F02 STEM NFO Amd 01 Civil Society 3Apr23.pdf

FEDERAL AWARDING AGENCY: Washington Headquarters Services Acquisition Directorate

(WHS/AD)

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY TITLE: Department of Defense (DoD) Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) National Defense

Education Program (NDEP) Notice of Funding

Opportunity (NFO)

ANNOUNCEMENT TYPE: Amendment 01: Civil Society

NOTICE OF FUNDING

OPPORTUNITY (NFO) NUMBER:

HQ003423NFOEASD01

ASSISTANCE LISTING: 12.006 National Defense Education Program

KEY DATES: Amendment Posted: 9 February 2023

White Papers: 6 March 2023, 2359 Eastern

Invitations for Full Technical Applications: 3 April 2023

Technical Applications Due: 8 May 2023, 2359 Eastern

Notification of Award (Tentative): 28 June 2023

Award Finalized (Tentative): 1 August 2023

AGENCY CONTACT: Jonathan Bertsch

Grants Officer, WHS/AD

E-mail: jonathan.e.bertsch.civ@mail.mil mailto:jonathan.e.bertsch.civ@mail.mil

I. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Department of Defense (DoD) National Defense Education Program (NDEP) is seeking to strategically fund grants supporting civil society education and outreach programs, as per Topic of Interest five (5) in the DoD STEM NDEP NFO (Section

1.C.5.). Specifically, as directed by Congress through the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 National

Defense Authorization Act (Public Law 117-81), DoD is seeking to work with universities with ethics and public affairs programs to promote civil society education and outreach, including among military and non-military communities.

Proposed civil society education and outreach programs can target any age group, from pre-K to graduate school, as well as the general public. Programs may include, but are not limited to, community engagement as civil servants, media literacy, science communication, and program leadership in civic engagement. Programs should be wide-ranging, supported by research with nationwide impact in supporting American democracy, ethical leadership, and civic engagement.

Additionally, programs should contribute to the types of support authorized under Section

234 of the FY2020 NDAA, which includes:

(1) the development or modification of curricula relating to civics education;

(2) classroom activities, thesis projects, individual or team projects, internships, or community service activities relating to civics;

(3) collaboration with government entities, nonprofit organizations, or consortia of such entities and organizations to provide participants with civics-related experiences;

(4) civics-related faculty development programs;

(5) recruitment of educators who are highly qualified in civics education to teach civics or to assist with the development of curricula for civics education;

(6) presentation of seminars, workshops, and training for the development of skills associated with civic engagement;

(7) activities that enable participants to interact with government officials and entities;

(8) expansion of civics education programs and outreach for members of the Armed

Forces, dependents and children of such members, and employees of the Department of Defense; and

(9) opportunities for participants to obtain work experience in fields relating to civics.

Proposals targeting age groups in the K-12 range can also consider a submission under

Amendment 04: Enhanced Civics Education.

Interested parties should submit a white paper in response to this amendment no later than 6 March 2023 at 11:59pm ET, following the instructions and template outlined in

Sections III.A., IV, and XII of the NFO. The white paper should be emailed to osd.dodstem@mail.mil with the subject line, “NFO White Paper Submission, Amendment 01: Civil Society.” Applicants will be selected from the white paper submissions to be invited by the Government via email to submit a full technical application on Grants.gov for evaluation and possible award consideration.

mailto:osd.dodstem@mail.mil

II. FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION

The Department intends to award multiple grants with a maximum grant award of $6M for a period of three (3) years, subject to the availability of funds. Applications with a proposed budget exceeding maximum grant may be considered, subject to the overall merit of proposed activity, and availability of funds. However, this does not bind the

Government to award grants beyond the maximum grant award described above.

III. TECHNICAL APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

Technical applications are accepted by invitation only and must adhere to all application guidelines and page limits, found in NFO Section IV. Note the turnaround time between invitations sent by the Government to submit full technical applications and when technical applications are due. Refer to timeline on the cover page.

The Project Narrative page limit is 28 pages, and is broken out as follows. Descriptions of each section are outlined in the NFO (Section IV.F.b.).

Cover Page – 1 page

Table of Contents – 1 page

Technical Approach and Justification – no more than 8 pages

Project Schedule and Milestones – no more than 2 pages

Financial Breakdown – no more than 2 pages

Reports – no more than 1 page

Management Approach – no more than 1 page

Metrics and Evaluation – no more than 2 pages

Qualifications – no more than 1 page

Responsibility – no more than 2 pages

Facilities & Equipment – 1 page

Work Plan – no more than 6 pages

IV. EVALUATION CRITERIA

Awards under this NFO will be made to Applicants on the basis of the evaluation criteria listed below. The weight or relative importance of each criterion is included in parentheses.

(1) Overall Technical Merits (60%)

Overall technical merits of the applicant’s proposal shall clearly describe its creativity, innovation, feasibility, and efficacy to achieve the BAA objectives. Also considered is:

a) The quality of the program’s plan to execute proposed activity and assess effectiveness of the program and participant outcomes;

b) The Applicant’s capabilities, related experience, facilities, techniques or unique combinations of these which are integral factors for achieving the application objectives; and

c) The qualifications, capabilities and experience of the proposed Project Director /

Principal Investigator, team leader and key personnel who are critical to achieving the application objectives.

(2) Relevance and Alignment (20%)

Application must address programs and capabilities listed in this Amendment. The applicant(s) must be from or work with a university with ethics and public affairs programs, and the proposal must promote civil society education and outreach, including among military and non-military communities.

(3) Cost Analysis (20%)

A cost analysis will be performed to determine reasonableness of the proposed budget. Long-term sustainability plan will also be evaluated under this criterion. The availability of funds to support the effort and long-term sustainability of the project will also be considered.