40510 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 142 / Wednesday, July 28, 2021 / Notices 

Commission on national and regional 

issues affecting the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers and Commission programs 

and projects on the Mississippi River 

and its tributaries; (2) District 

Commander’s overview of current 

project issues within the St. Louis and 

Memphis Districts; and (3) Presentations 

by local organizations and members of 

the public giving views or comments on 

any issue affecting the programs or 

projects of the Commission and the 

Corps of Engineers. 

TIME AND DATE: 9:00 a.m., August 24, 

2021. 

PLACE: On board MISSISSIPPI V at 

Beale Street Landing, Memphis, 

Tennessee. 

STATUS: Open to the public. 

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED: (1) 

Summary report by President of the 

Commission on national and regional 

issues affecting the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers and Commission programs 

and projects on the Mississippi River 

and its tributaries; (2) District 

Commander’s overview of current 

project issues within the Memphis 

District; and (3) Presentations by local 

organizations and members of the 

public giving views or comments on any 

issue affecting the programs or projects 

of the Commission and the Corps of 

Engineers. 

TIME AND DATE: 1:00 p.m., August 25, 

2021. 

PLACE: On board MISSISSIPPI V at 

Greenville City Front, Greenville, 

Mississippi. 

STATUS: Open to the public. 

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED: (1) 

Summary report by President of the 

Commission on national and regional 

issues affecting the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers and Commission programs 

and projects on the Mississippi River 

and its tributaries; (2) District 

Commander’s overview of current 

project issues within the Vicksburg 

District; and (3) Presentations by local 

organizations and members of the 

public giving views or comments on any 

issue affecting the programs or projects 

of the Commission and the Corps of 

Engineers. 

TIME AND DATE: 9:00 a.m., August 27, 

2021. 

PLACE: On board MISSISSIPPI V at Port 

Commission Dock, Morgan City, 

Louisiana. 

STATUS: Open to the public. 

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED: (1) 

Summary report by President of the 

Commission on national and regional 

issues affecting the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers and Commission programs 

and projects on the Mississippi River 

and its tributaries; (2) District 

Commander’s overview of current 

project issues within the Vicksburg 

District; and (3) Presentations by local 

organizations and members of the 

public giving views or comments on any 

issue affecting the programs or projects 

of the Commission and the Corps of 

Engineers. 

CONTACT PERSON FOR MORE INFORMATION: 

Mr. Charles A. Camillo, telephone 601– 

634–7023. 

Diana M. Holland, 

Major General, USA, President, Mississippi 

River Commission. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16144 Filed 7–26–21; 11:15 am] 

BILLING CODE 3720–58–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Applications for New Awards; 

Education Innovation and Research 

(EIR) Program—Early-Phase Grants 

AGENCY: Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education, Department of 

Education. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Education 

(Department) is issuing a notice inviting 

applications for fiscal year (FY) 2021 for 

the EIR program—Early-phase Grants, 

Assistance Listing Number 84.411C 

(Early-phase Grants). This notice relates 

to the approved information collection 

under OMB control number 1894–0006. 

DATES: 

Applications Available: July 30, 2021. 

Deadline for Notice of Intent to Apply: 

August 17, 2021. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: August 27, 2021. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: October 26, 2021. 

Pre-Application Information: The 

Department will post additional 

competition information for prospective 

applicants on the EIR program website: 

https://oese.ed.gov/offices/office-ofdiscretionary-grants-support-services/ 

innovation-early-learning/educationinnovation-and-research-eir/fy-2021- 

competition/. 

ADDRESSES: For the addresses for 

obtaining and submitting an 

application, please refer to our Common 

Instructions for Applicants to 

Department of Education Discretionary 

Grant Programs, published in the 

Federal Register on February 13, 2019 

(84 FR 3768) and available at 

www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2019- 

02-13/pdf/2019-02206.pdf. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Yvonne Crockett, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 

Room 3E344, Washington, DC 20202– 

5900. Telephone: (202) 453–7122. 

Email: eir@ed.gov. 

If you use a telecommunications 

device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 

telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay 

Service (FRS), toll-free, at 1–800–877– 

8339. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Full Text of Announcement 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Purpose of Program: The EIR program, 

established under section 4611 of the 

Elementary and Secondary Education 

Act, as amended (ESEA), provides 

funding to create, develop, implement, 

replicate, or take to scale 

entrepreneurial, evidence-based (as 

defined in this notice), field-initiated 

innovations to improve student 

achievement and attainment for highneed students; and rigorously evaluate 

such innovations. The EIR program is 

designed to generate and validate 

solutions to persistent education 

challenges and to support the expansion 

of those solutions to serve substantially 

larger numbers of students. 

The central design element of the EIR 

program is its multi-tier structure that 

links the amount of funding an 

applicant may receive to the quality of 

the evidence supporting the efficacy of 

the proposed project, with the 

expectation that projects that build this 

evidence will advance through EIR’s 

grant tiers: ‘‘Early-phase,’’ ‘‘Mid-phase,’’ 

and ‘‘Expansion.’’ 

The Department awards three types of 

grants under this program: ‘‘Earlyphase’’ grants, ‘‘Mid-phase’’ grants, and 

‘‘Expansion’’ grants. These grants differ 

in terms of the level of prior evidence 

of effectiveness required for 

consideration for funding, the 

expectations regarding the kind of 

evidence and information funded 

projects should produce, the level of 

scale funded projects should reach, and, 

consequently, the amount of funding 

available to support each type of project. 

Early-phase grants must demonstrate 

a rationale (as defined in this notice). 

The Department expects that Earlyphase grants will be used to fund the 

development, implementation, and 

feasibility testing of a program, which 

prior research suggests has promise, for 

the purpose of determining whether the 

program can successfully improve 

student achievement and attainment for 

high need students. These Early-phase 

grants are not intended simply to 

implement established practices in 

additional locations or address needs 

that are unique to one particular 


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context. The goal is to determine 

whether and in what ways relatively 

newer practices can improve student 

achievement and attainment for highneed students. 

This notice invites applications for 

Early-phase grants only. The notices 

inviting applications for Mid-Phase and 

Expansion grants were published in the 

Federal Register on June 7, 2021 (86 FR 

30292 and 86 FR 30302, respectively). 

Background: 

While this notice is for the Earlyphase tier only, the premise of the EIR 

program is that new and innovative 

programs and practices can help to 

solve the persistent problems in 

education that prevent students, 

particularly high-need students, from 

succeeding. These innovations need to 

be evaluated, and, if sufficient evidence 

of effectiveness can be demonstrated, 

the intent is for these innovations to be 

replicated and tested in new 

populations and settings. EIR is not 

intended to provide support for 

practices that are already commonly 

implemented by educators, unless 

significant adaptations of such practices 

warrant testing to determine if they can 

accelerate achievement, or greatly 

increase the efficiency and likelihood 

that they can be widely implemented in 

a variety of new populations and 

settings effectively. 

As an EIR project is implemented, 

grantees are encouraged to learn more 

about how the practices improve 

student achievement and attainment; 

and to develop increasingly rigorous 

evidence of effectiveness and new 

strategies to efficiently and costeffectively scale to new school districts, 

regions, and States. We encourage 

applicants to develop a logic model (as 

defined in this notice), theory of action, 

or another conceptual framework that 

includes the goals, objectives, outcomes, 

and key project components (as defined 

in this notice) of the project. 

All EIR applicants and grantees 

should also consider how they need to 

develop their organizational capacity, 

project financing, or business plans to 

sustain their projects and continue 

implementation and adaptation after 

Federal funding ends. The Department 

intends to provide grantees with 

technical assistance in their 

dissemination, scaling, and 

sustainability efforts. 

EIR is designed to offer opportunities 

for States, districts, schools, and 

educators to develop innovations and 

scale effective practices that address 

their most pressing challenges. 

Early-phase grantees are encouraged 

to make continuous and iterative 

improvements in project design and 

implementation before conducting a 

full-scale evaluation of effectiveness. 

Grantees should consider how easily 

others could implement the proposed 

practice, and how its implementation 

could potentially be improved. 

Additionally, grantees should consider 

using data from early indicators to gauge 

initial impact and to consider possible 

changes in implementation that could 

increase student achievement and 

attainment. 

Early-phase applicants should 

develop, implement, and test the 

feasibility of their projects. The 

evaluation of an Early-phase project 

should be an experimental or quasiexperimental design study (as defined 

in this notice) that can determine 

whether the program can successfully 

improve student achievement and 

attainment for high-need students. 

Early-phase grantees’ evaluation designs 

are encouraged to have the potential to 

demonstrate a statistically significant 

effect on improving student outcomes or 

other relevant outcomes based on 

moderate evidence (as defined in this 

notice) from at least one well-designed 

and well-implemented experimental or 

quasi-experimental design study. The 

Department intends to provide grantees 

and their independent evaluators with 

evaluation technical assistance. This 

evaluation technical assistance could 

include grantees and their independent 

evaluators providing to the Department 

or its contractor updated comprehensive 

evaluation plans in a format as 

requested by the technical assistance 

provider and using such tools as the 

Department may request. Grantees will 

be encouraged to update this evaluation 

plan at least annually to reflect any 

changes to the evaluation, with updates 

consistent with the scope and objectives 

of the approved application. 

