Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 24 / Thursday, February 5, 2004 / Notices 5523

4. Performance Measures: Under the 

Government Performance and Results 

Act (GPRA), measures have been 

developed for evaluating the overall 

effectiveness of the Hight School 

Equivalency Program. These measures 

are: (1) The number and percent of HEP 

participants who complete the course of 

study and receive a GED, and (2) the 

number and percent of HEP participants 

with a GED who enter postsecondary 

education programs, career positions, or 

the military. 

All grantees will be requried to 

submit an annual performance report 

documenting their success in addressing 

these performance measures. 

VII. Agency Contact

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mary L. Suazo, U.S. Department of 

Education, Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education, Office of Migrant 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., 

room 3E227, Washington, DC 20202–

6135. Telephone number: (202) 260–

1396, or by e-mail: mary.suazo@ed.gov.

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 contact person 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: 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: www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/

index.html.

Dated: February 2, 2004. 

Raymond Simon, 

Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education.

[FR Doc. 04–2519 Filed 2–4–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Office of Elementary and Secondary 

Education 

Overview Information; Early Childhood 

Educator Professional Development 

Program Notice Inviting Applications 

for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 

2004

Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.349A.

DATES: Applications Available: February 

5, 2004. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: March 16, 2004. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: May 17, 2004. 

Eligible Applicants: A partnership

consisting of at least one entity from 

each of the following categories, as 

indicated below: 

(i) One or more institutions of higher 

education, or other public or private 

entities (including faith-based 

organizations), that provide professional 

development for early childhood 

educators who work with children from 

low-income families in high-need 

communities. 

(ii) One or more public agencies 

(including local educational agencies, 

State educational agencies, State human 

services agencies, and State and local 

agencies administering programs under 

the Child Care and Development Block 

Grant Act of 1990), Head Start agencies, 

or private organizations (including faithbased organizations). 

(iii) If feasible, an entity with 

demonstrated experience in providing 

training to educators in early childhood 

education programs concerning 

identifying and preventing behavior 

problems or working with children 

identified as or suspected to be victims 

of abuse. This entity may be one of the 

partners described in paragraphs (i) and 

(ii) under Eligible Applicants.

A partnership may apply for these 

funds only if one of the partners 

currently provides professional 

development for early childhood 

educators working in programs located 

in high-need communities with children 

from low-income families. 

Estimated Available Funds:

$14,814,000. 

Estimated Range of Awards:

$1,000,000–$1,500,000 for one year; 

$2,000,000–$3,000,000 for two years. 

Estimated Average Size of Awards:

$1,250,000 for one year; $2,500,000 for 

two years. 

Estimated Number of Awards: 5–15 

awards.

Note: The Department is not bound by any 

estimates in this notice.

Project Period: Up to 24 months. 

Full Text of Announcement 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Purpose of Program: The purpose of 

the Early ChildhoodEducator 

Professional Development (ECEPD) 

program is to enhance the school 

readiness of young children, 

particularly disadvantaged young 

children, and to prevent them from 

encountering difficulties once they enter 

school. 

Projects funded under the ECEPD 

program provide high-quality, 

sustained, and intensive professional 

development for these early childhood 

educators in how to provide 

developmentally appropriate schoolreadiness services for preschool-age 

children that are based on the best 

available research on early childhood 

pedagogy and on child development 

and learning. 

The specific activities for which 

recipients may use grant funds are 

identified in the application package. 

Priorities:

This competition includes one 

absolute priority and one invitational 

priority that are explained in the 

following paragraphs. These priorities 

are as follows. In accordance with 34 

CFR 75.105(b)(2)(iv), the absolute 

priority is from section 2151(e)(5)(A) of 

the Elementary and Secondary 

Education Act of 1965, as amended 

(ESEA), 20 U.S.C. 6651(e)(5)(A). 

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. 

This priority is: 

High-Need Communities 

To provide professional development 

to early childhood educators who are 

working in early childhood programs 

that are located in ‘‘high-need 

communities.’’

