Individuals interested in reading copies of funded grant proposals have several options available to them:

1. You may visit the Department’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) e-Reading room online at http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/foia/operoom.html .  The FOIA Service Center Staff, not FIPSE staff, have selected examples of certain grant applications for the public to view.  All inquiries regarding these selections should be sent to EDFOIAManager@ed.gov or call 202-401-8365.

2. You may contact the grant project director directly for a copy of the proposal.  The project director’s contact information is on the grant’s abstract page in the FIPSE database.  The database is located at www.fipseaed.org .  Please keep in mind that grant project directors are not obligated to provide you with a copy of their applications, although they may choose to do so as a courtesy.

3. You may file a FOIA request.  To do this, go to: http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/foia/request.html .  Your request will be received by a central office responsible for FOIA inquiries, not FIPSE.  FIPSE staff cannot respond to questions you may have about FOIA requests.

4. You may read a limited number of funded proposals from our hard-copy files if you are in Washington, DC and would like to visit our office. You will be able to read the proposal in the FIPSE office, but you will not be able to copy any material.

   Please contact FIPSE (202-502-7500) to arrange an appointment.  At least one week prior to your visit, send the grant numbers for the proposals that you are seeking to read to fipse@ed.gov .  (You can locate grant numbers by searching the FIPSE database at www.fipseaed.org .  The numbers we need are the P116#s.)  The minimum of one week’s advance notice is required to allow FIPSE staff time to prepare the files for your use.

Under no circumstances does FIPSE make unsuccessful applications available to the public.

Applicants requesting sample proposals are generally seeking exemplars, i.e. samples, that may serve as models or otherwise inform applicants in preparing a proposal for submission.  Seldom does this exercise prove as useful as expected.  First, every grant proposal has its shortcomings and, for that reason, sample proposals may not offer reliable guidance for proposal development.  Second, application instructions, review criteria, and review processes change from year to year.

The best guidance for writing a competitive proposal will be found in the instructions included in the Application Package of the annual competition to which you intend to apply.  Reading those instructions carefully, including giving close attention to criteria current reviewers will use, is likely to have much greater payoff than reading applications submitted in years past.

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