NOAA-NMFS-GARFO-2019-2005875 FFO Report.pdf

FY2019-FY2020 NOAA New England Bay Watershed Education and Training (New England B-WET) Program

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. Funding Opportunity Description 4

A. Program Objective 4 B. Program Priorities 9 C. Program Authority 12

II. Award Information 13 A. Funding Availability 13 B. Project/Award Period 14 C. Type of Funding Instrument 14

III. Eligibility Information 14 A. Eligible Applicants 14 B. Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement 15 C. Other Criteria that Affect Eligibility 15

IV. Application and Submission Information 16 A. Address to Request Application Package 16 B. Content and Form of Application 17 C. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM) 30 D. Submission Dates and Times 31 E. Intergovernmental Review 31 F. Funding Restrictions 31 G. Other Submission Requirements 32

V. Application Review Information 32 A. Evaluation Criteria 32 B. Review and Selection Process 34 C. Selection Factors 36 D. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates 37

VI. Award Administration Information 37 A. Award Notices 37 B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements 38 C. Reporting 41

VII. Agency Contacts 42 VIII. Other Information 42

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 1 of 43

ANNOUNCEMENT OF FEDERAL FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Federal Agency Name(s): National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce

Funding Opportunity Title: FY2019-FY2020 NOAA New England Bay Watershed Education and Training (New England B-WET) Program

Announcement Type: Initial

Funding Opportunity Number: NOAA-NMFS-GARFO-2019-2005875

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 11.008, NOAA Mission-Related Education Awards

Dates: Complete applications must be received at http://www.Grants.gov, or postmarked, or provided to a delivery service, with appropriate documentation, no later than 11:59 p.m., Eastern Standard Time (EST), on the closing date, February 19, 2019. Electronic submission via Grants.gov is preferred. If use of Grants.gov is not feasible or practical, paper copy applications will be accepted, but use of the U.S. Postal Service or other delivery service must be documented with a receipt. Private meter postmarks are not acceptable. Postmarked applications received more than five (5) business days after the closing date will not be accepted. Facsimile or email applications will not be accepted. Any application not adhering to the postmark or submission deadlines will be rejected and returned to the sender without further consideration.

When developing your submission timeline, know that submission via w.w.w.Grants.gov is preferred. This electronic submission is complex for first-time users. It involves several preliminary registrations which must be completed before the application itself can be submitted.

Allow yourself sufficient time to submit your application electronically and to accommodate possible computer delays. Validation or rejection of your application by Grants.gov may take up to two (2) business days after submission.

Funding Opportunity Description: NOAA’s Bay Watershed Education and Training Program (B-WET) is an environmental education program that promotes locally relevant, experiential learning focused on K-12 students and their classroom teachers. This competitive grant program promotes Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (“MWEEs”), B-WET’s signature methodology which include multi-stage activities, in the classroom and outdoors, to increase environmental literacy of all participants.

New England B-WET is one of NOAA’s seven (7) regional, B-WET environmental education

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 2 of 43 programs. New England B-WET promotes high quality environmental education, fosters innovative programs, and encourages capacity-building and environmental education partnerships within the six New England States: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. Successful projects advance ocean, climate, and other environmental literacy goals and incorporate the goals of the NOAA Education Strategic Plan (https://noaa.gov/explainers/noaa-education-strategic-plan) through (1) student, hands-on environmental education in New England watersheds and (2) formal kindergarten through grade 12 teacher and administrator professional development and support during student MWEEs.

Proposals submitted to this competition must address and identify one of the two priorities: (1) Backyard B-WET: Investigation of Stewardship and Habitat Restoration on School Grounds, and

(2) Grass Roots: Community Resilience in Changing Times. This Federal funding opportunity includes information on the application process and evaluation criteria for proposals which may request up to $240,000 in Federal funding for up to three (3) years. There is no required match contribution, and match contributions will NOT be considered as a criterion for evaluating applications.

Grant awards resulting from this competition are dependent on the availability of Federal funding as provided in enacted Appropriations Acts. We release this funding opportunity in advance of the FY2019 Federal appropriations process due to extended award processing timeframes. Successful applicants are not guaranteed a specific level of funding. If funds are not available in FY2019, applications submitted in FY2019 may be carried over for consideration in FY2020, should funds become available then and if these applications remain relevant to New England B-WET priorities.

