34690 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 128 / Tuesday, July 2, 1996 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Safe and Drug-Free Schools and

Communities Federal Activities Grants

Program (Drug and Violence

Prevention)

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of final priorities for

fiscal year 1996.

SUMMARY: The Secretary announces

priorities for fiscal year (FY) 1996 under

the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and

Communities Federal Activities Grants

Program. The Secretary takes this action

to focus Federal financial assistance on

national needs. Under these priorities,

the Department will fund projects that

develop and implement, expand, or

enhance innovative programs designed

to accomplish one or more of the

following: (1) Infusing research-based

knowledge about ‘‘what works’’ into the

design, development, and

implementation of school-based

strategies to prevent drug use among

youth; (2) removing firearms and other

weapons from schools; (3) preventing

truancy and addressing the needs of

youth who are out of the education

mainstream; or (4) preventing violent,

aggressive, intimidating, or other

disruptive behavior arising out of

bullying, sexual harassment, or other

cause.

EFFECTIVE DATE: These priorities take

effect August 1, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Charlotte Gillespie, U.S. Department of

Education, 600 Independence Avenue,

SW., Room 604 Portals, Washington, DC

20202–6123. Telephone: (202) 260–

3954. Individuals who use a

telecommunications device for the deaf

(TDD) may call the Federal Information

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339

between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern time,

Monday through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

seventh National Education Goal

provides that, by the year 2000, all

schools in America will be free of drugs

and violence and the unauthorized

presence of firearms and alcohol and

will offer a disciplined environment

that is conducive to learning. The State

grant portion of the Safe and Drug-Free

Schools and Communities Act

(SDFSCA) provides funding to 97

percent of school districts in the Nation

to assist them in preventing violence in

and around schools, promoting safety

and discipline for students, and

preventing the illegal use of alcohol,

tobacco, and other drugs. The SDFSCA

Federal Activities Grants Program

supports the development of innovative

programs that (1) Demonstrate effective

new methods of ensuring safe and drugfree schools and communities, and (2)

ultimately will provide models of

proven effective practice that will assist

schools and communities around the

nation to improve their programs under

the SDFSCA.

This notice contains four absolute

priorities and one competitive

preference priority to be applied to this

competition under the Safe and DrugFree Schools and Communities Federal

Activities Grants Program.

Under priority 1, the Department will

fund innovative projects that infuse

research-based knowledge about ‘‘what

works’’ into the design, development,

and implementation of school-based

strategies to prevent drug use among

youth.

Under priority 2, the Department will

fund innovative strategies to remove

firearms and other weapons from

schools. For this competition, a weapon

means a knife, club, or other device

used to inflict intentional injury.

Under priority 3, the Department will

fund innovative, research-based

programs to prevent truancy and

address the needs of youth who are out

of the education mainstream. For this

competition, youth who are out of the

education mainstream means truants,

dropouts, children who are afraid to go

to school, children who have been

suspended or expelled, and children in

the juvenile justice system who need to

maintain or enhance their educational

status and be reintegrated into the

school system upon their release from

residential placement.

Under priority 4, the Department will

fund innovative, research-based

strategies to prevent violent, aggressive,

intimidating, or other disruptive

behavior arising from bullying, sexual

harassment, or other cause.

Under the competitive priority, the

Secretary will award five (5) extra

points to applications from

Empowerment Zones and Enterprise

Communities (EZ/EC). The

Empowerment Zone and Enterprise

Community program is a critical

element of the Administration’s

community revitalization strategy. The

program is the first step in rebuilding

communities in America’s povertystricken inner cities and rural

heartlands. It is designed to empower

people and communities by inspiring

Americans to work together to create

jobs and opportunity.

The Departments of Agriculture

(USDA) and Housing and Urban

Development (HUD) have designated

empowerment zones and enterprise

communities, which are communities

located within the cities and counties

listed in the appendix.

The Empowerment Zones and

Enterprise Communities were

designated based on locally-developed

strategic plans that comprehensively

address how the community will link

economic development with education

and training, as well as how community

development, public safety, human

services, and environmental initiatives

together will support sustainable

communities. Designated areas receive

Federal grant funds and substantial tax

benefits and have access to other

Federal programs. (For additional

information on the Urban EZ/EC

program, contact HUD at 1–800–998–

9999 and for the rural EZ/EC program,

contact USDA at 1–800–645–4712.)

