Funding Opportunity Number: HRSA-24-015
Eligibility
Program Requirements
Application
Eligibility
Who is eligible to apply for the NFLP grant? Are individuals eligible to apply?
No. Individuals are not eligible to apply for this grant.
Applicants must be domestic accredited schools of nursing with advanced nursing education programs.
Is a Tribal Government eligible to apply for the NFLP grant? What role would the Tribal Government have in the NFLP grant?
Tribe or Tribal organization are considered eligible applicants. NFLP grants are awarded only to accredited nursing schools offering advanced nursing degree programs. If the Tribe or Tribal organization is not an accredited nursing school, but is a practice site, they can foster an academic-practice partnership framework, where the accredited nursing school applies for the NFLP grant.
We are a current NFLP grantee and still have remaining NFLP funds. Can we apply for more funding during the 2024 application cycle?
Yes. You can apply for additional funding if you anticipate needing more funds to support current or perspective student borrowers for the 2024 academic year.
Schools that do not receive a new award may continue making loans from the student loan fund account they have already established. Each fiscal year funding will be used to support new and continuing NFLP applicants. NFLP awardees are expected to continue conducting training activity and maintaining the loan fund account throughout the duration of the project. Currently, NFLP has a total of 213 awardees maintaining the loan fund account.
Note: The NFLP is a formula-based program. NFLP funds will be distributed among applicants as formula-payment based awards according to data provided in the application.
Which nursing programs are eligible for NFLP loan support? Are bridge programs included within this grant?
Eligible nursing degree programs include advanced nursing education masters and doctoral nursing degree programs such as MSN and DNP.
Other eligible doctoral programs that train nurses include, but not limited to:
- Doctor of Education (EdD)
- Doctorate of Nurse Anesthesia Practice (DNAP)
- Doctor of Anesthesia Practice (DrAP)
Students enrolled in post-master’s nursing certificate programs and Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) programs are eligible for NFLP funding.
Students enrolling in bridge programs, such as BSN to DNP or BSN to PhD, are eligible for NFLP loan support once their BSN degree is completed and they begin the graduate level nursing school.
Program Requirements
Does the same person often fill the Project Direct and Authorizing Official roles?
No. The Project Director (PD) and the Authorizing Official (AO) are two different roles. The PD and the AO cannot be the same person.
The PD is the main point of contact at the institution for NFLP correspondence with HRSA. The PD maintains primary oversight for the project and is responsible to HRSA for all deliverables, requests for information, participation in HRSA requirements, and collaborations required for the grant. The PD is the primary contact and works closely with HRSA staff, members of the project staff and partners, and other award recipients as needed, to synergize efforts and ensure success of the NFLP project.
The AO is the person legally and financially responsible for the use and disposition of any NFLP funds awarded based on this NFLP application. The AO is the individual, named by the applicant/recipient organization, who is authorized to act for the applicant/recipient and to assume the obligations imposed by the Federal laws, regulations, requirements, and conditions that apply to grant applications or awards.
Is the awarded institution required to provide an Institutional Capital Contribution?
Yes, awardees are required to provide an Institutional Capital Contribution (ICC). The ICC is a legislative requirement of the NFLP and is required for cost sharing/matching. Upon receipt of the NFLP award funds (Federal Capital Contribution/FCC) from HRSA, the ICC which is equal to not less than one-ninth of the FCC, must be deposited into the established interest-bearing student loan fund account.
What are some examples of nurse educator development activities that can be supported by the NFLP fund award?
Examples of nurse educator development activities are (not limited to):
- Mentorship Teaching practicum
- Teaching assistantships
- Nurse education focused workshops,
- Nurse educator certification preparation
- Nurse educator certification fees.
Nurse educator development activities should be incorporated as part of the curriculum/courses. NFLP loan funds can be used to cover the cost of student nurse educator development activities within the course of study, as a reasonable educational expense.
Can the NFLP grant be used to provide funding for existing faculty as a method of retention?
The NFLP grant funds can only be used to pay for the education of students enrolled in a course of study as outlined in the 2024 NFLP Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). Faculty members who are currently enrolled in an advanced nursing degree program at your institution can be eligible beneficiaries of NFLP. Their teaching time prior to graduation will not be eligible for loan cancellation.
