2020-13480.pdf

37636 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 121 / Tuesday, June 23, 2020 / Notices

1 See CARES Act, Sec. 18001(a)(3).

Venue and Attorney Fees

Additionally, should it become necessary for the Navigation District to file suit to collect any delinquent User Fees or to enforce any provision of this Ordinance, the party obligated herein to pay such User Fees under this section or the party against whom enforcement of the User Fee is sought consents to such suit being filed in the appropriate Federal District Court in Jefferson County, Texas. The Navigation District shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees from the person sued under this provision.

Criminal Penalties (Texas Water Code § 60.078)

The failure to file accurate reporting forms or to remit User Fees required by this Ordinance shall be a misdemeanor.

Punishment of the misdemeanor will be by a fine of not more than $200.00 for each offense or violation. Each failure to file the required accurate report form or pay any User Fee is a separate violation.

Severability

If any provision of this Ordinance or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of this Ordinance that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this Ordinance are severable.

Notice

Pursuant to § 60.075(c) of the Texas Water Code, a descriptive caption stating the purpose of this Ordinance and penalty for its violation will be published for a ten (10) day period following the passage in every issue of the Beaumont Enterprise, a newspaper of general circulation in the Navigation District.

This User Fee Ordinance was passed at a Regular Meeting of the Commissioners of the Sabine Neches Navigation District held on the

Approved by:

R.D. James, Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works).

[FR Doc. 2020–13420 Filed 6–22–20; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3720–58–P

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) for the FY 2020 Education Stabilization Fund—Reimagine Workforce Preparation (ESF–RWP) Grants Program

AGENCY: Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education, Department of Education.

ACTION: Supplemental notice.

SUMMARY: The Department of Education (Department) is issuing an NIA for eligible applicants for the FY 2020 ESF– RWP Grants program under section 18001(a)(3) of Division B of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number 84.425G. This notice relates to the approved information collection under OMB control number 1894–0006.

This supplemental notice supersedes the notice published on April 27, 2020 at https://oese.ed.gov/offices/education-stabilization-fund/states-highest-coronavirus-burden/.

DATES:

Applications Available: June 23, 2020.

Deadline for Notice of Intent to Apply:

July 13, 2020.

Deadline for Transmittal of

Applications: August 24, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Pre-Application Information: The Department will post additional information for prospective applicants on the ESF–RWP program website: https://cte.ed.gov/grants/ funding-opportunities.

For the addresses for obtaining and submitting an application, please refer to our Common Instructions for Applicants to Department of Education Discretionary Grant Programs, published in the Federal Register on February 13, 2019 (84 FR 3768) and available at www.govinfo.gov/content/ pkg/FR-2019-02-13/pdf/2019-02206.pdf.

The addresses pertinent to this program, including the addresses for obtaining and submitting an application, can be found under

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin Berg, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Room 11113, PCP, Washington, DC 20202. Telephone:

(202) 245–6792. Email: ESF-RWP@ ed.gov.

If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1–800–877– 8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description Purpose of Program: The purpose of the ESF–RWP Grants program is to provide support to help States with the highest coronavirus 1 burden create or expand short-term education and training opportunities and/or or career pathways programs that help citizens return to work, become entrepreneurs, or expand their small businesses (as described under Absolute Priority 1); or to enable States to create or expand small business incubators that offer education and training, mentorship, as well as shared facilities and resources that will help small businesses recover and grow and new entrepreneurs thrive (as described under Absolute Priority 2).

Short-term educational programs or career pathways programs created or expanded under Absolute Priority 1 of this program must lead to certificates, badges, micro-credentials, licenses, or other workplace-relevant credentials that respond to the needs of employers or facilitate entrepreneurship. By definition, career pathways programs must also enable participants who have not already completed a high school diploma or equivalent to earn such a diploma or equivalent. Short-term educational and career pathways programs supported under this program must create opportunities for individuals to more rapidly prepare for, and over time adapt to, changing workplace needs or to start or grow a small business.

Grant funds may be used under Absolute Priority 1 to develop and implement short-term education and training programs and/or career pathways programs, hire qualified instructors, procure necessary equipment and supplies, and subsidize tuition and fees for individuals enrolled in these or existing short-term educational, workforce development or career pathways programs so that they can quickly gain entry to the workforce or become entrepreneurs without taking on debt. Funds may also be used to provide student uniforms, protective gear, student support services and transportation vouchers for all students, as well as childcare support for student-parents who are enrolled in education and training programs supported by programs developed under this grant program.

