Susan Harwood Training and Educational Materials Development | SHTG FY 19 02

Opportunity Information: Apply for SHTG FY 19 02

The Susan Harwood Training and Educational Materials Development grant is a discretionary funding opportunity run by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). It traces back to OSHA's authority under Section 21(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 and has existed as a grant program since 1978, later renamed in 1997 to honor Susan Harwood, a former director in OSHA's Office of Risk Assessment. The overall purpose is practical and worker-focused: to help nonprofit organizations create training and education efforts that improve safety and health in the workplace, especially for small business employers and workers, by strengthening their ability to recognize hazards, avoid them, and prevent injuries and illnesses. A related goal is rights-and-responsibilities education, meaning workers learn their protections under the OSH Act while employers learn what they are required to do.

For fiscal year 2019, OSHA announced about $10.5 million total available across the Susan Harwood Training Program, with the expectation of making multiple awards through a competitive Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). This specific track is for Training and Educational Materials Development, with a maximum award (ceiling) of $75,000 per grant. OSHA anticipated making many awards overall (the source data lists an expected 80 awards). Awards are for a 12-month project period that must start no later than September 30, 2019 and end September 30, 2020, and like most federal programs, final awards depend on federal appropriations and the availability of funds.

Applicants under this FOA are not being funded primarily to deliver broad training programs from existing curricula; they are being funded to build new training materials around one of OSHA's specified training topics. The deliverables are fairly comprehensive and resemble a full course package rather than a simple slide deck. Required components include clearly stated learning objectives, a course matrix, presentation and training materials (including videos), instructor guides and participant guides, student handouts, tools to evaluate the training, and methods to assess learning. After development, grantees must also validate the materials in a live classroom training session, which functions as a real-world test to confirm the materials work as intended with actual learners.

Eligibility is limited to nonprofit organizations, with several categories explicitly included. Eligible applicants include qualifying labor unions, community-based and faith-based organizations, and employer associations, as long as the employer association is not an agency of a state or local government. State- or locally supported institutions of higher education may apply under the federal uniform guidance rules (OMB 2 CFR 200) and Department of Labor exceptions (2 CFR 2900). Tribal eligibility is also recognized: Indian tribes, tribal organizations, Alaska Native entities, Indian-controlled organizations serving Indians, and Native Hawaiian organizations can apply consistent with Executive Order 13175. On the other hand, several applicant types are explicitly excluded: individuals, for-profit organizations, and 501(c)(4) organizations are not eligible. The FOA also excludes certain prior grantees, specifically FY 2018 Susan Harwood grantees whose performance period extension exceeds the allowed threshold (the notice highlights that grantees with extensions beyond 90 days are not eligible for a FY 2019 award).

The competition has strict submission rules that affect strategy and quality control. An organization may receive only one Susan Harwood Training grant award in a fiscal year. If an organization submits more than one application, OSHA will only review the last complete and viable application package submitted, which makes version control and submission timing important. Once an application is submitted, it cannot be edited, corrected, or revised; the only way to make changes is to submit an entirely new application package.

OSHA also places tight boundaries on how the work can be carried out. Grant duties cannot be sub-awarded or passed through to other organizations, meaning the grantee must remain responsible for the core work rather than handing it off through subgrants. Contractors can be used, but the application and subsequent contracting must explain what each contractor will do, why they are necessary, and how they support the grant's activities; depending on the situation, those contracts may need to follow full and open competition requirements consistent with 2 CFR 200. Partnerships and consortia are allowed, but every participating entity must meet the FOA's eligibility definition and comply with program requirements. There is also a key conflict rule: an organization listed as a partner on one application may not apply for a separate grant at the same time. The applicant must act as the lead partner and name an authorized representative within its organization who has the authority to enter into the grant agreement and will serve as the main point of contact for OSHA.

Key administrative details from the source information include the opportunity title (Susan Harwood Training and Educational Materials Development), funding opportunity number (SHTG FY 19 02), CFDA number (17.502), and the original closing date of July 2, 2019. In practical terms, this opportunity is best understood as a one-year, relatively modest award meant to produce a polished, field-tested training package on an OSHA-designated hazard topic, created by eligible nonprofit organizations that can demonstrate both subject-matter capability and the operational capacity to develop materials, pilot them in a classroom setting, and manage federal grant compliance requirements.

• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration in the other sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Susan Harwood Training and Educational Materials Development" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 17.502.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-05-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2019-07-02. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $75,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 80 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for SHTG FY 19 02

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