[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 153 (Wednesday, August 9, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45570-45571]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-12977]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

    In compliance with Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 concerning opportunity for public comment on proposed 
collections of information, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health 
Services Administration (SAMHSA) will publish periodic summaries of 
proposed projects. To request more information on the proposed projects 
or to obtain a copy of the information collection plans, call the 
SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer on (240) 276-1243.
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collections of 
information are necessary for the proper performance of the functions 
of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other 
forms of information technology.

Proposed Project: School Climate Survey for the National Cross-Site 
Evaluation of Safe School/Healthy Student (SS/HS) Initiative Grants--
NEW

    The SS/HS Initiative is a collaborative grant program supported by 
three Federal departments--the U.S. Departments of Health and Human 
Services, Education, and Justice. The program is authorized under the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, and the 
Higher Education Act of 1965, Title IV, part A, subpart 2 (National 
Programs), Section 4121 (Federal Activities).
    This initiative, instituted by Congress following the murderous 
assaults at Columbine High School in Colorado, is designed to provide 
Local Educational Agencies (LEAs), including school districts and 
multi-district regional consortia, with three years of funding to 
simultaneously improve school safety, student access to mental health 
services, the reduction of violence and substance abuse, school 
relationships with the larger community, and early childhood 
preparation for learning. Collectively, Congress expects these changes 
to be reflected in improved school climate.
    Local Education Agencies (LEAs) serve as the primary applicants for 
SS/HS grants, but the LEAs are required to establish formal 
partnerships with the local mental health system, the local law 
enforcement agency, and the local juvenile justice agency. Other 
partners often include public and private social services agencies, 
businesses, civic organizations, the faith community, and private 
citizens. As a result of these partnerships, comprehensive plans are 
developed, implemented, evaluated, and sustained with the goals of 
promoting the healthy development of children and youth, fostering 
their resilience in the face of adversity, and preventing violence.
    From FY-1999 through FY-2004, grants of $1 million to $3 million 
annually for three years were awarded

[[Page 45571]]

to 190 LEAs, for a total of $916 million. Approximately 40 new SS/HS 
grants were awarded in FY-2005. These grants are providing support for 
rural, tribal, suburban, and urban communities that include diverse 
racial and ethnic groups across the country.
    In compliance with the Government Performance and Results Act 
(GPRA) of 1993, grantees are required to collect and report data that 
measure the results of the programs implemented with this grant. 
Specifically, grantees are required to collect and report information 
on the following GPRA indicators:
    1. The percentage of SS/HS grant sites that experience a decrease 
in the number of violent incidents at schools.
    2. The percentage of SS/HS grant sites that experience a decrease 
in substance abuse.
    3. The percentage of SS/HS grant sites that improve school 
attendance.
    4. The percentage of SS/HS grant sites that increase mental health 
services to students and families.
    In addition to GPRA measures, the Federal Evaluation Work Group of 
the Safe School/Healthy Students (SS/HS) Initiative national 
evaluation, comprised of Federal officials representing the U.S. 
Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, and Justice, 
determined that information on changes in school climate is also 
required to provide a direct basis of comparison for performance with 
subsequent cohorts of grantees. Although GPRA measures monitor changes 
in individual outcomes among students, GPRA measures have been found to 
provide an incomplete metric of performance in terms of observed 
changes in overall ``school climate.''
    The SS/HS National Evaluation Team proposes to adopt the staff 
version of the California Healthy Kids Survey for this purpose. This 
instrument contains 43 multiple choice questions that are used to 
obtain school staff perceptions of student behavior and attitudes, 
school programs and policies, and the overall school climate as they 
relate to student well-being and learning. It deals with such issues as 
truancy, safety, harassment, substance abuse, school connectedness and 
learning supports. The instrument, modified slightly to form the SS/HS 
School Climate Survey, will track changes in school climate in schools 
targeted for program services under the SS/HS Initiative. In the 
absence of the School Climate Survey, there would be no common, cross-
site measure of performance across SS/HS initiative grantees. In 
practice, the School Climate Survey will be administered electronically 
among approximately 67,500 local educational system employees. These 
employees will be encouraged to log onto a Web site during each year 
that their school benefits from the grant to answer questions 
concerning their perception of student behavior and safety at the 
school.
    The burden estimate for the annual survey is as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                Burden
Number of respondents      Responses per       response    Total annual
                            respondent         (hours)    burden (hours)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
67,500...............  1 per year..........          0.5          33,750
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Send comments to Summer King, SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer, 
Room 7-1044, One Choke Cherry Road, Rockville, MD 20857. Written 
comments should be received within 60 days of this notice.

    Dated: August 1, 2006.
Anna Marsh,
Director, Office of Program Services.
[FR Doc. E6-12977 Filed 8-8-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4162-20-P