[Federal Register: March 26, 1996 (Volume 61, Number 59)]
[Notices]
[Page 13375-13377]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[[Page 13375]]
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Part XIV
Department of Education
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Education of Individuals With Disabilities: Personnel Training; Notice
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Training Personnel for the Education of Individuals With
Disabilities--Grants for Personnel Training
AGENCY: Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of proposed priority.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary proposes a priority for the Training Personnel
for the Education of Individuals with Disabilities--Grants for
Personnel Training program administered by the Office of Special
Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) under the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act. The Secretary may use this priority in
Fiscal Year 1996 and subsequent years. The Secretary takes this action
to focus Federal assistance on identified needs to improve outcomes for
children with disabilities. This proposed priority is intended to
ensure wide and effective use of program funds.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 25, 1996.
ADDRESSES: All comments concerning the proposed priority should be
addressed to: Linda Glidewell, U.S. Department of Education, 600
Independence Avenue SW., Room 3524, Switzer Building, Washington, D.C.
20202-2641.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Scott Brown, U.S. Department of
Education, 600 Independence Avenue SW., Room 3522, Switzer Building,
Washington, D.C. 20202-2641.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Individuals with Disabilities Education
Act (IDEA) directs the Secretary to develop and implement a plan for
providing outreach services to minority entities and underrepresented
populations to assist them in participating more fully in the
discretionary programs under the Act (section 610(j)(2)(C)).
This proposed priority supports the National Education Goals by
improving understanding of how to enable children and youth with
disabilities to reach higher levels of academic achievement.
The Secretary will announce the final priority in a notice in the
Federal Register. The final priority will be determined by responses to
this notice, available funds, and other considerations of the
Department. Funding of particular projects depends on the availability
of funds, the content of the final priority, and the quality of the
applications received. Further, the priority could be affected by
enactment of legislation reauthorizing this program. The publication of
this proposed priority does not preclude the Secretary from proposing
additional priorities, nor does it limit the Secretary to funding only
this priority, subject to meeting applicable rulemaking requirements.
Note: This notice of proposed priority does not solicit
applications. A notice inviting applications under this competition
will be published in the Federal Register concurrent with or
following publication of the notice of final priority.
Priority
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), the Secretary proposes to give an
absolute preference to applications that meet the following priority.
The Secretary proposes to fund under this competition only applications
that meet this absolute priority.
Proposed Absolute Priority--Outreach Services to Minority Entities to
Expand Research Capacity
Background
The Congress has found that the Federal Government must be
responsive to the growing needs of an increasingly diverse society and
that a more equitable distribution of resources is essential for the
Federal Government to meet its responsibility to provide an equal
educational opportunity for all individuals. The Congress has concluded
that the opportunity for full participation in awards for grants,
cooperative agreements and contracts by Historically Black Colleges and
Universities (HBCUs), other institutions of higher education whose
minority enrollment is at least 25% (OMIs) and other eligible
institutions as defined under section 312 of the Higher Education Act
of 1965 (OEIs) is essential if we are to obtain greater success in the
education of children from diverse backgrounds in special education.
This priority focuses on assisting HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs to prepare
scholars for careers in research on special education and related
services. This preparation shall consist of engaging both faculty and
students at HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs in special education research
activities. The activities focus on an area of critical emerging need
which has material application in today's changing environment and will
likely be the subject of future research efforts--the special education
of children in urban and high poverty schools with predominantly
minority enrollments. By building a cadre of experienced researchers on
this important topic, the chances for full participation in awards for
grants, cooperative agreements and contracts by HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs
will be increased.
The association between socioeconomic status and enrollment in
special education has been well documented. Available data from the
National Longitudinal Transition Study (NLTS) show that 68% of students
in special education live in a household where the income is less than
$25,000 per year versus 39% of the general population of youth.