Unlike traditional degree and certificate programs which are typically designed by educators, this grant program is designed to support efforts led by State Workforce Development

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37637 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 121 / Tuesday, June 23, 2020 / Notices

2 For example, the NICE Framework (https:// niccs.us-cert.gov/workforce-development/cyber-security-workforce-framework) should be utilized for the development of programs preparing individuals to meet the demands of cybersecurity in various aspects of the information technology industry, and the Department of Labor has supported the development of a number of industry-led competency frameworks for use in designing education and training programs that meet employer needs (see https://www.urban.org/ policy-centers/center-labor-human-services-and-population/projects/competency-based-occupational-frameworks-registered-apprenticeships and https:// www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel/).

3 U.S. Department of Labor, ‘‘Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Program,’’ https:// www.apprenticeship.gov/industry-recognized-apprenticeship-program.

4 The White House, ‘‘U.S. Unemployment Rate Falls to 50-Year Low,’’ October 4, 2019, https:// www.whitehouse.gov/articles/u-s-unemployment-rate-falls-50-year-low/.

Boards, in partnership with groups of employers, industry organizations, and education and training partners to identify workplace competencies, develop curriculum and assessments that help workers gain and demonstrate those competencies, and establish a credentialing system that employers will use to make hiring and promotion decisions within their organizations.

The Department encourages applicants to review existing occupational frameworks and incorporate them, to the extent possible, in their efforts. The program does not seek to fund the development of new occupational frameworks where existing frameworks that have been endorsed by employers or industry sectors already exist.2

While grants will be made to State Workforce Boards, these recipients may partner with business and trade organizations, employers or groups of employers, Standards Recognition Entities (SREs),3 Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs), third-party intermediaries who help employers design and implement work-based learning programs, and other education and training providers.

This grant program also supports a second activity, which is designed to cultivate entrepreneurship by supporting the development of small business incubators located on the campuses of, or developed in association with, colleges and universities. These incubators provide, among other things, short-term educational and training programs or continuing education courses to help entrepreneurs establish and grow their businesses, comply with or exceed industry standards, and meet State and occupational health, safety and licensure requirements. In addition to educational offerings, small business incubators also provide mentorship from faculty and other business professionals, and typically offer shared space, services, staffing and equipment to help small businesses get started and grow.

These small business incubators create new opportunities for colleges and universities to expand their offerings and create new revenue streams so that institutions can also become entrepreneurial at a time when declining enrollments and COVID–19 related disruptions may result in longer-term underutilization of campus facilities. In this regard, these funds assist in the stabilization of institutions and the local economy.

Background: Section 18001(a)(3) of the CARES Act directs the Secretary to allocate 1 percent of the Education Stabilization Fund appropriated by the Act to provide grants to States with the highest coronavirus burden to support education and training activities, as well as economic stabilization activities, described under section 18001 of the CARES Act or the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.

Our goals in administering these grants include, among other things, creating new education and training opportunities designed to help dislocated workers quickly return to employment, expanding postsecondary options and opportunities, and supporting entrepreneurship in stabilizing both the local economy and institutions of higher education, thus restoring pre-pandemic economic growth.

The Department will make awards to State Workforce Boards that, at the Governor’s direction, will award under Absolute Priority 1, subgrants to business organizations, trade associations, continuing education providers employer-based educational organizations, labor organizations, education and training organizations and institutions of higher education to create or expand innovative education and training opportunities, primarily through short-term educational programs and career pathways programs that are responsive to rapidly changing economic conditions, provide new opportunities for education providers to help more individuals meet employer needs and workforce demands, and/or help entrepreneurs succeed in rebuilding their businesses and finding new opportunities for growth.

This program will also engage States in developing mechanisms—such as creating competency exams and evaluations, developing tracking systems to monitor participant outcomes, and administering employer satisfaction surveys—for assuring the quality of short-term educational programs and for engaging business leaders in their development, implementation, and assessment.

Under Absolute Priority 2, State Workforce Boards will make subgrants available to colleges and universities, and/or college or university-affiliated entities, to support the development or expansion of campus-based or campus-affiliated small business incubator programs and facilities. The goal under Absolute Priority 2 is to improve the sustainability of institutions of higher education, expand learning opportunities in the State, support the continued employment of faculty and staff at educational organizations, and create new opportunities for entrepreneurs and small business owners to grow, become more resilient and thrive.

