Office of Postsecondary Education; Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards and Final Procedures and Requirements for Fiscal Year (FY) 1999 Competitions Under the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant Programs

[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 25 (Monday, February 8, 1999)]

[Notices]

[Pages 6140-6147]

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

[FR Doc No: 99-2720]

[[Page 6139]]

_______________________________________________________________________

Part II

Department of Education

_______________________________________________________________________

Office of Postsecondary Education; Notice Inviting Applications for New

Awards and Final Procedures and Requirements for Fiscal Year (FY) 1999

Competitions Under the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant Programs;

Notice

Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 25 / Monday, February 8, 1999 /

Notices

[[Page 6140]]

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA NO: 84.336]

Office of Postsecondary Education; Notice Inviting Applications

for New Awards and Final Procedures and Requirements for Fiscal Year

(FY) 1999 Competitions Under the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant

Programs

SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education (Assistant

Secretary) invites applications for new awards for Fiscal Year (FY)

1999 for the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant Programs for States and

Partnerships authorized by sections 201-205 of the Higher Education Act

(HEA), as amended by the Higher Education Amendments of 1998. The

Assistant Secretary also announces final procedures and requirements to

govern the competitions and FY 1999 awards.

PURPOSE OF PROGRAM: See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this

notice for a description of the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant

Programs.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Louis J. Venuto, Higher Education

Programs, Office of Postsecondary Education, 400 Maryland Ave. SW.,

Portals Building, Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20202-5131: Telephone:

(202) 708-8596. Inquiries also may be sent by e-mail to:

Louis__V[email protected] or by FAX to: (202) 260-9272.

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.

Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an

alternate format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer

diskette) upon request to the contact person listed in the preceding

paragraph. Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the

application package in an alternative format, also, by contacting that

person. However, the Department is not able to reproduce in an

alternate format the standard forms included in the application

package.

Eligible Applicants: The Secretary invites applications from States

and from eligible partnerships comprised, at minimum, of an institution

of higher education with an eligible teacher preparation program, a

school of arts and sciences, and a high-need local educational agency

(LEA). These terms are defined in section 203 of the HEA.

Applicability of Regulations: The following provisions of EDGAR

contained Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) apply to

the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant Programs: 34 CFR Parts 74, 75,

77, 79, 80, 82, 85, and 86. However, section 75.590, regarding a

project evaluation to be submitted at the end of the final year of the

grant, does not apply to recipients of State Program grants.

Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking

In accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553),

it is the practice of the Department of Education to offer interested

parties the opportunity to comment on proposed rulemaking documents.

However, in accordance with section 437(d)(1) of the General Education

Provisions Act, the Secretary has determined that because it is not

possible to offer the public an opportunity for comment on proposed

rulemaking under the Teacher Quality grant programs and still make

awards by September 30, 1999, as required by law, it is desirable to

waive public comment for the first year competition of this new

discretionary grant program. This waiver will apply only to the

criteria, procedures, and requirements included in this notice for

awarding FY 1999 Teacher Quality Enhancement Program grants. Any

criteria and procedures that the Department establishes for the award

of grants under these programs in future years will be based on

experiences with this FY 1999 award process, and will be published in

proposed form in the Federal Register with an opportunity for

interested parties to comment.

Applications Available: On or before February 11, 1999. The

Department also expects that application packages will be available

electronically through the internet on February 11, 1999, at the

Department's website: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/heatqp/index.html

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Note: Information about six regional workshops the Department

has scheduled between February 17 and March 2, 1999, to answer

questions about the Teacher Quality Programs and to provide general

assistance in preparing applications for each of the programs, is

included in an appendix to this notice.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 8, 1998, the President signed

into law the Higher Education Amendments of 1998. Title II of this law

addresses the Nation's need to ensure that new teachers enter the

classroom prepared to teach all students to high standards by

authorizing, as Title II of the Higher Education Act, Teacher Quality

Enhancement Grants for States and Partnerships. The new Teacher Quality

programs provide an historic opportunity to effect positive change in

the recruitment, preparation, licensing, and on-going support of

teachers in America. The programs are designed to increase student

achievement by implementing comprehensive approaches to improving

teacher quality.

