[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 70 (Tuesday, April 11, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 19606-19614]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-8890]



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Part VI





Department of Education





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34 CFR Parts 75 and 611



Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants Program; Final Rule and Notice

  Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 70 / Tuesday, April 11, 2000 / Rules 
and Regulations  

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Parts 75 and 611


Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants Program

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education

ACTION: Final regulations.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education issues 
regulations for the three grant programs included in the Teacher 
Quality Enhancement Grants Program, sections 202-204 of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). These regulations contain 
selection criteria that will be used to select applicants for awards 
under the State Program, Partnership Program, and Teacher Recruitment 
Program. These regulations also contain certain other requirements that 
would apply to the programs.

DATES: These regulations are effective May 11, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kathy Price, Higher Education 
Programs, Office of Postsecondary Education, Office of Policy, 
Planning, and Innovation, 1990 K Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20006-
8525: Telephone: (202) 502-7775. Inquiries also may be sent by e-mail 
to: [email protected] or by FAX to: (202) 502-7775. If you use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
    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 person listed in the preceding 
paragraph.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On October 8, 1998, the President signed into law the Higher 
Education Amendments of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-244). 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 (HEA), the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants 
for States and Partnerships (Teacher Quality Programs). The new Teacher 
Quality Enhancement Grants Program provides an historic opportunity to 
effect positive change in the recruitment, preparation, licensing, and 
on-going support of teachers in America.
    The new Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants Program consists of 
three different competitive grant programs: (1) The State Grants 
Program, which is designed to help States promote a broad array of 
improvements in teacher licensure, certification, preparation, and 
recruitment; (2) the Partnership Grants for Improving Teacher 
Preparation Program, which is designed to have schools of education, 
schools of arts and sciences, high-need local educational agencies 
(LEAs), and others work together to ensure that new teachers have the 
content knowledge and skills their students need of them when they 
enter the classroom; and (3) the Teacher Recruitment Grants Program, 
which is designed to help schools and school districts with severe 
teacher shortages to secure the high-quality teachers that they need. 
Together, these programs are designed to increase student achievement 
by supporting comprehensive approaches to improving teacher quality.

State Grants Program (State Program)

    The State Grants Program offers a unique opportunity to support 
far-reaching efforts to redesign teacher education. Through the policy 
leadership of Governors, State legislatures, and other important 
partners, the program can assure the statewide support so essential to 
bringing about the important policy changes needed in teacher 
recruitment, preparation, licensing and certification, and retention. 
States are in the position to increase the expectations for newly 
state-certified and licensed teachers as well as test for and reward 
high-quality teaching.
    Under the program, each State may develop a program application 
that focuses on activities it chooses to conduct in one or more areas 
that are key to improving the quality of new teachers. In this regard, 
areas in which a State may propose to focus include:

     Teacher licensure, certification, and preparation policies and 
practices, including rigorous alternative routes to certification;
     Reforms that hold institutions of higher education (IHE) 
with teacher preparation programs accountable for preparing teachers 
who are highly competent in academic content areas and possess strong 
teaching skills;
     Wholesale redesign of teacher preparation programs, in 
collaboration with the schools of arts and sciences, in ways that 
promote stronger academic content and subject-matter knowledge of 
students in those programs;
     Improved linkages between IHEs and K-12 schools, with more 
time spent by college faculty and teacher education students in K-12 
classrooms, and greater use of technology in the teacher education 
programs;
     Use of new strategies to attract, prepare, support, and 
retain highly competent teachers in high-poverty urban and rural areas;
     Redesign and improvement of existing teacher professional 
development programs to improve the content knowledge, technology 
skills, and teaching skills of practicing teachers;
     Improved accountability for high-quality teaching through 
performance-based compensation and the expeditious removal of 
incompetent or unqualified teachers while ensuring due process; and
     Efforts to address the problem of social promotion and to 
prepare teachers to deal with the issues raised by ending social 
promotion.

Partnership Grants for Improving Teacher Education (Partnership 
Program)

    The purpose of the Partnership Program is to improve student 
learning by bringing about fundamental change and improvement in 
traditional teacher education programs. Through multi-year awards to a 
limited number of highly-committed partnerships, the Partnership 
Program is intended to ensure that new teachers have the content 
knowledge and teaching skills they need when they enter the classroom. 
Section 203(a) and (b) of the HEA provides that partnerships eligible 
for awards must comprise, at a minimum, a partnership institution, a 
school of arts and science, and a high-need LEA as the law defines 
these terms. Partnerships also may include other entities that can 
contribute expertise, resources or both to the teacher preparation 
project. A key aspect of the program is the active participation of all 
members of the partnership in the design and implementation of project 
activities.
    By law, successful applicants must propose to implement certain 
activities:
     The reform of teacher preparation programs so that these 
programs become accountable for producing teachers who are highly 
competent in the academic content areas in which they plan to teach;
     The provision of high quality and sustained pre-service 
clinical experiences and mentoring for new teachers, together with a 
substantial increase in the interaction between teachers, principals, 
and higher education faculty; and
     The creation of opportunities for enhanced and ongoing 
professional development that improves the academic content knowledge 
of teachers

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in fields in which they are or will be certified to teach.
    Beyond these minimum requirements, the Partnership Program supports 
activities that propose to educate teachers in ways that reflect up-to-
date knowledge from research and effective practice, and embody high 
teaching standards. These activities include the preparation of 
teachers to work with diverse student populations so that all students 
they will teach can achieve to high State and local content and 
performance standards, and implementation of instructional programs 
whose effectiveness has been demonstrated through research.
    The Partnership Program also seeks to--
     Offer alternative routes into teaching to individuals who 
may have had careers in other professions, in the military or in other 
fields, and to educational paraprofessionals;
     Prepare teachers to successfully integrate technology into 
teaching and learning;
     Require prospective teachers to participate in intensive, 
structured, and clinically-based experiences with master teachers;
     Offer continuous assistance to graduates during their 
initial years in the classroom; and
     Prepare school principals, superintendents, and other 
school administrators to employ strong management and leadership skills 
that can help increase student achievement.

