Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 81 / Wednesday, April 27, 2022 / Notices 24977 

Authority: Public Law 107–279, Title 

III—National Assessment of Educational 

Progress § 301. 

Munira Mwalimu, 

Executive Officer, National Assessment 

Governing Board (NAGB), U.S. Department 

of Education. 

[FR Doc. 2022–09001 Filed 4–26–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–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) 2022 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: April 29, 

2022. 

Deadline for Notice of Intent to Apply: 

May 27, 2022. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: July 21, 2022. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: September 21, 2022. 

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-2022- 

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 December 27, 2021 

(86 FR 73264), and available at 

www.federalregister.gov/d/2021-27979. 

Please note that these Common 

Instructions supersede the version 

published on February 13, 2019, and, in 

part, describe the transition from the 

requirement to register in SAM.gov a 

Data Universal Numbering System 

(DUNS) number to the implementation 

of the Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). 

More information on the phaseout of 

DUNS numbers is available at 

www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ofo/ 

docs/unique-entity-identifier-transitionfact-sheet.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 to 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 

higher numbers of students. 

The central design element of the EIR 

program is its multitier 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.’’ 

‘‘Early-phase,’’ ‘‘Mid-phase,’’ and 

‘‘Expansion’’ 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). 

Early-phase grants provide funding for 

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. Early-phase grants 

are not intended simply to implement 

established practices in additional 

locations or address needs that are 

unique to one particular context. The 

goal is to determine whether and in 

what ways relatively new practices can 

improve student achievement and 

attainment for high-need students. 

This notice invites applications for 

Early-phase grants only. The notices 

inviting applications for Mid-phase and 

Expansion grants are published 

elsewhere in this issue of the Federal 

Register. 

Background 

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

program is that new and innovative 

educational programs and practices can 

help to overcome the persistent and 

significant challenges to student 

success, particularly for underserved 

and high-need students. 

Note: The EIR program statute refers 

to ‘‘high-need students’’ but allows 

applicants to define the term as it relates 

to the proposed project, population, and 

setting. In addressing the needs of 

underserved students, the statutory 

requirement for serving ‘‘high-need 

students’’ can also be addressed. 

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 increase the 

likelihood that the practices can be 

widely, efficiently, and effectively 

implemented in new populations and 

settings. 

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. To meet the 

required evidence level, applicants must 

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 


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technical assistance in their 

dissemination, scaling, and 

sustainability efforts. 

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 

should have the potential to 

demonstrate a statistically significant 

effect on improving student outcomes or 

other relevant outcomes (as defined in 

this notice) based on moderate evidence 

(as defined in this notice) from at least 

one well-designed and wellimplemented experimental or quasiexperimental 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 2022 Early-phase competition 

includes four absolute priorities and 

two 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 have the option of 

addressing one or both competitive 

preference priorities and may opt to do 

so regardless of the absolute priority 

they select. 

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 

demonstrates a rationale (as defined in 

this notice). 

Absolute Priority 2—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—General allows applicants 

to propose projects that align with the 

purpose of the EIR program: To create 

and take to scale entrepreneurial, 

evidence-based, field-initiated 

innovations to improve student 

achievement and attainment. 

Absolute Priority 3—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—Promoting Equity in 

Student Access to Educational 

Resources and Opportunities is 

intended to support innovations to 

improve student achievement and 

attainment in the science, technology, 

engineering, or mathematics (STEM) 

education field, consistent with efforts 

to ensure our Nation’s economic 

competitiveness by improving and 

expanding STEM learning and 

engagement. 

In Absolute Priority 3, the Department 

recognizes the importance of funding 

prekindergarten (Pre-K) through grade 

12 STEM education and anticipates that 

projects would expand opportunities for 

high-need students. Within this absolute 

priority, applicants may focus on 

expanding opportunities in computer 

science for underrepresented students, 

such as students of color, girls, English 

learners, students with disabilities, 

youth from rural communities, and 

youth from families living at or below 

the poverty line, to help reduce the 

enrollment and achievement gaps in a 

manner consistent with 

nondiscrimination requirements 

contained in Federal civil rights laws. 

