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The
Minority
Institutions
Assistance
Program
(MIA)
Office of
Exploratory Research
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£PAX
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Introduction
The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), through its
Office of Exploratory Research (OER) , operates a special
program to provide Federal assistance to Minority
Institutions. The Minority Institutions Assistance (MIA)
Program was initiated in 1981 in response to Executive Order
12320 (September 15, 1981), to increase research support for
eligible minority institutions and to provide fellowships for
students attending these institutions. This Order is now
superceded by Executive Order 12677, dated April 28, 1989.
SV Eligible Institutions
Eligible Minority Institutions under OER's MIA Programs are
those identified by the Secretary of the Department of
Education as Historically Black Colleges or Universities
(HBCU's), and the Hispanic Association of Colleges or
Universities (HACU's) .
Programs
Presently the MIA Program has three separate components:
a Research Assistance Program for faculty; an Undergraduate/
Graduate Fellowships Program; and a Summer Intern Program for
students who have successfully completed the Student
Fellowships Program. The three programs are described
separately below.
I. Research Assistance Program
The MIA Research Assistance Program is a part of the regular
competitive research grants program, managed by OER. MIA
grant applications are processed, evaluated, and reviewed by
the same criteria as all other applications. The differences
between the MIA and the regular competitive program are: (1)
the MIA institutions may upon request receive preapplication
assistance and (2) a limited amount of money is set aside to
fund MIA applications recommended for funding by the Peer
Review Panels.
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The Objectives of the program are:
0 To identify existing and potential environmental research
capability within minority institutions and to assist
them in participating in EPA research activity;
0 To help minority institutions to become more competitive
with other institutions for Federal funds;
0 To provide an opportunity Nfor minority students to gain
research experience in environmental science fields; and
0 To promote good working relationships between the Agency
and participating institutions.
Terms and Restrictions for Research Assistance
0 Consideration will be given only to applications
submitted by institutions identified by the Secretary of
the Department of Education as HBCU'S, or HACU's.
0 In contrast to the regular grants program, preapplication
assistance is available upon request. A potential
investigator may submit a preapplication for informal
scientific review and determination of its relevance to
Agency research goals.
0 The Application Forms (SF 424 and 424A), instructions
and procedures are the same as those used for EPA's
regular research grants, except that "MIA", as well as
the "discipline" should be typed in Block (10) on the
face page to identify the program to which the
application is directed. Use one of the following
designations for "discipline":
Environmental Health
Environmental Biology
Chemistry and Physics, Water
Chemistry and Physics, Air
Environmental Engineering
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All of the research topic areas described for the regular
research grant program are applicable to the MIA Program and
the publication "Solicitation for Research Grant Proposals",
is available on request.
Preapplication Assistance
In order to provide meaningful preapplication assistance, a fully
developed proposal must be submitted. Concept papers or
preliminary ideas do not provide sufficient material for a
preapplication scientific review. Discussions with the MIA Program
Manager of the OER staff may be helpful in the selection of the
area of research. The MIA Program Manager is:
Ms. Virginia Broadway (RD-675)
Research Grants Staff, OER
Environmental Protection Agency
401 M Street, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20460
The preapplication proposal should be prepared in the same style
and completeness as if it were a formal application.
Preapplication proposals are reviewed by OER staff for Agency
relevance and scientific merit. The service is provided only for
those institutions qualifying under the MIA Program terms and
restrictions for research assistance.
Format of Research Application
A complete set of instructions is available in the Addendum to Form
SF 424 located in the Application Kit for Assistance. The Addendum
can also used as a check off list to assure your application is
complete. If there are further questions concerning instructions,
please call the MIA Program Manager.
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Review Process of Formal Research Applications
All applications will initially be reviewed by the Agency to
determine their legal and administrative acceptability.
Acceptable applications will then be reviewed by an
appropriate peer review panel. This review is designed to
evaluate and rank each proposal according to its scientific
and/or technical merit as a basis for recommending Agency
approval of disapproval.
The Peer review panels use the following- criteria in their
review:
0 Quality of research plan (including theoretical and/or
experimental design, originality, and creativity).
0 Qualifications of principal investigator and staff
including knowledge of subject area.
0 Potential contribution to scientific knowledge.
0 Availability and adequacy of facilities and equipment.
0 Budgetary justification.
Proposals which receive a panel's approval based upon
scientific merit are further evaluated by EPA officials for
relevance to the Agency's mission and budget appropriations.
It is emphasized that scientifically approved applications
must be germane to EPA's mission to be funded. A summary of
the scientific review and recommendation of the panel(s) will
be provided to each applicant.
Peer Review Panel Membership
Each peer review panel is composed primarily of non-EPA
scientists and engineers who are acknowledged experts in their
respective disciplines. OER encourages the participation of
scientists and engineers from minority institutions in all
five review panel disciplines. Interested scientists should
contact the'MIA Program Manager.