The FY 2021 Early-phase competition 

includes four absolute priorities and 

three competitive preference priorities. 

All Early-phase applicants must address 

Absolute Priority 1. Early-phase 

applicants are also required to address 

one of the other three absolute 

priorities. Applicants addressing 

Absolute Priority 3 also have the option 

to address Competitive Preference 

Priority 1. Applicants have the option of 

addressing Competitive Preference 

Priority 2 and Competitive Preference 

Priority 3 and may opt to do so 

regardless of the absolute priority they 

select. Applicants may choose to 

address multiple competitive preference 

priorities. 

‘‘Absolute Priority 1—Demonstrates a 

Rationale’’ establishes the evidence 

requirement for this tier of grants. All 

Early-phase applicants must submit 

prior evidence of effectiveness that 

meets the demonstrates a rationale 

evidence standard. 

‘‘Absolute Priority 2—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—General’’ allows 

applicants to propose projects that align 

with the intent of the EIR program 

statute: To create and take to scale 

entrepreneurial, evidence-based, fieldinitiated innovations to improve student 

achievement and attainment. 

‘‘Absolute Priority 3—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—Science, Technology, 

Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM)’’ is 

intended to support innovations to 

improve student achievement and 

attainment in the STEM field, consistent 

with efforts to ensure our Nation’s 

economic competitiveness by improving 

and expanding STEM learning and 

engagement, including computer 

science (as defined in this notice). 

In Absolute Priority 3, the Department 

recognizes the importance of funding 

Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) through grade 

12 STEM education and anticipates that 

projects would expand opportunities for 

high-need students. Within this absolute 

priority, the Department includes 

Competitive Preference Priority 1 that 

focuses on expanding opportunities in 

computer science for underserved 

populations such as minorities, girls, 

and youth from rural communities and 

low-income families, to help reduce 

achievement and attainment gaps in a 

manner consistent with 

nondiscrimination requirements 

contained in the U.S. Constitution and 

Federal civil rights laws. 

‘‘Absolute Priority 4—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—Fostering Knowledge and 

Promoting the Development of Skills 

That Prepare Students To Be Informed, 

Thoughtful, and Productive Individuals 

and Citizens’’ is intended to advance 

innovation, build evidence, and address 

the learning and achievement of highneed students beginning in Pre-K 

through grade 12. The priority promotes 

social and emotional learning (SEL) 

skills that prepare students to be 

informed, thoughtful, and productive 

individuals. 

Competitive Preference Priorities 2 

and 3 highlight the Administration’s 

acknowledgment of the timely and 

urgent needs in Pre-K–12 education 

related to addressing the impact of the 

novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID–19) and 

promoting equity. 

‘‘Competitive Preference Priority 2— 

Innovative Approaches to Addressing 

the Impact of COVID–19 on 

Underserved Students and Educators’’ is 

intended to encourage applicants to 

propose projects that focus on the needs 

of underserved students (as defined in 

this notice) most impacted by COVID– 


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40512 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 142 / Wednesday, July 28, 2021 / Notices 

19. The EIR program statute refers to 

‘‘high-needs students.’’ In addressing 

the needs of underserved students, the 

statutory requirement for serving ‘‘highneeds students’’ can also be addressed. 

The Department seeks innovative 

strategies under this priority that 

support students’ success in the 

classroom; are delivered by qualified 

individuals (based on requirements 

established by the applicant) who 

receive adequate training and support; 

and are aligned with students’ learning 

experiences in their classrooms. This 

includes incorporating any innovations 

and technology practices from the last 

year that have improved student’s 

learning experiences to supplementally 

support and enhance the return to inperson learning. 

‘‘Competitive Preference Priority 3— 

Promoting Equity and Adequacy in 

Student Access to Educational 

Resources and Opportunities’’ is 

intended to offer applicants the option 

of proposing projects that promote 

equity. Improving educational equity 

and adequacy is a priority for the 

Nation’s education system, with 

particular emphasis on supporting 

underserved students. 

The Department seeks projects that 

develop and evaluate evidence-based, 

field-initiated innovations to remedy the 

inequities in our country’s education 

system. This type of innovation will 

better enable students the access to the 

educational opportunities they need to 

succeed in school and reach their future 

goals. 

Through these priorities, the 

Department intends to advance 

innovation, build evidence, and address 

the learning and achievement of highneed students beginning in Pre-K 

through grade 12. 

Priorities: This notice includes four 

absolute priorities and three competitive 

preference priorities. In accordance with 

34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(ii), Absolute 

Priority 1 is from the notice of final 

priorities published in the Federal 

Register on March 9, 2020 (85 FR 

13640) (Administrative Priorities). In 

accordance with 34 CFR 

75.105(b)(2)(iv), Absolute Priority 2 is 

from section 4611(a)(1)(A) of the ESEA. 

In accordance with 34 CFR 

75.105(b)(2)(iv), Absolute Priorities 3 

and 4 are from section 4611(a)(1)(A) of 

the ESEA and the Supplemental 

Priorities and Definitions for 

Discretionary Grant Programs, 

published in the Federal Register on 

March 2, 2018 (83 FR 9096) 

(Supplemental Priorities). Competitive 

Preference Priority 1 is from the 

Supplemental Priorities. Competitive 

Preference Priorities 2 and 3 are from 

the Department’s notice of final 

priorities and definitions published 

elsewhere in this issue of the Federal 

Register (NFP). 

In the Early-phase grant competition, 

Absolute Priorities 2, 3, and 4 constitute 

their own funding categories. The 

Secretary intends to award grants under 

each of these absolute priorities 

provided that applications of sufficient 

quality are submitted. To ensure that 

applicants are considered for the correct 

type of grant, applicants must clearly 

identify the specific absolute priority 

that the proposed project addresses. If 

an entity is interested in proposing 

separate projects (e.g., one that 

addresses Absolute Priority 2 and 

another that addresses Absolute Priority 

3), separate applications must be 

submitted. 

Absolute Priorities: For FY 2021 and 

any subsequent year in which we make 

awards from the list of unfunded 

applications from this competition, 

these priorities are absolute priorities. 

Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider 

only applications that meet Absolute 

Priority 1 and one additional absolute 

priority (Absolute Priority 2, Absolute 

Priority 3, or Absolute Priority 4). 

These priorities are: 

Absolute Priority 1—Applications that 

Demonstrate a Rationale. 

Under this priority, an applicant 

proposes a project that demonstrates a 

rationale. 

Absolute Priority 2—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—General. 

Projects that are designed to create, 

develop, implement, replicate, or take to 

scale entrepreneurial, evidence-based, 

field-initiated innovations to improve 

student achievement and attainment for 

high-need students. 

Absolute Priority 3—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—Promoting STEM 

Education, With a Particular Focus on 

Computer Science. 

Projects that are designed to— 

(1) Create, develop, implement, 

replicate, or take to scale 

entrepreneurial, evidence-based, fieldinitiated innovations to improve student 

achievement and attainment for highneed students; and 

(2) Improve student achievement or 

other educational outcomes in one or 

more of the following areas: Science, 

technology, engineering, math, or 

computer science. 

Absolute Priority 4—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—Fostering Knowledge and 

Promoting the Development of Skills 

That Prepare Students To Be Informed, 

Thoughtful, and Productive Individuals 

and Citizens. 

Projects that are designed to— 

(1) Create, develop, implement, 

replicate, or take to scale 

entrepreneurial, evidence-based, fieldinitiated innovations to improve student 

achievement and attainment for highneed students; and 

(2) Improve student academic 

performance and better prepare students 

for employment, responsible 

citizenship, and fulfilling lives, 

including by preparing children or 

students to do one or more of the 

following: 

(a) Develop positive personal 

relationships with others. 

(b) Develop determination, 

perseverance, and the ability to 

overcome obstacles. 

(c) Develop self-esteem through 

perseverance and earned success. 

(d) Develop problem-solving skills. 

(e) Develop self-regulation in order to 

work toward long-term goals. 

Competitive Preference Priorities: For 

FY 2021 and any subsequent year in 

which we make awards from the list of 

unfunded applications from this 

competition, these priorities are 

competitive preference priorities. 

Within Absolute Priority 3, we give 

competitive preference to applications 

that address Competitive Preference 

Priority 1. Within Absolute Priorities 2, 

3, and 4, we give competitive preference 

to applications that address Competitive 

Preference Priorities 2 or 3. 

These priorities are: 

Competitive Preference Priority 1— 

Computer Science (up to 5 points). 

Projects designed to improve student 

achievement or other educational 

outcomes in computer science. These 

projects must address expanding access 

to and participation in rigorous 

computer science coursework for 

traditionally underrepresented students 

such as racial or ethnic minorities, 

women, students in communities served 

by rural local educational agencies 

(LEAs) (as defined in this notice), 

children or students with disabilities (as 

defined in this notice), or low-income 

individuals (as defined under section 

312(g) of the Higher Education Act of 

1965, as amended). 

