Notice is hereby given of the Washington D.C. area meeting of the National Reading Panel. The meeting will be held on Monday, January 31, 2000, from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM. The meeting location is the National Institutes of Health, Building 31, C Wing-Conference Room 6, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, Maryland, 20816. The entire meeting will be open to the public.

The National Reading Panel was requested by Congress and created by the Director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in consultation with the Secretary of Education. The Panel is studying the effectiveness of various approaches to teaching children how to read and report on the best ways to apply these findings in classrooms and at home. Its members include prominent reading researchers, teachers, child development experts, leaders in elementary and higher education, and parents. The Chair of the Panel is Dr. Donald N. Langenberg, Chancellor of the University System of Maryland.

The Panel is building on the findings presented by the National Research Council's Committee on the Prevention of Reading Difficulties in Young Children. Based on these findings and the National Reading Panel's own review of the literature, the Panel will: determine the readiness for application in the classroom of the results of these research studies; identify appropriate means to rapidly disseminate this information to facilitate effective reading instruction in the schools; and identify gaps in the knowledge base for reading instruction and the best ways to close these gaps.

                    The agenda for this meeting will include discussion and final acceptance of the reports by The National Reading Panel. A period of time will be set aside at approximately 3:00 PM on Monday, January 31 for members of the public to address the Panel and express their views regarding the Panel's mission.                     Start Printed Page 3966                    Individuals desiring an opportunity to speak before the Panel should address their requests to F. William Dommel, Jr., Executive Director, National Reading Panel, c/o Mr. Patrick Riccards and either mail them to the Widmeyer-Baker Group, 1825 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Fifth Floor, Washington, D.C. 20009, or e-mail them to patrickr@twog.com, or fax them to 202-667-0902. Requests for addressing the Panel should be received by January 27, 2000. Panel business permitting, each public speaker will be allowed five minutes to present his or her views. In the event of a large number of public speakers, the Panel Chair retains the option to further limit the presentation time allowed to each. Although the time permitted for oral presentations will be brief, the full text of all written comments submitted to the Panel will be made available to the Panel members for consideration.                

For further information contact Mr. Patrick Riccards at 202-667-0901. Individuals who plan to attend and need special assistance, such as sign language interpretation or other reasonable accommodations, should contact Mr. Patrick Riccards by January 27, 2000.

Dated: January 13, 2000.

Duane Alexander,

Director, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

[FR Doc. 00-1688 Filed 1-24-00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4140-01-M