18202 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 71 / Monday, April 14, 1997 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training

Administration

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Office of Vocational and Adult

Education

School-to-Work Opportunities;

Urban/Rural Opportunities Grants;

Application Procedures

AGENCIES: Employment and Training

Administration, Department of Labor.

Office of Vocational and Adult

Education, Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of availability of funds,

solicitation for grant application (SGA)

and an Empowerment Zone/Enterprise

Community EZ/EC invitational priority

for School-to-Work Urban/Rural

Opportunities Grants.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the

1997 competition for Urban/Rural

Opportunities Grants authorized under

Title III of the School-to-Work

Opportunities Act of 1994 (the Act).

This notice contains all of the necessary

information and forms to apply for

funds appropriated in FY 1996. Urban/

Rural Opportunities Grants enable local

partnerships serving youth who reside

or attend school in high poverty areas to

develop and implement School-to-Work

Opportunities initiatives in high poverty

areas of urban and rural communities.

These initiatives offer young Americans

in these communities access to Schoolto-Work Opportunities programs

specifically designed to address barriers

to their successful participation in such

programs and to prepare them for

further education and training and first

jobs in high-skill, high-wage careers.

DATES: Applications for grant awards

will be accepted commencing April 14,

1997. The closing date for receipt of

applications is June 30, 1997 at 2 p.m.

(Eastern time) at the address below.

Telefacsimile (FAX) applications will

not be accepted.

ADDRESSES: Applications must be

mailed to: U.S. Department of

Education, Application Control Center,

Attention: CFDA #278G, Washington,

DC 20202–4725.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Christine Camillo, National School-toWork Office, Telephone: (202) 401–6222

(this is not a toll-free number).

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., Eastern time,

Monday through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Section A. Background

The Departments of Labor and

Education are reserving funds

appropriated for FY 1996 for a

competition for Urban/Rural

Opportunities Grants authorized under

Title III of the Act. Grants under this

competition will be awarded to local

partnerships that serve high-poverty

areas and that are also prepared to

develop and implement local School-toWork Opportunities initiatives in these

areas. The Departments recognize that

high-poverty areas face particular

challenges in implementing School-toWork initiatives, including: Few large

private or public employers; dropout

rates that, in many cases, are over 50

percent; poor students who may be

much less aware of post-secondary

opportunities than students in other

areas; strong peer pressure that does not

[necessarily] promote achievement

among youth; pressure on youth from

situations outside of school that may

affect their school performance; schools

with students of more diverse ethnic

and racial backgrounds than schools in

other areas; proportionately more out-ofschool youth than in other areas; and

uneven quality in educational and

employment opportunities available to

high-poverty area youth.

Due to these particular challenges, a

local partnership in a high-poverty area

must identify and address a great variety

of needs of youth residing, or attending

school, in these areas. The Departments

encourage applications from only those

local partnerships that propose

innovative and effective ways to deliver

the common features and basic program

components as outlined in Title I of the

Act and that have the potential to serve

large numbers of students who reside or

attend school in the targeted area.

Further, the Departments wish to

emphasize the importance of a local

partnership’s ability to coordinate its

strategies for serving in-school and outof-school youth; for achieving its

planned goals and outcomes; for

assessing and addressing the multiple

needs of high-poverty area youth,

particularly the human service needs;

and for linking effectively with both

schoolwide reform efforts and with

State and community plans for a

comprehensive School-to-Work

Opportunities system.

In accordance with the authority

provided in Section 5 of the Act, the

Departments have determined that the

administrative provisions contained in

the Education Department General

Administrative Regulations (EDGAR), at

34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 82, 85

and 86, will apply to grants awarded to

local partnerships under this Urban/

Rural Opportunities Grant competition.

This notice contains the definition of

the term ‘‘administrative costs,’’ as

established by the Departments in a

final notice published on November 14,

1995 (60 FR 57276), and a 10 percent

cap on administrative costs incurred by

local partnerships receiving grants

under Title III. This notice also

establishes an invitational priority for

funding EZ/EC applicants, and contains

all of the other necessary information

and forms to apply for a grant.

