[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 219 (Tuesday, November 15, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-28096]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: November 15, 1994]
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Part V
Department of Education
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National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research; Notice
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research
AGENCY: Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of Proposed Funding Priorities for Fiscal Years 1995-
1996 for Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary proposes funding priorities for Rehabilitation
Research and Training Centers (RRTCs) under the National Institute on
Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) for fiscal years 1995-
1996. The Secretary takes this action to focus research attention on
areas of national need. These proposed priorities are intended to
improve outcomes for individuals with disabilities.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 15, 1994.
ADDRESSES: All comments concerning these proposed priorities should be
addressed to Betty Jo Berland, U.S. Department of Education, 600
Independence Avenue, S.W., Switzer Building, Room 3424, Washington,
D.C. 20202-2601. Internet address: Training____Centers@ed.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Betty Jo Berland. Telephone: (202)
205-9739. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf
(TDD) may call the TDD number at (202) 205-5516.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice contains four proposed
priorities under the RRTC program. The proposed priorities are for
research related to independent living and disability policy,
management and services of Centers for Independent Living (CILs), low-
functioning deaf individuals, and rehabilitation in long-term mental
illness. These proposed priorities support the National Education Goals
that call for all Americans to possess the knowledge and skills
necessary to compete in a global economy and exercise the rights and
responsibilities of citizenship.
Authority for the RRTC program of NIDRR is contained in section
204(b)(2) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. 760-
762). Under this program the Secretary makes awards to public and
private entities, including institutions of higher education and Indian
tribes or tribal organizations, to conduct coordinated research and
training activities. To be eligible, these entities must be of
sufficient size, scope, and quality to carry out effectively the
activities of the Center in an efficient manner consistent with
appropriate State and Federal laws. They must demonstrate the ability
to carry out the training activities either directly or through another
entity that can provide such training.
The Secretary may make awards through grants or cooperative
agreements. The purpose of the awards is for planning and conducting
research, training, demonstrations, and related activities leading to
the development of methods, procedures, and devices that will benefit
individuals with disabilities, especially those with the most severe
disabilities. Under the regulations for this program (see 34 CFR
352.32), the Secretary may establish research priorities by reserving
funds to support particular research activities.
Description of the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center
Program
RRTCs must be operated in collaboration with institutions of higher
education or providers of rehabilitation services or other appropriate
services. RRTCs serve as centers of national excellence and national or
regional resources for service providers and individuals with
disabilities and the parents, family members, guardians, advocates or
authorized representatives of these individuals.
RRTCs conduct coordinated and advanced programs of research in
rehabilitation targeted toward the production of new knowledge to
improve rehabilitation methodology and service delivery systems,
alleviate or stabilize disabling conditions, and promote maximum social
and economic independence of individuals with disabilities.
RRTCs provide training, including graduate, pre-service, and in-
service training, to service providers in order to enhance the quality
and effectiveness of services provided to individuals with
disabilities. They also provide training, including graduate, pre-
service, and in-service training, for rehabilitation research personnel
and other rehabilitation personnel.
RRTCs serve as informational and technical assistance resources to
service providers, individuals with disabilities, and the parents,
family members, guardians, advocates, or authorized representatives of
these individuals through conferences, workshops, public education
programs, in-service training programs, and similar activities.
The statute requires that each applicant for a grant from NIDRR
demonstrate how its proposed activities address the needs of
individuals from minority backgrounds who have disabilities. NIDRR
encourages all Centers to involve individuals with disabilities and
minorities as recipients in both research training and clinical
training.
Applicants have considerable latitude in proposing the specific
research and related projects they will undertake to achieve the
designated outcomes; however, the regulatory selection criteria for the
program (34 CFR 352.31) state that the Secretary reviews the extent to
which applicants justify their choice of research projects in terms of
the relevance to the priority and to the needs of individuals with
disabilities. The Secretary also reviews the extent to which applicants
present a scientific methodology that includes reasonable hypotheses,
methods of data collection and analysis, and a means to evaluate the
extent to which project objectives have been achieved.
The Department is particularly interested in ensuring that the
expenditure of public funds is justified by the execution of intended
activities and the advancement of knowledge and, thus, has built this
accountability into the selection criteria. Not later than three years
after the establishment of any RRTC, NIDRR will conduct one or more
reviews of the activities and achievements of the Center. In accordance
with the provisions of 34 CFR 75.253(a), continued funding depends at
all times on satisfactory performance and accomplishment.
