60D Comment Response

Paperwork Reduction Act Submission Supporting Statement

The International Resource Information System (IRIS)

June 2024

Response to Public Comments

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) solicited comments on a proposed extension of the International Resource Information System (IRIS), an existing information collection, in a notice published in the Federal Register on 03/29/2024 (89 FR 22132). ED received a total of two (2) public comment submissions from the same commenter related to the following topic: WhoPoo App requested that IRIS address an alleged incident of bullying at a Missouri high school and a subsequent legal issue related to this same incident. IFLE described and responded to these comments below.

Background:

The International and Foreign Language Education (IFLE) office within the Office of Postsecondary Education, of the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) administers 14 institutional and fellowship grant programs authorized under Title VI of the Higher Education Act and section 102(b)(6) of the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act, also known as Fulbright-Hays (F-H).  The purpose of these programs is to strengthen the capability and performance of American education in foreign languages and in area and international studies.    

The International Resource Information System (IRIS) is an online database that is used for performance reporting by the grantees funded by these 14 programs. The purpose of IRIS is to provide a centralized and effective way of collecting, reporting, and analyzing annual performance data.  

This is a request for an extension of this collection.

public comments and responses

Comments:

One comment related to an alleged incident of bullying at a Missouri high school, and a second comment was a follow-up on a legal issue related to that same incident.

Response:

Thank you for your comment.  The International and Foreign Language Education (IFLE) office does not have any response documents for the two public comments submitted by Woo Poo App., because information collection ED-2024-SCC-0052 International Resource Information System (IRIS) does not request or collect data about bullying or such incidents in American schools as described by the commenter. Specifically, IRIS is an online performance reporting system for IFLE programs, which strengthen foreign language instruction and area/international studies teaching and research, professional development for educators, and curriculum development. IFLE is part of the Department’s Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), which means grants are awarded primarily through institutions of higher education. IFLE’s IRIS system is unable to address the legal concerns raised in the two similar comments.

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