Teacher Recruitment Grants Program (Teacher Recruitment Program)

    The Teacher Recruitment Program is designed to address the 
challenge of America's teacher shortage by making significant and 
lasting systemic changes to the ways that teachers are recruited, 
prepared, and supported as new teachers in high-need schools. The 
Teacher Recruitment Program supports projects that use funds to--
     Award scholarships to help students pay the costs of 
tuition, room, board, and other expenses of completing a teacher 
training program;
     Provide support services, if needed, to enable scholarship 
recipients to complete postsecondary education programs; and
     Provide for follow-up services to former scholarship 
recipients during their first three years of teaching.
    Alternatively, funds may be used to develop and implement effective 
mechanisms to ensure that high-need LEAs and schools are able to 
effectively recruit highly qualified teachers.
    Both States and eligible partnerships may receive awards under the 
Teacher Recruitment Program. For both States and partnerships, 
effective relationships and partnerships among all those who will 
implement project activities are keys to effective Teacher Recruitment 
Program activities. In particular, out of these partnerships and 
relationships will come (1) the recruitment strategies that are so 
vital to meeting the severe teaching needs of the high-need LEAs, (2) 
the kind of teacher preparation programs, which are built around 
effective support from both schools of education and schools of arts 
and science and other areas of the IHE, that recruited individuals will 
need in order to be effective teachers to the diverse student 
populations in those LEAs, and (3) the support services these 
individuals will need once they begin to teach.
    The Teacher Recruitment Program also anticipates that projects will 
provide prospective teachers with high-quality teacher preparation and 
induction programs that--
     Set high standards for teaching;
     Reflect the best research and practice known across the 
country; and
     Prepare teachers to use technology in their classrooms.
    Finally, all three of the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant 
Programs anticipate that when program funding ceases, the work that 
States and partnerships have begun will be sustained. Therefore, the 
ability and willingness of grantees to sustain activities after the end 
of the project are key determinants of success. Section 205(a)(2) of 
Title II permits an eligible state or eligible partnership to receive 
only one grant award under each of the State, Partnership, and Teacher 
Recruitment Programs.
    On February 11, 2000, the Secretary published a notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPRM) for this part in the Federal Register (65 FR 6936-
6946). In the preamble to the NPRM, the Secretary discussed on pages 
6938 through 6940 the content of proposed regulations for these 
programs. The major issues addressed by the NPRM included--
     The content of selection criteria for grant competitions 
conducted under the three Teacher Quality Programs;
     The use of a pre-application process to determine which 
applicants should be invited to submit full applications under the 
Partnership Program and Teacher Recruitment Program;
     The elements of a workplan that all applicants for any of 
the three Teacher Quality Programs would be required to submit with 
their full applications;
     The applicability of a maximum eight-percent indirect cost 
rate for all IHE and nonprofit organizations in their use of Teacher 
Quality Program funds.
     The requirement that recipients of State Program grants 
provide for each year of their grant, from non-federal sources, an 
amount equal to 50 percent of the State Program grant award to carry 
out the activities supported by the grant.
    As noted in the section of this preamble entitled ``Analysis of 
Comments and Changes,'' these final regulations correct a few errors 
contained in the NPRM, such as the proposed requirement that applicants 
for Partnership or Teacher Recruitment Program grant awards submit a 
detailed workplan with their pre-applications rather than, as intended, 
with their full program applications. Otherwise, while these 
regulations in a few places clarify language that had been proposed, 
there are no differences between the final regulations and those 
proposed in the February 11, 2000 NPRM.
    In addition, these regulations include two technical changes for 
which public comment is not necessary. First, these regulations correct 
an error made in the final regulations governing scholarships provided 
with Teacher Quality Program funds, which were published in the Federal 
Register on January 12, 2000 (65 FR 1780-1787). As published, 
Sec. 611.43(d) requires grantees offering a scholarship to ensure that 
the scholarship agreement the recipient executes includes the current 
rate of interest, as provided by the Department. This provision was not 
included in the proposed regulations to govern the scholarships 
published on November 5, 1999 at 64 FR 60632-60646, but was added to 
the final regulations to clarify the grantees' responsibility to add 
the applicable interest rate annually to the approved scholarship 
agreements. We added this provision to establish the interest rate that 
would apply to any scholarship funds received under that agreement in 
the event the scholarship recipient failed to meet the service 
obligation and instead had to repay the scholarship.
    However, the terms of the scholarship agreement provide that the 
recipient is not liable for repayment of the scholarship until the 
Department first has determined that he or she has not fulfilled the 
service obligation. Therefore, in accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3717, the 
rate of interest that should apply to the amount of scholarship that a 
recipient must repay for failure to meet the service obligation is the 
rate in effect when the indebtedness is established, not the rate in 
effect when the recipient received the scholarship. Section 611.43(d) 
has been amended to

