[Federal Register: August 29, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 168)]
[Notices]
[Page 52629-52638]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr29au00-136]
[[Page 52629]]
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Part V
Department of Education
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Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Grant
Applications Under the Special Education--Personnel Preparation To
Improve Services and Results for Children With Disabilities Program;
Notice
[[Page 52630]]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Grant
Applications Under the Special Education--Personnel Preparation To
Improve Services and Results for Children with Disabilities Program
AGENCY: Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice inviting applications for new awards for fiscal year
(FY) 2001.
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SUMMARY: This notice provides closing dates and other information
regarding the transmittal of applications for FY 2001 competitions
under one program authorized by the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA), as amended. The program is: Special Education--
Personnel Preparation to Improve Services and Results for Children with
Disabilities (six priorities).
Goals 2000: Educate America Act
The Goals 2000: Education America Act (Goals 2000) focuses the
Nation's education reform efforts on the eight National Education Goals
and provides a framework for meeting them. Goals 2000 promotes new
partnerships to strengthen schools and expands the Department's
capacities for helping communities to exchange ideas and obtain
information needed to achieve the goals.
These priorities would address the first National Education Goal
that all children in America will start school ready to learn by
helping to improve results for children with disabilities.
Waiver of Rulemaking
It is generally our practice to offer interested parties the
opportunity to comment on proposed priorities. However, section
661(e)(2) of IDEA makes the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553)
inapplicable to the priorities in this notice.
General Requirements
(a) The projects funded under this notice must make positive
efforts to employ and advance in employment qualified individuals with
disabilities in project activities (see Section 606 of IDEA).
(b) Applicants and grant recipients funded under this notice must
involve individuals with disabilities or parents of individuals with
disabilities in planning, implementing, and evaluating the projects
(see Section 661(f)(1)(A) of IDEA).
(c) Applicants and grant recipients funded under this notice that
are not local educational agencies or State educational agencies must
include information demonstrating to our satisfaction that the
applicant and one or more State educational agencies have engaged in a
cooperative effort to plan the project to which the application
pertains and will cooperate in carrying out and monitoring the project.
(d) The projects funded under these priorities must budget for a
two-day Project Directors' meeting in Washington, D.C. during each year
of the project.
(e) In a single application, an applicant must address only one
absolute priority in this notice.
(f) Part III of each application submitted under a priority in this
notice, the application narrative, is where an applicant addresses the
selection criteria that are used by reviewers in evaluating the
application. You must limit Part III to the equivalent of no more than
the number of pages listed under each applicable priority, using the
following standards:
* A ``page'' is 8.5" x 11" (on one side only) with one-inch
margins (top, bottom, and sides).
* Double-space (no more than three lines per vertical inch)
all text in the application narrative, including titles, headings,
footnotes, quotations, and captions, as well as all text in charts,
tables, figures, and graphs.
* If using a proportional computer font, use no smaller than
a 12-point font, and an average character density no greater than 18
characters per inch. If using a nonproportional font or a typewriter,
do not use more than 12 characters per inch.
The page limit does not apply to Part I--the cover sheet; Part II--
the budget section, including the narrative budget justification; Part
IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page abstract, the
resumes, the bibliography or references, or the letters of support.
However, you must include all of the application narrative in Part III.
We will reject without consideration or evaluation any application
if--
* You apply these standards and exceed the page limit; or
* You apply other standards and exceed the equivalent of the
page limit.
Special Education--Personnel Preparation To Improve Services and
Results for Children With Disabilities [CFDA 84.325]
Purpose of Program: The purposes of this program are to (1) help
address State-identified needs for qualified personnel in special
education, related services, early intervention, and regular education,
to work with children with disabilities; and (2) to ensure that those
personnel have the skills and knowledge, derived from practices that
have been determined through research and experience to be successful,
that are needed to serve those children.
Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education are eligible
applicants for Absolute Priorities 1-4 under this program. Eligible
applicants for Absolute Priority 5, Projects of National Significance,
are: State and local educational agencies; institutions of higher
education; other public agencies; private nonprofit organizations;
outlying areas; freely associated States; and Indian tribes or tribal
organizations.
Applicable Regulations: (a) Program regulations in 34 CFR Part 304;
(b) The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR)
in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99; (c)
The selection criteria for the priorities under this program that are
drawn from the EDGAR general selection menu. The specific selection
criteria for each priority are included in the funding application
packet for the applicable competition.
Additional Requirement for All Personnel Preparation Program
Priorities
Student financial assistance is authorized only for the preservice
preparation of special education and related services personnel who
serve children ages 3 through 21, early intervention personnel who
serve infants and toddlers, and leadership personnel who work in these
areas.
Priority
Under section 673 of the Act and 34 CFR 75.105 (c)(3) we consider
only applications that meet one of the following priorities:
Absolute Priority 1--Preparation of Special Education, Related
Services, and Early Intervention Personnel to Serve Infants, Toddlers,
and Children with Low-Incidence Disabilities (84.325A)
Background
The national demand for educational, related services, and early
intervention personnel to serve infants, toddlers, and children with
low-incidence disabilities exceeds available supply. However, because
of the small number of these personnel needed in each State,
institutions of higher education and individual States have not given
priority to programs that train personnel to work with those with low-
incidence disabilities. Moreover, of the programs that do exist, many
are not producing graduates with the prerequisite skills
[[Page 52631]]
needed to meet the needs of the low-incidence disability population.
