[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 100 (Thursday, May 23, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36165-36166]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-13024]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No.: 84.330B]


Office of Elementary and Secondary Education--Advanced Placement 
(AP) Test Fee Program; Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for 
Fiscal Year (FY) 2002

    Purpose of Program: The AP Test Fee program provides grants to 
States to enable them to pay advanced placement test fees on behalf of 
eligible low-income students who (1) are enrolled in an advanced 
placement course; and (2) plan to take an advanced placement exam. The 
program is designed to increase the number of low-income students who 
take advanced placement tests and receive scores for which college 
academic credit is awarded. Further, the program seeks to increase the 
number of low-income students who achieve a baccalaureate or advanced 
degree. Therefore, through participation in this program, low-income 
students will have greater opportunities to achieve to higher standards 
in English, mathematics, science, and other core subjects.
    Eligible Applicants: State educational agencies (SEAs) in any 
State, including the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
Rico, and each of the outlying areas.


    Note: For purposes of this program, the Bureau of Indian Affairs 
is treated as an SEA.


    Applications Available: May 23, 2002.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 8, 2002.
    Deadline for Transmittal Review: September 5, 2002.
    Estimated Available Funds: Up to $1,000,000.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $50,000 to $400,000 per year.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $225,000 per year.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 5-20.


    Note: These estimates are projections for the guidance of 
potential applicants. The Department is not bound by any estimates 
in this notice.


    Project Period: Up to 36 months.
    E-Mail Notification of Intent to Apply for Funding: The Department 
will be able to develop a more efficient process for reviewing grant 
applications if it has a better understanding of the number of entities 
that intend to apply for funding under this competition. Therefore, the 
Secretary strongly encourages each potential applicant for the AP Test 
Fee program to notify the Department by e-mail that it intends to 
submit an application for funding. The Secretary requests that this e-
mail notification be sent no later than June 24, 2002. The e-mail 
notification should be sent to Ms. Madeline Baggett at 
[email protected]. Applicants that fail to provide this e-mail 
notification may still apply for funding.

Allowable Activities

    States receiving grants under this program may use the grant funds 
to pay part or all of the cost of advanced placement test fees for low-
income individuals who (1) are enrolled in an advanced placement class; 
and (2) plan to take an advanced placement test.

Priority

    In accordance with statutory requirements, in allocating funds 
appropriated for Title I, Part G

[[Page 36166]]

Advanced Placement programs, the Department gives priority to funding 
proposals to use grant funds to pay advanced placement test fees on 
behalf of eligible low-income individuals. To implement this priority, 
the Department intends to fund, at some level, all applications that 
meet the minimum Requirements for Approval of Applications as described 
in the application package.

Award Basis

    In determining grant award amounts, the Department will consider, 
among other things, the number of children in the State eligible to be 
counted under section 1124(c) of Title I of the ESEA in relation to the 
number of such children so counted in all the States. Complete budget 
data must be submitted for each year of funding requested.

Applicable Regulations and Statute

    The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) 
in 34 CFR parts 75, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 85, 86, and 99. Title I, Part G 
of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as 
amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Public Law 107-110.
    The following definitions and other provisions are taken from the 
Advanced Placement Programs authorizing statute, in Title I, Part G of 
the ESEA. They are repeated in this application notice for the 
convenience of the applicant.

Definitions

    As used in this section:
    (a) The term advanced placement test means an advanced placement 
test administered by the College Board or approved by the Secretary of 
Education.


    Note: In addition to advanced placement tests administered by 
the College Board, the Department has approved advanced placement 
tests administered by the International Baccalaureate Organization. 
As part of the grant application process, applicants may request 
approval of tests from other educational entities that provide 
comparable programs of rigorous academic courses and testing through 
which students may earn college credit.


    (b) The term low-income individual means an individual who is 
determined by an SEA or local educational agency to be a child, ages 5 
through 17, from a low-income family, on the basis of data used by the 
Secretary to determine allocations under section 1124 of Title I of the 
ESEA, data on children in families receiving assistance under part A of 
title IV of the Social Security Act, or data on children eligible to 
receive medical assistance under the Medicaid program under title XIX 
of the Social Security Act, or through an alternate method that 
combines or extrapolates from those data.

Information Dissemination

    An SEA awarded a grant under the AP Test Fee program shall 
disseminate information regarding the availability of advanced 
placement test fee payments under this program to eligible individuals 
through secondary school teachers and guidance counselors.

Supplement, Not Supplant Rule

    Funds provided under this program must be used to supplement, and 
not supplant, other non-Federal funds that are available to assist low-
income individuals in paying advanced placement test fees.
    For Applications or Information Contact: Madeline E. Baggett, U.S. 
Department of Education, School Improvement Programs, 400 Maryland 
Avenue, SW., Room 3E228, Washington, DC 20202-6140. Telephone (202) 
260-2669. Internet address: [email protected]
    Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) 
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) upon request to the contact person listed under For 
Applications or Information Contact. Individuals with disabilities may 
obtain a copy of the application package in an alternative format, 
also, by contacting that person. However, the Department is not able to 
reproduce in an 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 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 a 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: Pub. L. 107-110.

    Dated: May 20, 2002.
Susan B. Neuman,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
[FR Doc. 02-13024 Filed 5-22-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P