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 3 of 43

FULL ANNOUNCEMENT TEXT

I. Funding Opportunity Description

A. Program Objective

The NOAA Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) Program is an environmental education program that promotes locally relevant, experiential learning and outdoor investigations integrated into formal classroom learning, from kindergarten through grade 12 (K-12). Established first in 2002 in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, the program currently exists in the Chesapeake Bay, the Gulf of Mexico, California, Hawaii, the Pacific Northwest, the Great Lakes, and New England. New England B-WET began in 2008.

Students receive hands-on, place-based, outdoor education related to issues affecting watershed, coastal, and ocean ecosystems. Teachers, administrators, and other educators who serve in-school, K-12 audiences receive professional development to support student learning based on Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEEs). The B-WET MWEE methodology integrates field experiences with classroom activities and instruction in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) using NOAA assets, such as datasets, reporting, websites, curriculum, experts, National Estuarine Research Reserves, and National Marine Sanctuaries. MWEEs are the foundation of the B-WET experience, used by all seven B-WET regional programs.

The New England B-WET Program

The New England B-WET program is managed by NOAA’s Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO), in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It supports projects within six New England states: Maine, New Hampshire Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. A project participant may be based outside the boundaries of the New England B-WET region, but proposed project activities should lie within New England, and field investigations should occur within New England watersheds. Experiences proposed outside the watershed must be well documented and justified in the application.

The goal of this New England B-WET funding announcement is to support K-12 environmental literacy programs through student MWEEs investigating New England watersheds, guided by professional development for in-service teachers, administrators, or other educators serving K-12 students. New England watershed communities are an excellent resource for environmental education and science, technical, engineering, and math (STEM) learning. Coastal and estuarine, tidal and non-tidal waters, and the surrounding landscapes provide hands-on, place-based laboratories where students can see, touch, Federal Funding Opportunity Page 4 of 43 investigate, and learn about their watersheds and the greater environment in an integrated fashion.

Successful applications will use MWEE best practices to advance ocean, climate, and other environmental literacy goals. MWEE best practices were developed using environmental education research and evaluation results and lessons learned over more than a decade of B- WET program implementation. Evaluation has demonstrated tangible links between student participation in B-WET-funded MWEEs and an increase in environmental literacy and stewardship.

You can find the definition of the MWEE at https://www.noaa.gov/explainers/noaa-meaningful-watershed-educational-experience

Please familiarize yourself with these materials before you apply.

Here are more specific details about the MWEE and what we will look for in an application:

1. The Student MWEE – 4 Essential Components

a. Issue definition and background research: Students focus on a specific environmental question requiring background research and investigation. They learn more about the issue through classroom instruction, the collection of data, conducting experiments, talking with experts, and reviewing credible publications. This process should be age-appropriate, with practices increasing in complexity and sophistication across the grades, starting with educator-guided investigation and progressing to student-led inquiry.

b. Outdoor field activities: Students participate in multiple, outdoor field activities to collect data, to make observations as part of issue definition and background research, or to make observations that answer a research question which students have helped to define.

Students are actively involved in defining the issue, the problem, or the research question, in planning the investigation, in taking measurements or constructing the project within age-appropriate safety guidelines, with teachers providing instruction on methods and procedures, data collection protocols, and the proper use of equipment, as needed. These activities can take place on school grounds and/or off-site.

c. Stewardship action projects: Students will participate in an age-appropriate project to proactively address environmental issues at a personal or societal level. Participants in B- WET MWEE activities learn that they have some control and responsibility for the outcome

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 5 of 43 of environmental issues, identify actions to address these issues, and understand the value of those actions. Examples of stewardship activities include, but are not limited to:

Watershed Restoration or Protection, e.g., modifying schoolyard habitat, planting trees or grasses, identifying and removing invasive species, cleaning up communities, evaluating and managing stormwater runoff.

Everyday Choices, e.g., reduce, reuse, recycle, upcycle programs; composting, energy conservation, water conservation.

Community Engagement, e.g., via presentations; use of social media; organizing events;

messaging at community events, fairs, festivals; mentoring, public service announcements, flyers, posters.

Civic Action, e.g., participation in town meetings, voting, writing or meeting with elected officials and decision-makers.

d. Synthesis and conclusions: Students analyze and evaluate the results of their investigations and stewardship. They synthesize and communicate results and conclusions to external audiences, e.g., other classrooms, schools, parents, to the broader community.

Support for student MWEEs: The following five elements support successful implementation of student MWEEs:

(1) Teacher participation for the duration of the MWEE. In-school teachers should support the MWEE experience in the classroom and in the field. They will provide the continuity necessary to help students make essential connections, draw on past lessons, serve as environmental role models, and enhance students’ overall outdoor education experience.

