FEDERAL
AGENCY: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
(EPA) Office of Environmental Education
TITLE: Environmental Education Regional Grants --
Solicitation Notice for 2011
ACTION: Solicitation Notice
RFP
NUMBER: EPA-EE-11-02
Catalog
of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA): 66.951
Purpose: The
purpose of the Environmental Education Regional Grant Program is to increase
public awareness and knowledge about environmental issues and provide the
skills that participants in its funded projects need to make informed
environmental decisions and take responsible actions toward the environment.
Application Deadline: Applications must be postmarked or submitted electronically via www.grants.gov by May 2, 2011, 11:59 pm in order to be considered for funding. See Section IV(D) for more details about the deadline.
Number
and Value of Awards: The total
estimated funding for this competitive opportunity is approximately $1,943,000
nationwide (approximately $194,300 per Region). EPA expects to award a minimum of 2 grants per
Region for an expected minimum of 20 grants nationwide; the minimum award amount is $15,000 and the maximum is $100,000,
subject to the availability of funds, the quality and quantity of applications
received, and other applicable considerations.
Cost Sharing Requirement: Applicants must demonstrate how they will provide non-federal matching funds of at least 25% of the total cost of the project.
Start Date: Applications should plan for projects to start no earlier than September 1, 2011.
CONTENTS
BY SECTION
I. Funding
II. Award
Information
III. Eligibility
Information
IV. Application
and Submission Information
V. Application
Review Information
VI. Award
Administration Information
VII. Agency
Contacts
Appendices
A – Federal Forms and Instructions
B – Checklist for Proposal
C –
Expected Outputs and Outcomes and Examples of Performance Measures (Logic
Model)
D –
Instructions for www.grants.gov Electronic
Submissions
Section
I. Funding
A. Background and Summary
Under this solicitation EPA is seeking grant proposals from eligible applicants to support environmental education projects that promote environmental stewardship and help develop knowledgeable and responsible students, teachers, and citizens. This grant program provides financial support for projects that design, demonstrate, and/or disseminate environmental education practices, methods, or techniques as described in this notice. Under this solicitation EPA expects to award environmental education grants from the 10 EPA Regional offices.
Grantees that receive awards under this solicitation must establish methods to document and report measurable results from grant projects. To ensure that grant proposals are competitive, applicants should carefully read Sections IV and V regarding how to structure a proposal and what criteria will be used to evaluate proposals. Due to the large number of grant applications received, EPA cannot fund all proposals.
Applicants
must demonstrate that any proposals submitted under this solicitation are for
different projects than ones the applicant has previously been awarded funding
for through EPA’s EE program.
B. Definitions
This grant program funds environmental education (EE)
projects. Environmental information and
outreach may be important elements of EE projects, but these activities by
themselves are not environmental education.
It may be helpful to view these activities along a continuum as follows:
By itself, environmental information only addresses
awareness and knowledge, usually about a particular environmental issue. Outreach involves information dissemination
and requests or suggestions for action on a particular issue (often without the
critical thinking, problem solving and decision making steps in between). EE covers the range of steps and activities
from awareness to action with an ultimate goal of environmental stewardship. Below are definitions of these and other
terms used throughout this solicitation.
(1) “Environmental Education (EE)” increases public
awareness and knowledge about environmental issues and provides the
participants in its programs the skills necessary to make informed environmental
decisions and to take responsible actions.
EE is based on objective and scientifically-sound information, and does
not advocate a particular viewpoint or a course of action. EE teaches individuals how to weigh various
sides of an issue through critical thinking and enhances their own problem
solving and decision making skills on environmental topics.
(2) “Environmental Information” provides facts or opinions
about environmental issues or problems. Information
is essential to any educational effort. However,
environmental information is not, by itself, environmental education. Information provides facts or opinions
whereas education teaches people how to think, analyze, and solve problems.
(3) “Environmental Outreach” disseminates information and
sometimes asks audiences to take specific action, but doesn’t necessarily teach
people how to analyze an issue. Outreach
often presents a particular point of view, and often in pursuit of a particular
goal. Examples may include a community
meeting to inform residents about a toxic site in their area and where they can
go for help, or a campaign to get volunteer participants for a beach or stream
cleanup event.
(4) “Environmental Stewardship” is voluntary commitment,
behavior, and action that results in environmental protection or improvement. Stewardship refers to an acceptance of
personal responsibility for actions to improve environmental quality and to
achieve sustainable outcomes.
Stewardship involves lifestyles and business practices, initiatives and
actions that enhance the state of the environment. Some examples are: living or conducting business in such a way
as to minimize or eliminate pollution at its source; use energy and natural
resources efficiently; decrease the use of hazardous chemicals; recycle wastes
effectively; and conserve or restore forests, prairies, wetlands, rivers, and
urban parks. Stewardship can be
practiced by individuals, groups, schools, organizations, companies,
communities, and state and local governments.
C. Educational and
Environmental Priorities
In order to be eligible, all applications must: (1) address at least one of the EPA
educational priorities listed below, (2) address at least one EPA environmental
priority listed below; and, (3) be for a
project that satisfies the definition of “environmental education” as defined
under Section I(B).
The educational and environmental priorities listed below
are not in order of importance or preference.
Proposals may address more than one priority. However, it is important that a project have
a focus rather than addressing multiple priorities at the expense of a quality
outcome. Proposals do not receive extra
points for addressing more than one educational or environmental priority.
EPA’s Educational Priorities are:
(1)
(2) Educational Advancement: Utilizing environmental education as a catalyst to advance state or local education reform goals.
(3) Community Projects: Addressing environmental stewardship in a
local educational context and using community-based stewardship activities as
the primary teaching tool.
(4) Human Health and the Environment: Educating K-12 youth
and post secondary students, and educators in formal and non-formal settings
about human health threats from environmental pollution and how to minimize
human exposure to preserve good health.
(5) EE Teaching Skills: Providing pre-service and in-service
professional development for teachers, faculty, or non-formal educators to
improve their environmental education teaching skills and/or knowledge about
environmental issues and content, such as sustainability, water and air
quality, chemical risks, hazardous wastes, climate change and greenhouse gas
emissions.
(6) Career Development: Educating K-12 youth and post secondary
students, and their educators in formal and non-formal settings about
environmental issues, solutions and stewardship for the purpose of encouraging
interest in environmental careers.
To assist in understanding EPA’s educational priorities for EE grants, detailed descriptions of some of the education priorities are provided below and in a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) online at www.epa.gov/education/grants.html.
For purposes of this grant program, “Capacity Building” refers to developing effective leaders and organizations that design, implement, and link environmental education programs across a state or states to promote long-term sustainability of the networked programs. Coordinated efforts should involve major education and environmental education providers, including state education and natural resource agencies, schools and school districts, professional education associations, and nonprofit educational and tribal organizations. To do this effectively, there needs to be a state plan, a network of trained leaders and qualified providers, funding and other resources that coordinate the efforts. For a proposal to be competitive as “capacity building”, it should identify how the project is linked to a state’s larger efforts statewide (e.g., as an activity within a state’s EE Master Plan or EE Strategic Plan.)
Examples of activities EPA is looking for under this priority include: identifying and assessing needs and setting priorities; developing a state master plan; identifying funding sources and resources; establishing requirements for instruction and curricula; facilitating communication and networking; promoting sustained professional development; and sponsoring leadership seminars.
Examples
of state capacity building projects that have been funded in the past include
the following:
- Kansas
Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (www.epa.gov/education/grants/ks01.htm#NE83408701)
- Virginia
Department of Environmental Quality (www.epa.gov/education/grants/va01.htm#NE833654010)
- Georgia
Department of Natural Resources (www.epa.gov/education/grants/ga01.htm#NE832676010)
(www.epa.gov/education/grants/wa01.htm#NE960298010)
Educational Advancement
Educational Advancement, as used in this solicitation notice, refers to state, local, or tribal efforts to involve environmental education in the improvement of student academic achievement. Educational advancement projects funded in the past have focused on the involvement of environmental education in efforts to change curriculum, instruction, assessment, or how schools are organized. Curriculum and instructional changes may include inquiry and problem solving, real-world learning experiences, project-based learning, team building and group decision-making, and interdisciplinary study. Assessment changes may include developing environmental education content and performance standards and realigning curriculum and instruction to the new standards and new assessments. School site changes may include creating magnet schools or encouraging parental and community involvement in environmental education programs. Proposals that address this educational priority should identify specific educational needs and goals and discuss how the proposed project will address them.
Teaching Skills
EPA has funded various kinds of projects focused on environmental education teaching skills. A resource to help guide projects that address “teaching skills” is the Guidelines for the Preparation and Professional Development of Environmental Educators developed with EPA funds. You may download or order a copy of this publication by going to EPA’s website at www.epa.gov/education/eepubsEPA.htm#guidelines.
EPA’s Environmental Priorities are:
In
addition to addressing at least one educational priority listed above, and
satisfying the definition of environmental education, all proposals must
address at least one of EPA’s environmental priorities listed below. The mission of EPA is to protect human health and the environment. EPA has identified seven key priorities that
help focus the work of the Agency.