Section B. Purpose

Under this competition, the

Departments will award grants to local

partnerships serving youth who reside

or attend school in high-poverty areas

that have built a sound planning and

development base for their school-towork programs, to begin

implementation of School-to-Work

Opportunities initiatives that will

become part of statewide School-toWork Opportunities systems. These

local initiatives offer young Americans

access to programs designed to increase

their opportunities for further education

and training, to prepare them for first

jobs in high-skill, high-wage careers,

and to address the special needs of

youth residing or attending school in

high poverty areas.

Section C. Application Process

1. Eligible Applicants

(A) Local Partnership Definition

A local entity that meets the

definition of ‘‘local partnership’’ in

section 4(11) of the Act is eligible to

apply for an Urban/Rural Opportunities

Grant. As defined in the Act, an eligible

partnership must include employers,

representatives of local educational

agencies and local postsecondary

educational institutions (including

representatives of area vocational

education schools, where applicable),

local educators, representatives of labor

organizations or nonmanagerial

employee representatives, and students.

Other entities appropriate to effective

implementation of a local School-toWork Opportunities initiative should

also be included in the partnership.

Such partnerships must be in place

prior to submitting an application for

funding.

Under section 302(b)(2) of the Act, a

local partnership is eligible to receive

only one (1) Urban/Rural Opportunities

Grant.
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 71 / Monday, April 14, 1997 / Notices 18203

(B) High-Poverty Area Definition

In addition to meeting the definition

of ‘‘local partnership’’ in section 4(11) of

the Act, under section 307 of the Act,

applicants seeking funding under this

notice are required to meet the

definition of ‘‘high-poverty area’’ as

stated in that section and to describe the

urban or rural high poverty area to be

served. The description must include:

• A map indicating the urban census

tract, contiguous group of urban census

tracts, block number area, contiguous

group of block number areas, or Indian

reservation to be served by the local

partnership. To be considered

contiguous, the tracts, areas or

reservations to be served must be

touching at any point.

• The population of each urban

census tract, block number area, or

Indian reservation to be served, along

with the total population of the entire

area to be served; and

• The poverty rate for each urban

census tract, block number area, or

Indian reservation to be served, among

individuals under the age of 22, as

determined by the U.S. Bureau of the

Census, along with an average poverty

rate among this age group for the entire

area to be served. Only U.S. Bureau of

Census statistics may be submitted for

review.

Only those applicants that both

provide the required map and

population/poverty rate data in their

applications in the format outlined in

this subsection of this notice and that

meet the definition of a high poverty

area as described in this subsection will

be considered for funding. The

Departments intend to pre-screen all

applications for high poverty area

eligibility prior to the panelists’ review

and will not consider any applications

that do not contain the required map

and population/poverty rate data.

Information in addition to what is

required in this notice with regard to

population/poverty rate data is not

necessary and will have no influence

upon meeting the high poverty area

definition. Applicants will not have the

opportunity to submit additional or

revised information should a

determination be made that the

identified area does not meet the high

poverty definition.

Note: U.S. Bureau of Census information

may be obtained through a local college or

university, city planning department, State

data center, or through the Data User Service

Division of the U.S. Bureau of the Census.

Applicants are encouraged to utilize local

providers of U.S. Bureau of Census data. For

those applicants who are unable to locate

such data, please contact the Census Bureau

State Data Center for your local area. A list

of State and Local Data Center contacts is

included in an appendix to this notice.

Population/poverty rate data published by

the Bureau of the Census is provided in age

ranges: 0–5, 6–11, 12–17, 18–24, and 25 and

up. The Departments will accept poverty rate

data for the age range up to 17 or up to 24,

whichever is higher, for the purposes of

eligibility. In order to be considered for

funding, all census tracts or blocks within the

area to be served must be characterized by a

poverty rate of 20.0 percent or greater among

the age group.

2. State Comments

The local partnership must submit its

application to the State for review and

comment before submitting the

application to the Departments, in

accordance with section 303(a) of the

Act. The application should be

submitted to the State’s School-to-Work

Contact. A list of State School-to-Work

Contacts is included in an appendix to

this notice. The Departments expect that

the State School-to-Work Contact will

provide all members of the State Schoolto-Work Partnership listed in section

213 (b)(4)(A)–(K) of the Act an

opportunity to review and comment on

the local partnership’s application.

Of particular importance to the

Departments are each State’s comments

on the consistency of the local

partnership’s planned activities with the

State’s plan for a comprehensive

statewide School-to-Work Opportunities

system and the relationship of any

proposed activities with other local

school-to-work partnerships or plans,

especially if the grant applicant is not

specifically identified as a local

partnership within the State system.

