students to a single local or regional educational agency that provides secondary school services to secondary school students in the same attendance area, a State shall distribute to that local or regional educational agency any amounts under paragraph (a) of this section that would otherwise have been allocated to LEAS operating only elementary schools.

(2) If an LEA that operates only elementary schools sends its graduating students to two or more local or regional educational agencies that provide secondary school services to secondary students in the same attendance area, the State shall distribute to those local or regional educational agencies an amount based on the proportionate number of students each agency received in the previous year from the LEA that operates only elementary schools.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2395b(b))

408.31 What are the requirements regarding a parent/community coordinator? 408.32 What are the requirements regarding a Council of Advisors?

408.33 What are the requirements regarding other center personnel?

408.34 What are the evaluation requirements?

AUTHORITY: 20 U.S.C. 2396, unless otherwise

noted.

SOURCE: 57 FR 36767, Aug. 14, 1992, unless otherwise noted.

Subpart A-General

§ 408.1 What is the Community Education Employment Centers Program?

The Community Education Employment Centers Program provides financial assistance to establish and evaluate model high school community education employment centers to provide low-income urban and rural youth with the education, skills, support services, and enrichment necessary to ensure

(a) Graduation from secondary school;

(b) Successful transition from secondary school to a broad range of postsecondary educational institutions:

and

(c) Employment, including military service.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2396 and 2396a)

§ 408.2 Who is eligible for an award?

(a) A public secondary school or area vocational education school is eligible for an award under the Community Education Employment Centers Program if the school

(1) Is located in or serves one or more local educational agencies that are eligible for assistance under section 1006 of chapter 1 of title 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (chapter 1) (20 U.S.C. 2712); and

(2) Demonstrates that it will serve a student population that is predominantly educationally and economically disadvantaged.

(b) For purposes of paragraph (a)(2) of this section, an eligible recipient is considered to be serving

(1) A predominately educationally disadvantaged population if over 75

percent of the students to be served are individuals—

(i) Who score at or below the 25th percentile on a standardized achievement or aptitude test;

(ii) Whose secondary school grades are below 2.0 on a 4.0 scale (grade “A” equals 4.0); or

(iii) Who fail to attain minimal academic competencies; and

(2) A predominately economically disadvantaged population if over 75 percent of the students to be served can be classified as economically disadvantaged individuals according to the definition of that term in 34 CFR 400.4.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2396f and 23961(1))

§ 408.3 What activities may the Secretary fund?

(a) The Secretary provides grants and cooperative agreements for community education employment centers.

(b) Each project assisted by the Sec=retary must

(1) Operate a community education employment center on an extended year and extended day basis;

(2) Establish a collegial working environment, with substantial opportunities for staff training and development and shared decision-making;

(3) Maintain small class sizes, and to the extent possible, maintain an average class size of 15 students or fewer;

(4) Offer a broad array of secondary school course-work, including, to the extent possible

(i) English, mathematics, history, geography, biology, chemistry, physics, and computer science;

(ii) Opportunities for student participation in a wide range of extracurricular activities, including community service and exploration, sports, fine and performing arts, and tutorial study sessions;

(iii) A comprehensive vocationaltechnical education program that—

(A) Was developed through regular consultation with employer-labor panels with knowledge of relevant industries; and

(B) Offers skills in planning, management, finances, technical and production skills, underlying principles of technology, labor and community issues, economic development and

health, safety, and environment issues; and

(iv) Courses in health, nutrition, and parenting;

(5) Offer students on-site opportunities for assistance with career planning and decision-making, employability, entrepreneurial abilities, interpersonal communication skills, and remedial studies;

(6) Maintain an emphasis on the development of academic skills, regardless of student career objectives;

(7) Provide technical assistance and training to staff from other schools and local educational agencies within the State that wish to replicate community education employment center capabilities;

(8) Seek to use community organizations to provide support for educational activities and services to parents and students;

(9) Offer school-to-work transition services;

(10) Establish a support system to coordinate services for students as described in § 408.30;

(11) Meet the requirements regarding center personnel in §§ 408.31 and 408.33; and

(12) Meet the requirements regarding a Council of Advisors in § 408.32.