State Workforce Boards function under the Governor’s direction, and include representatives of education, small business, labor and economic development, making them well suited to administer these grants on behalf of a State. Grants may support, through subgrants or contractual relationships, a variety of entities, including state higher education agencies, institutions of higher education, and other postsecondary and continuing education and training providers. Non-traditional educational providers, including those engaged in apprenticeship and other work-based learning opportunities (such as training providers under Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) title I programs), National Apprenticeship sponsors, and Standards Recognition Entities are eligible to receive funds, through subgrants, as part of an ESF– RWP Grant project.

The coronavirus pandemic created a public health crisis that in turn generated a precipitous economic crisis unlike any we have seen in recent history. The economic challenges of today were not born of business failures, lack of good ideas, or declining consumer demand. In fact, prior to the outbreak of COVID–19, economic growth was stronger than ever before and unemployment was at its lowest point in fifty years.4 Moreover, prior to the pandemic, unemployment among underrepresented minorities and individuals with disabilities was at its lowest rate in history.

However, when businesses were asked to close their doors, employees were required to work from home, and consumers were forced to find new

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S https://niccs.us-cert.gov/workforce-development/cyber-security-workforce-framework https://niccs.us-cert.gov/workforce-development/cyber-security-workforce-framework https://niccs.us-cert.gov/workforce-development/cyber-security-workforce-framework https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/u-s-unemployment-rate-falls-50-year-low/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/u-s-unemployment-rate-falls-50-year-low/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/u-s-unemployment-rate-falls-50-year-low/ https://www.apprenticeship.gov/industry-recognized-apprenticeship-program https://www.apprenticeship.gov/industry-recognized-apprenticeship-program https://www.apprenticeship.gov/industry-recognized-apprenticeship-program https://www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel/ https://www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel/ https://www.urban.org/policy-centers/center-labor-human-services-and-population/projects/competency-based-occupational-frameworks-registered-apprenticeships https://www.urban.org/policy-centers/center-labor-human-services-and-population/projects/competency-based-occupational-frameworks-registered-apprenticeships https://www.urban.org/policy-centers/center-labor-human-services-and-population/projects/competency-based-occupational-frameworks-registered-apprenticeships https://www.urban.org/policy-centers/center-labor-human-services-and-population/projects/competency-based-occupational-frameworks-registered-apprenticeships https://www.urban.org/policy-centers/center-labor-human-services-and-population/projects/competency-based-occupational-frameworks-registered-apprenticeships

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5 J.P. Morgan Chase and Company, Small Businesses are an Anchor of the U.S. Economy, n.d.

Retrieved from: https://www.jpmorganchase.com/ corporate/institute/small-business-economic.htm.

6 U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce, Number of Firms, Number of Establishments, Employment, and Annual Payroll by Enterprise Employment Size for the United States and States, Totals: 2017. Retrieved from:

https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/susb/ tables/2017/us_state_totals_2017.xlsx?#.

7 https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ETA/ grants/pdfs/FOA-ETA-18-08.pdf.

8 Barnow, Burt S., and Shayne Spaulding. 2015.

‘‘Employer Involvement in Workforce Programs:

What Do We Know?’’ In Transforming U.S.

Workforce Development Policies for the 21st Century, edited by Carl Van Horn, Tammy Edwards, and Todd Greene. Atlanta, GA: Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, and Rutgers University.

9 This type of action can also be described as a logic model, as defined by 34 CFR 77.1.

ways to obtain goods and services—to protect public health—many workers found themselves suddenly unemployed.

The pandemic also had a tremendous impact on the many small businesses that anchor communities and drive the local and national economy. Almost all of America’s businesses are small businesses,5 and 89 percent have fewer than 20 employees.6 As Governors and local officials issued COVID–19 stay at home orders to protect the health of citizens, there has been a dramatic, negative impact on the small business community across the United States.

The pandemic also had an unprecedented impact on the nation’s colleges and universities, forcing most to abandon use of their ground-based classrooms and campus facilities and engage in various modalities of distance learning. With some already struggling under declining enrollments, and others concerned that students will wait out a semester before returning to campus, there is concern that many institutions will not be able to enroll enough students to continue the employment of faculty and staff and maintain campus operations through the end of the calendar year. As a result, institutions must become entrepreneurial in finding new ways to more quickly meet the needs of students, employers, and their local community—and to do so at lower cost and in ways that generate significantly less student debt.