Can part-time advanced nursing education students receive NFLP loan support? How is enrollment status determined?
Both part-time and full-time students in advanced nursing education programs can receive NFLP loan support. The school is responsible for determining academic semester sequence and student’s enrollment status (part-time or full-time) based on institutional policies.
Can the institution set a cap on the NFLP loan support to benefit a larger student population?
The NFLP loan support amount for any student cannot exceed $40,000 per academic year. Your institution (not HRSA) is responsible for determining the student loan amounts based on your internal loan disbursement requirement and student needs, without exceeding the maximum limit. We encourage institutions to request a federal award amount that meets each student needs without exceeding the academic year limit of $40,000 per student. Schools should prioritize loans to continuing NFLP borrowers ahead of new NFLP borrowers.
Can we allocate a part of the NFLP award for personnel, specifically for document processing and managing NFLP program requirements, or is it exclusively for personnel costs related to collections?
NFLP funds may only be used for students’ loan support except for covering the costs of collection of loaned principals, accrued interest and/or penalty, and cost of student nurse educator development activities as reasonable expenses.
NFLP funds can be used to cover the costs of collection of NFLP loans including designated institutional structures to collect costs/fees such as personnel and third-party servicers. If the document processing and program requirements management is part of collection activities, then those costs can be covered using NFLP funds.
Since accreditation is not required for some doctorate or post doctorate programs, what should we upload for the accreditation requirement in this application?
Doctorate or post-graduate certificate programs must have appropriate approvals recognized by the institutional boards/committees, higher education commissions, regional associations of higher education, such as, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, University’s Provost Office. Applicants must submit an official letter of approval for all doctoral programs included in the project. Upload as Attachment #1.
What does a nursing student that received NFLP support need to do to qualify for loan forgiveness or loan cancellation?
Students must complete and graduate from their advanced nursing education program. To qualify for loan cancellations, graduates must obtain full-time employment as nurse faculty within 12 months following graduation. For the NFLP, full-time employment, must include one of the following criteria:
- employment as a full-time faculty member at an accredited school of nursing;
- employment as a part-time faculty member at an accredited school of nursing in combination with another part-time faculty position or part-time clinical preceptor/educator position affiliated with an accredited school of nursing that together equates to full-time employment; or
- designation of nurse faculty in a joint nurse faculty appointment serving as full-time advanced practice registered nurse preceptor for an accredited school of nursing, within an academic-practice partnership framework
The institution which provided NFLP support to the student makes the determination about meeting the full-time employment requirement.
Application
In the NOFO, we are directed to upload the biographical sketch(es) with the R&R Senior/Key Person Profile (expanded) form, however this form is not available in the grants.gov application package. Where should we upload our Project Director’s biographical sketch?
Upload biographical sketches under Attachment 2 section in your application. Make sure the biographical sketches do not exceed 2 pages in length for each key personnel.
I am a returning grantee that did not apply under the 2023 application. Should I select “Continuation” or “New” as the type of application on the SF-424 R&R form in grants.gov?
Schools that received NFLP funding in past years must indicate ‘Continuation’ as the type of application when completing the SF-424 R&R form in grants.gov, regardless of whether the school recently applied for and received funding or had not received funding in recent years. Applicants that have never received NFLP funding must indicate ‘New’ as the type of application when completing the SF-424 R&R form in grants.gov.
I am a returning 2022 grantee that did not apply in the 2023 application cycle. How does this impact the Maintenance of Effort (MOE) under this application?
The MOE which is also your NFLP institutional capital contribution (ICC), must be equal to not less than one-ninth of your federal fund requested amount for this application. For the 2023 section that asks for your “actual” MOE amount, enter zero, as there were no additional funds requested and no ICC deposited in FY 2023.
Our APRN roles have different tuition costs. How should we enter that information?
You must enter the average amount for one term with fees/expenses based on the required full-time credit hours if your institution has more than one tuition cost.
Where should we report NFLP students whose specialty or degree is not listed on the Program Specific Form Part-4 - NFLP Enrollees by Practice?
Please use the “Other” row to report NFLP Enrollees by Degree and Specialty for any Nurse Practice Specialty not listed on table E.4 of the NFLP Program-Specific Forms.