Frequently Asked Questions

Below are some Frequently Asked Questions on the process and guidelines for RFP. Please post any additional questions in the Comments section of the RFP Process page, where they will be answered as soon as possible.

Is the focus just on renewable energy?

The primary focus is renewable energy, since that has been identified as having the potential to become a leading economic driver in our region. However, projects/proposals involving supporting businesses such as value-added agriculture, agri-bioscience, and industries such as manufacturing that support renewable energy in their proposals are also eligible.

Why are you including the minimum partnership requirement of industry, workforce development board, and education?

MNREM-WIRED views this partnership as the base of developing a solid talent development system in order to transform our region to meet the needs of the global economy. It is critical that workforce development and education work together to meet the needs of our local and regional industries.

Does ‘educational partner’ mean that a college has to be one of the partners?

No. The educational partner could be a secondary school, adult basic education, a private training facility, a college, or another appropriate educational partner. The key factor is that the educational partner meets the talent development needs as identified in the proposed project.

What is the match requirement for the MNREM Talent Development Proposal?

There is no required or prescribed percentage of matching funds for this round of MNREM investments. However, the inclusion of some match or leveraged resources is required.

Can an organization be involved in more than one proposal?

There is no limit to the number of proposals in which an organization can be involved.

Is R&D an allowable expenditure ?

No, Research and Development projects are not an allowable use of dollars for this grant (See Allowable Use of Funds)

How far-reaching does a project have to be? Does it have to encompass all 36 counties of the MNREM region?

Proposed projects and activities do not have to include all 36 counties. In order to be considered regional, proposed projects and activities must transcend institutional, political and geographic boundaries, in favor of regional economic development. Projects that do not encompass a significant portion of the region must describe the benefits provided to the entire region and/or how the project will be able to be replicated throughout the entire region.

Does the proposed project need to be sustainable without the MNREM-WIRED Investment Grant?

By the end of the MNREM-WIRED grant, the goal is to have the project sustainable without continued MNREM-WIRED investment.

Is the WorkForce Center partner by definition the fiscal agent, or is the identification of the fiscal agent negotiated among the partners?

No, the WorkForce Center partner is not by definition the fiscal agent, and yes, the identification of the fiscal agent can be negotiated among the partners.  Generally, the fiscal agent is the partner with the administrative capacity and experience to deal best with grant administration.

Do you have examples of types of projects that you are looking for?

No. We are looking for creative, innovative projects that will build regional talent in the targeted industries (renewable energy, value-added agriculture, agri-bioscience, and related industries), and encourage both youth and adults to develop the skills needed to transform our regional economy. However, we have posted a list of types of projects that were in the original proposal as examples. Please do not let that list restrict or define your project.

We would like to submit a proposal for a project that includes students in grades 7-12. I see in the guidelines that youth under age 14 cannot be served, and youth ages 14-15 can only be served with special approval from the Department of Labor. Can we still submit the proposal, and use other funds for those students who are under age 16?

Absolutely! That is a prime example of using leveraged funds to broaden the scope of your project. Make sure that you indicate the amount and source of your leveraged funds in both your project narrative, and in the budget.

Our proposal includes youth ages 14-15. Am I reading it correctly, that we can serve those age groups, as long as we get permission?

That is correct. The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) has determined that it may be consistent with the purpose of WIRED (H-1B) grant funds to allow for the use of funds for secondary educational activities involving individuals under the age of 16, depending on the type of activity.   There are innovative strategies to begin exposing students in middle and secondary schools to career opportunities and to help them begin an educational pathway leading to employment; ways to tailor learning environments to develop core competencies and occupational skills that have a direct connection with future employment; and strategies for teacher education that will lead to workers with the right skills and competencies and/or will support attainment of the right skills through “model activities”.

Permission from DOL-ETA must be obtained prior to grant approval. In order to facilitate this process, please refer to the Approval Request Form on http://www.mnrem.org/www.mnrem.org . If you are planning to request permission to serve 14 and 15-year-olds in your proposal, please include a 2-page maximum Approval Request Attachment with your proposal.

How is “industry partner” defined?

The industry partner is private sector and must be an integral part of the project and the proposal. The proposal must show that the project activities are meeting the needs of industry, as defined by industry.

Tell me more about equipment purchases. You said that equipment for training is an allowable cost, but that you are not encouraging that we include that in our proposals? Why is that?

Equipment for training is an allowable cost. The Department of Labor defines equipment as: “tangible property, with a useful life of more than one year and a per-unit cost of $5,000 or more”, and requires prior approval before any equipment purchase. The equipment needs should be tied to specific identified training needs and actual employment opportunities.

If possible, applicants are encouraged to use equipment purchase and expenses as part of their match or leveraged resources.

Note: We have received a number of questions regarding the process for equipment approval, if a request for funding for equipment is included as part of a proposal. Below is the clarification from the Department of Labor:

If equipment purchase is part of your proposal, this is the process that will be followed to request DOL approval, once a grant is awarded:

Equipment must be purchased through a competitive, open and fair bid process. The grant applicant/recipient should use their own procurement policy, as long as it is competitive and complies with Federal procurement rules and regulations. Send the selected competitive bid (along with the organization's procurement policy and the competing bids) to the MNREM Fiscal Agent (SW MN PIC, ATTN: Pam, 607 West Main, Marshall MN 56258).  MNREM will review the request, and forward it to the grantee (DEED) who will forward the request to the Department of Labor. It will take at least two weeks for the Department of Labor to review and process the request once they have received it.