In accordance with section 305 of the

Act, if a State has an approved State

School-to-Work Opportunities plan, the

State must confirm that the plan

submitted by the local partnership is in

accordance with the State plan. The

application from the local partnership

must contain this confirmation.

Section 303(b)(1) of the Act requires

that each State review and comment on

a local partnership’s application within

30 days from the date on which the

State receives the application from the

local partnership. Therefore, even

though an applicant has 75 days to

apply for a Urban/Rural Opportunties

Grant under this notice, it must provide

its application to its State in time for the

State to have at least 30 days before the

due date to review and comment on the

application.

Furthermore, under section 303(c)(2)

of the Act, the State’s comments must be

included in the local partnership’s

application. However, if the State does

not provide review and comment within

the 30-day time period described above,

the local partnership may submit the

application to the Departments without

State comment. In such a case, the local

partnership should provide proof that

the State received a copy of the local

partnership’s application at least 30

days prior to the application due date.

3. Period of Performance

The period of performance for Urban/

Rural Opportunities Grants is sixty (60)

months from the beginning of the

project period.

4. Option to Extend

Urban/Rural Opportunities Grants

may be continued up to 4 additional

years, regardless of the State

Implementation Grant status of the State

in which the partnership is located.

Additional funding will be based upon

availability of funds and the progress of

the local partnership towards its

objectives as stated in its performance

agreement and will be subject to the

annual approval of the Secretaries of

Labor and Education (the Secretaries). It

is expected that the amount of Federal

funds, if any, that are awarded to local

partnerships under this notice in

subsequent years, will decrease.

5. Available Funds

Approximately $14 million is

available for this competition.

6. Estimated Range of Awards

The amount of an award under this

competition will depend upon the

scope, quality, and comprehensiveness

of the proposed initiative and the

relative size of the high poverty area to

be served by the local partnership.

While there is no limitation on the size

of a high poverty area, the Departments

expect that the resources available for

individual grants will effectively serve

high poverty areas of no more than a

total of 50,000 in population. The

Departments further expect that firstyear award amounts will range from a

minimum award of $200,000 to a

maximum award of $500,000. These

estimates, which are provided to assist

applicants in developing their plans, are

not binding.

7. Estimated Number of Awards

The Departments expect to award 30–

40 grants under this competition.

Note: The Departments are not bound by

any estimates in this notice.

8. Grantee Reporting Requirements/

Deliverables

(a) Reporting requirements.

The local partnership grantee will be

required, at a minimum, to submit:
18204 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 71 / Monday, April 14, 1997 / Notices

—Quarterly Financial Reports (SF 269

A);

—Quarterly Narrative Progress Reports;

—Performance Agreement or

Performance Standards;

—Annual Financial Reports (ED Form

524 B, and SF 269);

Budget Information for Upcoming Years,

if necessary;

—An Annual Performance Report

providing data on performance

measures; and

—A close-out report at the end of the

grant.

(b) Deliverables.

The local partnership grantee will be

required to:

• Provide information on best

practices and innovative school-and

work-based curricula suitable for

dissemination to States and other

stakeholders;

• Participate in two grantee meetings

per year sponsored by the National

School-to-Work Office;

• Act as a host to outside visitors who

are interested in developing and

implementing School-to-Work

Opportunities initiatives in urban or

rural areas of high poverty and to other

visitors interested in the replication,

adaptation and/or impact of successful

program elements; and

• Participate as needed in national

evaluation and special data collection

activities.

9. Application Transmittal Instructions

An application for an award must be

mailed or hand delivered by the closing

date.

(A) Applications Delivered by Mail

An application sent by mail must be

addressed to the U.S. Department of

Education, Application Control Center,

Attention CFDA # 278G, 600

Independence Avenue, SW,

Washington, DC 20202-4725.

An application must show proof of

mailing consisting of one of the

following:

• A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service

Postmark;

• A legible mail receipt with the date

of mailing stamped by the U.S. Postal

Service;

• A dated shipping label, invoice, or

receipt from a commercial carrier; or

• Any other proof of mailing

acceptable to the U.S. Secretary of

Education.

