1 **OMB Approval No.: 1840**  **- NEW**  **Expiration Date: [TBD]**  **Veterans Upward Bound (VUB) Programs General Instructions for Completing the Annual Performance Report** 

**For Program Year 2012**
**– 13**  **1. What does this package contain?**  This package contains the forms and ins tructions needed to prepare the annual performance report (APR) for the Veteran s Upward Bound ( V UB) program. The Department of Education uses the information conveyed in the performance report to assess a grantee’s progress in meeting its approved goals and objectives and to evaluate a grantee’s prior experience in accordance with the program regulations in 34 CFR 645.32. Grantees’ annual performance reports also provide information on the outcomes of projects’ work and of the VUB programs as a whole. In addition, APR data allows the Department to respond to the reporting requirements of the Government Performance and Results Act
. **2. What are the legislative and regulatory authorities to collect this information?**   Title IV, Part A, Subpart 2, Chapter 1, Section 402A(c)(2) and Section 402C, of the Higher Education Act of 1965 , as amended;  The program regulations in 34 CFR Part 645; and  Sections 75.590 and 75.720 of the Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR). **3. Who must submit t**  **his data report?** All grantees funded under the Veterans Upward Bound program must submit an annual performance report as a condition of the grant award. **4. What period of time is covered in the report? For which participants should the grantee**  **provide da ta?**  The report covers the 12
- month project y ear for which the grant has been made. This information can be found in Block 6 of the Grant Award Notification. In determining which participant records to include, a grantee must use the regulatory definition of a participant in 34 CFR 645.6. For the 2012

– 13 APR, a grantee must of course report on all participants served in project y ear 2012

– 13. **Extent to which prior participants must remain on projects’ data files** : New objectives required b y the HEOA, an d on which prior experience points are based, affect the extent to which grantees must keep prior participants on the project file into the future. The new objectives also affect the extent to which grantees must attempt to gather ongoing information about these participants. Because the postsecondary enrollment objective involves both the year2

the participant completes the program and the subsequent year, grantees need to continue to report on participants who complete the project even after their depart ure from the program. More notabl y, since calculating the HEOA’s objective on postsecondary **completion** involves a period of six y ears, grantees must keep prior participants who completed the VUB program on their files for six y ears after enrollment in a p rogram of postsecondary education , **whenever that enrollment might be**  . The following table provides reporting requirements for prior participants under varying circumstances. **Circumstances of prior participant**  **Grantee must keep the participant on the pro**  **ject’s data file for... Tracking period (that is, period during which**  **grantee must attempt to gather ongoing information on the participant)**  Completed VUB program and enrolled in a program of postsecondary education Six years after enrolling in postseconda ry education Track until completion of postsecondary education. Note that, in cases in which a participant completes in less than six years, further tracking could yield valuable information — for example, news that the participant earned an additional degr ee — though completing one program of postsecondary education is all that is needed for the participant to count towards the project’s PE objective . Completed VUB program, but for a long period the participant shows no sign of enrolling in postsecondary edu cation For the enrollment objective, keep the participant on the file t hrough the project year following the project year in which the participant completed the VUB program. After that, keeping the participant on the file is at the project’s discretion, t hough **if the participant eventually enrolls in**  **PSE, the participant must be on the file**  **and tracked for six years after**  **enrollment.** Track to the extent possible through the project year following the project year in which the participant completed VUB . **Tr acking thereafter**  **is at the project’s discretion, but it will presumably be to the project’s advantage to**  **identify participants who completed the project ,**  **eventually enrolled , and completed their**  **postsecondary program.**

Participant who left VUB program wit hout completing it Because the postsecondary completion objective applies only to prior participants who completed the VUB program, there is no requirement to keep these individuals on the file. The grantee may leave the participant’s record on the file i f the project wishes to do so. No requirement. If a participant leaves the program and eventually returns, the project will need to restore his or her record to the data file .3

**Note for projects that were awarded a grant under the 2007**
**– 12 cycle**  : In anti cipation of the Department’s implementation of the HEOA requirements (particularl y the postsecondary completion objective), TRI O required grantees who were funded under the prior cy cle to maintain on their files all participants with a scheduled completion ye ar of 2007

– 08 or later. While projects will no longer need to establish scheduled completion years for new participants under the 2012

– 17 cycle, grantees must continue to report on participants whose inclusion was required in their 2011

– 12 APRs. Becau se projects have maintained these participant records, the Department will be able to use 2013

– 14 APR data to calculate the postsecondary completion objective for participants who completed the VUB program at any time and who enrolled in a program of posts econdary education during the 2007

– 08 reporting year. The participants in this group who completed their postsecondary program within six y ears (that is, by August 30, 201 4 ) will count towards the project’s success in meeting its postsecondary completion objective. Similarly , the Department will calculate postsecondary completion using 2014

– 15 and 2015

– 16 APR data for participants who completed their VUB program at an y time and enrolled in postsecondary

education during the 2008

– 09 and 2009

– 10 reporting y ears, respectivel y. **5 . What years will be used to calculate prior experience points?**  The Department will calculate PE points using data submitted in the 2013

– 14, 2014

– 15, and 2015

– 16 APRs. Further information on PE calculations may be found in these instructions and in the appendix that will be available on the VUB Web pages devoted to performance and the APRs. **6 .**  **What information must be submitted?** The report consists of two sections, and all grantees will be required to complete both sections:

-- Sect ion I requests project
- identifying data and information on the way i n which the project has addressed the Competitive Preference Priorities announced for the 2012 grant competition.

