[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 109 (Tuesday, June 8, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32428-32435]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-13781]



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



DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION




Office of Innovation and Improvement; Overview Information; Full-

Service Community Schools Program; Notice Inviting Applications for New 

Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2010



Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.215J.



    Applications Available: June 8, 2010.

    Deadline of Notice of Intent to Apply: June 23, 2010.

    Date of Pre-Application Meeting: June 17, 2010.

    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 23, 2010.

    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: September 21, 2010.



Full Text of Announcement



I. Funding Opportunity Description



    Purpose of Program: The Fund for the Improvement of Education 

(FIE), which is authorized by section 5411 of the Elementary and 

Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA), supports nationally 

significant programs to improve the quality of elementary and secondary 

education at the State and local levels and help all children meet 

challenging academic content and academic achievement standards. The 

Full-Service Community Schools (FSCS) program, which is funded under 

FIE, encourages coordination of academic, social, and health services 

through partnerships between (1) Public elementary and secondary 

schools; (2) the schools' local educational agencies (LEAs); and (3) 

community-based organizations, nonprofit organizations, and other 

public or private entities. The purpose of this collaboration is to 

provide comprehensive academic, social, and health services for 

students, students' family members, and community members that will 

result in improved educational outcomes for children. The Full-Service 

Community Schools program is a ``place-based'' program (see http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/memoranda_fy2009/m09-28.pdf) that can 

leverage investments by focusing resources in targeted places, drawing 

on the compounding effects of well-coordinated actions. Place-based 

approaches can also streamline otherwise redundant and disconnected 

programs.

    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7243-7243b.

    Priorities:

    These priorities are from the notice of final priorities, selection 

criteria, definitions, and requirements for this program, published 

elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.

    Absolute Priority: For FY 2010 and any subsequent year in which we 

make awards from the list of unfunded applications, this priority is an 

absolute priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only 

applications that meet this priority.

    This priority is:



Projects That Establish or Expand Full-Service Community Schools



    Background: In order for children to be ready and able to learn, 

they need academic, social, and health supports. The National Research 

Council has cited the presence of these supports as important 

predictors of future adult success.\1\ Students' needs are better met 

when academic, social, and health services are delivered to them in a 

well-coordinated, results-focused, and integrated manner.

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



    \1\ Committee on Community-Level Programs for Youth (2002). 

Community Programs to Promote Youth Development. Edited by J.S. 

Eccles and J. Gootman. Washington, DC: National Research Council, 

Institute of Medicine, and National Academy Press.

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



    A full-service community school, as defined in this notice, is a 

public elementary or secondary school that works with its local 

educational agency and community-based organizations, nonprofit 

organizations, and other public or private entities to provide a 

coordinated and integrated set of comprehensive academic, social, and 

health services that respond to the needs of its students, students' 

family members, and community members, as defined in this notice. These 

results-focused partnerships, as defined in this notice, are based on 

identified needs and organized around a set of mutually defined results 

and outcomes.

    Full-service community schools recognize that schools do not 

operate in total isolation from the communities in which they are 

located. Community challenges such as poverty, violence, poor physical 

health, and family instability can become education issues when left 

unaddressed. When schools and community partners collaborate to address 

these issues and align their resources to achieve common results, 

children are more likely to succeed



[[Page 32429]]



academically, socially, and physically. Full-service community schools 

seek to address these challenges by connecting students, students' 

family members, and community members with available services and 

opportunities, creating the conditions for students to achieve in 

school and beyond.

    The Department recognizes that in order for students and the 

members of the communities in which they reside to thrive, their 

schools must be effective. Effective schools create learning 

environments that support student academic success and foster student 

engagement. When characterized by stable leadership and a strong 

instructional program, full-service community schools have been 

associated with improved attendance and student achievement,\2\ 

increased family and community engagement,\3\ and improved student 

behavior and youth development.\4\ In addition, system-wide support 

should be present for developing, implementing, and sustaining 

effective full-service community schools. There is greater potential 

impact when full-service community schools have a strong infrastructure 

in place to support sustaining the overall effort and expanding the 

number of FSCS sites throughout an LEA.