More specifically, the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant Programs

include three new competitive grant programs:

State Grants Program: Competitive grants to States will support the

implementation of comprehensive statewide reforms to improve the

quality of a State's teaching force. By law, State activities must

include one or more of the following activities: reforming teacher

certification or licensure standards; implementing reforms to hold

institutions of higher education accountable for preparing teachers who

are highly competent in their subject areas; providing prospective

teachers with alternative pathways into teaching; implementing programs

of support for teachers during their initial periods of teaching and

establishing, expanding, or improving alternative routes to State

certification; developing effective methods of recruiting and rewarding

highly competent teachers and removing incompetent or unqualified

teachers; recruiting teachers for high-poverty urban and rural areas;

and developing ways teachers can address the problem of social

promotion.

Partnership Grants For Improving Teacher Preparation Program: The

purpose of the Partnership program is to bring teacher preparation

programs, schools of arts and sciences, and high-need school districts

and schools together (as appropriate with other stakeholders) to create

fundamental change and improvement in traditional teacher education

programs--thereby increasing teachers' capacity to help all students

learn to high standards. Designed to support highly committed

partnerships that will accelerate the change process in teacher

education, the program will (1) strengthen the vital role of K-12

educators in the design and implementation of effective teacher

education programs, and (2) increase collaboration between departments

of arts and sciences and schools of education.

The program is designed to make an important impact on teacher

education and thereby to increase significantly the number of new

teachers emerging from programs that have been redesigned to ensure

that new teachers have the content knowledge and teaching skills to be

effective.

Teacher Recruitment Grants Program: In addition, there is a great

need, especially in high-poverty communities, to recruit and prepare

more people to become teachers. The Teacher Recruitment Grants--awarded

either to States or to partnerships among high-need LEAs, teacher

preparation institutions, and schools of arts and sciences--are

designed to reduce shortages of highly qualified teachers in high-need

school districts.

Local partnerships between school districts and teacher preparation

institutions have been found to be very effective at providing teachers

for communities where they are most needed. The ``grow your own''

approach is also effective for these communities because individuals

who are already members of a community are likely to remain there after

they become teachers. The recruitment grants will allow individual

communities to determine their needs for teachers and to recruit and

prepare teachers who meet those needs. States can also play an

important role in ensuring that high-need school districts are able to

recruit highly qualified teachers, and they can use the recruitment

grants to develop and implement effective mechanisms to do so.

Rules Applicable to These Programs for FY 1999 Competitions

In order to administer the program fairly and properly, the

following rules apply to these competitions:

State Grants Program

The Department will use provisions contained in 34 CFR 75.209-

75.210 to establish selection criteria that reviewers will use to make

recommendations on which applicants to recommend for award. However,

rather than include ``Quality of project personnel'' (75.210(e)) as a

separate criterion, the Department will use, as an additional element

under the criterion ``Quality of the management plan'' (section

75.210(g)), the following: The qualifications, including training and

experience, of key project personnel (including consultants, if any)

that are relevant to implementing the proposed project.

In addition, consistent with section 205(b)(2) of the HEA, which

established priorities for projects awarded grants under the State

Grants program, the Secretary includes in the selection criteria the

following competitive preference:

Competitive Preference: The Secretary reviews each application to

determine the extent to which the State's proposed activities in any

one or more of the following statutory priorities are likely to yield

successful and sustained results.

1. Projects that propose initiatives to reform State teacher

certification requirements that are designed to ensure that current and

future teachers possess the necessary teaching skills and academic

content knowledge in the subject areas in which the teachers are

certified or licensed to teach.

2. Projects that proposes innovative reforms to hold institutions

of higher education with teacher preparation programs accountable for

preparing teachers who are highly competent in academic content area in

which the teachers plan to teach and have strong teaching skills.

