PKG00256047-instructions.pdf

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration

NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS AND FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

ANNOUNCEMENT FOR:

Job Corps Scholars Program

ANNOUNCEMENT TYPE: Initial

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY NUMBER: FOA-ETA-20-03

CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE (CFDA) NUMBER: 17.287

KEY DATES: The closing date for receipt of applications under this Announcement is January 8, 2020. We must receive applications no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

ADDRESSES: Address mailed applications to:

The U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration, Office of Grants Management Attention: Melissa Abdullah, Grant Officer Reference FOA-ETA-20-03 200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room N4716 Washington, DC 20210

For complete application and submission information, including online application instructions, please refer to Section IV.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

A. Program Purpose B. Program Authority

II. AWARD INFORMATION

A. Award Type and Amount B. Period of Performance C. Outcomes

III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. Eligible Applicants B. Cost Sharing or Matching C. Other Information

1. Application Screening Criteria

2. Number of Applications Applicants May Submit

3. Eligible Participants

IV. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

A. How to Obtain an Application Package B. Content and Form of Application Submission

1. SF-424, “Application for Federal Assistance”

2. Project Budget

3. Project Narrative

4. Attachments to the Project Narrative

C. Submission Date, Time, Process and Address

1. Hardcopy Submission

2. Electronic Submission through Grants.gov

D. Intergovernmental Review E. Funding Restrictions

1. Indirect Costs

2. Salary and Bonus Limitations

3. Intellectual Property Rights

4. WIOA Infrastructure

F. Other Submission Requirements

V. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

A. Criteria B. Review and Selection Process

1. Merit Review and Selection Process

2. Risk Review Process

VI. AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

A. Award Notices B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

1. Administrative Program Requirements

2. Other Legal Requirements

3. Other Administrative Standards and Provisions

4. Special Program Requirements

C. Reporting

1. Quarterly Financial Reports

2. Quarterly Performance Reports

VII. AGENCY CONTACTS

VIII. OTHER INFORMATION

A. Web-Based Resources B. Industry Competency Models and Career Clusters C. WorkforceGPS Resources D. SkillsCommons Resources E. Workforce Development System

IX. OMB INFORMATION COLLECTION

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL, or the Department, or we), announces the availability of approximately $23,738,000 in grant funds authorized by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Section 156 (a) (29 U.S.C. 3193(a)) and Section 189(c) (29 U.S.C._3249(c)) for Job Corps Scholars Program Partnership.

Under this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), DOL will competitively award grants to accredited, two-year, public community colleges; accredited, public two- and four-year historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs); and accredited tribally controlled colleges and universities (TCCUs) as part of a “Job Corps Scholars Program” demonstration project. Grantees must enroll Job Corps eligible youth and provide those enrolled with intensive counseling services to support and facilitate each student’s employment and career success.

DOL expects grantees to provide these services throughout each student’s participation in the 12-month career technical training component of the Job Corps Scholars Program and the up to 12-month employment placement period following separation from the program.

Grantees may also fund developmental coursework where necessary for student entry into the technical training component. The time necessary to complete such coursework does not count against the 12 months allotted for the career technical training component.

Separation is defined, for the purpose of the demonstration project, as the successful completion and exit from the career technical training. All counseling should encompass activities that aim to ensure each student’s employment success.

DOL expects to serve 1,600 students through the award of approximately twenty (20) grants to accredited, two-year, public community colleges; accredited, public, two- and four-year HBCUs; and accredited, two- and four-year TCCUs. These students must be new enrollees, that is, not previously admitted or currently attending classes at the community college, HBCU, or TCCU. Transfer students are not considered new enrollees for the purpose of this program. The grant period of performance for this FOA is 39 months and the maximum amount of each grant is $1,186,900. First year costs are estimated at $529,700, second year costs are estimated at $572,200, and year three costs are $85,000.

Grantees must use the grant funds to pay for the tuition and fees of approximately eighty

(80) Job Corps eligible youth entering the program in two separate groups or cohorts of 40.

Tuition is the cost associated with taking each course; it is typically calculated per unit or credit hour. Tuition associated with developmental education coursework that a student requires to enter the technical training component is eligible for funding under this program.

Grantees must use grant funds to hire at least two (2) personal and career counselors, at least two (2) employment counselors, and provide other supportive services and materials to the students in the demonstration project. Examples of expenditures for allowable supportive services and materials are below:

• laboratory and workshop fees associated with the career technical training/learning activities,

• classroom equipment, supplies, and materials (e.g., books and school supplies) personal to the student,

• student activity fees,

• parking decals and fees,

• transportation costs to and from home during the up to 12 months of technical training period and the up to 12 months of employment counseling portion of the program,

• meal or food vouchers for the technical training and employment counseling portions of the program, and

• any other costs included in the program’s cost of attendance, such as those in Section 472 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002).

