1.This Act may be cited as the
Head Start Improvements for School
Readiness Act
.
2.Section 636 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831) is
amended by inserting educational instruction in prereading skills,
premathematics skills, and language and through
after low-income
children through
.
3.Section 637 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9832) is
amended—
(1)in paragraph (2), by inserting
(including a community-based organization)
after
nonprofit
;
(2)in paragraph (3)(C), by inserting ,
including financial literacy,
after Parent
literacy
;
(3)in paragraph (17), by striking
Mariana Islands,
and all that follows and inserting
Mariana Islands.
; and
(4)by adding at the end the following:
(18)The term homeless child means
a child described in section 725(2) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance
Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a(2)).
(19)The term limited English
proficient, used with respect to a child, means a child—
(A)who is enrolled or preparing to enroll in a
Head Start program, Early Head Start program, or other early care and education
program;
(B)(i)who was not born in the United States or
whose native language is a language other than English;
(ii)(I)who is a Native American, Alaska Native, or
a native resident of a United States territory; and
(II)who comes from an environment where a
language other than English has had a significant impact on the child’s level
of English language proficiency; or
(iii)who is migratory, whose native language is
a language other than English, and who comes from an environment where a
language other than English is dominant; and
(C)whose difficulty in speaking or
understanding the English language may be sufficient to deny such child—
(i)the ability to successfully achieve in a
classroom in which the language of instruction is English; or
(ii)the opportunity to participate fully in
society.
(20)The term deficiency
means—
(A)a systemic or substantial failure of an
agency in an area of performance that the Secretary determines involves—
(i)a threat to the health, safety, or civil
rights of children or staff;
(ii)a denial to parents of the exercise of
their full roles and responsibilities related to program operations;
(iii)a failure to comply with standards related
to early childhood development and health services, family and community
partnerships, or program design and management;
(iv)the misuse of funds under this
subchapter;
(v)loss of legal status or financial
viability, loss of permits, debarment from receiving Federal grants or
contracts, or the improper use of Federal funds; or
(vi)failure to meet any other Federal or State
requirement that the agency has shown an unwillingness or inability to correct,
after notice from the Secretary, within the period specified;
(B)systemic failure of the board of directors
of an agency to fully exercise its legal and fiduciary responsibilities;
(C)substantial failure of an agency to meet
the administrative requirements of section 644(b);
(D)failure of an agency to demonstrate that
the agency attempted to meet the coordination and collaboration requirements
with entities described in section 640(a)(5)(D)(iii)(I); or
(E)having an unresolved area of
noncompliance.
(21)The term unresolved area of
noncompliance means failure to correct a noncompliance item within 120
days, or within such additional time (if any) authorized by the Secretary,
after receiving from the Secretary notice of such noncompliance item, pursuant
to section
641A(d).
.
4.Financial assistance
for Head Start programsSection 638 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9833) is
amended by inserting for a period of 5 years
after
provide financial assistance to such agency
.
5.Authorization of
appropriationsSection 639 of
the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9834) is
amended to read as follows:
639.Authorization of
appropriations
(a)There are authorized
to be appropriated for carrying out the provisions of this subchapter
$7,215,000,000 for fiscal year 2006, $7,515,000,000 for fiscal year 2007,
$7,815,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, and such sums as may be necessary for each
of fiscal years 2009 and 2010.
(b)From the amount
appropriated under subsection (a), the Secretary shall make available to carry
out research, demonstration, and evaluation activities, including longitudinal
studies under section 649, not more than $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2006, and
such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2007 through 2010, of
which not more than $7,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010 shall
be available to carry out impact studies under section
649(g).
.
6.
(a)Section 640(a) of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9835(a)) is
amended—
(1)in paragraph (2)—
(A)by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting
the following:
(A)Indian Head Start programs, services for
children with disabilities, and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs,
except that—
(i)subject to the availability of
appropriations, the Secretary shall reserve for each fiscal year for use by
Indian Head Start and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs (referred to in
this subparagraph as covered programs
), on a nationwide basis, a
sum that is the total of not less than 4 percent of the amount appropriated
under section 639 for that fiscal year (for Indian Head Start programs), and
not less than 5 percent of that appropriated amount (for migrant and seasonal
Head Start programs), except that—
(I)if reserving the specified percentages for
Indian Head Start programs and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs would
reduce the number of children served by Head Start programs, relative to the
number of children served on the date of enactment of the Head Start
Improvements for School Readiness Act, taking into consideration an appropriate
adjustment for inflation, the Secretary shall reserve percentages that
approach, as closely as practicable, the specified percentages and that do not
cause such a reduction; and
(II)notwithstanding any other provision of this
subparagraph, the Secretary shall reserve for each fiscal year for use by
Indian Head Start programs and by migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, on
a nationwide basis, not less than the amount that was obligated for use by
Indian Head Start programs and by migrant and seasonal Head Start programs for
the previous fiscal year;
(ii)after ensuring that each grant recipient
for a covered program has received an amount sufficient to enable the grant
recipient to serve the same number of children in Head Start programs as were
served by such grant recipient on the date of enactment of the Head Start
Improvements for School Readiness Act, taking into consideration an appropriate
adjustment for inflation, and after allotting the funds reserved under
paragraph (3)(A) as specified in paragraph (3)(D), the Secretary shall
distribute the remaining funds available under this subparagraph for covered
programs, by—
(I)distributing 65 percent of the remainder by
giving priority to grant recipients in the States serving the smallest
percentages of eligible children (as determined by the Secretary); and
(II)distributing 35 percent of the remainder on
a competitive basis;
;
(B)by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting
the following:
(C)training and technical assistance
activities that are sufficient to meet the needs associated with program
expansion and to foster program and management improvement activities as
described in section 648, in an amount for each fiscal year that is equal to 2
percent of the amount appropriated under section 639 for such fiscal year, of
which—
(i)50 percent shall be made available to Head
Start agencies to use directly, or by establishing local or regional agreements
with community experts, colleges and universities, or private consultants, for
any of the following training and technical assistance activities,
including—
(I)activities that ensure that Head Start
programs meet or exceed the program performance standards described in section
641A(a)(1);
(II)activities that ensure that Head Start
programs have adequate numbers of trained, qualified staff who have skills in
working with children and families, including children and families who are
limited English proficient and children with disabilities;
(III)activities to pay expenses, including
direct training for expert consultants working with any staff, to improve the
management and implementation of Head Start services and systems;
(IV)activities that help ensure that Head Start
programs have qualified staff who can promote language skills and literacy
growth of children and who can provide children with a variety of skills that
have been identified as predictive of later reading achievement, school
success, and other educational skills described in section 641A;
(V)activities to improve staff qualifications
and to assist with the implementation of career development programs and to
encourage the staff to continually improve their skills and expertise,
including developing partnerships with programs that recruit, train, place, and
support college students in Head Start centers to deliver an innovative early
learning program to preschool children;
(VI)activities that help local programs ensure
that the arrangement, condition, and implementation of the learning
environments in Head Start programs are conducive to providing effective
program services to children and families;
(VII)activities to provide training necessary to
improve the qualifications of Head Start staff and to support staff training,
child counseling, health services, and other services necessary to address the
needs of children enrolled in Head Start programs, including children from
families in crises, children who experience chronic violence or homelessness,
and children who experience substance abuse in their families, and children
under 3 years of age, where applicable;
(VIII)activities to provide classes or
in-service-type programs to improve or enhance parenting skills, job skills,
adult and family literacy, including financial literacy, or training to become
a classroom aide or bus driver in a Head Start program;
(IX)additional activities deemed appropriate to
the improvement of Head Start agencies' programs, as determined by the
agencies' technical assistance and training plans; or
(X)any other activities regarding the use of
funds as determined by the Secretary;
(ii)50 percent shall be made available to the
Secretary to support a regional or State system of early childhood education
training and technical assistance, and to assist local programs (including
Indian Head Start programs and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs) in
meeting the standards described in section 641A(a)(1); and
(iii)not less than $3,000,000 of the amount in
clause (ii) appropriated for such fiscal year shall be made available to carry
out activities described in section
648(d)(4);
;
(C)in subparagraph (D), by striking
agencies;
and inserting agencies);
; and
(D)by adding at the end of the flush matter at
the end the following: The Secretary shall require each Head Start
agency to report at the end of each budget year on how funds provided to carry
out subparagraph (C)(i) were used.
;
(2)in paragraph (3)—
(A)in subparagraph (A)(i)(I)—
(i)by striking 60 percent of such
excess amount for fiscal year 1999
and all that follows through
2002, and
; and
(ii)by inserting before the semicolon the
following: , 30 percent of such excess amount for fiscal year 2006, and
40 percent of such excess amount for each of fiscal years 2007 through
2010
;
(B)in subparagraph (B)—
(i)in clause (i), by striking
performance standards
and all that follows and inserting
standards and measures pursuant to section 641A.
;
(ii)by striking clause (ii) and inserting the
following:
(ii)Ensuring that such programs have adequate
numbers of qualified staff, and that such staff is furnished adequate training,
including training to promote the development of language skills,
premathematics skills, and prereading in young children and in working with
limited English proficient children, children in foster care, children referred
by child welfare services, and children with disabilities, when
appropriate.
;
(iii)by striking clause (iii) and inserting the
following:
(iii)Developing and financing the salary scales
and benefits standards under section 644(a) and section 653, in order to ensure
that salary levels and benefits are adequate to attract and retain qualified
staff for such
programs.
;
(iv)by striking clause (iv) and inserting the
following:
(iv)Using salary increases to—
(I)assist with the implementation of quality
programs and improve staff qualifications;
(II)ensure that staff can promote the language
skills and literacy growth of children and can provide children with a variety
of skills that have been identified, through scientifically based early reading
research, as predictive of later reading achievement, as well as additional
skills identified in section 641A(a)(1)(B)(ii); and
(III)encourage the staff to continually improve
their skills and expertise by informing the staff of the availability of
Federal and State incentive and loan forgiveness programs for professional
development.
;
(v)in clause (v), by inserting ,
including collaborations to increase program participation by underserved
populations of eligible children
before the period; and
(vi)by striking clauses (vii) and (viii) and
inserting the following:
(vii)Providing assistance to complete
postsecondary coursework including scholarships or other financial incentives,
such as differential and merit pay, to enable Head Start teachers to improve
competencies and the resulting child outcomes.
(viii)Promoting the regular attendance and
stability of all Head Start children with particular attention to highly mobile
children, including children from migrant and seasonal farmworking families
(where appropriate), homeless children, and children in foster care.
(ix)Making such other improvements in the
quality of such programs as the Secretary may
designate.
;
and
(C)in subparagraph (C)—
(i)in clause (i)(I), by striking the last
sentence and inserting Salary increases, in excess of cost-of-living
allowances, provided with such funds shall be subject to the specific standards
governing salaries and salary increases established pursuant to section
644(a).
;
(ii)in clause (ii)—
(I)in the matter preceding subclause (I), by
striking education performance
and inserting additional
educational
;
(II)in subclause (I), by inserting ,
prereading,
after language
;
(III)by striking subclause (II) and inserting
the following:
(II)to help limited English proficient children
attain the knowledge, skills, and development specified in section
641A(a)(1)(B)(ii) and to promote the acquisition of the English language by
such children and families;
;
and
(IV)by striking subclause (IV) and inserting
the following:
(IV)to provide education and training necessary
to improve the qualifications of Head Start staff, particularly assistance to
enable more instructors to be fully competent and to meet the degree
requirements under section 648A(a)(2)(A), and to support staff training, child
counseling, and other services necessary to address the challenges of children
participating in Head Start programs, including children from immigrant,
refugee, and asylee families, children from families in crisis, homeless
children, children in foster care, children referred to Head Start programs by
child welfare agencies, and children who are exposed to chronic violence or
substance
abuse.
;
(iii)in clause (iii), by inserting ,
educational staff who have the qualifications described in section
648A(a),
after ratio
;
(iv)in clause (v), by striking programs,
including
and all that follows and inserting
programs.
;
(v)by redesignating clause (vi) as clause (x);
and
(vi)by inserting after clause (v) the
following:
(vi)To conduct outreach to homeless families in
an effort to increase the program participation of eligible homeless
children.
(vii)To conduct outreach to migrant and seasonal
farmworking families and families with limited English proficient
children.