3. Projects that propose the development of innovative efforts

aimed at reducing the shortage of highly qualified teachers in high

poverty urban and rural areas.

The Secretary awards up to ten (10) additional points on the basis

of how well the application addresses this preference.

Note: Evaluation. In view of the public accountability required

by section 206(a) of the HEA, States receiving grant awards under

this program will not need to submit the end-of-project evaluation

report otherwise required by 34 CFR 75.590 of the Education

Department's General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR).

Partnership Grants Program

Pre-Application Process: So that all applicants have as much time

as possible to design activities and develop new relationships that are

needed for applications that will address these challenges, the

Department will use a two-phase peer review process to select

applicants for awards. All applicants must submit pre-applications by

April 2, 1999 that include a narrative of no more than 10 double-spaced

pages.

Peer reviewers will rate each application on its response to these

topics:

[[Page 6143]]

1. What is the partnership's vision to produce significant and

sustainable improvements in teacher education?

2. Explain what your partnership can accomplish by working together

that could not be accomplished by working separately.

3. Describe key components of the change process to realize your

vision. What are the components? How do they reflect best research and

practice? What will the partnership do to implement these components of

change?

4. Discuss the specific outcomes of the proposed project. What will

change? How will you know that the project is successful?

Each of these topics (i.e., the pre-application selection criteria)

is critical to the design and implementation of high-quality

partnership grants for improving teacher education. Peer reviewers will

rate each pre-application by assigning up to 25 points for each of

these four responses. Only those applicants whose pre-applications are

rated very highly in this competitive peer review process will be

invited and eligible to submit full Partnership Grant applications.

Other Pre-Application Requirements: Pre-applications also will need

to contain the following information:

1. Application face sheet, as well as information on whether key

LEAs are in urban/rural areas and in either Empowerment Zones or

Enterprise Communities.

2. An Addendum that includes--

a. The identity of each of the application's partners, and

sufficient information to permit the Department to determine that the

partnership meets the minimum eligibility definitions included in the

``General Program Information'' (Part C) of the application package;

and

b. Relevant Budgetary Information: For the pre-application, this

information is limited to--

i. An estimated budget that includes--for each year of the

project--the total amount of Title II, HEA funds projected to be

requested, and the projected amount or of cash or in-kind contribution

from each contributing partner; and

ii. A budget narrative of no more than two double-spaced pages that

addresses generally, for each year of the project, how federal grant

funds and the non-federal contribution will be used.

Peer reviewers will use this budget information to gauge the scale

and scope of the proposed project, and to help clarify information

contained in the application narrative. Those invited to submit a full

application may modify this projected budget to reflect the plan of

work in the full proposal. They also will be required to submit more

complete budget information in the full application.

Full Partnership Application: The Secretary will select for funding

under the Partnership Program those applications that are of highest

overall quality. In determining which applications to recommend for

award as having the highest overall quality, reviewers will assign each

application up to 110 points using the following selection criteria and

competitive preference. The relative weights for each criterion are

indicated in parentheses. Applicants are free to respond to these

criteria in any way they choose.

These selection criteria have been designed to ensure that those

partnership applications selected for funding have addressed elements

that the Secretary believes are key to a successful teacher preparation

partnership, and have the greatest promise of meeting the broad

purposes of the program.

Each of these three broad criteria includes one or more key

questions that peer reviewers will consider as they examine an

application, as well as a number of key elements that are critical to a

well-developed response to these questions and to the partnership's

overall success. Peer reviewers will consider what the partnership will

accomplish--from whatever point the partners are in implementing

reform--to enable teachers to have the knowledge and teaching skills

they need to teach all of their students to high standards.

To be recommended for award, peer reviewers must either--

1. Find that the application satisfactorily addresses each of the

key elements that follow each question, or

2. Be satisfied that an inadequate response to an element would

prevent an award to an applicant that otherwise addressed, in

outstanding ways, all Selection Criteria. (Reviewers will still need to

find that the applicant submitted all information required by section

203 of the HEA.

