[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 10 (Tuesday, January 16, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3557-3558]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-1243]


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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) 2001.

    Purpose of Program: To provide grants or enter into cooperative 
agreements to enhance the delivery, quality, and accountability of 
postsecondary education and career-oriented lifelong learning through 
asynchronous distance education.
    For fiscal year (FY) 2001, the Secretary encourages applicants to 
design projects that focus on the invitational priorities set forth 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, associations, corporations, 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 16, 2001.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Preapplications: March 15, 2001.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: June 15, 2001.

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

    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: August 8, 2001.
    Available Funds: $15,500,000.

    Note: Federal funds available under this competition may not pay 
for more than 50 percent of the cost of a project. Grantees are 
required to share project costs by matching the requested Federal 
funds dollar for dollar. 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 Size of Awards: $333,333 per year.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 30-40.


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

    Project Period: Up to 36 months.
    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 
82, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99.

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 that achieve economies of scale 
by delivering programs over large geographic regions covering more 
students, faculty and institutions; and by promoting cost-sharing, 
resource sharing, and faculty collaboration across institutions.
    Invitational Priority 2--Projects that develop high quality, 
interactive software that is both modular or sufficiently flexible for 
faculty modification of academic content, as well as portable for wide-
scale implementation across institutions.
    Invitational Priority 3--Projects that package courses and programs 
to assist students in accessing the offerings of multiple providers and 
to assist institutions in cooperating and sharing resources.
    Invitational Priority 4--Projects that use skill competencies and 
learning outcomes to measure student progress and achievement in 
asynchronous distance learning programs.
    Invitational Priority 5--Projects that improve quality and 
accountability of asynchronous distance education, thereby ensuring 
that credentials are meaningful, providers are accountable, and courses 
meet high standards.
    Invitational Priority 6--Projects that create new asynchronous 
distance 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 7--Projects that improve support services for 
students seeking asynchronous 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.
    Invitational Priority 8--Projects that remove or revise 
institutional, system, State, or other policies, which are barriers to 
the implementation of new types of asynchronous distance education.

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

[[Page 3558]]

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 Applications Contact: Education Publications Center (ED Pubs), 
P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll free): 1-877-433-
7827. FAX: (301) 470-1244. If you use a telecommunications device for 
the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free): 1-877-576-7734.
    You may also contact ED Pubs via its Web site http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address: 
[email protected]
    If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify the 
competition as follows: CFDA number 84.339A.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Fund for the Improvement of 
Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K 
Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20006-8544. Telephone: (202) 502-7500. 
Individuals may also request applications or request information by 
submitting the name of the competition, their name, and postal mailing 
address to the e-mail address: [email protected].
    The application text may be obtained from the Internet address 
http://www.ed.gov/FIPSE/LAAP
    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 
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer 
diskette) on request to the contact office listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Individuals with disabilities also may obtain a copy of the 
application package in an alternative format by contacting the email 
address: [email protected]
    However, the Department is not able to reproduce in alternative 
format the standard forms included in the application package.

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 PDF you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is 
available free at either of the previous sites. If you have questions 
about using 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 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. 1070f et seq.

    Dated: January 9, 2001.
A. Lee Fritschler,
Assistant Secretary, Office of Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 01-1243 Filed 1-12-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P