§ 607.10 What activities may and may not be carried out under a grant?

(a) Planning grants. Under a planning grant, a grantee shall formulate—

(1) A comprehensive development plan described in § 607.8; and

(2) An application for a development grant.

(b) Development grants—allowable activities. Under a development grant, except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, a grantee shall carry out activities that implement its comprehensive development plan and hold promise for strengthening the institution. Activities that may be carried out include, but are not limited to—

(1) Faculty exchanges, faculty fellowships, and faculty development that provide faculty with the skills and knowledge needed to—

(i) Develop academic support services, including advising and mentoring students;

(ii) Develop academic programs or methodology, including computer-assisted instruction, that strengthen the academic quality of the institution; or

(iii) Acquire terminal degrees that are required to obtain or retain accreditation of an academic program or department;

(2) Funds and administrative management that will improve the institution's ability to—

(i) Manage financial resources in an efficient and effective manner; and

(ii) Collect, access, and use information about the institution's operations for improved decisionmaking;

(3) Developing and improving academic programs that enable the institution to—

(i) Develop new academic programs or new program options that show promise for increased student enrollment;

(ii) Provide new technology or methodology to increase student success and retention or to retain accreditation; or

(iii) Improve curriculum or methodology for existing academic programs to stabilize or increase student enrollment;

(4) Acquiring equipment for use in strengthening management and academic programs to achieve objectives such as those described in paragraphs (b)(2) and (b)(3) of this section;

(5) Establishing or increasing the joint use of facilities such as libraries and laboratories to—

(i) Eliminate the distance and high cost associated with providing academic programs and academic support; or

(ii) Provide clinical experience that is part of an approved academic program at off-campus locations;

(6) Developing or improving student services to provide—

(i) New or improved methods to deliver student services, including counseling, tutoring, and instruction in basic skills; or

(ii) Improved strategies to train student services personnel;

(7) Payment of any portion of the salary of a dean, with proper justification, to fill a position under the project such as project coordinator or activity director. For purposes of this paragraph, proper justification includes evidence that the position entitled “Dean” is not one that has college-wide administrative authority and responsibility;

(8) Purchase, rental, or lease of scientific or laboratory equipment for educational purposes, including instructional and research purposes;

(9) Construction, maintenance, renovation, and improvement in classrooms, libraries, laboratories, and other instructional facilities, including the integration of computer technology into institutional facilities to create smart buildings;

(10) Establishing or improving a development office to strengthen or improve contributions from alumni and the private sector;

(11) Establishing or improving an endowment fund, provided a grantee uses no more than 20 percent of its grant funds for this purpose and at least matches those grant funds with non-Federal funds;

(12) Creating or improving facilities for Internet or other distance learning academic instruction capabilities, including purchase or rental of telecommunications technology equipment or services;

(13) For grants authorized under section 316 of the HEA to tribal colleges or universities—

(i) Purchase, rental, or lease of scientific or laboratory equipment for educational purposes, including instructional and research purposes;

(ii) Construction, maintenance, renovation, and improvement in classroom, library, laboratory, and other instructional facilities, including purchase or rental of telecommunications technology equipment or services;

(iii) Support of faculty exchanges, faculty development, and faculty fellowships to assist in attaining advanced degrees in their field of instruction;

(iv) Curriculum development and academic instruction;

(v) Purchase of library books, periodicals, microfilm, and other educational materials, including telecommunications program materials;

(vi) Funds and administrative management, and acquisition of equipment for use in strengthening funds management;

(vii) Joint use of facilities such as laboratories and libraries; and

(viii) Academic tutoring and counseling programs and student support services designed to improve academic services;

(ix) Academic instruction in disciplines in which Indians are underrepresented;

(x) Establishing or improving a development office to strengthen or improve contributions from the alumni and the private sector;

(xi) Establishing or enhancing a program of teacher education designed to qualify students to teach in elementary schools or secondary schools, with a particular emphasis on teaching Indian children and youth, that shall include, as part of such program, preparation for teacher certification;

(xii) Establishing community outreach programs that encourage Indian elementary school and secondary school students to develop the academic skills and the interest to pursue postsecondary education; and