Note: Section 203(b)(1) of the HEA requires that all

partnerships include at least one high-need LEA (which by definition

must have one or more high-need school). The definitions of a high-

need LEA (and of a high-need school) are contained in the section of

this notice entitled ``Program Requirements Applicable to More Than

One Program''.

These definitions present a minimum standard that any partnership

application must meet to be eligible to be considered. (As noted in

``Other Important Application Information'' in the application package,

all applications must include information that confirms that the

partnerships are comprised of the required components--including one or

more school district that is a ``high-need'' LEA.) However, while the

Partnership Program needs to have the greatest possible benefit for all

participating LEAs and schools, the Nation faces a particular need to

address the needs of those LEAs and schools whose students are most at-

risk of failure. Given the particular challenges faced by these

districts and schools, the highest-quality applications are likely to

be those that not only are able to provide outstanding responses to the

three selection criteria, but also focus on LEAs and schools that

greatly exceed the definitions of high need.

Selection Criteria and Competitive Preference

a. Significance of Project Activities: (34 points)

In assessing how well the application meets this criterion,

reviewers will determine how well it responds to the following

question:

How does the partnership plan to meet its objectives and ensure

that, once they begin work in the classroom, new teachers have the

content knowledge and teaching skills they need to enable their

students to succeed?

In responding to this question, applicants should be sure to

address the following key elements:

The existence of institution-wide commitments to high-

quality teacher preparation programs that integrate pedagogy and

subject-area content, and that include--

1. Strong connections between teacher preparation program(s) and

the school(s) of arts and sciences;

2. Permanent institutional mechanisms that reward effective

collaboration with the teacher preparation programs; and

3. Significant involvement of tenured and tenure-track faculty of

the teacher preparation program(s) and the school(s) of arts and

sciences.

The responsiveness of teacher preparation programs to the

needs of K-12 educators in high-need LEAs through, among other things:

1. Joint activities with high-need LEAs that increase the

involvement of classroom teachers and school administrators in the

design, improvement, and implementation of the teacher preparation and

induction programs;

2. Demonstrable evidence of an increased presence of university

faculty and preservice students in participating LEA schools;

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3. Revamped teacher preparation curriculum and related

organizational changes within the institution for higher education; and

4. Strong organizational linkages between each participating

institution of higher education and the participating LEA's.

The partnership's commitment to using evidence of how well

graduates of the teacher preparation program(s) are teaching (including

evidence of how well their students are achieving) to make regular

adjustments and improvements in those programs.

The partners' commitment to share effective practices and

provide technical assistance about ways to improve teacher education at

each teacher preparation institution that participates in the

partnership.

The quality of the partnership activities which--

1. Must include the following mandatory activities--

a. Carrying out reform of teacher preparation programs to hold

those programs accountable for producing highly competent teachers,

including teachers competent to use technology effectively in their

classrooms;

b. Providing good clinical experiences and mentoring for new

teachers and substantially increasing the interaction between teachers,

principals, and administrators and an higher education faculty; and

c. Creating opportunities for enhanced and ongoing professional

development that improves the academic content knowledge of teachers in

fields they are or will be certified to teach.

2. And may also include activities such as--

a. Activities to prepare teachers to work with diverse populations

and parents;

b. Broad dissemination of information on effective practices used

by the partnership, and coordination of partnership activities with

State governors, boards of education and State agencies;

c. Developing and implementing proven methods for enhancing the

managerial and leadership skills of superintendents and principals

(including those of master teachers and teacher-mentors); and

d. Teacher recruitment activities that may be conducted under the

Teacher Recruitment Grant Program (see section 204 of the HEA).

Note: See section 203(d) and (e) of the HEA, which identifies

with greater detail the three mandatory and four permissive

activities, included in Part G of the Partnership Program's

application package.

A well-considered statement, for each year of the grant,

of annual goals, benchmarks, and time lines that the partnership will

use to determine whether project activities are effective in meeting

the partnership's objectives.