General
The Secretary proposes that the following requirements will apply
to all of the RRTCs pursuant to the priorities:
Each RRTC must conduct an integrated program of research to develop
solutions to problems confronted by individuals with disabilities.
Each RRTC must conduct a coordinated and advanced program of
training in rehabilitation research, including training in research
methodology and applied research experience, that will contribute to
the number of qualified researchers working in the area of
rehabilitation research.
Each Center must disseminate and encourage the use of new
rehabilitation knowledge. They must make available all materials for
dissemination or training in alternate formats to make them accessible
to individuals with a range of disabling conditions.
Each RRTC must involve individuals with disabilities and, if
appropriate, their family members, as well as rehabilitation service
providers, in planning and implementing the research and training
programs, in interpreting and disseminating the research findings, and
in evaluating the Center.
Priorities
Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) the Secretary gives an absolute
preference to applications that meet one of the following proposed
priorities. The Secretary will fund under this competition only
applications that meet one of these absolute priorities:
Proposed Priorities 1 and 2: Independent Living
Background
Independent Living (IL) programs operate from a philosophy of
consumer control, self-help, advocacy, development of peer
relationships and peer role models, and equal access of individuals
with significant disabilities to society, programs, and activities. The
IL philosophy stresses the concept of empowerment of individuals with
disabilities to control their own lives through participation in
service planning, management of their own personal assistants, informed
decisionmaking, and self-advocacy. In its 25-year history,
``Independent Living'' has been a philosophy, a social movement, and a
service program. These priorities address all of the aspects of
independent living, and propose investigations into new applications of
independent living concepts, as well as studies and training related to
the operations of the publicly-supported IL programs.
The 1992 Amendments to the Rehabilitation Act made major changes to
Title VII, which authorizes the support of Centers for Independent
Living (CILs) and IL programs under the Federal-State vocational
rehabilitation program. The changes that are of most relevance to these
priorities are: Establishment of Statewide Independent Living Councils
(SILCs) to jointly develop and sign the State plan for independent
living; a new definition of a CIL as a consumer-controlled, community-
based, cross-disability, nonresidential, private non-profit agency that
is designed and operated within a local community by individuals with
disabilities and provides an array of independent living services;
changes in the State and Federal responsibilities for making grants;
and the specific authorization of advocacy services.
NIDRR has funded RRTCs in independent living since 1980. Current
RRTCs focus on disability policy, IL management, and IL for underserved
populations. The current Centers on policy and management will receive
their final funding in fiscal year 1994. In order to determine the
continued need for RRTCs in IL, and some possible research needs, NIDRR
convened a two-day focus group of experts in IL research and
administration in Washington in January, 1994. The following proposed
priorities are based largely on the work of this focus group as well as
reports from the current research centers and input from other Federal
agencies. Focus group participants raised issues for further
investigation in the following areas of program operations: compliance
with program standards; outcome measures and accountability; improved
program services; reaching diverse populations; training, recruitment,
and retention of staff; and effective operations of governing boards
and SILCs.
The focus group also discussed a number of issues concerning new
roles for CILs in societal developments such as violence, homelessness,
and information technology, and in the formulation and implementation
of policy in areas with particular implications for individuals with
disabilities, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the
reform of the health care delivery system.
The RRTC on CIL management and services will be funded jointly by
NIDRR and RSA and will be required to work closely with the RSA grantee
providing training, technical assistance, and transition assistance to
CILs under Part C of Title VII of the amended Rehabilitation Act.
