Foa_Content_of_NOAA-NMFS-HCPO-2025-29770.pdf

NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

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Table of Contents

NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

Executive Summary Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description II. Award Information III. Eligibility Information IV. Application and Submission Information V. Application Review Information VI. Award Administration Information VII. Agency Contacts VIII. Other Information

Executive Summary Federal Agency Name Fisheries Habitat Conservation Program Office (HCPO)

Funding Opportunity Title Fiscal Year 2025 NOAA Delaware Bay B-WET Funding Program

Announcement Type Competitive

Funding Opportunity Number

NOAA-NMFS-HCPO-2025-29770

Assistance Listing Number(s) 11.008

Dates The deadline for applications is 11:59 p.m Eastern Time on April 18, 2025, and applications must be submitted using www.grants.gov (Grants.gov). PLEASE NOTE: it may take Grants.gov up to two business days to validate or reject the application. Please keep this in mind in developing your submission timeline.

Informational webinars about the FY 2025 Delaware Bay B-WET funding announcement will be held on January 31, 2025 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time and February 13, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.

To register for these webinars, please visit: https://forms.gle/TaKGWo3EZnsmWrnf8. Note that NOAA B- WET staff will be available to answer questions Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m.- 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time excluding federal holidays.

https://forms.gle/TaKGWo3EZnsmWrnf8

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NOTE: We strongly encourage all prospective applicants to begin required registrations as early as possible. Completing the required registrations can take six weeks or longer. Submission due dates will not be extended because of registration delays. Submissions received after the due date will be considered late and will not be accepted.

Applicant organizations and individuals must register for three different Federal systems prior to submitting an application through Grants.gov (SAM.gov, eRA Commons, and Grants.gov).

Applicant organizations and individuals must first register with SAM.gov and obtain a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). After you obtain your UEI, you can complete your Grants.gov and eRA Commons registrations concurrently.

See Section IV(G) for detailed instructions on registration requirements. If you do not have access to the internet, please contact the Agency Contacts listed in this NOFO for submission instructions.

Funding Opportunity Description

The Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) program is a competitive grants program that provides funding for locally relevant environmental education projects for K-12 audiences. This funding opportunity supports programming throughout the Delaware Bay watershed in Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York.

Funded projects promote Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEEs). The MWEE is a learner-centered framework that focuses on investigating local environmental issues and leads to informed action. MWEEs are composed of multiple components that include learning both outdoors and in the classroom as students engage in issue definition, outdoor field experiences, synthesis and conclusions, and environmental action projects. MWEEs aim to increase understanding and stewardship of the Delaware Bay and local watersheds, including the rivers, upland streams, and natural habitats found throughout the region. In these experiences, the core ideas of multiple disciplines are applied to make sense of the relationships between the natural world and the communities that rely on it. MWEEs help connect students with their local environment and equip them to make decisions and take actions that contribute to stronger communities.

B-WET funding supports school districts and their partners to develop high-quality environmental education experiences for students, rigorous teacher training opportunities, and capacity-building efforts that underpin the implementation of high-quality environmental literacy programming. Projects advance regional fisheries initiatives, state and local education and environmental priorities, and the NOAA Education Strategic Plan.

The priority for this funding announcement is: Supporting systemic and sustainable MWEEs.

Full Text of Announcement I. Funding Opportunity Description A. Program Objective https://www.noaa.gov/education/explainers/2021-2040-noaa-education-strategic-plan https://www.noaa.gov/education/explainers/2021-2040-noaa-education-strategic-plan

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The NOAA Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) program is a competitive grants program that provides funding for locally relevant environmental education projects for K-12 audiences. Watersheds and the local environment are an excellent context for education providing hands-on, place-based laboratories where students can see, touch, and learn about their local watershed and the greater environment.

The goal of this funding opportunity is to support the development and implementation of K-12 environmental literacy programs that provide students with Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEEs) and related professional development (PD) for in-service teachers, administrators, and/or other educators serving K-12 students.

Successful B-WET projects provide formal education that directly supports state standards and local curriculum and connects to regional, state, and local environmental policies and initiatives. Many states within the Delaware Bay watershed have recently updated their learning standards or have added new aspects to these standards. Pennsylvania is in the process of implementing the new Science, Technology & Engineering, Environmental Literacy & Sustainability (https://www.pa.gov/en/agencies/education/programs-and-services/instruction/elementary-and-secondary-education/curriculum/science/science-standards.html) standards (STEELS), and New Jersey recently adopted the New Jersey Student Learning Standards (https://www.nj.gov/education/standards/) that integrate locally relevant environmental topics across the curriculum. Delaware has developed a set of environmental literacy competencies that are being integrated within career and technical education programs (https://delawarepathways.org/environmental-literacy/). Proposed projects should directly support student learning that addresses elements of these standards and initiatives.