An eligible applicant must 

demonstrate in its application narrative 

how it meets the statutory requirement 

in section 2151(e)(5)(A) of the ESEA by 

including relevant demographic and 

socioeconomic data about the ‘‘highneed community’’ in which the program 

is located. (See section 2151(e)(3)(B)(i) 

of the ESEA.) 

‘‘High-need community,’’ as defined 

in section 2151(e)(9)(B) of the ESEA, 

means—

(a) A political subdivision of a State, 

or a portion of a political subdivision of 

a State, in which at least 50 percent of 

the children are from low-income 

families; or 

(b) A political subdivision of a State 

that is among the 10 percent of political 

5524 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 24 / Thursday, February 5, 2004 / Notices 

subdivisions of the State having the 

greatest numbers of such children.

Note: The following additional terms used 

in or related to this absolute priority have 

statutory definitions that are included in the 

application package: ‘‘early childhood 

educator,’’ ‘‘low-income family,’’ and 

‘‘professional development.’’

Under this competition we are 

particularly interested in applications 

that address the following priority. 

Invitational Priority: For FY 2004 this 

priority is an invitational priority. 

Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1) we do not 

give an application that meets this 

invitational priority a competitive or 

absolute preference over other 

applications. 

This priority is: 

Young Children With Limited English 

Proficiency, Disabilities, or Other 

Special Needs 

The Secretary is particularly 

interested in receiving applications that 

focus on providing professional 

development for early childhood 

educators who work with young 

children (including infants or toddlers, 

as applicable) with: limited English 

proficiency; disabilities, as identified 

under Parts B or C of the Individuals 

with Disabilities Education Act; or other 

special needs.

Note: The following terms used in this 

invitational priority have statutory 

definitions that are included in the 

application package: ‘‘child with a 

disability,’’ ‘‘infants and toddlers with 

disabilities,’’ ‘‘limited English proficient.’’

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 6651(e). 

Applicable Regulations: The 

Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 

34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 

84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99. 

II. Award Information 

Type of Award: Discretionary grants. 

Estimated Available Funds:

$14,814,000. 

Estimated Range of Awards:

$1,000,000–$1,500,000 for one year; 

$2,000,000–$3,000,000 for two years. 

Estimated Average Size of Awards:

$1,250,000 for one year; $2,500,000 for 

two years. 

Estimated Number of Awards: 5–15 

awards.

Note: The Department is not bound by any 

estimates in this notice.

Project Period: Up to 24 months.

III. Eligibility Information 

1. Eligible Applicants: A partnership

consisting of at least one entity from 

each of the following categories, as 

indicated below: 

(i) One or more institutions of higher 

education, or other public or private 

entities (including faith-based 

organizations), that provide professional 

development for early childhood 

educators who work with children from 

low-income families in high-need 

communities. 

(ii) One or more public agencies 

(including local educational agencies, 

State educational agencies, State human 

services agencies, and State and local 

agencies administering programs under 

the Child Care and Development Block 

Grant Act of 1990), Head Start agencies, 

or private organizations (including faithbased organizations). 

(iii) If feasible, an entity with 

demonstrated experience in providing 

training to educators in early childhood 

education programs concerning 

identifying and preventing behavior 

problems or working with children 

identified as or suspected to be victims 

of abuse. This entity may be one of the 

partners described in paragraphs (i) and 

(ii) under Eligible Applicants.

A partnership may apply for these 

funds only if one of the partners 

currently provides professional 

development for early childhood 

educators working in programs located 

in high-need communities with children 

from low-income families. 

2. Cost Sharing or Matching: Each 

partnership that receives a grant under 

this program must provide (1) at least 50 

percent of the total cost of the project for 

the entire grant period; and (2) at least 

20 percent of the project cost for each 

year. The project may provide these 

funds from any source, other than this 

program, including other Federal 

sources. The partnership may satisfy 

these cost-sharing requirements by 

providing contributions in cash or inkind, fairly evaluated, including plant, 

equipment, and services. Only 

allowable costs may be counted as part 

of the grantee’s share. For example, any 

indirect costs over and above the 

allowable amount may not be counted 

toward a grantee’s share. For additional 

information about indirect costs, see 

section IV.5. of this notice. 