The commitment and ability of the partnership to:

(1) Integrate its activities with other educational reform

activities underway in the State(s) and communities in which the

partners are located; and (2) coordinate its activities with other

local, State, or federally-supported teacher training or professional

development programs and with appropriate activities of the Governor,

State board of education and State educational agency and agency for

higher education.

b. Extent to Which the Partnership's Objectives Are Built Around the

Needs of High-Need LEAs and Their High-Need Schools. (33 Points)

1. Does the application demonstrate that the partnership has

developed strong measurable objectives, including measurable objectives

for--

Improving teacher preparation programs in the partnership;

and

Improving the quality and number of teacher education

program graduates who (1) meet the teacher preparation needs of high-

need school districts in the partnership, and (2) take teaching

positions in high-need schools in those districts?

2. Does the application demonstrate that the partnership's

objectives build upon a clear and thorough needs assessment performed

by and of all K-12 and higher education partners that--

Was developed with the active participation of school and

district administrators and classroom teachers of all types of

students?

Focuses on what all new teachers must know and be able to

do once they begin teaching in the classroom--particularly in teaching

reading, mathematics, science and other core subjects?

Includes an assessment performed by the partner

institution(s) of higher education that--

Examines the state of collaboration on the campus between arts and

sciences faculty and the education faculty in teacher preparation

activities, and between higher education faculty and K-12 teachers and

administrators;

Examines the adequacy of the clinical experiences afforded to

preservice students;

Examines the adequacy of content preparation for prospective

teachers; and

Explains the need to improve the overall quality of teacher

preparation to better respond to the needs of LEAs, and in particular

of high-need LEAs?

c. Feasibility of Achieving Project Objectives: Quality of Project

Management, Governance Structure, and the Availability and Use of

Resources: (33 Points)

In assessing how well the application meets this criterion,

reviewers will determine how well it responds to the following

question:

How well does the application demonstrate that the partnership will

be able to achieve its objectives, and that all members of the

partnership will work collaboratively to sustain, improve, and enhance

project activities during and beyond the period of the project?

In addressing this question, applicants should be sure to address

the following elements:

The extent to which the partnership has an effective,

inclusive, and responsive governance and decision-making structure--

1. That will permit all members of the partnership (including

teachers of the high-need LEA(s)) to plan, implement, and assess the

adequacy of partnership activities; and

2. Through which the fiscal agent will provide project funds, as

appropriate, to other partners to permit them to implement program

activities.

The extent to which the application demonstrates that the

partnership will sustain itself during and beyond the period of the

grant (which may include evidence that members of the partnership have

succeeded--with each other or other entities--in other significant and

sustained partnering efforts).

The extent to which members of the partnership will

provide technical assistance to each other to further project

objectives.

A resource assessment that describes--

1. The (federal and non-federal) resources available to the

partnership;

2. The intended uses of grant funds (including financial support,

faculty participation, and time commitments), whether awarded by the

Department or provided by the partners, including how grant funds will

be fairly distributed among the partners with no partner retaining more

than 50 percent of grant funds that the Secretary awards; and

3. The commitment of the partnership's own resources to project

activities, including non-federal financial support, faculty

participation, time commitments, and other in-kind services, as well as

continuation of activities when the grant ends.

Note: As required by 34 CFR 75.117, all applications must

include, among other

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things, a multi-year budget reflecting Federal and non-Federal

resources.

The qualifications and relevant experience of the overall

project director and key personnel of each partner who have

responsibility for implementing project activities.

How well the application describes how the partnership

Will--

1. Regularly assess whether it is meeting its program objectives;

2. Take steps to modify project plans and activities if the

partnership finds that it is not meeting its objectives; and

3. Prepare the evaluation and annual progress report that include

strong performance objectives, and measures and reporting information

as required by section 206(b) and (c) of the HEA.

Competitive Preference: Consistent with section 205(b)(2)(B) of the

HEA, the Secretary reviews each application to determine the extent to

which the partnership proposes to meet the following statutory

priority: a significant role for private business in the design and

implementation of the partnership. The Secretary awards up to ten (10)

additional points for applications that address this preference.

