[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2955 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2955

 To improve calculation, reporting, and accountability for graduation 
                                 rates.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 10, 2007

    Mr. Scott of Virginia (for himself, Mr. Hinojosa, Mr. Davis of 
 Illinois, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Ms. Corrine Brown of Florida, 
  Mr. Cummings, Mr. Fattah, Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Grijalva, Ms. Linda T. 
Sanchez of California, Ms. Lee, Ms. Carson, Mr. Al Green of Texas, Ms. 
 Loretta Sanchez of California, Mr. Towns, Mr. Ellison, Mr. Hare, and 
 Ms. Kilpatrick) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                  the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To improve calculation, reporting, and accountability for graduation 
                                 rates.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Every Student Counts Act''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to require consistent calculations of graduation rates 
        across schools, districts, and States;
            (2) to leverage accurate reporting of graduation rates;
            (3) to provide educators with critical information about 
        students' progress toward graduation; and
            (4) to ensure meaningful accountability for the improvement 
        of graduation rates for all students, particularly those of 
        poor and minority students.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

     The Congress finds the following:
            (1) To retain its competitive edge in the world economy, it 
        is essential that America's youth be prepared for the jobs of 
        today and for the jobs of the future. Such jobs increasingly 
        require a postsecondary education--an estimated 85 percent of 
        current jobs and almost 90 percent of the fastest growing and 
        best paying jobs require some postsecondary education.
            (2) Individuals without a high school diploma experience 
        higher rates of unemployment, incarceration, living in poverty, 
        and receiving public assistance than individuals with at least 
        a high school diploma.
            (3) Approximately one-third of all high school students in 
        the United States fail to graduate with their peers--about 
        1,230,000 every year.
            (4) The graduation rates for historically disadvantaged 
        minority groups are far lower than that of their white peers; 
        little more than half of all African-American and Hispanic 
        students will finish high school on time with a regular high 
        school diploma compared to over three-quarters of white 
        students.
            (5) About 2,000 of the more than 20,000 high schools in the 
        United States produce nearly half of the Nation's dropouts. In 
        these schools, the number of seniors is routinely 60 percent or 
        less than the number of freshmen 4 years earlier. While almost 
        half of the Nation's African-American students and nearly 40 
        percent of Latino students attend these ``dropout factories,'' 
        only 11 percent of white students do.
            (6) The graduation rate calculations currently used by most 
        States for both reporting and accountability are inconsistent 
        and misleading. Not only does this obscure the graduation rate 
        crisis, particularly for poor and minority students, but it 
        also makes it impossible to compare graduation rates across 
        schools, districts, and States.
            (7) The average gap between State-reported and 
        independently reported graduation rates is approximately 11 
        percent, and in some States that difference rises to over 25 
        percent.
            (8) In 2005, all 50 of the Nation's Governors signed the 
        National Governors Association's Graduation Rate Compact, 
        pledging to use a common, accurate graduation rate. However, 
        since only a few States currently use the Compact rate for 
        accountability purposes and some States have backed off this 
        goal, it is necessary to operationalize common calculations and 
        accountability for graduation rates.
            (9) The most accurate graduation rate calculations are 
        reliant on high-quality longitudinal data systems that track 
        individual student data from the time a student enters the 
        educational system until he or she leaves it. Currently only 16 
        States have the 4 elements of a statewide longitudinal data 
        system that are necessary to calculate the National Governors 
        Association Compact rate at the school level.
            (10) An accountability system with meaningful graduation 
        rate goals holds schools, districts, and States responsible for 
        both student achievement and outcomes and ensures that low-
        performing students are not unnecessarily held back or pushed 
        out (encouraged to leave school without a diploma).
            (11) As implemented, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 
        does not require consistent calculations, meaningful goals, or 
        disaggregation of graduation rates. This means that most high 
        schools can make adequate yearly progress despite a consistent, 
        or even a growing, graduation gap or by making as little as 0.1 
        percent improvement or less in graduation rates each year.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

