Request for Applications (RFA): Collaborative Partnerships - Haiti

Creating Opportunities for Haitian Undergraduates in Finance and Accounting

Date Issued: December 11, 2007
Deadline: February 26, 2008

HED expects to make one (1) award of up to $552,000 for this three-year higher education partnership with the Université Quisqueya (UNIQ). The partnership will create opportunities for talented, disadvantaged undergraduates from UNIQ to complete their degrees in finance and/or accounting in the United States. The partnership will also strengthen the quality of UNIQ’s curriculum leading to the undergraduate degrees in accounting and finance and develop new instructional modules that increase the program's relevance to Haiti’s workforce needs.

For further information regarding this RFA, please contact:

Marilyn Crane, Senior Program Associate
(202) 243-7680
Email: mcrane@hedprogram.org

Background

Introduction

Partnership Description

Eligibility

Application Review Criteria

Application Format, Submission, and Review

Terms of the Solicitation

Frequently Asked Questions

Background

Higher Education for Development

Higher Education for Development (HED) manages open competitions and administers awards on behalf of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to engage higher education institutions in addressing global development challenges. HED engages the higher education community through outreach to the six major U.S. higher education associations. In September 2005, USAID awarded a Leader with Associate Cooperative Agreement to the American Council on Education (ACE), with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), the Association of American Universities (AAU), the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU), and the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (NASULGC). The agreement (AEG-A-00-05-00007-00) is sponsored by USAID’s Bureau for Economic Growth, Agriculture and Trade, Office of Education, and administered by the Higher Education for Development (HED) office.

U.S. Agency for International Development

USAID’s historic partnership and collaboration with the higher education community has repeatedly demonstrated that institutions of higher education are important engines of development, economic growth, good governance, and healthy societies. The community’s contributions in the areas of training, applied research, program evaluation, policy analysis, and program implementation have been critical to USAID’s foreign assistance goals. USAID has provided economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide for more than 40 years. More information on USAID is available on our site.

Introduction

The second oldest republic in the Western Hemisphere (after the United States), Haiti’s troubled political past has contributed to its poverty. Not only is Haiti considered one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere, it is one of the least developed.

Elected in February 2006, President René Préval’s newly installed government has placed the revitalization of Haiti’s university system among its priorities in education, and the government has explicitly expressed a desire to work with U.S. colleges and universities and to encourage Haitian academics in the Diaspora to serve as visiting faculty in Haitian universities.

USAID/Haiti is seeking to increase the capacity of higher education institutions in Haiti to provide the human and institutional resources needed for economic growth and social prosperity.  Through the creation and strengthening of partnerships between Haitian and U.S. higher education institutions, the U.S.-Haiti Higher Education Partnership Program will contribute to economic growth and employment in Haiti by training university students in high demand fields in the Haitian economy and by strengthening the capacity of selected Haitian universities to deliver quality degree programs.

The U.S.-Haiti Higher Education Partnership Program is establishing four partnerships between colleges and universities in the United States and higher education institutions in Haiti identified by USAID/Haiti. This partnership is one of two that will offer the opportunity for disadvantaged Haitian students to complete their bachelor’s degree in the United States after at least two years of study at Haitian universities. All four partnerships will strengthen Haitian universities’ capacity to offer degree programs at the undergraduate level in selected fields of study.

These partnerships support the implementation of USAID/Haiti’s 2007-2009 Country Strategy, which encompasses a college and university partnership component and a scholarship component for individual Haitians at the undergraduate level. Specifically, the U.S.-Haiti Higher Education Partnership Program responds to USAID/Haiti’s Strategic Objective 11: Livelihoods, Program Component 28 (Improve Quality of Workforce through Vocational and Technical Education). For more information on USAID/Haiti’s Strategic Objective 11, Component 28, please view USAID/Haiti’s 2007-2009 Country Strategy.

Partnership Description

Sound accounting practices and improved financial analysis will strengthen business profitability in Haiti, provide the information needed to attract domestic and foreign investment, increase the access of small and medium businesses to financial resources, and help local businesses align their standards and practices with those of the country's main trade and investment partners.