We cannot request approval of any equipment purchases until after your grant proposal has been approved. However, you may wish to expedite the process on your end by soliciting your bids prior to your grant approval.

IF you choose to do that, you MUST include a statement with your solicitation that it is released in advance of grant approval, and the equipment purchase will be dependent upon available funds and DOL approval.

NOTE: Costs incurred for the solicitation of the bid, i.e., any costs incurred to solicit the bid (the salary of the person putting the specifications together, cost of mailing, etc.) cannot be charged to the grant or to the MNREM Fiscal Agent if they are incurred before the grant is obtained.

What are the reporting requirements?

All project report forms are posted on the Grantee Information page at http://www.mnrem.org/www.mnrem.org . Grantees will be expected to submit quarterly narrative and fiscal reports, and a final report. We will also be inviting grantees to report on their projects to the Leadership Board.

Who is responsible for reporting?

Staff from the WIA Administrator (Workforce Investment Board) will be responsible for enrolling participants and the required DOL participant reporting. The grantee will be responsible for the quarterly narrative and fiscal reports.

Are there any particular metrics, measurements, or outcomes that you are looking for?

The Department of Labor has identified some common measures required of all employment related DOL grantees. Most are reported as a percentage relative to the number of participants who leave the programs during the same quarter.  They include:

o   Entered Employment:  # of adult participants who enter employment in a quarter

o   Retention: # of participants who are employed in two consecutive quarters

o   Average Earnings

o   Youth in Employment or Education: Numbers enrolled or working

o   Attainment of a Degree or Certificate

o   Gains in Literacy: # of participants increasing one or more education level

Other ways to measure capacity-building and regional outcomes are listed in the project quarterly report narrative. In addition, projects may have specific outcomes not listed, and may include those in their reports.

Will proposals be evenly distributed throughout the region?

While that would be ideal, at this point the Board has determined that they will be looking at funding projects that best meet the identified goals, outcomes and strategies.

How will proposals be evaluated?

Evaluation will be conducted by outside evaluators. Each proposal will be reviewed by how it addresses the required sections of the narrative guide, and how the proposed goals and outcomes meet the intent of the request for proposals. The evaluators will be doing a preliminary review and making a recommendation to the MNREM Executive Committee. This Committee will then make the final determination of which projects to fund.

Can you give an explanation of what would be considered administrative costs for this grant? Do they need to be budgeted items or can the 10% be taken like indirect costs off the top?

Administrative costs are those that are not direct program costs, but are necessary to grant management, including administrative and clerical staff salaries, project reporting, etc. These costs cannot exceed 10% of the grant. They do not need to be itemized.

Can we apply for a grant for a project that is already started? And could grant funds be used to cover costs that have already been incurred?

You can apply for a project that has already started. Projects can be new, or an expansion/replication of a promising practice. However, MNREM-WIRED grant funds could not be used to pay expenses that were incurred prior to the grant being awarded.

We are planning activities in conjunction with "Kids College" at the community college. "Kids College" targets 4th, 5th, and 6th graders with career demonstrations and activities. Would we need an "Approval Request Form" for this portion of our request?

MNREM-WIRED funds can only be used to serve those age 16 and older, or possibly 14 and 15-year-olds with DOL approval. Under no circumstances can MNREM-WIRED funds be used to serve youth under the age of 14. Any youth under the age of 14 (or under the age of 16 if not approved) should be served using matching or leveraged funds. So - to answer your question - the Approval Request Form is only to request permission to serve 14 and 15 year-olds.

Is the request regarding youth (under age 16) due with the proposal or just sometime prior to approval/disbursement?

It should be submitted with the grant application. That will allow us time to request DOL approval prior to grant approval.

What is the difference between match and leveraged funds?

By DOL definition, match must come from non-Federal funds, so any Federal support would be considered leveraged funds. Also, to qualify as match, it cannot be for costs that are unallowable under grant regulations. Therefore, wages for employee release time (which are unallowable grant costs) would be considered leveraged funds. Leveraged resources can include "all resources used by the grantee to support the grant activity and outcomes, whether or not those resources meet the standards required for match", and can include Federal resources.A document with more information on match and leveraged funds is accessible on the RFP page at http://www.mnrem.org/www.mnrem.org

In reading the RFP it appears that employee release time costs would be entered into the leveraged resources column. Is that assumption correct? 

Yes, that is correct

Does the administration category count against the $100,000 cap on award amounts?

The $100,000 cap is the maximum, including any administrative costs. For example, $91,000 program cost + $9,000 admin = $100,000

What are we allowed for attachments?

Attachments would include letters of commitment from project partners; Approval Request Form for Youth Age 14-15 (if appropriate); project timeline; and resumes of key project staff (if appropriate and necessary).

For the timeline, what would be the earliest possible start date for initiating programs provided the proposal was funded?

Grant awards and actual project start time are dependent upon the Department of Labor funding allocation being received. In constructing your timeline, rather than identifying a specific date, you could identify it as: Month 1, Month 2, etc.