36474 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 140 / Thursday, July 23, 2009 / Notices 

VIII. Other Information 

Accessible Format: Individuals with 

disabilities can obtain this document 

and a copy of the application package in 

an accessible format (e.g., braille, large 

print, audiotape, or computer diskette) 

by contacting the Grants and Contracts 

Services Team, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., 

Room 5075, PCP, Washington, DC 

20202–2550. Telephone: (202) 245– 

7363. If you use a TDD, call the FRS, toll 

free, at 1–800–877–8339. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

You can view this document, as well as 

all other documents of this Department 

published in the Federal Register, in 

text or Adobe Portable Document 

Format (PDF) on the Internet at the 

following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/ 

fedregister. 

To use PDF you must have Adobe 

Acrobat Reader, which is available free 

at this site. If you have questions about 

using PDF, call the U.S. Government 

Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1– 

888–293–6498; or in the Washington, 

DC, area at (202) 512–1530. 

Note: The official version of this document 

is the document published in the Federal 

Register. Free Internet access to the official 

edition of the Federal Register and the Code 

of Federal Regulations is available on GPO 

Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/ 

index.html. 

Delegation of Authority: The Secretary 

of Education has delegated authority to 

Andrew J. Pepin, Executive 

Administrator for the Office of Special 

Education and Rehabilitative Services to 

perform the functions of the Assistant 

Secretary for Special Education and 

Rehabilitative Services. 

Dated: July 17, 2009. 

Andrew J. Pepin, 

Executive Administrator for Special 

Education and Rehabilitative Services. 

[FR Doc. E9–17552 Filed 7–22–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Office of Special Education and 

Rehabilitative Services; Overview 

Information; Personnel Development 

To Improve Services and Results for 

Children With Disabilities—Leadership 

Preparation in Sensory Disabilities; 

Notice Inviting Applications for New 

Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

(CFDA) Number: 84.325V. 

DATES: 

Applications Available: July 23, 2009. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: August 24, 2009. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: September 1, 2009. 

Full Text of Announcement 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Purpose of Program: The purposes of 

this program are to (1) help address 

State-identified needs for highly 

qualified personnel—in special 

education, related services, early 

intervention, and regular education—to 

work with infants, toddlers, and 

children with disabilities; and (2) 

ensure that those personnel have the 

necessary skills and knowledge, derived 

from practices that have been 

determined through scientifically based 

research and experience, to be 

successful in serving those children. 

Priority: In accordance with 34 CFR 

75.105(b)(2)(v), this priority is from 

allowable activities specified in the 

statute or otherwise authorized in the 

statute (see sections 662 and 681 of the 

Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act (IDEA) (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.)). 

Absolute Priority: For FY 2009 and 

any subsequent year in which we make 

awards based on the list of unfunded 

applicants from this competition, this 

priority is an absolute priority. Under 34 

CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only 

applications that meet this priority. 

This priority is: 

Personnel Development to Improve 

Services and Results for Children with 

Disabilities—Leadership Preparation in 

Sensory Disabilities (84.325V). 

Background: During the ten-year 

period between 1996 and 2006 there 

was little change in the number of 

doctorates awarded annually in special 

education. The numbers ranged from a 

high of 288 doctorates awarded in 2004 

to a low of 213 doctorates awarded in 

2002; 237 doctorates were awarded in 

special education in 2006, the most 

recent year reported (Hoffer, Hess, 

Welch, & Williams, 2007). As a general 

matter, this number of doctoral 

graduates is insufficient to fill current 

and anticipated future vacancies for 

special education faculty at institutions 

of higher education (IHEs), special 

education teachers, and special 

education leaders at State and local 

public agencies. (Smith, Pion, & Tyler, 

2004; Smith, Pion, Tyler, Sindelar, & 

Rosenberg, 2001; Wasburn-Moses & 

Therrien, 2008). 

The lack of doctoral graduates in 

special education is even more acute in 

the area of sensory disabilities (e.g., deaf 

and hard-of-hearing, visual impairments 

and blindness, and deaf-blindness). 

These specialties have an immediate 

and critical need for doctoral-level 

personnel (Dilka, Haydon, & Mertens, 

2007; Huebner, Merk-Adam, Stryker, & 

Wolfe, 2004; Johnson, 2003). ‘‘The 

Study of Special Education Leadership 

Personnel: With Particular Attention to 

the Professoriate’’ (Smith, Pion, Tyler, 

Sindelar, & Rosenberg, 2001) reports 

that one-third of higher education 

faculty positions available in special 

education go unfilled every year, 

including many in sensory disability 

areas. For doctoral training programs in 

sensory disabilities that have only one 

full-time faculty on staff, the inability to 

fill a vacant position often results in the 

termination of the program. Because 

doctoral-level faculty also provide 

training for teachers and related services 

providers (e.g., orientation and mobility 

training) who work with children with 

sensory disabilities, faculty shortages at 

IHEs mean that there are fewer 

resources to train critical direct service 

staff. 

