[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 103 (Thursday, May 29, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29120-29125]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-13966]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Vocational and Adult Education School-to-Work
Opportunities Act; State and Territory Implementation Grants
AGENCIES: Department of Labor and Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year
(FY) 1997 for School-to-Work Opportunities State and Territory
Implementation Grants (State and Territory Implementation Grants).
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SUMMARY: The Departments of Labor and Education jointly invite
applications for new awards in FY 1997, as authorized under section 212
of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994 (the Act). These State
Implementation Grants will enable States and Territories to carry out
their plans for statewide and jurisdiction-wide School-to-Work
Opportunities partnership systems, offering young Americans access to
programs designed to prepare them for a first job in high-skill, high-
wage careers, and for achievement in further postsecondary education
and training.
DATES: In order to ensure review and processing of applications
recommended for award prior to the expiration of FY 1997
appropriations, applications must be submitted by May 31, 1998. (FY
1997 appropriations expire in September of 1998.)
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Departments of Labor and Education are reserving funds
appropriated for FY 1997 under the Act (Pub. L. 103-329) for awarding
State and Territory Implementation Grants authorized under section 212
of the Act.
This notice contains the selection criteria and describes the
review and
[[Page 29121]]
technical assistance process that will be used in evaluating
applications submitted in response to this year's solicitation.
Invitation for Application for New Awards
Purpose of Program: Funds awarded under this solicitation will
serve as ``venture capital'' to allow States and Territories to build
comprehensive partnerships. These partnerships, including teachers,
parents, students, schools, businesses, and alternative education
providers will provide all youth with high-quality education that
integrates classroom learning, hands-on work-based learning, and
connecting activities, prepares them for success in high-skill, high
wage careers, and helps them make the transition to further
postsecondary education and training.
Eligible Applicants: All States, including the District of Columbia
and Puerto Rico, that did not receive a State Implementation Grant in
FY 1994, FY 1995, or FY 1996, are eligible for Implementation Grants
under this solicitation. This solicitation also applies to all seven
Territories listed in section 212(b) of the Act. In accordance with the
School-to-Work Opportunities Act, the Governor must submit the
application on behalf of the State or Territory.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 31, 1998. Further
details on the application deadline are included in the application
package which will be mailed to each eligible applicant. Telefacsimile
(FAX) applications will not be honored.
Availability of Applications: Application packages will be mailed
directly to both the State and Territorial Governors and School-to-Work
Development Grant contacts in each eligible State and Territory. These
applications will be sent by overnight mail within one day of the
publication of this notice in the Federal Register. Any other party
interested in receiving a copy of the application package should
contact: The National School-to-Work Office, 400 Virginia Avenue, S.W.,
Room 210, Washington, D.C. 20024. Telephone: (202) 401-6222. This is
not a toll-free number.
Available Funds: Approximately $56 million for States, DC and
Puerto Rico; and $2 million for Territories (funding for the first
twelve-month period).
Estimated Range of Awards: The Departments expect the minimum award
to be approximately $1.5 million and the maximum award to be
approximately $10 million for States. For the Territories, the minimum
award is anticipated to be approximately $200,000 and the maximum award
to be approximately $475,000. The Departments wish to emphasize that,
in accordance with sections 212, 213, 214, and 216 of the Act, the
actual amount of each award made under this process will depend on such
factors as the scope and quality of the plan and application, the
number of projected participants in programs operating within each
State or Territory School-to-Work Opportunities system, and the total
youth population. Therefore, the Departments strongly encourage all
applicants to consider these factors, and the estimated average grant
award amount, in deciding the amount of funds to request. State
applicants are discouraged from requesting significantly more funds
than States with similar numbers of school-age youth received last year
without a strong programmatic basis for doing so. (Information on
previous years' State Implementation award amounts is contained in the
application package.) Actual award amounts will be determined during
negotiations with the Department of Labor's Grants Office; see note
below on compressed four-year funding period for States.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $3.4 million for State awards, $
285,000 for Territories.
