FR Doc 04-9052
[Federal Register: April 21, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 77)]
[Notices]
[Page 21507-21510]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr21ap04-39]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Overview
Information; Training and Information for Parents of Children with
Disabilities--Parent Training and Information Centers; Notice Inviting
Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2004
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.328M.
DATES: Applications Available: April 22, 2004.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 26, 2004.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 26, 2004.
Eligible Applicants: Parent organizations. The full definition of
Parent Organization is provided elsewhere in this notice in Section
III. Eligibility Information.
Estimated Available Funds: $4,144,360.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $275,000.
Maximum Award: For funding information regarding individual States,
see the chart in the Award Information section of this notice.
Estimated Number of Awards: 15.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
Full Text of Announcement
I. Funding Opportunity Description
Purpose Of Program: The purpose of this program is to ensure that
parents of children with disabilities receive training and information
to help improve results for their children.
Priority: In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(iv), this priority
is from allowable activities specified in the statute (see sections
661(e)(2) and 682 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA)).
Absolute Priority: For FY 2004 this priority is an absolute
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that
meet this priority.
Background: In order to allocate resources equitably, create a
unified system of service delivery, and provide the broadest coverage
for the parents and families in every State, the Assistant Secretary is
making awards in five-year cycles for each State. In FY 2004,
applications for 5-year awards will be accepted for the following
States: Arizona; Delaware; District of Columbia; Indiana; Iowa;
Massachusetts; Minnesota; Mississippi; Missouri; South Dakota;
Virginia; Washington; and Wyoming. Awards may also be made to
authorized entities in Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana
Islands, and the freely associated States. However, maximum funding
levels have not been specified.
In addition to the State awards, the Secretary intends to fund one
award that focuses on the needs of Native-American families who have
children with disabilities and one award that focuses on the needs of
military families who have children with disabilities. Each of these
projects must have a national focus with strategies for outreach to
their specific populations and coordination with the Parent Training
Information (PTI) Centers and Community Parent Resource Centers (CPRCs)
in the States.
Statement of Priority: This priority is: Awards to PTI Centers.
A PTI Center must--
(a) Provide training and information that meets the training and
information needs of parents of children with disabilities in the area
served by the PTI Center, particularly underserved parents and parents
of children who may be inappropriately identified as having a
disability when the child may not have a disability;
(b) Assist parents to understand the availability of, and how to
effectively use, procedural safeguards under IDEA, including
encouraging the use, and explaining the benefits, of alternative
methods of dispute resolution, such as the mediation process described
in IDEA;
(c) Serve the parents of infants, toddlers, and children with the
full range of disabilities;
(d) Assist parents to--
(1) Better understand the nature of their children's disabilities
and their educational and developmental needs;
(2) Communicate effectively with personnel responsible for
providing special education, early intervention, and related services;
(3) Participate in decisionmaking processes and the development of
individualized education programs and individualized family service
plans;
(4) Obtain appropriate information about the range of options,
programs, services, and resources available to assist children with
disabilities and their families;
(5) Understand the provisions of IDEA and the No Child Left Behind
Act of 2001 (NCLB) relating to the education of, and the provision of
early intervention services to, children with disabilities; and
(6) Participate in school reform activities;
(e) Contract with the State educational agency, if the State elects
to contract with the PTI Center, for the purpose of meeting with
parents who choose not to use the mediation process to encourage the
use, and explain the benefits, of mediation consistent with section
615(e)(2)(B) and (D) of IDEA;
(f) Establish cooperative relations with the CPRC or PTI Centers in
their State in accordance with section 683(b)(3) of IDEA;
(g) Network with appropriate clearinghouses, including
organizations conducting national dissemination activities under
section 685(d) of IDEA, and with other national, State, and local
organizations and agencies, such as protection and advocacy agencies,
that serve parents and families of children with the full range of
disabilities;
[[Page 21508]]
(h) Annually report to the Assistant Secretary on--
(1) The number of parents to whom the PTI Center provided
information and training in the most recently concluded fiscal year,
and
(2) The effectiveness of strategies used to reach and serve
parents, including underserved parents of children with disabilities;
and
(i) If there is more than one parent center in a particular State,
coordinate its activities with the other center or centers to ensure
the most effective assistance to parents in that State.
An applicant must identify the strategies it will undertake--
(a) To ensure that the needs for training and information for
underserved parents of children with disabilities in the areas to be
served are effectively met, particularly in underserved areas of the
State; and
(b) To work with the community-based organizations, particularly in
the underserved areas of the State.
A PTI Center that receives assistance under this absolute priority
may also conduct the following activities--
(a) Provide information to teachers and other professionals who
provide special education and related services to children with
disabilities;
(b) Assist students with disabilities to understand their rights
and responsibilities on reaching the age of majority, as stated in
section 615(m) of IDEA; and
(c) Assist parents of children with disabilities to be informed
participants in the development and implementation of the State
improvement plan under IDEA.
(d) Budget for a two-day Project Directors' meeting in Washington,
DC during each year of the project.