Thus, Federal support is required to ensure an adequate supply of
personnel to serve children with low-incidence disabilities and to
improve the quality of appropriate training programs so that graduates
possess necessary prerequisite skills.
Priority: This priority supports projects that increase the number
and quality of personnel to serve children with low-incidence
disabilities by providing preservice preparation of special educators,
early intervention personnel, and related services personnel at the
associate, baccalaureate, master's, or specialist level.
A preservice program is a program that leads to a degree,
certification, professional license or endorsement (or its equivalent),
and may be supported at the associate, baccalaureate, master's, or
specialist level. A preservice program may include the preparation of
currently employed personnel who are seeking additional degrees,
certifications, endorsements, or licenses.
The term ``low-incidence disability'' means a visual or hearing
impairment, or simultaneous visual and hearing impairments, a
significant cognitive impairment, or any impairment for which a small
number of personnel with highly specialized skills and knowledge are
needed in order for children with that impairment to receive early
intervention services or a free appropriate public education (IDEA,
section 673(b)(3)). Training for personnel to serve children with mild-
moderate mental retardation, specific learning disabilities, speech or
language disorders, or emotional and behavioral disabilities is
addressed under the priority for the preparation of personnel to serve
children with high-incidence disabilities (84.325H), and, therefore, is
not supported under this priority.
Applicants may propose to prepare one or more of the following
types of personnel:
(a) Early intervention personnel who serve children birth through
age 2 (until the third birthday) with low-incidence disabilities and
their families. For the purpose of this priority, all children who
require early intervention services are considered to have a low-
incidence disability. Early intervention personnel include persons who
train, or serve as consultants to, service providers and service
coordinators;
(b) Special educators, including early childhood, speech and
language, adapted physical education, and assistive technology, and
paraprofessional personnel who work with children with low-incidence
disabilities; or
(c) Related services personnel who provide developmental,
corrective, and other support services (such as school psychologists,
occupational or physical therapists, and recreational therapists) that
assist children with low-incidence disabilities to benefit from special
education. Both comprehensive programs, and specialty components within
a broader discipline, that prepare personnel for work with the low-
incidence population may be supported. For the purpose of this
priority, eligible related services providers do not include
physicians.
We particularly encourage projects that address the needs of more
than one State, provide multi-disciplinary training, and provide for
collaboration among several training institutions and between training
institutions and public schools. In addition, we encourage projects
that foster successful coordination between special education and
regular education professional development programs to meet the needs
of children with low-incidence disabilities in inclusive settings.
Each project funded under this absolute priority must--
(a) Use research-based curriculum and pedagogy to prepare personnel
who are able to improve outcomes for students with low-incidence
disabilities and to foster appropriate access to and achievement in the
general education curriculum whenever appropriate;
(b) Offer integrated training and practice opportunities that will
enhance the collaborative skills of appropriate personnel who share
responsibility for providing effective services for children with the
disabilities;
(c) Prepare personnel to address the specialized needs of children
with low-incidence disabilities from diverse cultural and language
backgrounds by;
(1) Determining the additional competencies needed for personnel to
understand and work with culturally and linguistically diverse
populations; and
(2) Infusing those competencies into early intervention, special
education, and related services training programs, as appropriate.
(d) Develop or improve and implement mutually beneficial
partnerships between training programs and schools where children are
served to promote continuous improvement in preparation programs and in
service delivery;
(e) If field-based training is provided, include field-based
training opportunities for students in schools and settings reflecting
wide contextual and student diversity, including schools and settings
in high poverty communities;
(f) If the project prepares personnel to provide services to
visually impaired or blind children that can be appropriately provided
in Braille, prepare those individuals to provide those services in
Braille.
To be considered for an award, an applicant must satisfy the
following requirements contained in section 673(f)-(i) of the Act and
34 CFR part 304--
(a) Demonstrate, with letters from one or more States that the
project proposes to serve, that States need personnel in the area or
areas in which the applicant proposes to provide preparation, as
identified in the States' comprehensive systems of personnel
development under Part B or C of the Act;
(b) Demonstrate that it has engaged in a cooperative effort with
one or more State educational agencies or, if appropriate, lead
agencies for providing early intervention services, to plan, carry out,
and monitor the project;
(c) Provide letters from one or more States stating that they
intend to accept successful completion of the proposed personnel
preparation program as meeting State personnel standards for serving
children with disabilities or serving infants and toddlers with
disabilities;
(d) Meet State and professionally-recognized standards for the
preparation of special education, related services, or early
intervention personnel;
(e) Ensure that individuals who receive financial assistance under
the proposed project will meet the service obligation requirements, or
repay all or part of the cost of that assistance, in accordance with
section 673(h)(1) of the Act and the regulations in 34 CFR part 304.
Applicants must describe how they will inform scholarship recipients of
this service obligation requirement; and
(f) In accordance with section 673(i) of the Act and Sec. 304.20 of
the regulations, use at least 55 percent of the total requested budget
for student scholarships or provide sufficient justification for any
designation less than 55 percent of the total requested budget for
student scholarships.
Under this absolute priority, we plan to award approximately:
* 60 percent of the available funds for projects that
support careers in special education, including early childhood
educators;
* 10 percent of the available funds for projects that
support careers in educational interpreter services for hearing
impaired individuals;
[[Page 52632]]
* 15 percent of the available funds for projects that
support careers in related services, other than educational interpreter
services; and
* 15 percent of the available funds for projects that
support careers in early intervention.