The Secretary will award

approximately 25 grants in FY 1996, for

a period not to exceed two years, to

public and private nonprofit

organizations and individuals to

develop and implement, expand, or

enhance innovative, research-based

programs that address these priorities.

In making awards under this grant

program, the Secretary may take into

consideration the geographic

distribution and diversity of activities

addressed by the projects, in addition to

the rank order of applicants.

Contingent upon the availability of

funds, the Secretary may make

additional awards in fiscal year 1997

from the rank-ordered list of unfunded

applicants from this competition.

Note: This notice of final priorities does

not solicit applications. A notice inviting

applications under this competition is

published in a separate notice in this issue

of the Federal Register.

Applications for this competition

must be received at the address

specified in the notice inviting

applications for this competition no

later than 4:30 p.m. on August 2, 1996.

Applications received after that time

will not be eligible for funding.

Postmarked dates will not be accepted.

Priorities

Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) and the

Safe and Drug-Free Schools and

Communities Act, the Secretary gives an

absolute preference to applications that

meet the following priorities. The

Secretary funds under this competition

only applications that meet one or more

of these absolute priorities.
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 128 / Tuesday, July 2, 1996 / Notices 34691

Absolute Priority 1—Infusing ResearchBased Knowledge About ‘‘What Works’’

Into the Design, Development and

Implementation of School-Based

Strategies to Prevent Drug Use Among

Youth.

Applicants proposing a project under

this priority must—

(1) Describe the activities that will be

implemented and explain how they are

based on research and best practices,

how they will lead to sustained

improvements in student results and the

school environment, and how they will

be cost-effective and replicable;

(2) Identify the age groups to be

served and describe how the proposed

activities are appropriate for the target

population;

(3) Provide evidence of collaboration

between a local educational agency

(LEA) and a research institution in the

design and implementation of activities,

including a description of the roles and

responsibilities of each; and

(4) Identify performance goals for the

project and provide a description of

how progress toward achieving goals

will be measured.

Absolute Priority 2—Removing Firearms

and other Weapons from School

Applicants proposing a project under

this priority must—

(1) Describe the activities that will be

implemented and explain how they are

based on research and best practices,

how they will lead to sustained

improvements in student results and the

school environment, and how they will

be cost-effective and replicable;

(2) Describe techniques the applicant

will use to identify and remove firearms

and other weapons that are brought into

school;

(3) Provide information that

demonstrates the extent to which the

applicant has involved local, State, and/

or Federal law enforcement agencies, as

appropriate, in the development and

implementation of innovative strategies

to prevent firearms and other weapons

from coming into school;

(4) Describe how the applicant will

provide for referrals to the juvenile

justice system of youths who are found

to possess a firearm, consistent with the

provisions of the Gun-Free Schools Act;

and

(5) Identify performance goals for the

project and provide a description of

how progress toward achieving goals

will be measured.

Absolute Priority 3—Preventing Truancy

and Addressing the Needs of Youth

Who are Out of the Education

Mainstream

Applicants proposing a project under

this priority must—

(1) Describe the activities that will be

implemented and explain how they are

based on research and best practices,

how they will lead to sustained

improvements in student results and the

school environment, and how they will

be cost-effective and replicable;

(2) Describe the problem that will be

addressed including an assessment of

the number of students who will benefit

from the project;

(3) Indicate how the activities are

appropriate for returning truant and

other youth who are out of the

education mainstream to the classroom

and ensuring their educational progress;

(4) Provide information on the extent

to which the following will be involved

in the development and implementation

of activities funded by this grant:

parents, students, local law enforcement

officials, including, as appropriate,

juvenile justice authorities, and other

youth-serving organizations in the

community; and

(5) Identify performance goals for the

project and provide a description of

how progress toward achieving goals

will be measured.