(e) Include relevant information and documents in an accessible
form on the project's Web site.
In addition to the annual Project Directors' meeting discussed in
paragraph (d) of this section, a project's budget must include funds to
attend a regional Project Directors' meeting to be held each year of
the project.
Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking: Under the Administrative Procedure
Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the Department generally offers interested parties
the opportunity to comment on proposed priorities. However, section
661(e)(2) of IDEA makes the public comment requirements inapplicable to
the priority in this notice.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1482.
Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80,
81, 82, 84, 85, 97, 98, and 99.
Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 79 apply to all applicants
except federally recognized Indian tribes.
II. Award Information
Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
Estimated Available Funds: $4,144,360.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $275,000.
Maximum Award: For funding information regarding individual States,
see the chart in the Award Information section of this notice.
Estimated Number of Awards: 15.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
Current funding levels and population of school age children were
factors in determining the funding level for grants.
Individuals With Disabilities Education Act Application Notice for
Fiscal Year 2004
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maximum
award
CFDA number and name (per
year)\2\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
84.328M Parent Training and Information Centers \1\:
Arizona.................................................. $300,000
Delaware................................................. 214,300
District of Columbia..................................... 186,700
Indiana.................................................. 359,300
Iowa..................................................... 226,200
Massachusetts............................................ 367,450
Minnesota................................................ 347,200
Mississippi.............................................. 244,050
Missouri................................................. 288,430
South Dakota............................................. 209,775
Virginia................................................. 391,090
Washington............................................... 331,365
Wyoming.................................................. 178,500
Native American Families................................. 250,000
Military Families........................................ 250,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Awards may also be made to authorized entities in Guam, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the freely
associated States. However, maximum funding levels have not been
specified.
\2\ We will reject any application that proposes a budget exceeding the
funding level for a single budget period of 12 months. The Assistant
Secretary for the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services may change the maximum amount through a notice published in
the Federal Register.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
III. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants: Parent organizations, as defined in section
682(g) of IDEA. A parent organization is a private nonprofit
organization (other than an institution of higher education) that:
(a) Has a board of directors, the parent and professional members
of which are broadly representative of the population to be served and
the majority of whom are parents of children with disabilities, that
includes individuals with disabilities and individuals working in the
fields of special education, related services, and early intervention;
or
(b) Has a membership that represents the interests of individuals
with disabilities and has established a special governing committee
meeting the requirements for a board of directors in paragraph (a)
under Eligible Applicants and has a memorandum of
[[Page 21509]]
understanding between this special governing committee and the board of
directors of the organization that clearly outlines the relationship
between the board and the committee and the decisionmaking
responsibilities and authority of each.
In addition, to demonstrate eligibility to receive a grant, an
applicant must describe how its board of directors or special governing
committee meets the criteria for a parent organization in section
682(g) of IDEA. Any parent organization that establishes a special
governing committee under section 682(g)(2) of IDEA must demonstrate
that the bylaws of its organization allow the governing committee to be
responsible for operating the project (consistent with existing fiscal
policies of its organization).
2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This competition does not involve cost
sharing or matching.
3. Other: General Requirements--(a) The projects funded under this
notice must make positive efforts to employ and advance in employment
qualified individuals with disabilities (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).
IV. Application and Submission Information
1. Address to Request Application Package: Education Publications
Center (ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll
free): 1-877-433-7827. Fax: (301) 470-1244. If you use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free):
1-877-576-7734.
You may also contact ED Pubs at its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html
or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address:
edpubs@inet.ed.gov
If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify
this competition as follows: CFDA Number 84.328M.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print,
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the Grants and Contracts
Services Team listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in section
VII of this notice.
2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you
must submit, are in the application package for this competition.
Page Limit: The application narrative (part III of the application)
is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that
reviewers use to evaluate your application. You must limit part III to
the equivalent of no more than 60 pages, using the following standards:
``page'' is 8.5 x 11, on
one side only, with 1 margins at the top, bottom, and both
sides.
Double space (no more than three lines per
vertical inch) all text in the application narrative, including titles,
headings, footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as
all text in charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or
no smaller than 10 pitch (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, the references, or the letters of support.
However, you must include all of the application narrative in part III.
We will reject your application if--
You apply these standards and exceed the page
limit; or
You apply other standards and exceed the
equivalent of the page limit.
3. Submission Dates and Times:
Applications Available: April 22, 2004.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 26, 2004.
The dates and times for the transmittal of applications by mail or
by hand (including a courier service or commercial carrier) are in the
application package for this competition. The application package also
specifies the hours of operation of the e-Application Web site.
We do not consider an application that does not comply with the
deadline requirements.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 26, 2004.
4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order
12372 is in the application package for this competition.
5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
6. Other Submission Requirements: Instructions and requirements for
the transmittal of applications by mail or by hand (including a courier
service or commercial carrier) are in the application package for this
competition.
Application Procedures
Note: Some of the procedures in these instructions for
transmitting applications differ from those in the Education
Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) (34 CFR
75.102). Under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the
Department generally offers interested parties the opportunity to
comment on proposed regulations. However, these amendments make
procedural changes only and do not establish new substantive policy.