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



    \2\ Krenichyn, Kira, Helene Clark, and Lymari Benitez (2008). 

Children's Aid Society 21st Century Community Learning Centers 

After-School Programs at Six Middle Schools: Final Report of a 

Three-Year Evaluation, 2004-2007. New York: ActKnowledge.

    \3\ Quinn, Jane, and Joy Dryfoos (2009). Freeing teachers to 

teach: Students in full-service community schools are ready to 

learn. American Educator, Summer 2009:16-21.

    \4\ Whalen, Samuel (2007). Three Years Into Chicago's Community 

Schools Initiative (CSI): Progress, Challenges, and Emerging 

Lessons. Chicago: University of Illinois at Chicago. Retrieved April 

9, 2010, from http://www.aypf.org/documents/CSI_ThreeYearStudy.pdf.

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



    In this and other programs, it is imperative that we pay close 

attention to our most educationally disadvantaged, persistently lowest-

achieving schools, as defined in this notice. These are the schools 

that continue to challenge our country's system of public education and 

fail to adequately educate our Nation's youth. Persistently lowest-

achieving schools can be transformed into schools that enable all 

students to meet high standards when these schools implement school 

intervention models, as defined in this notice, that are aligned with a 

well-coordinated system of comprehensive academic, social, and health 

services. The Department believes that the full-service community 

school model can create the needed synergy to bolster efforts to 

transform persistently lowest-achieving schools into schools that 

enable all students to meet high standards.

    This absolute priority supports projects that propose to establish 

or expand (through collaborative efforts among local educational 

agencies, community-based organizations, nonprofit organizations, and 

other public and private entities) full-service community schools, as 

defined in this notice, offering a range of services. To meet this 

priority, an applicant must propose a project that is based on 

scientifically based research--as defined in section 9101(37) of the 

ESEA--and that establishes or expands a full-service community school. 

Each applicant must propose to provide at least three of the following 

eligible services at each participating full-service community school 

included in its proposed project:

    1. High-quality early learning programs and services.

    2. Remedial education, aligned with academic supports and other 

enrichment activities, providing students with a comprehensive academic 

program.

    3. Family engagement, including parental involvement, parent 

leadership, family literacy, and parent education programs.

    4. Mentoring and other youth development programs.

    5. Community service and service learning opportunities.

    6. Programs that provide assistance to students who have been 

chronically absent, truant, suspended, or expelled.

    7. Job training and career counseling services.

    8. Nutrition services and physical activities.

    9. Primary health and dental care.

    10. Activities that improve access to and use of social service 

programs and programs that promote family financial stability.

    11. Mental health services.

    12. Adult education, including instruction of adults in English as 

a second language.

    Competitive Preference Priority: For FY 2010 and any subsequent 

year in which we make awards from the list of unfunded applicants from 

this competition, this priority is a competitive preference priority. 

Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) we award an additional 2 points to an 

application, depending on how well the application meets this priority.

    This priority is:



Strategies That Support Turning Around Persistently Lowest-Achieving 

Schools



    We give competitive preference to applications that propose to 

serve persistently lowest-achieving schools, as defined in this notice, 

and are currently implementing or plan to implement one of three school 

intervention models, as defined in this notice, to enable these schools 

to become full-service community schools. Applicants seeking to receive 

this priority must describe (a) The school intervention model that 

would be or is being implemented to improve academic outcomes for 

students; (b) the academic, social, and/or health services that would 

be provided and why; and (c) how the academic, social and/or health 

services provided would align with and support the school intervention 

model implemented.

    Application Requirements:

    The following requirements are from the NFP for this program, 

published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.

    Background: Children, particularly those living in poverty, need a 

variety of family and community resources, including intellectual, 

social, physical, and emotional supports, to have the opportunity to 

attain academic success. Many children live in communities that lack 

not only high-performing schools, but also the supports needed to be 

ready and able to learn when they start school. School-community 

partnerships can be key strategies for providing resources to these 

individual students. A variety of organizations can help provide the 

missing resources for children living in poverty and, therefore, begin 

to transform struggling schools and communities. These organizations 

can be public or private, community-based or faith-based, governmental 

or non-governmental, or a combination thereof, but they must work 

together with clearly articulated and mutually agreed upon goals, 

target populations, roles, and desired results and outcomes. 

