[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 48 (Monday, March 13, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12687-12691]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-3508]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Elementary and Secondary Education; Overview 
Information; Alaska Native Education Program; Notice Inviting 
Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2006

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA)

    Number: 84.356A
    Dates: Applications Available: March 13, 2006.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 27, 2006.
    Eligible Applicants: (a) Alaska Native organizations;
    (b) Educational entities with experience in developing or operating 
Alaska Native programs or programs of instruction conducted in Alaska 
Native languages;
    (c) Cultural and community-based organizations with experience in 
developing or operating programs to benefit Alaska Natives; and
    (d) Consortia of organizations and entities described in this 
paragraph to carry out activities that meet the purposes of this 
program.


    Note: A State educational agency or local educational agency may 
apply for an award under this program only as part of a consortium 
involving an Alaska Native organization. The consortium may include 
other eligible applicants.


    Estimated Available Funds: $16,300,000. Contingent upon the 
availability of funds and the quality of applications, the Secretary 
may make additional awards in FY 2007 from the list of unfunded 
applicants from this competition.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $300,000-$700,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $500,000.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 20-40.


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


    Project Period: Up to 36 months.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    Purpose of Program: The purpose of this program is to develop and 
support supplemental educational programs to benefit Alaska Natives. 
Permissible activities under this program include the following: (1) 
Development and implementation of plans, methods, and strategies to 
improve the education of Alaska Natives; (2) Development of curricula 
and educational programs that address the educational needs of Alaska 
Native students; (3) Professional development activities for educators; 
(4) Development and operation of home instruction programs for Alaska 
Native preschool children, to ensure the active involvement of parents 
in their children's education from the earliest ages; (5) Family 
literacy services; (6) Development and operation of student enrichment 
programs in science and mathematics; (7) Research and data collection 
activities to determine the educational status and needs of Alaska 
Native children and adults; (8) Other research and evaluation 
activities related to programs carried out under Alaska Native 
education programs; (9) Remedial and enrichment programs to assist 
Alaska Native students in performing at a high level on standardized 
tests; (10) Education and training of Alaska Native students enrolled 
in a degree program that will lead to certification or licensing as 
teachers; (11) Parenting education for parents and caregivers of Alaska 
Native children to improve parenting and caregiving skills (including 
skills relating to discipline and cognitive development and parenting 
education provided through in-home visitation of new mothers); (12) 
Activities carried out through Even Start programs under subpart 3 of 
part B of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965, as amended (ESEA), and Head Start programs under the Head Start 
Act, including the training of teachers for Even Start and Head Start 
programs; (13) Other early learning and preschool programs; (14) 
Dropout prevention programs; (15) Career preparation activities to 
enable Alaska Native children and adults to prepare for meaningful 
employment, including programs providing ``tech-prep,'' mentoring, 
training, and apprenticeship activities; (16) Provision of operational 
support and purchasing of equipment to

[[Page 12688]]

develop regional vocational schools in rural areas of Alaska, including 
boarding schools, for Alaska Native students in grades 9 through 12, or 
at higher levels of education, to provide the students with necessary 
resources to prepare for skilled employment opportunities; (17) 
Construction of facilities that support the operation of Alaska Native 
education programs; and (18) Other activities, consistent with the 
purposes of this program, to meet the educational needs of Alaska 
Native children and adults.
    Priorities: In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(iv), the 
following competitive preference priority is from section 7304(c) of 
the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 7544(c)) and the invitational priority is from the 
Department of Education Appropriations Act, 2006 (Pub. L. 109-149).
    Competitive Preference Priority: For FY 2006 and any subsequent 
year in which we make awards based on the list of unfunded applications 
from this competition, this priority is a competitive preference 
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), we award an additional five 
points to an application that meets this priority.
    This priority is:
    The Secretary gives priority to applications from Alaska Native 
regional nonprofit organizations or consortia that include at least one 
Alaska Native regional nonprofit organization. In order to receive a 
competitive preference under this priority, an application must provide 
documentation supporting its claim that it meets this priority.
    Invitational Priority: For FY 2006 and any subsequent year in which 
we make awards based on the list of unfunded applications from this 
competition, this priority is an invitational priority. Under 34 CFR 
75.105(c)(1) we do not give an application that meets this invitational 
priority a competitive or absolute preference over other applications.
    This priority is:
    The use of funds to address the construction needs of rural schools 
serving Alaska Native students.
    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7541, et seq.; Department of Education 
Appropriations Act, 2006 (Pub. L. 109-149).
    Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 80, 81, 
82, 84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99.

    Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 apply to institutions of 
higher education only.