Potential applicants are encouraged to contact the Delaware Bay B-WET Coordinator (contact information in Section VII) before submitting an application with questions about applicability of project activities to B-WET goals and objectives.

B. Program Priorities

B-WET projects funded under this announcement will support the development and implementation of systemic and sustainable MWEEs to be conducted as a part of school district curricular programs.

Systemic MWEEs reach the entire student population in one or more grades within a school district and ensure that the teachers of these students receive high-quality professional development to improve content knowledge and pedagogical skills for implementing all aspects of the MWEE. They support student learning outcomes and are formally embedded into the district curriculum either prior to or during the implementation of the project. Projects that are systemic encourage ownership from a broad range of constituents and promote long-term sustainability of the MWEE project in a school district. These programs require leadership and support from the school district, and, because of the broad reach of systemic projects, partnerships with multiple entities are often required to ensure all students receive all components of a MWEE and meaningful professional development for teachers is provided.

https://www.pa.gov/en/agencies/education/programs-and-services/instruction/elementary-and-secondary-education/curriculum/science/science-standards.html https://www.pa.gov/en/agencies/education/programs-and-services/instruction/elementary-and-secondary-education/curriculum/science/science-standards.html https://www.nj.gov/education/standards/ https://delawarepathways.org/environmental-literacy/

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The program recognizes that there are school districts that face challenges in developing and implementing systemic MWEE projects in a single grant cycle. While every project faces some barrier to implementation, some districts have greater challenges due to a need to build understanding and support of the MWEE framework, a lack of local resources or partners, policies that conflict with outdoor education, or limited internal capacity. Not being able to become fully systemic over the course of the 3-year grant cycle should not discourage applications to this funding announcement. Applicants should explain why systemic implementation is not feasible in the project timeline and how they will build toward it over the course of the grant period and into the future.

Projects should help advance existing local and state education priorities such as advancing college and career readiness; supporting implementation of new standards; building connections between science, reading, and math; and teacher retention. They should also engage learners in exploring state and local conservation priorities and expose them to job opportunities in the field to encourage the development of a future workforce. Proposals should describe how the proposed work will connect to both educational and conservation priorities in their local context.

Applications for projects can come from any applicant type listed as eligible in this opportunity; however, substantial coordination and support from the school district is strongly encouraged. Official letters of commitment from superintendents, school boards, and/or school district curriculum supervisors are requested with proposals if they are not the primary applicant.

We encourage applicants to review MWEE 101 and the Facilitator's Guide to MWEE Training on www.baybackpack.com and to explain in the proposal how you will incorporate or reference aspects of these resources.

METHODS TO SUPPORT SYSTEMIC AND SUSTAINABLE MWEEs

Projects should include one or more of the methods outlined below and describe how these methods come together to build toward the development and implementation of systemic and sustainable MWEEs.

(Note: Applicants are not limited to the examples detailed below.)

1. Create and Disseminate Model MWEEs: Model MWEEs clearly illustrate how all of the essential elements and supporting practices are woven together in support of standards-connected student learning. Proposals and supporting materials focusing on MWEE development and implementation should include details about where the project fits within the scope and sequence of the school district’s curriculum and applicants should clearly understand and convey the primary learning objectives. Multi disciplinary programs are encouraged. Model MWEEs should follow a development cycle that includes initial development with stakeholder input, teacher PD, piloting the MWEE, and making revisions based on feedback. Every effort should be made to ensure the MWEEs are piloted and tested with the variety of student groups and schools that compose the school district. Model MWEEs must result in products (e.g. Environmental Literacy Model, curriculum guide, training guides/videos) that can be used in ongoing implementation and serve as examples for other MWEE development efforts. Examples of work that could support this method include:

• Develop, train teachers, and implement a model MWEE with multiple student audiences within a school district

• Identify existing environmental literacy programming, lessons, and field trips and develop a

MWEE around these existing components

• In addition to MWEE development, support professional development focused on the MWEE framework for teachers and partners that will be responsible for MWEE implementation

• Adapt and refine existing MWEEs and develop and implement a strategy for sharing the resulting

MWEE Models with regional stakeholders http://www.baybackpack.com

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2. Develop Local Networks: Support the development or strengthening of a local network that includes school district(s) and community partners focused on advancing environmental literacy through collective impact, network development principles, or other partnership/social impact models. This work includes coordination, networking, leadership, and other support structures necessary for advancing the MWEE as an approach at the local, school district, or multi-school district level. Local networks should have the ultimate goal of embedding systemic outdoor education, including MWEEs, into curriculum and/or school and district operations. Network development efforts must result in the development of tangible products such as a statement of shared vision, network governance documents, communication tools, or other tools and resources that can be used to advance future work. Examples of work that could support this method include:

• Identifying and advancing shared priorities among school districts, environmental literacy practitioners, and community partners with the applicant emphasizing MWEEs in this work.