Partnerships between schools and organizations may take many forms and 

should be based on overlapping vital interests. For example, a 

telecommunications firm might provide internships to high school 

students to foster real-world connections to the school's science 

curriculum. Or, a local police department might provide mentors for 

troubled youth in order to keep students in school. Such results-

focused partnerships, as defined in this notice, can transform the 

capacity of both the school and its partners to better serve students' 

and families' diverse needs and improve their outcomes.

    A full-service community school coordinator, as defined in this 

notice, is often central to the effective facilitation of these 

partnerships, as well as the coordination and integration of services,



[[Page 32430]]



programs, supports, and available opportunities. The FSCS coordinator's 

main responsibility is to work closely and plan jointly with the 

school's principal to drive, develop, and implement the community 

school effort. The FSCS coordinator convenes a cross-section of school 

staff, parents, and community organizations to develop systems with 

which to coordinate new and existing programs that respond to the needs 

of the school and community through ongoing needs assessments. The FSCS 

coordinator adds capacity to the principal's leadership of the school 

and is essential to ensuring that all programs, supports, services, 

opportunities, and the mutually defined results and outcomes are fully 

aligned.

    In order to receive funding, an applicant must include the 

following in its application:

    1. A description of the needs of the students, students' family 

members, and community members to be served, including information 

about (a) The basic demographic characteristics of the students, 

students' family members, and community members; (b) the magnitude or 

severity of the needs to be addressed by the project; and (c) the 

extent to which specific gaps or weaknesses in services, 

infrastructures, or opportunities have been identified and will be 

addressed by the proposed project.

    2. A list of entities that will partner with the applicant to 

coordinate existing services or to provide additional services that 

promote successful student, family, and community results and outcomes. 

The applicant must describe how existing resources and services will be 

coordinated and integrated with new resources and services.

    3. A memorandum of understanding between the applicant and all 

partner entities, describing the role each partner will assume, the 

services or resources each one will provide, and the desired results 

and outcomes.

    4. A description of the organizational capacity of the applicant to 

provide and coordinate eligible services at a full-service community 

school that will support increased student achievement. The description 

must include the applicant's experience partnering with the target 

school(s) and other partner entities; examples of how the applicant has 

responded to challenges working with these schools and entities; 

lessons learned from similar work or previous community-school efforts, 

and a description of the existing or proposed infrastructure to support 

the implementation and sustainability of the full-service community 

school. Applicants must also describe their past experience (a) 

building relationships and community support to achieve results; and 

(b) collecting and using data for decision-making and continuous 

improvement.

    5. A comprehensive plan based on results-focused partnerships, as 

defined in this notice, that includes a description of well-aligned 

goals, services, activities, objectives, performance measures, and 

project results and outcomes. In addition, the plan must include the 

estimated total number of individuals to be served, disaggregated by 

the number of students, students' family members, and community 

members, and the type and frequency of services to be provided to each 

group.

    6. A list and description of the eligible services to be provided 

or coordinated by the applicant and the partner entities; a description 

of the applicant's approach to integrating new and existing programs 

and services with the school's (or schools') core instructional 

program; and identification of the intended results and outcomes.

    7. A description of how the applicant will use data to drive 

decisionmaking and measure success. This includes a description of the 

applicant's plans to monitor and assess outcomes of the eligible 

services provided and coordinated by the FSCS project, as well as the 

number of individuals served, while complying with Federal, State, and 

other privacy laws and requirements.

    8. A description of the roles and responsibilities of a full-time 

FSCS coordinator and the proposed approach to ensuring that the FSCS 

coordinator engages in joint planning with the principal and key 

community stakeholders to guide the proposed full-service community 

school.

    Applications that do not meet these requirements will not be read 

and will not be considered for funding.

    Definitions: The following definitions are from the NFP for this 

program, published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.

    These definitions are:

    Community member means an individual who is not a student or a 

student's family member, as defined in this notice, but who lives in 

the community served by the FSCS grant.

