01-16983. Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research

ACTION:

Notice inviting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2001 for new awards and announcing pre-application meetings.

SUMMARY:

We invite applications for new grant awards for FY 2001 for three Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects and Centers Program (DRRP) funding priorities on Strategies for Promoting Information Technology (IT)-based Educational Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities, Strategies for Promoting Information Technology (IT)-based Employment and Training Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities, and Wayfinding Technologies for Individuals Who Are Blind.

Purpose of the Program: The purpose of the Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects and Centers Program is to improve the effectiveness of services authorized under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. We take this action to focus research attention on areas of national need. The priorities are intended to improve rehabilitation services and outcomes for individuals with disabilities.

National Education Goals

The eight National Education Goals focus the Nation's education reform efforts and provide a framework for improving teaching and learning.

This notice addresses the National Education Goal that every adult American will be literate and will possess the knowledge and skills necessary to compete in a global economy and exercise the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR), 34 CFR Parts 74, 75, 77, 81, 82, 85, 86 and 97; and the following program regulations: Disability Rehabilitation Research Projects and Centers—34 CFR part 350, and the Notice of Final Priority published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.

Pre-Application Meeting: Interested parties are invited to participate in pre-application meetings to discuss the funding priorities. In each meeting you will receive technical assistance and information about the funding priority. You may attend the meetings either in person or by conference call at the Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, Switzer Building, Room 3065, 330 C St. SW., Washington, DC between 10:00 a.m. and 12 noon. NIDRR staff will also be available at this location from 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on that same day to provide technical assistance through individual consultation about the funding priority.

Pre-Application Meeting Dates: The pre-application meeting for both the Resource Center for Strategies for Promoting IT-based Educational Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities and the Strategies for Promoting IT-based Employment and Training Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities will be held on July 24, 2001. For further information or to make arrangements to participate in the July 24, 2001, meeting contact Richard Wilson, Switzer Building, room 3033C, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202. Internet: [e-mail] Telephone [phone].

The pre-application meeting for the Wayfinding Technologies for Individuals Who Are Blind will be held on July 25, 2001. For further information or to make arrangements to participate in the July 25, 2001, meeting contact William Peterson, Switzer Building, room 3425, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202. Internet: [e-mail] Telephone [phone]. If you use a telecommunication device for the deaf (TDD), you may call [phone].

Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities at the Public Meetings

The meeting site is accessible to individuals with disabilities, and a sign language interpreter will be available. If you need an auxiliary aid or service other than a sign language interpreter in order to participate in the meeting (e.g. other interpreting service such as oral, cued speech, or tactile interpreter; assistive listening device; or materials in alternative format), notify the contact person listed in this notice at least two weeks before the scheduled meeting date. Although we will attempt to meet a request we receive after this date, we may not be able to make available the requested auxiliary aid or service because of insufficient time to arrange it.

Application Notice for Fiscal Year 2001—Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects, CFDA No. 84-133A

Funding priority	Deadline for transmittal of applications	Estimated number of awards	Maximum award amount (per year)*	Project period (months)
84.133A-1 Strategies for Promoting IT-based Educational Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities	August 17, 2001	2	$300,000	60
84.133A-18 Strategies for Promoting IT-based Employment and Training Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities	August 17, 2001	2	300,000	60
84.133A-19 Wayfinding Technologies for Individuals Who are Blind	August 17, 2001	1	450,000	60
* We will reject without consideration or evaluation any application that proposes a project funding level that exceeds the stated maximum award amount in any year (See 34 CFR 75.104(b)).
Note: The estimate of funding level and awards in this notice do not bind the Department of Education to a specific level of funding or number of grants.

Eligible Applicants: Parties eligible to apply for grants under this program are States; public or private agencies, including for-profit agencies; public or private organizations, including for-profit organizations; institutions of higher education; and Indian tribes and tribal organizations.

Selection Criteria: The selection criteria to be used for these competitions will be provided in the application package for each competition.

For Applications Contact: Education Publications Center (ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll free): 1-877-433-7827. FAX: [phone]. 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 via its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/​pubs/​edpubs.html or its E-mail address ([e-mail]). If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify this competition as follows: CFDA number 84.133A.

Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application package in an alternative format by contacting the Grants and Contracts Services Team, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, S.W., room 3317, Switzer Building, Washington, DC 20202-2550. Telephone: [phone]. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call the Federal Information Relay Services (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339. However, the Department is not able to reproduce in an alternative format the standard forms included in the application package.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Donna Nangle, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, S.W., room 3414, Switzer Building, Washington, DC 20202-2645. Telephone: [phone]. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the TDD number at [phone]. Internet: [e-mail]

Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, or computer diskette) on request to the contact person listed in the preceding paragraph.

Electronic Access to This Document

You may review this document, as well as all other Department of Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site: www.ed.gov/​legislation/​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 [phone].

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.access.gpo.gov/​nara/​index.html

Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 762(g) and 764(b).

Dated: July 2, 2001.

Francis V. Corrigan,

Deputy Director, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.