[Federal Register: March 6, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 44)] [Notices] [Page 11329-11330] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr06mr98-124] [[Page 11329]] _______________________________________________________________________ Part II Department of Education _______________________________________________________________________ Native Hawaiian Curriculum Development, Teacher Training and Recruitment Program; Notice [[Page 11330]] DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION [CFDA No.: 84.297A] Native Hawaiian Curriculum Development, Teacher Training and Recruitment Program AGENCY: Department of Education. ACTION: Notice of proposed funding Priorities for Fiscal Year (FY) 1998. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Secretary of Education proposes to establish absolute priorities for the FY 1998 grant competition under the Native Hawaiian Curriculum Development, Teacher Training and Recruitment Program. Under the priorities, funds would be reserved to support activities in the following three areas: (1) Waste management innovation; (2) native Hawaiian language revitalization curricula and teacher training and recruitment; and (3) prisoner education. DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 6, 1998. ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Madeline Baggett, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 600 Independence Avenue, SW, Room 4500 Portals Building, Washington, D.C. 20202-6410, Telephone: (202) 260-2502, FAX: (202) 205-0302. Comments may also be sent through the Internet: at madeline__baggett@ed.gov. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Madeline Baggett, U. S. Department of Education, Room 4500, the Portals Building, 600 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 260-2502. Individuals who use a telecommunications device 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. Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of this notice in an alternate format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) on request to the contact person listed in the preceding paragraph. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: There is available for distribution to eligible grantees under the Native Hawaiian Curriculum Development, Teacher Training and Recruitment Program (20 USC 7909) a total of $4 million of Fiscal Year (FY) 1998 funds. Congress has encouraged the U.S. Department of Education to use funds appropriated for this program for continuation awards and to support activities in each of the following three areas: (1) Waste management innovation; (2) Native Hawaiian language revitalization curricula and teacher training and recruitment; and (3) prisoner education. The Secretary believes that limiting newly funded projects to these areas will better address the unique needs of Native Hawaiian students, within the context of Native Hawaiian culture, language, and traditions. Therefore, the Secretary is proposing absolute funding priorities and intends to use $2 million of the FY 1998 funds available under the program to fund one or two projects in each of the three referenced categories. In funding these activities, the Secretary intends to allocate approximately $660,000 among each of the three categories and estimates that the average size of the FY 1998 awards for these new projects will range from $330,000 to $660,000. The remaining $2 million of FY 1998 funds will be used for continuation awards for previously funded projects. The Secretary will announce the final priorities in a notice in the Federal Register. The final priorities will be determined by responses to this notice, available funds, and other considerations of the Department. Funding of a particular project depends on the final priority, the availability of funds, and the quality of the applications received. The publication of these proposed priorities does not preclude the Secretary from proposing additional priorities, nor does it limit the Secretary to funding only these priorities, subject to meeting applicable rulemaking requirements. Note: This notice of proposed priorities does not solicit applications. A notice inviting applications under this competition will be published in the Federal Register concurrent with or following the notice of final priorities. Proposed Absolute Priorities The Secretary proposes to give an absolute preference to applications that focus entirely on activities in one of the following areas: (1) Waste management innovation to study and document traditional Hawaiian practices of sustainable waste management and to prepare teaching materials for educational purposes and for demonstration of the use of native Hawaiian plants and animals for waste treatment and environmental remediation; (2) Native Hawaiian language revitalization curricula and teacher training and recruitment activities, including K-12 language immersion programs, preservice and inservice teacher training programs, and programs designed to increase the number of Native Hawaiian teachers; and (3) prisoner education programs that target juvenile offenders and/ or those youth at risk of becoming juvenile offenders. Comprehensive and culturally sensitive strategies for reaching the target population will include family counseling, basic education/job skills training, and the involvement of community elders as mentors. Electronic Access to This Document Anyone 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 World Wide Web at either of the following sites: http:\\ocfo.ed.gov\\fedreg.htm http:\\ww:edgov\news.html To use the pdf you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader Program with Search, 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 toll free at 1-888-293-6498. Anyone may also view these documents in text copy on an electronic bulletin board of the Department. Telephone: (202)219-1511 or, toll free 1-800-222-4922. The documents are located under Option G--Files/ Announcements, Bulletins and Press Releases. Note: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register. Invitation To Comment Interested persons are invited to submit comments and recommendations regarding these proposed priorities. All comments submitted in response to this notice will be available for public inspection during and after the comment period, in Room 4500, Portals Building, 1250 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, DC between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday of each week except Federal holidays. Program Authority: Section 9209 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (20 USC 7909). Gerald N. Tirozzi, Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education. [FR Doc. 98-5832 Filed 3-5-98; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4000-01-P