1.This Act may be cited as the
Increased Student Achievement Through
Increased Student Support Act
.
2.Congress finds the following:
(1)Research shows that socioeconomic status
and family background characteristics are highly correlated with educational
outcomes, with a concentration of low-performing schools in low-income and
under-served communities.
(2)Teachers cite poor working conditions,
student behavior, lack of student motivation, and lack of administrative
support as key reasons why they choose to leave the teaching profession.
(3)Teachers and principals working for
low-income local educational agencies are increasingly tasked with addressing
not only the academic needs of a child, but also the social, emotional, and
behavioral needs of a child that require the services of a school counselor,
school social worker, and school psychologist, and these needs often interfere
with delivering quality instruction and raising student achievement.
(4)Rates of abuse and neglect of young
children in military families have doubled with the increased military
involvement of the United States abroad since October 2002; likewise,
adolescents with deployed parents report increased perceptions of uncertainty
and loss, role ambiguity, negative changes in mental and behavioral health, and
increased relationship conflict, raising concerns about the impact of
deployment on military personnel and their families and whether schools that
serve a large number of children with deployed parents have sufficient staff
and expertise to meet these challenges.
(5)Children of
military families in rural communities are often geographically isolated, and
schools that were already experiencing understaffing of school counselors,
school social workers, and school psychologists face even greater challenges
meeting the increased needs of students enduring the stress that comes along
with having 1 or more deployed parents.
(6)Schools served by low-income local
educational agencies suffer disproportionately from a lack of services, with
many schools sharing a single school counselor, school social worker, or school
psychologist with neighboring schools.
(7)Too few school counselors, school social
workers, and school psychologists per student means that such personnel are
often unable to effectively address the needs of students.
(8)The American
School Counselor Association and American Counseling Association recommend
having at least 1 school counselor for every 250 students.
(9)The School Social
Work Association of America recommends having at least 1 school social worker
for every 400 students.
(10)The National
Association of School Psychologists recommends having at least 1 school
psychologist for every 1,000 students.
3.The purpose of this Act is to increase the
recruitment and retention of school counselors, school social workers, and
school psychologists by low-income local educational agencies in order
to—
(1)support all students who are at risk of
negative educational outcomes;
(2)improve student achievement, which may be
measured by growth in academic achievement on tests required by the applicable
State educational agency, persistence rates, graduation rates, and other
appropriate measures;
(3)improve retention
of teachers who are highly qualified (as defined in section 9101 of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801));
(4)increase and improve outreach and
collaboration between school counselors, school social workers, and school
psychologists and parents and families served by low-income local educational
agencies;
(5)increase and improve collaboration among
teachers, principals, school counselors, school social workers, and school
psychologists and improve professional development opportunities for teachers
and principals in the area of strategies related to improving classroom climate
and classroom management; and
(6)improve working
conditions for all school personnel.
4.Grant program to
increase the number of school counselors, school social workers, and school
psychologists employed by low-income local educational agencies
(a)The Secretary of
Education (hereafter the Secretary
) shall award grants on a
competitive basis to eligible partnerships that receive recommendations from
the peer review panel established under subsection (d) to enable such
partnerships to carry out pipeline programs to increase the number of school
counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists employed by
low-income local educational agencies by carrying out any of the activities
described in subsection (g).
(b)A grant awarded under
this section shall be for a 5-year period and may be renewed for additional
5-year periods upon a showing of adequate progress, as the Secretary determines
appropriate.
(c)To
be eligible to receive a grant under this section, an eligible graduate
institution, on behalf of an eligible partnership, shall submit to the
Secretary a grant application, including—
(1)an assessment of the existing ratios of
school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists to students
enrolled in schools in each low-income local educational agency that is part of
the eligible partnership; and
(2)a detailed description of—
(A)a plan to carry
out a pipeline program to train, place, and retain school counselors, school
social workers, and school psychologists in low-income local educational
agencies; and
(B)the proposed
allocation and use of grant funds to carry out activities described in
subsection (g).
(d)
(1)The Secretary shall establish a peer review panel to
evaluate applications for grants under subsection (c) and make recommendations
to the Secretary regarding such applications.