Competitive Preference Priority 2— 

Innovative Approaches to Addressing 

the Impact of COVID–19 on 

Underserved Students and Educators 

(up to 5 points). 

Projects designed to address the needs 

of underserved students and educators 

most impacted by COVID–19 through— 

(a) Engaging in two-way, mutually 

respectful collaboration with key 

stakeholders, such as families, 

caretakers, students, educators 

(including teachers, school leaders and 

other school staff), and community 


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leaders (including individuals from 

diverse cultural, linguistic, and 

socioeconomic backgrounds), to assess 

and understand students’ social, 

emotional, physical and mental health, 

and academic needs, in light of 

historical educational inequities and the 

impact of the COVID–19 pandemic; and 

(b) Developing and implementing 

strategies to address those needs 

through one or more of the following: 

(1) Re-engaging students (and their 

families) and strengthening 

relationships between educators, 

students, and families. 

(2) Supporting district- and schoolwide use of personalized learning (as 

defined in this notice). 

(3) Utilizing multi-tier system of 

supports (as defined in this notice) and 

universal design for learning (as defined 

in this notice). 

(4) Providing educators with 

professional development (as defined in 

this notice) and resources to use traumainformed practices. 

(5) Creating or supporting equitable 

and inclusive learning environments in 

schools. 

(6) Ensuring students have access to 

additional specialized instructional 

support personnel (as defined in this 

notice) during their school day, at their 

school site. 

(7) Finding and supporting students 

experiencing homelessness, including 

those not attending school during the 

pandemic. 

(8) Providing additional supports to 

educators to address their mental health 

and well-being and instructional 

practice needs. 

(9) Providing evidence-based supports 

and educational opportunities to 

accelerate grade-level student learning 

(especially for underserved students) 

through in-class learning and additional 

instructional practice, including those 

supported by technology in ways that 

do not contribute to tracking or 

remediation, which may include one or 

both of the following: 

(i) High-quality tutoring (as defined in 

this notice), summer learning and 

enrichment, or opportunities for highquality expanded learning time (as 

defined in this notice) as well as 

implementation of embedded, highquality formative assessment to support 

personalization. 

(ii) Providing targeted supports for 

high school students to prepare for postsecondary education transition and 

success. 

Competitive Preference Priority 3— 

Promoting Equity and Adequacy in 

Student Access to Educational 

Resources and Opportunities (up to 5 

points). 

Projects designed to promote equity in 

access to critical resources for 

underserved students in 

prekindergarten through grade 12 

through one or more of the following: 

(a) Addressing inequities in access to 

fully certified, experienced, and 

effective teachers through one or more 

of the following activities: 

(1) Improving the preparation, 

recruitment, early career support, and 

development of teachers in high-need or 

hard-to-staff schools, including 

strategies that improve teacher diversity. 

(2) Reforming hiring, compensation, 

and advancement systems. 

(3) Improving the retention of fully 

certified (including teachers certified in 

the area they are assigned to teach), 

experienced, and effective teachers in 

districts, schools, and classrooms 

serving high concentrations of 

underserved students through one or 

more of the following activities: 

(i) Providing comprehensive, highretention pathways into the profession. 

(ii) Creating or enhancing 

opportunities for teachers’ professional 

growth and leadership opportunities. 

(iii) Delivering collaborative, jobembedded, and sustained professional 

development. 

(iv) Improving workplace conditions 

to create opportunities for successful 

teaching and learning, including 

through inclusive and culturally 

affirming working environments. 

(b) Addressing inequities in access to 

and success in rigorous, engaging, and 

culturally and linguistically responsive 

teaching and learning environments that 

prepare students for college and career 

through one or both of the following 

activities: 

(1) Increasing access to and success in 

middle school courses that are 

foundational to advanced coursework in 

high school; advanced courses and 

programs, including Advanced 

Placement, International Baccalaureate, 

high-quality dual or concurrent 

enrollment (as defined in this notice), 

and high-quality early college high 

school (as defined in this notice), 

programs; high-quality STEM programs; 

or high-quality career and technical 

education pathways that are integrated 

into the curriculum. 

(2) Developing, and expanding access 

to, programs designed to provide a wellrounded education (as defined in this 

notice). 

(c) Addressing bias (e.g., implicit and 

explicit) and creating inclusive, 

supportive learning environments. 

(d) Involving diverse stakeholders to 

include students, families, caretakers, 

educators (including teachers, school 

leaders, and other staff), and community 

leaders in State and local education 

decisions. 

(e) Identifying and addressing, in 

collaboration with students, families, 

and educators, policies that result in the 

disproportionate use of exclusionary 

discipline through data collection and 

analysis (including school climate 

surveys) disaggregated by race, sex, 

English learner, disability status, 

gender-identity, and sexual orientation, 

in compliance with 20 U.S.C. 1232h and 

34 CFR part 98, and other important 

variables. 

(f) Identifying and addressing issues 

of equity in access to and the use of 

innovative tools, rigorous content, and 

effective teaching and learning 

practices, including by providing jobembedded professional development to 

educators on strategies for equitably 

integrating educational technology in 

ways that elevate student engagement 

beyond passive use and over-reliance on 

drill-and-practice to a more robust, 

creative, and playful medium. 

(g) Addressing policies, practices, and 

procedures that contribute to significant 

disproportionality in special education 

or programs for English learners based 

on race or ethnicity. 

(h) Improving the quality of 

educational programs in juvenile justice 

facilities (such as detention facilities 

and secure and non-secure placements) 

or supporting re-entry after release, by 

linking youth to education or job 

training programs. 

Definitions: The definitions of 

‘‘baseline,’’ ‘‘demonstrates a rationale,’’ 

‘‘experimental study,’’ ‘‘logic model,’’ 

‘‘moderate evidence,’’ ‘‘nonprofit,’’ 

‘‘performance measure,’’ ‘‘performance 

target,’’ ‘‘project component,’’ ‘‘quasiexperimental design study,’’ ‘‘relevant 

outcome,’’ and ‘‘What Works 

Clearinghouse Handbooks (WWC 

Handbooks)’’ are from 34 CFR 77.1. The 

definitions of ‘‘children or students with 

disabilities,’’ ‘‘computer science,’’ and 

‘‘rural local educational agency’’ are 

from the Supplemental Priorities. The 

definitions of ‘‘dual or concurrent 

enrollment,’’ ‘‘early college high 

school,’’ ‘‘evidence-based,’’ ‘‘expanded 

learning time,’’ ‘‘local educational 

agency,’’ ‘‘multi-tier system of 

supports,’’ ‘‘professional development,’’ 

‘‘specialized instructional support 

personnel,’’ ‘‘State educational agency,’’ 

‘‘universal design for learning,’’ and 

‘‘well-rounded education’’ are from 

section 8101 of the ESEA. The 

definitions of ‘‘high-quality tutoring,’’ 

‘‘personalized learning,’’ and 

‘‘underserved students’’ are from the 

NFP. 


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Baseline means the starting point 

from which performance is measured 

and targets are set. 

Children or students with disabilities 

means children with disabilities as 

defined in the Individuals with 

Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) or 

individuals defined as having a 

disability under Section 504 of the 

Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) 

(or children or students who are eligible 

under both laws). 

Computer science means the study of 

computers and algorithmic processes 

and includes the study of computing 

principles and theories, computational 

thinking, computer hardware, software 

design, coding, analytics, and computer 

applications. 

Computer science often includes 

computer programming or coding as a 

tool to create software, including 

applications, games, websites, and tools 

to manage or manipulate data; or 

development and management of 

computer hardware and the other 

electronics related to sharing, securing, 

and using digital information. 

In addition to coding, the expanding 

field of computer science emphasizes 

computational thinking and 

interdisciplinary problem-solving to 

equip students with the skills and 

abilities necessary to apply computation 

in our digital world. 

Computer science does not include 

using a computer for everyday activities, 

such as browsing the internet; use of 

tools like word processing, 

spreadsheets, or presentation software; 

or using computers in the study and 

exploration of unrelated subjects. 

Demonstrates a rationale means a key 

project component included in the 

project’s logic model is informed by 

research or evaluation findings that 

suggest the project component is likely 

to improve relevant outcomes. 

Dual or concurrent enrollment means 

a program offered by a partnership 

between at least one institution of 

higher education and at least one local 

educational agency through which a 

secondary school student who has not 

graduated from high school with a 

regular high school diploma is able to 

enroll in one or more postsecondary 

courses and earn postsecondary credit 

that— 

(a) Is transferable to the institutions of 

higher education in the partnership; and 

(b) Applies toward completion of a 

degree or recognized educational 

credential as described in the Higher 

Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 

et seq.). 

Early college high school means a 

partnership between at least one local 

educational agency and at least one 

institution of higher education that 

allows participants to simultaneously 

complete requirements toward earning a 

regular high school diploma and earn 

not less than 12 credits that are 

transferable to the institutions of higher 

education in the partnership as part of 

an organized course of study toward a 

postsecondary degree or credential at no 

cost to the participant or participant’s 

family. 

Evidence-based means an activity, 

strategy, or intervention that 

demonstrates a rationale based on high 

quality research findings or positive 

evaluation that such activity, strategy, or 

intervention is likely to improve student 

outcomes or other relevant outcomes. 