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Application Procedures
Application forms, instructions, and other pertinent
information are available in the EPA Research Grant
Application/Information Kit. It is recommended that
interested investigators review the material in this kit
before preparing an application for assistance. The kits are
available from:
Grants Operations Branch
Grants Administration Division (PM-216F)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
401 M Street, SW
Washington, DC 20460
or
Research Grants staff
Office of Exploratory Research (RD-675)
Office of Research and Development
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
401 M Street, SW
Washington, DC 20460
II Student Fellowship Program
The objective of the Fellowship Program is to encourage students
enrolled at minority institutions to develop careers , in
environmental research via the environmental sciences, biological
sciences, physical sciences, computer sciences, engineering, and
mathematics. Awarded fellowships provide payment of full tuition
and fees, a $250 book allowance and a monthly stipend for one
academic year.
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Terms and Restrictions for student Fellowship Assistance
0 Consideration will be given only to applicants who are
enrolled full-time in a four year minority institution
(HBCU or HACU) and must be at least a junior at the time
of application. The applicant must also be in good
standing with that institution.
0 The applicant must be a senior or graduate student with
a cumulative grant Point Average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher
on a scale of 4.0
0 Student Fellowship applications must be properly executed
on EPA Form 5770-4. Failure to complete all forms with
appropriate signatures will delay processing or
disqualify the application. Each application must enter
"MIA" in the upper left-hand corner of the face page.
0 Applicants must be citizens of the United States, its
territories, or possessions, or lawfully admitted to the
U. S. for permanent residence.
0 If selected for a Student Fellowship, the applicant must
agree in writing, at the time of award that he/she will
participate in the EPA Summer Intern Program, following
completion of the fellowship. (See Summer Intern Program
in this publication).
0 The Environmental Protection Agency reserves the right
to limit the number of awards to a particular college or
university.
Review Process for Fellowship Applications
All applications will be reviewed by an appropriate fellowship
panel and evaluated for the following: '
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individual's orientation towards and commitment to a
career in the Environmental Sciences, Physical Sciences
(Chemistry, Physics), Biological Sciences (Microbiology,
Ecology, Marine Biology, Biochemistry) , Computer Science,
Mathematics or Engineering;
Grade Point Average (GPA) verified by college transcript;
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3. applicant's statement objectives and personal goals;
4. recommendations by the sponsor and faculty;
5. employment experience related to the field of study; and
6. the sponsor's summary of plans for the applicant's
proposed training and facilities available to him/her.
Application Procedure
Each year (around January) the solicitation for the EPA Student
Fellowship Program is sent to all eligible minority institutions
with applications due in March or April. Application forms,
instructions, and other pertinent information are available in the
EPA Fellowship/Traineeship Application Kit. It is suggested that
a faculty or staff member be responsible for the oversight of
preparation and timely submission of applications by students.
Application assistance is available from the MIA Program Manager.
III.
Intern Program
Subject to the availability of projects, all fellowship
recipients are required to serve in a 10 - 12 week summer
internship at an EPA facility. The internship is a
continuation of the fellowship during the summer immediately
following the academic year in which the fellowship is
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awarded. The program was started in 1985 with the
objective of allowing students to apply their newly
acquired skills to real-world environmental problems.
The program provides greater motivation to those students
who are truly interested in environmental conditions to
. target their continuing education and, ultimately, their
careers to the environment.
Under the program, fellows are matched to projects at
various EPA sites. They receive travel accommodations
to the work site at the beginning of the internship and
back home at the end. While at the EPA site, interns
receive a weekly stipend to cover living expenses.
Terms and Restrictions for Interns
0 Eligibility for the summer program is extended only to
current holders of minority academic fellowships. No
one else is eligible to apply. (See Minority Fellowship
Program in this publication.
0 Students in this program are assigned to a specific
project at an EPA facility and is supervised and overseen
by a mentor. The mentor gives the student guidance and
advice during the summer assignment and serves as the
student's supervisor.
0 Appointments are for approximately three months, from
early June through late August.
0 Mentors assist interns in locating and arranging adequate
and affordable housing and day-to-day transportation to
and from the project site.
0 Interns receive a stipend to cover expenses for food,
housing, day-to-day transportation to the work site, and
travel to the project site at the beginning of the
internship and back to their permanent residence at the
end.
Assignment Procedures
Between December and March of an academic year, current fellows
are contacted concerning upcoming summer assignments. Based on
their area of study and personal interests, they are interviewed
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by EPA organizations offering summer assignments, a match is made
and an assignment start date is scheduled. Interns begin their
assignments in accordance with that start date.
For more information, contact:
Alvin Edwards (RD-675)
Research Grants staff
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
401 M Street, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20460
(202) 382-7473
Additional Information
For administrative and technical information please contact:
Ms. Virginia E. Broadway
MIA Program Manager
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
401 M Street, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20460
(202) 382-7473
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