Grantee institutions have the flexibility to enroll more than 40 Job Corps Scholars per cohort. However, grantees must maintain the 20 students to one counselor ratio established by the grant and additional Job Corps Scholars grant funds will not be available.

Job Corps Scholars participants may receive other funding, including Pell grants and other federal grant aid that may cover some or all of the tuition and fees. After applying other sources of aid, grantees must ensure they use Job Corps Scholars grant funds to cover any remaining tuition and fees. If a grantee has grant funds available after covering tuition and fees for its participants and hiring the four counselors described above, it may use remaining grant funds to enroll additional participants (provided tuition and fees are fully covered), hire additional counselors, or cover additional supportive services and materials from the list above.

Job Corps Scholars Program students must meet the grantee’s existing admissions standards to participate in the program. Job Corps’ student code of conduct and disciplinary policies do not apply to the students in the Job Corps Scholars Program.

However, students in the Job Corps Scholars Program must abide by all applicable student codes of conduct and are subject to the disciplinary policies of their grantee community college, HBCU, or TCCU. A Job Corps Scholars Program student’s withdrawal, dismissal, or other termination of enrollment in the community college, HBCU, or TCCU will result in the student’s termination from the Job Corps Scholars Program.

The length of any certificate program must not exceed 12 months if it is to be used for the Job Corps Scholars Program. However, grantees are not required to create new or modify their existing technical training certificate programs. Participants may be allowed more than 12 months to complete the training if the additional time is necessary to complete required developmental education coursework. The entire combined period of technical skills instruction and employment counseling/placement portions of the demonstration project must not exceed 24 months.

Job Corps Scholars successfully completing the up to 12-month training component of the program must have earned a technical training certification and academic credit, if academic credit is incorporated into the certification coursework. These credits must be transferrable to another degree program at the school or to another accredited two- or four-year academic institution should the student decide to continue his or her education in lieu of immediately entering into an apprenticeship or pursuing other employment.

Grantees must provide Job Corps Scholars separating from the training component, and wanting to enter into the workforce but are not yet “job attached,” with up to 12 months of employment counseling as a part of the program.

In addition to promoting being “job attached,” these grants support work-based learning solutions for industry and sustainable career pathways for the workforce by incorporating apprenticeships into offered employment counseling and placement.

Grantees cannot use grant funds to provide grantee staff with training and counseling of any type, or to subsidize the career technical training and personal counseling of non-Job Corps Scholars.

DOL is committed to producing strong evidence on the effectiveness of its grant programs and full participation in any evaluation initiated by the Department is a condition of all grant awards.

I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

A. PROGRAM PURPOSE

By 2020, if the job training crisis in the U.S. goes unchecked, it is estimated that there will be 55 million job vacancies.1 This, in combination with the existing skills gap and changing population demographics, creates an opportunity for Job Corps to explore new and innovative ways to deliver education and career training that creates a pipeline of talent.

The Job Corps Scholars Program, conducted as a demonstration grant program, allows Job Corps to explore how it may execute its mission in a manner that decreases the government’s cost and increases program outcomes. The Job Corps Scholars Program will

1 Georgetown Public Policy Institute, Center on Education and the Workforce, Recovery: Job Growth and Education Requirements Through 2020, p. 8, https://cew.georgetown.edu/cew-reports/recovery-job-growth-and-education-requirements-through-2020/ (last accessed July 18, 2018).

https://cew.georgetown.edu/cew-reports/recovery-job-growth-and-education-requirements-through-2020/ https://cew.georgetown.edu/cew-reports/recovery-job-growth-and-education-requirements-through-2020/ rely on accredited, two-year, public community colleges; accredited, public, two- and four-year HBCUs; and accredited, two- and four-year TCCUs, to accomplish the following:

• Provide career technical training to at-risk, Job Corps eligible youth;

• Deliver intensive, individualized personal and employment counseling to Job Corps eligible students that improves student performance and employment outcomes;

• Deliver a one-year certification program aimed at increasing the employment prospects for Job Corps eligible students, including increasing access to apprenticeship programs;

• Provide opportunities for Job Corps eligible students to earn transferable academic credit hours. These hours may be earned as a part of the technical skills training certification coursework; and

• Monitor student and program performance.

As a part of the 39-month period of performance, there will be an assessment of the cost and performance of the Job Corps Scholars Program model. Performance and cost will be compared to DOL’s traditional Job Corps program model.

The Department’s Job Corps program helps young people between the ages of 16 and 24 from disadvantaged backgrounds complete their high school education and provides them training to prepare them for meaningful careers. Job Corps seeks to give its students the opportunity to realize their full potential, gain new vocational and academic skills, and become mature, responsible and productive adults. The program has trained and educated two million individuals in its more than 50-year history. Currently, Job Corps serves approximately 60,000 youths annually through more than 120 Job Corps centers throughout the country. Job Corps operates primarily by awarding contracts for operating its training centers, including providing outreach and admissions services, technical training, employment and career counseling, job placement and other services.