-- Section II contains detailed instructions for preparing a data file of i nformation on individual participants. **7 .**  **When must the report be filed?** The annual report is normally submitted electronically

within 90 day s after the end of each 12
- month grant (budget) period, which is November 30 for VUB projects
. **8 .**  **How may the r eport be submitted?**  All VUB grantees must complete the APR online using our contractor’s Web application. The entire report should be submitted via the World Wide Web. After the APR has been successfull y submitted, the signatures of the project director and the certifying official for the grantee institution/agency

must be obtained on Section I of the printed APR indicating that the information submitted electronicall y is accurate, complete, and readily verifiable. Once the form has been signed, it shou ld be scanned so that it can be uploaded using the functionality on the APR site. I f a grantee is unable to upload Section I, it may be faxed to 703
- 832
- 1360. Only Section Ishould be faxed
-- not the entire report.4

Because the APR requests personal and co nfidential information on project participants, the secured Web site meets the Department of Education’s data security standards for sensitive data, including improved password and site access procedures. Further, to ensure that the data is accessible only to authorized individuals and protected from unauthorized use, a grantee must submit the participant
- level data via the Web application; under no circumstances should a grantee transmit the data to the Department or the APR Help Desk via e
- mail. The Web a

pplication and instructions for completing and submitting the report online will be available on November 1, 2013, at the following Web address: http://www.ed.gov/programs/triovete ransupbound/report.html ( VUB) The Web application that VUB grantees must use to submit the annual performance report has the following features:  A Web form for completing Sections I and II, online.

 Functionality

to upload a file with the individual participant records (Section II) to the Web application using a CSV or XL S file format.

 Functionality

to view/delete/add participant data online.

 Online data field validations and error checks. In order for a grantee to be able to submit the APR, all secti ons of the APR must pass the first level of data field validations. Following the initial submission of the participant data, additional data quality checks will be run. If an y errors or data inconsistencies are found, the grantee will be informed of nee ded corrections and the due date for resubmitting the Section II data.

 A print button to make a hard cop y of the information entered online for Section I
.
 Functionality

t o download an electronic file with the individual participant records (Section II)
.
 A submit button to send the entire report to the Department.

 An e - mail confirmation that the report has been submitted (a valid e - mail address must be provided in Section I).

 A button to upload a signed cop y of Section I only
. D o not upload or fax in a copy o f the entire report. **In a new feature, the online application will provide on an annual basis a report of PE points to be awarded once a grantee has successfully submitted an APR for one of the three**  **years used for PE calculations (2013**
**– 14, 2014** 
**– 15, and 2015** 
**– 16).**  A project will receive confirmation when the report has been successfull y s ubmitted. I f you do not receive an e
- mail confirmation, contact the APR Help Desk. If for an y reason you need to5

revise your performance report data after it has been submitted, please contact the APR Help Desk as soon as possible, **but prior to the deadline date** 
. **9 .**  **Who may**  **be contacted**  **for additional**  **information concerning**  **the submission**  **of the**  **performance report?** Please contact your program specialist dire ctl y if you have questions regarding the performance report requirements. A state listing of program specialists and contact information is available at the Web address provided above. If you have technical problems accessing the Web site or using the Web application, please contact the APR Help Desk at (703) 846
- 8248 or via e
- mail at: generaltrio@cbmiweb.com
. **GETTING STARTED Step 1** 
**— Access the Web site.**  To begin completing this report online, from the Department’s Web page you will need to click on https://trio.ed.gov/ub , a Web site hosted by our contractor to support submittal of annual performance reports. **Step 2 --**  **Registration.** Once at the contractor's Web site (enti tled " VUB Online, Program Year 2012

– 13"), you will need to register to receive a user ID and temporary password; you may

do so well in advance of actual submittal of reports. So as to allow time to resolve an y problems that might occur with registration, we ask you to register as earl y as possible. To register, click on " Register Here Each Year " ; yo u will then enter the project director's first and last names and e
- mail address and the project's PR award number (found on the Grant Award Notification). You will also be required to select and answer two security questions (to be used in the event that yo u need to use the “Forgot Password” function). If the project director’s information matches the data that the Department currentl y has on file, a user ID and temporary password will be sent to the e
- mail address on file. If discrepancies exist, you will be directed to a "Registration Failed" page; if necessary , your program specialist and the Help Desk will be sent an e - mail message requesting verification o f data on the project. Verification will occur within 24 hours if the program specialist can readily confirm a change in project director or e
mail address; if the program specialist has no prior knowledge of the change, it may take longer. Once the Help D esk has received verification from the program specialist, you will be notified to continue with registration. **Step 3**
**— Set Password.**  Once you have your user ID and temporary password, you may

enter them on the site in the top box of the left side of the p age; click "Log in." You will be guided to select a new password, then to log in again. After three failed attempts to access the Web site, you will be required to reset your password and will need to contact the Help Desk for further assistance.6

