Sec. 104. Basic program requirements
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/bill/113/s/1101/is/section-104A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Subpart 1 of part A of title I ( 20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq. ) is amended— by striking sections 1111 through 1117 and inserting the following: For any State desiring to receive a grant under this part, the State educational agency shall submit to the Secretary a plan, developed by the State educational agency in consultation with local educational agencies, teachers, principals, pupil services personnel, administrators, other staff, and parents, that satisfies the requirements of this section. A State plan submitted under paragraph
(1)may be submitted as part of a consolidated plan under section 9302. The Secretary shall— establish a peer-review process to assist in the review of State plans; establish multidisciplinary peer review teams and appoint their members, including representatives of teachers, State educational agencies, local educational agencies, and those with practical experience in implementing academic standards, assessments, accountability, the needs of low-performing schools, and other educational needs of students; and approve a State plan within 45 days of its submission unless the Secretary presents a body of substantial, high-quality education research that clearly demonstrates that the State's plan does not meet the requirements of this section and is likely to be ineffective or is inappropriate for its intended purposes. The peer review process shall be designed to— promote effective implementation of State-developed challenging academic standards through State and local innovation; and provide transparent feedback to States designed to strengthen the States' plans. Peer reviewers shall conduct a good faith review of State plans in their totality and in deference to State and local judgments, with the goal of promoting State- and local-led innovation. If the Secretary determines that the State plan does not meet the requirements of this subsection or subsection
(b)or (c), the Secretary shall, prior to declining to approve a State plan— immediately notify the State of such determination; provide a detailed description of the specific requirements of this subsection or subsection
(b)or
(c)of the State plan that the Secretary determines fails to meet such requirements; offer the State an opportunity to revise and resubmit its plan within 60 days of such determination; provide technical assistance, upon request of the State, in order to assist the State to meet the requirements of this subsection or subsection
(b)or (c); and conduct a public hearing within 30 days of such resubmission, with public notice provided not less than 15 days before such hearing. The Secretary shall have the authority to disapprove a State plan if the State has been notified and offered an opportunity to revise and submit with technical assistance under paragraph (4), and— the State does not revise and resubmit its plan; or the State revises and resubmits a plan that the Secretary determines does not meet the requirements of this part after a hearing conducted under paragraph (4)(E). The Secretary shall not have the authority to require a State, as a condition of approval of the State plan, to— include in, or delete from, such plan 1 or more specific elements of the State’s academic content standards or academic achievement standards; use specific academic assessment instruments or items; include in, or delete from, such a plan any criterion that specifies, defines, or prescribes the standards or measures that State or local educational agencies use to establish, implement, or improve— State standards; assessments; State accountability systems; systems that measure student growth; measures of other academic indicators; or teacher and principal evaluation systems; or require the collection, publication, or transmission to the Department of individual student data that is not expressly required to be collected under this Act. All written communications, feedback, and notifications under this subsection shall be conducted in a manner that is transparent and immediately made available to the public through the Department website, including— plans submitted or resubmitted by a State; peer review comments; State plan determinations by the Secretary, including approvals or disapprovals; and public hearings under this section. Each State plan shall— remain in effect for the duration of the State’s participation under this part; and be periodically reviewed and revised as necessary by the State educational agency to reflect changes in the State’s strategies and programs under this part. A State shall notify the Secretary if a State makes significant changes to its plan, such as the adoption of new State academic content standards, State academic achievement standards, new academic assessments, or changes to its accountability system under subsection (b)(3). If a State fails to meet any of the requirements of this section, then the Secretary may withhold funds for State administration under this part until the Secretary determines that the State has fulfilled those requirements. Each State shall provide an assurance that the State has adopted challenging academic content standards and student academic achievement standards that will be used by the State, its local educational agencies, and its schools to carry out this part. The standards required by subparagraph
(A)shall be the same standards that the State applies to all public schools and public school children in the State. The State shall have such standards in mathematics, reading or language arts, and science, and any other subjects as determined by the State, which shall include the same knowledge, skills, and levels of achievement expected of all children in the State. Each State shall provide an assurance to the Secretary that the State’s challenging academic content standards are aligned with— entrance requirements, without the need for academic remediation, for an institution of higher education in the State; and State performance measures identified in the State plan under section 113(b) of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006. Notwithstanding any other provision of this paragraph, a State may, through a documented and validated standards-setting process, adopt alternate academic achievement standards for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who take an alternate assessment, provided those standards— are aligned with the State’s challenging academic content standards under subparagraph (A); promote access to the general curriculum; and reflect professional judgment of the highest achievement standards attainable by those students. Notwithstanding any other provision of this paragraph, a State may, through a documented and validated standards-setting process, adopt modified academic achievement standards for students who have disabilities that preclude them from meeting State student achievement standards within the academic year covered by a student’s individualized education program under section 614(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, provided those standards— are aligned with the State’s challenging academic content standards under subparagraph
(A)for the grade in which the student is enrolled; and are challenging for such eligible students, but may be less difficult than the grade-level academic achievement standards under this section. Each State plan shall provide an assurance that the State has adopted English language proficiency standards that are aligned with the State’s challenging academic content standards under subparagraph (A). Such standards shall— ensure proficiency in each of the domains of speaking, listening, reading, and writing; address the different proficiency levels of English language learners; and be aligned with the State’s academic content standards in reading or language arts so that achieving proficiency against the State’s English language proficiency standards indicates a sufficient knowledge of English to measure validly and reliably the student’s achievement on the State’s reading or language arts standards. A State shall not be required to submit any standards developed under this subsection for academic content or student academic achievement to the Secretary for review or approval. The Secretary shall not have the authority to mandate, direct, control, or exercise any direction or supervision over the academic content standards or academic achievement standards adopted or implemented by a State. Nothing in this part shall prohibit a State from revising, consistent with this