[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 42 (Monday, March 5, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9739-9744]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-3793]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services Overview 
Information; Personnel Development To Improve Services and Results for 
Children With Disabilities--National Center To Enhance the Training of 
Personnel Who Share Responsibility for Improving Outcomes for Young 
Children With Disabilities (National Early Childhood Training 
Enhancement Center); Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for 
Fiscal Year (FY) 2007

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.325J.

    Dates: Applications Available: March 5, 2007.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 19, 2007.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 18, 2007.
    Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education (IHEs).
    Estimated Available Funds: The Administration has requested 
$90,626,000 for the Personnel Development To Improve Services and 
Results for Children with Disabilities program for FY 2007, of which we 
intend to use an estimated $600,000 for the National Early Childhood 
Training Enhancement Center competition. The actual level of funding, 
if any, depends on final congressional action. However, we are inviting 
applications to allow enough time to complete the grant process if 
Congress appropriates funds for this program.
    Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a 
budget exceeding $600,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. The 
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services 
may change the maximum amount through a notice published in the Federal 
Register.
    Number of Awards: 1.

    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this 
notice.

    Project Period: Up to 60 months.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    Purpose of Program: The purposes of this program are to (1) help 
address State-identified needs for highly qualified personnel--in 
special education, related services, early intervention, and regular 
education--to work with infants or toddlers with disabilities, or 
children with disabilities; and (2) ensure that those personnel have 
the skills and knowledge--derived from practices that have been 
determined through research and experience to be successful--that are 
needed to serve those children.
    Priority: In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(v), this priority 
is from allowable activities specified in the statute (see sections 
662(d) and 681(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 
(IDEA)).
    Absolute Priority: For FY 2007 this priority is an absolute 
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that 
meet this priority.
    This priority is: National Early Childhood Training Enhancement 
Center Background:
    In growing numbers, infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with 
disabilities are joining their peers without disabilities in natural 
settings such as childcare centers, Early Head Start and Head Start 
programs, and public and private preschools. Early interventionists, 
early childhood educators and special educators, related services 
providers, and childcare personnel share responsibility for ensuring 
high quality services and improved outcomes for young children with 
disabilities. To effectively meet the learning and developmental needs 
of young children (birth through five) with disabilities, all of these 
professionals must have knowledge and training in early intervention 
and early childhood special education, including how to work with 
families with young children.
    Recent data collected by the Office of Special Education Programs 
(OSEP)-funded Center to Inform Personnel Preparation Policy and 
Practice in Early Intervention and Preschool Education (http://www.uconnucedd.org/per_prep_center/index.html) suggest, however, that 
programs have serious difficulty finding and hiring personnel with 
adequate training in early intervention or early childhood special 
education. In addition, many early care and education personnel do not 
have the training or knowledge to effectively meet the diverse 
developmental and educational needs of young children with disabilities 
in natural environments. In order to meet the early learning and 
developmental needs of young children more effectively, future and 
current early childhood personnel must have access to training, 
educational resources, and materials that reflect evidence-based 
practice in the fields of early intervention and early childhood 
education.
    In particular, educators and service providers must have: (1) 
Knowledge of authentic assessment practices such as collecting work 
samples and observational records, which go beyond assessment of 
discrete skills to assessments that capture the depth of children's 
functional abilities within their daily context; (2) training in 
service coordination and collaborative models of service delivery (this 
is particularly important as specialized service providers go into 
natural environments, such as childcare centers and preschools, where 
staff may not be as knowledgeable about evidence-based practices in 
working with children with disabilities and their families); and (3) 
knowledge of interventions and practices that support the development 
of school readiness skills, particularly in the areas of language, 
early literacy, and social-emotional development.
    To this end, the Assistant Secretary proposes a National Early 
Childhood Training Enhancement Center for preservice higher education 
faculty and professional development providers who train early 
interventionists, early childhood educators and special educators, 
related services providers, and childcare personnel (the targeted 
constituent group) to work with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers 
with disabilities (birth through five) and their families.