**Step 4**
**— Complete and Submit.**  Follow the instructions for completing and submitting the report via the World Wide Web.7

**► Section I**  New to the 2012

– 17 grant cycle, Section I is now divided into Parts 1 and 2. The first part covers, as in past y ears, the project’s identification and characteristics, along with certification and a warning statement. In Part 2, grantees prov ide information on how they have implemented the competitive preference priorities established for the 2012 grant competition. **► Section I, Part 1**  Your PR award number will be automatically inserted into line 1 of Part 1. The sy stem will also pre - populate most of the other data fields in Part 1. Please review the pre
- populated fields, including the project director’s e
- mail address, and update these fields as needed. You may change the data in all fields except for the project’s PR award number, the gr antee name, and the report period. Please provide information for an y fields that are not pre
- populated. Part 1.B, the Certification, allows the grantee institution to certify that the information submitted electronically

is accurate, complete, and readi ly verifiable to the best of your knowledge. Section I , Part 1 must be signed by both the project director and the certifying representative at the grantee institution and scanned so that it can be uploaded using the functionality on the APR site. I f a grantee is unable to upload Section I, it may be f axed to **(703) 832 -**  **1360** . Only Section I should be faxed

— not the entire report. **Any person who knowingly makes a false statement or misrepresentation on this report is subject to penalties, which may include**  **fines, imprisonment, or both, under the United States Criminal Code and 20 U.S.C. 1097.**  Further, federal funds or other benefits may be withheld under these programs unless this report is completed and filed as required b y existing law (20 U.S.C. 1231a) and regulations (34 CFR 75.590 and 75.720). **► Section I, Part 2: Competitive Preference Priorities**  The 2012 VUB grant competition established two competitive preference priorities including data
based decision
- making and improving productivity . Section I, Part 2, asks projects whether they addres sed the competitive preference priorities; for each priority addressed, the grantee is to complete the text boxes with concise information about implementation. **► Section II: Record Structure for Participant List**  **Rationale for Fields** The Department wi ll use the data that grantees provide in Section II to assess the project’s progress in meeting its objectives and to evaluate the grantee’s prior experience. The data also allows the Department to respond to reporting requirements of the Government Perfo rmance and8

Results Act (GPRA) and to assess the VUB program ’s performance in light of the performance measures found in the instructions for the 2012 grant competition. The following field is new to the APR since the 2007

– 12 grant cycle and is not connect ed to PE calculations
. Th is field w as added to respond to specific changes in the HEOA: #28 Served by Another Federal Program

Similar to VUB, During Reporting Year A dditional ly , the APR includes a new field to allow the Department to determine progress towards one of the VUB performance measures: #4 4 Postsecondary Remediation Also new to the APR are four fields (#34

– 37) asking projects to indicate whether participants received services listed in § 645.15 of the program regulations that projects may pr ovide to participants. And finall y, to respond to the performance measures that involve attainment of postsecondary

credentials by

varying periods of time, fields # 45

– 50 provide a breakdown of certificates and degrees and their associated dates of accompl ishment. 

### General Instructions for **t he Participant List**  **(1) Who should be included on the annual data file?**  Please see page 1 of these instructions for information on participants for whom the grantee should provide data. For the Veterans Upward Bound progr am, a participant is defined as an individual who enrolled in and participated in the educational programs offered b y the project during the project ye ar being reported. Be sure to include each participant

— whether new, continuing, reentry , or prior
- ye ar — **o nly once**  in the file the project submits for the reporting period
. **(2) What are the data fields?**  The VUB APR contains 5 2 data fields of which three are project identifiers. The remaining 4 9 fields are student data fields and may or may not require updates as noted below. **Project Identifiers (pre -**  **populated) Field #**  **Field Name** 1 PR/Award Number 2 Batch Year 3 Program Type9

**IMPORTANT:** To avoid mismatches between 2012

– 13 APR data and the VUB sy stem of records, identifying data for each participant in yo ur APR file (except for new students) **must** match the data in your 2011

– 12 APR, even if yo u have discovered errors or misspellings in last ye ar’s APR . I dentifying data includes SSN (Field #4), Last Name (Field #5), First Name (Field #6), and Date of Birth ( Field #8). **These and**  **other fields**  **that mu**  **st not**  **change from**  **reporting year to reporting year**  are shown in the following table **.** #4 Social Security Number #5 Student’s Last Name #6 Student’s First Name #7 Student’s Middle Initial #8 Student’s Date of Birth #16

–21 Eligibility fields #23 Date of First Project Service #24 Educational Status at Date of