EPA’s environmental priorities are:
- Taking Action on
Climate Change
- Improving Air
Quality
- Assuring the
Safety of Chemicals
- Cleaning Up Our
Communities
- Protecting
- Expanding the
Conversation on Environmentalism and Working for Environmental Justice
Many of these priorities focus on environmental challenges, such
as climate change, that require a population that is diverse, informed,
environmentally literate, as well as willing and able to translate their
knowledge and skills into decisions and actions that protect the environment in
every community, including but not limited to minority, low income, and tribal
communities. As
such, we encourage proposals that reach out to a variety of communities,
especially those that can be demonstrated to be more likely affected adversely
(e.g., higher rates of medical problems due to environmental factors) by
environmental risks than other communities.
Environmental education is an important
non-regulatory tool the Agency uses to help us meet our mission. For more information on EPA’s priorities, go
to: http://blog.epa.gov/administrator/2010/01/12/seven-priorities-for-epas-future.
E. Statutory
Authority
Section 6 of the National Environmental Education Act of
1990 (Public Law 101-619) authorizes the award of Environmental Education
Grants.
F.
Linkage to EPA’s Strategic Plan and
Expected Outputs and Outcomes
(1) Linkage to EPA’s Strategic Plan. All proposals must support EPA Strategic Goal 5 (Compliance and Environmental Stewardship), Objective 5.2 (Improve Environmental Performance through Pollution Prevention and Innovation), and Sub-Objective 5.2.1 (Prevent pollution and promote environmental stewardship by government and the public). See EPA’s Strategic Plan at www.epa.gov/ocfo/plan/2006/entire_report.pdf.
(2) Expected Outputs and Outcomes (See Appendix C). Recipients of these grants will implement educational projects that improve behavior through non-regulatory means and raise public awareness of actions that can be taken to promote environmental stewardship. During the evaluation process for proposals, EPA will determine if each work plan contains well-defined outputs and outcomes. Outputs and short-term outcomes must occur and be reported to EPA within the project period. Progress should at least begin on medium-term or long-term outcomes during the project period. For more detailed information on expected outputs and outcomes from environmental education grants, please see Appendix C.
G. Other
Funding Opportunities
Please note that this is a very competitive grant program. Limited funding is available and not all grant proposals can be funded. If your project is not funded, you may wish to review other available grant funding opportunities on www.grants.gov or on the EE Link website for the North American Association for Environmental Education at http://eelink.net/pages/EE-Link+Introduction.
Section II. Award Information
A. Funding Type
The funding for selected projects will be in the form of a
grant.
B. Number and Amount
of Awards
EPA expects approximately $1,943,000 to be available for
grants in amounts of a minimum of $15,000 and
a maximum of $100,000. Each of
EPA’s 10 Regions anticipates funding a minimum of 2
grants resulting in a minimum number of grants issued to be approximately 20
grants nationwide.
C. Start Date and
Length of Project Period
Proposals should plan for their projects to begin no earlier than September 1, 2011. Applicants should plan for a flexible start date since the date awards are made varies from Region to Region. EPA will accept proposals for one or 2 year project periods, but the total funding will be the same regardless of the project period (i.e., if a 2 year project is proposed, the minimum award amount is $15,000 and the maximum is $100,000for the whole 2 years and no additional funding will be issued for the second year.) The proposal must demonstrate clearly how the project will be completed in the time frame proposed.
D. Funding and
Partial Funding Provisions
EPA reserves the right to reject all proposals and make no
awards under this announcement or make fewer awards than expected.
EPA also reserves the right to make additional awards under
this announcement consistent with Agency policy and guidance if additional
funding becomes available after the original selections are made. Any additional selections for awards will be
made no later than 6 months after the original selection decisions.
In appropriate circumstances, EPA reserves the right to
partially fund proposals by funding discrete portions or phases of a proposed
project. If EPA decides to partially
fund a proposal, it will do so in a manner that does not prejudice any
applicants or affect the basis upon which the proposal, or portion thereof, was
evaluated or selected for award, and therefore maintains the integrity of the
competition and selection process.
E. Multiple
Proposals
Applicants can submit more than
one proposal under this solicitation so long as each one is for a different
project and is separately submitted.
Section III. Eligibility Information
A. Eligible
Applicants
Any local education agency, college or university, state
education or environmental agency, nonprofit organization as described in
Section 501(C)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or a noncommercial educational
broadcasting entity as defined and licensed by Federal Communications
Commission may submit a proposal. Applicant
organizations must be located in the
“Tribal education agencies” that are eligible to apply
include a school or community college which is controlled by an Indian tribe,
band, or nation, which is recognized as eligible for special programs and
services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as
Indians and which is not administered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Tribal organizations do not qualify unless
they meet that criteria or the non-profit criteria listed above. The terms for eligibility are defined in
Section 3 of the Act and 40 CFR 47.105.
B. Matching Funds
Non-federal matching funds of at least 25% of the total cost of the grant project are required for awards made under this announcement. The matching requirement is explained in detail in Section IV(C)(4) under Budget and Non- Federal Match. In order to ensure you meet the match requirement, divide the total cost of the project, including the minimum 25% match, by 4. For example, if the total cost of your project is $100,000 then your match must be a minimum of $25,000 and your request from EPA would be $75,000. (Some applicants find it easier to divide the dollar amount they are requesting from EPA by 3 in order to figure their required match; e.g., if you are asking for $75,000 from EPA to fund your project, then you must have a match of $25,000, or $75,000 divided by 3). Please see Section IV(C)(4) for additional examples of minimum matches. In order to be eligible for funding consideration, proposals must demonstrate how the applicant will meet the match requirement if it is selected for award.
C. Threshold
Eligibility Criteria
Proposals must meet the following threshold criteria to be
eligible for funding consideration under this solicitation. Failure to meet any of the following
criteria in the proposal will result in automatic disqualification of the proposal
for funding consideration. Ineligible
applicants will be notified within 15 calendar days of the determination that
they are ineligible based on threshold criteria.
(1) a. Proposals must substantially comply with the
application submission instructions and requirements set forth in Section IV of
this announcement or else they will be rejected. Where a page limit is specified in Section IV
for the work plan, pages in excess of the page limitation will not be reviewed.
b. Proposals must be submitted electronically
through www.grants.gov or postmarked by 11:59
pm, May 2, 2011 in order to be considered for funding.
c. Applications submitted electronically or
postmarked after the submission deadline will be considered late and returned
to the sender without further consideration unless the applicant can clearly
demonstrate that it was late due to EPA mishandling or because of technical problems associated with www.grants.gov. Applicants should confirm receipt of their
proposal with the appropriate contact listed in Section VII as soon as possible
after the submission deadline—failure to do so may result in your proposal not
being reviewed.
(2) The applicant must be an eligible organization as
described in Section III(A) above.
(3) The applicant must demonstrate how it will meet the
non-federal match as required in Section III(B) above.
(4) The amount requested from EPA must be no less than a
minimum of $15,000 and no more than a maximum of $100,000. Proposals for less than
$15,000 or more than $100,000 will be rejected.
(5) All proposals must be for projects that satisfy the
definition of “environmental education” as defined under Section I(B).
(6) All proposals must address at least one of the
educational priorities listed in Section I(C).
(7) All proposals must address at least one of the EPA’s
environmental priorities listed in Section I(C).
(8) Proposals must be for projects that have not been previously awarded by EPA’s EE program to the applicant, and a statement to this effect must be included in the first paragraph of the Project Summary. Grantees currently or previously funded by EPA’s EE grant program who are interested in applying under this solicitation must list all of those previously funded projects, clearly labeled as “EPA EE Grants”, in the Past Performance section of their proposal.
(9) Applicants can submit more than
one proposal under this solicitation so long as each one is for a different
project and is separately submitted.
D. Ineligible
Activities
Environmental education funds cannot be used for:
(1) Technical training of environmental management
professionals;
(2) Environmental “information” and/or “outreach” projects
that have no additional educational component, as described in Section I(B);
(3) Advocacy promoting a particular point of view or course
of action;
(4) Lobbying or political activities as defined in OMB Circulars A-21 www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars/a021/a021.html, A-87 www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars/a087/a087-all.html, and A-122 www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars/a122/a122_2004.html.
(5) Non-educational research and development; or
(6) Construction projects–EPA will not fund construction
activities such as the acquisition of real property (e.g., buildings) or the
construction or modification of any building.
Proposals that contain ineligible activities may be removed
from consideration for funding depending on the extent to which the proposal
contains the ineligible activities.
Section IV. Application
and Submission Information
A. Submission
Requirements
Please follow the instructions below and do not submit
additional items or forms. Please do not refer to websites or online
tools in your proposal as the reviewers
will evaluate only the materials provided in the application. This solicitation notice describes all the
information and forms necessary to prepare a complete proposal package, as well
as a description of the review process that will be used in each EPA Region and
the criteria and point system under which your proposal will be reviewed and
ranked (see Section V). If an
applicant is selected as a finalist after the evaluation process is concluded,
EPA will provide them with additional federal forms and any other information
and instructions needed to complete the process.
Note: Grantees
currently or previously funded by EPA’s EE grant program who are interested in
applying under this solicitation must state that the proposal they submit is
for a different project than one EPA has already funded for this applicant. See Section III(C)(8).
Applicants have the option to submit their proposals in one
of two ways: (1) hard copy; or (2)
electronically through www.grants.gov. Regardless of the
option chosen, applicants must submit the information described below. If you wish to apply with hard copy (paper)
submission, please follow the instructions below for “Hard Copy Submission” and
go to the environmental education website www.epa.gov/education/grants.html where you can access and
print the two required federal forms. If
you wish to apply electronically via www.grants.gov,
please follow the instructions in Appendix D for “Electronic Submission”. Note that registration for www.grants.gov
can take a week or longer. Further
detailed instructions are available on www.grants.gov
and can be downloaded.