In 2004, the Office of Special 

Education Programs (OSEP) awarded a 

five-year cooperative agreement for the 

establishment of a National Center on 

Leadership in Visual Impairment 

(NCLVI) to address the ongoing shortage 

of doctoral-level leaders in the field of 

visual impairment and blindness. The 

14 universities participating in the 

NCLVI each offer doctoral degrees with 

an emphasis on doctoral leadership 

training in the areas of visual 

impairment, blindness, or deafblindness. The NCLVI, with OSEP 

input, established the terms of the 

student awards, offering full tuition 

awards and a stipend for living 

expenses for a maximum of four years 

to offset additional costs related to fulltime studies and general living 

expenses. Scholars were required to be 

full-time so as to ensure that they 

completed their doctoral studies as 

expeditiously as possible to address the 

immediate and critical need for doctoral 

professionals in the field. 

According to a recently published 

National Center of Education Statistics 

(NCES) report, ‘‘The Condition of 

Education 2007,’’ the 2003–04 average 

annual costs for a doctorate in education 

were $10,700 for tuition and $17,200 for 

living expenses, for a total of $27,900. 

According to NCES, the 2003–2004 

average annual costs for all other Ph.D. 

programs, excluding those in education, 

totaled $33,600, including an average 

annual tuition amount of $14,900 and 

living expenses of approximately 

$18,700. Without adjusting for inflation, 

the comparable average NCLVI annual 

tuition amount for 2007–08 was 

$10,673, and the average stipend was 

$20,535, for a total average NCLVI 

annual award of $31,208. Thus, based 

on the most recent NCES data available, 


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1The students who completed their doctorates 

found employment in leadership positions in the 

field of visual impairment, including five in 

university faculty positions. One graduate secured 

a highly competitive two-year post-doctoral 

internship at the Centers for Disease Control, and 

the three most recent graduates are actively 

interviewing for positions in IHEs, SEAs and 

research organizations. 

with no adjustments for inflation, the 

average costs for tuition and living 

expenses for NCLVI program fellows are 

slightly above the average annual costs 

for doctoral programs in education and 

slightly below the average annual costs 

for all other doctoral programs. 

Of the 19 NCLVI scholars, six 

completed their doctoral degrees in 

their third year of enrollment, three 

completed in their fourth year, and 

NCLVI faculty report that the remaining 

ten students are on schedule to 

complete their doctorates in their fourth 

year of enrollment. Assuming that these 

projections are accurate, the NCLVI 

average completion time is shorter than 

the national median time to completion 

of 7.9 years for Ph.D.s, Ed.D.s, and 

D.Sc.s. (Hoffer, Hess, Welch, & 

Williams, 2007). NCLVI graduates have 

also successfully secured positions in 

the field of visual impairment.1

The consortium design and 

curriculum used by NCLVI have 

facilitated the pooling of resources and 

expertise to provide high-quality 

training opportunities for NCLVI 

scholars, including structured research 

and learning opportunities that extend 

beyond those available at any of the 

individual NCLVI partner institutions. 

NCLVI students have the additional 

benefit of interacting with professionals 

and other students outside their home 

universities. 

This priority builds on OSEP’s 

previous investment in a consortium 

model that is focused on the preparation 

of doctoral leaders in visual impairment 

and blindness. 

Priority: The purpose of this priority 

is to fund a consortium (Consortium) 

that will prepare leaders at the doctoral 

level to work in the special education 

field with a specialty in the following 

sensory disabilities: (1) Visual 

impairment and blindness; (2) deafblindness; and (3) deafness and hard-ofhearing. 

To be considered for funding under 

this absolute priority, applicants must 

meet the application requirements 

contained in this priority. All projects 

funded under this absolute priority also 

must meet the programmatic and 

administrative requirements specified in 

the priority. 