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reflect this change by deleting the additional provision added to the 
final regulations. Scholarship recipients who have executed scholarship 
agreements with a stated rate of interest prior to the effective date 
of these regulations will be given a choice of--
     Retaining this rate of interest for the portion of their 
scholarship they have received prior to the effective date of these 
regulations; or
     Having the interest rate in effect if and when the 
recipient fails to meet the service obligation apply to both this 
portion of the scholarship and to scholarship amount received after the 
regulations' effective date.
    In addition, these regulations amend Sec. 75.60(b) of the Education 
Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR). Section 75.60(b) 
contains a list of Departmental scholarship, fellowship, discretionary 
grant, and loan programs for which an individual who has received 
financial assistance must be current in any payments that are due as a 
condition of eligibility for financial assistance under this or other 
Department programs. When Sec. 75.60 was proposed on August 18, 1992 
(53 FR 31580), the Department announced its intent to apply this rule 
generally to all Department scholarship or fellowship programs to which 
part 75 applies. Since part 75 applies to the Teacher Quality Programs 
and to all other Department discretionary grant programs, we now are 
adding the Teacher Quality Programs to the list of programs in 
Sec. 75.60 that are covered by this rule.

Analysis of Comments and Changes

    In response to the Assistant Secretary's invitation in the NPRM, we 
received two comments. An analysis of the comments follows. Generally, 
we do not address technical and other minor changes--and suggested 
changes the law does not authorize the Secretary to make.
    Comment: The commenters questioned several aspects of the proposed 
regulations, and asked us to clarify the language of a number of 
provisions. For example, they objected to language in proposed 
Sec. 611.2 that would have all those who wish to receive grant awards 
under the Partnership or Teacher Recruitment Programs submit detailed 
workplans as part of those pre-applications. One commenter requested 
that we revisit page limitations of pre-applications in view of the 
changes in criteria from those used last year under the Partnership 
program for FY 1999 grants. The commenter asked that we clarify how the 
Department would implement the tie-breaking measure for applications 
with the most impact on the nation's Empowerment Zones and Enterprise 
Communities Sec. 611.2), specifically whether we would use factors such 
as the number of affected Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities, 
or the number of teachers whom a proposed project would recruit to 
teach in their schools. The commenter also asked that we clarify how 
the competitive preference for the State Grants Program (Sec. 611.13) 
would work, and how the preference differs from more general State 
Program activities that the statute authorizes. Finally, the commenter 
recommended that we clarify aspects of the pre-application and general 
application selection criteria for the Partnership Program, and general 
selection criteria for the State Program, to clarify these criteria and 
the points to be awarded under them.
    Discussion: In view of the comment, we have modified the proposed 
regulations in a number of ways. Sections 611.2 and 611.3 now clarify 
that only applicants submitting a full application for a Teacher 
Quality Program grant must submit a detailed workplan. Those submitting 
pre-applications under the Partnership or Teacher Recruitment Programs 
will not need to submit workplans with their pre-applications. The 
final regulations also correct several technical errors that the 
commenter identified in the proposed regulations. The program 
application packages, and not these regulations, identify the maximum 
number of points that reviewers will award applications under the 
elements of each criterion.
    We continue to believe that the proposed language in Sec. 611.2, 
which would resolve any ties in scoring applications on the basis of a 
project's relative impact on the nation's Empowerment Zones and 
Enterprise Communities, is adequate. It provides the Department the 
latitude to resolve ties on a case-by-case basis in ways that permit us 
comprehensively to examine the likely impact of a project on the 
nation's Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities. With regard to 
the proposed competitive preference in Sec. 611.13, we agree with the 
commenter that each of the three activities entitling an applicant to a 
preference mirrors activities that section 202 of Title II authorizes. 
However, the competitive preference in Sec. 611.13 reflects statutory 
requirements of section 205(b)(2) of the HEA, in which Congress 
identified certain allowable State Program activities as deserving of 
this preference.
    Changes: The final regulations for this part have been revised 
accordingly.

Goals 2000: Educate America Act

    The Goals 2000: Educate America Act (Goals 2000) focuses the 
Nation's education reform efforts on the eight National Education Goals 
and provides a framework for meeting them. Goals 2000 promotes new 
partnerships to strengthen schools and expands the Department's 
capacities for helping communities to exchange ideas and obtain 
information needed to achieve the goals.
    These regulations address the National Education Goal that the 
Nation's teaching force will have the content knowledge and teaching 
skills needed to instruct all American students for the next century.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 does not require you to respond 
to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control 
number. We display the valid OMB control numbers assigned to the 
collections of information in these final regulations at the end of the 
affected sections of the regulations.

Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking

    Under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the 
Department generally offers interested parties the opportunity to 
comment on proposed regulations. However, two regulations announced 
included in these final regulations are being issued without public 
comment. The correction of Sec. 611.43(d) reflects a legal requirement 
governing when a Teacher Quality program scholarship recipient incurs 
liability for failure to meet the service obligation, and hence no 
public comment is needed. The amendment to Sec. 75.60(b) of EDGAR, 
which includes the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants Program in the 
list of Department programs for which individuals must be current in 
their payments or be ineligible for further financial assistance 
provided by Department programs is a technical amendment. The 
Department already took public comment on the content of Sec. 75.60(b) 
before the regulation was published as a final regulation on August 18, 
1992 (53 FR 31580). Therefore, under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the Secretary 
has determined that proposed regulations are unnecessary and contrary 
to the public interest.

