[Federal Register: April 1, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 62)] [Notices] [Page 15905-15909] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr01ap99-186] [[Page 15905]] _______________________________________________________________________ Part III Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education _______________________________________________________________________ Department of Justice Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention _______________________________________________________________________ Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration _______________________________________________________________________ Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities National Programs; Federal Activities Grants Program--Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative; Final Priority and Selection Criteria; Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year 1999; Notices [[Page 15906]] DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Elementary and Secondary Education DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; Center for Mental Health Services; Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities National Programs; Federal Activities Grants Program--Safe Schools/ Healthy Students Initiative; Notice of Final Priority and Selection Criteria AGENCY: Department of Education. ACTION: Notice of final priority and selection criteria for fiscal year 1999. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Secretary of Education (the Secretary), with the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Attorney General, announces a final priority and selection criteria for fiscal year (FY) 1999. Under this priority, the Departments of Education (ED), Health and Human Services (HHS), and Justice (DOJ) will fund the implementation and enhancement of comprehensive community-wide strategies for creating safe and drug-free schools and promoting healthy childhood development. To be funded, local comprehensive plans must address the following six elements and may address other elements as determined by the needs of the community: (1) Safe school environment; (2) youth alcohol and drug prevention, violence prevention, and early intervention; (3) school and community mental health preventive and treatment intervention programs; (4) early childhood psychosocial and emotion development services; (5) educational reform; and (6) safe school policies. EFFECTIVE DATE: This notice takes effect April 1, 1999. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Detailed information regarding the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative is available at the following sites on the World Wide Web: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OESE/SDFS http://www.ojjdp.ncjrs.org http://www.usdoj.gov/cops http://www.samhsa.gov http://www.mentalhealth.org Individuals who use a telecommunications devices for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: More than a generation of research has provided a solid knowledge base of the complex risk processes that lead to violent outcomes for children, families, schools, and communities. Antisocial behaviors of children and adolescents at highest risk arise from the interaction of multiple environmental and individual antecedents that begin early in the child's life. They include (1) stressful family environments; (2) lack of parenting skills; (3) alienation between family and school (and other community institutions); and (4) individual characteristics of the child that may be biologically based (e.g., irritability, impulsivity), that interfere with critical early attachment and nurturing relationships and later make the child's behavior difficult to control. This results in the early onset of aggressive behaviors, an increase in behavior problems at home, and the continuation and escalation of problems with peers and teachers when the child reaches school age. Unless interrupted, antisocial behavior persists throughout the school career and on into adulthood. High risk converges in middle school and accelerates into adolescence. Risk is exacerbated by exposure to negative peer pressure and a noxious environment where few protective factors are available. This, in turn, increases the likelihood of interpersonal violence and other antisocial behavior, substance abuse and addiction, potential drug dealing, the emergence of disorders such as depression and anxiety, academic failure, risky sexual behaviors leading to increased risk for HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases, and teen pregnancy. The Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative draws on the best practices of the education, justice, social service, and mental health systems to promote a comprehensive, integrated framework for use by communities in planning, designing, and implementing programs to prevent school violence and youth alcohol and other drug use. This comprehensive framework includes: (1) Establishing school-community partnerships; (2) identifying and measuring the problem; (3) setting measurable goals and objectives; (4) identifying appropriate research- based programs and strategies; (5) implementing the programs and strategies in an integrated fashion; (6) evaluating the outcomes of the programs and strategies; and (7) revising the comprehensive plan on the basis of evaluation information. The goal of the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative is to help students develop the skills and emotional resilience necessary to promote positive mental health and engage in pro-social behavior, and, thereby prevent violent behavior and