(viii)To partner with institutions of higher
education and nonprofit organizations, including community-based organizations,
that recruit, train, place, and support college students to serve as mentors
and reading coaches to preschool children in Head Start programs.
(ix)To upgrade the qualifications and skills of
educational personnel to meet the professional standards described in section
648A(a)(1), including certification and licensure as bilingual education
teachers and for other educational personnel who serve limited English
proficient
students.
;
(3)in paragraph (4)—
(A)in subparagraph (A), by striking
1998
and inserting 2005
; and
(B)by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting
the following:
(B)any amount available after all allotments
are made under subparagraph (A) for such fiscal year shall be distributed as
follows:
(i)Each State shall receive an amount
sufficient to serve the same number of children in Head Start programs in each
State as were served on the date of enactment of the Head Start Improvements
for School Readiness Act, taking into consideration an appropriate adjustment
for inflation.
(ii)After ensuring that each State has received
the amount described in clause (i) and after allotting the funds reserved under
paragraph (3)(A) as specified in paragraph (3)(D), the Secretary shall
distribute the remaining balance, by—
(I)distributing 65 percent of the balance by
giving priority to States serving the smallest percentages of eligible children
(as determined by the Secretary); and
(II)distributing 35 percent of the balance on a
competitive
basis.
;
(4)in paragraph (5)—
(A)by redesignating subparagraphs (E) and (F)
as subparagraphs (F) and (G), respectively; and
(B)by striking subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D)
and inserting the following:
(B)(i)From the reserved sums, the Secretary shall
award a collaboration grant to each State to facilitate collaboration between
Head Start agencies and entities (including the State) that carry out other
activities designed to benefit low-income families and children from birth to
school entry.
(ii)Grants described in clause (i) shall be
used to—
(I)encourage Head Start agencies to
collaborate with entities involved in State and local planning processes to
better meet the needs of low-income families and children from birth to school
entry;
(II)encourage Head Start agencies to coordinate
activities with the State agency responsible for administering the State
program carried out under the Child Care and
Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.) and
entities providing resources and referral services in the State to make
full-working-day and full calendar year services available to children;
(III)promote alignment of Head Start services
with State early learning and school readiness goals and standards, including
the Head Start child outcome framework;
(IV)promote better linkages between Head Start
agencies and other child and family agencies, including agencies that provide
health, mental health, or family services, or other child or family supportive
services; and
(V)carry out the activities of the State
Director of Head Start Collaboration authorized in subparagraph (D).
(C)In order to improve coordination and
delivery of early education services to children in the State, a State that
receives a grant under subparagraph (B) shall—
(i)appoint an individual to serve as the State
Director of Head Start Collaboration;
(ii)ensure that the State Director of Head
Start Collaboration holds a position with sufficient authority and access to
ensure that the collaboration described in subparagraph (B) is effective and
involves a range of State agencies; and
(iii)involve the State Head Start Association in
the selection of the Director and involve the Association in determinations
relating to the ongoing direction of the collaboration office.
(D)The State Director of Head Start
Collaboration, after consultation with the State Advisory Council described in
subparagraph (E), shall—
(i)not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of the Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act, conduct an
assessment that—
(I)addresses the needs of Head Start agencies
in the State with respect to collaborating, coordinating services, and
implementing State early learning and school readiness goals and standards to
better serve children enrolled in Head Start programs in the State;
(II)shall be updated on an annual basis;
and
(III)shall be made available to the general
public within the State;
(ii)assess the availability of high quality
prekindergarten services for low-income children in the State;
(iii)develop a strategic plan that is based on
the assessment described in clause (i) that will—
(I)enhance collaboration and coordination of
Head Start services with other entities providing early childhood programs and
services (such as child care and services offered by museums), health care,
mental health care, welfare, child protective services, education and community
service activities, family literacy services, reading readiness programs
(including such programs offered by public and school libraries), services
relating to children with disabilities, other early childhood programs and
services for limited English proficient children and homeless children, and
services provided for children in foster care and children referred to Head
Start programs by child welfare agencies, including agencies and State
officials responsible for such services;
(II)assist Head Start agencies to develop a
plan for the provision of full-working-day, full calendar year services for
children enrolled in Head Start programs who need such care;
(III)assist Head Start agencies to align
services with State early learning and school readiness goals and standards and
to facilitate collaborative efforts to develop local school readiness
standards; and
(IV)enable agencies in the State to better
coordinate professional development opportunities for Head Start staff, such as
by—
- (aa)assisting 2- and 4-year public and private
institutions of higher education to develop articulation agreements;
- (bb)awarding grants to institutions of higher
education to develop model early childhood education programs, including
practica or internships for students to spend time in a Head Start or
prekindergarten program;
- (cc)working with local Head Start agencies to
meet the degree requirements described in section 648A(a)(2)(A), including
providing distance learning opportunities for Head Start staff, where needed to
make higher education more accessible to Head Start staff; and
- (dd)enabling the State Head Start agencies to
better coordinate outreach to eligible families;
(iv)promote partnerships between Head Start
agencies, State governments, and the private sector to help ensure that
preschool children from low-income families are receiving comprehensive
services to prepare the children to enter school ready to learn;
(v)consult with the chief State school
officer, local educational agencies, and providers of early childhood education
and care to conduct unified planning regarding early care and education
services at both the State and local levels, including undertaking
collaborative efforts to develop and make improvements in school readiness
standards;
(vi)promote partnerships (such as the
partnerships involved with the Free to Grow initiative) between Head Start
agencies, schools, law enforcement, and substance abuse and mental health
treatment agencies to strengthen family and community environments and to
reduce the impact on child development of substance abuse, child abuse,
domestic violence, and other high risk behaviors that compromise healthy
development;
(vii)promote partnerships between Head Start
agencies and other organizations in order to enhance the Head Start curriculum,
including partnerships to promote inclusion of more books in Head Start
classrooms and partnerships to promote coordination of activities with the
Ready-to-Learn Television program carried out under subpart 3 of part D of
title II of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6775 et seq.); and
(viii)identify other resources and organizations
(both public and private) for the provision of in-kind services to Head Start
agencies in the State.
(E)(i)The Governor of the State shall designate
or establish a council to serve as the State advisory council on collaboration
on early care and education activities for children from birth to school entry
(in this subchapter referred to as the State Advisory
Council
).
(ii)The Governor may designate an existing
entity to serve as the State Advisory Council, if the entity includes
representatives described in subclauses (I) through (XXIV) of clause
(iii).
(iii)Members of the State Advisory Council shall
include, to the maximum extent possible—
(I)the State Director of Head Start
Collaboration;
(II)a
representative of the appropriate regional office of the Administration for
Children and Families;
(III)a representative of the State educational
agency and local educational agencies;
(IV)a
representative of institutions of higher education;
(V)a
representative (or representatives) of the State agency (or agencies)
responsible for health or mental health care;
(VI)a
representative of the State agency responsible for teacher professional
standards, certification, and licensing, including prekindergarten teacher
professional standards, certification standards, certification, and licensing,
where applicable;
(VII)a representative of the State agency
responsible for child care;
(VIII)early childhood education professionals,
including professionals with expertise in second language acquisition and
instructional strategies in teaching limited English proficient
children;
(IX)kindergarten teachers and teachers in
grades 1 through 3;
(X)health care professionals;
(XI)child development specialists, including
specialists in prenatal, infant, and toddler development;
(XII)a representative of the State agency
responsible for assisting children with developmental disabilities;
(XIII)a representative of the State agency
responsible for programs under part C of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.);
(XIV)a representative of the State interagency
coordinating councils established under section 641 of the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1441);
(XV)a
representative of the State Head Start Association (where appropriate), and
other representatives of Head Start programs in the State;
(XVI)a representative of the State network of
child care resource and referral agencies;
(XVII)a representative of community-based
organizations;
(XVIII)a representative of State and local
providers of early childhood education and child care;
(XIX)a representative of migrant and seasonal
Head Start programs and Indian Head Start programs (where appropriate);
(XX)parents;
(XXI)religious and business leaders;
(XXII)the head of the State library
administrative agency;
(XXIII)representatives of State and local
organizations and other entities providing professional development to early
care and education providers; and
(XXIV)a representative of other entities
determined to be relevant by the chief executive officer of the State.
(iv)(I)The State Advisory Council shall be
responsible for, in addition to responsibilities assigned to the council by the
chief executive officer of the State—
- (aa)conducting a periodic statewide needs
assessment concerning early care and education programs for children from birth
to school entry;
- (bb)identifying barriers to, and opportunities
for, collaboration and coordination between entities carrying out Federal and
State child development, child care, and early childhood education
programs;
- (cc)developing recommendations regarding means
of establishing a unified data collection system for early care and education
programs throughout the State;
- (dd)developing a statewide professional
development and career ladder plan for early care and education in the State;
and
- (ee)reviewing and approving the strategic plan,
regarding collaborating and coordinating services to better serve children
enrolled in Head Start programs, developed by the State Director of Head Start
Collaboration under subparagraph (D)(iii).
(II)The State Advisory Council shall hold
public hearings and provide an opportunity for public comment on the needs
assessment and recommendations described in subclause (I). The State Advisory
Council shall submit a statewide strategic report containing the needs
assessment and recommendations described in subclause (I) to the State Director
of Head Start Collaboration and the chief executive officer of the
State.
(III)After submission of a statewide strategic
report under subclause (II), the State Advisory Council shall meet periodically
to review any implementation of the recommendations in such report and any
changes in State and local needs.
;
and
(5)in paragraph (6)—
(A)in subparagraph (A), by striking 7.5
percent
and all that follows and inserting 11 percent for fiscal
year 2006, 13 percent for fiscal year 2007, 15 percent for fiscal year 2008, 17
percent for fiscal year 2009, and 18 percent for fiscal year 2010, of the
amount appropriated pursuant to section 639(a).
;
(B)by striking subparagraph (B);
(C)in subparagraph (C)(i), by striking
required to be
; and
(D)by redesignating subparagraph (C) as
subparagraph (B).
(b)Section
640(f) of the Head Start Act (42
U.S.C. 9835(f)) is amended by striking needs.
and
inserting
needs,
including—(1)models that leverage the capacity and
capabilities of the delivery system of early childhood education and child
care; and
(2)procedures to provide for the conversion of
part-day programs to full-day programs or part-day slots to full-day
slots.
.
(c)Section 640(g)(2) of
the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C.
9835(g)(2)) is amended—
(1)by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting
the following:
(C)the extent to which the applicant has
undertaken communitywide strategic planning and needs assessments involving
other community organizations and Federal, State, and local public agencies
serving children and families (including organizations and agencies providing
family support services and protective services to children and families and
organizations serving families in whose homes English is not the language
customarily spoken), and individuals, organizations, and public entities
serving children with disabilities, children in foster care, and homeless
children including the local educational agency liaison designated under
section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42
U.S.C.
11432(g)(1)(J)(ii));
;
(2)in subparagraph (D), by striking
other local
and inserting the State and
local
;
(3)in subparagraph (E), by inserting
would like to participate but
after community
who
;
(4)in subparagraph (G), by inserting
leverage the existing delivery systems of such services and
after manner that will
; and
(5)in subparagraph (H), by inserting ,
including the local educational agency liaison designated under section
722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)),
after community involved
.
(d)Section 640(i) of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9835(i)) is
amended by inserting and requirements to ensure the appropriate
supervision and background checks of individuals with whom the agencies
contract to transport those children
before the period.
(e)Migrant and
seasonal Head Start programsSection 640(l) of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9835(l)) is
amended by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
(3)In carrying out this subchapter, the
Secretary shall continue the administrative arrangement at the national or
regional level for meeting the needs of Indian children and children of migrant
and seasonal farmworkers and shall ensure that appropriate funding is provided
to meet such needs, including training and technical assistance and the
appointment of a national migrant and seasonal Head Start collaboration
director and a national Indian Head Start collaboration director.
(4)(A)For the purposes of paragraph (3), the
Secretary shall conduct an annual consultation in each affected Head Start
region, with tribal governments operating Head Start and Early Head Start
programs.
(B)The consultations shall be for the purpose
of better meeting the needs of American Indian and Alaska Native children and
families pertinent to subsections (a), (b), and (c) of section 641, taking into
consideration funding allocations, distribution formulas, and other issues
affecting the delivery of Head Start services within tribal communities.
