[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 111 (Friday, June 11, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31299-31300]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-12298]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No.: ED-2021-SCC-0087]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; School 
Pulse Panel Preliminary Activities

AGENCY: Institute for Education Sciences (IES), National Center for 
Education Statistics (NCES), Department of Education (ED).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ED is 
requesting the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to conduct an 
emergency review of a new information collection.

DATES: Approval by the OMB has been requested by June 11, 2021. 
Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before July 12, 
2021.

ADDRESSES: To access and review all the documents related to the 
information collection listed in this notice, please use http://www.regulations.gov by searching the Docket ID number ED-2021-SCC-0087. 
Comments submitted in response to this notice should be submitted 
electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov by selecting the Docket ID number or via postal 
mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. If the regulations.gov 
site is not available to the public for any reason, ED will temporarily 
accept comments at [email protected]. Please include the docket ID 
number and the title of the information collection request when 
requesting documents or submitting comments. Please note that comments 
submitted by fax or email and those submitted after the comment period 
will not be accepted. Written requests for information or comments 
submitted by postal mail or delivery should be addressed to the 
Director of the Strategic Collections and Clearance Governance and 
Strategy Division, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave. SW, 
LBJ, Room 6W208B, Washington, DC 20202-8240.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For specific questions related to 
collection activities, please contact Carrie Clarady, 202-245-6347.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Education (ED), in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general public and Federal agencies with 
an opportunity to comment on proposed, revised, and continuing 
collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact 
of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's 
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's 
information collection requirements and provide the requested data in 
the desired format. ED is soliciting comments on the proposed 
information collection request (ICR) that is described below. The 
Department of

[[Page 31300]]

Education is especially interested in public comment addressing the 
following issues: (1) Is this collection necessary to the proper 
functions of the Department; (2) will this information be processed and 
used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden accurate; (4) 
how might the Department enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and (5) how might the Department 
minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, including 
through the use of information technology. Please note that written 
comments received in response to this notice will be considered public 
records.
    Title of Collection: School Pulse Panel Preliminary Activities.
    OMB Control Number: 1850-NEW.
    Type of Review: A new information collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: State, Local or Tribal Govt.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 4,120.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 3,086.
    Abstract: The School Pulse Panel is a new study to collect 
extensive data on issues concerning the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic 
on students and staff in U.S. public primary, middle, high, and 
combined-grade schools. It will be one of the nation's few sources of 
reliable data on a wealth of information focused on school reopening 
efforts, virus spread mitigation strategies, services offered for 
students and staff, and technology use, as reported by school district 
staff and principals in U.S. public schools. About 1,200 public 
elementary, middle, high, and combined-grade schools will be selected 
to participate in a panel where school and district staff will be asked 
to provide requested data monthly during the 2021-22 school years. This 
approach provides the ability to collect detailed information on 
various topics while also assessing changes in reopening efforts over 
time. Given the high demand for data collection during this time, the 
content of the survey may change on a quarterly basis.
    The School Pulse Panel is essentially a continuation of the 
National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) 2021 School Survey 
(OMB #1850-0957) that was fielded in the spring of 2021. That NAEP 2021 
School Survey met the need of Executive Order 14000 by using an 
existing sample and survey instrument to quickly collect information on 
instructional mode offerings and enrollment counts of various subgroups 
of students using the various instructional modes. The School Pulse 
Panel intends to continue to collect this critical information, along 
with other priority items for the White House, Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, and Department of Education program offices 
throughout the 2021-22 school year.
    Additional Information: NCES requests emergency clearance to allow 
us to comply with the January 21, 2021 Executive Order on Supporting 
the Reopening and Continuing Operation of Schools and Early Childhood 
Education Providers which states that the Department of Education must 
``coordinate with the Director of the Institute of Education Sciences 
to facilitate, consistent with applicable law, the collection of data 
necessary to fully understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on 
students and educators, including data on the status of in-person 
learning. These data shall be disaggregated by student demographics, 
including race, ethnicity, disability, English-language-learner status, 
and free or reduced lunch status or other appropriate indicators of 
family income.'' Normal clearance procedures would not allow IES to 
comply with the intent of this E.O. NCES will publish a Federal 
Register Notice soliciting 30 days of public comment on this collection 
concurrent with district and school recruitment.

    Dated: June 8, 2021.
Stephanie Valentine,
PRA Coordinator, Strategic Collections and Clearance, Governance and 
Strategy Division, Office of Chief Data Officer.
[FR Doc. 2021-12298 Filed 6-10-21; 8:45 am]
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