Teacher Recruitment Grants Program

The Department will use provisions contained in 34 CFR 75.209-

75.210 to establish selection criteria that reviewers will use to make

recommendations on which applicants to recommend for award. However,

rather than include ``Quality of project personnel'' (34 CFR 75.210(e))

as a separate criterion, the Department will use, as an additional

element under the criterion ``Quality of the management plan ``(34 CFR

75.210(g)), the following: The qualifications, including training and

experience, of key project personnel (including consultants, if any)

that are relevant to implementing the proposed project.

Finally, section 204 of the HEA requires partnership and State

grant recipients under the Teacher Recruitment Program to work with

high-need LEAs to recruit and prepare teachers who will work in those

districts and thereby help to address their teacher shortages. To

ensure that program funds are used to meet the purposes of this

program, States and partnerships receiving grant awards under this

program (as well as any high-need LEAs participating in their projects)

must ensure that teachers who have received scholarship assistance and

other services under the Teacher Recruitment Program are placed, to the

extent possible, in high-need schools within the high-need LEAs that

participate in the partnership or State project.

Invitational Priorities: The Secretary is particularly interested

in receiving applications from States and partnerships that propose to

focus their efforts on recruiting members of minority or historically

disadvantaged groups to become teachers in high-need LEAs and schools

because of the growing gap between the diveristy of the student

population and the composition of the teaching force.

In addition, in order to recruit highly competent individuals to

become teachers in high-need LEAs and schools, section 204(d)(1)

permits States and partnerships to use grant funds for the costs of

scholarship assistance that teaching candidates need to enable them to

pay the costs of completing a teacher preparation program in addition

to other support services and follow-up services after they begin

teaching. Alternatively, section 204(d)(2) permits States and

partnerships, more generally, to use grant funds to design and

implement effective mechanisms to ensure that high-need LEAs and

schools are able to effectively recruit highly qualified teachers. The

availability of scholarship assistance is likely to be a very useful

tool in attracting well-qualified individuals to become teachers in

these high-need LEAs and schools. For this reason, regardless of which

approach States and partnerships take in designing their projects, the

Secretary is particularly interested in receiving proposals that would

provide scholarship support for prospective teachers.

Program Requirements Applicable to More Than One Program

The Department is establishing a number of requirements that, in

addition to the statutory requirements in the HEA, govern two or more

of the Teacher Quality Programs. These include the following:

1. Section 201(a)(2) provides a definition of ``high-need'' LEA as

a public school district that serves an elementary or secondary school

located in an area in which there is--

a. A high percentage of individuals from families with incomes

below the poverty line;

b. A high percentage of secondary school teachers not teaching in

the content area in which the teachers were trained to teach; or

c. A high teacher turnover rate.

None of the three alternative meanings can be applied equally and

fairly to all applicants without further definition. Therefore, for

purposes of these Teacher Quality Enhancements Grant Programs--

1. An LEA with at least one school located in an area in which

there is ``a high percentage of individuals from families with incomes

below the poverty line'' is a ``high-need LEA'' if--the LEA has at

least one school in which 40 percent or more of the enrolled students

are eligible for free (not ``free and reduced'') lunch subsidies.

2. An LEA that has one school with a ``high percentage of secondary

school teachers not teaching in the content area in which the teachers

were trained to teach'' is a ``high-need LEA'' if either of the

following conditions holds true:

More than 34 percent of academic classroom teachers

overall (across all academic subjects) do not have a major, minor, or

significant course work in their main assignment field; or

More than 34 percent of the main assignment faculty in two

of the academic departments do not have a major, minor, or significant

work in their main assigned field.

For purposes of the definition above--

``Main assignment field'' means--the academic field in which

teachers have the largest percentage of their classes.

``Significant course work'' means--four or more college-or

graduate-level courses in the content area.

3. An LEA that serves an elementary or secondary school located in

an area in which there is a high turnover rate is a ``high-need LEA''

if the LEA has an elementary or secondary school whose attrition rate

is 15 percent or more in the last three school years.

