80 FR 43398 - National Assessment Governing Board Quarterly Board Meeting

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 140 (July 22, 2015)

This notice sets forth the agenda for the August 6-8, 2015 Quarterly Meeting of the National Assessment Governing Board (hereafter referred to as Governing Board). This notice provides information to members of the public who may be interested in attending the meeting or providing written comments on the meeting. The notice of this meeting is required under section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA).

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 140 (Wednesday, July 22, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43398-43400]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-17832]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


National Assessment Governing Board Quarterly Board Meeting

AGENCY: National Assessment Governing Board, U.S. Department of 
Education.

ACTION: Announcement of open and closed meetings.

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SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the agenda for the August 6-8, 2015 
Quarterly Meeting of the National Assessment Governing Board (hereafter 
referred to as Governing Board). This notice provides information to 
members of the public who may be interested in attending the meeting or 
providing written comments on the meeting. The notice of this meeting 
is required under section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee 
Act (FACA).

DATES: The Quarterly Board meeting will be held on the following dates:
     August 6, 2015 from 8:30 a.m. to 6:15 p.m.
     August 7, 2015 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
     August 8, 2015 from 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: Westin Arlington Gateway, 801 North Glebe Road, Arlington, 
VA 22203.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Munira Mwalimu, Executive Officer, 800 
North Capitol Street NW., Suite 825, Washington, DC 20002, telephone: 
(202) 357-6938, fax: (202) 357-6945.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Statutory Authority and Function: The National Assessment Governing 
Board is established under Title III--National Assessment of 
Educational Progress Authorization Act, Public Law 107-279. Information 
on the Board and its work can be found at www.nagb.gov.
    The Board is established to formulate policy for the National 
Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The Board's responsibilities 
include the following: Selecting subject areas to be assessed, 
developing assessment frameworks and specifications, developing 
appropriate student achievement levels for each grade and subject 
tested, developing standards and procedures for interstate and national 
comparisons, improving the form and use of NAEP, developing guidelines 
for reporting and disseminating results, and releasing initial NAEP 
results to the public.

Detailed Meeting Agenda: August 6-8, 2015

August 6: Committee Meetings

    Assessment Development Committee: Closed Session: 8:30 a.m.-4:00 
p.m.
    Executive Committee: Open Session: 4:30 p.m.-5:20 p.m.; Closed 
Session: 5:20 p.m.-6:15 p.m.

August 7: Full Board and Committee Meetings

    Full Board: Open Session: 8:30 a.m.-10:15 a.m.; Closed Session: 
12:45 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.; Open Session 2:45 p.m.-5:30 p.m.

Committee Meetings

    Assessment Development Committee (ADC): Open Session: 10:15 a.m.-
11:10 a.m.; Closed Session: 11:10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
    Reporting and Dissemination Committee (R&D): Open Session: 10:15 
a.m.-12:30 p.m.
    Committee on Standards, Design and Methodology (COSDAM): Open 
Session: 10:15 a.m.-11:45 a.m.; Closed Session: 11:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

August 8: Full Board and Committee Meetings

    Nominations Committee: Closed Session: 7:30 a.m.-8:15 a.m.
    Full Board: Closed Session: 8:30 a.m.-10:00 a.m. Open Session 10:00 
a.m.-12:00 p.m.
    On August 6, 2015, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., the Assessment 
Development Committee will meet in closed session to review assessment 
items for the NAEP transition to digital-based assessments (DBA). The 
review will include secure items in mathematics at grades 4 and 8 for 
the 2016 pilot, in preparation for the 2017 operational assessment. The 
Committee's reviews and discussions on secure test items cannot be 
discussed in an open meeting to protect the confidentiality of the 
secure assessment materials. Premature disclosure of these results 
would significantly impede implementation of the NAEP assessment 
program, and is therefore protected by exemption 9(B) of section 
552b(c) of Title 5 United States Code.
    The Board's standing committees will meet to conduct regularly 
scheduled work, based on agenda items planned for this quarterly Board 
meeting, and follow up items as reported in the Board's committee 
meeting minutes available at http://nagb.gov/what-we-do/board-committee-reports-and-agendas.html.
    The Executive Committee will convene in open session on August 6, 
2015 from 4:30 p.m. to 5:20 p.m. and