• Improving communication between school districts and/or local community organizations to facilitate the implementation of outdoor education programs, including MWEEs, and teacher professional development.

• Engaging decision makers (e.g. superintendents, school boards, school administrators, principals) to promote and support outdoor education, including MWEEs and related teacher professional development.

3. Support Planning and Capacity for Outdoor Education and Environmental Literacy Programming:

Work with partners from both within schools and the communities that support them to develop comprehensive plans that outline the strategy for integrating outdoor and environmental literacy programming and ultimately systemic MWEEs across the learners' experience from pre-kindergarten through graduation. Build capacity for agencies, organizations, or collaboratives that are working to modify or enhance existing outdoor or environmental literacy programs that will ultimately support systemic MWEEs. We encourage applicants that are submitting a proposal that supports planning and capacity aspects to review the District Environmental Literacy Planning Toolkit on Bay Backpack (https://www.baybackpack.com/district-toolkit/district-environmental-literacy-planning-toolkit).

Examples of work that could support this method include:

• Supporting staff in key agencies or organizations to engage in planning and implementation of

MWEEs and related efforts. An emphasis should be placed on ensuring that smaller, local organizations can meaningfully contribute to the efforts defined in the proposal. This could also include support for an environmental literacy coordinator position at the school district that leads development and implementation of MWEEs, environmental literacy plans, and/or other environmental literacy elements.

• Supporting the development of a school district environmental literacy plan or other documented strategy that includes policies, practices, and metrics for ensuring environmental literacy programming for all students and training for all involved teachers. This plan must clearly identify in which grades MWEEs currently exist and/or will be built out by the school district or cadre of schools and should include a financial sustainability component with clear strategies for sustaining programs. Applicants may refer to School District Environmental Literacy Plan Templates that have been adopted and/or created within the state and the School District Environmental Literacy Planning Toolkit (https://www.baybackpack.com/district-toolkit/district-environmental-literacy-planning-toolkit).

• Recruiting and/or training practitioners committed to advancing outdoor education, including the MWEE framework, with an emphasis on bringing new disciplines and perspectives to environmental literacy.

https://www.baybackpack.com/district-toolkit/district-environmental-literacy-planning-toolkit https://www.baybackpack.com/district-toolkit/district-environmental-literacy-planning-toolkit https://www.baybackpack.com/district-toolkit/district-environmental-literacy-planning-toolkit

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• Developing outdoor learning spaces on school grounds and creating support structures for their use to break down barriers to outdoor learning, including how to use the space to support MWEEs and environmental literacy programming. Note: BWET funds cannot be used for construction, but can be used for supplies often needed to resource outdoor classrooms (e.g. whiteboards, seating, shade, storage, and natural elements).

DEFINING THE MEANINGFUL WATERSHED EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE (MWEE)

All B-WET regions around the country use the MWEE as a framework for delivering high-quality environmental education (www.noaa.gov/education/explainers/noaa-meaningful-watershed-educational-experience). Additional MWEE information and resources are available on the Bay Backpack website (www.baybackpack.com), including:

1. An Educator’s Guide to the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (the MWEE Guide);

2. MWEE online trainings;

3. The Facilitator’s Guide to MWEE Training

4. Evaluating a MWEE Resource; and

5. School District Toolkit.

The MWEE is a learner-centered framework that focuses on investigations into local environmental issues and leads to informed action. MWEEs are made up of multiple components that include learning both outdoors and in the classroom and are designed to increase environmental literacy by actively engaging students in building knowledge and meaning through hands-on experiences. In these experiences, the core ideas and practices of multiple disciplines are applied to make sense of the relationships between the natural world and society. MWEEs help connect students with their local environment and equip them to make decisions and take actions that contribute to stronger communities.

The MWEE consists of four essential elements and four supporting practices that build upon each other to create a comprehensive, student-centered learning experience. Throughout the MWEE, teachers provide structure, support, and encouragement as students use their curiosity and creativity to investigate and take action to address a local environmental issue. To support teacher implementation of MWEEs, B- WET has also included six characteristics that are recommended to be included in teacher professional development activities.

