[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 26, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4026-4027]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-1720]



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Part III





Department of Education





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Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education--Learning Anytime 
Anywhere Partnerships (LAAP) (Preapplications and Applications); Notice 
Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 1999; Notice

  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 16 / Tuesday, January 26, 1999 / 
Notices  

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA Nos. 84.339A; 84.339B]


Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education--Learning 
Anytime Anywhere Partnerships (LAAP) (Preapplications and 
Applications); Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal 
Year (FY) 1999

    Purpose of Program: To provide grants or enter into contracts or 
cooperative agreements to enhance the delivery, quality, and 
accountability of postsecondary education and career-oriented lifelong 
learning through technology and related innovations.
    For fiscal year (FY) 1999, the Secretary encourages applicants to 
design projects that focus on the invitational priorities summarized in 
the invitational priorities section of this application notice.
    Eligible Applicants: Partnerships consisting of two or more 
independent agencies, organizations, or institutions, including 
institutions of higher education, community organizations, and other 
public and private institutions, agencies, and organizations.

    Note: A nonprofit organization must serve as the fiscal agent 
for a funded partnership.

    Applications Available: January 26, 1999.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Preapplications: April 2, 1999.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: June 18, 1999.

    Note: All applicants must submit a preapplication to be eligible 
to submit a final application.

    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: August 17, 1999.
    Available Funds: $10,000,000.

    Note: Federal funds available under this competition provide not 
more than 50 percent of the cost of a project. The non-Federal share 
of project costs may be in cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, 
including services, supplies, or equipment.

    Estimated Range of Awards: $100,000 to $500,000 per year.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $333,333 per year.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 25-30.

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

    Project Period: Up to 60 months.
    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 
82, 85, and 86.

Authorized Activities

    Funds awarded to an eligible partnership must be used to conduct 
one or more of the following activities:
    (a) Develop and assess model distance learning programs or 
innovative educational software.
    (b) Develop methodologies for the identification and measurement of 
skill competencies.
    (c) Develop and assess innovative student support services.
    (d) Support other activities consistent with the statutory purpose 
of this program.

Invitational Priorities

    The Secretary is particularly interested in applications that meet 
one or more of the following invitational priorities. However, an 
application that meets one or more of these invitational priorities 
does not receive competitive or absolute preference over other 
applications (34 CFR 75.105(c)(1)).
    Invitational Priority 1--Projects to address the need to ensure 
that significant development costs can be justified by wide-scale 
applicability and long-term sustainability of technology-mediated 
distance education, and the need to find new ways to overcome the 
barriers that may inhibit faculty across institutions from working 
collectively.
    Invitational Priority 2--Projects to address the proper balance of 
interactivity, flexibility, and cost in order to ensure that 
educational opportunities are as convenient as possible but still 
instructionally effective and affordable.
    Invitational Priority 3--Projects to develop high quality, 
interactive courseware that can be implemented to achieve the scale 
necessary to recoup large investments, but is modular and sufficiently 
flexible for faculty to shape and modify academic content.
    Invitational Priority 4--Projects to package courses and programs 
to assist students who wish to draw from the offerings of multiple 
providers and to assist institutions to cooperate and share resources.
    Invitational Priority 5--Projects to use skill competencies and 
learning outcomes in order to measure student progress and achievement 
in technology-mediated distance learning programs.
    Invitational Priority 6--Projects to improve quality and 
accountability of technology-mediated distance education to ensure that 
credentials are meaningful, that educational providers are accountable, 
and that courses meet high standards.
    Invitational Priority 7--Projects to create new technology-mediated 
education opportunities for underserved learners, especially those who 
have not always been well served by traditional campus-based education 
or common forms of distance education, including: individuals with 
disabilities; individuals who have lost their jobs; individuals making 
the transition from welfare to the workforce; and individuals seeking 
basic or technical skills or their first postsecondary education 
experience.
    Invitational Priority 8--Projects to improve support services for 
students seeking technology-mediated distance education to ensure that 
they have complete and convenient access to needed services such as 
registration, financial aid, advising, assessment, counseling, 
libraries, and many others.

Selection Criteria

    The Secretary selects from the criteria in 34 CFR 75.210 to 
evaluate preapplications and applications for this competition. Under 
34 CFR 75.201, the Secretary announces in the application package the 
selection criteria and factors, if any, for this competition and the 
maximum weight assigned to each criterion.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR APPLICATIONS: The Fund for the Improvement 
of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U.S. Department of Education, 400 
Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 3100, ROB-3, Washington, DC 20202-5175. 
Telephone: (202) 358-3041 to order applications; or (202) 708-5750, 
between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through 
Friday, for information. Individuals may also request applications by 
submitting the name of the competition, their name, and postal mailing 
address to the e-mail address [email protected]. Individuals may obtain the 
application text from Internet address http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/
FIPSE/. 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) on request to the contact office listed in the preceding 
paragraph.

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) via Internet at either of the following 
sites:


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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 only on an 
electronic bulletin board of the Department. Telephone: (202) 219-1511 
or, toll free, 1-800-222-4922. The documents are located under Option 
G--Files/Announcements, Bulletins and Press Releases.

    Note: The official version of a document is the document 
published in the Federal Register.
    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070f et seq.
    Dated: January 20, 1999.
David A. Longanecker,
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 99-1720 Filed 1-25-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P