(C)The Secretary shall publish a notification
of the consultations in the Federal Register prior to conducting the
consultations.
(D)A
detailed report of each consultation shall be prepared and made available, on a
timely basis, to all tribal governments receiving funds under this
subchapter.
.
(f)Section 640 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9835) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
(m)Enrollment of
homeless childrenThe
Secretary shall issue regulations to remove barriers to the enrollment and
participation of homeless children in Head Start programs. Such regulations
shall require Head Start agencies to—
(1)implement policies and procedures to ensure
that homeless children are identified and receive appropriate priority for
enrollment;
(2)allow homeless children to apply to, enroll
in, and attend Head Start programs while required documents, such as proof of
residency, proof of immunization, and other medical records, birth
certificates, and other documents, are obtained within a reasonable timeframe
(consistent with State law); and
(3)coordinate individual Head Start programs
with efforts to implement subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.).
(n)Nothing in this
subchapter shall be construed to require a State to establish a program of
early education for children in the State, to require any child to participate
in a program of early education in order to attend preschool, or to participate
in any initial screening prior to participation in such program, except as
provided under section 612(a)(3) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Act (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(3)) and consistent with section 614(a)(1)(C) of such Act
(20 U.S.C. 1414(a)(1)(C)).
(o)All curricula funded under this subchapter
shall be scientifically based and age appropriate. Parents shall have the
opportunity to examine any such curricula or instructional materials funded
under this
subchapter.
.
7.Designation of Head
Start agenciesSection 641 of
the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9836) is
amended to read as follows:
641.Designation of Head
Start agencies
(a)
(1)The Secretary is
authorized to designate as a Head Start agency any local public or private
nonprofit or for-profit agency, within a community, including a community-based
organization that—
(A)has power and authority to carry out the
purpose of this subchapter and perform the functions set forth in section 642
within a community; and
(B)is determined to be capable of planning,
conducting, administering, and evaluating, either directly or by other
arrangements, a Head Start program.
(2)Required goals
for designationIn order to
be designated as a Head Start agency, an entity described in paragraph (1)
shall establish program goals for improving the school readiness of children
participating in a program under this subchapter, including goals for meeting
the performance standards and additional educational standards described in
section 641A and shall establish results-based school readiness goals that are
aligned with State early learning standards, if applicable, and requirements
and expectations for local public schools.
(3)Eligibility for
subsequent grantsIn order to
receive a grant under this subchapter subsequent to the initial grant provided
following the date of enactment of the Head Start Improvements for School
Readiness Act, an entity described in paragraph (1) shall demonstrate that the
entity has met or is making progress toward meeting the goals described in
paragraph (2).
(4)
(A)
(i)Ensuring high
quality programsIn order to
be designated as a Head Start agency, an entity described in paragraph (1)
shall have a governing body—
(I)with legal and fiscal responsibility for
administering and overseeing programs under this subchapter; and
(II)that fully participates in the development,
planning, implementation, and evaluation of the programs to ensure the
operation of programs of high quality.
(ii)Ensuring
compliance with lawsThe
governing body shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with Federal laws
and regulations, including the performance standards described in section 641A,
as well as applicable State, Tribal, and local laws and regulations, including
laws defining the nature and operations of the governing body.
(B)Composition of
governing body
(i)The governing body
shall be composed as follows:
(I)Not less than 1 member of the governing
body shall have a background in fiscal management.
(II)Not less than 1 member of the governing
body shall have a background in early childhood development.
(III)Not less than 1 member of the governing
body shall live in the local community to be served by the entity.
(ii)Members of the
governing body shall—
(I)not have a conflict of interest with the
Head Start agency or delegate agencies; and
(II)not receive compensation for service to the
Head Start agency.
(C)
(i)The governing body
shall be responsible, in consultation with the policy council or the policy
committee of the Head Start agency, for—
(I)the selection of delegate agencies and such
agencies' service areas;
(II)establishing criteria for defining
recruitment, selection, and enrollment priorities;
(III)all funding applications and amendments to
funding applications for programs under this subchapter;
(IV)the annual self-assessment of the Head
Start agency or delegate agency’s progress in carrying out the programmatic and
fiscal intent of such agency's grant application, including planning or other
actions that may result from the review of the annual audit, self-assessment,
and findings from the Federal monitoring review;
(V)the composition of the policy council or
the policy committee of the Head Start agency and the procedures by which group
members are chosen;
(VI)audits, accounting, and reporting;
(VII)personnel policies and procedures including
decisions with regard to salary scales (and changes made to the scale),
salaries of the Executive Director, Head Start Director, the Director of Human
Resources, and the Chief Fiscal Officer, and decisions to hire and terminate
program staff; and
(VIII)the community assessment, including any
updates to such assessment.
(ii)Conduct of
responsibilitiesThe
governing body shall develop an internal control structure to facilitate these
responsibilities in order to—
(I)safeguard Federal funds;
(II)comply with laws and regulations that have
an impact on financial statements;
(III)detect or prevent noncompliance with this
subchapter; and
(IV)receive audit reports and direct and
monitor staff implementation of corrective actions.
(D)To facilitate
oversight and Head Start agency accountability, the governing body shall
receive regular and accurate information about program planning, policies, and
Head Start agency operations, including—
(i)monthly financial statements (including
detailed credit card account expenditures for any employee with a Head Start
agency credit card or who seeks reimbursement for charged expenses);
(ii)monthly program information
summaries;
(iii)program enrollment reports, including
attendance reports for children whose care is partially subsidized by another
public agency;
(iv)monthly report of meals and snacks through
programs of the Department of Agriculture;
(v)the annual financial audit;
(vi)the annual self-assessment, including any
findings related to the annual self-assessment;
(vii)the community assessment of the Head Start
agency’s service area and any applicable updates; and
(viii)the program information reports.
(E)Training and
technical assistanceAppropriate training and technical
assistance shall be provided to the members of the governing body to ensure
that the members understand the information the members receive and can
effectively oversee and participate in the programs of the Head Start
agency.
(b)For purposes of this subchapter, a
community may be a city, county, or multicity or multicounty unit within a
State, an Indian reservation (including Indians in any off-reservation area
designated by an appropriate tribal government in consultation with the
Secretary), or a neighborhood or other area (irrespective of boundaries or
political subdivisions) that provides a suitable organizational base and
possesses the commonality of interest needed to operate a Head Start
program.
(c)In administering
the provisions of this section, the Secretary shall, in consultation with the
chief executive officer of the State involved, give priority in the designation
(including redesignation) of Head Start agencies to any high-performing Head
Start agency or delegate agency that—
(1)is receiving assistance under this
subchapter;
(2)meets or exceeds program and financial
management requirements or standards described in section 641A(a)(1);
(3)has no unresolved deficiencies and has not
had findings of deficiencies during the last triennial review under section
641A(c); and
(4)can demonstrate, through agreements such as
memoranda of understanding, active collaboration with the State or local
community in the provision of services for children (such as the provision of
extended day services, education, professional development and training for
staff, and other types of cooperative endeavors).
(d)Designation
when entity has priorityIf
no entity in a community is entitled to the priority specified in subsection
(c), the Secretary shall, after conducting an open competition, designate a
Head Start agency from among qualified applicants in such community.
(e)Notwithstanding
any other provision of law, under no condition may a non-Indian Head Start
agency receive a grant to carry out an Indian Head Start program.
(f)In selecting from among qualified
applicants for designation as a Head Start agency, the Secretary shall consider
the effectiveness of each such applicant to provide Head Start services, based
on—
(1)any past performance of such applicant in
providing services comparable to Head Start services, including how effectively
such applicant provided such comparable services;
(2)the plan of such applicant to provide
comprehensive health, educational, nutritional, social, and other services
needed to aid participating children in attaining their full potential, and to
prepare children to succeed in school;
(3)the capacity of such applicant to serve
eligible children with programs that use scientifically based research that
promote school readiness of children participating in the program;
(4)the plan of such applicant to meet
standards set forth in section 641A(a)(1), with particular attention to the
standards set forth in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of such section;
(5)the plan of such applicant to coordinate
the Head Start program the applicant proposes to carry out with other preschool
programs, including—
(A)the Early Reading First and Even Start
programs under subparts 2 and 3 of part B of title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 6371 et seq., 6381 et seq.);
(B)programs under section 619 and part C of
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et
seq.);
(C)State prekindergarten programs;
(D)child care programs;
(E)the educational programs that the children
in the Head Start program involved will enter at the age of compulsory school
attendance; and
(F)reading readiness programs such as those
conducted by public and school libraries;
(6)the plan of such applicant to coordinate
the Head Start program that the applicant proposes to carry out with public and
private entities who are willing to commit resources to assist the Head Start
program in meeting its program needs;
(7)the plan of such applicant to collaborate
with a local library, where available, that is interested in that
collaboration, to—
(A)develop innovative programs to excite
children about the world of books, such as programs that involve—
(i)taking children to the library for a story
hour;
(ii)promoting the use of library cards;
(iii)developing a lending library or using a
mobile library van; and
(iv)providing fresh books in the Head Start
classroom on a regular basis;
(B)assist in literacy training for Head Start
teachers; and
(C)support parents and other caregivers in
literacy efforts;
(8)the plan of such applicant—
(A)to seek the involvement of parents of
participating children in activities (at home and in the center involved where
practicable) designed to help such parents become full partners in the
education of their children;
(B)to afford such parents the opportunity to
participate in the development and overall conduct of the program at the local
level, including through providing transportation costs;
(C)to offer (directly or through referral to
local entities, such as entities carrying out Even Start programs under subpart
3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6381 et seq.), public and
school libraries, and entities carrying out family support programs) to such
parents—
(i)family literacy services; and
(ii)parenting skills training;
(D)to offer to parents of participating
children substance abuse counseling (either directly or through referral to
local entities), including information on the effect of drug exposure on
infants and fetal alcohol syndrome;
(E)at the option of such applicant, to offer
(directly or through referral to local entities) to such parents—
(i)training in basic child development
(including cognitive development);
(ii)assistance in developing literacy and
communication skills;
(iii)opportunities to share experiences with
other parents (including parent mentor relationships);
(iv)regular in-home visitation; or
(v)any other activity designed to help such
parents become full partners in the education of their children;
(F)to provide, with respect to each
participating family, a family needs assessment that includes consultation with
such parents about the benefits of parent involvement and about the activities
described in subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E) in which such parents may choose
to become involved (taking into consideration their specific family needs, work
schedules, and other responsibilities); and
(G)to extend outreach to fathers, in
appropriate cases, in order to strengthen the role of fathers in families, in
the education of their young children, and in the Head Start program, by
working directly with fathers and father figures through activities such
as—
(i)in appropriate cases, including fathers in
home visits and providing opportunities for direct father-child interactions;
and
(ii)targeting increased male participation in
the conduct of the program;
(9)the ability of such applicant to carry out
the plans described in paragraphs (2), (4), and (5);
(10)other factors related to the requirements
of this subchapter;
(11)the plan of such applicant to meet the
needs of limited English proficient children and their families, including
procedures to identify such children, plans to provide trained personnel, and
plans to provide services to assist the children in making progress toward the
acquisition of the English language;
(12)the plan of such applicant to meet the
needs of children with disabilities;
(13)the plan of such applicant who chooses to
assist younger siblings of children who will participate in the Head Start
program, to obtain health services from other sources;
(14)the plan of such applicant to collaborate
with other entities carrying out early childhood education and child care
programs in the community;
(15)the plan of such applicant to meet the
needs of homeless children and children in foster care, including the
transportation needs of such children; and
(16)the plan of such applicant to recruit and
retain qualified staff.
(g)If there is not a
qualified applicant in a community for designation as a Head Start agency, the
Secretary shall designate a qualified agency to carry out the Head Start
program in the community on an interim basis until a qualified applicant from
the community is so designated.
(h)Involvement of
parents and area residentsThe Secretary shall continue the practice
of involving parents and area residents who are affected by programs under this
subchapter in the selection of qualified applicants for designation as Head
Start agencies.
(i)In selecting from among qualified
applicants for designation as a Head Start agency, the Secretary shall give
priority to applicants that have demonstrated capacity in providing effective,
comprehensive, and well-coordinated early childhood services to children and
their
families.
.