Hard Copy Submission:
Applicants choosing to submit
applications in hard copy must submit an original and two copies of the
proposal materials described below (by mail or express delivery service) to the
Regional Office in which the project will be located. The 10 EPA Regional Offices and the EE
contacts in them are listed in Section VII (Agency Contacts). The original, signed package must be
postmarked by 11:59 pm, May 2, 2011.
B. Format of
Proposal Submission
The required contents of the proposal package are described
in detail below. The entire narrative
portion of the Work Plan (which includes the Project Summary, Project
Description, and Project Evaluation) shall not exceed 7 single-spaced pages.
“One page” refers to one side of a single-spaced typed page. The pages must be letter-sized (8 ˝ X 11
inches). The Detailed Budget and
Appendices (i.e., Timeline, Logic Model, Technical Expertise/Qualifications,
and Partnership Commitment Letters) are not included in the page limit.
C. Contents of
Submission
Checklist of Items to Submit: A complete proposal package must contain all of the information
outlined below (original and 2
copies of each, if submitting a hard copy application). Please also refer to the additional
instructions provided under “Instructions” below. Also, please see Appendix B -- Checklist for
Proposal.
(1) Standard Form (SF) 424, Application for Federal
Assistance
(2) SF 424A Budget Information
(3) Work plan (not to exceed 7 single spaced pages total):
(a) Project summary (recommended
not to exceed 1 page);
(b) Project description;
(c) Project evaluation;
(4) Detailed budget (not included in page limit)
(5) Appendices (not included in page limit):
(a) Timeline;
(b) Logic model;
(c) Programmatic capability and
past performance; and
(d) Partnership letters of
commitment (only if you have partner organizations making a commitment to the
project – please NO letters of endorsement or recommendation)
Instructions:
(1) Standard Form (SF) 424 – Application for Federal
Assistance. Complete the form. Refer to Appendix A for additional
instructions.
(2) Standard Form (SF) 424A – Budget Information. Complete only
Section B with the EPA funds and matching funds in separate columns and with
the totals in column 5. Do not complete
Section A, C, D, E or F of this form. Refer
to Appendix A for additional instructions.
NOTE: The two federal forms required are available online at www.epa.gov/education/grants_apply.html and the website also has examples of completed forms. You can key in your data and budget information on the online forms and print a hard copy (and print or make 2 additional copies) to be submitted by mail or delivery service with your proposal if you choose to submit hard copies rather than electronically through www.grants.gov. Only finalists will be asked to submit additional federal forms necessary to process a federal grant.
(3) Work Plan. A work plan describes your proposed project. The work plan (and the appendices described below as applicable) must address the requirements in Section I of this solicitation as well as any applicable threshold eligibility requirements in Section III and the evaluation criteria in Section V. Grant reviewers look at many proposals when scoring them, and providing your information in the order listed prevents information from being overlooked. The work plan and budget will be scored based on the ranking factors identified in Section V. The work plan must not exceed 7 single-spaced pages total; excess pages will not be reviewed.
(a) Project Summary: Provide a recommended one page overview of
your entire project in the following format.
(i) Organization and Partnerships: Briefly describe: 1) your organization, 2) who will manage and
implement your project, and 3) list your key partners for this grant, if
applicable. Partnerships are encouraged and considered a contribution to the
success of projects. (Note: Letters of Commitment from your partners must
be included with your application.) Full
details about your organization and staff will be in an appendix.
(ii) Summary: Provide a concise statement that your organization is not currently receiving and has not previously received funding for this project from EPA’s EE Grant Program. (Note: Grantees currently or previously funded by EPA’s EE grant program who are interested in applying under this solicitation also must list all of those previously funded projects, clearly labeled as “EPA EE Grants”, in the Past Performance section of their proposal.)
Next, briefly explain the need for your project, its goals and objectives, and how it meets the definition of environmental education given in Section I(B). In addition, identify the educational priority or priorities listed in Section I(C) that your project addresses, as well as how your project addresses one or more of EPA’s environmental priorities listed in Section I(C). (Note: If your project also addresses one or more environmental issues not identified as an EPA priority, describe those here as well.)
Your
summary should use ordinary terms to provide
reviewers with an understanding of the purpose and expected outcomes of your
project. A person unfamiliar with your
project should be able to read this paragraph and understand your plan.
(iii) Delivery Method:
Explain how you will reach your audience, such as workshops, field
trips, interactive programs, conferences, etc.
(iv) Audience: Describe
the demographics of your target audience including the number and types you
expect to reach, such as educators and students and specific grade levels. One important priority for EPA is expanding
the conversation on environmentalism by reaching a variety of audiences. Where appropriate, describe how the project
will reach diverse communities, including but not limited to minority, low
income and tribal communities.
(v) Costs: List the
types of expenses on which you will spend the EPA portion of the grant
funds.
(b) Project Description: Describe precisely what your project will
achieve, using the following headings – what, why, how, and who. Explain each aspect of your proposal clearly
and address each topic below. If you
choose to reorder the following paragraphs, include the headings below or you
risk the possibility of information being overlooked when the project is scored. Please address all of the following to ensure
that grant reviewers can fully comprehend and evaluate your proposal.
(i) What: (1)
Identify the educational priority or priorities your project will be
addressing and why. Educational
priorities are defined under Section I(C). (2) Identify the environmental issue(s) you
will be addressing, and explain why you have chosen this issue, including why
this issue is important to your specific audience. Examples of environmental issues include air
quality, water quality, greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, chemical
risks, and hazardous waste. (3) Identify
the EPA environmental priority or priorities you will address. EPA environmental
priorities are defined under Section I(C).
(4) Explain the goals of your project.
What are you trying to achieve? (5)
Explain how your project will increase environmental stewardship as defined in
Section I.
NOTE: Your
project may address more than one environmental issue and/or educational/EPA
priority. However, it is important to be
clear about where your focus will be.
(ii) Why: Explain
the need for your project. Why are you
proposing this project? Cite studies or sources, where appropriate, that verify
the need for your project.
(iii) How: Explain
how you will reach your goals and objectives. Clearly explain how you will achieve your
expected outputs and outcomes including those described in the Appendix. This includes clearly identifying your
activities as well as the materials and delivery methods that will be used. (Please see the information provided in the
online FAQs at www.epa.gov/education/grants.html about developing, evaluating, and selecting educational
materials to be used as part of your proposal.) Clarify for the reviewers how you will
complete all basic steps of your project from beginning to end. Do not omit steps that lead up to or follow
the actual delivery methods (e.g., if you plan to make a presentation about
your project at a local or national conference, specify where).
(iv) Who: Identify
your target audience and the numbers to be reached. Discuss the needs of that audience and why
you have chosen to target them. Also, explain
your recruitment plan to attract your target audience, and identify
incentives to be used such as teacher stipends or continuing education credits.
An important priority for EPA is
expanding the conversation on environmentalism by reaching a variety of
audiences. Proposals should be clear as
to how they will reach a variety of audiences, including but not limited to minority,
low income, and tribal communities.
(v) Project Uniqueness:
Explain if and to what extent your project will be innovative;
e.g., contribute a new or significantly improved method or activity to the
field of EE, have potential for wide application and/or sustainability, could
serve as a model for others, and/or find a way to use funding, materials and
human resources creatively and effectively.
(c) Project Evaluation: In this section, you must explain your plans
for meeting the goals and objectives of your project and for tracking and
measuring your progress towards achieving the expected outputs and short-term
outcomes. If your medium- and long-term
outcomes can also be measured within the project period, explain your plans for
that evaluation as well. For additional
information on project outputs and outcomes, please refer to Appendix C. Evaluation plans may be quantitative and/or
qualitative and may include, for example, evaluation tools, observation, or
outside consultation. Pre- and
post-training questionnaires are recommended to determine if your performance
measures for learning are being satisfied.
If funded by EPA, grant recipients must be willing to report evaluation
results to EPA. Please be sure to
include project evaluation activities in your timeline of activities explained
in section IV(C)(5) below. For
additional guidance on project evaluation please see http://meera.snre.umich.edu which is a website partially
supported with EPA funds to assist educators and others in evaluating their
educational projects.
Please note: Section I (F)(1) above explains that all EE grants must support the EPA Strategic Plan. In addition, all EPA grants must result in improved environmental results over time.
(4) Budget and Non-Federal Match. Create a detailed
budget table with three columns titled “EPA Funds, “Non-EPA Funds, and “Total”
to show how EPA funds and non-federal matching funds will be used. Make sure you demonstrate how you will meet
the non-Federal match requirement described in Section III of this
solicitation. In the detailed budget,
use the same order and headings listed on the Budget Form 424A. These cost categories are: personnel/salaries; fringe benefits; travel;
equipment over $5000; supplies; contract costs; other costs; and indirect
costs, where appropriate, since not all applicants will use every cost category. Provide details for each expense, such as
personnel (number of staff, title or role in project, hourly wage, and
percentage of time spent on project), travel (reasons for travel, costs and
locations of trips, and costs per mile for travel and per diem per person), and
supplies (provide categories and detailed listings according to the project
tasks in which they will be used). Make
sure you factor in the costs for all proposed activities and clarify which will
be paid by EPA or will be paid by matching funds. (See Appendix A, Instructions for the SF424
Application, which includes instructions for preparing a detailed budget.)