Competitive Preferences: Within this absolute priority, we will
give the following competitive preference under section 673(g)(2)(B) of
IDEA and 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) to applications that are otherwise
eligible for funding under this priority:
Up to ten (10) points based on the extent to which institutions of
higher education are successfully recruiting and preparing individuals
with disabilities and individuals from groups that are underrepresented
in the profession for which they are preparing individuals.
In addition, we will give the following competitive preference
under section 606 of IDEA and 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) to applications
that are otherwise eligible for funding under this priority:
Up to ten (10) points based on the effectiveness of the applicant's
strategies for employing and advancing in employment qualified
individuals with disabilities in project activities as required under
paragraph (a) of the ``General Requirements'' section of this notice.
In determining the effectiveness of those strategies, we may consider
the applicant's past success in pursuit of this goal.
Therefore, for purposes of these competitive preferences,
applicants can be awarded up to a total of 20 points in addition to
those awarded under the published selection criteria for this priority.
That is, an applicant meeting these competitive preferences could earn
a maximum total of 120 points.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
Maximum Award: The maximum award amount is $300,000. Consistent
with EDGAR 34 CFR 75.104(b), we will reject any application that
proposes a project funding level for any year that exceeds the stated
maximum award amount for that year. We will consider, and may fund,
requests for additional funding as an addendum to an application to
reflect the costs of reasonable accommodations necessary to allow
individuals with disabilities to be employed on the project as
personnel on project activities.
Page Limits: The maximum page limit for this priority is 40 double-
spaced pages.
Note: Applications must meet the required page limit standards
that are described in the ``General Requirements'' section of this
notice.
Absolute Priority 2--Preparation of Leadership Personnel (84.325D)
This priority supports projects that conduct the following
preparation activities for leadership personnel:
(a) Preparing personnel at the doctoral, and postdoctoral levels of
training to administer, enhance, or to provide special education,
related services, or early intervention services for children with
disabilities; or
(b) Master's and specialist level programs in special education
administration.
Projects funded under this absolute priority must--
(a) Prepare personnel to work with culturally and linguistically
diverse populations by;
(i) Determining the additional competencies for personnel needed to
understand and work with culturally diverse populations; and
(ii) Infusing those competencies into early intervention, special
education and related services training programs.
(b) Include coursework reflecting current research and pedagogy on:
(1) Participation and achievement in the general education curriculum
and improved outcomes for children with disabilities; or (2) the
provision of coordinated services in natural environments to improve
outcomes for infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families.
(c) Offer integrated training and practice opportunities that will
enhance the collaborative skills of appropriate personnel who share
responsibility for providing effective services for children with
disabilities.
To be considered for an award, an applicant must satisfy the
following requirements contained in section 673(f)-(i) of the Act and
34 CFR part 304--
(a) Demonstrate, with letters from one or more States that the
project proposes to serve, that States need personnel in the area or
areas in which the applicant proposes to provide preparation, as
identified in the States' comprehensive systems of personnel
development under Part B or C of the Act;
(b) Demonstrate that it has engaged in a cooperative effort with
one or more State educational agencies or, if appropriate, lead
agencies for providing early intervention services, to plan, carry out,
and monitor the project;
(c) Meet State and professionally-recognized standards for the
preparation of leadership personnel in special education, related
services, or early intervention fields; and
(d) Ensure that individuals who receive financial assistance under
the proposed project will meet the service obligation requirements, or
repay all or part of the cost of that assistance, in accordance with
section 673(h)(2) of the Act and the regulations in 34 CFR part 304.
Applicants must describe how they will inform scholarship recipients of
this service obligation requirement; and
(e) In accordance with section 673(i) of the Act and Sec. 304.20 of
the regulations, use at least 65 percent of the total requested budget
for student scholarships or provide sufficient justification for any
designation less than 65 percent of the total requested budget for
student scholarships.
Competitive Preferences
Within this absolute priority, we will give the following
competitive preference under section 673(g)(2)(B) of IDEA and 34 CFR
75.105(c)(2)(i) to applications that are otherwise eligible for funding
under this priority:
Up to ten (10) points based on the extent to which institutions of
higher education are successfully recruiting and preparing individuals
with disabilities and individuals from groups that are underrepresented
in the profession for which they are preparing individuals.
In addition, we will give the following competitive preference
under section 606 of IDEA and 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) to applications
that are otherwise eligible for funding under this priority:
Up to ten (10) points based on the effectiveness of the applicant's
strategies for employing and advancing in employment qualified
individuals with disabilities in project activities as required under
paragraph (a) of the ``General Requirements'' section of this notice.
In determining the effectiveness of those strategies, we may consider
the applicant's past success in pursuit of this goal.
Therefore, for purposes of these competitive preferences,
applicants can be awarded up to a total of 20 points in addition to
those awarded under the published selection criteria for this priority.
That is, an applicant meeting these competitive preferences could earn
a maximum total of 120 points.
Project Period: Up to 48 months.
Maximum Award: The maximum award amount is $200,000. Consistent
with EDGAR 34 CFR 75.104(b), we will reject any application that
proposes a project funding level for any year that exceeds the stated
maximum award amount for that year. We will consider, and may fund,
requests for additional funding as an addendum to an application to
reflect the costs of reasonable accommodations necessary to allow
individuals with disabilities to
[[Page 52633]]
be employed on the project as personnel on project activities.