Intergovernmental Review

    This program is subject to the requirements of Executive Order 
12372

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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 
governments for coordination and review of proposed Federal financial 
assistance.
    In accordance with the order, we intend this document to provide 
early notification of specific plans and actions for this program.

Assessment of Educational Impact

    In the NPRM we requested comments on whether the proposed 
regulations would require transmission of information that any other 
agency or authority of the United States gathers or makes available.
    Based on the response to the NPRM and on our review, we have 
determined that these final regulations do not require transmission of 
information that any other agency or authority of the United States 
gathers or makes available.

Electronic Access to This Document

    You may review 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 these 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, DC area at 
(202) 512-1530.

    Note: The official version of the 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


(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.336: Teacher 
Quality Enhancement Grants Program)

List of Subjects

34 CFR part 75

    Administrative practice and procedure, Education Department, Grant 
programs--education, Grant administration, Incorporation by reference, 
Performance reports, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, 
Unobligated funds.

34 CFR part 611

    Colleges and universities, Elementary and secondary education, 
Grant programs--education.

    Dated: April 5, 2000.
Claudio R. Prieto,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Secretary amends parts 
75 and 611 of title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations as follows:

PART 75--DIRECT GRANT PROGRAMS

    1. The authority citation for part 75 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1221e-3 and 3474


    2. Section 75.60 is amended by adding a new paragraph (b) (7) to 
read as follows:


Sec. 75.60  Individuals ineligible to receive assistance.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (7) A scholarship awarded under the Teacher Quality Enhancement 
Grants Program (20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.).

PART 611--TEACHER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT GRANTS PROGRAM

    1. The authority citation for part 611 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority:  20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq., unless otherwise noted.

    2-3. Sections 611.2 and 611.3 are added to Subpart A of part 611 to 
read as follows:


Sec. 611.2  What management plan must be included in a Teacher Quality 
Enhancement Grants Program application?

    (a) In addition to a description of the proposed multiyear project, 
timeline, and budget information required by 34 CFR 75.112 and 75.117 
and other applicable law, an applicant for a grant under this part must 
submit with its application under paragraphs (a)(1), (a)(2)(iii), or 
(a)(3)(iii) of Sec. 611.3, as appropriate, a management plan that 
includes a proposed multiyear workplan.
    (b) At a minimum, this workplan must identify, for each year of the 
project--
    (1) The project's overall objectives;
    (2) Activities that the applicant proposes to implement to promote 
each project objective;
    (3) Benchmarks and timelines for conducting project activities and 
achieving the project's objectives;
    (4) The individual who will conduct and coordinate these 
activities;
    (5) Measurable outcomes that are tied to each project objective, 
and the evidence by which success in achieving these objectives will be 
measured; and
    (6) Any other information that the Secretary may require.
    (c)(1) In any application for a grant that is submitted on behalf 
of a partnership, the workplan also must identify which partner will be 
responsible for which activities.
    (2) In any application for a grant that is submitted on behalf of a 
State, the workplan must identify which entities in the State will be 
responsible for which activities.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.3  What procedures does the Secretary use to award a grant?

    The Secretary uses the selection procedures in 34 CFR 75.200 
through 75.222 except that--
    (a) Application procedures for each program. (1) For the State 
Grants Program, the Secretary evaluates applications for new grants on 
the basis of the selection criteria and competitive preference 
contained in Secs. 611.11 through 611.13.
    (2) For the Partnership Grants Program, the Secretary--
    (i) Uses a two-stage application process to determine which 
applications to fund;
    (ii) Uses the selection criteria in Secs. 611.21 through 611.22 to 
evaluate pre-applications submitted for new grants, and to determine 
those applicants to invite to submit full program applications; and
    (iii) For those applicants invited to submit full applications, 
uses the selection criteria and competitive preference in Secs. 611.23-
611.25 to evaluate the full program applications.
    (3) For the Teacher Recruitment Grants Program, the Secretary--
    (i) Uses a two-stage application process to determine which 
applications to fund;
    (ii) Uses the selection criteria in Sec. 611.31 to evaluate pre-
applications submitted for new grants, and to determine those 
applicants to invite to submit full program applications; and
    (iii) For those applicants invited to submit full applications, 
uses the selection criteria in Sec. 611.32 to evaluate the full program 
applications.
    (b) Required budgets in pre-applications. An applicant that submits 
a pre-application for a Partnership Program or Teacher Recruitment 
Program grant under paragraphs (b)(2)(ii) and (b)(3)(ii) must also 
submit any budgetary information that the

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Secretary may require in the program application package.
    (c) Tie-breaking procedures. In the event that two or more 
applicants are ranked equally for the last available award under any 
program, the Secretary selects 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.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


    4. Subpart B, consisting of Secs. 611.11 through 611.13, is added 
to part 611, to read as follows:
Subpart B--State Grants Program
611.11   What are the program's general selection criteria?
611.12   What additional selection criteria are used for an 
application proposing teacher recruitment activities?
611.13   What competitive preference doe the Secretary provide?


Sec. 611.11  What are the program's general selection criteria?

