[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 106 (Friday, May 31, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27340-27341]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-13704]



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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No. 84.133A--7]


Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services National 
Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research

    Notice Inviting Applications for a New Award Under the Research and 
Demonstration Projects Program for Fiscal Years 1996-1997.
    Purpose of Program: The Research and Demonstration Projects (R&D) 
Program supports discrete research, demonstration, training, and 
related projects to develop methods, procedures, and technology that 
maximize the full inclusion and integration into society, independent 
living, employment, family support, and economic and social self-
sufficiency of individuals with disabilities, especially those with the 
most severe disabilities.
    Eligible Applicants: Parties eligible to apply for grants under 
this program are public and private nonprofit and for-profit agencies 
and organizations, including institutions of higher education and 
Indian tribes and tribal organizations.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 15, 1996.
    Application Available: June 3, 1996.
    Available Funds: $250,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Award per Year: $250,000.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 1.
    Project Period: 36 months.
    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR), 34 CFR Parts 74, 75, 77, 80, 81, 
82, 85, 86; and (b) the regulations for this program in 34 CFR Parts 
350 and 351.

    Note: The estimate of funding level and awards in this notice do 
not bind the Department of Education to a specific level of funding 
or number of grants.

    This notice supports the National Education Goal that calls for all 
Americans to possess the knowledge and skills necessary to compete in a 
global economy and exercise the rights and responsibilities of 
citizenship.

Priorities

    Under 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2) (v) and (c)(3) and Section 204(a) of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, the Secretary gives an absolute 
preference to applications that meet the following priority. The 
Secretary funds under this competition only applications that meet the 
absolute priority:

Absolute Priority--Unserved or Underserved Populations

    Research, demonstration, training, and related projects that hold 
promise of increasing knowledge and improving the rehabilitation of 
individuals, particularly those with the most severe disabilities and 
those who are members of populations that are unserved or underserved 
by programs under the Rehabilitation Act.

Invitational Priority

    Within the absolute priority, the Secretary is particularly 
interested in applications that address the following invitational 
priority. However, under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1) an application that meets 
an invitational priority does not receive competitive or absolute 
preference over other applications:
    NIDRR has observed that while women constitute most of the 
disability population, little information or quantitative data is 
available relative to circumstances and needs of women with 
disabilities. The information that does exist suggests that women with 
disabilities in America confront problems that differ in important 
respects from those of their nondisabled female peers as well as those 
of men with disabilities. While NIDRR currently supports projects to 
address the needs of other underserved populations such as persons with 
disabilities from minority backgrounds and American Indian individuals 
with disabilities, NIDRR does not currently support a focused research 
effort to address critical issues unique to women with disabilities.
    In 1995, NIDRR convened a focus group of women with disabilities, 
service providers, and researchers to discuss research gaps and 
opportunities. The following topics emerged as critical areas to 
disabled women: economic and employment status; prevalence of violence 
and abuse; access to appropriate health care; and opportunities for 
disabled girls and young women to develop independence and leadership 
skills. The Secretary invites applications to undertake research 
projects that address these topics, including the identification of 
intervention strategies that can be addressed through research.
    Research projects might propose to address one or more of the 
following research needs: analysis of the income status of disabled 
women; documentation of employment status and identification of 
employment barriers; design and testing of leadership development 
models; and an analysis of the existing data about violence and abuse 
toward women with disabilities.
    The Secretary is also interested in supporting projects that study 
the need for and feasibility of a comprehensive research effort on the 
unique problems of women with disabilities, and develop an agenda for 
future research.
    For Applications Contact: William H. Whalen, U.S. Department of 
Education, 600 Independence Avenue SW., Switzer Building, Room 3411, 
Washington, D.C. 20202. Telephone: (202) 205-9141. Individuals who use 
a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the TDD number 
at (202) 205-8887.
    For Further Information Contact: David Esquith, U.S. Department of 
Education, 600 Independence Avenue SW., Switzer Building, Room 3424, 
Washington, D.C. 20202. Telephone: (202) 205-8801. Individuals who use 
a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the TDD number 
at (202) 205-8133. Internet: David E[email protected]
    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; on the Internet Gopher Server at 
GOPHER.ED.GOV (under Announcements, Bulletins, and Press Releases); or 
on the World Wide Web at http://www.ed.gov/money.html
    However, the official application notice for a discretionary grant 
competition is the notice published in the Federal Register.

    Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 761a and 762.


[[Page 27341]]


    Dated: May 24, 1996.
Judith E. Heumann,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 96-13704 Filed 5-30-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P