Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Notices 25463 

consider whether the applicant failed to 

submit a timely performance report or 

submitted a report of unacceptable 

quality. 

In addition, in making a competitive 

grant award, the Secretary also requires 

various assurances including those 

applicable to Federal civil rights laws 

that prohibit discrimination in programs 

or activities receiving Federal financial 

assistance from the Department of 

Education (34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 

108.8, and 110.23). 

3. Special Conditions: Under 34 CFR 

74.14 and 80.12, the Secretary may 

impose special conditions on a grant if 

the applicant or grantee is not 

financially stable; has a history of 

unsatisfactory performance; has a 

financial or other management system 

that does not meet the standards in 34 

CFR parts 74 or 80, as applicable; has 

not fulfilled the conditions of a prior 

grant; or is otherwise not responsible. 

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 notify you informally, 

also. 

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: (a) If you apply for a 

grant under this competition, you must 

ensure that you have in place the 

necessary processes and systems to 

comply with the reporting requirements 

in 2 CFR part 170 should you receive 

funding under the competition. This 

does not apply if you have an exception 

under 2 CFR 170.110(b). 

(b) 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 directed by the Secretary 

under 34 CFR 75.118. The Secretary 

may also require more frequent 

performance reports under 34 CFR 

75.720(c). 

4. Performance Measures: Under the 

Government Performance and Results 

Act of 1993 (GPRA), the Department has 

developed four measures to evaluate the 

overall effectiveness of the Enhanced 

Assessment Instruments Grants 

program: (1) The number of States that 

participate in Enhanced Assessment 

Instruments Grants projects funded by 

this competition; (2) the percentage of 

grantees that, at least twice during the 

period of their grants, make available to 

SEA staff in non-participating States 

and to assessment researchers 

information on findings resulting from 

the Enhanced Assessment Instruments 

Grants through presentations at national 

conferences, publications in refereed 

journals, or other products disseminated 

to the assessment community; (3) for 

each grant cycle and as determined by 

an expert panel, the percentage of 

Enhanced Assessment Instruments 

Grants that yield significant research, 

methodologies, products, or tools 

regarding assessment systems or 

assessments; and (4) for each grant cycle 

and as determined by an expert panel, 

the percentage of Enhanced Assessment 

Instruments Grants that yield significant 

research, methodologies, products, or 

tools specifically regarding 

accommodations and alternate 

assessments for students with 

disabilities and limited English 

proficient students. Grantees will be 

expected to include in their interim and 

final performance reports information 

about the accomplishments of their 

projects because the Department will 

need data on these measures. 

VII. Agency Contact 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Collette Roney, Enhanced Assessment 

Grants Program, Office of Elementary 

and Secondary Education, U.S. 

Department of Education, 400 Maryland 

Avenue SW., room 3W210, Washington, 

DC 20202–6132. Telephone: (202) 401– 

5245 or by email: 

Collette.Roney@ed.gov. 

If you use a TDD or a TTY, call the 

FRS, toll-free, at 1–800–877–8339. 

VIII. Other Information 

Accessible Format: Individuals with 

disabilities can obtain this document 

and a copy of the application package in 

an accessible format (e.g., braille, large 

print, audiotape, or compact disc) on 

request to the program contact person 

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT in section VII in this notice. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

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 via the Federal Digital System 

at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you 

can 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). To use PDF you must 

have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is 

available free at the site. 

You may also access documents of the 

Department published in the Federal 

Register by using the article search 

feature at: www.federalregister.gov. 

Specifically, through the advanced 

search feature at this site, you can limit 

your search to documents published by 

the Department. 

Dated: April 25, 2012. 

Michael Yudin, 

Acting Assistant Secretary for Elementary and 

Secondary Education. 

[FR Doc. 2012–10359 Filed 4–27–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Applications for New Awards; 

Enhanced Assessment Instruments 

Grants Program—Enhanced 

Assessment Instruments (Accessibility 

Competition) 

AGENCY: Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education, Department of 

Education. 

ACTION: Notice. 

Overview Information: 

Enhanced Assessment Instruments 

Grants Program—Enhanced Assessment 

Instruments (Accessibility Competition) 

Notice inviting applications for new 

awards for fiscal year (FY) 2011 funds. 

Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.368A–2. 

DATES:

Applications Available: April 30, 

2012. 

Deadline for Notice of Intent to Apply: 

May 30, 2012. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: June 14, 2012. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: August 13, 2012. 

Full Text of Announcement 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Purpose of Program: The purpose of 

the Enhanced Assessments Instruments 

Grants program, also called the 

Enhanced Assessment Grants (EAG) 

program, is to enhance the quality of 

assessment instruments and systems 

used by States for measuring the 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

25464 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Notices 

1 In selecting a proposed project management 

partner, an eligible applicant must comply with the 

requirements for procurement in 34 CFR 80.36. 

academic achievement of elementary 

and secondary school students. 

