[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 110 (Thursday, June 8, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30288-30290]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-14009]



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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No.: 84.083]


Women's Educational Equity Act Program; Notice Inviting 
Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 1995

    Purpose of Program: To promote gender equity in education; to 
promote equity in education for women and girls who suffer from 
multiple forms of discrimination based on sex and race, ethnic origin, 
limited English proficiency, disability or age; and to provide 
financial assistance to enable educational agencies to meet the 
requirements of title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.
    Eligible Applicants: Public agencies, private nonprofit agencies, 
organizations, institutions, student [[Page 30289]] groups, community 
groups, and individuals.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 24, 1995.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: September 22, 1995.
    Applications Available: June 19, 1995.
    Available Funds: $3.2 million.
    Estimated Range of Awards: Implementation Grants: $210,000-
$310,000; Research and Development Grants: $80,000-$200,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: Implementation Grants: $260,000; 
Research and Development Grants: $140,000.
    Estimated Number of Awards: Implementation Grants: 10; Research and 
Development Grants: 4.

    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in the 
notice.

    Project Period: Up to 48 months.
    Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 
81, 82, 85, and 86.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department will award two types of 
grants: (1) grants for the implementation of gender equity programs in 
schools; and (2) research and development grants to develop model 
equity programs. Examples of authorized activities under the program 
include--

Implementation Grants

    (a) Assisting educational agencies and institutions to implement 
policies and practices to comply with title IX of the Education 
Amendments of 1972;
    (b) Training for teachers, counselors, administrators, and other 
school personnel, especially preschool and elementary school personnel, 
in gender-equitable teaching and learning practices;
    (c) Leadership training for women and girls to develop professional 
and marketable skills to compete in the global marketplace, improve 
self-esteem, and benefit from exposure to positive role models;
    (d) School-to-work transition programs, guidance and counseling 
activities, and other programs to increase opportunities for women and 
girls to enter a technologically demanding workplace and, in 
particular, to enter highly skilled, high-paying careers in which women 
and girls have been underrepresented;
    (e) Enhancing educational and career opportunities for those women 
and girls who suffer multiple forms of discrimination, based on sex and 
on race, ethnic origin, limited-English proficiency, disability, 
socioeconomic status, or age;
    (f) Assisting pregnant students and students rearing children to 
remain in or to return to secondary school, graduate, and prepare their 
preschool children to start school;
    (g) Evaluating exemplary model programs to assess the ability of 
such programs to advance educational equity for women and girls;
    (h) Introduction into the classroom of textbooks, curricula, and 
other materials designed to achieve equity for women and girls;
    (i) Programs and policies to address sexual harassment and violence 
against women and girls and to ensure that educational institutions are 
free from threats to the safety of students and personnel;
    (j) Nondiscriminatory tests of aptitude and achievement and of 
alternative assessments that eliminate biased assessment instruments 
from use;
    (k) Programs to increase educational opportunities, including 
higher education, vocational training, and other educational programs 
for low-income women, including underemployed and unemployed women, and 
women receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children benefits;
    (l) Programs to improve representation of women in educational 
administration at all levels; and
    (m) Planning, development, and initial implementation of--
    (i) Comprehensive institution or districtwide evaluation to assess 
the presence or absence of gender equity in educational settings;
    (ii) Comprehensive plans for implementation of equity programs in 
State and local educational agencies and institutions of higher 
education, including community colleges; and
    (iii) Innovative approaches to school-community partnerships for 
educational equity.

