[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 125 (Wednesday, June 28, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 39814]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-16124]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
34 CFR Part 694
Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs
AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.
ACTION: Final regulations; interpretation.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary interprets and clarifies sections of the
Department of Education's final regulations governing the Gaining Early
Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) program
that were published in the Federal Register on April 27, 2000 (65 FR
24756). The Secretary takes this action in response to questions that
have arisen about scholarships for GEAR UP students.
DATES: This interpretation is effective June 28, 2000.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rafael Ramirez, Office of
Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street,
NW, Room 6252, Washington, DC 20006. Telephone: (202) 502-7676. If you
use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call the
Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339. Individuals
with disabilities may obtain this document in an alternative format
(e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) on
request to the contact person listed.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In the GEAR UP regulations, in Sec. 694.10,
we require State and partnership grantees to monitor the treatment of
GEAR UP scholarships in relation to other aid GEAR UP students may
receive. Some colleges and universities have raised questions about the
applicability of the regulations to them.
The GEAR UP regulations govern the use of GEAR UP funds by GEAR UP
grantees. Accordingly, the GEAR UP regulations do not apply to
institutions that are not GEAR UP grantees or do not enroll any GEAR UP
students. Moreover, under the regulations, no institution is required
to enroll a GEAR UP student, and if it does so, that institution may
decline to order the student's aid in the manner required by the
regulations. In the latter case, however, it would be the grantee's
responsibility to inform the GEAR UP student that he or she could not
receive the GEAR UP scholarship to attend that institution. In this
case, the student would be free to attend that college without the GEAR
UP scholarship or another college that orders the aid in a manner
consistent with the regulations with the GEAR UP scholarship.
Waiver of Public Comment
In accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, it is the
practice of the Secretary to offer interested parties the opportunity
to comment on proposed rules. However, since this document only
clarifies and interprets an existing regulation, additional public
comment on this document is not required under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A).
Electronic Access to This Document
You may view this document in text or Adobe Portable Document
Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following sites:
http://ocfo.ed.gov/fedreg.htm
http://www.ed.gov/news.html
http://ifap.ed.gov/csb_html/fedlreg.htm
To use the PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at the first of the previous sites. If you have questions about
using the PDF, call the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), toll
free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in the Washington, DC area at (202) 512-
1530.
Note: The official version of this document is the document
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 84.334 Gaining Early
Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Program)
Dated: June 21, 2000.
A. Lee Fritschler,
Assistant Secretary, Office of Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 00-16124 Filed 6-27-00; 8:45 am]
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