Higher Education Programs in Modern Foreign Language Training and Area StudiesForeign Language and Area Studies Fellowships Program

SUMMARY: The Secretary proposes to amend the regulations governing the

Higher Education Programs in Modern Foreign Language Training and Area

Studies--Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships Program.

These amendments are needed in order to improve the application review

process and to update the regulations in light of developments in the

field of foreign language, area, and international studies. In the

spirit of reinventing government, the goal of the proposed changes is

to markedly reduce the burden associated with the application review

process. These regulations are intended to (a) reduce the burden on

applicants and readers by clarifying and restructuring selection

criteria to remove ambiguity and eliminate repetition of information

presented in applications, (b) facilitate funding decisions by

providing a larger possible point spread for greater differentiation of

rankings, (c) simplify the application process for applicants, improve

the cost-effectiveness of the program, and standardize program

management by adopting the fellowship award allocation system currently

used to administer other Federal fellowship programs, and (d) improve

program quality, efficiency, and flexibility by adopting changes

program management experience shows to be appropriate.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 29, 1996.

ADDRESSES: All comments concerning these proposed regulations should be

addressed to Sara West, U.S. Department of Education, 600 Independence

Avenue, S.W., Suite 600B, Portals Building, Washington, D.C. 20202-

5331. Comments may also be sent through the Internet to ``FLAS--

F[email protected]''.

Comments that concern information collection requirements must be

sent to the Office of Management and Budget at the address listed in

the Paperwork Reduction Act section of this preamble. A copy of those

comments may also be sent to the Department representative named in the

preceding paragraph.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sara West. Telephone: (202) 401-9782.

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:

Background

The Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships Program is one of

several international education programs authorized under Part A of

Title VI of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). The

main provisions of the regulations govern the awarding of grants

designed to provide fellowship assistance to students enrolled in

advanced programs of modern foreign language and area or international

studies.

In the spirit of reinventing government, it is the Secretary's goal

to simplify the application process and management of the Foreign

Language and Area Studies Fellowships Program to benefit the public.

The Secretary intends the proposed changes to add clarity to the review

process, to decrease the current burden on applicants and peer

reviewers, to facilitate the application of uniform standards among

peer reviewers and in Federal fellowship program management, to

increase cost-effectiveness of the program, and to increase flexibility

in program management for funded grantees and for the Secretary.

The Secretary proposes to amend the regulations for the Foreign

Language and Area Studies Fellowships Program by modifying the

selection criteria for applications, by eliminating references to

undergraduate programs and fellowship recipients in keeping with

statutory requirements, by adopting a new system of allocating

fellowship awards, and by easing restrictions on the use of fellowship

awards abroad and clarifying that only academic year awards may be used

for research abroad.

Selection Criteria. The selection criteria currently used are very

general, leading to some misinterpretation of questions asked, frequent

repetition of information, and inclusion of information that is not

pertinent to the purpose of the Foreign Language and Area Studies

Fellowships Program. The proposed changes seek to retain much of the

sense of the current criteria while removing ambiguity regarding

requested information. The purpose of the changes is to clarify what

information should be presented so that (a) all applicants will provide

more focused information necessary for evaluation of a proposal under

this program, (b) applicants will be able to present all relevant

information within fewer pages of the proposal narrative, and (c) peer

reviewers will be able to more easily and accurately evaluate and rank

proposals based on comparative strengths.

A reorganized, broader point scale and clearly identified point

allocations for individual paragraphs of the technical review criteria

are proposed in order to (a) enable peer reviewers to score more

carefully and accurately differentiate between proposals of high

caliber, (b) discourage peer reviewers from overlooking any individual

question to be scored, and (c) clarify for peer reviewers and

applicants exactly what requested information corresponds to each point

value.

Undergraduate References. The Higher Education Amendments of 1992,

Pub. L. 102-325, amended section 603 of the HEA to limit the awarding

of FLAS fellowships to graduate students. For that reason, the

Secretary eliminates references to undergraduate students or programs

and use of ambiguous terms such as ``advanced.'' The purpose of these

changes is to bring the regulations in line with the authorizing

statute and to clarify program requirements for applicants and

grantees.