First Project Service #25 Employment Status at Date of

First Project Service For certain date fields and for the Postsecondary Education Enrollment Co hort field (#3 9 ), a grantee might initially

enter “Not applicable,” but in a later reporting period enter a specific date (or cohort in the case of field #3 9 ). Once the specific data has been submitted in one year’s APR, that data **must not** change in subse quent y ears’ APRs. These fields are: #3 1 Date of Last Project Service # 3 2 VUB Educational Program Completion Year # 38 Date of First Postsecondary Enrollment #39 Postsecondary Education Enrollment Cohort #4 6 Date of First Certificate/Diploma #4 8 Dat e of First Associate Degree # 50 Date of First Bachelor’s Degree10

**Fields that need to be reviewed and updated annually, as needed:** #26 Deceased or Incapacitated # 27 Participant Status # 28 Served By Another Federal Program Similar to

VUB, During Reporting Year #29 Called To Active Duty #30 Academic Improvement on Standardized Test

Objective (Numerator) #3 3 Reason for Leaving VUB Program #40 Postsecondary Enrollment Objective (Numerator) # 42 Source of Postsecondary Education Information #43 Coll ege Status At Beginning of Academic Year # 44 Postsecondary Remediation #4 5 Certificate/Diploma Completed # 4 7 Associate Degree Attained #4 9 Bachelor’s Degree Attained #51 Postsecondary Completion Objective
--Numerator #52 Postsecondary Completion Obje ctive

— Called to

Active Duty **(3) How should the date fields be formatted (e.g., fields # 8, 2**  **3 ,**  **3 8**  **, 46**  **, etc.)?** Please review carefull y the Valid Field Content column to ensure that the data submitted is in the correct format. All date fields should be f ormatted as follows: two digits for month; two digits for day ; two digits for century ; and two digits for y ear. **Fo r the student’s date of birth (field**  **#8), you are required to provide the full, precise date (month, day, and complete year).** For other dat e fields , accuracy is important only for the month and y ear. If the day is unknown, use 15. For example, a participant’s date of first project service of September 2008 would be formatted as follows: 09/1 5 /2008. I f the exact month or y ear is uncertain, use an estimate. If there is no basis for estimating the month, but the year is known or can be estimated, use 01 for the month (e.g., 01/15/2008). If there is no basis for estimating the ye ar, use 00/00/0000 (“Unknown ” ).11

To ensure that the date is prop erl y imported, always insert slashes and use the zero before one
digit months and day s . **(4) How should “Not Applicable” and “Unknown” be reported?**  With the exception of fields #6 and #7 and #10

– 15, leaving a field blank is not an option. In general, the format for the data fields uses “0” or a series of “0s” to allow a project to indicate “Unknown”; “9” or a series of “9s” indicates “Not Applicable.” Since some exceptions to this practice were unavoidable, please observe the specific options stated for each field. **(5) Where are the objectives found?** The objectives for the programs are found in the “Definitions That Apply” pages at the end of this document.12 

### S **UPPLEMENTAL** 

### I **NSTRUCTIONS FOR** 

### S **PECIFIC** 

### F **IELDS**



### Project Identifiers **Field #1**
**— PR/Award Number**  **(pre -**  **populated)** Once the grantee has successfully logged in to the VUB APR Web application, this field will be pre - populated for each participant record. **Field #2**
**— Batch Year**  **(pre -**  **populated)** Use the four
- digit ye ar provided on the form. This number will change with each ye ar’s submission. The Batch Year designates the fiscal year funding for the project period reported. TRI O grants are forward
- funded. Therefore, as an example, fiscal y ear 2012 funds are used to support project activities in the 2012

– 13 progr am y ear. Thus, the data file for Batch Year 2012 will include information on project participants served or tracked during program year 2012

– 13. 

### Participants’ Demographic Information **Field #4 ---**  **Social Security Number (SSN)** SSNs are very

important as they

allow the Department to match participant lists with the federal financial aid files for purposes of tracking participant outcomes. If a project does not know the SSN for a student, please enter “0s” rather than enter other forms of identification numb ers. So as to allow participants’ records to match across years, this data must match your 2011

– 12 APR (except for students new in 2012

– 13). **Field s**  **#5**
**– #8** 
**— Student Identifying Information**  Please pay

special attention to the required formatting for each field. So as to allow participants’ records to match across years, this data must match your 2011

– 12 APR (except for students new in 2012

– 13). **Fields #9**
**– #14** 
**— Gender, Ethnicity (Hispanic) and Race**  On October 19, 2007, ED released revised, Department
- wide guidance on how institutions should collect and maintain data on race and ethnicity and on how they

should report such data in the aggregate: http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/other/2007
- 4/101907c.pdf ; or http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/other/2007
- 4/101907c.html13

Because Vetera ns Upward Bound grantees report individual data, they should not follow the portions of the guidance that cover aggregate reporting; they must, however, collect and maintain data as indicated in the guidance
. The Department required the new guidance to be implemented b y the fall of 2010 for the 2010