If an application is sent through the

U.S. Postal Service, the Secretaries do

not accept either of the following as

proof of mailing:

• A private metered postmark; or

• A mail receipt that is not dated by

the U.S. Postal Service.

An applicant should note that the

U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly

provide a dated postmark. Before

relying on this method, an applicant

should check with its local post office.

An applicant is encouraged to use

registered or at least first class mail.

Each late applicant will be notified that

its application will not be considered.

(B) Applications Delivered by Hand

An application that is hand delivered

must be taken to the U.S. Department of

Education, Application Control Center,

Room 3633, Regional Office Building 3,

7th and D Streets, SW, Washington, DC.

The Application Control Center will

accept hand delivered applications

between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

(Eastern time) daily, except Saturdays,

Sundays and Federal Holidays.

Individuals delivering applications

must use the D Street Entrance. Proper

identification is necessary to enter the

building.

In order for an application sent

through a courier service to be

considered timely, the courier service

must be in receipt of the application on

or before the closing date.

Section D. Organization and Content of

Applications

Applicants are encouraged to submit

an original and three (3) copies of their

application. The Departments suggest

that the application be divided into six

distinct parts: detachable description

addressing the high poverty area

definition, budget and certifications,

abstract, State comments, program

narrative, and appendices. To ensure a

comprehensive and expeditious review,

the Departments strongly suggest that

applicants submit an application

formatted as follows:

Table of Contents

I. Eligibility Requirements

Part I must contain detailed

information as described in the Eligible

Applicants, High Poverty Area

Definition subsection of this notice and,

for pre-screening purposes, should be

separate and easily detachable from the

remainder of the application.

II. Budget and Certifications

Part II should contain the Standard

Form (SF) 424, ‘‘Application for Federal

Assistance,’’ and SF 524, ‘‘Budget.’’ One

copy of the SF 424 must have original

signatures of the designated fiscal agent,

who will be the grantee. In addition, the

budget should include—on a separate

page(s)— a detailed cost break-out of

each line item on SF 524. Applicants

should list any non-Federal resources

within their narrative applications. Any

non-Federal resources listed on the

applicant’s SF 424 or ED Form 524,

Section B, will be considered binding.

Assurances and Certifications found in

an appendix to this notice should also

be included in Part II of the application

and should include the original

signatures of the fiscal agent/grantee.

III. Abstract

Part III should consist of a one-page

abstract summarizing the essential

components and key features of the

local partnership’s plan.

IV. State Comments

Part IV should contain the State’s

comments on the application. Details on

this section can be found under the

State Comments heading of this notice.

V. Program Narrative

Part V should contain the application

narrative that demonstrates the

applicant’s plan and capabilities in

accordance with the selection criteria

contained in this notice. In order to

facilitate expeditious evaluation by the

panels, applicants should describe their

proposed plan in light of each of the

selection criteria. No cost data or

reference to price should be included in

this part of the application. The

Departments strongly request that

applicants limit the program narrative

section to no more than 40 one-sided,

double-spaced pages.

VI. Appendices

All applicable appendices including

letters of support, resumes, and

organization charts should be included

in this section. The Departments

recommend that all appendix entries be

cross-referenced back to the applicable

sections in the program narrative.

Note: Applicants are advised that the peer

review panels evaluate each application

solely on the basis of the selection criteria

contained in this notice and the School-toWork Opportunities Act. Appendices may be

used to provide supporting information.

However, in scoring applications, reviewers

are required to take into account only

information that is presented in the

application narrative, which must address

the selection criteria and requirements of the

Act. Letters of support are welcome, but

applicants should be aware that support

letters contained in the application will

strengthen the application only if they

contain commitments that pertain to the

selection criteria.

Based on their experience with past

competitions, and in an effort to ensure

and confirm the commitment of key

partners to their partnership, the

Assistant Secretaries may wish to

contact the applicants and their key
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 71 / Monday, April 14, 1997 / Notices 18205

partners before making final funding

decisions.

Section E. Safeguards

The Departments will apply certain

safeguards, as required under Section

601 of the Act, to School-to-Work

Opportunities programs funded under

this notice. The application must

include a brief assurance that the

following safeguards will be

implemented and maintained

throughout all program activities:

(a) No student shall displace any

currently employed worker (including a

partial displacement, such as a

reduction in the hours of non-overtime

work, wages, or employment benefits).