[[Page 9740]]

Priority

    The purpose of this priority is to address the need for high 
quality early childhood personnel and ensure that they have the skills 
and knowledge to provide collaborative services to meet the 
developmental and learning needs of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers 
with disabilities. The goal of this priority is to establish a National 
Early Childhood Training Enhancement Center (Center) that will 
identify, develop, and disseminate evidence-based training modules for 
use by higher education faculty, including community college faculty, 
and professional development providers who provide ongoing training to 
the targeted constituent group. The Center must provide technical 
assistance to programs providing preservice preparation and 
professional development. The Center also must ensure that these 
programs have ready access to current materials and resources necessary 
to support the development of personnel to effectively work within a 
collaborative model to effectively serve young children with 
disabilities in natural environments.
    The Center must:
    (a) Identify needs. Identify knowledge and skill enhancement needs 
of preservice trainees and practicing personnel in the targeted 
constituent group that are most critical to ensuring that these 
personnel are well prepared to meet the developmental and learning 
needs of young children with disabilities. As part of this needs-
identification process, the Center must consult with, representatives 
of professional organizations, faculty from both 4-year and 2-year 
programs engaged in preservice training, professional development 
providers, students in training, practicing personnel, families of 
young children with disabilities, and other stakeholders as 
appropriate. In addition to the needs identified through this process, 
the Center must, as appropriate to the roles of the targeted 
constituents, focus on the following topic areas: Authentic assessment 
of young children, collaborative service delivery, working with 
families of young children with disabilities, and knowledge of 
intervention and practices that support the development of school 
readiness outcomes for young children with disabilities, especially in 
the areas of language, early literacy, and social-emotional 
development.
    (b) Identify appropriate existing resources. Identify existing 
resources that represent state of the art, evidence-based knowledge and 
practice in early intervention and early childhood education, including 
resources that have been developed through early childhood 
discretionary grants or contracts funded by OSEP, Head Start and the 
Child Care Bureau in the Department of Health and Human Services, or 
other relevant agencies. Additionally, the Center must review and 
consider for incorporation, into proposed training modules and 
supporting materials, appropriate early childhood products that have 
been developed by projects that are part of the OSEP Technical 
Assistance Network, including State Personnel Development projects, 
Parent Training and Information Centers, and other OSEP-funded 
technical assistance projects.
    (c) Identify and develop training modules. Identify and evaluate 
existing training modules in the field using established criteria and 
develop content-rich training modules that address the critical 
knowledge and skill-enhancement needs identified through activities 
conducted under paragraph (a); reflect evidence-based practices and 
scientifically-based research; are designed to maximize adult learning; 
and integrate existing resources identified in paragraph (b). In 
addition, the training modules must be designed for ease of integration 
into existing curricular and experiential opportunities in the targeted 
preservice preparation programs or structured to be effective resources 
for providing professional development opportunities for personnel 
already in practice. Training modules also must be identified and 
developed in collaboration with content experts, through sub-
contractual or consultative arrangements with the Center, to ensure 
that module content is current and reflects promising and effective 
practices. Each proposed content expert and module topic must be 
approved by OSEP prior to the initiation of any development activity.
    (d) Disseminate training modules and provide targeted technical 
assistance. Develop and implement mechanisms that will result in broad, 
effective dissemination and use of training modules identified or 
developed in paragraph (c). The Center must make all training modules 
and supporting materials available on a dedicated Web site that is 
easily searchable by topic and is available for use to everyone at no 
cost. As an example of previous OSEP-supported work that utilizes this 
approach, please see the following Web site: http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/. The Center must develop a dissemination 
partnership with at least one publisher who links (without cost to the 
Center or additional costs to the consumer) the materials and resources 
created by the Center to its products and services. The Center must 
develop targeted mechanisms for the dissemination and utilization of 
products by preservice personnel preparation programs in institutions 
of higher education, including community colleges, OSEP-funded State 
Personnel Development grantees, and professional development providers 
whose services target personnel serving infants, toddlers, and 
preschoolers with disabilities. The Center must also develop efficient, 
effective strategies for providing technical assistance to assist 
higher education faculty and professional development providers in the 
use of the training modules created by the Center.
    (e) Conduct comprehensive project evaluation. Design and conduct a 
comprehensive evaluation of the work, accomplishments, outcomes, 
impact, and effectiveness of the Center. This evaluation must be 
designed to provide information to guide ongoing refinements to the 
structure, activities, workflow, and products that will improve the 
ultimate impact and effectiveness of the Center. This comprehensive 
evaluation must also be designed to measure the impact of the Center's 
work on the goal of enhancing the knowledge and skills of the targeted 
constituent group so that they can effectively provide young children 
with disabilities the services and supports necessary for them to fully 
participate in natural environments, meet their developmental and 
learning potential, and be prepared to enter school ready to learn.
    (f) Establish an advisory board. In designing and carrying out the 
required activities of the Center, the project must establish and make 
ongoing and effective use of a Board of Advisors. The make-up of the 
Board of Advisors should include as appropriate: Professional 
organization representatives, higher education faculty, practicing 
personnel, professional development providers, family members of young 
children with disabilities, State and local IDEA Part C and section 619 
coordinators, federally supported technical assistance providers, and 
federally supported higher education project directors.
    (g) Maintain communication with OSEP. The project should maintain 
ongoing communication with the OSEP Project Officer, including monthly 
conference calls. The project must also budget for a three-day Project 
Directors' meeting in Washington, DC during each year of the project 
plus additional two-

