Section 1090.40  Application

Applications must be jointly submitted by one or more public community colleges and one or more public or private, not-for-profit, 4-year colleges or universities [110 ILCS 205/9.33(b)].

a)         Applications for grant funds shall be made on prescribed forms developed by the Board and shall include, at a minimum, the following provisions and information: 

1)         The names, addresses, chief officers and general descriptions of the applicants;

2)         The 4-year degree-granting college or university that will serve as the fiscal agent;

3)         A grant proposal for which grant funding is requested.  A request for proposals (RFP) will provide any restrictions or priorities regarding the degree program areas as furnished by the Board at the time the RFP is announced;

4)         If the proposal involves an existing degree program, the grantee will provide a plan describing how the existing program outcomes will be incorporated into evaluating the proposed degree program offering;

5)         Data from the partnering institutions for each of the previous 3 academic years, reported both at the institutional level and at the program level that aligns with this grant proposal, including the following:

A)        Number of students who enroll in the starting term;

B)        Number of students who successfully complete the academic year; and

C)        Retention rate of students during the academic year; 

6)         Proposals to continue a program funded by this grant program for a second or third year will be considered if at least 75 percent of the original cohort is retained or, if approved by IBHE, an alternative measure demonstrating low student attrition;

7)         An annual evaluation of the program as provided by the grantees at the end of the grant period; and

8)         Cost estimates and proposed expenditures of the program.  

b)         Grant applications may be obtained from the Illinois Board of Higher Education, 431 East Adams Street, Second Floor, Springfield, Illinois 62701-1404 or the Board's website at www.ibhe.org. 

c)         Completed applications must be submitted to the Board at the address indicated in subsection (b) and must be received by the announced deadline for the submission of applications, which shall not be less than 45 days after the announcement and release of application materials.