Title 20EducationRelease 119-73

§1068b Application review process

Title 20 › Chapter CHAPTER 28— - HIGHER EDUCATION RESOURCES AND STUDENT ASSISTANCE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER III— - INSTITUTIONAL AID › Part Part G— - General Provisions › § 1068b

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Applications for these grants must be read by a panel of reviewers the Secretary picks. The Secretary must make sure no reviewer has a conflict of interest. The Secretary must include readers who represent historically Black colleges, Hispanic institutions, Tribal colleges and universities, and schools with many Hispanic, Native American, Asian American, and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander students. All reviewers must get clear training on how to score applications, including what activities to favor for Part A and Part B grants and the factors used to judge quality, award decisions, award amounts, and grant length. The Secretary must consider the panel’s recommendations when awarding grants. By June 30 each year, the Secretary must tell every applicant its panel score, the panel’s recommendations, and the Secretary’s reasons for granting or denying a grant, including any changes the Secretary made to the panel’s recommendations. These rules do not apply to Part D applications.

Full Legal Text

Title 20, §1068b

Education — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)All applications submitted under this subchapter by institutions of higher education shall be read by a panel of readers composed of individuals selected by the Secretary. The Secretary shall assure that no individual assigned under this section to review any application has any conflict of interest with regard to the application which might impair the impartiality with which the individual conducts the review under this section.
(2)The Secretary shall take care to assure that representatives of historically and predominantly Black colleges, Hispanic institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and institutions with substantial numbers of Hispanics, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and Native American Pacific Islanders (including Native Hawaiians) are included as readers.
(3)All readers selected by the Secretary shall receive thorough instruction from the Secretary regarding the evaluation process for applications submitted under this subchapter and consistent with the provisions of this subchapter, including—
(A)explanations and examples of the types of activities referred to in section 1057(b) of this title that should receive special consideration for grants awarded under part A and of the types of activities referred to in section 1062 of this title that should receive special consideration for grants awarded under part B;
(B)an enumeration of the factors to be used to determine the quality of applications submitted under this subchapter; and
(C)an enumeration of the factors to be used to determine whether a grant should be awarded for a project under this subchapter, the amount of any such grant, and the duration of any such grant.
(b)In awarding grants under this subchapter, the Secretary shall take into consideration the recommendations of the panel made under subsection (a).
(c)Not later than June 30 of each year, the Secretary shall notify each institution of higher education making an application under this subchapter of—
(1)the scores given the applicant by the panel pursuant to this section;
(2)the recommendations of the panel with respect to such application; and
(3)the reasons for the decision of the Secretary in awarding or refusing to award a grant under this subchapter, and any modifications, if any, in the recommendations of the panel made by the Secretary.
(d)The provisions of this section shall not apply to applications submitted under part D.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was formerly classified to section 1068 of this title prior to renumbering by Pub. L. 105–244.

Amendments

1998—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 105–244, § 308(e)(1), substituted “Tribal Colleges and Universities” for “Native American colleges and universities”. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 105–244, § 308(e)(2), added subsec. (d).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1998 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 105–244 effective Oct. 1, 1998, except as otherwise provided in Pub. L. 105–244, see section 3 of Pub. L. 105–244, set out as a note under section 1001 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

20 U.S.C. § 1068b

Title 20Education

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73