Note: The Department believes that use of the percentage of

teachers in high-poverty schools who do not return in the following

year is a better source of data than the percentage of teachers in

schools with high percentages of minority students who do not return

to teach the following year--a factor proposed in the draft

application package. In addition, for this third definition of high-

need LEA, data is not readily available on the teacher turnover rate

in schools in which the students are eligible for free lunch

subsidies. Therefore, the data source for this definition and the

first definition of high-need LEA (high-poverty) cannot be the same.

4. Section 205(c)(1) requires that any State that receives either a

State Grant or a Teacher Recruitment Grant provide, from non-Federal

sources, an amount equal to 50 percent of the amount of the grant (in

cash or in kind) to carry out grant activities. This 50 percent match

must be made annually, with respect to each grant award of the project

period.

5. For purposes of indirect costs that may be charged to the

Teacher Recruitment Program and to the Partnership Program, all funded

projects

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are treated as ``educational training grants.'' Therefore, consistent

with 34 CFR 75.562, except for costs that may be incurred by State

agencies or LEAs, a recipient's indirect cost rate is limited to the

maximum of eight percent or the amount permitted by its negotiated

indirect cost rate agreement, whichever is less. In addition, this same

eight percent maximum indirect cost rate applies for any funds that

institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations may receive

from States under the State Program.

6. The Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA)

requires all Federal programs to use performance indicators to measure

their quality and effectiveness. GPRA further requires that the

Department provide Annual Performance Plans to Congress that provide

data on how all of the programs are performing with respect to the

program performance indicators. Therefore, the Department submits an

Annual Plan to Congress that provides the most recent data on the

Department's five-year Strategic Plan, as well as the latest data on

the performance of each program with respect to the program indicators.

7. In the event that the peer reviewers' use of these selection

criteria results in an equal ranking among two or more applicants for

the last available award under any of the three Teacher Quality

Programs, the Department will select the applicant whose activities

will focus (or have most impact) on LEAs and schools located in one (or

more) of the Nation's Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities.

8. In the case of any application or pre-application whose

narrative exceeds the 50-page double-spaced limitation for all Teacher

Quality Program applications and ten-page double-spaced limitation for

Partnership Program pre-applications, the Department will provide to

the peer reviewers only the first 50 pages of narrative and ten pages

of narrative, respectively.

9. The Title II Teacher Quality programs have a set of draft

performance objectives and indicators that appear in Part G,

``Supplementary Information,'' in the application package. Although

these performance objectives and indicators are still draft, the

objectives and indicators will be finalized by February of 1999 and

will look much like the draft performance indicators. All State and

partnership grantees must collect data and report to the Department on

their progress with respect to each of the performance indicators on

all of the final performance indicators.

In addition, there may be a few indicators for which data will be

collected by the contractor hired to conduct the national evaluation of

the Title II programs. All grantees also are required to cooperate with

the contractor for the national evaluation as the contractor collects

data from grantees related to these indicators.

Paperwork Reduction Act Considerations

The procedures and requirements contained in this notice relate to

application packages that the Department has developed under the three

Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant Programs. The public may obtain

copies of these packages by calling or writing the individuals

identified at the beginning of this notice as the Department's contact,

or through the Department's website: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/

heatqp/index.html

As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Office of

Management and Budget has approved the use of these application

packages under the following OMB control number 1840-0007, expires

February, 2002. As noted earlier in this notice, these application

packages will be available on or before February 11, 1999.

Electronic Access to This Document.

Anyone may view this document, as well as all other Department of

Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or

portable document format (pdf) on the World Wide Web at either of the

following sites:

http://ocfo.ed.gov/fedreg.htm

http://www.ed.gov/news.html

To use the pdf you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader Program with

Search, which is available free at either of the previous sites. If you

have questions about using the pdf, call the U.S. Government Printing

Office at (202) 512-1530 or, toll free at 1-888-293-6498.