In 2012, the Department is holding 

two separate competitions for FY 2011 

EAG funds. The competition announced 

in this notice (EAG Accessibility 

Competition) (CFDA No. 84.368A–2) 

will support efforts designed to advance 

practice significantly in the area of 

increasing the accessibility and validity 

of assessments for students with 

disabilities or limited English 

proficiency, or both, including strategies 

for test design, administration with 

accommodations, scoring, and 

reporting. Elsewhere in this issue of the 

Federal Register we are publishing a 

notice inviting applications for a 

separate competition for FY 2011 EAG 

funds to be awarded in 2012 (the EAG 

English Language Proficiency (ELP) 

Competition, CFDA No. 84.368A–1). 

The Department may use any unused 

funds from the competition announced 

in this notice to make awards in the 

EAG ELP Competition. Conversely, the 

Department may use any unused funds 

from the EAG ELP Competition to make 

awards in the competition announced in 

this notice. 

Priorities: This competition includes 

four absolute priorities and three 

competitive preference priorities. In 

accordance with 34 CFR 

75.105(b)(2)(iv), absolute priorities 1 

through 4 (Statutory Priorities) are based 

on section 6112 of the Elementary and 

Secondary Education Act of 1965, as 

amended (ESEA) (20 U.S.C. 7301a). 

Competitive Preference Priority 1 and 

Competitive Preference Priority 3 are 

from Appendix E to the notice of final 

requirements for optional State 

consolidated applications submitted 

under section 9302 of the ESEA, 

published in the Federal Register on 

May 22, 2002 (67 FR 35967). 

Competitive Preference Priority 2 is 

from the notice of final priorities, 

requirements, definitions, and selection 

criteria, published in the Federal 

Register on April 19, 2011 (76 FR 

21986). 

Absolute Priorities: For awards made 

from this competition in 2012 with FY 

2011 funds, and any subsequent year in 

which we make awards from the list of 

unfunded applicants from this 

competition, these priorities are 

absolute priorities. Under 34 CFR 

75.105(c)(3) we consider only 

applications that meet one or more of 

the Statutory Priorities. 

These priorities are: 

Absolute Priority 1—Collaboration. 

Collaborate with institutions of higher 

education, other research institutions, or 

other organizations to improve the 

quality, validity, and reliability of State 

academic assessments beyond the 

requirements for these assessments 

described in section 1111(b)(3) of the 

ESEA. 

Absolute Priority 2—Use of Multiple 

Measures of Student Academic 

Achievement. Measure student 

academic achievement using multiple 

measures of student academic 

achievement from multiple sources. 

Absolute Priority 3—Charting Student 

Progress Over Time. Chart student 

progress over time. 

Absolute Priority 4—Comprehensive 

Academic Assessment Instruments. 

Evaluate student academic achievement 

through the development of 

comprehensive academic assessment 

instruments, such as performance- and 

technology-based academic 

assessments. 

Competitive Preference Priorities: For 

awards made in 2012 with FY 2011 

funds, and any subsequent year in 

which we make awards from the list of 

unfunded applicants from this 

competition, the following priorities are 

competitive preference priorities. Under 

34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) we award up to 

an additional 25 points to an 

application, depending on how well the 

application meets these competitive 

preference priorities. 

These priorities are: 

Competitive Preference Priority 1— 

Accommodations and Alternate 

Assessments (up to 15 points). 

Applications that can be expected to 

advance practice significantly in the 

area of increasing accessibility and 

validity of assessments for students with 

disabilities or limited English 

proficiency, or both, including strategies 

for test design, administration with 

accommodations, scoring, and 

reporting. 

Competitive Preference Priority 2— 

Collaborative Efforts Among States (up 

to 5 points). 

To meet this priority, an applicant 

must— 

(a) Include a minimum of 15 States in 

the consortium; 

(b) Identify in its application a 

proposed project management partner 

and provide an assurance that the 

proposed project management partner is 

not partnered with any other eligible 

applicant applying for an award under 

this competition 1; 

(c) Provide a description of the 

consortium’s structure and operation. 

The description must include— 

(1) The organizational structure of the 

consortium (e.g., differentiated roles 

that a member State may hold); 

(2) The consortium’s method and 

process (e.g., consensus, majority) for 

making different types of decisions (e.g., 

policy, operational); 

(3) The protocols by which the 

consortium will operate, including 

protocols for member States to change 

roles in the consortium, for member 

States to leave the consortium, and for 

new member States to join the 

consortium; 

(4) The consortium’s plan, including 

the process and timeline, for setting key 

policies and definitions for 

implementing the proposed project, 

including, for any assessments 

developed through a project funded by 

this grant, the common set of standards 

upon which to base the assessments, a 

common set of performance-level 

descriptors, a common set of 

achievement standards, common 

assessment administration procedures, 

common item-release and test-security 

policies, and a common set of policies 

and procedures for accommodations 

and student participation; and 

(5) The consortium’s plan for 

managing grant funds received under 

this competition; and 

(d) Provide a memorandum of 

understanding or other binding 

agreement executed by each State in the 

consortium that includes an assurance 

that, to remain in the consortium, the 

State will adopt or use any instrument, 

including to the extent applicable, 

assessments, developed under the 

proposed project no later than the end 

of the project period. 