Absolute Priority 4—Field-Initiated 

Innovations—Meeting Student Social, 

Emotional, and Academic Needs is 

intended to promote high-quality social 

and emotional learning projects. 

Countless students have been exposed 

to trauma and disruptions in learning 

and have experienced disengagement 

from school and peers, negatively 

impacting their mental health and 

wellbeing. It is critical to provide 

support for students’ social and 

emotional needs, not only to benefit 

student wellbeing, but also to support 

their academic success as student social, 

emotional, and academic development 

are interconnected. 

Competitive Preference Priority 1 is 

intended to encourage applicants to 

propose projects that promote equity 

and adequacy in educational 

opportunity and outcomes. 

Competitive Preference Priority 2 

reflects the Administration’s ongoing 

commitment to addressing the impact of 

the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID–19) 

on Pre-K- grade 12 education. COVID– 

19 has caused unprecedented disruption 

in schools across the country and drawn 

renewed attention to the ongoing 

challenges for underserved students. In 

response to the pandemic, educators 

have mobilized and continue to work 

hard to address the needs of all 

students. Researchers, educators, 

parents, and policymakers are working 

to understand and address the impact of 

inconsistent access to instruction, 

enrichment, peers, and services and 

supports, and the impact of other 

related challenges. 

We also know that for students in 

underserved communities, inequities in 

educational opportunity and outcomes 

existed prior to COVID–19. Those 

inequities have only been exacerbated 

by COVID–19. The impact of the 

COVID–19 pandemic changed the 

education landscape for the foreseeable 

future, especially as students continue 

to make up for lost classroom 

instruction. However, it also provides 

an opportunity to redesign how schools 

approach teaching and learning in ways 

that both address long-standing gaps in 

educational opportunity and better 

prepare students for college and careers. 

The Department seeks projects that 

develop and evaluate evidence-based, 

field-initiated innovations to remedy the 

inequities in our country’s education 

system. The proposed innovations 

should be designed to better enable 

students to access the educational 

opportunities they need to succeed in 

school and reach their full potential. 

Through these priorities, the 

Department intends to advance 

innovation, build evidence, and address 

the learning and achievement of 

underserved and high-need students in 

Pre-K through grade 12. 

Priorities: This notice includes four 

absolute priorities and two 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 

December 10, 2021 (86 FR 70612) 

(Supplemental Priorities). The 

competitive preference priorities are 

from the Supplemental Priorities. 


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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), it must submit separate applications. 

Absolute Priorities: For FY 2022 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 Equity in 

Student Access to Educational 

Resources and Opportunities: STEM. 

Projects that are designed to— 

(a) Create, develop, implement, 

replicate, or take to scale 

entrepreneurial, evidence-based, fieldinitiated innovations to improve student 

achievement and attainment for highneed students; and 

(b) Promote educational equity and 

adequacy in resources and opportunity 

for underserved students— 

(1) In one or more of the following 

educational settings: 

(i) Early learning programs. 

(ii) Elementary school. 

(iii) Middle school. 

(iv) High school. 

(v) Career and technical education 

programs. 

(vi) Out-of-school-time settings. 

(vii) Alternative schools and 

programs. 

(viii) Juvenile justice system or 

correctional facilities; (2) That examine 

the sources of inequity and inadequacy 

and implement responses, including 

rigorous, engaging, and well-rounded 

(e.g., that include music and the arts) 

approaches to learning that are inclusive 

with regard to race, ethnicity, culture, 

language, and disability status and 

prepare students for college, career, and 

civic life, including science, technology, 

engineering, and mathematics (STEM), 

including computer science coursework. 

Absolute Priority 4—Field-Initiated 

Innovations— Meeting Student Social, 

Emotional, and Academic Needs. 

Projects that are designed to— 

(a) Create, develop, implement, 

replicate, or take to scale 

entrepreneurial, evidence-based, fieldinitiated innovations to improve student 

achievement and attainment for highneed students; and 

(b) Improve students’ social, 

emotional, academic, and career 

development, with a focus on 

underserved students, through one or 

more of the following priority areas: 

(1) Developing and supporting 

educator and school capacity to support 

social and emotional learning and 

development that— 

(i) Fosters skills and behaviors that 

enable academic progress; 

(ii) Identifies and addresses 

conditions in the learning environment, 

that may negatively impact social and 

emotional well-being for underserved 

students, including conditions that 

affect physical safety; and 

(iii) Is trauma-informed, such as 

addressing exposure to communitybased violence and trauma specific to 

military- or veteran-connected students 

(as defined in this notice). 