System of Allocation. The Secretary proposes to increase cost-

effectiveness, simplify the application process and program management

for grantees, and bring the Foreign Language and Area Studies

Fellowships Program more in line with other government fellowship

programs by amending the system of allocation. Under the system of

allocation currently used to administer this program, a FLAS fellowship

consists of a student subsistence allowance and tuition plus all

required fees. Grantees are expected to submit in their proposal

budgets a variety of tuition rates for graduate students at differing

levels of study and enrolled in different academic programs; for

example, public institutions provide different rates based upon

residency requirements, while both public and private institutions

often have varying tuition rates for graduate students enrolled in arts

and sciences or professional degree programs or at the dissertation

level. Grant monies are then allocated based on a combination of awards

at a variety of tuition rates for an individual grantee institution.

Because the rates supplied are projections based on rates in effect at

the time of application and not actual prospective tuition rates, and

because the grantee institutions do not know at

[[Page 14007]]

the time of the grant competition which students will compete

successfully for awards, the current system of allocation is imprecise.

While the Secretary might allocate funds for five awards to an

institution, there is no guarantee that the institution will make five

awards in the amounts assumed. Depending on the students selected, it

might actually make two awards at a high tuition rate or seven awards

at a low tuition rate.

Under the proposed system of allocation, a FLAS fellowship consists

of a student subsistence allowance and a standard institutional payment

(rather than full tuition plus fees) to be established by the Secretary

and announced in the application notice. This system of allocation is

commonly referred to as the ``cost-of-education allowance'' system. By

applying for an allocation of fellowship awards, the institution agrees

to accept the institutional payment published in the application notice

in lieu of any additional costs of tuition and fees. In cases in which

the institutional payment is greater than the actual cost of tuition

and fees at the institution, the excess institutional payment funds

must be applied toward additional fellowship awards. The purpose of

this amendment is to (a) simplify the budget portion of the application

process for applicants; (b) make the Foreign Language and Area Studies

Fellowships Program more ``user-friendly'' for the public by adopting a

system of allocation currently used for a variety of Federal fellowship

programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education and other

agencies; (c) simplify grantee institutions' own competitions for

fellowship candidates by treating each applicant equally, regardless of

tuition rate; (d) eliminate imprecision in how funds will actually be

used by grantees and increase the accountability of grantee

institutions by requiring them to make a minimum number of awards with

their grant allocations; and (e) increase the cost-effectiveness of the

program by requiring institutions with high tuition rates to accept a

standard institutional payment in lieu of full tuition and fees.

Easing Limits on Overseas Use of Fellowships. Proposed changes to

the limitations on the use of funds for overseas fellowships seek to

expand grantees' program management options and clarify the appropriate

use of awards. The requirement that students using awards at overseas

language programs be at the advanced level of language study is

expanded to include intermediate-level study for all eligible languages

as well as beginning-level study of languages for which appropriate

instruction is not available in the United States. Additional

modifications are intended to clarify that only academic year awards

may be used abroad for research, and summer fellowships are to be used

for intensive language training rather than for short-term dissertation

research.

Explanation of Changes

The Secretary proposes to make the following changes:

Section 657.1 What is the Foreign Language and Area Studies

Fellowships Program?

Section 657.1(a). The Secretary proposes to modify this section to

clarify that only graduate-level students are eligible to receive

awards since the 1992 reauthorization of the HEA. The current language

indicates that students who receive fellowships must be enrolled in

``advanced'' training. The Secretary believes that substituting the

word ``graduate'' for ``advanced'' more clearly states the statutory

requirement.

Section 657.2 Who is eligible to receive an allocation of fellowships?

Section 657.2(d). The Secretary proposes to eliminate the reference

to the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program

because undergraduate students are no longer eligible to receive awards

since the 1992 reauthorization of the HEA.

Section 657.3 Who is eligible to receive a fellowship?

Section 657.3(a)(3). The Secretary proposes to eliminate the entire

paragraph referring to students who are permanent residents of the

Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, because there is no longer a

Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

Section 657.20 How does the Secretary evaluate an institutional

application for an allocation of fellowships?

