[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 178 (Friday, September 15, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 63543-63547]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-20011]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Chapter II

[Docket ID ED-2023-OELA-0132]


Proposed Priorities, Requirements, and Definitions--National 
Professional Development Program

AGENCY: Office of English Language Acquisition, Department of 
Education.

ACTION: Proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Education (Department) proposes priorities, 
requirements, and definitions for use in

[[Page 63544]]

the National Professional Development (NPD) program, Assistance Listing 
Number 84.365Z. The Department may use one or more of these priorities, 
requirements, and definitions for competitions in fiscal year (FY) 2023 
and later years. We intend for these priorities, requirements, and 
definitions to increase the number of bilingual and multilingual 
teachers supporting English language learners.

DATES: We must receive your comments on or before October 16, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be submitted via the Federal eRulemaking 
Portal at www.regulations.gov. However, if you require an accommodation 
or cannot otherwise submit your comments via www.regulations.gov, 
please contact the program contact person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT. The Department will not accept comments submitted 
after the comment period closes. To ensure the Department does not 
receive duplicate copies, please submit your comments only once. In 
addition, please include the Docket ID at the top of your comments.
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to www.regulations.gov to submit 
your comments electronically. Information on using Regulations.gov, 
including instructions for accessing agency documents, submitting 
comments, and viewing the docket, is available on the site under 
``FAQ.''
    Privacy Note: The Department's policy is to make all comments 
received from members of the public available for public viewing in 
their entirety on the Federal eRulemaking Portal at 
www.regulations.gov. Therefore, commenters should be careful to include 
in their comments only information that they wish to make publicly 
available.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Francisco Javier L[oacute]pez, U.S. 
Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Room H3215, PCP, 
Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 558-4880. Email: [email protected].
    If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and 
wish to access telecommunications relay services, please dial 7-1-1.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Invitation to Comment: We invite you to submit comments regarding 
the proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions. To ensure that 
your comments have maximum effect in developing the final priorities, 
requirements, and definitions, we urge you to identify clearly the 
specific proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions that each 
comment addresses.
    We invite you to assist us in complying with the specific 
requirements of Executive Orders 12866, 13563, and 14094 and their 
overall requirement of reducing regulatory burden that might result 
from these proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions. Please 
let us know of any further ways we could reduce potential costs or 
increase potential benefits while preserving the effective and 
efficient administration of the program.
    During and after the comment period, you may inspect public 
comments about the proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions 
by accessing Regulations.gov. To inspect comments in person, please 
contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Assistance to Individuals with Disabilities in Reviewing the 
Rulemaking Record: On request we will provide an appropriate 
accommodation or auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability who 
needs assistance to review the comments or other documents in the 
public rulemaking record for these proposed priorities, requirements, 
and definitions. If you want to schedule an appointment for this type 
of accommodation or auxiliary aid, please contact the person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Purpose of Program: The NPD program, authorized by sections 
3111(c)(1)(C) and 3131 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965(ESEA), provides grants to institutions of higher education (IHEs) 
or public or private entities with relevant experience and capacity, in 
consortia with State educational agencies (SEAs) or local educational 
agencies (LEAs), to implement pre-service and in-service professional 
development activities intended to improve instruction for English 
Learners (ELs) and assist education personnel working with ELs to meet 
high professional standards.
    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 6861.

Proposed Priorities

    The Department proposes the following three priorities for this 
program. We may use one or more of these priorities in any year in 
which this program is in effect.