In Haiti, the informal sector provides employment for an estimated 70% of the population. A World Bank needs assessment for Haiti estimates that 95% of private employment is in the informal sector.  The role of the private sector in meeting Haiti's major investment needs, however, remains negligible. As a result, bringing informal sector businesses into the formal sector is seen as critical to ensuring Haiti’s economic development and the establishment of a strong market economy.  Doing so will require introducing informal sector businesses to accounting and finance principles and practices.

Program Objectives:

• Create opportunities for UNIQ undergraduates from disadvantaged backgrounds, who have completed at least their second year of studies, to complete their studies in the United States and graduate with accounting and finance degrees from a U.S. higher education institution;
• Strengthen UNIQ’s undergraduate curricula leading to degrees in accounting and finance so that graduates are prepared to enter the workforce upon graduation with knowledge of sound accounting practice and financial analysis;
• Develop new curricula and instructional modules in accounting and financial analysis that increase the relevance of UNIQ’s accounting and finance curricula to the needs of Haiti’s workforce; and,
• Develop the skills and knowledge of UNIQ faculty so that they are prepared to develop and deliver new courses and instructional modules in accounting and financial analysis designed by the partnership.

Expected partnership activities include:

• Student exchanges with a scholarship component that provides a minimum of five undergraduate scholarships for UNIQ students who have completed at least their second year of studies to complete their accounting and/or finance degrees at a U.S. higher education institution;
• A fair and transparent process for selecting appropriate scholarship recipients, including Haitian nationals from disadvantaged backgrounds and women;
• A plan to address all aspects of the exchange program, including pre-departure orientation specific to the needs of Haitian students, English language preparation, academic and social support services while studying at the U.S. institution, and support services to facilitate the students’ reentry to Haiti upon completion of the degree program.  Students should return to seek work in Haiti within a defined timeframe with follow-on support for job searching and monitoring from the partners;
• Institutional development to strengthen and modernize UNIQ’s curricula and course offerings in accounting and finance, based on a needs analysis that will be conducted jointly by the partners and will include input from the private sector;
• Joint development of new courses and instructional modules and creation of supporting instructional materials targeting the needs identified in the needs analysis;
• Support for the professional development of UNIQ faculty, including seminars on teaching and research methods, faculty exchanges, and/or joint collaborative workshops on financial analysis and accounting principles;
• Workshops and seminars in accounting and finance fundamentals built on the content of the revised curriculum for colleagues at other Haitian universities and for other public and private sector stakeholders;
• Special courses, faculty development programs, and/or other program activities that encourage greater participation by women in UNIQ’s finance and accounting degree program; and,
• A plan to sustain the partnership after the end of the award period, including details on how the partnership activities might be scaled up and/or replicated. The exploration of dual or joint undergraduate degrees or certificate programs in business for majors in accounting and finance is encouraged.

Proposed work plans for this partnership should demonstrate feasibility of accomplishing all planned activities, including the completion and awarding of undergraduate degrees in accounting and/or finance at the U.S. higher education institution(s), within the three-year time frame of the award. USAID gives priority to funding partnerships that involve members of the Haitian Diaspora based at U.S. universities in program planning and implementation.  Partners may provide for limited material support to UNIQ in the award budget, which may include library materials, computers, software, textbooks, and journals.

Applications should describe the course articulation and transfer credit or other means by which the U.S. partner institution can insure full participation of the Haitian scholarship students in U.S. undergraduate programs as juniors or seniors and complete their degrees in two years.  Partners will encourage the participation of women and provide incentives to attract women candidates for training opportunities and scholarships.

Applications should also address how, at the end of the partnership, the Haitian higher education partner institution will be strengthened, management capacity strengthened, and curricula modernized.

HED and USAID/Haiti recognize that this program may require language training for Haitian participants before travel to the United States.  Partners should include adequate provisions in the implementation plan and proposed award budgets for English language training.

Applications must demonstrate that partnership key personnel from the U.S. institution can operate in French (or possess advanced proficiency in French), as French is the language of communication, instruction, and discussion at UNIQ.  USAID/Haiti encourages all potential applicants to involve U.S. faculty of the Haitian Diaspora to the greatest possible extent.

Applications for this partnership should also include a completed Annual Workplan Worksheet and a completed Projected Target Indicators Worksheet.  HED will use the projected target indicators to report outcomes and results to USAID.

Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)

The application must describe a monitoring and reporting plan for the partnership that includes an initial baseline assessment and a clearly articulated plan for external evaluation and that shows how progress towards objectives will be measured, and how results of partnership activities will be summarized. The plan must also include an end-of-partnership impact assessment plan.

Please view the full UNIQ Capacity and Needs Statement for more information on UNIQ’s institutional capacity and needs.

Other Background Documents:

UNIQ Course Descriptions (doc)

UNIQ Accounting Program (doc)

UNIQ Calendar (pdf) 

CV: Claude Elisma (doc) 

CV: Jean Bruner Clotaire (doc) 

CV: Thomas Emmanuel (doc) 

CV: Julien Maxon (doc) 

CV: Wilfrid Jean-Baptiste (doc)

Contact Information

If you have additional questions regarding UNIQ’s institutional capacity and needs, the primary contact at UNIQ is:

Claude Elisma
Dean FSEA, UNIQ
E-mail: claudelisma@hotmail.com

The following HED staff member should be copied on all email correspondence with UNIQ:

Marilyn Crane
Senior Program Associate, HED
E-mail: mcrane@hedprogram.org

Scholarship Criteria

Applicant institutions should propose a plan through which five or more Haitian undergraduates with at least two years of study at the Haitian partner institutions will attain bachelor’s degrees in accounting and/or finance with at least one, and no more than two, years of study in the United States. 

Eligibility

HED welcomes applications from the member institutions of ACE, AACC, AASCU, AAU, NAICU, and NASULGC, and from other regionally accredited, degree granting, U.S. higher education institutions. U.S. colleges and universities may apply individually, or in partnership with other institutions. HED encourages applications from or with the participation of minority-serving institutions.

Application Review Guidelines

Peer reviewers will use the following criteria to evaluate the applications:

I.  Institutional, Sector, and National Context     (10 points)

• Demonstration of understanding of UNIQ’s institutional priorities and needs; and,
• Demonstration of understanding of the Haitian country context and relevance of the proposed program to addressing Haiti’s needs for expertise in accounting and financial analysis.

II. Capacity Building       (30 points)

• Quality of plans to assess the accounting program’s curriculum;
• Strength of plans to design and implement new courses and modules at UNIQ that increase the program’s relevance to Haiti’s workforce needs in accounting and financial analysis;
• Potential for continuation of curricula and courses beyond the period of the award and quality of plans for partnership sustainability beyond the period of the award;
• Quality of plans to strengthen faculty knowledge and skills and relevance of activities to improving the quality of instruction at UNIQ;
• Extent of involvement of members of Haitian Diaspora based at U.S. universities in program planning and implementation; and,
• Evidence of measures to encourage greater participation of women in the finance and accounting degree programs at UNIQ.

III. Scholarships and Training     (25 points)

• Quality, fairness, and transparency of process for selecting appropriate scholarship recipients, including giving priority to Haitian nationals from disadvantaged backgrounds and women;
• Quality of plans for English language training, when necessary, for students participating in the exchanges;
• Evidence of ability of U.S. institution to integrate the Haitian undergraduate students into the campus community and to provide academic and social support services for them, including plans for pre-departure orientation;
• Quality of plans for a student re-entry program for the undergraduate scholarship recipients from Haiti and evidence that they will return within a defined timeframe; and,
• Likelihood of degree completion by at least five Haitian undergraduate students.

IV. Expertise and Collaboration     (15 points)

• Quality of credentials of key personnel, including relevant expertise in accounting and finance education and French language proficiency of the team;
• Extent of institutional commitment (engagement of faculty, students, and/or administrators) among all partners, in the United States and Haiti; and,
• Extent of planned collaboration with private and public sector stakeholders in program implementation.

V. Cost Sharing and Cost Effectiveness of Overall Budget (10 points)

• Cost sharing and leveraging of cash or in-kind contribution from U.S. partners, including institutional cost sharing for scholarships, waivers of tuition and/or other academic costs, and other contributions from the additional U.S. partners (private sector firms, foundations, NGOs, and other higher education institutions); and,
• Demonstrated cost-effectiveness and balanced budget with equitable distribution of funds to both U.S. and Haitian partners.