(c) Projects assisted by the Secretary under this part may organize community education employment centers into one or more programs specializing in different areas of study of particular interest and employment opportunities for the student population.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2396b, 2396c, and 2396d(a))

§ 408.4 What regulations apply?

The following regulations apply to the Community Education Employment Centers Program:

(a) The regulations in this part 408. (b) The regulations in 34 CFR part 400.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2396a-2396m)

§ 408.5 What definitions apply?

(a) The definitions in 34 CFR 400.4 apply to this part.

(b) The following definition also applies to this part:

Parent includes a legal guardian or other person standing in loco parentis. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 23961)

Subpart B-How Does One Apply for an Award?

§ 408.10 What must an application contain?

An application must

(a) Contain information demonstrating that the area where the center is to be located has a high concentration of children from low-income families, relative to the county and State as a whole, such as proof of eligibility for an award under section 1006 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act; (b) Describe the activities and services for which assistance is sought;

(c) Describe how the applicant will comply with the provisions of §§ 408.2, 408.3, and 408.30 through 403.34;

(d) Provide assurances that the State and local educational agencies in which the applicant is located or serves will, in any fiscal year, supply at least the same fiscal effort per student, with respect to the provision of free public education, to community education employment center students as the local educational agency provides for students attending secondary schools in the local educational agency;

(e) Describe how the applicant will use funding available from appropriate employment, training, and education programs in the State in order to provide a maximum amount of resources for instructional and student services; and

(f) Provide assurances that the community education employment center will coordinate the operations of the center with local postsecondary institutions, business, industry, labor, and other appropriate public and private community agencies in order to help meet local economic needs.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under Control No. 1830-0013) (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2396g)

Subpart C-How Does the
Secretary Make an Award?

§ 408.20 What awards does the Sec retary make?

The Secretary makes awards to establish and operate not more than 10 community education employment centers for up to five years. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2396a)

§ 408.21 How does the Secretary evalu ate an application?

(a) The Secretary evaluates an appli cation on the basis of the criteria in § 408.22.

(b) The Secretary may award up to 100 points, including a reserved 15 points to be distributed in accordance with paragraph (d) of this section. based on the criteria in § 408.22.

(c) Subject to paragraph (d) of this section, the maximum possible score for each criterion is indicated in parentheses after the heading for each criterion.

(d) For each competition, as announced in a notice published in the FEDERAL REGISTER, the Secretary may assign the reserved 15 points among the criteria in § 408.22.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2396a-2396m)

§ 408.22 What selection criteria does the Secretary use?

The Secretary uses the following criteria to evaluate an application:

(a) Program factors. (10 points) The Secretary reviews the quality of the proposed project to assess the extent to which

(1) The center will be located in an urban or rural area that has a high concentration of children from low-income families, relative to the county and State as a whole;

(2) Activities and services will be provided to low-income urban and rural youth with education, skills, and the enrichment necessary to ensure graduation from secondary school, transition from secondary school to postsecondary school, or employment;

(3) Proposed activities will be coordi nated with the entities listed in

§ 408.10(f) to ensure that the operations of the community education employment center will help meet current and projected occupational needs in the area;

(4) In-service training will be provided for community education employment center teachers in techniques, procedures, and policies relevant to the community education employment center;

(5) Support services will be provided to meet the requirements of §408.30; and

(6) Parental and community partici#pation will be provided for, as required in §408.31.

(b) Educational significance. (10 points) The Secretary reviews each application to determine the extent to which the applicant

(1) Bases the proposed community education employment center on successful model education programs that I include components similar to the components required by this program, as evidenced by empirical data from those programs on such factors as

(i) Student performance, achievement, and learning gains in vocational competencies and skills;

(ii) Student performance, achievement, and learning gains in such subjects as English, mathematics, history, geography, biology, chemistry, physics, and computer science as measured by standardized tests;

(iii) High school graduation;

(iv) Placement of students in jobs, including military service; and

(v) Successful transfer of students to a wide variety of postsecondary educational programs;

(2) Proposes project objectives that contribute to the improvement of education; and

(3) Proposes to use unique and innovative techniques to produce benefits that address educational problems and needs that are of national significance.

