Form FOA-ETA-21-01 Workforce Pathways for Youth Grant Program

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL, or the Department, or we), announces the availability of approximately $10,000,000 in grant funds authorized by Section 169(c) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act for the Workforce Pathways for Youth grant program. The grant program, as outlined in the Department of Labor Appropriations Act, 2020 (Public Law 116-94) Statement of Managers, provides $10,000,000 to utilize the demonstration grant authority under the dislocated worker national reserve for grants to support national out-of-school time (OST) organizations that serve youth. These grants will place an emphasis on age-appropriate workforce readiness programming to expand job training and workforce pathways for youth, including soft skill development, career exploration, job readiness and certification, summer jobs, year-round job opportunities, and apprenticeships. Funding will also support partnerships between workforce boards and youth serving organizations.

This program will expand workforce development activities in OST organizations across the country that serve youth during non-school hours. The goals of the grant program are to: 1) expand age-appropriate workforce readiness programming through national OST organizations and their state or locally-operated affiliate organizations; 2) promote increased alignment between OST organizations, workforce development programs, and school systems, including alignment with dropout reengagement and recovery programs; 3) increase opportunities for youth, particularly those at risk of not completing their high school education, to gain the skills needed to be successful in higher education and employment; and 4) ensure all services provided are clearly linked to employment opportunities through the use of business engagement and labor market information (LMI) data.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION
1. PROGRAM PURPOSE

This Announcement solicits applications for the Workforce Pathways for Youth grant program. The purpose of this program is to increase alignment between workforce and OST programs and expand job training and workforce pathways for youth and disconnected youth including soft skill development, career exploration, job readiness and certification, summer jobs, year-round job opportunities, and apprenticeships.

An OST organization is a non-profit that operates a supervised program that young people regularly attend when school is not in session. This can include before- and after- school programs on a school campus or facilities off of a school campus such as academic programs (e.g., reading or math focused programs), specialty programs (e.g., sports teams; Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) programming; arts enrichment), and multipurpose programs that provide an array of activities.¹ More than 10 million U.S. children attend after-school programs between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.;² however, only 12 percent of these young people are high school aged.³ Additionally, there is a need for OST programs in areas of concentrated poverty and rural areas⁴ as they are a safe space for young people providing academic support⁵ and contribute to improving their overall health.⁶

While some OST programs specifically include workforce development activities, most do not include it in their program design. Employers in the United States require a skilled and educated workforce. With strong partnerships between OST organizations, local workforce entities, and state⁷ and local education agencies,⁸ OST programs may provide opportunities for workforce readiness, career exploration, career preparation, and career training to connect young adults to the skills necessary to become college and career ready.⁹ Providing youth exposure to career possibilities and mentors based on student interest, aptitude, and labor market needs may help OST participants gain critical skills through real-world work experiences that enhance their employability. In addition, DOL recognizes that the COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly altered the education and employment landscape across the country. In light of the changing environment, OST organizations are also adjusting their service delivery model.

This grant program will help establish lasting connections and partnerships between existing OST program activities and other state and local workforce partners to better address the need for youth exposure to career-related services, which support and prepare youth to enter the workforce.

PROGRAM AUTHORITY

Section 169(c) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and the Department of Labor Appropriations Act, 2020 (Public Law 116-94) authorizes this program. The Statement of Managers accompanying the appropriations act explained that the appropriation provided funds to the Department of Labor under this demonstration grant authority for grants to support national out-of-school time organizations that serve youth and teens and place an emphasis on workforce readiness programming.

GEOGRAPHIC SCOPE

As discussed below, applicants must identify the geographic scope of the proposed project. The geographic scope is the physical service area in which awarded applicants will serve participants, and refers to both the geographic area and affiliate sites within the geographic area. Applicants may choose one of the following geographic scopes: local/regional, statewide, or national scope. If applicants choose the local/regional scope, they must implement the project in at least two separate local/regional areas.

Local/regional means serving a part of one state or a contiguous area that includes multiple sites that may cross more than one state;
Statewide means serving an entire state or multiple non-contiguous sites within one state; and
National means serving three or more states in multiple locations across the country.^¹⁰ The service area does not need to be contiguous.

Within the chosen geographic scope, applicants must identify the specific site(s) where participants will receive services.

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES/ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES

The applicant (OST organization) will be responsible for: 1) funding locally-operated OST organizations that will implement workforce-focused OST programming; 2) providing coordination among the OST, education, and workforce systems partners; 3) monitoring progress of the implementation of programming and delivery of services; 4) developing a process for scaling up and sustaining effective programming across its network of affiliates after initial funding expires; and 5) ultimately sustaining and beginning to scale up effective programming with additional affiliates by leveraging existing WIOA and other workforce dollars.

Successful applicants will develop strategies and programming based on the existing evidence base for serving youth, and will be committed to using data for the continuous improvement of programs. For information on existing evidence in youth programming, please visit https://clear.dol.gov/topic-area/opportunities-for-youth and https://youth.gov/evidence-innovation.

All grantees must fund locally-operated OST organizations to implement evidence-based, career-focused and innovative programming. The locally-operated OST organizations must carry out the following grant activities, which may be done virtually or in-person: 1) career exploration services; 2) work readiness; 3) career counseling; 4) work experience (which may include internships, summer and year-round employment, pre-apprenticeships, and Registered Apprenticeship); and 5) assistance in placing youth in employment, education, or training.

These five grant activities may take many forms, both in-person and virtually, including the following:

Conducting work readiness and career interest assessments, including using innovative technologies, such as virtual platforms or gaming technology to assess abilities, aptitudes and interests in careers and to promote learning;
Providing labor market and employment information about in-demand industry sectors or occupations available in the local area such as career awareness, career counseling, and career exploration services;
Providing paid and unpaid work experiences, including internships, job shadowing, pre-apprenticeships, and Registered Apprenticeships;
Providing staff time to develop relationships and agreements with employers;
Developing mentoring activities;
Facilitating industry-specific engagement and support with industries that are growing or experiencing skills gaps;

Providing supportive services for participants such as transportation and needs-related payments that are necessary to enable an individual to participate in OST activities funded through this grant; and
Combining academic, career, and technical instruction with work experience, allowing youth to develop industry specific workplace competencies, skills, and knowledge.

Grant activities may also include the following to assist the grantee in implementing, scaling up, and sustaining effective workforce-focused OST programming:

Working with partners to monitor progress of efforts and develop plans for scaling up and sustaining effective workforce-focused OST programming;
Building relationships and customer flows through the creation of established connections;
Collaborate with WIOA Youth program partners to create training materials and toolkits for local affiliates on how to operate workforce-focused OST programs;
Covering costs of tools and technologies that may be needed to assist in scaling up and sustaining programming; and
Providing technical assistance and professional development to OST staff.

If grantees develop new curriculum, training, or credentials for their OST programs, the Department requires that data regarding these resources be in an open-data format, to allow use and replication across state and local partners nationwide. Specifically, the Department requires information regarding all credentials and competencies developed or delivered using these grant funds be made publicly accessible through the use of linked open data formats, such as through the use of the credential transparency description language specifications. Credentials include but are not limited to badges, certificates, certifications, licenses, and degrees of all levels and types. Competencies are generally considered to be groupings of knowledge, skills, and abilities. The linked open data formats support full transparency and interoperability of information. This allows individuals, employers, education and training providers, and others to access the information necessary to make more informed career and training decisions, such as complete, current, and beneficial information about providers, programs, credentials, and skills. Facilitating this access requires having information fully operable on the semantic web (meaning machine-readable and machine-discoverable). This enables information to be used in modern applications, tools, and services to support better understanding of available pathways. This open data also supports the development of improved navigation and guidance tools to help individuals make better decisions about which pathways are best for them.

AWARD INFORMATION

AWARD TYPE AND AMOUNT

Funding will be provided in the form of a grant.

We expect availability of approximately $10 million to fund approximately two to three grants ranging from $3.3 million to $5 million. Applicants may apply for a ceiling amount of up to $5 million. 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.

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The period of performance is 36 months with an anticipated start date of June 1, 2021. This performance period includes all necessary start-up activities.

ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

Grants under this program will be awarded to national OST non-profit (501(c)(3)) organizations with local affiliate networks. For purposes of this FOA, a national organization is defined as an organization that has affiliates operating in at least five states. An OST organization is a non-profit that operates a supervised program that young people regularly attend when school is not in session. This can include before- and after- school programs on a school campus or facilities off of a school campus such as academic programs (e.g., reading or math focused programs), specialty programs (e.g., sports teams, STEM, arts enrichment), and multipurpose programs that provide an array of activities.¹¹

REQUIRED PARTNERS

The applicant must also include the following organizations, in the quantity specified below, as required partners on the application for each service area identified.

A minimum of one organization involved in administering the workforce development system established under WIOA (29 U.S.C. 3151), which are limited to State Workforce Development Boards, Local Workforce Development Boards, and Indian and Native American entities (as outlined in Section 166 of WIOA) (29 U.S.C. 3221);
A minimum of two employer partners, or one industry/trade association that represents employers; and
A minimum of one State or Local Education Agency (including high schools and school districts) or an alternative education program.¹²

OPTIONAL PARTNERS

While the required partners reflect collaboration between secondary education, employers, and workforce development, we strongly encourage applicants to collaborate with other partners that can support and advance the work of the project. These include, but are not limited to, organizations functioning as workforce intermediaries, labor-management organizations, community-based organizations, training providers, and service providers; other organizations to support outreach and training activities, such as: industry-led training organizations, industry intermediaries, unions, or educational organizations; Small Business Development Centers; American Job Centers; community organizations that provide social support and/or wrap-around services; YouthBuild programs; Job Corps centers; WIOA Youth programs; Standard Recognition Entities (SREs); foundations and philanthropic organizations; and federally-funded youth-serving programs.

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. Applicants are encouraged to identify leveraged resources. Please note that this will be a scoring factor for the application. Section IV.B.2 provides more information on leveraged resources.

OTHER INFORMATION

Application Screening Criteria

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	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 federal funds request is between $3.3 million and $5 million	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
Documentation of Partnership Commitment	Section IV.B.3.c.2. and Section IV.B.4.a.2
Documentation of OST Organization and Required Number of Affiliates	Section III.A and Section IV.B.4.a.3.

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 consider only 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.

Eligible Participants

For purposes of this program, eligible participants must be youth between the ages of 14 to 21 at the time of program participation. Within this population of youth, applicants may serve a wide range of individuals, such as in-school and out-of-school youth, low income youth, and youth with barriers to employment including, but not limited to, foster youth, parenting youth, homeless youth, youth with disabilities, and youth offenders/ex-offenders.

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 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.

APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION
1. 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.

CONTENT AND FORM OF APPLICATION SUBMISSION

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

1. 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.

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 https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupAction!input.action.

The SF-424 must clearly identify the applicant and must be signed by an individual with authority to enter into a grant agreement. Upon confirmation of an award, the individual signing the SF-424 on behalf of the applicant is considered the Authorized Representative of the applicant. As stated in block 21 of the SF-424 form, the signature of the Authorized Representative on the SF-424 certifies that the organization is in compliance with the Assurances and Certifications form SF-424B (available at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/sf-424-family.html#sortby=1). You do not need to submit the SF-424B with the application.

