U.S. Department of Education · General
ED Title III-A Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP)
Five-year development grants to non-MSI institutions with low educational and general expenditures per FTE and a high percentage of needy students. Funds academic quality, institutional management, and fiscal stability improvements.
Program facts
- Typical award
- $400K – $600K
- Non-federal match
- Varies by NOFO
- Audience
- Local governments and eligible subrecipients
- Application window
- Approximately every five years per competition cycle.
- Typical prep time
- 10–18 weeks
- Statutory authority
- Higher Education Act Title III, Part A §311 (20 U.S.C. §1057)
Catalog entry last verified 2026-05-27 · Verify on the agency page →
Eligibility at a glance
- Institutions of higher education are eligible applicants.
Institution must demonstrate financial need and serve a high proportion of low-income students; eligibility designation must be obtained from ED before applying. Amounts and timing approximate; verify directly with administering agency.
How Strategic Pursuit scores this program
When you run a city dossier, Strategic Pursuit cross-checks the city's demographics, federal award history, disaster history, and CEJST burden categories against this program's eligibility and strategic-fit signals. You see an explicit eligibility / strategic / competitive grade — backed by source citations — instead of a generic "match" badge.
Planning purposes only. Award ranges, match percentages, and application windows on this page summarize the latest publicly available agency guidance and are approximate. Always verify the binding NOFO on the administering agency's page before applying.