Sec. 4. Grants to reduce exclusionary school discipline practices
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The Secretary shall award grants (which shall be known as the Healing School Climate Grants ), on a competitive basis, to eligible entities for the purpose of reducing the overuse and discriminatory use of exclusionary discipline practices in schools. An eligible entity seeking a grant under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require, including an assurance that the eligible entity shall prioritize schools with the highest rates of suspensions and expulsions.
The Secretary shall make applications publicly accessible in an appropriate digital format. An eligible entity that receives a grant under subsection
(a)shall prohibit the use of— out-of-school suspension or expulsion for any student in preschool through grade 5 for incidents that do not involve serious bodily injury; out-of-school suspension or expulsion for any student in preschool through grade 12 for insubordination, willful defiance, vulgarity, truancy, tardiness, chronic absenteeism, or as a result of a violation of a grooming or appearance policy; corporal punishment; seclusion; a mechanical or chemical restraint on a student; or a physical restraint on a student, except when— the behavior of a student poses a high risk of serious bodily injury to the student or another individual and less restrictive interventions would be ineffective in addressing such a high risk; a limited amount of force is used to protect the student or another individual from an injury and such ends immediately upon the cessation of the imminent danger of serious bodily injury to the student or another individual; the physical restraint does not restrict breathing or the flow of blood to the brain, including restraining in the prone or supine position; the physical restraint does not interfere with the ability of a student to communicate in the language or other mode of communication primarily used by such student; the physical restraint is imposed— by personnel who are trained and certified by a State in crisis intervention; or when personnel described in clause
(i)are not available, in the case of a rare and unforeseeable emergency; or the physical restraint does not affect or interfere with, with respect to a student, a disability, health care needs, or a medical or psychiatric condition documented in a— health care directive or medical management plan; a behavior intervention plan; an individualized education program or an individualized family service plan (as defined in section 602 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ( 20 U.S.C. 1401 )); or another relevant record made available to the State or eligible entity involved. An eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall use funds to— evaluate the current discipline policies of a school and, in partnership with students (including girls of color), the family members of students, and the local community of such school, develop discipline policies for such school to ensure that such policies are not exclusionary or discriminately applied toward students; provide training and professional development for teachers, principals, school leaders, and other school personnel to avoid or address the overuse and discriminatory disproportionate use of exclusionary discipline practices in schools and to create awareness of implicit and explicit bias and use culturally affirming practices, including training in— identifying and providing support to students who may have experienced or are at risk of experiencing trauma or have other mental health needs; administering and responding to assessments on adverse childhood experiences; providing student-centered, trauma-informed positive behavior management intervention and support that creates safe and supportive school climates; using restorative practices; using culturally and linguistically responsive intervention strategies; developing social and emotional learning competencies; and increasing student engagement and improving dialogue between students and teachers; implement evidence-based alternatives to suspension or expulsion, including— multi-tier systems of support, such as schoolwide positive behavioral interventions and supports; social, emotional, and academic learning strategies designed to engage students and avoid escalating conflicts; and other data-driven approaches to improving school environments; improve behavioral and academic outcomes for students by creating a safe and supportive learning environment and school climate, which may include— restorative practices with respect to improving relationships among students, school officials, and members of the local community, which may include partnering with local mental health agencies or nonprofit organizations; access to mentors and peer-based support programs; extracurricular programs, including sports and art programs; social and emotional learning strategies designed to engage students and avoid escalating conflicts; access to counseling, mental health programs, and trauma-informed care programs, including suicide prevention programs; and access to culturally responsive curricula that affirms the history and contributions of traditionally marginalized people and communities; hire social workers, school counselors, trauma-informed care personnel, and other mental health personnel; and support the development, delivery, and analysis of school climate surveys. An eligible entity that receives a grant under this section may not use funds to— hire or retain school-based law enforcement personnel, including school resource officers; purchase, maintain, or install surveillance equipment, including metal detectors or software programs that monitor or mine the social media use or technology use of students; arm teachers, principals, school leaders, or other school personnel; and enter into formal or informal partnerships or data and information sharing agreements with— the Secretary of Homeland Security, including agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or U.S. Customs and Border Protection; or local law enforcement agencies, including partnerships that allow for hiring of school-based law enforcement. The Secretary, in carrying out subsection (a), may reserve not more than 2 percent of funds to provide technical assistance to eligible entities, which may include— support for data collection, compliance, and analysis of the activities of the program authorized under subsection (a); and informational meetings and seminars with respect to the application process under subsection (b). Not later than one year after the date of enactment of this section, an eligible entity receiving a grant under this section shall submit to the Secretary a report on the activities funded through the grant. The Secretary shall make each such report publicly accessible in an appropriate digital format. Such report shall include, at a minimum, a description of— the evaluation methods of disciplinary practices prior to the grant; training and professional development services provided for school personnel to address discriminatory discipline practices, implicit and explicit bias, and other uses described in subsection (d)(1); aggregated and de-identified behavioral, social emotional, and academic outcomes experience by students; any instance of physical restraint used on a student with an explanation of a circumstance described in subsection (c)(6); the number of students who were referred to some form of alternative practice described in subsection (d)(1)(C); disaggregated data on students suspended, expelled, and referred to the juvenile or criminal legal system, cross tabulated by— reason for disciplinary action; grade level; race; ethnicity; sex (including to the extent possible, sexual orientation and gender identity); low-income status; disability status; English learner status; Tribal citizenship or descent, in the first or second degree, of an Indian Tribe; and if applicable, pregnant and parenting student status; and any other information required by the Secretary. In this section, the term eligible entity means— one or more local educational agencies (who may be partnered with a State educational agency), including a public charter school that is a local educational agency under State law or local educational agency operated by the Bureau of Indian Education; or a nonprofit organization (defined as an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, which is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code) with a track record of success in improving school climates and supporting students.
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Sec. 4
Grants to reduce exclusionary school discipline practices
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