    Full-service community school means a public elementary or 

secondary school that works with its local educational agency and 

community-based organizations, nonprofit organizations, and other 

public or private entities to provide a coordinated and integrated set 

of comprehensive academic, social, and health services that respond to 

the needs of its students, students' family members, and community 

members. In addition, a full-service community school promotes family 

engagement by bringing together many partners in order to offer a range 

of supports and opportunities for students, students' family members, 

and community members.

    Full-service community school coordinator means an individual who 

works closely and plans jointly with the school's principal to drive 

the development and implementation of the FSCS effort and who, in that 

capacity, facilitates the partnerships and coordination and integration 

of service delivery.

    Persistently lowest-achieving school means, as determined by the 

State under the School Improvement Grants program (pursuant to the 

final requirements for the School Improvement Grants program, 74 FR 

65618, published in the Federal Register on December 10, 2009)--

    (1) Any Title I school in improvement, corrective action, or 

restructuring that--

    (i) Is among the lowest-achieving five percent of Title I schools 

in improvement, corrective action, or restructuring or the lowest-

achieving five Title I schools in improvement, corrective action, or 

restructuring in the State, whichever number of schools is greater; or

    (ii) Is a high school that has had a graduation rate as defined in 

34 CFR 200.19(b) that is less than 60 percent over a number of years; 

and

    (2) Any secondary school that is eligible for, but does not 

receive, Title I funds that--

    (i) Is among the lowest-achieving five percent of secondary schools 

or the lowest-achieving five secondary schools in the State that are 

eligible for, but do not receive, Title I funds, whichever number of 

schools is greater; or

    (ii) Is a high school that has had a graduation rate as defined in 

34 CFR 200.19(b) that is less than 60 percent over a number of years.

    Results-focused partnership means a partnership between a full-

service community school and one or more nonprofit organizations 

(including community-based organizations) that is based on identified 

needs and organized around a set of mutually defined results and 

outcomes for increasing student success and improving access to family 

and community services.

    School intervention model means one of the following three specific 

interventions described in the final requirements for the School



[[Page 32431]]



Improvement Grants program, 74 FR 65618, published in the Federal 

Register on December 10, 2009 and summarized as follows:

    (1) Turnaround model, which includes, among other actions, 

replacing the principal and rehiring no more than 50 percent of the 

school's staff, adopting a new governance structure, and implementing 

an instructional program that is research-based and vertically aligned 

from one grade to the next as well as aligned with a State's academic 

standards.

    (2) Restart model, in which a local educational agency converts the 

school or closes and reopens it under the management of a charter 

school operator, a charter management organization, or an education 

management organization that has been selected through a rigorous 

review process.

    (3) Transformation model, which addresses four specific areas 

critical to transforming persistently lowest-achieving schools: (i) 

Replace the principal and take steps to increase teacher and school 

effectiveness; (ii) institute comprehensive instructional reforms; 

(iii) increase learning time and create community-oriented schools; 

(iv) provide operational flexibility and sustained support.

    Student means a child enrolled in a public elementary or secondary 

school served by the FSCS grant.

    Student's family member means the student's parents/guardians, 

siblings, and any other related individuals living in the same 

household as the student and not enrolled in the school served by the 

FSCS grant.

    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7243-7243b.

    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 

81, 82, 84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99. (b) The notice of final priorities, 

requirements, definitions, and selection criteria (NFP) for this 

program, published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.





    Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 79 apply to all applicants 

except federally recognized Indian tribes.







    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: $5,000,000.

    Estimated Range of Awards: $275,000-$500,000.

    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $415,000.

    Maximum Award: The maximum award amount is $500,000 per year. We 

may choose not to further consider or review applications with budget 

requests for any 12-month budget period that exceed this amount, if we 

conclude, during our initial review of the application, that the 

proposed goals and objectives cannot be obtained with the specified 

maximum amount.

    Estimated Number of Awards: 8-12.





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

notice.



    Project Period: Up to 60 months.



III. Eligibility Information



    1. Eligible Applicants: To be eligible for a grant under this 

competition, an applicant must be a consortium consisting of a local 

educational agency and one or more community-based organizations, 

nonprofit organizations, or other public or private entities. Consortia 

must comply with the provisions governing group applications in 34 CFR 

75.127 through 75.129 of EDGAR.

