Record Number: 6672
 
Education (Department of)
 Office of Postsecondary Education
  Higher and Continuing Education Programs
   Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)
    Comprehensive Program
 
600 Independence Avenue, SW
Room 3100, ROB-3
Washington, DC  20202-5175
Phone: (202)358-3041
E-mail: FIPSE@ed.gov
Web Site: http://gcs.ed.gov/
E-Forms: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/FIPSE/
 
ACTIVITIES SUPPORTED:         Provision of Training Programs
                              Teaching or Curric/Prog Development
                              Operating or General Support
LAST REVIEWED:                08/26/97
ACADEMIC BACKGROUND REQUIRED: Doctorate/Equiv Professional
CITIZENSHIP REQUIRED:         U.S. Citizens
AGENCY TYPE:                  U.S. Federal Government
DEADLINES ANNOUNCED:          10/24/97
 
The purpose of the Comprehensive Program is to provide grants or enter 
into cooperative agreements to improve postsecondary education 
opportunities. The Secretary is particularly interested in applications 
that meet one or more of the following invitational priorities; however, 
an application that meets one or more of these invitational priorities 
does not receive competitive or absolute preference over other 
applications: Invitational Priority 1: Projects to support new ways of 
ensuring equal access to postsecondary education and to improve rates of 
retention and program completion, especially for low-income and 
underrepresented minority students, whose retention and completion rates 
continue to lag disturbingly behind those of other groups. Invitational 
Priority 2: Projects to improve campus climates for learning by creating 
an environment that is safe, welcoming, and conducive to academic growth 
for all students. Invitational Priority 3: Projects to support innovative 
reforms of undergraduate, graduate, and professional curricula that 
improve not only what students learn, but how they learn. Invitational 
Priority 4: Projects to make more productive use of resources to improve 
teaching and learning and to increase learning productivity--that is, to 
transform programs and teaching to promote more student learning relative 
to institutional resources expended. Invitational Priority 5: Projects to 
support the professional development of full- and part-time faculty by 
assessing and rewarding effective teaching; promoting new and more 
effective teaching methods; and improving the preparation of graduate 
students who will be future faculty members. Invitational Priority 6: 
Projects to promote innovative school-college partnerships and to improve 
the preparation of K-12 teachers in order to enhance students' 
preparation for, access to, and success in college. Invitational Priority 
7: Projects to disseminate innovative postsecondary educational programs 
that have already been locally developed, implemented, and evaluated. 
SUPPORT PROVIDED: The Administration's request for the Fund for the 
Improvement of Postsecondary Education for FY 1998 is $18,000,000. Of 
this amount, it is anticipated that approximately $5,000,000 will be 
available for an estimated 72 new awards under the Comprehensive Program. 
The estimated average size of awards is $70,000. Project periods may be 
for up to 36 months. The Congress has not yet completed action on the FY 
1998 appropriation. The estimates in this notice assume passage of the 
Administration's request. APPLICANT INFORMATION: Eligible applicants are 
institutions of higher education or combinations of such institutions and 
other public and private nonprofit educational institutions and agencies. 
APPLICATION INFORMATION: The above deadline is for required 
preapplications. The deadline for final applications is March 20, 1998. 
The telephone number listed above is for requesting applications. All of 
the forms necessary to apply to the FY98 Comprehensive Program are also 
available by fax-on-demand. Applicants using a touch-tone phone may call 
(732) 544-2872 and enter their fax number as directed. They will receive, 
by fax, the title page, budget form, and certifications form. This 
service will not be available after the program closing date. To obtain 
further program information, call (202)708-5750 between the hours of 8:00 
a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday. Individuals who 
use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800- 877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 
p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday. (CFDA 84.116A, 84.116B)