8.Quality standards;
monitoring of Head Start agencies and programsSection 641A of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9836a) is
amended—
(1)in subsection (a)—
(A)in paragraph (1)(A), by striking
642(d)
and inserting 642(c)
;
(B)in paragraph (1)(B)—
(i)in clause (i), by striking education
performance standards
and inserting educational performance
standards
; and
(ii)by striking clause (ii) and inserting the
following:
(ii)additional educational standards based on
the recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences panel described in
section 649(h) and other experts in the field, to ensure that the curriculum
involved addresses, and that the children participating in the program show
appropriate progress toward developing and applying, the recommended
educational outcomes, after the panel considers the appropriateness of
additional educational standards relating to—
(I)language skills related to listening,
understanding, speaking, and communicating, including—
- (aa)understanding and use of a diverse
vocabulary (including knowing the names of colors) and knowledge of how to use
oral language to communicate for various purposes;
- (bb)narrative abilities used, for example, to
comprehend, tell, and respond to a story, or to comprehend instructions;
- (cc)ability to detect and produce sounds of the
language the child speaks or is learning; and
- (dd)clarity of pronunciation and speaking in
syntactically and grammatically correct sentences;
(II)prereading knowledge and skills,
including—
- (aa)alphabet knowledge including knowing the
letter names and associating letters with their shapes and sounds in the
language the child speaks or is learning;
- (bb)phonological awareness and processes that
support reading, for example, rhyming, recognizing speech sounds and separate
syllables in spoken words, and putting speech sounds together to make
words;
- (cc)knowledge, interest in, and appreciation of
books, reading, and writing (either alone or with others), and knowledge that
books have parts such as the front, back, and title page;
- (dd)early writing, including the ability to
write one’s own name and other words and phrases; and
- (ee)print awareness and concepts, including
recognizing different forms of print and understanding the association between
spoken and written words;
(III)premathematics knowledge and skills,
including—
- (aa)number recognition;
- (bb)use of early number concepts and
operations, including counting, simple adding and subtracting, and knowledge of
quantitative relationships, such as part versus whole and comparison of numbers
of objects;
- (cc)use of early space and location concepts,
including recognizing shapes, classification, striation, and understanding
directionality; and
- (dd)early pattern skills and measurement,
including recognizing and extending simple patterns and measuring length,
weight, and time;
(IV)scientific abilities, including—
- (aa)building awareness about scientific skills
and methods, such as gathering, describing, and recording information, making
observations, and making explanations and predictions; and
- (bb)expanding scientific knowledge of the
environment, time, temperature, and cause-and-effect relationships;
(V)general cognitive abilities related to
academic achievement and child development, including—
- (aa)reasoning, planning, and problem-solving
skills;
- (bb)ability to engage, sustain attention, and
persist on challenging tasks;
- (cc)intellectual curiosity, initiative, and
task engagement; and
- (dd)motivation to achieve and master concepts
and skills;
(VI)social and emotional development related to
early learning and school success, including developing—
- (aa)the ability to develop social
relationships, demonstrate cooperative behaviors, and relate to teachers and
peers in positive and respectful ways;
- (bb)an understanding of the consequences of
actions, following rules, and appropriately expressing feelings;
- (cc)a
sense of self, such as self-awareness, independence, and confidence;
- (dd)the ability to control negative behaviors
with teachers and peers that include impulsiveness, aggression, and
noncompliance; and
- (ee)knowledge of civic society and surrounding
communities;
(VII)physical development, including
developing—
- (aa)fine motor skills, such as strength, manual
dexterity, and hand-eye coordination; and
- (bb)gross motor skills, such as balance and
coordinated movements; and
(VIII)in
the case of limited English proficient children, progress toward acquisition of
the English language while making meaningful progress in attaining the
knowledge, skills, abilities, and development described in subclauses (I)
through
(VII);
;
(C)in paragraph (1)(D), by striking
projects; and
and
inserting
projects, including regulations that
require that the facilities used by Head Start agencies (including Early Head
Start agencies) and delegate agencies for regularly scheduled center-based and
combination program option classroom activities—(i)shall be in compliance with State and local
requirements concerning licensing for such facilities; and
(ii)shall be accessible by State and local
authorities for purposes of monitoring and ensuring
compliance.
;
(D)in paragraph (2)—
(i)in subparagraph (B)—
(I)in clause (i), by striking the date
of enactment of this section
and inserting the date of enactment
of the Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act
;
(II)in clause (ii), by striking the date
of enactment of this Act
and inserting the date of enactment of
the Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act
;
(III)in clause (vi), by striking ;
and
and inserting a semicolon;
(IV)in clause (vii), by striking public
schools
and inserting the schools that the children will be
attending
; and
(V)by adding at the end the following:
(viii)the unique challenges faced by individual
programs, including those programs that are seasonal or short term and those
programs that serve rural populations;
and
;
(ii)in subparagraph (C)(ii), by striking
the date of enactment of the Coats Human Services Reauthorization Act of
1998
and inserting the date of enactment of the Head Start
Improvements for School Readiness Act
; and
(iii)by adding at the end the following:
(D)consult with Indian tribes, American Indian
and Alaska Native experts in early childhood development, linguists, and the
National Indian Head Start Directors Association on the review and promulgation
of program standards and measures (including standards and measures for
language acquisition and school
readiness).
;
(E)by adding at the end the following:
(4)Evaluations and
corrective actions for delegate agencies
(A)
(i)Subject to clause
(ii), the Head Start agency shall establish procedures relating to its delegate
agencies, including—
(I)procedures for evaluating delegate
agencies;
(II)procedures for defunding delegate agencies;
and
(III)procedures for appealing a defunding
decision relating to a delegate agency.
(ii)The Head Start agency may not terminate a
delegate agency’s contract or reduce a delegate agency’s service area without
showing cause or demonstrating the cost-effectiveness of such a
decision.
(B)Each Head Start agency—
(i)shall evaluate its delegate agencies using
the procedures established pursuant to this section, including subparagraph
(A); and
(ii)shall inform the delegate agencies of the
deficiencies identified through the evaluation that shall be corrected.
(C)Remedies to
ensure corrective actionsIn
the event that the Head Start agency identifies a deficiency for a delegate
agency through the evaluation, the Head Start agency may—
(i)initiate procedures to terminate the
designation of the agency unless the agency corrects the deficiency;
(ii)conduct monthly monitoring visits to such
delegate agency until all deficiencies are corrected or the Head Start agency
decides to defund such delegate agency; and
(iii)release funds to such delegate agency only
as reimbursements until all deficiencies are corrected or the Head Start agency
decides to defund such delegate agency.
(D)Nothing in this
paragraph shall be construed to impact or obviate the responsibilities of the
Secretary with respect to Head Start agencies or delegate agencies receiving
funding under this
subchapter.
;
(2)in subsection (b)—
(A)in paragraph (2)—
(i)by striking the paragraph heading and
inserting the following:
(2)Characteristics
and use of
measures
;
(ii)in subparagraph (B), by striking ,
not later than July 1, 1999; and
and inserting a semicolon;
(iii)in subparagraph (C), by striking the period
and inserting a semicolon;
(iv)by striking the flush matter following
subparagraph (C); and
(v)by adding at the end the following:
(D)measure characteristics that are strongly
predictive (as determined on a scientific basis) of a child’s school readiness
and later performance in school;
(E)be appropriate for the population served;
and
(F)be reviewed not less than every 4 years,
based on advances in the science of early childhood development.
The
performance measures shall include the performance standards and additional
educational standards described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection
(a)(1).;
(B)in paragraph (3)—
(i)in subparagraph (A), by striking ;
and
and inserting a semicolon;
(ii)in subparagraph (B), by striking the period
and inserting ; and
; and
(iii)by adding at the end the following:
(C)to enable Head Start agencies to
individualize programs of instruction to better meet the needs of the child
involved.
;
(C)by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the
following:
(4)Results-based
outcome measuresResults-based outcome measures shall be
designed for the purpose of promoting the knowledge, skills, abilities, and
development, described in subsection (a)(1)(B)(ii), of children participating
in Head Start programs that are strongly predictive (as determined on a
scientific basis) of a child’s school readiness and later performance in
school.
;
and
(D)by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the
following:
(5)Additional
local results-based educational measures and goalsHead
Start agencies may establish and implement additional local results-based
educational measures and
goals.
;
(3)in subsection (c)—
(A)in paragraph (1)—
(i)in the matter preceding subparagraph (A),
by inserting and Head Start centers
after Head Start
programs
;
(ii)in subparagraph (A), by striking
such agency
and inserting Head Start
center
;
(iii)by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting
the following:
(C)Unannounced site inspections of Head Start
centers for health and safety reasons, as
appropriate.
;
(iv)by redesignating subparagraph (D) as
subparagraph (E); and
(v)by inserting after subparagraph (C) the
following:
(D)Notwithstanding subparagraph (C), followup
reviews, including—
(i)prompt return visits to agencies, programs,
and centers that fail to meet 1 or more of the performance measures developed
by the Secretary under subsection (b); and
(ii)a review of programs with citations that
include findings of deficiencies not later than 6 months after the date of such
citation.
;
and
(B)by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the
following:
(2)The Secretary shall
ensure that reviews described in paragraph (1)—
(A)that incorporate a monitoring visit, may
incorporate the visit without prior notice of the visit to the agency involved
or with such limited prior notice as is necessary to ensure the participation
of parents and key staff members;
(B)are conducted by review teams that shall
include individuals who are knowledgeable about Head Start and other early
childhood education programs and, to the maximum extent practicable, the
diverse (including linguistic and cultural) needs of eligible children
(including children with disabilities, homeless children, and children in
foster care) and limited English proficient children and their families;
(C)include as part of the reviews of the
programs, a review and assessment of program effectiveness, as measured in
accordance with the results-based performance measures developed by the
Secretary pursuant to subsection (b) and with the standards established
pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (a)(1);
(D)seek information from the communities and
States where Head Start programs exist about innovative or effective
collaborative efforts, barriers to collaboration, and the efforts of the Head
Start agencies to collaborate with the entities carrying out early childhood
education and child care programs in the community;
(E)include as part of the reviews of the
programs, a review and assessment of whether the programs are in conformity
with the income eligibility requirements under section 645 and regulations
promulgated under such section;
(F)include as part of the reviews of the
programs, a review and assessment of whether programs have adequately addressed
the population and community needs (including needs of populations of limited
English proficient children and children of migrant and seasonal farmworking
families); and
(G)include as part of the reviews of the
programs, data from the results of periodic child assessments, and a review and
assessment of child outcomes and performance as they relate to State, local,
and agency-determined school readiness
goals.
;
(4)in subsection (d)(1)—
(A)in the matter preceding subparagraph (A),
by inserting or fails to address the community needs and strategic plan
identified in section 640(g)(2)(C),
after subsection
(b),
; and
(B)in subparagraph (A), by inserting
and identify the technical assistance to be provided consistent with
paragraph (3)
after corrected
;
(5)in subsection (e), by striking the last
sentence and inserting The information contained in such report shall be
made available to all parents with children receiving assistance under this
subchapter in an understandable and uniform format, and to the extent
practicable, provided in a language that the parents can understand. Such
information shall be made widely available through public means such as
distribution through public agencies, and, at a minimum, by posting such
information on the Internet immediately upon publication.
; and
(6)by adding at the end the following:
(f)
(1)Not less frequently
than once each program year, with the consultation and participation of policy
groups and, as appropriate, other community members, each agency receiving
funds under this subchapter shall conduct a self-assessment of the
effectiveness and progress in meeting programs goals and objectives and in
implementing and complying with Head Start program performance
standards.
(2)Report and
improvement plans
(A)An agency conducting a self-assessment
shall report the findings of the self-assessment to the relevant policy
council, policy committee, governing body, and regional office of the
Department of Health and Human Services. Each self-assessment shall identify
areas of strength and weakness.
(B)The agency shall develop
an improvement plan approved by the governing body of the agency to strengthen
any areas identified in the self-assessment as weaknesses or in need of
improvement.
(3)Each Head Start
agency, Early Head Start agency, and delegate agency shall establish and
implement procedures for the ongoing monitoring of their Head Start and Early
Head Start programs, to ensure that the operations of the programs work toward
meeting program goals and objectives and Head Start performance
standards.