MWEEs are appropriate for all grade levels with content and practices growing in complexity and sophistication across the grades starting with teacher-guided investigations and progressing to student-led inquiry. Using the MWEE framework helps educators create an engaging program to achieve their learning objectives (i.e., the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that students should be able to exhibit following instruction). Learning objectives should address academic standards, but might also include other objectives, such as teamwork, social-emotional learning, and civic responsibility.

1. MWEE Essential Elements

The MWEE consists of four essential elements that describe “what students do.” Issue Definition, Outdoor Field Experiences, Synthesis and Conclusions, and Environmental Action Projects. These elements, together with the supporting practices, create a learner-centered framework that emphasizes the role of the student in actively constructing meaning from the learning experiences. The essential elements are not meant to be linear. In fact, some elements, such as Synthesis and Conclusions, occur repeatedly throughout the MWEE.

https://www.noaa.gov/education/explainers/noaa-meaningful-watershed-educational-experience https://www.noaa.gov/education/explainers/noaa-meaningful-watershed-educational-experience https://www.baybackpack.com

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1.1 Issue Definition

During Issue Definition, students learn about an environmental issue by planning and conducting background research and investigations. An environmental issue is an environmental problem, often with observable phenomena, to which community members bring a variety of perspectives.

To provide structure for their exploration of the issue, students focus on a driving question that is defined by the teacher. This question is the “big picture” question that sparks curiosity and organizes student inquiry and investigations, which ultimately informs environmental actions. It should be open-ended, relevant to students’ lived experiences, and meet learning objectives. To support youth voice and deepen the learning, students are actively involved in co-developing supporting questions with teachers to better understand the driving question and environmental issue.

To explore the driving and supporting questions, students gather information by making observations, finding and reading credible sources, talking to experts, and carrying out field investigations. Students also consider environmental policies and community practices and reflect on personal, stakeholder, and societal values and perspectives to develop a comprehensive picture of the root causes of the environmental issue.

1.2 Outdoor Field Experiences

Students participate in multiple Outdoor Field Experiences to explore the driving question and strengthen their connection to the natural world. Within appropriate safety guidelines, students are actively involved in planning and conducting the field investigations, including developing supporting questions to explore the driving question in the field. Field experiences allow students to interact with their local environment and contribute to learning in ways that traditional classroom or laboratory settings may not. During field experiences, students can use their senses, scientific equipment, and technology to make observations, collect data or measurements, and conduct experiments necessary to answer their supporting questions and inform environmental action. Students who have opportunities to learn in, thrive in, and appreciate the outdoors can become informed and engaged community members.

Outdoor Field Experiences can take place on school grounds or at locations close to schools, such as streams or local parks. They can also take place at off-site locations such as state or national parks, wildlife refuges, marine protected areas, or nature centers that are often staffed by experts and may provide access to field equipment and facilities. A range of partners, including environmental educators, conservation professionals, or trained volunteers, can help facilitate field experiences; however, they should be co-developed and co-taught with teachers so that field experiences support learning objectives. Teachers and partners should ensure an accessible outdoor learning environment for all participants, including students with a range of physical, cognitive, emotional, and social abilities. They should also prepare students by providing information and discussing what students can expect to see, feel, or experience during their time outdoors to ensure students feel safe and comfortable during their field experiences.

1.3 Synthesis and Conclusions

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During Synthesis and Conclusions, students reflect on each experience and investigation in relation to the issue, and share their claims and conclusions with each other. Teachers should plan for this to occur regularly throughout the MWEE. This learning and frequent reflection provide the foundation for the development of claims and environmental action that address the driving question and connect to the environmental issue. Throughout this process, students should demonstrate understanding of their investigations and conclusions with their peers or the school community. This could involve multiple disciplines and a variety of formats including discussion, journaling, presentations, graphing, performing skits or songs, or creating art.

1.4 Environmental Action Projects

As a result of their investigations, students identify solutions and develop Environmental Action Projects that directly address the issue within their school, neighborhood, or community.

Students are actively engaged in and, to the extent possible, drive the decision making, planning, and implementation of the action project. Teachers facilitate this process by forming groups, moderating, and answering questions. Students reflect on the value of the action and determine the extent to which it successfully addressed the issue.

This essential element allows students to understand that they personally have the power to bring about change by taking action to address environmental issues at the personal, community, or societal level. Taking action instills confidence in students and can contribute to students becoming environmental stewards in their communities.