(2) Creating education or work-based 

settings that are supportive, positive, 

identity-safe and inclusive with regard 

to race, ethnicity, culture, language, and 

disability status, through one or more of 

the following activities: 

(i) Developing trusting relationships 

between students (including 

underserved students), educators, 

families, and community partners. 

(ii) Providing high-quality 

professional development opportunities 

designed to increase engagement and 

belonging and build asset-based 

mindsets for educators working in and 

throughout schools. 

(iii) Engaging students (including 

underserved students), educators, 

families, and community partners from 

diverse backgrounds and representative 

of the community as partners in school 

climate review and improvement efforts. 

(iv) Developing and implementing 

inclusive and culturally informed 

discipline policies and addressing 

disparities in school discipline policy 

by identifying and addressing the root 

causes of those disparities, including by 

involving educators, students, and 

families in decision-making about 

discipline procedures and providing 

training and resources to educators. 

(v) Supporting students to engage in 

real-world, hands-on learning that is 

aligned with classroom instruction and 

takes place in community-based 

settings, such as apprenticeships, preapprenticeships, work-based learning, 

and service learning, and in civic 

activities, that allow students to apply 

their knowledge and skills, strengthen 

their employability skills, and access 

career exploration opportunities. 

(3) Providing multi-tiered systems of 

supports that address learning barriers 

both in and out of the classroom, that 

enable healthy development and 

respond to students’ needs and which 

may include evidence-based traumainformed practices and professional 

development for educators on avoiding 

deficit-based approaches. 

(4) Developing or implementing 

policies and practices, consistent with 

applicable Federal law, that prevent or 

reduce significant disproportionality on 

the basis of race or ethnicity with 

respect to the identification, placement, 

and disciplining of children or students 

with disabilities (as defined in this 

notice). 

(5) Providing students equitable 

access that is inclusive, with regard to 

race, LGBTQI+, ethnicity, culture, 

language, and disability status, to social 

workers, psychologists, counselors, 

nurses, or mental health professionals 

and other integrated services and 

supports, which may include in early 

learning environments. 

(6) Preparing educators to implement 

project-based or experiential learning 

opportunities for students to strengthen 

their metacognitive skills, self-direction, 

self-efficacy, competency, or motivation, 

including through instruction that: 

Connects to students’ prior knowledge 

and experience; provides rich, engaging, 

complex, and motivating tasks; and 

offers opportunities for collaborative 

learning. 

(7) Creating and implementing 

comprehensive schoolwide frameworks 

(such as small schools or learning 

communities, advisory systems, or 

looping educators) that support strong 

and consistent student and educator 

relationships. 

(8) Fostering partnerships, including 

across government agencies (e.g., 

housing, human services, employment 

agencies), local educational agencies, 

community-based organizations, adult 

learning providers, and postsecondary 

education intuitions, to provide 

comprehensive services to students and 

families that support students’ social, 


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emotional, mental health, and academic 

needs, and that are inclusive with 

regard to race, ethnicity, culture, 

language, and disability status. 

Competitive Preference Priorities: For 

FY 2022 and any subsequent year in 

which we make awards from the list of 

unfunded applications from this 

competition, these priorities are 

competitive preference priorities. Under 

34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), we award up to 

an additional 6 points to an application, 

depending on how well the application 

addresses the competitive preference 

priorities. 

If an applicant chooses to address one 

or both competitive preference 

priorities, the applicant must identify in 

the project narrative section of its 

application its response to the 

competitive preference priorities it 

chooses to address. 

These priorities are: 

Competitive Preference Priority 1— 

Promoting Equity in Student Access to 

Educational Resources and 

Opportunities (up to 3 points). 