They need the ability, the confidence, and the commitment to lead students in critical thinking about environmental issues in the classroom as well as outdoors. Thus, teachers need knowledge of environmental issues, including watershed concepts, skill in connecting watershed issues to their curriculum, and competency in environmental education pedagogy.

(2) Integration with the classroom curriculum. Teachers, schools, and school systems should all integrate outdoor experiences into what is occurring in the classroom. These outdoor experiences should provide authentic, age-appropriate, engaging, multi-disciplinary content to address academic standards. Specifically, science and social studies standards related to questioning and investigation, evidence-based analysis and interpretation, model and theory building, knowledge of environmental processes and systems, skills for

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 6 of 43 understanding and addressing environmental issues, and personal and civic responsibility, all align well with MWEEs. Non-school activities may enrich the traditional classroom curriculum but should not be the focus of the MWEE.

(3) Use of the local context for learning. The local community and environment are primary resources for student MWEEs. Place-based education promotes learning rooted in the unique history, environment, culture, economy, literature, and art of a student’s schoolyard, neighborhood, town, or community. Place-based education lets students and teachers explore how local individual and collective decisions impact their immediate surroundings. Once students make a firm connection to their local environment, they can expand their thinking to recognize the far-reaching implications of the decisions they make with respect to the state, regional, national, and global environments, fostering community resilience.

(4) Experiences are a set of activities over time. MWEEs include everything leading up to outdoor field experiences, the outdoor field experiences themselves, and follow-up to the outdoor field experiences. Each component should involve a significant investment of instructional time, as well as time for assessment and reflection, and should include all students. Single events (tours, simulations, demonstrations, nature walks) are not a MWEE for the purposes of this grant competition.

(5) Includes NOAA assets, including personnel and resources. Environmental professionals can be role models for student career choices and provide proactive examples of scientific/environmental stewardship. NOAA has personnel, products, and services, including a cadre of professional and scientific experts, to support environmental instruction in the classroom and in the field. For an introduction to NOAA assets for environmental education, please see:

https://www.noaa.gov/education https://www.weather.gov/wrn/

2. Teacher MWEEs and Professional Development Training

Professional development training should include tools for teachers to implement MWEEs on their school grounds as well as in offsite field experiences. Resources exist to support the effective, hands-on implementation of MWEEs and the development and continued use of integrated, sustainable indoor and outdoor environmental learning projects that benefit teachers, students, the school system, and the environment. Please see the “School Grounds

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 7 of 43 for Learning” resources available at:

http://baybackpack.com/schoolyard_projects/about

Teachers need skills in environmental education and MWEEs to address the curriculum standards of multiple students and local education agency initiatives. To acquire and maintain environmental education competencies, teachers need sustained, high-quality, professional development that includes ongoing support and feedback. They need confidence in the value of MWEEs and strategies for conducting MWEEs so that they will integrate MWEEs into the project and into the academic curriculum after B-WET financial support has ended. We recommend inclusion of the following five elements for professional development to support teachers implementing MWEEs:

a. Increase teachers’ knowledge and awareness of environmental issues. Teachers must have an adequate level of content knowledge for their MWEE topic specific to their grade level and discipline, including an understanding of basic watershed concepts and the human connection to the watershed. Recognizing that environmental issues often include different perspectives and opinions, teachers also need a solid understanding of the facts related to environment issues, along with an understanding of diverse stakeholder values. Teachers teach; they also learn and in so doing increase their capacity to guide students in actions to address complex environmental issues, thereby serving as role models for their students.

b. Model environmental education pedagogy. Facilitators and trainers for teacher professional development should use the same techniques and experiences in their training programs that teachers will use with their students, i.e., MWEEs.

c. Allow for adequate instructional time. Professional development training should be multi-day, occurring consecutively or over the course of several months. Training should include time for teachers to reflect on their own teaching practices and how to use these practices in their classroom and outdoors, and the knowledge and skills they have gained from this professional development training. Based on educational research findings and preliminary evidence from the B-WET national evaluation system, the national B-WET program recommends that professional development training includes more than 30 hours of professional development time, of which more than 10 hours should be spent outdoors.