    2. Cost Sharing or Matching: To be eligible for an award, a portion 

of the services provided by the applicant must be supported through 

non-Federal contributions, either in cash or in-kind donations. The 

applicant must propose the amount of cash or in-kind resources to be 

contributed for each year of the grant.

    3. Planning: Interagency collaborative efforts are highly complex 

undertakings that require extensive planning and communication among 

partners and key stakeholders. Partnerships should be based on 

identified needs and organized around a set of mutually-defined results 

and outcomes. Applicants under this program may devote funds received 

during the first year of the project period to comprehensive program 

planning, establishing results-focused partnerships, and capacity 

building. Funding received by grantees during the remainder of the 

project period must be devoted to program implementation.



IV. Application and Submission Information



    1. Address to Request Application Package:

    You can obtain an application package via the Internet or from the 

Education Publications Center (ED Pubs). To obtain a copy via the 

Internet, use the following address: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/communityschools/applicant.html.

    To obtain a copy from ED Pubs, write, fax, or call the following: 

ED Pubs, U.S. Department of Education, P.O. Box 22207, Alexandria, VA 

22304. Telephone, toll free: 1-877-433-7827. FAX: (703) 605-6794. If 

you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call, toll 

free: 1-877-576-7734.

    You can contact ED Pubs at its Web site, also: http://www.EDPubs.gov or at its e-mail address: [email protected].

    If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify 

this program or competition as follows: CFDA number 84.215J.

    Individuals with disabilities can obtain a copy of the application 

package in an accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, 

or computer diskette) by contacting the person or team listed under 

Accessible Format in section VIII of this notice.

    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.

    Notice of Intent to Apply: 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 to notify the Department by sending 

a short e-mail message indicating the applicant's intent to submit an 

application for funding. The e-mail need not include information 

regarding the content of the proposed application, only the applicant's 

intent to submit it. This e-mail notification should be sent to 

[email protected] with ``INTENT TO APPLY'' in the subject line by June 23, 

2010. Applicants that fail to provide this e-mail notification may 

still apply for funding.

    Page Limit: The application narrative (Part III of the application) 

is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that 

reviewers use to evaluate your application.

    You should limit the application narrative [Part III] to the 

equivalent of no more than 35 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.



[[Page 32432]]



     Use a font that is either 12 point or larger or no smaller 

than 10 pitch (characters per inch).

     Use one of the following fonts: Times New Roman, Courier, 

Courier New, or Arial. An application submitted in any other font 

(including Times Roman or Arial Narrow) will not be accepted.

    The page limit does not apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II, 

the budget section, including the narrative budget justification; Part 

IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page abstract, the 

resumes, the bibliography, or the letters of support. However, the page 

limit does apply to all of the application narrative section [Part 

III].

    3. Submission Dates and Times:

    Applications Available: June 8, 2010.

    Deadline for Notice of Intent to Apply: June 23, 2010.

    Date of Pre-Application Meeting: The Department will hold a pre-

application meeting for prospective applicants on June 17, 2010 from 

1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the U.S. Department of Education, Barnard 

Auditorium, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC. Interested 

parties are invited to participate in this meeting to discuss the 

purpose of the FSCS program, absolute and competitive priorities, 

application requirements, definitions, selection criteria, application 

content, submission requirements, and reporting requirements. 

Interested parties may participate in this meeting either by conference 

call or in person. This site is accessible by Metro on the Blue, 

Orange, Green, and Yellow lines at the Seventh Street and Maryland 

Avenue exit of the L'Enfant Plaza station.

    Individuals interested in attending this meeting must register no 

later than June 11, 2010 by e-mailing their name, organization, and 

contact information with ``PRE-APPLICATION MEETING'' in the subject 

line to [email protected]. There is no registration fee for attending this 

meeting. For further information contact Jill Staton, U.S. Department 

of Education, Office of Innovation and Improvement, room 4W245, 400 

Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 401-2091 

or by e-mail: [email protected].



Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities at the Pre-Application 

Meeting



    The meeting site is accessible to individuals with disabilities. If 

you will need an auxiliary aid or service to participate in the meeting 

(e.g., interpreting service, assistive listening device, or materials 

in an alternate format), notify the contact person listed in this 

notice at least two weeks before the scheduled meeting date. Although 

we will attempt to meet a request we receive after that date, we may 

not be able to make available the requested auxiliary aid or service 

because of insufficient time to arrange it.

    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 23, 2010.

    Applications for grants under this competition must be submitted 

electronically using the Electronic Grant Application System (e-

Application) accessible through the Department's e-Grants site. For 

information (including dates and times) about how to submit your 

application electronically, or in paper format by mail or hand delivery 

if you qualify for an exception to the electronic submission 

requirement, please refer to section IV.7. Other Submission 

Requirements of this notice.

    We do not consider an application that does not comply with the 

deadline requirements.

    Individuals with disabilities who need an accommodation or 

auxiliary aid in connection with the application process should contact 

the person listed under For Further Information Contact in section VII 

of this notice. If the Department provides an accommodation or 

auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability in connection with the 

application process, the individual's application remains subject to 

all other requirements and limitations in this notice.

    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: September 21, 2010.

    4. Intergovernmental Review: This competition is subject to 

Executive Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. 

Information about Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under 

Executive Order 12372 is in the application package for this 

competition.

    5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding 

restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section in this notice.

    6. Data Universal Numbering System Number, Taxpayer Identification 

Number, and Central Contractor Registry: To do business with the 

Department of Education, (1) You must have a Data Universal Numbering 

System (DUNS) number and a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN); (2) 

you must register both of those numbers with the Central Contractor 

Registry (CCR), the Government's primary registrant database; and (3) 

you must provide those same numbers on your application.

    You can obtain a DUNS number from Dun and Bradstreet. A DUNS number 

can be created within one business day.

    If you are a corporate entity, agency, institution, or 

organization, you can obtain a TIN from the Internal Revenue Service. 

If you are an individual, you can obtain a TIN from the Internal 

Revenue Service or the Social Security Administration. If you need a 

new TIN, please allow 2-5 weeks for your TIN to become active.

    The CCR registration process may take five or more business days to 

complete. If you are currently registered with the CCR, you may not 

need to make any changes. However, please make certain that the TIN 

associated with your DUNS number is correct. Also note that you will 

need to update your CCR registration on an annual basis. This may take 

three or more business days to complete.

    7. 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 Full-Service Community Schools 

program--CFDA Number 84.215J must be submitted electronically using e-

Application, accessible through the Department's e-Grants Web site at: 

http://e-grants.ed.gov.

    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.

    While completing your electronic application, you will be entering 

data online that will be saved into a database. You may not e-mail an 

electronic copy of a grant application to us.

    Please note the following:

     You must complete the electronic submission of your grant 

application by 4:30:00 p.m. Washington, DC time, on the application 

deadline date. E-Application will not accept an application for this 

competition after 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application 

deadline date. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you do not wait 

until the application



[[Page 32433]]



deadline date to begin the application process.

     The hours of operation of the e-Grants Web site are 6:00 

a.m. Monday until 7:00 p.m. Wednesday; and 6:00 a.m. Thursday until 

8:00 p.m. Sunday, Washington, DC time. Please note that, because of 

maintenance, the system is unavailable between 8:00 p.m. on Sundays and 

6:00 a.m. on Mondays, and between 7:00 p.m. on Wednesdays and 6:00 a.m. 

on Thursdays, Washington, DC time. Any modifications to these hours are 

posted on the e-Grants Web site.

     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 you typically provide on the following forms: the 

Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424), the Department of 

Education Supplemental Information for SF 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 in this paragraph 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.

     Prior to submitting your electronic application, you may 

wish to print a copy of it for your records.

     After you electronically submit your application, you will 

receive an automatic acknowledgment that will include a PR/Award number 

(an identifying number unique to your application).

     Within three working days after submitting your electronic 

application, fax a signed copy of the SF 424 to the Application Control 

Center after following these steps:

    (1) Print SF 424 from e-Application.

    (2) The applicant's Authorizing Representative must sign this form.

    (3) Place the PR/Award number in the upper right hand corner of the 

hard-copy signature page of the SF 424.

    (4) Fax the signed SF 424 to the Application Control Center at 

(202) 245-6272.