Anyone may also view these documents in text copy on an electronic

bulletin board of the Department. Telephone: (202) 219-1511 or, toll

free, 1-800-222-4922. The documents located under Option G--Files/

Announcements, Bulletins, and Press Releases.

Note: The official version of the document is the document

published in the Federal Register.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.

Dated: February 1, 1999.

David A. Longanecker,

Assistant Secretary, Office of Postsecondary Education.

Appendix

Technical Assistance Workshops on Implementation of Teacher Quality

Enhancement Grant Programs

The Department of Education has scheduled six regional technical

assistance workshops between February 17 and March 2, 1999, to help

prospective applicants to better understand the Department's

approach to implementing the competitive grant competitions to be

held this spring under the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant

Programs, authorized by sections 201-204 of the Higher Education Act

of 1965, as amended. Under the Teacher Quality Programs, States must

submit applications for the State Program by April 16, 1999,

eligible partnerships must submit pre-applications for the

Partnership Program for Improving Teacher Education by April 2,

1999, and States and eligible partnerships must submit applications

for the Teacher Recruitment Program by April 16, 1999. At these

workshops, the public will be able to learn more about the purposes

and requirements of these programs, how to apply for funds, program

eligibility requirements, the application selection process, and

considerations that might help them to improve the quality of their

grant applications. Department of Education staff with expertise on

these and other issues related to the Teacher Quality Programs will

be available to answer any questions on these topics.

The locations and dates of these workshops are: February 17 B

Washington, DC; February 19 B San Diego, California; February 22 B

Seattle, Washington; February 25 B St. Louis, Missouri; February 26

B Dallas, Texas; and March 2, Atlanta, Georgia. Any interested

parties are invited to attend these workshops.

The Department of Education has reserved a limited number of

hotel rooms, at a special government per diem room rate, at each of

the following hotels that will host the workshops. To reserve these

rates, be certain to inform the hotel that you are attending the

workshops with the Department of Education.

The meeting sites are accessible to individuals with

disabilities. The Department will provide a sign language

interpreter at each of the scheduled workshops. An individual with a

disability who will need an auxiliary aid or service other than an

interpreter to participate in the meeting (e.g., assistive listening

device, or materials in an alternative format) should notify the

contact person listed in this notice at least two weeks before the

scheduled meeting date. Although the Department will attempt to meet

a request received after that date, the requested auxiliary aid or

service may not be available because of insufficient time to arrange

it.

Dates, Times, and Locations of Technical Assistance Workshops

Workshop #1: Wednesday, February 17, 1999, Washington, DC,

Washington Hilton

[[Page 6147]]

Hotel, 1919 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005; Phone:

(202) 483-3000. Rate: $115.00 plus tax.

Workshop #2: Friday, February 19, 1999, San Diego, California,

Marriott Hotel--Mission Valley, 8757 Rio San Diego Drive, San Diego,

CA 92108, Phone: (619) 692-3800. Rate: $93.00 plus tax.

Workshop #3: Monday, February 22, 1999, Seattle, Washington,

Renaissance Madison Hotel, 515 Madison & Sixth Avenue, Seattle, WA

98104, Phone: 1-800-278-4159. Rate: $104.00 plus tax.

Workshop #4: Thursday, February 25, 1999, St. Louis, Missouri,

Radisson Hotel & Suites, 600 North Fourth Street, St. Louis, MO

63102, Phone: (314) 621-8200. Rate: $66.00 plus tax.

Workshop #5: Friday, February 26, 1999, Dallas, Texas, Wyndham

Garden Hotel/Dallas, Park Central, 8051 LB. Johnson Freeway, Dallas,

TX 75251, Phone: (972) 680-3000. Rate: $89.00 plus tax.

Workshop #6: Tuesday, March 2, 1999, Atlanta, Georgia, Sheraton

Gateway Hotel, 1900 Sullivan Road, College Park, GA 30337, Phone:

(770) 997-1100. Rate: $90.00 plus tax.

For further information about these workshops, please call or

write the Department contact identified at the beginning of this

notice.

[FR Doc. 99-2720 Filed 2-5-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000-01-P