[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 110 (Thursday, June 7, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33774-33776]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-13820]
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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request;
Education and Human Resources Project Monitoring Clearance
AGENCY: National Science Foundation.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) is announcing plans to
establish this collection. In accordance with the requirement of
section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we are
providing opportunity for public comment on this action. After
obtaining and considering public comment, NSF will prepare the
submission requesting Office of Management and Budget (OMB) clearance
of this collection for no longer than 3 years.
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the Agency, including whether the information shall have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information on respondents, including
through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of
information technology; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of
automated collection techniques or other forms of information
technology.
DATES: Written comments should be received by August 6, 2012 to be
assured of consideration. Comments received after that date will be
considered to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: Written comments regarding the information collection and
requests for copies of the proposed information collection request
should be addressed to Suzanne Plimpton, Reports Clearance Officer,
National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Rm.
[[Page 33775]]
295, Arlington, VA 22030, or by email to [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Suzanne Plimpton at (703) 292-7556 or
send email to [email protected]. Individuals who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339, which is accessible
24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year (including federal
holidays).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title of Collection: Education and Human Resources Project
Monitoring Clearance.
OMB Approval Number: 3145-NEW.
Expiration Date of Approval: Not applicable.
Type of Request: Intent to seek approval to establish an
information collection.
Abstract: The National Science Foundation (NSF) requests
establishment of program accountability data collections that describe
and track the impact of NSF funding that focuses on the Nation's
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and
STEM workforce. NSF funds grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements
to colleges, universities, and other eligible institutions, and
provides graduate research fellowships to individuals in all parts of
the United States and internationally.
The Directorate for Education and Human Resources (EHR), a unit
within NSF, promotes rigor and vitality within the Nation's STEM
education enterprise to further the development of the 21st century's
STEM workforce and public scientific literacy. EHR does this through
diverse projects and programs that support research, extension,
outreach, and hands-on activities that service STEM learning and
research at all institutional (e.g., pre-school through postdoctoral)
levels in formal and informal settings; and individuals of all ages
(birth and beyond). EHR also focuses on broadening participation in
STEM learning and careers among United States citizens, permanent
residents, and nationals, particularly those individuals traditionally
underemployed in the STEM research workforce, including but not limited
to women, persons with disabilities, and racial and ethnic minorities.
The scope of this information collection request will primarily
cover descriptive information gathered from education and training
projects that are funded by NSF. NSF will primarily use the data from
this collection for program planning, management, and audit purposes to
respond to queries from the Congress, the public, NSF's external merit
reviewers who serve as advisors, including Committees of Visitors
(COVs), the NSF's Office of the Inspector General and as a basis for
either internal or third-party evaluations of individual programs.
The collections will generally include three categories of
descriptive data: (1) Staff and project participants (data that are
also necessary to determine individual-level treatment and control
groups for future third-party study or for internal evaluation); (2)
project implementation characteristics (also necessary for future use
to identify well-matched comparison groups); and (3) project outputs
(necessary to measure baseline for pre- and post- NSF-funding-level
impacts).
Use of the Information: This information is required for effective
administration, communication, program and project monitoring and
evaluation, and for measuring attainment of NSF's program, project, and
strategic goals, and as identified by the President's Accountability in
Government Initiative; GPRA, and the NSF's Strategic Plan. The
Foundation's FY 2011- 2016 Strategic Plan may be found at: http://www.nsf.gov/news/strategicplan/nsfstrategicplan_2011_2016.pdf.
Since the this collection will primarily be used for accountability
and evaluation purposes, including responding from queries from COVs
and other scientific experts, a census rather than sampling design
typically is necessary. At the individual project level funding can be
adjusted based on individual project's responses to some of the
surveys. Some data collected under this collection will serve as
baseline data for separate research and evaluation studies.
NSF-funded contract or grantee researchers and internal or external
evaluators in part may identify control, comparison, or treatment
groups for NSF's ET portfolio using some of the descriptive data
gathered through this collection to conduct well-designed, rigorous
research and portfolio evaluation studies.
Respondents: Individuals or households, not-for-profit
institutions, business or other for profit, and Federal, State, local
or tribal government.
Number of Respondents: 9,341.
Burden on the Public: NSF estimates that a total reporting and
recordkeeping burden of 63,947 hours will result from activities to
monitor EHR STEM education programs. The calculation is shown in Table
1.
Table 1--Anticipated Programs That Will Collect Data on Project Progress and Outcomes Along With the Number of
Respondents and Burden Hours per Collection per Year
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No of Annual hour
Collection title respondents No of responses burden
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Centers of Research Excellence in Science and 37 37.............................. 1,374
Technology (CREST) and Historically Black
Colleges and Universities Research
Infrastructure for Science and Engineering
(HBCU-RISE) Monitoring System.
Graduate STEM Fellows in K-12 Education (GK- 1,626 1,626........................... 3,941
12) Monitoring System.
Integrative Graduate Education and Research 4,658 4,658........................... 12,156
Traineeship Program (IGERT) Monitoring System.
Informal Science Education (ISE) Monitoring 157 157............................. 2,047
System.
Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority 518 518............................. 17,094
Participation (LSAMP) Monitoring System.
Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority 50 50.............................. 3,600
Participation Bridge to the Doctorate (LSAMP-
BD) Monitoring System.
Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program 294 294............................. 3,822
(Noyce) Monitoring System.
Research in Disabilities Education (RDE) 49 49.............................. 2,781
Monitoring System.
Scholarships in Science, Technology, 500 1,000 (500 respondents x 2 6,000
Engineering, and Mathematics Program (S-STEM) responses/yr.)
Monitoring System.
Science, Technology, Engineering, and 242 242............................. 6,292
Mathematics Talent Expansion Program (STEP)
Monitoring System.
[[Page 33776]]
Transforming Undergraduate Education in 1,210 1,210........................... 4,840
Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics (TUES) Monitoring System.
Additional Collections not Specified.......... 900 900............................. 1,200
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Total..................................... 10,241 10,741.......................... 65,147
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The total estimate for this collection is 63,947 annual burden
hours. The average annual reporting burden is between 1.5 and 72 hours
per ``respondent,'' depending on whether a respondent is a direct
participant who is self-reporting or representing a project and
reporting on behalf of many project participants.
Dated: June 4, 2012.
Suzanne H. Plimpton,
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation.
[FR Doc. 2012-13820 Filed 6-6-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555-01-P