[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 35 (Thursday, February 21, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8014-8015]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-4234]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No. 84.358]


Small, Rural School Achievement Program and Rural and Low-Income 
School Program

AGENCY: Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Department of 
Education.

ACTION: Notice announcing acceptability of Alternative Average Daily 
Attendance (ADA) data and establishing state deadline for submission of 
ADA and other eligibility and allocation data.

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SUMMARY: Part B of Title VI of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act (ESEA) authorizes the Secretary of Education to award funds under 
two grant programs that are designed to address the unique needs of 
rural school

[[Page 8015]]

districts--the Small, Rural School Achievement Program (section 6212) 
and the Rural and Low-Income School Program (section 6221). Under the 
Small, Rural School Achievement Program, the Secretary awards grants 
directly to eligible local educational agencies (LEAs) on a formula 
basis. Under the Rural and Low-Income School Program, the Secretary 
awards formula grants to State educational agencies (SEAs), which in 
turn award subgrants to eligible LEAs either competitively or by 
formula. If a State chooses not to participate in the Rural and Low-
Income School Program, the Secretary awards grants directly to eligible 
LEAs in that State.
    The Department has prepared an Excel spreadsheet and instructions 
for SEAs to use in submitting the data needed to determine an LEA's 
eligibility for an award and allocations under the programs. These 
documents are available on the Department's Web site at http://www.ed.gov/offices/OESE/reap.html.
    In this notice, the Department (1) announces that, for the first 
year of funding under the Small, Rural School Achievement Program and 
the Rural and Low-Income Program, it will accept alternative average 
daily attendance data that are consistent with the definition in 
section 6231(a) of the ESEA; and (2) establishes a deadline by which 
States may submit LEA eligibility data and allocation data for the 
programs.
    Average Daily Attendance Data: An LEA's eligibility for funding 
under the Small, Rural School Achievement Program, as well as the 
amount of its grant award, is based, in part, on the number of students 
in average daily attendance (ADA) in the schools of the LEA. ADA data 
also affect an LEA's eligibility under the Rural and Low-Income Program 
because an LEA may not receive an award under that program if it is 
eligible for funding under the Small, Rural School Achievement Program. 
Furthermore, ADA data are used to determine the amount of each State's 
allocation under the Rural and Low-Income Program.
    Section 6231(a) of the ESEA states that for purposes of the rural 
education programs, not later than December 1 of each year, an LEA must 
``conduct a census to determine the number of students in average daily 
attendance in kindergarten through grade 12 at the schools served by 
the agency.'' This provision further requires that the ADA data be 
submitted no later than March 1 of each year. Thus, an ADA submission 
for the first year of the rural education programs should be based on a 
census conducted by December 1, 2001. The Secretary recognizes that not 
all SEAs or LEAs determine ADA on the basis of a census. Given that the 
legislation authorizing the rural education programs was enacted on 
January 8, 2002, a date after the period in which the initial census 
should have been conducted, for the purposes of determining FY 2002 
eligibility and allocations under these programs the Department will 
accept alternative ADA data that are consistent with the statutorily 
required data (e.g., ADA data that are based on a percentage of 
enrollment).
    Deadline for State Submission of ADA and Other Data: The 
legislation requires LEAs desiring a grant under either rural education 
program to submit ADA data to the Department by March 1 of each year 
(ESEA section 6231(a)(2)). A State must submit ``such information as 
the Secretary may reasonably require'' before receiving its allocation 
under the Rural and Low-Income Program (ESEA section 6223(a)). The 
Department is requesting that SEAs submit ADA data on behalf of their 
LEAs as well as other data needed to determine eligibility and to make 
allocations under the Small, Rural School Achievement Program and the 
Rural and Low-Income Program in order to (1) ensure maximum LEA 
participation in all States in both programs; (2) assist LEAs in 
demonstrating eligibility for funding and in providing data necessary 
to determine LEA and SEA allocations under the programs; (3) facilitate 
the process by which the Department makes awards; and (4) ensure that 
SEAs and LEAs receive their funds on a timely basis. SEAs should submit 
the data electronically on the Excel spreadsheet referenced above.
    Although the legislation states that ADA data are to be submitted 
by March 1, given that this is the first year of the program and that 
the period of time between the date of enactment of the legislation and 
the ADA submission date is so short, the Department is extending the 
deadline for submission of ADA data for this year. The Department will 
permit States to submit, through April 1, 2002, ADA and other data that 
the Department needs to determine eligibility and allocations under the 
rural education programs. All of the relevant data are specified on the 
Excel spreadsheet and accompanying instructions. To avail itself of 
this extension, an SEA must notify the Department by March 1, 2002, 
that it cannot submit the applicable data by March 1, but that it will 
provide this information by April 1, 2002 or an earlier specified date.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Charles Lovett, Group Leader. 
Telephone: (202) 401-0039 or via Internet: [email protected].
    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 notice in an 
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer 
diskette) on request to the contact person listed above.
    Electronic Access To This Document: You may view this document, as 
well as other Department of Education documents published in the 
Federal Register in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the 
Internet at the following site: www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/.
    To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available 
free at this site. 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 version 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:  Sections 6201 through 6234 of the ESEA, as 
amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Pub. L. 107-110).

    Dated: February 15, 2002.
Susan B. Neuman,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
[FR Doc. 02-4234 Filed 2-20-02; 8:45 am]
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