34 C.F.R. § 401.20 – How does the Secretary evaluate an application?

(a) The Secretary evaluates an application on the basis of the criteria in § 401.21.
(b) The Secretary may award up to 100 points, including a reserved 15 points to be distributed in accordance with paragraph (d) of this section, based on the criteria in § 401.21.
(c) Subject to paragraph (d) of this section, the maximum possible score for each criterion is indicated in parentheses after the heading for each criterion.
(d) For each competition, as announced through a notice published in the Federal Register, the Secretary may assign the reserved points among the criteria in § 401.21.
(e) In addition to the 100 points to be awarded based on the criteria in § 401.21, the Secretary awards -
1. (1) Up to 5 points to applications that propose exemplary approaches that involve, coordinate with, or encourage tribal economic development plans; and
2. (2) Five points to applications from tribally controlled community colleges that -
  1. (i) Are accredited or are candidates for accreditation by a nationally recognized accreditation organization as an institution of postsecondary vocational education; or
  2. (ii) Operate vocational education programs that are accredited or are candidates for accreditation by a nationally recognized accreditation organization and issue certificates for completion of vocational education programs.
    (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2313(b))