These targets support teacher professional development and increase the likelihood that teachers will implement MWEEs.

d. Provide ongoing teacher support and appropriate incentives. Even in cases where

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 8 of 43 teachers participate in robust multi-day trainings, such as summer or weekend courses, providers of professional development training need to provide a structure for on-going teacher support and enrichment. This support and enrichment can take the form of follow-up meetings, creating web-based forums for communication and feedback, establishing mentor-teachers as points of contact, or teams of teachers. Continuing education credits and stipends encourage proactive teacher participation in on-going professional development opportunities. Outreach and training opportunities for school administrators may also sustain support for both environmental education and continuing teacher professional development.

e. Meet jurisdictional guidelines for effective teacher professional development. Each state has established guidance and recommendations germane to teachers’ professional development. Professional development opportunities in environmental education should strive to adhere to the guidelines established by state and local education agencies.

New England B-WET is committed to expanding the participation and knowledge of low-income and underserved student populations in ocean, watershed, and environmental STEM education. In your application, provide demographic evidence if your project targets in whole or in part low-income or underserved populations, for example, Title I schools, minority groups, including Native American populations and tribal organizations, underrepresented communities, and rural schools.

Additional information on the New England B-WET program, including examples of projects funded to date, can be found at:

https://www.noaa.gov/office-education/bwet/awards

B. Program Priorities

This funding announcement supports the two (2) priorities described below. Applicants MUST designate a single priority in their application.

All applications, whether they address priority 1 or priority 2 under this funding opportunity must include MWEEs that directly serve both teachers and their students.

Teacher professional development should include support during the school year, including assistance and co-teaching during delivery of student MWEEs. Evaluation results show that teacher training promotes teacher confidence in adopting and sustaining student MWEEs after the B-WET-supported funding has ended. Effective student MWEEs are learner-centered, focus on investigations that require collection, analysis, and communication of

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 9 of 43 data, and promote stewardship action. These activities are grounded in proven MWEE best practices, defined within the context of the local community and culture, increase student interest and motivation, promote positive attitudes toward scientific inquiry, and foster environmental stewardship. Appropriate student MWEEs will provide students with an understanding of basic watershed concepts, a knowledge of interactions and linkages among natural systems (e.g., wildlife, plants, the water cycle, etc.), social systems (e.g., among communities, transportation systems, schools, etc.), and the connections between human activities and environmental conditions.

Priority 1 – Backyard B-WET: Investigation of Stewardship and Habitat Restoration on School Grounds Over 5,000 public schools serve more than two million public school students in New England. There are many private schools in New England as well. Funds for field investigations are often limited and costly, so projects that require transportation or site fees cannot always be sustained after the grant period ends. However, there are endless opportunities for MWEE investigations and hands-on stewardship and restoration projects on school grounds or within walking distance of a school.

Restoration projects on school grounds, on land adjacent to schools, or through walking field trips can support each of the four elements of the MWEE. When watershed and issue investigation components of the MWEE occur outside of the school grounds, the action element of the MWEE project should include hands-on habitat restoration, such as planning, implementing, and maintaining stream buffers, school forests, wildlife habitat, or the creation of outdoor learning environments. Projects that remove impervious surfaces, install barrels, or plant rain gardens are possibilities, but applicants are encouraged to suggest other types of projects. Where non-consumable equipment is critical to continuation of the project after the grant has ended, budgets may include equipment purchases for schools.

Successful Priority 1 projects may implement environmentally sustainable practices that could, for example, improve the health of the school’s watershed, assure teacher confidence integrating the program into the classroom curriculum, offer authentic investigation and stewardship experiences for students, or reduce energy and maintenance costs for schools.

Competitive projects might include family and community outreach opportunities, for example, peer-to-peer sharing in school, presentations at school events or at public meetings, or posting at libraries and other community spaces. Backyard-BWET schools may become “Green Schools," local examples of responsible environmental practices, reaching into communities and families in ways that few other organizations are able.

Priority 2 – Grass Roots: Community Resilience in Changing Times.

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 10 of 43

Community resilience is a GARFO Strategic Plan priority. Projects under this New England B-WET priority will support coastal and watershed community resilience by building knowledge and appreciation of the economic, cultural, physical, geological, or other evidences of coastal, estuarine, and watershed influences on a community, in historical and contemporary terms.

Resilience and sustainability studies show a strong correlation between a community’s appreciation of its history and heritage and that community’s ability to withstand or recover from threats, including threats from storms, war, technological change, demographic change, etc.

Projects under this priority will support curriculum development, teacher training, and classroom and field support or co-teaching to support student investigations of biological, physical, economic, and cultural local resources that reveal their community’s historical and contemporary connections to coastal, estuarine, and river resources. How did the community’s watershed resources contribute to its early settlement and its cultural heritage, and now to its future potential in a time of dramatic environmental, technological, demographic, etc., change?

