[Federal Register: March 12, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 49)]
[Notices]
[Page 11847-11849]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr12mr04-45]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Overview
Information; Demonstration and Training Programs--Braille Training
Program; Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year
(FY) 2004
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.235E
Dates: Applications Available: March 12, 2004.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 26, 2004.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 25, 2004.
Eligible Applicants: State agencies and other public or nonprofit
agencies and organizations, including institutions of higher education.
Estimated Available Funds: $200,000.
Estimated Range of Awards: $75,000-$100,000.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $100,000 per 12-month period.
Estimated Number of Awards: 2.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
Full Text of Announcement
I. Funding Opportunity Description
Purpose of Program: This program offers financial assistance to
establish projects that will provide training in the use of braille for
personnel providing vocational rehabilitation services or educational
services to youth and adults who are blind.
Priority: In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(iv), this priority
is from section 303(d)(2) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended
(Act), 29 U.S.C. 773(d)(2).
[[Page 11848]]
Absolute Priority: For FY 2004 this priority is an absolute
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only applications that
meet this priority.
This priority is:
Grants must be used for the establishment or continuation of
projects that may provide (1) development of braille training
materials; (2) in-service or pre-service training in the use of
braille, the importance of braille literacy, and methods of teaching
Braille to youth and adults who are blind; and (3) activities to
promote knowledge and use of braille and nonvisual access technology
for blind youth and adults through a program of training,
demonstration, and evaluation conducted with leadership of experienced
blind individuals, including the use of comprehensive, state-of-the-art
technology.
Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 773(d).
Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80,
81, 82, 84, 85, 86, 97, and 99.
Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 79 apply to all applicants
except federally recognized Indian tribes.
Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 apply to institutions of
higher education only.
II. Award Information
Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
Estimated Available Funds: $200,000.
Estimated Range of Awards: $75,000-$100,000.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $100,000 per each 12-month
period.
Estimated Number of Awards: 2.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
III. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants: State agencies and other public or
nonprofit agencies and organizations, including institutions of higher
education.
2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This program does not involve cost
sharing or matching.
IV. Application and Submission Information
1. Address to Request Application Package: Education Publications
Center (ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll
free): 1-877-433-7827. FAX: (301) 470-1244. If you use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free):
1-877-576-7734.
You may also contact ED Pubs at its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html
or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address:
edpubs@inet.ed.gov.
If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify
this competition as follows: CFDA number 84.235E.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print,
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the Grants and Contracts
Services Team, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW.,
room 3317, Switzer Building, Washington, DC 20202-2550. Telephone:
(202) 205-8207.
2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you
must submit, are in the application package for this program.
3. Submission Dates and Times: Applications Available: March 12,
2004. Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 26, 2004. The
dates and times for the transmittal of applications by mail or by hand
(including a courier service or commercial carrier) are in the
application package for this program. The application package also
specifies the hours of operation of the e-Application Web site.
We do not consider an application that does not comply with the
deadline requirements. Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 25,
2004.
4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order
12372 is in the application package for this program.
5. Funding Restrictions: Indirect cost reimbursement for grants
under this program is limited to the recipient's actual indirect costs,
as determined by its negotiated indirect cost rate agreement, or 10
percent of the total direct cost base, whichever amount is less (34 CFR
373.22(a)). We reference additional regulations outlining funding
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
6. Other Submission Requirements: Instructions and requirements for
the transmittal of applications by mail or by hand (including a courier
service or commercial carrier) are in the application package for this
program.
Application Procedures:
Note: Some of the procedures in these instructions for
transmitting applications differ from those in EDGAR (34 CFR
75.102). Under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the
Department generally offers interested parties the opportunity to
comment on proposed regulations. However, these amendments make
procedural changes only and do not establish new substantive policy.
Therefore, under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A), the Secretary has determined
that proposed rulemaking is not required.
Pilot Project for Electronic Submission of Applications
We are continuing to expand our pilot project for electronic
submission of applications to include additional formula grant programs
and additional discretionary grant competitions. Demonstration and
Training Programs--Braille Training Program--CFDA Number 84.235E is one
of the programs included in the pilot project. If you are an applicant
under the Demonstration and Training Programs-- Braille Training
Program, you may submit your application to us in either electronic or
paper format.