Competitive Preference Priority 3— 

Dissemination (5 points). Applications 

that include an effective plan for 

dissemination of results. 

Requirements: The following 

requirement, which was published in 

the Federal Register on April 19, 2011 

(76 FR 21986), applies to this 

competition. An eligible applicant 

awarded a grant under this program 

must: 

Unless otherwise protected by law or 

agreement as proprietary information, 

make any assessment content (i.e., 

assessments and assessment items) and 

other assessment-related instruments 

developed with funds from this 

competition freely available to States, 

technology platform providers, and 

others that request it for purposes of 

administering assessments, provided 

that those parties receiving assessment 

content comply with consortium or 

State requirements for test or item 

security. 

Definitions: The following definition, 

which was published in the Federal 

Register on April 19, 2011 (76 FR 

21986), applies to this competition. 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Notices 25465 

Student with a disability means a 

student who has been identified as a 

child with a disability under the 

Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act, as amended. 

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7301a 

and 7842. 

Applicable Regulations: (a) The 

Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 

34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 80, 81, 82, 84, 

86, 97, 98, and 99. (b) The Debarment 

and Suspension regulations in 2 CFR 

part 3485. (c) The notice of final 

requirements for optional State 

consolidated applications submitted 

under section 9302 of the ESEA, 

published in the Federal Register on 

May 22, 2002 (67 FR 35967). (d) The 

notice of final priorities, requirements, 

definitions, and selection criteria, 

published in the Federal Register on 

April 19, 2011 (76 FR 21986). (e) The 

notice of final revision to selection 

criteria, published elsewhere in this 

issue of the Federal Register. 

Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 

apply to institutions of higher education 

only. 

II. Award Information 

Type of Award: Discretionary grants. 

Estimated Available Funds: 

$3,900,000 in FY 2011 funds to be 

awarded in 2012. Contingent upon the 

availability of funds and the quality of 

applications, we may make additional 

awards with FY 2012 funds from the list 

of unfunded applicants from this 

competition. 

Estimated Range of Awards: 

$1,000,000 to $3,000,000. 

Estimated Average Size of Awards: 

$1,950,000. 

Estimated Number of Awards: 2. 

Note: Applicants should submit a single 

budget request for a single budget and project 

period of up to 24 months. Subject to the 

availability of future years’ funds, the 

Department may make supplemental grant 

awards to the grants awarded with FY 2011 

funds. 

Note: The Department is not bound by any 

estimates in this notice. 

Project Period: Up to 24 months. 

III. Eligibility Information 

1. Eligible Applicants: State 

educational agencies (SEAs) as defined 

in section 9101(41) of the ESEA and 

consortia of such SEAs. 

2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This 

competition does not require cost 

sharing or matching. 

3. Other: An application from a 

consortium of SEAs must designate one 

SEA as the fiscal agent. 

IV. Application and Submission 

Information 

1. Address to Request Application 

Package: You can access the electronic 

grant application for the Enhanced 

Assessment Instruments Grants Program 

at www.Grants.gov. You must search for 

the downloadable application package 

for this competition by the CFDA 

number. Do not include the CFDA 

number’s alpha suffix in your search 

(e.g., search for 84.368, not 84.368A). 

Your search will result in two grant 

opportunities; be sure to select the 

opportunity for the EAG Accessibility 

Competition application package. You 

can also obtain a copy of the application 

package by contacting the program 

contact persons listed under Agency 

Contacts in section VII of this notice. 

Individuals with disabilities can 

obtain a copy of the application package 

in an accessible format (e.g., braille, 

large print, audiotape, or compact disc) 

by contacting the person listed under 

Accessible Format in section VIII 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 4 of the application) is where you, 

the applicant, address the selection 

criteria that reviewers use to evaluate 

your application and the absolute and 

competitive preference priorities. You 

must limit the application narrative 

(Part IV) to the equivalent of no more 

than 45 pages, using the following 

standards: 

• A ‘‘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. 

• Times New Roman font no smaller 

than 11.0 point for 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. (Font sizes that round up to 11, 

such as 10.7 point, will be considered 

as smaller than 11.0.) 

• Any screen shots included as part 

of the application narrative should 

follow these standards or, if other 

standards are applied, be sized to equal 

the equivalent amount of space if these 

standards were applied. 

