[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 146 (Friday, July 29, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45589-45591]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-19290]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-5480-N-69]


Notice of Submission of Proposed Information Collection to OMB; 
Evaluation of the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office 
of University Partnerships

AGENCY: Office of the Chief Information Officer, HUD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The proposed information collection requirement described 
below has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. The Department 
is soliciting public comments on the subject proposal.
    The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is conducting 
an evaluation of four grant programs funded through HUD's Office of 
University Partnerships (OUP). The four OUP programs are: Historically 
Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU);

[[Page 45590]]

Hispanic-Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC); Alaskan 
Native/Native Hawaiian Institutions Assisting Communities (ANNHIAC); 
and Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP). These programs 
were designed to encourage and expand the growing number of 
partnerships formed between colleges and universities and their 
communities. Program grants are used to fund community development 
activities in disadvantaged communities and to encourage minority-
serving colleges and universities to contribute their technical 
expertise, organizational capacity, and resources to local community 
development efforts.
    There has been no prior evaluation of the outcomes or impacts of 
activities funded through OUP grants, which have an average annual 
value of $25 million. Therefore, this evaluation will be the first to 
systematically document program outcomes and to explore how factors 
such as partnership structure or the types of activities completed with 
grant funds affect outcomes for OUP grants. In addition, the study will 
help the Office of University Partnerships better understand the 
challenges that grantees face in implementing grant-funded activities. 
The results of the evaluation will assist the Department in designing 
grant programs in the future. This request is for data collection 
through a web survey and telephone interviews with 67 OUP grant 
recipients. The web survey instrument and telephone interview protocol 
are provided in Appendices 5 and 6, respectively. Together, the web 
survey and telephone interviews will be used to collect in-depth 
information about the activities funded with OUP grants. The web survey 
will be used to develop a comprehensive list of activities undertaken 
by grantees, and to document the partners and additional funding used 
to support OUP-funded activities. The telephone interviews will focus 
on two non-trivial activities per grantee (an activity will be 
considered non-trivial if more than 20 percent of grant funds from a 
given OUP grant were dedicated to it). The evaluation team will use the 
telephone interviews to collect more detailed information on the goals, 
accomplishments, and beneficiaries of the activities, as well as the 
partnership structures used to implement funded activities.

DATES: Comments Due Date: August 29, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding 
this proposal. Comments should refer to the proposal by name and/or OMB 
approval Number (2528-Pending) and should be sent to: HUD Desk Officer, 
Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, 
Washington, DC 20503; e-mail [email protected] fax: 202-395-
5806.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Colette Pollard, Reports Management 
Officer, QDAM, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20410; e-mail Colette Pollard at 
[email protected]; or telephone (202) 402-3400. This is not a 
toll-free number. Copies of available documents submitted to OMB may be 
obtained from Ms. Pollard.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice informs the public that the 
Department of Housing and Urban Development has submitted to OMB a 
request for approval of the Information collection described below. 
This notice is soliciting comments from members of the public and 
affecting agencies concerning the proposed collection of information 
to: (1) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) 
Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information; (3) Enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) Minimize the 
burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond; 
including through the use of appropriate automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submission of responses.

This Notice Also Lists the Following Information

    Title of Proposal: Evaluation of the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development's Office of University Partnerships.
    OMB Approval Number: 2528-Pending.
    Form Numbers: None.
    Description of the Need for the Information and Its Proposed Use: 
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is conducting an 
evaluation of four grant programs funded through HUD's Office of 
University Partnerships (OUP). The four OUP programs are: Historically 
Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU); Hispanic-Serving Institutions 
Assisting Communities (HSIAC); Alaskan Native/Native Hawaiian 
Institutions Assisting Communities (ANNHIAC); and Tribal Colleges and 
Universities Program (TCUP). These programs were designed to encourage 
and expand the growing number of partnerships formed between colleges 
and universities and their communities. Program grants are used to fund 
community development activities in disadvantaged communities and to 
encourage minority-serving colleges and universities to contribute 
their technical expertise, organizational capacity, and resources to 
local community development efforts.
    There has been no prior evaluation of the outcomes or impacts of 
activities funded through OUP grants, which have an average annual 
value of $25 million. Therefore, this evaluation will be the first to 
systematically document program outcomes and to explore how factors 
such as partnership structure or the types of activities completed with 
grant funds affect outcomes for OUP grants. In addition, the study will 
help the Office of University Partnerships better understand the 
challenges that grantees face in implementing grant-funded activities. 
The results of the evaluation will assist the Department in designing 
grant programs in the future.
    This request is for data collection through a web survey and 
telephone interviews with 67 OUP grant recipients. The web survey 
instrument and telephone interview protocol are provided in Appendices 
5 and 6, respectively. Together, the web survey and telephone 
interviews will be used to collect in-depth information about the 
activities funded with OUP grants. The web survey will be used to 
develop a comprehensive list of activities undertaken by grantees, and 
to document the partners and additional funding used to support OUP-
funded activities. The telephone interviews will focus on two non-
trivial activities per grantee (an activity will be considered non-
trivial if more than 20 percent of grant funds from a given OUP grant 
were dedicated to it). The evaluation team will use the telephone 
interviews to collect more detailed information on the goals, 
accomplishments, and beneficiaries of the activities, as well as the 
partnership structures used to implement funded activities.
    Frequency of Submission: On occasion.

[[Page 45591]]



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                                         Number of          Annual             Hours per
                                        respondents       responses      x      response      =    Burden hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reporting Burden....................              67                2   ..           0.664   ..              89
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Total Estimated Burden Hours: 89.
    Status: New collection.

    Authority: Section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
44 U.S.C. 35, as amended.

    Dated: July 25, 2011.
Colette Pollard,
Departmental Reports Management Officer, Office of the Chief 
Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2011-19290 Filed 7-28-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P