[[Page 9741]]

day trips annually to Washington, DC to attend additional national 
meetings and to meet and collaborate with the OSEP Project Officer and 
other funded projects for purposes of cross-project collaboration and 
information exchange.

Fourth and Fifth Years of the Project

    In deciding whether to continue funding the Center for the fourth 
and fifth years, the Secretary will consider the requirements of 34 CFR 
75.253(a), and in addition--
    (a) The recommendation of a review team consisting of experts 
selected by the Secretary. The review will be conducted in Washington, 
DC during the last half of the project's second year; projects must 
budget for travel expenses associated with this one-day intensive 
review;
    (b) The timeliness and effectiveness with which all requirements of 
the negotiated cooperative agreement have been or are being met by the 
Center; and
    (c) The degree to which the Center's products reflect evidence-
based practices and scientifically-based research and address the 
identified critical knowledge and skill enhancement needs within the 
field.
    Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking: Under the Administrative Procedure 
Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 553) the Department generally offers interested 
parties the opportunity to comment on a proposed priority. However, 
section 681(d) of IDEA makes the public comment requirements of the APA 
inapplicable to the priority in this notice.
    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1462 and 1481(d).
    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: Cooperative agreement.
    Estimated Available Funds: The Administration has requested 
$90,626,000 for the Personnel Development to Improve Services and 
Results for Children with Disabilities program for FY 2007, of which we 
intend to use an estimated $600,000 for the National Early Childhood 
Training Enhancement Center competition. The actual level of funding, 
if any, depends on final congressional action. However, we are inviting 
applications to allow enough time to complete the grant process if 
Congress appropriates funds for this program.
    Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a 
budget exceeding $600,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. The 
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services 
may change the maximum amount through a notice published in the Federal 
Register.
    Number of Awards: 1.

    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this 
notice.

    Project Period: Up to 60 months.

III. Eligibility Information

    1. Eligible Applicants: IHEs.
    2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This competition does not involve cost 
sharing or matching.
    3. Other: General Requirements--(a) The projects funded under this 
competition must make positive efforts to employ and advance in 
employment qualified individuals with disabilities (see section 606 of 
IDEA).
    (b) Applicants and grant recipients funded under this competition 
must involve individuals with disabilities or parents of individuals 
with disabilities ages birth through 26 in planning, implementing, and 
evaluating the projects (see section 682(a)(1)(A) of IDEA).