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thereafter in closed session from 5:20 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. During the 
closed session, the Executive Committee will receive and discuss cost 
estimates for implementing NAEP's Assessment Schedule for 2014-2024, 
and the implications of the cost and funding estimates for the NAEP 
Assessment Schedule and future NAEP activities will also be discussed. 
This meeting must be conducted in closed session because public 
disclosure of this information would likely have an adverse financial 
effect on the NAEP program by providing confidential cost details and 
proprietary contract costs of current contractors to the public. 
Discussion of this information would be likely to significantly impede 
implementation of a proposed agency action if conducted in open 
session. Such matters are protected by exemption 9(B) of section 552b 
of Title 5 U.S.C.
    On August 7, 2015, the full Board will meet in open session from 
8:30 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. The Board will review and approve the August 6-
7, 2015 Board meeting agenda and meeting minutes from the May 2015 
Quarterly Board meeting. This session will be followed by the 
Chairman's remarks and welcome remarks from the Governing Board's new 
Executive Director, Bill Bushaw. Thereafter, the full Board will 
receive a briefing on the Trial Urban District Assessments (TUDA) and 
implications for education reforms from Michael Casserly, Executive 
Director of the Council of the Great City Schools. The briefing will be 
followed by update reports from the Acting Director of the Institute of 
Education Sciences, Sue Betka, and the Acting Commissioner of the 
National Center for Education Statistics, Peggy Carr. The Board will 
recess for Committee meetings from 10:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
    The Reporting and Dissemination Committee will meet in open session 
from 10:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
    The Committee on Standards, Design and Methodology (COSDAM) will 
meet in open session from 10:15 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. and thereafter in 
closed session from 11:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. During the closed session 
COSDAM will discuss information regarding analyses of the 2014 grade 8 
Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) assessment, and discuss 
secure NAEP TEL data. This part of the meeting must be conducted in 
closed session because the analysis involves the use of secure data for 
the NAEP TEL assessment. Public disclosure of secure data would 
significantly impede implementation of the NAEP assessment program if 
conducted in open session. Such matters are protected by exemption 9(B) 
of section 552b of Title 5 U.S.C.
    The Assessment Development Committee will meet in open session from 
10:15 a.m. to 11:10 a.m. and thereafter in closed session from 11:10 
a.m. to 12:30 p.m. During the closed session, the Committee will 
receive a briefing on transitioning NAEP to Digital-Based Assessments 
(DBA). The briefing will be in-depth, with discussion of secure NAEP 
reading and mathematics test questions for the 2017 operational 
assessments at grades 4 and 8, and secure items at grades 8 and 12 in 
U.S. history, civics, and geography for the 2018 operational 
assessments. This part of the meeting must be conducted in closed 
session because the items are to be used in NAEP assessments; public 
disclosure of secure test items would significantly impede 
implementation of the NAEP assessment program if conducted in open 
session. Such matters are protected by exemption 9(B) of section 552b 
of Title 5 U.S.C.
    Following the Committee meetings, the Board will convene in closed 
session from 12:45 p.m. to 2:45 p.m. The closed session will for the 
Board to receive a briefing and discuss the NAEP 2015 Report Cards in 
Reading and Mathematics for grades 4 and 8 national and state data. 
This part of the meeting must be conducted in closed session because 
results of these NAEP assessments have been embargoed and are not ready 
for public release. Public disclosure of this information would likely 
have an adverse technical and financial impact on the NAEP program. 
Discussion of this information would be likely to significantly impede 
implementation of a proposed agency action if conducted in open 
session. Such matters are protected by exemption 9(B) of section 552b 
of Title 5 U.S.C.
    Thereafter, the Board will meet in open session from 2:45 p.m. to 
5:00 p.m. From 3:15-4:15 p.m., the Board will meet in breakout sessions 
by groups comprised of NAGB members established by the Chairman to 
discuss the Governing Board's Strategic Planning Initiative. The Board 
will then convene from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. to receive reports from 
the group breakouts and engage in discussions prior to taking action on 
the Governing Board's Strategic Planning Framework.
    The August 7, 2015 session of the Board meeting will adjourn at 
5:30 p.m.
    On August 8, 2015, the Nominations Committee will meet in closed 
session from 7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. to discuss candidates for six Board 
vacancies for terms beginning on October 1, 2016. The Committee's 
discussions pertain solely to internal personnel rules and practices of 
an agency and information of a personal nature where disclosure would 
constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. As such, the 
discussions are protected by exemptions 2 and 6 of section 552b(c) of 
Title 5 of the United States Code.
    On Saturday, August 8, the full Board will meet in closed session 
from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. to discuss preliminary information 
regarding the 2014 grade 8 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) 
assessment and achievement levels setting process. This part of the 
meeting must be conducted in closed session because it involves secure 
items and data for the NAEP TEL assessment. Public disclosure of secure 
items and data would significantly impede implementation of the NAEP 
assessment program if conducted in open session. Such matters are 
protected by exemption 9(B) of section 552b of Title 5 U.S.C.
    From 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. the Board will discuss and take 
action on the Assessment Literacy Communications Plan. Outgoing Board 
members whose terms expire in September 2015 will provide remarks from 
11:15 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
    The Board will receive reports from the standing committees and 
take action proposed by the Executive and Reporting Committees from 
11:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. as follows:
    1. Executive Committee: Election of Board Vice Chair for 2015-2016
    2. Executive Committee: Budget Resolution on NAEP Funding
    3. Reporting and Dissemination Committee: Release Plan for 2015 
Reading and Mathematics Report Cards.
    The August 8, 2015 meeting is scheduled to adjourn at 12:00 p.m.
    Access to Records of the Meeting: Pursuant to FACA requirements, 
the public may also inspect the meeting materials at www.nagb.gov on 
Friday, August 7, 2015 by 7:00 a.m. ET. The official verbatim 
transcripts of the public meeting sessions will be available for public 
inspection no later than 30 calendar days following the meeting.
    Reasonable Accommodations: The meeting site is accessible to 
individuals with disabilities. If you will need an auxiliary aid or 
service to participate in the meeting (e.g., interpreting service, 
assistive listening device, or materials in an alternate format), 
notify the contact person listed in this notice at least two weeks 
before the scheduled meeting date. Although we will attempt to meet a 
request received after that date, we may not be able to make available 
the

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requested auxiliary aid or service because of insufficient time to 
arrange it.
    Electronic Access to this Document: 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 via the Federal Digital System 
at: www.thefederalregister.org/fdsys. At this site you can view this document, as well 
as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal 
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by the Department.

    Authority: Pub. L. 107-279, Title III--National Assessment of 
Educational Progress section 301.

    Dated: July 16, 2015.
Mary Crovo,
Deputy Executive Director, National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), 
U.S. Department of Education.
[FR Doc. 2015-17832 Filed 7-21-15; 8:45 am]
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