[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 620 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 620

 To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 regarding 
           elementary school and secondary school counseling.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 26, 2001

  Mr. Harkin (for himself and Mr. Wellstone) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 regarding 
           elementary school and secondary school counseling.

    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 ``Elementary and Secondary School 
Counseling Improvement Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) elementary and secondary school children are being 
        subjected to unprecedented social stresses, including 
        fragmentation of the family, drug and alcohol abuse, violence, 
        child abuse, and poverty;
            (2) an increasing number of elementary and secondary school 
        children are exhibiting symptoms of distress, such as substance 
        abuse, emotional disorders, violent outbursts, disruptive 
        behavior, juvenile delinquency, and suicide;
            (3) between 1984 and 1994, the homicide rate for 
        adolescents doubled, while the rate of nonfatal violent crimes 
        committed by adolescents increased by almost 20 percent;
            (4) according to the National Institute of Mental Health, 
        up to one in five children and youth have psychological 
        problems severe enough to require some form of professional 
        help, yet only 20 percent of youth with mental disorders or 
        their families receive help;
            (5) the Institute of Medicine has identified psychological 
        counseling as the most serious school health need for the 
        normal development of our Nation's children and youth;
            (6) school counselors, school psychologists, and school 
        social workers can contribute to the personal growth, 
        educational development, and emotional well-being of elementary 
        and secondary school children by providing professional 
        counseling, intervention, and referral services;
            (7) the implementation of well designed school counseling 
        programs has been shown to increase students' academic success;
            (8) the national average student-to-counselor ratio in 
        elementary and secondary schools is 531 to 1, and the average 
        student-to-psychologist ratio is 2300 to 1;
            (9) it is recommended that to effectively address students' 
        mental health and development needs, schools have 1 full-time 
        counselor for every 250 students, 1 psychologist for every 
        1,000 students, and 1 school social worker for every 800 
        students;
            (10) the population of elementary and secondary school 
        students in the United States is expected to increase 
        dramatically during the 5 to 10 years beginning with 1999;
            (11) the Federal Government can help reduce the risk of 
        academic, social, and emotional problems among elementary and 
        secondary school children by stimulating the development of 
        model school counseling programs; and
            (12) the Federal Government can help reduce the risk of 
        future unemployment and assist the school-to-work transition by 
        stimulating the development of model school counseling programs 
        that include comprehensive career development.
    (b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this Act to enhance the 
availability and quality of counseling services for elementary and 
secondary school children by providing grants to local educational 
agencies to enable such agencies to establish or expand effective and 
innovative counseling programs that can serve as national models.

SEC. 3. SCHOOL COUNSELING.

    Title IV of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) in section 4004 (20 U.S.C. 7104)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the period and 
                inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2002, and such sums as 
        may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years, for 
        grants under section 4124.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end of subpart 2 of part A, the 
        following:

``SEC. 4124. ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND SECONDARY SCHOOL COUNSELING 
              DEMONSTRATION.