(4)Training and
technical assistanceFunds
may be made available, through section 648(d)(13), for training and technical
assistance to assist agencies in conducting self-assessments.
(g)Reduction of
grants and redistribution of funds in cases of Under-Enrollment
(1)In this subsection:
(A)The term
actual enrollment means, with respect to the program of a Head
Start agency, the actual number of children enrolled in such program and
reported by the agency (as required in paragraph (2)) in a given month.
(B)The term base
grant means, with respect to a Head Start agency for a fiscal year, that
portion of the grant derived—
(i)from amounts reserved for use in accordance
with section 640(a)(2)(A), for a Head Start agency administering an Indian Head
Start program or migrant and seasonal Head Start program;
(ii)from amounts reserved for payments under
section 640(a)(2)(B); or
(iii)from amounts available under section
640(a)(2)(D) or allotted among States under section 640(a)(4).
(C)The term
funded enrollment means, with respect to the program of a Head
Start agency in a fiscal year, the number of children that the agency is funded
to serve through a grant for the program during such fiscal year, as indicated
in the grant agreement.
(2)Enrollment
reporting requirement for current fiscal yearEach entity carrying out a Head Start
program shall report on a monthly basis to the Secretary and the relevant Head
Start agency—
(A)the actual enrollment in such program;
and
(B)if such actual enrollment is less than the
funded enrollment, any apparent reason for such enrollment shortfall.
(3)Secretarial
review and planThe Secretary
shall—
(A)on a semiannual basis, determine which Head
Start agencies are operating with an actual enrollment that is less than the
funded enrollment based on not less than 4 consecutive months of data;
(B)for each such Head Start agency operating a
program with an actual enrollment that is less than 95 percent of its funded
enrollment, as determined under subparagraph (A), develop, in collaboration
with such agency, a plan and timetable for reducing or eliminating
under-enrollment taking into consideration—
(i)the quality and extent of the outreach,
recruitment, and community needs assessment conducted by such agency;
(ii)changing demographics, mobility of
populations, and the identification of new underserved low-income
populations;
(iii)facilities-related issues that may impact
enrollment;
(iv)the ability to provide full-day programs,
where needed, through Head Start funds or through collaboration with entities
carrying out other preschool or child care programs, or programs with other
funding sources (where available);
(v)the availability and use by families of
other preschool and child care options (including parental care) in the local
catchment area; and
(vi)agency management procedures that may
impact enrollment; and
(C)provide timely and ongoing technical
assistance to each agency described in subparagraph (B) for the purpose of
implementing the plan described in such subparagraph.
(4)Upon receipt of the technical assistance
described in paragraph (3)(C), a Head Start agency shall immediately implement
the plan described in paragraph (3)(B).
(5)Secretarial
action for continued Under-EnrollmentIf, 1 year after the date of implementation
of the plan described in paragraph (3)(B), the Head Start agency continues to
operate a program at less than full enrollment, the Secretary shall, where
determined appropriate, continue to provide technical assistance to such
agency.
(6)Secretarial
review and adjustment for chronic Under-Enrollment
(A)If, after receiving
technical assistance and developing and implementing a plan to the extent
described in paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) for 9 months, a Head Start agency is
still operating a program with an actual enrollment that is less than 95
percent of its funded enrollment, the Secretary may—
(i)designate such agency as chronically
under-enrolled; and
(ii)recapture, withhold, or reduce the base
grant for the program by a percentage equal to the percentage difference
between funded enrollment and actual enrollment for the program for the most
recent year in which the agency is determined to be under-enrolled under
paragraph (2)(B).
(B)Waiver or
limitation of reductionsIf
the Secretary, after the implementation of the plan described in paragraph
(3)(B), finds that—
(i)the causes of the enrollment shortfall, or
a portion of the shortfall, are beyond the agency’s control (such as serving
significant numbers of migrant or seasonal farmworker, homeless, foster, or
other highly mobile children);
(ii)the shortfall can reasonably be expected to
be temporary; or
(iii)the number of slots allotted to the agency
is small enough that under-enrollment does not constitute a significant
shortfall, the Secretary may, as appropriate, waive or reduce the percentage
recapturing, withholding, or reduction otherwise required by subparagraph
(A).
(C)Procedural
requirements; effective dateThe actions taken by the Secretary under
this paragraph with respect to a Head Start agency shall take effect 1 day
after the date on which—
(i)the time allowed for appeal under section
646(a) expires without an appeal by the agency; or
(ii)the action is upheld in an administrative
hearing under section 646.
(7)
(A)The Secretary shall
use amounts recovered from a Head Start agency through recapturing,
withholding, or reduction under paragraph (6) in a fiscal year—
(i)in the case of a Head Start agency
administering an Indian Head Start program or a migrant and seasonal Head Start
program, whose base grant is derived from amounts specified in paragraph
(1)(C)(i), to redirect funds to 1 or more agencies that—
(I)are administering Head Start programs
serving the same special population; and
(II)demonstrate that the agencies will use such
redirected funds to increase enrollment in their Head Start programs in such
fiscal year; or
(ii)in the case of a Head Start agency in a
State, whose base grant is derived from amounts specified in clause (ii) or
(iii) of paragraph (1)(C), to redirect funds to 1 or more agencies that—
(I)are administering Head Start programs in
the same State; and
(II)make the demonstration described in clause
(i)(II).
(B)If there is no agency
located in a State that meets the requirements of subclauses (I) and (II) of
subparagraph (A)(ii), the Secretary shall use amounts described in subparagraph
(A) to redirect funds to Head Start agencies located in other States that make
the demonstration described in subparagraph (A)(i)(II).
(C)Adjustment to
funded enrollmentThe
Secretary shall adjust as necessary the requirements relating to funded
enrollment indicated in the grant agreement of a Head Start agency receiving
redistributed amounts under this
paragraph.
.
9.Centers of Excellence
in Early ChildhoodThe
Head Start Act is amended by inserting
after section 641A (42 U.S.C. 9836a) the following:
641B.Centers of
Excellence in Early Childhood
(a)In this section, the term center of
excellence means a Center of Excellence in Early Childhood designated
under subsection (b).
(b)Designation and
bonus grantsThe Secretary
shall, subject to the availability of funds under this subchapter, including
under subsection (f), establish a program under which the Secretary
shall—
(1)designate not more than 200 exemplary Head
Start agencies (including Early Head Start agencies, Indian Head Start
agencies, and migrant and seasonal Head Start agencies) as Centers of
Excellence in Early Childhood; and
(2)make bonus grants to the centers of
excellence to carry out the activities described in subsection (d).
(c)Application and
designation
(1)
(A)Nomination and
submission
(i)To be eligible to
receive a designation as a center of excellence under subsection (b), except as
provided in clause (ii), a Head Start agency in a State shall be nominated by
the Governor of the State and shall submit an application to the Secretary at
such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may
require.
(ii)Indian and
migrant and seasonal Head Start programsIn the case of an Indian Head Start agency
or a migrant or seasonal Head Start agency, to be eligible to receive a
designation as a center of excellence under subsection (b), such an agency
shall be nominated by the head of the appropriate regional office of the
Department and Health and Human Services and shall submit an application to the
Secretary in accordance with clause (i).
(B)At a minimum, the application shall
include—
(i)evidence that the Head Start program
carried out by the agency has significantly improved the school readiness of,
and enhanced academic outcomes for, children who have participated in the
program;
(ii)evidence that the program meets or exceeds
standards and performance measures described in subsections (a) and (b) of
section 641A, as evidenced by successful completion of programmatic and
monitoring reviews, and has no findings of deficiencies with respect to the
standards and measures;
(iii)evidence that the program is making
progress toward meeting the requirements described in section 648A;
(iv)evidence demonstrating the existence of a
collaborative partnership among the Head Start agency, the State (or a State
agency), and other early care and education providers in the local community
involved;
(v)a nomination letter from the Governor, or
appropriate regional office, demonstrating the agency’s ability to carry out
the coordination, transition, and training services of the program to be
carried out under the bonus grant involved, including coordination of
activities with State and local agencies that provide early childhood services
to children and families in the community served by the agency;
(vi)information demonstrating the existence of
a local council for excellence in early childhood, which shall include
representatives of all the institutions, agencies, and groups involved in the
work of the center for, and the local provision of services to, eligible
children and other at-risk children, and their families; and
(vii)a description of how the Center, in order
to expand accessibility and continuity of quality early care and education,
will coordinate the early care and education activities assisted under this
section with—
(I)programs carried out under the Child Care
and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.);
(II)other programs carried out under this
subchapter, including the Early Head Start programs carried out under section
645A;
(III)- (aa)Early Reading First and Even Start programs
carried out under subparts 2 and 3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6371 et seq., 6381 et seq.);
- (bb)other preschool programs carried out under
title I of that Act (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.); and
- (cc)the Ready-to-Learn Television program
carried out under subpart 3 of part D of title II of that Act (20 U.S.C. 6775
et seq.);
(IV)programs carried out under part C of the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.);
(V)State prekindergarten programs; and
(VI)other early care and education
programs.
(2)In selecting agencies to designate as
centers of excellence under subsection (b), the Secretary shall designate not
less than 1 from each of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, an Indian
Head Start program, a migrant and seasonal Head Start program, and the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
(3)
(A)Subject to
subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall designate a Head Start agency as a center
of excellence for a 5-year term. During the period of that designation, subject
to the availability of appropriations, the agency shall be eligible to receive
a bonus grant under subsection (b).
(B)The Secretary may revoke an agency’s
designation under subsection (b) if the Secretary determines that the agency is
not demonstrating adequate performance or has had findings of deficiencies
described in paragraph (1)(B)(ii).
(4)The Secretary shall
base the amount of funding provided through a bonus grant made under subsection
(b) to a center of excellence on the number of children eligible for Head Start
services in the community involved. The Secretary shall, subject to the
availability of funding, make such a bonus grant in an amount of not less than
$200,000 per year.
(d)
(1)A center of excellence that receives a
bonus grant under subsection (b) may use the funds made available through the
bonus grant—
(A)to provide Head Start services to
additional eligible children;
(B)to better meet the needs of working
families in the community served by the center by serving more children in
existing Early Head Start programs (existing as of the date the center is
designated under this section) or in full-working-day, full calendar year Head
Start programs;
(C)to model and disseminate best practices for
achieving early academic success, including achieving school readiness and
developing prereading and premathematics skills for at-risk children and
achieving the acquisition of the English language for limited English
proficient children, and to provide seamless service delivery for eligible
children and their families;
(D)to further coordinate early childhood and
social services available in the community served by the center for at-risk
children (birth through age 8), their families, and pregnant women;
(E)to provide training and cross training for
Head Start teachers and staff, child care providers, public and private
preschool and elementary school teachers, and other providers of early
childhood services, and training and cross training to develop agency
leaders;
(F)to provide effective transitions between
Head Start programs and elementary school, to facilitate ongoing communication
between Head Start and elementary school teachers concerning children receiving
Head Start services, and to provide training and technical assistance to
providers who are public elementary school teachers and other staff of local
educational agencies, child care providers, family service providers, and other
providers of early childhood services, to help the providers described in this
subparagraph increase their ability to work with low-income, at-risk children
and their families;
(G)to develop or maintain partnerships with
institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations, including
community-based organizations, that recruit, train, place, and support college
students to serve as mentors and reading coaches to preschool children in Head
Start programs; and
(H)to carry out other activities determined by
the center to improve the overall quality of the Head Start program carried out
by the agency and the program carried out under the bonus grant
involved.
(2)Involvement of
other Head Start agencies and providersA center that receives a bonus grant under
subsection (b), in carrying out activities under this subsection, shall work
with the center’s delegate agencies, several additional Head Start agencies,
and other providers of early childhood services in the community involved, to
encourage the agencies and providers described in this sentence to carry out
model programs.
(e)
(1)The Secretary shall, subject to the
availability of funds to carry out this subsection, make a grant to an
independent organization to conduct research on the ability of the centers of
excellence to improve the school readiness of children receiving Head Start
services, and to positively impact school results in the earliest grades. The
organization shall also conduct research to measure the success of the centers
of excellence at encouraging the center’s delegate agencies, additional Head
Start agencies, and other providers of early childhood services in the
communities involved to meet measurable improvement goals, particularly in the
area of school readiness.
