[Federal Register: January 25, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 16)]
[Notices]
[Page 3948-3950]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr25ja00-35]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education--Safe and Drug-Free
Schools and Communities National Programs--Federal Activities Grants
Program
AGENCY: Department of Education
ACTION: Notice of proposed priority and selection criteria for fiscal
year 2000 and subsequent years.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary announces a proposed priority, eligible
applicants, and selection criteria for fiscal year (FY) 2000 and, at
the discretion of the Secretary, for subsequent years under the Safe
and Drug-Free Schools and Communities (SDFSC) National Programs--
Federal Activities Grants Program. The Secretary takes this action to
focus Federal financial assistance on an identified national need--the
development and dissemination of a newsletter with information about
effective practices to prevent drug use and violent behavior among
youth. The Challenge newsletter will provide a communication link on
current and future program directions, research-based activities, and
other information related to effective drug and violence prevention
strategies between the U.S. Department of Education and State and local
education agencies and other public and private organizations involved
with safe and drug-free schools programs.
Eligible Applicants: Eligible applicants under this competition are
public and private nonprofit organizations and individuals.
Invitation to Comment: Interested persons are invited to submit
comments and recommendations regarding this proposed priority. All
comments submitted in response to this notice will be available for
public inspection, during and after the comment period, in Room 3E310,
400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, DC, between the hours of 8:30 a.m.
and 4:00 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday of each week except
Federal holidays. On request, the Department supplies an appropriate
aid, such as a reader or print magnifier, to an individual with a
disability who
[[Page 3949]]
needs assistance to review the comments. An individual with a
disability who wants to schedule an appointment for this type of aid
may call (202) 205-8113 or (202) 260-9895. An individual who uses a TDD
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-
8339.
DATES: Comments must be received by the Department on or before
February 24, 2000.
ADDRESSES: All comments concerning these proposed priorities should be
addressed to Gail Beaumont, Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program, U.S.
Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 3E310,
Washington, DC 20202-6123. Comments may be sent through the Internet:
comments@ed.gov. You must include the term ``Federal Activities Grants
Program'' in the subject line of your electronic message.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gail Beaumont, Safe and Drug-Free
Schools Programs, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue,
SW, Room 3E310, Washington, DC 20202-6123, (202) 260-3954. Fax: (202)
260-7767. Internet: http//www.ed.gov/offices/OESE/SDFS.
Individuals who use a telecommunication device for the deaf (TDD)
may call the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an alternate
format (e.g., Braille, large print, audio tape, or computer diskette)
on request to the contact person listed above.
Note: This notice of proposed priorities does not solicit
applications. A notice inviting applications under this competition
will be published in the Federal Register concurrent with or
following the publication of the notice of final priorities.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice contains one proposed priority
for fiscal year 2000, and related selection criteria. Under the
absolute priority, the Secretary intends to award one cooperative
agreement for up to 36 months; this cooperative agreement will support
a means of communicating with the field on current and future program
directions, research-based activities, and other information related to
effective drug and violence prevention practices through The Challenge
newsletter. The primary audience for The Challenge is classroom
teachers.
Applicants must demonstrate extensive knowledge of elements of
effective drug and violence prevention programs and current research in
the area of drug and violence prevention programs and current research
in the area of drug and violence prevention. Funds under the Safe and
Drug-Free Schools Program reach 97 percent of the nation's school
districts. While most school districts have implemented drug and
violence prevention activities in some form, too often these activities
are narrow in scope and are not based on science. Many school districts
lack data on the effects of their drug and violence prevention programs
on student behavior. They need information about programs that have
proven to be effective or promising that they can adopt for their
students. Although research exists on drug and violence prevention
strategies that have positive results, too often this research is not
known to school personnel, and does not get translated into practice.
The Challenge will provide classroom teachers and other professionals
with information about effective or promising drug and violence
prevention programs and strategies, articles by experts in the
prevention field, and other timely information covering a broad range
of topics that comprise the expanding knowledge base on drug and
violence prevention.
With regard to content, the following information describes
examples of topics and types of articles that have been featured in
past issues of The Challenge:
* Information about principles of effective drug and
violence prevention programs.
* Key elements or characteristics of successful drug and
violence prevention programs.
* Research studies and data related to drug and violence
prevention.
* Articles by recognized experts in fields related to safe
and drug-free schools.
* Articles describing model programs.
* Information that describes discretionary grant activities
funded under the Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program, National Programs,
including resources and products resulting from the activities.
* Timely information on special topics such as emerging
trends in use of specific drugs, or early warning signs of violent
behavior.
* Resources and helplines for obtaining information and
materials on drug and violence prevention.
While applicants are expected to address in their applications the
topics and types of articles described in the above list, the list is
by no means comprehensive. Applicants are encouraged to offer
suggestions on ways to communicate with the field on key issues.