     We may request that you provide us original signatures on 

other forms at a later date.

    Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of e-Application 

Unavailability: If you are prevented from electronically submitting 

your application on the application deadline date because e-Application 

is unavailable, we will grant you an extension of one business day to 

enable you to transmit your application electronically, by mail, or by 

hand delivery. We will grant this extension if--

    (1) You are a registered user of e-Application and you have 

initiated an electronic application for this competition; and

    (2) (a) E-Application is unavailable for 60 minutes or more between 

the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the 

application deadline date; or

    (b) E-Application is unavailable for any period of time between 

3:30 p.m. and 4:30:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application 

deadline date.

    We must acknowledge and confirm these periods of unavailability 

before granting you an extension. To request this extension or to 

confirm our acknowledgment of any system unavailability, you may 

contact either (1) the person listed elsewhere in this notice under For 

Further Information Contact (see VII. Agency Contact) or (2) the e-

Grants help desk at 1-888-336-8930. If e-Application is unavailable due 

to technical problems with the system and, therefore, the application 

deadline is extended, an e-mail will be sent to all registered users 

who have initiated an e-Application. Extensions referred to in this 

section apply only to the unavailability of e-Application.

    Exception to Electronic Submission Requirement: You qualify for an 

exception to the electronic submission requirement, and may submit your 

application in paper format, if you are unable to submit an application 

through e-Application because--

     You do not have access to the Internet; or

     You do not have the capacity to upload large documents to 

e-Application; 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 

prevents 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: Jill Staton, U.S. 

Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 4W245, 

Washington, DC 20202. FAX: (202) 205-5630.

    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 following address:

    U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, 

Attention: (CFDA Number 84.215J), LBJ Basement Level 1, 400 Maryland 

Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260.

    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.

    (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.

    (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:



[[Page 32434]]



(CFDA Number 84.215J), 550 12th Street, SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center 

Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-4260.

    The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily 

between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30:00 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 11 of the SF 424 the CFDA number, including 

suffix letter, if any, of the competition under which you are 

submitting your application; and

    (2) The Application Control Center will mail to you a 

notification of receipt of your grant application. If you do not 

receive this grant notification 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: The selection criteria for this competition are 

from the NFP for this program, published elsewhere in this issue of the 

Federal Register. These selection criteria are listed in the 

application package as well as this notice. We may apply one or more of 

these criteria in any year in which this program is in effect. The 

maximum score for all the selection criteria is 100 points. The maximum 

score for each criterion is indicated in parentheses with the 

criterion. The selection criteria are as follows:

    (a) Quality of the Project Design (up to 25 points).

    (1) The Secretary considers the quality of the design of the 

proposed project.

    (2) In determining the quality of the design of the proposed 

project, the Secretary considers the extent to which the proposed 

project consists of a comprehensive plan that includes a description 

of--

    (i) The project objectives;

    (ii) The students, students' family members, and community to be 

served, including information about the demographic characteristics and 

needs of the students, students' family members, and other community 

members and the estimated number of individuals to be served; and

    (iii) The eligible services (as listed in the Absolute Priority 

described elsewhere in this notice) to be provided or coordinated by 

the applicant and its partner entities, how those services will meet 

the needs of students, students' family members, and other community 

members, and the frequency with which those services will be provided 

to students, students' family members, and community members.

    (b) Adequacy of Resources (up to 20 points).

    (1) The Secretary considers the adequacy of resources for the 

proposed project.

    (2) In determining the adequacy of resources for the proposed 

project, the Secretary considers the following factors:

    (i) The adequacy of support, including facilities, equipment, 

supplies, and other resources to be provided by the applicant and 

consortium partners;

    (ii) The relevance and demonstrated commitment of each partner in 

the proposed project to the implementation and success of the project; 

and

    (iii) The extent to which costs are reasonable in relation to the 

number of persons to be served and services to be provided.

    (c) Quality of the Management Plan (up to 25 points).

    (1) The Secretary considers the quality of the management plan for 

the proposed project.