Page Limits: The maximum page limit for this priority is 40 double-
spaced pages.
Note: Applications must meet the required page limit standards
that are described in the ``General Requirements'' section of this
notice.
Absolute Priority 3--National IHE Faculty Enhancement Center To Improve
Results for Children With Disabilities in Schools (84.325F)
Children with disabilities are, in growing numbers, joining their
nondisabled peers in schools and in classrooms to receive instruction
in the general education curriculum with appropriate supports and
services. The intent of the standards based reform movement is for all
students to have access to and to enjoy meaningful participation and
progress in curricular offerings that will enable them to achieve to
high standards. As schools seek to ensure appropriate access to and
participation of students with disabilities in the daily life of the
regular school and in the general education curriculum within the
standards based reform movement, many school administrative, general
instructional, and support personnel are finding themselves ill-
prepared to effectively carry out their new and emerging roles and
responsibilities. Unless a major initiative is mounted at the
preservice training level, incoming personnel will continue to face
these challenges ill-prepared.
The purpose of this priority is to support a National Center to
enhance the knowledge and skills of IHE faculty in school
administration, regular education teacher training (including bilingual
teacher training), school counseling, and school nursing, to improve
the preservice training of personnel who share responsibility with
special educators for providing effective services and ensuring
improved results for children with disabilities in our schools. The
Center must:
(a) Identify needs. Identify knowledge and skill enhancement needs
of IHE faculty in each of the targeted training programs (i.e., school
administration; regular education teacher training; school counseling;
and school nursing) that are most critical to ensuring that trainees in
these programs are well prepared to carry out their respective roles
and responsibilities in serving children with disabilities in school
settings. This need identification process must be guided by a
comprehensive review of the extant literature base and supplemented
with methodologically sound investigative activities to enhance the
current knowledge base where gaps are identified. Informants to this
process must include recent program graduates and parents of children
with disabilities.
(b) Identify appropriate existing resources. Identify existing
resources, including those that have been developed with IDEA
discretionary grant or contract support, that represent state of the
art, research-based knowledge and practice that address the critical
needs identified in paragraph (a) and that can be appropriately
integrated into training modules under paragraph (c). Products
developed by the IDEA Partnerships Technical Assistance projects
currently supported by OSEP must be reviewed and considered for
incorporation into proposed training modules.
(c) Develop training modules. Develop content-rich training modules
that address the critical knowledge and skill enhancement needs
identified in paragraph (a), that integrate existing resources
identified in paragraph (b), and that are designed for ease of
integration into existing curricular courses and experiential
opportunities in the targeted IHE training programs. Modules must be
structured to incorporate state of the art technology that will serve
to enhance dissemination and use.
(d) Disseminate training modules. Develop and implement mechanisms
that will result in broad, effective dissemination and use of training
modules developed in paragraph (c).
(e) Conduct comprehensive evaluation. Design and conduct a
comprehensive evaluation of the work, accomplishments, outcomes,
impact, and effectiveness of the Center. This evaluation must be
designed to provide information to guide necessary, ongoing,
refinements to the structure, activities, workflow, and products that
will improve the ultimate impact and effectiveness of the Center. This
comprehensive evaluation must also be designed to measure the impact of
this National Center on the primary goal of enhancing the knowledge and
skills of IHE faculty in school administration, regular education
teacher training, school counseling, and school nursing to improve the
preservice training of personnel who share responsibility for providing
effective services and ensuring improved results for children with
disabilities in our public schools.
In designing and carrying out the required activities of this
National Center, the project must collaborate with individuals and
groups of individuals such as deans, IHE faculty, practicing
professionals in the targeted training fields and in special education,
module design technology experts, dissemination and training entities,
and evaluation experts. Collaborators must include appropriate
professional organizations and associations, federally supported
technical assistance providers, and federally supported higher
education projects, as appropriate.
In addition to the annual two-day Project Directors' meeting in
Washington, DC mentioned in the ``General Requirements'' section of
this notice, projects must budget for two additional meetings in
Washington, DC to collaborate with the Federal project officer and the
other projects funded under this priority, to share information and
discuss model development, evaluation, and project implementation
issues.
Project Period: Under this priority, we will make one award for a
cooperative agreement with a project period of up to 60 months subject
to the requirements of 34 CFR 75.253(a) for continuation awards. During
the second year of the project, we will determine whether to continue
the Center for the fourth and fifth years of the project period and
will consider in addition to the requirements of 34 CFR 75.253(a):
(a) The recommendation of a review team consisting of three experts
whom we select. The services of the review team, including a two-day
site visit to the project, are to be performed during the last half of
the project's second year and may be included in that year's evaluation
required under 34 CFR 75.590. Costs associated with the services to be
performed by the review team must also be included in the project's
budget for year two. These costs are estimated to be approximately
$6,000;
(b) The timeliness and effectiveness with which all requirements of
the negotiated cooperative agreement have been or are being met by the
project; and
(c) The degree to which the project's design and technical
strategies demonstrate the potential for disseminating significant new
knowledge.
Competitive Preferences
Within this absolute priority, we will give the following
competitive preference under section 606 of IDEA and 34 CFR
75.105(c)(2)(i), to applications that are otherwise eligible for
funding under this priority:
Up to ten (10) points based on the effectiveness of the applicant's
strategies for employing and advancing in
[[Page 52634]]
employment qualified individuals with disabilities in project
activities as required under paragraph (a) of the ``General
Requirements'' section of this notice. In determining the effectiveness
of those strategies, we may consider the applicant's past success in
pursuit of this goal.