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 the 

Federal Information Relay Service 

(FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339. 

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 

84.349A. The public also may obtain a 

copy of the application package on the 

Department’s Web site at the following 

address: http://www.ed.gov/programs/

eceducator/index.html. 

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 program 

contact person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT elsewhere in this 

notice. However, the Department is not 

able to reproduce in an alternative 

format the standard forms included in 

the application package. 

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 program 

competition. 

Page Limit: The application narrative 

(Part III of the application) is where you, 

the applicant, address the absolute 

priority and the selection criteria that 

reviewers use to evaluate your 

application. You must limit Part III to 

the equivalent of no more than 30 typed 

pages and the additional budget 

narrative to the equivalent of no more 

than 5 typed 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. You may 

single space information in tables, 

charts, or graphs, and you may single 

space the limited Appendices. 

• Use a font that is either 12-point or 

larger or no smaller than 10 pitch 

(characters per inch). You may use other 

point fonts for any tables, charts, graphs, 

and the limited Appendices, but those 

tables, charts, graphs and limited 

Appendices should be in a font size that 

is easily readable by the reviewers of 

your application. 

• Any tables, charts, or graphs are 

included in the overall narrative page 

limit. The limited Appendices, 

including the required Partnership 

Agreement, are not part of these page 

limits.

• Appendices are limited to the 

following: required Partnership 

Agreement; and curriculum vitae of key 

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 24 / Thursday, February 5, 2004 / Notices 5525

personnel (including key contract 

personnel and consultants). 

• Other application materials are 

limited to the specific materials 

indicated in the application package, 

and may not include any video or other 

non-print materials. 

Our reviewers will not read any pages 

of your application that—

• Exceed the page limits if you apply 

these standards; or 

• Exceed the equivalent of the page 

limits if you apply other standards. 

3. Submission Dates and Times:

Applications Available: February 5, 

2004. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: March 16, 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 program. 

The application package also specifies 

the hours of operation of the eApplication Web site. 

We do not consider an application 

that does not comply with the deadline 

requirements. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: May 17, 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 

program. 

5. Funding Restrictions:

(a) Indirect Costs. For purposes of 

indirect cost charges, the Secretary 

considers all Early Childhood Educator 

Professional Development program 

grants to be ‘‘educational training 

grants’’ within the meaning of section 

75.562(a) of EDGAR (34 CFR 75.562(a)). 

Consistent with 34 CFR 75.562, the 

indirect cost rate for any fiscal agent 

other than a State agency or agency of 

local government (such as a local 

educational agency) is limited to a 

maximum of eight percent or the 

amount permitted by the fiscal agent’s 

negotiated indirect cost rate agreement, 

whichever is less. Further information 

about indirect cost rates, and on how to 

apply for a negotiated indirect cost rate 

for fiscal agents that do not yet have 

one, is available at the following Web 

site: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/

list/ocfo/fipao/icgindex.html.

(b) Pre-award Costs: For FY 2004 the 

Secretary exercises his authority under 

sections 75.263 and 74.25(e)(1) of 

EDGAR (34 CFR 75.263 and 74.25(e)(1)) 

to approve pre-award costs incurred by 

recipients of these grants more than 90 

calendar days before the grant award. 

Specifically, the Secretary approves 

necessary and reasonable pre-award 

costs incurred by these grant recipients 

for up to 90 days before the application 

due date. These pre-award costs must be 

related to the needs assessment that 

applicants conduct under section 

2151(e)(3)(B)(iii) of the ESEA before 

submitting their applications, to 

determine the most critical professional 

development needs of the early 

childhood educators to be served by the 

project and in the broader community. 