This priority is not restricted to investigations of fishing or coastal communities. Inland communities have powerful, significant, historical and cultural connections to rivers and lakes through such early industries as trade and shipping, manufacturing, quarries, agriculture, or shipbuilding. Teachers and students may begin with investigation as to why populations settled in a particular location. What impacts did humans have on the landscape in the past; what are their impacts now; and what are possible impacts in the future? How might those impacts affect current and future economic, social, ecological resilience, as well as vulnerability, in a time of profound social, technological, and environmental change such as we are experiencing now? Teachers and students explore these impacts, positive as well as negative, focusing on the significance of the watershed as a driver of change in the community of interest, and strategies for mitigation or promotion.

A multidisciplinary approach to this priority could involve research and data collection on biological, physical, economic, and cultural local resources that define a community’s past, present, and future relationship to its watershed resources. Students could collect and analyze current and historical physical evidence on walking trips, by researching town archives, collecting oral histories from multi-generational family and community members, researching changes in demographic, physical, and biological landscapes, and reviewing weather and climate databases, census data, or other long-term datasets. Examples of associated stewardship opportunities include site restoration or cleanup, issue identification, Federal Funding Opportunity Page 11 of 43 and presentations to community groups. Water quality, the impact of catastrophic weather events, and the impact of these events on humans, animals, production, and economic drivers, could be a tangible, valuable learning opportunity for a successful priority 2 project.

NOAA Sea Grant, National Weather Service scientists and datasets, and social scientists are just some of the “NOAA assets” available for projects under both priorities. Identify how you will monitor and measure the outcomes of your project’s stewardship activities.

Successful grantees will report on these stewardship activities and measurable outcomes in regular performance progress reports, and NOAA’s Office of Education will use these measurable

To raise awareness and promote activities of a key diadromous species, a global and NOAA-Fisheries-supported initiative has designated 2019 as The International Year of the Salmon. Diadromous fish are those that spend part of their life in freshwater and part in salt water. The Atlantic salmon distinct population segment in the Gulf of Maine is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. We encourage applicants to consider projects under either priority 1 or priority 2 that also connect to The International Year of the Salmon. Such applications may include, but are not limited to, proposals that explore a community’s historical and contemporary connection to Atlantic salmon and/or other diadromous species (e.g., shad, river herring, American eel), promote students’ and/or community awareness about Atlantic salmon and/or other diadromous fish conservation issues such as fish passage or river health, connect students to their local rivers and watersheds, and provide examples of what humans can be proactively to ensure the health of these important ecosystems.

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, including underrepresented groups in ocean and atmospheric science and policy careers. In conducting those activities, the Administrator shall build upon the educational programs and activities of the agency with consideration given to the goal of promoting the participation of individuals from underrepresented groups in STEM fields and in promoting the acquisition and retention of highly qualified and motivated young scientists to complement and supplement workforce needs.

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 12 of 43

II. Award Information

A. Funding Availability

We anticipate that approximately $250,000 will be available to support three to five New England B-WET awards in FY2019. The number of awards made as a result of this solicitation will depend on the number of eligible applications received, the amount of funds requested for each project, the merit and ranking of the proposals, and the amount of funds made available to the New England B-WET Program.

Total Federal funds requested should not exceed $80,000 in any year. The minimum Federal funding requested for one year is $25,000. The maximum Federal funding requested for a three-year project is $240,000.

Multi-year projects (two or three years) will receive funding for only the first year of the award in FY2019. Funding for future (“out”) years is always dependent on the B-WET Program’s budget and on priorities in those years. Out-year funding for any award is not guaranteed, so include in your project description discrete deliverables that can be completed by the end of each year in the event that future funding does not become available.

This funding opportunity is for FY2019 and FY2020. If B-WET receives funding in both years, after FY2019 projects have been funded, we may use the ranking from the FY2019 competition to select new projects for funding in FY2020. This alternative to developing another, new funding opportunity for FY2020 acknowledges the significant effort required of applicants to develop a strong proposal, as well as the resources required by the B-WET Program Office and reviewers to conduct the competition. If we select proposals from the FY2019 competition for possible funding in FY2020, we will adhere to the standard practice of considering the remaining applications in the rank order determined in the FY2019 review process.

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B. Project/Award Period

We will award grants for a maximum period of three years (36 months), but shorter term project proposals are welcomed. Applications beyond this 36-month duration will not be considered. The requested award start date must begin on the first day of the month and end on the last day of the month. The earliest start date for projects will be July 1, 2019, dependent upon availability of Federal funding as provided by appropriations, acceptable completion of all NOAA/applicant negotiations, and the provision of other supporting documentation as requested. Applicants selected for funding may be asked to modify the project start date.

C. Type of Funding Instrument

The type of funding instrument, exact amount of funding, the scope of work, and the terms and conditions of a successful award will be determined in pre-award negotiations between the applicant and NOAA/NMFS representatives after the application has been selected for funding.

The funding instrument will be either a grant or a cooperative agreement. The award will be a cooperative agreement if the proposed project involves substantial NOAA Federal scientific or programmatic involvement. NOAA involvement may include planning, scheduling, conducting and evaluating proposed project activities, and frequent contact with the applicant to help solve technical problems as they arise during the project. “Substantial involvement” means that, after the award is approved for funding, NOAA scientific or program staff will assist, guide, coordinate, or participate in project activities in a partnership role. NOAA will NOT assume direction, primary responsibility, or a dominant role in project activities. These reside with the recipient for the project as a whole, although specific tasks and activities may be shared between the recipient and NOAA. Examples of “substantial NOAA involvement” may include non-compensated collaboration in research or approval of key stages in project implementation before subsequent steps are taken.

III. Eligibility Information

A. Eligible Applicants

Eligible applicants are K-12 public and independent schools and school systems;

institutions of higher education; community-based and non-profit organizations; state, county, local, or Indian tribal government agencies; and regional organizations.

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Individuals, Federal agencies, for-profit organizations, foreign organizations, and foreign public entities are NOT eligible to apply. Federal employees can serve as uncompensated partners in a project. If you wish to partner with a NOAA employee, in your application you must provide a written agreement documenting the participation, including details of the NOAA employee’s involvement, signed by his or her supervisor. While applicants do not need to be located in New England, the work proposed must occur within this geographical region.

The Department of Commerce/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is committed to broadening the participation of historically black colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, tribal colleges and universities, and institutions that work in underserved areas. New England B-WET encourages applications from, or applications involving, any of the above categories of institutions. Information on minority-serving institutions and the demographics of K-12 schools can be found at:

https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/edlite-minorityinst.html

B. Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement

No cost sharing or matching is required. The B-WET program does not require that you share in the total cost of the project. Cost-sharing is voluntary and will NOT increase your chances of your project being selected, nor will it be considered as a criterion for ranking applications. If you choose to cost-share and if your application is selected for funding, you will be obligated to account for the amount of cost-share dollars reflected in the award documents, signed by the NOAA Grants Officer. This commitment of matching dollars becomes a binding offer.

C. Other Criteria that Affect Eligibility

Potential applicants may contact NOAA’s Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (deirdre.kimball@noaa.gov) before submitting an application to discuss the applicability of project ideas to B-WET goals and objectives, but Federal staff are NOT allowed to assist in the preparation of an application. B-WET program staff may provide you with information and clarification on program goals, funding priorities, application procedures, and completion of application forms. Because this is a competitive program, Federal staff will not provide assistance in conceptualizing, developing, or structuring proposals, or writing

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 15 of 43 letters of support for any application.

IV. Application and Submission Information

A. Address to Request Application Package

For the full application, the standard application package, consisting of the standard forms, i.e., SF-424, SF-424A, SF-424B, SF-LLL, and the CD-511, is available at http://www.grants.gov

A complete, standard NOAA grant application package is required in accordance with the guidelines in this funding opportunity. Applications that are not complete on the closing date of this announcement, February 19, 2019, will not be reviewed. Your application must contain all required documents and forms; if these forms are not signed via the www.Grants.gov application process, they MUST be signed in ink. If the www.Grants.gov electronic signature is not used, the applicant organization’s Authorized Representative MUST sign and date these forms over the printed signature that will appear in the signature boxes. Paper applications without inked signatures on their forms will be considered incomplete and will not be reviewed. An incomplete application or one that does not follow the format requirements will not be reviewed and will be withdrawn from the competition.

Registered users of Grants.gov can download a copy of the application package, complete it offline, and then upload and submit the application via the Grants.gov site. If you have problems downloading the application from Grants.gov, contact Grants.gov Support at 1- 800-518-4726, or support@Grants.gov. If you do not have internet access, contact Deirdre Kimball (deirdre.kimball@noaa.gov, 978-281-9290) to request an application package. If Grants.gov cannot reasonably be used, or if internet access is not available to you or your organization, you may submit a paper application.

All pages must be no less than single-spaced printed or typed, in at least a 12–point font with one-inch margins on letter sized (8.5” x 11”) paper. Any PDF or other attachments that are included in an electronic application must meet the above format requirement when printed out. Mail your paper application to:

Deirdre M. Kimball NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office.