    ``(a) Counseling Demonstration.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary may award grants under 
        this section to local educational agencies to enable the local 
        educational agencies to establish or expand elementary school 
        and secondary school counseling programs.
            ``(2) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
        Secretary shall give special consideration to applications 
        describing programs that--
                    ``(A) demonstrate the greatest need for new or 
                additional counseling services among the children in 
                the schools served by the applicant;
                    ``(B) propose the most promising and innovative 
                approaches for initiating or expanding school 
                counseling; and
                    ``(C) show the greatest potential for replication 
                and dissemination.
            ``(3) Equitable distribution.--In awarding grants under 
        this section, the Secretary shall ensure an equitable 
        geographic distribution among the regions of the United States 
        and among urban, suburban, and rural areas.
            ``(4) Duration.--A grant under this section shall be 
        awarded for a period not to exceed three years.
            ``(5) Maximum grant.--A grant under this section shall not 
        exceed $400,000 for any fiscal year.
    ``(b) Applications.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each local educational agency desiring a 
        grant under this section shall submit an application to the 
        Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such 
        information as the Secretary may reasonably require.
            ``(2) Contents.--Each application for a grant under this 
        section shall--
                    ``(A) describe the school population to be targeted 
                by the program, the particular personal, social, 
                emotional, educational, and career development needs of 
                such population, and the current school counseling 
                resources available for meeting such needs;
                    ``(B) describe the activities, services, and 
                training to be provided by the program and the specific 
                approaches to be used to meet the needs described in 
                subparagraph (A);
                    ``(C) describe the methods to be used to evaluate 
                the outcomes and effectiveness of the program;
                    ``(D) describe the collaborative efforts to be 
                undertaken with institutions of higher education, 
                businesses, labor organizations, community groups, 
                social service agencies, and other public or private 
                entities to enhance the program and promote school-
                linked services integration;
                    ``(E) describe collaborative efforts with 
                institutions of higher education which specifically 
                seek to enhance or improve graduate programs 
                specializing in the preparation of school counselors, 
                school psychologists, and school social workers;
                    ``(F) document that the applicant has the personnel 
                qualified to develop, implement, and administer the 
                program;
                    ``(G) describe how any diverse cultural 
                populations, if applicable, would be served through the 
                program;
                    ``(H) assure that the funds made available under 
                this part for any fiscal year will be used to 
                supplement and, to the extent practicable, increase the 
                level of funds that would otherwise be available from 
                non-Federal sources for the program described in the 
                application, and in no case supplant such funds from 
                non-Federal sources; and
                    ``(I) assure that the applicant will appoint an 
                advisory board composed of parents, school counselors, 
                school psychologists, school social workers, other 
                pupil services personnel, teachers, school 
                administrators, and community leaders to advise the 
                local educational agency on the design and 
                implementation of the program.
    ``(c) Use of Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--From amounts made available under 
        section 4004(3) to carry out this section, the Secretary shall 
        award grants to local education agencies to be used to initiate 
        or expand elementary or secondary school counseling programs 
        that comply with the requirements of paragraph (2).
            ``(2) Program requirements.--Each program assisted under 
        this section shall--
                    ``(A) be comprehensive in addressing the personal, 
                social, emotional, and educational needs of all 
                students;
                    ``(B) use a developmental, preventive approach to 
                counseling;
                    ``(C) increase the range, availability, quantity, 
                and quality of counseling services in the schools of 
                the local educational agency;
                    ``(D) expand counseling services only through 
                qualified school counselors, school psychologists, and 
                school social workers;
                    ``(E) use innovative approaches to increase 
                children's understanding of peer and family 
                relationships, work and self, decisionmaking, or 
                academic and career planning, or to improve social 
                functioning;
                    ``(F) provide counseling services that are well-
                balanced among classroom group and small group 
                counseling, individual counseling, and consultation 
                with parents, teachers, administrators, and other pupil 
                services personnel;
                    ``(G) include inservice training for school 
                counselors, school social workers, school 
                psychologists, other pupil services personnel, 
                teachers, and instructional staff;
                    ``(H) involve parents of participating students in 
                the design, implementation, and evaluation of a 
                counseling program;
                    ``(I) involve collaborative efforts with 
                institutions of higher education, businesses, labor 
                organizations, community groups, social service 
                agencies, or other public or private entities to 
                enhance the program and promote school-linked services 
                integration; and
                    ``(J) evaluate annually the effectiveness and 
                outcomes of the counseling services and activities 
                assisted under this section.
            ``(3) Report.--The Secretary shall issue a report 
        evaluating the programs assisted pursuant to each grant under 
        this subsection at the end of each grant period in accordance 
        with section 14701.
            ``(4) Dissemination.--The Secretary shall make the programs 
        assisted under this section available for dissemination, either 
        through the National Diffusion Network or other appropriate 
        means.
            ``(5) Limit on administration.--Not more than 5 percent of 
        the amounts made available under this section in any fiscal 
        year shall be used for administrative costs to carry out this 
        section.
    ``(d) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
            ``(1) School counselor.--The term `school counselor' means 
        an individual who has documented competence in counseling 
        children and adolescents in a school setting and who--
                    ``(A) possesses State licensure or certification 
                granted by an independent professional regulatory 
                authority;
                    ``(B) in the absence of such State licensure or 
                certification, possesses national certification in 
                school counseling or a specialty of counseling granted 
                by an independent professional organization; or
                    ``(C) holds a minimum of a master's degree in 
                school counseling from a program accredited by the 
                Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related 
                Educational Programs or the equivalent.
            ``(2) School psychologist.--The term `school psychologist' 
        means an individual who--
                    ``(A) possesses a minimum of 60 graduate semester 
                hours in school psychology from an institution of 
                higher education and has completed 1,200 clock hours in 
                a supervised school psychology internship, of which 600 
                hours shall be in the school setting;
                    ``(B) possesses State licensure or certification in 
                the State in which the individual works; or
                    ``(C) in the absence of such State licensure or 
                certification, possesses national certification by the 
                National School Psychology Certification Board.
            ``(3) School social worker.--The term `school social 
        worker' means an individual who--
                    ``(A)(i) holds a master's degree in social work 
                from a program accredited by the Council on Social Work 
                Education; and
                    ``(ii) is licensed or certified by the State in 
                which services are provided; or
                    ``(B) in the absence of such licensure or 
                certification, possess a national certification or 
                credential as a school social work specialist that has 
                been awarded by an independent professional 
                organization.
            ``(4) Supervisor.--The term `supervisor' means an 
        individual who has the equivalent number of years of 
        professional experience in such individual's respective 
        discipline as is required of teaching experience for the 
        supervisor or administrative credential in the State of such 
        individual.''.
                                 <all>