IV. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Request Application Package: Education Publications 
Center (ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll 
free): 1-877-433-7827. FAX: (301) 470-1244. If you use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free): 
1-877-576-7734.
    You may also contact ED Pubs at its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address: 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9ffafbefeafdecdff6f1faebb1fafbb1f8f0e9"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="35505145405746755c5b50411b50511b525a43">[email protected]</span></a>.
    If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify 
this competition as follows: CFDA number 84.325J.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application 
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, 
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the Grants and Contracts 
Services Team listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in section 
VII of this notice.
    2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements 
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you 
must submit, are in the application package for this competition.
    Page Limit: The application narrative (Part III of the application) 
is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that 
reviewers use to evaluate your application. You must limit Part III to 
the equivalent of no more than 70 pages, using the following standards:
    <bullet> A ``page'' is 8.5'' x 11'', on one side only, with 1'' 
margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
    <bullet> 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.
    <bullet> Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or no smaller 
than 10 pitch (characters per inch).
    The page limit does not apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II, 
the budget section, including the narrative budget justification; Part 
IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page abstract, the 
resumes, the bibliography, the references, or the letters of support. 
However, you must include all of the application narrative in Part III.
    We will reject your application if--
    <bullet> You apply these standards and exceed the page limit; or
    <bullet> You apply other standards and exceed the equivalent of the 
page limit.
    3. Submission Dates and Times:
    Applications Available: March 5, 2007.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 19, 2007.
    Applications for grants under this competition may be submitted 
electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov), or in 
paper format by mail or hand delivery. For information (including dates 
and times) about how to submit your application electronically, or by 
mail or hand delivery, please refer to section IV. 6. Other Submission 
Requirements in 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.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 18, 2007.
    4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive 
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about 
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order 
12372 is in the application package for this competition.
    5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding 
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
    6. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under 
this

[[Page 9742]]

competition may be submitted electronically or in paper format by mail 
or hand delivery.
    a. Electronic Submission of Applications. To comply with the 
President's Management Agenda, we are participating as a partner in the 
Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site. The National Early Childhood 
Training Enhancement Center competition--CFDA number 84.325J is 
included in this project. We request your participation in Grants.gov.
    If you choose to submit your application electronically, you must 
use the Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site at http://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 e-mail an electronic copy of a grant 
application to us.
    You may access the electronic grant application for the National 
Early Childhood Training Enhancement Center competition--CFDA number 
84.325J at: http://www.grants.gov. You must search for the downloadable 
application package for this program by the CFDA number. Do not include 
the CFDA number's alpha suffix in your search (e.g., search for 84.326, 
not 84.326A).
    Please note the following:
    <bullet> Your participation in Grants.gov is voluntary.
    <bullet> 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.
    <bullet> Applications received by Grants.gov are time and date 
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 
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. Except as 
otherwise noted in this section, we will not consider your application 
if it is date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system later than 4:30 
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. 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 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the 
application deadline date.
    <bullet> 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.
    <bullet> You should review and follow the Education Submission 
Procedures for submitting an application through 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 at http://e-Grants.ed.gov/help/GrantsgovSubmissionProcedures.pdf. 
    <bullet> To submit your application via Grants.gov, you must 
complete all steps in the Grants.gov registration process (see http://www.grants.gov/applicants/get_registered.jsp). These steps include (1) 
registering your organization, a multi-part process that includes 
registration with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR); (2) 
registering yourself as an Authorized Organization Representative 
(AOR); and (3) getting authorized as an AOR by your organization. 
Details on these steps are outlined in the Grants.gov 3-Step 
Registration Guide (see http://www.grants.gov/section910/Grants.govRegistrationBrochure.pdf). You also must provide on your 
application the same D-U-N-S Number used with this registration. Please 
note that the registration process may take five or more business days 
to complete, and you must have completed all registration steps to 
allow you to submit successfully an application via Grants.gov. In 
addition you will need to update your CCR registration on an annual 
basis. This may take three or more business days to complete.
    <bullet> You will not receive additional point value because you 
submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you 
if you submit your application in paper format.
    <bullet> If you submit your application electronically, you must 
submit all documents electronically, including all information you 
typically provide on the following forms: Application for Federal 
Assistance (SF 424), the Department of Education Supplemental 
Information for SF 424, Budget Information--Non-Construction Programs 
(ED 524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. Please note 
that two of these forms--the SF 424 and the Department of Education 
Supplemental Information for SF 424--have replaced the ED 424 
(Application for Federal Education Assistance).
    <bullet> If you submit your application electronically, you must 
attach any narrative sections of your application as files in a .DOC 
(document), .RTF (rich text), or .PDF (Portable Document) format. If 
you upload a file type other than the three file types specified in 
this paragraph or submit a password-protected file, we will not review 
that material.
    <bullet> Your electronic application must comply with any page-
limit requirements described in this notice.
    <bullet> 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 e-mail. This second notification 
indicates that the Department has received your application and has 
assigned your application a PR/Award number (an ED-specified 
identifying number unique to your application).
    <bullet> 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 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 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 p.m., Washington, DC time, 
on the application deadline date, please contact the person listed 
elsewhere in this notice under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 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 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.