    (2) In determining the quality of the management plan for the 

proposed project, the Secretary considers the following factors:

    (i) The extent to which the proposed project consists of a 

comprehensive plan that includes a description of planning, 

coordination, management, and oversight of the eligible services (as 

listed in the Absolute Priority described elsewhere in this notice) to 

be provided at each school to be served, including the role of the 

school principal, the FSCS coordinator, partner entities, parents, and 

community members;

    (ii) The qualifications, including relevant training and 

experience, of the FSCS coordinator and other key project personnel 

including prior performance of the applicant on similar or related 

efforts; and

    (iii) The extent to which the time commitments of the project 

director, the FSCS coordinator, and other key project personnel are 

appropriate and adequate to meet the objectives of the proposed 

project.

    (d) Quality of Project Services (up to 20 points).

    (1) The Secretary considers the quality of the services to be 

provided by the proposed project.

    (2) In determining the quality of the project services, the 

Secretary considers the following:

    (i) The extent to which the services to be provided by the proposed 

project reflect up-to-date knowledge from research and effective 

practice; and

    (ii) The likelihood that the services to be provided by the 

proposed project will lead to improvements in the achievement of 

students as measured against rigorous academic standards.

    (e) Quality of the Project Evaluation (up to 10 points).

    (1) The Secretary considers the quality of the evaluation to be 

conducted of the proposed project.

    (2) In determining the quality of the evaluation, the Secretary 

considers the extent to which the proposed evaluation--

    (i) Sets out methods of evaluation that 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;

    (ii) Will provide timely and valid information on the management, 

implementation, or efficiency of the project; and

    (iii) Will provide guidance on or strategies for replicating or 

testing the project intervention in multiple settings.



Factors Applicants May Wish To Consider in Developing an Evaluation 

Plan



    The quality of the evaluation plan is one of the selection criteria 

by which applications in this competition will be judged. A strong 

evaluation plan should be included in the application narrative and 

should be used, as appropriate, to shape the development of the project 

from the beginning of the project period. The plan should include 

benchmarks to monitor progress toward specific project objectives and 

also outcome measures to assess the impact on teaching and learning or 

other important outcomes for project participants. More specifically, 

the plan should identify the individual or organization that has agreed 

to serve as evaluator for the project and describe the qualifications 

of that evaluator. The plan should describe the evaluation design, 

indicating: (1) What types of data will be collected; (2) when various 

types of data will be collected; (3) what methods will be used; (4) 

what instruments will be developed and when; (5) how the data will be 

analyzed; (6) when reports of results and outcomes will be available; 

and (7) how the applicant will use the information collected through 

the evaluation to monitor progress of the funded project and to provide 

accountability information both about success at the initial site and 

about effective strategies for replication in other settings. 

Applicants are encouraged to devote an appropriate level of resources 

to project evaluation.



[[Page 32435]]



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 notify you informally, also.

    If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, 

we notify you.

    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 directed by the Secretary 

under 34 CFR 75.118. The Secretary may also require more frequent 

performance reports under 34 CFR 75.720(c). For specific requirements 

on reporting, please go to http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/appforms/appforms.html.

    4. Performance Measures: The Secretary has established one 

performance indicator for this program: The percentage of individuals 

targeted for services who receive services during each year of the 

project period. All grantees will be required to submit an annual 

performance report documenting their contribution in assisting the 

Department in measuring the performance of the program against this 

indicator, as well as performance on project-specific indicators.



VII. Agency Contact



    For Further Information Contact: Jill Staton, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 4W245, Washington, DC 20202. 

Telephone: (202) 401-2091 or by e-mail: [email protected]. If you use a TDD, 

call the FRS, toll free, at 1-800-877-8339.



VIII. Other Information



    Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this 

document and a copy of the application package in an accessible format 

(e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) by 

contacting the Grants and Contracts Services Team, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 5075, PCP, Washington, DC 

20202-2550. Telephone: (202) 245-7363. If you use a TDD, call the FRS, 

toll free, at 1-800-877-8339.

    Electronic Access to This Document: You can 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. To 

use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at 

this site.



    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.





    Dated: June 3, 2010.

James H. Shelton, III,

Assistant Deputy Secretary for Innovation and Improvement.

[FR Doc. 2010-13781 Filed 6-7-10; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000-01-P