Subpart B--State Grants Program

    In evaluating the quality of applications, the Secretary uses the 
following selection criteria.
    (a) Quality of project design. (1) The Secretary considers the 
quality of the project design.
    (2) In determining the quality of the project design, the Secretary 
considers the extent to which--
    (i) The project design will result in systemic change in the way 
that all new teachers are prepared, and includes partners from all 
levels of the education system;
    (ii) The Governor and other relevant executive and legislative 
branch officials, the K-16 education system or systems, and the 
business community are directly involved in and committed to supporting 
the proposed activities;
    (iii) Project goals and performance objectives are clear, 
measurable outcomes are specified, and a feasible plan is presented for 
meeting them;
    (iv) The project is likely to initiate or enhance and supplement 
systemic State reforms in one or more of the following areas: teacher 
recruitment, preparation, licensing, and certification;
    (v) The applicant will ensure that a diversity of perspectives is 
incorporated into operation of the project, including those of parents, 
teachers, employers, academic and professional groups, and other 
appropriate entities; and
    (vi) The project design is based on up-to-date knowledge from 
research and effective practice.
    (b) Significance. (1) The Secretary considers the significance of 
the project.
    (2) In determining the significance of the project, the Secretary 
considers the extent to which--
    (i) The project involves the development or demonstration of 
promising new strategies or exceptional approaches in the way new 
teachers are recruited, prepared, certified, and licensed;
    (ii) Project outcomes lead directly to improvements in teaching 
quality and student achievement as measured against rigorous academic 
standards;
    (iii) The State is committed to institutionalize the project after 
federal funding ends; and
    (iv) Project strategies, methods, and accomplishments are 
replicable, thereby permitting other States to benefit from them.
    (c) Quality of resources. (1) The Secretary considers the quality 
of the project's resources.
    (2) In determining the quality of the project resources, the 
Secretary considers the extent to which--
    (i) Support available to the project, including personnel, 
equipment, supplies, and other resources, is sufficient to ensure a 
successful project;
    (ii) Budgeted costs are reasonable and justified in relation to the 
design, outcomes, and potential significance of the project; and
    (iii) The applicant's matching share of the budgeted costs 
demonstrates a significant commitment to successful completion of the 
project and to project continuation after federal funding ends.
    (d) Quality of management plan. (1) The Secretary considers the 
quality of the project's management plan.
    (2) In determining the quality of the management plan, the 
Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) The extent to which the management plan, including the 
workplan, is designed to achieve goals and objectives of the project, 
and includes clearly defined activities, responsibilities, timelines, 
milestones, and measurable outcomes for accomplishing project tasks.
    (ii) The adequacy of procedures to ensure feedback and continuous 
improvements in the operation of the project.
    (iii) The qualifications, including training and experience, of key 
personnel charged with implementing the project successfully.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.12  What additional selection criteria are used for an 
application proposing teacher recruitment activities?

    In reviewing applications that propose to undertake teacher 
recruitment activities, the Secretary also considers the following 
selection criteria:
    (a) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.11(a) 
(Quality of project design), the Secretary considers the extent to 
which the project addresses--
    (1) Systemic changes in the ways that new teachers are to be 
recruited, supported and prepared; and
    (2) Systemic efforts to recruit, support, and prepare prospective 
teachers from disadvantaged and other underrepresented backgrounds.
    (b) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.11(b) 
(Significance), the Secretary considers the applicant's commitment to 
continue recruitment activities, scholarship assistance, and 
preparation and support of additional cohorts of new teachers after 
funding under this part ends.
    (c) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.11(c) 
(Quality of resources), the Secretary considers the impact of the 
project on high-need LEAs and high-need schools based upon--
    (1) The amount of scholarship assistance the project will provide 
students from federal and non-federal funds;
    (2) The number of students who will receive scholarships; and
    (3) How those students receiving scholarships will benefit from 
high-quality teacher preparation and an effective support system during 
their first three years of teaching.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.13  What competitive preference does the Secretary provide?

    The Secretary provides a competitive preference on the basis of how 
well the State's proposed activities in any one or more of the 
following statutory priorities are likely to yield successful and 
sustained results:
    (a) Initiatives to reform State teacher licensure and certification 
requirements so that current and future teachers possess strong 
teaching skills and academic content knowledge in the subject areas in 
which they will be certified or licensed to teach.
    (b) Innovative reforms to hold higher education institutions with 
teacher preparation programs accountable for preparing teachers who are 
highly competent in the academic content areas and have strong teaching 
skills.

[[Page 19611]]

    (c) Innovative efforts to reduce the shortage (including the high 
turnover) of highly competent teachers in high-poverty urban and rural 
areas.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)

    5. Subpart C, consisting of Secs. 611.21 through 611.25, is added 
to part 611, to read as follows:
Subpart C--Partnership Grants Program
611.21   What are the program's selection criteria for pre-
applications?
611.22   What additional selection criteria are used for pre-
application that proposes teacher recruitment activities?
611.23   What are the program's general selection criteria for full 
applications?
611.24   What additional selection criteria are used for a full 
application that proposes teacher recruitment activities?
611.25   What competitive preference does the Secretary provide?

Subpart C--Partnership Grants Program


Sec. 611.21  What are the program's selection criteria for pre-
applications?