Institutions must find new uses for campus facilities that create novel revenue streams and expand the kinds of high-quality short-term learning opportunities available for students. In addition, States must do more to help those who lack a high school diploma or equivalency prepare for jobs and earn a post-secondary credential.

Institutions of higher education are not alone in their ability to provide high quality postsecondary education and training opportunities, and thus are not the sole entities eligible for subgrants under this program. The U.S.

Department of Labor has identified the capacity of employers and trade associations in various industry sectors to work collaboratively to expand the number of high quality apprenticeship opportunities made available to prepare individuals for in-demand jobs without the burden of Direct Loan student debt.7 Moreover, employer participation in education and training programs improves the earnings and employment outcomes of program participant when compared to education provided without deep employer engagement.8 We believe that sector-based strategies can be equally or more effective than traditional college or university programs in providing short-term educational programs and training opportunities that help individuals continue their education and advance in their careers.

We applaud the Department of Labor for its efforts, and plan to leverage what we have learned from them and their successes to similarly employ sector-based strategies in expanding the number and types of education and training opportunities available to individuals, employers, and communities. Sector-based education, training, and credentialing strategies ensure the critical mass needed to sustain these programs and to ensure the long-term value of credentials earned.

Education and training opportunities supported with these funds can include Registered Apprenticeship Program Programs (RAP) and Industry Recognized Apprenticeship Programs (IRAPs), as well as other work-based learning and continuing education programs, and funds can support the development of curriculum or assessment tools as well as systems to maintain student records and verify credentials earned by students who complete these programs.

These funds may also be used to provide student stipends for work-based learning opportunities; subsidize tuition and fees for short-term educational programs and career pathways programs; procure or rent equipment and supplies necessary for instruction and assessment; provide pre-apprenticeship, adult education and literacy activities (as defined in this notice), including integrated education and training (as defined in this notice);

provide supportive services for participants, including childcare vouchers and transportation vouchers, career guidance and academic counseling; and develop and implement interoperable learning record systems that record and communicate to potential employers verifiable information about an individual’s credentials, skills, and achievements.

The Department of Education wishes to ensure that individuals, employers, educators and training providers have access to the most complete, current and beneficial information about providers, programs and credentials supported with these grant funds. To this end, the Department requires that information about all credentials (including but not limited to badges, certificates, certifications, licenses, and degrees of all levels and types) and competencies (knowledge, skills and abilities) developed or delivered through the use of these Federal funds be made publicly accessible through the use of linked open data formats that support full transparency and interoperability, such as through the use of credential transparency description language specifications.

Under Absolute Priority 2, funds may be used to convert underutilized campus-based or campus-affiliated facilities to small business incubators, to hire staff to operate the facility, to subsidize wages of faculty and entrepreneurs-in-residence, to purchase or rent equipment that will serve as a shared resource for incubator occupants or support the work of the incubator’s administrative staff, to subsidize the cost to participants of enrolling in short-courses or continuing education opportunities and to subsidize on a sliding scale the rent paid by small businesses that are operating out of or using space, facilities or shared equipment or services provided by the incubator.

Applicants are encouraged to develop innovative solutions that move beyond traditional education and training regimes. The proposed project design should be supported by evidence that meets the standard of demonstrates a rationale (as defined in this notice).

Applications may provide a framework that identifies key components on how the proposed strategy, program, or activity is informed by research or by the positive outcomes of earlier efforts that are similar to or serve as the foundation for the proposed project.9 These positive outcomes must suggest the proposed activity is likely to improve relevant outcomes (as defined in this notice). We encourage evidence that demonstrates a rationale for the proposed activity to ensure that some

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37639 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 121 / Tuesday, June 23, 2020 / Notices preliminary work has been done to demonstrate the merit of the proposal, while at the same time inviting the broadest possible range of innovative solutions that may not yet have been tested at scale or evaluated through experimental or quasi-experimental design.

Priorities: This notice contains two absolute priorities and three competitive preference priorities. We are establishing these priorities for the FY 2020 grant competition and any subsequent year in which we make awards from the list of unfunded applications from this competition, in accordance with section 437(d)(1) of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA), 20 U.S.C. 1232(d)(1).

