[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 210 (Friday, October 30, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66891-66893]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-27720]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


National Assessment Governing Board Quarterly Board Meeting

AGENCY: National Assessment Governing Board, U.S. Department of 
Education.

ACTION: Announcement of open and closed meetings.

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SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the agenda for the November 19-21, 2015 
Quarterly Meeting of the National Assessment Governing Board (hereafter 
referred to as Governing Board). This notice provides information to 
members of the public who may be interested in attending the meeting or 
providing written comments on the meeting. The notice of this meeting 
is required under section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee 
Act (FACA).

DATES: The Quarterly Board meeting will be held on the following dates:
     November 19, 2015 from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
     November 20, 2015 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
     November 21, 2015 from 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: Westin Crystal City, 1800 Jefferson Davis Highway, 
Arlington, VA 22202.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Munira Mwalimu, Executive Officer, 800 
North Capitol Street NW., Suite 825, Washington, DC 20002, telephone: 
(202) 357-6938, fax: (202) 357-6945.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Statutory Authority and Function: The National Assessment Governing 
Board is established under Title III--National Assessment of 
Educational Progress Authorization Act, Public Law 107-279. Information 
on the Board and its work can be found at www.nagb.gov.
    The Board is established to formulate policy for the National 
Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The Board's responsibilities 
include the following: Selecting subject areas to be assessed, 
developing assessment frameworks and specifications, developing 
appropriate student achievement levels for each grade and subject 
tested, developing standards and procedures for interstate and national 
comparisons, improving the form and use of NAEP, developing guidelines 
for reporting and disseminating results, and releasing initial NAEP 
results to the public.

November 19-21, 2015 Committee Meetings

    The Board's standing committees will meet to conduct regularly 
scheduled work, based on agenda items planned for this quarterly Board 
meeting, and follow-up items as reported in the Board's committee 
meeting minutes available at http://nagb.gov/what-we-do/board-committee-reports-and-agendas.html.

Detailed Meeting Agenda: November 19-21, 2015

November 19: Informational Briefing and Executive Committee Meeting

    What Gallup is Learning about Education: Open Session: 3:00 p.m.-
4:00 p.m.
    Executive Committee: Open Session: 4:30 p.m.-5:15 p.m.; Closed 
Session: 5:15 p.m.-6:00 p.m.

November 20: Full Board Meeting

    Full Board: Open Session: 8:30 a.m.-9:45 a.m.; Closed Session: 
12:50 p.m.-2:20 p.m.; Open Session: 2:20 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

November 20: Committee Meetings

Reporting and Dissemination Committee (R&D) and Assessment
    Development Committee (ADC): Joint Closed Session: 10:00 a.m.-11:00 
a.m.
    ADC: Open Session: 11:00 a.m.-11:30 a.m.; Closed Session: 11:30 
a.m.-12:30 p.m.
    R&D: Open Session: 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
    Committee on Standards, Design and Methodology (COSDAM): Open 
Session: 10:00 a.m.-10:05 a.m.; Closed Session: 10:05 a.m.-12:10 p.m.; 
Open Session: 12:10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

