[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1464 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1464

     To enable States to implement integrated statewide education 
                       longitudinal data systems.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             August 1, 2011

   Mr. Blumenthal (for himself and Mr. Brown of Ohio) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To enable States to implement integrated statewide education 
                       longitudinal data systems.

    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 ``Measuring and Evaluating Trends for 
Reliability, Integrity, and Continued Success (METRICS) Act of 2011'' 
or the ``METRICS Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) ESEA definitions.--The terms ``elementary school'', 
        ``local educational agency'', ``secondary school'', 
        ``Secretary'', and ``State educational agency'' have the 
        meanings given the terms in section 9101 of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
            (2) Aligned statewide education longitudinal data 
        systems.--The term ``aligned statewide education longitudinal 
        data systems'' means 1 or more statewide data systems that 
        house and link the longitudinal data of individual students, 
        including such students' early childhood, elementary school, 
        secondary school, postsecondary education, and workforce data.
            (3) Eligible local entity.--The term ``eligible local 
        entity'' means--
                    (A) a high-need local educational agency;
                    (B) a consortium of high-need local educational 
                agencies; or
                    (C) a high-need local educational agency or a 
                consortium of high-need local educational agencies and 
                an external partner.
            (4) Eligible state entity.--The term ``eligible State 
        entity'' means a State educational agency, which may partner 
        with another public State agency, such as a State higher 
        education agency, an early childhood agency, a State workforce 
        agency, or a multi-agency State group (such as a preschool 
        through grade 20 (P-20) council).
            (5) External partner.--The term ``external partner'' means 
        an entity, such as a nonprofit organization, community-based 
        organization, local education fund, service organization, 
        educational service agency, or institution of postsecondary 
        education, that has demonstrated expertise and effectiveness in 
        providing targeted support (such as data analysis, professional 
        development, or the provision of non-academic support and 
        integrated student services) to local educational agencies, 
        schools, or students that leads to improved teaching, learning, 
        and outcomes for students, including students who are failing 
        to make sufficient progress to graduate in the standard number 
        of years or students who have dropped out of secondary school.
            (6) High-need local educational agency.--The term ``high-
        need local educational agency'' means a local educational 
        agency--
                    (A) that serves not less than 10,000 children who 
                are from families with incomes below the poverty line; 
                or
                    (B) for which not less than 20 percent of the 
                children served by such agency are from families with 
                incomes below the poverty line.
            (7) Poverty line.--The term ``poverty line'' means the 
        poverty line (as defined and revised annually in accordance 
        with section 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant Act) 
        applicable to a family of the size involved.

SEC. 3. IMPROVING THE USE OF STATEWIDE LONGITUDINAL DATA SYSTEMS.

