[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2455 Engrossed in House (EH)]

103d CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 2455

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

To help local school systems achieve Goal Six of the National Education 
 Goals, which provides that by the year 2000, every school in America 
    will be free of drugs and violence and will offer a disciplined 
  environment conducive to learning, by ensuring that all schools are 
                       safe and free of violence.






103d CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 2455

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
To help local school systems achieve Goal Six of the National Education 
 Goals, which provides that by the year 2000, every school in America 
    will be free of drugs and violence and will offer a disciplined 
  environment conducive to learning, by ensuring that all schools are 
                       safe and free of violence.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Safe Schools Act of 1994''.

SEC. 2. SAFE SCHOOLS PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

    (a) In General.--With funds appropriated under subsection (b)(1), 
the Secretary of Education shall make competitive grants to eligible 
local educational agencies to carry out projects designed to achieve 
Goal Six of the National Education Goals, which provides that by the 
year 2000, every school in America will be free of drugs and violence 
and will offer a disciplined environment conducive to learning, by 
helping to ensure that all schools are safe and free of violence.
    (b) Model Project.--The Secretary of Education, shall develop a 
written safe schools model so all schools can develop models that 
enable all students to participate regardless of any language barriers.
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations and Reservation.--
            (1) Authorization.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
        to carry out this Act $50,000,000 for fiscal year 1994.
            (2) Reservation.--From the sums appropriated to carry out 
        this Act for any fiscal year, the Secretary may reserve not 
        more than 5 percent to carry out national leadership activities 
        under section 6.

SEC. 3. ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.

    To be eligible to receive a grant under this Act, a local 
educational agency shall demonstrate in its application under section 
4(a) that it--
            (1) serves an area in which there is a high rate of--
                    (A) homicides committed by persons between the ages 
                5 to 18, inclusive;
                    (B) referrals of youth to juvenile court;
                    (C) youth under the supervision of the courts;
                    (D) expulsions and suspensions of students from 
                school;
                    (E) referrals of youth, for disciplinary reasons, 
                to alternative schools; or
                    (F) victimization of youth by violence, crime, or 
                other forms of abuse; and
            (2) has serious school crime, violence, and discipline 
        problems, as indicated by other appropriate data.

SEC. 4. APPLICATIONS AND PLANS.

    (a) In General.--In order to receive a grant under this Act, an 
eligible local educational agency shall submit to the Secretary an 
application that includes--
            (1) an assessment of the current violence and crime 
        problems in the schools to be served by the grant and in the 
        community to be served by the applicant;
            (2) an assurance that the applicant has written policies 
        regarding school safety, student discipline, and the 
        appropriate handling of violent or disruptive acts;
            (3) a description of the schools and communities to be 
        served by the grant, the activities and projects to be carried 
        out with grant funds, and how these activities and projects 
        will help to reduce the current violence and crime problems in 
        the schools and communities served;
            (4) a description of educational materials to be developed 
        in the second most predominate language of the schools and 
        communities to be served by the grant, if applicable;
            (5) if the local educational agency receives Federal 
        education funds, an explanation of how activities assisted 
        under this Act will be coordinated with and support any 
        systemic education improvement plan prepared with such funds;
            (6) the applicant's plan to establish school-level advisory 
        committees, which include faculty, parents, staff, and 
        students, for each school to be served by the grant and a 
        description of how each committee will assist in assessing that 
        school's violence and discipline problems as well as in 
        designing appropriate programs, policies, and practices to 
        combat those problems;
            (7) the applicant's plan for collecting baseline and future 
        data, by individual schools, to monitor violence and discipline 
        problems and to measure its progress in achieving the purpose 
        of this Act;
            (8) a description of how, in subsequent fiscal years, the 
        grantee will integrate the violence prevention activities it 
        carries out with funds under this Act with activities carried 
        out under its comprehensive plan for drug and violence 
        prevention adopted under the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and 
        Communities Act of 1986;
            (9) a description of how the grantee will coordinate its 
        school crime and violence prevention efforts with education, 
        law enforcement, judicial, health, social service, programs 
        supported under the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention 
        Act of 1974, and other appropriate agencies and organizations 
        serving the community;
            (10) a description of how the grantee will inform parents 
        about the extent of crime and violence in their children's 
        schools and maximize the participation of parents in its 
        violence prevention activities;
            (11) an assurance that grant funds under this Act will be 
        used to supplement and not supplant State and local funds that 
        would, in the absence of funds under this Act, be made 
        available by the applicant for the purposes of the grant;
            (12) an assurance that the applicant will cooperate with, 
        and provide assistance to, the Secretary in gathering 
        statistics and other data the Secretary determines are 
        necessary to determine the effectiveness of projects and 
        activities under this Act or the extent of school violence and 
        discipline problems throughout the Nation; and
            (13) such other information as the Secretary may require.
    (b) Priorities.--In awarding grants under this Act, the Secretary 
shall take into account the special needs of local educational agencies 
located in both rural and urban communities.