Applicants incur any pre-award costs 

at their own risk. The Secretary is under 

no obligation to reimburse these costs if 

for any reason the applicant does not 

receive an award or if the award is less 

than anticipated and inadequate to 

cover these costs.

We reference additional 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 program. 

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. Early 

Childhood Educator Professional 

Development—CFDA Number 84.349A 

is one of the programs included in the 

pilot project. If you are an applicant 

under Early Childhood Educator 

Professional Development, 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 eApplication, 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 

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 Early 

Childhood Educator Professional 

Development and you are prevented 

from submitting your application on the 

application deadline date because the eApplication 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—

5526 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 24 / Thursday, February 5, 2004 / Notices 

1. You are a registered user of eApplication, 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 Early Childhood 

Educator Professional Development at: 

http://e-grants.ed.gov/.

V. Application Review Information 

1. Selection Criteria: The selection 

criteria for this program are from section 

75.210 of EDGAR, 34 CFR 75.210, and 

are identified in the application 

package. 

2. Review and Selection Process: An 

additional factor we consider in 

selecting an application for an award is 

geographical distribution (section 

2151(e)(4)(B) of the ESEA). 

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 Notice (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: For FY 

2004, grants under this program will be 

governed by the achievement indicators 

that the Secretary published in the 

Federal Register on March 31, 2003 (68 

FR 15646–15648). These achievement 

indicators are included in the 

application package. 

VII. Agency Contact 

For Further Information Contact:

Early Childhood Educator Professional 

Development (ECEPD) program, c/o 

Rosemary Fennell, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20202–6132. 

Telephone: (202) 260–0792, or via 

Internet: eceprofdev@ed.gov.

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 program contact person 

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: 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: www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/

index.html.

Dated: February 2, 2004. 

Raymond Simon, 

Assistant Secretary for Elementary and 

Secondary Education.

[FR Doc. 04–2520 Filed 2–4–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Recognition of Accrediting Agencies, 

State Agencies for the Approval of 

Public Postsecondary Vocational 

Education, and State Agencies for the 

Approval of Nurse Education

AGENCY: National Advisory Committee 

on Institutional Quality and Integrity, 

Department of Education (The Advisory 

Committee). 

What Is the Purpose of This Notice? 

The purpose of this notice is to invite 

written comments on accrediting 

agencies and State approval agencies 

whose applications to the Secretary for 

initial or renewed recognition or whose 

interim reports will be reviewed at the 

Advisory Committee meeting to be held 

on June 10–11, 2004. 

Where Should I Submit My Comments? 

Please submit your written comments 

by March 22, 2004, to Ms. Carol 

Griffiths, Accreditation and State 

Liaison. You may contact her at the U.S. 

Department of Education, room 7105, 

MS 8509, 1990 K Street, NW., 

Washington, DC 20006, telephone: (202) 

219–7011. Individuals who use a 

telecommunications device for the deaf 

(TDD) may call the Federal Information 

Relay Service at 1–800–877–8339. 

What Is the Authority for the Advisory 

Committee? 

The National Advisory Committee on 

Institutional Quality and Integrity is 

established under Section 114 of the 

Higher Education Act (HEA), as 

amended, 20 U.S.C. 1011c. One of the 

purposes of the Advisory Committee is 

to advise the Secretary of Education on 

the recognition of accrediting agencies 

and State approval agencies. 

Will This Be My Only Opportunity To 

Submit Written Comments? 

Yes, this notice announces the only 

opportunity you will have to submit 

written comments. However, a 

subsequent Federal Register notice will 

announce the meeting and invite 

individuals and/or groups to submit 

requests to make oral presentations 

before the Advisory Committee on the 

agencies that the Committee will 

review. That notice, however, does not 

offer a second opportunity to submit 

written comment. 

What Happens to the Comments That I 

Submit? 

We will review your comments, in 

response to this notice, as part of our 

evaluation of the agencies’ compliance 

with the Secretary’s Criteria for 

Recognition of Accrediting Agencies