(2)Not later than 48 months after the date of
enactment of the Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act, the
organization shall prepare and submit to the Secretary and Congress a report
containing the results of the research described in paragraph (1).
(f)Authorization
of appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2006 and each subsequent fiscal
year—
(1)$90,000,000 to make bonus grants to centers
of excellence under subsection (b) to carry out activities described in
subsection (d);
(2)$2,500,000 to pay for the administrative
costs of the Secretary in carrying out this section, including the cost of a
conference of centers of excellence; and
(3)$2,000,000 for research activities
described in subsection
(e).
.
10.Powers and functions
of Head Start agenciesSection
642 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C.
9837) is amended to read as follows:
642.Powers and functions
of Head Start agencies
(a)In order to be
designated as a Head Start agency under this subchapter, an agency shall have
authority under its charter or applicable law to receive and administer funds
provided under this subchapter, funds and contributions from private or local
public sources that may be used in support of a Head Start program, and funds
provided under any Federal or State assistance program pursuant to which a
public or private nonprofit or for-profit agency (as the case may be) organized
in accordance with this subchapter, could act as a grantee, contractor, or
sponsor of projects appropriate for inclusion in a Head Start program. Such an
agency shall also be empowered to transfer funds so received, and to delegate
powers to other agencies, subject to the powers of its governing board and its
overall program responsibilities. The power to transfer funds and delegate
powers shall include the power to make transfers and delegations covering
component projects in all cases in which that power will contribute to
efficiency and effectiveness or otherwise further program objectives.
(b)In order to be
designated as a Head Start agency under this subchapter, a Head Start agency
shall also—
(1)establish a program with all standards set
forth in section 641A(a)(1), with particular attention to the standards set
forth in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of such section;
(2)demonstrate the capacity to serve eligible
children with scientifically based curricula and other interventions and
support services that help promote the school readiness of children
participating in the program;
(3)establish effective procedures and provide
for the regular assessment of Head Start children, including observational and
direct formal assessment, where appropriate;
(4)seek the involvement of parents, area
residents, and local business in the design and implementation of the
program;
(5)provide for the regular participation of
parents and area residents in the implementation of the program;
(6)provide technical and other support needed
to enable such parents and area residents to secure, on their own behalf,
available assistance from public and private sources;
(7)establish effective procedures to
facilitate the involvement of parents of participating children in activities
designed to help such parents become full partners in the education of their
children, and to afford such parents the opportunity to participate in the
development and overall conduct of the program at the local level;
(8)conduct outreach to schools in which Head
Start children will enroll, local educational agencies, the local business
community, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, museums,
and libraries to generate support and leverage the resources of the entire
local community in order to improve school readiness;
(9)offer (directly or through referral to
local entities, such as entities carrying out Even Start programs under subpart
3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6381 et seq.)), to
parents of participating children, family literacy services, and parenting
skills training;
(10)offer to parents of participating children
substance abuse and other counseling (either directly or through referral to
local entities), if needed, including information on the effect of drug
exposure on infants and fetal alcohol syndrome;
(11)at the option of such agency, offer
(directly or through referral to local entities), to such parents—
(A)training in basic child development
(including cognitive development);
(B)assistance in developing literacy and
communication skills;
(C)opportunities to share experiences with
other parents (including parent mentor relationships);
(D)regular in-home visitation; or
(E)any other activity designed to help such
parents become full partners in the education of their children;
(12)provide, with respect to each participating
family, a family needs assessment that includes consultation with such parents
(including foster parents and grandparents, where applicable) about the
benefits of parent involvement and about the activities described in this
subsection in which such parents may choose to be involved (taking into
consideration their specific family needs, work schedules, and other
responsibilities);
(13)consider providing services to assist
younger siblings of children participating in its Head Start program, to obtain
health services from other sources;
(14)perform community outreach to encourage
individuals previously unaffiliated with Head Start programs to participate in
its Head Start program as volunteers;
(15)(A)inform custodial parents in single-parent
families that participate in programs, activities, or services carried out or
provided under this subchapter about the availability of child support services
for purposes of establishing paternity and acquiring child support; and
(B)refer eligible parents to the child support
offices of State and local governments;
(16)provide parents of limited English
proficient children outreach and information in an understandable and uniform
format and, to the extent practicable, in a language that the parents can
understand; and
(17)at the option of such agency, partner with
an institution of higher education and a nonprofit organization to provide
college students with the opportunity to serve as mentors or reading coaches to
Head Start participants.
(c)
(1)Each Head Start
agency shall take steps to ensure, to the maximum extent possible, that
children maintain the developmental and educational gains achieved in Head
Start programs and build upon such gains in further schooling.
(2)
(A)In
communities where both public prekindergarten programs and Head Start programs
operate, a Head Start agency shall collaborate and coordinate activities with
the local educational agency or other public agency responsible for the
operation of the prekindergarten program and providers of prekindergarten,
including outreach activities to identify eligible children.
(B)Head Start staff
shall, with the permission of the parents of children enrolled in Head Start
programs, regularly communicate with the elementary schools such children will
be attending to—
(i)share information about such
children;
(ii)get advice and support from the teachers in
such elementary schools regarding teaching strategies and options; and
(iii)ensure a smooth transition to elementary
school for such children.
(C)The head of each
Head Start agency shall coordinate activities and collaborate with the State
agency responsible for administering the State program carried out under the
Child Care and Development Block Grant Act
of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.), other entities carrying out early
childhood education and development programs, and the agencies responsible for
administering section 106 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42
U.S.C. 5106a), parts B and E of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
620 et seq. and 670 et seq.), programs under subtitle B of title VII of the
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.), Even Start
programs under subpart 3 of part B of title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 6381 et seq.), and programs under section 619 and
part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431
et seq.), serving the children and families served by the Head Start
agency.
(3)A Head Start agency shall take steps to
coordinate activities with the local educational agency serving the community
involved and with schools in which children participating in a Head Start
program operated by such agency will enroll following such program,
including—
(A)collaborating on the shared use of
transportation and facilities;
(B)collaborating to reduce the duplication of
services while increasing the program participation of underserved populations
of eligible children; and
(C)exchanging information on the provision of
noneducational services to such children.
(4)In order to
promote the continued involvement of the parents of children that participate
in Head Start programs in the education of their children upon transition to
school, the Head Start agency shall—
(A)provide training to the parents—
(i)to inform the parents about their rights
and responsibilities concerning the education of their children; and
(ii)to enable the parents—
(I)to understand and work with schools in
order to communicate with teachers and other school personnel;
(II)to support the schoolwork of their
children; and
(III)to participate as appropriate in decisions
relating to the education of their children; and
(B)take other actions, as appropriate and
feasible, to support the active involvement of the parents with schools, school
personnel, and school-related organizations.
(d)Each Head Start agency shall adopt, in
consultation with experts in child development and with classroom teachers, an
assessment to be used when hiring or evaluating any classroom teacher in a
center-based Head Start program. Such assessment shall measure whether such
teacher has mastered the functions described in section 648A(a)(1) and attained
a level of literacy appropriate to implement Head Start curricula.
(e)Funded
enrollment; waiting listEach
Head Start agency shall enroll 100 percent of its funded enrollment and
maintain an active waiting list at all times with ongoing outreach to the
community and activities to identify underserved populations.
(f)Technical
assistance and training planIn order to receive funds under this
subchapter, a Head Start agency shall develop an annual technical assistance
and training plan. Such plan shall be based on the agency's self-assessment,
the community needs assessment, and the needs of parents to be served by such
agency.
.
11.Section 642A of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9837a) is
amended to read as follows:
642A.Head Start
transition and alignment with k–12 educationEach Head Start agency shall take steps to
coordinate activities with the local educational agency serving the community
involved and with schools in which children participating in a Head Start
program operated by such agency will enroll following such program,
including—
(1)developing and implementing a systematic
procedure for transferring, with parental consent, Head Start program records
for each participating child to the school in which such child will
enroll;
(2)establishing ongoing channels of
communication between Head Start staff and their counterparts in the schools
(including teachers, social workers, health staff, and local educational agency
liaisons designated under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii))) to facilitate
coordination of programs;
(3)developing continuity of developmentally
appropriate curricula and practice between the Head Start agency and local
educational agency to ensure an effective transition and appropriate shared
expectations for children’s learning and development as the children make the
transition to school;
(4)conducting meetings involving parents,
kindergarten or elementary school teachers, and Head Start teachers to discuss
the educational, developmental, and other needs of individual children;
(5)organizing and participating in joint
training, including transition-related training of school staff and Head Start
staff;
(6)developing and implementing a family
outreach and support program, in cooperation with entities carrying out
parental involvement efforts under title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), and family outreach and support
efforts under subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance
Act (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.), taking into consideration the language needs of
limited English proficient parents;
(7)assisting families, administrators, and
teachers in enhancing educational and developmental continuity and continuity
of parental involvement in activities between Head Start services and
elementary school classes;
(8)linking the services provided in such Head
Start program with the education services, including services relating to
language, literacy, and numeracy, provided by such local educational
agency;
(9)helping parents understand the importance
of parental involvement in a child’s academic success while teaching the
parents strategies for maintaining parental involvement as their child moves
from the Head Start program to elementary school;
(10)developing and implementing a system to
increase program participation of underserved populations of eligible children,
including children with disabilities, homeless children, children in foster
care, and limited English proficient children; and
(11)coordinating activities and collaborating
to ensure that curricula used in the Head Start program is aligned with State
early learning standards with regard to cognitive, social, emotional, and
physical competencies that children entering kindergarten are expected to
demonstrate.
.
12.Submission of plans
to governorsSection 643 of
the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9838) is
amended—
(1)in the first sentence—
(A)by inserting for approval
after submitted to the chief executive officer of the State
;
and
(B)by striking 45
and inserting
30
; and
(2)in the last sentence, by inserting
to Indian and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs in existence on
the date of enactment of the Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act,
or
after other assistance
.
13.Participation in Head
Start programsSection 645(a)
of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C.
9840(a)) is amended—
(1)in paragraph (1)(A), by inserting
130 percent of
after below
; and
(2)by adding at the end the following:
(3)(A)In this paragraph:
(i)The term dependent has the
meaning given the term in paragraphs (2)(A) and (4)(A)(i) of section 401(a) of
title 37, United States Code.
(ii)The terms member and
uniformed services have the meanings given the terms in paragraphs
(23) and (3), respectively, of section 101 of title 37, United States
Code.
(B)The following amounts of pay and allowance
of a member of the uniformed services shall not be considered to be income for
purposes of determining the eligibility of a dependent of such member for
programs funded under this subchapter:
(i)The amount of any special pay payable under
section 310 if title 37, United States Code, relating to duty subject to
hostile fire or imminent danger.
(ii)The amount of basic allowance payable under
section 403 of such title, including any such amount that is provided on behalf
of the member for housing that is acquired or constructed under the alternative
authority for the acquisition and improvement of military housing under
subchapter IV of chapter 169 of title 10, United States Code, or any other
related provision of law.
(4)After demonstrating a need through a
community needs assessment, a Head Start agency may apply to the Secretary to
convert part-day sessions, particularly consecutive part-day sessions, into
full-day
sessions.
.
14.Early Head Start
programsSection 645A of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9840a) is
amended—
(1)by striking the section heading and
inserting the following:
645A.Early Head Start
programs
;
(2)in subsection (b)—
(A)in paragraph (4), by striking
provide services to parents to support their role as parents
and
inserting provide additional services to parents to support their role
as parents (including parenting skills training and training in basic child
development)
;
(B)by redesignating paragraphs (5), (6), (7),
(8), and (9) as paragraphs (6), (7), (10), (11), and (12), respectively;
(C)by inserting after paragraph (4) the
following:
(5)where appropriate and in conjunction with
services provided under this section to the children’s immediate families (or
as approved by the Secretary), provide home-based services to family child care
homes and kin caregivers caring for infants and toddlers who also participate
in Early Head Start programs, to provide continuity in supporting the
children’s physical, social, emotional, and intellectual
development;
;
(D)in paragraph (6), as redesignated by
subparagraph (B)—
(i)by inserting (including home-based
services)
after with services
; and
(ii)by inserting , and family support
services
after health services
;
(E)by inserting after paragraph (7), as
redesignated by subparagraph (B), the following:
(8)develop and implement a systematic
procedure for transitioning children and parents from an Early Head Start
program into a Head Start program or another local early childhood education
program;
(9)establish channels of communication between
staff of Early Head Start programs and staff of Head Start programs or other
local early childhood education programs, to facilitate the coordination of
programs;
;
and
(F)in paragraph (11), as redesignated by
subparagraph (B)—
(i)by striking and providers
and inserting , providers
; and
(ii)by inserting , and the agencies
responsible for administering section 106 of the
Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment
Act (42 U.S.C. 5106a) and parts B and E of title IV of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 620 et seq. and 670 et seq.)
after (20
U.S.C. 1400 et seq.)