Proposed Priority 1: Independent Living and Disability Policy
An RRTC on independent living and disability policy shall--
Develop policies and strategies to enhance leadership and
empowerment among individuals with disabilities; define the nature and
characteristics of empowerment for individuals with disabilities;
analyze how empowerment is achieved; assess the roles of participation
in disability culture and of peer support in achieving empowerment and
successful independent living; identify similarities and differences in
the characteristics of empowerment and the means of achieving it for
individuals with disabilities from minority ethnic or cultural
backgrounds, women, youth, and elderly persons; and develop
recommendations for policies and strategies for CILS to enhance
empowerment in individuals with disabilities;
Develop and test an assessment instrument to evaluate the
appropriateness for and accessibility to individuals with significant
disabilities of generic community services-- including vulnerable
individuals such as persons with disabilities who are homeless, who are
at risk for societal abuse and violence, and those who are from
minority backgrounds--and develop strategies for CILs to promote
accessible communities in areas where lack of access can be identified;
Analyze CIL policies regarding activities to promote
implementation of the ADA, and develop strategies that CILs might
adopt, including an analysis of the implications and consequences of
various options;
Analyze issues related to health care reform as they
relate to independent living and the ability of persons with
significant disabilities to maintain themselves and their health in
settings of their own choice, and develop appropriate strategies for
CIL participation in the redesign of the health care system, including
roles in influencing reforms, assessing the impact of reforms,
educating consumers and providers, and assessing consumer satisfaction;
Develop strategies and models for the most effective
participation of the CIL staff and consumers in the design and conduct
of research, and develop policy recommendations for disability consumer
organizations and research agencies based on these models; and
Provide training and information to CILs, policymakers,
administrators, and advocates on research findings and policy
developments affecting independent living.
Proposed Priority 2: Independent Living Center Management and Services
An RRTC on independent living center management and services
shall--
Develop self-evaluation and management information systems
for use by CILs in assessing and improving operations and services,
including appropriate outcome measures for CILs, minimum data elements
necessary for documenting outcomes, and minimally obtrusive and least
cumbersome systems for data collection;
Develop and implement methodologies to assess compliance
with statutory and regulatory requirements, including Federal standards
and indicators, and design and test interventions to ensure and
maintain compliance;
Identify best practices and develop and test improved
models for CIL services to linguistic, cultural, and ethnic minorities
and for the delivery of IL services to diverse populations;
Identify best practices and develop and test optimal roles
for CILs in expanding services to youth with disabilities and in
interfacing with education and transition programs to prepare youth for
independent living;
Define appropriate preservice and inservice training for
CIL staff, and develop or adapt and pilot test curricula and training
with a cross-section of CIL staff;
Identify best practices in the operation of CIL governing
boards and design and deliver training to a sample of CIL governing
boards and senior staff, documenting the long-term impact of this
effort on CIL operations and outcomes;
Review the funding patterns of CILs and analyze the impact
on Center activities of receiving funding from diverse sources, and
design and test several options for generating funding from a variety
of sources, including sources independent of public financing;
Develop models for the use of the National Information
Infrastructure (NII) and other communications technologies to enhance
the ability of CILs to communicate, share information, and provide
improved services to clients;
Document the initial development, composition, and
operation of the SILCs, and develop and provide training and technical
assistance to a selected sample of SILCs and document the impact of
this effort; and
Coordinate with and provide investigative methodologies,
instruments, and curricula, as well as research findings, to the RSA
grantee providing training, technical assistance, and transition
assistance to CILs under Part C of Title VII of the amended
Rehabilitation Act.
Proposed Priority 3: Improved Outcomes for Individuals with Long-Term
Mental Illness
Background
Findings of the National Institute of Mental Health Epidemiological
Catchment Area program are that more than 20 percent of all Americans
has a diagnosable mental disorder in any given year. (Office of
Technology Assessment, Psychiatric Disabilities, Employment, and the
Americans with Disabilities Act, 1994). Of the population with mental
disorders, 4 to 5 million adults are considered ``seriously mentally
ill'' (Rutman, ``How Psychiatric Disability Expresses Itself as a
Barrier to Employment,'' NIDRR Consensus Validation Conference on
``Strategies to Secure and Maintain Employment for Persons With Long
Term Mental Illness'', 1993). This priority focuses on that part of the
population that has serious and persistent mental disorders that
interfere with normal activities of daily life; the term ``long-term
mentally ill'' (LTMI) is also commonly used to refer to this
population.
A number of consumer-run community-based programs have developed in
recent years offering vocational counseling, educational and training
programs, job placement services, and ongoing peer support. These
programs often are a low-cost augmentation of scarce community
services. (Parrish, J., Center for Mental Health Services, 1994) The
programs are, however, very difficult to evaluate (Goldklang, D.,
American Journal of Community Psychiatry, October, 1991). Nevertheless,
in order to identify those elements of community-based programs that
are most effective in meeting the needs of individuals with LTMI, there
is a need to evaluate the effectiveness of various models of consumer-
run programs in: Serving the most significantly disabled individuals;
providing appropriate services for individuals from minority cultures;
obtaining diverse funding sources; maintaining accountability; training
peer service providers; providing an appropriate range and quality of
services; providing crisis response services; and achieving optimal
outcomes.
