FR Doc E9-26430[Federal Register: November 3, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 211)]
[Notices]
[Page 56826-56828]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr03no09-45]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records--National Longitudinal
Transition Study-2 (NLTS2)
AGENCY: Institute of Education Sciences, Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended
(Privacy Act), the U.S. Department of Education (Department) publishes
this notice of a new system of records entitled ``National Longitudinal
Transition Study-2 (NLTS2)'' (18-13-23).
In 2001, the Department funded the NLTS2 to provide a national
picture of the characteristics, experiences, and outcomes of secondary
school students with disabilities as they complete secondary school and
transition to young adulthood. NLTS2 includes the study of a sample of
more than 11,000 youth from the population of 13 through 16 year olds
receiving special education services in seventh grade or above in
December of 2000. The sample is nationally representative of the types
of disabilities, as defined by the 12 Federal special education
disability categories, in this population.
DATES: The Department seeks comment on the new system of records
described in this notice, in accordance with the requirements of the
Privacy Act. We must receive your comments on the proposed routine uses
for the system of records referenced in this notice on or before
December 3, 2009.
The Department filed a report describing the new system of records
covered by this notice with the Chair of the Senate Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Chair of the House of
Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and the
Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on October 29, 2009. This system
of records will become effective at the later date of--(1) the
expiration of the 40-day period for OMB review on December 8, 2009,
unless OMB waives 10 days of the 40-day review period for compelling
reasons shown by the Department, or (2) December 3, 2009, unless the
system of records needs to be changed as a result of public comment or
OMB review.
ADDRESSES: Address all comments about the proposed routine uses to
Jacquelyn Buckley, PhD, National Center for Special Education Research,
Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, 555 New
Jersey Avenue, NW., room 510C, Washington, DC 20208-5550. If you prefer
to send comments through the Internet, use the following
address:comments@ed.gov.
You must include the term ``National Longitudinal Transition Study-
2 (NLTS2)'' in the subject line of the electronic message.
During and after the comment period, you may inspect all comments
about this notice at the U.S. Department of Education in room 510C, 555
New Jersey Avenue, NW., Washington, DC, between the hours of 8 a.m. and
4:30 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday of each week except
Federal holidays.
Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities in Reviewing the Rulemaking
Record
On request, we will supply an appropriate aid, such as a reader or
print magnifier, to an individual with a disability who needs
assistance to review the comments or other documents in the public
rulemaking record for this notice. If you want to schedule an
appointment for this type of aid, please contact the person listed
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jacquelyn Buckley. Telephone number:
(202) 219-2130. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf
(TDD), call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-800-877-
8339.
Individuals with disabilities can obtain this document in an
accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the contact person listed in this section.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
The Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)) requires the Department to
publish in the Federal Register this notice of a new system of records
maintained by the Department. The Department's regulations implementing
the Privacy Act are contained in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)
in part 5b of title 34.
The Privacy Act applies to information about an individual that is
maintained in a system of records from which individually identifying
information is retrieved by a unique identifier associated with each
individual, such as a name or social security number. The information
about each individual is called a ``record,'' and the system, whether
manual or computer-based, is called a ``system of records.''
The Privacy Act requires each agency to publish a system of records
notice in the Federal Register and to submit, whenever the agency
publishes a new system of records or makes a significant change to an
established system of records, a report to the Administrator of the
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB. Each agency is also
required to send copies of the report to the Chair of the House of
Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the
Chair of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs.
Electronic Access to This Document
You can view this document, as well as all other documents of this
Department published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable
Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site:
http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister/index.html.
To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at this site. If you have questions about using 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
[[Page 56827]]
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.gpoaccess.gov/nara.
Dated: October 29, 2009.
John Q. Easton,
Director, Institute of Education Sciences.
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Director of the
Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the U.S. Department of
Education (Department) publishes a notice of a new system of records to
read as follows:
SYSTEM NUMBER:
18-13-23
SYSTEM NAME:
National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS2)
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
None.
SYSTEM LOCATIONS:
(1) SRI International, 333 Ravenswood Ave., Menlo Park, CA 94025-
3493. (Contractor)
(2) Research Triangle Institute (RTI), 3040 Cornwallis Rd., Ragland
Building, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2194. (Subcontractor to SRI)
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
The NLTS2 system contains records of a sample of more than 11,000
youth from the population of 13 through 16 year olds receiving special
education services in seventh grade or above in December of 2000. The
sample is nationally representative of the types of disabilities, as
defined by the 12 Federal special education disability categories, in
this population.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
This system of records contains responses to surveys and interviews
administered to students, parents, guardians, administrators, and
teachers. The responses may include a student's background and
demographic data (e.g., ethnicity, primary language spoken in the
student's home), educational experiences, employment experiences,
finances, aspirations, plans and goals, family variables (e.g.,
household income, number of adults living in the household, parental
expectations for youth to attend postsecondary school), school
characteristics, school programs, classroom experiences, adult services
and supports, and early adult outcomes in employment, education,
independence, and social domains. Records in this system of records
also may include the student's achievement test scores and high school
transcript data.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
The evaluation being conducted is authorized under sections 171(b)
and 173 of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA) (20 U.S.C.
9561(b) and 9563) and section 664(e) of the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1464(e)).