55 Great Republic Drive Gloucester, MA 01930

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B. Content and Form of Application

Your application will not be reviewed if we receive it after the deadline, February 19, 2019. Applications lacking any of required elements, or which do not follow the instructions prescribed in this funding announcement, will be deemed ineligible and eliminated from further review.

Here is some guidance on completing some of the required Standard Federal Forms:

* Application for Federal Assistance, Standard Form SF-424.

Items 18a – g (Estimated Funding ($). These items must reflect (1) the total Federal funding requested for ALL years of the project, (2) the total match, if match is a factor, for ALL years of the project, and (3) the total project cost, which equals the total Federal funding requested for ALL years of the project plus the total match, if there is match, for ALL years for the entire project.

Item 21 (Authorized Representative). Signatures (electronic or ink) must match the name printed in the “Authorized Representative” section of the SF-424 Block 21. Another Authorized Representative may not sign on behalf of the individual noted in Block 21.

* Budget Information, Non-construction Programs, Standard Form SF-424A.

Submit separate SF-424A budget forms for EACH year of requested funding. In Section B, use separate columns to indicate how Federal funds, and matching funds, if match is a factor, are broken down by each cost category, i.e., by each line item.

* SF-424B, Assurances - Non-construction Programs.

This must be completed for each submitted non-construction application.

* CD-511, Certification Regarding Lobbying.

* SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (if applicable).

You must complete and submit this form if you have made or have agreed to make payment to any lobbying entity to influence or attempt to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, or an officer or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with the awarding of, or the extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of any Federal contract, grant, cooperative agreement, or loan. Recipients may not use funds awarded under a Federal grant or cooperative agreement to conduct such lobbying activities.

PLEASE NOTE: Validation or rejection of your application by the Grants.gov system may

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 17 of 43 take up to two (2) business days after submission. Consider this timeline in submitting your application. Submit early!

Submission Process

Electronic submission, preferred and encouraged, is a two-step process. First, the complete application package must be successfully submitted into the Grants.gov system. If that submission is successful, the application moves into NOAA’s Grants Online (GOL) system.

Required registrations: You MUST complete and maintain the following three (3) registrations to be eligible to submit an application via Grants.gov:

* Grants.gov

* Dun & Bradstreet’s Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS)

* System for Award Management (SAM)

ALL three registrations must be completed before an applicant can submit an application.

Since complete registration can take from three (3) days to four (4) weeks or longer to complete, begin the registration process early.

* Grants.gov registration. This is the first step required to submit an online application. It is a one-time registration process.

* Data Universal Numbering System registration. All applicants must be issued a DUNS number, a unique nine-digit identifier provided by Dun and Bradstreet. You must use your Data University Identifier Number when applying for Federal awards. Request a DUNS number by calling 1-866-705-5711 (toll free) or through the internet:

https://www.grants.gov/applicants/organization-registration/step-1-obtain-duns-number.html

Securing your DUNS number is a free service.

* System for Award Management (SAM). All applicants must complete and maintain an active SAM registration. SAM registration must be renewed at least annually. New registrations take an average of fourteen (14) business days to complete, and renewal may require as much time as the initial registration. SAM registration includes assignment of a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) Code for domestic organizations which have

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 18 of 43 not already been assigned a CAGE Code. To register, go to:

https://www.hrsa.gov/grants/apply/register/sam-registration/index.html

Registration is free.

You must renew and revalidate your organization’s SAM registration at least every twelve

(12) months from the date you were last certified and submitted your SAM registration, or sooner than twelve (12) months, if your applicant organization’s information has changed.

The primary point of contact’s email address will receive a message alerting them to the entity’s/entities’ renewal requirements at 60 days, 30 days, and 15 days prior to SAM registration expiration. If you do not renew your registration, it will expire. You must have an active SAM registration to receive contract awards or grant payments, submit financial assistance award applications via Grants.gov, or receive certain payments from some Federal agencies.

Once you have completed all three registrations, a designated, registered Authorized Representative of the applicant must submit the application via Grants.gov. Applications submitted through Grants.gov will be accompanied by THREE (3) automated email responses to the Authorized Representative:

* The first email will be received within 24 to 48 hours, confirming receipt into the Grants.gov system. This acknowledgment of receipt contains a Grants.gov tracking number which you must keep for your records. This acknowledgment indicates receipt by the Grants.gov system ONLY, not receipt by NOAA.