Section 657.20(b). The Secretary proposes to expand the range of

possible points for applications in order to enable peer reviewers in

scoring to more carefully and accurately differentiate between

proposals of high caliber. It has been the Secretary's experience that

competition for grants under the Foreign Language and Area Studies

Fellowships Program is strong; recent winning applicants have scored

within a 15-point range on the current scale. As a result, there has

been narrow point differentiation among winning applicants and the

highest scoring unsuccessful applicants. The Secretary believes that

expanding the possible point range would facilitate funding decisions

by providing peer reviewers with a larger scale on which to rank

applications, allowing for greater differentiation of scores for

applications of similar but different merit. The changed point scale,

reflecting changes in the selection criteria and their point

allocations, would add 40 possible points for competitions for which

there are no announced competitive priorities and 50 possible points

for competitions for which competitive priorities have been announced.

Section 657.21 What criteria does the Secretary use in selecting

institutions for an allocation of fellowships?

The Secretary proposes extensive changes in this section in order

to improve the program's application review process and to reflect

current standards in the field of foreign language, area and

international studies. The proposed selection criteria identify

specific information to be provided in an application, thereby

facilitating proposal writing for applicants and evaluation for peer

reviewers. The proposed criteria incorporate most aspects of the

current criteria but are restructured to enable applicants to present

information in a more succinct and less repetitious manner.

Section 657.21(a). The Secretary proposes to eliminate the current

Plan of operation criterion and substitute a Foreign language and area

studies awardee selection procedures criterion that incorporates

elements of the current Plan of operation and Need and potential impact

criteria. It has been the Secretary's experience that the language of

the current criterion has led to some confusion among grantees and peer

reviewers regarding what information should be presented. For example,

one question in the Plan of operation criterion asks about the extent

to which the objectives of the project relate to the purpose of the

program. Applicants and peer reviewers are often uncertain whether

``program'' refers to the Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships

Program or to the applicant's training program. The Secretary believes

that the proposed language would eliminate uncertainty and assist

applicants in writing, and peer reviewers in evaluating, proposals for

fellowship awards.

Section 657.21(b). The Secretary proposes to replace the Quality of

key personnel criterion with a criterion called Quality of staff

resources. The staff resources criterion would ask the same kind of

questions as the current key personnel criterion, but would also

require explicit information to be

[[Page 14008]]

presented regarding faculty and staff involvement in fellowship program

activities and oversight and professional development opportunities.

Section 657.21(c). The Secretary proposes to eliminate the current

Evaluation plan criterion. The Secretary proposes an Impact and

evaluation criterion that would combine related aspects of the current

Need and potential impact, Evaluation plan, and Plan of operation

criteria. Combining elements of these criteria is logical due to the

interrelatedness of questions about past performance and evaluating

future performance.

Section 657.21(d). The Secretary proposes to modify the language of

the Commitment to the subject area on which the center or program

focuses criterion by clarifying those areas for which institutional

support should be identified. In the past, some applicant institutions

have shown support for the applicant's students by offering matching

funds or tuition waivers for fellowship grants received. Although the

Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships Program does not have a

cost-matching requirement, the Secretary would like to encourage

institutional efforts to promote the cost-effectiveness of the program

as well as institutional commitment to the applicant's training

program. For this reason, this criterion also asks applicants to

provide information about the extent to which the institution provides

financial support to graduate students in fields related to the

applicant's teaching program.

Section 657.21(e). The Secretary proposes to modify and redesignate

the Strength of library criterion. Due to the changes in information

technology and the rising costs of maintaining traditional collections,

a library's book and periodical holdings are no longer the only factor

that should be considered in evaluating the strength of an applicant

institution's library. The proposed regulations would clarify

information to be presented and take into account that library

resources can be provided in print and non-print media, through

cooperative collections and access arrangements with other library

collections, and through on-line, electronic data bases.

Section 657.21(f). The Secretary proposes to add a new criterion

called Quality of the applicant's non-language instructional program.

The proposed criterion would incorporate related elements of the

current Quality of the applicant's instructional program and Quality of

the applicant's relationships within the institution criteria. The

Secretary believes that including all questions related to non-language

course offerings in one section would allow grantees to streamline

their proposals and avoid repetition. It has been the Secretary's

experience that combining questions about non-language and language

courses in the same criterion can lead to applicants neglecting to

provide full information about both non-language and language training.