Historically, Job Corps has struggled to demonstrate the extent to which its training program has helped participants enter meaningful jobs appropriate to their training.2 While the program delivers positive results, Job Corps is interested in exploring alternatives to delivering Job Corps services that cost less and are more effective in achieving the Job Corps mission. Some of the expense associated with operating a traditional Job Corps center is rooted in the need to invest continually in the program’s infrastructure, for example, equipment and related maintenance, and maintaining student residences. Through their existing certificate programs, many community colleges, HBCUs and TCCUs already provide state-of-the-art technical career training.

2 Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Labor, Job Corps Could Not Demonstrate Beneficial Job Training Outcomes, Report Number 04-18-001-03-370 (March 30, 2018), https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/viewpdf.php?r=04-18-001-03-370&y=2018 (last accessed October 28, 2018).

https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/viewpdf.php?r=04-18-001-03-370&y=2018

When the Job Corps program was created in 1964, public community and junior college systems were just beginning to be established across the nation. In the 1960s, community college enrollment grew more rapidly than any other segment in higher education. In the 1980s, community colleges began to offer specialized, customized as well as vocational training. Today, there are more than 1,100 community colleges serving more than 12 million students.

Public community colleges have an expansive reach, opening doors to individuals without the means to access higher education. These institutions are attractive potential providers of skills instruction to Job Corps eligible students because community colleges are less expensive than four-year institutions, they are typically commuter colleges and their students are able to live at home and continue to perform caregiving and other responsibilities, and their students are able to maintain employment while attending classes. In addition, community colleges are uniquely local and are intimately involved in local and state economic development initiatives. Across the country, community colleges are demonstrating flexibility as they work to meet the needs of local employers and provide students training that use state-of-the-art equipment.

In addition to local community colleges, there are approximately 100 accredited HBCUs with an enrollment of nearly 300,000 students.3 Approximately 80 percent of those enrolled in HBCUs are African American, and 70 percent are from low-income families.4 HBCUs are located in 19 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, 51 of the 102 HBCUs are public institutions and 51 are private nonprofit institutions.5

There are 38 TCCUs with an approximate enrollment of 30,000 full- and part-time students.6 There are 32 fully accredited TCCUs with one formal candidate for accreditation and three in Associate Status. 7 These institutions offer 358 total programs, including

3 U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Table 313.20. Fall enrollment in degree-granting historically Black colleges and universities, by sex of student and level and control of institution: Selected years, 1976 through 2016, https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_313.20.asp?current=yes (last accessed November 12, 2018). Data show total enrollment of 292,083. See also College Navigator https://nces.ed.gov/COLLEGENAVIGATOR/?s=all&sp=4&pg=1(last accessed March 20, 2019).

4 Id. See also United Negro College Fund, HBCUs Make America Strong: THE POSITIVE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES, p. 3, November 2017, http://images.uncf.org/production/HBCU_Consumer_Brochure_FINAL_APPROVED.pdf?_ga=2.79699479.181294 6613.1540775681-177476315.1540775681 (last accessed October 28, 2018).

5 U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Table 313.10. Fall enrollment, degrees conferred, and expenditures in degree-granting historically Black colleges and universities, by institution: 2015, 2016, and 2015-16, https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_313.10.asp?current=yes (last accessed Nov.

14, 2018) 6 White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, U.S. Department of Education, Tribal Colleges and Universities, TCUs and 2020 Goal, https://sites.ed.gov/whiaiane/tribes-tcus/tribal-colleges-and-universities/ (last accessed November 12, 2018).

7 White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, U.S. Department of Education, Tribal Colleges and Universities, https://sites.ed.gov/whiaiane/tribes-tcus/tribal-colleges-and-universities/ (last accessed November 12, 2018).

https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_313.20.asp?current=yes https://nces.ed.gov/COLLEGENAVIGATOR/?s=all&sp=4&pg=1(last http://images.uncf.org/production/HBCU_Consumer_Brochure_FINAL_APPROVED.pdf?_ga=2.79699479.1812946613.1540775681-177476315.1540775681 http://images.uncf.org/production/HBCU_Consumer_Brochure_FINAL_APPROVED.pdf?_ga=2.79699479.1812946613.1540775681-177476315.1540775681 https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_313.10.asp?current=yes https://sites.ed.gov/whiaiane/tribes-tcus/tribal-colleges-and-universities/ apprenticeships, diplomas, certificates, and degrees.8 According to the U.S. Department of Education, these programs “include 181 associate degree programs at 23 TCCUs, 40 bachelor’s degree programs at 11 TCCUs, and 5 master’s degree programs at two TCCUs (AIHEC).”9 TCCUs play a critical role in the American system of higher education.