All scholars receiving support 

through this project must satisfy the 

service obligation requirement in 34 

CFR Part 304, which requires 2 years of 

work for every year of scholarship 

support. The service obligation 

requirement, however, does not create 

an incentive for scholars to obtain 

employment in postsecondary 

institutions, which is one of the main 

objectives of this priority, over other 

kinds of employment. Thus, the service 

obligation may indirectly be deterring 

doctoral-level graduates under this 

project from seeking and obtaining 

employment as higher education faculty 

in postsecondary institutions with low 

incidence training programs. As a result, 

under the authority of section 662(h)(2) 

of IDEA, which authorizes the Secretary 

to reduce or waive the service obligation 

in this situation, the Secretary has 

determined that scholars who complete 

doctoral-level degrees under this project 

and go on to obtain employment as 

higher education faculty at 

postsecondary institutions in the area 

for which they received training will 

only be required to complete 1 year of 

work for every year of scholarship 

support instead of 2 years of work for 

every year of scholarship support. 

Application Requirements. An 

applicant must include in its 

application— 

(a) A logic model that depicts, at a 

minimum, the goals, activities, outputs, 

and outcomes of the proposed project. A 

logic model communicates how a 

project will achieve its outcome and 

provides a framework for both the 

formative and summative evaluations of 

the project; 

Note: The following Web site provides 

more information on logic models and lists 

multiple on-line resources: http:// 

www.cdc.gov/eval/resources.htm. 

(b) A plan to implement the activities 

described in the Project Activities 

section of this priority; 

(c) A plan, linked to the proposed 

project’s logic model, for a formative 

evaluation of the proposed project’s 

activities. The plan must describe how 

the formative evaluation will use clear 

performance objectives to ensure 

continuous improvement in the 

operation of the proposed project, 

including objective measures of progress 

in implementing the project and 

ensuring the quality of products and 

services; 

(d) A budget that ensures that at least 

70 percent of the total requested budget 

is used for student support, with a 

minimum of 30 full-time students to be 

supported; 

(e) A budget for a summative 

evaluation to be conducted by an 

independent third party; 

(f) A budget for attendance at the 

following: 

(1) A one-and-one-half-day kick-off 

meeting to be held in Washington, DC, 

within four weeks after receipt of the 

award, and an annual planning meeting 

held in Washington, DC, with the OSEP 

Project Officer during each subsequent 

year of the project period. 

(2) A three-day Project Director’s 

Conference in Washington, DC, during 

each year of the project period. 

(3) Three two-day trips annually to 

attend Department briefings, 

Department-sponsored conferences, and 

other meetings, as requested by OSEP; 

and 

(g) A line item in the proposed budget 

for an annual set-aside of five percent of 

the grant amount to support emerging 

needs that are consistent with the 

proposed project’s activities, as those 

needs are identified in consultation 

with OSEP. 

Note: With approval from the OSEP Project 

Officer, the Consortium must reallocate any 

remaining funds from this annual set-aside 

no later than the end of the third quarter of 

each budget period. 

Project Activities. To meet the 

requirements of this priority, the 

project, at a minimum, must conduct 

the following activities: 

(a) Establish a Consortium comprised 

of IHEs that prepares students to work 

as doctoral leaders in all of the 

following sensory disability areas: 

Visual impairment and blindness, deafblindness, and deafness and hard-ofhearing. The project must include at 

least two established IHE programs in 

each of the sensory disability areas. The 

application must include the following 

information from each proposed 

Consortium member: The name of the 

IHE, the specific sensory disability 

program or programs at each IHE, and 

a letter of commitment from each IHE. 

OSEP will approve the Consortium 

members within eight weeks after 

making the award. 

(b) Establish policies and procedures 

for the work of the Consortium in areas 

such as: Decision-making, recruitment, 

and selection of students who will be 

supported by the Consortium, 

distribution of tuition and stipends 

among participating students, 

measurement and reporting of student 

progress, and contingency planning in 

case of Consortium faculty losses. The 

Consortium must create standard 

guidelines for awarding tuition and 

stipends to all Consortium-supported 

students and must submit those 

proposed guidelines to the OSEP project 

officer for approval prior to their 

implementation. 


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(c) Develop and implement a single, 

common research-based curriculum for 

all Consortium students that aligns with 

each IHE Consortium member’s course 

of study and that reflects scientifically 

based practices in course syllabi. 

(d) Maintain a Web site that meets 

government or industry-recognized 

standards for accessibility and that links 

to the Web site operated by the 

Technical Assistance Coordination 

Center (TACC). 