– 11 sc hool y ear, though grantees were encouraged to implement earlier, if possible. **(Note that projects may leave the race and ethnicity fields blank for prior year participants who left the project before the project implemented the**  **guidance.)** Collection proc edures in the guidance require grantees to collect data on race and ethnicity on all participants using a two
- part question: first, the grantee asks the respondent whether he or she is Hispanic/Latino; second, the grantee asks the respondent to select one or more races from the five racial groups listed. The grantee reports the responses in fields 10

– 15 of the APR. If, for example, a VUB participant identifies himself or herself as Hispanic, Asian, and White, entries for the fields would appear thus: Field 10: 1, Yes, participant is identified as Hispanic/L atino Field 11: 2, No, participant is not identified as American Indian/Alaskan Native Field 12: 1, Yes, participant is identified as Asian Field 13: 2, No, participant is not identified as Blac k or African American Field 14: 1, Yes, participant is identified as White Field 15: 2, No, participant is not identified as Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. If the participant decli nes to answer questions about race and ethnicit y, the grantee should use observation, as discussed in the guidance. While grantees should make a good effort to collect data on race and ethnicity for all participants, if for some highl y unusual reason the race and/or ethnicity of a particular student is unknown, as a last resort the grantee may leave the race and/or ethnicity fields blank. For further details on the guidance for collecting data, please see the full Federal Register notice. Grantees are re sponsible for implementing all relevant aspects of the gu idance. Note that the Department encourages institutions to allow all current students to re
identify their race and ethnicity

using OMB's 1997 standards (see page 59276 of the notice), but does not require institutions to do so. For definitions of the e thnicity and race categories, refer to the “Definitions That Apply” section of these instructions. 

### Eligibility Information **Fields #16**
**– 18** 
**— General Eligibility**  The statute and regulations governing the Upward Bound program s require that an individual, at the time of initial selection for the project, must be a “low
- income individual,” a “potential first
generation college student,” or “an individual who has a high risk for academic failure.” (These14

terms are defined in the section on “Definitions That Ap ply .”) No less than two
- thirds of the project’s participants each year must be both low
- income and potential first
- generation college students; the remaining one
- third must be low
- income individuals, potential first
- generation college students, or individu als who have a high risk for academic failure. In fields #16

– 18 , please indicate “Yes,” “No,” or “Unknown” for each field. An individual participant might meet one, two, or all three criteria. **Fields #19**
**– 21** 
**—**

**Academic Need (at initial selection)** As ind icated above, one criterion for eligibility in the Upward Bound programs is high risk for academic failure. The program regulations define a veteran at such risk as one who, at the time of initial selection, (a) has been out of high school or dropped out of a program of postsecondary education for five or more y ears; (b) has scored on standardized tests below the level that demonstrates a likelihood of success in a program of postsecondary education; or (c) meets the definition of an individual with a disa bility as defined in §645.6(b). Information collected in fields 19

–21 will indicate whether a student is at high risk for academic failure, as so define d , and therefore eligible for services. An individual might meet one, two, or all three criteria. If the project has entered “No” for a participant in field #18 (High Risk for Academic Failure Eligibility), the project should choose “NA, participant not at high risk for academic failure” in fields #19

–21. Regarding field #20, also note that proficiency on standardized tests is used for two purposes in the APR: as a criterion for at
- risk status here, and as a measure of the academic proficiency PE objective in field #30. A proj ect’s response for field #30 might change over several reporting periods, but f

or field #20, the response must not change once it is submitted. For Field #21 (Disability at First Entry), disability is defined in section 12102 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq . ).



### Fields **Concerning Participation in VUB**  **F ield # 22** 
**— Recruitment**  Please indicate how the participant came to your project. **Field #23**
**– Date of First Project**  **Service** Do not use the date of acceptance into the project unless that is the same as the date of first service. Use the original month an d y ear of service at this project even if the participant subsequently

left and reentered. If the participant transferred from another VUB project, in this field give the month and year of first service at the project submitting the report.15

For continui ng and prior participants, use the date entered in the earlier APR, even if it was a date of entry

that differed from the date of first service. **Please note that accuracy is particularly important for this field.**  **Field s**  **#24**
**– 2**  **6** Self
- e xplanatory
. **Field #2 7** 
**— Participant Status**  For each participant, the grantee must review the options available and select or update this field as appropriate. The participant status options , defined in Section II, for 2012

– 13 include: □ New participant □ Continuing participant □ Reentry

participant, previously

served by

project submitting report □ Prior
- ye ar participant □ Unknown Reference the “Definitions That Apply” section of these instructions for participant eligibility requirements (as noted in 34 CFR 645.3 ) and the defi nition of a veteran (as noted in § 645.6). **Field s**  **#28 --**  **Served By Another Federal Program Similar to VUB** Self
- e xplanatory
. **Field# 29** 
**— Called To Active Duty**  Select option 1 for an individual who was called to active dut y during the 2012

– 13 project year as a current participant (that is, a new, continuing, or reentry participant). Select option 2 for prior
- year participants who had been called to active duty and who served in the military during project year 2012

