[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 61 (Thursday, April 1, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17207-17209]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06664]


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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION


Notice of Intent To Seek Approval To Renew With Changes an 
Information Collection

AGENCY: National Science Foundation.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) is announcing plans to 
request establishment and clearance of this collection. In accordance 
with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we are 
providing opportunity for public comment on this action. After 
obtaining and considering public comment, NSF will prepare the 
submission requesting that OMB approve clearance of this collection for 
no longer than three years.

DATES: Written comments on this notice must be received by June 1, 2021 
to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date will 
be considered to the extent practicable.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Suzanne H. Plimpton, Reports Clearance 
Officer, National Science Foundation, 2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Room W 
18000, Alexandria, Virginia 22314; or send email to [email protected]. 
Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may 
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339, 
which is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year 
(including federal holidays).
    Instructions: Please submit one copy of your comments by only one 
method. All submissions received must include the agency name and 
collection name identified above for this information collection. 
Commenters are strongly encouraged to transmit their comments 
electronically via email. Comments, including any personal information 
provided become a matter of public record. They will be summarized and/
or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget approval 
of the information collection request.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Comments: Comments are invited on (a) whether the proposed 
collection of

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information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the Agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information on respondents, including 
through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology; (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Title of Collection: National Science Foundation's Education and 
Training Application Pilot.
    OMB Number: 3145-0248.
    Expiration Date of Approval: November 30, 2021.

Abstract

    The National Science Foundation (NSF) seeks to develop and pilot 
test an electronic data collection system that supports applications to 
education and training opportunities funded by NSF and allows tracking 
of participants' program experiences and career outcomes over time. The 
pilot aims to provide NSF with information to inform decisions in 
developing an effective and low-burden approach to collect data needed 
to monitor programs, report to NSF leadership, and comply with 
congressional requirements.
    The main goal of the current project is to build upon a system 
originally developed for the NSF Research Experiences for 
Undergraduates (REU) program. The work involves revising and enhancing 
the system based on the lessons from the initial REU pilot and 
conducting further testing to prepare it for adoption for the REU 
program and other education and training programs at NSF. The original 
REU data system was designed to collect data required by Congress in 
the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010, which states that 
students in the REU program must ``be tracked, for employment and 
continued matriculation in STEM fields, through receipt of the 
undergraduate degree and for at least three years thereafter'' (Section 
514[a][6] of Pub. L. 111-358). A study conducted by the Science and 
Technology Policy Institute determined the need for NSF to create new 
data collection because ``the status quo of [REU] participants 
providing demographic information to NSF's Research Performance Report 
System, coupled with voluntary tracking of participants' career choices 
by the REU [principal investigators], was clearly insufficient to meet 
the [congressional] mandate''.\i\ To respond to the America COMPETES 
mandate, NSF commissioned a data system for the REU program. The 
current project is the evolution of this early test that originated 
with the REU program to leverage the system and scale its pilot test to 
include other NSF programs that similarly invest in human capital 
development. The new system--The Education and Training Application 
(ETAP)--supports NSF's learning agenda and is in alignment with the 
Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115-
435), which requires NSF to collect, use, or acquire data to support 
decision making.
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    \i\ Zuckerman, B., J. Doyle, A. Mudd, T. Jones, and G. Davis. 
``Assessment of the Feasibility of Tracking Participants from the 
National Science Foundation's Research Experiences for 
Undergraduates (REU) Sites Program.'' Final report. Washington, DC: 
STPI, 2016.
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    In addition to developing and enhancing the system, the present 
study will pilot test collecting data from a sample of Sites that 
volunteer to participate. (A Site is an instance of an NSF award 
offering an education and training opportunity at a given point in 
time.) By participating in this study, principal investigators (PIs) 
from these Sites will experience the data collections firsthand and 
provide feedback to help NSF improve the system before expanding its 
use. For example, PIs will have an opportunity to determine whether the 
system facilitates managing applications more efficiently than the 
usual process, comment on whether the system is user friendly, assess 
the usefulness of data reports the system produces, and suggest 
enhancements to the system.
    Four key activities define the pilot:
    1. Testing a web-based approach to obtain basic background and 
participation information while supporting applications to individual 
Sites. Specifically, PIs choose whether they will be running a 
competitive application process for their Site (for example, an REU 
Site award recruiting participants nationally) or noncompetitive 
application (for example, an REU Supplement award that invites its 
participants). Data collected from applicants will therefore depend on 
the type of application process for their Sites of interest. The system 
will include the following:
     Common registration form. All applicants will need to 
register to apply and participate in an NSF-funded opportunity 
participating in the pilot. Individuals who are participating in awards 
that do not have a competitive application process will only need to 
complete a profile with basic demographic and contact information and 
provide other information not captured in the profile but that is 
required for program monitoring and evaluation purposes, such as 
students' current enrollment or class standing (if applicable).
     Additional application requirements. Individuals wishing 
to apply for awards that run competitive applications will be able to 
use the ETAP to apply to multiple NSF awards through a fully 
operational electronic application. They will first complete the common 
registration form (described above), which collects basic demographic 
and contact information needed for analysis and tracking purposes. 
Next, they will proceed to the application form, through which they 
will submit additional information that competitive Sites require as 
part of their applications, such as resume, transcripts, and contact 
information for their references. PIs and other authorized staff will 
use the system to provide information needed by prospective applicants 
(such as the application deadline), retrieve applicant information, 
record application decisions and participation status among admitted 
applicants, and produce reports of data submitted by applicants to 
their Sites.
    2. Gathering program experiences and satisfaction. After 
participating in the NSF program, participants will be administered an 
exit survey to capture program experiences and participants' attitudes 
and opinions.
    3. Obtaining and integrating educational and employment 
information. Following a sample of students who had used the 
predecessor system (REU data system) to apply to the NSF award, this 
study will do the following:
     Obtain information on educational outcomes from 
administrative data (National Student Clearinghouse) that NSF can 
purchase at low cost to the government and no burden to students.
     Administer a short survey to obtain information on 
employment outcomes.
     Obtain information on research productivity outcomes (such 
as publications or patents) from Web of Science, Scopus, and the United 
States Patent and Trademark Office. (NSF already subscribes to these 
administrative databases, so they are accessible through NSF systems.)
    4. Conducting usability testing and gathering user feedback. This 
testing will focus on new system enhancements

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or functionality and seeks to obtain in-depth feedback from users on 
the common registration form, additional application requirements, and 
data reports available.
    Estimate of Burden: At present, most education and training 
opportunities funded by NSF use applications that are submitted 
directly to each Site, if such applications are required as is the case 
with the REU Sites program. Sites might run competitive and 
noncompetitive applications to select their program participants. We 
estimate that individuals applying for noncompetitive Sites will spend 
3.25 hours submitting information through the ETAP system; for 
competitive Sites, this estimate is 7 hours. We estimate that 
individuals writing letters of reference for students will spend 0.5 
hours drafting a letter in support of a student's application to a 
competitive Site. We estimate that PIs (or their designated users) will 
spend 4.7 hours using the system to track and manage applications to 
their Site.
    Respondents: Individuals.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 66,499.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 146,710 hours.
    Frequency of Responses: Three rounds of data collection.

    Dated: March 26, 2021.
Suzanne H. Plimpton,
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation.
[FR Doc. 2021-06664 Filed 3-31-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555-01-P