alcohol and other drug use to ensure that all students who attend the schools served by this initiative are able to learn in a safe, disciplined, and drug-free environment. Successful applicants will provide students, schools, and families within the targeted geographic area to be served a network of effective comprehensive services, supports, and activities that promote healthy development and safety. Eligible Applicants: Local educational agencies. The Secretary, with the Secretary of HHS and the Attorney General, will award approximately 50 grants in fiscal year 1999 to local educational agencies. To be eligible for funding applicants must: (a) Demonstrate that they have developed a comprehensive, integrated, community-wide Safe Schools/Healthy Students Plan in partnership with, at a minimum, their local public mental health authority and law enforcement agency, students and members of their families, teachers, and juvenile justice officials, and that the plan addresses at least the following six elements: (1) safe school environment; (2) youth alcohol and drug prevention, violence prevention, and early intervention; (3) school and community mental health preventive and treatment intervention services; (4) early childhood psychosocial and emotional development services; (5) educational reform; and (6) safe school policies; (b) Submit a written agreement signed by the school superintendent, the head of the local public mental health authority, and the chief law enforcement executive adopting the plan that describes (1) the goals and objectives of the partnership, and (2) a delineation of the roles and responsibilities of the partners; (c) Submit a written agreement signed by the school superintendent and head of the local public mental health organization that describes the procedures the signatories will use for referral, treatment, and follow-up by the appropriate mental health system for children and adolescents with serious mental health problems; [[Page 15907]] (d) Provide a baseline assessment of risk factors among students and within the community, and resources and services available to students and their families, including: (1) Risk factors among students such as the number of students engaged in alcohol and drug use and violent behavior; incidence and prevalence of alcohol and drug use by youth; weapon carrying or possessing in schools; incidents of serious and violent crime in schools; truancy and other unauthorized absences; suicidal behaviors; student suspensions and/or expulsions for drug use or violent behavior; students on probation; students in juvenile justice placements; students in foster care and child protective services; children abused and neglected; students with emotional and behavioral disorders; and data on school attendance and student academic performance. (2) Community risk factors such as socioeconomic conditions as measured by the percentage of families at or below the poverty level and the percentage of students receiving free and reduced cost meals at schools; population turnover; racial and ethnic heterogeneity; housing density; household composition; crime and delinquency rates, including domestic violence and rape; and suicide rates. (3) Resources and services available to students and their families such as number of after-school programs; number of youth served by programs to build social skills; number and quality of community mental health and social service organizations available to provide services to children, adolescents, and families; number of youth participating in academic readiness programs; number and types of early intervention services and programs; number and types of law enforcement prevention programs; number of substance abuse programs, and presence of a community anti-drug coalition. (e) Agree to participate in a national evaluation of the Initiative that will collect data on student risk indicators and outcomes of the program(s) implemented across sites on an annual basis. (f) Provide a local plan for evaluating the community-wide strategy and agree to set aside sufficient funds (not less than 5 percent of the project budget) to fund a local evaluator to assist with a range of evaluation activities. (g) In the comprehensive plan, provide for mental health services for all students. (h) Show that Federal regulations regarding possession of firearms and reporting of firearm offenses to appropriate law enforcement officials and regulations regarding tobacco use are being enforced. In making awards under this grant program, the Secretary, with the Secretary of HHS and the Attorney General, may (1) take into consideration the geographic distribution and diversity of activities addressed by the projects, in addition to the rank order of applicants, and (2) in accordance with Section 75.217(d) of the Education Department General Administrative Regulations, ensure equitable distribution of grants under this program among urban, suburban, and rural LEAs. Contingent upon the availability of funds, the Secretary, with the Secretary of HHS and the Attorney General, may make additional awards in fiscal year 2000 from the rank-ordered list of unfunded applicants from this competition. Note: This notice of final priority and selection criteria does not solicit applications. A notice inviting applications under this competition is published in a separate notice in this issue of the Federal Register. Applications for this competition must be received at the address specified in the notice inviting applications for this competition no later than 5 p.m. on June 1, 1999. Applications received after that time will not be eligible for funding. Postmarked dates will not be