– 13. **Field # 30** 
**—**

**Academic Improvement o n Standardized Test**  This field refers to the first performance objective listed in the VUB application package for the 2012 competition : applicants were required to indicate what percentage of participants who would complete their VUB program during eac h project year would improve their academic skills as measured b y a standardized test taken before and after receiving services from the project
. F or all participants who completed their VUB program during the 201 2

– 1 3 budget period, select among options 1 , 2, 3, or 0. For those who did not complete the program during16

2012

– 13, select option 9 or 0. For participants coded with option 1 or 2, grantees should keep records of the test each participant took, the dates of administration, and the participant’s s cores. Grantees should also document their rationale for determining whether a change in scores constituted improvement; such a rationale should presumabl y be based on the design and content of the test, on background information the test publisher provid ed about the test, and on the experience of the project with similar students using the test. **Field #3 1** 
**— Date of Last Project Service**  If a veteran is still a participant in the VUB project , enter “ 8 s” (“Not applicable , still in the educational program off

ered b y the project” ). Report a date of last service only for those participants who the project believes will not return
. When reporting a date of last service, please do so regardless of the amount of time the veteran spent in the program. Providing th ese dates will allow the Department to obtain an accurate measure of the average length of time spent in the program . I f a project omitted in last year’s report a date of last service for a given participant who subsequently did not participate in the year on which the project is now reporting, please include that participant in this y ear’s report as a prior participant and record a date of last project service for him or her, even if the date occurred in the prior reporting period. For those VUB particip ants who dropped out of the program, it would be best to use the date the participant last attended a program activity or received any

kind of help from the project. This could include contacting a participant regarding attendance in project activities, pr oviding advice, counseling, etc. If that information is not available, you may use the date the participant was no longer on the project ’s active list. **Field #3 2**  **-- VUB**  **Educational Program Completion Year**  Grantees should follow the instructions in Sectio n II carefull y, as this field is used for calculating performanc e measures and PE points for three objectives (academic improvement on standardized test, education program retention and completion, and postsecondary enrollment). Projects should determine completion y ears based on dates of their project years. For the majority of projects, which have September 1

–August 31 project y ears, a participant must have completed the VUB program by August 31 , 2013 to be counted in the 201 2

– 13 completion year. For th e projects with October 1 start dates, however, a participant must have completed the program b y September 30, 2013 to belong in that completion year. **Field #3 3**  **-- Reason for Leaving VUB Pr**  **o g**  **ra m**  Self
- explanatory
. **Fields# 34** 
**– 37** 
**— Select Project Services**  O f the academic instruction and services required or permitted by the authorizing statute and implementing regulations, the APR requests data on four services and activities of special17

interest to the Department
. Complete these fields only for those partici pants served by the project during the reporting period. If the participant received the service, select 1 = Yes; if not, select 2 = No. If the project did n ot offer the service, choose “8”; u se 9, Not Applicable, for prior participants **.** Please refer to the section on “Definitions That Apply” for definitions of the services and activities. **Field #38**
**– Date**  **of First Postsecondary School Enrollment**  Self
- explanatory
. **Field # 39**  **-- Postsecondary**  **Education Enrollment**  **Cohort** This field is used to establish the cohort of participants who will form the denominator for each project’s postsecondary

completion objective and for relevant performance measures described in the application instructions and listed in “Definitions That Apply .” The **postsecondary educat**  **ion enrollment cohort** can be set for a participant only when he or she has both completed the VUB educational program at any time and enrolled in a program of postsecondary education, for the first time since completing the VUB program, during the project ye ar. Thus, for the 2012

– 13 APR, participants who had completed the VUB program at any time and enrolled in postsecondary education in 2012

– 13 will be part of the 2012

– 13 postsecondary education enrollment cohort. Once established, this field must not be adjusted in later ye ars. **Establishing cohorts for participants in 2007**
**– 12 cycle:**  Grantees that were funded in the 2007

– 12 grant cycle were required to maintain on their APR file all participants with a scheduled completion y ear of 2007

– 08 or later and, to the extent possible, provide updated information on these participants’ academic progress. (Note: The scheduled completion year field was discontinued in the 2012

– 17 APR.) Because projects have maintained these participant records on the APR, these g rantees should thus have reliable records of participants who have finished the VUB program and, if applicable, the ye ar in which the participants enrolled in a program of postsecondary

education for the first time since completing the VUB program. Theref ore, the Department will be able to use 2013

– 14 APR data to calculate the postsecondary completion objective for participants who finished the VUB program at an y time and who enrolled in a program of postsecondary education during the 2007

– 08 project year. Beginning with the 2012

– 13 APR, grantees that were funded in the 2007

– 12 grant cycle will therefore need to submit data in field #39 on prior participants in postsecondary education enrollment cohorts from 2007

– 08 through 2011

– 12. The Department will use the APR data grantees provided from 2007

– 08 through 2011

– 12 to verify the postsecondary

cohort ye ars in field #39 for prior participants. **“Tier 1A” process:** So as to ensure that grantees’ data on postsecondary enrollment cohorts for 2007

