[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 837 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 837

  To develop a generation of school leaders who are committed to, and 
  effective in, increasing student achievement and to ensure that all 
   low-income, under-performing schools are led by effective school 
        leaders who are well-prepared to foster student success.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 9, 2007

 Mrs. Clinton introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To develop a generation of school leaders who are committed to, and 
  effective in, increasing student achievement and to ensure that all 
   low-income, under-performing schools are led by effective school 
        leaders who are well-prepared to foster student success.

    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 ``Improving the Leadership and 
Effectiveness of Administrators for Districts Act of 2007'' or the ``I 
LEAD Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. SCHOOL LEADERSHIP.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) In the next 5 years, the number of openings for school 
        principals is expected to grow by 20 percent and the number of 
        principals retiring is likely to see a marked increase. The 
        resulting principal shortage is expected to pose the greatest 
        challenge for urban and rural local educational agencies with 
        large concentrations of high-poverty and under-performing 
        schools, as those local educational agencies often attract the 
        fewest new principals.
            (2) Literature from the American Educational Research 
        Association concludes that school leadership has significant 
        effects on student learning. School leaders can have positive 
        effects on student achievement, primarily by galvanizing effort 
        around ambitious goals and by establishing conditions that 
        support teachers and help students succeed.
            (3) School leaders, especially in under-performing schools, 
        are typically unprepared to foster student success, as the 
        leaders themselves do not receive the proper support, 
        resources, and professional development needed to become 
        effective leaders.
            (4) A 2003 Public Agenda report found that 72 percent of 
        superintendents and 67 percent of principals agree that the 
        typical leadership training that administrators receive does 
        not give administrators ``what it takes to run today's school 
        district''.
            (5) State educational leaders currently lack concrete 
        benchmarks against which school leaders can be measured to 
        determine adequacy. State educational agencies and local 
        educational agencies also lack the funds necessary to recruit, 
        train, and maintain successful school leaders.
    (b) School Leadership.--Section 2151(b) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6651(b)) is amended to read 
as follows:
    ``(b) School Leadership.--
            ``(1) Purposes.--The purposes of this subsection are--
                    ``(A) to develop a generation of school leaders who 
                are committed to, and effective in, increasing student 
                achievement; and
                    ``(B) to ensure that all under-performing schools 
                are led by well-trained, well-supported, effective 
                school leaders.
            ``(2) National principal recruitment program.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary is authorized to 
                establish and carry out a national principal 
                recruitment program to assist high-need local 
                educational agencies in recruiting and training 
                principals (including assistant principals) through 
                such activities as--
                            ``(i) providing financial incentives to 
                        aspiring new principals;
                            ``(ii) providing stipends to principals 
                        who--
                                    ``(I) have a demonstrated record of 
                                effectiveness; and
                                    ``(II) mentor new principals;
                            ``(iii) carrying out professional 
                        development programs in instructional 
                        leadership and management; and
                            ``(iv) providing incentives that are 
                        appropriate for teachers or individuals from 
                        other fields who want to become principals and 
                        that are effective in retaining new principals.
                    ``(B) Grants.--The Secretary shall carry out this 
                paragraph by making grants, on a competitive basis, 
                to--
                            ``(i) high-need local educational agencies;
                            ``(ii) consortia of high-need local 
                        educational agencies; and
                            ``(iii) partnerships of high-need local 
                        educational agencies, nonprofit organizations, 
                        and institutions of higher education.
            ``(3) Evaluation and model school leadership zone 
        implementation grants.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a 
                national competitive grant program to award grants to 
                eligible entities to enable the eligible entities--
                            ``(i) to carry out research-based 
                        evaluations described in subparagraph (D) 
                        examining the effectiveness of current State 
                        requirements for school leader certification or 
                        licensure in recruiting, training, and 
                        retaining effective school leaders who improve 
                        student achievement at schools that receive 
                        funding under part A of title I;
                            ``(ii) to develop plans described in 
                        subparagraph (E) to build upon the State school 
                        leader certification or licensure process; and
                            ``(iii) to create model school leadership 
                        zones in accordance with subparagraph (F) by 
                        implementing such plans.
                    ``(B) Amount of grants.--The amount of a grant 
                under this paragraph shall be based on a formula 
                developed by the Secretary that takes into 
                consideration--
                            ``(i) the size of the school-age population 
                        served by the eligible entity; and
                            ``(ii) the availability of additional 
                        resources to support the implementation of the 
                        evaluation and the changes to the State 
                        certification or licensure process.