Absolute Priorities: These priorities are absolute priorities. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that meet one of the two absolute priorities. The Secretary intends to award grants under each of Absolute Priorities 1 and 2 for which applications of sufficient quality are submitted. Because applications will be placed in rank order separately by Absolute Priority, applicants must clearly identify whether the proposed project addresses either Absolute Priority 1 or Absolute Priority 2. Each State Workforce Board may submit only one application under this competition that addresses either absolute priority, but not both.

These priorities are:

Absolute Priority 1 Projects that will focus on:

(a) Creating, developing, implementing, replicating, or taking to scale short-term educational programs and training courses or programs, and/ or career pathways programs, including those focused on facilitating and strengthening entrepreneurship and small business ownership. Applicants must propose a project that focuses on one or more of the following activities:

(1) Helping displaced workers return to gainful employment; (2) helping new workers enter jobs within in-demand industry sectors or occupations (as identified at the national, State or local level); (3) transitioning underemployed workers to new fields, or (4) assisting small business owners to gain the skills needed to create new businesses or grow current businesses and become more resilient; and/or

(b) Funding the creation, development, implementation, replication, or scaling of industry sector-based education and training models and programs that:

(1) Are initiated and organized by employer stakeholders, which may include business leaders, trade associations, professional societies or community businesses organizations;

(2) May partner with institutions of higher education or other post-secondary education and training providers; and

(3) May include the engagement of third-party intermediaries, which are organizations that help bridge the gap between employers and educational institutions to the benefit of students.

Projects under Absolute Priority 1(a) and 1(b) may include apprenticeships and other work-based learning programs and must provide individuals the opportunity to earn badges, certifications, micro-credentials, licenses, or other credentials that employers affirmatively signal will contribute to qualifying a candidate for employment or promotion in an in-demand industry sector or occupation (as defined in this notice).

Competitive Preference Priority 1:

Within this absolute priority, we give competitive preference to applications that address the following priority:

Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i) we award up to an additional five points to an application that meets Competitive Preference Priority 1. This priority is:

Competitive Preference Priority 1— Distance Education

The extent to which an application that proposes a project in which the short-term educational programs and training programs described above include didactic education that will be principally delivered through distance education (as defined in this notice); or

Competitive Preference Priority 2:

Within this absolute priority, we give competitive preference to applications that serve lifelong learners in distressed communities.

We will award up to an additional three points to an application that addresses:

Competitive Preference Priority 2— Serving Lifelong Learners in Distressed Communities (0 to 3 points)

The extent to which an application proposes a project that focuses on the unique needs of individuals who reside in rural communities or Opportunity Zones, and that is designed to enable economic growth and development in those regions. This could include focusing primarily on in-demand jobs available to individuals in these communities, aligning education and job training opportunities with the strategic planning goals for economic development in the community, or meeting the unique needs of individuals who may have challenges related to transportation, childcare or limitations in access to technology associated with living and working in these communities.

For purposes of this competition, we will consider a community as rural if the community meets qualifications for rural applicants established in section 114(e)(5)(A) of Perkins V, and the applicant certifies that it meets those qualifications in its application.

Opportunity Zones must be census tracts designated by the Secretary of the Treasury under section 1400Z–1 of the Internal Revenue Code. An applicant must provide the census tract numbers of the Qualified Opportunity Zone(s) in which it proposes to provide services.

Absolute Priority 2 Projects that will focus on creating or supporting one or more IHE-based or IHE-affiliated small business incubators that leverage the facilities and/or instructional resources of one or more IHEs to support high-quality job growth, the establishment of small businesses important to the local economy or the development of technology commercialization. Applicants must propose a plan to provide education, training and mentorship; offer shared facilities, services, space or equipment;

and facilitate partnerships and networks among business leaders that help entrepreneurs start or expand their core businesses or develop business adjacencies that will enable them expand into new markets, products or services.

Competitive Preference Priority 3:

Within absolute priority 2, we give competitive preference to applications that address the following priority:

Competitive Preference Priority 3— Serving Entrepreneurs and Businesses in Distressed Communities (0 to 3 points)

(a) The applicant will locate the business incubator, or include as an affiliated partner in managing and administering an off-campus business incubator, at least one minority-serving institution of higher education that is eligible to receive assistance under sections 316 through 320 of part A of Title III, under part B of Title III, or under Title V of the Higher Education Act of 1965. An applicant must identify the minority-serving institution of higher education with which it will partner; or

(b) The applicant will locate the IHE-affiliated business incubator in a rural community or Opportunity Zone in order to support the business development goals of those communities and to enable businesses

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10 Federal Register, Vol 85, No. 48, Wednesday, March 11, 2020, pgs. 14294–14392 (https:// www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2020-03-11/pdf/ 2020-03605.pdf. 11 29 U.S.C. 3102(7).

that are located in those regions and that employ individuals who live in those communities to thrive.