For that reason, the Secretary proposes to ask parallel questions

regarding the quality of language and non-language training under two

separate criteria. It is the opinion of the Secretary that separate

criteria would emphasize the importance to the Foreign Language and

Area Studies Fellowships Program of both language and area or

international studies training.

Section 657.21(g). The Secretary proposes to address under this

criterion the Quality of the applicant's language instructional

program. Questions asked under this criterion are similar to questions

currently asked under Quality of the applicant's instructional program

criterion but more specifically identify information to be provided.

Section 657.21(h). The Secretary proposes to replace the current

Overseas activities criterion with a criterion called Quality of

curriculum design. Relevant questions about overseas activities would

be asked under the proposed Quality of curriculum design, Commitment to

the subject area on which the applicant focuses, and Quality of staff

resources criteria. It has been the Secretary's experience in this

program that overseas activities have been critical to providing

successful training options for students and professional development

opportunities for faculty. Therefore, the Secretary believes that it is

more appropriate and more clearly related to the purpose of the Foreign

Language and Area Studies Fellowships Program to ask questions

regarding overseas activities in the context of curriculum design and

staff resources. The proposed Quality of curriculum design criterion

would combine elements of the current Overseas activities and Quality

of the applicant's relationships within the institution criteria. The

new criterion would allow applicants to focus on the issue of training

options for students within the context of a single criterion.

Section 657.21(i). The Secretary proposes to eliminate the current

Need and potential impact criterion because related questions would be

asked under the proposed Foreign language and area studies fellowships

awardee selection procedures and Impact and evaluation criteria. The

Secretary proposes to redesignate the current Priorities criterion as

Sec. 657.21(i) and to decrease the point value from 20 points to 10. It

has been the Secretary's experience that most proposals submitted for

competitions under this program succeed in securing almost all of the

points allocated to the competitive priority. A 20-point allocation to

the competitive priority can result in applications with weaker scores

on the mandatory criteria ranking higher than quality proposals that do

not meet the priority. A 10-point competitive priority allocation would

continue to ensure that quality proposals that meet the competitive

priority are funded before quality proposals that do not meet the

priority. The Secretary proposes to decrease the total possible points

allocated for priorities in order to maintain proportion in the

competition and to ensure that only high quality proposals are funded.

Section 657.21(j). The Secretary proposes to eliminate this

paragraph because the Priorities criterion would be included under

Sec. 657.21(i).

Section 657.31 What is the amount of a fellowship?

The Secretary proposes to change the system of allocation of

fellowship award monies in order to simplify the administration of

awards for grantees, increase cost-effectiveness of the program, and

increase uniformity of procedures among federally funded fellowship

programs. The Secretary proposes to specify that each fellowship

awarded would consist of a standard institutional payment and a

subsistence allowance to be announced in the application notice

published in the Federal Register. The Secretary also proposes to

delete references to education levels of recipients since all

recipients must be at the graduate level.

Section 657.32 What is the payment procedure for fellowships?

Section 657.32(d). The Secretary proposes to limit the use of

fellowship funds by stating that funds not used by one fellowship

recipient for reasons of withdrawal are to be used for alternate

recipients to the extent that funds are available for a full

subsistence allowance. In addition, if actual tuition rates are less

than the institutional payment, excess funds must be used to fund

additional fellowships to the extent that funds are available for a

full subsistence allowance. This provision would maximize the cost-

efficiency of the fellowship funds by ensuring that low-tuition

institutions use excess funds to support additional fellows.

[[Page 14009]]

Section 657.33 What are the limitations on the use of funds for

overseas fellowships?

The Secretary proposes changes to this section that would ease

restrictions on and clarify appropriate use of overseas awards. It has

been the Secretary's experience that students at an intermediate level

of language study can benefit as much from an overseas study experience

as advanced students if enrolled in a high-quality language program.

Furthermore, appropriate instruction (particularly for less-commonly-

taught languages) is not always available in the United States.

Section 657.33(b)(1). The Secretary proposes to allow students at

the intermediate level of language study to enroll in overseas language

programs. Currently, only advanced students may use awards abroad.

Additionally, the Secretary proposes to allow the use of fellowship

awards for overseas study at the beginning level of languages for which

instruction is frequently not available in the United States.

