Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Notice of Final Priorities

[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 13 (Tuesday, January 21, 1997)]

[Notices]

[Pages 3176-3179]

From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[FR Doc No: 97-1391]

[[Page 3175]]

_______________________________________________________________________

Part IV

Department of Education

_______________________________________________________________________

Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year 1997 and Final Priorities;

Notices

Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 13 / Tuesday, January 21, 1997 /

Notices

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Notice

of Final Priorities

AGENCY: Department of Education.

SUMMARY: The Secretary announces final priorities for three programs

administered by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative

Services (OSERS) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

The Secretary may use these priorities in Fiscal Year 1997 and

subsequent years. The Secretary takes this action to focus Federal

assistance on identified needs to improve results for children with

disabilities. These final priorities are intended to ensure wide and

effective use of program funds.

EFFECTIVE DATE: These priorities take effect on February 20, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The address, and telephone number at

the Department to contact for information on each final priority is

listed under that priority.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice contains six final priorities

under three programs authorized by the Individuals with Disabilities

Education Act, as follows: Research in Education of Individuals with

Disabilities Program (one priority); Educational Media Research,

Production, Distribution, and Training Program (four priorities); and

Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals with

Disabilities Program (one priority). The purpose of each program is

stated separately under the title of that program.

On October 9, 1996, the Secretary published a notice of proposed

priorities for these programs in the Federal Register (61 FR 53032).

These final priorities support the National Education Goals by

improving understanding of how to enable children and youth with

disabilities to reach higher levels of academic achievement.

The publication of these priorities does not preclude the Secretary

from proposing additional priorities, nor does it limit the Secretary

to funding only these priorities, subject to meeting applicable

rulemaking requirements. Funding of particular projects depends on the

availability of funds, and the quality of the applications received.

Further, FY 1997 priorities could be affected by enactment of

legislation reauthorizing these programs.

Note: This notice of final priorities does not solicit

applications. A notice inviting applications under these

competitions is published in a separate notice in this issue of the

Federal Register.

Analysis of Comments and Changes

In response to the Secretary's invitation in the notice of proposed

priorities, one party submitted comments. An analysis of the comment

follows. Technical and other minor changes--as well as suggested

changes the Secretary is not legally authorized to make under the

applicable statutory authority--are not addressed.

Comment: One commenter suggested that the Initial Career Awards

priority should: (1) include individuals who have completed a

professional degree, such as physical therapists, but who are not

doctorally prepared; and (2) permit researchers to request up to five

years of research support.

Discussion: The Department has a basic three-pronged approach to

develop the capacity of the special education research community.

First, there is the Student-Initiated Research Projects priority (begun

in 1974) that targets students at the post-secondary level to encourage

students to pursue special education research. Under the Student-

Initiated Research Projects priority, awards are made for up to a 12-

month period. Second, the Initial Career Awards (ICA) competition

(begun in 1990) is intended to bridge the gap between students and

established researchers by providing support to individuals who are in

the initial phases of their careers to initiate and develop promising

lines of research. Under the ICA competition, awards are made for up to

three years. Third, the Field-Initiated Research Projects (FIR)

competition (begun in 1964) provides support to researchers who may be

associated with institutions of higher education, State and local

educational agencies, and other public agencies and nonprofit private

organizations. Awards under the FIR competition may be for up to 5

years. The Department believes this approach should be maintained

because historically the students and beginning researchers have a

difficult time competing against established researchers, and the

Department believes it is important to encourage and support their

participation to expand the special education research capacity into as

broad a range as possible. The Department believes that limiting the

ICA competition to individuals who are doctorally prepared supports the

commitment to increase the capacity of individuals who intend to pursue

careers in special education research, rather than individuals who may

be capable of conducting research, but who are not making special

education research a career. The Department has limited ICA to three

years since these awards are intended as start-up rather than long-term

investments.

Changes: None.