(b) No School-to-Work Opportunities

program shall impair existing contracts

for services or collective bargaining

agreements, and no program funded

under this notice shall be undertaken

without the written concurrence of the

labor organization and employer

concerned.

(c) No student shall be employed or

fill a job—

(1) When any other individual is on

temporary layoff, with the clear

possibility of recall, from the same or

any substantially equivalent job with

the participating employer; or

(2) When the employer has terminated

the employment of any regular

employee or otherwise reduced its

workforce with the intention of filling

the vacancy so created with the student.

(d) Students shall be provided with

adequate and safe equipment and safe

and healthful workplaces in conformity

with all health and safety requirements

of Federal, State, and local laws.

(e) Nothing in the Act shall be

construed so as to modify or affect any

Federal or State law prohibiting

discrimination on the basis of race,

religion, color, ethnicity, national

origin, gender, age, or disability.

(f) Funds awarded under the Act shall

not be expended for wages of students

or workplace mentors.

(g) The grantee shall implement and

maintain such other safeguards as the

Secretaries may deem appropriate in

order to ensure that School-to-Work

Opportunities participants are afforded

adequate supervision by skilled adult

workers, or to otherwise further the

purposes of the Act.

Section F. Waivers

Under Title V of the Act, the

Secretaries may waive certain Federal

requirements that impede the ability of

a State or local partnership to carry out

the purposes of the Act. Only local

partnerships in States with approved

School-to-Work Opportunities plans

may apply for waivers. A local

partnership that seeks a waiver should

contact its State School-to-Work Contact

to determine what documentation is

required and to whom it should be sent.

In May, 1995, the National School-toWork Opportunities Office issued a

document entitled ‘‘School-to-Work

Opportunities Waiver and Plan

Approval Process Questions and

Answers.’’ This document was sent to

every Governor and State School-toWork Contact. The document contains

answers to many of the questions that

localities may have when preparing

their waiver requests. Local

Partnerships interested in applying for

waivers should contact the National

School-to-Work Opportunities Office or

their State School-to-Work Contact for a

copy of the waivers document.

Section G. Bidders’ Conferences

Bidders’ Conferences for interested

School-to-Work Urban/Rural

Opportunities representatives are

scheduled from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.,

on the dates and locations listed below:

• May 9, 1997, Dallas, Texas.

• May 12, 1997, Chicago, Illinois.

Registration for both conferences will

be held from 12–1 p.m. (Central Time).

More information on the location of

each conference will be provided to

applicants at the time of registration.

Participants at each of the

Conferences will receive a detailed

description of the School-to-Work

Opportunities Act, the selection criteria

and high poverty area definition and

how they will be applied, and will have

the opportunity to ask questions of

Federal School-to-Work officials.

All partnerships must pre-register by

faxing the names and addresses of up to

three members of the local partnership

planning to attend, the name of the local

partnership, and a phone number to:

Jeffrey Way, Way and Associates, 7338

Baltimore Avenue, Suite 107, College

Park, MD 20740, (301) 277–2050; FAX:

(301) 277–2051.

Questions regarding the solicitation

may be submitted in advance. If you are

unable to attend one of the Bidders’

Conferences but would like the

conference materials and a conference

transcript, submit your request via fax to

the fax number listed above. All

reservations must be submitted no later

than April 25, 1997. You will be sent a

confirmation along with hotel

accommodation information once your

registration has been received.

School-to-Work Local Partnership

Grants

Administrative Cost Cap

The Departments are applying the 10

percent cap on administrative costs

contained in section 215(b)(6) of the Act

to local partnerships receiving grants

directly under this competition. As was

explained in the notice announcing the

FY 1995 competition, section 215(b)(6)

of the Act applies the 10 percent

administrative cap to subgrants received

by local partnerships from a State.

Applying the 10 percent cap to Urban/

Rural local partnership grants under this

competition is consistent with the Act’s

intent and its broader limitations on

administrative costs, as well as with

section 305 of Title III, which requires

conformity between School-to-Work

Opportunities plans of local

partnerships and State School-to-Work

Opportunities plans.

