[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 42 (Wednesday, March 3, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10110-10113]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-4719]



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Part III





Department of Education





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Migrant Education Program (MEP) Consortium Incentive Grant Program; 
Notices

  Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 42 / Wednesday, March 3, 2004 / 
Notices  

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

RIN 1810-ZA08


Migrant Education Program Consortium Incentive Grant Program

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

ACTION: Notice of final requirements.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education 
announces final requirements under the Migrant Education Program 
Consortium Incentive Grant Program. The Assistant Secretary establishes 
these requirements for competitions in fiscal year (FY) 2004 and later 
years. The Department intends that these requirements will promote the 
participation of State educational agencies in high-quality consortia.

EFFECTIVE DATE: These requirements are effective April 2, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elsa Chagolla, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3E257, FOB-6, Washington, DC 
20202-6135. Telephone: (202) 260-2823, 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 document in an 
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer 
diskette) on request to the contact person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Migrant Education Program (MEP), authorized by Title I, Part C 
of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as 
amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, is a State-operated 
and State-administered formula grant program. The MEP provides 
assistance to State educational agencies (SEAs) to support high-quality 
and comprehensive educational programs that provide migratory children 
appropriate educational and supportive services to address their 
special needs in a coordinated and efficient manner, and to give 
migratory children the opportunity to meet the same challenging State 
academic content and student academic achievement standards that all 
children are expected to meet.
    Section 1308(d) of the ESEA authorizes the Secretary to ``reserve 
not more than $3,000,000 to award grants of not more than $250,000 on a 
competitive basis to State educational agencies that propose a 
consortium arrangement with another State or other appropriate entity 
that the Secretary determines, pursuant to criteria that the Secretary 
shall establish, will improve the delivery of services to migratory 
children whose education is interrupted.'' Through this program, the 
Department provides financial incentives to SEAs to participate in 
high-quality consortia that improve the interstate or intrastate 
coordination of migrant education programs by addressing key needs of 
migratory children who have their education interrupted.
    We published a notice of proposed requirements for this program in 
the Federal Register on Friday, July 11, 2003 (68 FR 41323) that 
discussed, and invited public comment on, proposed procedures to award 
consortium incentive grants in FY 2003 and subsequent years.

Analysis of Comments and Changes

    In response to our invitation in the notice of proposed 
requirements, four parties submitted a total of eight comments on the 
proposed requirements. An analysis of the comments and of any changes 
in the requirements since the publication of the notice of proposed 
requirements is provided in an appendix at the end of this notice of 
final requirements.
    This notice of final requirements contains six significant changes 
from the notice of proposed requirements. Specifically:
    (1) The Application Requirements have been revised to require that, 
to be funded, an applicant must explain how the proposed consortium 
will improve interstate or intrastate coordination of migrant education 
programs.
    (2) The definition of ``other appropriate entity'' has been revised 
to include specific examples of public or private entities with which 
an SEA may establish a consortium.
    (3) The discussion regarding grantees' submission of a first-year 
performance report and a second-year final evaluation report has been 
revised to clarify that, in these reports, grantees must address their 
completion of activities and attainment of objectives described in the 
approved consortium application, rather than describe the uses of their 
incentive grant funds.
    (4) The discussion regarding the applicability of parts 76 and 80 
of the Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) 
has been revised to clarify that, while an SEA that receives incentive 
grant funds does not need to submit performance reports on its use of 
the incentive grant funds as otherwise required under Sec.  76.720 and 
Sec.  80.40(b), it must submit the financial reports regarding use of 
incentive grant funds required by Sec.  76.720 and Sec.  80.41 of 
EDGAR.
    (5) The discussion regarding Use of Consortium Incentive Grant 
Funds has been revised to make the supplement-not-supplant provision of 
sections 1120A(b) and 1304(c)(2) of the ESEA apply to the use of the 
incentive grant funds.
    (6) The discussion regarding Amount and Duration of Incentive 
Grants has been revised to explain more clearly the funding formula 
that the Department will use to calculate the amounts of the incentive 
grant awards.
    With these changes, and for the reasons discussed in the notice of 
proposed requirements (68 FR 41323) and in the Analysis of Comments and 
Changes contained in the appendix to this notice, the Department 
establishes the following final definitions, requirements, criteria, 
and procedures to award and use consortium incentive grants in FY 2004 
and subsequent years.

