[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 72 (Thursday, April 16, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17686-17687]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-8690]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs


Request for Nominations of Members To Serve on the Bureau of 
Indian Education Advisory Board for Exceptional Children

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Education, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of request for nominations.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act and the 
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, as amended by Public Law 
108-446 (IDEA of 2004), the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) requests 
nominations of individuals to serve on the Advisory Board for 
Exceptional Children (Advisory Board). The BIE will consider 
nominations received in response to this Request for Nominations, as 
well as other sources. The SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for this 
notice provides committee and membership criteria.

DATES: Nomination applications must be received on or before May 15, 
2009.

ADDRESSES: Please submit nomination applications to Gloria Yepa, 
Supervisory Education Specialist, Bureau of Indian Education, 
Albuquerque Service Center, Division of Performance and Accountability, 
P.O. Box 1088, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87103-1088; telephone 505-563-
5264.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gloria Yepa, Supervisory Education 
Specialist, at the above listed address; telephone 505-563-5264.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Advisory Board was established in 
accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463. 
The following provides information about the Advisory Board, the 
membership and the nomination process.

Objective and Duties

    (a) Members of the Advisory Board will provide guidance, advice and 
recommendations with respect to special education and related services 
for children with disabilities in BIE-funded schools in accordance with 
the requirements of IDEA of 2004.
    (b) The Advisory Board will:
    (1) Provide advice and recommendations for the coordination of 
services within the BIE and with other local, State and Federal 
agencies.
    (2) Provide advice and recommendations on a broad range of policy 
issues dealing with the provision of educational services to American 
Indian children with disabilities.

[[Page 17687]]

    (3) Serve as advocates for American Indian students with special 
education needs by providing advice and recommendations regarding best 
practices, effective program coordination strategies, and 
recommendations for improved educational programming.
    (4) Provide advice and recommendations for the preparation of 
information required to be submitted to the Secretary of Education 
under section 611(h)(2)(D).
    (5) Provide advice and recommend policies concerning effective 
inter/intra-agency collaboration, including modifications to 
regulations, and the elimination of barriers to inter/intra-agency 
programs and activities.
    (6) Report and direct all correspondence to the Assistant 
Secretary--Indian Affairs through the Director, BIE with a courtesy 
copy to the Designated Federal Official (DFO).

Membership

    (a) As required by IDEA of 2004, section 611(h)(6), the Advisory 
Board shall be composed of individuals involved in or concerned with 
the education and provision of services to Indian infants, toddlers, 
children, and youth with disabilities. The Advisory Board composition 
will reflect a broad range of viewpoints and will include at least one 
(1) member representing each of the following interests: Indians with 
disabilities; teachers of children with disabilities; Indian parents or 
guardians of children with disabilities; service providers, State 
Education Officials; Local Education Officials; State Interagency 
Coordinating Councils (for States having Indian reservations); tribal 
representatives or tribal organization representatives; and other 
members representing the various divisions and entities of the BIE.
    (b) The Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs may provide the 
Secretary of the Interior recommendations for the chairperson; however, 
the chairperson and other Advisory Board members will be appointed by 
the Secretary of the Interior. The Advisory Board members shall serve 
staggered terms of 2 years or 3 years from the date of their 
appointment.

Miscellaneous

    (a) Members of the Advisory Board will not receive compensation, 
but will be reimbursed for travel, including subsistence, and other 
necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties in the 
same manner as persons employed intermittently in Government Service 
under 5 U.S.C. 5703.
    (b) A member may not participate in matters that will directly 
affect, or appear to affect, the financial interests of the member or 
the member's spouse or minor children, unless authorized by the DFO. 
Compensation from employment does not constitute a financial interest 
of the member so long as the matter before the Advisory Board will not 
have a special or distinct effect on the member or the member's 
employer, other than as part of a class. The provisions of this 
paragraph do not affect any other statutory or regulatory ethical 
obligations to which a member may be subject.
    (c) The Advisory Board meets at least twice a year, budget 
permitting, but additional meetings may be held as deemed necessary by 
the Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs or DFO.
    (d) All Advisory Board meetings are open to the public in 
accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act regulations.

Nomination Information

    (a) Nominations are requested from individuals, organizations, and 
federally recognized tribes, as well as from State Directors of Special 
Education (within the 23 States in which BIE-funded schools are 
located) concerned with the education of Indian children with 
disabilities as described above.
    (b) Nominees should have expertise and knowledge of the issues and/
or needs of American Indian children with disabilities. Such knowledge 
and expertise are needed to provide advice and recommendations to the 
BIE regarding the needs of American Indian children with disabilities.
    (c) A summary of the candidate's qualifications 
(r[eacute]sum[eacute] or curriculum vitae) must be included with the 
nomination application. Nominees must have the ability to attend 
Advisory Board meetings, carry out Advisory Board assignments, 
participate in teleconference calls, and work in groups.
    (d) The Department of the Interior is committed to equal 
opportunity in the workplace and seeks diverse Advisory Board 
membership, which is bound by the Indian Preference Act of 1990 (25 
U.S.C. 472).

    Dated: March 26, 2009.
George T. Skibine,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Economic Development.
 [FR Doc. E9-8690 Filed 4-15-09; 8:45 am]
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