August 15, 2008
ACTION
REQUIRED/
FUNDING AVAILABLE
TO ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS
SUBJECT: eGrants Request for Application, RFA# 701-08-113
Investment Capital Fund, Cycle 18 Grant Program
The Texas Education Agency’s (TEA) web-based grant application system, “eGrants”, will be available for applicants to apply for the campus-based competitive Investment Capital Fund grant beginning on or about August 15, 2008. This grant opportunity is available for all public school campuses and open enrollment charter schools that currently do not have an Investment Capital Fund grant. A separate application must be submitted for each campus on behalf of which the public school district is applying.
Description of Program
The purpose of these campus-based grants is to improve student achievement through deregulation and restructuring that includes staff development, and parent and community training and may also include strategies designed to enrich or extend student learning experiences outside of the regular school day.
Eligible Applicants
TEA is requesting eGrants applications under Request for Applications (RFA) #701-08-113 from school districts and open-enrollment charter schools on behalf of an individual campus. A multi-campus school district or open-enrollment charter school may submit more than one application. However, each application must address strategies and activities for a single campus and its community. The school must have demonstrated a commitment to campus deregulation and to restructuring educational practices and conditions at the school. This must be shown by entering into a partnership with school staff, parents of students at the school, community and business leaders, school district officers, and a nonprofit community-based organization. The nonprofit organization must have a demonstrated capacity to train, develop, and organize parents and community leaders into a large, nonpartisan constituency that will hold the school and the school district accountable for achieving high academic standards. Campuses currently participating in the 2007-2008 Investment Capital Fund Grant Program, Cycle 17 (SAS #ICFGAA08), are not eligible to participate in this project.
Project Funding
The Investment Capital Fund grant will be implemented during the 2008-2010 school year. Applicants should plan for a starting date of no earlier than March 1, 2009 and an ending date of no later than August 31, 2010. Each project will receive a maximum of $50,000 for the grant period. Funding will be provided for approximately 89 projects.
Selection Criteria
Applications will be selected based on independent reviewers' assessments of each applicant's ability to carry out all requirements contained in the eGrants Program Guidelines. Reviewers will evaluate applications based on the overall quality and validity of the proposed grant programs and the extent to which the applications address the primary objectives and intent of the project. Applications must address each requirement as specified in the eGrants Program Guidelines to be considered for funding. TEA reserves the right to select from the highest-ranking applications those that address all requirements in the RFA and are most advantageous to the project goals.
TEA is not obligated to approve an application, provide funds, or endorse any application submitted in response to this eGrants request for application (RFA). This eGrants RFA does not commit TEA to pay any costs before an application is approved. The issuance of this eGrants RFA does not obligate TEA to award a grant or pay any costs incurred in preparing a response.
Obtaining Access to eGrants
This Investment Capital Fund grant is available only through eGrants and may not be submitted through any other means. To participate in the eGrants system, simply request access to eGrants by completing and submitting the TEA SE Request for Access form available on the TEA Grant Opportunities homepage in the eGrants Toolbox at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/opge/egrant/index.html. You will receive a user name and password via email, usually within two weeks. Even if you already have a TEA SE user name for other applications, you must request access specifically for eGrants.
To apply for access to eGrants:
1. Open your web browser.
2. Access the TEA Grants Opportunity page.
3. Under the “eGrants Toolbox” midway down the page, select “Apply for eGrants Logon”. Organizations will be directed to the correct format by selected one of the four choices in the drop list for “Request Access or Assistance”
A TEA SE user name and password is ultimately required for each user of eGrants, including authorized officials such as superintendents and executive directors, employees or contractors who will assist in writing/completing the eGrants, grant personnel who will be reporting progress on the eGrants projects, individuals who are requested by TEA to review/score competitive grants, and business office personnel who will be filing expenditure reports and requesting payment for various eGrants. At a minimum, each applicant must have a user name and password for one authorized official to submit the application. “View Only” versions of the applications and guidelines will be available on the Grants Website and will not require a TEA SE user name and password. However, to apply for these grants a TEA SE user name and password will be required.
Grant Writer Assignment Form
Due to the competition among campuses for this grant, users also must be designated to have access to a campus grant application by the superintendent or the organization’s authorized official. The Grant Writer Assignment form is designed to identify users who will have access to view and to complete grant applications. Only the superintendent or the organization’s authorized official may complete this form and must denote agreement with the authorization statement on the bottom of the form. Only the users identified on this form will have access to this grant application. All applicants must complete and submit the Grant Writer Assignment (GWA) previously known as Grant Writer Designation (GWD), which will close 5 to 10 days before the deadline for receipt of applications or access to the application will not be available.
On-Line Resources
A complete set of on-line resources is available for applicants. The documents listed below should be accessed/viewed and/or printed from the Grants homepage at the TEA Grants Opportunities page . In the “Select Search Options” box, select the name of the RFA from the drop-down list. Scroll down to the “Application and Support Information” to view all documents that pertain to this RFA prior to August 15, 2008.
Under “eGrants Toolbox”:
· Apply for eGrants Logon
· Quick Reference: eGrants Form Navigation
· eGrants User Guide - a comprehensive guide to setting up your computer and navigating through eGrants.
· Part 1: General and Fiscal Guidelines - important guidelines that apply to all eGrants.
When the actual Investment Capital Fund grant is available in eGrants beginning August 15, 2008, other resources will be available and should be carefully reviewed by each applicant:
· Program Guidelines – program-specific guidelines that apply only to this Investment Capital Fund eGrants.
· Schedule Instructions – detailed instructions for completing each schedule/form in the eGrants application.
· Any applicable FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) or Erratum pertaining to this grant
For Further Information
For clarifying information about the eGrants application, contact Carlos Garza, Division of Discretionary Grants, Texas Education Agency, (512) 463-9269. In order to assure that no prospective applicant may obtain a competitive advantage because of acquisition of information unknown to other prospective applicants, any additional information that is different from or in addition to information provided in the eGrants Guidelines will be provided only in response to written inquiries. Copies of all such inquiries and the written answers thereto will be posted on the TEA website in the format of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) at http://burleson.tea.state.tx.us/GrantOpportunities/forms/. In the “Select Search Options” box, select the name of the RFA from the drop-down list. Scroll down to the “Application and Support Information” to view all documents that pertain to this RFA.
Deadline for Receipt of eGrants Application The eGrants application will be available on or about August 15, 2008, for eligible applicants to complete the required forms. To be considered for funding, the eGrants application must be certified and submitted by 5:00 p.m., Central Time, September 25, 2008 by the applicant’s official authorized to commit the organization to a legally binding contractual agreement with TEA.
We’ll see you online!
Sincerely,
Nora Ibáñez Hancock, Ed.D.
Associate Commissioner
Office for Planning, Grants and Evaluation