Expanded learning time means using 

a longer school day, week, or year 

schedule to significantly increase the 

total number of school hours, in order 

to include additional time for— 

(a) Activities and instruction for 

enrichment as part of a well-rounded 

education; and 

(b) Instructional and support staff to 

collaborate, plan, and engage in 

professional development (including 

professional development on family and 

community engagement) within and 

across grades and subjects. 

Experimental study means a study 

that is designed to compare outcomes 

between two groups of individuals 

(such as students) that are otherwise 

equivalent except for their assignment 

to either a treatment group receiving a 

project component or a control group 

that does not. Randomized controlled 

trials, regression discontinuity design 

studies, and single-case design studies 

are the specific types of experimental 

studies that, depending on their design 

and implementation (e.g., sample 

attrition in randomized controlled trials 

and regression discontinuity design 

studies), can meet What Works 

Clearinghouse (WWC) standards 

without reservations as described in the 

WWC Handbooks: 

(i) A randomized controlled trial 

employs random assignment of, for 

example, students, teachers, classrooms, 

or schools to receive the project 

component being evaluated (the 

treatment group) or not to receive the 

project component (the control group). 

(ii) A regression discontinuity design 

study assigns the project component 

being evaluated using a measured 

variable (e.g., assigning students reading 

below a cutoff score to tutoring or 

developmental education classes) and 

controls for that variable in the analysis 

of outcomes. 

(iii) A single-case design study uses 

observations of a single case (e.g., a 

student eligible for a behavioral 

intervention) over time in the absence 

and presence of a controlled treatment 

manipulation to determine whether the 

outcome is systematically related to the 

treatment. 

High-quality tutoring means tutoring 

that is based on evidence-based 

strategies to support students’ success in 

the classroom (provided in addition to, 

and not as a replacement for, classroom 

teaching); is delivered in individualized 

or small-group settings; reflects 

differentiated support based on student 

need; is aligned with the district’s 

curriculum and rigorous academic 

standards; has established standards of 

intensity and dosage based on level of 

need; is delivered by tutors who are 

well-trained, who are supported with 

resources and personnel (such as a tutor 

coordinator), and who work closely 

with the student’s teacher of record; and 

includes instruments to examine 

instructional quality and quantity. 

Local educational agency (LEA) 

means: 

(a) In General. A public board of 

education or other public authority 

legally constituted within a State for 

either administrative control or 

direction of, or to perform a service 

function for, public elementary schools 

or secondary schools in a city, county, 

township, school district, or other 

political subdivision of a State, or of or 

for a combination of school districts or 

counties that is recognized in a State as 

an administrative agency for its public 

elementary schools or secondary 

schools. 

(b) Administrative Control and 

Direction. The term includes any other 

public institution or agency having 

administrative control and direction of 

a public elementary school or secondary 

school. 

(c) Bureau of Indian Education 

Schools. The term includes an 

elementary school or secondary school 

funded by the Bureau of Indian 

Education but only to the extent that 

including the school makes the school 

eligible for programs for which specific 

eligibility is not provided to the school 

in another provision of law and the 

school does not have a student 

population that is smaller than the 

student population of the LEA receiving 

assistance under the ESEA with the 

smallest student population, except that 

the school shall not be subject to the 

jurisdiction of any State educational 

agency (SEA) (as defined in this notice) 

other than the Bureau of Indian 

Education. 

(d) Educational Service Agencies. The 

term includes educational service 

agencies and consortia of those 

agencies. 


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(e) State Educational Agency. The 

term includes the SEA in a State in 

which the SEA is the sole educational 

agency for all public schools. 

Logic model (also referred to as a 

theory of action) means a framework 

that identifies key project components 

of the proposed project (i.e., the active 

‘‘ingredients’’ that are hypothesized to 

be critical to achieving the relevant 

outcomes) and describes the theoretical 

and operational relationships among the 

key project components and relevant 

outcomes. 

Moderate evidence means that there is 

evidence of effectiveness of a key 

project component in improving a 

relevant outcome for a sample that 

overlaps with the populations or 

settings proposed to receive that 

component, based on a relevant finding 

from one of the following: 

(i) A practice guide prepared by the 

WWC using version 2.1, 3.0, 4.0, or 4.1 

of the WWC Handbooks reporting a 

‘‘strong evidence base’’ or ‘‘moderate 

evidence base’’ for the corresponding 

practice guide recommendation; 

(ii) An intervention report prepared 

by the WWC using version 2.1, 3.0, 4.0, 

or 4.1 of the WWC Handbooks reporting 

a ‘‘positive effect’’ or ‘‘potentially 

positive effect’’ on a relevant outcome 

based on a ‘‘medium to large’’ extent of 

evidence, with no reporting of a 

‘‘negative effect’’ or ‘‘potentially 

negative effect’’ on a relevant outcome; 

or 

(iii) A single experimental study or 

quasi-experimental design study 

reviewed and reported by the WWC 

using version 2.1, 3.0, 4.0, or 4.1 of the 

WWC Handbooks, or otherwise assessed 

by the Department using version 4.1 of 

the WWC Handbook, as appropriate, 

and that— 

(A) Meets WWC standards with or 

without reservations; 

(B) Includes at least one statistically 

significant and positive (i.e., favorable) 

effect on a relevant outcome; 

(C) Includes no overriding statistically 

significant and negative effects on 

relevant outcomes reported in the study 

or in a corresponding WWC 

intervention report prepared under 

version 2.1, 3.0, 4.0, or 4.1 of the WWC 

Handbooks; and 

(D) Is based on a sample from more 

than one site (e.g., State, county, city, 

school district, or postsecondary 

campus) and includes at least 350 

students or other individuals across 

sites. Multiple studies of the same 

project component that each meet 

requirements in paragraphs (iii)(A), (B), 

and (C) of this definition may together 

satisfy this requirement. 

Multi-tier system of supports means a 

comprehensive continuum of evidencebased, systemic practices to support a 

rapid response to students’ needs, with 

regular observation to facilitate databased instructional decision-making. 

Nonprofit, as applied to an agency, 

organization, or institution, means that 

it is owned and operated by one or more 

corporations or associations whose net 

earnings do not benefit, and cannot 

lawfully benefit, any private 

shareholder or entity. 

Performance measure means any 

quantitative indicator, statistic, or 

metric used to gauge program or project 

performance. 

Performance target means a level of 

performance that an applicant would 

seek to meet during the course of a 

project or as a result of a project. 

Personalized learning means 

instruction that is aligned with rigorous 

college- and career-ready standards so 

that the pace of learning and the 

instructional approach are tailored to 

the needs of individual learners. 

Learning objectives and content, as well 

as the pace, may all vary depending on 

a learner’s needs. Personalized learning 

may also draw on a number of studentcentered blended learning models (e.g., 

competency-based education, projectbased learning, universal design for 

learning). In addition, learning activities 

are aligned with specific interests of 

each learner. Data from a variety of 

sources (including formative 

assessments, student feedback, and 

progress in digital learning activities), 

along with teacher recommendations, 

are often used to personalize learning. 

Professional development means 

activities that— 

(i) Are an integral part of school and 

local educational agency strategies for 

providing educators (including teachers, 

principals, other school leaders, 

specialized instructional support 

personnel, paraprofessionals, and, as 

applicable, early childhood educators) 

with the knowledge and skills necessary 

to enable students to succeed in a wellrounded education and to meet the 

challenging State academic standards; 

and 

(ii) Are sustained (not stand-alone, 1- 

day, or short term workshops), 

intensive, collaborative, job-embedded, 

data-driven, and classroom-focused, and 

may include activities that— 

(A) Improve and increase teachers’ 

knowledge of the academic subjects the 

teachers teach; understanding of how 

students learn; and ability to analyze 

student work and achievement from 

multiple sources, including how to 

adjust instructional strategies, 

assessments, and materials based on 

such analysis; 

(B) Are an integral part of broad 

schoolwide and districtwide 

educational improvement plans; 

(C) Allow personalized plans for each 

educator to address the educator’s 

specific needs identified in observation 

or other feedback; 

(D) Improve classroom management 

skills; 

(E) Support the recruitment, hiring, 

and training of effective teachers, 

including teachers who became certified 

through State and local alternative 

routes to certification; 

(F) Advance teacher understanding of 

effective instructional strategies that are 

evidence-based; and strategies for 

improving student academic 

achievement or substantially increasing 

the knowledge and teaching skills of 

teachers; 

(G) Are aligned with, and directly 

related to, academic goals of the school 

or local educational agency; 

(H) Are developed with extensive 

participation of teachers, principals, 

other school leaders, parents, 

representatives of Indian tribes (as 

applicable), and administrators of 

schools to be served under the ESEA; 

(I) Are designed to give teachers of 

English learners, and other teachers and 

instructional staff, the knowledge and 

skills to provide instruction and 

appropriate language and academic 

support services to those children, 

including the appropriate use of 

curricula and assessments; 