section, any standard adopted under this part before or after the date of enactment of the Every Child Ready for College or Career Act of 2013. Each State plan shall provide an assurance that the State educational agency, in consultation with local educational agencies, has implemented a set of high-quality, yearly student academic assessments that include, at a minimum, academic assessments in mathematics and reading or language arts that will be used as the primary means of determining the yearly performance of each school in the State in enabling all children to meet the State’s challenging student academic achievement standards. Each State plan shall provide an assurance that such assessments— are the same academic assessments used to measure the achievement of all students; are aligned with the State’s challenging academic content and student academic achievement standards, and provide coherent information about student attainment of such standards; are used for purposes for which such assessments are valid and reliable, be of adequate technical quality for each purpose required under this Act, and be consistent with relevant, nationally recognized professional and technical standards; measure the annual academic achievement of all students against the State’s challenging academic achievement standards in mathematics and reading or language arts, and be administered— in each of grades 3 through 8; and at least once in grades 9 through 12; and measure the academic achievement of all students against the State’s challenging academic achievement standards in science, and be administered not less than one time, during— grades 3 through 5; grades 6 through 8; and grades 9 through 12; involve multiple up-to-date measures of student academic achievement; provide for— the participation in such assessments of all students; the reasonable adaptations and accommodations for children with disabilities (as defined in section 602(3) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) necessary to measure the academic achievement of such children relative to State academic content and student academic achievement standards; alternate assessments aligned with grade-level academic content and academic achievement standards, unless the State develops alternate assessments aligned with— alternate academic achievement standards, consistent with subparagraph (C), for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities; or modified academic achievement standards consistent with subparagraph (C); and the inclusion of English language learners, who shall be assessed in a valid and reliable manner and provided reasonable accommodations on assessments administered to such students under this paragraph, including, to the extent practicable, assessments in the language and form most likely to yield accurate data on what such students know and can do in academic content areas, until such students have achieved English language proficiency, as determined under paragraph (1)(G); produce individual student interpretive, descriptive, and diagnostic reports, consistent with clause (iii), that allow parents, teachers, and principals to understand and address the specific academic needs of students, and include information regarding achievement on academic assessments, and that are provided to parents, teachers, and principals in a timely manner after the assessment is given, in an understandable and uniform format; and enable results to be disaggregated within each State, local educational agency, and school, by— each major racial and ethnic group; economically disadvantaged students as compared to students who are not economically disadvantaged; students with disabilities as compared to nondisabled students; English proficiency status; gender; and migrant status. A State may provide for alternate assessments aligned with alternate academic achievement standards for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, if the State— establishes and monitors implementation of clear and appropriate guidelines for individualized education program teams (as defined in section 614(d)(1)(B) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) (referred to in this section as IEP Teams ) to apply in determining when a child’s significant cognitive disability justifies assessment based on alternate academic achievement standards; ensures that the parents of those students are informed that their child’s academic achievement will be based on alternate academic achievement standards; documents that students with the most significant cognitive disabilities are, to the extent practicable, included in the general curriculum, and in assessments aligned with that curriculum; develops, disseminates information on, and promotes the use of appropriate accommodations to increase the number of students with disabilities who are tested against academic achievement standards for the grade in which a student is enrolled; and ensures that regular and special education teachers and other appropriate staff know how to administer assessments, including making appropriate use of accommodations, for students with disabilities. A State may assess students with disabilities based on modified academic achievement standards, if the State— establishes and ensures implementation of clear and appropriate guidelines for IEP Teams to apply in determining which students with disabilities are eligible to be assessed based on modified academic achievement standards, which criteria, at a minimum, shall include— whether the student’s disability has precluded the student from achieving grade-level proficiency, as demonstrated by objective evidence, such as the student’s performance on the State’s regular assessments or on other assessments that can validly demonstrate academic achievement; and whether the student’s progress in response to appropriate instruction, including special education and related services designed to address the student’s individual needs, is such that, even if significant growth occurs, the IEP Team is reasonably certain that the student will not achieve to grade-level within the year covered by the IEP, which progress shall be based on multiple measurements, over a period of time, that are valid for the subjects being assessed; ensures that, if a student’s IEP includes goals for a subject assessed based on modified academic achievement standards, those goals are based on academic content standards for the grade in which the student is enrolled; ensures that parents of students with disabilities who are assessed against modified academic achievement standards are informed that their child’s achievement will be measured based on modified academic achievement standards; ensures that the alternate assessment yields results that measure the achievement of those students separately in reading or language arts, mathematics, and science relative to the modified academic achievement standards; ensures that students who are assessed based on modified academic achievement standards have access to the curriculum, including instruction, for the grade in which the students are enrolled; and establishes and monitors implementation of clear and appropriate guidelines for IEP Teams to apply in developing and implementing IEPs for students who are assessed based on modified academic achievement standards. Each State plan shall identify the languages other than English that are present to a significant extent in the participating student population and indicate the languages for which yearly student academic assessments are not available and are needed, and such State shall make every effort to develop such assessments as are necessary. Each State plan shall provide an assurance that local educational agencies in the State will provide for an annual assessment of English proficiency (measuring students’ speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills in English) of all English language learners in the schools served by the State educational agency, except that each local educational agency shall have discretion to exempt any student who has been assessed as proficient in listening, speaking, reading, or writing English from the corresponding portion of the assessment. A State may defer the commencement, or suspend the administration, but not cease the development, of the assessments described in this paragraph, for 1 year for each year for which the amount appropriated for grants under part B is less than $368,900,000. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to prescribe or prohibit the use of the academic assessments described in this part for student promotion or graduation purposes. Each State plan shall provide an assurance that the State has developed and is implementing a single, statewide State accountability system that will be based on the challenging academic content standards and student academic achievement standards adopted by the State, and other academic indicators related to student achievement identified by the State, to ensure that all students graduate from high school prepared for postsecondary education or the workforce without the need for remediation and that, at a minimum— annually measures academic achievement of all public school students in the State towards meeting the State’s challenging academic achievement standards established by the State in mathematics and reading or language arts, which may include measures of student growth to such standards and any other valid and reliable academic indicators related to student achievement; establishes a system of annually identifying and differentiating among all public schools in the State based on student academic achievement and any other factors determined appropriate by the State and also takes into account— achievement gaps between each category of students described in subclauses
