[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 194 (Friday, October 7, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61005-61006]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-21903]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No.: ED-2022-SCC-0124]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; 
Educational Opportunity Centers Program (EOC) Annual Performance Report

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), Department of 
Education (ED).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ED is 
proposing a reinstatement without change of a previously approved 
collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
December 6, 2022.

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-2022-SCC-0124. 
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 PRA 
Coordinator of the Strategic Collections and Clearance

[[Page 61006]]

Governance and Strategy Division, U.S. Department of Education, 400 
Maryland Ave. SW, LBJ, Room 6W208D, Washington, DC 20202-8240.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For specific questions related to 
collection activities, please contact Emory Morrison, 202-453-6963.

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 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: Educational Opportunity Centers Program (EOC) 
Annual Performance Report.
    OMB Control Number: 1840-0830.
    Type of Review: A reinstatement without change of a previously 
approved collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: State, Local, and Tribal Governments; 
Private Sector.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 170.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 1,360.
    Abstract: The Department of Education (ED) collects Annual 
Performance Reports (APRs) from Educational Opportunity Centers (EOC) 
grantees under the authority of Title IV, part A, subpart 2, division 
1, sections 402A and 402B of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as 
amended, the program regulations in 34 CFR 644, and the Education 
Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR), in 34 CFR 74.51, 
75.720, and 75.732. The information that grantees submit in their APRs 
allows ED to annually assess each grantee's progress in meeting their 
project's approved goals and objectives. The APR data that grantees 
submit are compared with the projects' approved objectives to determine 
the projects' accomplishments, to make decisions regarding whether 
funding should be continued, and to award ``prior experience'' points. 
The regulations for this program provide for awarding up to 15 points 
for prior experience (34 CR 644.22).
    During a competition for new grant awards, the prior experience 
points are added to the average of the field reader scores to arrive at 
a total score for each application. Funding recommendations and 
decisions are primarily based on the rank order of applications on the 
slate; therefore, assessment of prior experience points, based on data 
in the annual performance report, is a crucial part of the overall 
application process.
    Further, this performance report form is the main source of data 
for the Department's response to the requirements of the Government 
Performance and Results Act (GPRA) for this program. In addition, the 
Department uses the annual performance reports to produce program level 
data for annual reporting, budget submissions to OMB, Congressional 
hearings and inquiries, and responding to inquiries from higher 
education interest groups and the general public.
    EOC APRs are prepared and submitted by EOC grant projects. For each 
EOC grant project, the grant project director of record completes, or 
supervises the completion of the data submission process. The grant 
project director supervises the administration of an EOC grant. An EOC 
grant provides counseling and information on college admissions to 
qualified adults who want to enter or continue a program of 
postsecondary education.
    The program also provides services to improve the financial and 
economic literacy of participants. An important objective of the 
program is to counsel participants on financial aid options, including 
basic financial planning skills, and to assist in the application 
process. The goal of the EOC program is to increase the number of adult 
participants who enroll in postsecondary education institutions.

    Dated: October 4, 2022.
Kun Mullan,
PRA Coordinator, Strategic Collections and Clearance, Governance and 
Strategy Division, Office of Chief Data Officer, Office of Planning, 
Evaluation and Policy Development.
[FR Doc. 2022-21903 Filed 10-6-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P