In addition, subject to the provisions of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb, the applicant’s Authorized Representative’s signature in block 21 of the SF-424 form constitutes assurance by the applicant of compliance with the WIOA 188 rules issued by the Department at 29 CFR 38.25, which includes the following language:

As a condition to the award of financial assistance from the Department of Labor under Title I WIOA, the grant applicant assures that it has the ability to comply fully with the nondiscrimination and equal opportunity provisions of the following laws: Section 188 of the WIOA, which, as interpreted through Departmental regulations, prohibits discrimination against all individuals in the United States on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions, transgender status, and gender identity), national origin (including limited English proficiency), age, disability, political affiliation or belief, and against beneficiaries on the basis of either citizenship status or participation in any WIOA Title I—financially assisted program or activity; Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the bases of race, color, and national origin; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, which prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities; The Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of age; and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs.

The grant applicant also assures, subject to RFRA, that as a recipient of WIOA Title I financial assistance [as defined at 29 CFR 38.4(zz)], it will comply with 29 CFR part 38 and all other regulations implementing the laws listed above. This assurance applies to the grant applicant's operation of the WIOA Title I-financially assisted program or activity, and to all agreements the grant applicant makes to carry out the WIOA Title I-financially assisted program or activity. The grant applicant understands that the United States has the right to seek judicial enforcement of this assurance. Note that the RFRA applies to all federal law and its implementation. If an applicant organization is a faith-based organization that makes hiring decisions on the basis of religious belief, it may be entitled to receive federal financial assistance under this grant solicitation and maintain that hiring practice. If a faith-based organization is awarded a grant, the organization will be provided with more information.

Requirement for DUNS Number

All applicants for federal grant and funding opportunities must have a DUNS number, and must supply their DUNS Number on the SF-424. The DUNS Number is a nine-digit identification number that uniquely identifies business entities. If you do not have a DUNS Number, you can get one for free through the D&B website: https://fedgov.dnb.com/webform/displayHomePage.do.

Grant recipients authorized to make subawards must meet these requirements related to DUNS Numbers:

Grant recipients must notify potential subawardees that no entity may receive a subaward unless the entity has provided its DUNS number.
Grant recipients may not make a subaward to an entity unless the entity has provided its DUNS number.

(See Appendix A to 2 CFR Part 25.)

Requirement for Registration with SAM

Applicants must register with the System for Award Management (SAM) before submitting an application. Find instructions for registering with SAM at https://www.sam.gov.

A recipient must maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which it has an active federal award or an application under consideration. To remain registered in the SAM database after the initial registration, the applicant is required to review and update the registration at least every 12 months from the date of initial registration or subsequently update its information in the SAM database to ensure it is current, accurate, and complete. For purposes of this paragraph, the applicant is the entity that meets the eligibility criteria and has the legal authority to apply and to receive the award. If an applicant has not fully complied with these requirements by the time the Grant Officer is ready to make a federal award, the Grant Officer may determine that the applicant is not qualified to receive a federal award and use that determination as a basis for making a federal award to another applicant.

Project Budget

You must complete the SF-424A Budget Information Form (available at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/sf-424-family.html#sortby=1). In preparing the Budget Information Form, you must provide a concise narrative explanation to support the budget request, explained in detail below.

Budget Narrative

The Budget Narrative must provide a description of costs associated with each line item on the SF-424A. The Budget Narrative should also include a section describing any leveraged resources provided (as applicable) to support grant activities. Leveraged resources are all resources, both cash and in-kind, in excess of this award. Valuation of leveraged resources follows the same requirements as match. Applicants are encouraged to leverage resources to increase stakeholder investment in the project and broaden the impact of the project itself.

Each category should include the total cost for the period of performance. Use the following guidance for preparing the Budget Narrative.

Personnel: List all staff positions by title (both current and proposed) including the roles and responsibilities. For each position give the annual salary, the percentage of time devoted to the project, and the amount of each position’s salary funded by the grant.

Fringe Benefits: Provide a breakdown of the amounts and percentages that comprise fringe benefit costs such as health insurance, FICA, retirement, etc.

Travel: For grantee staff only, specify the purpose, number of staff traveling, mileage, per diem, estimated number of in-state and out-of-state trips, and other costs for each type of travel.

Equipment: Identify each item of equipment you expect to purchase that has an estimated acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit (or if your capitalization level is less than $5,000, use your capitalization level) and a useful lifetime of more than one year (see 2 CFR 200.1 for the definition of Equipment). List the item, quantity, and the unit cost per item.

Items with a unit cost of less than $5,000 are supplies, not “equipment.” In general, we do not permit the purchase of equipment during the last funded year of the grant.

Supplies: Identify categories of supplies (e.g., office supplies) in the detailed budget and list the item, quantity, and the unit cost per item. Supplies include all tangible personal property other than “equipment” (see 2 CFR 200.1 for the definition of Supplies).

Contractual: Under the Contractual line item, delineate contracts and subawards separately. Contracts are defined according to 2 CFR 200.1 as a legal instrument by which a non-federal entity purchases property or services needed to carry out the project or program under a federal award. A subaward, defined by 2 CFR 200.1, means an award provided by a pass-through entity to a subrecipient for the subrecipient to carry out part of a federal award received by the pass-through entity. It does not include payments to a contractor or payments to an individual that is a beneficiary of a federal program.

For each proposed contract and subaward, specify the purpose and activities to be provided, and the estimated cost.

Construction: Construction costs are not allowed and this line must be left as zero. Minor alterations to adjust an existing space for grant activities (such as a classroom alteration) may be allowable. We do not consider this as construction and you must show the costs on other appropriate lines such as Contractual.

Other: Provide clear and specific detail, including costs, for each item so that we are able to determine whether the costs are necessary, reasonable, and allocable. List items, such as stipends or incentives, not covered elsewhere.

Indirect Costs: If you include an amount for indirect costs (through a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement or De Minimis) on the SF-424A budget form, then include one of the following:

a) If you have a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA), provide an explanation of how the indirect costs are calculated. This explanation should include which portion of each line item, along with the associated costs, are included in your cost allocation base. Also, provide a current version of the NICRA.

b) If you intend to claim indirect costs using the 10 percent de minimis rate, please confirm that your organization meets the requirements as described in 2 CFR 200.414(f). Clearly state that your organization does not have a current (including provisional) rate, and your organization is not one described in 2 CFR 200, Appendix VII(D)(1)(b).

Applicants choosing to claim indirect costs using the de minimis rate must use Modified Total Direct Costs (see 2 CFR 200.1 below for definition) as their cost allocation base. Provide an explanation of which portion of each line item, along with the associated costs, are included in your cost allocation base. Note that there are various items not included in the calculation of Modified Total Direct Costs. See the definitions below to assist you in your calculation.

2 CFR 200.1 Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC) means all direct salaries and wages, applicable fringe benefits, materials and supplies, services, travel, and up to the first $25,000 of each subaward (regardless of the period of performance of the subawards under the award). MTDC excludes equipment, capital expenditures, charges for patient care, rental costs, tuition remission, scholarships and fellowships, participant support costs and the portion of each subaward in excess of $25,000. Other items may be excluded only when necessary to avoid a serious inequity in the distribution of indirect costs, and with the approval of the cognizant agency for indirect costs.

The definition of MTDC in 2 CFR 200.1 no longer allows any sub-contracts to be included in the calculation. You will also note that participant support costs are not included in modified total direct cost. Participant support costs are defined below.

2 CFR 200.1 Participant Support Cost means direct costs for items such as stipends or subsistence allowances, travel allowances, and registration fees paid to or on behalf of participants or trainees (but not employees) in connection with conferences or training projects.

See Section IV.B.4. and Section IV.E.1 for more information. Additionally, the following link contains information regarding the negotiation of Indirect Cost Rates at DOL: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/centers-offices/business-operations-center/cost-determination.

Note that the SF-424, SF-424A, and Budget Narrative must include the entire federal grant amount requested (not just one year).

Do not show leveraged resources on the SF-424 and SF-424A. You should describe leveraged resources in the Budget Narrative.

Applicants should list the same requested federal grant amount on the SF-424, SF-424A, and Budget Narrative. If minor inconsistencies are found between the budget amounts specified on the SF-424, SF-424A, and the Budget Narrative, ETA will consider the SF-424 the official funding amount requested. However, if the amount specified on the SF-424 would render the application nonresponsive, the Grant Officer will use his or her discretion to determine whether the intended funding request (and match if applicable) is within the responsive range.

Project Narrative

The Project Narrative must demonstrate your capability to implement the grant project in accordance with the provisions of this Announcement. It provides a comprehensive framework and description of all aspects of the proposed project. It must be succinct, self-explanatory, and well-organized so that reviewers can understand the proposed project.

The Project Narrative is limited to 20 double-spaced single-sided 8.5 x 11 inch pages with Times New Roman 12-point text font and 1-inch margins. You must number the Project Narrative beginning with page number 1.

We will not read or consider any materials beyond the specified page limit in the application review process.

The following instructions provide all of the information needed to complete the Project Narrative. Carefully read and consider each section, and include all required information in your Project Narrative. The agency will evaluate the Project Narrative using the evaluation criteria identified in Section V.A. You must use the same section headers identified below for each section of the Project Narrative.

Statement of Need (6 points)

Scope of the Issue (2 points)

Population Served (2 points)

Proposed Target Area (2 points)

The applicant must identify the proposed target service area and the number of youth ages 14 to 21 that the applicant expects to serve. The applicant must state the geographic scope of their proposed target area as discussed in Section I.C. as well as the specific site(s) within their chosen geographic scope.

Expected Outcomes and Outputs (16 points)

Applicants must clearly identify outcomes and outputs that the project will achieve as a direct result of the proposed project. Outputs are tangible products or services that result from the project.

Participant Outputs and Outcomes (6 points)

Applicants must provide a table that clearly identifies the outputs and outcomes (listed directly below) that will result from the project. This table will include annual target outcomes that will be used for the purposes of technical assistance. In addition, applicants must describe in a narrative format how these outcomes and outputs align with their project goals.

The performance table must be submitted as a separate attachment and does not count against the page limit of the Project Narrative (see Section IV.B.4. Attachments to the Project Narrative, as well as Appendix A, Performance Outcome Measures Table).

Applicants must include comprehensive numerical outcome projections for each of the three measures identified below and defined in Appendix A. Applicants must provide raw numbers for each of the target outcome measures for each year of the project as well as the cumulative number; otherwise, they will not receive full points. Percentages, percent increases, or other types of data projections are not acceptable.

Total number of program participants who complete a work experience as a result of a program supported by this grant;
Total number of program participants who enter postsecondary education or occupational skills training; and
Total number of program participants who enter unsubsidized employment.

Grantee-Defined Outcomes (10 points)

Applicants must include at least three grantee-defined performance indicators (either outputs or outcomes) based on their proposed program model as outlined in the below logic model. The grantee-defined measures must be included in the performance table in Appendix A and the indicators must include targets for each of the three years of the program as well as cumulative grant targets.