     For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Graduation rate.--The term ``graduation rate'' means 
        the ratio of the number of graduates with a regular high school 
        diploma to the number of students in the adjusted cohort as 
        calculated using the adjusted cohort rate formulas.
            (2) Four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula.--The 
        term ``four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula'' 
        means the number of students who graduate in four years or less 
        with a regular high school diploma (which does not include a 
        GED or other certificate of completion or alternative to a 
        diploma except as provided in paragraph (7)(B)), divided by the 
        number of students who formed the adjusted cohort for that 
        graduating class.
            (3) Five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula.--The 
        term ``five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula'' 
        means the number of students who graduate in five years or less 
        with a regular high school diploma (which does not include a 
        GED or other certificate of completion or alternative to a 
        diploma except as provided in paragraph (7)(B)), divided by the 
        number of students who formed the adjusted cohort for that 
        graduating class five years earlier.
            (4) Adjusted cohort.--
                    (A) In general.--Subject to the other subparagraphs 
                of this paragraph, the term ``adjusted cohort'' means 
                the students who entered grade 9 together, and any 
                students that transferred into the cohort in grade 9 
                through 12 minus any students removed from the cohort.
                    (B) Transfers in.--The term ``transfers in'' means 
                the students who enroll after the beginning of the 
                entering cohort's first year in high school, up to and 
                including in grade 12.
                    (C) Cohort removal.--To remove students from the 
                cohort, the school or local educational agency must 
                confirm that the student has either transferred out or 
                is deceased.
                    (D) Transfers out.--The term ``transfers out'' 
                means the students the school or local educational 
                agency has confirmed have transferred to another 
                school, local educational agency, or other educational 
                program for which they are expected to receive a 
                regular high school diploma. Confirmation of a 
                student's transfer to another school, local educational 
                agency, or program requires formal documentation that 
                the student enrolled in the receiving school. Students 
                enrolled in a GED or other alternative educational 
                program that does not issue or provide credits toward 
                the issuance of a regular high school diploma are not 
                considered transfers out. Students who were enrolled, 
                but for whom there is no confirmation of transfer or 
                completion, may not be labeled transfers or errors, but 
                must remain in the cohort as non-graduates for 
                reporting and accountability purposes.
                    (E) Treatment of other leavers and withdrawals.--
                Students who were retained in grade, enrolled in a GED 
                program, or left school for any other reason may not be 
                counted as transfers out for the purpose of calculating 
                graduation rates and must remain in the adjusted 
                cohort.
                    (F) Special rule.--For those high schools that 
                start after ninth grade, the cohort shall be calculated 
                based on the earliest high school grade.
            (5) Four-year graduates.--The term ``four-year graduates'' 
        means those students who earned a regular high school diploma 
        at the conclusion of their fourth year, before their fourth 
        year, or during a summer session immediately following their 
        fourth year.
            (6) Five-year graduates.--The term ``five-year graduates'' 
        means those students who earned a regular high school diploma 
        at the conclusion of their fifth year, before their fifth year, 
        or during a summer session immediately following their fifth 
        year.
            (7) Regular high school diploma.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``regular high school 
                diploma'' means the standard high school diploma 
                awarded to the preponderance of students in the State 
                that is fully aligned with State standards, or a higher 
                diploma, and does not include GEDs, certificates of 
                attendance, or any lesser diploma award.
                    (B) Special rule.--For those students who have 
                significant cognitive disabilities and are assessed 
                using an alternate assessment aligned to alternate 
                achievement standards, receipt of a regular high school 
                diploma or State-defined alternate diploma aligned with 
                completion of their entitlement under the Individuals 
                with Disabilities Education Act shall be counted as 
                graduates with a regular high school diploma for the 
                purposes of this Act. No more than one percent of 
                students can be counted as graduates with a regular 
                high school diploma under this subparagraph.
            (8) Alternative educational setting.--The term 
        ``alternative educational setting'' means--
                    (A) a secondary school or secondary educational 
                program that is designed for students who are under-
                credited or have dropped out of high school and that 
                awards a regular high school diploma; or
                    (B) a secondary school or secondary educational 
                program designed to issue a regular high school diploma 
                concurrently with either a postsecondary degree or up 
                to two years of college credit.
            (9) Under-credited.--The term ``under-credited'' means the 
        student is a year or more behind the expected accumulation of 
        credits or courses towards an on-time graduation as determined 
        by the relevant local and State educational agency's high 
        school graduation requirements for an on-time graduation.
            (10) On-track student.--The term ``on-track student'' means 
        a student that--
                    (A) has accumulated the number of credits necessary 
                to promote to the next grade, in accordance with State 
                and district policies; and
                    (B) has failed no more than one semester in English 
                or language arts, mathematics, science, or social 
                studies.