(e) Establish and maintain an advisory 

committee to review the activities and 

outcomes of the Consortium and to 

provide programmatic support and 

advice throughout the project period. At 

a minimum, the advisory committee 

must meet on an annual basis in 

Washington, DC, and consist of at least 

one representative from each of the 

following: 

(1) Organizations, agencies, and 

associations that represent the interests 

of persons with sensory disabilities, 

specifically the disability areas 

addressed by the Consortium. 

(2) Persons with sensory disabilities. 

(3) Professional organizations 

representing the interests and work of 

faculty and administrators of IHEs; and 

(4) Students enrolled in Consortiummember universities’ sensory 

disabilities doctoral leadership 

preparation programs. The Consortium 

must submit the names of proposed 

advisory committee members to OSEP 

for approval within eight weeks after 

receipt of the award. 

(f) Communicate and collaborate, on 

an ongoing basis, with other OSEPfunded projects, and the Technical 

Assistance and Dissemination (TA&D) 

Network Centers. This collaboration 

could include the joint development 

and implementation of curriculum 

activities, accessing and using researchbased strategies and promising practices 

that are disseminated by personnel 

preparation centers and TA&D Network 

Centers, and planning and carrying out 

joint meetings and events with other 

OSEP-funded projects. 

(g) Maintain ongoing communication 

with the OSEP Project Officer through 

monthly phone conversations with the 

grantee and Consortium members and email communication. 

Fourth and Fifth Years of the Project: 

In deciding whether to continue funding 

the Consortium for the fourth and fifth 

years, the Secretary will consider the 

requirements of 34 CFR 75.253(a), and 

in addition— 

(a) The recommendation of a review 

team consisting of experts selected by 

the Secretary. This review will be 

conducted during a one-day intensive 

meeting in Washington, DC, that will be 

held during the last half of the second 

year of the project period. The 

Consortium must budget for travel 

expenses associated with this one-day 

intensive review; 

(b) The timeliness and effectiveness 

with which all requirements of the 

negotiated cooperative agreement have 

been or are being met by the 

Consortium; and 

(c) The quality, relevance, and 

usefulness of the Consortium’s activities 

and products and the degree to which 

the Consortium’s activities will 

contribute to increasing the supply of 

doctoral leadership personnel in visual 

impairment and blindness, deafblindness, and deafness and hard-ofhearing. 

References 

Dilka, K., Haydon, D., & Mertens, D. M. 

(2007). Program faculty demographics of 

deaf and hard of hearing teacher 

preparation programs. Paper presented at 

the Association of College Educators-Dear 

Hard-of-Hearing. 

Hoffer, T.B., Hess, M., Welch, V. Jr., & 

Williams, K. (2007). Doctorate recipients 

from United States universities: Summary 

report 2006. Chicago: National Opinion 

Research Center. 

Huebner, M. K., Merk-Adam, B., Stryker, D., 

& Wolfe, K. E. (2004). The national agenda 

for the education of children and youths 

with visual impairments, including those 

with multiple disabilities—revised. New 

York: American Foundation for the Blind. 

Johnson, H.A. (2003). U.S. deaf education 

teacher preparation programs: A look at 

the present and a vision for the future 

(COPSSE Document No. IB–9). Gainesville, 

FL: University of Florida, Center of 

Personnel Studies in Special Education. 

National Center for Education Statistics: 

(2007). The condition of education 2007 

(ED–NCES 2007–064). Washington, DC: 

U.S. Government Printing Office. 

Sindelar (Eds.), Critical Issues in Special 

Education: Access, Diversity, and 

Accountability (pp. 258–276). New York: 

Pearson Allyn and Bacon. 

Smith, D.S., Pion, G., Tyler, N.C., Sindelar, 

P., & Rosenberg, M. (2001). The study of 

special education leadership personnel: 

With particular attention to the 

professoriate. Vanderbilt University, 

Nashville, TN, University of Florida at 

Gainesville, Gainesville, FL, and Johns 

Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD. 

Smith, D.D., Pion, G.M., Tyler, N.C. (2004) 

Leadership personnel in special education: 

Can persistent shortage be resolved? In A. 

McCray Sorrells, H.J. Rieth, & P.T. 

Smith, D.D. (March, 2009). Special Education 

Faculty Needs Assessment Brief: A 

comparison of doctoral funding levels 

across Federal programs. Claremont 

Graduate University: Claremont, CA. 

Wasburn-Moses, L. & Therrien, W.J. (2008). 

The impact of Leadership Personnel Grants 

on the doctoral student population in 

special education. Teacher Education in 

Special Education. 31(2), 65–76. 

Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking: 

Under the Administrative Procedure Act 

(APA) (5 U.S.C. 553) the Department 

generally offers interested parties the 

opportunity to comment on proposed 

priorities and requirements. Section 

681(d) of the IDEA, however, makes the 

public comment requirements of the 

APA inapplicable to the priorities in 

this notice. 

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1462 

and 1481. 

Applicable Regulations: (a) The 

Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 

34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 

84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99. (b) The 

regulations for this program in 34 CFR 

part 304. 

Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 79 

apply to all applicants except federally 

recognized Indian tribes. 

II. Award Information 

Type of Awards: Cooperative 

agreements. 

Estimated Available Funds: 

$1,000,000. 

Contingent upon the availability of 

funds and the quality of applications, 

we may make additional awards in FY 

2010 from the list of unfunded 

applicants from this competition. 

Estimated Average Size of Awards: 

$1,000,000. 

Maximum Award: We will reject any 

application that proposes a budget 

exceeding $1,000,000 for a single budget 

period of 12 months. The Assistant 

Secretary for Special Education and 

Rehabilitative Services may change the 

maximum amount through a notice 

published in the Federal Register. 

Estimated Number of Awards: 1. 

Note: The Department is not bound by any 

estimates in this notice. 

Project Period: Up to 60 months. 

III. Eligibility Information 

1. Eligible Applicants: IHEs. 

2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This 

program does not require cost sharing or 

matching. 

3. Other: General Requirements—(a) 

The projects funded under this 

competition must make positive efforts 

to employ and advance in employment 

qualified individuals with disabilities 

(see section 606 of the IDEA). 

(b) Applicants and grant recipients 

funded under this competition must 

involve individuals with disabilities or 

parents of individuals with disabilities 

ages birth through 26 in planning, 

implementing, and evaluating the 

project (see section 682(a)(1)(A) of the 

IDEA). 


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IV. Application and Submission 

Information 

1. Address to Request Application 

Package: Education Publications Center 

(ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 

20794–1398. Telephone, toll free: 1– 

877–433–7827. Fax: (301) 470–1244. If 

you use a telecommunications device 

for the deaf (TDD), call, toll free: 1–877– 

576–7734. 

You can contact ED Pubs at its Web 

site, also: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/ 

edpubs.html or at its e-mail address: 

edpubs@inet.ed.gov. 

If you request an application from ED 

Pubs, be sure to identify the competition 

as follows: CFDA number 84.325V. 

Individuals with disabilities can 

obtain a copy of the application package 

in an accessible format (e.g., braille, 

large print, audiotape, or computer 

diskette) by contacting the person or 

team listed under Accessible Format in 

section VIII of this notice. 

2. Content and Form of Application 

Submission: Requirements concerning 

the content of an application, together 

with the forms you must submit, are in 

the application package for this 

competition. 

Page Limit: The application narrative 

(Part III of the application) is where you, 

the applicant, address the selection 

criteria that reviewers use to evaluate 

your application. You must limit Part III 

to the equivalent of no more than 50 

pages using 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). 

The page limit does not apply to Part 

I, the cover sheet; Part II, the budget 

section, including the narrative budget 

justification; Part IV, the assurances and 

certifications; or the one-page abstract, 

the resumes, the bibliography, the 

references, or the letters of support. 

However, you must include all of the 

application narrative in Part III. 

We will reject your application if you 

exceed the page limit; or if you apply 

other standards and exceed the 

equivalent of the page limit. 

3. Submission Dates and Times: 

Applications Available: July 23, 2009. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: August 24, 2009. 

Applications for grants under this 

competition may be submitted 

electronically using the Electronic Grant 

Application System (e-Application) 

accessible through the Department’s eGrants system, or in paper format by 

mail or hand delivery. For information 

(including dates and times) about how 

to submit your application 

electronically, or by mail or hand 

delivery, please refer to section IV.6. 

Other Submission Requirements of this 

notice. 

We do not consider an application 

that does not comply with the deadline 

requirements. 

Individuals with disabilities who 

need an accommodation or auxiliary aid 

in connection with the application 

process should contact the person listed 

under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT in section VII of this notice. If 

the Department provides an 

accommodation or auxiliary aid to an 

individual with a disability in 

connection with the application 

process, the individual’s application 

remains subject to all other 

requirements and limitations in this 

notice. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: September 1, 2009. 

4. Intergovernmental Review: This 

program 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. 

5. Funding Restrictions: We reference 

regulations outlining funding 

restrictions in the Applicable 

Regulations section of this notice. 

6. Other Submission Requirements: 

Applications for grants under this 

competition may be submitted 

electronically or in paper format by mail 

or hand delivery. 

a. Electronic Submission of 

Applications. 