(J) To the extent appropriate, provide 

training for teachers, principals, and 

other school leaders in the use of 

technology (including education about 

the harms of copyright piracy), so that 

technology and technology applications 

are effectively used in the classroom to 

improve teaching and learning in the 

curricula and academic subjects in 

which the teachers teach; 

(K) As a whole, are regularly 

evaluated for their impact on increased 

teacher effectiveness and improved 

student academic achievement, with the 

findings of the evaluations used to 

improve the quality of professional 

development; 

(L) Are designed to give teachers of 

children with disabilities or children 

with developmental delays, and other 

teachers and instructional staff, the 

knowledge and skills to provide 

instruction and academic support 

services, to those children, including 

positive behavioral interventions and 

supports, multi-tier system of supports, 

and use of accommodations; 


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(M) Include instruction in the use of 

data and assessments to inform and 

instruct classroom practice; 

(N) Include instruction in ways that 

teachers, principals, other school 

leaders, specialized instructional 

support personnel, and school 

administrators may work more 

effectively with parents and families; 

(O) Involve the forming of 

partnerships with institutions of higher 

education, including, as applicable, 

Tribal Colleges and Universities as 

defined in section 316(b) of the Higher 

Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

1059c(b)), to establish school-based 

teacher, principal, and other school 

leader training programs that provide 

prospective teachers, novice teachers, 

principals, and other school leaders 

with an opportunity to work under the 

guidance of experienced teachers, 

principals, other school leaders, and 

faculty of such institutions; 

(P) Create programs to enable 

paraprofessionals (assisting teachers 

employed by a local educational agency 

receiving assistance under part A of title 

I) to obtain the education necessary for 

those paraprofessionals to become 

certified and licensed teachers; 

(Q) Provide follow-up training to 

teachers who have participated in 

activities described in this paragraph 

that are designed to ensure that the 

knowledge and skills learned by the 

teachers are implemented in the 

classroom; and 

(R) Where practicable, provide jointly 

for school staff and other early 

childhood education program providers, 

to address the transition to elementary 

school, including regular issues related 

to school readiness. 

Project component means an activity, 

strategy, intervention, process, product, 

practice, or policy included in a project. 

Evidence may pertain to an individual 

project component or to a combination 

of project components (e.g., training 

teachers on instructional practices for 

English learners and follow-on coaching 

for these teachers). 

Quasi-experimental design study 

means a study using a design that 

attempts to approximate an 

experimental study by identifying a 

comparison group that is similar to the 

treatment group in important respects. 

This type of study, depending on design 

and implementation (e.g., establishment 

of baseline equivalence of the groups 

being compared), can meet WWC 

standards with reservations, but cannot 

meet WWC standards without 

reservations, as described in the WWC 

Handbooks. 

Relevant outcome means the student 

outcome(s) or other outcome(s) the key 

project component is designed to 

improve, consistent with the specific 

goals of the program. 

Rural local educational agency means 

a local educational agency that is 

eligible under the Small Rural School 

Achievement (SRSA) program or the 

Rural and Low-Income School (RLIS) 

program authorized under Title V, Part 

B of the ESEA. Eligible applicants may 

determine whether a particular district 

is eligible for these programs by 

referring to information on the 

Department’s website at https://

oese.ed.gov/files/2021/05/FY2021_

Master_Eligibility_Spreadsheetpublic51221.xlsx. 

Specialized instructional support 

personnel means— 

(a) School counselors, school social 

workers, and school psychologists; and 

(b) Other qualified professional 

personnel, such as school nurses, 

speech language pathologists, and 

school librarians, involved in providing 

assessment, diagnosis, counseling, 

educational, therapeutic, and other 

necessary services (including related 

services as that term is defined in 

section 602 of the Individuals with 

Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

1401)) as part of a comprehensive 

program to meet student needs. 

State educational agency (SEA) 

means the agency primarily responsible 

for the State supervision of public 

elementary schools and secondary 

schools. 

Underserved students means highneed students as determined by the 

applicant, which may include one or 

more of the following: 

(a) Students who are living in poverty, 

especially those students who are also 

served by schools with high 

concentrations of students living in 

poverty. 

(b) Students of color. 

(c) Students who are members of 

federally recognized Indian Tribes. 

(d) English learners. 

(e) Students with disabilities, 

including students served under the 

Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act and Section 504 of the 

Rehabilitation Act of 1973. 

(f) Disconnected youth, including but 

not limited to (1) students who lost 

significant amounts of in-person 

instruction as a result of the COVID–19 

pandemic, and (2) students who did not 

consistently participate in remote 

instruction when offered during school 

building closures. 

(g) Migrant students. 

(h) Students experiencing 

homelessness. 

(i) Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, 

and queer (LGBTQ+) students. 

(j) Students in foster care. 

(k) Students without documentation 

of immigration status. 

(l) Pregnant, parenting, or caregiving 

students. 

(m) Students impacted by the justice 

system including formerly incarcerated 

students. 

(n) Students who are the first in their 

family to attend postsecondary 

education. 

(o) Students enrolling in or seeking to 

enroll in postsecondary education for 

the first time at the age of 20 or older. 

(p) Students who are working fulltime while enrolling in postsecondary 

education. 

(q) Students who are enrolling in or 

seeking to enroll in postsecondary 

education who are eligible for a Pell 

Grant. 

(r) Adult students with low skills, 

including those with limited English 

proficiency. 

Universal design for learning means a 

scientifically valid framework for 

guiding educational practice that— 

(a) Provides flexibility in the ways 

information is presented, in the ways 

students respond or demonstrate 

knowledge and skills, and in the ways 

students are engaged; and 

(b) Reduces barriers in instruction, 

provides appropriate accommodations, 

supports, and challenges, and maintains 

high achievement expectations for all 

students, including students with 

disabilities and students who are 

limited English proficient. 

Well-rounded education means 

courses, activities, and programming in 

subjects such as English, reading or 

language arts, writing, science, 

technology, engineering, mathematics, 

foreign languages, civics and 

government, economics, arts, history, 

geography, computer science, music, 

career and technical education, health, 

physical education, and any other 

subject, as determined by the State or 

local educational agency, with the 

purpose of providing all students access 

to an enriched curriculum and 

educational experience. 

What Works Clearinghouse 

Handbooks (WWC Handbooks) means 

the standards and procedures set forth 

in the WWC Standards Handbook, 

Versions 4.0 or 4.1, and WWC 

Procedures Handbook, Versions 4.0 or 

4.1, or in the WWC Procedures and 

Standards Handbook, Version 3.0 or 

Version 2.1 (all incorporated by 

reference, see § 77.2). Study findings 

eligible for review under WWC 

standards can meet WWC standards 

without reservations, meet WWC 

standards with reservations, or not meet 

WWC standards. WWC practice guides 


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and intervention reports include 

findings from systematic reviews of 

evidence as described in the WWC 

Handbooks documentation. 

Note: The What Works Clearinghouse 

Procedures and Standards Handbooks are 

available at https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/ 

Handbooks. 

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7261. 

Note: Projects will be awarded and must be 

operated in a manner consistent with the 

nondiscrimination requirements contained in 

Federal civil rights laws. 

Applicable Regulations: (a) The 

Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations in 34 CFR 

parts 75, 77, 79, 81, 82, 84, 86, 97, 98, 

and 99. (b) The Office of Management 

and Budget Guidelines to Agencies on 

Governmentwide Debarment and 

Suspension (Nonprocurement) in 2 CFR 

part 180, as adopted and amended as 

regulations of the Department in 2 CFR 

part 3485. (c) The Uniform 

Administrative Requirements, Cost 

Principles, and Audit Requirements for 

Federal Awards in 2 CFR part 200, as 

adopted and amended as regulations of 

the Department in 2 CFR part 3474. (d) 

The Administrative Priorities. (e) The 

Supplemental Priorities. (f) The NFP. 

Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 

apply to institutions of higher education 

(IHEs) only. 

II. Award Information 

Type of Award: Discretionary grants. 

Estimated Available Funds: 

$180,000,000. 

These estimated available funds are 

the total available for all three types of 

grants under the EIR program (Earlyphase, Mid-phase, and Expansion 

grants). 

Contingent upon the availability of 

funds and the quality of applications, 

we may make additional awards in 

subsequent years from the list of 

unfunded applications from this 

competition. 

Estimated Average Size of Awards: 

Up to $4,000,000. 

Maximum Award: We will not make 

an award exceeding $4,000,000 for a 

project period of 60 months. The 

Department intends to fund one or more 

projects under each of the EIR 

competitions, including Expansion 

(84.411A), Mid-phase (84.411B), and 

Early-phase (84.411C). Entities may 

submit applications for different 

projects for more than one competition 

(Early-phase, Mid-phase, and 

Expansion). The maximum award 

amount a grantee may receive under 

these three competitions, taken together, 

is $15,000,000. If an entity is within 

funding range for multiple applications, 

the Department will award the highest 

scoring applications up to $15,000,000. 

Estimated Number of Awards: 12–23. 

Note: The Department is not bound by any 

estimates in this notice. 

Project Period: Up to 60 months. 