November 21: Full Board and Committee Meetings

    Nominations Committee: Closed Session: 7:30 a.m.-8:15 a.m.
    Full Board: Closed Session: 8:30 a.m.-9:35 a.m.; Open Session: 
10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
    On November 19, 2015, from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., the Board will 
receive a briefing in open session on What Gallup is Learning About 
Education. Thereafter, the Executive Committee will convene in open 
session from 4:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., and in closed session from 5:15 
p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
    During the closed session, the Executive Committee will receive and 
discuss cost estimates and implications for implementing NAEP's 
Assessment Schedule for 2014-2024. This meeting must be conducted in 
closed session because public disclosure of this information would 
likely have an adverse financial effect on the NAEP program by 
providing confidential cost details and proprietary contract costs of 
current contractors to the public. Discussion of this information would 
be likely to significantly impede implementation of a proposed agency 
action if conducted in open session. Such matters are protected by 
exemption 9(B) of section 552b of Title 5 U.S.C.
    On November 20, 2015, the Full Board will meet in open session from 
8:30 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. The Board will review and approve the November 
19-21, 2015 Board meeting agenda and meeting minutes from the August 
2015 Quarterly Board meeting. This session will be followed by the 
Chairman's introduction of new Board members and remarks from new 
members. Thereafter, the Executive Director of the Governing Board, 
Bill Bushaw, will provide his report, followed by an update on the work 
of IES provided by Ruth Neild, Deputy Director for Policy and Research, 
IES. The NCES update will be provided by the Acting Commissioner of the 
NCES, Peggy Carr. The Board will recess for Committee meetings at 9:45 
a.m. scheduled from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
    The Assessment Development Committee (ADC) and the Reporting and 
Dissemination (R&D) Committee will meet in a joint closed session from 
10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Thereafter R&D Committee will meet in open 
session from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The ADC will meet in open session 
from 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and in closed session from 11:30 a.m. to 
12:30 p.m. The purpose of the joint closed session is to review the 
embargoed reporting Web site content for the 2014 grade 8 Technology 
and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Report Card. This meeting is being 
conducted in closed session because the TEL results are embargoed and 
have not been released to the public. Public disclosure of the secure 
data would significantly impede implementation of the NAEP assessment 
program if conducted in open session. Such matters are protected by 
exemption 9(B) of section 552b of Title 5 U.S.C.
    The ADC will meet in open session from 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. to 
receive a briefing on NAEP digital-based assessments. From 11:30 a.m. 
to 12:30 p.m. the ADC will meet in closed session to receive a briefing 
on in-depth analyses of the 2015 Reading and Mathematics results at 
grades 4 and 8. This meeting must be closed because the briefing will 
include secure NAEP items from reading and math test results at grades 
4 and 8. Public disclosure of

[[Page 66892]]