If you choose to submit your 

application to us electronically, you 

must use e-Application, accessible 

through the Department’s e-Grants 

portal page at: http://e-grants.ed.gov. 

While completing your electronic 

application, you will be entering data 

online that will be saved into a 

database. You may not e-mail an 

electronic copy of a grant application to 

us. 

Please note the following: 

• Your participation in e-Application 

is voluntary. 

• You must complete the electronic 

submission of your grant application by 

4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on 

the application deadline date. EApplication will not accept an 

application for this competition after 

4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on 

the application deadline date. 

Therefore, we strongly recommend that 

you do not wait until the application 

deadline date to begin the application 

process. 

• The hours of operation of the eGrants Web site are 6 a.m. Monday until 

7 p.m. Wednesday; and 6 a.m. Thursday 

until 8 p.m. Sunday, Washington, DC 

time. Please note that, because of 

maintenance, the system is unavailable 

between 8 p.m. on Sundays and 6 a.m. 

on Mondays, and between 7 p.m. on 

Wednesdays and 6 a.m. on Thursdays, 

Washington, DC time. Any 

modifications to these hours are posted 

on the e-Grants Web site. 

• You will not receive additional 

point value because you submit your 

application in electronic format, nor 

will we penalize you if you submit your 

application in paper format. 

• You must submit all documents 

electronically, including all information 

you typically provide on the following 

forms: the Application for Federal 

Assistance (SF 424), the Department of 

Education Supplemental Information for 

SF 424, Budget Information—NonConstruction Programs (ED 524), and all 

necessary assurances and certifications. 

You must attach any narrative sections 

of your application as files in a .DOC 

(document), .RTF (rich text), or .PDF 

(Portable Document) format. If you 

upload a file type other than the three 

file types specified in this paragraph or 

submit a password protected file, we 

will not review that material. 

• Your electronic application must 

comply with any page limit 

requirements described in this notice. 

• Prior to submitting your electronic 

application, you may wish to print a 

copy of it for your records. 

• After you electronically submit 

your application, you will receive an 

automatic acknowledgment that will 

include a PR/Award number (an 

identifying number unique to your 

application). 

• Within three working days after 

submitting your electronic application, 

fax a signed copy of the SF 424 to the 

Application Control Center after 

following these steps: 

(1) Print SF 424 from e-Application. 

(2) The applicant’s Authorizing 

Representative must sign this form. 

(3) Place the PR/Award number in the 

upper right hand corner of the hardcopy signature page of the SF 424. 

(4) Fax the signed SF 424 to the 

Application Control Center at (202) 

245–6272. 

• We may request that you provide us 

original signatures on other forms at a 

later date. 


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Application Deadline Date Extension 

in Case of System Unavailability: If you 

are prevented from electronically 

submitting your application on the 

application deadline date because eApplication is unavailable, we will 

grant you an extension of one business 

day to enable you to transmit your 

application electronically, by mail, or by 

hand delivery. We will grant this 

extension if— 

(1) You are a registered user of eApplication and you have initiated an 

electronic application for this 

competition; and 

(2) (a) E-Application is unavailable for 

60 minutes or more between the hours 

of 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Washington, 

DC time, on the application deadline 

date; or 

(b) E-Application is unavailable for 

any period of time between 3:30 p.m. 

and 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, 

on the application deadline date. 

We must acknowledge and confirm 

these periods of unavailability before 

granting you an extension. To request 

this extension or to confirm our 

acknowledgment of any system 

unavailability, you may contact either 

(1) the person listed elsewhere in this 

notice under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT (see VII. Agency Contact) or (2) 

the e-Grants help desk at 1–888–336– 

8930. If e-Application is unavailable 

due to technical problems with the 

system and, therefore, the application 

deadline is extended, an e-mail will be 

sent to all registered users who have 

initiated an e-Application. 

Extensions referred to in this section 

apply only to the unavailability of eApplication. If e-Application is 

available, and, for any reason, you are 

unable to submit your application 

electronically or you do not receive an 

automatic acknowledgment of your 

submission, you may submit your 

application in paper format by mail or 

hand delivery in accordance with the 

instructions in this notice. 

b. Submission of Paper Applications 

by Mail. 

If you submit your application in 

paper format by mail (through the U.S. 

Postal Service or a commercial carrier), 

you must mail the original and two 

copies of your application, on or before 

the application deadline date, to the 

Department at the following address: 

U.S. Department of Education, 

Application Control Center, Attention: 

(CFDA Number 84.325V), 400 Maryland 

Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202– 

4260. 

