1.This Act may be cited as the
Early Learning Innovation
Act
.
2.The Congress finds as follows:
(1)Research conducted
by the Bureau of the Census of the Department of Commerce suggests that 18
percent of children under the age of 18 are living in poverty, and 19.79
percent of children from birth to age 9 are living below the poverty
line.
(2)Research conducted
by the Bureau of the Census of the Department of Commerce 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.
(3)According to a
study published by Columbia University in 2005, schooling significantly reduces
criminal activity. Specifically, a 1 percent increase in the high school
completion rate would save the United States as much as $1,400,000,000 per
year.
(4)A
2003 study on low-income children showed that low-income children were
cognitively equivalent to children of similar ages in middle and upper class
communities, yet were as much as three years behind in language development
because of severe deprivation of stimulation and support for basic skill
development.
(5)As an example of
an innovative early learning curriculum producing tangible results for
low-income children, a 2007 independent evaluation of the Total Learning
Curriculum developed by Action for Bridgeport Community Development, Inc., in
cooperation with the Dr. Edward Zigler of the Yale Child Study Center and
implemented in Bridgeport, CT, has demonstrated that students who received all
the elements of the Total Learning Curriculum made an average 2 point gain on
the Diagnostic Reading Assessment (DRA) compared to an average 1.76 point gain
on such assessment by those students who did not participate in the Total
Learning Curriculum.
(6)Such independent
evaluation also showed that students who received all elements of Total
Learning Curriculum have an average score of 22.35 points on the Concept of
Print assessment, compared to an average score of 20.82 points on such
assessment by those students who did not participate in the Total Learning
Curriculum.
(7)According to the
findings of such independent evaluation, children with low initial DRA scores,
high-family risk levels, low parental involvement, have special needs, or who
are English-language-learners or participate in extended-day programs, make
significant DRA gains after receiving all the elements of the Total Learning
Curriculum.
(8)Several models for
comprehensive early childhood education have recently demonstrated the impact
of enhanced service supports within the public school system, including the
Full-Service Community Schools model developed in the State of Maryland, and
the community schools initiative developed in the Chicago, Illinois, school
system.
3.It is the purpose of this Act to promote
academic success for children living in poverty by—
(1)improving and
promoting school readiness by enhancing the cognitive, social, and emotional
development of children from birth;
(2)focusing such
enhancements on low-income children who are at the greatest risk of negative
educational outcomes; and
(3)harnessing the
most current developmentally appropriate educational methods to improve the
public education system, including—
(A)educational
interventions beginning as close to birth as possible;
(B)a child-initiated
learning process with time for independent inquiry and play;
(C)access to
wraparound social services, including support for nutrition, housing, and
family literacy;
(D)professional
development for instructional staff, including elementary school teachers,
paraprofessionals, and pre-school teachers;
(E)an extended school
day and school year;
(F)parent
development, which includes providing parents with the knowledge and skills
needed to be able to support a child’s growth and academic progress;
(G)child-to-staff
ratios of at least 1 early childhood or elementary educator for every 7
children; and
(H)an enhanced
transition from pre-kindergarten to elementary school, so that the cognitive
and social gains of the pre-kindergarten program are sustained through the
remainder of a child’s educational career.
4.Grant program to
close the achievement gap
(a)From the amount appropriated under section 10, the
Secretary shall award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible partnerships
to implement innovative early learning curricula in early childhood education
programs and elementary schools in high-need communities for children from
birth through age 9.
(b)A grant under this section shall be awarded for a 5-year
period and may be renewed for an additional 5-year period upon a showing of
adequate progress, as determined by the Secretary.
(c)To
be eligible to receive a grant under this section, an eligible partnership
shall submit to the Secretary a grant application at such time and in such
manner as the Secretary shall require, and containing the following
information:
(1)A
description of the high-need community to be served by the eligible
partnership, including the number and percent of English-language learners that
will be served and other demographic and socioeconomic information as the
Secretary may request.
(2)An assessment of
the need for such a grant in the high-need community, including—
(A)the number of
low-income families; and
(B)the number of and
percent of elementary school children performing below grade level for reading
and math on State assessments described in section 1111(b)(3) of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(3)).