    (a) Grants Authorized.--From the funds appropriated under section 8 
for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall award grants, on a competitive 
basis, to eligible State entities to enable such eligible State 
entities to improve access to, sharing of, and use of education data to 
improve student outcomes.
    (b) Duration.--Each grant awarded under this section shall be for a 
period of not more than 5 years.
    (c) Applications.--
            (1) Contents of application.--Each eligible State entity 
        that desires to receive 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 reasonably 
        require. Such application shall include the following:
                    (A) A list of State agencies whose cooperation will 
                be necessary for the implementation of the grant 
                program, and an assurance of support from--
                            (i) each such agency;
                            (ii) the chief State school officer;
                            (iii) the Governor of the State; and
                            (iv) any other entity that will comprise 
                        the eligible State entity.
                    (B) A description of the State's status relating to 
                each priority activity described in subsection (e)(2), 
                including--
                            (i) a demonstration that the State has 
                        implemented the priority activity;
                            (ii) a demonstration that the State has, at 
                        the time of the application, received funding 
                        from another source and made plans for the 
                        implementation of the priority activity; or
                            (iii) a statement that the State has not, 
                        at the time of the application, implemented, or 
                        received funds to implement, the priority 
                        activity.
                    (C) For each priority activity whose status is 
                categorized under subparagraph (B)(iii), a description 
                of how the eligible State entity plans to use grant 
                funds under this section to carry out such activity.
                    (D) A description of how the eligible State entity 
                plans to use grant funds to carry out the permissible 
                activities described in subsection (e)(3), if the 
                eligible State entity--
                            (i) categorizes the status of many of the 
                        priority activities described in subsection 
                        (e)(2) under clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph 
                        (B); and
                            (ii) anticipates the possibility of having 
                        remaining grant funds after ensuring 
                        implementation of each priority activity 
                        described under subsection (e)(2).
                    (E) A description of how activities funded under 
                the grant program will--
                            (i) support the State's policy and reform 
                        goals;
                            (ii) support alignment between State and 
                        local data systems; and
                            (iii) support coordination with, or 
                        alignment or advancement of, related activities 
                        that are funded through other Federal programs, 
                        including such programs under section 208 of 
                        the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 
                        2002 (20 U.S.C. 9607), the American Recovery 
                        and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-
                        5), the Race to the Top fund under section 
                        14006 of such Act, including the Race to the 
                        Top Early Learning Challenge fund under 
                        sections 14005, 14006, and 14013 of such Act 
                        (as amended by, and subject to the requirements 
                        of, section 1832 of the Full-Year Continuing 
                        Appropriations Act, 2011 (Public Law 112-10)), 
                        and the Workforce Data Quality Initiative under 
                        section 171(c)(2) of the Workforce Investment 
                        Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2916(c)(2)).
                    (F) A budget that details how grant funds and other 
                funding resources, including State and Federal funding, 
                will be used to carry out the proposed activities.
                    (G) An assurance of the State's long-term financial 
                commitment to--
                            (i) implementing and supporting aligned 
                        statewide education longitudinal data systems; 
                        and
                            (ii) maintaining such systems after the end 
                        of the grant program.
                    (H) A description of the indicators that the 
                eligible State entity will use to determine--
                            (i) if grant funds are being used 
                        effectively; and
                            (ii) the impact of grant funds on improving 
                        teaching, learning, and student outcomes.
                    (I) Any other information that the Secretary may 
                reasonably require.
            (2) Form of application.--In establishing the application 
        described under this subsection, the Secretary shall, where 
        practicable, require each eligible State entity to provide a 
        demonstration of the capabilities of any system that the 
        eligible State entity is, at the time of the application, using 
        to track data, in lieu of a description of such capabilities.
    (d) Awarding of Grants.--
            (1) In general.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
        Secretary shall--
                    (A) use a peer review process, as described in 
                paragraph (2);
                    (B) select applications that demonstrate technical 
                quality, validity, and reliability;
                    (C) promote multi-state collaboration; and
                    (D) ensure that applications protect student and 
                educator privacy, including through compliance with the 
                requirements of Federal, State, and local privacy laws 
                (including section 444 of the General Education 
                Provisions Act (commonly known as the ``Family 
                Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974'') (20 
                U.S.C. 1232g)).
            (2) Peer review process.--The Secretary shall award grants 
        under this section through a peer review process that, to the 
        extent practicable, includes--
                    (A) educators;
                    (B) users and consumers of statewide longitudinal 
                data systems, including representatives of State 
                educational agencies;
                    (C) individuals with demonstrated technical 
                expertise in data system construction, integration, or 
                implementation; and
                    (D) representatives of business and the workforce.
            (3) Competitive priorities.--In awarding grants under this 
        section, the Secretary may give priority to eligible State 
        entities that--
                    (A) propose to coordinate efforts with other State 
                educational agencies;
                    (B) propose to coordinate efforts with local 
                educational agencies;
                    (C) fulfill other criteria relating to the purposes 
                of this section, as determined by the Secretary.
    (e) Uses of Funds.--
            (1) In general.--
                    (A) Requirement relating to priority activities.--
                Each eligible State entity shall use grant funds to 
                carry out the priority activities described in 
                paragraph (2), before such entity may use any remaining 
                funds to carry out the permissible activities described 
                in paragraph (3).
                    (B) Exception.--An eligible State entity is deemed 
                to satisfy the requirements of paragraph (1) if such 
                entity demonstrates that the State has funding for, and 
                has in place, or has developed and is implementing a 
                plan that will result in the existence of, aligned 