You must show proof of mailing 

consisting of one of the following: 

(1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service 

postmark. 

(2) A legible mail receipt with the 

date of mailing stamped by the U.S. 

Postal Service. 

(3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or 

receipt from a commercial carrier. 

(4) Any other proof of mailing 

acceptable to the Secretary of the U.S. 

Department of Education. 

If you mail your application through 

the U.S. Postal Service, we do not 

accept either of the following as proof 

of mailing: 

(1) A private metered postmark. 

(2) A mail receipt that is not dated by 

the U.S. Postal Service. 

If your application is postmarked after 

the application deadline date, we will 

not consider your application. 

Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not 

uniformly provide a dated postmark. Before 

relying on this method, you should check 

with your local post office. 

c. Submission of Paper Applications 

by Hand Delivery. 

If you submit your application in 

paper format by hand delivery, you (or 

a courier service) must deliver the 

original and two copies of your 

application by hand, on or before the 

application deadline date, to the 

Department at the following address: 

U.S. Department of Education, 

Application Control Center, Attention: 

(CFDA Number 84.325V), 550 12th 

Street, SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center 

Plaza, Washington, DC 20202–4260. 

The Application Control Center 

accepts hand deliveries daily between 

8:00 a.m. and 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, 

DC time, except Saturdays, Sundays, 

and Federal holidays. 

Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper 

Applications: If you mail or hand deliver 

your application to the Department— 

(1) You must indicate on the envelope 

and—if not provided by the Department—in 

Item 11 of the SF 424 the CFDA number, 

including suffix letter, if any, of the 

competition under which you are submitting 

your application; and 

(2) The Application Control Center will 

mail to you a notification of receipt of your 

grant application. If you do not receive this 

notification within 15 business days from the 

application deadline date, you should call 

the U.S. Department of Education 

Application Control Center at (202) 245– 

6288. 

V. Application Review Information 

1. Selection Criteria: The selection 

criteria for this program are from 34 CFR 

75.210 and are listed in the application 

package. 

2. Review and Selection Process: In 

the past, the Department has had 

difficulty finding peer reviewers for 

certain competitions, because so many 

individuals who are eligible to serve as 

peer reviewers have conflicts of interest. 

The Standing Panel requirements under 

the IDEA also have placed additional 

constraints on the availability of 

reviewers. Therefore, the Department 

has determined that, for some 

discretionary grant competitions, 

applications may be separated into two 

or more groups and ranked and selected 

for funding within specific groups. This 

procedure will make it easier for the 

Department to find peer reviewers, by 

ensuring that greater numbers of 

individuals who are eligible to serve as 

reviewers for any particular group of 

applicants will not have conflicts of 

interest. It also will increase the quality, 

independence, and fairness of the 

review process, while permitting panel 

members to review applications under 

discretionary grant competitions for 

which they also have submitted 

applications. However, if the 

Department decides to select an equal 

number of applications in each group 

for funding, this may result in different 

cut-off points for fundable applications 

in each group. 

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). 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. Reporting: 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 multi-year 

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 

http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/ 

appforms/appforms.html. 


erowe on DSK5CLS3C1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 140 / Thursday, July 23, 2009 / Notices 36479 

4. Performance Measures: Under the 

Government Performance and Results 

Act of 1993 (GPRA), the Department has 

established a set of performance 

measures, including long-term 

measures, that are designed to yield 

information on various aspects of the 

effectiveness and quality of the 

Personnel Development to Improve 

Services and Results for Children with 

Disabilities program. These measures 

include: (1) The percentage of projects 

that incorporate scientifically based 

practices into the curriculum; (2) the 

percentage of scholars who exit training 

programs prior to completion due to 

poor academic performance; (3) the 

percentage of degree or certification 

recipients who are working in the 

area(s) for which they were trained 

upon program completion; (4) the 

percentage of degree or certification 

recipients who are working in the 

area(s) for which they were trained 

upon program completion and are fully 

qualified under the IDEA; (5) the 

percentage of scholars completing the 

IDEA-funded training programs who are 

knowledgeable and skilled in 

scientifically based practices for infants, 

toddlers, and children with disabilities; 

(6) the percentage of low incidence 

positions that are filled by personnel 

who are fully qualified under the IDEA; 

and (7) the percentage of program 

graduates who maintain employment for 

three or more years in the area(s) for 

which they were trained. 

