Call for Reviewers

FY 2023 21st CCLC National Technical Assistance Center (NTAC)

CALL FOR PEER REVIEWERS

CONTEXT: The U.S. Department of Education (Department) seeks individuals to serve as external peer reviewers of applications for the Department’s discretionary grant for the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) National Technical Assistance Center (NTAC). The purpose of the 21st CCLC NTAC is to support State educational agencies (SEAs) and their subgrantees that operate 21st CCLC programs. The 21st CCLC NTAC will initially focus on: (a) students’ academic and mental health needs and alignment with the traditional school day (e.g., literacy, math, overall well-being); (b) academic recovery (e.g., acceleration, high-dosage tutoring); (c) science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) activities; (d) providing 21st CCLC programming in rural areas; (e) improving attendance and student engagement of middle and high school students; (f) re-engagement of disengaged youth; (g) implementation and evaluation of 21st CCLC programs; (h) supporting multilingual learners; (i) financial literacy; (j) supporting discretionary grants funded with 21st CCLC funds, including the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) four current 21st CCLC Out-of-School Time Career Pathway grants; and (k) any other priority areas mutually identified by the grantee and the Department through annual service plans. In addition, the 21st CCLC NTAC will provide sessions and resources to support SEAs and their 21st CCLC subgrantees in the development and implementation of robust 21st CCLC programs. The grantee will periodically gather data from SEAs and a sample of 21st CCLC subgrantees, as well as the Department, to determine its activities and to plan its technical assistance using a multi-tiered system of supports and/or a multi-session series that incorporates principles of adult learning, resulting in improved systems and processes for SEAs and 21st CCLC subgrantees.

WHO: The Department seeks peer reviewers with up-to-date and relevant knowledge of educational interventions and practices across the learning continuum, from elementary education to college and career, and a variety of learning settings, including charter schools, public schools, tribally operated schools, private schools, and institutions of higher education. Department peer reviewers are education professionals who have gained subject matter expertise through their education and work (e.g., Kindergarten through grade 12 teachers, out-of-school time directors, professors, school administrators, school counselors, researchers, evaluators, curriculum developers, advocates, consultants). The Department seeks reviewers with experience implementing high quality out-of-school time activities. The Department is also seeking reviewers with knowledge of high needs communities and the challenges faced by students and their families, particularly those with expertise in one or more of the focus areas listed in the section above. Peer reviewers can be active education professionals in any educational level or sector or those who are retired but stay informed of current educational content and issues. No prior experience as a peer reviewer is required.

WHAT: The Department will offer peer reviewers an honorarium. Peer reviewers will independently read, score, and provide written comments for grant applications submitted to the Department under the NTAC program. These reviews will be used to recommend applications for funding. Copies of the reviewer’s comments will be shared with respective applicants following the review; however, personally identifiable information will be redacted. Comments regarding winning applicants will also be made available to the general public following the completion of the application review process. Reviewers must adhere to the requirements listed in this call for peer reviewers.

REQUIREMENTS:

Availability: Each reviewer will need to dedicate approximately 60 hours of time for reading, scoring, developing comments, and discussing assigned applications over a four-week period, likely beginning on or around June 14, 2023, and ending on or around July 14, 2023. Reviewers must also participate in the Department’s webinar-based technical assistance session to prepare for the review. This webinar is tentatively scheduled for June 14, 2023. Reviewers must be available for the duration of the peer review and should anticipate reviewing applications over the weekend if necessary. No panel calls will take place on June 19 or July 4.

Tools: Each reviewer must have access to the Internet, a phone, and the ability to interact within the web environment. The review will be conducted totally online.

Quality of review: Each reviewer must provide detailed, objective, constructive, and timely written reviews for each assigned application.

Review Schedule: Once the review schedule is finalized, each reviewer must commit to the schedule in writing. Reviewers who are unable to commit to the agreed upon schedule during the competition will be dismissed.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST ISSUES:

If you are affiliated with an organization that intends to apply for a grant under the NTAC competition, you may not be eligible to serve as a reviewer. As a reviewer, you will have a conflict of interest if (a) you helped prepare an application, regardless of financial interest in the success or failure of that application; (b) you have agreed to serve, or you have been offered a position, as an employee, advisor, or consultant on the project; and/or (c) your personal financial interest will be affected by the outcome of the competition, which would include any family members, employees or associates of the project applying for funding. These and other potential conflicts of interest will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis once identified/disclosed.

TO APPLY: To apply to be a peer review, please send an updated resume, in Word or PDF format, to 21stCCLC@ed.gov no later than May 12. You are encouraged to highlight your areas of expertise that are aligned with the areas of focus mentioned above. Please include the following in the subject line of your e-mail: “2023 NTAC Peer Review.”

You must register as a reviewer and submit your resume in G5 (www.g5.gov). If you need help, you may contact the G5 helpdesk at edcaps.user@ed.gov or call 1-888-336-8930. The G5 system will require you to submit your resume in a PDF format only; please ensure your resume (maximum of 5 pages) includes a brief list of career highlights and/or outlines your specific expertise in one or more of the areas outlined in the above call for reviewers. You are encouraged to highlight your areas of expertise that are aligned with the areas of focus mentioned above. Please do not exceed the five-page limit for resumes.
Please note that registering in G5 does not guarantee that you will be selected as a reviewer.
To expedite consideration of your resume, be sure to send a copy (maximum of 5 pages) to 21stCCLC@ed.gov.

Note: If you are retired, please list all consulting positions or other relevant positions you have held since retirement. Please provide a full description of your professional work experience and substantive professional experience that are relevant to this type of work. We are interested in all work you have accomplished involving elementary and secondary education, out-of-school-time programming, academic needs and recovery, mental health needs, nontraditional educational settings, and implementation and evaluation of 21st CCLC programs, including any grant reviewing experience of other Federal programs.

Reasonable Accommodation Policy: The Department’s policy is to provide reasonable accommodation for volunteers, part-time employees, student interns, detailees, and temporary employees who are qualified individuals with disabilities, unless doing so poses an undue hardship. After a candidate is notified of his or her appointment as a reviewer, it is the reviewer’s responsibility to inform the Department in a timely manner of any disability that would require a need for reasonable accommodations in order to perform the duties of the position.

If you have any questions about any aspect of this document, please contact us at 21stCCLC@ed.gov.