                statewide education longitudinal data systems and 
                related activities that meet the requirements of 
                paragraph (2).
            (2) Priority activities.--An eligible State entity 
        receiving a grant under this section shall use grant funds to 
        carry out the following activities:
                    (A) Implementing aligned statewide education 
                longitudinal data systems that include the following:
                            (i) With respect to preschool through grade 
                        12 education and postsecondary education--
                                    (I) a unique statewide student 
                                identifier that does not permit a 
                                student to be individually identified 
                                by users of the system;
                                    (II) student-level enrollment, 
                                demographic, and program participation 
                                information;
                                    (III) student-level information 
                                about the points at which students 
                                exit, transfer in, transfer out, drop 
                                out, or complete P-16 education 
                                programs;
                                    (IV) the capacity to communicate 
                                with higher education data systems; and
                                    (V) a State data audit system 
                                assessing data quality, validity, and 
                                reliability.
                            (ii) With respect to preschool through 
                        grade 12 education--
                                    (I) yearly test records of 
                                individual students with respect to 
                                State assessments under section 
                                1111(b)(3) of the Elementary and 
                                Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
                                U.S.C. 6311(b)(3));
                                    (II) information on students not 
                                tested by grade and subject;
                                    (III) a teacher identifier system 
                                with the ability to match teachers to 
                                students;
                                    (IV) student-level transcript 
                                information, including information on 
                                courses completed and grades earned; 
                                and
                                    (V) student-level college readiness 
                                test scores.
                            (iii) With respect to postsecondary 
                        education, data that provide--
                                    (I) information regarding the 
                                extent to which students transition 
                                successfully from secondary school to 
                                postsecondary education, including 
                                whether students enroll in remedial 
                                coursework; and
                                    (II) other information determined 
                                necessary to address alignment and 
                                adequate preparation for success in 
                                postsecondary education.
                    (B) Establishing inter- and intra-agency governance 
                strategies that define policies and procedures for the 
                collection, access, and use of education data.
                    (C) Establishing and implementing comprehensive 
                policies and procedures to protect the privacy, 
                security, and confidentiality of student and educator 
                data, including--
                            (i) justifying that data being collected, 
                        stored, and shared are necessary, useful, 
                        accurate, and valid;
                            (ii) limiting access to personally 
                        identifiable information to necessary and 
                        appropriate individuals;
                            (iii) protecting shared data from 
                        inappropriate use;
                            (iv) implementing a data security framework 
                        (including regular and comprehensive training 
                        and professional development) for the use, 
                        dissemination, storage, and maintenance of 
                        data;
                            (v) providing parental and public notice 
                        about data collection, information about data 
                        policies, and information relating to the 
                        accessibility and use of data;
                            (vi) ensuring compliance with the 
                        requirements of Federal, State and local 
                        privacy laws, including section 444 of the 
                        General Education Provisions Act (commonly 
                        known as the ``Family Educational Rights and 
                        Privacy Act of 1974'') (20 U.S.C. 1232g); and
                            (vii) aligning data policies and procedures 
                        with best practices for data stewardship, 
                        including best practices identified by the 
                        Secretary.
                    (D) Establishing the capacity to link education 
                data with workforce data.
                    (E) Enabling the matching of the teacher identifier 
                described in subparagraph (A)(ii)(III) with information 
                about certification or licensure and teacher 
                preparation programs, including the development of 
                linkages with pre-service programs that enable the 
                matching of teacher certification and preparation 
                programs to--
                            (i) the postsecondary institutions at which 
                        teachers received their training;
                            (ii) job placement;
                            (iii) retention rates; and
                            (iv) teacher impact on student academic 
                        achievement.
                    (F) Enabling standardization of education data 
                through the use of openly developed common education 
                data standards.
                    (G) Providing the State with the ability to meet 
                Federal reporting requirements, including reporting 
                requirements under the Elementary and Secondary 
                Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), the 
                American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public 
                Law 111-5), the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical 
                Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.), and the 
                Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 
                1400 et seq.).
            (3) Permissible activities.--An eligible State entity 
        receiving a grant under this section may use remaining grant 
        funds, after ensuring the implementation of the priority 
        activities described in paragraph (2), to carry out activities 
        that--
                    (A) expand the ability of aligned statewide 
                education longitudinal data systems to align data that 
                covers the time a student enters preschool through the 
                time that such student graduates from secondary school 
                or an institution of postsecondary education, and 
                enters and spends time in the workforce;
                    (B) improve opportunities to access, analyze, 
                communicate about, and use data from aligned statewide 
                education longitudinal data systems; or
                    (C) build the capacity of teachers, school leaders, 
                parents, students, researchers, external partners, and 
                the public to use longitudinal data for effective 
                decisionmaking.
    (f) Supplement Not Supplant.--Funds made available under this 
section shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, other State or 
local funds used for developing integrated statewide education 
longitudinal data systems linking early childhood, elementary school, 
secondary school, postsecondary, or workforce data.