Estimated Number of Awards: Up to 15 State awards and 7 Territory
awards.
Note: The Departments are not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period of Performance: Up to 4 years (4 twelve-month grant
periods).
Note: States funded in previous Implementation Grant rounds were
funded for up to five years. However, the Departments expect that
the last appropriation for the School-to-Work Opportunities Act will
be for FY 2000, which would provide for only four years of funding
under this solicitation. It is anticipated that, subject to
appropriations and grantee progress and expenditures, States funded
under this solicitation in 1997 will receive the total amount they
would have received through a five-year grant, but will receive it
during a compressed, four-year period. Territories will likely
receive no more than level funding in each of four years, due to the
fact that the Act limits the amount to be used for awards to the
Territories to not more than \1/2\ of one percent of each year's
total School-to-Work appropriation. Both State and Territory awards
are subject to appropriations and the grantee's progress toward its
stated objectives.
Applicable Regulations: 29 CFR Parts 33, 93, 95, 96, 97, 98. The
selection criteria and definition published in this notice, as well as
the instructions contained in the application package and the
eligibility and other requirements specified in the Act, apply to this
competition.
For Additional Information Contact: Ms. Laura Cesario, U.S.
Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Division
of Acquisition and Assistance, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Room S-
4203, Washington, D.C. 20210. Telephone: (202) 219-7300, extension 111
(this is not a toll-free number).
Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD)
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339
between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday.
[Reference: SGA# DAA--97-015.]
Implementation Grant Competition
Definition
All definitions in the Act apply to School-to-Work Opportunities
systems funded under this and future State and Territory Implementation
Grant selection processes. Since the Act does not contain a definition
of the term ``administrative costs'' as used in section 217 of the Act,
the Departments will apply the following definition to this and future
selection processes for State and Territory Implementation Grants:
The term ``administrative costs'' means the activities of a State
or local partnership that are necessary for the proper and efficient
performance of its duties under the School-to-Work Opportunities Act
and that are not directly related to the provision of services to
participants or otherwise allocable to the system's allowable
activities listed in section 215(b)(4) and section 215(c) of the Act.
Administrative costs may be either personnel costs or non-personnel
costs, and direct or indirect. Costs of administration shall include,
but not be limited, to:
(A) Costs of salaries, wages, and related costs of the grantee's
staff engaged in:
(1) Overall system management, system coordination, and general
administrative functions;
(2) Preparing program plans, budgets, and schedules, as well as
applicable amendments;
(3) Monitoring of local initiatives, pilot projects, subrecipients,
and related systems and processes;
(4) Procurement activities, including the award of specific
subgrants, contracts, and purchase orders;
(5) Developing systems and procedures, including management
information systems, for assuring compliance with the requirements
under the Act;
(6) Preparing reports and other documents related to the Act; and
[[Page 29122]]
(7) Coordinating the resolution of audit findings.
(B) Costs for goods and services required for administration of the
system;
(C) Costs of system-wide management functions; and
(D) Travel costs incurred for official business in carrying out
grant management or administrative activities.
Note on Administrative Cost Cap: In accordance with section
215(b)(6) of the Act, a local partnership receiving a subgrant from
State Implementation Grant funds awarded under this solicitation may
use no more than 10 percent of that subgrant for administrative
costs associated with carrying out the School-to-Work program
activities in one fiscal year. A 10 percent cap on administrative
costs applies to both State Implementation grantees and all State-
funded local partnerships. This same cap applies to Territory
Implementation grantees and their local partnerships.
Review Process and Selection Criteria
Territory Review Process
In reviewing applications from the Territories, the Departments
will utilize the selection criteria, point values, scoring system, and
time frames described below for States. It is anticipated that the
technical assistance and review process will also parallel that
outlined for States. However, given such unique factors as the
geography, government, demographics, educational systems, and economies
of the Territories, and the special considerations that may affect
School-to-Work design and implementation plans for these areas, the
specific types and frequency of technical assistance offered will be
determined by the federal review teams. The Territory review process
will be managed by staff of the New York and San Francisco Regional
Offices of the Departments of Education and Labor.
