SORT: 1025.5 DOCI: DODI 1025.5 DATE: 19950213 TITL: DODI 1025.5 National Security Education Program (NSEP) Grants to Institutions of Higher Education, February 13, 1995, ASD(S&R) References: (a) DoD 5025.1-M, "DoD Directives System Procedures," August, 1994, authorized by DoD Directive 5025.1, June 24, 1994 (b) Sections 1901-1910 of title 50, United States Code (David L. Boren National Security Education Act of 1991, December 4, 1991, as amended) (c) DoD Directive 1025.2, "National Security Education Program," January 13, 1993 (d) Section 1141 of title 20, United States Code (The Higher Education Act of 1965) (e) DoD Instruction 1025.3, "Administrator, National Security Education Program," January 19, 1993 A. PURPOSE This Instruction, following DoD Directives procedures in reference (a), implements policy, assigns responsibilities, and prescribes procedures under references (b) and (c) by which institutions of higher education apply for, and are awarded, grants under the NSEP. B. APPLICABILITY This Instruction applies to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Military Departments, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Unified Combatant Commands, the Inspector General of the Department of Defense, the Defense Agencies, and the DoD Field Activities (hereafter referred to collectively as "the DoD Components"). C. DEFINITIONS Terms used in this Instruction are defined in enclosure 1. D. POLICY It is DoD policy that: 1. Grants shall be awarded to accredited public or private U.S. institutions of higher education (reference (d)) to enable these institutions to establish, operate or improve programs in foreign languages, area studies, and other international fields that are critical areas of those disciplines (as determined under Section 1902(a)(1)(c) of reference (b)). Other U.S. or foreign organizations, associations, and agencies may be included in proposals but may not be direct recipients of a grant. 2. Program participation shall be restricted solely to those institutions of higher education, associations, organizations, and other entities that do not discriminate against applicants, students, and employees on the basis of race, religion, sex, color, disability that is not disqualifying, age, or national or ethnic origin and do not bar on campus military recruiting. E. RESPONSIBILITIES The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Requirements (ASD(S&R)), directly or by assignment to the Director of the NSEP (reference (e)), shall: 1. Make available competitive grants to U.S. institutions of higher education to enable these institutions to establish, operate, or improve programs in foreign languages, area studies, and other critical international fields, 2. Administer, or designate an appropriate administrative agent to administer, the grants program. 3. Ensure that institutions of higher education or organizations competing for grants shall: a. Adhere to the guidance for submitting preliminary proposals provided in this Instruction and in the application issued for each annual competition. b. If invited to submit a full proposal, adhere to the guidance for submitting a full proposal provided in this Instruction and in the application issued for each annual competition. 4. Approve final grant recommendations of the independent review panels. 5. Ensure that institutions of higher education or organizations that are recipients of grants shall: a. Complete the project and fulfill the conditions contained in the proposal upon which their award was based. b. Advise the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Requirements (ASD(S&R)) if conditions develop which would prevent the award recipient from carrying out the program specified in their proposal. 6. Ensure that the Administrative Agent, or other entity designated by the Secretary of Defense or ASD(S&R) to administer the grants program, shall, consistent with section D.1-2, above, administer the program on behalf of the Secretary. F. PROCEDURES 1. The National Security Education Program Office (NSEPO) will announce annually a competition for NSEP Institutional Grants beginning in the spring and ending in the fall. 2. United States institutions of higher education qualified to compete for NSEP grants as defined in reference (b), section 1908(3) and reference (d), can obtain application forms and information by: a. Writing to: National Security Education Program Rosslyn P.O. Box 20010 1101 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1210 Arlington, VA 22209 b. Sending a facsimile request to: 703-696-5667 or by c. Sending an Internet message to: nsep@policy1.policy.osd.mil 3. Grants to institutions are designed to: a. Complement NSEP scholarship and fellowship programs by encouraging the development of programs and curricula that: (1) If prove the quality and infrastructure of international educational opportunities. (2) Address issues of national capacity. (3) Define innovative approaches to issues not addressed by NSEP scholarship and fellowship programs. b. Enhance institutional capacity and increase the number of faculty who can educate U.S. citizens to: (1) Understand less commonly taught languages and cultures and become involved in global issues. (2) Build a critical base of future leaders in the marketplace and in Government service who have cultivated international relationships and worked and studied alongside foreign experts. (3) Develop a cadre of professionals with substantial knowledge of language and culture who can use this ability to make sound decisions and deal effectively with global issues in their professions. 4. Grants will be awarded for 1 or 2 year periods. Any funding beyond 2 years will be based on an evaluation of the project and an assessment of its progress in meeting NSEP objectives (as specified in reference (b)) and will require reapplication through the established competition procedures. 