Note: Under section 4611(c) of the ESEA, 

the Department must use at least 25 percent 

of EIR funds for a fiscal year to make awards 

to applicants serving rural areas, contingent 

on receipt of a sufficient number of 

applications of sufficient quality. For 

purposes of this competition, we will 

consider an applicant as rural if the applicant 

meets the qualifications for rural applicants 

as described in the Eligible Applicants 

section and the applicant certifies that it 

meets those qualifications through the 

application. 

In implementing this statutory 

provision and program requirement, the 

Department may fund high-quality 

applications from rural applicants out of 

rank order in the Early-phase 

competition. 

In addition, for the FY 2021 Earlyphase competition, the Department 

intends to award an estimated $35 

million in funds for STEM projects and 

$35 million in funds for SEL projects, 

contingent on receipt of a sufficient 

number of applications of sufficient 

quality. 

III. Eligibility Information 

1. Eligible Applicants: 

(a) An LEA; 

(b) An SEA; 

(c) The Bureau of Indian Education 

(BIE); 

(d) A consortium of SEAs or LEAs; 

(e) A nonprofit (as defined in this 

notice) organization; and 

(f) An LEA, an SEA, the BIE, or a 

consortium described in clause (d), in 

partnership with— 

(1) A nonprofit organization; 

(2) A business; 

(3) An educational service agency; or 

(4) An IHE. 

To qualify as a rural applicant under 

the EIR program, an applicant must 

meet both of the following 

requirements: 

(a) The applicant is— 

(1) An LEA with an urban-centric 

district locale code of 32, 33, 41, 42, or 

43, as determined by the Secretary; 

(2) A consortium of such LEAs; 

(3) An educational service agency or 

a nonprofit organization in partnership 

with such an LEA; or 

(4) A grantee described in clause (1) 

or (2) in partnership with an SEA; and 

(b) A majority of the schools to be 

served by the program are designated 

with a locale code of 32, 33, 41, 42, or 

43, or a combination of such codes, as 

determined by the Secretary. 

Applicants are encouraged to retrieve 

locale codes from the National Center 

for Education Statistics School District 

search tool (https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/ 

districtsearch/), where districts can be 

looked up individually to retrieve locale 

codes, and Public School search tool 

(https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/), 

where individual schools can be looked 

up to retrieve locale codes. More 

information on rural applicant 

eligibility is in the application package. 

Note: If you are a nonprofit organization, 

under 34 CFR 75.51, you may demonstrate 

your nonprofit status by providing: (1) Proof 

that the Internal Revenue Service currently 

recognizes the applicant as an organization to 

which contributions are tax deductible under 

section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue 

Code, (2) a statement from a State taxing 

body or the State attorney general certifying 

that the organization is a nonprofit 

organization operating within the State and 

that no part of its net earnings may lawfully 

benefit any private shareholder or individual, 

(3) a certified copy of the applicant’s 

certificate of incorporation or similar 

document if it clearly establishes the 

nonprofit status of the applicant, or (4) any 

item described above if that item applies to 

a State or national parent organization, 

together with a statement by the State or 

parent organization that the applicant is a 

local nonprofit affiliate. 

In addition, any IHE is eligible to be 

a partner in an application where an 

LEA, SEA, BIE, consortium of SEAs or 

LEAs, or a nonprofit organization is the 

lead applicant that submits the 

application. A private IHE that is a 

nonprofit organization can apply for an 

EIR grant. A nonprofit organization, 

such as a development foundation, that 

is affiliated with a public IHE can apply 

for a grant. A public IHE that has 

501(c)(3) status would also qualify as a 

nonprofit organization and could be a 

lead applicant for an EIR grant. A public 

IHE without 501(c)(3) status (even if that 

entity is tax exempt under Section 115 

of the Internal Revenue Code or any 

other State or Federal provision), or that 

could not provide any other 

documentation described in 34 CFR 

75.51(b), however, would not qualify as 

a nonprofit organization, and therefore 

could not apply for and receive an EIR 

grant. 

2. Cost Sharing or Matching: Under 

section 4611(d) of the ESEA, each grant 

recipient must provide, from Federal, 

State, local, or private sources, an 

amount equal to 10 percent of funds 

provided under the grant, which may be 

provided in cash or through in-kind 

contributions, to carry out activities 

supported by the grant. Grantees must 

include a budget showing their 

matching contributions to the budget 

amount of EIR grant funds and must 


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provide evidence of their matching 

contributions for the first year of the 

grant in their grant applications. Section 

4611(d) of the ESEA also authorizes the 

Secretary to waive this matching 

requirement on a case-by-case basis, 

upon a showing of exceptional 

circumstances, such as: 

(a) The difficulty of raising matching 

funds for a program to serve a rural area; 

(b) The difficulty of raising matching 

funds in areas with a concentration of 

LEAs or schools with a high percentage 

of students aged 5 through 17— 

(1) Who are in poverty, as counted in 

the most recent census data approved by 

the Secretary; 

(2) Who are eligible for a free or 

reduced price lunch under the Richard 

B. Russell National School Lunch Act 

(42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.); 

(3) Whose families receive assistance 

under the State program funded under 

part A of title IV of the Social Security 

Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.); or 

(4) Who are eligible to receive medical 

assistance under the Medicaid program; 

and 

(c) The difficulty of raising funds on 

Tribal land. 

Applicants that wish to apply for a 

waiver must include a request in their 

application that describes why the 

matching requirement would cause 

serious hardship or an inability to carry 

out project activities. Further 

information about applying for waivers 

can be found in the application package. 

However, given the importance of 

matching funds to the long-term success 

of the project, the Secretary expects 

eligible entities to identify appropriate 

matching funds. 

3. Subgrantees: A grantee under this 

competition may not award subgrants to 

entities to directly carry out project 

activities described in its application. 

4. Other: a. Funding Categories: An 

applicant will be considered for an 

award only for the type of EIR grant for 

which it applies (i.e., Early-phase: 

Absolute Priority 2, Early-phase: 

Absolute Priority 3, or Early-phase: 

Absolute Priority 4). An applicant may 

not submit an application for the same 

proposed project under more than one 

type of grant (e.g., both an Early-phase 

grant and Mid-phase grant). 

Note: Each application will be reviewed 

under the competition it was submitted 

under in the Grants.gov system, and only 

applications that are successfully submitted 

by the established deadline will be peer 

reviewed. Applicants should be careful that 

they download the intended EIR application 

package and that they submit their 

applications under the intended EIR 

competition. 

b. Evaluation: The grantee must 

conduct an independent evaluation of 

the effectiveness of its project. 

c. High-need students: The grantee 

must serve high-need students. 

IV. Application and Submission 

Information 

1. Application Submission 

Instructions: Applicants are required to 

follow the Common Instructions for 

Applicants to Department of Education 

Discretionary Grant Programs, 

published in the Federal Register on 

February 13, 2019 (84 FR 3768) and 

available at www.govinfo.gov/content/ 

pkg/FR-2019-02-13/pdf/2019-02206.pdf, 

which contain requirements and 

information on how to submit an 

application. 

2. Submission of Proprietary 

Information: Given the types of projects 

that may be proposed in applications for 

Early-phase grants, your application 

may include business information that 

you consider proprietary. In 34 CFR 

5.11 we define ‘‘business information’’ 

and describe the process we use in 

determining whether any of that 

information is proprietary and, thus, 

protected from disclosure under 

Exemption 4 of the Freedom of 

Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552, as 

amended). 

Because we plan to make successful 

applications available to the public, you 

may wish to request confidentiality of 

business information. 

Consistent with Executive Order 

12600, please designate in your 

application any information that you 

believe is exempt from disclosure under 

Exemption 4. In the appropriate 

Appendix section of your application, 

under ‘‘Other Attachments Form,’’ 

please list the page number or numbers 

on which we can find this information. 

For additional information please see 34 

CFR 5.11(c). 

3. Intergovernmental Review: This 

competition is subject to Executive 

Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 

CFR part 79. Information about 

Intergovernmental Review of Federal 

Programs under Executive Order 12372 

is in the application package for this 

competition. 

4. Funding Restrictions: We reference 

regulations outlining funding 

restrictions in the Applicable 

Regulations section of this notice. 

5. Recommended Page Limit: The 

application narrative is where you, the 

applicant, address the selection criteria 

that reviewers use to evaluate your 

application. We recommend that you (1) 

limit the application narrative for an 

Early-phase grant to no more than 25 

pages and (2) use the following 

standards: 

• A ‘‘page’’ is 8.5′′ x 11′′, on one side 

only, with 1′′ margins at the top, bottom, 

and both sides. 

• Double space (no more than three 

lines per vertical inch) all text in the 

application narrative, including titles, 

headings, footnotes, quotations, 

references, and captions, as well as all 

text in charts, tables, figures, and 

graphs. 

• Use a font that is either 12 point or 

larger or no smaller than 10 pitch 

(characters per inch). 

• Use one of the following fonts: 

Times New Roman, Courier, Courier 

New, or Arial. 

The recommended page limit does not 

apply to the cover sheet; the budget 

section, including the narrative budget 

justification; the assurances and 

certifications; or the one-page abstract, 

the resumes, the bibliography, or the 

letters of support. However, the 

recommended page limit does apply to 

all of the application narrative. 