Projects designed to promote 

educational equity and adequacy in 

resources and opportunity for 

underserved students in middle school 

or high school that examine the sources 

of inequity and inadequacy and 

implement responses, including 

rigorous, engaging, and well-rounded 

(e.g., that include music and the arts) 

approaches to learning that are inclusive 

with regard to race, ethnicity, culture, 

language, and disability status and 

prepare students for college, career, and 

civic life, including one or more of the 

following: 

(a) Student-centered learning models 

that may leverage technology to address 

learner variability (e.g., universal design 

for learning (as defined in this notice), 

K–12 competency-based education (as 

defined in this notice), project-based 

learning, or hybrid/blended learning) 

and provide high-quality learning 

content, applications, or tools. 

(b) Middle school courses or projects 

that prepare students to participate in 

advanced coursework in high school. 

(c) Advanced courses and programs, 

including dual enrollment and early 

college programs. 

(d) Project-based and experiential 

learning, including service and workbased learning. 

(e) High-quality career and technical 

education courses, pathways, and 

industry-recognized credentials that are 

integrated into the curriculum. 

Competitive Preference Priority 2— 

Addressing the Impact of COVID–19 on 

Students, Educators, and Faculty (up to 

3 points). 

Projects that are designed to address 

the impacts of the COVID–19 pandemic, 

including impacts that extend beyond 

the duration of the pandemic itself, on 

the students most impacted by the 

pandemic, with a focus on underserved 

students and the educators who serve 

them through— 

(a) Conducting community assetmapping and needs assessments that 

may include an assessment of the extent 

to which students, including subgroups 

of students, have become disengaged 

from learning, including students not 

participating in in-person or remote 

instruction, and specific strategies for 

reengaging and supporting students and 

their families; and 

(b) Using evidence-based instructional 

approaches and supports, such as 

professional development, coaching, 

ongoing support for educators, high 

quality tutoring, expanded access to 

rigorous coursework and content across 

K–12, and expanded learning time to 

accelerate learning for students in ways 

that ensure all students have the 

opportunity to successfully meet 

challenging academic content standards 

without contributing to tracking or 

remedial courses. 

Definitions: The definitions of 

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

‘‘evidence-based,’’ ‘‘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,’’ ‘‘competency-based 

education,’’ ‘‘disconnected youth,’’ 

‘‘early learning,’’ ‘‘educator,’’ ‘‘English 

learner,’’ ‘‘military- or veteranconnected student,’’ ‘‘underserved 

students,’’ and ‘‘universal design for 

learning’’ are from the Supplemental 

Priorities. The definitions of ‘‘local 

educational agency’’ and ‘‘State 

educational agency’’ are from section 

8101 of the ESEA. 

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 section 602(3) of the 

Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act (IDEA) (20 U.S.C. 1401(3)) and 34 

CFR 300.8, or students with disabilities, 

as defined in the Rehabilitation Act of 

1973 (29 U.S.C. 705(37), 705(202)(B)). 

Competency-based education (also 

called proficiency-based or masterybased learning) means learning based on 

knowledge and skills that are 

transparent and measurable. Progression 

is based on demonstrated mastery of 

what students are expected to know 

(knowledge) and be able to do (skills), 

rather than seat time or age. 

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. 

Disconnected youth means an 

individual, between the ages 14 and 24, 

who may be from a low-income 

background, experiences homelessness, 

is in foster care, is involved in the 

justice system, or is not working or not 

enrolled in (or at risk of dropping out of) 

an educational institution. 

Early learning means any (a) Statelicensed or State-regulated program or 

provider, regardless of setting or 

funding source, that provides early care 

and education for children from birth to 

kindergarten entry, including, but not 

limited to, any program operated by a 

child care center or in a family child 

care home; (b) program funded by the 

Federal Government or State or local 

educational agencies (including any 

IDEA-funded program); (c) Early Head 

Start and Head Start program; (d) 

nonrelative child care provider who is 

not otherwise regulated by the State and 

who regularly cares for two or more 

unrelated children for a fee in a 

provider setting; and (e) other program 

that may deliver early learning and 

development services in a child’s home, 

such as the Maternal, Infant, and Early 

Childhood Home Visiting Program; 

Early Head Start; and Part C of IDEA. 