                    ``(C) Application.--An eligible entity desiring a 
                grant under this paragraph shall submit an application 
                to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 
                containing such information as the Secretary may 
                require. The application shall demonstrate that--
                            ``(i) the results of the evaluation under 
                        subparagraph (D) will be used to drive changes 
                        in the State certification or licensure process 
                        if necessary; and
                            ``(ii) the eligible entity is well-
                        positioned to implement a successful 
                        evaluation, as determined by--
                                    ``(I) a strong commitment to school 
                                leadership among the local school 
                                superintendents, teachers, parents, and 
                                the local community, including private 
                                sector and higher education leaders; 
                                and
                                    ``(II) an ability to leverage 
                                additional funding to carry out the 
                                evaluation as well as the 
                                recommendations made as a result of the 
                                evaluation.
                    ``(D) Evaluation.--
                            ``(i) In general.--An eligible entity 
                        receiving a grant under this paragraph shall 
                        use grant funds to contract with an external 
                        agency that is experienced in conducting 
                        qualitative research to carry out a research-
                        based evaluation of the school leader 
                        certification or licensure process in effect in 
                        the State as of the time of the evaluation, and 
                        the effect of such process on student 
                        achievement.
                            ``(ii) Development.--The evaluation 
                        described in clause (i) shall be developed in 
                        collaboration with groups such as--
                                    ``(I) veteran school leaders with 
                                track records of demonstrated gains in 
                                student achievement;
                                    ``(II) institutions of higher 
                                education involved with school 
                                leadership development located within 
                                the State; and
                                    ``(III) organizations that 
                                represent school leaders.
                            ``(iii) Measurement.--The evaluation 
                        described in clause (i) shall include a 
                        measurement of the following student 
                        achievement indicators for the State:
                                    ``(I) Student achievement on the 
                                State academic assessments described in 
                                section 1111(b)(3).
                                    ``(II) Secondary school graduation 
                                rates, if applicable.
                                    ``(III) The degree of family and 
                                community involvement in the schools.
                                    ``(IV) Retention rates for school 
                                leaders, particularly in schools that 
                                have not made adequate yearly progress 
                                (as defined in section 1111(b)(2)(C)) 
                                for 1 or more of the school years 
                                following the date of enactment of the 
                                No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 
                                (Public Law 107-110).
                                    ``(V) School safety, including 
                                decreases in the number of suspensions 
                                and expulsions, and other crime 
                                reporting done by the schools.
                                    ``(VI) Student and teacher 
                                attendance rates.
                                    ``(VII) Any other factor that the 
                                Secretary determines necessary.
                            ``(iv) Submission of evaluation.--After the 
                        completion of the evaluation under this 
                        subparagraph, an eligible entity receiving a 
                        grant under this paragraph shall submit a copy 
                        of the evaluation to the Secretary for approval 
                        under clause (v).
                            ``(v) Approval.--The Secretary shall review 
                        an evaluation submitted under clause (iv), and 
                        shall approve or reject the evaluation based on 
                        the extent the evaluation meets the criteria 
                        described in this subparagraph.
                    ``(E) Building upon state requirements for school 
                leader certification or licensure.--
                            ``(i) In general.--In the case of an 
                        eligible entity receiving a grant under this 
                        paragraph whose evaluation under subparagraph 
                        (D) demonstrates that the school leader 
                        licensing or certification process of the State 
                        does not yield school leaders who are effective 
                        in improving student achievement, as measured 
                        by the student achievement indicators described 
                        in subparagraph (D)(iii), the eligible entity, 
                        in collaboration with the groups described in 
                        subparagraph (D)(ii), shall develop a plan to 
                        build upon the existing State certification or 
                        licensure processes for school leaders and 
                        improve the effectiveness of school leaders 
                        based on data from the evaluation developed 
                        under this paragraph.
                            ``(ii) Content.--The plan described under 
                        clause (i) may include the following for 
                        potential school leaders:
                                    ``(I) Experimental training 
                                programs for individuals within the 
                                teaching profession and from other 
                                fields to enable individuals to become 
                                effective school leaders.
                                    ``(II) Incentives to encourage 
                                veteran and new school leaders to lead 
                                low-income, under-performing schools.
                                    ``(III) Ongoing professional 
                                development programs with track records 
                                of demonstrated goals in student 
                                achievement for all school leaders.