For purposes of this competitive preference, applicants can be
awarded up to a total of 10 points in addition to those awarded under
the published selection criteria for this priority. That is, an
applicant meeting this competitive preference could earn a maximum
total of 110 points.
Maximum Award: The maximum award amount is $850,000. Consistent
with EDGAR 34 CFR 75.104(b), we will reject any application that
proposes a project funding level for any year that exceeds the stated
maximum award amount for that year. We will consider, and may fund,
requests for additional funding as an addendum to an application to
reflect the costs of reasonable accommodations necessary to allow
individuals with disabilities to be employed on the project as
personnel on project activities.
Page Limits: The maximum page limit for this priority is 70 double-
spaced pages.
Note: Applications must meet the required page limit standards
that are described in the ``General Requirements'' section of this
notice.
Absolute Priority 4--Preparation of Personnel in Minority Institutions
(84.325E)
This priority supports awards to institutions of higher education
with minority student enrollments of at least 25 percent, including
Historically Black Colleges and Universities, for the purpose of
preparing personnel to work with children with disabilities.
This priority supports projects that provide preservice preparation
of special educators, early intervention personnel, and related
services personnel at the associate, baccalaureate, master's,
specialist, doctoral, or post-doctoral level.
A preservice program is a program that leads toward a degree,
certification, professional license or endorsement (or its equivalent),
and may include the preparation of currently employed personnel who are
seeking additional degrees, certifications, endorsements, or licenses.
Applicants may propose to prepare one or more of the following
types of personnel:
(a) Special educators, including early childhood, speech and
language, adapted physical education, and assistive technology, and
paraprofessional personnel who work with children with disabilities;
(b) Related services personnel who provide developmental,
corrective, and other support services (such as school psychologists,
occupational or physical therapists, recreational therapists) that
assist children with disabilities to benefit from special education.
Both comprehensive programs, and specialty components within a broader
discipline, that prepare personnel for work with children with
disabilities may be supported. For the purpose of this priority,
eligible related services providers do not include physicians; or
(c) Early intervention personnel who serve children birth through
age 2 (until the third birthday) and their families. Early intervention
personnel include persons who train, or serve as consultants to service
providers and service coordinators.
Projects funded under this absolute priority must--
(a) Use research-based curriculum and pedagogy to prepare personnel
who are able to improve outcomes for students with disabilities and to
foster appropriate access to and achievement in the general education
curriculum where appropriate;
(b) Offer integrated training and practice opportunities that will
enhance the collaborative skills of appropriate personnel who share
responsibility for providing effective services for children with the
disabilities;
(c) Prepare personnel to address the specialized needs of children
with disabilities from diverse cultural and language backgrounds by:
(1) Determining the additional competencies needed for personnel to
understand and work with culturally and linguistically diverse
populations; and
(2) Infusing those competencies into early intervention, special
education, and related services training programs, as appropriate.
(d) Develop or improve and implement mutually beneficial
partnerships between training programs and schools where children are
served to promote continuous improvement in preparation programs and in
service delivery;
(e) If field-based training is provided, include field-based
training opportunities for students in schools and settings reflecting
wide contextual and student diversity, including schools and settings
in high poverty communities;
(f) Employ effective strategies for recruiting students from
culturally and linguistically diverse populations; and
(g) Provide student support systems (including tutors, mentors, and
other innovative practices) to enhance student retention and success in
the program.
To be considered for an award, an applicant must satisfy the
following requirements contained in section 673(f)-(i) of the Act and
34 CFR part 304-
(a) Demonstrate, with letters from one or more States that the
project proposes to serve, that States need personnel in the area or
areas in which the applicant proposes to provide preparation, as
identified in the States' comprehensive systems of personnel
development under Part B or C of the Act;
(b) Demonstrate that it has engaged in a cooperative effort with
one or more State educational agencies or, if appropriate, lead
agencies for providing early intervention services, to plan, carry out,
and monitor the project;
(c) Provide letters from one or more States stating that they
intend to accept successful completion of the proposed personnel
preparation program as meeting State personnel standards for serving
children with disabilities or serving infants and toddlers with
disabilities;
(d) Meet State and professionally-recognized standards for the
preparation of special education, related services, or early
intervention personnel, if the purpose of the project is to assist
personnel in obtaining degrees;
(e) Ensure that individuals who receive financial assistance under
the proposed project will meet the service obligation requirements, or
repay all or part of the cost of that assistance, in accordance with
section 673(h)(1) of the Act and the regulations in 34 CFR part 304.
Applicants must describe how they will inform scholarship recipients of
this service obligation requirement; and
(f) In accordance with section 673(i) of the Act and Sec. 304.20 of
the regulations, use at least 55 percent of the total requested budget
for student scholarships or provide sufficient justification for any
designation less than 55 percent of the total requested budget for
student scholarships.
Sufficient justification for proposing less than 65 percent of the
budget for student support would include activities such as program
development, expansion of a program, or the addition of a new emphasis
area. Examples include:
* A project that is starting a new program may request up
to a year for program development and capacity building. In the
initial project year, no student support would be required. Instead,
a project could hire a new faculty member, or a consultant to assist
in program development;
[[Page 52635]]
* A project that is proposing to build capacity may hire
a field supervisor so that additional students can be trained; and
* A project that is expanding or adding a new emphasis
area to the program may initially need additional faculty or other
resources such as expert consultants, additional training supplies
or equipment that would enhance the program.