Research in Education of Individuals With Disabilities Program

Purpose of Program: To advance and improve the knowledge base and

improve the practice of professionals, parents, and others providing

early intervention, special education, and related services--including

professionals who work with children with disabilities in regular

education environments--to provide children with disabilities effective

instruction and enable these children to learn successfully.

Priority: Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), the Secretary gives an

absolute preference to applications that meet the following priority.

The Secretary will fund under this competition only those applications

that meet this absolute priority:

Absolute Priority--Initial Career Awards

The Secretary establishes an absolute priority for the purpose of

awarding grants to eligible applicants for the support of individuals

in the initial phases of their careers to initiate and develop

promising lines of research consistent with the purposes of the

program. For purposes of this priority, the initial phase of an

individual's career is considered to be the first four years after

completing a doctoral program and graduating (e.g., for fiscal year

1997 awards, projects may support individuals who completed a doctoral

program and graduated no earlier than the 1991-92 academic year).

Projects must--

(a) Pursue a line of inquiry that reflects a programmatic strand of

research emanating either from theory or a conceptual framework. The

line of research must be evidenced by a series of related questions

that establish directions for designing future studies extending beyond

the support of this award. The project is not intended to represent all

inquiry related to the particular theory or conceptual framework;

rather, it is expected to initiate a new line or advance an existing

one;

(b) Include, in its design and conduct, sustained involvement with

nationally recognized experts having substantive or methodological

knowledge and expertise relevant to the proposed research. Experts do

not have to be at the same institution or agency at which the project

is located, but the interaction must be sufficient to develop the

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capacity of the researcher to pursue effectively the research into mid-

career activities. At least 50 percent of the researcher's time must be

devoted to the project;

(c) Prepare its procedures, findings, and conclusions in a manner

that informs other interested researchers and is useful for advancing

professional practice or improving programs and services to infants,

toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities and their families; and

(d) Disseminate project procedures, findings, and conclusions to

appropriate research institutes and technical assistance providers.

A project's budget must include funds to attend the two-day

Research Project Directors' meeting to be held in Washington, DC each

year of the project.

For Further Information Contact: For further information on the

priority under the Research in Education of Individuals with

Disabilities Program contact the U.S. Department of Education, 600

Independence Avenue, SW., room 3529, Switzer Building, Washington, DC

20202-2641. Telephone: (202) 205-9864. FAX: (202) 205-8105. Internet:

Claudette--C[email protected].

Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD)

may call the TDD number: (202) 205-8953.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1441.

Educational Media Research, Production, Distribution, and Training

Program

Purpose of Program: To promote the general welfare of individuals

who are deaf or hard of hearing and individuals with visual

disabilities, and to promote the educational advancement of individuals

with disabilities.

Priorities: Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), the Secretary gives an

absolute preference to applications that meet any one of the following

priorities. The Secretary will fund under these competitions only

applications that meet any one of these absolute priorities:

Absolute Priority 1--Closed-Captioned Sports Programs

Background

This priority supports cooperative agreements to continue and to

expand closed-captioning of major national sports programs shown on

national commercial broadcast or basic cable television networks.

Captioning provides a visual representation of the audio portion of the

programming and enables individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to

participate in the shared educational, social, and cultural experiences

of national sporting events. Funds provided under this priority may be

used to support no more than sixty percent of the captioning costs for

the first year of the project, fifty-five percent for the second year,

and fifty percent for the third year.

Priority

To be considered for funding under this competition, a project

must--

(1) Include criteria for selecting programs for captioning that

take into account the preference of consumers for particular sports

programs, the diversity of programming available, and the contribution

of programs to the general educational, social, and cultural

experiences of individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing;

(2) Provide a flexible plan, including back-up systems, to ensure

closed-captioning of sports programs without interruption, while

accommodating last-minute program substitutions and new programs;

(3) Identify the total number of hours and the projected cost per

hour for each of the programs to be captioned;

(4) Identify for each proposed program to be captioned the source

of private or other public support and the projected dollar amount of

that support;

(5) Identify the methods of captioning to be used for each

program--indicating whether captioning is provided in real-time, live

display, offline, or reformatted--and the projected cost per hour for

each method used;

(6) Demonstrate the willingness of major national commercial

broadcast or basic cable networks to permit captioning of their

programs; and

(7) Implement procedures for monitoring the extent to which full

and accurate captioning is provided and use this information to make

refinements in captioning operations.