VI. Monitoring and Reporting Plan (10 points)

• Valid and reliable evidence of a methodology for collecting baseline data and monitoring partnership activities and outcomes; and,
• Clearly articulated plan for an external evaluation to assess the partnership’s achievement of objectives and impact.

Total Points: 100 points

Application Format, Submission and Review

Application Format

How to Submit an Application

Peer Review

Application Format

Please provide the contents of the application in the following order:

1. Title Page (Please complete HED form in full and obtain signatures of authorized officials.)

2. Table of Contents

3. Abstract (not to exceed 3 typed, double-spaced pages, 12-point font, 1-inch margins). The abstract should contain a summary of the narrative, workplan and budget.

4. Narrative (not to exceed 20 typed, double-spaced pages, 12-point font, 1-inch margins) Address the criteria listed in Application Review Guidelines I-VI (see above).

5. The 20-page application must describe a monitoring and reporting plan for the partnership, including an initial baseline assessment, that shows how progress and results will be communicated and reported to USAID through HED.

6. Appendices (Attachments beyond the stated appendices will not be read nor taken into consideration):
    * Annual workplan for the funding period (Use HED form).
    * Budget forms (Use HED form. Complete all tabs).
    * Projected Target Indicators Worksheet (Use HED form).
    * Résumés of the proposed U.S. institution director(s) and host institution personnel, not to exceed 2 one-sided pages per person.
    * Signed letters of support from the presidents, chancellors, or other chief executive officers of the cooperating institution in the United States.
 * Signed letters of support from appropriate university leaders of the overseas partner institution as well as partnership directors. University leaders from the overseas partner may include deans, rectors, or university presidents.
    * Signed letter from appropriate official at applicant institution verifying that all costs cited conform to established institutional policies and practices.

How to Submit an Application

Applications must be received at HED by 5:00PM, Eastern Time (ET), February 26, 2008. Faxed or electronically transmitted applications will not be accepted. All elements of the application must be received by the deadline. HED recognizes that original, signed cover letters and letters of support from overseas partners may be subject to delays due to factors beyond the applicant’s control. Only in these exceptional cases, faxed or scanned copies of the application title page and letters that include all necessary signatures may be submitted in the application, provided signed originals are received at HED within seven (7) calendar days of the deadline.

Applicants should submit the original application plus seven (7) hard copies of the complete application package containing title page, table of contents, abstract, narrative, and appendices (all on loose-leaf paper, clipped together — no three-ring binders, staples, or plastic bindings), and a diskette or CD (with files saved as Microsoft Word/Excel for PC) containing the entire application, including all budget forms, budget narrative, and other appendices.

Applications should be sent to: (*NOTE: This is a NEW address)

Collaborative Partnership: Haiti
Higher Education for Development
1 Dupont Circle NW, Room1B30
Washington, DC 20036-1193

Once an application has been received, there is to be no contact with the HED program office until the completion of the peer review process in order to ensure fairness to all parties concerned.

Peer Review

Applications will be reviewed by expert panelists, which include representatives from higher education, international development, and USAID.  Awards will be made on the basis of reviewers’ recommendations of merit, and USAID. Peer review of applications is slated for mid-March, 2008.

Letters of communication from members of the U.S. Congress in support of an application are discouraged as these may be thought to prejudice the peer-review process. Such letters will not be forwarded to peer reviewers.

Notification about awards is expected following the completion of peer review. Upon final announcement of awards, the person named in the application as partnership director may submit a written request for copies of the peer reviewers’ scores for the application. No personal reviews will be granted, and no comparative score tabulations will be shared.

Terms of the Solicitation

Cost Share

Execution of Awards

Post Award Briefings

TraiNet Requirements

Health and Accident Insurance

Reporting

Cost Share

The minimum suggested total cost share from all U.S. partners is 25 percent of the award amount. Reported cost share must be auditable. Non-auditable contributions may not be used to meet the minimum, but can be indicated separately and attached to the budget detail form.

Higher education institutions are expected to leverage support from the private sector in addition to the cost sharing provided by their institutions. Applicants should itemize all cost sharing and in-kind contributions.

Cash and in-kind contributions will be accepted as part of the applicant’s cost sharing when such contributions are: (a) verifiable from the applicant’s records; (b) not included as contributions for any other federally-assisted program; (c) reasonable for the accomplishment of partnership objectives; and (d) not paid by the federal government under another grant.