(2)Evaluation of
ApplicationsIn making its
recommendations, the peer review panel shall take into account the purpose of
this Act and the application requirements under subsection (c), including the
quality of the proposed pipeline program.
(3)The Secretary may award grants under this section only to
eligible partnerships whose applications receive a recommendation from the peer
review panel.
(4)The peer review panel shall include at a minimum the
following members:
(A)One tenured or tenure track faculty member
at an institution of higher education with a current appointment to teach
courses in the subject area of school counselor education.
(B)One tenured or tenure track faculty member
at an institution of higher education with a current appointment to teach
courses in the subject area of school social worker education.
(C)One tenured or tenure track faculty member
at an institution of higher education with a current appointment to teach
courses in the subject area of school psychology education.
(D)One tenured or tenure track faculty member
at an institution of higher education with a current appointment to teach
courses in the subject area of teacher education.
(E)One individual with
expertise in school counseling who works or has worked in public
schools.
(F)One individual
with expertise in school social work who works or has worked in public
schools.
(G)One individual with expertise in school
psychology who works or has worked in public schools.
(H)One administrator
who works or has worked for a low-income local educational agency.
(e)From among the
applications receiving a recommendation by the peer review panel, the Secretary
shall—
(1)award the first 5
grants to eligible partnerships from 5 different States; and
(2)to the extent
practicable, distribute grants equitably among eligible partnerships that
propose to train graduate students in each of the three professions of school
counseling, school social work, and school psychology.
(f)The
Secretary shall give priority to eligible partnerships that—
(1)propose to use the grant funds to carry out
the activities described under paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection (g) in
schools that have higher numbers or percentages of low-income students and
students not meeting the proficient level of achievement (as described in
section 1111 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
6311)) in comparison to other schools that are served by the low-income local
educational agency that is part of the eligible partnership;
(2)include a low-income local educational
agency that has fewer school counselors, school social workers, and school
psychologists per student than other eligible partnerships; and
(3)include one or more eligible graduate
institutions that offer graduate programs in the greatest number of the
following areas:
(A)School
counseling.
(B)School social
work.
(C)School
psychology.
(g)Grant funds awarded
under this section may be used—
(1)to pay the
administrative costs (including supplies, office and classroom space,
supervision, mentoring, and transportation stipends as necessary and
appropriate) related to—
(A)having graduate
students of school counseling, school social work, and school psychology placed
in schools served by participating low-income local educational agencies to
complete required field work, credit hours, internships, or related training as
applicable for the degree, license, or credential program of each such student;
and
(B)offering required graduate course work for
graduate students of school counseling, school social work, and school
psychology on the site of a participating low-income local educational
agency;
(2)for not more than the first 3 years after
participating graduates receive a masters or other graduate degree or obtain a
State license or credential in school counseling, school social work, or school
psychology, to hire and pay all or part of the salaries of such participating
graduates to work as school counselors, school social workers, and school
psychologists in schools served by participating low-income local educational
agencies;
(3)to increase the number of school
counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists per student in
schools served by participating low-income local educational agencies to work
towards the student support personnel target ratios;
(4)to recruit, hire, and pay faculty as
necessary to increase the capacity of a participating eligible graduate
institution to train graduate students in the fields of school counseling,
school social work, and school psychology;
(5)to develop course work that will—
(A)encourage a
commitment by graduate students in school counseling, school social work, or
school psychology to work for low-income local educational agencies;
(B)give participating
graduates the knowledge and skill sets necessary to meet the needs of—
(i)students and
families served by low-income local educational agencies; and
(ii)teachers,
administrators, and other staff who work for low-income local educational
agencies; and
(C)enable
participating graduates to meet the unique needs of students at-risk of
negative educational outcomes, including students who—
(i)are
English language learners;
(ii)have
a parent or caregiver who is a migrant worker;
(iii)have a parent or
caregiver who is a member of the Armed Forces or National Guard who has been
deployed or returned from deployment;
(iv)are
homeless, including unaccompanied youth;
(v)are
foster youth;
(vi)have been
adjudicated by the adult or juvenile criminal justice system; and
(vii)have been
identified as eligible for services under the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.) or the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. 701 et seq.);
(6)to provide tuition credits to graduate
students participating in the program;
(7)for student loan forgiveness for
participating graduates who are employed as school counselors, school social
workers, or school psychologists by participating low-income local educational
agencies for a minimum of 5 years; and
(8)for similar
activities to fulfill the purpose of this Act, as the Secretary determines
appropriate.