    In evaluating the quality of pre-applications, the Secretary uses 
the following selection criteria.
    (a) Project goals and objectives. (1) The Secretary considers the 
goals and objectives of the project design.
    (2) In determining the quality of the project goals and objectives, 
the Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) The extent to which the partnership's vision will produce 
significant and sustainable improvements in teacher education.
    (ii) The needs the partnership will address.
    (iii) How the partnership and its activities would be sustained 
once federal support ends.
    (b) Partnering commitment. (1) The Secretary considers the 
partnering commitment embodied in the project.
    (2) In determining the quality of the partnering commitment, the 
Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) Evidence of how well the partnership would be able to 
accomplish objectives working together that its individual members 
could not accomplish working separately.
    (ii) The significance of the roles given to each principal partner 
in implementing project activities.
    (c) Quality and comprehensiveness of key project components. (1) 
The Secretary considers the quality and comprehensiveness of key 
project components in the process of preparing new teachers.
    (2) In determining the quality and comprehensiveness of key project 
components in the process of preparing new teachers, the Secretary 
considers the extent to which--
    (i) Specific activities are designed and would be implemented to 
ensure that students preparing to be teachers are adequately prepared, 
including activities designed to ensure that they have improved content 
knowledge, are able to use technology effectively to promote 
instruction, and participate in extensive, supervised clinical 
experiences;
    (ii) Specific activities are designed and would be implemented to 
ensure adequate support for those who have completed the teacher 
preparation program during their first years as teachers; and
    (iii) The project design reflects up-to-date knowledge from 
research and effective practice.
    (d) Specific project outcomes. (1) The Secretary considers the 
specific outcomes the project would produce in the preparation of new 
teachers.
    (2) In determining the specific outcomes the project would produce 
in the preparation of new teachers, the Secretary considers the 
following factors:
    (i) The extent to which important aspects of the partnership's 
existing teacher preparation system would change.
    (ii) The way in which the project would demonstrate success using 
high-quality performance measures.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.22  What additional selection criteria are used for a pre-
application that proposes teacher recruitment activities?

    In reviewing pre-applications that propose to undertake teacher 
recruitment activities, the Secretary also considers the following 
selection criteria:
    (a) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.21(a) 
(Project goals and objectives), the Secretary considers the extent to 
which--
    (1) The partnership's vision responds to LEA needs for a diverse 
and high quality teaching force, and will lead to reduced teacher 
shortages in these high-need LEAs; and
    (2) The partnership will sustain its work after federal funding has 
ended by recruiting, providing scholarship assistance, training and 
supporting additional cohorts of new teachers.
    (b) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.21(c) 
(Quality and comprehensiveness of key project components), the 
Secretary considers the extent to which the project will--
    (1) Significantly improve recruitment of new students, including 
those from disadvantaged and other underrepresented backgrounds; and
    (2) Provide scholarship assistance and adequate training to 
preservice students, as well as induction support for those who become 
teachers after graduating from the teacher preparation program.
    (c) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.21(d) 
(Specific project outcomes), the Secretary considers the extent to 
which the project addresses the number of new teachers to be produced 
and their ability to teach effectively in high-need schools.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.23  What are the program's general selection criteria for full 
applications?

    In evaluating the quality of applications, the Secretary uses the 
following selection criteria.
    (a) Quality of project design. (1) The Secretary considers the 
quality of the project design.
    (2) In determining the quality of the project design, the Secretary 
considers the following factors:
    (i) The extent of evidence of institution-wide commitment to high 
quality teacher preparation that includes significant policy and 
practice changes supported by key leaders, and which result in 
permanent changes to ensure that preparing teachers is a central 
mission of the entire university.
    (ii) The extent to which the partnership creates and sustains 
collaborative mechanisms to integrate professional teaching skills, 
including skills in the use of technology in the classroom, with strong 
academic content from the arts and sciences.
    (iii) The extent of well-designed and extensive preservice clinical 
experiences for students, including mentoring and other forms of 
support, implemented through collaboration between the K-12 and higher 
education partners.
    (iv) Whether a well-planned, systematic induction program is 
established for new teachers to increase their chances of being 
successful in high-need schools.
    (v) The strength of linkages within the partnership between higher 
education and high-need schools or school districts so that all 
partners have important roles in project design, implementation, 
governance and evaluation.

[[Page 19612]]

    (vi) Whether the project design is based on up-to-date knowledge 
from research and effective practice, especially on how students learn.
    (b) Significance of project activities. (1) The Secretary considers 
the significance of project activities.
    (2) In determining the significance of the project activities, the 
Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) How well the project involves promising new strategies or 
exceptional approaches in the way new teachers are recruited, prepared 
and inducted into the teaching profession.
    (ii) The extent to which project outcomes include preparing 
teachers to teach to their State's highest K-12 standards, and are 
likely to result in improved K-12 student achievement.
    (iii) The extent to which the partnership has specific plans to 
institutionalize the project after federal funding ends.
    (iv) The extent to which the partnership is committed to 
disseminating effective practices to others and is willing to provide 
technical assistance about ways to improve teacher education.
    (v) How well the partnership will integrate its activities with 
other education reform efforts underway in the State or communities 
where the partners are located, and will coordinate its work with 
local, State or federal teacher training, teacher recruitment, or 
professional development programs.
    (c) Quality of resources. (1) The Secretary considers the quality 
of resources of project activities.
    (2) In determining the quality of resources, the Secretary 
considers the extent to which--
    (i) Support available to the project, including personnel, 
equipment, supplies, and other resources, is sufficient to ensure a 
successful project;
    (ii) Budgeted costs are reasonable and justified in relation to the 
design, outcomes, and potential significance of the project; and
    (iii) The applicant's matching share of the budgeted costs 
demonstrates a significant commitment to successful completion of the 
project and to project continuation after federal funding ends.
    (d) Quality of management plan. (1) The Secretary considers the 
quality of the management plan.
    (2) In determining the quality of the management plan, the 
Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) The extent to which the management plan, including the work 
plan, is designed to achieve goals and objectives of the project, and 
includes clearly defined activities, responsibilities, timelines, 
milestones, and measurable outcomes for accomplishing project tasks.
    (ii) The extent to which the project has an effective, inclusive, 
and responsive governance and decision-making structure that will 
permit all partners to participate in and benefit from project 
activities, and to use evaluation results to ensure continuous 
improvements in the operations of the project.
    (iii) The qualifications, including training and experience, of key 
personnel charged with implementing the project successfully.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.24  What additional selection criteria are used for a full 
application that proposes teacher recruitment activities?