5. Between Sand 25 awards of $25,000 to $250,000 per year for up to 2 years may be made in each competition. Awards will not exceed $250,000 per year. Within the foregoing limits these are estimates and do not bind the NSEP to a specific number of grants or specific grant amounts. 6. Only U.S. citizens and U.S. institutions of higher education may receive NSEP funding as stipulated in reference (b). Student scholarships or fellowships funded through the NSEP institutional grants program shall only be awarded to U.S. citizens; non-U.S. citizens on exchange programs are not eligible for funds under the NSEP. 7. Only those requirements that govern all Federal grants shall be reflected in NSEP grant awards. 8. The NSEP U.S. Institutional Grants Program has a two-stage submission and review process: a preliminary stage and a final stage. To qualify for funding consideration, all applicants must submit a Preliminary Proposal (application). 9. Preliminary Proposals shall be submitted in accordance with submission procedures summarized in this paragraph and detailed in the grants application available from the NSEPO (section F.2 above). a. An ORIGINAL AND SEVEN COPIES of the proposal must be submitted by the annually announced deadline to: Acquisition Directorate ATTN: Mr. Robert Lavelle (R-2) Defense Supply Service-Washington 5200 Army Pentagon Washington, DC 20310-5200 b. The burden of timely receipt is on the applicant. PROPOSALS MAY NOT BE SENT BY FACSIMILE. c. A completed Grant Application Cover Sheet (enclosure 2) must cover each proposal. d. The narrative, of no more than five pages, must be DOUBLE-SPACED and NUMBERED. It must describe a problem or need, offer a strategy to solve the problem or meet the need, and explain how the approach serves NSEP objectives. One or two additional pages of background material on the institution(s) involved in the proposal may be included separate from the five page narrative. e. The applicant should use the Proposal Budget Estimate Worksheet (enclosure 3) to delineate proposal costs for either one or two year funding. f. The NSEPO will mail confirmations with a Proposal Reference Number within two weeks of receipt of the proposal. 10. An independent review process will be coordinated by the NSEPO for a period of between 45 and 60 days from the date that the preliminary proposals are due. Applicants will be notified by mail of the results of the preliminary review. A summary of readers' comments will be available from NSEPO upon request. Those institutions whose proposals were determined to be eligible to submit final proposals will be notified in writing and by telephone. 11. Final Proposals shall be submitted in accordance with submission procedures for Preliminary Proposals summarized above (except as amended below) and detailed in the grants application available from the NSEPO (see section F.2 above). a. Final proposals will be due no earlier than 45 days and no later than 60 days from the date that the final competition commences. The exact due date will be specified each year in the grant application. b. In block 8 of the Proposal Cover Sheet, an abstract must be included giving a concise statement of the problem, proposed activities, and the program's potential for contributing to the national capacity. c. The proposal narrative, of between 15 and 25 DOUBLE-SPACED pages, should discuss how the proposal addresses the NSEP criteria specified in section F.3 above and described in detail in the application form. d. Following the Proposal Budget Estimate Worksheet (enclosure 3) a narrative budget statement should be attached explaining: (1) The basis used to estimate professional personnel, consultants', travel, indirect costs and any other costs that may appear unusual. (2) How major cost items relate to the proposed project activities. (3) Costs of the project's evaluation component. e. Any assurances and certificates required by the Federal Government should be enclosed. 12. Proposals will be evaluated by merit review panels of primarily faculty and administrators from higher education, although some reviewers might be from the non-academic research and business communities. Consistent with judgments based on merit, efforts will be made to ensure balance (geographical, ethnic, gender, institutional type and subject matter) across the entire competition. 13. Proposals will be evaluated according to the following selection criteria which are summarized in this paragraph and described in detail in the application: a. Significance of the problem. The proposal must address issues of national capacity and identify needs, gaps and/or shortfalls in the national capacity. The proposal should explain why the gaps exist and how the proposal will fill the need. It must show familiarity with the state of the field in the proposal area. b. Response to the problem. The proposal must present a credible, appropriate and original response to the needs and gaps identified. c. Prospects for wider impact. The proposal must address national capacity and clearly show how it will have impact beyond a specific campus. The impact on students and diversity will be considered. d. Cost-effectiveness. Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of "educational value for the dollar." The feasibility of the budget plan, the likelihood of continued support for the program for 3 to 5 years after the NSEP grant period, and the extent of non-NSEP funding to support the program will be considered. e. Capacity and commitment of the applicant. The proposal must demonstrate a clear commitment to the project by the institution including a willingness to bear a reasonable and increasing share (over 3 to 5 years) of the direct and indirect costs of the project. f. Evaluation plans. The proposal must have a clearly defined approach to measure the short, intermediate and long-term its impact on language competency, foreign cultural competency, and the value of study abroad experiences (where appropriate) and the flexibility to make modifications to increase impact. G. INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS Information collection requirements imposed by this issuance are licensed under Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number 0704-0366. H. EFFECTIVE DATE This Instruction is effective immediately. Edward L. Warner, III Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Requirements Enclosures 1. Definitions 2. Proposal Cover Sheet 3. Proposal Budget Estimate Worksheet 4. Expanded Definition: Institutions of Higher Education 1. Administrative Agent. An organization, association, college, or university given authority by the Secretary of Defense to administer and monitor the grants program. Administrative agents must be private, not-for-profit organizations, associations, or institutions. 2. Aggregate. The sum of the days of award assistance granted to a scholarship or fellowship recipient. 3. Award. Any amount of financial assistance given to an institution of higher education as a grant under the NSEP. 4. Critical Area. A language, country, geographic area or region, other than one traditionally focussed upon by U.S. institutions of higher education, and where limited capacity for study currently exists. This definition excludes countries of Western Europe, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. 5. Federal Government. Organizations and Agencies that comprise the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the U.S. Government. 6. Field of Education. Activities where teaching or research is a primary responsibility and is conducted in institutions of primary, secondary, or postsecondary education, or where such activities take place in a recognized organized educational or instructional environment. 7. Grant. A financial award made to an institution of higher education under this program based on the relative merit of a proposal submitted by that institution to the NSEP office during specified periods of competition for such awards. 8. Indirect Costs. These costs, also called "overhead" are understood to be negotiated by institutions of higher education with the Federal Government. NSEP institutional grants are assumed to be for training programs, thus, indirect costs associated with training programs should be used as a benchmark for determining appropriate overhead rates. 9. Institution of Higher Education. A U.S.-accredited community college, or an accredited college or university with postsecondary degree-granting authority, as defined in section 1201(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (reference (d)). 10. National Capacity. The concept of national capacity refers to the goal of the NSEP to provide opportunities to more U.S. students and institutions to improve their capabilities in understanding and adapting to other languages and cultures. 11. National Security. Economics, foreign affairs, and defense generally characterize the scope of national security. 12. National Security Education Board. A 13-member board established by the Secretary under the provisions of Section 803 of Public Law 102-183 (1991) (reference (b)) with responsibilities as specified therein. 13. National Security Education Program Group of Advisors. A body of senior education, business, and private sector representatives who provide advice to the National Security Education Board and to the Program Office, and provide for a communication exchange between higher education and the Federal Government. 14. National Security Education Program Office (NSEPO). The office established to administer the NSEP. 15. National Security Education Program Director. This official is the Administrator of the NSEP (reference (e)). <<|IMAGE DODI0001.gif|>> <<|IMAGE DODI0002.gif|>> <<|IMAGE DODI0003.gif|>> DEFINITION OF INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION The National Security Education Act of 1991 (reference (b)) stipulates this as the definition to be applied in the conduct of the program. The following definition is quoted from reference (d). "(a) The term `institution of higher education means an educational institution in any State which (1) admits as regular students only persons having a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the recognized equivalent of such a certificate, (2) is legally authorized within such State to provide a program of education beyond secondary education, (3) provides an educational program for which it awards a bachelor's degree or provides not less than a two-year program which is acceptable for full credit toward such a degree, (4) is a public or other nonprofit institution, and (5) is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association, or if not so accredited, is an institution that has been granted preaccreditation status by such an agency or association within a reasonable time. Such term also includes any school which provides not less than a one-year program of training to prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation and which meets the provisions of clauses (1), (2), (4), and (5). Such term also includes a public or nonprofit educational institution in any State which, in lieu of the requirement in clause (1), admits as regular students persons who are beyond the age of compulsory school attendance in the State in which the institution is located. For purposes of this subsection, the Secretary shall publish a list of nationally recognized accrediting agencies or associations which he determines, pursuant to subpart 3 of part G, to be reliable authority as to the