Please note the
following funding restrictions:
-- Applicants are generally allowed to include indirect costs; such as expenses for rent, supplies and other administrative and office support costs on the "indirect costs" line of their proposed budget as long as they have a federally approved/negotiated indirect cost rate agreement in place. Organizations without a federally approved/negotiated indirect cost rate agreement MUST submit an indirect cost rate proposal to their cognizant Federal agency (with copy to EPA if EPA is not the cognizant agency) for approval within 90 days of the date of being awarded a grant if they wish to be reimbursed for indirect costs. Please note: recipients are not allowed to seek reimbursement for indirect costs until an approved indirect cost rate is obtained. To find more information on indirect cost rate agreements, go to www.aqd.nbc.gov/indirect/indirect.asp.
-- If you anticipate earning program income as a result of
your EPA award, show the estimated amount, explain how it is to be earned (the
source of income), and how it will be used to enhance your project. When you do use program income on your
project, it is important that you include the amount in your detailed budget.
-- EPA’s EE Grant Program will not fund the acquisition of
real property (including buildings) or the construction or modification of any
building. EPA may, however, fund
activities such as creating a nature trail with educational signs or building a
bird watching station, as long as these items are an integral part of the
environmental education project, and the cost is a relatively small percentage
of the total amount federal funds requested.
-- Funds for salaries and fringe benefits may be requested
only for those personnel who are directly involved in implementing the proposed
project and whose salaries and fringe benefits are directly related to specific
products or outcomes of the proposed project.
EPA strongly encourages applicants to request reasonable amounts of
funding for salaries and fringe benefits to ensure that your proposal is
competitive.
Matching Funds Explanation: Non-federal matching funds must be at least
25% of the total cost of the project. The
match must be for allowable costs and may be provided by the applicant or a
partner organization or institution. The
match may be provided in cash or by in-kind contributions and other
non-monetary support. In-kind
contributions often include salaries or other verifiable costs such as
supplies/materials, and this value must be carefully documented. In the case of salaries, applicants may use
fair market value for the locale. If the
match is provided by a partner organization, the applicant is still responsible
for proper accountability and documentation.
All grants are subject to federal audit.
IMPORTANT: The required matching non-federal share is
25% of the ENTIRE cost of the project. To
calculate 25% of the entire cost of the project, calculate how much you will
spend on the entire project from beginning to end, including both federal funds
and your own funds, and divide this amount by 4. The amount resulting will be the amount you
will need to contribute to the project as the minimum match. For example, if the total cost of the project
is $100,000, divide this amount by 4, which equals $25,000. Your match needs to
be at least $25,000 and the amount you request from EPA would be $75,000. (Some applicants find it easier to
calculate their match requirement by dividing the amount of federal funds they
are requesting by 3; e.g., if you are requesting $75,000 from EPA then your
match requirement is $25,000.) Please
see the chart below for additional examples of the minimum match required.
|
Amount of EPA Request |
Minimum Match |
Total Project Cost |
|
$100,000 maximum request |
$33,333 |
$133,333 |
|
$60,000 |
$20,000 |
$80,000 |
|
$30,000 |
$10,000 |
$40,000 |
|
$15,000 minimum request |
$5,000 |
$20,000 |
Other Federal Funds: You may not use any federal funds to meet any
part of the required 25% match described above, unless it is specifically
authorized by statute. If you have
already been awarded federal funds for a project for which you are seeking
additional support from this grant program, you must indicate those funds in
the budget section of the work plan. You
must also identify the project officer, agency, office, address, phone number,
and the amount of the federal funds.
(5) Appendices. Appendices provide information on your
timeline, logic model, expertise/qualifications, past performance and
programmatic capability and any partnerships with other organizations.
(a) Timeline – Include a “timeline” to link your
activities to a clear project schedule and indicate at what point over the
months of your budget period each action, event, milestone, product development, and
evaluation will occur. Please ensure
that you have realistic goals and will use effective methods to reach them.
(b) Logic Model – Provide a graphic to display the
outputs and outcomes developed through the project. An example of a basic logic model is attached
in Appendix C of this document. Our website
has a basic logic model where you can enter your data and print a copy to submit with a proposal (www.epa.gov/education/grants.html).
Refer to Appendix C for additional
instructions and information on outputs and outcomes.
(c) Programmatic Capability and Past Performance – Attach a description of your programmatic capabilities and
ability to successfully implement and manage the proposed project including
staff expertise/qualifications, staff knowledge, and resources or the ability
to obtain them to successfully achieve the goals of the project, and your
organizational experience and past history in performing tasks similar to the
proposed project. Include a paragraph
describing the qualifications of each of the key personnel conducting the
project. If you send resumes for the key
personnel conducting the project, please keep them to a maximum of 3 one-page
resumes. Also include a plan for how you
will timely and successfully achieve the objectives of your project.
Please also submit a list of
federally funded assistance agreements (assistance agreements include Federal
grants and cooperative agreements but not Federal contracts) similar in size,
scope and relevance to the proposed project that your organization performed
within the last three years (no more than 5 agreements, and preferably EPA
agreements) and describe (i) whether, and how, you were able to successfully
complete and manage those agreements and (ii) your history of meeting the
reporting requirements under those agreements including whether you adequately
and timely reported on your progress towards achieving the expected outputs and
outcomes of those agreements (and if not, explain why not) and whether you
submitted acceptable final technical reports under the agreements. In evaluating applicants under these factors
in Section V, EPA will consider the information provided by the applicant and
may also consider relevant information from other sources, including
information from EPA files and from current/prior grantors (e.g., to verify
and/or supplement the information provided by the applicant). If you do not have any relevant or
available past performance or past reporting information, please indicate this
in the proposal and you will receive a neutral score for these factors (a
neutral score is half of the total points available in a subset of possible
points). If you do not provide any response
for these items, you may receive a score of 0 for these factors.
Note: If you
currently are receiving or have previously received grant funds from EPA’s EE
Grant program, you must clearly label and provide a list of those grants as
“EPA EE Grants” in this section of your proposal.
(d) Partnership Letters of Commitment – If the
applicant organization has partners, such as schools, state agencies, or other
organizations, letters of commitment should be included from partners explaining
their role in and/or funding of the proposed project. If no letters are included, it will be
assumed the applicant has no partners. Applicants
must be aware, however, that regardless of whether they have partnership
commitments, they are responsible for meeting the cost share requirement
described in Section III(B) of the announcement. Partnerships are encouraged because of the
strength and depth they usually add to a project. If an applicant does not have partners for
this project, the proposal should be clear about how the project will be
completed effectively without partners.
Note: Do not include
letters of endorsement or recommendation or have letters mailed in later. Regardless of the source, letters of
endorsement or recommendation will not be considered in evaluating
proposals. Please do not submit other
appendices or attachments.
D. Submission
Deadline
Due Date – Proposal packages
must be postmarked or submitted electronically through www.grants.gov by May 2, 2011, 11:59 pm in
order to be considered for review.
E. Pre-proposal/Application
Assistance and Communications
In accordance with EPA’s Assistance Agreement Competition
Policy (EPA Order 5700.5A1), EPA staff will not meet with individual applicants
to discuss draft proposals, provide informal comments on draft proposals, or
provide advice to applicants on how to respond to ranking criteria. Applicants are responsible for the contents
of their applications/proposals. However,
consistent with the provisions in the announcement, EPA will respond to
questions from individual applicants regarding threshold eligibility criteria,
administrative issues related to the submission of the proposal, and requests
for clarification about the announcement.
At least two conference calls will be conducted by EPA staff to answer questions about this solicitation
notice from potential applicants. Please
go to www.epa.gov/education/grants.html for announcements of dates/times and call-in numbers, or
to sign up to be on an email list for notifications of dates/times and call-in
numbers for the calls.
Answers to frequently asked questions about this program
will be listed on the website (http://www.epa.gov/education/grants_apply.html). For information
on whom to contact, please see Section VII of this announcement. Email inquiries only.
F. Contracts and
Subawards
Applicants that plan on using
project funds for contracting or subawards must comply with the following
requirements.
EPA awards funds to one eligible applicant as the recipient
even if other eligible applicants are named as partners or co-applicants or
members of a coalition or consortium. The
recipient is accountable to EPA for the proper expenditure of funds.
Funding may be used to provide subgrants or subawards of
financial assistance, which includes using subawards or subgrants to fund
partnerships, provided the recipient complies with applicable requirements for
subawards or subgrants including those contained in 40 CFR Parts 30 or 31, as
appropriate. Applicants must compete
contracts for services and products, including consultant contracts, and
conduct cost and price analyses, to the extent required by the procurement
provisions of the regulations at 40 CFR Parts 30 or 31, as appropriate. The regulations also contain limitations on
consultant compensation. Applicants are
not required to identify subawardees/subgrantees and/or contractors (including
consultants) in their proposal/application.
However, if they do, the fact that an applicant selected for award has
named a specific subawardee/subgrantee, contractor, or consultant in the
proposal/application EPA selects for funding does not relieve the applicant of
its obligations to comply with subaward/subgrant and/or competitive procurement
requirements as appropriate. Please note
that applicants may not award sole source contracts to consulting, engineering
or other firms assisting applicants with the proposal solely based on the firm’s
role in preparing the proposal/application.