;
(3)in subsection (d)—
(A)in paragraph (1), by inserting ,
including tribal governments and entities operating migrant and seasonal Head
Start programs
after subchapter
; and
(B)in paragraph (2), by inserting ,
including community-based organizations
after private
entities
;
(4)in subsection (g)(2)(B), by striking clause
(iv) and inserting the following:
(iv)providing professional development and
personnel enhancement activities, including the provision of funds to
recipients of grants under subsection (a), relating to—
(I)effective methods of conducting parent
education, home visiting, and promoting quality early childhood
development;
(II)recruiting and retaining qualified staff;
and
(III)increasing program participation for
underserved populations of eligible
children.
;
(5)by adding at the end the following:
(h)Staff
qualifications and development
(1)The Secretary shall
ensure that, not later than September 30, 2010, all teachers providing direct
services to Early Head Start children and families in Early Head Start centers
have a minimum of a child development associate credential or an associate
degree, and have been trained (or have equivalent course work) in early
childhood development.
(2)
(A)In order to further enhance the quality of
home visiting services provided to families of children participating in
home-based, center-based, or combination program options under this subchapter,
the Secretary shall establish standards for training, qualifications, and the
conduct of home visits for home visitor staff in Early Head Start
programs.
(B)The standards for training, qualifications,
and the conduct of home visits shall include content related to—
(i)structured child-focused home visiting that
promotes parents’ ability to support the child’s cognitive, social, emotional,
and physical development;
(ii)effective strengths-based parent education,
including methods to encourage parents as their child’s first teachers;
(iii)early childhood development with respect to
children from birth through age 3;
(iv)methods to help parents promote emergent
literacy in their children from birth through age 3, including use of
research-based strategies to support the development of literacy and language
skills for children who are limited English proficient;
(v)health, vision, hearing, and developmental
screenings;
(vi)strategies for helping families coping with
crisis; and
(vii)the relationship of health and well-being
of pregnant women to prenatal and early child
development.
.
15.Appeals, notice, and
hearing and records and audits
(a)Section 646(a) of the Head Start Act (42
U.S.C. 9841(a)) is amended by striking paragraphs (3) and (4) and inserting the
following:
(3)financial assistance under this subchapter
may be terminated or reduced, and an application for funding may be denied,
after the recipient has been afforded reasonable notice and opportunity for a
full and fair hearing, including—
(A)a right to file a notice of appeal of a
decision within 30 days of notice of the decision from the Secretary;
and
(B)access to a full and fair hearing of the
appeal, not later than 120 days from receipt by the Secretary of the notice of
appeal;
(4)the Secretary shall develop and publish
procedures (including mediation procedures) to be used in order to—
(A)resolve in a timely manner conflicts
potentially leading to an adverse action between—
(i)recipients of financial assistance under
this subchapter; and
(ii)delegate agencies or Head Start Parent
Policy Councils;
(B)avoid the need for an administrative
hearing on an adverse action; and
(C)prohibit a Head Start agency from expending
financial assistance awarded under this subchapter for the purpose of paying
legal fees pursuant to an appeal under paragraph (3), except that such fees
shall be reimbursed by the Secretary if the agency prevails in such decision;
and
(5)the Secretary may suspend funds to a
grantee for not more than 30
days.
.
(b)Section 647(a) of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9842(a)) is
amended by striking Each recipient of
and inserting Each
Head Start agency, Head Start center, or Early Head Start center
receiving
.
(c)Section 647 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9842) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
(c)Each Head Start agency, Head Start center,
or Early Head Start center receiving financial assistance under this subchapter
shall maintain, and annually submit to the Secretary, a complete accounting of
its administrative expenses, including expenses for salaries and compensation
funded under this subchapter and provide such additional documentation as the
Secretary may
require.
.
16.Technical assistance
and trainingSection 648 of
the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9843) is
amended—
(1)in subsection (a)(2), by striking
(b) and (c)
and inserting (b), (c), and
(d)
;
(2)by redesignating subsections (b) through
(e) as subsections (c) through (f), respectively;
(3)by inserting after subsection (a) the
following:
(b)The Secretary shall make available funds
set aside in section 640(a)(2)(C)(ii) to support a regional or State system of
early childhood education training and technical assistance that improves the
capacity of Head Start programs to deliver services in accordance with the
standards described in section 641A(a)(1), with particular attention to the
standards described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of such section. The Secretary
shall—
(1)ensure that agencies with demonstrated
expertise in providing high-quality training and technical assistance to
improve the delivery of Head Start services, including the State Head Start
Associations, State agencies, migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, and
other entities providing training and technical assistance in early education,
for the region or State are included in the planning and coordination of the
system; and
(2)encourage States to supplement the funds
authorized in section 640(a)(2)(C)(ii) with Federal, State, or local funds
other than Head Start funds, to expand training and technical assistance
activities beyond Head Start agencies to include other providers of other early
childhood services within a region or
State.
;
(4)in subsection (d), as so
redesignated—
(A)in paragraph (1)(B)(ii), by striking
educational performance measures
and inserting
measures
;
(B)in paragraph (2), by inserting and
for activities described in section 1221(b)(3) of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 6371(b)(3))
after children with
disabilities
;
(C)in paragraph (5), by inserting ,
including assessing the needs of homeless children and their families
after needs assessment
;
(D)in paragraph (10), by striking ;
and
and inserting a semicolon;
(E)in paragraph (11), by striking the period
and inserting a semicolon; and
(F)by adding at the end the following:
(12)assist Head Start agencies and programs in
increasing the program participation of homeless children;
(13)provide training and technical assistance
to members of governing bodies to ensure that the members can fulfill the
functions described in section 641(a)(4);
(14)provide training and technical assistance
to Head Start agencies to assist such agencies in conducting self-assessments;
and
(15)assist Head Start agencies and Head Start
programs in improving outreach to, and quality of services available to,
limited English proficient children and their families, including such services
to help such families learn English, particularly in communities that have
experienced a large percentage increase in the population of limited English
proficient individuals, as measured by the Bureau of the
Census.
;
(5)in subsection (e), as so redesignated, by
inserting including community-based organizations,
after
nonprofit entities
;
(6)in subsection (f), as so redesignated, by
inserting or providing services to children determined to be abused or
neglected, training for personnel providing services to children referred by
entities providing child welfare services or receiving child welfare
services,
after English language),
; and
(7)by adding at the end the following:
(g)The Secretary shall provide, either
directly or through grants or other arrangements, funds for training of Head
Start personnel in addressing the unique needs of migrant and seasonal
farmworking families, families with limited English proficiency, and homeless
families.
(h)Funds used under this section shall be used
to provide high quality, sustained, and intensive, training and technical
assistance in order to have a positive and lasting impact on classroom
instruction. Funds shall be used to carry out activities related to 1 or more
of the following:
(1)Education and early childhood
development.
(2)Child health, nutrition, and safety.
(3)Family and community partnerships.
(4)Other areas that impact the quality or
overall effectiveness of Head Start programs.
(i)Funds used under this section for training
shall be used for needs identified annually by a grant applicant or delegate
agency in its program improvement plan, except that funds shall not be used for
long-distance travel expenses for training activities—
(1)available locally or regionally; or
(2)substantially similar to locally or
regionally available training activities.
(j)(1)To support local efforts to enhance early
language and preliteracy development of children in Head Start programs, and to
provide the children with high-quality oral language skills, and environments
that are rich in literature, in which to acquire language and preliteracy
skills, each Head Start agency, in coordination with the appropriate State
office and the relevant State Head Start collaboration office, shall ensure
that all of the agency’s Head Start teachers receive ongoing training in
language and emergent literacy (referred to in this subsection as
literacy training
), including appropriate curricula and
assessments to improve instruction and learning. Such training shall include
training in methods to promote phonological and phonemic awareness and
vocabulary development in an age-appropriate and culturally and linguistically
appropriate manner.
(2)The literacy training shall be provided at
the local level in order—
(A)to
be provided, to the extent feasible, in the context of the Head Start programs
of the State involved and the children the program serves; and
(B)to
be tailored to the early childhood literacy background and experience of the
teachers involved.
(3)The literacy training shall be culturally
and linguistically appropriate and support children’s development in their home
language.
(4)The literacy training shall include
training in how to work with parents to enhance positive language and early
literacy development at home.
(5)The literacy training shall include
specific methods to best address the needs of children who are English language
learners or are limited English proficient.
(6)The literacy training shall include
specific methods to best address the needs of children who have speech and
language delays, including problems with articulation, or have other
disabilities.
.
17.Staff qualification
and developmentSection 648A
of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C.
9843a) is amended—
(1)in subsection (a)—
(A)by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the
following:
(2)
(A)The Secretary shall
ensure that—
(i)not later than September 30, 2010, all Head
Start teachers in center-based programs have at least—
(I)- (aa)an associate degree (or equivalent
coursework) relating to early childhood; or
- (bb)an associate degree in a related
educational area and, to the extent practicable, coursework relating to early
childhood; and
(II)demonstrated teaching competencies, as
determined by the program director involved (including, at a minimum, an
appropriate level of literacy, a demonstrated capacity to be highly engaged
with children, and a demonstrated ability to effectively implement an early
childhood curriculum); and
(ii)not later than September 30, 2008, all Head
Start curriculum specialists and education coordinators in center-based
programs have—
(I)the capacity to offer assistance to other
teachers in the implementation and adaptation of curricula to the group and
individual needs of a class; and
(II)- (aa)a baccalaureate or advanced degree relating
to early childhood; or
- (bb)a
baccalaureate or advanced degree and coursework equivalent to a major relating
to early childhood;
(iii)not later than September 30, 2008, all Head
Start teaching assistants in center-based programs have—
(I)at least a child development associate
credential;
(II)enrolled in a program leading to an
associate or baccalaureate degree; or
(III)enrolled in a child development associate
credential program to be completed within 2 years; and
(iv)not later than September 30, 2011—
(I)in States that have established teacher
requirements for State prekindergarten programs, all Head Start teachers in
center-based programs—
- (aa)if such requirements are not less than
those requirements described in subclause (II), meet such teacher requirements
for State prekindergarten programs; and
- (bb)if such requirements are less than those
requirements described in subclause (II), meet the requirements described in
subclause (II); and
(II)in States that do not have teacher
requirements for their State prekindergarten programs, 50 percent of all Head
Start teachers in each center-based program have a baccalaureate degree
relating to early childhood (or a related educational area or a baccalaureate
degree that meets State specialized training requirements for prekindergarten
teachers, such as State licensure, endorsement, or certification for
prekindergarten or other early childhood area), and demonstrated teaching
competencies, as determined by the program director involved (including, at a
minimum, an appropriate level of literacy, a demonstrated capacity to be highly
engaged with children, and a demonstrated ability to effectively implement an
early childhood curriculum).
(B)Teacher
in-service requirementEach
Head Start teacher shall attend an average of not less than 15 clock hours of
professional development per year. Such professional development shall be high
quality, sustained, intensive, and classroom-focused in order to have a
positive and lasting impact on classroom instruction and the teacher's
performance in the classroom, and regularly evaluated for effectiveness.
(C)
(i)The Secretary shall—
(I)require Head Start agencies to—
- (aa)demonstrate continuing progress each year
to reach the result described in subparagraph (A); and
- (bb)submit to the Secretary a report indicating
the number and percentage of classroom instructors in center-based programs
with child development associate credentials or associate, baccalaureate, or
graduate degrees; and
(II)compile and submit a summary of all program
reports described in subclause (I)(bb) to the Committee on Education and the
Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate.
(ii)A Head Start agency
may demonstrate progress by partnering with institutions of higher education or
other programs that recruit, train, place, and support college students to
deliver an innovative early learning program to preschool children.