HBCUs and TCCUs generally serve populations that may not be able to commit four years to obtaining a degree. These institutions also serve those who are unwilling to take on excessive educational debt without the hope of being able to realize a return on that financial investment. Many of those served through the network of HBCUs and TCCUs are likely to meet the eligibility criteria of the Job Corps program. Collectively, these three educational systems provide affordable opportunities for individuals seeking education and skills instruction. The Job Corps Scholars Program addresses the financial barriers associated with attending a four-year college because the grant covers student tuition and fees, as well as other items that would otherwise be financial barriers such as transportation, and classroom supplies and materials. Some certificates can be earned in less than 12 months so the students can move quickly into employment without investing four-years in a degree.

Whether participating in the Job Corps Scholars Program at a community college, HBCU, or TCCU a Job Corps Scholar will receive personal, career and employment counseling to support them as they navigate through the program.

The Job Corps Scholars Program

The Job Corps Scholars Program will serve Job Corps eligible youth enrolled at selected community colleges, HBCUs and TCCUs. For students designated by the grantees as “Job Corps Scholars,” these educational institutions will provide free tuition for their first year in the Job Corps Scholars program, career technical training, and intensive personal and career counseling services to support and facilitate completion of the program. In addition, employment counseling services will be provided, including follow-up employment services. DOL will select approximately twenty (20) institutions via the competitive grant process.

In the first year, a cohort of at least 40 Job Corps Scholars will enter and complete the up to one-year career technical training program. Job Corps Scholars must complete the training and earn a certificate within 12 months or be removed from the program. Scholars who require developmental education courses to complete the technical training program may be given more than 12 months to complete. Those removed from the program will be able to seek enrollment in a traditional Job Corps program. Upon exiting the career technical training program, the first cohort will move into the 12-month employment counseling and placement phase of the program. Job Corps Scholars opting to pursue a two- or four-year degree should still be provided the opportunity to obtain employment counseling.

8 Id.

9 Id.

However, such counseling for them is not mandatory. Also in year two, a new cohort of no less than 40 Job Corps Scholars will begin the career technical training program. This second cohort will complete training at the end of year two, exit, and move into a 12-month employment counseling and placement follow-up phase in year three. By entering in small groups or cohorts, the expectation is that the students will create an informal support system that would further increase the likelihood of them successfully completing the program. Whenever possible, the grantee educational institutions should encourage the development of these cohort support systems.

Career Technical Training. Each educational institution will serve at least 80 students and will provide career technical training to Job Corps eligible youth. Students will select a career technical training program from the list of those programs already offered by the institution. Students are not limited to only selecting skills training certification programs that include earning academic credit. The technical training programs offered must not exceed 12 months in duration. If any of the grantees’ existing training programs are less than 12 months they need not be extended to qualify for this funding opportunity if the training certification and academic credit requirements of the Job Corps Scholars Program are met. A cohort of at least 40 students would enter the career technical program in the first year and a second cohort in the second year. The Job Corps Scholars will attend classes along with non-Job Corps students.

Personal and Career Counseling Services. Each educational institution will provide at least two full time equivalent (FTE) counselors to deliver intensive personal and career counseling services (at a ratio of at least 20 students per one counselor). The institution will recruit and select qualified professionals to serve as personal and career counselors.

These counselors must ensure the delivery of at least the specific services described below.

Counseling is a critical component of the Job Corps Scholars Program. A paper submitted to the 2010 White House Summit on Community Colleges by Michelle Cooper, President of the Institute for Higher Education Policy, concluded that, “In a review of the literature on the impact of counseling on student retention, it was found that counseling increases the retention of students with high risk factors for dropping out.”10 Therefore, if intensive supportive services are provided, both during and after enrollment, student success could be realized through higher completion rates and better employment outcomes.

Accordingly, personal and career counseling services for Job Corps Scholars must include:

• Conducting an initial assessment to identify, and create a strategy to address, the personal developmental, social, and academic strengths and challenges of each student.

10 Cooper, M., Institute for Higher Education Policy, The White House Summit on Community Colleges Conference, Student Support Services at Community Colleges: A Strategy for Increasing Student Persistence and Attainment, https://www2.ed.gov/PDFDocs/college-completion/04-student-support-services-at-community-colleges.pdf (last accessed February 2019).

o Identify personal and academic strengths and challenges that must be considered and/or addressed during career and employment counseling and planning.

o Develop, document, implement, and monitor the intervention strategies that were specifically designed to address each student’s personal developmental, social and academic challenges.

o Periodically reassess the results of the intervention strategies that are described above. This includes documenting the findings of the reassessment, and developing and implementing modifications in sufficient time to allow for student improvement.

o Establish and monitor progress toward each student’s short- and long-term personal and career goals.

o Encourage the development of cohort support system, as appropriate.