(I)through
(IV)of paragraph (2)(B)(viii); overall performance of all students and of each category of students described in subclauses
(I)through
(IV)of paragraph (2)(B)(viii); and secondary school graduation rates, as appropriate; for public schools participating under this part, includes a system for annually— identifying such schools that are in need of strategies for improving student academic achievement and any other measures determined appropriate by the State; and providing assistance to local educational agencies to develop and implement appropriate strategies for improving identified schools; provides a clear and understandable explanation of the method of identifying schools under clause (iii); measures the annual progress of not less than 95 percent of each category of students described in subclauses
(I)through
(IV)of paragraph (2)(B)(viii) who are enrolled in the school and are required to take the assessments under paragraph (2); and measures the high school graduation rate for each category of students described in subclauses
(I)through
(IV)of paragraph (2)(B)(viii). Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to permit the Secretary to establish any criterion that specifies, defines, or prescribes the standards or measures that State or local educational agencies use to establish, implement, or improve— State standards; assessments; State accountability systems; systems that measure student growth; measures of other academic indicators; or teacher and principal evaluation systems. Each State plan shall provide an assurance that— the State will notify local educational agencies, schools, teachers, parents, and the public of the academic content standards, student academic achievement standards, academic assessments, and State accountability system, developed under this section; the State educational agency will assist each local educational agency and school affected by the State plan to meet the requirements of this part; and low-income and minority children, enrolled in schools assisted under this part, are served by effective teachers and principals and have access to a high-quality instructional program in the core academic subjects, and the State shall adopt measures to evaluate and publicly report the progress of the State educational agency with respect to such steps. Each State plan shall contain an assurance that— the State will participate in biennial State academic assessments of 4th and 8th grade reading and mathematics under the National Assessment of Educational Progress carried out under section 303(b)(3) of the National Assessment of Educational Progress Authorization Act if the Secretary pays the costs of administering such assessments; the State educational agency will modify or eliminate State fiscal and accounting barriers so that schools can easily consolidate funds from other Federal, State, and local sources in order to improve educational opportunities and reduce unnecessary fiscal and accounting requirements; the State educational agency will support the collection and dissemination to local educational agencies and schools of effective parental involvement practices; the State educational agency will provide the least restrictive and burdensome regulations for local educational agencies and individual schools participating in a program assisted under this part; the State educational agency will ensure that local educational agencies, to the extent feasible, in developing and implementing programs under this part, will work in consultation with outside intermediary organizations or individuals who have expertise in using strategies and programs based on scientifically valid research to improve teaching, learning, and schools; and the State educational agency has appropriate procedures and safeguards in place to ensure the validity of the assessment process. A State that receives assistance under this part shall prepare and disseminate widely to the public an annual State report card. The State report card shall be— concise; and presented in an understandable and uniform format. The State shall include in its annual State report card— information, in the aggregate, on student achievement on the State academic assessments described in subsection (b)(2) (disaggregated by each category of students described in subsection (b)(2)(B)(viii)); the percentage of students tested (disaggregated by each category of students described in subsection (b)(2)(B)(viii)); information on any other indicator used by the State to determine student achievement under subsection (b)(3) (disaggregated by each category of students described in subsection (b)(2)(B)(viii)); graduation rates for secondary school students consistent with subsection (b)(3)(A)(vi); the professional qualifications of teachers in the State and the percentage of such teachers teaching with emergency or provisional credentials, in the aggregate and disaggregated by high-poverty compared to low-poverty schools which, for the purpose of this clause, means schools in the top quartile of poverty and the bottom quartile of poverty in the State; information on the performance of local educational agencies and schools in the State; and for a State that implements a teacher and principal evaluation system consistent with title II, the evaluation results of teachers and principals, except that such information shall not provide individually identifiable information on individual teachers or principals. The State shall include in its annual State report card the per-pupil expenditures of Federal, State, and local funds for each local educational agency in the State for the preceding fiscal year. The State may include in its annual State report card such other information as the State believes will best provide parents, students, and other members of the public with information regarding the progress of each of the State’s public schools. A local educational agency that receives assistance under this part shall prepare and disseminate, in accordance with subparagraph (E), an annual local educational agency report card. The local educational agency shall include in its report card the information described in paragraph (1)(C) as applied to the local educational agency and each school served by the local educational agency, and— in the case of a local educational agency, information that shows how students served by the local educational agency achieved on the statewide academic assessment compared to students in the State as a whole; and in the case of a school, information that shows how the school’s students’ achievement on the statewide academic assessments compared to students in the local educational agency and the State as a whole. The local educational agency shall include in its annual local educational agency report card the per-pupil expenditures of Federal, State, and local funds for each school served by the agency for the preceding fiscal year. A local educational agency may include in its annual local educational agency report card any other appropriate information, whether or not such information is included in the annual State report card. Except as provided in clause (ii), a local educational agency shall— publicly disseminate the information described in this paragraph to all schools in the school district served by the local educational agency and to all parents of students attending such schools in an understandable and uniform format; and make the information widely available through public means, such as posting on the Internet, distribution to the media, and distribution through public agencies. If