(h)Funds made available
under this section shall be used to supplement, not supplant, Federal, State,
or local funds for the activities described in subsection (g).
(i)Each eligible
partnership that receives a grant under this section shall submit an annual
report to the Secretary on the progress of such partnership in carrying out the
purpose of this Act. Such report shall include a description of—
(1)actual service
delivery provided through grant funds, including—
(A)characteristics of
the participating eligible graduate institution, including descriptive
information on the model used and actual program performance;
(B)characteristics of
graduate students participating in the program, including performance on any
tests required by the State educational agency for credentialing or licensing,
demographic characteristics, and graduate student retention rates;
(C)characteristics of
students of the participating low-income local educational agency, including
performance on any tests required by the State educational agency, demographic
characteristics, and promotion, persistence, and graduation rates, as
appropriate;
(D)an estimate of the
annual implementation costs of the program; and
(E)the numbers of
students, schools, and graduate students participating in the program;
(2)outcomes that are
consistent with the purpose of the grant program, including—
(A)internship and
post-graduation placement;
(B)graduation and
professional career readiness indicators; and
(C)characteristics of
the participating low-income local educational agency including changes in
hiring and retention of highly qualified teachers and school counselors, school
psychologists, and school social workers;
(3)the instruction,
materials, and activities being funded under the grant program; and
(4)the effectiveness
of any training and ongoing professional development provided—
(A)to students and
faculty in the appropriate departments or schools of the participating eligible
graduate institution;
(B)to the faculty,
administration, and staff of the participating low-income local educational
agency; and
(C)to the broader
community of providers of social, emotional, behavioral, and related support to
students and to those who train such providers.
(j)
(1)The Secretary may
conduct interim evaluations to determine whether each eligible partnership
receiving a grant is making adequate progress as the Secretary considers
appropriate. The contents of the annual report submitted to the Secretary under
subsection (i) may be used by the Secretary to determine whether an eligible
partnership receiving a grant is demonstrating adequate progress.
(2)The Secretary shall conduct a final evaluation
to—
(A)determine the
effectiveness of the grant program in carrying out the purpose of this Act;
and
(B)compare the
relative effectiveness of each of the various activities described in
subsection (g) for which grant funds may be used.
(k)Not sooner than 5 years nor later than 6
years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to
Congress a report containing the findings of the evaluation conducted under
subsection (j)(2), and such recommendations as the Secretary considers
appropriate.
(l)Authorization of
Appropriations
(1)There is
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $30,000,000 for each of
the fiscal years 2009 to 2019.
(2)From the total amount appropriated to carry
out this section each fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve not more than 3
percent of that appropriation for evaluations under subsection (j).
5.Student loan
forgiveness for individuals who are employed for 5 or more school years as
school counselors, school social workers, school psychologists, or other
qualified psychologists or psychiatrists by low-income local educational
agencies
(a)The Secretary shall
establish a program to provide student loan forgiveness to individuals who are
not and have never been participants in the grant program established under
section 4 and who have been employed for 5 or more school years as school
counselors, school social workers, school psychologists, other qualified
psychologists, or child and adolescent psychiatrists by low-income local
educational agencies.
(b)Authorization of
appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary to
carry out the program under this section.
6.