II. Award Information

    Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
    Estimated Available Funds: $16,300,000. Contingent upon the 
availability of funds and the quality of applications, the Secretary 
may make additional awards in FY 2007 from the list of unfunded 
applicants from this competition.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $300,000-$700,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $500,000.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 20-40.


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


    Project Period: Up to 36 months.

III. Eligibility Information

    1. Eligible Applicants: (a) Alaska Native organizations;
    (b) Educational entities with experience in developing or operating 
Alaska Native programs or programs of instruction conducted in Alaska 
Native languages;
    (c) Cultural and community-based organizations with experience in 
developing or operating programs to benefit Alaska Natives; and
    (d) Consortia of organizations and entities described in this 
paragraph to carry out activities that meet the purposes of this 
program.


    Note: A State educational agency or local educational agency may 
apply for an award under this program only as part of a consortium 
involving an Alaska Native organization. The consortium may include 
other eligible applicants.


    2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This competition does not involve cost 
sharing or matching.

IV. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Request Application Package: To obtain a copy of the 
application package via the Internet use the following addresses: 
http://www.grants.gov or http://www.ed.gov/programs/alaskanative/applicant.html. Individuals may also obtain a copy of the application 
package by contacting the program contact person listed in this 
section.
    Address and mail your request for information to Alexis Fisher, 
U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3W217, 
Washington, DC 20202-6200. Telephone: (202) 401-0281 or by e-mail: 
[email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application 
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, 
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the program contact 
person listed in this section.
    2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements 
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you 
must submit, are in the application package for this competition.
    Page Limit: The application narrative is where you, the applicant, 
address the selection criteria that reviewers use to evaluate your 
application. We strongly encourage you to limit the application 
narrative (text plus all figures, charts, tables, and diagrams) to the 
equivalent of no more than 25 pages, using the following standards:
     A ``page'' is 8.5'' x 11'', on one side only, with 1'' 
margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
     Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) 
all text in the application narrative, including titles, headings, 
footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as all text in 
charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
     Use a font that is either 12 point or larger or no smaller 
than 10 pitch (characters per inch).
    The recommended page limit does not apply to the cover sheet; the 
budget section, including the narrative budget justification; the 
assurances and certifications; the abstract; the resumes; or the 
appendices.
    3. Submission Dates and Times:

    Applications Available: March 13, 2006.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 27, 2006.

    Applications for grants under this competition must be submitted 
electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov). For 
information (including dates and times) about how to submit your 
application electronically or by mail or hand delivery if you qualify 
for an exception to the electronic submission requirement, please refer 
to section IV. 6. Other Submission Requirements in this notice.
    We do not consider an application that does not comply with the 
deadline requirements.
    4. Intergovernmental Review: This competition is not subject to 
Executive Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79.
    5. Funding Restrictions: Under section 7304(b) of the ESEA (20 
U.S.C. 7544(b)), not more than five percent of funds provided to a 
grantee under this

[[Page 12689]]