Definition for Eligibility To Participate in Consortium Incentive 
Grants

    Section 1308(d) permits an SEA to enter into a consortium with 
another State or other appropriate entity. The Department defines the 
term ``other appropriate entity'' to mean any public or private agency 
or organization, such as a school district, a charter school, a 
nonprofit or for-profit organization, or an institution of higher 
education. However, under section 1308(d), only SEAs are eligible 
applicants to receive consortium incentive grants.

Application Requirements

    An application for an incentive grant must be submitted by an SEA 
that will act as the ``lead SEA'' for the proposed consortium. To be 
eligible for award, this application must include--
    1. The identity of the lead SEA for the consortium, and of each 
other SEA or entity participating in the consortium;
    2. The goals and measurable outcomes of the consortium, and the 
activities that each participating SEA or entity in the consortium will 
conduct during each project year to improve the delivery of services to 
migratory children whose education is interrupted;
    3. A concise and cogent explanation of the need for and value of 
the proposed consortium to each participating SEA, and of how the 
proposed consortium will improve interstate or intrastate coordination 
of migrant education programs;

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    4. A description of the process each participating SEA will use for 
evaluating its progress in achieving the measurable outcomes of the 
consortium; and
    5. A signed statement from the Chief State School Officer (or his 
or her authorized representative) of each SEA that is participating in 
the proposed consortium of his or her SEA's commitment to implement its 
activities as described in the application.

Absolute Priorities

    For competitions in FY 2004 and later years, the Department 
establishes the following seven absolute priorities that promote key 
national objectives of the MEP. In order for SEAs to be considered for 
incentive grants, a proposed consortium in which an SEA would 
participate must address one or more of the following absolute 
priorities:
    1. Services designed to improve the proper and timely 
identification and recruitment of eligible migratory children whose 
education is interrupted;
    2. Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to improve the school readiness of pre-school-aged migratory 
children whose education is interrupted;
    3. Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to improve the reading proficiency of migratory children 
whose education is interrupted;
    4. Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to improve the mathematics proficiency of migratory children 
whose education is interrupted;
    5. Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to decrease the dropout rate of migratory students whose 
education is interrupted and improve their high school completion rate;
    6. Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to strengthen the involvement of migratory parents in the 
education of migratory students whose education is interrupted; and
    7. Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to expand access to innovative educational technologies 
intended to increase the academic achievement of migratory students 
whose education is interrupted.