– 08 through 2011

– 12 will be as accurate and complete as possible, prior to the “go live” date of the APR the Department will conduct a process (known as “Tier 1A” after a similar undertaking completed for the Student Support Services program) under which grantees will be able to examine a file of relevant data from earlier APRs. Grantees will have an opportunity to18

notify the Department of duplicate records and postsecondary enrollees that do not appear on the file and to help the Department resolve records that appe ar to have discrepancies in identifying fields (such as last name and date of birth). The end result will be a database, improved in terms of accuracy

and completeness, of prior participants’ cohorts; the database will be used as a match file to ensure th at projects use the confirmed postsecondary education enrollment cohorts in the 2012

– 13 APR. **Fi eld #40** 
**— Postsecondary Enrollment**  **Objective --**  **Numerator** The denominator for calculating the PE objective on postsecondary enrollment is the number of participants who completed the ir prescribed VUB educational program during the previous project year (2011

– 12)
. Participants coded 1 in f ield # 40 ( Yes, participant completed VUB educational program during last project year and enrolled in postsecondary education by September 30, 2013 ) will count towards the postsecondary enrollment objective
. If a participant has begun course work in postsecondary education but is still participating in VUB (for example, if the student is taking postsecondary English courses but still completing preparatory

work in other content areas in the VUB program), the student should not be reported as enrolled in a program of postsecondary education. A participant is considered enrolled if he or she has completed registration requirement s (excluding pay

ment of tuition and fees) at the institution he or she is attending. **Field s**  **#41**
**– 4**  **3 :**  Self
- explanatory
. **Field #4 4**  **-- Postsecondary Remediation**  This information is needed for reporting on one of the performance measures described in the 2 012 VUB grant application instructions and listed in “Definitions That Apply .” Please provide data as available at the time the APR is submitted on participants in the 201 2 postsecondary education enrollment cohort (see field # 39 )

—that is, those who comple ted the VUB educational program at an y time and enrolled in a program of postsecondary education in project year 2012

– 13 . Select option 1 for members of the cohort who **did not** receive college
- level math or English remediation in their first year of postse condary education in the 2012

– 13 project year. For a definition of remediation, please see “Definitions That Apply .” **Field s**  **# 4**  **5**
**– 5**  **0 --**  **Postsecondary Credentials Earned** The information in f

ields # 4 5

– 5 0 will allow the Department to report on participants’ attainment of various kinds of credentials over varying lengths of time, as specified in the performance measures described in the 2012 VUB grant application instructions. Each type of credential is to be reported separatel y, as indicated in the fields.19

If a participant has received more than one credential of a particular kind (e.g., more than one certificate), the project should report the date that the first certificate was completed. If a participant attained more than one kind of credential (e.g., an associate degree and a bachelor’s degree), each should be shown in the report in the respective field. In f ield # 49 (Bachelor’s Degree Attained) , f or a student enrolled in a dual degree program (see “Definitions That Appl y” ) who has completed four years o f postsecondary instruction, use option 1 (“Yes, attained bachelor’s degree”) to indicate that the student has accomplished the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree, though a degree was not awarded. **Field #5 1** 
**— Postsecondary Completion**  **Objective --**  **Numerator** T he postsecondary

completion objective measures the extent to which participants who completed the VUB educational program at any time, and enrolled in a program of postsecondary

education, subsequently

completed that postsecondary program within six y ears. In reporting ye ar 2013

– 14, grantees with awards in the 2007

– 12 cycle will report in this field whether participants in the 2007

– 08 postsecondary education enrollment cohort (the denominator; see field #39) had completed a program of postsecondary educati on within six project years (that is, b y August 31, 2014). This data will be used to determine whether the grantee meets its target for the postsecondary completion objective in the first of the three ye ars in which PE points are calculated. **Field #52**
**– Postsecondary Completion Objective** 
**– Called to Active Duty**  This field is designed to gather data on the extent to which participants in the 2007

– 08 postsecondary

e ducation enrollment cohort (field #39) were called to active duty , and on the duration of se rvice of participants so called. The Department wishes to know to what extent this data might illumine patterns of postsecondary completion.20 **D EFINITIONS THAT APPLY**  **Veterans Upward Bound Veterans Upward Bound Standard Objectives**  **F rom**  **t he 20**  **12 C**  **om pe**  **tition Academic**  **I mprovement on**  **S tandardized**  **T est**  **:** X % of participants who completed their VUB educational program during the project ye ar will improve their academic performance as measured b y a standardized test taken before and after receiving services from the project. **Education Program Retention and Completion :**  X

_ % of participants served during the project year will complete their VUB educational program b y the end of the project ye ar or remain enrolled in the program. **Post s**  **econdary Enrollment :**  X % of participants who completed their prescribed VUB educational program in the project ye ar (e.g., 2011

– 12) will enroll in a program of postsecondary education b y the end of the next project year (e.g., 2012

– 13). **Post s**  **econdary Completion :**  X% of parti cipants who completed the VUB educational program at an y time and who enrolled in a program of postsecondary education in the project ye ar (e.g., 2013

– 14) will complete a program of postsecondary education within six project years (e.g., b y project year 20 19