    In reviewing full applications that propose to undertake teacher 
recruitment activities, the Secretary also considers the following 
selection criteria:
    (a) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.23(a) 
(Quality of project design), the Secretary considers the extent to 
which the project reflects--
    (1) A commitment to recruit, support and prepare additional well-
qualified new teachers for high-need schools;
    (2) Appropriate academic and student support services; and
    (3) A comprehensive strategy for addressing shortages of well-
qualified and well-trained teachers in high-need LEAs, especially 
teachers from disadvantaged and other underrepresented backgrounds.
    (b) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.23(b) 
(Significance of project activities), the Secretary considers the 
extent to which the project promotes the recruitment, scholarship 
assistance, preparation, and support of additional cohorts of new 
teachers.
    (c) In addition to the elements contained in Sec. 611.23(c) 
(Quality of resources), the Secretary considers the impact of the 
project on high-need LEAs and high-need schools based upon--
    (1) The amount of scholarship assistance the project will provide 
students from federal and non-federal funds;
    (2) The number of students who will receive scholarships; and
    (3) How those students receiving scholarships will benefit from 
high-quality teacher preparation and an effective support system during 
their first three years of teaching.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.25  What competitive preference does the Secretary provide?

    The Secretary provides a competitive preference on the basis of how 
well the project includes a significant role for private business in 
the design and implementation of the project.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)

    6. Subpart D, consisting of Secs. 611.31 and 611.32, is added to 
part 611, to read as follows:

Subpart D--Teacher Recruitment Grants Program

611.31   What are the program's selection criteria for pre-
applications?
611.32   What are the program's general selection criteria?

Subpart D--Teacher Recruitment Grants Program


Sec. 611.31  What are the program's selection criteria for pre-
applications?

    In evaluating pre-applications, the Secretary considers the 
following criteria:
    (a) Project goals and objectives. (1) The Secretary considers the 
goals and objectives of the project design.
    (2) In determining the quality of the project goals and objectives, 
the Secretary considers how the partnership or State applicant intends 
to--
    (i) Produce significant and sustainable improvements in teacher 
recruitment, preparation, and support; and
    (ii) Reduce teacher shortages in high-need LEAs and schools, and 
improve student achievement in the schools in which teachers who 
participate in its project will teach.
    (b) Partnership commitment. (1) The Secretary considers the 
partnering commitment embodied in the project.
    (2) In determining the quality of the partnering commitment, the 
Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) What the partnership, or the State and its cooperating 
entities, can accomplish by working together that could not be achieved 
by working separately.
    (ii) How the project proposed by the partnership or State is driven 
by the needs of LEA partners.
    (c) Quality of key project components. (1) The Secretary considers 
the quality of key project components.
    (2) In determining the quality of key project components, the 
Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) The extent to which the project would make significant and 
lasting systemic changes in how the applicant recruits, trains, and 
supports new

[[Page 19613]]

teachers, and reflects knowledge gained from research and practice.
    (ii) The extent to which the project would be implemented in ways 
that significantly improve recruitment, scholarship assistance to 
preservice students, training, and induction support for new entrants 
into teaching.
    (d) Specific project outcomes. (1) The Secretary considers the 
specific outcomes the project would produce in the recruitment, 
preparation, and placement of new teachers.
    (2) In determining the specific outcomes the project would produce 
in the recruitment, preparation, and placement of new teachers, the 
Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) The number of teachers to be produced and the quality of their 
preparation.
    (ii) The partnership's or State's commitment to sustaining the work 
of the project after federal funding has ended by recruiting, providing 
scholarship assistance, training, and supporting additional cohorts of 
new teachers.

    (Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.32  What are the program's general selection criteria?