Projects that are funded to develop, expand, or to add a new
emphasis area to special education or related services programs must
provide information on how these new areas will be institutionalized
once Federal funding ends.
Competitive Preferences: Within this absolute priority, we will
give the following competitive preference under section 673(g)(2)(B) of
IDEA and 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) to applicant institutions that are
otherwise eligible for funding under this priority:
(a) Up to ten (10) points based on the extent to which institutions
of higher education are successfully recruiting and preparing
individuals with disabilities and individuals from groups that are
underrepresented in the profession for which they are preparing
individuals.
(b) Up to ten (10) points to applicant institutions that have not
received a FY 2000 or FY 2001 award under the IDEA personnel
preparation program.
In addition, we will give the following competitive preference
under section 606 of IDEA and 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), to applications
that are otherwise eligible for funding under this priority:
Up to ten (10) points based on the effectiveness of the applicant's
strategies for employing and advancing in employment qualified
individuals with disabilities in project activities as required under
paragraph (a) of the ``General Requirements'' section of this notice.
In determining the effectiveness of those strategies, we may consider
the applicant's past success in pursuit of this goal.
Therefore, for purposes of these competitive preferences applicants
can be awarded up to a total of 30 points in addition to those awarded
under the published selection criteria for this priority. That is, an
applicant meeting all of these competitive preferences could earn a
maximum total of 130 points.
Project Period: Up to 48 months.
Maximum Award: The maximum award amount is $200,000. Consistent
with EDGAR 34 CFR 75.104(b), we will reject any application that
proposes a project funding level for any year that exceeds the stated
maximum award amount for that year. We will consider, and may fund,
requests for additional funding as an addendum to an application to
reflect the costs of reasonable accommodations necessary to allow
individuals with disabilities to be employed on the project as
personnel on project activities.
Page Limits: The maximum page limit for this priority is 40 double-
spaced pages.
Note: Applications must meet the required page limit standards
that are described in the ``General Requirements'' section of this
notice.
Absolute Priority 4--Improving the Preparation of Personnel to Serve
Children with High-Incidence Disabilities (84.325H)
Background
State agencies, university training programs, local schools, and
other community-based agencies and organizations confirm both the
importance and the challenge of improving training programs for
personnel to serve children with high-incidence disabilities and of
meeting the staffing needs of localities experiencing chronic shortages
of these personnel.
This priority is intended to improve personnel preparation programs
throughout the nation and help meet shortages in particular areas. A
number of important factors that are common to effective personnel
preparation programs are:
(a) Collaboration among governmental, educational and community-
based organizations on the Federal, State, and local levels in meeting
personnel needs;
(b) Field-based training opportunities for students to use acquired
knowledge and skills in demographically diverse schools;
(c) Multi-disciplinary training of teachers, including regular and
special education teachers, and related services personnel;
(d) Coordinating personnel preparation programs aimed at addressing
chronic personnel shortages with State practices for addressing those
needs;
(e) Addressing shortages of teachers in particular geographic and
content areas;
(f) Integration of research-based curriculum and pedagogical
knowledge and practices; and
(g) Meeting the needs of trainees, and of children with
disabilities, from diverse backgrounds.
Priority
Consistent with section 673(e) of the Act, the purpose of this
priority is to develop or improve, and implement, programs that provide
preservice preparation for special and regular education teachers and
related services personnel in order to meet the diverse needs of
children with high incidence disabilities and to enhance the supply of
well-trained personnel to serve these children in areas of chronic
shortage. For the purpose of this priority, high-incidence disabilities
include mild or moderate mental retardation, speech or language
impairments, emotional disturbance, or specific learning disability.
Training of early intervention personnel is addressed under the
priority for the preparation of personnel to serve children with low-
incidence disabilities (84.325A), and, therefore, is not included as
part of this priority).
A preservice program is a program that leads to a degree,
certification, professional license or endorsement (or its equivalent),
and may be supported at the associate, baccalaureate, master's, or
specialist level. A preservice program may include the preparation of
currently employed personnel who are seeking additional degrees,
certifications, endorsements, or licenses.
Applicants may propose to prepare one or more of the following
types of personnel:
(a) Special educators, including early childhood, speech and
language, adapted physical education, assistive technology, and
paraprofessional personnel who work with children with high-incidence
disabilities.
(b) Related services personnel, who provide developmental,
corrective, and other support services (such as school psychologists,
occupational or physical therapists, recreational therapists) that
assist children with high-incidence disabilities to benefit from
special education. For the purpose of this priority, eligible related
service providers do not include physicians. Both comprehensive
programs, and specialty components within a broader discipline that
prepare personnel for work with the high incidence population, may be
supported.