For purposes of this competition, we will consider a community as rural if the community meets qualifications for rural applicants established in section 114(e)(5)(A) of Perkins V, and the applicant certifies that it meets those qualifications in its application.

Opportunity Zones must be census tracts designated by the Secretary of the Treasury under section 1400Z–1 of the Internal Revenue Code. An applicant must provide the census tract numbers of the Qualified Opportunity Zone(s) in which it proposes to provide services.

Definitions: The definitions of ‘‘demonstrates a rationale,’’ ‘‘performance measure,’’ ‘‘performance target,’’ ‘‘project component,’’ and ‘‘relevant outcome’’ are from 34 CFR

77.1. The definition of ‘‘work-based

learning’’ is from section 3 of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006, as amended by the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act. The definition of ‘‘institution of higher education’’ is from section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). The definitions of ‘‘career pathway,’’ ‘‘dislocated worker,’’ and ‘‘recognized postsecondary credential’’ are from section 3 of the WIOA (29 U.S.C. 3102). The definitions of ‘‘adult education and literacy activities’’ and ‘‘integrated education and training’’ are from section 203 of the WIOA. The definition of Registered Apprenticeship and the definition of an Industry Recognized Apprenticeship are provided by the U.S. Department of Labor.10 The definition of ‘‘State’’ is from section 18007 of the CARES Act.

We are establishing the definitions of ‘‘coronavirus burden,’’ ‘‘distance education,’’ ‘‘entrepreneurship education,’’ ‘‘industry sector-based education and training programs,’’ ‘‘industry-recognized credential,’’ ‘‘micro-credential,’’ ‘‘non-traditional education,’’ ‘‘pre-apprenticeship,’’ ‘‘small business incubator,’’ ‘‘short-term educational programs,’’ and ‘‘State Workforce Board,’’ ‘‘standards recognition entities,’’ ‘‘third-party intermediaries’’ for the FY 2020 grant competition and any subsequent year in which we make awards from the list of unfunded applications from this competition, in accordance with section 437(d)(1) of GEPA, 20 U.S.C. 1232(d)(1).

Adult education and literacy activities means programs, activities, and services that include adult education, literacy, workplace adult education and literacy activities, family literacy activities, English language acquisition activities, integrated English literacy and civics education, workforce preparation activities, or integrated education and training.

Career pathway 11 means a combination of rigorous and high-quality education, training, and other services that—

(a) Aligns with the skill needs of industries in the economy of the State or regional economy involved;

(b) Prepares an individual to be successful in any of a full range of secondary or postsecondary education options, including apprenticeships programs registered under the Act of August 16, 1937 (commonly known as the ‘‘National Apprenticeship Act’’; 50 Stat. 664, chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.);

(c) Includes counseling to support an individual in achieving the individual’s education and career goals;

(d) Includes, as appropriate, education offered concurrently with and in the same context as workforce preparation activities and training for a specific occupation or occupational cluster;

(e) Organizes education, training, and other services to meet the particular needs of an individual in a manner that accelerates the educational and career advancement of the individual to the extent practicable;

(f) Enables an individual to attain a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent and at least one recognized postsecondary credential;

and

(g) Helps an individual enter or advance within a specific occupation or occupational cluster.

Coronavirus burden means burden on a State from coronavirus based on the measures in Appendix 1 and any measures identified by the applicant in response to Application Requirement 1.

Demonstrates a rationale means a key project component included in the project’s design is informed by research or evaluation findings that suggest the project component is likely to improve relevant outcomes.