Educator means an individual who is 

an early learning educator, teacher, 

principal or other school leader, 

specialized instructional support 

personnel (e.g., school psychologist, 

counselor, school social worker, early 

intervention service personnel), 

paraprofessional, or faculty. 

English learner means an individual 

who is an English learner as defined in 

section 8101(20) of the ESEA, or an 

individual who is an English language 

learner as defined in section 203(7) of 

the Workforce Innovation and 

Opportunity Act. 

Evidence-based means the proposed 

project component is supported by one 

or more of strong evidence, moderate 

evidence, promising evidence, or 

evidence that demonstrates a rationale. 

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 


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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 (as defined in this 

notice): 

(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. 

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. 

(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. 

Military- or veteran-connected student 

means one or more of the following: 

(a) A child participating in an early 

learning program, a student enrolled in 

preschool through grade 12, or a student 

enrolled in career and technical 

education or postsecondary education 

who has a parent or guardian who is a 

member of the uniformed services (as 

defined by 37 U.S.C. 101), in the Army, 

Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast 

Guard, Space Force, National Guard, 

Reserves, National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration, or Public 

Health Service or is a veteran of the 

uniformed services with an honorable 

discharge (as defined by 38 U.S.C. 

3311). 

(b) A student who is a member of the 

uniformed services, a veteran of the 

uniformed services, or the spouse of a 

service member or veteran. 

(c) A child participating in an early 

learning program, a student enrolled in 

preschool through grade 12, or a student 

enrolled in career and technical 

education or postsecondary education 

who has a parent or guardian who is a 

veteran of the uniformed services (as 

defined by 37 U.S.C. 101). 

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 (as 

defined in this notice) or quasiexperimental 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. 

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. 

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 


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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. 

State educational agency (SEA) 

means the agency primarily responsible 

for the State supervision of public 

elementary schools and secondary 

schools. 

Underserved student means a student 

(which may include children in early 

learning environments, students in K– 

12 programs, and students in 

postsecondary education or career and 

technical education, as appropriate) in 

one or more of the following subgroups: 

(a) A student who is living in poverty 

or is served by schools with high 

concentrations of students living in 

poverty. 

(b) A student of color. 

(c) A student who is a member of a 

federally recognized Indian Tribe. 

(d) An English learner. 

(e) A child or student with a 

disability. 

(f) A disconnected youth. 

(g) A technologically unconnected 

youth. 

(h) A migrant student. 

(i) A student experiencing 

homelessness or housing insecurity. 

(j) A lesbian, gay, bisexual, 

transgender, queer or questioning, or 

intersex (LGBTQI+) student. 

(k) A student who is in foster care. 

(l) A student without documentation 

of immigration status. 

(m) A pregnant, parenting, or 

caregiving student. 

(n) A student impacted by the justice 

system, including a formerly 

incarcerated student. 

(o) A student who is the first in their 

family to attend postsecondary 

education. 

(p) A student performing significantly 

below grade level. 

(q) A military- or veteran-connected 

student. 

Universal design for learning has the 

meaning ascribed it in section 103(24) of 

the Higher Education Act of 1965, as 

amended. 

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 

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. 

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: 

$159,400,000. 

These estimated available funds are 

the total available for new awards for all 

three types of grants under the EIR 

program (Early-phase, 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 new 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: 11–20. 

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. 

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 


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(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 the 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 submitted by 

an LEA, SEA, BIE, consortium of SEAs 

or LEAs, or a nonprofit organization. A 

private IHE that is a nonprofit 

organization may apply for an EIR grant. 

A nonprofit organization, such as a 

development foundation, that is 

affiliated with a public IHE may apply 

for a grant. A public IHE that has 

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

nonprofit organization and may apply 

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 of 

nonprofit status described in 34 CFR 

75.51(b), however, would not qualify as 

a nonprofit organization, and therefore 

would not be eligible to apply for and 

receive an EIR grant. 

2. a. 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 

provide evidence of their matching 

contributions for the first year of the 

grant in their grant applications. 