The problem of this association is heightened in urban school
districts and, to a lesser extent, rural districts. NLTS data reveal
that only 34% of students in special education live in suburban school
districts compared to 48% of all youth. Data from the Office for Civil
Rights indicate that 30% of all inner-city students live in poverty
compared to 18% of students in non-inner city areas. Moreover, findings
from the National Longitudinal Transition Study indicate that 47% of
urban youth with disabilities live in households with an annual income
of less than $12,000 (in 1986 dollars) compared to 34% of rural and 19%
of suburban youth with disabilities (Valdes et al., 1990).
Urban school districts face a variety of challenges in meeting the
educational needs of their students. Their schools often have high per
student costs and limited financial resources. Their students are
disproportionately poor and the population of individuals with limited
English proficiency is among the fastest growing populations with
special needs in some of these districts. This disproportionate
representation of poor children in special education is also likely to
be uniquely influenced by culturally diverse and urban settings, posing
both opportunities and problems in the provision of special education
services.
Priority
The Assistant Secretary establishes an absolute priority for a
project to design and conduct a program of research by individuals who
show promise of contributing to the program improvement activities
authorized under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA). Each research activity of the program must implement the
Congress' direction in section 610(j)(2) to support outreach activities
to HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs to increase their participation in competition
for research, demonstration and outreach grants, cooperative agreements
and contracts funded under the IDEA. Activities shall include:
(1) Conducting research activities at HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs as
explained
[[Page 13377]]
below that link scholars at HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs with researchers at
institutions with an established research capacity in a mentoring
relationship to develop both individual and institutional research
capacity at those HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs with a demonstrated need for
capacity development; and
(2) Providing linkages between HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs with a
demonstrated need for capacity development and institutions with an
established research capacity to provide opportunities for researchers
at those HBCUs, OMIs and OEIs to develop first hand experience in the
grants and contracts application process.
All research activities must be conducted for the purpose of
capacity building. The research program must include one or more
projects that are focused on issues related to improving the delivery
of special education services and educational results for children with
disabilities in urban and high poverty schools with predominantly
minority enrollments. The program must examine the association between
minority status and identification for, evaluation for and placement in
special education. Other possible research topics may include:
(1) Effective intervention strategies that make a difference in the
provision of a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE);
(2) Practices to promote the successful inclusion of children with
disabilities in a least restrictive environment (LRE);
(3) Strategies for establishing high expectations for children with
disabilities and increasing their participation in the general
curriculum provided to all children;
(4) Increasing effective parental participation in the educational
process, especially for poor parents, minority parents, and parents
with limited English proficiency;
(5) Effective disciplinary approaches, including behavioral
management strategies, for ensuring a safe and disciplined learning
environment;
(6) The effect of school-wide projects conducted under Title 1 of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act on the delivery of special
education; or
(7) Effective practices for promoting the coordination of special
education services with health and social services for children with
disabilities and their families.
The program shall ensure that findings are communicated in
appropriate formats for researchers. The program shall also ensure that
if findings are of importance to other audiences, such as teachers,
administrators and parents, they are made available to Department of
Education's technical assistance, training and dissemination projects
for distribution to those audiences.
Projects must demonstrate experience and familiarity in research on
children with disabilities in urban and high poverty schools with
predominantly minority enrollments. The project must also demonstrate
experience in capacity development in special education research, as
well as a thorough understanding of the strengths and needs of HBCUs,
OMIs and OEIs.
The project must budget for two trips annually to Washington, DC
for: (1) A two-day Research Project Directors' meeting; and (2) an
additional meeting to meet and collaborate with the project officer of
the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and with other relevant
OSEP funded projects. The project must also coordinate activities with
the ongoing Policy Research Institute funded by OSEP.
Intergovernmental Review
This program is 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, this document is intended to provide
early notification of the Department's specific plans and actions for
this program.
Invitation to Comment
Interested persons are invited to submit comments and
recommendations regarding this proposed priority.
All comments submitted in response to this notice will be available
for public inspection, during and after the comment period, in Room
3521, 300 C Street SW., Washington, DC, between the hours of 8:30 a.m.
and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday of each week except Federal
holidays.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1431.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.029, Training
Personnel for the Education of Individuals with Disabilities
Program)
Dated: March 20, 1996.
Howard R. Moses,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services.
[FR Doc. 96-7211 Filed 3-25-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P