                                    ``(IV) Ongoing support, including 
                                being partnered for the first 2 years 
                                after the individual obtains a school 
                                leader license or certificate with a 
                                mentor who is a school leader with a 
                                demonstrated record of effectiveness to 
                                help design and implement a plan to 
                                improve student achievement at the new 
                                school leader's school.
                                    ``(V) Additional, specialized 
                                training for new principals leading 
                                schools with high populations of 
                                students with disabilities or students 
                                with limited English proficiency.
                                    ``(VI) Any other requirements the 
                                eligible entity developing the plan 
                                determines necessary.
                    ``(F) School leadership zone implementation.--
                            ``(i) Required activities.--An eligible 
                        entity that receives a grant under this 
                        paragraph and that is required to develop a 
                        plan under subparagraph (E) shall use grant 
                        funds to create a model school leadership zone 
                        by implementing the plan developed by the 
                        eligible entity in an urban high-need local 
                        educational agency participating in the 
                        consortium described in paragraph (6)(A) and in 
                        a rural high-need local educational agency 
                        participating in such consortium.
                            ``(ii) Report.--Not later than 60 days 
                        after the last day of the grant period, an 
                        eligible entity that is required to carry out 
                        the activity described in clause (i) shall 
                        prepare and submit to the Secretary an analysis 
                        of the effectiveness of the model school 
                        leadership zone, based on evidence of the 
                        program's impact on the student achievement 
                        indicators described in subparagraph (D)(iii).
            ``(4) Study on effectiveness of school leadership zones.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not later than 4 years after the 
                date of enactment of the Improving the Leadership and 
                Effectiveness of Administrators for Districts Act of 
                2007, the Secretary shall enter into a contract with an 
                external agency experienced in conducting qualitative 
                research to conduct a study, in consultation with 
                representatives of the high-need local educational 
                agencies participating in the school leadership zones 
                described in this subsection, evaluating the 
                effectiveness of the school leadership zones developed 
                under paragraph (3)(F) in the recruitment, training, 
                and retraining of school leaders, as well as the 
                effects of such zones on student achievement, as 
                compared to the effectiveness of school leaders at 
                similar schools served by local educational agencies 
                not participating in the school leadership zones 
                described in this subsection.
                    ``(B) Criteria for evaluation.--The criteria for 
                the evaluation under subparagraph (A) shall be based on 
                the student achievement indicators described in 
                paragraph (3)(D)(iii).
            ``(5) Grants for replicating school leadership zones and 
        amending school leader certification or licensure 
        requirements.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall award a 
                grant to each eligible entity that received a grant 
                under paragraph (3) and successfully created a model 
                school leadership zone, as determined by the study 
                under paragraph (4), to enable the eligible entity to 
                use the data and research gathered and analyzed by the 
                Secretary under paragraph (4) to revise the school 
                leader certification or licensure process of the State 
                in order to replicate the practices of the model school 
                leadership zone in other local educational agencies 
                within the State.
                    ``(B) Application.--An eligible entity that 
                received a grant under paragraph (3) and that desires 
                to receive a grant under this paragraph shall submit an 
                application to the Secretary at such time, in such 
                manner, and containing such information as the 
                Secretary may require.
                    ``(C) Amount of grant.--In determining the amount 
                of a grant under this paragraph, the Secretary shall 
                increase the grant amount for each eligible entity that 
                created a successful model school leadership zone under 
                paragraph (3)(G) that also demonstrated significant 
                positive impact on student achievement.
                    ``(D) Report.--Not later than 60 days after the 
                last day of the grant period, an eligible entity 
                receiving a grant under this paragraph shall prepare 
                and submit to the Secretary a report regarding the 
                effectiveness of the program under this paragraph.
            ``(6) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                    ``(A) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' 
                means a State educational agency working in partnership 
                with a consortium of high-need local educational 
                agencies, which consortium shall include not less than 
                1 rural high-need local educational agency and not less 
                than 1 urban high-need local educational agency.
                    ``(B) School leader.--The term `school leader' 
                means a principal or assistant principal.
                    ``(C) Under-performing school.--The term `under-
                performing school' means an elementary school or 
                secondary school that has failed to make adequate 
                yearly progress, as defined in section 1111(b)(2)(C), 
                for 1 or more consecutive school years.
            ``(7) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized 
        to be appropriated, to enable the Secretary to carry out this 
        subsection and to award not less than a total of 10 grants 
        under paragraphs (3) and (5) for each of 5 consecutive years, 
        such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2008 
        through 2012.''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 2103(b) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6603(b)) is amended by 
inserting ``(except for section 2151(b))'' after ``subpart 5''.
                                 <all>