Definition of Administrative Costs

All definitions in the Act apply to

local School-to-Work Opportunities

systems funded under this and future

Urban/Rural Opportunities Grant

competitions. Since the Act does not

contain a definition of the term

‘‘administrative costs’’ as used in

section 217 of the Act, as was explained

in the notice announcing the FY 1995

competition, the Departments will apply

the following definition to competitions

for Urban/Rural Opportunities Grants.

The term ‘‘administrative costs’’

means the activities of a local

partnership that are necessary for the

proper and efficient performance of its

duties under the Urban/Rural

Opportunities Grant pursuant to the

School-to-Work Opportunities Act and

that are not directly related to the

provision of services to participants or

otherwise allocable to the program’s

allowable activities listed in section

215(b)(4) and section 215(c) of the Act.

Administrative costs may be either

personnel or non-personnel costs, and

may be either direct or indirect. Costs of

administration include those costs that

are related to this grant in such

categories as—

A. Costs of salaries, wages, and

related costs of the grantee’s staff

engaged in—

• Overall system management, system

coordination, and general

administrative functions, except

evaluation activities;

• Preparing program plans, budgets,

and schedules, as well as applicable

amendments;

• Monitoring of local initiatives, pilot

projects, subrecipients, and related

systems and processes;
18206 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 71 / Monday, April 14, 1997 / Notices

• Procurement activities, including

the award of specific subgrants,

contracts, and purchase orders;

• Developing systems and

procedures, including management

information systems, for ensuring

compliance with the requirements

under the Act;

• Preparing reports and other

documents related to the Act;

• Coordinating the resolution of audit

findings;

B. Costs for goods and services

required for administration of the

School-to-Work Opportunities system;

C. Costs of system-wide management

functions; and

D. Travel costs incurred for official

business in carrying out grants

management or administrative

activities.

EZ/EC Priority

The Departments invite applications

from local partnerships proposing to

implement a School-to-Work

Opportunities initiative for youth

residing or attending school in an

Empowerment Zone or Enterprise

Community (EZ/EC), designated under

section 1391 of the Internal Revenue

Code (IRC), as amended by Title XIII of

the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act

of 1993. This is an invitational priority,

under authority of 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1),

whereby the Departments seek to

encourage EZ/EC communities to apply

for grants in this competition.

Selection Criteria

Under the School-to-Work Urban/

Rural Opportunities Grant competition,

the Departments will use the following

selection criteria in evaluating

applications and will utilize a peer

review process in which review teams,

including peers, will evaluate

applications using the selection criteria

and the associated point values. The

Departments will base final funding

decisions on the ranking of applications

as a result of the peer review, and such

other factors as replicability,

sustainability, innovation, geographic

balance, and diversity of system

approaches.

Further, as established in section

302(b)(3) of the Act, the Secretaries, in

awarding grants under this notice, shall

give priority to local partnerships that

have demonstrated effectiveness in the

delivery of comprehensive vocational

preparation programs with successful

rates in job placement through

cooperative activities among local

educational agencies, local businesses,

labor organizations, and other

organizations.

Selection Criterion 1: Comprehensive

Local School-to-Work Opportunities

System (40 Points)

Considerations: In applying this

criterion, reviewers will consider—

A. 20 Points. The extent to which the

partnership has designed a

comprehensive local School-to-Work

Opportunities plan that—

• Includes effective strategies for

integrating school-based and workbased learning, integrating academic

and vocational education, and

establishing linkages between secondary

and postsecondary education;

• Is likely to produce systemic change

that will have substantial impact on the

preparation of all students for a first job

in a high-skill, high-wage career and in

increasing their opportunities for further

learning;

• Ensures that all students will have

a full range of options, including

options for higher education, additional

training and employment in high-skill,

high-wage jobs;

• Ensures coordination and

integration with existing school-to-work

programs, and with related programs

financed from State and private sources,

with funds available from Federal

education and training programs (such

as the Job Training Partnership Act and

the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and

Applied Technology Education Act);

and where applicable, communities

designated as Empowerment Zones or

Enterprise Communities (EZ/EC);

• Serves a geographical area that

reflects the needs of the local labor

market (i.e., considers the needs of the

local labor market that encompasses the

high poverty area), and is able to adjust

to regional structures that the State

School-to-Work Opportunities plan may

identify;

• Targets occupational clusters that

represent growing industries in the

partnership’s geographic area; and,

where applicable, demonstrates that the

clusters are included among the

occupational clusters being targeted by

the State School-to-Work Opportunities

system; and

• Consistent with section 301(2) of

the Act, includes an effective strategy

for assessing and addressing the

academic and human service needs of

students and dropouts within the high

poverty area, making improvements or

adjustments as necessary, with

particular emphasis on the coordination

of various human services provided

within the community.