Environmental Action Projects can take many forms and may fall into the following types:

• Restoration or Protection: Actions that assist in the recovery or preservation of a watershed or related ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed. Examples include: plant or restore protective vegetation/trees; restore a local habitat; remove invasive plants; clean up litter at local beaches, parks, or school grounds; develop a school garden, natural history area, community garden, or other sustainable green space; install rain gardens to help manage stormwater.

• Everyday Choices: Actions that reduce human impacts on watersheds and related ecosystems and offer ways to live more sustainably. Examples include: refuse/reduce/reuse/recycle; monitor and save water in the face of potential drought or reduction in water availability; compost food or yard waste; research and implement conservation strategies or other alternatives at school and/or at home.

• Community Engagement: Actions that inform others about how to address community-level environmental issues. Examples include: give presentations to local organizations; organize community events; record or broadcast public service announcements; share information on social media; post flyers in community; share posters at community events/fairs/festivals;

mentoring.

• Civic Engagement: Actions that identify and address issues of public concern. Students acting alone or together to protect societal values or make a change or difference in a student’s school, neighborhood, or community. Examples include: Present to school principal or school board;

attend, speak, or present at town meetings; write to local or state decision makers or elected officials.

2. MWEE Supporting Practices

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The MWEE also includes four supporting practices that describe “what teachers do,” along with their partners, to ensure successful implementation with students. The supporting practices are Teacher Facilitation, Learning Integration, Sustained Experiences, and Local Context.

2.1 Teacher Facilitation

MWEEs require that teachers support student learning for the duration of the MWEE, both inside and outside the classroom. Teachers balance roles of facilitation, direct instruction, and coaching to create a student-centered learning experience where the essential elements of the MWEE come together to support goals for learning and create opportunities for students to take active roles in the learning process. Teachers provide space for student choice and voice by creating learning experiences that center on what students value. Even when activities or lessons occur at partner sites or are primarily led by partners at the school, teachers should be actively engaged. Teachers should connect these experiences to prior learning, foster critical thinking, and lead reflection after the experience so, regardless of the facilitator, the entire MWEE experience feels cohesive to the students.

To support this level of engagement, teachers should have access to professional development opportunities that support their content knowledge, understanding of the MWEE framework, and confidence and intention to implement MWEEs independently (see Teacher MWEE Professional Development Characteristics for specifics).

2.2 Learning Integration

The MWEE is an educational framework that helps teachers meet their learning objectives in an engaging way. MWEEs are not meant to be something “extra,” but rather a means of enriching lessons for deeper student learning while meeting academic standards. To achieve this vision, MWEEs should be embedded into the school curriculum to support goals for learning and student achievement. They can also provide authentic, engaging interdisciplinary learning that crosses traditional boundaries between disciplines. Finally, the MWEE essential elements can also be used by educators in out-of-school settings (for example, after school programs, clubs, or summer camps) to enrich activities and complement school-based programming.

2.3 Sustained Experience

MWEEs rely on teachers to plan and implement a series of rich and connected learning opportunities where each essential element from asking questions during Issue Definition through implementing Environmental Action Projects builds upon and reinforces the others. To accomplish this, MWEEs are incorporated into a unit or multiple units, where learning happens both in and out of the classroom. This provides adequate time for students to not only reflect on the individual lessons and experiences, but also on how all of the elements cohesively come together. While an individual lesson may occur in one class period or field experience, that lesson or experience should be explicitly connected to the larger learning sequence of the MWEE.

2.4 Local Context

MWEEs have teachers use the local environment and community as a context for learning that is relevant to students’ lives. Situating the MWEE within local contexts promotes learning that is rooted in the unique culture, history, environment, economy, literature, and art of a students’ school, neighborhood, or community.

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Programming should be designed to be locally relevant and make authentic connections to students' lived experiences. Emphasizing the local context enables students and teachers to develop stronger connections to, and appreciation for, their local environments and communities.

This also enables students and teachers to explore how their individual and collective decisions affect their immediate surroundings and in turn affect larger ecosystems and watersheds.

3. Teacher MWEE Professional Development Characteristics

Professional development providers play a crucial role in preparing teachers to implement successful MWEEs with their students. Professional development that includes characteristics such as: relevant content; explicit modeling of educational frameworks; collaboration, feedback, and modeling instruction such as student centered teaching; adequate time for professional development including time for ongoing support; and offering participation incentives that teachers value leads to a variety of positive outcomes. Professional development should empower teachers to confidently and competently use the MWEE framework to support standards-based learning that aligns with local education agency initiatives. Teachers should gain confidence in the value of MWEEs and strategies for conducting them so that they will be able to implement MWEEs after the professional development has ended. To set teachers up for success, the following six overarching characteristics, informed by education research and evaluation results, are recommended for inclusion in professional development to support teachers implementing MWEEs.