Research and Development Activities

    (a) Research and development of innovative strategies and model 
training programs for teachers and other education personnel;
    (b) The development of high-quality and challenging assessment 
instruments that are nondiscriminatory;
    (c) The development and evaluation of model curricula, textbooks, 
software, and other educational materials to ensure the absence of 
gender stereotyping and bias;
    (d) The development of instruments and procedures that employ new 
and innovative strategies to assess whether diverse educational 
settings are gender equitable;
    (e) The development of instruments and strategies for evaluation, 
dissemination, and replication of promising or exemplary programs 
designed to assist local educational agencies in integrating gender 
equity in their educational policies and practices;
    (f) Updating high-quality educational materials previously 
developed through Women's Educational Equity Act grants;
    (g) The development of policies and programs to address and prevent 
sexual harassment and violence to ensure that educational institutions 
are free from threats to safety of students and personnel;
    (h) The development and improvement of programs and activities to 
increase opportunity for women, including continuing educational 
activities, vocational education, and programs for low-income women, 
including underemployed and unemployed women, and women receiving Aid 
to Families with Dependent Children; and
    (i) The development of guidance and counseling activities, 
including career education programs, designed to ensure gender equity.

Selection Criteria

    The selection criteria for implementation grants and research and 
development grants, respectively, are included, in full, in the WEEA 
application package. These selection criteria were established based on 
the Department's Notice of Optional Procedure for Conducting Fiscal 
Year 1995 Grant Competitions Under the Improving America's Schools Act 
of 1994, which was published in the Federal Register on March 7, 1995.
    The respective criteria provide that the Secretary may award up to 
100 points for the selection criteria for that competition. The 
selection criteria for each competition include all the EDGAR selection 
criteria in 34 CFR 75.210. The Secretary has also established the 
following additional selection criteria for the respective competitions 
by assigning the number of points indicated to particular WEEA 
statutory provisions identified below. The Secretary awards points 
under these criteria according to how well the applicant addresses the 
statutory provision:

Additional Implementation Grant Criteria

    (a) Project as a component of a comprehensive plan--20 U.S.C. 
7235(a)(2)(C)--(5 points).
    (b) Implementing an institutional change strategy--20 U.S.C. 
7235(a)(2)(D)--(5 points).
    (c) Meeting local needs--20 U.S.C. 7235(a)(2)(B)--(5 points). 
[[Page 30290]] 

Additional Research and Development Grant Criteria

    (a) Addressing multiple discrimination--20 U.S.C. 7235(a)(2)(A)--(5 
points).
    (b) Addressing issues of national significance--20 U.S.C. 
7235(b)(3)(D)--(5 points).

Priorities

    Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1) and 20 U.S.C. 7235, the Secretary invites 
and encourages applications that meet the following invitational 
priorities for implementation grant and research and development grant 
competitions, respectively. The Secretary is particularly interested in 
applications that meet these priorities. However, an application that 
meets the respective invitational priority does not receive competitive 
or absolute preference over other applications.

Implementation Grants

    Projects that address the educational needs of women and girls who 
suffer multiple or compound discrimination based on sex and on race, 
ethnic origin, disability, or age.

Research and Development Grants

    Projects to update high-quality educational materials developed 
through previous WEEA grants. These products are identified and 
described in the WEEA application package.

    Note: In funding projects to update previously developed 
materials, the Department will utilize its license under 34 CFR 
74.145 and 80.34 to use, and authorize others to use, copyrighted 
material for Federal Government purposes. These purposes include 
implementing WEEA's statutory authorization to develop, maintain, 
and disseminate materials and resources relating to education equity 
for women and girls and to update education materials previously 
developed through WEEA grants. In addition, the Department expects 
to fund only one project to update any individual WEEA product.

FOR APPLICATIONS OR INFORMATION CONTACT: Carrolyn N. Andrews, U.S. 
Department of Education, 600 Independence Avenue, SW., Portals Room 
4500, Washington, DC 20202-6140. Telephone (202) 260-2670. 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.
    Information about the Department's funding opportunities, including 
copies of application notices for discretionary grant competitions, can 
be viewed on the Department's electronic bulletin board (ED Board), 
telephone (202) 260-9950; or on the Internet Gopher Server at 
GOPHER.ED.GOV (under Announcements, Bulletins, and Press Releases). 
However, the official application notice for a discretionary grant 
competition is the notice published in the Federal Register.

    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7231-7238.

    Dated: June 1, 1995.
Thomas W. Payzant,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
[FR Doc. 95-14009 Filed 6-7-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P