B. 20 Points. The extent to which the

partnership’s plan demonstrates its

capability to achieve the statutory

requirements and to effectively put in

place the system components in Title I

of the School-to-Work Opportunities

Act, including—

• A work-based learning component

that includes the statutory ‘‘mandatory

activities’’ and that contributes to the

transformation of workplaces into active

learning components of the education

system through an array of learning

experiences such as mentoring, jobshadowing, unpaid work experiences,

school-sponsored enterprises, and paid

work experiences;

• A school-based learning component

that provides students with high-level

academic and technical skills consistent

with academic standards that the State

establishes for all students, including,

where applicable, standards established

under the Goals 2000: Educate America

Act;

• A connecting activities component

to provide a functional link between

students’ school and work activities,

and between workplace partners,

educators, community organizations,

and other appropriate entities;

• Effective processes for assessing

skills and knowledge required in career

majors, and issuing portable skill

certificates that are benchmarked to

high-quality standards such as those

States will establish under the Goals

2000: Educate America Act, and for

periodically assessing and collecting

information on student outcomes, as

well as a realistic strategy and timetable

for implementing the process in concert

with the State;

• A flexible School-to-Work

Opportunities system that allows

students participating in the local

system to develop new career goals over

time, and to change career majors; and

• Effective strategies for: providing

staff development for teachers, worksite

mentors and other key personnel;

developing model curricula and

innovative instructional methodologies;

expanding career and academic

counseling in elementary and secondary

schools; and utilizing innovative

technology-based instructional

techniques.

Selection Criterion 2: Quality and

Effectiveness of the Local Partnership

(20 Points)

Considerations: In applying this

criterion, reviewers will refer to section

4(11) of the Act and consider—

• Whether the partnership’s plan

demonstrates an effective and

convincing strategy for continuing the

commitment of required partners and

other interested parties in the local

School-to-Work Opportunities system.

As defined by the Act, partners must

include employers, representatives of
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local educational agencies and local

postsecondary educational institutions

(including representatives of area

vocational education schools, where

applicable), local educators (such as

teachers, counselors, or administrators),

representatives of labor organizations or

nonmanagerial employee

representatives, and students, and may

include other relevant stakeholders such

as those listed in section 4(11)(B) of the

Act, including employer organizations;

community-based organizations;

national trade associations working at

the local levels; industrial extension

centers; rehabilitation agencies and

organizations; registered apprenticeship

agencies; local vocational education

entities; proprietary institutions of

higher education; local government

agencies; parent organizations; teacher

organizations; vocational student

organizations; private industry councils

under JTPA; Federally recognized

Indian tribes, Indian organizations, and

Alaska Native villages; and Native

Hawaiian entities;

• Whether the partnership’s plan

demonstrates an effective and

convincing strategy for continuing the

commitment of workplace partners and

other interested parties in the local

School-to-Work Opportunities system;

• The effectiveness of the

partnership’s plan to include private

sector representatives as joint partners

with educators in both the design and

the implementation of the local Schoolto-Work Opportunities system;

• The extent to which the local

partnership has developed strategies to

provide a range of opportunities for

workplace partners to participate in the

design and implementation of the local

School-to-Work Opportunities system,

including membership on councils and

partnerships; assistance in setting

standards, designing curricula, and

determining outcomes; providing

worksite experiences for teachers;

helping to recruit other employers; and

providing worksite learning activities

for students such as mentoring, job

shadowing, unpaid work experiences,

and paid work experiences;

• The extent to which the roles and

responsibilities of the key parties and

any other relevant stakeholders are

clearly defined and are likely to produce

the desired changes in the way students

are prepared for the future;

• The extent to which the partnership

demonstrates the capacity to build a

quality local School-to-Work

Opportunities system; and

• Whether the partnership has

included methods for sustaining and

expanding the partnership as the

program expands in scope and size.