6. Notice of Intent to Apply: The 

Department will be able to review grant 

applications more efficiently if we know 

the approximate number of applicants 

that intend to apply. Therefore, we 

strongly encourage each potential 

applicant to notify us of their intent to 

submit an application. Applicants may 

access this form using the link available 

on the Notice of Intent to Apply section 

of the competition website: https://

oese.ed.gov/offices/office-ofdiscretionary-grants-support-services/ 

innovation-early-learning/educationinnovation-and-research-eir. Applicants 

that do not submit a notice of intent to 

apply may still apply for funding; 

applicants that do submit a notice of 

intent to apply are not bound to apply 

or bound by the information provided. 

V. Application Review Information 

1. Selection Criteria: The selection 

criteria for the Early-phase competition 

are from 34 CFR 75.210. The points 

assigned to each criterion are indicated 

in the parentheses next to the criterion. 

An applicant may earn up to a total of 

100 points based on the selection 

criteria for the application. 

A. Significance (up to 20 points). 

The Secretary considers the 

significance of the proposed project. In 

determining the significance of the 

proposed project, the Secretary 

considers the following factors: 

(1) The extent to which the proposed 

project involves the development or 

demonstration of promising new 

strategies that build on, or are 

alternatives to, existing strategies. (15 

points) 


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(2) The extent to which the results of 

the proposed project are to be 

disseminated in ways that will enable 

others to use the information or 

strategies. (5 points) 

B. Quality of the Project Design (up to 

30 points). 

The Secretary considers the quality of 

the design of the proposed project. In 

determining the quality of the design of 

the proposed project, the Secretary 

considers the following factors: 

(1) The extent to which there is a 

conceptual framework underlying the 

proposed research or demonstration 

activities and the quality of that 

framework. (15 points) 

(2) The extent to which the goals, 

objectives, and outcomes to be achieved 

by the proposed project are clearly 

specified and measurable. (5 points) 

(3) The extent to which the design of 

the proposed project is appropriate to, 

and will successfully address, the needs 

of the target population or other 

identified needs. (10 points) 

C. Adequacy of Resources and Quality 

of the Management Plan (up to 25 

points). 

The Secretary considers the adequacy 

of resources and the quality of the 

management plan for the proposed 

project. In determining the adequacy of 

resources and quality of the 

management plan, the Secretary 

considers the following factors: 

(1) The adequacy of the management 

plan to achieve the objectives of the 

proposed project on time and within 

budget, including clearly defined 

responsibilities, timelines, and 

milestones for accomplishing project 

tasks. (10 points) 

(2) The qualifications, including 

relevant training and experience, of key 

project personnel. (5 points) 

(3) The extent to which the costs are 

reasonable in relation to the objectives, 

design, and potential significance of the 

proposed project. (5 points) 

(4) The adequacy of procedures for 

ensuring feedback and continuous 

improvement in the operation of the 

proposed project. (5 points) 

D. Quality of the Project Evaluation 

(up to 25 points). 

The Secretary considers the quality of 

the evaluation to be conducted of the 

proposed project. In determining the 

quality of the evaluation, the Secretary 

considers the following factors: 

(1) The extent to which the methods 

of evaluation will, if well implemented, 

produce evidence about the project’s 

effectiveness that would meet the What 

Works Clearinghouse standards with or 

without reservations as described in the 

What Works Clearinghouse Handbook 

(as defined in this notice). (15 points) 

(2) The extent to which the methods 

of evaluation will provide performance 

feedback and permit periodic 

assessment of progress toward achieving 

intended outcomes. (5 points) 

(3) The potential contribution of the 

proposed project to increased 

knowledge or understanding of 

educational problems, issues, or 

effective strategies. (5 points) 

Note: Applicants may wish to review the 

following technical assistance resources on 

evaluation: (1) WWC Procedures and 

Standards Handbooks: https://ies.ed.gov/ 

ncee/wwc/Handbooks; (2) ‘‘Technical 

Assistance Materials for Conducting Rigorous 

Impact Evaluations’’: http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/ 

projects/evaluationTA.asp; and (3) IES/NCEE 

Technical Methods papers: http://ies.ed.gov/ 

ncee/tech_methods/. In addition, applicants 

may view an optional webinar recording that 

was hosted by the Institute of Education 

Sciences. The webinar focused on more 

rigorous evaluation designs, discussing 

strategies for designing and executing 

experimental studies that meet WWC 

evidence standards without reservations. 

This webinar is available at: http://ies.ed.gov/ 

ncee/wwc/Multimedia/18. 

2. Review and Selection Process: We 

remind potential applicants that in 

reviewing applications in any 

discretionary grant competition, the 

Secretary may consider, under 34 CFR 

75.217(d)(3), the past performance of the 

applicant in carrying out a previous 

award, such as the applicant’s use of 

funds, achievement of project 

objectives, and compliance with grant 

conditions. The Secretary may also 

consider whether the applicant failed to 

submit a timely performance report or 

submitted a report of unacceptable 

quality. 

In addition, in making a competitive 

grant award, the Secretary requires 

various assurances, including those 

applicable to Federal civil rights laws 

that prohibit discrimination in programs 

or activities receiving Federal financial 

assistance from the Department (34 CFR 

100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23). 

Before making awards, we will screen 

applications submitted in accordance 

with the requirements in this notice to 

determine whether applications have 

met eligibility and other requirements. 

This screening process may occur at 

various stages of the process; applicants 

that are determined to be ineligible will 

not receive a grant, regardless of peer 

reviewer scores or comments. 

Peer reviewers will read, prepare a 

written evaluation of, and score the 

assigned applications, using the 

selection criteria provided in this 

notice. 

3. Risk Assessment and Specific 

Conditions: Consistent with 2 CFR 

200.206, before awarding grants under 

this competition the Department 

conducts a review of the risks posed by 

applicants. Under 2 CFR 200.208, the 

Secretary may impose specific 

conditions and, under 2 CFR 3474.10, in 

appropriate circumstances, high-risk 

conditions on a grant if the applicant or 

grantee is not financially stable; has a 

history of unsatisfactory performance; 

has a financial or other management 

system that does not meet the standards 

in 2 CFR part 200, subpart D; has not 

fulfilled the conditions of a prior grant; 

or is otherwise not responsible. 

4. Integrity and Performance System: 

If you are selected under this 

competition to receive an award that 

over the course of the project period 

may exceed the simplified acquisition 

threshold (currently $250,000), under 2 

CFR 200.206(a)(2), we must make a 

judgment about your integrity, business 

ethics, and record of performance under 

Federal awards—that is, the risk posed 

by you as an applicant—before we make 

an award. In doing so, we must consider 

any information about you that is in the 

integrity and performance system 

(currently referred to as the Federal 

Awardee Performance and Integrity 

Information System (FAPIIS)), 

accessible through the System for 

Award Management. You may review 

and comment on any information about 

yourself that a Federal agency 

previously entered and that is currently 

in FAPIIS. 

Please note that, if the total value of 

your currently active grants, cooperative 

agreements, and procurement contracts 

from the Federal Government exceeds 

$10,000,000, the reporting requirements 

in 2 CFR part 200, Appendix XII, 

require you to report certain integrity 

information to FAPIIS semiannually. 

Please review the requirements in 2 CFR 

part 200, Appendix XII, if this grant 

plus all the other Federal funds you 

receive exceed $10,000,000. 

5. In General: In accordance with the 

Office of Management and Budget’s 

guidance located at 2 CFR part 200, all 

applicable Federal laws, and relevant 

Executive guidance, the Department 

will review and consider applications 

for funding pursuant to this notice 

inviting applications in accordance 

with: 

(a) Selecting recipients most likely to 

be successful in delivering results based 

on the program objectives through an 

objective process of evaluating Federal 

award applications (2 CFR 200.205); 

(b) Prohibiting the purchase of certain 

telecommunication and video 

surveillance services or equipment in 

alignment with section 889 of the 

National Defense Authorization Act of 

2019 (Pub. L. 115–232) (2 CFR 200.216); 


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(c) Providing a preference, to the 

extent permitted by law, to maximize 

use of goods, products, and materials 

produced in the United States (2 CFR 

200.322); and 

(d) Terminating agreements in whole 

or in part to the greatest extent 

authorized by law if an award no longer 

effectuates the program goals or agency 

priorities (2 CFR 200.340). 

VI. Award Administration Information 

1. Award Notices: If your application 

is successful, we notify your U.S. 

Representative and U.S. Senators and 

send you a Grant Award Notification 

(GAN); or we may send you an email 

containing a link to access an electronic 

version of your GAN. We may notify 

you informally, also. 

If your application is not evaluated or 

not selected for funding, we notify you. 

2. Administrative and National Policy 

Requirements: We identify 

administrative and national policy 

requirements in the application package 

and reference these and other 

requirements in the Applicable 

Regulations section of this notice. 

We reference the regulations outlining 

the terms and conditions of an award in 

the Applicable Regulations section of 

this notice and include these and other 

specific conditions in the GAN. The 

GAN also incorporates your approved 

application as part of your binding 

commitments under the grant. 

