3556 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 10 / Tuesday, January 16, 2001 / Notices

otherwise regulate the course of this

meeting, to recess, reconvene, postpone

or adjourn the meeting, and otherwise

exercise its authority under the Atomic

Energy Act of 1954, as amended.

Dated: January 10, 2001.

John T. Conway,

Chairman.

[FR Doc. 01–1341 Filed 1–11–01; 2:12 pm]

BILLING CODE 3670–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Notice of Proposed Information

Collection Requests

AGENCY: Department of Education

(DOE).

SUMMARY: The Leader, Regulatory

Information Management Group, Office

of the Chief Information Officer, invites

comments on the proposed information

collection requests as required by the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to

submit comments on or before March

19, 2001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section

3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of

1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35) requires

that the Office of Management and

Budget (OMB) provide interested

Federal agencies and the public an early

opportunity to comment on information

collection requests. OMB may amend or

waive the requirement for public

consultation to the extent that public

participation in the approval process

would defeat the purpose of the

information collection, violate State or

Federal law, or substantially interfere

with any agency’s ability to perform its

statutory obligations. The Leader,

Regulatory Information Management

Group, Office of the Chief Information

Officer, publishes that notice containing

proposed information collection

requests prior to submission of these

requests to OMB. Each proposed

information collection, grouped by

office, contains the following: (1) Type

of review requested, e.g., new, revision,

extension, existing or reinstatement; (2)

Title; (3) Summary of the collection; (4)

Description of the need for, and

proposed use of, the information; (5)

Respondents and frequency of

collection; and (6) Reporting and/or

Recordkeeping burden. OMB invites

public comment. The Department of

Education is especially interested in

public comment addressing the

following issues: (1) Is this collection

necessary to the proper functions of the

Department; (2) will this information be

processed and used in a timely manner;

(3) is the estimate of burden accurate;

(4) how might the Department enhance

the quality, utility, and clarity of the

information to be collected; and (5) how

might the Department minimize the

burden of this collection on the

respondents, including through the use

of information technology.

Dated: January 10, 2001.

John Tressler,

Leader Regulatory Information Management,

Office of the Chief Information Officer.

Office of Education Research and

Improvement

Type of Review: Extension.

Title: Standards for Evaluation of the

Performance of OERI Grants,

Cooperative Agreements, and Contracts.

Frequency: Annually.

Affected Public: State, Local, or Tribal

Gov’t, SEAs or LEAs; Businesses or

other for-profit; Not-for-profit

institutions.

Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour

Burden:

Responses: 1.

Burden Hours: 1.

Abstract: P.L. 103–227 reauthorized

the Office of Educational Research and

Improvement (OERI) and required the

Assistant Secretary to establish

standards for evaluating the

performance of recipients of OERI

grants, cooperative agreements, and

contracts (20 U.S.D. 6011 (I)(2)(B)(ii)).

Requests for copies of the proposed

information collection request may be

accessed from http://edicsweb.ed.gov, or

should be addressed to Vivian Reese,

Department of Education, 400 Maryland

Avenue, SW, Room 4050, Regional

Office Building 3, Washington, DC

20202–4651. Requests may also be

electronically mailed to the internet

address OCIOlIMGlIssues@ed.gov or

faxed to 202–708–9346. Please specify

the complete title of the information

collection when making your request.

Comments regarding burden and/or the

collection activity requirements should

be directed to Kathy Axt at her internet

address KathylAxt@ed.gov.

Individuals who use a

telecommunications device for the deaf

(TDD) may call the Federal Information

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–

8339.

[FR Doc. 01–1245 Filed 1–12–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Submission for OMB Review;

Comment Request

AGENCY: Department of Education.

SUMMARY: The Leader, Regulatory

Information Management Group, Office

of the Chief Information Officer invites

comments on the submission for OMB

review as required by the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to

submit comments on or before February

15, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should

be addressed to the Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs,

Attention: Lauren Wittenberg, Acting

Desk Officer, Department of Education,

Office of Management and Budget, 725

17th Street, NW., Room 10235, New

Executive Office Building, Washington,

DC 20503 or should be electronically

mailed to the internet address

Lauren_Wittenberg@omb.eop.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section

3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of

1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35) requires

that the Office of Management and

Budget (OMB) provide interested

Federal agencies and the public an early

opportunity to comment on information

collection requests. OMB may amend or

waive the requirement for public

consultation to the extent that public

participation in the approval process

would defeat the purpose of the

information collection, violate State or

Federal law, or substantially interfere

with any agency’s ability to perform its

statutory obligations. The Leader,

Regulatory Information Management

Group, Office of the Chief Information

Officer, publishes that notice containing

proposed information collection

requests prior to submission of these

requests to OMB. Each proposed

information collection, grouped by

office, contains the following: (1) Type

of review requested, e.g. new, revision,

extension, existing or reinstatement; (2)

Title; (3) Summary of the collection; (4)

Description of the need for, and

proposed use of, the information; (5)

Respondents and frequency of

collection; and (6) Reporting and/or

Recordkeeping burden. OMB invites

public comment.

Dated: January 10, 2001.

John Tressler,

Leader, Regulatory Information Management,

Office of the Chief Information Officer.

Office of the Undersecretary

Type of Review: New.

Title: Evaluation of the State Grants

Program and Teacher Recruitment

Grants Program of Title II of the Higher

Education Act.

Frequency: Annually.

Affected Public: Individuals or

households; State, Local, or Tribal

Gov’t, SEAs or LEAs.

Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour

Burden:

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 10 / Tuesday, January 16, 2001 / Notices 3557

Responses: 2,200

Burden Hours: 1,000

Abstract: In 1999, the federal

government funded a major effort

toward increasing teacher quality

through the State Grants Program and

Teacher Recruitment Grants Program.

Together, the programs allow states,

institutions of higher education, and/or

local education agencies to increase the

quality of the teacher workforce through

certification reform, recruitment efforts,

alternative certification routes, and

accountability measures. This

evaluation looks at both programs to

determine how federal funds were

spent, what issues arose in

implementing the programs, and the

impact of the programs.

Requests for copies of the proposed

information collection request may be

accessed from http://edicsweb.ed.gov, or

should be addressed to Vivian Reese,

Department of Education, 400 Maryland

Avenue, SW, Room 4050, Regional

Office Building 3, Washington, D.C.

20202–4651. Requests may also be

electronically mailed to the internet

address OCIO_IMG_Issues@ed.gov or

faxed to 202–708–9346. Please specify

the complete title of the information

collection when making your request.

Comments regarding burden and/or the

collection activity requirements should

be directed to Jacqueline Montague at

(202) 708–5359 or via her internet

address Jackie_Montague@ed.gov.

Individuals who use a

telecommunications device for the deaf

(TDD) may call the Federal Information

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–

8339.

[FR Doc. 01–1244 Filed 1–12–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA Nos. 84.339A; 84.339B]

Fund for the Improvement of

Postsecondary Education—Learning

Anytime Anywhere Partnerships

(LAAP) (Preapplications and

Applications) Notice Inviting

Applications for New Awards for Fiscal

Year (FY) 2001.

Purpose of Program: To provide

grants or enter into cooperative

agreements to enhance the delivery,

quality, and accountability of

postsecondary education and careeroriented lifelong learning through

asynchronous distance education.

For fiscal year (FY) 2001, the

Secretary encourages applicants to

design projects that focus on the

invitational priorities set forth in the

invitational priorities section of this

application notice.

Eligible Applicants: Partnerships

consisting of two or more independent

agencies, organizations, or institutions,

including institutions of higher

education, associations, corporations,

community organizations, and other

public and private institutions,

agencies, and organizations.

Note: A nonprofit organization must serve

as the fiscal agent for a funded partnership.

Applications Available: January 16,

2001.

Deadline for Transmittal of

Preapplications: March 15, 2001.

Deadline for Transmittal of

Applications: June 15, 2001.

Note: All applicants must submit a

preapplication to be eligible to submit a final

application.

Deadline for Intergovernmental

Review: August 8, 2001.

Available Funds: $15,500,000.

Note: Federal funds available under this

competition may not pay for more than 50

percent of the cost of a project. Grantees are

required to share project costs by matching

the requested Federal funds dollar for dollar.

The non-Federal share of project costs may

be in cash or in kind, fairly evaluated,

including services, supplies, or equipment.

Estimated Range of Awards: $100,000

to $500,000 per year.

Estimated Size of Awards: $333,333

per year.

Estimated Number of Awards: 30–40.

Note: The Department is not bound by any

estimates in this notice.

Project Period: Up to 36 months.

Applicable Regulations: (a) The

Education Department General

Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in

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

86, 97, 98, and 99.

Authorized Activities

Funds awarded to an eligible

partnership must be used to conduct

one or more of the following activities:

(a) Develop and assess model distance

learning programs or innovative

educational software.

(b) Develop methodologies for the

identification and measurement of skill

competencies.

(c) Develop and assess innovative

student support services.

(d) Support other activities consistent

with the statutory purpose of this

program.

Invitational Priorities

The Secretary is particularly

interested in applications that meet one

or more of the following invitational

priorities. However, an application that

meets one or more of these invitational

priorities does not receive competitive

or absolute preference over other

applications (34 CFR 75.105(c)(1)).

Invitational Priority 1—Projects that

achieve economies of scale by

delivering programs over large

geographic regions covering more

students, faculty and institutions; and

by promoting cost-sharing, resource

sharing, and faculty collaboration across

institutions.

Invitational Priority 2—Projects that

develop high quality, interactive

software that is both modular or

sufficiently flexible for faculty

modification of academic content, as

well as portable for wide-scale

implementation across institutions.

Invitational Priority 3—Projects that

package courses and programs to assist

students in accessing the offerings of

multiple providers and to assist

institutions in cooperating and sharing

resources.

Invitational Priority 4—Projects that

use skill competencies and learning

outcomes to measure student progress

and achievement in asynchronous

distance learning programs.

Invitational Priority 5—Projects that

improve quality and accountability of

asynchronous distance education,

thereby ensuring that credentials are

meaningful, providers are accountable,

and courses meet high standards.

Invitational Priority 6—Projects that

create new asynchronous distance

education opportunities for underserved

learners, especially those who have not

always been well served by traditional

campus-based education or common

forms of distance education, including:

individuals with disabilities;

individuals who have lost their jobs;

individuals making the transition from

welfare to the workforce; and

individuals seeking basic or technical

skills or their first postsecondary

education experience.

Invitational Priority 7—Projects that

improve support services for students

seeking asynchronous distance

education to ensure that they have

complete and convenient access to

needed services such as registration,

financial aid, advising, assessment,

counseling, libraries, and many others.

Invitational Priority 8—Projects that

remove or revise institutional, system,

State, or other policies, which are

barriers to the implementation of new

types of asynchronous distance

education.

Selection Criteria

The Secretary selects from the criteria

in 34 CFR 75.210 to evaluate

preapplications and applications for this

competition. Under 34 CFR 75.201, the