Amount and Duration of Incentive Grants

    An SEA that participates in a high-quality consortium, as the 
Department will select by use of the program's selection criteria, 
shall receive only one incentive grant award regardless of the number 
of high-quality consortia in which it participates.
    In determining the amount of incentive grant awards, the Department 
will not use a cost analysis as described in Sec.  75.232 of EDGAR. 
Rather, the Department will determine the amounts of the incentive 
grant awards on the basis of the following two-tiered funding formula:
    The first tier consists of those SEAs participating in high-quality 
consortia whose MEP Basic State Formula grant allocations are $1 
million or more. Each of these SEAs will, subject to the following 
exceptions, receive an incentive grant award of the same base amount.
    The second tier consists of those SEAs participating in high-
quality consortia whose MEP Basic State Formula grant allocations are 
$1 million or less. Each of these SEAs will, subject to the following 
exceptions, receive an incentive grant award that is twice the base 
amount.
    Within each tier, awards will be of equal size, except that the 
amount of any SEA's incentive grant award in either tier may not exceed 
$250,000 (which is the statutory maximum) or the amount of its MEP 
Basic State Formula grant, whichever is less.
    The base amount will be calculated by dividing the total amount 
reserved for incentive grants by the sum of the total number of SEAs 
participating in high-quality consortia whose MEP Basic State Formula 
grant allocations are greater than $1 million and two times the total 
number of SEAs participating in high-quality consortia whose MEP Basic 
State Formula grant allocations are $1 million or less.
    It must be noted that, because an SEA cannot receive an incentive 
award that exceeds its MEP Basic State Formula grant allocation or 
$250,000, whichever is less, it is possible that some SEAs with MEP 
Basic State Formula allocations of $1 million or less will not receive 
an incentive grant amount that is actually twice the amount of the 
awards provided to SEAs whose MEP Basic State Formula allocations are 
greater than $1 million.
    For FY 2004, the Department plans to reserve $2.5 million for 
consortium incentive awards. The amount reserved for awards in future 
years will vary and will be announced prior to any future competition. 
With a $2.5 million reservation of funds, the range of annual awards to 
SEAs participating in consortia will be between $35,738 (if all 52 SEAs 
receive grants under this competition) to $250,000 (the statutory 
maximum). Assuming the number of SEAs that receive consortium incentive 
grants for FY 2004 is the same as the number of SEAs that received them 
in FY 2002 (39), the size of an annual award will be $45,997 for SEAs 
whose MEP allocations are greater than $1 million, and $91,995 for SEAs 
whose MEP allocations are $1 million or less (and greater than 
$91,995). The actual size of an SEA's award will depend on the number 
of SEAs that participate in high-quality consortia and the size of 
those SEAs' MEP formula grant allocations.
    Consortium incentive grants will be awarded for up to two years. 
(The Department will not conduct a new incentive grant competition in 
FY 2005; rather, it will make second-year funding available to those 
SEAs that receive a FY 2004 incentive award.)
    In this regard, pursuant to Sec.  75.118 and Sec.  75.590 of EDGAR, 
each SEA that receives a consortium incentive grant award must submit a 
performance report (through the consortium's lead State) toward the end 
of the first project year, and a final evaluation report at the end of 
the second year. These reports must address the SEA's completion of 
activities and attainment of objectives of the approved consortium, 
rather than the activities supported with incentive grant funds. 
Eligibility of each SEA for second-year awards will depend on the 
information provided in the first-year performance report regarding the 
SEA's substantial completion of first-year consortium activities and 
attainment of the outcomes identified in the approved consortium 
application.

Selection Criteria

    The Department has established selection criteria from the general 
criteria for competitive grants contained in Sec.  75.210 of EDGAR to 
evaluate applications for the incentive grants competition. The 
selection criteria may be found in the application package for the FY 
2004 competition. The Department will review and rank applications on 
the basis of how well the information provided responds to these 
selection criteria. However, to be funded, an application must also 
address one or more of the absolute priorities, and the elements 
described in the Application Requirements section of this notice.

Use of Consortium Incentive Grant Funds

    An SEA may use incentive grant funds to implement the consortium or 
to carry out any other activities authorized under the MEP. Because the 
incentive grants may be used for any activities authorized under the 
MEP, the

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supplement-not-supplant provision of section 1120A(b) and section 
1304(c)(2) of the ESEA applies to the use of the incentive grant funds. 
Moreover, because the MEP is a formula grant program, the use and 
reporting of the incentive grant funds are governed by the provisions 
of parts 76 and 80 of EDGAR, which concern State-administered formula 
grant programs, rather than the provisions of part 75 of EDGAR, which 
concern discretionary grant programs. In this regard, an SEA receiving 
an incentive grant must submit the financial reports required under 
Sec.  76.720 (and Sec.  80.41) of EDGAR. However, under these 
requirements, an SEA does not need to submit the performance reports on 
the use of the incentive grant funds otherwise required under Sec.  
76.720 and Sec.  80.40(b). Instead, information on the effects of the 
incentive grant funds will be gathered through the performance 
reporting to be required by the Department for the MEP Basic State 
Formula grant.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 does not require you to respond 
to collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control 
number. We display the valid OMB control number assigned to the 
collection of information in this final notice at the end of this 
notice.