3. Open Licensing Requirements: 

Unless an exception applies, if you are 

awarded a grant under this competition, 

you will be required to openly license 

to the public grant deliverables created 

in whole, or in part, with Department 

grant funds. When the deliverable 

consists of modifications to pre-existing 

works, the license extends only to those 

modifications that can be separately 

identified and only to the extent that 

open licensing is permitted under the 

terms of any licenses or other legal 

restrictions on the use of pre-existing 

works. Additionally, a grantee or 

subgrantee that is awarded Early-phase 

grant funds must have a plan to 

disseminate these public grant 

deliverables. This dissemination plan 

can be developed and submitted after 

your application has been reviewed and 

selected for funding. For additional 

information on the open licensing 

requirements please refer to 2 CFR 

3474.20. 

Note: The evaluation report is a specific 

deliverable under an Early-phase grant that 

grantees must make available to the public. 

Additionally, EIR grantees are encouraged to 

submit final studies resulting from research 

supported in whole or in part by EIR to the 

Educational Resources Information Center 

(http://eric.ed.gov). 

4. Reporting: (a) If you apply for a 

grant under this competition, you must 

ensure that you have in place the 

necessary processes and systems to 

comply with the reporting requirements 

in 2 CFR part 170 should you receive 

funding under the competition. This 

does not apply if you have an exception 

under 2 CFR 170.110(b). 

(b) At the end of your project period, 

you must submit a final performance 

report, including financial information, 

as directed by the Secretary. If you 

receive a multiyear award, you must 

submit an annual performance report 

that provides the most current 

performance and financial expenditure 

information as directed by the Secretary 

under 34 CFR 75.118. The Secretary 

may also require more frequent 

performance reports under 34 CFR 

75.720(c). For specific requirements on 

reporting, please go to www.ed.gov/ 

fund/grant/apply/appforms/ 

appforms.html. 

(c) Under 34 CFR 75.250(b), the 

Secretary may provide a grantee with 

additional funding for data collection 

analysis and reporting. In this case the 

Secretary establishes a data collection 

period. 

5. Performance Measures: The overall 

purpose of the EIR program is to expand 

the implementation of, and investment 

in, innovative practices that are 

demonstrated to have an impact on 

improving student achievement and 

attainment for high-need students. We 

have established, for the purpose of the 

Government Performance and Results 

Act of 1993 (GPRA), several 

performance measures (as defined in 

this notice) for the Early-phase grants. 

Annual performance measures: (1) 

The percentage of grantees that reach 

their annual target number of students 

as specified in the application; (2) the 

percentage of grantees that reach their 

annual target number of high-need 

students as specified in the application; 

(3) the percentage of grantees with 

ongoing well-designed and independent 

evaluations that will provide evidence 

of their effectiveness at improving 

student outcomes in multiple contexts; 

(4) the percentage of grantees that 

implement an evaluation that provides 

information about the key practices and 

the approach of the project so as to 

facilitate replication; (5) the percentage 

of grantees that implement an 

evaluation that provides information on 

the cost-effectiveness of the key 

practices to identify potential obstacles 

and success factors to scaling; and (6) 

the cost per student served by the grant. 

Cumulative performance measures: 

(1) The percentage of grantees that reach 

the targeted number of students 

specified in the application; (2) the 

percentage of grantees that reach the 

targeted number of high-need students 

specified in the application; (3) the 

percentage of grantees that implement a 

completed, well-designed, wellimplemented and independent 

evaluation that provides evidence of 

their effectiveness at improving student 

outcomes at scale; (4) the percentage of 

grantees with a completed welldesigned, well-implemented, and 

independent evaluation that provides 

information about the key elements and 

the approach of the project so as to 

facilitate replication or testing in other 

settings; (5) the percentage of grantees 

with a completed evaluation that 

provided information on the costeffectiveness of the key practices to 

identify potential obstacles and success 

factors to scaling; and (6) the cost per 

student served by the grant. 

Project-Specific Performance 

Measures: Applicants must propose 

project-specific performance measures 

and performance targets (as defined in 

this notice) consistent with the 

objectives of the proposed project. 

Applications must provide the 

following information as directed under 

34 CFR 75.110(b) and (c): 

(1) Performance measures. How each 

proposed performance measure would 

accurately measure the performance of 

the project and how the proposed 

performance measure would be 

consistent with the performance 

measures established for the program 

funding the competition. 

(2) Baseline (as defined in this notice) 

data. (i) Why each proposed baseline is 

valid; or (ii) if the applicant has 

determined that there are no established 

baseline data for a particular 

performance measure, an explanation of 

why there is no established baseline and 

of how and when, during the project 

period, the applicant would establish a 

valid baseline for the performance 

measure. 

(3) Performance targets. Why each 

proposed performance target is 

ambitious yet achievable compared to 

the baseline for the performance 

measure and when, during the project 

period, the applicant would meet the 

performance target(s). 

(4) Data collection and reporting. (i) 

The data collection and reporting 

methods the applicant would use and 

why those methods are likely to yield 

reliable, valid, and meaningful 

performance data; and (ii) the 

applicant’s capacity to collect and 

report reliable, valid, and meaningful 


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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 142 / Wednesday, July 28, 2021 / Notices 40521 

performance data, as evidenced by highquality data collection, analysis, and 

reporting in other projects or research. 

All grantees must submit an annual 

performance report with information 

that is responsive to these performance 

measures. 

6. Continuation Awards: In making a 

continuation award under 34 CFR 

75.253, the Secretary considers, among 

other things: Whether a grantee has 

made substantial progress in achieving 

the goals and objectives of the project; 

whether the grantee has expended funds 

in a manner that is consistent with its 

approved application and budget; and, 

if the Secretary has established 

performance measurement 

requirements, whether the grantee has 

made substantial progress in achieving 

the performance targets in the grantee’s 

approved application. 

In making a continuation award, the 

Secretary also considers whether the 

grantee is operating in compliance with 

the assurances in its approved 

application, including those applicable 

to Federal civil rights laws that prohibit 

discrimination in programs or activities 

receiving Federal financial assistance 

from the Department (34 CFR 100.4, 

104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23). 

VII. Other Information 

Accessible Format: On request to the 

program contact person listed under FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, 

individuals with disabilities can obtain 

this document and a copy of the 

application package 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, or 

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. 

Ian Rosenblum, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and 

Programs Delegated the Authority to Perform 

the Functions and Duties of the Assistant 

Secretary, Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16099 Filed 7–27–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Applications for New Awards; 

Rehabilitation Short-Term Training: 

Client Assistance Program; Correction 

AGENCY: Office of Special Education and 

Rehabilitative Services, Department of 

Education. 

ACTION: Notice; correction. 

SUMMARY: On June 23, 2021, the 

Department of Education (Department) 

published in the Federal Register a 

notice inviting applications (NIA) for 

new awards for fiscal year (FY) 2021 for 

Rehabilitation Short-Term Training: 

Client Assistance Program, Assistance 

Listing Number 84.246K. We are 

correcting the deadline for 

intergovernmental review. All other 

information in the NIA, including the 

August 9, 2021, deadline for transmittal 

of applications, remains the same. 

DATES: This correction is applicable July 

28, 2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Felipe Lulli, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 

room 5051, Potomac Center Plaza, 

Washington, DC 20212–2800. 

Telephone: (202) 245–7425. Email: 

84.246K@ed.gov. 

If you use a telecommunications 

device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 

telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay 

Service (FRS), toll free, at 1–800–877– 

8339. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 

23, 2021, we published the NIA in the 

Federal Register (86 FR 32909). The 

NIA stated that the deadline for 

intergovernmental review is October 6, 

2021. This notice corrects the deadline 

for intergovernmental review, from 

October 6, 2021, to September 3, 2021. 

All other requirements and conditions 

in the NIA remain the same. 

Correction: 

In FR Doc. 2021–13190 appearing on 

pages 32910–32915 of the Federal 

Register of June 23, 2021, the following 

corrections are made: 

1. On page 32910, in the first column, 

under the caption ‘‘Dates’’ and after the 

heading ‘‘Deadline for 

Intergovernmental Review’’, remove 

‘‘October 6, 2021’’ and add in its place 

‘‘September 3, 2021’’. 

2. On page 32912, in the second 

column, in section IV, at the end of 

paragraph 3 entitled ‘‘Intergovernmental 

Review’’, add the following sentence: 

Please note that, under 34 CFR 

79.8(a), we have shortened the standard 

60-day intergovernmental review period 

in order to make awards by the end of 

Federal FY 2021. 

Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 

772(a)(1). 

Accessible Format: On request to the 

contact person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with 

disabilities can obtain this notice, the 

NIA, and a copy of the application in an 

accessible format. The Department wll 

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, or 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. 

Katherine Neas, 

Acting Assistant Secretary for the Office of 

Special Education and Rehabilitative 

Services. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16013 Filed 7–27–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

[Docket ID ED–2021–OESE–0044] 

Final Priorities and Definitions— 

Education Innovation and Research— 

COVID–19 and Equity 

AGENCY: Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education, Department of 

Education. 

ACTION: Final priorities and definitions. 


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