a local educational agency issues a report card for all students, the local educational agency may include the information described in this paragraph as part of such report. A State educational agency or local educational agency that was providing public report cards on the performance of students, schools, local educational agencies, or the State prior to the date of enactment of the Every Child Ready for College or Career Act of 2013 , may use such report cards for the purpose of disseminating information under this subsection if the report card is modified, as may be needed, to contain the information required by this subsection. Each State educational agency receiving assistance under this part shall report annually to the Secretary, and make widely available within the State— information on the achievement of students on the academic assessments required under subsection (b)(2), including the disaggregated results for each category of students described in subsection (b)(2)(B)(viii); information on the acquisition of English proficiency by children who are English language learners; the number and names of the schools identified under section 1114(a)(1)(B), and the school assistance strategies developed and implemented by the local educational agency under section 1114(b) to address the needs of students in each school; the number of students and schools that participated in public school choice under this title; information on the quality and effectiveness of teachers; and the percentage of classes being taught by teachers who are licensed or certified to teach in their field of study, for the State and for each local educational agency and public elementary school or secondary school in the State; and information on the results of the teacher and principal evaluation system, as applicable. A State educational agency or local educational agency shall only include in its annual report card described under paragraphs
(1)and
(2)data that are sufficient to yield statistically reliable information, as determined by the State or local educational agency, and that do not reveal personally identifiable information about an individual student. Subject to section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act and notwithstanding section 444(b)(1)(F) of such Act, student educational records and information shall not be shared without the informed explicit consent of the student’s legal guardian or if the student has reached the age of majority, the student, with any— individual or governmental entity outside of the school; local educational agency or State educational agency; and third party contractor, such as a researcher or private or nonprofit non-governmental organization, including third party assessment and testing organizations. Notwithstanding subparagraph (B), the sharing of educational records and information shall be permissible— in an emergency situation; and in the case where the student does not currently have a recognized legal guardian or is part of a court proceeding regarding child abuse or neglect. The Secretary shall transmit annually to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives a report that provides national and State level data on the information collected under paragraph (4). Such report shall be submitted through electronic means only. Not later than July 1, 2015, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall transmit to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives a national report card on the status of elementary and secondary education in the United States. Such report shall— analyze existing data from State reports required under this Act, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006, and summarize major findings from such reports; analyze data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress and comparable international assessments; identify trends in student achievement, student performance, and secondary school graduation rates, by analyzing and reporting on the status and performance of students, disaggregated by each category of students described in subsection (b)(2)(B)(viii); analyze data on Federal, State, and local expenditures on education, including per-pupil spending, teacher salaries and pension obligations, school level spending, and other financial data publicly available, and report on current trends and major findings; and analyze information on the teaching and principal profession, including education and training, retention and mobility, and effectiveness in improving student achievement. The information used to prepare the report described in subparagraph
(A)shall be derived from existing State and local reporting requirements and data sources. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as authorizing, requiring, or allowing any additional reporting requirements, data elements, or information to be reported to the Secretary not otherwise explicitly authorized by any other Federal law. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a State from entering into a voluntary partnership with another State to develop and implement the academic assessments, State academic content standards, and accountability systems required under this section. The Secretary shall be prohibited from requiring a State to enter into a voluntary partnership described in paragraph (1), including as a condition of approval of a State plan under this section or as a condition of an award of Federal funds under any grant, contract, or cooperative agreement. In determining the assessments to be used by each school operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian Education of the Department of the Interior that receives funds under this part, the following shall apply: Each such school that is accredited by the State in which it is operating shall use the assessments the State has developed and implemented to meet the requirements of this section, or such other appropriate assessment as approved by the Secretary of the Interior. Each such school that is accredited by a regional accrediting organization shall adopt an appropriate assessment in consultation with, and with the approval of, the Secretary of the Interior and consistent with assessments adopted by other schools in the same State or region, that meets the requirements of this section. Each such school that is accredited by a tribal accrediting agency or tribal division of education shall use an assessment developed by such agency or division, except that the Secretary of the Interior shall ensure that such assessment meets the requirements of this section. A local educational agency may receive a subgrant under this part for any fiscal year only if such agency has on file with the State educational agency a plan, approved by the State educational agency, that is developed in consultation with teachers, principals, administrators (including administrators of programs described in other parts of this title), other appropriate school personnel, and with parents of children in schools served under this part, that satisfies the requirements of this section. The plan may be submitted as part of a consolidated application under section 9305. Each local educational agency plan shall be filed according to a schedule established by the State educational agency. The State educational agency shall approve a local educational agency’s plan only if the State educational agency determines that the local educational agency’s plan satisfies the requirements of this part and enables children served under this part to meet the State’s challenging academic standards described in section 1111(b)(1). Each local educational agency plan shall be submitted for the first year for which this part is in effect following the date of enactment of the Every Child Ready for College or Career Act of 2013 and shall remain in effect for the duration of the agency’s participation under this part. Each local educational agency shall periodically review and, as necessary, revise its plan to reflect changes in the local educational agency’s strategies and programs under this part. To ensure that all children receive a high-quality education that prepares them for postsecondary education and the workforce without the need for academic remediation, and to close the achievement gap between high- and low-performing children, especially the achievement gaps between minority and nonminority students, and between disadvantaged children and their more advantaged peers, each local educational agency plan shall describe— how the local educational agency will work with each of the schools served by the agency so that students meet the State’s challenging academic standards by— developing and implementing a comprehensive program of instruction to meet the academic needs of all students; identifying quickly and effectively students who may be at risk for academic failure; providing additional educational assistance to individual students determined as needing help in meeting the State’s challenging academic achievement standards; identifying significant gaps in student academic achievement between each category of students described in subclauses
(I)through
(IV)of section 1111(b)(2)(B)(viii) and develop strategies to reduce such gaps in achievement; and identifying and implementing effective methods and instructional strategies that are based on scientifically valid research intended to strengthen the core academic program of the school; how the local educational agency will monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of school programs in improving student academic achievement, especially for students not meeting the State's challenging academic achievement standards; how the local educational agency will meet the requirements of section 1119 regarding the qualifications of teachers and paraprofessionals; and how the local educational agency, through incentives for voluntary transfers, recruitment programs, incentive pay, performance- or merit-based pay systems, or other effective strategies, will identify and address any disparities that result in low-income students and minority students being taught at higher rates than other students by ineffective, out-of-field, or inexperienced teachers; the actions the local educational agency will take to assist schools identified under section 1114(a)(1)(B) and other schools also determined by the local educational agency to be in need of assistance to improve student academic achievement, and the funds used to conduct such actions; the programs to be conducted by such agency’s schools under section 1113, and where appropriate, educational services outside such schools for children living in local institutions for neglected or delinquent children, and for neglected and delinquent children in community day school programs; the services the local educational agency will provide homeless children, including services provided with funds reserved under section 1113(a)(3)(C)(i); the strategy the local educational agency will use to implement effective parental involvement under section 1118; how the local educational agency will coordinate and integrate services provided under this part with preschool educational services at the local educational agency or individual school level, including plans for the transition of participants in such programs to local elementary school programs, and, if appropriate, a description of how the local educational agency will use funds under this part to support preschool programs for children, particularly children participating in a Head Start program, which may be provided directly by the local educational agency or through a subcontract with the local Head Start agency designated by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under section 641 of the Head Start Act, or another comparable public early childhood development program; how the local educational agency will coordinate programs and integrate services under this part with other Federal, State, and local services and programs; and how teachers, in consultation with parents, administrators, and pupil services personnel, in targeted assistance schools under section 1113, will identify the eligible children most in need of services under this part. Each local educational agency plan shall provide assurances that the local educational agency will— ensure that the results from the academic assessments required under section 1111(b)(2) will be provided to parents and teachers as soon as is practicably possible after the test is taken; ensure that migratory children and formerly migratory children who are eligible to receive services under this part are selected to receive such services on the same basis as other children who are selected to receive services under this part; provide services to eligible children attending private elementary schools and secondary schools in accordance with section 1120, and timely and meaningful consultation with private school officials regarding such services; and participate, if selected, in the National Assessment of Educational Progress in 4th and 8th grade reading and mathematics carried out under section 303(b)(2) of the National Assessment of Educational Progress Authorization Act. In addition to the plan requirements described in subsection (c), for schools operating a schoolwide program under section 1113(b)(2), the plan shall also include— a description of schoolwide reform strategies that— provide opportunities for all children to meet the State’s challenging academic achievement standards under section 1111(b); use effective methods and instructional strategies that are based on scientifically valid research that— strengthen the core academic program in the school; and increase the amount and quality of learning time and help provide an enriched and accelerated curriculum; and address the academic and other support needs of all children in the school; a list of State educational agency and local educational agency programs and other Federal programs that will be consolidated in the schoolwide program; and if appropriate, a description of how funds will be used to establish or enhance prekindergarten programs for children below the age of 6. In addition to the plan requirements described in subsection (c), for schools operating a targeted assistance program under section 1113(b)(3), the plan shall also include— a description of— the process for determining which students will be served and the students to be served; the assistance that will be provided to such students; and how the activities supported under this part will be coordinated with and incorporated into the regular education program of the school; and assurances that the school will— help provide an accelerated, high-quality curriculum; minimize removing children from the regular classroom during regular school hours for instruction provided under this part; and on an ongoing basis, review the progress of participating children and revise the plan under this section, if necessary, to provide additional assistance to enable such children to meet the State’s challenging academic achievement standards. At the beginning of each school year, a local educational agency that receives funds under this part shall notify the parents of each student attending any school receiving funds under this part that the parents may request, and the agency will provide the parents on request (and in a timely manner), information regarding the professional qualifications of the student’s classroom teachers, including, at a minimum, the following: Whether the teacher has met State qualification and licensing criteria for the grade levels and subject areas in which the teacher provides instruction. Whether the teacher is teaching under emergency or other provisional status through which State qualification or licensing criteria have been waived. Whether the child is provided services by paraprofessionals and, if so, whether each such paraprofessional meets the qualifications required under section 1119. In addition to the information that parents may request under subparagraph (A), a school that receives funds under this part shall provide to each individual parent— information on the level of achievement of the parent’s child in each of the State academic assessments as required under this part; and timely notice that the parent’s child has been assigned, or has been taught for 4 or more consecutive weeks by, a teacher who does not meet applicable State certification or licensure requirements. Each local educational agency using funds under this part to provide a language instruction educational program as determined under title III shall, not later than 30 days after the beginning of the school year, inform a parent or parents of an English language learner identified for participation or participating in such a program of— the reasons for the identification of their child as an English language learner and in need of placement in a language instruction educational program; the child’s level of English proficiency, how such level was assessed, and the status of the child’s academic achievement; the methods of instruction used in the program in which their child is, or will be participating, and the methods of instruction used in other available programs, including how such programs differ in content, instructional goals, and the use of English and a native language in