3.1 Increases teachers’ knowledge and awareness of environmental issues

Professional development facilitators should ensure that teachers have an adequate level of content knowledge in science and specific to their grade level and discipline to support their MWEE. The content knowledge should also be connected to the interactions between natural systems and social systems, including human impacts on local watersheds and larger Earth systems. Recognizing that environmental issues often include different perspectives and opinions about the environment, teachers must also experience and build skills that enable them to address these traditionally non academic factors in their classrooms. When combined, this knowledge and these experiences often result in teachers who are more aware of, and more prepared for, the complexity of implementing MWEEs.

3.2 Models the MWEE framework

Professional development should also provide opportunities for teachers to understand the goals and rationale behind the MWEE as a framework for fostering learning and environmental stewardship. Facilitators of teacher professional development should utilize the same techniques and experiences that teachers are expected to use with their students, such as hands-on Outdoor Field Experiences, critical thinking about environmental issues, and Environmental Action Projects.

Based on current education research and B-WET evaluation results, we recommend professional development (PD) providers consider the following in the design of professional development to support change in teacher practice and the implementation of effective MWEEs.

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According to evaluation data on teacher PD, between 24-30% teachers are not participating in environmental action projects, one of the MWEE essential elements, during PD. Research suggests teachers are more likely to engage their students in activities they experience themselves during professional development programs. Therefore, MWEE professional development should always include opportunities for teachers to participate in environmental action projects that connect to the watershed issue being studied, as well as the inquiry activities their students will take to plan and implement their own action projects.

Regarding the time allocated for professional development, educational research findings and evidence from the B-WET national evaluation system support the B-WET program recommendation that professional development include more than 30 hours of professional development (for example, in-person multi-day workshops, virtual lectures or demonstrations, field-based data collection, one-on-one consultations), of which more than 10 hours should be spent doing hands-on inquiry and/or engaging in action projects in the outdoors. It has been shown that these targets will change teacher practice and increase the likelihood that teachers will implement effective MWEEs. Where states and/or school districts put limits on the amount of time teachers can spend in professional development, applicants should describe those limitations and how they will maximize the professional development time that is available.

Professional development, and subsequent implementation with students, may take place on school grounds or at off-site locations. Where appropriate, professional development should include tools for teachers to implement MWEEs on their school grounds and/or adequate resources for transportation for teachers to participate in off-site PD.

For more information on effective ways to model professional development, download the Facilitator’s Guide to MWEE Training from the list of resources on Bay Backpack (http://baybackpack.com/mwee/what-is-a-mwee).

3.3 Includes collaboration, feedback, and models high-quality instruction

Effective professional development includes peer collaboration, time for teachers to experience, plan for, and practice model activities and lesson plans, and opportunities for reflection and feedback. Collaborative opportunities that include observing effective teaching practices and replicating these practices with expert instruction and feedback, can result in higher likelihood that teachers will apply these practices when implementing MWEEs. Such opportunities also foster exchanging ideas and create a collaborative atmosphere for changing the culture around adopting new teaching practices at multiple levels within a school system. In addition, when teachers experience high-quality instruction, such as active learning and student-centered inquiry, they are more likely to use high-quality instruction when implementing MWEEs with their own students.

3.4 Allows for adequate instructional time and ongoing support http://baybackpack.com/mwee/what-is-a-mwee

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Professional development should be multi-day, occurring consecutively or over the course of several weeks or months and include time for ongoing support for teachers. Professional development facilitators should build in adequate time for the types of experience described above, including time to learn, practice, reflect upon, and design practices they learn during the professional development. Even in cases where teachers participate in robust multi-day workshops, such as summer or weekend courses, it is still essential that professional development providers have structures and opportunities in place for ongoing teaching support and enrichment. This can take the form of follow up meetings, web-based forums for communication and feedback, mentor teachers who can serve as points of contact, or teams of teachers from one particular school.

3.5 Offers appropriate incentives

Having appropriate incentives can increase participation in professional development programs.

For example, teachers who participated in B-WET-funded professional development programs in the past reported that receiving a stipend or continuing education credits were the “most valuable” incentives enabling them to participate in those programs. While a variety of incentives can be offered to professional development program participants, it is clear that continuing education credits and stipends can enable participation in ways that other incentives might not.

