Reviewers Needed: 2007 Teaching American History (TAH) Grant Competition

For Immediate Release

It's that time again! Time to prepare for the 2007 Teaching American History (TAH) grant competition. We believe that the grant review process will occur in early 2007, but we do not have final review dates. Even without final review dates, there is still much planning to do. This planning includes soliciting qualified persons to serve as grant reviewers for the 2007 TAH competition.

We are reaching out to establish a new pool of grant reviewers. If you or someone within your organization is interested in serving as a grant reviewer, please forward this information to them and ask them to forward their résumé to Mia Howerton at mia.howerton@ed.gov by December 15, 2006. All resumes will be screened and approved by the U.S. Department of Education. Once we receive all résumés, we will begin the approval process. If you are selected, we will contact you with the final review dates and further instructions. Remember, the process starts with your résumé, so please forward that information to us as soon as possible.

Below you will find information that gives reviewer qualifications, as well as what is expected of each reviewer, as well as an overview of the TAH program

Grant Reviewers
The U.S. Department of Education seeks qualified individuals interested in reviewing applications for grant programs of the Office of Innovation and Improvement (OII). These reviewers, also called field readers, will independently read and evaluate applications submitted to the Department requesting federal funds. Persons interested in reading TAH grants must possess at least one of the following qualifications:

• A degree in history
• Elementary or secondary history teachers
• History Professor
• TAH Grant Director
• TAH Grant Partner
• Historian
• Other history-related professional
• Must not be involved in any 2007 TAH application
• Interested parties should email their résumé to Mia Howerton at mia.howerton@ed.gov. Once your résumé has been approved, the TAH office will contact you with 2007 competition dates.

Note: Reviewers will not read applications from their home state.

What to Expect

• Participate in a phone orientation and receive additional written instructions for reviewing and scoring TAH applications
• Read and score approx. 10 TAH applications
• Panel with other reviewers to discuss each application and its scores

Where
Grant reviews are reviewed ON-LINE, via E-reader. (Reviewers must have a reliable internet connection, fax machine access, and be able to print applications.)

When
Between February and April 2007 (Official dates TBA)

Teaching American History Program: An Overview
Purpose: The TAH program is designed to raise student achievement by improving teachers' knowledge, understanding, and appreciation for traditional American history.

Program History
Research has shown that many students lack basic knowledge of American history. Senator Robert Byrd (D, West Virginia) was concerned that students did not have an adequate knowledge of or appreciation for American history and the great accomplishments of our Founding Fathers. This program began in 2001 in an effort to correct this situation.

Program Statute
Title II, Part C, Subpart 4 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.

Applicant Eligibility
Local Educational Agencies (LEAs), including charter schools that are considered LEAs under State laws, working in partnership with one or more of the following entities:

• An institution of higher education
• A non-profit history or humanities organization
• A library or museum

Services Provided
Services provided by a TAH project include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. High-quality in-service or pre-service professional development activities
2. Collaborations among other teachers and history experts
3. Summer institutes and summer immersion activities
4. Field Trips
5. Mentoring and coaching

Grant Competition
TAH grant competitions are held every year. All grant applications must be submitted electronically via Grants.gov. If there are extenuating circumstances and an applicant needs to submit a paper application, the applicant must obtain an electronic submission waiver from the TAH office.

Next TAH Competition: Early 2007

Grants.gov
Applicants must submit TAH applications via Grants.gov. There is a minimum 5 day process to register an institution/agency with Grants.gov, so we recommend that applicants start EARLY with the registration process.

2007 Pre-application Workshops:
The TAH Program Office will conduct 2 to 3 pre-application workshops around the United States. The workshops are designed to inform applicants of what is required in the TAH application package. The workshops will be held before the closing date of the 2007 application. Final dates and locations for the workshops will be posted on the TAH webpage.

APPROPRIATIONS HISTORY

FY 2006
Appropriation: $119,790,000.00
Number of Awards: 124
Average New Award: $950,000

APPLICANT FUNDING

$500,000 for LEAs with enrollments less than 20,000 students; $1,000,000 for LEAs with enrollments of 20,000 - 300,000 students; and $2,000,000 for LEAs with enrollments above 300,000 students. LEAs may form consortia and combine their enrollments in order to receive a grant reflective of their combined enrollment. For districts applying jointly as a consortium, the maximum award is based on the combined enrollment of the individual districts in the consortium

Performance Period: 36 months

Website Address
http://www.ed.gov/programs/teachinghistory/

Program Contacts
Peggi Zelinko, Director
Teacher Quality Programs - (202) 260-2614
Peggi.Zelinko@ed.gov

Alex Stein,
TAH Team Leader - (202) 205-9085
Alex.Stein@ed.gov

Definitions

1. "Traditional American History" (as used in the selection criteria): The term "traditional American history" includes the significant issues, episodes, and turning points in the history of the United States. It includes how the words and deeds of individuals have determined the course of our Nation and how the principles of freedom and democracy articulated in the founding documents of this Nation have shaped America's struggles and achievements and its social, political, and legal institutions and relations.
2. "Local Educational Agency" (LEA): The term "local educational agency" means 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 or secondary schools in a city, county, township, school district, or other political subdivision of a State, or for such combination of school districts or counties as are recognized in a State as an administrative agency for its public elementary as secondary schools.

Application Process

1. TAH applications are submitted via Grants.gov
2. All applications are prescreened to ensure proper eligibility
3. A panel of 3 non-federal readers will read and evaluate each application.
4. Each panelist will provide a thorough evaluation of each application and assign the application a score of up 100 points plus any competitive priority points that may apply.
5. The final scores are placed in rank order, highest to lowest, and placed on a funding slate.
6. Awards are funded down the slate until all funds are used.
7. The Department's Office of Legislation and Congressional Affairs will inform the Congress regarding applicants approved for new TAH grants. Successful applicants will receive award notices by mail shortly after the Congress is notified. No funding information will be released before the Congress is notified.
8. Successful and unsuccessful applicants will receive copies of evaluators' scores and comments for reference purposes.