Absolute Priority 2--Video Description

Background

This priority supports cooperative agreements to provide video

description in two areas: (1) Broadcast and cable television programs;

and (2) home video. The purpose of this activity will be to describe

television programs and videos to make television programming and home

videos more accessible to children and adults with visual disabilities.

The intent of this priority is to provide access to described

television programming and home videos in order to enhance shared

educational, social, and cultural experiences for children and adults

with visual disabilities.

Priority

To be considered for funding under this priority, a project must--

(1) Include criteria for selecting programs and videos that take

into account the preference of consumers for particular topics of

interest, the diversity of programs or videos available, and the

contribution of these programs or videos to the general educational,

social, and cultural experiences of individuals with visual

disabilities;

(2) Identify the total number of hours to be described and the

projected cost per hour for each program or video to be described;

(3) Identify the source of private or public support, if any, for

each program or video to be described, and the projected dollar amount

of that support;

(4) Demonstrate the willingness of program or video producers to

permit video description and distribution of their program or video;

and,

(5) Evaluate the effectiveness of the methods and technologies used

in providing this service and the impact on intended populations.

Absolute Priority 3--Educational Video Selection and Captioning

Background

This priority supports one cooperative agreement that would screen,

evaluate, obtain, caption, and make available educational videos,

including classics and general interest titles, for use by students and

other individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, parents of

individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, and other individuals

directly involved in activities promoting the advancement of

individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. This activity includes the

preparation of captions on computer diskettes or CD-ROM, as

appropriate, and the preparation of lesson guides for educational

videos. This priority would ensure that students and other individuals

who are deaf or hard of hearing may benefit from the same educational

and general interest videos used to enrich the educational experiences

of students and other individuals without hearing disabilities.

Priority

To be considered for funding under this priority, the project

must--

(1) Develop strategies and procedures to be used in determining

curricular needs of students who are deaf or hard of hearing in all

types of school settings for captioned videos;

(2) Develop and implement an on-going evaluation program for

incorporating the reaction and

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suggestions of users into the selection and captioning process;

(3) Develop and implement criteria and procedures for screening,

evaluating, and captioning selected videos;

(4) Obtain videos from film and video distributors for screening,

evaluation, and possible captioning. Select from among video titles

submitted by evaluators those that closely match the curricular needs

identified under paragraph (1) of this proposed priority, taking into

account the videos most commonly used in school districts across the

Nation for all students;

(5) Make arrangements with respective producers and distributors to

have selected videos captioned and made available through general

distribution mechanisms (such as video sales catalogues), as well as

through the captioned film and video loan service authorized under Part

F of IDEA and 34 CFR Part 330 (by purchasing up to 100 copies of each

captioned title, which must be open-captioned). Closed-captioned

masters must be made available to producers and distributors in an

effort to promote the use of captioned videos.

(6) For selected titles, prepare captions on computer diskettes or

CD-ROM, as appropriate, and check for accuracy. These captions would

take into account the age and reading levels of the likely target

audience;

(7) For selected educational videos, prepare lesson guides;

(8) Identify, select, and, if necessary, provide training or

technical assistance to video evaluators, caption checkers, and

captioning service providers; and

(9) Develop and implement quality control guidelines and procedures

for checking videocassettes after they are captioned.

