58870 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 210 / Thursday, October 30, 1997 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

RIN 1850–ZA02

National Awards Program for Model

Professional Development

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of final eligibility and

selection criteria.

SUMMARY: The Secretary announces

eligibility and selection criteria to

govern the National Awards Program for

Model Professional Development for

Fiscal Year 1998. Under these criteria,

the National Awards Program will

recognize a variety of schools (public

and private) and school districts with

model professional development

activities in the pre-kindergarten

through twelfth grade levels that have

led to increases in student achievement.

EFFECTIVE DATE: These criteria take effect

December 1, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sharon Horn, Office of Educational

Research and Improvement, U.S.

Department of Education, 555 New

Jersey Avenue, NW, Room 506e,

Washington, DC 20208–5644.

Telephone: 202–219–2203 or 202–219–

2187. Inquiries also may be sent by email to sharonlhorn@ed.gov or by FAX

at 202–219–2198. Individuals who use a

telecommunications device for the deaf

(TDD) may call the Federal Information

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339

between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Individuals with disabilities may

obtain this document in an alternate

format (e.g., Braille, large print,

audiotape, or computer diskette) on

request to the contact person listed in

the preceding paragraph.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Through

this notice the Secretary announces

definitions and criteria to govern

applications for recognition submitted

under the second National Awards

Program for Model Professional

Development. This program began in

1996, in coordination with a wide range

of national education organizations, to

highlight and recognize schools and

school districts whose professional

development activities are aligned with

the statement of Mission and Principles

of Professional Development that the

Department developed in 1994. See

Appendix A. This second National

Awards Program, to be conducted

during Fiscal Year (FY) 1998, will be

implemented in ways similar to last

year’s program (see, for example, the

Notice Inviting Applications for Awards

published in the Federal Register on

June 14, 1996 at 61 FR 30450) but with

criteria designed to better inform

applicants of the kind of information

that successful applicants will need to

provide. Again this year, the Secretary

intends to recognize successful

applicants at a ceremony in

Washington, DC, and present each

successful applicant with an award of

not less than $5,000 that the recipient

could use to expand, promote, or

publicize its professional development

activities.

The reasons for wanting to continue

the National Awards Program are clear.

Schools and school districts throughout

the Nation are undertaking efforts to

raise academic standards and to

improve the academic achievement of

all students. For these efforts to be

successful they must include strategies

for permitting teachers (and other

school and local educational agency

(LEA) staff) to obtain the skills and

knowledge they need to enable all

students to achieve. Indeed, whatever

the school reform initiative, teachers are

the core. However, teachers need access

to new knowledge and skills to enable

them to continue to teach to higher

standards and to respond to the

challenges facing education today.

Realizing that high-quality

professional development must be at the

core of any effort to achieve educational

excellence, the Secretary in 1994

directed a broadly representative team

within the U.S. Department of

Education to examine the best available

research and exemplary practices

related to professional development and

work with the field to develop a set of

basic principles of high-quality

professional development. Out of this

national effort came the Department’s

Statement of Mission and Principles of

Professional Development. This

statement reflected both extensive

collaboration with a wide range of

education constituents and review of

public comment received on a draft

Statement of Mission and Principles of

Professional Development published in

the Federal Register on December 9,

1994 (59 FR 63773). The Department

issued the final Statement of Mission

and Principles (Appendix A) in 1995

after review of public comment and reexamination of the best available

research on exemplary practices. This

Statement—grounded in the practical

wisdom of leading educators across the

country—describes the kind of

professional development that, if

implemented, maintained, and

supported, will have a positive and

lasting effect on teaching and learning

in America.

The Statement of Mission and

Principles of Professional Development

represents a framework for guiding

school and school district staff as they

design and implement their professional

development activities. Many of the

same national education organizations

that worked with the Department to

develop the Mission and Principles of

Professional Development sought the

Department’s help last year in

identifying and recognizing those

professional development efforts across

the pre-kindergarten through twelfth

grade spectrum that reflect the Mission

and Principles. Given the efforts of

schools and school districts throughout

the Nation to pursue school reform

initiatives, the Secretary agreed with

these organizations about the urgent

need to identify sites whose

professional development activities can

be models for other schools and districts

that are working to enhance their own

professional development activities.