• Identifying, providing and/or coordinating the delivery of college and community, State, and Federal resources to meet students’ identified personal developmental, social and academic needs including, but not limited to, the below.

o Ongoing structured, scheduled, and documented individual psychological and/or emotional counseling throughout the program.

o Academic tutoring and mentoring services.

• Advising and recommending the most appropriate technical training career pathway after assessing numerous factors, including employment prospects in various trades/fields/areas, and the student’s interests and aptitude/skill level, in collaboration with career and employment counselors.

• Advising on the quality of the various skills training certification programs, including employability and/or labor market demand, and earnings potential.

• Determining, periodically, how the student is progressing in his/her education and career technical training.

• Collaborating and sharing information with other staff, departments, and community resources, to the extent allowed by applicable federal, state, and local laws, to ensure the coordinated delivery of needed services to each student.

• Assessing transitional support needs, developing strategies to meet those needs, and working with employment counselors.

Employment Counseling Services. Each educational institution will provide at least two FTE counselors to deliver intensive employment counseling services (at a ratio of no more than 20 students per one counselor). Grantee institutions have the flexibility to enroll more than 40 Job Corps Scholars per cohort. However, they must maintain the 20 students to one counselor ratio and additional Job Corps Scholars grant funds will not be available.

The institution would recruit and select qualified professionals to serve as career and employment counselors. Accordingly, employment counseling for Job Corps Scholars must include:

• Pre-Separation Services o Initiating or supporting pre-separation job search efforts.

o Assisting students in assessing their readiness for career transition.

o Ensuring that students are fully prepared to conduct a successful job search or continuation of postsecondary education or enter an apprenticeship program.

o Preparing students to effectively access resources and services that will assist them in making a successful transition to the workforce, including into apprenticeship programs, or further their post-secondary education.

o At least 45 days prior to projected separation, career and employment counselors will assess and counsel students to determine their capabilities and review job search skills and strategies as follows:

Sources of employment Conducting an Internet job search Completing a job application Preparing and/or updating the resume Writing a cover letter Preparing for job interviews and interview skills Worker’s rights and responsibilities Strategies for succeeding during the first weeks on a job o Assisting students in assembling documents necessary for obtaining employment or enrolling in an apprenticeship program, including earned credentials that document the student’s accomplishments.

o Assisting students in developing a strategy to secure housing, transportation, childcare (if applicable), health care, work clothing and tools, food and nutrition, budgeting/money management, and federal funding for advanced education (as applicable).

• Post-Separation Services o Developing resources to meet transitional support needs.

o Providing participants with personalized career transition services that lead to job placement, continued enrollment in postsecondary education or enrollment in an apprenticeship program.

Providing participants with job placement and supportive services for up to twelve (12) months following certificate completion.

Maintaining and documenting direct contact with all participants at least every 30 days during the service period to reassess their needs.

o Providing participants with ongoing support to ensure continued employment, further education, licensing in the field in which they were certified, and career progression.

o Assisting participants in identifying and obtaining support services within the communities in which they work and live. Support services include, but are not limited to, housing, transportation, childcare (if applicable), health care, work clothing and tools, food and nutrition, financial planning, counseling services, job retention, and legal services.

• Employer Engagement o Use labor market information and employer provided information to inform training and career counseling decisions.

o Create new or leverage existing partnerships with employers to identify workforce labor demands. This may include, for example, determining gaps in training and education for specific industries and occupations, an analysis of project employment opportunities, or other methods.

o Determine the extent to which the college or university has training programs that will meet those labor needs. Employer engagement may inform decisions about what future training programs should be offered by the institution, and will contribute to improved job placement activities and rates.

o Seek early placement commitments for Job Corps Scholars successfully separating from the Job Corps Scholars Program.

o Create and maintain relationships, as appropriate, within the local communities, with American Job Centers or One-Stop Centers, and with local Workforce Development Boards.

o Create and execute a communications plan to reasonably ensure that employers can provide feedback on the degree to which their labor needs are being met.

o Explore the possibility with employers of using existing or creating new apprenticeship programs for students to gain employment and create a career path.

B. PROGRAM AUTHORITY

The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014, Sections 156(a) and 189(c) (29 U.S.C. 3193(a), 3249(c)) authorizes this program.

II. AWARD INFORMATION

A. AWARD TYPE AND AMOUNT

Funding will be provided in the form of a grant.

We expect availability of approximately $23,738,000 to fund approximately 20 grants for 39 months.

You may apply for a ceiling amount of up to $1,186,900. The ceiling amount includes program start-up costs, any developmental coursework necessary to enter the technical training program, a career technical training program, post-separation follow-up for employment placement and transition counseling, and program performance evaluation.