Project Design (34 points)

Project Design/Logic Model (6 points)

Scoring under this criterion is based on how completely the application describes the project design and the strength of the logic behind the design based on need and intended outputs and outcomes. Successful applicants will design their project based on existing evidence for serving youth and cite such evidence in their project design.

(i) Applicants must provide a comprehensive graphic depiction (not longer than one page) of the applicant’s logic model that illustrates the underlying theory of how the applicant’s strategy will produce intended outcomes. This logic model is a required attachment to the Project Narrative. A logic model (also referred to as theory of action) is a well-specified conceptual framework that identifies key components of the proposed process, product, strategy, or practice (i.e., the active “ingredients” or inputs and outputs that may be critical to achieving the relevant outcomes) and describes the relationships among the key components and outcomes, theoretically and operationally. This logic model must include the “ingredients” that are articulated in Section IV.B.3.c.1.ii. below. (2 points)

(ii) Applicants must provide a clear description of the project design that addresses the gaps and the disparities identified in the response to the statement of need and how the project design will achieve intended outcomes. This includes a description of the applicant's plan for the following:

how it will provide funding to its affiliate OST organization(s);
how the affiliate organization(s) will recruit and engage youth;
the services and activities (outputs) that will be provided to youth by the affiliate organization(s) and required and optional partners;
the outcomes that the affiliate organization(s) and partners will help youth achieve;
a description of the plan for how it will provide oversight and support to the affiliate organization(s) throughout the project;
how it will track and identify strategies and practices; and
how it will sustain activities with an even broader set of affiliates. (4 points)

OST Partnership Design (8 points)

Scoring under this criterion is based on how completely the application describes how the applicant has structured the partnership to meet effectively the goals outlined in the funding opportunity including how the affiliate organization(s) will communicate and collaborate with the required and optional partners.

Workforce Development Partner: The applicant must provide documentation of the role of the required workforce development partner organization identified in Section III.B. This includes a thorough and clear description of the capacity and role of the partner’s involvement, including in expanding an existing program on a local/regional, statewide, or national scale, deploying a new program, and/or providing outreach and recruitment services, work experience activities, services that provide labor market and employment information, supportive services, and other services. Such documentation must be included in the form of attached partnership agreements, letters on the partner letterhead outlining partnership commitment signed by an officer of the entity, or other documentation (as described in Sections IV.B.4. Attachments to the Project Narrative). (2 points)

Employer Partners: The applicant must provide a clear explanation and concrete evidence, with appropriate citations, that the employer partners represent a presence in the service area and how the entities will be involved in the project, including the specific roles played in the activities proposed in the Project Narrative, such as the employer role in providing work experience and developing participant workplace skills and competencies for jobs that are or will be in demand. The applicant must provide documentation of the roles of the required employer partners identified in Section III.B. Such documentation must be included in the form of attached partnership agreements, letters on the partner letterhead outlining partnership commitment signed by an officer of the entity, or other documentation (as described in Sections IV.B.4. Attachments to the Project Narrative). (2 points)

Education Partner: The applicant must provide documentation of the role of the required education partner identified in Section III.B. This includes a thorough and clear description of the capacity of the partner’s involvement, including in expanding an existing program on a local/regional, statewide, or national scale, deploying a new program, and/or providing outreach and recruitment services and other services. Such documentation must be included in the form of attached partnership agreements, letters on the partner letterhead outlining partnership commitment signed by an officer of the entity, or other documentation (as described in Sections IV.B.4. Attachments to the Project Narrative). (2 points)

Optional Partners: If the applicant includes collaboration with any optional partners, the applicant must provide documentation of the role of the optional partners. This includes a thorough and clear description of the capacity of the partner’s involvement, including in expanding an existing program on a local/regional, statewide, or national scale; deploying a new program; and/or providing outreach and recruitment services and other services. Such documentation must be included in the form of attached partnership agreements, letters on the partner letterhead outlining partnership commitment signed by an officer of the entity, or other documentation (as described in Sections IV.B.4. Attachments to the Project Narrative). Optional partners may include, but are not limited to, organizations functioning as workforce intermediaries, labor-management organizations, community-based organizations, training providers, and service providers; other organizations to support outreach and training activities, such as: industry-led training organizations, industry intermediaries, unions, or educational organizations; Small Business Development Centers; American Job Centers; community organizations that provide social support and/or wrap-around services; YouthBuild programs; Job Corps centers; WIOA Youth programs; foundations and philanthropic organizations; and federally-funded youth-serving programs. (2 points)

Increasing Workforce Opportunities for All Youth (6 points)

Scoring under this criterion is based on how fully the applicant describes how the project will increase workforce opportunities for all youth, particularly youth with barriers to employment.

Comprehensive description of the recruitment and enrollment strategy for engaging the target population(s), including clear identification of how partner organizations will support this effort, and the process to ensure collaboration between the applicant, applicant’s outreach partners, and other relevant partners in these activities. This must include a thorough description of the assessment process that will be used to determine if individuals are an appropriate fit for the program; (2 points)

Clear explanation of how the applicant will directly engage with partners and leverage resources including but not limited to WIOA resources to ensure that a wide range of youth, including those with barriers to employment, are able to participate in the program, including the incorporation of assistive technology, and other appropriate accessibility strategies to make the program accessible for this youth population; (2 points) and

Clear description of the proposed supportive service strategy(ies) for participants, including a thorough description of the specific services to be provided. The description must provide a clear plan detailing how these services will be effectively provided, either by the grantee or leveraged through WIOA or other partner resources, including individual needs assessments, and must convincingly demonstrate how these services will effectively support individuals in successfully participating in and completing the program. (2 points)

Project Work Plan (4 points)

Scoring under this criterion is based on the application identifying and including clear and complete project goals, milestones, key activities, and key partners of the proposed program as described in the work plan attachment as outlined in Appendix B. Note: Attachments do not count against page limitation.

(i) Narrative description that clearly identifies the overall project goals and milestones of this project. The narrative description must demonstrate that milestones are feasible based on the project design. To that end, the work plan must clearly describe short-term, mid-term, and long-term milestones of the project. The work plan must include all of the following:

Project goals and outcomes, which are the overarching achievements that will be pursued;
Milestones, which are key markers of grant progress; these are typically expressed in the form of an action or event marking a significant change or stage in development;
Key Activities, including timeframes for development and/or expansion of apprenticeship programs, deployment of apprenticeship programs, and/or enrollment in apprenticeship training; and
Key partner(s) identified for key activities.

Scalability/Sustainability (10 points)

Scoring under this criterion is based on the application identifying concrete strategies for scaling up the program model beyond the initial affiliates participating in the project and sustaining the project beyond the life of the grant funds. This project, as described below, envisions a sustainability approach where projects will implement the program in additional affiliate sites in year three and continue the project beyond the life of the grant.

Applicants must provide a description of a clearly delineated scalability strategy for the final year of the grant. Scalability must include expansion beyond the initial geographic scope into additional states if proposing a local/regional or statewide model that includes only one state. The scalability strategy must include the following elements:
1. Convincing description of the how the project will implement the program model in OST affiliate sites that are not part of the initial project design;
2. A realistic timeline for when the project will implement the program model in additional affiliates; and
3. Convincing description of the strategy for bringing on the additional workforce development, employer, and education partners in the local areas of affiliates that will implement the program model as part of the scaling up in the latter phase of the project. (4 points)

Applicants must provide a description of a clearly delineated sustainability strategy that includes the following elements:
1. Convincing description of the resources the program will use to ensure institutional capacity to support the program in the long-term, demonstrating strong potential to continue program activities without future federal funding;
2. How the continuing program will incorporate the strategies used to carry out the core elements of the program;
3. To the extent possible, the application should demonstrate plans for the sustainability of existing partnerships that include employers, educational institutions, and the workforce development organizations; and
4. Applications must demonstrate how they plan to sustain program activities beyond the program’s period of performance and provide a detailed description of professional development plans for program staff and how they will lead to sustainability beyond the period of performance.
5. Applicants must demonstrate the ability to build relationships and partnerships to facilitate leveraging funds and resources across the workforce system. (6 points)

Organizational, Administrative, and Fiscal Capacity (6 points)

Capacity of Applicant, Partnership Structure, and Administrative Controls and Systems (4 points)

The application must include a detailed description demonstrating the applicant’s capacity to effectively manage each component of the program including a narrative portion and functional organizational chart as indicated below:

Detailed description demonstrating the applicant’s capacity to effectively manage each component of the program, including a project management plan and a communications plan for efficient and effective management of the project with all partners and staff and demonstrating its capacity to establish effective procurement processes, systems, and procedures and those of any partners who will be providing any services or conducting any activities under the grant (if applicable); and (2 points)

Detailed organizational chart that identifies the applicant and required partners. The chart must describe the structure of the relationships of all partners involved in the project. The chart must also identify the proposed project’s staffing plan to illustrate that partners have the capacity to support the applicant to carry out the proposed project. The staffing plan must describe the qualifications and experience of all executive and administrative staff, as well as other personnel such as board members, advisors, and consultants, to fulfill the needs and requirements of the proposed project. Such qualifications and experience must demonstrate the ability to manage a strategic partnership, including fiscal and administrative management, outreach, and promotion. The chart should be included as an attachment to the project narrative and does not count against the 20-page limit. (2 points)

Financial, Data Collection, and Performance Reporting Systems (2 points)

Applicants must provide a comprehensive description of the existing or planned systems and processes that the applicant will use to provide timely and accurate financial and performance reporting to report to the Department during the life of the grant. In addition, the description must detail how these systems will be used to regularly assess progress towards the identified performance goals and that rigorous performance reporting will be taken into account in staffing and budgeting plans.

Past Performance – Programmatic Capability (32 points)

Organizations will receive points based on past performance data. Applicants must use the information below and provide the applicable past performance information.

Full description of the applicant’s prior experience and performance in the development and implementation of OST programs. This could include evidence of existing partnerships, prior experience in developing and implementing OST program, and relevant performance outputs and outcomes; (8 points)

Demonstration that partners have experience in engaging industry and employers in working with youth including specific industries and employers partners have worked with in the past; (4 points)

Demonstration that the applicant or partners have experience in developing and implementing youth workforce development programs, including work experience for youth, and demonstrated ability to integrate and work with existing workforce system and workforce system partners including the specific workforce system partners applicants have worked with in the past. Applicants must list specific programs they have developed and the specific activities within those programs; and (6 points)

Demonstrated ability to serve youth with barriers to employment, including the applicant’s identified target population. Applicant must provide data on numbers of youth with barriers served that demonstrates they have served such youth in the past; (6 points)

Demonstrated ability to pilot an initiative, monitor its progress and performance, adjust practices as needed and then effectively scale up those promising elements of the initiative to a broader set of affiliates. (8 points)

Budget and Budget Narrative (6 points)

The Budget and Budget Narrative will be used to evaluate this section. Please see Section IV.B.2 for information on the requirements. The Budget and Budget Narrative do not count against the page limit requirements for the Project Narrative.

