Federal Register: December 18, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 243)
DOCID: FR Doc 03-31230
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
State Department
DOCUMENT ID: [Public Notice 4559]
NOTICE: NOTICES
ACTION: Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.:
SUBJECT CATEGORY:
SUMMARY: The Office of Global Educational Programs of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs announces an open competition to administer the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program. Public and private non-profit organizations meeting the provisions described in Internal Revenue Code section 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) may submit proposals for the purpose of administering a scholarship program for academic study by Americans outside of the United States.
DOCUMENT SUMMARY:
Important Note: This Request for Grant Proposals contains language in the ``Shipment and Deadline for Proposals'' section that is significantly different from that used in the past. Please pay special attention to procedural changes as outlined.
Program Information
This program provides grants to enable U.S. citizen undergraduate students of limited financial means to pursue academic studies abroad. Such foreign study is intended to expand understanding of other countries and cultures among U.S. students, expose citizens of other countries to Americans from diverse backgrounds, and better prepare U.S. students to assume significant roles in an increasingly global economy.
Overview
It is anticipated that, pending appropriation of funds, this grant will provide an assistance award of approximately $1,600,000 for the purpose of recruiting, selecting, and issuing grants of up to $5,000 to individuals who meet the eligibility requirements listed below toward the cost of up to one academic year of undergraduate study abroad. Subject to the availability of funding and to satisfactory performance of the organization selected, this assistance award may be renewable for two subsequent fiscal years.
The intent of the authorizing legislation for the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program is to broaden the U.S. student population that participates in study abroad by focusing on those students who might not otherwise study outside the U.S. due to financial constraints.
The Bureau also seeks to encourage participating students and their [[Page 70578]]
institutions to choose nontraditional studyabroad locations and to
help underrepresented U.S. institutions offer and promote studyabroad
opportunities for their students. These objectives should also be addressed in grant proposals.
Guidelines
The administering organization should be prepared to announce the program and solicit applications as soon as possible upon receipt of grant notification and to award scholarships to U.S. students to enable them to begin overseas study in the fall semester of 2004.
Student Eligibility: To apply for a scholarship, an applicant must:
[sbull] Be a citizen of the United States. Permanent residents of the United States are not eligible.
[sbull] Be an undergraduate student in good standing at an
institution of higher education in the United States (including both twoyear and fouryear institutions).
[sbull] Be a recipient of federal Pell Grant funding during the academic term of his/her application.
[sbull] Be applying to, or accepted for a program of study abroad
eligible for credit from the student's home institution. Proof of
program acceptance is required for final award disbursement.
[sbull] Not study in a country currently under a Travel Warning
issued by the United States Department of State. Travel Warnings are
issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid a
certain country. To find a list of these countries, please see http://travel.state.gov/warnings_list.html .
Recruitment, Application and Selection:
(1) Outreach will be made by the grantee organization to accredited
institutions of higher education in the United States for the purpose
of publicizing the scholarship competition. This can be achieved
through direct contacts with these institutions and through
participation in major education conferences and events. Emphasis will
be on reaching out to a diverse pool of institutions and programs within those institutions.
(2) The selection process shall be carried out through a committee
which includes representatives of accredited institutions of higher education in the United States.
(3) In ranking eligible applicants for scholarships, consideration
should be given to academic excellence, financial need, diversity of
the applicant pool, fields of study, proposed destination, and type and
location of home institution. Preference should be given to applicants with no previous study abroad experience.
Reporting:
The grantee organization will submit quarterly reports on the number of applicants, the number of participants selected, the names of the institutions of higher education in the United States that applicants and awardees were attending at the time of application, the names of institutions sponsoring the study programs abroad, the names and locations of the institutions of higher education outside the United States that participants attended during their study program abroad, the fields of study of participants, and attrition rates. Because diversity is an important program goal, the grantee should attempt to collect age, ethnic, gender, and disability data from applicants and from those selected for awards, in keeping with Federal guidelines on the solicitation of such information. Additionally, the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs may request other periodic and ad hoc reports.
Budget Guidelines
Grants awarded to eligible organizations with less than four years of experience in conducting international exchange programs are limited by Bureau policy to $60,000. The Bureau intends to make one award not to exceed $1,600,000. Accordingly, institutions with less than four years experience are not encouraged to apply. The Bureau encourages applicants to provide maximum levels of costsharing and funding from private sources in support of its programs.
Applicants must submit a comprehensive budget for the entire program. Applicants should budget the maximum possible amount for scholarships and keep administrative and overhead costs to a minimum. There must be a summary budget as well as breakdowns reflecting both administrative and program budgets. Applicants may provide separate subbudgets for each program component, phase, location, or activity to provide clarification.