The page limit does not apply to: Part 

1 (including the response regarding 

research activities involving human 

subjects); Parts 2 and 5 (the budget 

sections, including the chart and 

narrative budget justification); Part 3 

(one-page project abstract); Part 6 (other 

attachments forms, including, if 

applicable, references/bibliography for 

the application narrative; re ́sume ́s for 

the project director and key personnel— 

applicants are encouraged to limit each 

re ́sume ́ to no more than five pages; 

memoranda of understanding or other 

binding agreement; assurance regarding 

management partner; copy of indirect 

cost rate agreement; and letters of 

commit and support); and Part 7 (the 

assurances and certifications, including 

the General Education Provisions Act 

427 response). 

The page limit applies to Part 4 

project narrative, including any table of 

contents for it. This section must 

include a discussion of how the 

application meets at least one of the 

absolute priorities, how well the 

application meets the competitive 

preference priorities (if applicable), and 

how well the application addresses each 

of the selection criteria. The page limit 

also applies to any attachments to the 

project narrative other than references/ 

bibliography. In other words, the 

entirety of Part 4 of the application, 

including the discussion described in 

this paragraph and any attachments to 

the narrative, must be limited to the 

equivalent of no more than 45 pages. 

The only allowable attachments other 

than any included in the project 

narrative are those described in Part 6. 

Any attachments other than those 

included within the page limit of the 

project narrative and those outlined for 

Part 6 will not be reviewed. 

Our reviewers will not read any pages 

of your project narrative that exceed the 

page limit or that exceed the equivalent 

of the page limit if you apply other 

standards. Applicants are encouraged to 

submit applications that meet the page 

limit following the standards outlined 

in this section rather than submitting 

applications that are the equivalent of 

the page limit applying other standards. 

3. Submission Dates and Times: 

Applications Available: April 30, 

2012. 

Deadline for Notice of Intent to Apply: 

May 30, 2012. 

We will be able to develop a more 

efficient process for reviewing grant 

applications if we have a better 

understanding of the number of 

applicants that intend to apply for 

funding under this competition. 

Therefore, the Secretary strongly 

encourages each potential applicant to 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

25466 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Notices 

notify us of the applicant’s intent to 

submit an application for funding by 

sending a short email message. This 

short email should provide the 

applicant organization’s name and 

address. The Secretary requests that this 

email be sent to Collette.Roney@ed.gov 

with ‘‘Intent to Apply’’ in the email 

subject line. Applicants that do not 

provide this email notification may still 

apply for funding. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: June 14, 2012. 

Applications for grants under this 

competition must be submitted 

electronically using the Grants.gov 

Apply site (Grants.gov). Note that 

applications for this EAG Accessibility 

Competition must be submitted under 

CFDA number 84.368A–2; only 

applications for the EAG ELP 

Competition should be submitted under 

CFDA number 84.368A–1. For 

information (including dates and times) 

about how to submit your application 

electronically, or in paper format by 

mail or hand delivery if you qualify for 

an exception to the electronic 

submission requirement, please refer to 

section IV. 7. Other Submission 

Requirements of this notice. 

We do not consider an application 

that does not comply with the deadline 

requirements. 

Individuals with disabilities who 

need an accommodation or auxiliary aid 

in connection with the application 

process should contact the person listed 

under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT in section VII of this notice. If 

the Department provides an 

accommodation or auxiliary aid to an 

individual with a disability in 

connection with the application 

process, the individual’s application 

remains subject to all other 

requirements and limitations in this 

notice. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: August 13, 2012. 

4. Intergovernmental Review: This 

competition 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 in this notice. 

6. Data Universal Numbering System 

Number, Taxpayer Identification 

Number, and Central Contractor 

Registry: To do business with the 

Department of Education, you must— 

a. Have a Data Universal Numbering 

System (DUNS) number and a Taxpayer 

Identification Number (TIN); 

b. Register both your DUNS number 

and TIN with the Central Contractor 

Registry (CCR), the Government’s 

primary registrant database; 

c. Provide your DUNS number and 

TIN on your application; and 

d. Maintain an active CCR registration 

with current information while your 

application is under review by the 

Department and, if you are awarded a 

grant, during the project period. 

You can obtain a DUNS number from 

Dun and Bradstreet. A DUNS number 

can be created within one business day. 

If you are a corporate entity, agency, 

institution, or organization, you can 

obtain a TIN from the Internal Revenue 

Service. If you are an individual, you 

can obtain a TIN from the Internal 

Revenue Service or the Social Security 

Administration. If you need a new TIN, 

please allow 2–5 weeks for your TIN to 

become active. 

The CCR registration process may take 

five or more business days to complete. 

If you are currently registered with the 

CCR, you may not need to make any 

changes. However, please make certain 

that the TIN associated with your DUNS 

number is correct. Also note that you 

will need to update your CCR 

registration on an annual basis. This 

may take three or more business days to 

complete. 

In addition, if you are submitting your 

application via Grants.gov, you must 

(1) be designated by your organization 

as an Authorized Organization 

Representative (AOR); and (2) register 

yourself with Grants.gov as an AOR. 