(c) Plan of operation. (15 points) The Secretary reviews each application to determine the quality of the plan of operation for the project, including

(1) The quality of the design of the project, especially the establishment of measurable objectives for the project that are based on the project's overall goals;

(2) The extent to which the plan of management is effective and ensures proper and efficient administration of the project over the award period;

(3) How well the objectives of the project relate to the purpose of the program;

(4) The quality of the applicant's plan to use its resources and personnel to achieve each objective; and

(5) How the applicant will ensure that project participants who are otherwise eligible to participate are selected without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, or disability.

(d) Evaluation plan. (15 points) The Secretary reviews each application to determine the quality of the project's evaluation plan, including the extent to which the plan

(1) Is clearly explained and is appropriate to the project, including the provision for meeting and reporting on the requirements in § 408.34;

(2) To the extent possible, is objective and will produce data that are quantifiable;

(3) Identifies expected outcomes of the services provided to participants and how those outcomes will be measured;

(4) Includes activities during the formative stages of the project to help guide and improve the project, as well as a summative evaluation that includes recommendations for replicating project activities and results;

(5) Will provide a comparison between intended and observed results, and lead to the demonstration of a clear link between the observed results and the specific treatment of project participants; and

(6) Will yield results that can be summarized and submitted to the Secretary for review by the Department's Program Effectiveness Panel.

(e) Demonstration and dissemination. (10 points) The Secretary reviews each application to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of the plan for demonstrating and disseminating information about the project activities and results throughout the project period, including

(1) High quality in the design of the demonstration and dissemination plan

and procedures for evaluating the effectiveness of the dissemination plan;

(2) Provisions for publicizing the project at the local, State, and national levels by conducting or delivering presentations at conferences, workshops, and other professional meetings and by preparing materials for journal articles, newsletters, and brochures;

(3) Provisions for demonstrating the methods and techniques used by the project to others interested in replicating those methods and techniques, such as by inviting them to observe project activities;

(4) A description of the types of materials the applicant plans to make available to help others replicate project activities and the methods for making the materials available; and

(5) Provisions for assisting and training others to adopt and successfully implement the project or methods and techniques used by the project.

(f) Key personnel. (10 points) (1) The Secretary reviews each application to determine the quality of key personnel the applicant plans to use on the project, including

(i) The qualifications, in relation to project requirements, of the project director;

(ii) The qualifications, in relation to project requirements, of each of the other key personnel to be used in the project, including the parent/community coordinator and personnel who will be employed to meet the requirements in § 408.33;

(iii) The appropriateness of the time that each person referred to in paragraphs (f)(1)(i) and (ii) of this section will commit to the project; and

(iv) How the applicant, as part of its nondiscriminatory employment practices, will ensure that its personnel are selected for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, or disability.

(2) To determine personnel qualifications under paragraphs (f)(1)(i) and (ii) of this section, the Secretary consid

ers

(i) The experience and training of key personnel in project management and in fields related to the objectives of the project; and

(ii) Any other qualifications of key personnel that pertain to the quality of the project.

(g) Budget and cost effectiveness. (10 points) The Secretary reviews each application to determine the extent to which the budget

(1) Is cost effective and adequate to support the project activities;

(2) Contains costs that are reasonable and necessary in relation to the objectives of the project;

(3) Proposes using funds available from appropriate employment, training, and education agencies in the State to provide project services and activities, and using non-Federal resources of community organizations to provide the support services described in § 408.30; and

(4) Proposes using funds or resources available from the State or local educational agency in which the center will be located or will serve to acquire community education employment center equipment and facilities in order to provide a maximum amount of resources for instructional and student services.

(h) Adequacy of resources and commi ment. (5 points) (1) The Secretary views each application to assess the adequacy of resources the applicant plans to devote to the project. The Secretary considers the extent to which

(i) The facilities that the applicant plans to use are adequate; and

(ii) The equipment and supplies that the applicant plans to use are adequate.

(2) The Secretary reviews each application to determine the commitment to the project, including whether the

(i) Uses of non-Federal resources are adequate to provide project services and activities, especially resources of community organizations and State and local educational agencies; and

(ii) Applicant has the capacity to continue, expand, and build upon the project when Federal assistance under this part ends.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under Control No. 1830-0013) (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2396e, 2396g, and 2396h)