Allowable costs for the program include the following:
(1) Administrative: Salaries and benefits and other direct
administrative expenses such as postage, phone, printing and office supplies.
(2) Program: Participant expenses, which may include institutional
fees, travel expenses, tuition; expenses related to review panels, including travel and perdiem.
Please refer to the Solicitation Package for complete budget guidelines and formatting instructions.
Announcement Title and Number
All correspondence with the Bureau concerning this RFGP should reference the above title and number ECA/A/S/A0414.
SUMMARY:
Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program,
DOCUMENT BODY 2:
Important Note: This Request for Grant Proposals contains language in the ``Shipment and Deadline for Proposals'' section that is significantly different from that used in the past. Please pay special attention to procedural changes as outlined.
Program Information
This program provides grants to enable U.S. citizen undergraduate students of limited financial means to pursue academic studies abroad. Such foreign study is intended to expand understanding of other countries and cultures among U.S. students, expose citizens of other countries to Americans from diverse backgrounds, and better prepare U.S. students to assume significant roles in an increasingly global economy.
Overview
It is anticipated that, pending appropriation of funds, this grant will provide an assistance award of approximately $1,600,000 for the purpose of recruiting, selecting, and issuing grants of up to $5,000 to individuals who meet the eligibility requirements listed below toward the cost of up to one academic year of undergraduate study abroad. Subject to the availability of funding and to satisfactory performance of the organization selected, this assistance award may be renewable for two subsequent fiscal years.
The intent of the authorizing legislation for the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program is to broaden the U.S. student population that participates in study abroad by focusing on those students who might not otherwise study outside the U.S. due to financial constraints.
The Bureau also seeks to encourage participating students and their [[Page 70578]]
institutions to choose nontraditional studyabroad locations and to
help underrepresented U.S. institutions offer and promote studyabroad
opportunities for their students. These objectives should also be addressed in grant proposals.
Guidelines
The administering organization should be prepared to announce the program and solicit applications as soon as possible upon receipt of grant notification and to award scholarships to U.S. students to enable them to begin overseas study in the fall semester of 2004.
Student Eligibility: To apply for a scholarship, an applicant must:
[sbull] Be a citizen of the United States. Permanent residents of the United States are not eligible.
[sbull] Be an undergraduate student in good standing at an
institution of higher education in the United States (including both twoyear and fouryear institutions).
[sbull] Be a recipient of federal Pell Grant funding during the academic term of his/her application.
[sbull] Be applying to, or accepted for a program of study abroad
eligible for credit from the student's home institution. Proof of
program acceptance is required for final award disbursement.
[sbull] Not study in a country currently under a Travel Warning
issued by the United States Department of State. Travel Warnings are
issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid a
certain country. To find a list of these countries, please see http://travel.state.gov/warnings_list.html .
Recruitment, Application and Selection:
(1) Outreach will be made by the grantee organization to accredited
institutions of higher education in the United States for the purpose
of publicizing the scholarship competition. This can be achieved
through direct contacts with these institutions and through
participation in major education conferences and events. Emphasis will
be on reaching out to a diverse pool of institutions and programs within those institutions.
(2) The selection process shall be carried out through a committee
which includes representatives of accredited institutions of higher education in the United States.
(3) In ranking eligible applicants for scholarships, consideration
should be given to academic excellence, financial need, diversity of
the applicant pool, fields of study, proposed destination, and type and
location of home institution. Preference should be given to applicants with no previous study abroad experience.
Reporting:
The grantee organization will submit quarterly reports on the number of applicants, the number of participants selected, the names of the institutions of higher education in the United States that applicants and awardees were attending at the time of application, the names of institutions sponsoring the study programs abroad, the names and locations of the institutions of higher education outside the United States that participants attended during their study program abroad, the fields of study of participants, and attrition rates. Because diversity is an important program goal, the grantee should attempt to collect age, ethnic, gender, and disability data from applicants and from those selected for awards, in keeping with Federal guidelines on the solicitation of such information. Additionally, the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs may request other periodic and ad hoc reports.
Budget Guidelines
Grants awarded to eligible organizations with less than four years of experience in conducting international exchange programs are limited by Bureau policy to $60,000. The Bureau intends to make one award not to exceed $1,600,000. Accordingly, institutions with less than four years experience are not encouraged to apply. The Bureau encourages applicants to provide maximum levels of costsharing and funding from private sources in support of its programs.
Applicants must submit a comprehensive budget for the entire program. Applicants should budget the maximum possible amount for scholarships and keep administrative and overhead costs to a minimum. There must be a summary budget as well as breakdowns reflecting both administrative and program budgets. Applicants may provide separate subbudgets for each program component, phase, location, or activity to provide clarification.
Allowable costs for the program include the following:
(1) Administrative: Salaries and benefits and other direct
administrative expenses such as postage, phone, printing and office supplies.