SEC. 5. GRANTS AND USE OF FUNDS.

    (a) Duration and Amount of Grants.--Grants under this Act may not 
exceed--
            (1) 1 year in duration; and
            (2) $3,000,000.
    (b) Use of Funds.--
            (1) Activities.--A local educational agency may use funds 
        awarded under section 2(a) for 1 or more of the following 
        activities:
                    (A) Identifying and assessing school violence and 
                discipline problems, including coordinating needs 
                assessment activities with education, law-enforcement, 
                judicial, health, social service, juvenile justice 
                programs, gang prevention activities, and other 
                appropriate agencies and organizations.
                    (B) Conducting school safety reviews or violence 
                prevention reviews of programs, policies, practices, 
                and facilities to determine what changes are needed to 
                reduce or prevent violence and promote safety and 
                discipline.
                    (C) Planning for comprehensive, long-term 
                strategies for combating and preventing school violence 
                and discipline problems through the involvement and 
                coordination of school programs with other education, 
                law-enforcement, judicial, health, social service, and 
                other appropriate agencies and organizations.
                    (D) Activities which involve parents in efforts to 
                promote school safety and prevent school violence;
                    (E) Community education programs involving parents, 
                businesses, local government, the medical, and other 
                appropriate entities about the local educational 
                agency's plan to promote school safety and reduce and 
                prevent school violence and discipline problems and the 
                need for community support.
                    (F) Coordination of school-based activities 
                designed to promote school safety and reduce or prevent 
                school violence and discipline problems with related 
                efforts of education, law-enforcement, judicial, 
                health, social service, juvenile justice programs, and 
                other appropriate agencies and organizations.
                    (G) Developing and implementing violence prevention 
                activities and materials, including--
                            (i) conflict resolution and social skills 
                        development for students, teachers, aides, 
                        other school personnel, and parents;
                            (ii) disciplinary alternatives to expulsion 
                        and suspension of students who exhibit violent 
                        or anti-social behavior;
                            (iii) student-led activities such as peer 
                        mediation, peer counseling, and student courts; 
                        or
                            (iv) alternative after-school programs that 
                        provide safe havens for students, which may 
                        include cultural, recreational, educational and 
                        instructional activities, and mentoring and 
                        community service programs.
                    (H) Educating students and parents about the 
                dangers of guns and other weapons and the consequences 
                of their use.
                    (I) Developing and implementing innovative 
                curricula to prevent violence in schools and training 
                staff how to stop disruptive or violent behavior if it 
                occurs.
                    (J) Supporting ``safe zones of passage'' for 
                students between home and school through such measures 
                as Drug- and Weapon-Free School Zones, enhanced law 
                enforcement, and neighborhood patrols.
                    (K) Counseling programs for victims and witnesses 
                of school violence and crime.
                    (L) Evaluating its project under this Act.
                    (M) The cost of administering the project of the 
                local educational agency under this Act.
                    (N) Other activities that meet the purposes of this 
                Act.
            (2) Other limitations.--A local educational agency may use 
        not more than 5 percent of its grant for activities described 
        in paragraph (1)(M).
            (3) Construction.--A local educational agency may not use 
        funds under this Act for construction.

SEC. 6. NATIONAL LEADERSHIP.

    To carry out the purpose of this Act, the Secretary may use funds 
reserved under section 2(b)(2) to conduct national leadership 
activities such as research, program development and evaluation, data 
collection, public awareness activities, training and technical 
assistance, to provide grants to noncommercial telecommunications 
entities for the production and distribution of national video-based 
projects that provide young people with models for conflict resolution 
and responsible decisionmaking, and to conduct peer review of 
applications under this Act. The Secretary may carry out such 
activities directly, through interagency agreements, or through grants, 
contracts, or cooperative agreements.

SEC. 7. REPORTS.

    (a) Report to Secretary.--Local educational agencies that receive 
funds under this part shall submit to the Secretary a report not later 
than March 1, 1995, that describes progress achieved in carrying out 
the plan required under section 4.
    (b) Report to Congress.--The Secretary shall submit to the 
Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives a 
report not later than October 1, 1995, which contains a detailed 
statement regarding grant awards, activities of grant recipients, a 
compilation of statistical information submitted by applicants under 
section 4, and an evaluation of programs established under this part.

SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Local educational agency.--The term ``local educational 
        agency'' has the meaning given such term in section 1471(12) of 
        the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        2891(12)).
            (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Education.

            Passed the House of Representatives February 22, 1994.

            Attest:






                                                                 Clerk.