* The second email will indicate that the application has been successfully validated by the Grants.gov system before transmission to the grantor agency (NOAA) or (2) that it has been rejected because of errors. Only validated applications are sent to NOAA for review, and the time of validation is the official time of NOAA’s receipt of the application.

* The third email validates that the application has been forwarded to NOAA’s Grants Online (GOL) system for further processing.

Save all three emails. If all three notifications are NOT received, follow up immediately with both the Grants.gov Support Desk (1-800-518-4726) and Deirdre Kimball (978-281- 9290, Deirdre.kimball@noaa.gov) to confirm NOAA receipt of the application package. If you use the Grants.gov Support Desk, secure a Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number, and retain this record for future reference.

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If you experience a Grants.gov “systems issue” (defined as technical problems or glitches with the Grants.gov website) that you believe threatens your ability to complete submission before the application deadline, print out a copy of any error message received AND call the Grants.gov Support Desk immediately. Problems with an applicant organization’s computer system or equipment are not considered “systems issues." An applicant’s failure to complete the required registrations and/or to ensure that a registered Authorized Representative submits the application on time are not “systems issues." A Grant.gov “systems issue” is a problem with the operation of the Grants.gov system, such as a temporary loss of service by Grants.gov due to unexpected volumes of traffic or a failure of its information technology systems. In the event of a confirmed “systems issue” or if a significant natural disaster affects submission, NOAA may allow more time for application submission.

Below is guidance on the substantive content of the application and related attachments or appendices.

Brevity and clarity will assist reviewers and B-WET regional Program Office staff in effectively processing the proposals. Do not assume prior knowledge and understanding on the part of the Program Office or the reviewers as to the information contained in the applications. Subject matter experts will review applications.

1. Project Summary

It is critical that the project summary accurately describe the project being proposed and convey all essential elements of the project for public dissemination. Provide a summary of the proposed project (two-page maximum). The summary must include:

Applicant Information: Applicant organization and name, title, and contact information of the Principal Investigator.

Project Information: Project title, location, requested project period (start and end dates).

Federal funding requested and identification of the New England B-WET priority that most closely reflects the objectives of your proposal. You MUST designate a single priority. This designation will determine the subject matter expert used to evaluate your proposal.

Partners: Identify collaborating partners, organizations, and contact information.

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Summary: A clear description of proposed activities, anticipated benefits/outcomes. State briefly the need for your project, its goals, and objectives, the number of teacher and students you anticipate reaching, anticipated contact hours (in professional development, in classrooms, and outdoors), what NOAA assets and educational resources you will use, and what your anticipated outcomes will be for each year. It is critical that the project summary accurately describes the project being proposed and conveys all essential elements of the project for public dissemination.

Use plain language, not jargon. Avoid acronyms. Reviewers must be able to understand the purpose and expected outcome(s) of your educational proposal, including the numbers of teachers and students targeted. Someone unfamiliar with your proposal should be able to read the project summary and understand your proposal.

Project Objectives: List primary objectives for the entire project period, broken out by year, if appropriate.

Delivery method: Explain how you will reach your audience: Via workshops, field experiences, interactive programs, summer institutes, classroom outreach, etc.

Audience(s): Describe the demographics of your target audience(s), including the school division(s) and the number and types of participants you expect to reach, such as teachers and students, the specific grade levels, environmental educators, principals, etc.

Budget Information: Provide total Federal funding requested for FY2019, total non-Federal match (if applicable), and total project cost for FY2019 (Federal funding requested plus all sources of match equals total project cost ). If you propose a multi-year investigation, include similar information for year two if you propose a two-year project and for year three, if you propose a three-year project.

ALWAYS list amounts in whole dollars If match applies, specify whether match contributions are cash or third party “in-kind contributions." Valuations for such contributions are found at 2 C.F.R. 200.306.

2. Detailed Project Narrative (12-page maximum):

Detail what your project will achieve under the following headings: What, Why, Who, How, and When? Explain each aspect of your proposal clearly, and address each topic below.

Reviewers must be able to connect proposed activities and project costs. The Detailed Project Narrative should track as tightly as possible the evaluation criteria listed under

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“Evaluation Criteria," in Section V.A.

What? Explain the goals and objectives for your project. Identify the ONE New England B- WET priority that your project supports. Show that you understand the MWEE and can use it to contribute to greater understanding and stewardship of the New England watersheds.

Discuss what your project will do to support ocean, climate, or environmental literacy and the goals of the NOAA Education Strategic Plan, the GARFO Strategic Plan, and the program priority selected.

This section will be scored under the…