Grantee institutions have the flexibility to enroll more than 40 Job Corps Scholars per cohort. However, grantees must maintain the 20 students to one counselor ratio established by the grant and additional Job Corps Scholars grant funds will not be available.

Awards made under this Announcement are subject to the availability of Federal funds. In the event that additional funds become available, we reserve the right to use such funds to select additional grantees from applications submitted in response to this Announcement.

B. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The period of performance is up to 39 months with an anticipated start date of March 1, 2020. All activities must be completed within the period of performance. This performance period includes all necessary implementation and start-up activities, including:

• Planning and start-up periods of up to two months beginning on or about March 1, 2020, or as determined appropriate by the educational institutions based on the start of the academic year;

• Two maximum 12-month career technical training programs (one for each of two student cohorts); the first training program cohort begins in or about May 2020, based on the start of the academic year, and the second training program cohort begins one year thereafter (in or about May 2021);

• Two maximum 12-month post-separation follow-up periods for employment placement and transition counseling (one for each of two student cohorts); the first sessions beginning in or about May 2021 based on the start of the academic year, and the second begins one year thereafter (in or about May 2022); and

• Post-pilot evaluation of performance and lessons learned for a period of up to one month. The evaluation may begin before the end of the academic year but must conclude no later than 30 days after the end of the second 12-month employment placement session.

Applicants are required to describe, as a part of the application, the activities they expect to undertake during the planning or start-up period to ensure that the target Job Corps eligible population is identified and recruited, and to ensure timely and effective initiation of the Job Corps Scholars Program.

C. OUTCOMES

Job Corps Scholars Program Outcomes

Post-secondary certificates have now overtaken both Associate’s and Master’s degrees as the second most-popular post-secondary award after Bachelor’s degrees according to a report from the Center on Education and the Workforce at Georgetown University: Career and Technical Education, Five Ways That Pay, September 2012. According to the report, individuals who possess a post-secondary certificate earn nearly 40 percent more than a high school graduate when they work in the field they studied. The most common certificate fields are health care, business/office management, auto mechanics, construction trades, computer and information services, electronics, transportation and material moving, and cosmetology. Post-secondary certificate programs often include college credit. Though students are not limited to selecting only certificate programs that include earning academic credit, when such courses are selected, the credit hours could eventually be applied toward graduation requirements in a formal degree program, such as in an associate degree program. Post-secondary certificate programs vary in their program length, purpose, structure, effects, and location.

Due to the intensive counseling services requirement, it is anticipated that student retention in the Job Corps Scholars Program would be high. At least eighty Job Corps Scholars Program students will enter the program as two cohorts of at least 40 students.

Upon successful separation from the up to 12-month certificate program, the students should secure a job, enter an apprenticeship program, or join the Armed Services. Some students may, in the alternative, continue enrollment or transfer to another institution to pursue an associate or four-year degree. The goal is to have students “job attached” by the time they separate from the training portion of the program. Student participants will receive job placement assistance and supportive services for up to twelve months following separation.

Job Corps requires the grantees to track and report the below performance measures.

• Job Corps Scholars Separation Rate (i.e., completion of the 12-month training certification program);

• Job Corps Scholars Dropout Rate (i.e., withdrawal, dismissal, or termination from the grantee institution or the Job Corps Scholars Program);

• Job Corps Scholars Qualifying Placement Rate Upon Separation (number and percent);11

• Job Corps Scholars Qualifying Placement Rate During the 12-month Employment

Counseling Period Post-Separation;

• Job Corps Scholars Average Starting Salary/Wage When in a Qualifying Placement Upon

Separation;

• Job Corps Scholars Average Salary/Wage When in a Qualifying Placement 12 months

After Separation;

• Job Corps Scholars Average Earned Academic Credit Hours;

• Job Corps Scholars Enrolled in the Armed Services Upon Separation;

• Job Corps Scholars Enrolled in an Apprenticeship Program Upon Separation (number and percentage); and

• Job Corps Scholars with Full-time Employment Upon Separation.

Additionally, Job Corps Scholars grantees under this FOA must track and report on the primary indicators of performance as listed in WIOA Section 116(b)(2)(A)(ii). The Job Corps Scholars program is held to the six WIOA primary indicators of performance for youth. These indicators are:

11 The definition of a qualifying placement is in the Job Corps Policy and Requirements Handbook, Chapter 4:

Career Transition Period, Exhibit 4-1: Career Transition Plan. The initial placement verification and documentation requirements is also in Chapter 4, Exhibit 4-2: Eligibility for Services. See Job Corps Policy and Requirements Handbook, Chapter 4: Career Transition Period, https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/Career%20Transition%20Period/Pages/default.aspx (last accessed November 19, 2018).

https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/Career%20Transition%20Period/Pages/default.aspx

• Education and Employment Rate – Second Quarter After Exit;

• Education and Employment Rate – Fourth Quarter After Exit;

• Median Earnings – Second Quarter After Exit;

• Credential Attainment;

• Measurable Skill Gains; and

• Effectiveness in Serving Employers.