Background

    ``Raise the Bar (RTB): Lead the World'' is the Department's call to 
action to transform prekindergarten through postsecondary learning and 
unite around what truly works by promoting academic excellence, boldly 
improving learning conditions, and preparing our Nation's students for 
global competitiveness.\1\ A robust and sustainable educator workforce 
available to educate and support all children and youth is essential to 
this call to action. The priorities proposed in this document would 
advance many of these goals. Specifically, we are proposing priorities 
designed to help eliminate the educator shortage, increase services for 
our students who are English learners, and expand pathways to 
multilingualism for all students.
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    \1\ https://www.ed.gov/raisethebar/.
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    A growing body of evidence suggests that diverse classroom 
settings, such as in bilingual and multilingual education, may be 
positively associated with students' ability to empathize and relate to 
others, have long-term career benefits, and result in a higher degree 
of literacy.\2\ Learning another language from a young age is an asset 
that prepares all students for an increasingly globalized economy. 
Globally, adults who are bilingual and biliterate have more job 
opportunities than monolingual adults.\3\ Fostering a culture of 
language-learning for all students also communicates to linguistically 
marginalized students that their heritage languages and home identities 
are valuable and welcomed in school.\4\
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    \2\ Commission on Language Learning. America's Language (2017). 
Investing in Language Education for the 21st Century. American 
Academy of Arts and Sciences: Cambridge, Massachusetts.
    \3\ Zelasko, N., & Antunez, B. (2000). If your child learns in 
two languages. National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education. 
Retrieved from http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/files/uploads/9/IfYourChildLearnsInTwoLangs_English.pdf.
    \4\  Analyzing the Curricularization of Language in Two-Way 
Immersion Education: Restating Two Cautionary Notes (Vald[eacute]s, 
2018).
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    While there is a rich and diverse population of both ELs and native 
English speakers who would benefit from bilingual education, there is a 
shortage of bilingual and multilingual teachers prepared to teach a 
growing population of ELs and to make multilingualism a reality for 
all. According to 2019-20 data reported by SEAs for the Title III State 
Formula Grant Program, the number of K-12 students that were identified 
as ELs increased 2.6 percent from the previous school year. Yet, the 
number of certified EL instructors decreased by almost 43,000 educators 
or 10.4 percent from the previous school year.\5\ Additionally, in a 
joint publication by The Century Foundation and the Children's Equity

[[Page 63545]]