(3)A
detailed description of a plan to carry out the implementation of the
innovative early learning curriculum in the high-need community,
including—
(A)how children and
families will be selected to participate, taking into account the need for
continuity and stability for all participating children and families;
(B)how the
implementation will coordinate and build on, and will not supplant or
duplicate, professional development activities available to the staff of the
innovative early learning curriculum in the high-need community;
(C)how the
implementation will train instructional staff in the innovative early learning
curriculum to provide developmentally appropriate school-readiness services
that are based on the best available child development and education
research;
(D)how the
implementation will train instructional staff in the innovative early learning
curriculum to meet the diverse educational needs of children in the high-need
community, including children who have limited English proficiency, children
with disabilities, or children with other special needs; and
(E)how the
implementation will train instructional staff in the innovative early learning
curriculum to identify and prevent behavioral problems in children or working
with children identified as or suspected to be victims of abuse.
(4)A
description of the plan for continuing the innovative early learning curriculum
after the end of the grant period.
(5)The proposed
allocation and use of grant funds to implement the innovative early learning
curriculum in the high-need community.
(6)A
description of the roles and responsibilities of the eligible partnership in
implementing the innovative early learning curriculum in the high-need
community.
(7)An assurance, if
applicable, that the eligible partnership will provide appropriate professional
development to volunteers working directly with young children, as well as to
paid staff.
(d)
(1)A grant awarded under this Act shall be used to cover costs
associated with implementing the innovative early learning curriculum,
including—
(A)costs for extended
school hours and days;
(B)costs associated
with professional development, staff compensation, and retention;
(C)costs for all
comprehensive child and family support services; and
(D)for any other
activities to needed to fulfill the purpose of this Act, as the Secretary deems
appropriate.
(2)Not more 5 percent of a grant awarded under this Act may be
used to pay the administrative costs (including supplies, office and classroom
space, supervision, mentoring, and transportation stipends as necessary and
appropriate) related to the implementation of the innovative early learning
curriculum.
(e)In awarding grants under this Act, the Secretary
shall—
(1)award the first 5
grants to eligible partnerships from 5 different States; and
(2)award not less
than 1 grant to an applicant serving—
(A)a school operated
by the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
(B)a tribal
educational agency; or
(C)a high-need
community located in a rural area.
(f)The
Secretary shall give priority to an eligible partnership that—
(1)proposes to use
the grant funds to carry out the innovative early learning curriculum in areas
served by local educational agencies with a higher percentage of students from
low-income families and English-language learners not meeting the proficient
level of achievement on State assessments described in section 1111(b)(3) of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(3)) in
comparison to other grant applicants; and
(2)demonstrates the
availability of local infrastructure in the high-need community to be served by
such eligible partnership to implement the innovative early learning
curriculum, including the availability of—
(A)public elementary
schools serving a high percentage of students from low-income families;
and
(B)public or
non-profit social service providers, including providers of health-related
services or early childhood education services.
(g)Each eligible partnership that receives a grant
under this section shall submit an annual report to the Secretary on the
progress of implementing the innovative early learning curriculum. Such report
shall include a description of—
(1)the actual service
delivery provided through grant funds, including characteristics of the
participating students (including descriptive information on the population of
children and families served), and how the innovative early learning curriculum
was implemented;
(2)an estimate of the
annual implementation costs of the program;
(3)outcomes that are
consistent with the purpose of the grant program, including—
(A)improvements in
student achievement;
(B)improvements in
language skills of children from birth to 3 years of age;
(C)improvements in
social-emotional outcomes for children at the greatest risk of needing
behavioral or psychological intervention; and
(D)improvements in
health for children, including nutrition and access to stable high-quality
health services;
(4)the types of
instruction, materials, and activities being funded under the grant program;
and
(5)the effectiveness
of any training and ongoing professional development provided—
(A)to the faculty,
administration, and staff of early childhood and elementary educators within
the eligible partnership receiving a grant under this Act; and
(B)to the broader
community of providers of social, emotional, behavioral, and related support to
students participating in the program and to those who train such
providers.
(h)
(1)From the amount appropriated under section 10, the
Secretary may conduct interim evaluations to determine whether each eligible
partnership receiving a grant under this Act is making adequate progress as the
Secretary considers appropriate. The contents of the annual report submitted to
the Secretary under subsection (g) may be used by the Secretary to determine
whether an eligible grantee receiving a grant is demonstrating adequate
progress.
(2)Not later than 4 years, the Secretary shall report the
results of a final evaluation of each innovative early learning curriculum
being implemented by an eligible partnership receiving a grant under this Act
to—
(A)determine the
effectiveness of such innovative early learning curriculum; and
(B)compare the
relative effectiveness of each of the various activities described by
subsection (d)(1) for which grant funds are used.