State Review Process
The Act anticipates that all States with comprehensive system plans
will receive Implementation Grants through this voluntary initiative.
However, in the first three rounds, limited resources and the large
pool of States eligible to apply made it necessary to use a more
competitive process to prioritize funding decisions, identifying those
States most ready to begin implementing their systems. To date, 37
States have received implementation awards. The 1997 appropriation will
allow the Departments to finance the remaining 15 States, as those
States submit applications which address appropriately the provisions
of the Act and this Notice, and demonstrate readiness to implement
quality school-to-work systems.
Based on the fact that adequate funds are now available to fund all
States, the Departments have modified the State Implementation Grant
review process. This will enable the Departments to meet the
legislative intent that all interested States with comprehensive plans
receive funding, and to provide States with adequate time to implement
their systems prior to the Act's expiration in 2001. This year's
process will be more flexible, while maintaining the rigor of prior
rounds, and is designed to help all States make the transition from
development to implementation.
As discussed below, the Departments will provide technical
assistance prior to and during the review, and will apply the selection
criteria given below in evaluating State applications.
Ongoing assistance. The approach for this solicitation
will facilitate better communication with potential applicants during
the period when applications are being accepted, and in later steps. In
this round, each applicant will be assigned a technical assistance/
review team, composed of the federal Grant Officer's Technical
Representative, staff of the Departments of Education and Labor, and
National School-to-Work Office staff. This team is responsible for
providing and coordinating technical assistance for the State.
Technical assistance efforts will focus on helping the applicants
address any outstanding issues and finalize their plans.
This same federal team will continue to work with the State
throughout the review. Applicants will be able to discuss proposed
application contents and share draft materials with the federal team
prior to submitting the application. When the application is formally
submitted for review, communications will continue.
A two-phase review process will be used, as in previous rounds.
During the first phase of the review, the team will be able to request
additional documentation from the State to support sections that were
not adequately addressed in the original submission, or travel to the
site for strategic planning and problem-solving sessions, if necessary.
After all criteria are met on paper, the review team will conduct a
second-phase, on-site review to verify its findings. In the event that
the site visit raises new concerns, the team will continue working with
the State to address them. However, the Departments anticipate that the
level of exchange and assistance available prior to the visit will do
much to preempt this possibility. If the site visit confirms that the
State is ready to implement, the team will make a funding
recommendation to the School-to-Work Steering Committee and the
Department of Labor Grants Office for approval. The review team will
also participate in final negotiations with the State, led by the
Department of Labor's Grants Office.
Review process. The selection criteria, point system and
the process used to evaluate State Plans will be the same as previous
years. As mentioned above, the first-phase evaluation of written
applications will be followed by a second-phase, on-site review to
confirm the applicant's readiness to implement. The Departments will
base final funding decisions on information obtained during the
application review and site visits, and are also interested in such
factors as replicability, sustainability, innovation, and geographic
balance and diversity of program approaches.
Rating system to pinpoint areas needing additional work.
In order to isolate areas needing improvement before an application
can be deemed acceptable, panelists will rate applications using the
selection criteria and associated point values, and will then assign a
rating of ``satisfactory'' or ``unsatisfactory'' to each major section,
such as Comprehensive Statewide System, Participation of All Students,
and Management Plan, based on the number of points received. The
minimum ``satisfactory'' score will be approximately 70% of the total
available points for that section. The State can then submit supporting
materials in areas that lacked sufficient detail. After a minimum total
score of 70 points has been reached, the State will receive a site
visit, with the selection criteria again being applied.