PURPOSE(S):
The information contained in the records maintained in this system
is used for the following purpose:
To describe the critical influences, contexts, and educational and
post-high school experiences for students with disabilities as they
complete secondary education and transition to adulthood. Specifically,
this study will examine the sample group of secondary students in
special education and: (a) Describe the characteristics of these
students and their households; (b) describe these students' secondary
school experiences in special education, including their experiences in
school, school programs, related services, and extracurricular
activities; (c) describe the experiences of these students once they
leave secondary school, including their experiences in adult programs
and services and social activities; (d) measure the secondary school
and post-school outcomes of these students in the education,
employment, social, and residential domains; and, e) identify factors
in these students' secondary school and post-school experiences that
contribute to more positive outcomes.
ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES
OF USERS AND THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
The Department may disclose information contained in a record in
this system of records under the routine uses listed in this system of
records without the consent of the individual if the disclosure is
compatible with the purposes for which the record was collected. The
Department may make these disclosures on a case-by-case basis, or, if
the Department has complied with the computer matching requirements of
the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988, as amended,
under a computer matching agreement. Any disclosure of individually
identifiable information from a record in this system must also comply
with the requirements of section 183 of the ESRA (20 U.S.C. 9573)
providing for confidentiality standards that apply to all collection,
reporting and publication of data by IES.
Contract Disclosure. If the Department contracts with an entity for
the purpose of performing any function that requires disclosure of
records in this system to employees of the contractor, the Department
may disclose the records to only those employees. Before entering into
such a contract, the Department will require the contractor to maintain
Privacy Act safeguards, as required under 5 U.S.C. 552a(m), with
respect to the records in the system.
DISCLOSURE TO CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCIES:
None.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING, RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING,
AND DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
STORAGE:
Records are maintained in a database on the contractors' secure
servers and in other electronic storage media. Respondent name and
contact information is stored separately from the rest of the data
collected in this system.
RETRIEVABILITY:
Records in this system are indexed by a unique number assigned to
each individual, which is cross-referenced by the individual's name.
Records are retrieved by the individual's name or by the unique number.
SAFEGUARDS:
Access to the records is limited to authorized personnel who are
briefed regarding confidentiality of the data, are required to sign a
written statement attesting to their understanding of the significance
of the confidentiality requirement, and have received Department of
Education security clearances.
All physical access to the contractor and subcontractor sites where
this system of records is maintained, is controlled and monitored by
security personnel who check each individual entering the buildings for
his or her employee or visitor badge.
The computer systems employed by the contractor and subcontractor
offer a high degree of resistance to tampering and circumvention.
Security systems limit data access to contract staff on a ``need to
know'' basis, and control each individual user's ability to access and
alter records within the system.
The contractor and subcontractor employees who ``maintain''
(including collect, maintain, use, or disseminate) data in this system
of records must comply with the requirements of the confidentiality
standards in section 183 of the ESRA (20 U.S.C. 9573).
RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:
In accordance with Part 3, Item 4.b (NC-12-75-1, Item 10b) of the
Department's Records Disposition
[[Page 56828]]
Schedules, records are destroyed upon verification of transfer to
electronic format or upon completion of the report.
SYSTEM MANAGER AND ADDRESS:
Contracting Officer's Representative (COR), National Longitudinal
Transition Study-2 (NLTS2), National Center for Special Education
Research, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of
Education, 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20208-5550.
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:
If you wish to determine whether a record exists regarding you in
the system of records, contact the system manager at the address listed
under SYSTEM MANAGER AND ADDRESS. Your request must meet the
requirements of the regulations in 34 CFR 5b.5, including proof of
identity.
RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURE:
If you wish to gain access to your record in the system of records,
contact the system manager at the address listed under SYSTEM MANAGER
AND ADDRESS. Requests should contain your full name, address, and
telephone number. Your request must meet the requirements of the
regulations in 34 CFR 5b.5, including proof of identity.
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURE:
If you wish to contest the content of a record regarding you in the
system of records, contact the system manager at the address listed
under SYSTEM MANAGER AND ADDRESS. Your request must meet the
requirements of the regulations in 34 CFR 5b.7, including proof of
identity.
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
Information maintained in this system of records is collected from
a variety of sources, including parents, guardians, teachers,
principals, school records, and students themselves. Records in this
system may be collected through methods such as: (a) Telephonic
interviews with parents or guardians of students that focus on student
and family characteristics, non-school activities, satisfaction with
school programs, and activities after high school; (b) telephonic
interviews or written questionnaires from students about their
experiences and outcomes; (c) teacher surveys about classroom practices
and student performance in the classroom; (d) surveys of school
programs completed by teachers knowledgeable about the overall program
and student performance in a broader context (e.g., instructional
settings that comprise a student's whole experience, vocational
education, transition planning experiences, and accommodations
received); (e) surveys about the characteristics of the school,
including aggregate measures of school performance to use as supporting
data for reports; (f) student assessments, which involve a direct
assessment of the student, including measures of the student's reading
and math skills, vocabulary, science and social studies content
knowledge, as well as interviews with the student about self-concept
and self-determination, or alternate assessments completed by a
knowledgeable adult when students are unable to complete a direct
assessment due to cognitive or behavioral limitations; and, (g) student
transcripts, including courses taken, grades, and attendance.
EXEMPTIONS CLAIMED FOR THIS SYSTEM:
None.
[FR Doc. E9-26430 Filed 11-2-09; 8:45 am]
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