Details on these steps are outlined in the 

Grants.gov Web page: www.grants.gov/ 

applicants/get_registered.jsp. 

7. Other Submission Requirements: 

Applications for grants under this 

competition must be submitted 

electronically unless you qualify for an 

exception to this requirement in 

accordance with the instructions in this 

section. 

a. Electronic Submission of 

Applications. 

Applications for grants under the 

Enhanced Assessment Instruments 

Grants Program, CFDA number 

84.368A–2, must be submitted 

electronically using the 

Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site 

at www.Grants.gov. Through this site, 

you will be able to download a copy of 

the application package, complete it 

offline, and then upload and submit 

your application. You may not email an 

electronic copy of a grant application to 

us. You should submit applications to 

this competition, the EAG Accessibility 

Competition, under CFDA number 

84.368A–2; do not submit applications 

for this competition under CFDA 

number 84.368A–1, which is the 

number for the EAG ELP Competition. 

We will reject your application if you 

submit it in paper format unless, as 

described elsewhere in this section, you 

qualify for one of the exceptions to the 

electronic submission requirement and 

submit, no later than two weeks before 

the application deadline date, a written 

statement to the Department that you 

qualify for one of these exceptions. 

Further information regarding 

calculation of the date that is two weeks 

before the application deadline date is 

provided later in this section under 

Exception to Electronic Submission 

Requirement. 

You may access the electronic grant 

application for the Enhanced 

Assessment Instruments Grants Program 

at www.Grants.gov. You must search for 

the downloadable application package 

for this competition by the CFDA 

number. Do not include the CFDA 

number’s alpha suffix in your search 

(e.g., search for 84.368, not 84.368A). 

Please note the following: 

• When you enter the Grants.gov site, 

you will find information about 

submitting an application electronically 

through the site, as well as the hours of 

operation. 

• Applications received by Grants.gov 

are date and time stamped. Your 

application must be fully uploaded and 

submitted and must be date and time 

stamped by the Grants.gov system no 

later than 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC 

time, on the application deadline date. 

Except as otherwise noted in this 

section, we will not accept your 

application if it is received—that is, date 

and time stamped by the Grants.gov 

system—after 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, 

DC time, on the application deadline 

date. We do not consider an application 

that does not comply with the deadline 

requirements. When we retrieve your 

application from Grants.gov, we will 

notify you if we are rejecting your 

application because it was date and time 

stamped by the Grants.gov system after 

4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on 

the application deadline date. 

• The amount of time it can take to 

upload an application will vary 

depending on a variety of factors, 

including the size of the application and 

the speed of your Internet connection. 

Therefore, we strongly recommend that 

you do not wait until the application 

deadline date to begin the submission 

process through Grants.gov. 

• You should review and follow the 

Education Submission Procedures for 

submitting an application through 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Notices 25467 

Grants.gov that are included in the 

application package for this competition 

to ensure that you submit your 

application in a timely manner to the 

Grants.gov system. You can also find the 

Education Submission Procedures 

pertaining to Grants.gov under News 

and Events on the Department’s G5 

system home page at www.G5.gov. 

• You will not receive additional 

point value because you submit your 

application in electronic format, nor 

will we penalize you if you qualify for 

an exception to the electronic 

submission requirement, as described 

elsewhere in this section, and submit 

your application in paper format. 

• You must submit all documents 

electronically, including all information 

you typically provide on the following 

forms: The Application for Federal 

Assistance (SF 424), the Department of 

Education Supplemental Information for 

SF 424, Budget Information—NonConstruction Programs (ED 524), and all 

necessary assurances and certifications. 

• You must upload any narrative 

sections and all other attachments to 

your application as files in a PDF 

(Portable Document) read-only, nonmodifiable format. Do not upload an 

interactive or fillable PDF file. If you 

upload a file type other than a readonly, non-modifiable PDF or submit a 

password-protected file, we will not 

review that material. 

• Your electronic application must 

comply with any page-limit 

requirements described in this notice. 

• After you electronically submit 

your application, you will receive from 

Grants.gov an automatic notification of 

receipt that contains a Grants.gov 

tracking number. (This notification 

indicates receipt by Grants.gov only, not 

receipt by the Department.) The 

Department then will retrieve your 

application from Grants.gov and send a 

second notification to you by email. 

This second notification indicates that 

the Department has received your 

application and has assigned your 

application a PR/Award number (an EDspecified identifying number unique to 

your application). 

• We may request that you provide us 

original signatures on forms at a later 

date. 

Application Deadline Date Extension 

in Case of Technical Issues with the 

Grants.gov System: If you are 

experiencing problems submitting your 

application through Grants.gov, please 

contact the Grants.gov Support Desk, 

toll free, at 1–800–518–4726. You must 

obtain a Grants.gov Support Desk Case 

Number and must keep a record of it. 