In addition, peer-support programs may have a significant role in
crisis response and in minimizing the need for involuntary
institutionalization or treatment. The Community Support Program (CSP)
of the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) convened meetings in
1991-1993, ``Round Tables on Alternatives to Involuntary Treatment'',
to identify approaches for minimizing the use of coercive interventions
that can impede recovery, independent living, and maintenance of
employment. The leadership and the staff of peer-support organizations
require appropriate training and preparation if they are to be
effective in crisis intervention.
The mental health field has become increasingly aware of the
special concerns and unmet needs of women with LTMI. A recent study
indicated that 40 percent of the children in foster care in New York
City have mothers with mental illness (New York State Office of Mental
Health). Peer-operated programs are a potential resource to assist
these women to develop the capacity to parent children and to obtain
and maintain housing, employment, and social supports in the community
(Salasin, S., Center for Mental Health Services, 1994).
There are strong indications that consumer-run mental health
organizations have not been as prevalent or as effective in minority
cultures. Approaches to this problem include providing more training in
cultural awareness and sensitivity (Cook, J. A., NAMI Outreach
Strategies to African American and Hispanic Families: Results of a
National Telephone Survey, 1992) to existing peer-operated programs,
and developing programs operated by or representing minority
individuals and cultures.
The National Task Force for Rehabilitation and Employment of
Persons with Psychiatric Disabilities called, in 1993, for improved
dissemination of useful research findings and best practices to all
appropriate target audiences. The Task Force also recommended that the
findings be translated in ways that are useful for policymakers,
administrators, consumers, and families of diverse cultural
backgrounds. The mental health field currently does not make full use
of computerized information systems to access knowledge about long-term
mental illness, or to link researchers, service providers, trainers,
educators, and consumers for on-line discussion and information
sharing. (Nance, R., Illinois Dept. of Mental Health and Developmental
Disabilities, 1993, letter to CMHS). With effective training and
technical assistance, consumer organizations could use technology to
access resources, establish electronic bulletin boards, and conduct
conferences and training.
The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research
proposes to support an RRTC on LTMI in collaboration with the Center
for Mental Health Services of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration. This RRTC on LTMI will focus on the role of
peer support and consumer-operated community-based programs in
improving independence, employment, and community integration.
Priority
An RRTC on improved outcomes for individuals with long-term mental
illness shall--
Develop and test an evaluation protocol for consumer-run
programs using outcome measures based on empirical data on recovery,
independence, empowerment, employment, community integration, and
cultural competency;
Develop methodology and identify and evaluate community-
based and workplace-based early intervention and crisis response
services, including those using peer support, in terms of effective
crisis planning approaches, avoidance of coercive treatment strategies,
and rapid return to employment and independent living in the community;
Identify best practices to meet the special needs of women
with LTMI, considering such areas as personal support networks and
contingency plans, parenting skills, and techniques for vocational
planning;
Identify and analyze specific characteristics of the
structure and process of consumer-run programs for various major
ethnic, cultural, and linguistic minorities and develop models for
cultural diversity training and for supporting the development of peer-
support programs in minority cultures;
Develop and test methodologies for participatory research
and consumer interface with the research process;
Develop, test, and implement model training programs for
preservice and inservice training of peers as service providers,
ensuring that culturally sensitive training modules are developed for
use with minorities; and
Identify channels of information exchange among and
between consumers and service providers, and develop training and
technical assistance strategies to promote the use of electronic
information networks.
Proposed Priority 4: Improved Outcomes for Low-Functioning Deaf
Individuals
Background
Approximately one of every 1,000 infants is born with a hearing
impairment that is severe enough to prevent the spontaneous development
of spoken language, according to the National Strategic Research Plan
for Deafness and Hearing Impairment, National Institute on Deafness and
Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), 1992. While many of these
prelingually deaf and severely hearing-impaired individuals complete
education and attain employment and independence, the report of the
Commission on the Education of the Deaf (COED) indicates that the
majority of deaf students do not go into any postsecondary education,
and that many need further education or training to obtain appropriate
employment (COED, Toward Equality: Education of the Deaf, 1988).