Project, the researchers noted, ``just one in eight American teachers 
speaks a non-English language at home . . . [and of those] teachers who 
are linguistically diverse, many are not trained or credentialed to 
provide academic instruction in non-English languages.'' \6\
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    \5\ https://ncela.ed.gov/sites/default/files/2023-05/OELABiennialReportSYs2018-20b-508.pdf.
    \6\ Williams, C.P., Meek, S., Marcus, M., Zabala, J. (2023). 
Ensuring Equitable Access to Dual-Language Immersion Programs: 
Supporting English Learners' Emerging Bilingualism. Retrieved from 
https://tcf.org/content/report/ensuring-equitable-access-to-dual-language-immersion-programs-supporting-english-learners-emerging-bilingualism/.
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    The NPD program, as a pre-service and in-service professional 
development program, is uniquely positioned to support the Department's 
RTB goals by helping to ensure that ELs have access to well-prepared 
educators and by growing our numbers of bilingual and multilingual 
educators in order to expand the availability of bilingual programs.
    The priorities proposed in this document focus on pre-service 
programs and in-service professional development designed to expand the 
numbers of bilingual or multilingual teachers and other staff, 
including through grow-your-own (GYO) efforts. Initial research \7\ 
suggests that GYO efforts may be particularly effective in recruiting 
educators who reflect the diversity of our students, in this case, ELs 
who are a growing resource that can be encouraged and recruited to 
pursue careers as bilingual and multilingual teachers. Many GYO 
programs also extend support to paraprofessionals, high-quality 
substitute teachers, and others in a community who are interested in 
transitioning into roles as educators by supporting their training and 
path to certification.
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    \7\ Strategies for Designing, Implementing, and Evaluating Grow-
Your-Own Teacher Programs for Educators (2017). REL Northwest. 
Retrieved from https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/regions/northwest/pdf/strategies-for-educators.pdf.
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    Additionally, we continue to emphasize and elevate supports for 
students from low-income backgrounds by proposing a priority and a 
corresponding definition that focuses on enrolling specific percentages 
of teacher candidates who are from low-income backgrounds. Thirty-seven 
percent of ELs are from disadvantaged family backgrounds who are living 
in poverty, and schools that have higher concentrations of ELs tend to 
be high-poverty schools.\8\ Students, particularly emerging bilingual 
and multilingual students, from low-income backgrounds are a critical 
part of addressing the need to provide culturally and linguistically 
relevant teaching in high-need schools and to give all students the 
opportunity to be taught by diverse educators. We are proposing a 
definition using Pell eligibility as a proxy for determining whether 
students are from low-income backgrounds given that Pell eligibility 
takes into account variables such as family income and family size. 
Further, we believe the data needed to demonstrate Pell eligibility is 
easily accessible to IHEs and other potential applicants that partner 
with IHEs who can obtain student aid information.
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    \8\ Quintero, D. & Hansen, M. (2021). As we tackle school 
segregation, don't forget about English Learner students. The 
Brookings Institution. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/blog/brown-center-chalkboard/2021/01/14/as-we-tackle-school-segregation-dont-forget-about-english-learner-students/.
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    As the EL population continues to grow, and as our global economy 
becomes more interconnected, it is increasingly important to focus 
efforts on addressing the shortage of teachers and other staff licensed 
and certified to work with ELs and to provide opportunities for all 
students to benefit from bilingual or multilingual instruction.
    Proposed Priority 1--Increase the Number of Bilingual or 
Multilingual Teachers Through Pre-Service Programs.
    Projects that propose to increase the number of licensed or 
certified bilingual or multilingual teachers working in language 
instruction educational programs or serving ELs, and improve their 
qualifications and skills, through evidence-based pre-service programs. 
Applicants must describe their plan for recruiting, supporting, and 
retaining bilingual or multilingual teacher candidates, which must 
include grow-your-own (GYO) efforts that are designed to address 
shortages of bilingual or multilingual teachers and increase the 
diversity of qualified individuals entering the educator workforce. 
Applicants must include in their proposed plan one or more of the 
following GYO strategies:
     Supporting bilingual or multilingual paraprofessionals 
actively working in P-12 schools in becoming teachers.
     Creating pathway programs for middle and high school 
students who are pursuing seals of biliteracy to become teachers.
     Recruiting individuals who may have a teaching credential 
but have not been teaching in bilingual or multilingual education 
settings.
     Offering registered apprenticeship programs for teachers 
that establish, scale, and build on existing high-quality pathways into 
bilingual or multilingual education settings.
     Implementing other evidence-based GYO efforts for 
bilingual or multilingual individuals.
    Proposed Priority 2--Service to Low-Income Students.
    Projects that propose to recruit, train, and retain in the pre-
service program classes of participants for which one or more of the 
following conditions are met:
    (a) At least 30 percent of the participants are low-income 
students.
    (b) At least 40 percent of the participants are low-income 
students.
    (c) At least 50 percent of the participants are low-income 
students.
    Proposed Priority 3--Improve In-Service Professional Development 
Programs Targeting Bilingual or Multilingual Educational Personnel Who 
Serve English Learners.
    Projects that propose evidence-based in-service professional 
development programs designed to expand the number, and improve the 
qualifications and skills, of bilingual or multilingual educational 
personnel working in language instruction educational programs or 
serving ELs, including educational paraprofessionals and personnel who 
are not certified or licensed.

Types of Priorities

    When inviting applications for a competition using one or more 
priorities, we designate the type of each priority as absolute, 
competitive preference, or invitational through a notice in the Federal 
Register. The effect of each type of priority follows:
    Absolute priority: Under an absolute priority, we consider only 
applications that meet the priority (34 CFR 75.105(c)(3)).
    Competitive preference priority: Under a competitive preference 
priority, we give competitive preference to an application by (1) 
awarding additional points, depending on the extent to which the 
application meets the priority (34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i)); or (2) 
selecting an application that meets the priority over an application of 
comparable merit that does not meet the priority (34 CFR 
75.105(c)(2)(ii)).
    Invitational priority: Under an invitational priority, we are 
particularly interested in applications that meet the priority. 
However, we do not give an application that meets the priority a 
preference over other applications (34 CFR 75.105(c)(1)).

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Proposed Requirements

    The Department proposes the following requirements for this 
program. We may apply one or more of these requirements in any year in 
which this program is in effect.
    Proposed Application Requirements: An applicant must provide the 
indicators it proposes to use to determine if a participant meets the 
definition of ``bilingual or multilingual.'' Applicants may provide 
this information in response to the selection criteria, or otherwise as 
applicable in their applications.