Dislocated worker means an individual who—

(A)(i) Has been terminated or laid off, or who has received a notice of termination or layoff, from employment;

(ii)(I) Is eligible for or has exhausted entitlement to unemployment compensation; or

(II) Has been employed for a duration sufficient to demonstrate, to the appropriate entity at a one-stop center referred to in WIOA section 121(e), attachment to the workforce, but is not eligible for unemployment compensation due to insufficient earnings or having performed services for an employer that were not covered under a State unemployment compensation law; and

(iii) Is unlikely to return to a previous industry or occupation;

(B)(i) Has been terminated or laid off, or has received a notice of termination or layoff, from employment as a result of any permanent closure of, or any substantial layoff at, a plant, facility, or enterprise;

(ii) Is employed at a facility at which the employer has made a general announcement that such facility will close within 180 days; or

(iii) For purposes of eligibility to receive services other than training services described in WIOA section 134(c)(3), career services described in WIOA section 134(c)(2)(A)(xii), or supportive services, is employed at a facility at which the employer has made a general announcement that such facility will close;

(C) Was self-employed (including employment as a farmer, a rancher, or a fisherman) but is unemployed as a result of general economic conditions in the community in which the individual resides or because of natural disasters;

(D) Is a displaced homemaker; or (E)(i) Is the spouse of a member of the

Armed Forces on active duty (as defined in section 101(d)(1) of title 10, United States Code), and who has experienced a loss of employment as a direct result of relocation to accommodate a permanent change in duty station of such member; or

(ii) Is the spouse of a member of the Armed Forces on active duty and who meets the criteria described in WIOA section 3(16)(B).

Distance education means:

(1) Education that uses one or more of the technologies listed in paragraphs (2)(i) through (iv) of this definition to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor or instructors and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor or instructors, either synchronously or asynchronously.

(2) The technologies that may be used to offer distance education include—

(i) The internet;

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(ii) One-way and two-way transmissions through open broadcast, closed circuit, cable, microwave, broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite, or wireless communications devices;

(iii) Audio conference; or

(iv) Other media used in a course in conjunction with any of the technologies listed in paragraph (2)(i) through (iii) of this definition.

(3) For purposes of this definition, an instructor is an individual responsible for delivering course content and who meets the qualifications for instruction established by an institution’s accrediting agency.

(4) For purposes of this definition, substantive interaction is engaging students in teaching, learning, and assessment, consistent with the content under discussion, and also includes at least two of the following—

(i) Providing direct instruction;

(ii) Assessing or providing feedback on a student’s coursework;

(iii) Providing information or responding to questions about the content of a course or competency;

(iv) Facilitating a group discussion regarding the content of a course or competency; or

(v) Other instructional activities approved by the institution’s or program’s accrediting agency.

(5) An institution ensures regular interaction between a student and an instructor or instructors by, prior to the student’s completion of a course or competency—

(i) Providing the opportunity for substantive interactions with the student on a predictable and regular basis commensurate with the length of time and the amount of content in the course or competency; and

(ii) Monitoring the student’s academic engagement and success and ensuring that an instructor is responsible for promptly and proactively engaging in substantive interaction with the student when needed on the basis of such monitoring, or upon request by the student.

Entrepreneurship education means the preparation of an individual to start and operate a new business venture through the development of knowledge and skills associated with entrepreneurship, including, but not limited to—

(a) Understanding the nature, role, and challenges of the entrepreneur;

(b) Identifying and assessing opportunities for new business ventures;

(c) Preparing a business plan and budgets and forecasting resource needs;

(d) Understanding and anticipating financing requirements, including the use of capital and debt as a means to finance a new business venture, the various strategies for attracting financing, and the trade-offs associated with each strategy;

(e) Examining the various business structure options for a new business venture, and understanding the benefits and tradeoffs offered by available organizational forms for a new business venture;

(f) Understanding and anticipating personnel needs for a new business venture;

(g) Examining cost-effective technologies for a new business venture;

(h) Understanding how effectively to market and advertise, including through the use of social and digital media, a new business venture;

(i) Examining common key legal issues experienced by new business ventures; and

(j) Examining how to manage for the survival and growth of a new business venture.

Institution of higher education (IHE) means—

(a) An educational institution in any State that—

(1) Admits as regular students only persons having a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the recognized equivalent of such a certificate, or persons who meet the requirements of section 484(d) of the HEA;

(2) Is legally authorized within such State to provide a program of education beyond secondary education;

(3) Provides an educational program for which the institution awards a bachelor’s degree or provides not less than a 2-year program that is acceptable for full credit toward such a degree, or awards a degree that is acceptable for admission to a graduate or professional degree program, subject to review and approval by the Secretary;

(4) Is a public or other nonprofit institution; and

(5) Is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association or, if not so accredited, is an institution that has been granted preaccreditation status by such an agency or association that has been recognized by the Secretary for the granting of pre-accreditation status, and the Secretary has determined that there is satisfactory assurance that the institution will meet the accreditation standards of such an agency or association within a reasonable time.