accepted. Absolute Priority Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act, and the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriation Act of 1999, Public law 105-277, enacted October 21, 1998, the Secretary, with the Secretary of HHS and the Attorney General, gives an absolute preference to applications that meet the following priority. Absolute Priority--Enhancing and implementing comprehensive community-wide strategies for creating safe and drug-free schools and promoting healthy childhood development. Applicants proposing a project under this priority must demonstrate how the funds they are requesting support or enhance a comprehensive, integrated strategy for an entire school district. In circumstances where implementation of the strategy for an entire school district is not possible, applicants must provide a full explanation of how the chosen schools will receive all 6 elements of the plan, and why district-wide implementation is not feasible or appropriate. Selection Criteria The Secretary, with the Secretary of HHS and the Attorney General, uses the following selection criteria to evaluate applications for new grants under this competition. The maximum total score for all of these criteria is 100 points. The maximum score for each criterion or factor under that criterion is indicated in parentheses. (a) Problem(s) to be addressed (20 points). In assessing the extent to which the application is based on a clear and accurate statement of a significant problem faced by the target community, the following factors are considered. (Note: Applicants from Federal Empowerment Zones or Enterprise Communities will have five points added to their score under this criterion, with the total number of points awarded not to exceed 20). (1) The magnitude or severity of the problem(s) to be addressed by the proposed strategy. (2) The extent to which existing gaps in services and resources exist, the magnitude of those gaps and weaknesses, and the extent to which the community is ready to improve current conditions. (3) The factual basis for the problem statement based on data including, at a minimum but not limited to, the rates of the following: --students engaged in alcohol and drug use and violent behavior; --incidence and prevalence of alcohol and drug use among youth; --weapon carrying or possessing in schools; --incidents of serious and violent crime in schools; --truancy and other unauthorized absences; --suicidal behaviors; --student suspensions and expulsions; --students on probation; --students in juvenile justice placements; --students in foster care and child protective services; --children abused and neglected; --students with emotional and behavioral disorders; and --student attendance and academic performance data. (4) Evidence of community risk factors including: --socioeconomic conditions as measured by the percentage of families at or below the poverty level and percentage of students receiving free and reduced cost meals at school; [[Page 15908]] --population turnover; --racial and ethnic heterogeneity; --housing density; --household composition; --crime and delinquency rates including domestic violence and rape; and --suicide rates. (5) The extent to which the problem statement includes an assessment of the community resources available for children and adolescents, including: --number of after-school programs; --number of youth served by programs to build social skills; --number and quality of community mental health and social service organizations available to provide services to children, adolescents, and families; --number of youth participating in academic readiness programs; --number and types of early intervention services and programs; --number and types of law enforcement prevention programs; --number and quality of substance abuse prevention programs; and --presence of a community anti-drug coalition. (b) Goals and objectives (10 points). In assessing the goals and objectives of the proposed comprehensive plan, the following factors are considered. (1) The extent to which the goals and objectives for the proposed strategy are clearly defined, measurable, and attainable. (2) The extent to which the proposed strategy will meet the established goals and objectives and lead to healthy childhood development and positive mental health, and safe, disciplined, and alcohol and drug-free learning environments. (3) The extent to which the objectives identified are related to measurable action steps needed to achieve the goal(s). (c) Design of Proposed Strategy (30 points). In assessing the design of the proposed strategy, the following factors are considered. (Note: Ten of the 30 points available for this criterion will be awarded for item 9, extent to which activities/ interventions are evidence-based, for those strategies that propose activities under program elements 2,3, and/or 4 of the comprehensive plan.) (1) The extent to which the proposed strategy represents a comprehensive network in which each element of the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative is addressed and incorporated in an integrated fashion; (2) The extent to which the intervention is appropriate for the age and developmental levels, gender, and ethnic and cultural diversity of the target population; (3) The extent to which the application clearly describes the programs, activities, and services that comprise the proposed strategy; (4) The extent to which the application demonstrates a linkage between program activities and objectives of the strategy; (5) The adequacy of the identified performance measures to demonstrate whether and to what extent the proposed strategy is meeting its