Note: As indicated in the Background

section of this notice, in accordance with

section 301(2) of the Act, the Departments

recognize the significance of a local

partnership’s capability to provide for a

broad range of services that sufficiently

address the various needs of high poverty

area youth. Applicants are, therefore,

reminded that local partnerships should

include members that are appropriate to the

effective implementation of the local

initiative, particularly community-based

organizations and others experienced in

dealing with the distinctive needs of youth

residing or attending schools in high poverty

areas.

Selection Criterion 3: Participation of

All Students (15 Points)

Considerations: In applying this

criterion, reviewers will refer to the

definition of the term ‘‘all students’’ in

section 4(2) of the Act, and consider—

• The extent to which the partnership

will implement effective strategies and

systems to provide all students with

equal access to the full range of program

components specified in sections 102

through 104 of the Act and related

activities such as recruitment,

enrollment, and placement activities,

and to ensure that all students have

meaningful opportunities to participate

in School-to-Work Opportunities

programs;

• Whether the partnership has

identified potential barriers to the

participation of any students, and the

degree to which it proposes effective

ways of overcoming these barriers;

• The degree to which the

partnership has developed realistic

goals and methods for assisting young

women to participate in School-to-Work

Opportunities programs leading to

employment in high-performance, highpaying jobs, including non-traditional

jobs;

• The partnership’s methods for

ensuring safe and healthy work

environments for students, including

strategies for encouraging schools to

provide students with general

awareness training in occupational

safety and health as part of the schoolbased learning component, and for

encouraging workplace partners to

provide risk-specific training as part of

the work-based learning component, as

well the extent to which the partnership

has developed realistic goals to ensure

environments free from racial and

sexual harassment; and

• The extent to which the

partnership’s plan provides for the

participation of a significant number or

percentage of students in School-toWork Opportunities activities listed

under Title I of the Act.

Selection Criterion 4: Collaboration

With State (15 Points)

Considerations: In applying this

criterion, reviewers will consider—

• The extent to which the local

partnership has effectively consulted

with its State School-to-Work

Opportunities Partnership, and has

established realistic methods for

ensuring consistency of its local

strategies with the statewide School-toWork Opportunities system being

developed by that State Partnership;

• Whether the local partnership has

developed a sound strategy for

integrating its plan, as necessary, with

the State plan for a statewide School-toWork Opportunities system;

• The extent to which the local

partnership has developed effective

processes through which it is able to

assist and collaborate with the State in

establishing the statewide School-toWork Opportunities system, and is able

to provide feedback to the state on their

system-building process; and

• Whether the plan includes a

feasible workplan which describes the

steps that will be taken in order to make

the local system part of the State

School-to-Work Opportunities System,

including a timeline that includes major

planned objectives during the grant

period.

Selection Criterion 5: Management Plan

(10 Points)

Considerations: In applying this

criterion, reviewers will consider—

• The feasibility and effectiveness of

the partnership’s strategy for using other

resources, including private sector

resources, to maintain the system when

Federal resources under the School-toWork Opportunities Act are no longer

available;

• The extent to which the

partnership’s management plan

anticipates barriers to implementation

and proposes effective methods for

addressing barriers as they arise;

• Whether the plan includes feasible,

measurable goals for the School-to-Work

Opportunities system, based on

performance outcomes established

under section 402 of the Act, and an

effective method for collecting

information relevant to the local

partnership’s progress in meeting its

goals;

• Whether the plan includes a

regularly scheduled process for

improving or redesigning the School-toWork Opportunities system based on

performance outcomes established

under section 402 of the Act;

• The extent to which the resources

requested will be used to develop
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information, products, and ideas that

will assist other States and local

partnerships as they design and

implement local systems; and

• The extent to which the partnership

will limit equipment and other

purchases in order to maximize the

amounts spent on delivery of services to

students.

Note: Experience with the 1994 and 1995

Urban/Rural Opportunities Grant

competitions provided the Departments with

a greater awareness with regard to a local

partnership’s responsibilty for understanding

and coordinating an array of programs and

services available to high poverty area youth.

In considering this criterion, applicants

should address the partnership’s capacity to

manage the implementation of the local

School-to-Work Opportunities initiative.

Dated: April 7, 1997.

Raymond Uhalde,

Acting Assistant Secretary for Employment

and Training, Department of Labor.

Patricia McNeil,

Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult

Education Department of Education.

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[FR Doc. 97–9403 Filed 4–11–97; 8:45 am]

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