The pilot project involves the use of the Electronic Grant
Application System (e-Application). If you use e-Application, you will
be entering data online while completing your application. You may not
e-mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us. If you
participate in this voluntary pilot project by submitting an
application electronically, the data you enter online will be saved
into a database. We request your participation in e-Application. We
shall continue to evaluate its success and solicit suggestions for its
improvement.
If you participate in e-Application, please note the following:
Your participation is voluntary.
When you enter the e-Application system, you
will find information about its hours of operation. We strongly
recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline date to
initiate an e-Application package.
You will not receive additional point value
because you submit a grant application in electronic format, nor will
we penalize you if you submit an application in paper format.
You may submit all documents electronically,
including the Application for Federal Education Assistance (ED 424),
Budget Information--Non-Construction Programs (ED 524), and all
necessary assurances and certifications.
Your e-Application must comply with any page
limit requirements described in this notice.
After you electronically submit your
application, you will receive an
[[Page 11849]]
automatic acknowledgement, which will include a PR/Award number (an
identifying number unique to your application).
Within three working days after submitting your
electronic application, fax a signed copy of the Application for
Federal Education Assistance (ED 424) to the Application Control Center
after following these steps:
1. Print ED 424 from e-Application.
2. The institution's Authorizing Representative must sign this
form.
3. Place the PR/Award number in the upper right hand corner of the
hard copy signature page of the ED 424.
4. Fax the signed ED 424 to the Application Control Center at (202)
260-1349.
We may request that you give us original
signatures on other forms at a later date.
Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of System
Unavailability: If you elect to participate in the e-Application pilot
for Demonstration and Training Programs--Braille Training Program and
you are prevented from submitting your application on the application
deadline date because the e-Application system is unavailable, we will
grant you an extension of one business day in order to transmit your
application electronically, by mail, or by hand delivery. We will grant
this extension if--
1. You are a registered user of e-Application, and you have
initiated an e-Application for this competition; and
2. (a) The e-Application system is unavailable for 60 minutes or
more between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Washington, DC,
time, on the application deadline date; or
(b) The e-Application system is unavailable for any period of time
during the last hour of operation (that is, for any period of time
between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC, time) on the
application deadline date.
We must acknowledge and confirm these periods of unavailability
before granting you an extension. To request this extension or to
confirm our acknowledgement of any system unavailability, you may
contact either (1) the persons listed elsewhere in this notice under
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT (see VII. Agency Contacts) or (2) the
e-GRANTS help desk at 1-888-336-8930.
You may access the electronic grant application for Demonstration
and Training Programs--Braille Training Program at: http://e-grants.ed.gov
.
V. Application Review Information
Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are in
the application package.
VI. Award Administration Information
1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your
U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award
Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally.
If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding,
we notify you.
2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify
administrative and national policy requirements in the application
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable
Regulations section of this notice.
We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding
commitments under the grant.
3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a
final performance report, including financial information, as directed
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an
annual performance report that provides the most current performance
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in
34 CFR 74.51 and in 34 CFR 75.118.
4. Performance Measures: All grantees will submit an annual
performance report documenting their evaluation findings, as required
by section 303(d)(2)(C) of the Act. This report must describe whether
they were successful in increasing the knowledge and use of braille for
program participants. For example, reports could include the number of
participants who successfully completed a college-level or advanced-
level Braille course, achieved demonstrated competence in reading and
writing Braille (i.e., certificate of completion of a program of self-
study or training module that will lead to successful completion of the
National Literary Braille Competency Test offered by the Library of
Congress, National Library Service for the Blind and Physically
Handicapped), successfully completed in-service training activities
leading to achievement of agency or State qualifications or standards
of competency in Braille reading, writing, and technology for
rehabilitation or education professionals, or demonstrated increased
knowledge of Braille through pre- and post-measures or other
appropriate measures.
VII. Agency Contacts
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Theresa DeVaughn or Alfreda Reeves,
U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3316,
Switzer Building, Washington, DC 20202-2650. Telephone: for Theresa
DeVaughn (202) 205-5392; for Alfreda Reeves (202) 205-9361.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the program contact persons listed in this
section.
VIII. Other Information
Electronic Access to This Document: You may 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) on the
Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister. To use PDF
you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at this
site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S. Government
Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in the
Washington, DC, area at (202) 512-1530.
Note: 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 on GPO Access at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html
.
Dated: March 8, 2004.
Troy R. Justesen,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special Education and
Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 04-5669 Filed 3-11-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P