Intergovernmental Review

    This program is subject to Executive Order 12372 and the 
regulations in 34 CFR part 79. One of the objectives of the Executive 
order is to foster an intergovernmental partnership and a strengthened 
federalism. The Executive order relies on processes developed by State 
and local governments for coordination and review of proposed Federal 
financial assistance.
    This document is intended to provide early notification of our 
specific plans and actions for this program.

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: 
http://www.ed.gov/news/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.
    You may also view this document in text at the following site: 
http://www.ed.gov/ about/offices/ list/oese/ome/index.html.

    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.gpoaccess.gov/ 
nara/index.html

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control 
number 1810-0649)

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.144: (Migrant 
Education Coordination Program)

    Dated: February 26, 2004.
Raymond Simon,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.

Appendix--Analysis of Comments and Changes

    We group major issues according to subject. Generally, we do not 
address technical and other minor changes, and suggested changes the 
law does not authorize us to make under applicable statutory 
authority.

Eligibility for Consortium Incentive Grants

    Comment: One commenter suggested that the notice include 
clarifying language that charter schools may also be an ``other 
appropriate entity'' with which an SEA may enter into a consortium. 
The commenter also suggested that the notice clarify that ``migrant 
children whose education is interrupted'' would include ``all [such] 
public school students, including migrant students enrolled in 
charter schools.''
    Discussion: The Department agrees that prospective applicants 
would benefit from inclusion of examples of ``other appropriate 
entities.'' However, we do not agree that the notice needs to 
further clarify the term ``migrant children whose education is 
interrupted'' since the term already clearly includes any such 
migrant children whether they are enrolled in public or private 
school or are out-of-school.
    Changes: The definition of ``other appropriate entity'' has been 
revised to include examples, ``such as a school district, a charter 
school, a nonprofit or for-profit organization, or an institution of 
higher education.''

Application Requirements

    Comment: One commenter asserted that the requirements of section 
1308(a), which focus on interstate and intrastate coordination, 
apply to all provisions in section 1308. The commenter said that, as 
a result, the consortia and the incentive grants authorized under 
section 1308(d) must, as a matter of law, be designed to ``improve 
the interstate and intrastate coordination among [State and local] 
agencies' migrant educational programs. * * *''
    Discussion: The Department does not agree with the comment. 
Section 1308 is entitled ``Coordination of Migrant Education 
Activities,'' and the provisions contained in this section all 
generally relate to coordination. The specific provision to which 
the commenter refers is in a subparagraph of section 1308(a), which 
itself is entitled ``Improvement of Coordination.'' Specifically, 
subparagraph 1308(a)(1), entitled ``In General,'' authorizes the 
Department, among other things, to award grants or contracts to 
various specific agencies in order to improve interstate and 
intrastate coordination of those agencies' migrant education 
programs. Neither this subparagraph (a)(1) nor the duration-of-
grants provision in subparagraph (a)(2) applies to the specific 
authorizations and provisions contained in sections 1308(b) through 
(e). However, while not legally required to do so, the Department 
has decided that to be considered high-quality consortia selected in 
this competition under section 1308(d), the proposed consortia must 
be designed to improve the interstate or intrastate coordination of 
migrant education programs.
    Changes: We have revised the Application Requirements to require 
that, to be funded, an applicant must explain how the proposed 
consortium will improve interstate and intrastate coordination of 
migrant education programs.

Absolute Priorities

    Comment: One commenter recommended that absolute priority 1 
(regarding services to improve the identification and recruitment of 
migratory children whose education is interrupted) must be put in 
place before incentive grants are provided for the other absolute 
priorities. The commenter also urged the Department to develop a 
nationwide Internet-based data management system that is accessible 
to all school districts and compatible with standard operating 
systems. The commenter stated that a system of this kind would 
enable school districts to access critical information on migrant 
children, thereby increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of the 
MEP and its services.
    Discussion: The Department agrees that absolute priority 1 is a 
critical first component of any migrant education program. However, 
for reasons discussed in the notice of proposed requirements, 
absolute priorities 2 through 7 reflect areas of national 
significance for migrant students that warrant award of consortium 
incentive grants, and there is no reason to delay consortia's 
efforts to address these six areas while SEAs further their 
identification and recruitment of migrant students.
    In addition, the Department agrees with the commenter that a 
system that facilitates the timely access to and transfer of student 
records can be an effective means of reducing the effects of 
educational disruption on migrant students. Pursuant to section 
1308(b)(2), the Department is currently in the process of developing 
and implementing a migrant student records system for the purpose of 
electronically exchanging health and educational information 
regarding migrant children among States. Because this is a separate 
national initiative, the Department is not addressing it through 
this grant program.
    Changes: None.
    Comment: One commenter, believing that migrant education 
programs do not provide