Budget Narrative (2 points)

Thorough explanation of costs associated with each line item on the SF-424A with the associated dollar value of each cost, including a clear description of how proposed expenditures will support program services and placement in employment, postsecondary education, or occupational skills training for the target populations identified in Section IV.B.3.a.2 Populations Served.

Amount and Scope of Leveraged Resources (4 points)

Detailed description of the leveraged resources to be provided that indicates if the project will have leveraged resources and the amount of such leveraged resources, including a complete account of these leveraged resources. Applicants will be scored based on the extent to which they fully demonstrate that leveraged resources will be provided. Full description of how the leveraged resources described above will support grant activities and how these funds and other resources will be used to contribute to the projected outcomes for the project, including the provision of supportive services for program participants. Detailed description of which costs will be paid by the grant and which costs will be covered by leveraged resources. This includes cash or in-kind support (e.g., 21^st Century Community Learning Center program funding, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program education and training funds, WIOA), state and local funding, (e.g., on-the-job training funds, state workforce dollars, funding for participating community colleges), and private sector investment funds (e.g., training investment funds, social impact bonds, industry association or labor organization funds, etc.). This also includes funds and other resources leveraged from businesses, labor organizations, education and training providers, and/or federal, state, and local government programs (i.e., staff, time, services, products, and other non-cash resources). Applicants will be scored based on the extent to which they fully demonstrate the leveraged resources provided, the type(s) of leveraged resources provided, the strength of commitment to provide these resources, the breadth and depth of the resources provided, and how well these resources support the proposed grant activities.

g) Priority Consideration – Designated Qualified Opportunity Zone (1 bonus point)

Applicants that plan to serve at least one census tract designated by the Secretary of Treasury as a qualified opportunity zone will be awarded one bonus point. Designated opportunity zone census tracts can be found at https://www.cdfifund.gov/Pages/Opportunity-Zones.aspx, using the “List of designated Qualified Opportunity Zones” link. Applicants will receive one bonus point priority consideration if at least one opportunity zone census tract in their target area is listed in the Abstract. Applicants will not receive additional bonus points for multiple Opportunity Zones within the proposed service area. Please be aware the IRS list provides the full 11-digit census tract number. Use the example below to identify your census tract number:

Attachments to the Project Narrative

In addition to the Project Narrative, you must submit attachments. All attachments must be clearly labeled. We will exclude only those attachments listed below from the page limit. The Budget and Budget Justification do not count against the page limit requirements for the Project Narrative.

You must not include additional materials such as resumés or general letters of support. You must submit your application in one package because documents received separately will be tracked separately and will not be attached to the application for review.

Save all files with descriptive file names of 50 characters or fewer and use only standard characters in file names: A-Z, a-z, 0-9, and underscore (_). File names may not include special characters (e.g. &,–,*,%,/,#), periods (.), blank spaces, or accent marks, and must be unique (e.g., no other attachment may have the same file name). You may use an underscore (example: My_Attached_File.pdf) to separate a file name.

Required Attachments
1. Abstract

You must submit an up to two-page abstract summarizing the proposed project including, but not limited to, the scope of the project and proposed outcomes. Omission of the abstract will not result in your application being disqualified; the lack of the required information in the abstract, however, may impact scoring. See III.C.1 for a list of items that will result in the disqualification of your application. The abstract must include the following:

the applicant’s name
the applicant’s city and state
the names of the required partners
the project title
the proposed geographic scope (local/regional, state-wide, or national) and proposed service areas and sites within the services areas
the full 11-digit census tract number for an opportunity zone to be served, if applicable
the number of participants to be served
the funding level requested
total leveraged funds
population(s) to be served
public contact information; and
a brief summarization of the proposed project including but not limited to, the scope of the project and proposed outcomes

The Abstract is limited to two, double-spaced, single-sided 8.5x11 inch pages with Times New Roman 12 point text font. When submitting in grants.gov, this document must be uploaded as an attachment to the application package and labeled “Abstract.” A suggested Abstract format is provided in Appendix C.

Documentation of Partnership Commitment

You will be scored on the quality of the documentation showing commitment of each of the required entities, as described in Section III.B. This may include signed and dated Letters of Commitment or Memoranda of Understanding between the applicant and all required and optional partner organizations and/or sub-recipients that propose to provide services to support the program model and lead to the identified outcomes. If applicants do not provide documentation of all required partnership commitments, the application will be disqualified.

When submitting in grants.gov, these documents must be uploaded as an attachment to the application package and labeled “Partnership Commitments.” This attachment does impact the scoring of the application.

Documentation of OST Organization and Required Number of Affiliates

As discussed in Section III.A., grants will be awarded to national OST non-profit organizations with local affiliate networks and a national organization is defined as an organization that has affiliates operating in at least five states. Applicants must provide documentation that they are a national OST organization with affiliates in at least five states. Acceptable documentation may include the organization’s website listing its mission and its affiliate members or any other documentation that shows that the organization is an OST organization and the location of its affiliates.

Requested Attachments

We request the following attachments, but their omission will not cause us to disqualify the application. The omission of the attachment will, however, impact scoring unless otherwise noted.

Project Work Plan

You will be scored on the completion and detail of the Project Work Plan as described in Section IV.B.3.c.4 Project Work Plan. See Suggested Template in Appendix B.

Performance Outcomes Table

You will be scored on the completion and detail of the projected performance outcomes information in a performance outcomes table as described in Section IV.B.3.b.1. For an example template, see Appendix A, Suggested Performance Outcome Measures Table Template.

Organizational Chart

You will be scored on the completion and detail of the organizational and project staffing information in an organizational chart as described in Section IV.B.3.d.

Indirect Cost Rate Agreement

If you are requesting indirect costs based on a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement approved by your federal Cognizant Agency, then attach the most recently approved Agreement. (For more information, see Section IV.B.2. and Section IV.E.1.) This attachment does not impact scoring of the application.

When submitting in grants.gov, this document must be uploaded as an attachment to the application package and labeled “NICRA.”

Financial System Assessment Information

All applicants are requested to submit Funding Opportunity Announcement Financial System Assessment Information. See Section V.B.2 for a sample template and additional instructions. This attachment does not impact the scoring of the application.

Verification of 501(c)(3) status

All Applicants, including current DOL grantees, must submit documentation from the Internal Revenue Service that verifies the applicant’s non-profit 501(c)(3) status (for entities applying as 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations only). If not provided, the Department will review Internal Revenue Service data to ensure an applicant’s non-profit 501(c)(3) status. This attachment does not impact scoring of the application, but if ETA determines that the applicant does not have non-profit 501(c)(3) status, the application will be disqualified.

Logic Model

As discussed in Section IV.B.3.c.1., applicants must provide, as an attachment, a graphic depiction (not longer than one page) of the applicant’s logic model that illustrates the underlying theory of how the applicant’s strategy will produce intended outcomes.

SUBMISSION DATE, TIME, PROCESS, AND ADDRESS

We must receive your application by [insert date XX days after the date of publication on Grants.gov]. You must submit your application either electronically on https://www.grants.gov or in hard copy by mail or in hard copy by hand delivery (including overnight delivery) no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date.

Applicants are encouraged to submit their application before the closing date to minimize the risk of late receipt. We will not review applications received after 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date. We will not accept applications sent by e-mail, telegram, or facsimile (FAX).

Hardcopy Submission

All applications submitted in hardcopy by mail or hand delivery (including overnight delivery) must be received at the designated place by the specified closing date and time. Applicants submitting applications in hard copy by mail or hand delivery must submit a copy-ready version free of bindings, staples, or protruding tabs to ease in the reproduction of the application by DOL. Applicants submitting applications in hard copy must also include in the hard copy submission an identical electronic copy of the application on compact disc (CD) or flash drive. If we identify discrepancies between the hard copy submission and CD/flash drive copy, we will consider the application on the CD/flash drive as the official submission for evaluation purposes. Failure to provide identical applications in hardcopy and CD/flash drive format may have an impact on the overall evaluation.

If an application is submitted both by hard copy and through https://www.grants.gov, a letter must accompany the hard-copy application stating which application to review. If no letter accompanies the hard copy, we will review the copy submitted through https://www.grants.gov.

We will grant no exceptions to the mailing and delivery requirements set forth in this notice. Further, we will not accept documents submitted separately from the application, before or after the deadline, as part of the application.

Address mailed applications as follows:

U.S. Department of Labor

Employment and Training Administration

Office of Grants Management

Attention: Melissa Abdullah, Grant Officer

Reference FOA-ETA-21-01

200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room N4716

Washington, D.C. 20210

Please note that mail decontamination procedures may delay mail delivery in the Washington DC area. We will receive hand-delivered applications at the above address at the 3rd Street Visitor Entrance. All overnight delivery submissions will be considered to be hand-delivered and must be received at the designated place by the specified closing date and time.

Electronic Submission through Grants.gov

Applicants submitting applications through Grants.gov must ensure successful submission no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date. Grants.gov will subsequently validate the application.

The process can be complicated and time-consuming. You are strongly advised to initiate the process as soon as possible and to plan for time to resolve technical problems. Note that validation does not mean that your application has been accepted as complete or has been accepted for review by the agency. Rather, grants.gov verifies only the submission of certain parts of an application.

How to Register to Apply through Grants.gov

Read through the registration process carefully before registering. These steps may take as long as four weeks to complete, and this time should be factored into plans for timely electronic submission in order to avoid unexpected delays that could result in the rejection of an application.

Applicants must follow the online instructions for registration at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration.html. We recommend that you prepare the information requested before beginning the registration process. Reviewing and assembling required information before beginning the registration process will alleviate last-minute searches for required information and save time.

An application submitted through Grants.gov constitutes a submission as an electronically signed application. The registration and account creation with Grants.gov, with E-Biz Point of Contact (POC) approval, establishes an Agency Organizational Representative (AOR). When an application is submitted through Grants.gov, the name of the AOR who submitted the application is inserted into the signature line of the application, serving as the electronic signature. The E-Biz POC must authorize the individual who is able to make legally binding commitments on behalf of your organization as the AOR; this step is often missed and it is crucial for valid submissions.

How to Submit an Application to DOL via Grants.gov

Grants.gov applicants can apply online using Workspace. Workspace is a shared online environment where members of a grant team may simultaneously access and edit different webforms within an application. For a complete workspace overview, refer to https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/workspace-overview.html.

For access to complete instructions on how to apply for opportunities, refer to

https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/apply-for-grants.html.

When a registered applicant submits an application with Grants.gov, an electronic time stamp is generated within the system when the application is successfully received by Grants.gov. Grants.gov will send the applicant AOR an email acknowledgement of receipt and a tracking number (GRANTXXXXXXXX) with the successful transmission of the application, serving as proof of timely submission. The applicant will receive two email messages to provide the status of the application’s progress through the system.

The first email will contain a tracking number and will confirm receipt of the application by Grants.gov.
The second email will indicate the application has either been successfully validated or has been rejected due to errors.

Grants.gov will reject applications if the applicant’s registration in SAM is expired. Only applications that have been successfully submitted by the deadline and later successfully validated will be considered. It is your responsibility to ensure a timely submission. While it is not required that an application be successfully validated before the deadline for submission, it is prudent to reserve time before the deadline in case it is necessary to resubmit an application that has not been successfully validated. Therefore, enough time should be allotted for submission (24-48 hours) and, if applicable, additional time to address errors and receive validation upon resubmission (an additional two business days for each ensuing submission). It is important to note that if enough time is not allotted and a rejection notice is received after the due date and time, DOL will not consider the application.

To ensure consideration, the components of the application must be saved as .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .rtf or .pdf files. If submitted in any other format, the applicant bears the risk that compatibility or other issues will prevent DOL from considering the application. We will attempt to open the document, but will not take any additional measures in the event of problems with opening.

We strongly advise applicants to use the various tools and documents, including FAQs, which are available on the “Applicant Resources” page at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-faqs.html.

We encourage new prospective applicants to view the online tutorial, “Grant Applications 101: A Plain English Guide to ETA Competitive Grants,” available through WorkforceGPS at https://strategies.workforcegps.org/resources/2014/08/11/16/32/applying-for-eta-competitive-grants-a-web-based-toolkit-for-prospective-applicants-438?p=1.

To receive updated information about critical issues, new tips for users, and other time-sensitive updates as information is available, you may subscribe to “Grants.gov Updates” at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/manage-subscriptions.html.

If you encounter a problem with Grants.gov and do not find an answer in any of the other resources, contact one of the following:

call 1-800-518-4726 or 606-545-5035 to speak to a Customer Support Representative or
email support@grants.gov.

The Grants.gov Contact Center is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week but closed on federal holidays. If you are experiencing difficulties with your submission, it is best to call the Grants.gov Support Center and get a ticket number.

Late Applications

For applications submitted on Grants.gov, we will consider only applications successfully submitted no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date and then successfully validated. You take a significant risk by waiting to the last day to submit through Grants.gov.

We will not consider any hard copy application received after the exact date and time specified for receipt at the office designated in this notice, unless we receive it before awards are made, it was properly addressed, and it was (a) sent by U.S. Postal Service mail, postmarked not later than the fifth calendar day before the date specified for receipt of applications (e.g., an application required to be received by the 20th of the month must be postmarked by the 15th of that month); or (b) sent by professional overnight delivery service to the addressee not later than one working day before the date specified for receipt of applications. ‘‘Postmarked’’ means a printed, stamped or otherwise placed impression (exclusive of a postage meter machine impression) that is readily identifiable, without further action, as having been supplied or affixed on the date of mailing by an employee of the U.S. Postal Service. Therefore, you should request the postal clerk to place a legible hand cancellation ‘‘bull’s eye’’ postmark on both the receipt and the package. Failure to adhere to these instructions will be a basis for a determination that the application was not filed timely and will not be considered. Evidence of timely submission by a professional overnight delivery service must be demonstrated by equally reliable evidence created by the delivery service provider indicating the time and place of receipt.

INTERGOVERNMENTAL REVIEW

This funding opportunity is not subject to Executive Order 12372, “Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.”

FUNDING RESTRICTIONS

All proposed project costs must be necessary and reasonable and in accordance with federal guidelines. Determinations of allowable costs will be made in accordance with the Cost Principles, now found in the Office of Management and Budget’s Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance), codified at 2 CFR Part 200 and at 2 CFR Part 2900 (Uniform Guidance-DOL specific). Disallowed costs are those charges to a grant that the grantor agency or its representative determines not to be allowed in accordance with the Cost Principles or other conditions contained in the grant. Applicants, whether successful or not, will not be entitled to reimbursement of pre-award costs.

Indirect Costs

As specified in the Uniform Guidance Cost Principles, indirect costs are those that have been incurred for common or joint objectives and cannot be readily identified with a particular final cost objective. An indirect cost rate is required when an organization operates under more than one grant or other activity, whether federally-assisted or not. You have two options to claim reimbursement of indirect costs.

Option 1: You may use a NICRA or Cost Allocation Plan (CAP) supplied by the federal Cognizant Agency. If you do not have a NICRA/CAP or have a pending NICRA/CAP, and in either case choose to include estimated indirect costs in your budget, at the time of award the Grant Officer will release funds in the amount of 10 percent of salaries and wages to support indirect costs. Within 90 days of award, you are required to submit an acceptable indirect cost proposal or CAP to your federal Cognizant Agency to obtain a provisional indirect cost rate. (See Section IV.B.4. for more information on NICRA submission requirements.)

Option 2: Any organization that does not have a current (including provisional) rate, with the exceptions noted at 2 CFR 200.414(f) in the Cost Principles, may elect to charge a de minimis rate of 10 percent of modified total direct costs (see 2 CFR 200.1 for definition), which may be used indefinitely. If chosen, this methodology once elected must be used consistently for all Federal awards until such time as the non-Federal entity chooses to negotiate for a rate, which the non-Federal entity may apply to do at any time. (See 2 CFR 200.414(f) for more information on use of the de minimis rate.)

Salary and Bonus Limitations

None of the funds appropriated under the heading “Employment and Training” in the appropriation statute(s) may be used by a recipient or subrecipient of such funds to pay the salary and bonuses of an individual, either as direct costs or indirect costs, at a rate in excess of Executive Level II. This limitation does not apply to contractors providing goods and services as defined in the Audit Requirements of the OMB Uniform Guidance (see 2 CFR 200 Subpart F). Where states are recipients of such funds, states may establish a lower limit for salaries and bonuses of those receiving salaries and bonuses from subrecipients of such funds, taking into account factors including the relative cost of living in the state, the compensation levels for comparable state or local government employees, and the size of the organizations that administer federal programs involved including ETA programs. See Public Law 113-235, Division G, Title I, section 105, and TEGL number 05-06 for further clarification: https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=2262.

Intellectual Property Rights

Pursuant to 2 CFR 2900.13, to ensure that the federal investment of DOL funds has as broad an impact as possible and to encourage innovation in the development of new learning materials, the grantee will be required to license to the public all work created with the support of the grant under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY) license. Work that must be licensed under the CC BY includes both new content created with the grant funds and modifications made to pre-existing, grantee-owned content using grant funds.

This license allows subsequent users to copy, distribute, transmit, and adapt the copyrighted work and requires such users to attribute the work in the manner specified by the grantee. Notice of the license shall be affixed to the work. For general information on CC BY, please visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0.

Instructions for marking your work with CC BY can be found at https://wiki.creativecommons.org/Marking_your_work_with_a_CC_license.

Questions about CC BY as it applies to this specific funding opportunity should be submitted to the ETA Grants Management Specialist specified in Section VII.

Only work that is developed by the recipient in whole or in part with grant funds is required to be licensed under the CC BY license. Pre-existing copyrighted materials licensed to or purchased by the grantee from third parties, including modifications of such materials, remain subject to the intellectual property rights the grantee receives under the terms of the particular license or purchase. In addition, works created by the grantee without grant funds do not fall under the CC BY licensing requirement.

The purpose of the CC BY licensing requirement is to ensure that materials developed with funds provided by these grants result in work that can be freely reused and improved by others. When purchasing or licensing consumable or reusable materials, the grantee is expected to respect all applicable federal laws and regulations, including those pertaining to the copyright and accessibility provisions of the Federal Rehabilitation Act.

Separate from the CC BY license to the public, the Federal Government reserves a paid-up, nonexclusive, and irrevocable license to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use, and to authorize others to use for federal purposes (i) the copyright in all products developed under the grant, including a subaward or contract under the grant or subaward; and (ii) any rights of copyright to which the recipient, subrecipient, or a contractor purchases ownership under an award (including, but not limited to, curricula, training models, technical assistance products, and any related materials). Such uses include, but are not limited to, the right to modify and distribute such products worldwide by any means, electronically or otherwise. The grantee may not use federal funds to pay any royalty or license fee for use of a copyrighted work, or the cost of acquiring by purchase a copyright in a work, where the Department has a license or rights of free use in such work. If revenues are generated through selling products developed with grant funds, including intellectual property, DOL treats such revenues as program income. Such program income is added to the grant and must be expended for allowable grant activities.

If applicable, the following standard ETA disclaimer needs to be on all products developed in whole or in part with grant funds.

“This workforce product was funded by a grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. The product was created by the grantee and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Labor. The U.S. Department of Labor makes no guarantees, warranties, or assurances of any kind, express or implied, with respect to such information, including any information on linked sites and including, but not limited to, accuracy of the information or its completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued availability, or ownership. This product is copyrighted by the institution that created it.”

Use of Grant Funds for Participant Wages

Under WIOA, grantees may use funds to provide need-based payments, stipends, wages, or benefits to help enable program participants to participate in the program. Need-based payments, stipends, wages, and benefits provided under Workforce Pathways for Youth grants must accord with the policies and procedures of the grantee organization. Wages can compensate youth at the same rates (including periodic increases) as similar trainees or employees, and rates must accord with all applicable laws. Stipends can provide a weekly living allowance to those participating in the program, designed to help with transportation, living expenses, day care, etc. Per Section 181(a)(2) of WIOA, payments to participants in the program do not count as income for the purposes of determining eligibility for and the amount of income transfer and in-kind aid provided to participants through any Federal or Federally-assisted program, except as provided under the Social Security Act. Need-based payments refer to additional payments (beyond regular stipends for program participation) that are based on defined needs that enable youth to participate in the program.

Please note that there are legal and financial obligations activated by paying participants wages or stipends. DOL encourages applicants to seek legal and/or accounting counsel before setting up or changing the funding system at your program for participants to ensure compliance with IRS and DOL requirements, and to help participants determine their income tax liability.

OTHER SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Withdrawal of Applications: You may withdraw an application by written notice to the Grant Officer at any time before an award is made.

APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

CRITERIA

We have instituted procedures for assessing the technical merit of applications to provide for an objective review of applications and to assist you in understanding the standards against which your application will be judged. The evaluation criteria are based on the information required in the application as described in Sections IV.B.2. (Project Budget) and IV.B.3. (Project Narrative). Reviewers will award points based on the evaluation criteria described below.

Section IV.B.3 (Project Narrative) of this FOA has several “section headers” (e.g. IV.B.3.a), Statement of Need). Each of these “section headers” of the Project Narrative may include one or more “criterion” and each “criterion” includes one or more “rating factors” which provide detailed specifications for the content and quality of the response to that criterion. Each of the rating factors have specific point values assigned. These point values are the number of points possible for the application to earn for the rating factor.

Criterion	Points (maximum)
Statement of Need (See Section IV.B.3.a. Statement of Need)	6 total

Expected Outputs and Outcomes (See Section IV.B.3.b. Expected Outputs and Outcomes )	16 total

Project Design (See Section IV.B.3.c. Project Design)	34 total
Organizational, Administrative, and Fiscal Capacity (See Section IV.B.3.e. Organizational, Administrative, and Fiscal Capacity)	6 total

Past Performance – Programmatic Capability (See Section IV.B.3.f. Past Performance – Programmatic Capability)	32 total
Budget and Budget Justification (See Section IV.B.2. Project Budget)	6 total

TOTAL	100
Priority Consideration: Opportunity Zone	1

Standards for Evaluating the Applicant’s Response to each Requirement

Section IV.B.3, Project Narrative, provides a detailed explanation of the information an application must include (e.g., a comprehensive work plan for the whole period of performance with feasible and realistic dates). Reviewers will rate each “rating factor” based on how fully and convincingly the applicant responds. For each “rating factor” under each “criterion,” panelists will determine whether the applicant thoroughly meets, partially meets, or fails to meet the “rating factor,” unless otherwise noted in Section IV.B.3, based on the definitions below:

Standard Rating	Definition	Standard for Calculating Points
Thoroughly Meets	The application thoroughly responds to the rating factor and fully and convincingly satisfies all of the stated specifications.	Full Points
Partially Meets	The application responds incompletely to the rating factor or the application convincingly satisfies some, but not all, of the stated specifications.	Half Points
Fails to Meet	The application does not respond to the rating factor or the application does respond to the rating factor but does not convincingly satisfy any of the stated specifications.	Zero Points

In order to receive the maximum points for each rating factor, applicants must provide a response to the requirement that fully describes the proposed program design and demonstrates the quality of approach, rather than simply re-stating a commitment to perform prescribed activities. In other words, applicants must describe why their proposal is the best strategy and how they will implement it, rather than that the strategy contains elements that conform to the requirements of this FOA.

REVIEW AND SELECTION PROCESS
1. Merit Review and Selection Process

A technical merit review panel will carefully evaluate applications against the selection criteria to determine the merit of applications. These criteria are based on the policy goals, priorities, and emphases set forth in this FOA. Up to 101 points may be awarded to an applicant, depending on the quality of the responses provided. The final scores (which may include the mathematical normalization of review panels) will serve as the primary basis for selection of applications for funding. The panel results are advisory in nature and not binding on the Grant Officer. The Grant Officer reserves the right to make selections based solely on the final scores or to take into consideration other relevant factors when applicable. Such factors may include the geographic distribution of funds, and other relevant factors. The Grant Officer may consider any information that comes to their attention.

The government may elect to award the grant(s) with or without discussion with the applicant. Should a grant be awarded without discussion, the award will be based on the applicant’s signature on the SF-424, including electronic signature via E-Authentication on https://www.grants.gov, which constitutes a binding offer by the applicant.

Risk Review Process

Prior to making an award, ETA will review information available through various sources, including its own records and any OMB-designated repository of government-wide eligibility qualification or financial integrity information, such as Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS), Dun and Bradstreet, and “Do Not Pay.” Additionally, ETA will comply with the requirements of 2 CFR Part 180 codified at 2 CFR Part 2998 (Non-procurement Debarment and Suspension). This risk evaluation may incorporate results of the evaluation of the applicant’s eligibility (application screening) or the quality of its application (merit review). If ETA determines that an award will be made, special conditions that correspond to the degree of risk assessed may be applied to the award. Criteria to be evaluated include the following:

Financial stability;
Quality of management systems and ability to meet the management standards prescribed in the Uniform Grant Guidance;
History of performance. The applicant’s record in managing awards, cooperative agreements, or procurement awards, if it is a prior recipient of such federal awards, including timeliness of compliance with applicable reporting requirements and, if applicable, the extent to which any previously awarded amounts will be expended prior to future awards;
Reports and findings from audits performed under Subpart F – Audit Requirements of the Uniform Grant Guidance or the reports and findings of any other available audits and monitoring reports containing findings, issues of non-compliance, or questioned costs;
The applicant’s ability to effectively implement statutory, regulatory, and other requirements imposed on recipients.

NOTE: As part of ETA’s Risk Review process, the Grant Officer will determine the following:

If the applicant had any restriction on spending for any ETA grant due to adverse monitoring findings; or
If the applicant received a High Risk determination in accordance with TEGL 23-15.

Depending on the severity of the findings and whether the findings were resolved, the Grant Officer may, at their discretion, elect not to fund the applicant for a grant award regardless of the applicant’s score in the competition.

All applicants are requested to submit the following information as an attachment to their application (suggested template below) for ETA to assess the applicant’s Financial System. This information will be taken into account as one component of ETA’s Risk Review Process. Applicants may use the suggested template or answer the questions in a separate attachment. It is unlikely that an organization will be able to manage a federal grant without the following system/processes in place. Applicants are expected to have these in place before applying for a grant with ETA.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR -EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION (ETA)
FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT: FINANCIAL SYSTEM ASSESSMENT

SECTION A: PURPOSE

The financial responsibility of grantees must be such that the grantee can properly discharge the public trust which accompanies the authority to expend public funds. Adequate administrative and financial systems including the accounting systems should meet the following criteria as contained in 2 CFR 200 and 2 CFR 2900.
(1) Accounting records should provide information needed to adequately identify the receipt of funds under each grant awarded and the expenditure
of funds for each grant.
(2) Entries in accounting records should refer to subsidiary records and/or documentation which support the entry and which can be readily located.
(3) The accounting system should provide accurate and current financial reporting information.
(4) The accounting system should be integrated with an adequate system of internal controls to safeguard the funds and assets covered, check the accuracy and reliability of accounting data, promote operational efficiency, and encourage adherence to prescribed management policies.

SECTION B: GENERAL

1. Complete the following items:

a. When was the organization founded/incorporated (month, day, year)

b. Principal officers

Titles

c. Employer Identification Number:

d. Number of Employees
Full Time: Part Time:

2. Is the organization or institution affiliated with any other organization: Yes No
If yes, please provide details as to the nature of the company (for profit, nonprofit, LLC, etc) and if it provides services or products to the organization in relation to this grant.

3. Total Sales/Revenues in most recent accounting period. (12 months)
$

SECTION C: ACCOUNTING SYSTEM

1. Has any Government Agency rendered an official written opinion concerning the adequacy of the accounting system for the collection, identification and allocation of costs under Federal contracts/grants? Yes No

a. If yes, provide name, and address of Agency performing review:

b. Attach a copy of the latest review and any subsequent correspondence, clearance documents, etc.

Note: If review occurred within the past three years, omit questions 2-8 of this Section and Section D.

2. Which of the following best describes the accounting system:

State administered

Internally Developed

Web-based

3. Does the accounting system identify the receipt and expenditure of program funds separately for each contract/grant?

Yes

Not Sure

4. Does the accounting system provide for the recording of expenditures for each grant/contract by the component project and budget cost categories shown in the approved budget?

Yes

Not Sure

5. Are time distribution records maintained for an employee when his/her effort can be specifically identified to a particular cost objective?

Yes

Not Sure

6. If the organization proposes an overhead rate, does the accounting system provide for the segregation of direct and indirect expenses?

Yes

Not Sure

7. Does the organization have an approved indirect cost rate or cost allocation plan?

If so, who approved it (Federal Cognizant Agency or a Pass-through Entity)? What are the effective dates?

Yes

Not Sure

8. Does the accounting/financial system include budgetary controls to preclude incurring obligations in excess of:
a. Total funds available for a grant?
b. Total funds available for a budget cost category (e.g. Personnel, Travel, etc)?

Yes
Yes

No
No

Not Sure
Not Sure

9. Does the organization or institution have an internal control structure that would provide reasonable assurance that the grant funds, assets, and systems are safeguarded?

Yes

Not Sure

SECTION D: FINANCIAL STABILITY

1. Is there any legal matter or an ongoing financial concern that may impact the organization's ability to manage and administer the grant? Yes No
If yes, please explain briefly.

SECTION E: FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

1. Did an independent certified public accountant (CPA) ever examine the financial statements? Yes No

2. If an independent CPA review was performed please attach a copy of their latest report and any management letters issued. Enclosed N / A

3. If an independent CPA was engaged to perform a review and no report was issued, please provide details and an explanation below:

SECTION F: ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

1. Use this space for any additional information (indicate section and item numbers if a continuation)

AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION
1. AWARD NOTICES

All award notifications will be posted on the ETA Homepage at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/. Applicants selected for award will be contacted directly before the grant’s execution. Non-selected applicants will be notified by mail or email and may request a written debriefing on the significant weaknesses of their application.

Selection of an organization as a recipient does not constitute approval of the grant application as submitted. Before the actual grant is awarded, we may enter into negotiations about such items as program components, staffing and funding levels, and administrative systems in place to support grant implementation. If the negotiations do not result in a mutually acceptable submission, the Grant Officer reserves the right to terminate the negotiations and decline to fund the application. We reserve the right not to fund any application related to this FOA.

ADMISTRATIVE AND NATIONAL POLICY REQUIREMENTS

Administrative Program Requirements

All grantees will be subject to all applicable federal laws and regulations, including the OMB Uniform Guidance, and the terms and conditions of the award. The grant(s) awarded under this FOA will be subject to the following administrative standards and provisions.

Non-Profit Organizations, Educational Institutions, For-profit entities and State, Local, and Indian Tribal Governments -– 2 CFR Part 200 (Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards) and 2 CFR Part 2900 (DOL’s Supplement to 2 CFR Part 200).

All recipients must comply with the applicable provisions of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), Public Law No. 113-328, 128 Stat. 1425 (codified as amended at 29 U.S.C. 3101 et. seq.) and the applicable provisions of the regulations at 20 CFR Part 675 et. seq. Note that 20 CFR Part 683 (Administrative Provisions) allows unsuccessful applicants to file administrative appeals.
All entities must comply with 29 CFR Part 93 (New Restrictions on Lobbying), 29 CFR Part 94 (Governmentwide Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace (Financial Assistance)), 2 CFR Part 180 (OMB Guidance to Agencies on Government-wide Debarment and Suspension (Non-procurement)), and, where applicable, 2 CFR Part 200 (Audit Requirements).
29 CFR Part 2, subpart D—Equal Treatment in Department of Labor Programs for Religious Organizations; Protection of Religious Liberty of Department of Labor Social Service Providers and Beneficiaries.
29 CFR Part 31—Nondiscrimination in Federally Assisted Programs of the Department of Labor—Effectuation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
29 CFR Part 32—Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Handicap in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance.
29 CFR Part 35—Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Age in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance from the Department of Labor.
29 CFR Part 36—Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance.
29 CFR Part 38 – Implementation of the Nondiscrimination and Equal Opportunity Provisions of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.
29 CFR Parts 29 and 30—Labor Standards for the Registration of Apprenticeship Programs, and Equal Employment Opportunity in Apprenticeship and Training, as applicable.
The Department of Labor will follow the procedures outlined in the Department’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regulations (29 CFR Part 70). If DOL receives a FOIA request for your application, the procedures in DOL’s FOIA regulations for responding to requests for commercial/business information submitted to the government will be followed, as well as all FOIA exemptions and procedures. See generally 5 U.S.C. § 552; 29 CFR Part 70.
Standard Grant Terms and Conditions of Award—see the following link: https://www.doleta.gov/grants/resources.cfm.

Other Legal Requirements
1. Religious Activities

The Department notes that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb, applies to all federal law and its implementation. If an applicant organization is a faith-based organization that makes hiring decisions on the basis of religious belief, it may be entitled to receive federal financial assistance under this grant solicitation and maintain that hiring practice. As stated in 2 CFR 2.32(a), religious organizations are eligible on the same basis as any other organization, to seek DOL support or participate in DOL programs for which they are otherwise eligible. Guidance from DOL is found at: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/grants/religious-freedom-restoration-act. If a faith-based organization is awarded a grant, the organization will be provided with more information.

Lobbying or Fundraising the U.S. Government with Federal Funds

In accordance with Section 18 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-65) (2 U.S.C. § 1611), non-profit entities incorporated under Internal Revenue Service Code section 501(c)(4) that engage in lobbying activities are not eligible to receive federal funds and grants. No activity, including awareness-raising and advocacy activities, may include fundraising for, or lobbying of, U.S. federal, state, or local governments (see 2 CFR 200.450 for more information).

Transparency Act Requirements

You must ensure that you have the necessary processes and systems in place to comply with the reporting requirements of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Pub. Law 109-282, as amended by the Government Funding Transparency Act of 2008, Pub. Law 110-252, Title VI, Chap. 2, Sec. 6202), as follows.

Except for those excepted from the Transparency Act under sub-paragraphs 1, 2, and below, you must ensure that you have the necessary processes and systems in place to comply with the subaward and executive total compensation reporting requirements of the Transparency Act, should you receive funding.

Upon award, you will receive detailed information on the reporting requirements of the Transparency Act, as described in 2 CFR Part 170, Appendix A, which can be found at https://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/pdf/2010-22705.pdf.

The following types of awards are not subject to the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act.

Federal awards to individuals who apply for or receive federal awards as natural persons (e.g., unrelated to any business or non-profit organization he or she may own or operate in his or her name);
Federal awards to entities that had a gross income, from all sources, of less than $300,000 in the entities' previous tax year; and
Federal awards, if the required reporting would disclose classified information.

Safeguarding Data Including Personally Identifiable Information (PII)

Applicants submitting applications in response to this FOA must recognize that confidentiality of PII and other sensitive data is of paramount importance to the Department of Labor and must be observed except where disclosure is allowed by the prior written approval of the Grant Officer or by court order. By submitting an application, you are assuring that all data exchanges conducted through or during the course of performance of this grant will be conducted in a manner consistent with applicable federal law and TEGL 39-11 (issued June 28, 2012). All such activity conducted by ETA and/or recipient(s) will be performed in a manner consistent with applicable state and federal laws.

By submitting a grant application, you agree to take all necessary steps to protect such confidentiality by complying with the following provisions that are applicable in governing the handling of confidential information:

You must ensure that PII and sensitive data developed, obtained, or otherwise associated with DOL/ETA funded grants is securely transmitted.

To ensure that such PII is not transmitted to unauthorized users, all PII and other sensitive data transmitted via e-mail or stored on CDs, DVDs, thumb drives, etc., must be encrypted using a Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2 compliant and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) validated cryptographic module. You must not e-mail unencrypted sensitive PII to any entity, including ETA or contractors.
You must take the steps necessary to ensure the privacy of all PII obtained from participants and/or other individuals and to protect such information from unauthorized disclosure. You must maintain such PII in accordance with the ETA standards for information security described in TEGL NO. 39-11 and any updates to such standards we provide to you. Grantees who wish to obtain more information on data security should contact their Federal Project Officer.
You must ensure that any PII used during the performance of your grant has been obtained in conformity with applicable federal and state laws governing the confidentiality of information.
You further acknowledge that all PII data obtained through your ETA grant must be stored in an area that is physically safe from access by unauthorized persons at all times and the data will be processed using recipient-issued equipment, managed information technology (IT) services, and designated locations approved by ETA. Accessing, processing, and storing of ETA grant PII data on personally owned equipment, at off-site locations, (e.g., employee’s home), and non-recipient managed IT services, (e.g., Yahoo mail), is strictly prohibited unless approved by ETA.
Your employees and other personnel who will have access to sensitive/confidential/proprietary/private data must be advised of the confidential nature of the information, the safeguards required to protect the information, and that there are civil and criminal sanctions for noncompliance with such safeguards that are contained in federal and state laws.
You must have policies and procedures in place under which your employees and other personnel, before being granted access to PII, acknowledge their understanding of the confidential nature of the data and the safeguards with which they must comply in their handling of such data, as well as the fact that they may be liable to civil and criminal sanctions for improper disclosure.
You must not extract information from data supplied by ETA for any purpose not stated in the grant agreement.
Access to any PII created by the ETA grant must be restricted to only those employees of the grant recipient who need it in their official capacity to perform duties in connection with the scope of work in the grant agreement.
All PII data must be processed in a manner that will protect the confidentiality of the records/documents and is designed to prevent unauthorized persons from retrieving such records by computer, remote terminal, or any other means. Data may be downloaded to, or maintained on, mobile or portable devices only if the data are encrypted using NIST validated software products based on FIPS 140-2 encryption. In addition, wage data may be accessed only from secure locations.
PII data obtained by the recipient through a request from ETA must not be disclosed to anyone but the individual requestor, except as permitted by the Grant Officer or by court order.
You must permit ETA to make onsite inspections during regular business hours for the purpose of conducting audits and/or conducting other investigations to assure that you are complying with the confidentiality requirements described above. In accordance with this responsibility, you must make records applicable to this Agreement available to authorized persons for the purpose of inspection, review, and/or audit.
You must retain data received from ETA only for the period of time required to use it for assessment and other purposes, or to satisfy applicable federal records retention requirements, if any. Thereafter, you agree that all data will be destroyed, including the degaussing of magnetic tape files and deletion of electronic data.

Record Retention

You must follow federal guidelines on record retention, which require that you maintain all records pertaining to grant activities for a period of at least three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report. See 2 CFR 200.334-.338 for more specific information, including information about the start of the record retention period for awards that are renewed quarterly or annually, and when the records must be retained for more than three years.

Use of Contracts and Subawards

You must abide by the following definitions of contract, contractor, subaward, and subrecipient.

Contract: Contract means a legal instrument by which a non-federal entity (defined as a state or local government, Indian tribe, institution of higher education (IHE), non-profit organization, for-profit entity, foreign public entity, or a foreign organization that carries out a federal award as a recipient or subrecipient) purchases property or services needed to carry out the project or program under a federal award. The term as used in this FOA does not include a legal instrument, even if the non-federal entity considers it a contract, when the substance of the transaction meets the definition of a federal award or subaward (see definition of Subaward below).

Contractor: Contractor means an entity that receives a contract as defined above in Contract.

Subaward: Subaward means an award provided by a pass-through entity (defined as a non-federal entity that provides a subaward to a subrecipient to carry out part of a federal program) to a subrecipient for the subrecipient to carry out part of a federal award received by the pass-through entity. It does not include payments to a contractor or payments to an individual that is a beneficiary of a federal program. A subaward may be provided through any form of legal agreement, including an agreement that the pass-through entity considers a contract.

Subrecipient: Subrecipient means a non-federal entity that receives a subaward from a pass-through entity to carry out part of a federal program, but does not include an individual that is a beneficiary of such program. A subrecipient may also be a recipient of other federal awards directly from a federal awarding agency.

You must follow the provisions at 2 CFR 200.331-.333 regarding subrecipient monitoring and management. Also see 2 CFR 200.308(c)(6) regarding prior approval requirements for subawards. When awarding subawards, you are required to comply with provisions on government-wide suspension and debarment found at 2 CFR Part 180 and codified at 2 CFR Part 2998.

Closeout of Grant Award

Any entity that receives an award under this Announcement must close its grant with ETA at the end of the final year of the grant. Information about this process may be found in ETA’s Grant Closeout FAQ located at https://www.doleta.gov/grants/docs/GCFAQ.pdf.

Other Administrative Standards and Provisions

Except as specifically provided in this FOA, our acceptance of an application and an award of federal funds to sponsor any programs(s) does not provide a waiver of any grant requirements and/or procedures. For example, the OMB Uniform Guidance requires that an entity’s procurement procedures ensure that all procurement transactions are conducted, as much as practical, to provide full and open competition. If an application identifies a specific entity to provide goods or services, the award does not provide the justification or basis to sole-source the procurement (i.e., avoid competition).

Special Program Requirements
1. ETA Evaluation

As a condition of grant award, grantees are required to participate in an evaluation, if undertaken by DOL. The evaluation may include an implementation assessment across grantees, an impact and/or outcomes analysis of all or selected sites within or across grantees, and a benefit/cost analysis or assessment of return on investment. Conducting an impact analysis could involve random assignment (which involves random assignment of eligible participants into a treatment group that would receive program services or enhanced program services, or into control group(s) that would receive no program services or program services that are not enhanced). We may require applicants to collect data elements to aid the evaluation. As a part of the evaluation, as a condition of award, grantees must agree to: (1) make records available to the evaluation contractor on participants, employers, and funding; (2) provide access to program operating personnel, participants, and operational and financial records, and any other relevant documents to calculate program costs and benefits; and (3) in the case of an impact analysis, facilitate the assignment by lottery of participants to program services, including the possible increased recruitment of potential participants; and (4) follow evaluation procedures as specified by the evaluation contractor under the direction of DOL.

Performance Goals

Please note that applicants will be held to outcomes provided, and failure to meet those outcomes may result in technical assistance or other intervention by ETA, and may also have a significant impact on decisions about future grants with ETA.

REPORTING

You must meet DOL reporting requirements. Specifically, you must submit the reports and documents listed below to DOL electronically.

Quarterly Financial Reports

A Quarterly Financial Status Report (ETA 9130) is required until such time as all funds have been expended or the grant period has expired. Quarterly reports are due 45 days after the end of each calendar-year quarter. On the final Financial Status Report, you must include any subaward amounts so we can calculate final indirect costs, if applicable. You must use DOL’s Online Electronic Reporting System and information and instructions will be provided to grantees. For other guidance on ETA’s financial reporting, reference TEGL 02-16 and our webpage at https://www.doleta.gov/grants/financial_reporting.cfm.

Quarterly Performance Reports

The grantee must submit a quarterly performance report within 45 days after the end of each calendar-year quarter. The report must include quarterly information on interim indicators and performance goals. The last quarterly progress report will serve as the grant’s Final Performance Report. This report must provide both quarterly and cumulative information on the grant performance. Submission requirements will be provided to grantees upon award. We will also provide you with guidance about the data and other information that is required to be collected and reported on either a regular basis or special request basis.

Quarterly Narrative Performance Reports

In addition to the Quarterly Performance Report, the grantee must submit the Joint Quarterly Narrative Performance Report Template (ETA 9179) progress report within 45 days after the end of each calendar year quarter during which the grant is within the period of performance for the award. The report includes quarterly information regarding accomplishments, including project success stories, upcoming grant activities, and promising approaches and processes, as well as progress toward performance outcomes, including updates on product, curricula, and training development.

AGENCY CONTACTS

For further information about this FOA, please contact Denise Roach, Grants Management Specialist, Office of Grants Management, at (202) 693-3820. Applicants should e-mail all technical questions to roach.denise@dol.gov and must specifically reference FOA-ETA-21-01, and along with question(s), include a contact name, fax and phone number. This Announcement is available on the ETA website at https://www.doleta.gov/grants and at https://www.grants.gov.

OTHER INFORMATION

WEB-BASED RESOURCES

DOL maintains a number of web-based resources that may be of assistance to applicants. These include the CareerOneStop portal (https://www.careeronestop.org), which provides national and state career information on occupations; the Occupational Information Network (O*NET) Online (https://online.onetcenter.org), which provides occupational competency profiles; and America's Service Locator (https://www.servicelocator.org), which provides a directory of our nation's American Job Centers (formerly known as One-Stop Career Centers).

INDUSTRY COMPETENCY MODELS AND CAREER CLUSTERS

ETA supports an Industry Competency Model Initiative to promote an understanding of the skill sets and competencies that are essential to an educated and skilled workforce. A competency model is a collection of competencies that, taken together, define successful performance in a particular work setting. Competency models serve as a starting point for the design and implementation of workforce and talent development programs. To learn about the industry-validated models, visit the Competency Model Clearinghouse (CMC) at https://www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel. The CMC site also provides tools to build or customize industry models, as well as tools to build career ladders and career lattices for specific regional economies.

WORKFORCEGPS RESOURCES

We encourage you to view the information on workforce resources gathered through consultations with federal agency partners, industry stakeholders, educators, and local practitioners, and made available on WorkforceGPS at https://workforcegps.org.

We encourage you to view the online tutorial, “Grant Applications 101: A Plain English Guide to ETA Competitive Grants,” available through WorkforceGPS at https://strategies.workforcegps.org/resources/2014/08/11/16/32/applying-for-eta-competitive-grants-a-web-based-toolkit-for-prospective-applicants-438?p=1.

We created Workforce System Strategies to make it easier for the public workforce system and its partners to identify effective strategies and support improved customer outcomes. The collection highlights strategies informed by a wide range of evidence, such as experimental studies and implementation evaluations, as well as supporting resources, such as toolkits. We encourage you to review these resources by visiting https://strategies.workforcegps.org.

We created a technical assistance portal at https://www.workforcegps.org/resources/browse?id=b8dd0aa1ecfb4b2282d6cd30c7248790 that contains online training and resources for fiscal and administrative issues. Online trainings available include, but are not limited to, Introduction to Grant Applications and Forms, Indirect Costs, Cost Principles, and Accrual Accounting.

SKILLSCOMMONS RESOURCES

SkillsCommons (https://www.skillscommons.org) offers an online library of curriculum and related training resources to obtain industry-recognized credentials in manufacturing, IT, healthcare, energy, and other industries. The website contains thousands of Open Educational Resources (OER) for job-driven workforce development, which were produced by grantees funded through DOL’s Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) program. Community colleges and other training providers across the nation can reuse, revise, redistribute, and reorganize the OER on SkillsCommons for institutional, industry, and individual use.

OMB INFORMATION COLLECTION

OMB Information Collection No 1225-0086, Expires July 31, 2022.

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 20 hours per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

Send comments about the burden estimated or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the U.S. Department of Labor, to the attention of the Departmental Clearance Officer, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Room N1301, Washington, D.C. 20210. Comments may also be emailed to: DOL_PRA_PUBLIC@dol.gov.

PLEASE DO NOT RETURN YOUR GRANT APPLICATION TO THIS ADDRESS. SEND ONLY COMMENTS ABOUT THE BURDEN CAUSED BY THE COLLECTION OF INFORMATION TO THIS ADDRESS. SEND YOUR GRANT APPLICATION TO THE SPONSORING AGENCY AS SPECIFIED EARLIER IN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.

This information is being collected for the purpose of awarding a grant. DOL will use the information collected through this “Funding Opportunity Announcement” to ensure that grants are awarded to the applicants best suited to perform the functions of the grant. This information is required to be considered for this grant.

Signed ____________, 2020, in Washington, D.C. by:

Melissa Abdullah

Grant Officer, Employment and Training Administration

Appendix A: Required Performance Measure Outcome Table

A.	Participant Outputs and Outcomes
1	Total participants who complete a work experience	Year 1: Year 2: Year 3:	Total:
2	Total participants who enter postsecondary education or occupational skills training (Please note that grantees will report this information disaggregated to ETA)	Year 1: Year 2: Year 3:	Total:
3	Total participants who enter unsubsidized employment	Year 1: Year 2: Year 3:	Total:
4	Grantee-defined performance indicator #1	Year 1: Year 2: Year 3:	Total:
5	Grantee-defined performance indicator #2	Year 1: Year 2: Year 3:	Total:
6	Grantee-defined performance indicator #3	Year 1: Year 2: Year 3:	Total:

Please Note:

• Applicants should provide targets for the first three indicators in raw numbers; percentages or other types of data projections are not acceptable.

• Applicants should provide targets for each year of the grant and for the total grant period. The figure provided for the total should equal the sum of the projections for each year.

Appendix B: Suggested Project Work Plan Format

Applicants are encouraged to align their goals with specific activities that will meet those goals. Sample activities can include project administration and ramp-up; partnership engagement, outreach and recruitment; and provision of services. For planning purposes, the applicant should identify key deliverables and the timeframe for achieving each deliverable, including any milestones to indicate progression of activities. The applicant should also provide the name of the lead or supporting institution engaged in each activity or producing each deliverable, including any partner organizations.

GOAL #1	Insert goal
Activity: Insert activity (Sample: Project Administration and Ramp-Up)	Insert description (if applicable)	Lead/Support Implementer (s)	Insert lead or supporting organization that will implement proposed activity
Deliverable(s): Insert deliverable(s)	Insert description (if applicable)
Milestones	Timeframe	Deliverable Dates
Insert milestone	Insert timeframe for deliverable	Start:	Insert start and end dates
		End:
		Annual Costs
		Year 1	$ Insert annual costs
		Year 2	$
		Year 3	$
		Year 4	$
		TOTAL	$
GOAL #2
Activity:		Lead/Support Implementer (s)
Deliverable(s):
Milestones	Timeframe	Deliverable Dates
		Start:
		End:
		Annual Costs
		Year 1	$
		Year 2	$
		Year 3	$
		Year 4	$
		TOTAL	$

Please Note: Applicants may replicate this chart in order to submit information on all activities and deliverables proposed during the period of performance.

Appendix C: Suggested Abstract Format

Please feel free to tailor template as needed to fit your information.

WORKFORCE PATHWAYS FOR YOUTH GRANT PROGRAM
Lead Applicant Organization’s Name:
Lead Applicant Entity Type:
Lead Applicant City/State:
Required Partners
Name of Partner:		Entity Type



Additional Partner/s:
Organization Names of Additional Partners:	Entity Type





Proposed Geographic Scope: (local/regional, state-wide, or National) Service Areas and Sites: (specific service areas and sites where participants will be served)
Total Participants to be Served:
Total Funding Requested:
Total Leveraged Funds:
Project Title/Name:
Targeted Population(s) to be Served:
Public Contact Information:	Name, Title: Address: Phone Number: Email Address:
Brief Summary of the Project:

1 CDC Healthy Schools, https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/ost.htm.

2 Afterschool Alliance. America After 3PM: Afterschool Programs in Demand

3 AIR, Afterschool Programming as a Lever to Enhance and Provide Career Readiness Opportunities, September 2019

4 AYPF, Harvesting the Potential of Rural Afterschool Programs (July 2018)

5 Durlak JA, Weissberg RP. Afterschool programs that follow evidence-based practices to promote social and emotional development are effective. Retrieved from https://casel.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/DurlakWeissberg_Final.pdf.external icon

6 Lauer PA, Akiba M, Wilkerson SB, Apthorp HS, Snow D, Martin-Glenn ML. Out-of-school-time programs: a meta-analysis of effects for at-risk students. Rev Educ Res. 2006;76(2):275–313.

7 Throughout this FOA, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the outlying areas (Guam, the US Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa) are considered a “state.”

8 AYPF, Five Suggestions to Leverage Afterschool Programs to Promote College and Career Readiness (October 2019)

9 AIR, Afterschool Programming as a Lever to Enhance and Provide Career Readiness Opportunities, September 2019

10 Throughout this FOA, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the outlying areas (Guam, the US Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa) are considered a “state.”

11 CDC Healthy Schools, https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/ost.htm.

12 A local educational agency is defined as a public board of education or other public authority legally constituted within a State for either administrative control or direction of, or to perform a service function for, public elementary schools or secondary schools in a city, county, township, school district, or other political subdivision of a State, or for a combination of school districts or counties that is recognized in a State as an administrative agency for its public elementary schools or secondary schools. Link accessible at https://www.ed.gov/race-top/district-competition/definitions.

File Type	application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
Author	Stowers, Samantha A - ETA
File Modified	0000-00-00
File Created	2021-01-13

Form FOA-ETA-21-01 Workforce Pathways for Youth Grant Program

DOL Generic Solution for Funding Opportunity Announcements

Workforce Pathways for Youth FOA for OIRA

Workforce Pathways for Youth Grant Program

OMB: 1225-0086

Table of Contents

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

PROGRAM PURPOSE

PROGRAM AUTHORITY

GEOGRAPHIC SCOPE

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES/ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES

AWARD INFORMATION

AWARD TYPE AND AMOUNT

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

REQUIRED PARTNERS

OPTIONAL PARTNERS

COST SHARING OR MATCHING

OTHER INFORMATION

Application Screening Criteria

Number of Applications Applicants May Submit

Eligible Participants

Veterans’ Priority for Participants

APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

HOW TO OBTAIN AN APPLICATION PACKAGE

CONTENT AND FORM OF APPLICATION SUBMISSION

SF-424, “Application for Federal Assistance”

Requirement for DUNS Number

Requirement for Registration with SAM

Project Budget

Budget Narrative

Project Narrative

Statement of Need (6 points)

Scope of the Issue (2 points)

Population Served (2 points)

Proposed Target Area (2 points)

Expected Outcomes and Outputs (16 points)

Participant Outputs and Outcomes (6 points)

Grantee-Defined Outcomes (10 points)

Project Design (34 points)

Organizational, Administrative, and Fiscal Capacity (6 points)

Past Performance – Programmatic Capability (32 points)

Budget and Budget Narrative (6 points)

Attachments to the Project Narrative

Required Attachments

Abstract

Documentation of Partnership Commitment

Documentation of OST Organization and Required Number of Affiliates

Requested Attachments

Project Work Plan

Performance Outcomes Table

Organizational Chart

Indirect Cost Rate Agreement

Financial System Assessment Information

Verification of 501(c)(3) status

Logic Model

SUBMISSION DATE, TIME, PROCESS, AND ADDRESS

Hardcopy Submission

Electronic Submission through Grants.gov

How to Register to Apply through Grants.gov

How to Submit an Application to DOL via Grants.gov

INTERGOVERNMENTAL REVIEW

FUNDING RESTRICTIONS

Indirect Costs

Salary and Bonus Limitations

Intellectual Property Rights

Use of Grant Funds for Participant Wages

OTHER SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

CRITERIA

REVIEW AND SELECTION PROCESS

Merit Review and Selection Process

Risk Review Process

AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

AWARD NOTICES

ADMISTRATIVE AND NATIONAL POLICY REQUIREMENTS

Administrative Program Requirements

Other Legal Requirements

Religious Activities