If you are prevented from 

electronically submitting your 

application on the application deadline 

date because of technical problems with 

the Grants.gov system, we will grant you 

an extension until 4:30:00 p.m., 

Washington, DC time, the following 

business day to enable you to transmit 

your application electronically or by 

hand delivery. You also may mail your 

application by following the mailing 

instructions described elsewhere in this 

notice. 

If you submit an application after 

4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on 

the application deadline date, please 

contact the person listed under FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in 

section VII of this notice and provide an 

explanation of the technical problem 

you experienced with Grants.gov, along 

with the Grants.gov Support Desk Case 

Number. We will accept your 

application if we can confirm that a 

technical problem occurred with the 

Grants.gov system and that that problem 

affected your ability to submit your 

application by 4:30:00 p.m., 

Washington, DC time, on the 

application deadline date. The 

Department will contact you after a 

determination is made on whether your 

application will be accepted. 

Note: The extensions to which we refer in 

this section apply only to the unavailability 

of, or technical problems with, the Grants.gov 

system. We will not grant you an extension 

if you failed to fully register to submit your 

application to Grants.gov before the 

application deadline date and time or if the 

technical problem you experienced is 

unrelated to the Grants.gov system. 

Exception to Electronic Submission 

Requirement: You qualify for an 

exception to the electronic submission 

requirement, and may submit your 

application in paper format, if you are 

unable to submit an application through 

the Grants.gov system because— 

• You do not have access to the 

Internet; or 

• You do not have the capacity to 

upload large documents to the 

Grants.gov system; 

and 

• No later than two weeks before the 

application deadline date (14 calendar 

days or, if the fourteenth calendar day 

before the application deadline date 

falls on a Federal holiday, the next 

business day following the Federal 

holiday), you mail or fax a written 

statement to the Department, explaining 

which of the two grounds for an 

exception prevent you from using the 

Internet to submit your application. 

If you mail your written statement to 

the Department, it must be postmarked 

no later than two weeks before the 

application deadline date. If you fax 

your written statement to the 

Department, we must receive the faxed 

statement no later than two weeks 

before the application deadline date. 

Address and mail or fax your 

statement to: Collette Roney, U.S. 

Department of Education, 400 Maryland 

Avenue SW., room 3W210, Washington, 

DC 20202. Fax: (202) 260–7764. 

Your paper application must be 

submitted in accordance with the mail 

or hand delivery instructions described 

in this notice. 

b. Submission of Paper Applications 

by Mail. 

If you qualify for an exception to the 

electronic submission requirement, you 

may mail (through the U.S. Postal 

Service or a commercial carrier) your 

application to the Department. You 

must mail the original and two copies 

of your application, on or before the 

application deadline date, to the 

Department at the following address: 

U.S. Department of Education, 

Application Control Center, Attention: 

(CFDA Number 84.368A–2), LBJ 

Basement Level 1, 400 Maryland 

Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20202– 

4260. 

You must show proof of mailing 

consisting of one of the following: 

(1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service 

postmark. 

(2) A legible mail receipt with the 

date of mailing stamped by the U.S. 

Postal Service. 

(3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or 

receipt from a commercial carrier. 

(4) Any other proof of mailing 

acceptable to the Secretary of the U.S. 

Department of Education. 

If you mail your application through 

the U.S. Postal Service, we do not 

accept either of the following as proof 

of mailing: 

(1) A private metered postmark. 

(2) A mail receipt that is not dated by 

the U.S. Postal Service. 

If your application is postmarked after 

the application deadline date, we will 

not consider your application. 

Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not 

uniformly provide a dated postmark. Before 

relying on this method, you should check 

with your local post office. 

c. Submission of Paper Applications 

by Hand Delivery. 

If you qualify for an exception to the 

electronic submission requirement, you 

(or a courier service) may deliver your 

paper application to the Department by 

hand. You must deliver the original and 

two copies of your application by hand, 

on or before the application deadline 

date, to the Department at the following 

address: U.S. Department of Education, 

Application Control Center, Attention: 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

25468 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Notices 

(CFDA Number 84.368A–2), 550 12th 

Street SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center 

Plaza, Washington, DC 20202–4260. 

The Application Control Center 

accepts hand deliveries daily between 

8:00 a.m. and 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, 

DC time, except Saturdays, Sundays, 

and Federal holidays. 

Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of 

Paper Applications: If you mail or hand 

deliver your application to the 

Department— 

(1) You must indicate on the envelope 

and—if not provided by the 

Department—in Item 11 of the SF 424 

the CFDA number, including suffix 

letter, if any, of the competition under 

which you are submitting your 

application; and 

(2) The Application Control Center 

will mail to you a notification of receipt 

of your grant application. If you do not 

receive this notification within 15 

business days from the application 

deadline date, you should call the U.S. 

Department of Education Application 

Control Center at (202) 245–6288. 

V. Application Review Information 

1. Selection Criteria: The selection 

criteria for this competition are from the 

notice of final priorities, requirements, 

definitions, and selection criteria, 

published elsewhere in this issue of the 

Federal Register and are listed in the 

application package. 