Successful applicants cannot use subgrants or subawards to
avoid requirements in EPA grant regulations for competitive procurement by
using these instruments to acquire commercial services or products from
for-profit organizations to carry out its assistance agreement. The nature of the transaction between the
recipient and the subawardee or subgrantee must be consistent with the
standards for distinguishing between vendor transactions and subrecipient
assistance under Subpart B Section .210 of OMB Circular A-133 , and the
definitions of subaward at 40 CFR 30.2(ff) or subgrant at 40 CFR 31.3, as
applicable. EPA will not be a party to
these transactions. Applicants acquiring
commercial goods or services must comply with the competitive procurement
standards in 40 CFR Part 30 or 40 CFR Part 31.36 and cannot use a
subaward/subgrant as the funding mechanism.
Section V of the announcement describes the evaluation
criteria and evaluation process that will be used by EPA to make selections
under this announcement. During this
evaluation, except for those criteria that relate to the applicant’s own
qualifications, past performance, and reporting history, the review panel will
consider, as appropriate and relevant, the qualifications, expertise, and
experience of: (i) an applicant’s named
subawardees/subgrantees identified in the proposal/application if the applicant
demonstrates in the proposal/application that if it receives an award that the
subaward/subgrant will be properly awarded consistent with the applicable
regulations in 40 CFR Parts 30 or 31. For
example, applicants must not use subawards/subgrants to obtain commercial
services or products from for profit firms or individual consultants.
(ii) an applicant’s named contractor(s), including
consultants, identified in the proposal/application if the applicant
demonstrates in its proposal/application that the contractor(s) was selected in
compliance with the competitive Procurement Standards in 40 CFR Part 30 or 40
CFR 31.36 as appropriate. For example,
an applicant must demonstrate that it selected the contractor(s) competitively
or that a proper non-competitive sole-source award consistent with the
regulations will be made to the contractor(s), that efforts were made to
provide small and disadvantaged businesses with opportunities to compete, and
that some form of cost or price analysis was conducted. EPA may not accept sole source justifications
for contracts for services or products that are otherwise readily available in
the commercial marketplace.
EPA will not consider the qualifications, experience, and expertise of named subawardees/subgrantees and/or named contractor(s) during the proposal/application evaluation process unless the applicant complies with these requirements.
G. Confidential
Business Information
In accordance with 40 CFR 2.203, applicants may claim all
or a portion of their proposal as confidential business information. EPA will evaluate confidentiality claims in
accordance with 40 CFR Part 2. Applicants
must clearly mark proposals or portions of proposals they claim as confidential. If no claim of confidentiality is made, EPA
is not required to make the inquiry to the applicant otherwise required by 40
CFR 2.204(c)(2) prior to disclosure. However,
competitive proposals/applications are considered confidential and protected
from disclosure prior to the completion of the competitive selection process.
H. Management Fees
When formulating budgets for proposals, applicants must not
include management fees or similar charges in excess of the direct costs at the
rate approved by the applicant’s cognizant audit agency, or at the rate
provided for by the terms of the agreement negotiated with EPA. These are fees added to the direct costs in
order to accumulate and reserve funds for ongoing expenses, unforeseen
liabilities, or for other similar costs that are not allowable under EPA grants. Management fees or similar charges may not be
used to improve or expand the project funded, except to the extent authorized
as a direct cost of carrying out the scope of work.
Section V. Application Review Information
A. Evaluation and
Scoring
Only proposals that meet all of the eligibility criteria in
Section III will be evaluated on a 100 point scale using the criteria below. Applicants should take these criteria into
consideration when designing proposals and should address them directly in
their proposals. Please carefully review Section IV(C)(3-5) to ensure you address all
the factors reviewers will use to rank your proposal. The following criteria and points will be
used to score eligible proposals:
(1) Project Summary – Maximum Score: 3 points.
Under this factor proposals
will be evaluated based on the extent to which the project summary clearly and
completely addresses the content and format described in Section IV (C)(3)(a).
(2) Project Description – Maximum Score: 45 points
(i) What: Maximum
Score: 10 points. Under this factor proposals will be evaluated
based on the substance, clarity and completeness of the explanation of what the
project will entail. Please refer to
Section IV (C)(3)(b)(i) for content and format required.
(ii) Why: Maximum
Score: 10 points. Under this factor proposals will be evaluated
based on the substance, clarity and completeness of the explanation of the need
for the project. See Section IV
(C)(3)(b)(ii) for further information.
(iii) How: Maximum
Score: 10 points. Under this factor proposals will be evaluated
based on the substance, clarity and completeness of the explanation of how the
project will accomplish its goals and objectives. See Section IV (C)(3)(b)(iii) for further
information.
(iv) Who: Maximum
Points: 10 points. Under this factor
proposals will be evaluated based on how well the project:
·
identifies the target
audience, numbers reached, why they were chosen, and clearly explains the recruitment plan, including
incentives to be used such as teacher stipends or continuing education credits.
(5
points).
· reaches a diverse audience, including but not limited to minority, low income and tribal communities, and demonstrates how the project will help address environmental issues that are more likely to adversely affect the audience(s) targeted. (5 points).
(v) Project uniqueness: Maximum Score: 5 points.
·
The extent to which
the proposal is different from others in terms of factors such as innovation
(e.g., to what degree the project introduces a new or significantly improved EE
practice, method or technique); creative use of resources; or wide
applicability or sustainability of the project after the project period ends. (5 points)
(3) Project Evaluation – Maximum Score: 10 points.
Under this factor proposals
will be evaluated based on the substance, clarity and completeness of the
explanation of how the project’s success in meeting its goals and objectives
will be achieved and tracked and measured.
This includes evaluating the applicants plan for tracking and measuring
its progress towards achieving the expected project outputs and outcomes
including those in Appendix C. See
Section IV(C)(3)(c) for more information.
(4) Budget – Maximum Score: 12 points. Under this factor, proposals will be evaluated
on:
(i) How well the budget information clearly and
accurately shows how funds will be used. (8 points)
(ii) Whether the funding request is reasonable
given the activities proposed and provides a good return on the investment. (4 points)
(5) Timeline,
Logic Model, and Partnership Letters of Commitment – Maximum Score: 15
points. Under this factor proposals will be evaluated on the extent to which they
clearly and completely address the content of each of the following. Please review Section IV(C)(5) for
information on what content and format is expected in each of these appendices.
(i) Timeline: The timeline links the activities to a clear
project schedule and clearly indicates a realistic timeline of when each
action, event, milestone, product development and evaluation will occur. (6 points)
(ii) Logic Model: The graphic displays outputs and outcomes
developed through the project in accordance with the instructions and
information in Appendix C. (6
points)
(iii) Partnership Letters
of Commitment: Proposals will be evaluated
based on the extent to which the applicant will engage with other partners to
help effectively perform the project. If
the applicant has partners, they should provide letters of commitment from
them. If no letters of commitment are
provided, it will be assumed the applicant has no partners for the
project. If the applicant does not
intend to have partners then it should explain how it will effectively perform
the project without partners. Please do
not send letters of endorsement or recommendation; they are not helpful and
will not be considered. (3 points)
(6) Programmatic
Capability and Past Performance – Maximum Score: 15 points. Under this criterion, applicants will be
evaluated based on their ability to successfully complete and manage the
proposed project taking into account the applicant’s:
(i) past performance in
successfully completing and managing the assistance agreements identified in
response to Section IV(C)(5)(c) of the announcement. (2 points)
(ii) history of meeting the
reporting requirements under the assistance agreements identified in response
to Section IV(C)(5)(c) of the announcement including whether the applicant
submitted acceptable final technical reports under those agreements and the
extent to which the applicant adequately and timely reported on their progress
towards achieving the expected outputs and outcomes under those agreements and
if such progress was not being made whether the applicant adequately reported
why not. (2 points).
(iii) organizational
experience and plan for timely and successfully achieving the objectives of the
proposed project. (5 points).
(iv) staff
expertise/qualifications, staff knowledge, and resources or the ability to
obtain them, to successfully achieve the goals of the proposed project. (6 points)
Note: In evaluating
applicants under items i and ii of this criterion, the Agency will consider the
information provided by the applicant and may also consider relevant
information from other sources including agency files and prior/current
grantors (e.g., to verify and/or supplement the information supplied by the
applicant). If you do not have any
relevant or available past performance or past reporting information, please
indicate this in the proposal and you will receive a neutral score for these
subfactors (items i and ii above-a neutral score is half of the total points
available in a subset of possible points). If you do not provide any response for these
items, you may receive a score of 0 for these factors.
Note: If you have received
or are receiving grant funds from EPA’s EE Grant program, you must clearly
label those as “EPA EE Grants” when responding to item i in this criterion in
order for the Agency to evaluate whether this proposal satisfies the threshold
eligibility as a project not previously funded by this program.
B. Review and Final
Selections
The review process to be used by the 10 EPA Regional
Offices is described below.
All eligible proposals will be evaluated on the 100 point
scale described in Section V(A) above by a review panel that includes one or
more teams consisting of EPA staff and/or external peer reviewers approved by
EPA. Proposals will be ranked based on
the reviewers’ scores, and the scores and rankings will be provided to the EPA
Regional Selection Official(s) for final funding decisions. In addition to providing the rankings and
scores to the Selection Officials, EPA staff will also brief the
Selection Official(s) on the variety and range of educational and EPA
priorities, environmental issues, geographic areas, and audiences that appear
in the ranked proposals—and as noted below the Selection Official(s) may
consider this information in making the final decisions.