competition for any fiscal year may be used for administrative 
purposes.
    We reference additional regulations outlining funding restrictions 
in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
    6. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under 
this competition must be submitted electronically, unless you qualify 
for an exception to this requirement in accordance with the 
instructions in this section.
    a. Electronic Submission of Applications.
    Applications for grants under the Alaska Native Education Program--
CFDA Number 84.356A must be submitted electronically using the 
Grants.gov Apply site at: http://www.grants.gov. Through this site, you 
will be able to download a copy of the application package, complete it 
offline, and then upload and submit your application. You may not e-
mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us.
    We will reject your application if you submit it in paper format 
unless, as described elsewhere in this section, you qualify for one of 
the exceptions to the electronic submission requirement and submit, no 
later than two weeks before the application deadline date, a written 
statement to the Department that you qualify for one of these 
exceptions. Further information regarding calculation of the date that 
is two weeks before the application deadline date is provided later in 
this section under Exception to Electronic Submission Requirement.
    You may access the electronic grant application for the Alaska 
Native Education Program at: http://www.grants.gov. You must search for 
the downloadable application package for this program by the CFDA 
number. Do not include the CFDA number's alpha suffix in your search.
    Please note the following:
     When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find 
information about submitting an application electronically through the 
site, as well as the hours of operation.
     Applications received by Grants.gov are time and date 
stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted, and 
must be date/time stamped by the Grants.gov system no later than 4:30 
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. Except as 
otherwise noted in this section, we will not consider your application 
if it is date/time stamped by the Grants.gov system later than 4:30 
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. When we 
retrieve your application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are 
rejecting your application because it was date/time stamped by the 
Grants.gov system after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the 
application deadline date.
     The amount of time it can take to upload an application 
will vary depending on a variety of factors including the size of the 
application and the speed of your Internet connection. Therefore, we 
strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline 
date to begin the application process through Grants.gov.
     You should review and follow the Education Submission 
Procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov that are 
included in the application package for this competition to ensure that 
you submit your application in a timely manner to the Grants.gov 
system. You can also find the Education Submission Procedures 
pertaining to Grants.gov at http://e-Grants.ed.gov/help/GrantsgovSubmissionProcedures.pdf.
     To submit your application via Grants.gov, you must 
complete all of the steps in the Grants.gov registration process (see 
http://www.Grants.gov/GetStarted). These steps include (1) Registering 
your organization, (2) registering yourself as an Authorized 
Organization Representative (AOR), and (3) getting authorized as an AOR 
by your organization. Details on these steps are outlined in the 
Grants.gov 3-Step Registration Guide (see http://www.grants.gov/assets/GrantsgovCoBrandBrochure8X11.pdf). You also must provide on your 
application the same D-U-N-S Number used with this registration. Please 
note that the registration process may take five or more business days 
to complete, and you must have completed all registration steps to 
allow you to submit successfully an application via Grants.gov.
     You will not receive additional point value because you 
submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you 
if you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission 
requirement, as described elsewhere in this section, and submit your 
application in paper format.
     You must submit all documents electronically, including 
all information typically included on the Application for Federal 
Education Assistance (ED 424), Budget Information--Non-Construction 
Programs (ED 524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. You 
must attach any narrative sections of your application as files in a 
.DOC (document), .RTF (rich text), or .PDF (Portable Document) format. 
If you upload a file type other than the three file types specified 
above or submit a password-protected file, we will not review that 
material.
     Your electronic application must comply with any page 
limit requirements described in this notice.
     After you electronically submit your application, you will 
receive an automatic acknowledgment from Grants.gov that contains a 
Grants.gov tracking number. The Department will retrieve your 
application from Grants.gov and send you a second confirmation by e-
mail that will include a PR/Award number (an ED-specified identifying 
number unique to your application).
     We may request that you provide us original signatures on 
forms at a later date.
    Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of Technical Issues 
with Grants.gov System: If you are prevented from electronically 
submitting your application on the application deadline date because of 
technical problems with the Grans.gov system, we will grant you an 
extension until 4:30 p.m., Washington DC time, the following business 
day to enable you to transmit your application electronically, or by 
hand delivery. You also may mail your application by following the 
mailing instruction as described elsewhere in this notice. If you 
submit an application after 4:30 p.m., Washington DC time, on the 
deadline date, please contact the person listed elsewhere in this 
notice under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, and provide an 
explanation of the technical problem you experienced with Grants.gov, 
along with the Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number (if available). We 
will accept your application if we can confirm that a technical problem 
occurred with the Grants.gov system and that the problem affected your 
ability to submit your application by 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, 
on the application deadline date. The Department will contact you after 
a determination is made on whether your application will be accepted.


    Note: Extension referred to in this section apply only to the 
unavailability of or technical problems with the Grants.gov system. 
We will not grant you an extension if you failed to fully register 
to submit your application to Grants.gov before the deadline date 
and time or if the technical problem you experienced is unrelated to 
the Grants.gov system.


    Exception to Electronic Submission Requirement: You qualify for an 
exception to the electronic submission

[[Page 12690]]

requirement, and may submit your application in paper format, if you 
are unable to submit an application through the Grants.gov system 
because--
     You do not have access to the Internet; or
     You do not have the capacity to upload large documents to 
the Grants.gov system; and
     No later than two weeks before the application deadline 
date (14 calendar days or, if the fourteenth calendar day before the 
application deadline date falls on a Federal holiday, the next business 
day following the Federal holiday), you mail or fax a written statement 
to the Department, explaining which of the two grounds for an exception 
prevent you from using the Internet to submit your application. If you 
mail your written statement to the Department, it must be postmarked no 
later than two weeks before the application deadline date. If you fax 
your written statement to the Department, we must receive the faxed 
statement no later than two weeks before the application deadline date.
    Address and mail or fax your statement to: Alexis Fisher, U.S. 
Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3W217, 
Washington, DC 20202-6200. FAX: (202) 260-8969.
    Your paper application must be submitted in accordance with the 
mail or hand delivery instructions described in this notice.
    b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail.
    If you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission 
requirement, you may mail (through the U.S. Postal Service or a 
commercial carrier), your application to the Department. You must mail 
the original and two copies of your application, on or before the 
application deadline date, to the Department at the applicable 
following address:
    By mail through the U.S. Postal Service: U.S. Department of 
Education, Application Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number 
84.356A), 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260; or
    By mail through a commercial carrier: U.S. Department of Education, 
Application Control Center--Stop 4260, Attention: (CFDA Number 
84.356A), 7100 Old Landover Road, Landover, MD 20785-1506.
    Regardless of which address you use, you must show proof of mailing 
consisting of one of the following:
    (1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark,
    (2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the 
U.S. Postal Service,
    (3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial 
carrier, or
    (4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the 
U.S. Department of Education.
    If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do 
not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:
    (1) A private metered postmark, or
    (2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.
    If your application is postmarked after the application deadline 
date, we will not consider your application.


    Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated 
postmark. Before relying on this method, you should check with your 
local post office.

    c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery.
    If you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission 
requirement, you (or a courier service) may deliver your paper 
application to the Department by hand. You must deliver the original 
and two copies of your application by hand, on or before the 
application deadline date, to the Department at the following address: 
U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, Attention: 
(CFDA Number 84.356A), 550 12th Street, SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center 
Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-4260.
    The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily 
between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, except Saturdays, 
Sundays, and Federal holidays.

    Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you 
mail or hand deliver your application to the Department:
    (1) You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by 
the Department--in Item 4 of the ED 424 form the CFDA number--and 
suffix letter, if any--of the competition under which you are 
submitting your application.
    (2) The Application Control Center will mail a grant application 
receipt acknowledgment to you. If you do not receive the grant 
application receipt acknowledgment within 15 business days from the 
application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of 
Education Application Control Center at (202) 245-6288.

V. Application Review Information

    Selection Criteria: We will use the following selection criteria 
from 34 CFR 75.210 to evaluate applications for new grants under this 
competition. The maximum score for all criteria is 100 points. The 
maximum score for each criterion is indicated in parentheses.
    The selection criteria for this competition are as follows:
    (a) Need for project (20 points). The Secretary considers the need 
for the proposed project. In determining the need for the proposed 
project, the Secretary considers the magnitude of the need for the 
services to be provided or the activities to be carried out by the 
proposed project.
    (b) Quality of the project design (30 points). The Secretary 
considers the quality of the design of the proposed project. In 
determining the quality of the design of the proposed project, the 
Secretary considers the extent to which the design of the proposed 
project is appropriate to, and will successfully address, the needs of 
the target population or other identified needs.
    (c) Quality of the management plan (20 points). The Secretary 
considers the quality of the management plan for the proposed project. 
In determining the quality of the management plan for the proposed 
project, the Secretary considers the adequacy of the management plan to 
achieve the objectives of the proposed project on time and within 
budget, including clearly defined responsibilities, timelines, and 
milestones for accomplishing project tasks.
    (d) Adequacy of resources (15 points) The Secretary considers the 
adequacy of resources for the proposed project. In determining the 
adequacy of resources for the proposed project, the Secretary considers 
the extent to which the budget is adequate to support the proposed 
project.
    (e) Quality of the project evaluation (15 points). The Secretary 
considers the quality of the evaluation to be conducted of the proposed 
project. In determining the quality of the evaluation, the Secretary 
considers the following factors:
    (i) The extent to which the methods of evaluation are thorough, 
feasible, and appropriate to the goals, objectives, and outcomes of the 
proposed project.
    (ii) The extent to which the methods of evaluation include the use 
of objective performance measures that are clearly related to the 
intended outcomes of the project and will produce quantitative and 
qualitative data to the extent possible.

VI. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your 
U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award 
Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally.
    If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, 
we notify you.

[[Page 12691]]

    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify 
administrative and national policy requirements in the application 
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable 
Regulations section of this notice.
    We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of 
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and 
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also 
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding 
commitments under the grant.
    3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a 
final performance report, including financial information, as directed 
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an 
annual performance report that provides the most current performance 
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in 
34 CFR 75.118.
    4. Performance Measures: The Alaska Native Education Program seeks 
to support supplemental education programs to benefit Alaska Native 
populations. The Department uses the following performance targets to 
measure the program's success: (1) The percentage of Alaska Native 
students who meet or exceed proficiency standards in mathematics, 
science, or reading; (2) The percentage of Alaska Native children who 
improve on measures of school readiness; and (3) The dropout rate of 
Alaska Native middle and high school students.
    Each grantee is expected to submit an annual performance report 
documenting its contributions in assisting the Department in meeting 
these performance measures.

VII. Agency Contact

    For Further Information Contact: Alexis Fisher, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3W217, Washington, DC 20202-
6200. Telephone: (202) 401-0281 or by e-mail: [email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) 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 program contact person listed in this 
section.

VIII. Other Information

    Electronic Access to This Document: You may view this document, as 
well as all other documents of this Department 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 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.


    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 html.


    Dated: March 8, 2006.
Henry L. Johnson,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
[FR Doc. E6-3508 Filed 3-10-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P