Therefore, the Secretary last year

announced the first National Awards

Program for Model Professional

Development. The public expressed

great interest in the program, and the

Department received over 100

applications. In February of this year,

the Department recognized five schools

and school districts in Massachusetts,

Connecticut, Kansas, and California for

the high quality of their professional

development activities and the link

between those activities and improved

student learning. But the importance of

high-quality professional development

to successful strategies to increase

student achievement demands that this

awards program be continued and that

more schools and school districts have

the opportunity for national recognition.

Therefore, the Secretary is pleased to

announce definitions and criteria to

govern the second National Awards

Program.

On August 19, 1997, the Acting

Assistant Secretary for Educational

Research and Improvement published a

notice of proposed eligibility and

selection criteria for this program in the

Federal Register (62 FR 44194–98). In

response to public comment, the final

eligibility criteria invite applicants to

identify and describe any important

partnering with institutions of higher

education and other entities that have

contributed to the high quality of their

professional development activities.

Otherwise, except for minor editorial

revisions made to enhance clarity, there

are no differences between the

eligibility and selection criteria

proposed in that notice and the final

eligibility and selection criteria

announced in this notice.

Note: This notice does not solicit

applications. A notice inviting applications
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 210 / Thursday, October 30, 1997 / Notices 58871

under this competition is published

elsewhere in this edition of the Federal

Register.

Summary of Comments and Changes

In response to the invitation in the

notice of proposed eligibility and

selection criteria, the Department

received two comments.

Comment: One commenter noted that

his State requires professional

development to be aligned with State

education standards, and requested that

the ‘‘Supplementary Information’’

section of the notice state that

successful applicants must demonstrate

a link between their professional

development activities and improved

student achievement and teacher

effectiveness ‘‘toward attaining State

standards.’’

Discussion: The notice of proposed

eligibility and selection criteria would

have required applicants to demonstrate

a link between their professional

development activities and ‘‘high’’

standards. These high standards are the

content and student performance

standards that states and school districts

have adopted or are adopting as key

parts of their strategies to increase

student achievement. Upon review of

the commenter’s suggestion, no change

in the background discussion contained

in the ‘‘Supplementary Information’’

section of the notice seems necessary.

However, the language of Selection

Criterion B, ‘‘Goals and Outcomes,’’ has

been clarified to require applicants to

address ‘‘how professional development

goals and outcomes promote teaching

and learning to State or local standards,

or both.’’ Moreover, while alignment

with challenging State content and

student performance standards is

crucial to successful education reform,

the language of the criterion is not

limited to ‘‘State standards’’ so as not to

penalize schools and districts with local

standards that now are more rigorous

than their States’ standards.

Changes: Selection Criterion B,

‘‘Goals and Outcomes,’’ has been

changed accordingly.

Comment: One commenter noted the

importance that institutions of higher

education (IHEs) play in promoting

high-quality professional development

at the school and school district level,

and urged that eligibility for the

National Awards Program be extended

to IHEs.

Discussion: Individual IHEs do play

an increasingly important role in

helping many schools and school

districts improve the quality of their

professional development activities.

However, the Secretary has determined

that eligibility for the program should

continue to be limited to schools and

school districts—the places where K–12

teaching and learning actually occurs—

both to maintain focus on the quality

professional development within

schools and school districts, and

because of the difficulty of using

common criteria to evaluate the relative

merit of applications that otherwise

would come from such very different

kinds of institutions.

Changes: In view of the comment, the

‘‘Eligibility Criteria’’ section of this

notice now specifically invites

applicants to describe their partnerships

with IHEs and other entities in their

applications.

Comment: None.

Discussion: The discussion of

‘‘Proposed Selection Procedures’’

contained in the Notice of Proposed

Eligibility and Selection Criteria failed

to advise the public that, like last year,

the Secretary expects to give recognition

under this National Awards Program to

no more than ten schools and school

districts. In addition, the proposed

notice stated that the Secretary

anticipated the size of a recipient’s

monetary award to be between $5,000

and $10,000. While the Secretary still

hopes that this is the case, this notice

clarifies that the Department anticipates

that each successful applicant will

receive a monetary award of no less

than $5,000.