(a)The Secretary shall
conduct a study to identify a formula for future designation of regions with a
shortage of school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists
to use in implementing grant programs and other programs, such as the programs
established under this Act, or for other purposes related to any such
designation, based on the latest available data on—
(1)the number of
residents under the age of 18 in an area served by a low-income local
educational agency;
(2)the percentage of
the population of an area served by a low-income local educational agency with
incomes below the poverty line;
(3)the percentage of residents age 18 or older
in an area served by a low-income local educational agency with secondary
school diplomas;
(4)the percentage of students identified as
eligible for special education services in an area served by a low-income local
educational agency;
(5)the youth crime rate in an area served by a
low-income local educational agency;
(6)the current number
of full-time-equivalent and active school counselors, school social workers,
and school psychologists employed by a low-income local educational agency;
and
(7)such other criteria as the Secretary
considers appropriate.
(b)Not
later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall
submit to Congress a report containing the findings of the study conducted
under subsection (a).
7.In this Act:
(1)The terms child
and adolescent psychiatrist, school counselor, school
psychologist, school social worker, and other
qualified psychologist have the meaning given the terms in section 5421
of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7245).
(2)State
educational agency; local educational agencyThe terms
State educational agency and local educational agency
have the meaning given the terms in section 9101 of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(3)Low-income local
educational agencyThe term low-income local educational
agency means a local educational agency—
(A)in which not less than 20 percent of the
students served by such agency are from families with incomes below the poverty
line as determined by the Bureau of the Census on the basis of the most recent
satisfactory data available;
(B)that has existing ratios of school
counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists to students served
by the local educational agency which fall at least 10 percent below the
student support personnel target ratios, meaning such low-income local
educational agency has no more than 1 counselor per 277 students, no more than
1 school psychologist per 1111 students, and no more than 1 school social
worker per 444 students; and
(C)that has been
identified for improvement or corrective action (as described in section
1116(c) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
6316(c))) or that includes at least one school that has been identified for
school improvement, corrective action, or restructuring (as described in
section 1116(b) of such Act).
(4)Institution of
higher educationThe term
institution of higher education has the meaning given such term in
section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002), but excludes
any institution of higher education described in section 102(a)(1)(C) of such
Act.
(5)Eligible
graduate institutionThe term
eligible graduate institution means an institution of higher
education that offers a program of study that is nationally recognized by the
National Association of School Psychologists or accredited and that leads
to—
(A)a masters or other
graduate degree in school counseling, school social work, or school psychology,
or any combination thereof;
(B)a State license or
credential in school counseling, school social work, or school psychology, or
any combination thereof; or
(C)any combination of
subparagraph (A) and (B).
(6)The term
eligible partnership means—
(A)a partnership between 1 or more low-income
local educational agencies and 1 or more eligible graduate institutions;
or
(B)in regions in which
local educational agencies may not have a sufficient elementary and secondary
school student population to support the placement of all participating
graduate students, a partnership between a State educational agency, on behalf
of 1 or more low-income local educational agencies, and 1 or more eligible
graduate institutions.
(7)Participating
eligible graduate institutionThe term participating
eligible graduate institution means an eligible graduate institution
that is part of an eligible partnership awarded a grant under section 4.
(8)Participating
low-income local educational agencyThe term participating
low-income local educational agency means a low-income local educational
agency that is part of an eligible partnership awarded a grant under section
4.
(9)The term participating graduate means an
individual who—
(A)has received a masters or other graduate
degree in elementary or secondary school counseling, school social work, or
school psychology from a participating eligible graduate institution or has
obtained a State license or credential in school counseling, school social
work, and school psychology from a participating eligible graduate institution;
and
(B)as a graduate
student of school counseling, school social work, or school psychology was
placed in a school served by a participating low-income local educational
agency to complete required field work, credit hours, internships, or related
training as applicable.
(10)Student support
personnel target ratiosThe
term student support personnel target ratios means the ratios of
school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists to students
recommended to enable such personnel to effectively address the needs of
students including—
(A)at least 1 school counselor for every 250
students (as recommended by the American School Counselors Association and
American Counseling Association);
(B)at least 1 school psychologist for every
1,000 students (as recommended by the National Association of School
Psychologists); and
(C)at least 1 school social worker for every
400 students (as recommended by the School Social Work Association of
America).
(11)The term unaccompanied youth has the meaning
given such term in section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
(42 U.S.C. 11434a).