(xiii) Establishing or improving an endowment fund, provided a grantee uses no more than 20 percent of its grant funds for this purpose and at least matches those grant funds with non-Federal funds; or

(14) For grants authorized under section 317 of the HEA to Alaska Native-serving institutions and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions—

(i) Purchase, rental, or lease of scientific or laboratory equipment for educational purposes, including instructional and research purposes;

(ii) Renovation and improvement in classroom, library, laboratory, and other instructional facilities;

(iii) Support of faculty exchanges, faculty development, and faculty fellowships to assist in attaining advanced degrees in the faculty's field of instruction;

(iv) Curriculum development and academic instruction;

(v) Purchase of library books, periodicals, microfilm, and other educational materials;

(vi) Funds and administrative management, and acquisition of equipment for use in strengthening funds management;

(vii) Joint use of facilities such as laboratories and libraries;

(viii) Academic tutoring and counseling programs and student support services.

(c) Development grants—unallowable activities. A grantee may not carry out the following activities or pay the following costs under a development grant:

(1) Activities that are not included in the grantee's approved application.

(2) Activities that are inconsistent with any State plan for higher education that is applicable to the institution, including, but not limited to, a State plan for desegregation of higher education.

(3) Activities or services that constitute religious instruction, religious worship, or proselytization.

(4) Activities provided by a school or department of divinity. For the purpose of this provision, a “school or department of divinity” means an institution, or a department of an institution, whose program is solely to prepare students to become ministers of religion or to enter into some other religious vocation.

(5) Developing or improving non-degree or non-credit courses other than basic skills development courses.

(6) Developing or improving community-based or community services programs, unless the program provides academic-related experiences or academic credit toward a degree for degree students, or unless it is an outreach program that encourages Indian elementary school and secondary school students to develop the academic skills and the interest to pursue postsecondary education.

(7) Purchase of standard office equipment, such as furniture, file cabinets, bookcases, typewriters, or word processors.

(8) Payment of any portion of the salary of a president, vice president, or equivalent officer who has college-wide administrative authority and responsibility at an institution to fill a position under the grant such as project coordinator or activity director.

(9) Costs of organized fund-raising, including financial campaigns, endowment drives, solicitation of gifts and bequests, and similar expenses incurred solely to raise capital or obtain contributions.

(10) Costs of student recruitment such as advertisements, literature, and college fairs.

(11) Services to high school students, unless they are part of a program to encourage Indian students to develop the academic skills and the interest to pursue postsecondary education.

(12) Instruction in the institution's standard courses as indicated in the institution's catalog.

(13) Costs for health and fitness programs, transportation, and day care services.

(14) Student activities such as entertainment, cultural, or social enrichment programs, publications, social clubs, or associations.

(15) Activities that are operational in nature rather than developmental in nature.

(d) Endowment funds. If a grantee uses part of its grant funds to establish or increase an endowment fund under paragraphs (b)(11) or (b)(13)(xiii) of this section, it must comply with the provisions of §§ 628.3, 628.6, 628.10 and 628.41 through 628.47 of this chapter with regard to the use of those funds, except—

(1) The definition of the term “endowment fund income” in § 628.6 of this chapter does not apply. For the purposes of this paragraph (d), “endowment fund income” means an amount equal to the total value of the fund, including fund appreciation and retained interest and dividends, minus the endowment fund corpus.

(2) Instead of the requirement in § 628.10(a) of this chapter, the grantee institution must match each dollar of Federal grant funds used to establish or increase an endowment fund with one dollar of non-Federal funds; and

(3) Instead of the requirements in § 628.41(a)(3) through (a)(5) and the introductory text in § 628.41(b) and § 628.41(b)(2) and (b)(3) of this chapter, if a grantee institution decides to use any of its grant funds for endowment purposes, it must match those grant funds immediately with non-Federal funds when it places those funds into its endowment fund.

[52 FR 30529, Aug. 14, 1987, as amended at 59 FR 41923, Aug. 15, 1994; 60 FR 15447, Mar. 23, 1995; 64 FR 70154, Dec. 15, 1999; 65 FR 79310, Dec. 19, 2000; 85 FR 59981, Sept. 23, 2020]