Section 657.33(b)(2). In order to clarify for grantees that summer

fellowships are to be used for intensive language training rather than

short-term dissertation research, the Secretary proposes to specify

that awards may be approved for dissertation research during the

academic year only.

Executive Order 12866

Clarity of the Regulations

Executive Order 12866 requires each agency to write regulations

that are easy to understand.

The Secretary invites comments on how to make these proposed

regulations easier to understand, including answers to questions such

as the following: (1) Are the requirements in the regulations clearly

stated? (2) Do the regulations contain technical terms or other wording

that interferes with their clarity? (3) Does the format of the

regulations (grouping and order of sections, use of headings,

paragraphing, etc.) aid or reduce their clarity? Would the regulations

be easier to understand if they were divided into more (but shorter)

sections? (A ``section'' is preceded by the symbol ``Sec. '' and a

numbered heading; for example, Sec. 657.2 Who is eligible to receive an

allocation of fellowships?) (4) Is the description of the proposed

regulations in the ``Supplementary Information'' section of this

preamble helpful in understanding the proposed regulations? How could

this description be more helpful in making the proposed regulations

easier to understand? (5) What else could the Department do to make the

regulations easier to understand?

A copy of any comments that concern how the Department could make

these proposed regulations easier to understand should also be sent to

Stanley M. Cohen, Regulations Quality Officer, U.S. Department of

Education, 600 Independence Avenue, S.W. (Room 5100 FB-10B),

Washington, D.C. 20202-2241.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

The Secretary certifies that these proposed regulations would not

have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small

entities.

These proposed regulations merely correct or simplify and clarify

provisions contained in previous regulations and would impose minimal

requirements to ensure the proper expenditure of program funds. The

small entities that would be affected by these proposed regulations are

institutions of higher education receiving Federal funds under this

program. However, the regulations would not have a significant economic

impact on the institutions affected because the regulations would not

impose excessive regulatory burdens or require unnecessary Federal

supervision.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

Section 657.21 contains information collection requirements. As

required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507(d)),

the Department of Education has submitted a copy of this section to the

Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for its review.

Collection of Information: Foreign Language and Area Studies

Fellowships Program.

Institutions of higher education and consortia of institutions of

higher education are eligible to apply for grants under these

regulations. The information to be collected is specified by the

proposed technical review criteria and includes information currently

collected under regulations for this program. This information is

needed and used by the Department to make grants.

The Secretary estimates that this information collection will

decrease the current estimated burden of 155 hours per response to 100

hours per response. The estimated burden includes the time for

reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and

maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the

application to be submitted. Competitions for the Foreign Language and

Area Studies Fellowships Program are held every three years, with

approximately 160 respondents per competition.

Organizations and individuals desiring to submit comments on the

information collection requirements should direct them to the Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Room 10235, New Executive

Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20503; Attention: Wendy Taylor.

The Department considers comments by the public on this proposed

collection of information in--

Evaluating whether the proposed collection of information

is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the

Department, including whether the information will have practical

utility;

Evaluating the accuracy of the Department's estimate of

the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the

validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

Enhancing the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the

information to be collected; and

Minimizing the burden of the collection of information on

those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate

automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection

techniques or other forms of information technology; e.g., permitting

electronic submission of responses.

OMB is required to make a decision concerning the collection of

information contained in these proposed regulations between 30 and 60

days after publication of this document in the Federal Register.

Therefore, a comment to OMB is best assured of having its full effect

if OMB receives it within 30 days of publication. This does not affect

the deadline for the public to comment to the Department on the

proposed regulations.

Intergovernmental Review

This program is subject to the requirements of Executive Order

12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR Part 79. The objective of the

Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental partnership and a

strengthened 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.

[[Page 14010]]

Invitation to Comment

Interested persons are invited to submit comments and

recommendations regarding these proposed regulations. All comments

submitted in response to these proposed regulations will be available

for public inspection, during and after the comment period, in Suite

600B, Portals Building, 1280 Maryland Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C.

between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday of

each week, except Federal holidays.

Assessment of Educational Impact

The Secretary particularly requests comments on whether the

proposed regulations in this document would require transmission of

information that is being gathered by or is available from any other

agency or authority of the United States.