Therefore, under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A), the Secretary has determined
that proposed rulemaking is not required.
Pilot Project for Electronic Submission of Applications: We are
continuing to expand our pilot project for electronic submission of
applications to include additional formula grant programs and
additional discretionary grant competitions. Special Education--
Training and Information for Parents of Children with Disabilities
Program--Parent Training and Information Centers--CFDA Number 84.328M
is one of the competitions included in the pilot project. If you are an
applicant under the Special Education--Training and Information for
Parents of Children with Disabilities Program--Parent Training and
Information Centers competition, you may submit your application to us
in either electronic or paper format.
The pilot project involves the use of the Electronic Grant
Application System (e-Application). If you use e-Application, you will
be entering data online while completing your application. You may not
e-mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us. If you
participate in this voluntary pilot project by submitting an
application electronically, the data you enter online will be saved
into a database. We request your participation in e-Application. We
shall continue to evaluate its success and solicit suggestions for its
improvement.
If you participate in e-Application, please note the following:
Your participation is voluntary.
When you enter the e-Application system, you
will find information about its hours of operation. We strongly
recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline date to
initiate an e-Application package.
You will not receive additional point value
because you submit a grant application in electronic format, nor will
we penalize you if you submit an application in paper format.
You may submit all documents electronically,
including the
[[Page 21510]]
Application for Federal Education Assistance (ED 424), Budget
Information--Non-Construction Programs (ED 524), and all necessary
assurances and certifications.
Your e-Application must comply with any page
limit requirements described in this notice.
After you electronically submit your
application, you will receive an automatic acknowledgement, which will
include a PR/Award number (an identifying number unique to your
application).
Within three working days after submitting your
electronic application, fax a signed copy of the Application for
Federal Education Assistance (ED 424) to the Application Control Center
after following these steps:
1. Print ED 424 from e-Application.
2. The institution's Authorizing Representative must sign this
form.
3. Place the PR/Award number in the upper right hand corner of the
hard copy signature page of the ED 424.
4. Fax the signed ED 424 to the Application Control Center at (202)
260-1349.
We may request that you give us original
signatures on other forms at a later date.
Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of System
Unavailability: If you elect to participate in the e-Application pilot
for the Special Education--Training and Information for Parents of
Children with Disabilities Program--Parent Training and Information
Centers competition and you are prevented from submitting your
application on the application deadline date because the e-Application
system is unavailable, we will grant you an extension of one business
day in order to transmit your application electronically, by mail, or
by hand delivery. We will grant this extension if--
1. You are a registered user of e-Application, and you have
initiated an e-Application for this competition; and
2. (a) The e-Application system is unavailable for 60 minutes or
more between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Washington, DC time,
on the application deadline date; or
(b) The e-Application system is unavailable for any period of time
during the last hour of operation (that is, for any period of time
between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time) on the
application deadline date.
We must acknowledge and confirm these periods of unavailability
before granting you an extension. To request this extension or to
confirm our acknowledgement of any system unavailability, you may
contact either (1) the person listed elsewhere in this notice under FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT (see VII. Agency Contact) or (2) the e-
GRANTS help desk at 1-888-336-8930.
You may access the electronic grant application for the Special
Education--Training and Information for Parents of Children with
Disabilities Program--Parent Training and Information Centers
competition at: http://e-grants.ed.gov.
V. Application Review Information
Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this competition are
listed in 34 CFR 75.210 of EDGAR. The specific selection criteria to be
used for this competition are in the application package.
VI. Award Administration Information
1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your
U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award
Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally.
If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding,
we notify you.
2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify
administrative and national policy requirements in the application
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable
Regulations section of this notice.
We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding
commitments under the grant.
3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a
final performance report, including financial information, as directed
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an
annual performance report that provides the most current performance
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in
34 CFR 75.118.
4. Performance Measures: Under the Government Performance and
Results Act (GPRA), the Department is currently developing measures
that will yield information on various aspects of the quality of the
Training and Information for Parents of Children with Disabilities
program (e.g., the extent to which projects use high quality methods
and materials, and the impact of services on helping parents improve
results for their children). Data on these measures will be collected
from the projects funded under this notice.
As specified in section I of this notice, grantees must, in
collaboration with the Office of Special Education Programs and the
National Parent Technical Assistance Center, participate in an annual
collection of program data for the PTI Centers and the CPRCs.
Grantees will also be required to report information on their
projects' performance in annual reports to the Department (EDGAR, 34
CFR 75.590).
VII. Agency Contact
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Grants and Contracts Services
Team, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room
3317, Switzer Building, Washington, DC 20202-2550. Telephone: 1-202-
205-8207.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the Grants and Contracts Services Team listed
in this section.
VIII. Other Information
Electronic Access to This Document: You may view this document, as
well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the
Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.
To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at this site. If you have questions about using 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.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.
Dated: April 15, 2004.
Troy R. Justesen,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special Education and
Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 04-9052 Filed 4-20-04; 8:45 am]
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