short-term, intermediate, and long-term objectives; (6) The extent to which the proposed strategy will be coordinated with similar or related efforts and will establish linkages with other appropriate agencies and organizations providing services to the target population including community, State, and Federal resources. (7) Adequacy and appropriateness of the plan to collect data related to violence from a variety of sources such as mental health services, social services, schools, law enforcement agencies, and the juvenile justice system. (8) The potential for continued support of the strategy after Federal funding ends, including, as appropriate, the demonstrated commitment of appropriate entities to such support. (9) The extent to which the activities/interventions proposed under program elements 2, 3, and/or 4 of the comprehensive plan are evidence- based; that is, they have a solid base of research evidence demonstrating effectiveness. (10 points) (10) The extent to which the program is adequately documented so that both the process and positive outcome can be easily replicated. (11) The extent to which the program selected is designed to help meet the goals and objectives of the community's comprehensive plan. (d) (Evaluation Plan (10 points) In determining the quality of the evaluation plan, the following factors will be considered: (1) The extent to which the plan provides information for increasing the effectiveness of management and administration of the comprehensive plan, documents that objectives have been met, and determines the overall effectiveness of the plan, its programs, and strategies. (2) The extent to which the methods of evaluation are thorough, feasible, and appropriate to the goals, objectives, and outcomes of the proposed strategy. (3) The extent to which the methods of evaluation will provide timely guidance for quality assurance. (e) Management and Organizational Capability (20 points). In determining the quality of management and organizational capability, the following factors are considered: (1) The level of commitment proposed by the written agreements signed by the school superintendent, the head of the local public mental health authority, and the chief law enforcement executive, as well as written agreements with other community partners. (2) The relevance and demonstrated commitment of each partner in the proposed strategy to the implementation and success of the strategy. (3) The adequacy of the management plan to achieve the objectives of the proposed project on time and within budget, including clearly defined responsibilities, timelines, and milestones for accomplishing project tasks. (4) The adequacy of procedures for communicating and sharing information among all partners to ensure feedback and continuous improvement in the operation of the strategy. (5) The skills, experience, time commitments, and educational requirements of key staff and relevance of the objectives of the proposed strategy. (6) The extent to which staff and the training of those staff reflect the needs of the population to be served. (f) Budget (10 points). In determining the quality of the budget, the following factors will be considered: (1) The extent to which the costs are reasonable in relation to the number of students to be served and to the anticipated benefits and results; and (2) The extent to which fiscal control and accounting procedures will ensure prudent use, proper and timely disbursement and accurate accounting of funds received under the grant. Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking It is the Secretary's practice, in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553), to offer interested parties the opportunity to comment on proposed rules. Section 437(d)(1) of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA), however, exempts from this requirement rules that apply to the first competition under a new or substantially revised program. Funding was provided for this new initiative in the fiscal year 1999 appropriations act enacted October 21, 1998. The Secretary, in accordance with [[Page 15909]] section 437(d)(1) of GEPA, has decided to forego public comment in order to ensure timely grant awards. Intergovernmental Review This program is subject to the requirements of Executive Order 12372 (Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs) and the regulations in 34 CFR Part 79. The objective of the Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental partnership and to strengthen federalism by relying on processes developed by State and local governments for coordination and review of proposed Federal financial assistance. In accordance with the order, this document is intended to provide early notification of the Federal Departments' specific plans and actions for this program. Electronic Access to This Document Anyone may view this document on the World Wide Web at the following sites: http://ocfo.ed/gov/fedreg.htm http://www.ed.gov/OESE/SDFS http://www.ojjdp.ncjrs.org http://www.usdoj.gov/cops http://www.samhsa.gov http://www.mentalhealth.org Note: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register. Dated: March 25, 1999. Judith Johnson, Acting Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. Shay Bilchik, Administrator, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Joseph Brann, Director, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. Nelba Chavez, Administrator, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.184L, Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act National Programs--Federal Activities Grants Program.) [FR Doc. 99-7943 Filed 3-31-99; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4000-01-U