Additional information on these performance indicators can be found in Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) 10-16, Change 1: “Performance Accountability Guidance for Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Title I, Title II, Title III and Title IV Core Programs,” found at https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=3255. Grantees will be provided detailed instructions on performance reporting procedures upon grant award.

Information on the numbers of Job Corps Scholars requiring developmental education coursework, the numbers and types of courses required, and the completion time must be collected. This information is not a performance evaluation factor.

III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

The following organizations are eligible to apply:

Eligible applicants are accredited, two-year, public community colleges; accredited, public, two- and four-year historically Black colleges and universities or HBCUs, and accredited, two- and four-year tribal colleges and universities or TCCUs with at least one certification training program that can be completed in 12 months or less.

The Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, defines an HBCU as “…any historically black college or university that was established prior to 1964, whose principal mission was, and is, the education of black Americans, and that is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association determined by the Secretary [of Education] to be a reliable authority as to the quality of training offered or is, according to such an agency or association, making reasonable progress toward accreditation.”

A tribal college or university is an institution that qualifies for funding under the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) or the Navajo Community College Act (25 U.S.C. 640a note); or is cited in section 532 of the Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 301 note).

https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=3255

For a specific definition of eligibility, see the Job Corps Policy and Requirement Handbook, Chapter 1, Section 2, Requirement 8 “Eligibility Requirements,” April 3, 2017, https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/ePRH%20Chapter%201/ePRH%20Chapter%201%20- %2004.03.17.pdf.

DOL will award approximately 20 individual grants. Each eligible community college, HCBU, and TCCU that DOL selects will receive one grant. Applicants are not required to have previously been a Job Corps contractor or center operator. Two-year public community colleges are institutions of higher education as defined in Section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002) which offer programs that can be completed in not more than two years. Historically Black colleges and universities are institutions of higher education as defined by The Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.12 Tribally controlled colleges and universities are institutions of higher education that qualify for funding under the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) or the Navajo Community College Act (25 U.S.C. 640a note); or is cited in section 532 of the Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 301 note).13

Applicants must identify their institution type in Section 9 of the SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance. Eligible institutions must be accredited, as of the closing date of this FOA, by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association that has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. A database of institutions that are accredited by agencies and associations recognized by the U.S. Department of Education can be found at http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. Applicants are strongly encouraged to check this Web site to confirm their eligibility, as the Department will rely solely on this database in determining an applicant’s accreditation to ensure eligibility.

B. COST SHARING OR MATCHING

This program does not require cost sharing or matching funds. Including such funds is not one of the application screening criteria and applications that include any form of cost sharing or match will not receive additional consideration during the review process.

Instead, the agency considers any resources contributed to the project beyond the funds provided by the agency as leveraged resources. Section IV.B.2 provides more information on leveraged resources.

C. OTHER INFORMATION

1. Application Screening Criteria

12 See also U.S. Department of Education National Center for Education Statistics, https://nces.ed.gov/COLLEGENAVIGATOR/?s=all&sp=4&pg=1 (last accessed October 29, 2018) 13 Ibid.

https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/ePRH%20Chapter%201/ePRH%20Chapter%201%20-%2004.03.17.pdf https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/ePRH%20Chapter%201/ePRH%20Chapter%201%20-%2004.03.17.pdf http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/ https://nces.ed.gov/COLLEGENAVIGATOR/?s=all&sp=4&pg=1

You should use the checklist below as a guide when preparing your application package to ensure that the application has met all of the screening criteria. Note that this checklist is only an aid for applicants and should not be included in the application package. We urge you to use this checklist to ensure that your application contains all required items. If your application does not meet all of the screening criteria, it will not move forward through the merit review process.

Application Requirement Instructions Complete?

The deadline submission requirements are met Section IV.C

Eligibility (including accreditation, as of the closing date of this FOA) Section III.A

If submitted through Grants.gov, the components of the application are saved in any of the specified formats and are not corrupt.

(We will attempt to open the document, but will not take any additional measures in the event of problems with opening.)

Section IV.C.2

Application for Federal funds request does not exceed the ceiling amount of $1,186,900 Section II.A

SAM Registration Section IV.B.1

SF-424, Application for Federal Assistance Section IV.B.1

SF-424 includes a DUNS Number Section IV.B.1

SF-424A, Budget Information Form Section IV.B.2

Budget Narrative Section IV.B.2

Project Narrative Section IV.B.3

2. Number of Applications Applicants May Submit

We will consider only one application from each organization. If we receive multiple applications from the same organization, we will only consider the most recently received application that met the deadline. If the most recent application is disqualified for any reason, we will not replace it with an earlier application.