List of Subjects in 34 CFR Part 657

Colleges and universities, Education, International education,

Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.015)

Dated: March 25, 1996.

David A. Longanecker,

Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.

The Secretary proposes to amend Title 34 of the Code of Federal

Regulations by revising Part 657 as follows:

PART 657--FOREIGN LANGUAGE AND AREA STUDIES FELLOWSHIPS PROGRAM

1. The authority citation for Part 657 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1122, unless otherwise noted.

Sec. 657.1 [Amended]

2. Section 657.1 is amended by revising the heading by removing the

word ``Fellowship'' and adding, in its place, the word ``Fellowships''

and by removing the word ``advanced'' and adding, in its place,

``graduate'' in paragraph (a).

Sec. 657.2 [Amended]

3. Section 657.2 is amended by removing ``or the Undergraduate

International Studies and Foreign Language Program, 34 CFR part 658,''

in paragraph (d).

Sec. 657.3 [Amended]

4. Section 657.3 is amended by removing paragraph (a)(3), adding

the word ``or'' at the end of paragraph (a)(1), and removing the word

``or'' at the end of paragraph (a)(2).

5. Section 657.20 is amended by revising paragraph (b) to read as

follows:

Sec. 657.20 How does the Secretary evaluate an institutional

application for an allocation of fellowships?

* * * * *

(b) In general, the Secretary awards up to 140 possible points for

these criteria. However, if priority criteria are used, the Secretary

awards up to 150 possible points. The maximum possible points for each

criterion are shown in parentheses.

6. Section 657.21 is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 657.21 What criteria does the Secretary use in selecting

institutions for an allocation of fellowships?

(a) Foreign language and area studies fellowships awardee selection

procedures. (15 points) The Secretary reviews each application to

determine--

(1) Whether the selection plan is of high quality, showing how

awards will be advertised, how students apply, what selection criteria

are used, who selects the fellows, when each step will take place, and

how the process will result in awards being made to correspond to any

announced priorities; and

(2) Whether the applicant provides information about current and

prospective applicant/award ratios.

(b) Quality of staff resources. (15 points) The Secretary reviews

each application to determine--

(1) The extent to which teaching faculty and other staff are

qualified for the current and proposed activities and training

programs, are provided professional development opportunities

(including overseas experience), and participate in teaching,

supervising, and advising students (5 points);

(2) The adequacy of applicant staffing and oversight arrangements

and the extent to which faculty from a variety of departments,

professional schools, and the library are involved (5 points); and

(3) The extent to which the applicant, as part of its

nondiscriminatory employment practices, encourages applications for

employment from persons who are members of groups that have been

traditionally underrepresented, such as members of racial or ethnic

minority groups, women, persons with disabilities, and the elderly (5

points).

(c) Impact and evaluation. (20 points) The Secretary reviews each

application to determine--

(1) The extent to which the applicant's activities and training

programs have contributed to an improved supply of specialists on the

program's subject as shown through indices such as graduate enrollments

and placement data; and the extent to which the applicant supplies a

clear description of how the applicant will provide equal access and

treatment of eligible project participants who are members of groups

that have been traditionally underrepresented, such as members of

racial or ethnic minority groups, women, persons with disabilities, and

the elderly (15 points); and

(2) The extent to which the applicant provides an evaluation plan

that will be comprehensive and objective and that will produce

quantifiable, outcome-measure-oriented data; and the extent to which

recent evaluations have been used to improve the applicant's program (5

points).

(d) Commitment to the subject area on which the applicant or

program focuses. (10 points) The Secretary reviews each application to

determine--

(1) The extent to which the institution provides financial and

other support to the operation of the applicant, teaching staff for the

applicant's subject area, library resources, and linkages with

institutions abroad (5 points); and

(2) The extent to which the institution provides financial support

to graduate students in fields related to the applicant's teaching

program (5 points).

(e) Strength of library. (15 points) The Secretary reviews each

application to determine--

(1) The strength of the institution's library holdings (both print

and non-print, English and foreign language) for graduate students; and

the extent to which the institution provides financial support for the

acquisition of library materials and for library staff in the subject

area of the applicant (10 points); and

(2) The extent to which research materials at other institutions

are available to students through cooperative arrangements with other

libraries or on-line databases (5 points).

