Table of Contents

• Published date: 21 April 2011
• Date: 21 April 2011
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/fgc.20056

Vol. 35, No. 10 April 21, 2011

USDA: Improve access,

participation in a SNAP

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced

earlier this month that the U.S. Department of

Agriculture (USDA) will award grants to improve

access to and increase participation in the

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

(SNAP).

The grants, which will help develop projects that

simplify SNAP application and eligibility systems

and find efficiencies in the administration of the

program with the goal of providing critical

nutrition assistance to those in need are targeted

to state and local governments and private

nonprofit organizations.

“Hunger is unacceptable for anyone in this

country—especially our children,” said Secretary

Vilsack, in a statement. “The Obama

administration is dedicated to providing more

Americans with better access to the nutrition they

need. SNAP is central to ensuring our most

vulnerable populations have the opportunity to

sustain a healthy diet.”

The USDA said it hopes to invest up to $5 million

this year in process improvement efforts, and it is

also interested in funding projects that use

technology to achieve procedural changes, such as

document imaging, telephone interviews, or Web-

based access to case status information.

SNAP puts healthy food on the table for over 44

million people each month—half of whom are

children, according to the department.

The deadline to submit grant proposals is 5 p.m.

EDT on June 6, 2011.

To learn more or locate grant applications, go to

www.grants.gov or the Food and Nutrition Service

website at www.fns.usda.gov/snap. ■

Grants alert

Atlantis Program (ED)

Scope: The Education Department seeks applications

for the European Union-United States Atlantis Program

to improve postsecondary education opportunities by

focusing on problem areas in postsecondary education

or approaches.

Deadline: May 24.

Funds: $2 million total for awards ranging from $35,000

to $102,000 for the first year and $66,000 to $456,000

for the duration of the grant.

Eligibility: Colleges and universities; nonprofit

organizations; and consortia.

Areas: ED said as an absolute priority applicants must

propose a project that encourages: cooperation in the

coordination of curricula; the exchange of students, if

pertinent to grant activities; and the opening of

educational opportunities between the U.S. and

countries in the EU. Invitational priorities for projects

include a plan to work with an institution of higher

education in Muslim-majority countries (in addition

to countries in the EU) to create a partnership that

would focus on key elements of international student

exchange programs; community colleges or minority-

serving institutions; and projects where the lead

applicant institution has not served as a lead or partner

grantee in a consortia funded under this program since

FY2006.

Îhttp://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-04-

01/pdf/2011-7777.pd

Educational Opportunity Centers Program (ED)

Scope: The Education Department’s Office of

Postsecondary Education seeks applications for the

Educational Opportunity Centers (EOC) Program.

Deadline: May 23.

Funds: In FY2012, $46.3 million total, depending

on appropriations, for up to 124 awards ranging

from $230,000 to $1.1 million for projects of up to

60 months.

(more)

© 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., A Wiley Company • All rights reserved

View this newsletter online at wileyonlinelibrary.com • DOI: 10.1002/fgc.20056