instruction; how the program in which their child is, or will be participating, will meet the educational strengths and needs of their child; how such program will specifically help their child learn English and meet age-appropriate academic achievement standards for grade promotion and graduation; the specific exit requirements for the program, including the expected rate of transition from such program into classrooms that are not tailored for English language learners, and the expected rate of graduation from secondary school for such program if funds under this part are used for children in secondary schools; in the case of a child with a disability, how such program meets the objectives of the individualized education program of the child, as described in section 614(a)(1)(D) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act; and information pertaining to parental rights that includes written guidance— detailing— the right that parents have to have their child immediately removed from such program upon their request; and the options that parents have to decline to enroll their child in such program or to choose another program or method of instruction, if available; and assisting parents in selecting among various programs and methods of instruction, if more than 1 program or method is offered by the eligible entity. For those children who have not been identified as English language learners prior to the beginning of the school year but are identified as English language learners during such school year, the local educational agency shall notify the children’s parents during the first 2 weeks of the child being placed in a language instruction educational program consistent with subparagraph (A). Each local educational agency receiving funds under this part shall implement an effective means of outreach to parents of English language learners to inform the parents regarding how the parents can be involved in the education of their children, and be active participants in assisting their children to attain English proficiency, achieve at high levels in core academic subjects, and meet challenging State academic achievement standards and State academic content standards expected of all students, including holding, and sending notice of opportunities for, regular meetings for the purpose of formulating and responding to recommendations from parents of students assisted under this part. A student shall not be admitted to, or excluded from, any federally assisted education program on the basis of a surname or language-minority status. The notice and information provided to parents under this subsection shall be in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent practicable, provided in a language that the parents can understand. A local educational agency shall use funds received under this part only in eligible school attendance areas. In this part— the term school attendance area means, in relation to a particular school, the geographical area in which the children who are normally served by that school reside; and the term eligible school attendance area means a school attendance area in which the percentage of children from low-income families is at least as high as the percentage of children from low-income families served by the local educational agency as a whole. If funds allocated in accordance with paragraph
(3)are insufficient to serve all eligible school attendance areas, a local educational agency shall— annually rank, without regard to grade spans, such agency’s eligible school attendance areas in which the concentration of children from low-income families exceeds 75 percent from highest to lowest according to the percentage of children from low-income families; and serve such eligible school attendance areas in rank order. If funds remain after serving all eligible school attendance areas under subparagraph (C), a local educational agency shall— annually rank such agency’s remaining eligible school attendance areas from highest to lowest either by grade span or for the entire local educational agency according to the percentage of children from low-income families; and serve such eligible school attendance areas in rank order either within each grade-span grouping or within the local educational agency as a whole. The local educational agency shall use the same measure of poverty, which measure shall be the number of children ages 5 through 17 in poverty counted in the most recent census data approved by the Secretary, the number of children eligible for a free or reduced priced lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, the number of children in families receiving assistance under the State program funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act, or the number of children eligible to receive medical assistance under the Medicaid program, or a composite of such indicators, with respect to all school attendance areas in the local educational agency— to identify eligible school attendance areas; to determine the ranking of each area; and to determine allocations under paragraph (3). This subsection shall not apply to a local educational agency with a total enrollment of less than 1,000 children. The Secretary may approve a local educational agency’s written request for a waiver of the requirements of this paragraph and paragraph
(3)and permit such agency to treat as eligible, and serve, any school that children attend with a State-ordered, court-ordered school desegregation plan or a plan that continues to be implemented in accordance with a State-ordered or court-ordered desegregation plan, if— the number of economically disadvantaged children enrolled in the school is at least 25 percent of the school’s total enrollment; and the Secretary determines on the basis of a written request from such agency and in accordance with such criteria as the Secretary establishes, that approval of that request would further the purposes of this part. Notwithstanding paragraph (1)(B), a local educational agency may— designate as eligible any school attendance area or school in which at least 35 percent of the children are from low-income families; use funds received under this part in a school that is not in an eligible school attendance area, if the percentage of children from low-income families enrolled in the school is equal to or greater than the percentage of such children in a participating school attendance area of such agency; designate and serve a school attendance area or school that is not eligible under this section, but that was eligible and that was served in the preceding fiscal year, but only for 1 additional fiscal year; and elect not to serve an eligible school attendance area or eligible school that has a higher percentage of children from low-income families if— the school meets the comparability requirements of section 1120A(b); the school is receiving supplemental funds from other State or local sources that are spent according to the requirements of this section; and the funds expended from such other sources equal or exceed the amount that would be provided under this part. Notwithstanding subparagraph (A)(iv), the number of children attending private elementary schools and secondary schools who are to receive services, and the assistance such children are to receive under this part, shall be determined without regard to whether the public school attendance area in which such children reside is assisted under subparagraph (A). A local educational agency shall allocate funds received under this part to eligible school attendance areas or eligible schools, identified under paragraphs
(1)and
(2)in rank order, on the basis of the total number of children from low-income families in each area or school. Except as provided in clause (ii), the per-pupil amount of funds allocated to each school attendance area or school under subparagraph
(A)shall be at least 125 percent of the per-pupil amount of funds a local educational agency received for that year under the poverty criteria described by the local educational agency in the plan submitted under section 1112, except that this clause shall not apply to a local educational agency that only serves schools in which the percentage of such children is 35 percent or greater. A local educational agency may reduce the amount of funds allocated under clause