Absolute Priority 4--Research on Educational Captioning

Background

This priority supports research on captioning of educational media

and materials. Research can be based on the instructional use of

captioning or the use of captioning as a language development tool for

enhancing the reading and literacy skills of individuals who are deaf

or hard of hearing. Media and technologies explored or used by projects

funded under this priority may include, but are not limited to: (1)

Television--including high-definition television; (2) videos; and (3)

other media and multi-media technologies such as interactive videodiscs

and CD-ROMs.

Priority

Under this competition, projects must--

(1) Identify specific technological approaches that would be

investigated;

(2) Carry out the research within a conceptual framework, based on

previous research or theory, that provides a basis for the strategies

to be studied, the research design, and target population;

(3) Collect, analyze and report (a) characteristics and outcome

data (actual rather than expected results), including the settings, the

service providers, and the individuals targeted by the project; and (b)

multiple, functional outcome data on the individuals who are the focus

of the technological approaches;

(4) Conduct the research in realistic settings such as residential

or integrated schools or colleges, or in community settings, as

appropriate; and

(5) Conduct the research using methodological procedures that

would: (a) Produce unambiguous findings regarding the effects of

approaches and effects of the interaction among particular approaches

and particular groups of individuals or particular settings; and (b)

permit use of the findings in policy analyses.

For Further Information Contact: For further information on the

four priorities under the Educational Media Research, Production,

Distribution, and Training Program contact the U.S. Department of

Education, 600 Independence Avenue SW., room 4627, Switzer Building,

Washington, DC 20202-4641. Telephone: (202) 205-8894. FAX: (202) 205-

8971. Internet: Jeffrey__P[email protected].

Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD)

may call the TDD number: (202) 205-8169.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1451, 1452.

Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals With

Disabilities Program

Purpose of Program: To support projects and centers for advancing

the availability, quality, use, and effectiveness of technology,

educational media, and materials in the education of children and youth

with disabilities and the provision of related services and early

intervention services to infants and toddlers with disabilities.

Priority: Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) the Secretary gives an absolute

preference to applications that meet the following priority. The

Secretary will fund under this competition only applications that meet

this absolute priority:

Absolute Priority--Technology, Educational Media, and Materials

Projects That Create Innovative Tools for Students With Disabilities

This priority provides support for development projects that design

or adapt technology, assistive technology, educational media, or

materials to improve the education of children and youth with

disabilities.

Invitational Priority

Within the absolute priority specified in this notice, the

Secretary is particularly interested in applications that meet the

following invitational priorities. However, under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1)

an application that meets one or more of these invitational priorities

does not receive competitive or absolute preference over other

applications:

The Secretary is particularly interested in projects that--

(a) Create Innovative Tools--by encouraging development of varied

and integrated technologies, media, and materials that open up and

expand the lives of those with disabilities. This work should enable

individuals with disabilities to achieve the outcomes expected of all

students, such as independence, productivity and an improved quality of

life, that promote equity in opportunity; or

(b) Foster the Creation of State-of-the-Art Instructional

Environments--both in and out of school. These environments should use

technology, educational media, and materials to enable students with

disabilities to access knowledge, develop skills and problem-solving

strategies, and engage in educational experiences necessary for their

success as adults who are fully included in our society.

For Further Information Contact: For further information on the

priority under the Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for

Individuals with Disabilities Program contact the U.S. Department of

Education, 600 Independence Avenue, S.W., Room 4617, Switzer Building,

Washington, D.C. 20202-2734. Telephone: (202) 205-9884. FAX: (202) 205-

8971. Internet: Robin M[email protected].

Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD)

may call the TDD number: (202) 205-8169.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1461.

Intergovernmental Review

The programs (except for the Research in Education of Individuals

with Disabilities Program) included in this notice are subject to the

requirements of

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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 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.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Numbers: Research in

Education of Individuals with Disabilities Program, 84.023; Media

Research, Production, Distribution, and Training Program, 84.026;

and Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals

with Disabilities Program, 84.180)

Dated: January 14, 1997.

Katherine D. Seelman,

Acting Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative

Services.

[FR Doc. 97-1391 Filed 1-17-97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000-01-P