Grantees may be asked to participate 

in assessing and providing information 

on these aspects of program quality. 

VII. Agency Contact 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Glinda Hill, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., 

room 4063, Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), 

Washington, DC 20202–2550. 

Telephone: (202) 245–7376. 

If you use a TDD, call the FRS, toll 

free, at 1–800–877–8339. 

VIII. Other Information 

Accessible Format: Individuals with 

disabilities can obtain this document 

and a copy of the application package in 

an accessible format (e.g., Braille, large 

print, audiotape, or computer diskette) 

by contacting the Grants and Contracts 

Services Team, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., 

room 5075, PCP, Washington, DC 

20202–2550. Telephone: (202) 245– 

7363. If you use a TDD, call the FRS, toll 

free, at 1–800–877–8339. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

You can view this document, as well as 

all other documents of this Department 

published in the Federal Register, in 

text or Adobe Portable Document 

Format (PDF) on the Internet at the 

following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/ 

fedregister. 

To use PDF you must have Adobe 

Acrobat Reader, which is available free 

at this site. If you have questions about 

using PDF, call the U.S. Government 

Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1– 

888–293–6498; or in the Washington, 

DC, area at (202) 512–1530. 

Note: The official version of this document 

is the document published in the Federal 

Register. Free Internet access to the official 

edition of the Federal Register and the Code 

of Federal Regulations is available on GPO 

Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/ 

index.html. 

Delegation of Authority: The Secretary 

of Education has delegated authority to 

Andrew J. Pepin, Executive 

Administrator for the Office of Special 

Education and Rehabilitative Services to 

perform the functions of the Assistant 

Secretary for Special Education and 

Rehabilitative Services. 

Dated: July 17, 2009. 

Andrew J. Pepin, 

Executive Administrator for Special 

Education and Rehabilitative Services. 

[FR Doc. E9–17554 Filed 7–22–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION 

Sunshine Act Notice 

AGENCY: U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of public meeting for 

EAC Standards Board. 

DATE AND TIME: Thursday, August 6, 

2009, 8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. MDT and 

Friday, August 7, 2009, 8:30 a.m.–12 

p.m. MDT. 

PLACE: Sheraton Phoenix Downtown, 

340 North Third Street, Phoenix, AZ 

85004, Phone Number: (602) 262–2500. 

AGENDA: The U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission (EAC) Standards Board, as 

required by the Help America Vote Act 

of 2002, will meet to receive updates on 

the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines 

1.1 (VVSG) which is now available for 

public comment. The Standards Board 

will discuss proposed updates and 

improvements to the VVSG. The 

Standards Board will hear committee 

reports on the VVSG, formulate 

recommendations to the EAC regarding 

the VVSG, receive updates on EAC 

activities, and consider other 

administrative matters. 

Members of the public may observe 

but not participate in EAC meetings 

unless this notice provides otherwise. 

Members of the public may use small 

electronic audio recording devices to 

record the proceedings. The use of other 

recording equipment and cameras 

requires advance notice to and 

coordination with the Commission’s 

Communications Office.* 

* View EAC Regulations Implementing 

Government in the Sunshine Act. 

This meeting will be open to the 

public. 

PERSON TO CONTACT FOR INFORMATION: 

Bryan Whitener, Telephone: (202) 566– 

3100. 

Gineen Beach, 

Chair, U.S. Election Assistance Commission. 

[FR Doc. E9–17752 Filed 7–21–09; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 6820–KF–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Docket No. IC09–546–001] 

Commission Information Collection 

Activities (FERC–546); Comment 

Request; Submitted for OMB Review 

July 16, 2009. 

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

requirements of section 3507 of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 

U.S.C. 3507, the Federal Energy 

Regulatory Commission (Commission or 

FERC) has submitted the information 

collection described below to the Office 

of Management and Budget (OMB) for 

review of the information collection 

requirements. Any interested person 

may file comments directly with OMB 

and should address a copy of those 

comments to the Commission as 

explained below. The Commission 

received no comments in response to 

the Federal Register notice (74FR6401, 

2/9/2009) and has made this notation in 

its submission to OMB. 

DATES: Comments on the collection of 

information are due by August 27, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: Address comments on the 

collection of information to the Office of 

Management and Budget, Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission Desk Officer. Comments to 

OMB should be filed electronically, c/o 

oira__submission@omb.eop.gov and 

include OMB Control Number 1902– 

0155 as a point of reference. The Desk 

Officer may be reached by telephone at 

202–395–4638. 


erowe on DSK5CLS3C1PROD with NOTICES