(i)for a school attendance area or school by the amount of any supplemental State and local funds expended in that school attendance area or school for programs that meet the requirements of this section. A local educational agency shall reserve such funds as are necessary under this part to provide services comparable to those provided to children in schools funded under this part to serve— homeless children who do not attend participating schools, including providing educationally related support services to children in shelters and other locations where children may live; children in local institutions for neglected children; and if appropriate, children in local institutions for delinquent children, and neglected or delinquent children in community day school programs. For each school that will receive funds under this part, the local educational agency shall determine whether the school operates as a schoolwide program consistent with paragraph
(2)or a targeted assistance school consistent with paragraph (3). A local educational agency may consolidate and use funds under this part, together with other Federal, State, and local funds, in order to upgrade the entire educational program of a school that serves an eligible school attendance area in which not less than 40 percent of the children are from low-income families, or not less than 40 percent of the children enrolled in the school are from such families. No school participating in a schoolwide program shall be required— to identify particular children under this part as eligible to participate in a schoolwide program; or to provide services to such children that are supplementary, as otherwise required by section 1120A(a). A school participating in a schoolwide program shall use funds available to carry out this paragraph only to supplement the amount of funds that would, in the absence of funds under this part, be made available from non-Federal sources for the school, including funds needed to provide services that are required by law for children with disabilities and children who are English language learners. The Secretary may, through publication of a notice in the Federal Register, exempt schoolwide programs under this section from statutory or regulatory provisions of any other noncompetitive formula grant program administered by the Secretary (other than formula or discretionary grant programs under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, except as provided in section 613(a)(2)(D) of such Act), or any discretionary grant program administered by the Secretary, to support schoolwide programs if the intent and purposes of such other programs are met. A school that chooses to use funds from such other programs shall not be relieved of the requirements relating to health, safety, civil rights, student and parental participation and involvement, services to private school children, comparability of services, uses of Federal funds to supplement, not supplant non-Federal funds, or the distribution of funds to State educational agencies or local educational agencies that apply to the receipt of funds from such programs. A school that consolidates and uses funds from different Federal programs under this paragraph shall not be required to maintain separate fiscal accounting records, by program, that identify the specific activities supported by those particular funds as long as the school maintains records that demonstrate that the schoolwide program, considered as a whole, addresses the intent and purposes of each of the Federal programs that were consolidated to support the schoolwide program. A school that is eligible for a schoolwide program under this paragraph may use funds made available under this part to establish or enhance prekindergarten programs for children below the age of 6. In all schools selected to receive funds under subsection (a)(3) that are ineligible for a schoolwide program under paragraph (2), or that choose not to operate such a schoolwide program, a local educational agency serving such school may use funds received under this part only for programs that provide services to eligible children under subparagraph
(B)identified as having the greatest need for special assistance. The eligible population for services under this section is— children not older than age 21 who are entitled to a free public education through grade 12; and children who are not yet at a grade level at which the local educational agency provides a free public education. From the population described in subclause (I), eligible children are children identified by the school as failing, or most at risk of failing, to meet the State’s challenging student academic achievement standards on the basis of multiple, educationally related, objective criteria established by the local educational agency and supplemented by the school. Children who are economically disadvantaged, children with disabilities, migrant children, or children who are English language learners, are eligible for services under this part on the same basis as other children selected to receive services under this part. A child who, at any time in the 2 years preceding the year for which the determination is made, participated in a Head Start program, or in preschool services under this title, is eligible for services under this part. A child who, at any time in the 2 years preceding the year for which the determination is made, received services under part C is eligible for services under this part. A child in a local institution for neglected or delinquent children and youth or attending a community day program for such children is eligible for services under this part. A child who is homeless and attending any school served by the local educational agency is eligible for services under this part. Funds received under this part may not be used to provide services that are otherwise required by law to be made available to children described in clause
(ii)but may be used to coordinate or supplement such services. To promote the integration of staff supported with funds under this part into the regular school program and overall school planning and improvement efforts, public school personnel who are paid with funds received under this part may— participate in general professional development and school planning activities; and assume limited duties that are assigned to similar personnel who are not so paid, including duties beyond classroom instruction or that do not benefit participating children, so long as the amount of time spent on such duties is the same proportion of total work time as prevails with respect to similar personnel at the same school. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to prohibit a school from serving students under this paragraph simultaneously with students with similar educational needs, in the same educational settings where appropriate. If health, nutrition, and other social services are not otherwise available to eligible children in a targeted assistance school and such school, if appropriate, has engaged in a comprehensive needs assessment and established a collaborative partnership with local service providers and funds are not reasonably available from other public or private sources to provide such services, then a portion of the funds provided under this part may be used as a last resort to provide such services, including— the provision of basic medical equipment, such as eyeglasses and hearing aids; compensation of a coordinator; and professional development necessary to assist teachers, pupil services personnel, other staff, and parents in identifying and meeting the comprehensive needs of eligible children. Each State educational agency receiving funds under this part shall use a system designed by the State in accordance with section 1111(b)(3)(A) to annually— review the academic performance of each public school in the State to measure the progress of each public school served under this part in meeting the State’s challenging academic standards and any other measures determined appropriate by the State, by using— the State academic assessments described in section 1111(b)(2); secondary school graduation rates, as appropriate; and other indicators determined by the State; and identify the public schools that receive funds under this part and are in need of assistance for improving student academic achievement and any other measures determined appropriate by the State. The State educational agency shall— make technical assistance available to local educational agencies that serve schools identified under paragraph (1)(B); if the State educational agency determines that a local educational agency failed to carry out its responsibilities under this section, take such actions as the State educational agency determines to be appropriate and in compliance with State law; and inform local educational agencies of schools identified under subparagraph (1)(B) in a timely manner that is before the beginning of the school year. Each local educational agency with a school identified under subsection (a)(1)(B) shall, in consultation with school personnel, parents, and the local community— conduct a review of such school and student achievement data, including data from the State assessments described in section 1111(b)(2), to determine the factors that led to such identification; conduct a review of the policies, procedures, personnel decisions, and budgetary decisions of the local educational agency and the school that impact the school and could have contributed to the identification of the school; develop appropriate strategies, as described under paragraph (3), for assisting the identified school; and develop a comprehensive plan for the successful implementation of the assistance strategies, including— technical assistance that will be provided to the school; improved delivery of services to be provided by the local educational agency; curriculum, program of instruction, or other services provided to students in the school; and any changes to personnel necessary to improve educational opportunities for children in the school. A local educational agency shall promptly provide to a parent or parents of each student enrolled in a school identified under subsection (a)(1)(B)— an explanation of what the identification means, and how the school compares in terms of academic achievement to other schools served by the local educational agency and the State educational agency involved; the reasons for the identification; an explanation of what the local educational agency or State educational agency is doing to help the school address the student academic achievement problem, including a description of the assistance strategies developed under paragraph (1)(C) that will be implemented in the school; an explanation of how the parents can become involved in addressing the academic achievement issues that caused the school to be identified; and an explanation of the parents’ option to transfer their child to another public school under paragraph (4), if applicable. Consistent with subsection (a)(1) and paragraph (1), a local educational agency shall develop assistance strategies for an identified school, which may include, among other strategies— replacing the principal who led the school before implementation of the strategy; screening and replacing teachers that are not effective in improving student achievement, as determined by the State or local educational agency; giving the school sufficient operational flexibility in programming, staffing, budgeting, and scheduling to fully implement a comprehensive strategy that is designed to substantially improve student achievement and, if applicable, increase the graduation rate; providing ongoing, high-quality professional development to instructional staff that is aligned with the school’s instructional program, facilitates effective teaching and learning, and supports the implementation of school turnaround model; implementing strategies, such as financial incentives, increased opportunities for promotion and career growth, and more flexible work conditions, that are designed to recruit, place, and retain staff with the skills that are necessary to meet the needs of the students in the school; using data to identify and implement a research-based instructional program that is aligned with the State's challenging academic standards or to inform and differentiate instruction in order to meet the academic needs of individual students; converting a school or closing and reopening the school— under a charter school operator, a charter management organization, an education management organization, as a magnet school, or as an innovative school as defined under State law; and enrolling in the school, within the grades it serves, any former student from the identified school who wishes to attend the school; closing a school and enrolling the students who attended that school in other schools of the local educational agency that are higher performing; adopting a new governance structure for the school; and any other strategies and activities that the local educational agency deems appropriate to address the needs of students in identified schools. Consistent with State law, a State educational agency may establish alternative State determined strategies that can be used by local educational agencies to assist a school identified under subsection (a)(1)(B), in addition to the assistance strategies developed by a local educational agency under subparagraph (A). In addition to the assistance strategies developed under paragraph (3)(A), a local educational agency may, not later than 3 months before the first day of the school year following identification under subsection (a)(1)(B), provide all students enrolled in the identified school with the option to transfer to another public school served by the local educational agency, unless such an option is prohibited by State law. In providing students the option to transfer to another public school, the local educational agency shall give priority to the lowest achieving children from low-income families, as determined by the local educational agency for the purposes of allocating funds to schools under section 1113(a)(3). Students who use the option to transfer to another public school shall be enrolled in classes and other activities in the public school to which the students transfer in the same manner as all other children at the public school. A local educational agency shall permit a child who transfers to another public school under this paragraph to remain in that school until the child has completed the highest grade in that school. Except as provided in clause (ii), a local educational agency shall provide, or shall pay for the provision of, transportation for a student who transfers under this paragraph to the public school to which the student transfers. The obligation of a local educational agency to provide, or pay for the provision of, transportation for a student who transfers under this paragraph ends at the end of a school year if the local educational agency determines that the school from which the student transferred is no longer identified under subsection (a)(1)(B). ; and by striking section 1119 and inserting the following: Each local educational agency receiving assistance under this part shall ensure that all teachers working in a program supported with funds under this part meet applicable State certification and licensure requirements. Each local educational agency receiving assistance under this part shall ensure that all paraprofessionals hired after the date of enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 ( Public Law 107–110 ) and working in a program supported with funds under this part have— completed not less than 2 years of study at an institution of higher education; obtained an associate’s (or higher) degree; or met a rigorous standard of quality and can demonstrate, through a formal State or local academic assessment— knowledge of, and the ability to assist in, instructing, reading, writing, and mathematics; or knowledge of, and the ability to assist in, reading readiness, writing readiness, and mathematics readiness, as appropriate. The receipt of a secondary school diploma (or its recognized equivalent) shall be necessary but not sufficient to satisfy the requirements of paragraph (1)(C). Subsection
(b)shall not apply to a paraprofessional— who is proficient in English and a language other than English and who provides services primarily to enhance the participation of children in programs under this part by acting as a translator; or whose duties consist solely of conducting parental involvement activities consistent with section 1118. Each local educational agency receiving assistance under this part shall ensure that a paraprofessional working in a program supported with funds under this part is not assigned a duty inconsistent with this subsection. A paraprofessional described in paragraph
(1)may only provide instructional service to a student under the direct supervision of a teacher or principal. A paraprofessional described in paragraph
(1)may be assigned— to provide one-on-one tutoring for eligible students, if the tutoring is scheduled at a time when a student would not otherwise receive instruction from a teacher; to assist with classroom management, such as organizing instructional and other materials; to provide assistance in a computer laboratory; to conduct parental involvement activities; to provide support in a library or media center; to act as a translator; or to provide instructional services to students in accordance with paragraph (2). .
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- Pub. L. 107-110
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