Absolute Priority 4: Preventing Violent,

Aggressive, Intimidating or Other

Disruptive Behavior Arising From

Bullying, Sexual Harassment or Other

Cause

Applicants proposing a project under

this priority must—

(1) Describe the activities that will be

implemented and explain how they are

based on research and best practices,

how they will lead to sustained

improvements in student results and the

school environment, and how they will

be cost-effective and replicable;

(2) Describe the behaviors that the

program seeks to correct, including an

assessment of the types and frequency

of violent, aggressive, intimidating, or

other disruptive behavior among youth

to be served;

(3) Identify the child development

framework used to identify appropriate

strategies for intervening in violent,

aggressive, intimidating, or other

disruptive behavior;

(4) Provide information on the extent

to which educators, law enforcement

officials, parents, and students have

been involved in the development and

implementation of interventions for

youths who engage in violent,

aggressive, intimidating, or other

disruptive behaviors and for youths who

are victims of such behaviors; and

(5) Identify performance goals for the

project and provide a description of

how progress toward achieving goals

will be measured.

Competitive Preference Priority—

Empowerment Zone or Enterprise

Community

Within the absolute priorities

specified in this notice, the Secretary,

under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) and the

Safe and Drug-Free Schools and

Communities Act, gives preference to

applications that meet the following

competitive priority. The Secretary

awards five (5) points to an application

that meets this competitive priority.

These points would be in addition to

any points the application earns under

the evaluation criteria for the program.

Note: The total number of points an

application may earn is 105:

Projects in an Empowerment Zone or

Enterprise Community

In order to meet the competitive

preference priority, applicants must—

(1) Propose projects that meet one or

more of the four absolute priorities for

this competition;

(2) Demonstrate that the project will

be carried out in an Empowerment Zone

(EZ) or Enterprise Community (EC)

designated in accordance with Section

1391 of the Internal Revenue Code

(IRC), as amended by Title XIII of the

Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act

(OBRA) of 1993 or that it will primarily

serve students who reside in an EZ or

EC; and

(3) Describe how the proposed project

is linked to the EZ/EC strategic plan and

will be an integral part of the

Empowerment Zone or Enterprise

Community Program.

Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking

In accordance with the

Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C.

553), it is the practice of the Department

to offer interested parties the

opportunity to comment on proposed

rules. Ordinarily, this practice would

have applied to the rules in this notice.

However, the Secretary waives

rulemaking under section 553(b)(B) of

the Administrative Procedures Act. This

section provides that rulemaking is not

required when the agency for good

cause finds that notice and public

procedure are impracticable,

unnecessary, or contrary to the public

interest. The Secretary believes that, in

order to make timely grant awards using

Fiscal Year (FY) 1996 funds, public

comment on those rules is

impracticable. Congress did not
34692 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 128 / Tuesday, July 2, 1996 / Notices

appropriate FY 1996 funds for this

program until April 26, 1996. The

Secretary must make new awards no

later than September 30, 1996.

Moreover, the Safe and Drug-Free

Schools and Communities National

Programs statute is designed to address

emergency needs in drug and violence

prevention. Programs need to be

implemented as early as possible in the

1996–97 school year. Due to the delay

in the appropriation of FY 1996 funds,

it is now impracticable to receive public

comments and still allow FY 1996

awards to be made by September 30,

1996.

Intergovernmental Review

This program is subject to the

requirements of Executive Order 12372

(Intergovernmental Review of Federal

Programs) and the regulations in 34 CFR

Part 79.

The objective of the Executive order is

to foster an intergovernmental

partnership and to strengthen

federalism by relying on processes

developed by State and local

governments for coordination and

review of proposed Federal financial

assistance.

In accordance with the order, this

document is intended to provide early

notification of the Department’s specific

plans and actions for this program.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7131.

Dated: June 26, 1996.

Gerald N. Tirozzi,

Assistant Secretary for Elementary and

Secondary Education.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Number 84.184D Safe and Drug-Free

Schools and Communities Act Federal

Activities Grants Program)

Appendix—Empowerment Zones and

Enterprise Communities

Empowerment Zones (EZ)

Georgia: Atlanta

Illinois: Chicago

Kentucky: Kentucky Highlands*

Maryland: Baltimore

Michigan: Detroit

Mississippi: Mid Delta*

New York: Harlem, Bronx

Pennsylvania/New Jersey: Philadelphia,

Camden

Texas: Rio Grande Valley*

Supplemental Empowerment Zones (SEZ)

California: Los Angeles

Ohio: Cleveland

Enterprise Communities (EC)