Changes: The ‘‘Selection Procedures’’

portion of this notice has been changed

accordingly.

Eligibility Criteria

As with last year’s program, eligible

applicants are schools and school

districts in the States (including schools

located on Indian reservations, and in

the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico,

and the outlying areas) serving students

in the pre-kindergarten through twelfth

grade range. While only schools and

school districts may apply, the Secretary

recognizes that the high quality of a

school or district’s professional

development activities may be the result

of its successful partnering with

institutions of higher education and

other entities such as public and private

nonprofit organizations, businesses, and

community organizations. The Secretary

invites applicants to describe these

partnerships in their National Award

Program applications.

In addition, this year’s program

retains application selection criteria that

are built on two key elements: (1) A

demonstration that the professional

development activities are fully aligned

with the Mission and Principles of

Professional Development, and (2) a

demonstration of how, consistent with

the Mission and Principles, the

professional development activities

benefit all affected students and have

led to improved student achievement

and improved teacher effectiveness. As

noted above, the Statement of Mission

and Principles of Professional

Development reflects broad agreement

on what is ‘‘best practice.’’ It was

prepared in collaboration with a great

many national educational associations

and upon review of public comment.

The Secretary believes that professional

development activities can only be

considered exemplary if they, in fact,

are linked to increased student

achievement.

Again this year, the format of

applications remains fairly simple.

However, the application material has

been revised to better identify topics

applicants will need to consider in

order to demonstrate alignment with the

Mission and Principles of Professional

Development and a link to increased

student achievement. In addition, to

promote fairness among those seeking

recognition under the National Awards

Program, all applications must be

prepared in accordance with formatting

instructions included in the application

packet.

Selection Criteria

Applicants are free to respond to

these selection criteria in any way they

choose as long as they comply with the

formatting requirements set out in the

application packet. The degree to which

applicants demonstrate alignment with

the Mission and Principles of

Professional Development and a link to

increased student achievement will be

evaluated using the following criteria:

Guiding Principles

In evaluating applications for the

National Awards Program, reviewers

will look to see whether the application,

taken as a whole, demonstrates that the

school’s or school district’s professional

development activities are

comprehensive and lead to improved

teacher effectiveness and increased

student achievement. In doing so,

reviewers will be guided by the extent

to which and how well applicants

respond to the following criteria, the

most important of which would concern

objective evidence of success. Each

criterion includes one or more questions

that are designed to help applicants

formulate their responses. It is not

necessary for applicants to answer each

question individually. But, taken as a

whole, the description of their

professional development activities

must address each criterion and provide

enough information so that reviewers
58872 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 210 / Thursday, October 30, 1997 / Notices

can determine whether the school’s or

district’s professional development is

comprehensive and leads to improved

teacher effectiveness and increased

student achievement. In this regard, this

description must provide evidence of

improved student achievement and

show how the improvement is linked to

the professional development activities

that have been implemented.

A. Background and Overview of

Professional Development

In this section applicants must

provide a brief explanation of why they

consider professional development in

their schools or districts exemplary by

describing its key components and

relating those to the U.S. Department of

Education’s Mission and Principles of

Professional Development. This

description must provide evidence that

the professional development activities

are not narrowly focused on one

subgroup of students or staff within the

school or district.

In responding to this criterion,

applicants should consider the

following questions:

1. What are the infrastructure,

content, and process components of

professional development in the school

or district?

2. How does professional

development in the school or district

reflect the U.S. Department of

Education’s Mission and Principles of

Professional Development?

3. Why is professional development

in the school or district exemplary?

B. Goals and Outcomes

In this section, applicants must

describe their professional development

goals, how they were developed, how

they relate to school improvement, and

how they are based on needs assessment

and address the achievement of all

students (regardless of gender; socioeconomic level; disadvantaged status;

racial, ethic or cultural background;

exceptional abilities or disabilities; or

limited English proficiency). Applicants

also must address the changes in

teaching and student learning that are

expected to result from professional

development. In doing so, they must

include how professional development

goals and outcomes promote teaching

and learning to State or local standards,

or both.

In responding to this criterion,

applicants should consider the

following questions:

1. What are the broad goals of

professional development in its school

or district?