Projects funded under this priority must--
(a) Use research-based curriculum and pedagogy to prepare personnel
who are able to assist students with disabilities in achieving in the
general education curricula and to improve student outcomes;
(b) Offer integrated training and practice opportunities that will
enhance the collaborative skills of appropriate personnel who share
responsibility for providing effective services for children with high-
incidence disabilities;
(c) Prepare personnel to work with culturally and linguistically
diverse populations by:
[[Page 52636]]
(1) Determining the additional competencies needed for personnel to
understand and work with culturally and linguistically diverse students
with high-incidence disabilities; and
(2) Infusing those competencies into special education or related
services training;
(d) Develop or improve and implement partnerships that are mutually
beneficial to grantees and LEAs in order to promote continuous
improvement of preparation programs; and
(e) Include field-based training opportunities for students in
schools reflecting wide contextual and student diversity, including
high poverty schools;
An applicant must satisfy the following requirements contained in
section 673(f)-(i) of the Act and 34 CFR part 304:
(a) Demonstrate, with letters from one or more States that the
project proposes to serve, that States need personnel in the area or
areas in which the applicant proposes to provide preparation, as
identified in the States' comprehensive systems of personnel
development under Part B of the Act;
(b) Demonstrate that it has engaged in a cooperative effort with
one or more State educational agencies to plan, carry out, and monitor
the project;
(c) Provide letters from one or more States stating that they
intend to accept successful completion of the proposed personnel
preparation program as meeting State personnel standards for serving
children with disabilities;
(d) Meet State and professionally-recognized standards for the
preparation of special education and related services personnel;
(e) Ensure that individuals who receive financial assistance under
the proposed project will meet the service obligation requirements, or
repay all or part of the cost of that assistance, in accordance with
section 673(h)(1) of the Act and the regulations in 34 CFR part 304.
Applicants must describe how they will inform scholarship recipients of
this service obligation requirement; and
(f) In accordance with section 673(i) of the Act and Sec. 304.20 of
the regulations, use at least 65 percent of the total requested budget
for student scholarships or provide sufficient justification for any
designation less than 65 percent of the total requested budget for
student scholarships.
Competitive Preferences: Within this absolute priority we will give
the following competitive preferences under section 673(g)(2)(B) of
IDEA and 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) to applications that are otherwise
eligible for funding under this priority.
Up to ten (10) points based on the extent to which institutions of
higher education are successfully recruiting and preparing individuals
with disabilities and individuals from groups that are underrepresented
in the profession for which they are preparing individuals.
In addition, we will give the following competitive preference
under section 606 of IDEA and 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) to applications
that are otherwise eligible for funding under this priority:
Up to ten (10) points based on the effectiveness of the applicant's
strategies for employing and advancing in employment qualified
individuals with disabilities in project activities as required under
paragraph (a) of the ``General Requirements'' section of this notice.
In determining the effectiveness of those strategies, we may consider
the applicant's past success in pursuit of this goal.
Therefore, for purposes of these competitive preferences applicants
can be awarded up to a total of 20 points in addition to those awarded
under the published selection criteria for this priority. That is, an
applicant meeting each of these competitive preferences could earn a
maximum total of 120 points.
Project Period: The maximum funding period for awards is 48 months.
Maximum Award: The maximum award amount is $200,000.
Consistent with EDGAR 34 CFR 75.104(b), we will reject any
application that proposes a project funding level for any year that
exceeds the stated maximum award amount for that year. We will
consider, and may fund, requests for additional funding as an addendum
to an application to reflect the costs of reasonable accommodations
necessary to allow individuals with disabilities to be employed on the
project as personnel on project activities.
Page Limits: The maximum page limit for this priority is 40 double-
spaced pages.
Note: Applications must meet the required page limit standards
that are described in the ``General Requirements'' section of this
notice.
Absolute Priority 5--Projects of National Significance (84.325N)
We establish an absolute priority to support projects that address
issues of national significance and have broad applicability. Projects
supported under this priority must develop, evaluate, and disseminate
innovative models. These models must be designed to serve as blueprints
for systemic improvement in the recruitment, preparation, induction,
retention, or ongoing professional development of personnel who have
responsibility for ensuring that children with disabilities achieve to
high standards and become independent, productive citizens. These
personnel include early intervention personnel, regular and special
education teachers, administrators, related service personnel, and
paraprofessionals. If the project maintains a web site, it must include
relevant information and documents in an accessible form.
Projects must (1) use current research-validated practices and
materials and (2) communicate appropriately with target audiences.
Applicants must note that:
(a) The purpose of this priority is model development. Thus, we do
not expect that student scholarships will be supported. However,
release time for staff for development activities is appropriate; and
(b) We expect that projects funded under this priority will
incorporate a systemic approach to dissemination to relevant training
and technical assistance entities.
Invitational Priorities
Within this absolute priority, we are particularly interested in
applications that meet one or more of the following priorities.
However, under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1) an application that meets one or
more of these invitational priorities does not receive competitive or
absolute preference over other applications:
(a) Projects that are designed to reduce personnel shortages by
developing innovative models for promoting the transferability, across
State and local jurisdictions, of licensure and certification of
personnel serving infants, toddlers, and children with disabilities;
(b) Projects that are designed to increase the quantity, quality,
and diversity of personnel who serve infants, toddlers, or children
with disabilities by developing innovative, proactive models for
recruiting personnel into training programs or professional positions;
(c) Projects that are designed to increase the retention of new
personnel by developing innovative, multi-year, developmental induction
models;
(d) Projects that are designed to improve the learning of children
with disabilities in the general education curricula by developing
innovative models for collaborative training of regular and special
education personnel, including paraprofessionals;
[[Page 52637]]
(e) Projects that are designed to enhance professional development
curricula for personnel serving infants, toddlers, or children with
disabilities by developing case or problem-based training modules that
can be integrated into training curricula. We expect that these
projects would incorporate state of the art technology in the design
and dissemination of the modules;
(f) Projects that are designed to enhance teaching and learning
through the development of innovative training models that incorporate
state of the art assistive, instructional and communicative technology
knowledge and use; and
(g) Projects that are designed to enhance professional development
curricula for teachers and administrators serving infants, toddlers, or
children with disabilities by developing modules for individualized
education program (IEP) decisionmaking, particularly with regard to a
child's participation in assessments.