In-kind contributions may include, but are not limited to: waivers of tuition and fees for students participating in academic exchanges; donation of library and classroom materials to the partner; ICT infrastructure and Internet Service Provider subscription subsidy for the partner and exchange students; faculty salaries; travel and/or per diem for faculty and administrators to participate in professional exchange and development programs; and indirect costs.

Execution of Awards

Awards will be executed as sub-agreements between the designated U.S. university, college, community college, or consortium, and the American Council on Education (ACE), through the Higher Education for Development (HED) office, under USAID Cooperative Agreement AEG-A-00-05-00007-00. The institution recommended for award will receive a draft version of the sub-agreements to review. The Awardee will be expected to submit a marking plan as part of the sub-agreement that clearly indicates the support provided by USAID for activities conducted under the award.

Please note that no award nor cost share funds may be expended prior to a fully executed (i.e., signed by both parties) sub-agreement between ACE and the designated U.S. institution unless pre-award expenses have been approved as a part of the negotiation of the sub-award. Activities are expected to commence immediately after the sub-agreement is executed.

Award funds will be disbursed to the designated U.S. university, college, community college, or consortium, based on the applicant’s implementation of the work plan, stated budget, and submission to HED of financial, tax, and narrative progress reports. It is the designated U.S. institution’s responsibility to provide disbursements (reimbursements) for its collaborating partner(s) in accordance with the agreed-upon activity schedule and budget.

Post Award Briefings

Partnership directors, and/or their designees, are required to participate in two post-award briefings. The first briefing, conducted in a virtual format, will review reporting, monitoring and evaluation requirements. The second briefing via a conference call will address general requirements of the award.

TraiNet Requirements

To comply with the Department of Homeland Security, U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Department of State, and USAID regulations regarding tracking and monitoring of Exchange Visitors, foreign nationals whose costs are paid, fully or partially, directly or indirectly using USAID program funds for training, non-training, and invitational travel, must enter the U.S. on a J-1 visa (non-immigrant Exchange Visitor visa) processed under one of USAID’s two program numbers, unless otherwise waived according to the procedure in ADS 252.3. J-2 visa applications for family members are not supported per USAID policy. USAID expects that all DS-2019 documents (paperwork needed for J visas) and in-country or third country training be processed through the USAID Training, Results and Information Network (TraiNet) system. Institutions may not directly access the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) to issue DS-2019 documents internally. Information regarding USAID’s J-1 visa requirements may be found online at the Participant Training website. Administrators must adhere to the regulations detailed under TraiNet, Visa Compliance System (VCS), the Student Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), and USAID’s Automated Directives System (ADS) 252-Visa Compliance for Exchange Visitors, and 253-Training for Development. U.S. institutions should allow up to 12 weeks for the processing of visas when planning activities in the United States.

TraiNet management requires a significant commitment of staff time and applicants are encouraged to take this into consideration when developing the program budget.

USAID Health and Accident Coverage (HAC) Insurance Program

The U.S. institution is responsible for enrolling each participant traveling to the United States or a third country in the official USAID Health and Accident Coverage (HAC) insurance program. Participants entering the United States on J-1 visas are required to obtain HAC from the official USAID vendor. Institutions may not use award funds to cover their own institutional HAC insurance. Click here for information on the USAID HAC insurance program. The cost of HAC for participants must be included in the budget.

Reporting

Awardees will be required to submit to HED:
· Financial reports are due quarterly to record expenditures for the following periods: Jan. 1-March 31, April 1-June 30, July 1-Sept. 30, and Oct. 1-Dec. 31;
· Semi-annual narrative progress reports for the following reporting periods may be sent via e-mail: April 1-September 30 and Oct. 1-March 30;
· Both financial reports and semi-annual progress reports are due within one-month after the corresponding reporting period closes: Jan. 31, April 30, July 31, and Oct. 31;
· A final narrative report (due 30 days after the conclusion of program activities); and
· Final financial reports (due no later than 90 days after the sub-agreement closing date).

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the anticipated award date and start date of the grant in order to clarify our timetable in the proposal?

A: Award announcements are expected to be made in April 2008.  The start date of the award depends on the date the subagreement is executed. We anticipate that the subagreement would be executed in late April or early May.