NAICU Washington Update

Grant Application Notice for CRRSAA FIPSE Funds Released

March 26, 2021

On Monday, the Federal Register will include an official notice on the availability of FIPSE funds included in the CRRSAA COVID relief bill passed last December.  The bill set aside $113 million in funds for institutions with special unmet needs due to COVID. 
 
Unlike the CARES Act, this fund is not dedicated to small schools.  Rather, it is intended for institutions with a high percentage of graduate students and those with the greatest unmet needs related to coronavirus, including institutions that did not otherwise receive an allocation under CRRSAA.
 
The notice, which was pre-released today, includes seven absolute priorities for the funding, which means an applicant must meet one of these priorities:
  • A MSI that has been designated as an MSI since initial CRRSAA eligibility for MSI institutions was determined;
  • An institution that was otherwise eligible for HEERF funds but did not receive grants because they had not submitted the necessary student data in their IPEDS report for 2018-19;
  • An institution that was otherwise eligible for HEERF funds but did not receive grants because their application was incomplete or failed to be filed (it does not apply to institutions that did not attempt to apply for funds);
  • An HBCU and MSI branch campus for which the Department did not have the needed data to make allocations;
  • An institution that merged after December 27, 2020 and experienced a change in its Program Participation Agreement that caused it to not be part of the HEERF allocation;
  • A community college or other institution in a rural area with more than 50% Pell enrollment and a more than 4.5% enrollment decline;
  • An institution with a high percentage of graduate students (at least 90%). 
The notice outlines the allowable use of funds, the funding restrictions and the application and process for institutions.
 

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