Longer period to submit applications. In previous rounds,
States generally had less than two months to submit applications. In
this round, States will be able to file an application at any time
during a period of approximately twelve months. This will allow for the
provision of any necessary technical assistance prior to and during the
review, while ensuring that all awards are obligated before the 1997
appropriations expire in September, 1998. A recommendation to approve
or disapprove funding will be made to the Secretaries of Education and
Labor for every State that submits an application by May 31, 1998, and
receives a site visit. If a State submits an application, receives a
site visit, and is not initially
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approved for funding, the review team will continue to work with the
State during the review period to bring the plan to an acceptable
level. However, final recommendations for all applications for the FY
1997 funding cycle will be made by August 1, 1998, to ensure that the
Department of Labor's Grants Office has adequate time to process awards
and obligate funds.
Selection Criterion 1: Comprehensive Statewide or Territory-wide System
Points: 35.
Considerations: In applying this criterion, reviewers will
consider--
(a) 20 points. The extent to which the State or Territory has
designed a comprehensive Statewide or Territorywide School-to-Work
Opportunities plan that--
(1) Includes effective strategies for integrating school-based and
work-based learning, integrating academic and vocational education, and
establishing linkages between secondary and postsecondary education;
(2) Is likely to produce systemic change in the way youth are
educated and prepared for work and for further education, across all
geographic areas of the State or Territory, including urban and rural
areas, within a reasonable period of time;
(3) Includes strategic plans for effectively aligning other
Statewide or Territorywide priorities, such as education reform,
economic development, and workforce development into a comprehensive
system that includes the School-to-Work Opportunities system and
supports its implementation at all levels--State, regional and local;
(4) Ensures that all students, including school dropouts, will have
a range of options, including options for higher education, additional
training and employment in high-skill, high-wage jobs; and
(5) Ensures coordination and integration with existing local
education and training programs and resources, including those School-
to-Work Opportunities systems established through local partnership
grants and Urban/Rural Opportunities grants funded under Title III of
the School-to-Work Opportunities Act, and related Federal, State, and
local programs.
(b) 15 points. The extent to which the State or Territory plan
demonstrates the capability of the State or Territory to achieve the
statutory requirements and to effectively put in place the system
components in Title I of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act,
including--
(1) The work-based learning component that includes the statutory
mandatory activities and that contributes to the transformation of
workplaces into active learning components of the education system
through an array of learning experiences, such as mentoring, job-
shadowing, unpaid work experiences, school-sponsored enterprises,
supported work experiences, and paid work experiences;
(2) The school-based learning component that will provide students,
as well as school dropouts, with high level academic skills consistent
with academic standards that the State or Territory establishes for all
students, including, where applicable, standards established under the
Goals 2000: Educate America Act;
(3) A connecting activities component to provide a functional link
between school and work activities and employers and educators for both
students and school dropouts; and
(4) A plan for an effective process for assessing students' skills
and knowledge required in career majors, and the process for issuing
portable skill certificates that are benchmarked to high quality
standards such as those the State or Territory establishes under the
Goals 2000: Educate America Act, and for periodically assessing and
collecting information on youth outcomes, as well as a realistic
strategy and timetable for implementing the process.
Selection Criterion 2: Commitment of Employers and Other Interested
Parties
Points: 15.
Considerations: In applying this criterion, reviewers will consider
the following:
(a) The extent to which the State or Territory has obtained the
active involvement of employers and other interested parties listed in
section 213(d)(5) of the Act, such as locally elected officials,
secondary schools and postsecondary educational institutions (or
related agencies), business associations, industrial extension centers,
employees, labor organizations or associations of such organizations,
teachers, related services personnel, students, parents, community-
based organizations, rehabilitation agencies and organizations,
registered apprenticeship agencies, local vocational educational
agencies, vocational student organizations, State or regional
cooperative education associations, and human service agencies, as well
as State legislators or Territorial representatives.
(b) Whether the State plan demonstrates an effective and convincing
strategy for continuing the involvement of employers and other
interested parties in the Statewide or Territorywide system, such as
the parties listed in section 213(d)(5) of the Act, as well as State
legislators or Territorial representatives.