    In evaluating the quality of full applications, the Secretary uses 
the following selection criteria.
    (a) Quality of the project design. (1) The Secretary considers the 
quality of the project design for ensuring that activities to recruit 
and prepare new teachers are a central mission of the project.
    (2) In considering the quality of the project design for ensuring 
that activities to recruit and prepare new teachers are a central 
mission of the project, the Secretary considers the extent to which the 
project design--
    (i) Shows evidence of institutional or (in the case of a State 
applicant) State-level commitment both to recruitment of additional new 
teachers, and to high-quality teacher preparation that includes 
significant policy and practice changes supported by key leaders and 
that result in permanent changes to current institutional practices;
    (ii) Creates and sustains collaborative mechanisms to integrate 
professional teaching skills, including skills in the use of technology 
in the classroom, with academic content provided by the school of arts 
and sciences;
    (iii) Includes well-designed academic and student support services 
as well as carefully planned and extensive preservice clinical 
experiences for students, including mentoring and other forms of 
support, that are implemented through collaboration between the K-12 
and higher education partners;
    (iv) Includes establishment of a well-planned, systematic induction 
program for new teachers that increases their chances of being 
successful in high-need schools;
    (v) Includes strong linkages among the partner institutions of 
higher education and high-need schools and school districts (or, in the 
case of a State applicant, between the State and these entities in its 
project), so that all those who would implement the project have 
important roles in project design, implementation, governance, and 
evaluation;
    (vi) Responds to the shortages of well-qualified and well-trained 
teachers in high-need school districts, especially from disadvantaged 
and other underrepresented backgrounds; and
    (vii) Is based on up-to-date knowledge from research and effective 
practice.
    (b) Significance. (1) The Secretary considers the significance of 
the project.
    (2) In determining the significance of the project, the Secretary 
considers the extent to which--
    (i) The project involves promising new strategies or exceptional 
approaches in the way new teachers are recruited, prepared, and 
inducted into the teaching profession;
    (ii) Project outcomes include measurable improvements in teacher 
quality and in the number of well-prepared new teachers, that are 
likely to result in improved K-12 student achievement;
    (iii) The project will be institutionalized after federal funding 
ends, including recruitment, scholarship assistance, preparation, and 
support of additional cohorts of new teachers;
    (iv) The project will disseminate effective practices to others, 
and provide technical assistance about ways to improve teacher 
recruitment and preparation; and
    (v) The project will integrate its activities with other education 
reform activities underway in the State or communities in which the 
project is based, and will coordinate its work with local, State, and 
federal teacher recruitment, training, and professional development 
programs.
    (c) Quality of resources. (1) The Secretary considers the quality 
of the project's resources.
    (2) In determining the quality of the project's resources, the 
Secretary considers the extent to which--
    (i) The amount of support available to the project, including 
personnel, equipment, supplies, student scholarship assistance, and 
other resources is sufficient to ensure a successful project.
    (ii) Budgeted costs are reasonable and justified in relation to the 
design, outcomes, and potential significance of the project.
    (iii) The applicant's matching share of budgeted costs demonstrates 
a significant commitment to successful completion of the project, and 
to project continuation after federal funding ends.
    (d) Quality of management plan. (1) The Secretary considers the 
quality of the project's management plan.
    (2) In determining the quality of the management plan, the 
Secretary considers the following factors:
    (i) The extent to which the management plan, including the 
workplan, is designed to achieve goals and objectives of the project, 
and includes clearly defined activities, responsibilities, timelines, 
milestones, and measurable outcomes for accomplishing project tasks.
    (ii) The extent to which the project has an effective, inclusive, 
and responsive governance and decisionmaking structure that will permit 
all partners to participate in and benefit from project activities, and 
to use evaluation results to continuously improve project operations.
    (iii) The qualifications, including training and experience, of key 
personnel charged with implementing the project successfully.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1840-0007.)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


    7. Section 611.43 is amended by revising paragraph (d) to read as 
follows:


Sec. 611.43  What are the consequences of a scholarship recipient's 
failure to meet the service obligation?

* * * * *
    (d) Interest. In accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3717 and 34 CFR part 30, 
the Secretary charges interest on the unpaid balance that the 
scholarship recipient owes. However, except as provided in 
Sec. 611.44(d), the Secretary does not charge interest for the period 
of time that precedes the date on which the scholarship recipient is 
required to begin repayment.
* * * * *

    8. Subpart F of part 611 is revised to read as follows:

[[Page 19614]]

Subpart F--Other Grant Conditions

Subpart F--Other Grant Conditions
611.61   What is the maximum indirect cost rate that applies to a 
recipient's use of program funds?
611.62   What are a grantee's matching requirements?


Sec. 611.61  What is the maximum indirect cost rate that applies to a 
recipient's use of program funds?

    Notwithstanding 34 CFR 75.560-75.562 and 34 CFR 80.22, the maximum 
indirect cost rate that any recipient of funds under the Teacher 
Quality Enhancement Grants Program may use to charge indirect costs to 
these funds is the lesser of--
    (a) The rate established by the negotiated indirect cost agreement; 
or
    (b) Eight percent.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)


Sec. 611.62  What are a grantee's matching requirements?

    (a)(1) Each State receiving a grant under the State Grants Program 
or Teacher Recruitment Grants Program must provide, from non-federal 
sources, an amount equal to 50 percent of the amount of the grant to 
carry out the activities supported by the grant.
    (2) The 50 percent match required by paragraph (a)(1) of this 
section must be made annually during the project period, with respect 
to each grant award the State receives.
    (b) Each partnership receiving a grant under the Partnership Grant 
Program or the Teacher Recruitment Grant Program must provide, from 
non-federal sources, an amount equal to--
    (1) 25 percent of the grant award for the first year of the grant;
    (2) 35 percent of the grant award for the second year of the grant; 
and
    (3) 50 percent of the grant award for each succeeding year of the 
grant.
    (c) The match from non-federal sources required by paragraphs (a) 
and (b) of this section may be made in cash or in kind.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.)

[FR Doc. 00-8890 Filed 4-10-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-U