(b) The term also includes:

(1) Any school that provides not less than a 1-year program of training to prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation and that meets the provisions of paragraphs (1), (2), (4), and (5) of subsection (a) of this definition; and

(2) A public or nonprofit private educational institution in any State that, in lieu of the requirement in subsection (a)(1) of this definition, admits as regular students individuals—

(A) Who are beyond the age of compulsory school attendance in the State in which the institution is located;

or

(B) Who will be dually or concurrently enrolled in the institution and a secondary school.

In-demand industry sector or occupation means: (1) An industry sector that has a substantial current or potential impact (including through jobs that lead to economic self-sufficiency and opportunities for advancement) on the State, regional or local economy, as appropriate, and that contributes to the growth or stability of other supporting businesses, or the growth of other industry sectors; or (2) an occupation that currently has or is projected to have a number of positions (including positions that lead to economic self-sufficiency and opportunities for advancement) in an industry sector so as to have a significant impact on the state, regional or local economy, as appropriate.12

Integrated education and training means a service approach that provides adult education and literacy activities concurrently and contextually with workforce preparation activities and workforce training for a specific occupation or occupational cluster for the purpose of educational and career advancement.

Industry recognized apprenticeship is a high-quality apprenticeship program, wherein an individual obtains workplace-relevant knowledge and progressively advancing skills, that include a paid-work component and an educational or instructional component, and that result in an industry-recognized credential. An IRAP is developed or delivered by entities such as trade and industry groups, corporations, non-profit organizations, educational institutions, unions, and joint labor-management organizations.

An IRAP is an apprenticeship program that has been recognized as a high-quality program by an SRE pursuant to 29 CFR 29.22(a)(4)(i) through (x) and otherwise meets the requirements of 29 CFR part 29, subpart B.

Industry-recognized credential means a credential that verifies a person’s qualifications or competence in

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performing specific skills or meeting specific industry performance requirements, and which employers rely upon in hiring and promotion decisions.

Industry sector-based education and training programs means programs that are designed to meet the training and education needs of a particular industry sector (or subsector)—such as advanced manufacturing, healthcare, transportation, information technology, cybersecurity, hospitality and tourism, personal services, etc.—as identified by business owners and leaders who work or represent companies in that sector, and that enable learners to enter employment or qualify for promotions at companies within the industry sector upon completion.

Micro-credential means certifications that verify an individual’s competence in a specific skill or set of skills within an occupation, and that meet the requirements of an industry-recognized credential as defined above.

Non-traditional education means education other than full-time, degree-yielding, ground-based classroom education and may include education and training that is delivered through distance learning, work based learning or virtual simulation modalities; by providers of sub-degree educational programs including employers, trade associations, unions, continuing education providers, non-accredited postsecondary providers and IHEs; or that result in credentials other than 2-year, 4-year or graduate degrees.

Performance measure means any quantitative indicator, statistic, or metric used to gauge program or project performance.

Performance target means a level of performance that an applicant would seek to meet during the course of a project or as a result of a project.

Pre-apprenticeship means a program or set of services designed to prepare individuals to enter and succeed in a Registered Apprenticeship program or an Industry Recognized Apprenticeship Program and has a documented partnership with at least one Registered Apprenticeship or Industry Recognized Apprenticeship program.

Project component means an activity, strategy, intervention, process, product, practice, or policy included in a project.

Evidence may pertain to an individual project component or to a combination of project components (e.g., training teachers on instructional practices for English learners and follow-on coaching for these teachers).

Recognized postsecondary credential means a credential consisting of an industry-recognized certificate or certification, a certificate of completion of an apprenticeship, a license recognized by the State involved or Federal Government, or an associate or baccalaureate degree.

Registered Apprenticeship means a program registered by the U.S.

Department of Labor or a U.S.

Department of Labor approved State Apprenticeship Agency that provides an industry-driven, high-quality career pathway where employers can develop and prepare their future workforce, and individuals can obtain paid work experience, classroom instruction, and a portable credential.13

Relevant outcome means the student outcome(s) or other outcome(s) the key project component is designed to improve, consistent with the specific goals of the program.

Small business incubator means a facility that is often on a IHE campus, or is affiliated with an IHE, that offers startup companies shared operation space, access to short-term classes and instruction, provides mentoring and networking opportunities, and provides access to shared facilities,…