(3)Not
sooner than 5 years, and not 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 paragraph (2), and such
recommendations as the Secretary considers appropriate.
5.Training program
authorizedFrom the amount
appropriated under section 10, the Secretary shall award funds to a public or
private nonprofit organization with demonstrated expertise in an innovative
early learning curriculum demonstrating the principles outlined in section 3,
for the purpose of training, and providing technical assistance to, eligible
partnerships on implementing the innovative early learning curriculum.
6.Funds made available
under this Act shall be used to supplement, not supplant, Federal, State, or
local funds that, in the absence of such availability, would have been expended
for the activities described in section 4(d).
7.
(a)The Secretary shall provide information about the grant
program under this Act to potential grant applicants that may be eligible to
receive a grant under this Act based on the latest available data on—
(1)the number of
residents under the age of 18 in an area served by a local educational
agency;
(2)the percentage of
residents with an income below the poverty line in an area served by a local
educational agency;
(3)the percentage of
residents age 18 or older with high school diplomas in an area served by a
local educational agency;
(4)the percentage of
students identified as eligible for special education services in an area
served by a local educational agency;
(5)the youth crime
rate in an area served by a local educational agency; and
(6)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 list of high-need communities that, pursuant to subsection
(a), received information about the grant program under this Act.
8.Nothing in this
Act shall be construed to abrogate or alter any valid and existing collective
bargaining agreement.
9.For purposes of this Act:
(1)The terms State educational agency,
local educational agency, highly qualified, and
poverty line have the meanings given such terms in section 9101 of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(2)The term eligible partnership
means—
(A)a full-service
community school; or
(B)a partnership
between a local educational agency and one of the following:
(i)A
public or non-profit social service provider, including a provider of
health-related services or early childhood education services.
(ii)A
full-service community school.
(3)The term extended school day means a school day
for children from birth to age 9 of not less than 9 hours, except in the case
where an eligible partnership cannot accommodate a 9-hour day.
(4)The term extended school year means a school
year for children from birth to age 9 of not less than 220 calendar days,
except in the case where an eligible partnership cannot accommodate a
220-calendar day school year.
(5)Full-service
community schoolThe term full-service community
school means a public school which coordinates educational,
developmental, family, health, and other comprehensive services through
community-based organizations and public and private partnerships, and provides
access to such services to students enrolled in such school, families of such
students, and the community where such school is located.
(6)
(A)The term high-need community means—
(i)a
political subdivision of a State, or a portion of a political subdivision of a
State, in which at least 50 percent of the children are from low-income
families; or
(ii)a
political subdivision of a State that is among the top 10 percent of political
subdivisions of a State having the greatest numbers of such children.
(B)In
determining which communities qualify as a high-need community under
subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall use such data as the Secretary determines
are most accurate and appropriate.
(7)The term low-income family means a family
with an income below the poverty line for the most recent fiscal year for which
satisfactory data are available.
(8)The
term Secretary means the Secretary of Education.
(9)innovative early
learning curriculumThe term innovative early learning
curriculum means a comprehensive model of early childhood education,
including the following principles as articulated by Dr. Edward Zigler of the
Yale Child Study Center, which incorporate—
(A)educational
interventions beginning as close to birth as possible;
(B)a child-initiated
learning process with time for independent inquiry and play;
(C)access to
wraparound social services, including support for nutrition, housing, and
family literacy;
(D)professional
development for instructional staff, including elementary school teachers,
paraprofessionals, and pre-school teachers;
(E)an extended school
day and school year;
(F)parent
development, which includes providing parents with the knowledge and skills
needed to be able to support a child’s growth and academic progress;
(G)child-to-staff
ratios of at least 1 early childhood or elementary educator for every 7
children; and
(H)an enhanced
transition from pre-kindergarten to elementary school, so that the cognitive
and social gains of the pre-kindergarten program are sustained through the
remainder of a child’s educational career.
(10)Wraparound
social servicesThe term wraparound social services
means comprehensive health and social services provided to a child and the
child’s family to supplement the child’s educational needs.
10.Authorization of
appropriations
(a)There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this
Act $50,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2010 to 2016.
(b)Of
the amount appropriated under paragraph (1) each fiscal year, the Secretary
shall reserve—
(1)not more than 3
percent for evaluations under section 4(h);
(2)between 2 percent
and 5 percent for the training program under section 5; and
(3)not more than 3
percent to carry out the study in section 7.