviewed

by the Agency’s Office of General

Counsel or other Agency elements.

Funding decisions are at the discretion

of the USIA Associate Director for

Educational and Cultural Affairs.

Final technical authority for grant

awards resides with USIA’s contracting

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 Program Idea: Proposals

should exhibit originality, substance,

precision, and relevance to Agency

mission.

2. Program Planning: Detailed agenda

and relevant work plan should

demonstrate substantive undertakings

and logistical capacity. Agenda and plan

should adhere to the program overview

and guidelines described above.

3. Ability to achieve program

objectives: Objectives should be

reasonable, feasible and flexible.

Proposals should clearly demonstrate

how the institution will meet the

program’s objectives and plan.

4. Multiplier Effect/impact: Proposed

program should strengthen long-term

mutual understanding, including

maximum sharing of information and

establishment of long-term institutional

and individual linkages.

5. Support of Diversity: Proposals

should demonstrate the recipient’s

commitment to promoting the

awareness and understanding of

diversity.

6. Institutional Capacity: Proposed

personnel and institutional resources

should be adequate and appropriate to

achieve the program or project’s goals.

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 insures that USIA

supported programs are not isolated

events.

9. Project Evaluation: Proposals

should include a plan to evaluate the

program’s success, both as the activities

unfold and at the end of the program.

USIA recommends that the proposal

include a draft survey questionnaire or

other technique plus description of a

methodology to use to link outcomes to

original project objectives. Awardreceiving organizations/institutions will

be expected to submit intermediate

reports after each project component is

concluded or quarterly, whichever is

less frequent.

10. Cost-effectiveness: The overhead

and administration 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.

12. Value to U.S.-Partner Country

Relations: Proposed projects should

receive positive assessments by USIA’s

geographic area office and overseas

offices of program need, potential

impact, and significance in the partner

country.

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. Final award cannot be

made until funds have been fully

appropriated by Congress, allocated and

committed through internal USIA

procedures.

Notification

All applicants will be notified of the

results of the review process on or about

May 12, 1995. Awards made will be

subject to periodic reporting and

evaluation requirements.

Dated: January 5, 1995.

John P. Loiello,

Associate Director for Educational and

Cultural Affairs.

[FR Doc. 95–711 Filed 1–11–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8230–01–M