Final funding selection decisions will be made by the
Selection Official in each Regional Office based on the rankings by the
evaluation team, and may also take into account the factors identified above in
order to ensure an efficient and effective use of federal funds that includes a
variety and range of educational and EPA priorities, environmental issues,
geographic areas, and audiences.
Section VI. Award Administration Information
A. Notification to
Applicants
Applicants will receive a confirmation that EPA has
received their proposal after EPA has entered information about all proposals
into a database. The 10 EPA Regional
offices operate independently, so specific dates are not available for when EPA
will contact the highest scoring finalists to request additional federal forms
and other information as recommended by reviewers and send non-selection
notification to the others. Non-selection
(rejection) notification will be sent within 15 calendar days after a decision
of non-selection. If selected for a
grant, an award package will be mailed to the recipient organization explaining
the responsibilities of the grantee. Notification of receipt of applications,
as well as selection and non-selection notification will be sent to the
individual identified on line #21 of the SF424.
B. Administrative
and National Policy Requirements
The Environmental Education Grant Program Regulations provide additional information on EPA’s administration of this program (57 FR 8390; Title 40 CFR, part 47). Also, EPA’s general assistance regulations at 40 CFR Part 31 apply to state, local, and Indian tribal governments and 40 CFR Part 30 applies to all other applicants such as nonprofit organizations. A listing and description of general EPA Regulations applicable to the award of assistance agreements may be viewed at: www.epa.gov/ogd/AppKit/applicable_epa_regulations_and_description.htm.
Executive Order 12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal
Programs may be applicable to awards, resulting from this announcement. Applicants selected for funding may be
required to provide a copy of their proposal to their State Point of
Contact (SPOC) for review, pursuant to Executive
Order 12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs. This review is not required with the Initial
Proposal and not all states require such a review.
Non-profit applicants that are recommended for funding
under this announcement are subject to pre-award administrative capability
reviews consistent with Section 8b, 8c and 9d of EPA Order 5700.8 - Policy on
Assessing Capabilities of Non-Profit Applicants for Managing Assistance Awards
(www.epa.gov/ogd/grants/award/5700_8.pdf). In addition, non-profit applicants that qualify
for funding may, depending on the size of the award, be required to fill out
and submit to the Grants Management Office the Administrative Capabilities Form
with supporting documents contained in Appendix A of EPA Order 5700.8.
C. Central Contractor
Registration (CCR) and Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Requirements
Unless exempt from these requirements under OMB guidance at
2 CFR Part 25 (http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=65430b8cd60ba715d7bbf033c2c00425&rgn=div5&view=text&node=2:1.1.1.4.1&idno=2)
(e.g., individuals), applicants must:
(1) Be registered in
the CCR prior to submitting an application or proposal under this
announcement. CCR information can be
found at https://www.bpn.gov/ccr/;
(2) Maintain an
active CCR registration with current information at all times during which it
has an active Federal award or an application or proposal under consideration
by an agency, and
(3) Provide its DUNS
number in each application or proposal it submits to the agency. Applicants can receive a DUNS number, at no
cost, by calling the dedicated toll-free DUNS Number request line at
1-866-705-5711, or visiting the D&B website at: http://www.dnb.com.
If an applicant fails to comply with these requirements, it
will, should it be selected for award, affect their ability to receive the
award.
D. Subaward and Executive Compensation Reporting
Applicants must ensure that they
have the necessary processes and systems in place to comply with the sub-award
and executive total compensation reporting requirements established under OMB
guidance at 2 CFR Part 170, unless they qualify for an exception from the
requirements, should they be selected for funding.
E. Progress Reports
and Work Products
Specific financial, technical, and other reporting
requirements to measure the grant recipient’s progress will be identified in
the EPA grant award agreement. Grant
recipients must submit periodic formal progress reports, as instructed in the
award agreement. Also, two copies of a
Final Technical Report and two copies of all work products must be sent to the
EPA project officer within 90 days after the expiration of the project period.
F. Disputes
Assistance agreement competition-related disputes will be
resolved in accordance with the dispute resolution procedures published in 70
FR (Federal Register) 3629, 3630 (January 26, 2005) located on the web at: www.epa.gov/ogd/competition/resolution.htm.
Copies of these procedures may also be
requested by contacting the person or persons
listed in Section VII of this announcement.
G. Unliquidated Obligations
An
applicant that receives an award under this announcement is expected to manage
assistance agreement funds efficiently and effectively and make sufficient
progress toward completing the project activities described in the work-plan in
a timely manner. The assistance
agreement will include terms/conditions implementing this requirement.
Section VII. Agency Contacts
A. Internet: www.epa.gov/education/grants.html
Please
visit our website where you can view or download: federal forms, a basic logic model template,
“Tips for Developing Successful Grant Applications” (www.epa.gov/education/granttips.html),
descriptions of projects funded under this program in each state,
Frequently Asked Questions (www.epa.gov/education/grants_faq.html), and other education links and resource materials. The “Excellence in EE” series of publications
listed at www.epa.gov/education/eepubsEPA.htm#guidelines includes guidelines for:
developing and evaluating educational materials; the initial preparation
of environmental educators; and using environmental education in grades K-12 to
support state and local education reform goals.
B. Notification of Future Environmental Education Grant Cycles
If you wish to be notified when the next Solicitation Notice is issued, you should visit our website (www.epa.gov/education/grants.html) where you can log in for notification of a new notice.
Mailing Addresses and Information
Applicants who need clarification about specific
requirements in this Solicitation Notice may contact their EPA Regional Office
listed below or the Office of Environmental Education in
Applications submitted in hard copy should be sent
via U.S. Postal Service, express mail (such as FedEx and UPS), or courier
service to the Regional Office where the proposed project will be located. See below for complete address information for
Regional Offices. (NOTE: EPA cannot be responsible for applications
sent to the wrong address.)
All proposals must be mailed to the
Information given to applicants in response to
inquiries is solely for the purpose of clarifying specific requirements
in this Solicitation Notice. Email
inquiries only.
Please check our Frequently Asked Questions
online at www.epa.gov/education/grants.html before contacting a Region or Headquarters with a
question.
Also please check our website at www.epa.gov/education/grants.html for announcements of dates, times and call-in numbers for conference
calls that will be held by EPA’s EE program to answer potential applicants’
questions. You can also go to the same
site to sign up for notifications about the calls.
EPA Region I – CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT |
|
|
Mail proposals to: Kristen Conroy
|
Information: Kristen Conroy |
|
EPA Region II -- NJ, NY, PR, VI |
|
|
Mail proposals to: Terry Ippolito
|
Information: Teresa (Terry) Ippolito |
|
EPA Region III -- DC, DE, MD, PA, VA, WV |
|
|
Mail proposals to: Kathleen Kirkland
|
Information: Kathleen Kirkland |
|
EPA Region IV -- AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, TN |
|
|
Mail proposals to:
|
Information:
|
|
EPA Region V – IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI |
|
|
Mail proposals to:
|
Information:
|
|
EPA Region VI -- AR, LA, NM, OK, TX |
|
|
Mail proposals to: Bonnie King
|
Information: Bonnie King |
|
EPA Region VII -- IA, KS, MO, NE |
|
|
Mail proposals to:
|
Information:
|
|
EPA Region VIII -- CO, MT, ND, SD, UT, WY |
|
|
Mail proposals to: Wendy Dew
|
Information: Wendy Dew |
|
EPA Region IX -- AZ, CA,
HI, NV, |
|
|
Mail proposals to: Julie Anderson
|
Information: Julie Anderson |
|
EPA Region X -- AK, ID, OR, WA |
|
|
Mail proposals to:
|
Information:
|
Information:
Environmental
Education Grant Program
Office of
Environmental Education
Karen
Scott (EEgrants@epa.gov)
Appendix A – Federal Forms and
Instructions
Instructions For the SF 424-Application
This is a standard Federal form to be used by
applicants as a required face sheet for the Environmental Education Grants
Program.
Instructions for Completing the SF 424 – Application for Federal Assistance (an interactive PDF version of this form is available online at www.epa.gov/education/grants.html.
1. Select "Application.”
2. Select “New.”
3. Leave blank.
4. Leave blank.
5. a. Leave blank.
b. Leave blank.
6. Leave blank.
7. Leave blank.
8. a. Enter the legal name of the applicant organization.
b. Enter the Employee/Taxpayer Identification Number as assigned by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
c. Enter the DUNS number of the application organization.
d. Enter the address (including street, city, state, and zip code) of the applicant organization.
e. Enter information as appropriate.
f. Enter the name, telephone number, fax, and e-mail address of the person to be contacted on matters involving this application. Middle name and suffix are optional.
9. Enter the appropriate letter to identify the applicant organization. If a not-for-profit organization, the organization must be categorized as a 501(c)(3) by the IRS to be eligible for this grant program.
10. Enter “Environmental Protection Agency.”
11. Enter “66.951.”
12. Enter “EPA-EE-11-02.”
13. Leave blank.
14. List only the major areas affected by the project.
15. Enter the title of the project for which you are applying (brief title such as “Students Save the Stream”)
16. a. List the Congressional District where the applicant organization is located.
b. List the Congressional District(s) affected by the project. If the project affects an entire state, enter “STATEWIDE.”