SEC. 5. CALCULATING AND REPORTING ACCURATE GRADUATION RATES.

    (a) Calculating Graduation Rates.--Upon the enactment of this Act, 
and every year thereafter, for all graduation rate requirements under 
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, every State 
educational agency, local educational agency, and school, using a 
Statewide longitudinal data system with individual student identifiers, 
must implement--
            (1) the four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula; 
        and
            (2) the five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula.
    (b) Disaggregation.--The graduation rate shall be calculated at the 
school, local educational agency, and State levels in the aggregate and 
disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, disability status, migrant 
status, English proficiency, and status as economically disadvantaged, 
except that such disaggregation shall not be required in a case in 
which the number of students in a category is insufficient to yield 
statistically reliable information or the results would reveal 
personally identifiable information about an individual student.
    (c) Reporting Graduation Rates.--Upon the enactment of this Act, 
and every year thereafter, every State educational agency, local 
educational agency, and school must report annually, as part of the 
State, local educational agency, and school report cards required by 
section 1111(h) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 
each of the following:
            (1) The four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate, in the 
        aggregate and disaggregated by each of the subgroups described 
        in subsection (b).
            (2) The five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate, in the 
        aggregate and disaggregated by each of the subgroups described 
        in subsection (b).
            (3) The number of students who have been removed from the 
        cohort as described in section 4(4), in the aggregate and 
        disaggregated by each of the subgroups described in subsection 
        (b).
            (4) The percentage of continuing students who have not 
        graduated but are still in school.
    (d) Use of Interim Graduation Rate.--States that do not have an 
individual student identifier longitudinal data system shall be 
required to temporarily use an interim graduation rate calculation that 
meets the following conditions:
            (1) The calculation must measure or estimate the number of 
        graduates compared to the number of students in the high 
        school's entering grade.
            (2) The calculation must not use dropout data.
            (3) The calculation must count as graduates only those 
        students who receive a regular high school diploma as described 
        in section 4(7).
            (4) The calculation can be disaggregated by the subgroups 
        described in subsection (b).
            (5) The calculation can be used on an annual basis to 
        determine a rate of growth, as described in section 6.
            (6) The interim graduation rate calculation may only be 
        used until 2012. No later than 2012, States must implement the 
        graduation rates described in subsection (a).
    (e) Reporting Use of Interim Graduation Rate.--The State must 
describe the interim graduation rate in use in accordance with 
subsection (d) in its State accountability plan, for review and 
approval by the Secretary.
    (f) Reporting Percent of On-Track Students.--Upon enactment, and 
every year thereafter, every State educational agency, local 
educational agency, and school must report annually, as part of the 
State, local educational agency, and school report cards required by 
section 1111(h) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 
the percent of on-track students (as defined in section 4(10)) from 
each grade, except the graduating grade, in the aggregate and 
disaggregated by each of the subgroups described in subsection (b).
    (g) Reporting Additional Indicators.--
            (1) States may report additional complementary indicators 
        of high school completion, such as--
                    (A) extended year graduation rates;
                    (B) a college-ready graduation rate;
                    (C) a dropout rate;
                    (D) in-grade retention rates;
                    (E) percentages of students receiving GEDs, 
                certificates of completion, or alternatives to a 
                diploma; and
                    (F) in States with exit exams, students who have 
                completed course requirements but failed a State exam 
                required for graduation.
            (2) The Secretary shall develop definitions for these 
        indicators, consistent with the National Center for Educational 
        Statistics, and provide those definitions in regulations, to 
        ensure that those measures are comparable across schools and 
        districts within the State.
            (3) For purposes of reporting or accountability, these 
        additional indicators may not replace the adjusted cohort 
        graduation rate.
            (4) Nothing in this Act should be construed as limiting 
        States in the reporting of other indicators.
    (h) Data Anomalies.--
            (1) When an individual student record indicates a student 
        was enrolled in more than one educational agency or a student 
        record shows enrollment but no subsequent information, such 
        student records shall be assigned to one entering graduation 
        rate cohort for the purposes of calculating and reporting 
        school, local educational agency, and State graduation rates.
            (2) A student that stays in school beyond five years, 
        returns to school after dropping out, or receives a diploma 
        from more than one school in a given local educational agency 
        shall be counted only once for reporting and accountability, as 
        part of their original cohort.
    (i) Monitoring of Data Collection.--Each State shall conduct 
regular audits of data collection, reporting, and calculations by local 
educational agencies. The Department of Education shall assist States 
in their efforts to develop and retain capacity for collection, 
analysis, and public reporting of high school graduation rate data.