2. What are the goals for ALL

students’ achievement through

professional development?

3. What are the ways that the

professional development goals are

connected to long-term school

improvement plans?

4. What process was used to create the

professional development goals and

plan, and who was involved in the

development?

5. What are the ways in which

teachers’ professional development

needs are assessed and incorporated in

the plan for professional development?

6. How do the professional

development goals and outcomes focus

on increasing teachers’ expertise in

teaching to high standards?

7. What changes in teaching and

student learning result from

participation in professional

development in the school or district?

What is the rationale for believing these

changes would result in improved

teaching and learning?

C. Professional Development Design and

Implementation

Overall, the applicant’s response to

this section must show how the context,

content, and processes of its

professional development activities are

consistent with the Department’s

Mission and Principles of Professional

Development. The description must

provide evidence that professional

development reflects research and best

practice; includes comprehensive

evaluation; includes organizational

structures (e.g., administrative policy

and support) and resources (e.g., use of

time, expertise, funds) that support it;

promotes continuous inquiry and

improvement; and ensures that the

larger school community understands

its importance to school improvement.

The applicant must describe the databased processes that are used for

ensuring that professional development

is connected to the school or district

improvement plan and that the

professional development design

supports the attainment of expected

changes in teaching practice and

student learning. The description must

include any formal and informal

processes used to routinely collect

information for monitoring how the

school or district is progressing toward

its goals; for assessing the links between

the plan, professional development

activities, and teacher and student

outcomes; and for adjusting what isn’t

working.

Applicants already integrating

technology into classroom instruction

also must include a discussion of how

professional development has

contributed to ensuring that technology

is an effective teaching tool or, if

applicable, how technology has been

used to support effective professional

development.

In responding to this criterion,

applicants should consider the

following questions:

1. How is professional development a

part of what ALL teachers do? What role

do administrators and other members of

the school community play in

professional development?

2. How do the applicant’s professional

development design and activities

reflect research and best practice?

3. How does the applicant’s

professional development design and

activities reflect comprehensive

evaluation? What data are routinely

collected to assess the alignment of

program activities and outcomes? How

are collected data used to refine

professional development?

4. Why were the specific content,

instructional strategies, and learning

activities selected for professional

development?

5. What are the processes for ensuring

and documenting that the improvement

plans, professional development

activities, and teacher and student

outcomes are in alignment?

6. What structures support the

implementation of professional

development at individual, collegial and

organizational levels?

7. What resources and types of

sustained support (financial and other)

are available for professional

development for individuals, groups,

and the whole school or district? How

are current resources obtained?

8. How does the applicant ensure that

the school community understands how

the professional development

components fit together and connect to

the overall school plan?

D. Objective Evidence of Success

This portion of the application is

fundamental to the characterization of

the applicant’s professional

development and is the most important

selection criterion that reviewers will

use. Applicants must demonstrate

clearly that teacher effectiveness and

student learning have improved as a

direct result of the implemented

professional development. Data that

indicate this connection must be

provided and discussed; the focus is

objective evidence. In doing so,

applicants are expected to make a

compelling argument for how

professional development positively

affects outcomes for all teachers and all

students, emphasizing areas where any

achievement gaps between groups (e.g.,
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 210 / Thursday, October 30, 1997 / Notices 58873

gender, socio-economic status,

ethnicity) have been closed.

In responding to this criterion,

applicants should consider the

following questions:

1. What evidence is there that

demonstrate that professional

development in the school or district

has improved the effectiveness of all

teachers?

2. What evidence is there that

professional development in the school

or district has improved student

achievement across all grade levels and

all subject areas?

3. What evidence is there that

professional development in the school

or district leads to a narrowing of

existing achievement gaps between

groups of students?

E. Implications for the Field

In this section of the application,

applicants must describe the lessons

learned as their professional

development activities have matured.

In responding to this criterion,

applicants should consider the

following questions:

1. What knowledge and

documentation (e.g., training materials,

strategies, or processes) are available

that can benefit others?

2. What lessons and practical advice

about providing quality professional

development has the applicant learned

that other schools and districts could

use?

Selection Procedures

The Secretary will evaluate

applications using unweighted selection

criteria. The Secretary believes that the

use of unweighted criteria is most

appropriate because they will allow the

reviewers maximum flexibility to apply

their professional judgments in

identifying the particular strengths and

weaknesses in individual applications.

However, to receive recognition under

the National Awards Program, reviewers

will need to find that the applicant’s

professional development activities

reflect model practices as evidenced by

exemplary responses to each of the

criteria identified under the ‘‘Selection

Criteria’’ section of this notice. A key

element in review of any application

will be the extent to which the applicant

demonstrates clear links between

professional development activities and

increases in student achievement. See

Selection Criteria D, Objective Evidence

of Success. In analyzing the response to

Selection Criterion E, Implications for

the Field, reviewers will not expect the

same level of specificity from

applications as will be expected in

response to the other selection criteria.

In examining the response to Selection

Criterion E, reviewers will be primarily

interested in seeing that applicants have

considered the lessons they have

learned and can pass on to others.

After an initial screening, the

Department will use outside panels of

experts to evaluate the quality of the

applications against these basic criteria.

This stage in the process may include

telephone interviews with project

contacts to discuss and clarify

information, and will lead to the

selection of up to twenty semifinalists.

The Department then will use outside

experts to conduct site visits, which

may involve the examination of

documentation to confirm the

effectiveness of the semifinalists’

professional development activities, and

the collection of additional supporting

information from them. Based on the

recommendations of the site reviewers

(and possibly through a final panel of

outside experts), the Secretary will

select those schools or school districts

that merit national recognition. Again

this year, the Secretary intends to

recognize up to ten schools and school

districts with the very best professional

development practices at a national

ceremony in Washington, DC.

Successful applicants also will receive

other forms of recognition including a

monetary award that the Department

anticipates will be no less than $5,000

per recipient. Recipients will be able to

use these funds to support their

professional development activities and

make them known to others.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

Under the Paperwork Reduction Act

of 1995, no persons are required to

respond to a collection of information

unless it displays a valid OMB control

number. The valid OMB control number

assigned to the collection of information

in this notice of eligibility and selection

criteria is 1880–0534.

Electronic Access to This Document

Anyone may view this document, as

well as all other Department of

Education documents published in the

Federal Register, in text or portable

document format (pdf) on the World

Wide Web at either of the following

sites:

http://gcs.ed.gov/fedreg.htm

http://www.ed.gov/news.html

To use pdf you must have the Adobe

Acrobat Reader Program with Search,

which is available free at either of the

previous sites. If you have questions

about using pdf, call the U.S.

Government Printing Office toll free at

1–888–293–6498.

Anyone may also view these

documents in text copy only on an

electronic bulletin board of the

Department. Telephone: (202) 219–1511

or, toll free, 1–800–222–4922. The

documents are located under Option

G—Files/Announcements, Bulletins and

Press Releases.

Note: The official version of this document

is the document published in the Federal

Register.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 8001.

Dated: October 24, 1997.

Ricky T. Takai,

Acting Assistant Secretary for Educational

Research and Improvement.

Appendix A—Mission and Principles of

Professional Development, U.S. Department

of Education—Professional Development

Team

July 5, 1995

Professional development plays an

essential role in successful education reform.

Professional development serves as the

bridge between where prospective and

experienced educators are now and where

they will need to be to meet the new

challenges of guiding all students in

achieving to higher standards of learning and

development.

High-quality professional development as

envisioned here refers to rigorous and

relevant content, strategies, and

organizational supports that ensure the

preparation and career-long development of

teachers and others whose competence,

expectations and actions influence the

teaching and learning environment. Both preand in-service professional development

require partnerships among schools, higher

education institutions and other appropriate

entities to promote inclusive learning

communities of everyone who impacts

students and their learning. Those within

and outside schools need to work together to

bring to bear the ideas, commitment and

other resources that will be necessary to

address important and complex educational

issues in a variety of settings and for a

diverse student body.

Equitable access for all educators to such

professional development opportunities is

imperative. Moreover, professional

development works best when it is part of a

systemwide effort to improve and integrate

the recruitment, selection, preparation, initial

licensing, induction, ongoing development

and support, and advanced certification of

educators.