Competitive Preference: Within this absolute priority, we will give
the following competitive preference under section 606 of IDEA and 34
CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) to applications that are otherwise eligible for
funding under this priority:
Up to ten (10) points based on the effectiveness of the applicant's
strategies for employing and advancing in employment qualified
individuals with disabilities in project activities as required under
paragraph (a) of the ``General Requirements'' section of this notice.
In determining the effectiveness of those strategies, we may consider
the applicant's past success in pursuit of this goal.
Therefore, for purposes of this competitive preference, applicants
can be awarded up to a total of 10 points in addition to those awarded
under the published selection criteria for this priority. That is, an
applicant meeting this competitive preference could earn a maximum
total of 110 points.
Project Period: Up to 36 months.
Maximum Award: The maximum award amount is $200,000. Consistent
with EDGAR 34 CFR 75.104(b), we will reject any application that
proposes a project funding level for any year that exceeds the stated
maximum award amount for that year. We will consider, and may fund,
requests for additional funding as an addendum to an application to
reflect the costs of reasonable accommodations necessary to allow
individuals with disabilities to be employed on the project as
personnel on project activities.
Page Limits: The maximum page limit for this priority is 40 double-
spaced pages.
Note: Applications must meet the required page limit standards
that are described in the ``General Requirements'' section of this
notice.
For Applications Contact: Education Publications Center (ED Pubs),
PO Box 1398, Jessup, Maryland 20794-1398. Telephone (toll free): 1-877-
4ED-Pubs (1-877-433-7827). FAX: 301-470-1244. Individuals who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call (toll free) 1-
877-576-7734.
You may also contact Ed Pubs via its Web site (http://www.ed.gov/
pubs/edpubs.html) or its E-mail address (edpubs@inet.ed.gov).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Grants and Contracts Services Team,
U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3317,
Switzer Building, Washington, DC 20202-2550. Telephone: (202) 260-9182.
If you use a TDD you may call the Federal Information Relay Service
(FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternate format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the contact persons listed in the preceding
paragraph.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application
package in an alternate format by contacting the Department as listed
above. However, the Department is not able to reproduce in an alternate
format the standard forms included in the application package.
Intergovernmental Review
All programs in this notice are subject to the requirements of
Executive Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. The
objective of the Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental
partnership and a strengthened 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, we intend this document to provide
early notification of the Department's specific plans and actions for
those programs.
Individuals With Disabilities Education Act--Application Notice for Fiscal Year 2001
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Application Deadline for Maximum Estimated
CFDA No. and name Applications deadline intergovernmental award (per Project period Page number of
available date review year)* limit** awards
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
84.325A Preparation of Special 09/06/00 10/20/00 12/19/00 $300,000 Up to 60 mos.............. 40 33
Education, Related Services, and Early
Intervention Personnel to Serve
Infants, Toddlers, and Children with
Low-Incidence Disabilities
84.325D Preparation of Leadership 09/06/00 10/13/00 12/12/00 200,000 Up to 48 mos.............. 40 13
Personnel
84.325E Preparation of Personnel in 09/06/00 01/26/01 03/27/01 200,000 Up to 48 mos.............. 40 16
Minority Institutions
84.325F National IHE Faculty 09/06/00 10/27/00 12/26/00 850,000 Up to 60 mos.............. 70 1
Enhancement Center to Improve Results
for Children with Disabilities in
School
[[Page 52638]]
84.325H Improving the Preparation of 09/06/00 11/17/00 01/16/01 200,000 Up to 48 mos.............. 40 31
Personnel to Serve Children with High-
Incidence Disabilities.
84.325N Projects of National 09/06/00 12/08/00 01/30/01 200,000 Up to 36 mos.............. 40 12
Significance.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Consistent with EDGAR 34 CFR 75.104(b), we will reject any application that proposes a project funding level for any year that exceeds the stated
maximum award amount for that year. We will consider, and may fund, requests for additional funding as an addendum to an application to reflect the
costs of reasonable accommodations necessary to allow individuals with disabilities to be employed on the project as personnel on project activities.
** Applicants must limit the Application Narrative, Part III of the Application, to the page limits noted above. Please refer to the ``Page Limit''
requirements included under each priority in this notice. The Assistant Secretary rejects and does not consider an application that does not adhere to
this requirement.
Electronic Access to This Document
You may view this document, as well as all other Department of
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or
portable document format (PDF) on the internet at either of the
following sites:
http://ocfo.ed.gov/fedreg.htm
http://www.ed.gov/news.html
To use the PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at either of the previous sites. If you have questions about using
the PDF, call the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at
1-888-293-6498; or in the Washington, DC., area at (202) 512-1530.
Note: The official version of this document is the document
published in the Federal Register Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.access.gpo/
nara/index.html
Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1473.
Dated: August 24, 2000.
Judith E. Heumann,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 00-22061 Filed 8-28-00; 8:45 am]
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