2. Review and Selection Process: We 

remind potential applicants that in 

reviewing applications in any 

discretionary grant competition, the 

Secretary may consider, under 34 CFR 

75.217(d)(3), the past performance of the 

applicant in carrying out a previous 

award, such as the applicant’s use of 

funds, achievement of project 

objectives, and compliance with grant 

conditions. The Secretary may also 

consider whether the applicant failed to 

submit a timely performance report or 

submitted a report of unacceptable 

quality. 

In addition, in making a competitive 

grant award, the Secretary also requires 

various assurances including those 

applicable to Federal civil rights laws 

that prohibit discrimination in programs 

or activities receiving Federal financial 

assistance from the Department of 

Education (34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 

108.8, and 110.23). 

3. Special Conditions: Under 34 CFR 

74.14 and 80.12, the Secretary may 

impose special conditions on a grant if 

the applicant or grantee is not 

financially stable; has a history of 

unsatisfactory performance; has a 

financial or other management system 

that does not meet the standards in 34 

CFR parts 74 or 80, as applicable; has 

not fulfilled the conditions of a prior 

grant; or is otherwise not responsible. 

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 notify you informally, 

also. 

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: (a) If you apply for a 

grant under this competition, you must 

ensure that you have in place the 

necessary processes and systems to 

comply with the reporting requirements 

in 2 CFR part 170 should you receive 

funding under the competition. This 

does not apply if you have an exception 

under 2 CFR 170.110(b). 

(b) 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 directed by the Secretary 

under 34 CFR 75.118. The Secretary 

may also require more frequent 

performance reports under 34 CFR 

75.720(c). 

4. Performance Measures: Under the 

Government Performance and Results 

Act of 1993 (GPRA), the Department has 

developed four measures to evaluate the 

overall effectiveness of the Enhanced 

Assessment Instruments Grants 

program: (1) The number of States that 

participate in Enhanced Assessment 

Instruments Grants projects funded by 

this competition; (2) the percentage of 

grantees that, at least twice during the 

period of their grants, make available to 

SEA staff in non-participating States 

and to assessment researchers 

information on findings resulting from 

the Enhanced Assessment Instruments 

Grants through presentations at national 

conferences, publications in refereed 

journals, or other products disseminated 

to the assessment community; (3) for 

each grant cycle and as determined by 

an expert panel, the percentage of 

Enhanced Assessment Instruments 

Grants that yield significant research, 

methodologies, products, or tools 

regarding assessment systems or 

assessments; and (4) for each grant cycle 

and as determined by an expert panel, 

the percentage of Enhanced Assessment 

Instruments Grants that yield significant 

research, methodologies, products, or 

tools specifically regarding 

accommodations and alternate 

assessments for students with 

disabilities and limited English 

proficient students. Grantees will be 

expected to include in their interim and 

final performance reports information 

about the accomplishments of their 

projects because the Department will 

need data on these measures. 

VII. Agency Contact 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Collette Roney, Enhanced Assessment 

Grants Program, Office of Elementary 

and Secondary Education, U.S. 

Department of Education, 400 Maryland 

Avenue SW., Room 3W210, 

Washington, DC 20202–6132. 

Telephone: (202) 401–5245 or by email: 

Collette.Roney@ed.gov. 

If you use a TDD, call the FRS, tollfree, at 1–800–877–8339. 

VIII. Other Information 

Accessible Format: Individuals with 

disabilities can obtain this document 

and a copy of the application package in 

an accessible format (e.g., braille, large 

print, audiotape, or compact disc) on 

request to the program contact person 

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT in section VII in this notice. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

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 via the Federal Digital System 

at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you 

can 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). To use PDF you must 

have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is 

available free at the site. 

You may also access documents of the 

Department published in the Federal 

Register by using the article search 

feature at: www.federalregister.gov. 

Specifically, through the advanced 

search feature at this site, you can limit 

your search to documents published by 

the Department. 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Notices 25469 

Dated: April 25, 2012. 

Michael Yudin, 

Acting Assistant Secretary for Elementary and 

Secondary Education. 

[FR Doc. 2012–10382 Filed 4–27–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Applications for New Awards; 

Investing in Innovation Fund, Scale-Up 

Grants 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

(CFDA) Number: 84.411A (Scale-up 

grants). 

AGENCY: Office of Innovation and 

Improvement, Department of Education. 

ACTION: Notice; extension of deadline 

date and correction. 

SUMMARY: On March 27, 2012, the Office 

of Innovation and Improvement in the 

U.S. Department of Education published 

in the Federal Register (77 FR 18216) a 

notice inviting applications for new 

awards for fiscal year 2012 for the 

Investing in Innovation (i3) Scale-up 

grant competition (March 27 i3 Scale-up 

NIA). This notice extends the deadline 

date and date for intergovernmental 

review announced in, and corrects an 

error in, the March 27 i3 Scale-up NIA. 

