The   Department   of   Education’s
Fund   for   the   Improvement   of
Postsecondary   Education
Erin   McDermott erin mcdermott@ed gov/ 202 ‐ 502 ‐ 7607
Fred   Winter frederick.winter@ed.gov/    202 ‐ 502 ‐ 7632
……………………….
(202)   502 ‐ 7500/fipse@ed.gov
What is FIPSE ?
• Founded   in   1972, ,   FIPSE   is   the   Fund   for   the
Improvement   of   Postsecondary   Education .
• Funding   higher   education   projects   that   are   new,   different,   and   transformative.
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Historically   FIPSE grants   are…
• Competitive,   peer   reviewed
• Focused   on   higher   education   curriculum,   programs,   organizational   realignments,   cost ‐
• In   any   and   all   disciplines
• Interesting   and   “novel”   initiatives   or   endeavors
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FIPSE supports:
Higher   education
Innovations   and   Improvements
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Innovation   and   Improvements   may   include:
Curriculum   innovations
New   programs   on   campus
New   student   support   mechanisms
Cost ‐ saving   innovations
Enrollment,   admissions,   retention   innovations
Teaching   innovations
New   faculty   reward   systems
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Formulating   an   Application
• Directly   and   Specifically   Address   the   Program’s   Published
Evaluation/Selection   Criteria.
• Directly   align   your   proposal   to   the   Evaluation/Selection
Criteria.
• Write   clearly   and   concisely.
• Provide   detailed   information   on   those   topics   referenced   in   each   statement   in   the   Evaluation/Selection   Criteria.
Remember:    FIPSE   proposals   are   rated   on   a   point   value   scale   that   responds   directly   to   the published   evaluation   or   selection   criteria
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FIPSE Competitions   May   Include
Preference   Priorities
Three   types   of   priorities
Absolute
Competitive
Invitational
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Contact FIPSE
• E ‐ mail   us:    Erin   McDermott,   Frederick   Winter
• Call   us.
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope
/fipse/staff.html
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Office   of   Postsecondary   Education
Fund   for   the   Improvement   of   Postsecondary
Education   (FIPSE)
What   is   First   in   the   World?
• $123m   proposed   discretionary   grant   competition   for   FY   2012
• Aligns   with   President’s   2020   Goal
• An   evidence ‐ based,   innovative   approach   to   improve   productivity   and   increase   college   completion
• Modeled   after   the   Investing   in   Innovation   Fund
Program   (i3   program)
First   in   the   World
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Eligibility
• Nonprofit   Institutions   of   Higher   Education
• Non ‐ profit   organizations
• Associations
• Consortia
• State   Higher   Education   Systems
FiTW’s   Data ‐ Driven   Investments
• Major   emphasis   on   the   effectiveness   of   outcomes/results
• Strong   research   p
• Rigorous   evaluation
• Dissemination   of   results
• Specialized   review   process
Three ‐ Tiered   Funding   Model   (i3)
1. Scale   up
– Strong   evidence   that   proposed   project   has   had   a   significant   impact
– Moderate   evidence   that   proposed   activity   has   had   significant   impact
3. Developmental
– Contains   potential   and   some   research ‐ based   findings   that   should   be   systematically   studied
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Opportunities   for   GRC
– Scaling   up   existing   projects
– Leveraging   partnerships   across   systems,   states   and   regions
– Increasing   student   access,   retention   and   completion
– State ‐ based   concepts Æ replicable   models   of   innovation   that   have   yielded   significant   results
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