(D)The Secretary
shall establish requirements to ensure that, in order to enable Head Start
agencies to comply with the requirements of subparagraph (A), individuals who
receive financial assistance under this subchapter to pursue a degree described
in subparagraph (A) shall—
(i)teach or work in a Head Start program for a
minimum of 3 years after receiving the degree; or
(ii)repay the total or a prorated amount of the
financial assistance received based on the length of service completed after
receiving the degree.
;
and
(B)by striking paragraphs (3) and (4) and
inserting the following:
(3)
(A)On request, the
Secretary may grant a waiver of the postsecondary degree requirements of
paragraph (2) for 1 or more Head Start agencies, either individually,
statewide, or throughout a region, that can demonstrate—
(i)that continuing aggressive statewide and
national efforts have been unsuccessful at recruiting an individual to serve as
a Head Start teacher or curriculum specialist or education coordinator who
meets the requirements of paragraph (2)(A);
(ii)limited access to degree programs
(including quality distance learning programs), due to the remote location of
the program involved; or
(iii)that Head Start staff members are, as of
the day the waiver is granted, enrolled in a program that—
(I)grants the required degree; and
(II)will be completed within 1 year.
(B)An agency that receives a waiver under
subparagraph (A) shall ensure that Head Start teachers for the agency, as of
the day the waiver is granted, who have not met the postsecondary degree
requirements of paragraph (2) but are otherwise highly qualified and competent
shall be directly and appropriately supervised by a teacher who has met or
exceeded the requirements of this subchapter.
(C)The Secretary may not grant a waiver under
subparagraph (A) for a period that exceeds 1
year.
;
(2)in subsection (c)—
(A)in paragraph (2), by striking
and
at the end;
(B)in paragraph (3), by striking the period
and inserting ; and
; and
(C)by adding at the end the following:
(4)promote the use of appropriate strategies
to meet the needs of special populations (including limited English proficient
populations).
;
(3)in subsection (d)(3)(C) by inserting
, including a center,
after any agency
;
and
(4)by adding at the end the following:
(f)Professional
development plansEvery Head
Start agency and center shall create, in consultation with employees of the
agency or center (including family service workers), a professional development
plan for employees who provide direct services to children, including a plan
for classroom teachers, curriculum specialists, and education coordinators to
meet the requirements set forth in subsection
(a).
.
18.Tribal Colleges and
Universities Head Start partnershipThe Head Start
Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section
648A the following:
648B.Tribal College or
University Head Start partnership program
(a)The purpose of this section is to promote
social competencies and school readiness in Indian children.
(b)Tribal College
or University Head Start partnership program
(1)The Secretary is authorized to award
grants, for periods of not less than 5 years, to Tribal Colleges and
Universities to—
(A)implement education programs that include
education concerning tribal culture and language and increase the number of
associate, baccalaureate, and graduate degrees in early childhood education and
related fields that are earned by Indian Head Start agency staff members,
parents of children served by such an agency, and members of the tribal
community involved;
(B)develop and implement the programs under
subparagraph (A) in technology-mediated formats, including providing the
programs through such means as distance learning and use of advanced
technology, as appropriate; and
(C)provide technology literacy programs for
Indian Head Start agency staff members and children and families of children
served by such an agency.
(2)The Secretary shall ensure that the
American Indian Programs Branch of the Head Start Bureau of the Department of
Health and Human Services shall have staffing sufficient to administer the
programs under this section and to provide appropriate technical assistance to
Tribal Colleges and Universities receiving grants under this section.
(c)Each Tribal College or University desiring
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 a certification that the Tribal College or University has
established a partnership with 1 or more Indian Head Start agencies for the
purpose of conducting the activities described in subsection (b).
(d)Authorization
of appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, $10,000,000 for fiscal
year 2006 and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2007
through 2010.
(e)In this section:
(1)Institution of
higher educationThe term
institution of higher education has the meaning given such term in
section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)).
(2)Tribal College
or UniversityThe term
Tribal College or University—
(A)has the meaning given such term in section
316 of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c); and
(B)means an institution determined to be
accredited or a candidate for accreditation by a nationally recognized
accrediting agency or
association.
.
19.Research,
demonstrations, and evaluationSection 649 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844) is
amended—
(1)in subsection (a)(1)(B), by inserting
and children determined to be abused or neglected
after
children with disabilities
;
(2)in subsection (d)—
(A)in paragraph (8), by adding
and
after the semicolon;
(B)by striking paragraph (9);
(C)by redesignating paragraph (10) as
paragraph (9); and
(D)by striking the last sentence;
(3)in subsection (g)—
(A)in paragraph (1)(A)—
(i)by striking clause (i); and
(ii)by redesignating clauses (ii) and (iii) as
clauses (i) and (ii), respectively; and
(B)in paragraph (7)(C)—
(i)in clause (i)(I), by striking
2003
and inserting 2007
; and
(ii)in clause (ii), by striking Labor
and Human Resources
and inserting Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions
; and
(4)by striking subsection (h) and inserting
the following:
(h)National
Academy of Sciences study
(1)The Secretary shall
enter into a contract with the Board on Children, Youth, and Families of the
National Research Council, the Board on Testing and Assessments, and the
Institute of Medicine, of the National Academy of Sciences to establish an
independent panel of experts to review and synthesize research and theories in
the social, behavioral, and biological sciences regarding early childhood, and
make recommendations with regard to each of the following:
(A)Age- and developmentally appropriate Head
Start academic requirements and outcomes, including the standards described in
section 641A(a)(1)(B)(ii).
(B)Differences in the type, length, mix, and
intensity of services that are necessary to ensure that children from
challenging family or social backgrounds (including low-income children,
children with disabilities, and limited English proficient children) enter
kindergarten ready to succeed.
(C)Appropriate assessments of young children
for the purposes of improving instruction, services, and program quality,
including—
(i)formal and systematic observational
assessments in a child’s natural environment;
(ii)assessments of children’s development
through parent and provider interviews;
(iii)appropriate accommodations for children
with disabilities and limited English proficient children;
(iv)appropriate assessments for children with
disabilities, limited English proficient children, and children from different
cultural backgrounds; and
(v)other assessments used in Head Start
programs.
(D)Identification of existing, or
recommendations for the development of, scientifically based, valid and
reliable assessments that are capable of measuring child outcomes in the
domains important to school readiness, including language skills, prereading
ability, premathematics ability, cognitive ability, scientific ability, social
and emotional development, and physical development;
(E)Appropriate use and application of valid
and reliable assessments for Head Start programs identified in accordance with
subparagraph (D).
(2)
(A)The panel described
in paragraph (1) shall consist of multiple experts in each of the following
areas:
(i)Child development (including cognitive,
social, emotional, and physical development) and child education (including
approaches to learning).
(ii)Professional development, including
preparation of individuals who teach young children.
(iii)Assessment of young children (including
children with disabilities and limited English proficient children), including
screening, diagnostic, and classroom-based instructional assessment.
(B)The panel described in paragraph (1) shall
be selected and appointed by the National Academy of Sciences, after
consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
(3)
(A)Not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of the Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act, the Board on
Children, Youth, and Families of the National Research Council, the Board on
Testing and Assessments, and the Institute of Medicine, of the National Academy
of Sciences shall establish the panel described in paragraph (1), including
selecting and appointing the members of the panel. Representatives described in
paragraph (2) shall be selected and appointed after consultation with the
Secretary.
(B)Not later than 1 year after the panel
described in paragraph (1) is established, the panel shall complete, and submit
to the Secretary a report containing, the recommendations described in
paragraph (1). The Secretary shall not implement the amendments made to section
641A(a)(1)(B)(ii) by the Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act until
the panel submits the report.
(4)Application of
panel reportThe Secretary
shall use the results of the review and recommendations described in paragraph
(1) to (where appropriate) develop, inform, and revise—
(A)the educational standards, and the
performance measures, described in section 641A; and
(B)the assessments utilized in the Head Start
programs.
(i)Services to
limited English proficient children and families
(1)The Secretary shall conduct a study on the
status of limited English proficient children and their families in Head Start
or Early Head Start programs.
(2)The Secretary shall prepare and submit to
Congress, not later than September 2009, a report containing the results of the
study, including information on—
(A)the demographics of limited English
proficient children from birth through age 5, including the number of such
children receiving Head Start or Early Head Start services and the geographic
distribution of children described in this subparagraph;
(B)the nature of Head Start or Early Head
Start services provided to limited English proficient children and their
families, including the types, content, duration, intensity, and costs of
family services, language assistance, and educational services;
(C)procedures in Head Start programs for the
assessment of language needs and the transition of limited English proficient
children to kindergarten, including the extent to which Head Start programs
meet the requirements of section 642A for limited English proficient
children;
(D)the qualifications and training provided to
Head Start and Early Head Start teachers serving limited English proficient
children and their families;
(E)the rate of progress made by limited
English proficient children and their families in Head Start programs and Early
Head Start programs, including—
(i)the rate of progress of the limited English
proficient children toward meeting the additional educational standards
described in section 641A(a)(1)(B)(ii) while enrolled in Head Start programs,
measured between 1990 and 2004;
(ii)the correlation between such progress and
the type of instruction and educational program provided to the limited English
proficient children; and
(iii)the correlation between such progress and
the health and family services provided by Head Start programs to limited
English proficient children and their families; and
(F)the extent to which Head Start programs
make use of funds under section 640(a)(3) to improve the quality of Head Start
services provided to limited English proficient children and their
families.
.
20.Section 650 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9846) is
amended—
(1)in subsection (a)—
(A)in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by
striking Labor and Human Resources
and inserting Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions
;
(B)in paragraph (8), by inserting
homelessness, children in foster care, children who are abused or
neglected,
after ethnic background,
; and
(C)in the flush matter at the end by striking
Labor and Human Resources
and inserting Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions
; and
(2)in subsection (b), by striking Labor
and Human Resources
and inserting Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions
.
21.Section 653 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9848) is
amended—
(1)by striking The Secretary shall
take
and inserting (a) The Secretary shall take
;
(2)in the first sentence of subsection (a), by
striking or (2)
and inserting (2) in excess of the salary
of the Secretary, in the case of an individual compensated with funds awarded
under this subchapter or the Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9901
et seq.); or (3)
; and
(3)by adding at the end the following:
(b)If in any fiscal year the restriction
described in subsection (a)(2) is violated, the Secretary shall withhold from
the base grant of the Head Start agency involved (as defined in section
641A(g)(1)) for the next fiscal year, an amount equal to the aggregate amount
by which the salary that resulted in the violation exceeded the salary of the
Secretary.
.
22.Limitation with
respect to certain unlawful activitiesSection 655 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9850) is
amended by inserting or in
after assigned
by
.
23.Section 656 of the
Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9851) is
amended—
(1)by striking all that precedes
chapter 15
and inserting the following:
; and
(2)by striking subsection (b) and inserting
the following:
(b)
(1)A program assisted
under this subchapter, and any individual employed by, or assigned to, a
program assessed under this subchapter (during the hours in which such
individual is working on behalf of such program), shall not engage in—
(A)any partisan or nonpartisan political
activity or any other political activity associated with a candidate, or
contending faction or group, in an election for public or party office;
(B)any activity to provide voters or
prospective voters with transportation to the polls or similar assistance in
connection with any such election; or
(C)any voter registration activity.
(2)The Secretary,
after consultation with the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, may
issue rules and regulations to provide for the enforcement of this section,
which may include provisions for summary suspension of assistance or other
action necessary to permit enforcement on an emergency
basis.
.
24.Parental consent
requirement for health servicesThe Head Start
Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following new section:
657A.Parental consent
requirement for nonemergency intrusive physical examinations
(a)The term nonemergency intrusive
physical examination means, with respect to a child, a physical
examination that—
(1)is not immediately necessary to protect the
health or safety of the child or the health or safety of another individual;
and
(2)requires incision or is otherwise invasive,
or involves exposure of private body parts.
(b)A Head Start agency shall obtain written
parental consent before administration of, or referral for, any health care
service provided or arranged to be provided, including any nonemergency
intrusive physical examination of a child in connection with participation in a
program under this subchapter.
(c)Nothing in this
section shall be construed to prohibit agencies from using established methods,
for handling cases of suspected or known child abuse and neglect, that are in
compliance with applicable Federal, State, or tribal
law.
.