(c) The extent to which the State or Territory plan proposes to
include private sector representatives as joint partners with educators
in the oversight and governance of the overall School-to-Work
Opportunities system.
(d) The extent to which the State or Territory has developed
strategies to provide a range of opportunities for employers to
participate in the design and implementation of the School-to-Work
Opportunities system, including membership on councils and
partnerships; assistance in setting standards, designing curricula and
determining outcomes; providing worksite experience for teachers;
helping to recruit other employers; and providing worksite learning
activities for students, such as mentoring, job shadowing, unpaid work
experiences, supported work experiences, and paid work experiences.
Selection Criterion 3: Participation of All Students
Points: 15.
Considerations: In applying this criterion, reviewers will refer to
the definition of the term ``all students'' in section 4(2) of the Act,
and consider the following:
(a) The extent to which the State or Territory will implement
effective strategies and systems to--
(1) Provide all students with equal access to the full range of
program components specified in sections 102 through 104 of the Act and
related activities such as recruitment, enrollment and placement
activities; and
(2) Ensure that all youth have meaningful opportunities to
participate in School-to-Work Opportunities programs.
(b) Whether the plan identifies potential barriers to the
participation of any students or out-of-school youth, and the degree to
which the plan proposes effective ways of overcoming these barriers.
(c) The degree to which the State or Territory has developed
realistic goals and methods for assisting young women to participate in
School-to-Work Opportunities programs leading to employment in high-
performance, high-paying jobs, including nontraditional jobs and has
developed realistic goals to ensure an environment free from racial and
sexual harassment.
(d) The feasibility and effectiveness of the State or Territory's
strategy for
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serving youth from rural communities with low population densities.
(e) The State or Territory's methods for ensuring safe and healthy
work environments for youth, including strategies for encouraging
schools and alternative education providers to provide youth with
general awareness training in occupational safety and health as part of
the school-based learning component, and for encouraging employers to
provide risk-specific training as part of the work-based learning
component.
Note: Experience with the FY 1994, FY 1995 and FY 1996 School-
to-Work Opportunities State Implementation Grant applications has
shown that many applicants do not give adequate attention to
designing systems that will serve school dropouts and systems that
will serve students with disabilities. Therefore, the Departments
would like to remind applicants that reviewers will consider whether
an application includes strategies to specifically identify the
barriers to participation of dropouts and students with disabilities
and proposes specific methods for effectively overcoming such
barriers and for integrating academic and vocational learning,
integrating work-based learning and school-based learning, and
linking secondary and postsecondary education for dropouts and
students with disabilities. Applicants are reminded that JTPA Title
II funds may be used to design and provide services to youth who
meet the appropriate JTPA eligibility criteria.
Selection Criterion 4: Stimulating and Supporting Local School-to-Work
Opportunities Systems
Points: 15.
Considerations: In applying this criterion, reviewers will consider
the following:
(a) The effectiveness of the State or Territory's plan for ensuring
that local partnerships include employers, representatives of local
educational agencies and local postsecondary educational institutions
(including representatives of area vocational education schools, where
applicable), local educators (such as teachers, counselors, or
administrators), representatives of labor organizations or
nonmanagerial employee representatives, and students, and others such
as those included in section 4(11)(B) of the Act.
(b) The extent to which the State or Territory assists local
entities to form and sustain effective local partnerships serving
communities in all parts of the State.
(c) Whether the plan includes an effective strategy for addressing
the specific labor market needs of localities that will be implementing
School-to-Work Opportunities systems.
(d) The effectiveness of the State or Territory's strategy for
building the capacity of local partnerships to design and implement
local School-to-Work Opportunities systems that meet the requirements
of the Act.