(f) Quality of the applicant's non-language instructional program.

(25 points) The Secretary reviews each application to determine--

(1) The quality and extent of the applicant's course offerings in a

variety of disciplines, including the extent to which courses in the

applicant's subject matter are available in the institution's

professional schools (10 points);

(2) The extent to which the applicant offers depth of specialized

course coverage in one or more disciplines on the applicant's subject

area (5 points);

(3) The extent to which the institution employs a sufficient number

of teaching faculty to enable the applicant to carry out its purposes

and the extent to which

[[Page 14011]]

teaching assistants are provided with pedagogy training (5 points); and

(4) The extent to which interdisciplinary courses are offered for

graduate students (5 points).

(g) Quality of the applicant's language instructional program. (20

points) The Secretary reviews each application to determine--

(1) The extent to which the applicant provides instruction in the

languages of the applicant's subject area and the extent to which

students enroll in those language courses (5 points);

(2) The extent to which the applicant provides three or more levels

of language training and the extent to which courses in disciplines

other than language, linguistics, and literature are offered in

appropriate foreign languages (5 points);

(3) Whether sufficient numbers of language faculty are available to

teach the languages and levels of instruction described in the

application and the extent to which language teaching staff (including

faculty and teaching assistants) have been exposed to current language

pedagogy training appropriate for performance-based teaching (5

points); and

(4) The quality of the language program as measured by the

performance-based instruction being used or developed, the adequacy of

resources for language teaching and practice, and language proficiency

requirements (5 points).

(h) Quality of curriculum design. (20 points) The Secretary reviews

each application to determine--

(1) The extent to which the applicant's curriculum provides

training options for graduate students from a variety of disciplines

and professional fields and the extent to which these programs and

their requirements (including language requirements) are appropriate

for an applicant in this subject area and result in graduate training

programs of high quality (10 points);

(2) The extent to which the applicant provides academic and career

advising services for students (5 points); and

(3) The extent to which the applicant has established formal

arrangements for students to conduct research or study abroad and the

extent to which these arrangements are used; and the extent to which

the institution facilitates student access to other institutions' study

abroad and summer language programs (5 points).

(i) Priorities. (10 points) If one or more priorities have been

established under Sec. 657.22, the Secretary reviews each application

for information that shows the extent to which the center or program

meets these priorities.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1122)

7. Section 657.31 is amended by revising paragraphs (a)(2) and

(b)(1), and adding new paragraph (a)(3) to read as follows:

Sec. 657.31 What is the amount of a fellowship?

(a) * * *

(2) Each fellowship includes an institutional payment and a

subsistence allowance to be determined by the Secretary.

(3) If the institutional payment determined by the Secretary is

greater than the tuition and fees charged by the institution, the

institutional payment portion of the fellowship is limited to actual

tuition and fees. The difference between actual tuition and fees and

the Secretary's institutional payment shall be used to fund additional

fellowships to the extent that funds are available for a full

subsistence allowance.

(4) If permitted by the Secretary, the fellowship may include an

allowance for travel and an allowance for dependents.

(b) The Secretary announces in an application notice published in

the Federal Register--

(1) The amounts of the subsistence allowance and the institutional

payment for an academic year and the subsistence allowance and the

institutional payment for a summer session;

* * * * *

8. Section 657.32 is amended by adding a new paragraph (d) to read

as follows:

Sec. 657.32 What is the payment procedure for fellowships?

* * * * *

(d) Funds not used by one recipient for reasons of withdrawal are

to be used for alternate recipients to the extent that funds are

available for a full subsistence allowance.

9. Section 657.33 is amended by revising paragraph (b) to read as

follows:

Sec. 657.33 What are the limitations on the use of funds for overseas

fellowships?

* * * * *

(b) The Secretary may approve the use of a fellowship outside the

United States if the student is--

(1) Enrolled in an overseas program approved by the institution at

which the student is enrolled in the United States for study at an

intermediate or advanced level or at the beginning level if appropriate

equivalent instruction is not available in the United States; or

(2) Engaged during the academic year in research that cannot be

done effectively in the United States and is affiliated with an

institution of higher education or other appropriate organization in

the host country.

[FR Doc. 96-7593 Filed 3-27-96; 8:45 am]

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