3.6 Meets jurisdictional guidelines and engages leadership

Each jurisdiction has established guidance and recommendations relevant to all forms of teacher professional development. When possible, professional development opportunities for MWEEs should adhere to guidelines set forth by state and/or local education agencies. Outreach and training opportunities for school administrators will also help ensure jurisdictional alignment and increase high level support for both environmental education and continuing teacher professional development for teachers.

4. Other Considerations

4.1 Includes NOAA assets, including personnel and resources

NOAA has a wealth of applicable products, data, and services as well as a cadre of scientific and professional experts who can enhance student and teacher experiences both in the classroom and in the field. These resources complement the educator’s strengths and augment the educational resources. Additionally, NOAA personnel can serve as important role models for career choices and stewardship. For more on NOAA assets for education please see:

https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections, NOAA in your state (https://www.legislative.noaa.gov/NIYS/), and NOAA in your backyard (https://www.noaa.gov/education/noaa-in-your-backyard).

4.2 Meaningful Engagement of Communities and Partners

NOAA seeks to support projects that are led by or collaborate with community organizations and institutions. Meaningful engagement of these partners is intended to ensure that they are integral to the visioning, decision making, and leadership for environmental education programs; to ensure that the scope of such programs are inclusive of the priorities and needs of communities;

and/or to ensure that the benefits of such programs flow back to communities.

https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections https://www.legislative.noaa.gov/NIYS/ https://www.noaa.gov/education/noaa-in-your-backyard

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Applicants are strongly encouraged to develop and grow mutually beneficial partnerships that honor the strengths of local communities and organizations. It is recommended that these partners be actively involved in project planning as well as programmatically and financially recognized for their contributions to programming. Projects should increase organizational and technical capacity of local community organizations to lead and/or support MWEE programming.

C. Program Authority

Under 33 U.S.C. § 893a(a), the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is authorized to conduct, develop, support, promote, and coordinate formal and informal educational activities at all levels to enhance public awareness and understanding of ocean, coastal, Great Lakes, and atmospheric science and stewardship by the general public and other coastal stakeholders. In conducting those activities, the Administrator shall build upon the educational programs and activities of the agency.

II. Award Information A. Funding Availability

Under this announcement, NOAA anticipates that up to $550,000 may be available in FY 2025 to fund new applications, subject to appropriations. NOAA anticipates making 3-4 awards during this exploratory funding phase. Projects should not exceed $75,000 annually in federal funds with a minimum request of $25,000. The performance period may be up to three years.

B. Project/Award Period

The project start date should be between September 1, 2025 and January 1, 2026. Applicants selected to receive funding may be asked to modify the project start date. It is recommended to include the flexibility of the requested start date in your project description. Applications should cover a project period of between one and three years. Projects that request multi-year funding must include in their submission a full description of the activities and estimated budget by line item (e.g. personnel, travel, supplies) for all proposed work for each year.

C. Type of Funding Instrument

Applications selected for funding will be funded through a cooperative agreement under the terms of this notice. Applications funded through cooperative agreements will include substantial involvement of the Federal government, which may include, but is not limited to, collaboration on the scope of work, such as liaison activities between the grantee and NOAA personnel who are contributing data or expertise to the project. Additional forms of substantial involvement that may arise are described in Chapter 5.C of the Department of Commerce (DoC) Federal Financial Assistance Manual, which is currently available at:

https://www.commerce.gov/oam/files/doc-federal-financial-assistance-manual-2024

III. Eligibility Information A. Eligible Applicants https://www.commerce.gov/oam/files/doc-federal-financial-assistance-manual-2024

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Eligible applicants are K-through-12 public and independent schools and school systems, institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, state or local government agencies, interstate agencies, and Indian tribal governments. Individuals, for-profit organizations, foreign organizations, and foreign public entities are not eligible to apply. However, for-profit and foreign organizations and foreign public entities may participate with an eligible applicant as a project partner. Additional guidance on subrecipient partners can be found at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.331. Likewise, federal agencies are not eligible to receive federal assistance under this announcement, but may be project partners.

Applicants may be physically located in any U.S. state; however, education projects must support teachers, students and school districts located in the Delaware Bay watershed. School districts with more than 25% of their land mass falling in the Delaware Bay watershed are eligible.

NOTE: We strongly encourage all prospective applicants to begin required registrations as early as possible. Completing the required registrations can take six weeks or longer. Submission due dates will not be extended because of registration delays. Submissions received after the due date will be considered late and will not be accepted.