[[Page 9743]]


    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.

    b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail. If you submit your 
application in paper format by mail (through the U.S. Postal Service or 
a commercial carrier), you must mail the original and two copies of 
your application, on or before the application deadline date, to the 
Department at the applicable following address:
    By mail through the U.S. Postal Service: U.S. Department of 
Education, Application Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number 
84.325J), 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260. or
    By mail through a commercial carrier: U.S. Department of Education, 
Application Control Center--Stop 4260, Attention: (CFDA Number 
84.325J), 7100 Old Landover Road, Landover, MD 20785-1506.
    Regardless of which address you use, 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 submit 
your application in paper format by hand delivery, you (or a courier 
service) 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: (CFDA Number 84.325J), 550 12th Street, SW., 
Room 7041, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-4260.
    The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily 
between 8 a.m. and 4:30 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 34 CFR 75.210 and are listed in the application package.
    2. Treating A Priority As Two Separate Competitions: In the past, 
there have been problems in finding peer reviewers without conflicts of 
interest for competitions in which many entities throughout the country 
submit applications. The Standing Panel requirements under IDEA also 
have placed additional constraints on the availability of reviewers. 
Therefore, the Department has determined that, for some discretionary 
competitions, applications may be separated into two or more groups and 
ranked and selected for funding within the specific group. This 
procedure will ensure the availability of a much larger group of 
reviewers without conflicts of interest. It also will increase the 
quality, independence and fairness of the review process and permit 
panel members to review applications under discretionary competitions 
for which they have also submitted applications. However, if the 
Department decides to select for funding an equal number of 
applications in each group, this may result in different cut-off points 
for fundable applications in each group.

VI. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your 
U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award 
Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally.
    If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, 
we notify you.
    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify 
administrative and national policy requirements in the application 
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable 
Regulations section of this notice.
    We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of 
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and 
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also 
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding 
commitments under the grant.
    3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a 
final performance report, including financial information, as directed 
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an 
annual performance report that provides the most current performance 
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in 
34 CFR 75.118.
    4. Performance Measures: Under the Government Performance and 
Results Act of 1993 (GPRA), the Department has developed annual 
performance measures that will yield information on various aspects of 
the technical assistance and dissemination activities currently being 
supported under IDEA Part D. These measures will be used for the 
National Early Childhood Training Enhancement Center competition. They 
are: The percentage of products and services deemed to be of high 
quality by an independent review panel of qualified experts or 
individuals with appropriate expertise to review the substantive 
content of the products and services; the percentage of products and 
services deemed to be of high relevance to educational and early 
intervention policy or practice by an independent review panel of 
qualified members of the target audiences of the technical assistance 
and disseminations; the percentage of all products and services deemed 
to be of high usefulness by target audiences to improve educational or 
early intervention policy or practice.
    We will notify grantees if they will be required to provide any 
information related to these measures.
    Grantees will also be required to report information on their 
projects' performance in annual reports to the Department (34 CFR 
75.590).

VII. Agency Contact

    For Further Information Contact: Christy Kavulic, U.S. Department 
of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Room 4057, Potomac Center 
Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-2550. Telephone: (202) 245-7359.

[[Page 9744]]

    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) 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 by contacting the following office: The Grants and 
Contracts Services Team, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland 
Avenue, SW., Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-2550. 
Telephone: (202) 245-7363.

VIII. Other Information

    Electronic Access to This Document: You may view this document, as 
well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal 
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the 
Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.
    To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available 
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S. 
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in 
the Washington, DC, area at (202) 512-1530.

    Note: The official version of this document is the document 
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the 
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal 
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.


    Dated: February 28, 2007.
John H. Hager,
Assistant Secretary for Special, Education and Rehabilitative, 
Services.
 [FR Doc. E7-3793 Filed 3-2-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P


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