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for the dental and vision needs of migrant children, recommended 
that dental and vision needs be addressed as an additional priority. 
The commenter also recommended recognition and support of programs 
addressing cultural self-identification and self-esteem for migrant 
children.
    Discussion: Dental and vision screenings, as well as activities 
that promote self-esteem of migrant students, are allowable services 
under the MEP Basic State Formula grant program to the extent that 
such services address needs that result from the migratory lifestyle 
and are educationally-related (i.e., are needed to permit migrant 
children to function effectively in school). However, while these 
issues are important for migrant children, the Department does not 
believe that they reflect the same high level of national 
significance as do the seven absolute priorities established for the 
incentive grant competition.
    Changes: None.

Reporting Requirements

    Comment: One commenter asked whether a grantee must submit a 
final summary evaluation report at the end of the second year, or 
whether instead it could submit a developmental evaluation for the 
second year, continue its work on consortium activities (with the 
use of other funds) for a third year, and then submit a final 
summary evaluation report at the end of third year. The commenter 
noted that the second option would allow a longer window of time to 
achieve the measurable goals of the consortium.
    Discussion: The Department is soliciting applications for 
consortia that will complete described activities in no more than 
two years. These applications must include objectives and measurable 
outcomes to be completed within the maximum two-year performance 
period. Participating SEAs or other entities in a consortium may 
continue to support and evaluate the effectiveness of consortium 
activities that they choose to carry out after the second year. 
However, participating SEAs must still provide a final report, under 
Sec.  75.590 of EDGAR, that addresses their success in completing 
the activities and achieving the objectives and outcomes that were 
established in their approved consortium applications for completion 
within the maximum two-year performance period.
    Changes: None.
    Comment: None.
    Discussion: In reviewing the notice, the Department noted a need 
to clarify the grantee reporting requirements.
    Changes: The reporting requirements have been revised to clarify 
that:
    (1) The first-year performance report and the final second-year 
evaluation report required under Sec.  75.118 and Sec.  75.590 of 
EDGAR concern the completion of activities of the approved 
consortium, rather than the use of the awarded incentive grant 
funds, and
    (2) SEAs do not need to submit a performance report on the use 
of the incentive grant funds. Instead, because an SEA may use 
incentive grant funds for any activity authorized under the MEP, the 
effectiveness of the incentive grants will be measured through those 
performance reports required by the Department for the MEP Basic 
State Formula grant. However, an SEA receiving an incentive grant 
must submit the financial reports relating to incentive grant funds 
required under Sec.  76.720 and Sec.  80.41 of EDGAR.

Use of Consortium Incentive Grant Funds

    Comment: None.
    Discussion: In reviewing the notice, the Department noted that, 
because the incentive grants may be used for any activities 
authorized under the MEP, the supplement-not-supplant provision 
found in sections 1120A(b) and 1304(c)(2) of the ESEA should be made 
applicable to the consortium incentive grants.
    Changes: The final requirements clarify that the supplement-not-
supplant provision of sections 1120A(b) and 1304(c)(2) apply to the 
use of these incentive grant funds.

Amount and Duration of Incentive Grants

    Comment: None.
    Discussion: In reviewing the notice, the Department noted the 
need to explain more clearly the funding formula that it will use to 
calculate the incentive grant award amounts.
    Changes: We have revised the final requirements to clarify the 
language explaining the funding formula.

[FR Doc. 04-4719 Filed 3-2-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P