Applicant organizations and individuals must register for three different Federal systems prior to submitting an application through Grants.gov (SAM.gov, eRA Commons, and Grants.gov).

Registration Requirements: Applicant organizations and individuals must first register with SAM.gov and obtain a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). After you obtain your UEI, you can complete your Grants.gov and eRA Commons registrations concurrently.

See Section IV(G) for detailed instructions on required registrations. If you do not have access to the internet, please contact the Agency Contacts listed in this NOFO for submission instructions.

B. Cost Share or Matching Requirement

Cost-sharing is not required for this program.

C. Other Criteria that Affect Eligibility

Projects whose sole audience is outside the Delaware Bay watershed are not eligible, as described in Section III.A, Eligible Applicants. Projects must serve school districts with more than 25% of their land mass falling in the Delaware Bay watershed.

Applications submitted after the deadline will not be reviewed. Applications that are lacking any of the required elements of the application or do not follow the form prescribed in IV.B of this Announcement may not receive merit review as described in Section V.B.

IV. Application and Submission Information A. Address to Request Application Package https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.331

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Electronic application packages are required and are available at: http://www.grants.gov/ (Grants.gov).

If the applicant has difficulty accessing Grants.gov or downloading the required forms from the NOAA website, they should contact Bart Merrick at the NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office by email at bart.merrick@noaa.gov or phone 240-627-6424. The NOAA Office does not have a direct telephonic device for the deaf; however, TDD capabilities can be accessed through the State of Maryland-supplied TDD contact number, 800-735-2258, between the hours of 8 a.m -4:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

B. Content and Form of Application

Required Elements for Applications:

(a) At the time of application submission, all applicants shall submit the following forms with signatures of the authorized representative of the submitting institution. (Note: submission through Grants.gov results in automatic electronic signatures on these forms):

• Application for Federal Assistance: Form SF-424

• Budget Information, Non-construction Programs: Form SF-424A

• Assurances, Non-Construction Programs: Form SF-424B

• Certifications Regarding Lobbying: Form CD-511

• Disclosure of Lobbying Activities: Form SF-LLL (if applicable, see instructions on form)

(i) Project Summary (1 page):

• Project Title

• Organization and Partnerships: List your organization name, type of organization, and number of employees. List key partners for this grant, if applicable. Partnerships are encouraged.

• School District(s): List the school district(s) engaged in the project and their NCES District ID which can be found at: https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/districtsearch/

• Project duration: 12, 24, or 36 month project period starting on the first of the month and ending on the last day of the month. This project period should match your timeline and all forms (e.g.

08/01/2025-07/31/2028)

• Summary: Provide a brief statement that explains the need of your project, how the need was identified, what the program goals are, and the specific objectives. Your summary should use plain language to provide reviewers with an understanding of the purpose and expected outcomes of your educational project. A person unfamiliar with your project should be able to read this single paragraph and grasp your plan. If awarded funding, this summary will be used on the B-WET website and in other public documents.

• Audience: Describe your audience including the number and types of participants you expect to reach for each year of the project, such as the number of teachers, principals, administrators, staff, and/or students. Identify whether the entire grade band(s) will engage in MWEEs through systemic implementation, and if not, what percentage of the grade band will be reached.

• Budget Information: List the total federal funding requested each fiscal year and total non-federal match for each fiscal year (if applicable). List the total multi-year request and total multi-year match (if applicable). Please list requested amounts in whole dollars. Match is not required for this funding opportunity, will not be considered by proposal reviewers, and will not affect scoring.

http://www.grants.gov/ mailto:elise.trelegan@noaa.gov https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/districtsearch/

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(ii) Project Description (up to 10 pages): Describe in detail what your project will achieve with the following headings: What, Who, and How. Explain each aspect of your proposal clearly and address each topic below. Please address all of the following to ensure that grant reviewers can fully comprehend and score your project correctly. Specific Evaluation Criteria are defined in Section V.A.

What: Explain the goals and objectives for your project.

• Describe the overarching goal of the project. Goals are what the program or project will help achieve, which may be longer-term and extend beyond the grant.

• Describe the outcomes for your project. Outcomes are the change that is prompted as a result of the project (example: increased knowledge and skills, changes in attitudes and behaviors, streamlining processes to remove barriers for outdoor environmental literacy programs, or securing sustainable funding to ensure the longevity of environmental literacy programs).

• Describe how the project supports the regional conservation and/or educational priorities.

• Describe how NOAA resources will be used to support the project.

If your project may trigger…