(e) The extent to which the State or Territory will provide a
variety of assistance to local partnerships, as well as the
effectiveness of the strategies proposed for providing this assistance,
including such services as: developing model curricula and innovative
instructional methodologies, such as creative strategies for meeting
the needs of school dropouts; expanding and improving career and
academic counseling services; and assisting localities in the use of
technology-based instructional techniques.
(f) The effectiveness of the State or Territory's strategy for
providing staff development to teachers, employers, mentors,
counselors, related services personnel, and others who are critical to
successful implementation of School-to-Work Opportunities systems for
all youth, such as staff in alternative learning environments.
(g) The ability of the State or Territory to provide constructive
assistance to local partnerships in identifying critical and emerging
industries and occupational clusters.
Selection Criterion 5: Resources
Points: 10.
Considerations: In applying this criterion, reviewers will consider
the following:
(a) The amount and variety of other Federal, State, and local
resources the State or Territory will commit to implementing its
School-to-Work Opportunities plan, as well as the specific use of these
funds, including funds for JTPA Summer and Year-Round Youth programs
and Perkins Act programs.
(b) The feasibility and effectiveness of the State or Territory's
long-term strategy for using other resources, including private sector
resources, to maintain the statewide system or territory-wide system
when Federal resources under the School-to-Work Opportunities Act are
no longer available.
(c) The extent to which the State or Territory is able to limit
administrative costs in order to maximize the funds spent on the
delivery of services to youth, as required in section 214(b)(3)(B) of
the Act, while ensuring the efficient administration of the School-to-
Work Opportunities system.
Criterion 6: Management Plan
Points: 10.
Considerations: In applying this criterion, reviewers will consider
the following:
(a) The adequacy of the management structure that the State or
Territory proposes for the School-to-Work Opportunities system.
(b) The extent to which the State or Territory's management plan
anticipates barriers to implementation and proposes effective methods
for addressing barriers as they arise.
(c) Whether the application includes an evaluation plan containing
feasible, measurable goals for the School-to-Work-Opportunities system,
based on performance measures contained in section 402(a) of the Act.
(d) The extent to which the evaluation plan includes an effective
method for collecting information relevant to the State's progress in
meeting its goals, and is likely to assist the State or Territory to
meet its School-to-Work Opportunities system objectives, to gauge the
success of the system in achieving those objectives, to continuously
improve the system's effectiveness, and to contribute to the review of
results across all States and Territories.
(e) Whether the plan includes a feasible workplan for the School-
to-Work Opportunities system that includes major planned objectives
over a four-year period.
Additional Priority Points
As required by section 214(a)(1) and (a)(2) of the Act, the
Departments will give priority to applications that demonstrate the
highest level of concurrence among State or Territorial partners with
the State or Territory's plan, and to applications that require paid,
high quality work-based learning experiences as an integral part of the
School-to-Work Opportunities system by assigning additional points--
above the 100 points described in the criteria--as follows:
(a) Highest Levels of Concurrence--5 Points
Up to 5 points will be awarded to applications that can fully
demonstrate that each of the State or Territorial partners listed in
section 213(b)(4) of the Act concurs with the State or Territory
School-to-Work Opportunities plan, and that the State or Territorial
partners' concurrence is backed by a commitment of time and resources
to implement the plan.
[[Page 29125]]
(b) Paid, High-quality Work-based Learning--10 Points
Up to 10 points will be awarded to applications that demonstrate
that the State or Territory--
(1) Has developed effective plans for requiring, to the maximum
extent feasible, paid, high-quality work experience as an integral part
of the State or Territory's School-to-Work Opportunities system, and
for offering the paid, high-quality work experiences to the largest
number of participating students and school dropouts as is feasible;
and
(2) Has established methods for ensuring consistently high quality
work-based learning experiences across the State or Territory.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.
Dated: May 20, 1997.
Raymond J. Uhalde,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training, Department of
Labor.
Patricia W. McNeil,
Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education, Department of
Education.
[FR Doc. 97-13966 Filed 5-28-97; 8:45 am]
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