DATES:

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: May 30, 2012. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: July 26, 2012. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Deadline Date Extension 

In the March 27 i3 Scale-up NIA the 

Department announced the 2012 i3 

Scale-up grant competition and 

indicated that the Deadline for 

Transmittal of Applications was May 

29, 2012. Applicants under this 

competition are required to use 

Grants.gov. Since publishing the March 

27 i3 Scale-up NIA, it has come to the 

Department’s attention that the 

Grants.gov help desk will be closed in 

observance of Memorial Day on 

Monday, May 28—the day before the 

original Deadline for the Transmittal of 

Applications that was announced in the 

March 27 i3 Scale-up NIA. The 

Department extends the deadline date 

for this competition to May 30, 2012 so 

that applicants will have sufficient 

access to the Grants.gov help desk to 

address any technical issues related to 

the application submission that may 

arise the day before the deadline date. 

As a result of the change in the deadline 

date, we are also extending the Date for 

Intergovernmental Review by one day— 

to July 26, 2012. 

Correction 

An error appears in the Electronic 

Submission of Applications section of 

the March 27 i3 Scale-up NIA. In seven 

places within that section, the notice 

indicates that applications must be fully 

uploaded and submitted and must be 

date and time stamped by the 

Grants.gov system no later than 

4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the 

application deadline date. These 

references to ‘‘4:30 p.m.’’ should be 

references to ‘‘4:30:00 p.m.’’ For this 

reason, we correct the March 27 i3 

Scale-up NIA as follows: 

On page 18225, second column, 

second bulleted paragraph, correct the 

three references to ‘‘4:30 p.m.’’ to read 

‘‘4:30:00 p.m.’’. 

On page 18225, third column, last 

paragraph, correct the reference to ‘‘4:30 

p.m.’’ to read ‘‘4:30:00 p.m.’’. 

On page 18226, first column, first full 

paragraph, correct the two references to 

‘‘4:30 p.m.’’ to read ‘‘4:30:00 p.m.’’. 

On page 18226, second column, last 

paragraph, correct the reference to ‘‘4:30 

p.m.’’ to read ‘‘4:30:00 p.m.’’. 

Program Authority: American Recovery 

and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Division A, 

Section 14007, Public Law 111–5. 

VIII. Agency Contact 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Carol Lyons, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW., 

room 4W203, Washington, DC 20202– 

5930. FAX: (202) 205–5631. Telephone: 

(202) 453–7122 or by email: i3@ed.gov. 

If you use a telecommunications 

device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 

telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay 

Service (FRS), toll free, at 1–800–877– 

8339. 

Accessible Format: Individuals with 

disabilities can obtain this document 

and a copy of the application package in 

an accessible format (e.g., braille, large 

print, audiotape, or compact disc) on 

request to the program contact person 

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT in this notice. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

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 via the Federal Digital System 

at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you 

can 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). To use PDF you must 

have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is 

available free at the site. 

You may also access documents of the 

Department published in the Federal 

Register by using the article search 

feature at: www.federalregister.gov. 

Specifically, through the advanced 

search feature at this site, you can limit 

your search to documents published by 

the Department. 

Dated: April 25, 2012. 

James H. Shelton, III, 

Assistant Deputy Secretary for Innovation and 

Improvement. 

[FR Doc. 2012–10383 Filed 4–27–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Applications for New Awards; 

Investing in Innovation Fund, 

Validation 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

(CFDA) Number: 84.411B (Validation 

grants). 

AGENCY: Office of Innovation and 

Improvement, Department of Education. 

ACTION: Notice; extension of deadline 

date and correction. 

SUMMARY: On March 27, 2012, the Office 

of Innovation and Improvement in the 

U.S. Department of Education published 

in the Federal Register (77 FR 18229) a 

notice inviting applications for new 

awards for fiscal year 2012 for the 

Investing in Innovation (i3) Validation 

grant competition (March 27 i3 

Validation NIA). This notice extends the 

deadline date and date for 

intergovernmental review announced 

in, and corrects an error in the March 27 

i3 Validation NIA. 

DATES:

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: May 30, 2012. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: July 26, 2012. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Deadline Date Extension 

In the March 27 i3 Validation NIA the 

Department announced the 2012 i3 

Validation grant competition and 

indicated that the Deadline for 

Transmittal of Applications was May 

29, 2012. Applicants under this 

competition are required to use 

Grants.gov. Since publishing the March 

27 i3 Validation NIA, it has come to the 

Department’s attention that the 

Grants.gov help desk will be closed in 

observance of Memorial Day on 

Monday, May 28—the day before the 

original Deadline for the Transmittal of 

Applications that was announced in the 

March 27 i3 Validation NIA. The 

Department extends the deadline date 

for this competition to May 30, 2012 so 

that applicants will have sufficient 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES