Distance Education Grants Program for Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Areas

A. Eligibility Requirements Applicants for the Distance Education Grants Program for Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Areas (DEG) must meet all the requirements discussed in this RFA. Failure to meet the eligibility criteria by the application deadline may result in exclusion from consideration or, preclude NIFA from making an award. For those new to Federal financial assistance, NIFA’s Grants Overview provides highly recommended information about grants and other resources to help understand the Federal awards process. Institutions receiving a grant under this program are eligible to receive DEG grants in subsequent years. Receiving a grant under any other authority does not affect eligibility for this DEG grants program. Each faculty recipient of support for developmental activities must be an “eligible participant” please refer to: 7 CFR 3430, Competitive and Noncompetitive Non-Formula Federal Assistance Programs-General Award Administrative Provisions, for applicable definitions for this NIFA grant program. Individual Institutions. For the purposes of the DEG grant program, an eligible institution is an institution of higher education, as defined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1995 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)), that is located in an insular area and that has a demonstrable capacity to carry out teaching and extension programs in the food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences. All public or non-profit 2-year and 4-year accredited institutions of higher education that offer certificate/degree programs in food and agricultural sciences are eligible. Individual land-grant colleges and universities, and other institutions that have secured land-grant status through Federal legislation, and which are located in insular areas are automatically eligible for awards under the DEG grant program as direct individual applicants. The eight insular areas are as follows: 1. American Samoa; 2. The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; 3. The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 4. The Federated States of Micronesia; 5. Guam; 6. The Republic of the Marshall Islands; 7. The Republic of Palau; and 8. The Virgin Islands of the United States. Branch Institutions of a State System. Individual branches of a state university system or public system of higher education that are separately accredited as degree-granting institutions are treated as separate, individual institutions eligible to apply for and receive awards, provided they otherwise satisfy the definition of “eligible institution” as specified above. Independent Branch Campuses. Independent branch campuses of individual institutions may apply for and receive grant awards under this program, if they satisfy the definition of “eligible institution” as specified above. An “independent branch campus” is a unit of a 2-year or 4-year institution of higher education that is geographically apart from the main campus, is permanent in nature, offers courses for credit and programs leading to an associate or bachelor’s degree, and is autonomous to the extent that it has its own faculty and administrative or supervisory organization and its own budgetary and hiring authority. Certification of Eligibility. At the time of application, each primary applicant will be required to demonstrate or certify that it is an eligible institution as defined by this RFA. A non-land-grant institution must submit a letter signed by the institution’s Authorized Representative (AR) certifying that it meets the requirements of an “eligible institution” as defined herein. The AR must also certify that the institution, or parent institution in the case of an independent branch campus: 1. Admits as regular students only persons having a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the recognized equivalent of such a certificate; 2. Is legally authorized by the Insular Area in which it is located to provide a program of education beyond seco

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