Proposed Definitions

    The Department proposes the following definitions for this program. 
We may apply one or more of these definitions in any year in which this 
program is in effect.
    Bilingual or multilingual means able to listen, speak, read, and 
write in two or more languages with at least a high level of 
proficiency in each language, as determined based on indicators of 
proficiency established by the grantee.
    Low-income student means a student--
    (a) Who is eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant for the award 
year for which the determination is made; or
    (b) Who would otherwise be eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant 
for the award year for which the determination is made, except that the 
student fails to meet the requirements of section 484(a)(5) of the 
Higher Education Act, 20 U.S.C. 1091(a)(5), because the student is in 
the United States for a temporary purpose.
    Pre-service means the period of training for a person who does not 
have a prior teaching certification or license and who is enrolled in a 
teacher education program at an institution of higher education.

Final Priorities, Requirements, and Definitions

    We will announce the final priorities, requirements, and 
definitions in the Federal Register. We will determine the final 
priorities, requirements, and definitions after considering responses 
to the proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions and other 
information available to the Department. This document does not 
preclude us from proposing additional priorities, requirements, 
definitions, or selection criteria, subject to meeting applicable 
rulemaking requirements.
    Note: This document does not solicit applications. In any year in 
which we choose to use one or more of these priorities, requirements, 
and definitions, we invite applications through a notice in the Federal 
Register.

Executive Orders 12866, 13563, and 14094

Regulatory Impact Analysis

    Under Executive Order 12866, the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) must determine whether this regulatory action is ``significant'' 
and, therefore, subject to the requirements of the Executive order and 
subject to review by OMB. Section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866, as 
amended by Executive Order 14094, defines a ``significant regulatory 
action'' as an action likely to result in a rule that may--
    (1) Have an annual effect on the economy of $200 million or more 
(adjusted every 3 years by the Administrator of Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA)for changes in gross domestic product); or 
adversely affect in a material way the economy, a sector of the 
economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public 
health or safety, or State, local, territorial, or Tribal governments 
or communities;
    (2) Create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an 
action taken or planned by another agency;
    (3) Materially alter the budgetary impacts of entitlements grants, 
user fees, or loan programs or the rights and obligations of recipients 
thereof; or
    (4) Raise legal or policy issues for which centralized review would 
meaningfully further the President's priorities, or the principles set 
forth in this Executive order, as specifically authorized in a timely 
manner by the Administrator of OIRA in each case.
    This proposed regulatory action is not a significant regulatory 
action subject to review by OMB under section 3(f) of Executive Order 
12866, as amended by Executive Order 14094.
    We have also reviewed this proposed regulatory action under 
Executive Order 13563, which supplements and explicitly reaffirms the 
principles, structures, and definitions governing regulatory review 
established in Executive Order 12866, as amended by Executive Order 
14094. To the extent permitted by law, Executive Order 13563 requires 
that an agency--
    (1) Propose or adopt regulations only upon a reasoned determination 
that their benefits justify their costs (recognizing that some benefits 
and costs are difficult to quantify);
    (2) Tailor its regulations to impose the least burden on society, 
consistent with obtaining regulatory objectives and taking into 
account--among other things and to the extent practicable--the costs of 
cumulative regulations;
    (3) In choosing among alternative regulatory approaches, select 
those approaches that maximize net benefits (including potential 
economic, environmental, public health and safety, and other 
advantages; distributive impacts; and equity);
    (4) To the extent feasible, specify performance objectives, rather 
than the behavior or manner of compliance a regulated entity must 
adopt; and
    (5) Identify and assess available alternatives to direct 
regulation, including economic incentives--such as user fees or 
marketable permits--to encourage the desired behavior, or provide 
information that enables the public to make choices.
    Executive Order 13563 also requires an agency ``to use the best 
available techniques to quantify anticipated present and future 
benefits and costs as accurately as possible.'' The Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs of OMB has emphasized that these 
techniques may include ``identifying changing future compliance costs 
that might result from technological innovation or anticipated 
behavioral changes.''
    We are issuing these proposed priorities, requirements, and 
definitions only on a reasoned determination that their benefits would 
justify their costs. In choosing among alternative regulatory 
approaches, we selected those approaches that would maximize net 
benefits. Based on the analysis that follows, the Department believes 
that this regulatory action is consistent with the principles in 
Executive Order 13563.
    We also have determined that this regulatory action would not 
unduly interfere with State, local, and Tribal governments in the 
exercise of their governmental functions.
    In accordance with these Executive orders, the Department has 
assessed the potential costs and benefits, both quantitative and 
qualitative, of this regulatory action. The potential costs are those 
resulting from statutory requirements and those we have determined as 
necessary for administering the Department's programs and activities.