the secure data would significantly impede implementation of the NAEP 
assessment program if conducted in open session. Such matters are 
protected by exemption 9(B) of section 552b of Title 5 U.S.C.
    R&D will meet in open session from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to 
discuss NAEP Report Card releases and the Governing Board's ongoing 
work on reporting and dissemination.
    The Committee on Standards, Design and Methodology (COSDAM) will 
meet in open session from 10:00 a.m. to 10:05 a.m. to introduce new 
Committee members and review the Committee meeting agenda. The 
Committee will meet in closed session from 10:05 a.m. to 12:10 p.m. and 
thereafter in open session from 12:10 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.
    During the first part of the closed session COSDAM will discuss 
information regarding analyses of the 2015 bridge studies for paper-
and-pencil and digital-based assessments, and discuss secure NAEP 
Reading and Mathematics data. This part of the meeting must be 
conducted in closed session because the analysis involves the use of 
secure data for the NAEP Reading and Mathematics assessments on 
digital-based platforms. Public disclosure of secure data would 
significantly impede implementation of the NAEP assessment program if 
conducted in open session. Such matters are protected by exemption 9(B) 
of section 552b of Title 5 U.S.C.
    During the second part of the closed session, COSDAM will discuss 
the proposed 2014 NAEP Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) 
achievement levels for grade 8, which includes secure NAEP TEL data. 
This part of the meeting must be conducted in closed session because 
the analysis involves the use of secure data for the NAEP TEL 
assessment. Public disclosure of secure data would significantly impede 
implementation of the NAEP assessment program if conducted in open 
session. Such matters are protected by exemption 9(B) of section 552b 
of Title 5 U.S.C. COSDAM will meet in open session from 12:10 p.m. to 
12:30 p.m. to take Committee action on achievement levels and discuss 
ongoing Committee work.
    Following the Committee meetings, the Board will convene in closed 
session on November 20, 2015 from 12:50 p.m. to 2:20 p.m. to discuss 
the proposed 2014 NAEP Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) 
achievement levels for grade 8, which includes secure NAEP TEL data. 
This part of the meeting must be conducted in closed session because 
the analysis involves the use of secure data for the NAEP TEL 
assessment. Public disclosure of secure data would significantly impede 
implementation of the NAEP assessment program if conducted in open 
session. Such matters are protected by exemption 9(B) of section 552b 
of Title 5 U.S.C.
    Thereafter, the Board will meet in open session from 2:45 p.m. to 
5:00 p.m. From 2:45 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., the Board will meet in open 
session to receive a briefing on the 2015 Trial Urban District 
Assessment (TUDA) Report Card in English and Mathematics. From 3:30 
p.m. to 4:15 p.m., the Board will receive the annual briefing from the 
Council of Chief State School Officers and Governing Board Policy Task 
Force Vice Chair and Assistant Superintendent form the Virginia 
Department of Education, Shelly Loving-Ryder. From 4:15 p.m. to 4:30 
p.m. the Governing Board members will be provided with the annual 
ethics briefing from Office of General Counsel staff.
    The November 20, 2015 session of the Board meeting will adjourn at 
5:00 p.m.
    On November 21, 2015, the Nominations Committee will meet in closed 
session from 7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. to discuss the final slate of 
candidates for seven Board vacancies for terms beginning on October 1, 
2016. The Committee's discussions pertain solely to internal personnel 
rules and practices of an agency and information of a personal nature 
where disclosure would constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal 
privacy. As such, the discussions are protected by exemptions 2 and 6 
of section 552b(c) of Title 5 of the United States Code. Following the 
closed session, the Committee will meet in open session from 8:15 a.m. 
to 8:20 a.m. to discuss and take action on the slate of finalists in 
the Chief State School Officer category for 2015. The final slate of 
candidates for this open position will be brought before the Board for 
discussion and action on November 21, 2015.
    The full Board will convene in closed session on Saturday, November 
21, 2015 from 8:30 a.m. to 8:35 a.m. The purpose of the closed session 
is to receive and discuss the slate of finalists being recommended for 
action by the Nominations Committee for the Chief State School Officer 
position, to be appointed by the Secretary of Education in 2016. At 
8:35 a.m., the Board will take action in open session on the slate of 
Chief State School Officer finalists for the vacancy.
    The Board will meet in closed session from 8:45 a.m. to 9:35 a.m. 
to receive an update on the NAEP budget and planned changes to the NAEP 
Assessment Schedule. During the closed session, the Board will receive 
and discuss cost estimates and implications for implementing NAEP's 
Assessment Schedule for 2014-2024. This meeting must be conducted in 
closed session because public disclosure of this information would 
likely have an adverse financial effect on the NAEP program by 
providing confidential cost details and proprietary contract costs of 
current contractors to the public. Discussion of this information would 
be likely to significantly impede implementation of a proposed agency 
action if conducted in open session. Such matters are protected by 
exemption 9(B) of section 552b of Title 5 U.S.C.
    The Board will take action on the NAEP Assessment Schedule from 
9:35 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. in open session. Thereafter, from 10:00 a.m. to 
11:00 a.m. the Board will receive updates on NCES' Future of NAEP 
Activities and the Governing Board's Strategic Planning Initiative.
    From 11:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. the Board will receive reports from 
the standing committees and take action proposed by the Committee on 
Standards, Design and Methodology on the TEL Achievement Levels at 
Grade 8. The November 21, 2015 meeting is scheduled to adjourn at 12:00 
p.m.
    Access to Records of the Meeting: Pursuant to FACA requirements, 
the public may also inspect the meeting materials at www.nagb.gov on 
Thursday, November 19, 2015 by 7:00 a.m. ET. The official verbatim 
transcripts of the public meeting sessions will be available for public 
inspection no later than 30 calendar days following the meeting.
    Reasonable Accommodations: 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 received after that date, we may not be able to make available 
the requested auxiliary aid or service because of insufficient time to 
arrange it.
    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: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you can view this document, as well 
as all other documents of this Department

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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: 
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

    Authority: Pub. L. 107-279, Title III--National Assessment of 
Educational Progress section 301.

    Dated: October 27, 2015.
William J. Bushaw,
Executive Director, National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), U.S. 
Department of Education.
[FR Doc. 2015-27720 Filed 10-29-15; 8:45 am]
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