3. Eligible Participants

Participants Eligible to Receive Training

The intent of this FOA is to fund projects by accredited, public, two-year community colleges; accredited, public, two- and four-year HBCUs; and accredited, two- and four-year TCCUs to provide up to 12 months of career technical training, up to 6 months of developmental coursework required to successfully enter the career technical training program, intensive personal and career counseling, and up to 12 months of employment counseling services to Job Corps eligible youth (i.e., Job Corps Scholars) to help prepare them for a career. For participant eligibility requirements see the Job Corps Policy and Requirement Handbook, Chapter 1, Outreach and Admissions, Exhibit 1-1, “Job Corps Eligibility Requirements,” April 3, 2017, https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/ePRH%20Chapter%201/ePRH%20Chapter%20 1%20-%2004.03.17.pdf and Appendix 101, Definitions of Family and Family Income, at https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/Appendices/Appendix%20101%20Definitions %20of%20Family%20and%20Family%20Income.pdf.

Job Corps Scholars are required to undergo the criminal background checks described in Exhibit 1-1. Grantees are not required to conduct and pay for these checks but will coordinate with the Job Corps program to have criminal background checks conducted once the grantee makes a preliminary admissions decision concerning the potential Job Corps Scholar. Background checks must be completed before the start of the training program. Except as provided in Exhibit 1-1, Job Corps Eligibility Requirements, Criterion 9, of the PRH, the existence of a criminal history does not disqualify a student from the Job Corps Scholars Program. In addition to meeting the Job Corps eligibility criteria, Job Corps Scholars must also qualify for the career technical training program through the grantee’s regular admissions process.

As with the Job Corps’ traditional program, individuals with disabilities are also eligible for the Job Corps Scholars Program. Grantees must maintain the confidentiality of the scholar’s disability status related records, using the grantees’ existing policies and procedures for obtaining and maintaining information concerning disability status. This includes policies and procedures governing voluntary disability self-disclosures and medical information, consistent with federal and state laws, including HIPAA where applicable. For HIPAA purposes, grantees should follow their own policies and procedures and not Job Corps PRH Exhibit 1-1, criterion 12, or Appendix 607.

Veterans’ Priority for Participants 38 U.S.C. 4215 requires grantees to provide priority of service to veterans and spouses of certain veterans for the receipt of employment, training, and placement services in any job training program directly funded, in whole or in part, by DOL. The regulations implementing this priority of service are at 20 CFR Part 1010. In circumstances where a grant recipient must choose between two qualified candidates for a service, one of whom https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/ePRH%20Chapter%201/ePRH%20Chapter%201%20-%2004.03.17.pdf https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/ePRH%20Chapter%201/ePRH%20Chapter%201%20-%2004.03.17.pdf https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/Appendices/Appendix%20101%20Definitions%20of%20Family%20and%20Family%20Income.pdf https://eprh.jobcorps.gov/Appendices/Appendix%20101%20Definitions%20of%20Family%20and%20Family%20Income.pdf is a veteran or eligible spouse, the veterans’ priority of service provisions require that the grant recipient give the veteran or eligible spouse priority of service by first providing him or her that service. To obtain priority of service, a veteran or spouse must meet the program’s eligibility requirements. Grantees must comply with DOL guidance on veterans’ priority. ETA’s Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) No. 10- 09 (issued November 10, 2009) provides guidance on implementing priority of service for veterans and eligible spouses in all qualified job training programs funded in whole or in part by DOL. TEGL No. 10-09 is available at https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=2816.

This guidance applies to programs funded under WIOA. For additional information on veteran’s priority of service and WIOA, please see TEGL 19-

16. TEGL 19-16 is available at https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=3851

IV. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

A. HOW TO OBTAIN AN APPLICATION PACKAGE

This FOA, found at www.Grants.gov and https://www.doleta.gov/grants/find_grants.cfm, contains all of the information and links to forms needed to apply for grant funding.

B. CONTENT AND FORM OF APPLICATION SUBMISSION

Applications submitted in response to this FOA must consist of four separate and distinct parts:

1. The SF-424 “Application for Federal Assistance;”

2. Project Budget, composed of the SF-424A and Budget Narrative;

3. Project Narrative; and

4. Attachments to the Project Narrative.

You must ensure that the funding amount requested is consistent across all parts and sub-parts of the application.

1. SF-424, “Application for Federal Assistance”

• You must complete the SF-424, “Application for Federal Assistance”

(available at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/sf-424-family.html#sortby=1.

• In the address field, fill out the nine-digit (plus hyphen) zip code. Nine-digit zip codes can be looked up on the USPS website at…