Moreover, an estimated 100,000 deaf people are unemployed or seriously
underemployed due to such problems as deficiencies in language
performance and related psychological, vocational, and social
underdevelopment. (COED, 1988, p. 69.)
These ``low-functioning'' deaf (LFD) individuals often do not have
comprehensive rehabilitation training and related services accessible
and available to them. This segment of the deaf population--sometimes
called ``low functioning'', ``low achieving'', ``multiple disabled
deaf'', or ``traditionally underserved deaf''--requires long term and
intensive habilitative and rehabilitative services and is the focus of
this priority.
The deaf individuals to be addressed by the proposed research
frequently exhibit deficits in vocational skills, independent living
skills, manual and oral communication skills, social skills, and
academic skills, and many have significant secondary disabilities. Many
are from socioeconomically and culturally disadvantaged backgrounds,
and many are from ethnic or linguistic minorities. Services to this
population are scarce and fragmented. In addition to understanding the
social, vocational, and educational implications of the disability,
service providers must also be able to communicate with the
individuals, often through less than optimal means, such as rudimentary
sign language.
In 1990, NIDRR funded an RRTC on Traditionally Underserved Persons
Who are Deaf, located at the University of Northern Illinois, to study
the parameters and service needs of this population. Funding for this
Center ends in fiscal year 1994. Activities of this Center include a
needs assessment, development of a model service program, outcome
studies, qualitative and quantitative analyses and surveys, development
of curriculum and training materials, conduct of training seminars, and
provision of technical assistance. This new proposed Center will have
the benefit of the work of the previous Center on Traditionally
Underserved Deaf Populations. The new Center will be required to
coordinate its activities with related projects for this population
funded by RSA and projects dealing with hearing-impaired children and
youth funded by the Office of Special Education Programs.
In January 1994, NIDRR convened a focus group of consumers and
providers of services, researchers, and advocates to consider the issue
of the need for ongoing research in the area of low-functioning deaf
individuals and to identify specific questions. The input from the
panel and other experts from the field has contributed to the decision
to fund additional research to understand more fully the population of
low-functioning deaf individuals, especially those with secondary
disabilities, and to develop improved interventions and service systems
for those individuals.
Priority
An RRTC on improved services for low-functioning deaf individuals
shall--
Define the population further by detailing the social,
cultural, educational, physical, psychological, communicative, and
cognitive characteristics of these individuals, especially those with
secondary disabilities;
Determine the effectiveness of existing assessment
techniques for deaf persons who have other disabilities and develop and
evaluate new assessment methods and techniques with particular
attention to the cultural relevance and cognitive appropriateness of
these assessment tools;
Evaluate the applicability of a variety of language and
literacy development strategies, including alternatives such as
survival skills language and functional workplace literacy training, to
enhance language and literacy skills in this population, including
those from minority cultural backgrounds;
Identify the range of services and service resources
required to meet the needs of this population; examine patterns of
service usage; develop mechanisms for coordination among agencies and
across service systems to foster a comprehensive system of educational,
social service, vocational, housing, mental health, and recreational
services for low-functioning deaf individuals, with specific attention
to systems that serve individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds;
and recommend Federal and State level policy changes needed to promote
comprehensive service systems;
Identify the rehabilitation service needs of low-
functioning deaf individuals from minority populations, identify the
cultural and physical barriers to accessing services for these
populations, and develop culturally sensitive service models and test
these in existing service delivery programs;
Determine the necessary competencies and attitudes for
service providers working with low-functioning deaf individuals,
identify and develop appropriate personnel training and train service
providers to deliver enhanced services to this population; and
Develop effective materials and media to enhance the
dissemination of new knowledge on LFD to appropriate audiences,
including LFD individuals and their families, independent living
centers, educators, and health care practitioners.
Invitation to Comment
Interested persons are invited to submit comments and
recommendations regarding these proposed priorities. All comments
submitted in response to this notice will be available for public
inspection, during and after the comment period, in Room 3423, Mary
Switzer Building, 330 C Street S.W., Washington, D.C., between the
hours of 8:00 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday of each week
except Federal holidays.
Applicable Program Regulations
34 CFR Parts 350 and 352
Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 760-762.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.133B,
Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers).
Dated: November 8, 1994.
Judith E. Heumann,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 94-28096 Filed 11-14-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