(2) Program: Participant expenses, which may include institutional
fees, travel expenses, tuition; expenses related to review panels, including travel and perdiem.
Please refer to the Solicitation Package for complete budget guidelines and formatting instructions.
Announcement Title and Number
All correspondence with the Bureau concerning this RFGP should reference the above title and number ECA/A/S/A0414.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
The Office of Global Educational
Programs, Educational Information and Resources Branch (ECA/A/S/A),
Room 349, U.S. Department of State, 301 4th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20547; telephone 2026195434; fax 2024011433; email
advise@pd.state.gov to request a Solicitation Package. The Solicitation
Package contains detailed award criteria, required application forms,
specific budget instructions, and standard guidelines for proposal
preparation. Please specify Bureau Branch Chief Phillip Ives on all other inquiries and correspondence.
Please read the complete Federal Register announcement before sending inquiries or submitting proposals. Once the RFGP deadline has passed, Bureau staff may not discuss this competition with applicants until the proposal review process has been completed.
To Download a Solicitation Package via Internet
The entire Solicitation Package may be downloaded from the Bureau's Web site at http://exchanges.state.gov/education/RFGPs. Please read all information before downloading.
New OMB Requirement
An OMB policy directive published in the Federal Register on
Friday, June 27, 2003, requires that all organizations applying for
Federal grants or cooperative agreements must provide a Dun and
Bradstreet (D&B) Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number when
applying for all Federal grants or cooperative agreements on or after
October 1, 2003. The complete OMB policy directive can be referenced at
http://exchanges.state.gov/. /exchanges.state.gov/.
with this new directive.
Shipment and Deadline for Proposals
Important Note: The deadline for this competition is Friday,
February 6, 2004. In light of recent events and heightened security
measures, proposal submissions must be sent via a nationally
recognized overnight delivery service (i.e., DHL, Federal Express, UPS, Airborne Express, or U.S. Postal Service
[[Page 70579]]
Express Overnight Mail, etc.) and be shipped no later than the above
deadline. The delivery services used by applicants must have in
place, centralized shipping identification and tracking systems that
may be accessed via the Internet and delivery people who are
identifiable by commonly recognized competition. Proposals shipped
after the established deadlines are ineligible for consideration
under this competition. It is each applicant's responsibility to
ensure that each package is marked with a legible tracking number
and to monitor/confirm delivery to ECA via the Internet. Delivery of
proposal packages may not be made via local courier service or in
person for this competition. Faxed documents will not be accepted at any time. Only proposals submitted as stated above will be
considered.
Applicants must follow all instructions in the Solicitation Package. The original and 15 copies of the application should be sent to: U.S. Department of State, SA44, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Ref.: ECA/A/S/A0414, Program Management, ECA/EX/PM, Room 534, 301 4th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20547.
Diversity, Freedom and Democracy Guidelines
Pursuant to the Bureau's authorizing legislation, programs must maintain a nonpolitical character and should be balanced and representative of the diversity of American political, social, and cultural life. ``Diversity'' should be interpreted in the broadest sense and encompass differences including, but not limited to ethnicity, race, gender, religion, geographic location, socioeconomic status, and physical challenges. Applicants are strongly encouraged to adhere to the advancement of this principle both in program administration and in program content. Please refer to the review criteria under the ``Support for Diversity'' section for specific suggestions on incorporating diversity into the total proposal. Public Law 104319 provides that ``in carrying out programs of educational and cultural exchange in countries whose people do not fully enjoy freedom and democracy,'' the Bureau ``shall take appropriate steps to provide opportunities for participation in such programs to human rights and democracy leaders of such countries.'' Public Law 106113 requires that the governments of the countries described above do not have inappropriate influence in the selection process. Proposals should reflect advancement of these goals in their program contents, to the full extent deemed feasible.
Adherence to All Regulations Governing the J Visa
Please note: The following is being communicated for informational purposes only and does not directly apply to this solicitation or program. The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs is placing renewed emphasis on the secure and proper administration of Exchange Visitor (J visa) Programs and adherence by grantees and sponsors to all regulations governing the J visa. Therefore, proposals should demonstrate the applicant's capacity to meet all requirements governing the administration of Exchange Visitor Programs as set forth in 22 CFR 6Z, including the oversight of Responsible Officers and Alternate Responsible Officers, screening and selection of program participants, provision of pre arrival information and orientation to participants, monitoring of participants, proper maintenance and security of forms, record keeping, reporting and other requirements.
A copy of the complete regulations governing the administration of
Exchange Visitor (J) programs is available at http://exchanges.state.gov
or from: United States Department of State, Office
of Exchange Coordination and Designation, ECA/EC/ECDSA44, Room 734,
301 4th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20547. Telephone: (202) 4019810.