Strengthening University eLearning Capacity | PAS CMR FY20 08

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAS CMR FY20 08

The Strengthening University eLearning Capacity grant opportunity is a competitive funding call from the U.S. Embassy in Cameroon (U.S. Department of State, U.S. Mission to Cameroon) aimed at helping Cameroonian universities strengthen their ability to deliver quality distance education. The focus is on building practical, durable capacity among university leadership and faculty to use modern e-learning platforms effectively, so institutions can keep teaching when in-person learning is disrupted and so they can more easily partner with U.S. higher education institutions.

At its core, the program is designed to move universities from ad hoc online teaching to a more intentional, institution-wide approach. The stated objectives are to help universities identify what is currently blocking effective e-learning, such as limited administrative or staff buy-in, gaps in faculty digital teaching skills, and shortages in technology or infrastructure, and then propose realistic ways to resolve or work around those barriers. It also seeks to strengthen university officials understanding of distance learning tools and best practices, and to support adoption of remote teaching methods that are credible and sustainable. A final major objective is helping institutions develop and implement strategies that fit their local context, including how they will support both faculty and students, how they will monitor learning quality over time, and how they will adapt based on feedback and performance.

Projects can be built around a single university or structured to benefit multiple universities at once, depending on the applicants design and reach. Because universities differ widely in how far along they are with e-learning, proposals are expected to be grounded in a needs assessment. That can mean using existing needs-analysis data, or including a concrete plan to conduct a needs analysis early in the project and then tailoring activities to what is found.

The opportunity allows several possible activity areas. Applicants may focus on developing institutional e-learning strategies, creating new e-learning platforms, implementing existing commercial or free platforms, improving faculty competence in designing and teaching online courses, or addressing student-side factors that affect participation such as expensive or unreliable internet access. However, the program emphasizes that e-learning success depends on more than one piece of the puzzle. If a proposal concentrates on just one or two factors (for example, training lecturers on an LMS), it should still show an understanding of other barriers that could undermine results (such as leadership commitment, policies, connectivity, or student access) and explain how those issues will be addressed within the project or why they are already resolved in the target setting. In other words, the embassy is looking for proposals that connect training, technology, institutional decision-making, and student realities into a coherent plan.

A key requirement is that every funded project must include at least one American-linked element. This can take the form of a formal collaboration between a Cameroonian and an American university, an American expert serving on the project team or participating as a speaker or consultant, the use of U.S.-developed best practices for distance learning, or the use of distance learning technology developed in the United States. Proposals should make this component meaningful, not token, by showing how the U.S. partner or expert will directly improve project design, delivery, quality assurance, or long-term sustainability.

Given the timing of the opportunity, proposals and project implementation must also respect COVID-19 public health precautions. The call specifically notes physical distancing measures such as maintaining roughly 2 meters of separation, wearing masks, and limiting large gatherings. Applicants are encouraged to use virtual tools wherever possible and to budget realistically for the costs that come with virtual participation, such as data bundles for workshop participants or online facilitation needs.

The grant is offered as a cooperative agreement, meaning the U.S. government typically expects an ongoing level of involvement or coordination during implementation compared to a standard grant. The funding opportunity number is PAS CMR FY20 08, with a listed award ceiling of $50,000 and an expectation of about three awards. Eligible applicants include public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (including both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3) organizations), and individuals. The opportunity was posted July 19, 2020, with an original closing date of August 20, 2020.

Several activity types are explicitly not allowed under this funding. The program will not fund scholarships for study in the United States, nor will it support travel-based conference attendance, study tours, or similar trips to the United States. It also excludes inherently political or partisan activities, construction, programs that support specific religious activities, fundraising campaigns, and cash prizes for participants. Overall, the embassy is looking for practical education-focused projects that strengthen university systems and teaching capacity for distance learning, while staying nonpolitical, nonreligious in orientation, and centered on scalable, locally appropriate solutions.

• The Department of State, U.S. Mission to Cameroon in the education, humanities (see cultural affairs in cfda) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Strengthening University eLearning Capacity" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.040.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 19, 2020.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 20, 2020. (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 $50,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 3 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Individuals.

Apply for PAS CMR FY20 08

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: