[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 216 (Thursday, November 7, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 88237-88240]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-25896]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket ID ED-2024-IES-0051]


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended 
(Privacy Act), the U.S. Department of Education (Department) publishes 
this notice of a new system of records titled ``Evaluation of 
Transition Supports for Youth with Disabilities'' (18-13-47). This 
system contains records maintained by the Department and its contractor 
to conduct the Evaluation of Transition Supports for Youth with 
Disabilities study (the study). The records in this system will be used 
to measure the effectiveness of two strategies encompassing transition 
supports that research has identified as having potential to improve 
the high school and post-high school outcomes for high school students 
who have individualized education programs (IEPs) under the Individuals 
with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

DATES: Submit your comments on this notice of a new system of records 
on or before December 9, 2024.
    This new system of records notice, except for the routine uses, 
will become applicable upon publication in the Federal Register on 
November 7, 2024, unless it needs to be changed as a result of public 
comment. The routine uses outlined in the section titled ``ROUTINE USES 
OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES OF USERS AND 
PURPOSES OF SUCH USES'' will become effective on the expiration of the 
30-day period of public comment on December 9, 2024, unless they need 
to be changed as a result of public comment. The Department will 
publish any significant changes to this new system of records notice or 
routine uses resulting from public comment.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be submitted via the Federal eRulemaking 
Portal at regulations.gov. However, if you require an accommodation or 
cannot otherwise submit your comments via regulations.gov, please 
contact the program contact person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT. The Department will not accept comments submitted by fax or by 
email, or comments submitted after the comment period closes. To ensure 
that the Department does not receive

[[Page 88238]]

duplicate copies, please submit your comments only once. In addition, 
please include the Docket ID at the top of your comments.
    <bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to www.regulations.gov to 
submit your comments electronically. Information on using 
Regulations.gov, including instructions for accessing agency documents, 
submitting comments, and viewing the docket, is available on the site 
under ``FAQ''.
    Privacy Note: The Department's policy is to make all comments 
received from members of the public available for public viewing in 
their entirety on the Federal eRulemaking Portal at 
www.regulations.gov. Therefore, commenters should be careful to include 
in their comments only information that they wish to make publicly 
available.
    Assistance to Individuals with Disabilities in Reviewing the 
Rulemaking Record: On request, we will provide an appropriate 
accommodation or auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability who 
needs assistance to review the comments or other documents in the 
public rulemaking record for this notice. If you want to schedule an 
appointment for this type of accommodation or auxiliary aid, please 
contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Teresa Cahalan, SORN coordinator, 
Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, Potomac 
Center Plaza, 550 12th Street SW, Room SW, Room 4126, Washington, DC 
20202. Telephone: 202-245-7299. Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5b121e0804081409151b3e3f753c342d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="da939f8985899588949abfbef4bdb5ac">[email protected]</span></a>.
    If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, 
please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department will use the records 
maintained in this new system to measure the effectiveness of two 
strategies encompassing transition supports that research has 
identified as having the potential to improve high school and post-high 
school outcomes for high school students who have IEPs under the IDEA. 
This study will allow the Department to measure the effectiveness of 
providing students instruction to strengthen their goal-setting, 
planning, and self-advocacy skills and helping them apply these self-
determination skills to work toward their post-high school goals.
    The records maintained in this system will be used to address the 
following research questions:
    <bullet> Is instruction in self-determination skills and how to 
apply them to transition planning effective in improving the 
intermediate and post-high school outcomes of students with 
disabilities with IEPs under the IDEA?
    <bullet> Is offering individual mentoring along with self-
determination skills instruction effective?
    <bullet> What is the added benefit and cost of providing individual 
mentoring support?
    Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities 
can obtain this document in an accessible format. The Department will 
provide the requestor with an accessible format that may include Rich 
Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3 file, 
braille, large print, audiotape, compact disc, or other accessible 
format.
    Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this 
document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may 
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of 
Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this 
document, as well as all other documents of this Department published 
in the Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To 
use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at 
the site.
    You may also access documents of the Department published in the 
Federal Register by using the article search feature at 
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

Matthew Soldner,
Acting Director, Institute of Education Sciences.

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Acting Director of 
the Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, 
publishes a a new system of records notice (SORN) to read as follows:

SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
    Evaluation of Transition Supports for Youth with Disabilities (18-
13-47).

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Institute of Education Sciences (IES), U.S. Department of 
Education, 550 12th Street SW, Washington, DC 20202. (This is the 
location of the IES Data Center.)
    American Institutes for Research (AIR), 1400 Crystal Drive, 10th 
Floor, Arlington, VA 22202. (This is the location of a Department 
contractor that collects personally identifiable information (PII) 
regarding district and school staff, program instructors, and students 
and their families in participating districts and stores such 
information until it is uploaded through secure transfer to the IES 
Data Center.)

SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
    Associate Commissioner, Evaluation Division, National Center for 
Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education 
Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, 550 12th Street SW, Washington, 
DC 20202.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    The Evaluation of Transition Supports for Youth with Disabilities 
study (the study) is authorized by section 664(b)(2)(D)(iii) of the 
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (20 U.S.C. 1400 et 
seq.) and sections 171 and 173 of the Education Sciences Reform Act 
(Pub. L. 114-95) (20 U.S.C. 9561 and 9563). The collection of Social 
Security numbers is authorized under Executive Order 9397 (November 22, 
1943), as amended by Executive Order 13478 (November 18, 2008).

PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
    The Department will use the records maintained in this system to 
measure the effectiveness of two strategies encompassing transition 
supports that research has identified as having the potential to 
improve the high school and post-high school outcomes for high school 
students who have individualized education programs (IEPs) under the 
IDEA. This study will allow the Department to gauge the effectiveness 
of providing students instruction to strengthen their goal-setting, 
planning, and self-advocacy skills and helping them apply these self-
determination skills to work toward their post-school goals, including 
employment and postsecondary education.
    The records maintained in this system will be used to address the 
following research questions:
    <bullet> Is instruction in self-determination skills and how to 
apply them to transition planning effective in improving the 
intermediate and post-high school outcomes of students with 
disabilities under the IDEA?
    <bullet> Is offering individual mentoring along with self-
determination skills instruction effective?
    <bullet> What is the added benefit and cost of providing individual 
mentoring support?
    To evaluate the effectiveness of providing students instruction to

[[Page 88239]]

strengthen their goal-setting, planning, and self-advocacy skills and 
helping them apply these self-determination skills to work toward their 
post-high school goals, the study will randomly assign high school 
students with IEPs under the IDEA who are two years from expected 
graduation to receive one of two transition support strategies or to 
continue with the regular transition supports they receive from their 
school. Training for program instructors on the study's transition 
support strategies and students' participation in the strategies will 
occur over two years, from 2024 through 2026. Data will be collected 
starting in spring 2024, and student outcomes will be measured through 
spring 2028.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    This system will maintain records on school district staff from 
approximately 16 districts, school staff from approximately 100 high 
schools across the 16 districts, 75 program instructors delivering the 
two strategies in high schools, and 3,000 high school students and 
their families.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    For school district staff, records maintained in this system 
include, but are not limited to, name, email address, telephone number, 
and other select information from the district's transition services 
and programs.
    For high school staff supporting students with their education and 
transition objectives, records maintained in this system include, but 
are not limited to, name, email address, telephone number, and role 
supporting students' IEP/transition planning. The system will also 
maintain records that the school staff provide on students' goals, 
services, and supports, including those identified in the participating 
students' IEPs under the IDEA.
    For program instructors, records maintained in this system include, 
but are not limited to, name, email address, telephone number, mailing 
address, education background, work and professional development/
training experiences, and demographic information (such as race, age, 
ethnicity, and gender). Additionally, the system will also maintain 
records that the program instructor provides on what program activities 
they are implementing with students, the resources offered to students, 
the type of support provided to students and families, their 
coordination with school staff, and their participation in the study's 
training.
    For families, records maintained in this system include, but are 
not limited to, names of family members, telephone number, mailing 
address, email address, and, for families who decline participation, 
the reasons for not participating.
    For students, records maintained in this system include, but are 
not limited to, name, date of birth, Social Security number, State/
local student identification number, demographic information (such as 
race, age, ethnicity, and gender), school information (such as grade 
level and school name), free or reduced-price lunch status, special 
education status, disability type, English learner status, home 
language, goals, transition support identified in their IEP(s), 
participation in transition support services, perceptions of the 
study's instruction to strengthen and apply self-determination skills 
(such as goal-setting, planning, and self-advocacy) to work toward 
their post-high school goals, progress in school, graduation/high 
school completion status, performance on State standardized English 
language arts and mathematics assessments, levels of self-determination 
skills the study's instruction focuses on, preparation for 
postsecondary education and independent living, work experience, 
enrollment in postsecondary education programs, use of financial aid to 
support participation in postsecondary education programs, employment, 
and earnings.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Information in this system will be obtained through student records 
maintained by the school districts, surveys of students, surveys and 
interviews completed by families, and forms completed by district and 
high school staff. Post-secondary enrollment and participation data 
will be obtained through the National Student Clearinghouse and through 
administrative records maintained by the Department's Federal Student 
Aid Office. Financial aid data also will be obtained through 
administrative records maintained by the Department's Federal Student 
Aid Office. Vocational Rehabilitative Services data will be obtained 
through administrative records maintained by the Department's 
Rehabilitation Services Administration. Employment and earnings data, 
including unemployment insurance information, will be obtained through 
the administrative records maintained by the U.S. Department of Health 
and Human Services' National Directory of New Hires. Records in this 
system also may be obtained from other persons or entities from whom or 
from which data is obtained under the routine uses set forth below.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    The Department may disclose information contained in a record in 
this system of records under the routine uses listed in this system of 
records without the consent of the individual if the disclosure is 
compatible with the purpose(s) for which the record was collected. The 
Department may make these disclosures on a case-by-case basis or, if 
the Department has complied with the computer matching requirements of 
the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (Privacy Act) (5 U.S.C. 552a), 
under a computer matching agreement. Any disclosure of PII from a 
record in this system must also comply with the requirements of section 
183 of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA) (20 U.S.C. 
9573) providing for confidentiality standards that apply to all 
collections, reporting, and publication of data by IES. Any disclosure 
of PII from student education records that were obtained from 
participating agencies and educational agencies or institutions must 
also comply respectively with the requirements of IDEA's 
confidentiality of information/privacy provisions (20 U.S.C. 1417(c); 
34 CFR 300.611 through 300.626), which protect PII in education records 
collected, maintained, or used under Part B of the IDEA, and the Family 
Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. 1232g; 34 CFR 
part 99), which protects the privacy of student education records 
maintained by educational agencies and institutions that receive funds 
from the Department.
    (1) Contract Disclosure. If the Department contracts with an entity 
for the purpose of performing any function that requires disclosure of 
records in this system to employees of the contractor, the Department 
may disclose the records to those employees. As part of such a 
contract, the Department will require the contractor to agree to 
maintain safeguards to protect the security and confidentiality of the 
records in the system. If the Department discloses PII from a student's 
education record covered by FERPA or the IDEA to the contractor, the 
contractor also must agree to comply with applicable FERPA and IDEA 
requirements.
    (2) Disclosure for the Purpose of Obtaining Student Participants' 
Post-Secondary and Employment and Earnings Records to Conduct this 
Study. The Department may disclose records from this system of records 
to the

[[Page 88240]]

National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) and the U.S. Department of Health 
and Human Services (HHS) in order to obtain student participants' post-
secondary, employment, earnings, and unemployment insurance records to 
conduct this study. The NSC and HHS must agree to safeguards, 
consistent with section 183(c) of ESRA (20 U.S.C. 9573(c)), to protect 
the security and confidentiality of the records disclosed from this 
system.If the Department discloses personally identifiable information 
from a student's education record covered by FERPA or the IDEA to the 
NSC and HHS, the NSC and HHS also must agree to comply with applicable 
FERPA and IDEA requirements.
    (3) Research Disclosure. The Department may disclose records to a 
researcher if the Department determines that the individual or 
organization to which the disclosure would be made is qualified to 
carry out specific research related to the functions or purpose(s) of 
this system of records. The Department may disclose records from this 
system of records to that researcher solely to carry out that research 
related to the functions or purpose(s) of this system of records. The 
researcher must agree to safeguards, consistent with section 183(c) of 
the ESRA (20 U.S.C. 9573(c)), to protect the security and 
confidentiality of the records disclosed from this system. If the 
Department discloses PII from a student's education record covered by 
FERPA or the IDEA to the researcher, the researcher also must agree to 
comply with applicable FERPA and IDEA requirements.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    The Department maintains secured, password-protected records on the 
IES Data Center, and the Department's contractor (American Institutes 
for Research) maintains records for this system on the Department's 
behalf on secured, password-protected computer systems and in hard copy 
until uploaded to the IES Data Center. Hard copy records will be kept 
in locked file cabinets during nonworking hours and work on hard copy 
records will take place in a single room, except for data entry.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    Records in this system are indexed by a unique number assigned to 
each individual, which can be cross-referenced when needed (such as for 
data matching) with the separately stored direct identifiers.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    The Department has submitted a retention and disposition schedule 
that is intended to cover the records contained in this system to the 
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) for review. The 
records will not be destroyed until NARA approves said schedule.

ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    Security protocols for this system of records meet all required 
security standards. All physical access to the Department's site and to 
the site of the Department's contractor, where this system of records 
is also maintained, is controlled and monitored by security personnel. 
The computer system employed by the Department offers a high degree of 
resistance to tampering and circumvention with the use of firewalls, 
encryption, and password protection. This system limits data access to 
Department and contract staff on a need-to-know basis and controls 
individual users' ability to access and alter records within the 
system. The contractor will establish a similar set of procedures at 
its site to ensure the confidentiality of data. The contractor's 
systems are required to ensure that PII is in files physically 
separated from other research data. The contractor will maintain the 
security of the complete set of all master data files. Access to PII 
will be strictly controlled. Access to information by contractor staff 
will be granted on a need-to-know basis, and individual staff's ability 
to alter records within the systems will be controlled. Security 
features that protect project data include password-protected accounts 
that authorize users to use the contractor's systems but to access only 
specific network directories and network software; user rights and 
directory and file attributes that limit those who can use particular 
directories and files and determine how they can use them; and 
additional security features that the network administrators will 
establish for projects as needed. The contractor's employees who 
``maintain'' (collect, maintain, use, or disseminate) data in the 
contractor's systems shall comply with the requirements of the 
confidentiality standards in section 183 of the ESRA (20 U.S.C. 9573) 
and applicable provisions in the Privacy Act, IDEA, and FERPA.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    If you wish to gain access to a record regarding you in this system 
of records, you must contact the system manager at the address listed 
above. Your request must provide necessary particulars of your full 
name, address, telephone number, and any other identifying information 
requested by the Department to distinguish between individuals with the 
same name. Your request must meet the requirements of regulations at 34 
CFR 5b.5.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
    If you wish to contest the content of a record regarding you, you 
must contact the system manager at the address listed above. Requests 
must contain your full name, address, and telephone number, and any 
other identifying information requested by the Department to 
distinguish between individuals with the same name. Your request must 
meet the requirements of the regulations at 34 CFR 5b.7.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
    If you wish to determine whether a record exists regarding you, you 
must contact the systems manager at the address listed above. Your 
request must provide necessary particulars, such as your full name, 
address, telephone number, and any other identifying information 
requested by the Department while processing the request to distinguish 
between individuals with the same name. Your request must meet the 
requirements of regulations at 34 CFR 5b.5.

EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.

HISTORY:
    None.

[FR Doc. 2024-25896 Filed 11-6-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P


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