Frequency of past publication of The Challenge has ranged from 6-10
times per year, and the number of pages has ranged from 4-26 pages per
issue. The number of copies has been 50,000 per issue. These numbers
are offered as guides based on past practice, and are not requirements
of the current competition. Applicants are encouraged to offer
suggestions regarding the length and frequency of publication, as well
as number of copies per issue and dissemination plan.
The applicant funded under the absolute priority in this notice
will have the responsibility to design, develop, publish, disseminate,
and manage all aspects of The Challenge consistent with the specific
requirements in the absolute priority below. In submitting their
proposals for funding, applicants are encouraged to offer suggestions
and ideas for The Challenge in addition to those specified in the
absolute priority.
Absolute Priority: Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) and the Safe and Drug-
Free Schools and Communities Act of 1994, the Secretary gives an
absolute preference to applications that meet the following priority.
The Secretary funds under this competition only applications that meet
this absolute priority. Under the absolute funding priority for this
competition, applicants must propose projects that:
(1) Design, develop, publish, and disseminate The Challenge, a
newsletter for educators, prevention specialists, and other
professionals in fields related to education and drug and violence
prevention to provide information above effective practices to prevent
drug use and violent behavior among youth.
(2) Manage all aspects of The Challenge, including developing
contents of each issue, writing or soliciting articles for each issue,
preparing artwork, handling all design and pre-production tasks, and
printing and mailing.
(3) Create, maintain, and expand a subscriber data base for ED.
(4) Evaluate on an ongoing basis the impact of The Challenge on the
intended audience, and use evaluation results for continuous
improvement of the newsletter.
(5) Develop, create, and maintain a Web site to post each issue and
receive reader comments and suggestions.
(6) Agree to have content of the newsletter reviewed and approved
by the Department of Education prior to publication.
Selection Criteria
The following selection criteria will be used to evaluate
applications for one cooperative agreement under this competition. The
maximum score for all these criteria is 100 points. The
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maximum score for each criterion or factor under that criterion is
indicated in parentheses.
(1) Significance. (10 points)
In determining the significance of the proposed project, the
following factor is considered: The potential contribution of the
proposed project to increased knowledge or understanding of educational
problems, issues, or effective strategies.
(2) Quality of the project design. (30 points)
In determining the quality of the design of the proposed project,
the following factors are considered:
(a) The extent to which the goals, objectives, and outcomes to be
achieved by the proposed project are clearly specified and measurable.
(10)
(b) The extent to which the design of the proposed project is
appropriate to, and will successfully address, the needs of the target
population or other identified needs. (5)
(c) The extent to which the proposed project represents an
exceptional approach to the priority or priorities established for the
competition. (15)
(3) Adequacy of resources. (10 points)
In determining the adequacy of resources for the proposed project,
the following factor is considered: The extent to which the costs are
reasonable in relation to the objectives, design, and potential
significance of the proposed project.
(4) Quality of management plan. (25 points)
In determining the quality of the management plan for the proposed
project, the following factors are considered.
(a) The adequacy of the management plan to achieve the objectives
of the proposed project on time and within budget, including clearly
defined responsibilities, timelines, and milestones for accomplishing
project tasks. (5)
(b) The adequacy of mechanisms for ensuring high-quality products
and services from the proposed project, including qualifications and
experience of key personnel in writing and editing newsletters for
education, prevention and related fields. (10)
(c) The extent to which the time commitments of the project
director and principal investigator and other key project personnel are
appropriate and adequate to meet the objectives of the proposed
project. (5)
(d) How the applicant will ensure that a diversity of perspectives
are brought to bear in the operation of the proposed project, including
those of students, faculty, parents, the business community, a variety
of disciplinary and professional fields, recipients or beneficiaries of
services, or others, as appropriate. (5)
(5) Quality of project evaluation. (25 points)
In determining the quality of the evaluation, the following factors
are considered:
(a) The extent to which the evaluation plan provides for an ongoing
evaluation of the effectiveness of The Challenge newsletter, and its
impact on the intended audience. (10)
(b) The extent to which the evaluation results will be used for
continuous improvement of The Challenge. (5)
(c) The extent to which the methods of evaluation are appropriate
to the context within which the project operates. (5)
(d) The extent to which the methods of evaluation will provide
performance feedback and permit periodic assignment of progress toward
achieving intended outcomes. (5)
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 government for coordination and review of proposed Federal
financial assistance.
In accordance with this order, this document is intended to provide
early notification of the Department's specific plans and actions for
this program.
Electronic Access To This Document
You may view this document, as well as all other Department of
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe
Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet 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 (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in the Washington, D.C.
area at (202) 512-1530.
Note: The official version of this document is the document
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://
www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7131.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.184P Office of
Elementary and Secondary Education--Safe and Drug-Free Schools and
Communities National Programs--Federal Activities--The Challenge
Newsletter)
Dated: January 19, 2000.
Michael Cohen,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
[FR Doc. 00-1726 Filed 1-24-00; 8:45 am]
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