Alabama: Birmingham

Alabama: Chambers County*

Alabama: Greene, Sumter Counties*

Arizona: Phoenix

Arizona: Arizona Border*

Arkansas: East Central*

Arkansas: Mississippi County*

Arkansas: Pulaski County

California: Imperial County*

California: Los Angeles, Huntington Park

California: San Diego

California: San Francisco, Bayview, Hunter’s

Point

California: Watsonville*

Colorado: Denver

Connecticut: Bridgeport

Connecticut: New Haven

Delaware: Wilmington

District of Columbia: Washington

Florida: Jackson County*

Florida: Tampa

Florida: Miami, Dade County

Georgia: Albany

Georgia: Central Savannah*

Georgia: Crisp, Dooley Counties*

Illinois: East St. Louis

Illinois: Springfield

Indiana: Indianapolis

Iowa: Des Moines

Kentucky: Louisville

Louisiana: Northeast Delta*

Louisiana: Macon Ridge*

Louisiana: New Orleans

Louisiana: Ouachita Parish

Massachusetts: Lowell

Massachusetts: Springfield

Michigan: Five Cap*

Michigan: Flint

Michigan: Muskegon

Minnesota: Minneapolis

Minnesota: St. Paul

Mississippi: Jackson

Mississippi: North Delta*

Missouri: East Prairie*

Missouri: St. Louis

Nebraska: Omaha

Nevada: Clarke County, Las Vegas

New Hampshire: Manchester

New Jersey: Newark

New Mexico: Albuquerque

New Mexico: Moro, Rico Arriba, Taos

Counties*

New York: Albany, Schenectady, Troy

New York: Buffalo

New York: Newburgh, Kingston

New York: Rochester

North Carolina: Charlotte

North Carolina: Halifax, Edgecombe, Wilson

Counties*

North Carolina: Robeson County*

Ohio: Akron

Ohio: Columbus

Ohio: Greater Portsmouth*

Oklahoma: Choctaw, McCurtain Counties*

Oklahoma: Oklahoma City

Oregon: Josephine*

Oregon: Portland

Pennsylvania: Harrisburg

Pennsylvania: Lock Haven*

Pennsylvania: Pittsburg

Rhode Island: Providence

South Carolina: Charleston

South Carolina: Williamsburg County*

South Dakota: Beadle, Spink Counties*

Tennessee: Fayette, Haywood Counties*

Tennessee: Memphis

Tennessee: Nashville

Tennessee/Kentucky: Scott, McCreary

Counties*

Texas: Dallas

Texas: El Paso

Texas: San Antonio

Texas: Watch

Utah: Ogden

Vermont: Burlington

Virginia: Accomack*

Virginia: Norfolk

Washington: Lower Yakima*

Washington: Seattle

Washington: Tacoma

West Virginia: West Central*

West Virginia: Huntington

West Virginia: McDowell*

Wisconsin: Milwaukee

*Denotes rural designee.

Enhanced Enterprise Communities (EEC)

California: Oakland

Massachusetts: Boston

Missouri/Kansas: Kansas City, Kansas City

Texas: Houston

[FR Doc. 96–16837 Filed 6–28–96; 9:01 am]

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P

[CFDA No.: 84.184D]

Safe and Drug-Free Schools and

Communities Federal Activities Grants

Program (Drug and Violence

Prevention); Notice Inviting

Applications for New Awards for Fiscal

Year (FY) 1996

Note to Applicants

This notice is a complete application

package. Together with the statute

authorizing the program and applicable

regulations governing the program,

including the Education Department

General Administrative Regulations

(EDGAR), the notice contains all of the

information, application forms, and

instructions needed to apply for a grant

under this competition.

Purpose of Program

To fund projects that develop and

implement, expand, or enhance

innovative programs designed to

accomplish one or more of the

following: (1) infuse research-based

knowledge about ‘‘what works’’ into the

design, development, and

implementation of school-based

strategies to prevent drug use among

youth; (2) remove firearms and other

weapons from schools; (3) prevent

truancy and address the needs of youth

who are out of the education

mainstream, or (4) prevent violent,

aggressive, intimidating, or other

disruptive behavior arising out of

bullying, sexual harassment, or other

cause.

Eligible Applicants: Public and

private nonprofit organizations and

individuals.

Deadline for Transmittal of

Applications: August 2, 1996.

Deadline for Intergovernmental

Review: September 2, 1996.

Available Funds: $10,000,000.