–20 ). **Veterans Upward Bound Performance Measures From the 2012 Competition** The success of the VUB Program is measured b y the percentage of VUB participants who enroll in and complete postsecondary education. The following performance measures have bee n developed to track progress toward achieving program success: 1. The percentage of VUB participants who enrolled in postsecondary education; 2. The percentage of VUB participants who enrolled in a program of postsecondary education and wh o attained either an associate degree within three y ears or a bachelor’s degree within six years; 3. The percentage of VUB participants who enrolled in a program of postsecondary education and who in the first y ear of postsecondary education placed into college
- level math and English without need for remediation; 4. The percentage of VUB participants who enrolled in a program of postsecondary education and who graduated on time

– - within four y ears for the bachelor’s degree and with in two y ears for the associate degree; 5. The cost per successful participant. Note : To assess the fifth performance measure on efficiency of the program, the Department will track the average cost, in Federal funds, of achieving a successful outcome, where success is21

defined as enrollment in postsecond ary education by a VUB participant no later than one ye ar after program completion. **Veteran means a person who** 
**—** (1) Served on active dut y as a member of the Armed Forces of the United States for a period of more than 180 day s and was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable; (2) Served on active dut y as a member of the Armed Forces of the United States and was discharged or released because of a service connected disability ; (3) Was a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States and was called to active dut y for a period of more than 30 days; or (4) Was a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States who served on active dut y in support of a contingency operation (as that term is defined in sec tion 101(a) (13) of title 10, United States Code) on or after September 11, 2001. **Ethnicity C**  **ategor y**  **( F**  **ield #10) Hispanic or Latino** 
- A person of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of r ace. **Race C**  **ategories ( F**  **ields #11**
**– 15)**  **Am erican Indian or Alaska Native** 
- A person having origins in an y of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America), and who maintains a tribal affiliation or community

attachment. **Asia n**  - A person having origins in an y of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. This area includes, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malay sia, Pakistan, the Philippine I slands, Thailand, and Vietnam. **Black or African American**
- A person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. **White**
- A person having origins in an y of the original peoples of Europe, North Africa, or the Middle East. **Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander**

– A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii or other Pacific islands such as Samoa and Guam.22

**P articipant Eligibility (**  **F ield**  **s #16** 
**– 21**  **) Low**  **- i**  **ncome individual** means an individual whose family taxable income did not exceed 150 perce nt of the povert y level amount in the calendar year preceding the ye ar in which the individual initially

participated in the project. The poverty level amount is determined using criteria of povert y established by the Bureau of the Census of the U.S. Department of Commerce. **First -**  **generation college student** means an individual neither of whose natural or adoptive parents received a baccalaureate degree; or a student who, prior to the age of 18, regularl y resided with and received support from only one natural or adoptive parent and whose supporting parent did not receive a baccalaureate degree. **H igh risk**  **for academic failure**  includes veterans who: (1) Have been out of high school or dropped out of a program of postsecondary education for five or more ye ars; (2) Have on standardized tests scored beneath the level that demonstrates a likelihood of success in a program of postsecondary education; or (3) Meet the definition of an individual with a disability as defined in §645.6(b). **Select Project Services (Fields # 34** 
**– 37**  **) Field #34**  **(Basic Skills Development)**  **:** Intensive basic skills development in those academic subjects required for successful completion of a high school equivalency program and for admission to p ostsecondary education programs
. **Field #35 (Short Ter**  **m Courses) :**  Short
- term remedial or refresher courses for veterans who are high school graduates but who have delay ed pursuing postsecondary education. If the grantee is an institution of higher education, these courses shall not duplicate courses otherwis e available to veterans at the institution
. **Field #36 (Local Support)**  **:** Assist veterans in securing support services from other locall y available resources such as the Veterans Administration, State veterans agencies, veterans associations, and other State and local a gencies that serve veterans
. **Field #37 (Special Services)**  **:** Provide special services, including mathematics and science preparation, to enable veterans to make the transition to postsecondary education
. **Postsecondary Enrollment Objective**  **-- Numerator**  **( Field #40)**  A participant is considered enrolled if he or she has completed registration requirements (excluding pay

ment of tuition and fees) at the institution he or she is attending. If a participant has begun course work in postsecondary education but is still participating in VUB (for example,23

if the student is taking postsecondary English courses but still completing preparatory work in other content areas in the VUB program), the student should not be reported as enrolled in a program of postsecondary education. **Postsecond ary Remediation (Field #**  **44 )**  For the purpose of APR reporting, remedial education courses are defined as courses in reading, writing, or mathematics for college
- level students lacking those skills necessary to perf orm college
- level work at the level required by the institution. **Bachelor’s Degree Attained (Field #49)** A **dual degree program** is a program of stud y that awards an individual both the bachelor’s and a graduate degree upon successful completion of the program of study . For a student enrolled in such a program who has completed four ye ars of postsecondary instruction, in field #49 grantees may use option 1 (“Yes, attained bachelor’s degree”) to indicate that the student has accomplished the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree, though a degree was not y et awarded.