High-quality professional development

should incorporate all of the principles stated

below. Adequately addressing each of these

principles is necessary for a full realization

of the potential of individuals, school

communities and institutions to improve and

excel.

The mission of professional development is

to prepare and support educators to help all

students achieve to high standards of

learning and development.—Professional

Development
58874 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 210 / Thursday, October 30, 1997 / Notices

• Focuses on teachers as central to student

learning, yet includes all other members of

the school community;

• Focuses on individual, collegial, and

organizational improvement;

• Respects and nurtures the intellectual

and leadership capacity of teachers,

principals, and others in the school

community;

• Reflects best available research and

practice in teaching, learning, and

leadership;

• Enables teachers to develop further

expertise in subject content, teaching

strategies, uses of technologies, and other

essential elements in teaching to high

standards;

• Promotes continuous inquiry and

improvement embedded in the daily life of

schools;

• Is planned collaboratively by those who

will participate in and facilitate that

development;

• Requires substantial time and other

resources;

• Is driven by a coherent long-term plan;

• Is evaluated ultimately on the basis of its

impact on teacher effectiveness and student

learning; and this assessment guides

subsequent professional development efforts.

[FR Doc. 97–28825 Filed 10–29–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

National Awards Program for Model

Professional Development; Notice

Inviting Applications for New Awards

for Fiscal Year (FY) 1998

Purpose of the Program: To recognize

a variety of schools and school districts

with model professional development

activities in the pre-kindergarten

through twelfth grade levels that have

led to increases in student achievement.

The FY 1998 competition focuses on

schools and school districts that meet

the eligibility and selection criteria for

this program, as published elsewhere in

this issue of the Federal Register.

Eligible Applicants: Schools (public

and private) and school districts in the

States (including schools located on

Indian reservations, and in the District

of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the

outlying areas).

Deadline for the Transmittal of

Applications: January 15, 1998.

Applications Available: November 3,

1997.

Estimated Range of Awards: Not less

than $5,000.

Estimated Number of Awards: 10.

Note: The Department is not bound by any

estimates in this notice.

Eligibility and Selection Criteria: The

eligibility and selection criteria and

selection procedures in the notice of

final eligibility and selection criteria for

this program, as published elsewhere in

this issue of the Federal Register, apply

to this competition.

For Application Information Contact:

To obtain a copy of the application or

to obtain information on the program,

call or write Sharon Horn, Office of

Educational Research and Improvement,

U.S. Department of Education, 555 New

Jersey Avenue, NW—Room 506e,

Washington, DC 20208–5644.

Telephone: 202–219–2203 or 202–219–

2187. Inquiries also may be sent by email to sharonlhorn@ed.gov or by FAX

at 202–219–2198. Individuals who use a

telecommunications device for the deaf

(TDD) may call the Federal Information

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339

between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Individuals with disabilities may

obtain this document in an alternate

format (e.g., Braille, large print,

audiotape, or computer diskette) on

request to the contact person listed in

the preceding paragraph.

Individuals with disabilities may

obtain a copy of the application package

in an alternate format, also, by

contacting that person. However, the

Department is not able to reproduce in

an alternate format the standard forms

included in the application package.

Electronic Access to This Document:

Anyone may view this document, as

well as all other Department of

Education documents published in the

Federal Register, in text or portable

document format (pdf) on the World

Wide Web at either of the following

sites:

http://ocfo.ed.gov/fedreg.htm

http://www.ed.gov/news.html

To use the pdf you must have the Adobe

Acrobat Reader Program with Search,

which is available free at either of the

previous sites. If you have questions

about using the pdf, call the U.S.

Government Printing Office toll free at

1–888–293–6498.

Anyone may also view these

documents in text copy only on an

electronic bulletin board of the

Department. Telephone: (202) 219–1511

or, toll free, 1–800–222–4922. The

documents are located under Option

G—Files/Announcements, Bulletins and

Press Releases.

Dated: October 24, 1997.

Note: The official version of a document is

the document published in the Federal

Register.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 8001.

Ricky T. Takai,

Acting Assistant Secretary for Educational

Research and Improvement.

[FR Doc. 97–28826 Filed 10–29–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P