September 5 at 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm Eastern
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On September 5, 2023, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) will conduct a Tribal Consultation on the Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions Program (TCPCTIP), Ready to Learn Programming (RTL or Ready to Learn, formerly Ready to Learn Television), and Education Innovation and Research (EIR). The purpose of this consultation will be to receive meaningful input from American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities to ensure that Tribal leader views inform these programs administered by ED. This consultation will advance the Department’s commitment to uphold the federal trust responsibility described in Executive Order 13175.

Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions Program

The Department is considering waiving the requirements of 34 CFR 75.250 and 34 CFR 75.261(c), which limit project periods to 60 months and restrict project period extensions that involve the obligation of additional Federal funds. This action would extend the project period for the two current TCPCTIP grantees awarded grants under Perkins V in 2019 for FY 2024 and FY 2025, effectively resulting in a two-year extension. This action would depend on Congress continuing to authorize and appropriate funds under the existing program authority and would require the grantees to continue meeting the TCPCTIP requirements. Moreover, the Department would not announce a new competition or make new awards in FY 2024 or FY 2025, or in future years, if Congress continues to authorize and appropriate funds under the existing program authority. Based on FY 2023 appropriations, the Department expects to use an estimated $11,953,000 for FY 2024 grant extensions and $11,953,000 for FY 2025 grant extensions. We will consider continuation award requests under the current TCPCTIP statutory authority, subject to the requirements of 34 CFR 75.253, including the requirement that each grantee demonstrates that it is making substantial progress performing its TCPCTIP grant activities based on the requirements in the 2019 notice inviting applications.

 The Department is considering this action to relieve the two TCPTIP grantees of the costs and time burden associated with submitting applications for a new competition in FY 2024. Please note that the Department took a similar action under Perkins IV; the Federal Register notice that announced the waivers under Perkins IV can be viewed here. TCPCTIP grantees first funded in 2007 received one-year grant extensions each year past the original project period until the Department conducted a new competition and made new awards under Perkins V in 2019.

Ready to Learn Programming

The Ready to Learn Programming (RTL) grant supports the development of educational ‘‘transmedia,’’ and grantees seek to create new, interrelated combinations of television and interactive media (games, apps, etc.) in which characters, narrative storylines, and problem-solving are used to support kindergarten readiness and early education for children ages 2-8. The RTL grant encourages partnerships that help promote the wider use of its educational media products in various settings, such as homes, daycare, libraries, museums, afterschool programs, and many other places where children learn. Tribal Consultation is critical to understand what subject matter content the focus of the next round of RTL (e.g., STEM, literacy, social-emotional learning, computational thinking) should be, and what strategies would be recommended for the dissemination and distribution of RTL-produced media and resources in reaching and serving Native communities and their young children.

Education Innovation and Research

The Education Innovation and Research (EIR) program supports efforts to use and build evidence on field-initiated innovation education to improve student achievement and attainment for high-needs students. Consultation is critical to understand what types of innovations are needed to serve Native communities, what emerging evidence exists on strategies to support students from Native communities, how EIR grantees might engage Native communities as potential implementation sites, what schools serving Native communities want to learn from EIR grantees, and how education leaders in Native communities might become involved as peer reviewers.

Written Comment Period

Written public comments for a topic will only be collected through the TribalConsultation@ed.gov email address. The comment period is now open, and all comments must be received by 11:59 p.m. ET on 10/05/2023. The Department of Education remains steadfast in its commitment to honor the nation-to-nation relationship and advance Tribal sovereignty and self-determination.

A Tribal government may designate information provided during the consultation as “sensitive” and request non-disclosure of the information to the public. Certain federal laws, including the Freedom of Information Act, may require disclosure of information designated sensitive by a Tribal government. Questions about this notice can be sent to TribalConsultation@ed.gov. This consultation is a closed press event.