Section 4611(d) of the ESEA 

authorizes the Secretary to waive the 

matching requirement on a case-by-case 

basis, upon a showing of exceptional 

circumstances, such as: 

(i) The difficulty of raising matching 

funds for a program to serve a rural area; 

(ii) 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— 

(A) Who are in poverty, as counted in 

the most recent census data approved by 

the Secretary; 

(B) 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.); 

(C) 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 

(D) Who are eligible to receive 

medical assistance under the Medicaid 

program; and 

(iii) 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. 

b. Indirect Cost Rate Information: This 

program uses an unrestricted indirect 

cost rate. For more information 

regarding indirect costs, or to obtain a 

negotiated indirect cost rate, please see 

www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocfo/ 

intro.html. 

c. Administrative Cost Limitation: 

This program does not include any 

program-specific limitation on 

administrative expenses. All 

administrative expenses must be 

reasonable and necessary and conform 

to Cost Principles described in 2 CFR 

part 200 subpart E of the Uniform 

Guidance. 

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 

December 27, 2021 (86 FR 73264) and 

available at www.federalregister.gov/d/ 

2021-27979, which contain 

requirements and information on how to 

submit an application. Please note that 

these Common Instructions supersede 

the version published on February 13, 

2019, and, in part, describe the 

transition from the requirement to 

register in SAM.gov a DUNS number to 

the implementation of the UEI. More 

information on the phase-out of DUNS 

numbers is available at www2.ed.gov/ 

about/offices/list/ofo/docs/uniqueentity-identifier-transition-factsheet.pdf. 

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 


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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/fy-2022- 

competition/. 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 extent to which the 

proposed project involves the 

development or demonstration of 

promising new strategies that build on, 

or are alternatives to, existing strategies. 

(20 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. (10 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. (15 points) 

C. Quality of Project Personnel (up to 

10 points). 

The Secretary considers the quality of 

the personnel who will carry out the 

proposed project. In determining the 

quality of project personnel, the 

Secretary considers the extent to which 

the applicant encourages applications 

for employment from persons who are 

members of groups that have 

traditionally been underrepresented 

based on race, color, national origin, 

gender, age, or disability. In addition, 

the Secretary considers the 

qualifications, including relevant 

training and experience, of key project 

personnel. (10 points) 

D. Quality of the Management Plan 

(up to 10 points). 

The Secretary considers the quality of 

the management plan for the proposed 

project. In determining the quality of the 

management plan, the Secretary 

considers 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) 

E. Quality of the Project Evaluation 

(up to 30 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). (20 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 extent to which the evaluation 

plan clearly articulates the key project 

components, mediators, and outcomes, 

as well as a measurable threshold for 

acceptable implementation. (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: https://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 


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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); 

(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 Earlyphase 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: For the 

purpose of Department reporting under 

34 CFR 75.110, the Department has 

established a set of performance 

measures (as defined in this notice) for 

the Early-phase grants. 


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24986 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 81 / Wednesday, April 27, 2022 / Notices 

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 designed to provide 

performance feedback to inform project 

design; (4) the percentage of grantees 

with ongoing well-designed and 

independent evaluations that will 

provide evidence of their effectiveness 

at improving student outcomes; (5) the 

percentage of grantees that implement 

an evaluation that provides information 

about the key elements and the 

approach of the project so as to facilitate 

testing, development, or replication in 

other settings; 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 use 

evaluation data to make changes to their 

practice(s); (4) the percentage of 

grantees that implement a completed 

well-designed, well-implemented, and 

independent evaluation that provides 

evidence of their effectiveness at 

improving student outcomes; (5) the 

percentage of grantees with a completed 

evaluation that provides information 

about the key elements and the 

approach of the project so as to facilitate 

testing, development, or replication in 

other settings; 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 

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. 

Ruth E. Ryder, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and 

Programs, Office of Elementary and 

Secondary Education. 

[FR Doc. 2022–09084 Filed 4–26–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Applications for New Awards; 

Education Innovation and Research 

(EIR) Program—Expansion 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) 2022 for 

the EIR program—Expansion Grants, 

Assistance Listing Number 84.411A 

(Expansion Grants). This notice relates 

to the approved information collection 

under OMB control number 1894–0006. 

DATES: 

Applications Available: April 29, 

2022. 

Deadline for Notice of Intent to Apply: 

May 27, 2022. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: June 21, 2022. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: August 22, 2022. 

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-2022- 

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 


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