Clarity of the Regulations

    Executive Order 12866 and the Presidential memorandum ``Plain 
Language in Government Writing'' require each agency to write 
regulations that are easy to understand. The Secretary invites comments 
on how to make these proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions 
easier to

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understand, including answers to questions such as the following:
     Are the requirements in the proposed priorities, 
requirements, and definitions clearly stated?
     Do the proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions 
contain technical terms or other wording that interferes with their 
clarity?
     Does the format of the proposed priorities, requirements, 
and definitions (grouping and order of sections, use of headings, 
paragraphing, etc.) aid or reduce their clarity?
     Would the proposed priorities, requirements, and 
definitions be easier to understand if we divided them into more (but 
shorter) sections?
     Could the description of the proposed priorities, 
requirements, and definitions in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section 
of this preamble be more helpful in making the proposed priorities, 
requirements, and definitions easier to understand? If so, how?
     What else could we do to make the proposed priorities, 
requirements, and definitions easier to understand?
    To send any comments that concern how the Department could make 
these proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions easier to 
understand, see the instructions in the ADDRESSES section.
    Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive 
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. One of the 
objectives of the Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental 
partnership and a strengthened federalism. The Executive order relies 
on processes developed by State and local governments for coordination 
and review of proposed Federal financial assistance.
    This document provides early notification of our specific plans and 
actions for this program.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    The Secretary certifies that these proposed priorities, 
requirements, and definitions would not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities. The U.S. Small 
Business Administration Size Standards define proprietary institutions 
as small businesses if they are independently owned and operated, are 
not dominant in their field of operation, and have total annual revenue 
below $7,000,000. Nonprofit institutions are defined as small entities 
if they are independently owned and operated and not dominant in their 
field of operation. Public institutions are defined as small 
organizations if they are operated by a government overseeing a 
population below 50,000.
    The small entities that this proposed regulatory action would 
affect are IHEs, or public or private entities with relevant experience 
and capacity, in consortia with LEAs or SEAs applying for and receiving 
funds under this program. The Secretary believes that the costs imposed 
on applicants by the proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions 
would be limited to paperwork burden related to preparing an 
application and that the benefits would outweigh any costs incurred by 
applicants.
    Participation in this program is voluntary. For this reason, the 
proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions would impose no 
burden on small entities in general. Eligible applicants would 
determine whether to apply for funds and have the opportunity to weigh 
the requirements for preparing applications, and any associated costs, 
against the likelihood of receiving funding and the requirements for 
implementing projects under the program. Eligible applicants most 
likely would apply only if they determine that the likely benefits 
exceed the costs of preparing an application. The likely benefits 
include the potential receipt of a grant as well as other benefits that 
may accrue to an entity through its development of an application, such 
as the use of that application to seek funding from other sources to 
address a shortage in bilingual or multilingual teachers working in a 
language instruction education program or serving ELs.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    These proposed priorities, requirements, and definitions do not 
contain any information collection requirements.
    Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities 
can obtain this document in an accessible format. The Department will 
provide the requestor with an accessible format that may include Rich 
Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3 file, 
braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc, or other accessible 
format.
    Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this 
document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may 
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of 
Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this 
document, as well as all other documents of this Department 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.

Montserrat Garibay,
Assistant Deputy Secretary and Director for the Office of English 
Language Acquisition.
[FR Doc. 2023-20011 Filed 9-14-23; 8:45 am]
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