To identify the appropriate Congressional District, go to www.house.gov/.
17. Enter the project start and end dates for the project (e.g., 09/01/11 to 08/30/12).
18. Enter the amount of funding requested or to be contributed during the funding/budget period.
a. Enter the amount of money you are requesting from EPA.
b. Enter the amount of money the application organization is contributing.
c. Enter the amount of money a state organization is contributing, as appropriate.
d. Enter the amount of money a local organization is contributing, as appropriate.
e. Enter the amount of money another organization is contributing, as appropriate.
f. Enter the amount for any program income which you expect will be generated by the project: e.g., income from admission fees to a conference financed by the grant funds. In your budget narrative explain how the income will benefit the project.
g. Enter the total amount of the project. The total of lines (b-e) must be at least 25% of the amount entered into (g) because this grant program has a matching requirement of 25% of the total allowable project costs. Divide the total amount entered in (g) by 4 to determine the match required for your proposal.
19. Select "c. Program is not covered by E.O. 12372."
20. Answer as appropriate.
21. Enter the name, title, telephone number and e-mail of the person authorized to contract or obligate the applicant organization to the terms and conditions of the grant. Print a hard-copy of the SF-424 and sign it (preferably in blue ink to identify the original).
Instructions for the SF-424A - Budget
This is a standard federal form used by applicants as a basic budget.
Section A - Budget Summary –Do NOT complete – Leave whole page blank for this program.
Section B - Budget Categories - Complete Columns (1), (2) and (5) as stated below.
All funds requested and contributed as a match must be listed under the appropriate Object Class categories listed on this form. Please round figures to the nearest dollar. In column (1) list by category how EPA funds will be spent; in column (2) list matching funds by category; then add across and put the totals in column (5) per category. Many applicants will have blank lines in some Object Class Categories and no applicant should use line 6(g) Construction because it is an unallowable cost for this program. NOTE: Your total dollar figures on the Form 424 and 424A and detailed budget should all be the same. Your detailed budget should list costs under the same object class categories used on this form, but with significantly more information; for example the 424A will have a total for travel and the detailed budget will list number of travelers and trips, locations, per diem costs, etc.
Line 6(i) - Show the totals of lines 6(a) through 6(h) in each column.
Line 6(j) - Show the amount of indirect costs. Please note: if you are claiming indirect costs, you MUST either: 1) have an Indirect Cost Rate Agreement on file with a Federal Agency, or 2) submit an indirect cost rate proposal to the EPA or other Federal agency (with copy to EPA) for approval within 90 days of being awarded a grant. Recipients are not allowed to seek reimbursement for indirect costs until an approved indirect cost rate is obtained.
Line 6(k) - Enter the total amount of Lines 6(i) and 6(j).
Line 7 - Program Income - Enter the
estimated amount of income, if any, expected to be generated from this
project. Do not add or subtract this amount from the total project
amount. Describe the nature and source of income in the detailed budget
description and your planned use of the funds to enhance your project.
Instructions for Detailed Itemization of Costs
The proposal must also contain a detailed budget description as specified in Section IV(C)(4) of this Notice, and should conform to the following:
Personnel: List all participants in the project by position title. Give the percentage of the budget period for which they will be fully employed on the project (e.g., half-time for half the budget period equals 25%, full-time for half the budget period equals 50%, etc.). The detail should include for each person: Percentage of Time on project X Annual Salary and/or hourly wage = Personnel Cost. List this data for all personnel and then put the total on the Form 424A.
Fringe Benefits: Indicate percentage of basic salary and what it includes, such as health insurance.
Travel: If travel is budgeted, show trips, travelers, destinations, costs per mile, per diem and purpose of travel.
Equipment: Identify each piece of equipment with a cost
of $5,000 or more per unit to be purchased and explain the purpose for which it
will be used. Less costly items are listed under supplies.
Supplies: List categories of supplies; e.g., laboratory supplies and office supplies for items that can be grouped. If the supply budget is less than 2% of total costs, you do not need to itemize.
Contractual: Specify the nature and cost of such services and how costs were determined such as by using estimates or historical information. Explain how you will select your contractor. EPA may require review of contracts for personal services prior to their execution to assure that all costs are reasonable and necessary to the project.
Construction: Not allowable for this program.
Other: Specify all other costs under this category. These may include costs such as: stipends for teachers, costs for buses for field trips, fees for entrance to parks and nature centers, printing, postage, conference fees for booths, and other costs that do not fall under the categories listed above.
Indirect Costs: Provide the percentage rate used and explain how charges were calculated for this project. Please note: if you are claiming indirect costs, you MUST either: 1) have an Indirect Cost Rate Agreement on file with a Federal Agency, or 2) submit an indirect cost rate proposal to the EPA or other Federal agency (with copy to EPA) for approval within 90 days of being awarded a grant. Recipients are not allowed to seek reimbursement for indirect costs until an approved indirect cost rate is obtained.
Income: If you anticipate earning program income as a result of
your EPA award, show the estimated amount, explain how it is to be earned (the
source of income), and how it will be used to enhance your project. When you do use program income on your
project, it is important that you include the amount in your detailed budget.
Example of a
Detailed Itemized Budget Table
|
Line Item |
EPA Funds |
Matching Funds |
Total Project Cost |
|
Personnel |
|
|
|
|
Fringe Benefits |
|
|
|
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Travel |
|
|
|
|
Equipment |
|
|
|
|
Supplies |
|
|
|
|
Contractual |
|
|
|
|
Other |
|
|
|
|
Indirect Costs |
|
|
|
|
Income |
|
|
|
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Total |
|
|
|
Be sure to double check your Detailed Itemized Budget against Form 424, Section 18 and Form 424A Section B to ensure the amounts you are requesting match each other.
Appendix B – Checklist for
Proposal
Checklist for Content of Proposal Submission – Please submit only the following documents in this order (Please send the original and two copies for hard copy submissions.):
_____ Standard Federal Application Form (SF-424)
_____ Budget Form (SF-424A) - Section B – 1 page only - Use 3 columns - EPA share, matching share, and total in column 5
_____ Project Summary Sheet –recommended 1 page – format required
_____ Project Description (what, why, how, who, and project uniqueness) - Format optional -- use headings to help reviewers find everything.
_____ Project Evaluation Criteria for key outputs and outcomes
_____ Detailed Budget – Use three columns to show EPA, non-Federal, and the total portions for each expense. Use the same order and categories used on 424A, but with much greater detail. Be sure to double check your Detailed Budget against Form 424, Section 18 and Form 424A Section B to ensure the amounts you are requesting match each other.
Appendices
_____ Timeline – List all major activities
and milestones over project period
_____ Logic model showing outputs and outcomes
_____ Programmatic Capability and Past Performance
_____ Letters of commitment from partners
explaining the tasks or funding they will provide
Please do not submit letters of recommendation or endorsement from individuals or organizations that explain the merits of your project or your past accomplishments. They will not add to your score regardless of who sends them on your behalf. Also, please do not submit unnecessary cover letters, maps and other attachments, binders and binder sheets, and audio visuals such as videos or CDs. These create a burden for the reviewers and are not helpful, nor are they reviewed or evaluated.
Appendix C – Expected Outputs and Outcomes
and Examples of Performance Measures (Logic Model)
Expected Outputs and Outcomes. Outputs
and short-term outcomes must occur and be reported to EPA within the project
period. Progress should at least begin on medium-term or long-term
outcomes during the project period.
Recipients of these grants will further EPA’s strategic goals by
implementing educational projects that improve behavior through non-regulatory
means, raise public awareness of actions that can be taken to prevent
pollution, and promote environmental stewardship. During the evaluation process for proposals,
EPA will determine if each work plan contains well-defined outputs and outcomes
as described below.
(a) Outputs are activities, efforts, and/or work
products that the applicant proposes to produce or provide during the project
period to support an environmental goal. Expected outputs funded under this
announcement may include: recruitment
for projects that educate teachers, students, and the public about
environmental issues; classroom activities, workshops, or field trips; training
sessions for educators; development of educational materials and websites;
designing methods to measure increased scores on standardized tests; and
designing systems or methods to report the results to EPA. Grant proposals must clearly define measurable
quantitative or qualitative outputs that can be reported during the funding
period. After the project is
implemented, grant recipients are required to submit to EPA status reports
about their progress in achieving outputs. See examples of outputs below.
(b) Outcomes are the results, effects, or
consequences that will occur from carrying out the activities or outputs of the
environmental education project that is supportive of an EPA strategic goal. Outcomes may have behavioral or health-related
elements, but all must be environmental, educational and quantitative. Outcomes should include efforts to reach
traditionally under-served audiences such as tribes, communities of color,
economically distressed communities and/or geographically isolated
communities. All of them may not
necessarily be achievable during the project period. Outcomes are classified as short-term,
medium-term, and long-term.
Short-term outcomes include: increased learning, knowledge, skills,
attitudes, and motivation. This type of outcome must be expected to occur
during the project period.
Medium-term outcomes
include: decisions, actions, practices,
and behavior that are the foundations of stewardship to protect the
environment. For example, a project
directed at students may include students cleaning up a stream, beach, habitat,
or nature trail. A project directed at
teachers may include teachers taking newly acquired skills into classrooms to
teach and motivate students. Most
projects will accomplish some medium-term outcomes during the project period.
