May 10, 2011

From Grants Resource Center: ED Cancellations Confirmed, but Still Not Official

Last week, the GRC learned that the U.S. Department of Education will cancel three competitions of popular grant programs, two of which currently have open solicitations. Because of the prior uncertainty of the FY 11 budget, program officers within ED were advised to take a “business as usual” approach while specific budget cuts were being determined.

Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) Comprehensive Program--Just two weeks ago, the GRC hosted a web conference featuring program officer Claire Cornell where she acknowledged that the Comprehensive Program may endure some budget cuts. However, she said then that ED was still proceeding with a new competition with a May 23, 2011 deadline. More recently, Sarah Beaton, co-coordinator, acknowledged that an official cancellation notice should appear in the Federal Register soon.

This is an unfortunate turn of events for the Comprehensive Program, as FY 11 may be the last year applicants see this program in its current form. In the FY 12 proposed budget, the Comprehensive Program has been zeroed out (but not proposed for elimination) in favor of a new First in the World competition within FIPSE, which would promote and test innovative strategies for improving college access, postsecondary education quality, and postsecondary completion.

European Union (EU)-U.S. Atlantis Program--The GRC featured this program during the Proposal Development Workshop in February and it still has a deadline set for May 24, 2011. Rumors of budget cuts for this program had been circulating among EU stakeholders a month or so before ED acknowledged it. Additionally, the other international programs formally housed under FIPSE (North American Mobility, U.S.-Russia, and U.S.-Brazil) may also suffer from severe budget cuts.

Emergency Management for Higher Education--This program will not have a competition for new awards in FY 11 and no solicitation has been released. The GRC will follow the future of this program closely as it is not mentioned in the FY 12 proposed budget.

The Sponsored Programs Office will let the campus community know more as we hear it.

No comments:

Post a Comment