SEC. 6. SCHOOL, LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY, AND STATE ACCOUNTABILITY.

    (a) Graduation Rate Goal.--Each State shall seek to have all 
students graduate from high school prepared for success in college and 
work.
    (b) Graduation Rate Calculation.--Each State shall use the 
aggregate and disaggregated four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate 
and five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate as the additional high 
school indicator for the purposes of determining each high school's and 
local educational agency's adequate yearly progress status as described 
in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(vi) of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act of 1965.
    (c) Annual Measurable Objectives.--Schools and local educational 
agencies with four-year adjusted cohort graduation rates and five-year 
adjusted cohort graduation rates below 90 percent overall or for any 
subgroup shall be required to increase graduation rates, overall and 
for any subgroup of economically disadvantaged students; students from 
major racial and ethnic groups; students with disabilities; migrant 
students; or students with limited English proficiency; in order to 
make adequate yearly progress, as follows:
            (1) Baseline for graduation rates.--Subject to paragraph 
        (2), the four-year and five-year graduation rates calculated 
        and reported in accordance with this Act for the first year 
        after the enactment of this Act shall serve as the baseline 
        rates. Annually thereafter, graduation rates calculated at the 
        school, local educational agency and State levels in the 
        aggregate and disaggregate shall be evaluated for annual growth 
        in accordance with this Act.
            (2) Baseline adjustment.--Once a State has implemented an 
        individual student identifier longitudinal data system and can 
        calculate the adjusted-cohort graduation rate described in 
        paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 4, but no later than 2012, 
        such State shall use this rate as the new baseline graduation 
        rate for reporting and accountability purposes.
            (3) Annual growth.--
                    (A) For a State, local educational agency, or 
                school to make adequate yearly progress, it must 
                demonstrate increases in the graduation rate from the 
                baseline rate, in the aggregate and for each subgroup 
                described in this subsection, as follows:
                            (i) For the four-year adjusted cohort rate, 
                        an average of 2.5 percentage points per year 
                        since the baseline was established.
                            (ii) For the five-year adjusted cohort 
                        rate, an average of 3 percentage points per 
                        year since the baseline was established.
                    (B) A school may not make adequate yearly progress 
                using the five-year adjusted cohort rate if--
                            (i) its four-year adjusted cohort rate, 
                        overall or for any subgroup described in this 
                        subsection, falls below the cohort's initial 
                        baseline or shows no improvement over a four-
                        year period; or
                            (ii) fewer than 75 percent of the students 
                        included as five-year graduates, overall or for 
                        any subgroup described in this subsection, are 
                        four-year graduates.
    (d) Waivers.--
            (1) In general.--Local educational agencies may apply to 
        the State educational agency, on behalf of schools or programs 
        described as an alternative education setting under section 
        4(8) for a waiver related to an alternative expected completion 
        time.
            (2) Application.--For each alternative education setting 
        the application for the waiver shall include--
                    (A) description of the educational program; and
                    (B) a proposed alternative expected completion time 
                for the preponderance of the students in the program to 
                be used for calculating an adjusted-cohort graduation 
                rate.
            (3) Annual growth.--To make adequate yearly progress, each 
        program or school receiving a waiver under paragraph (1) must 
        increase its approved alternative graduation calculation an 
        average of 2.5 percentage points per year since the baseline 
        was established.

SEC. 7. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

     Within 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 
annually thereafter, each State educational agency shall submit, and 
make publicly available a report to the Secretary on the implementation 
of this Act, including--
            (1) a description of every category, code, and the 
        corresponding definitions that the State has authorized for 
        identifying, tracking, calculating, and publicly reporting 
        student status; and
            (2) if using an interim graduation rate pursuant to section 
        5(d), a description of efforts to implement the four-year and 
        five-year adjusted cohort rates and expected date of 
        implementation, no later than 2012.
                                 <all>