[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 109 (Tuesday, June 7, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32968-32969]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-14023]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No. 84.325F]


Proposed Extensions and Waivers: National Center To Enhance the 
Professional Development of School Personnel Who Share Responsibility

AGENCY: Office of Special Education Programs, Office of Special 
Education and Rehabilitative Services, Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of proposed extension of project period and waiver for 
the National Center to Enhance the Professional Development of School 
Personnel Who Share Responsibility for Improving Results for Children 
with Disabilities.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary proposes to waive the requirements in the 
Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR), in 34 
CFR 75.250 and 75.261(a) and (c), respectively, that generally prohibit 
project periods exceeding five years and extensions of project periods 
involving the obligation of additional Federal funds. This extension of 
project period and waiver would enable the currently funded project to 
receive funding from October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012.

DATES: We must receive your comments on or before July 7, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Address all comments about this proposed extension of 
project period and waiver to Shedeh Hajghassemali, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 4091, Potomac Center Plaza, 
Washington, DC 20202-2600.
    If you prefer to send your comments by e-mail, use the following 
address: [email protected]. You must include the phrase 
``proposed extension of project period and waiver'' in the subject line 
of your message.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shedeh Hajghassemali at the address 
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. Telephone: (202) 245-
7506. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call 
the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll-free, at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities can obtain this document in an 
accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or computer 
diskette) on request to the contact person listed in this section.

Invitation To Comment

    We invite you to submit comments regarding this proposed extension 
of project period and waiver.
    During and after the comment period, you may inspect all public 
comments about this proposed extension of project period and waiver in 
room 4091, Potomac Center Plaza, 550 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC, 
between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Washington, DC time, 
Monday through Friday of each week except Federal holidays.

Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities in Reviewing the Rulemaking 
Record

    On request, we will supply an appropriate aid, such as a reader or 
print magnifier, to an individual with a disability who needs 
assistance to review the comments or other documents in the public 
rulemaking record for this proposed extension of project period and 
waiver. If you want to schedule an appointment for this type of aid, 
please contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Background

    On June 19, 2006, the Department published a notice in the Federal 
Register (71 FR 35260) inviting applications for new awards for fiscal 
year (FY) 2006 for a National Professional Development Enhancement 
Center (Center), funded under the Personnel Development to Improve 
Services and Results for Children with Disabilities program, authorized 
under section 662 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 
(IDEA).
    The purpose of the Center is to provide pre-service training and 
professional development programs with high-quality instructional 
modules, materials, and resources in order to improve the overall 
quality of special education personnel training and professional 
development. The goal is to help ensure that local educational agencies 
(LEAs) and schools have the capacity to implement school improvement 
programs to close achievement gaps between students with disabilities 
and their peers, and to promote access to, and greater participation 
and progress in, the general education curriculum in the least 
restrictive environment for students with disabilities.
    Based on the 2006 notice inviting applications, the Department made 
one award for a period of 60 months to Vanderbilt University to serve 
as the Center. The Center's current project period is scheduled to end 
on September 30, 2011. We do not believe that it would be in the public 
interest to hold a new competition in 2011 to fund this personnel 
development project as the Department is currently working on changes 
to the entire Personnel Development to Improve Services and Results for 
Children with Disabilities program. The program's new design will 
ensure that all the projects being supported are more strategically 
aligned with each other and that all projects more effectively meet the 
needs of LEAs and schools for effective teachers and

[[Page 32969]]

other school personnel and leaders. The Department is currently shaping 
these changes and expects to fund a more strategic competition in FY 
2012. However, we also have concluded that it would be contrary to the 
public interest to have a lapse in the provision of the resources 
currently provided by the Center. For these reasons, the Secretary 
proposes to waive the requirements in 34 CFR 75.250, which prohibit 
project periods exceeding five years, and the requirements in 34 CFR 
75.261(a) and (c), which limit the extension of a project period if the 
extension involves the obligation of additional Federal funds, and 
issue a continuation award in the amount of $1,350,000 to Vanderbilt 
University (H325F060003) for an additional twelve-month period.
    Waiving these regulations and issuing this continuation award would 
ensure that pre-service and professional development programs will 
continue to receive instructional modules, materials, and resources to 
improve the overall quality of training for individuals who provide 
services to students with disabilities.
    With this proposed extension of project period and waiver, the 
Center would conduct the following activities during FY 2012:
    (a) Build on the previous work of the project by developing 
additional materials, and disseminating products to an increased number 
of institutions of higher education, State educational agencies, LEAs, 
and any other entities that provide training and professional 
development to individuals who provide services to students with 
disabilities.
    (b) Develop products and services that are based on the input 
obtained from the comprehensive needs-assessments, textbook analyses, 
focus groups, and consumer-input processes previously conducted by the 
Center that tapped the experiences and expertise of an array of 
partners, consumers, and advisors, including staff from the 
Department's Office of Special Education Programs. In addition, the 
Center must continue to seek recommendations from consumers and the 
Department to guide the development of enhancements (e.g., interactive 
modules, case studies, activities, information briefs) and services 
(e.g., technical assistance to faculty, training of trainers, training 
sessions, and dissemination activities) provided by the Center.
    (c) Continue to disseminate project materials to instructors and 
their students through a cost-free, dedicated Web site that meets 
accessibility standards under section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act 
(See http://www.section508.gov for additional information).

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    The Secretary certifies that this proposed extension of project 
period and waiver would not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities. The entities that would be 
affected are the current grantee serving as the Professional 
Development Enhancement Center and any other potential applicant.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    This proposed extension of project period and waiver does not 
contain any information collection requirements.

Intergovernmental Review

    This program is subject to the requirements of Executive Order 
12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. One of the objectives of 
the Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental partnership and a 
strengthened federalism. The Executive order relies on processes 
developed by State and local governments for coordination and review of 
proposed Federal financial assistance. This document provides early 
notification of our specific plans and actions for this program.
    Electronic Access to This Document: 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 via the Federal Digital System 
at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site 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). To 
use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at 
the site.
    You may also access documents of the Department published in the 
Federal Register by using the article search feature at: http://www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

    Dated: June 2, 2011.
Alexa Posny,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 2011-14023 Filed 6-6-11; 8:45 am]
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