Long-term outcomes
include: enhanced civic responsibility,
and environmental improvements. These long-term outcomes may occur after the
project closes, such as establishing a more environmentally literate public
that takes action to restore or protect a watershed or transform a Brownfield
site into an inner city park.
Anticipated outcomes for environmental education grants
include:
(1) Promotion of environmental stewardship;
(2) Increased environmental knowledge and public awareness
of environmental issues as measured by pre- and post-training surveys;
(3) Improved environmental literacy and improved scores on
standardized achievement tests;
(4) Improved teacher access to training and research on
environmental topics; and
(5) Sustainable
environmental education programs.
Examples of Performance Measures (Logic Model). This chart provides examples of some of the outputs and outcomes Environmental Education Grants may produce. It is intended as guidance to define terms used in this announcement. A basic logic model template can be found on the EPA Environmental Education website (www.epa.gov/education/grants.html) and used to print out a specific version that complements your grant proposal.
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Sample Logic Model of PROJECT PERFORMANCE MEASURES (examples of outputs and outcomes for various types of educational projects) |
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OUTPUTS |
OUTCOMES |
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Short-term |
Short-term |
Medium-term |
Long-term |
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Recruitment of
teachers, students, or other target audience Training Workshops/Clinics Courses Field Trips Educational Materials Videos, CDs, DVDs, web sites Conferences and presentation of results |
Increased access to
environmental education resources and programs Students and teachers learn skills Increased environmental knowledge Increased motivation to become stewards and protect habitat and the environment Educators are motivated to train others Assessment of learning/ measuring success |
Changes in awareness about issues and decisions that affect the environment Students and community leaders make decisions to improve their environment Specific actions are taken to improve the environment Environmental stewardship is underway Assessment of actions to improve the environment/Measuring success |
Establishment of sustainable environmental education programs Improved environmental literacy and environmental change for the better Increased stewardship leads to civic responsibility for environmental protection, habitat preservation, and prevention of environmentally induced human health problems. |
Appendix D –
Instructions for www.grants.gov Electronic Submissions for Announcement Number
EPA-EE-11-02
General Application Instructions
The electronic submission of your proposal must be made by an official representative of your institution who is registered with www.grants.gov and is authorized to sign applications for Federal assistance. For more information, go to www.grants.gov and click on “Get Registered” on the left side of the page. Note that the registration process may take a week or longer to complete. If your organization is not currently registered with www.grants.gov, please encourage your office to designate an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) and ask that individual to begin the registration process as soon as possible.
To begin the proposal process under this grant announcement,
go to www.grants.gov
and click on the “Apply for Grants” tab on the left side of the page. Then click on “Apply Step 1: Download a Grant Application Package” to
download the compatible Adobe viewer and
obtain the application package. To
apply through www.grants.gov you must use Adobe Reader applications and
download the compatible Adobe Reader version (Adobe Reader applications
are available to download for free on the
www.grants.gov website. For more information on Adobe Reader please
visit the Help section on www.grants.gov at www.grants.gov/help/help.jsp
or www.grants.gov/aboutgrants/program_status.jsp).
Once you have downloaded the viewer, you may retrieve the
application package by entering the Funding Opportunity Number, EPA-EE-11-02,
or the CFDA number that applies to the announcement (CFDA 66.951), in the
appropriate field. You may also be able to access the proposal package by
clicking on the Application button at the top right of the synopsis page for
this announcement on www.grants.gov (to find the synopsis page, go to www.grants.gov and click on
the “Find Grant Opportunities” button on the left side of the page and then go
to Search Opportunities and use the Browse by Agency feature to find EPA opportunities).
Proposal Submission Deadline: Your organization’s AOR must submit your complete proposal package electronically to EPA through www.grants.gov no later than 11:59 pm, May 2, 2011. Please submit all of the proposal materials described below.
Proposal Materials
The following forms and documents are required to be submitted under this announcement:
I. Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424)
II. Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424A)
III. Work
plan prepared as described in Section IV(C) of the announcement.
IV. Budget and Non-Federal Match
V. Appendices
(a) Timeline;
(b) Logic model;
(c) Programmatic capability and past
performance; and
(d) Partnership letters of
commitment (only if you have partner organizations making a commitment to the
project – please NO letters of endorsement or recommendation)
The proposal package must include all of the following materials:
I. Standard Form (SF) 424,
Application for Federal Assistance
Complete the form. There are no attachments. Please be sure to include organization fax number and email address in Block 5 of the Standard Form SF 424. Please note that the organizational Dun and Bradstreet (D&B) Data Universal Number System (DUNS) number must be included on the SF-424. Organizations may obtain a DUNS number at no cost by calling the toll-free DUNS number request line at 1-866-705-5711.
II. Standard Form
SF 424A – Budget Information
Complete the form. There are no attachments.
The total amount of federal funding requested for the
project period should be shown on line 5(e) and on line 6(k) of SF-424A. If indirect costs are included, the amount of
indirect costs should be entered on line 6(j).
The indirect cost rate (i.e., a percentage), the base (e.g., personnel
costs and fringe benefits), and the amount should also be indicated on line 22.
III. Work Plan-Project
Narrative Attachment
Prepare in accordance with the instructions in Section IV(C) of the announcement. The document should be readable in PDF or MS Word and consolidated into a single file.
IV. Budget and Non-Federal Match-Project Narrative Attachment
Prepare in accordance with the instructions in Section IV(C) of the announcement. The document should be readable in PDF or MS Word and consolidated into a single file.
V. Appendices-Project Narrative Attachment or
Other Attachments Form
Prepare in accordance with the instructions in Section IV(C) of the announcement. The document should be readable in PDF or MS Word and consolidated into a single file. Appendices include:
(a) Timeline;
(b) Logic model;
(c) Programmatic capability and past
performance; and
(d) Partnership letters of
commitment (only if you have partner organizations making a commitment to the
project – please NO letters of endorsement or recommendation)
Application Preparation and Submission Instructions
Documents I through III listed under Proposal Materials above should appear in the “Mandatory Documents” box on the www.grants.gov Grant Application Package page. The Other Attachments, Document IV, appears in the Optional Documents box.
For documents I and II, click on the appropriate form and then click “Open Form” below the box. The fields that must be completed will be highlighted in yellow. Optional fields and completed fields will be displayed in white. If you enter an invalid response or incomplete information in a field, you will receive an error message. When you have finished filling out each form, click “Save.” When you return to the electronic Grant Application Package page, click on the form you just completed, and then click on the box that says, “Move Form to Submission List.” This action will move the document over to the box that says, “Mandatory Completed Documents for Submission.”
For documents III, IV, and V, you will need to attach electronic files. Prepare your work plan as described in Section IV of the announcement and save the document to your computer as an MS Word, PDF or WordPerfect file. When you are ready to attach your work plan to the application package, click on “Project Narrative Attachment Form,” and open the form. Click “Add Mandatory Project Narrative File,” and then attach your proposal (previously saved to your computer) using the browse window that appears. You may then click “View Mandatory Project Narrative File” to view it. Enter a brief descriptive title of your project in the space beside “Mandatory Project Narrative File Filename;” the filename should be no more than 40 characters long. To attach the other required documents (IV Budget and Non-Federal Match and V Appendices), you may click “Add Optional Project Narrative File” and proceed as before or use the Other Attachments from that appears in the Optional Box.. When you have finished attaching the necessary documents, click “Close Form.” When you return to the “Grant Application Package” page, select the “Project Narrative Attachment Form” and click “Move Form to Submission List.” The form should now appear in the box that says, “Mandatory Completed Documents for Submission.”
Once you have finished filling out all of the forms/attachments and they appear in one of the “Completed Documents for Submission” boxes, click the “Save” button that appears at the top of the Web page. It is suggested that you save the document a second time, using a different name, since this will make it easier to submit an amended package later if necessary. Please use the following format when saving your file: “Applicant Name – FY11 –AssocProgSupp– 1st Submission” or “Applicant Name – FY 11 AssocProgSupp– Back-up Submission.” If it becomes necessary to submit an amended package at a later date, then the name of the 2nd submission should be changed to “Applicant Name – FY11 AssocProgSupp– 2nd Submission.”
Once your proposal package has been completed and saved, send it to your AOR for submission to U.S. EPA through www.grants.gov. Please advise your AOR to close all other software programs before attempting to submit the proposal package through www.grants.gov.
In the “Application Filing Name” box, your AOR should enter your organization’s name (abbreviate where possible), the fiscal year (e.g., FY11), and the grant category (e.g., AssocProgSupp). The filing name should not exceed 40 characters. From the “Grant Application Package” page, your AOR may submit the application package by clicking the “Submit” button that appears at the top of the page. The AOR will then be asked to verify the agency and funding opportunity number for which the application package is being submitted. If problems are encountered during the submission process, the AOR should reboot his/her computer before trying to submit the proposal package again. [It may be necessary to turn off the computer (not just restart it) before attempting to submit the package again.] If the AOR continues to experience submission problems, he/she may contact www.grants.gov for assistance by phone at 1-800-518-4726 or email at www.grants.gov/help/help.jsp or contact the appropriate Regional EPA staff as identified in Section VII of the announcement.
Proposal packages submitted through www.grants.gov will be time/date stamped electronically.
If you have not received a confirmation of receipt from EPA (not from www.grants.gov) within 60 days of the proposal deadline, please contact the appropriate Regional EPA staff as identified in Section VII of the announcement. Failure to do so may result in your proposal not being reviewed.