SEC. 4. IMPROVING LOCAL USE OF DATA TO IMPROVE STUDENT OUTCOMES.

    (a) Grants Authorized.--From the funds appropriated under section 8 
for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall award grants, on a competitive 
basis, to eligible local entities to enable educators to improve access 
to, sharing of, and use of education data to improve student outcomes.
    (b) Duration.--Each grant awarded under this section shall be for a 
period of not more than 5 years.
    (c) Applications.--Each eligible local entity that desires to 
receive 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 reasonably require. Such application shall include 
the following:
            (1) A memorandum of understanding between the State 
        educational agency and the eligible local entity, which shall 
        include--
                    (A) a description of the State educational agency's 
                level of participation in the grant;
                    (B) an assurance that the State educational agency 
                agrees to--
                            (i) provide the eligible local entity 
                        with--
                                    (I) appropriate access to student 
                                data from State data systems; and
                                    (II) cooperation in efforts to 
                                align local educational agency data 
                                with data from State data systems;
                            (ii) provide training to the eligible local 
                        entity to address the use of data collection 
                        software, privacy policies, Federal, State, and 
                        local privacy laws (including section 444 of 
                        the General Education Provisions Act (commonly 
                        known as the ``Family Educational Rights and 
                        Privacy Act of 1974'') (20 U.S.C. 1232g)), data 
                        integrity issues, reporting, planning, and 
                        processes;
                    (C) a description of the State educational agency's 
                strategy for the dissemination of information about the 
                successes and challenges of the grant activities under 
                this section; and
                    (D) a description of how the State will fund the 
                activities described in subparagraph (B), including 
                information about any grant funds that the eligible 
                local entity will give to the State educational agency 
                to carry out the activities described in such 
                subparagraph.
            (2) A description of how the local educational agencies 
        that are part of the eligible local entity, and any educators 
        working for such agencies, submit data to, access, and use 
        existing statewide education longitudinal data systems, at the 
        time of the application.
            (3) A description of the data systems used by the eligible 
        local entity at the time of the application.
            (4) A description of how activities funded under the grant 
        will improve local access to, and use of, data that is, at the 
        time of the application, provided by data systems at the local 
        and State level.
            (5) A description of how the eligible local entity will use 
        funds received under this section to carry out the proposed 
        activities in order to improve teaching, learning, and student 
        outcomes.
            (6) A mechanism for soliciting the feedback of educators, 
        school leaders, parents, and external partners in developing, 
        revising, and implementing plans and activities under this 
        section.
            (7) A description of how the eligible local entity will 
        align the use of funds under this section with the technology 
        plan of each local educational agency served under the grant.
            (8) A description of the indicators that the eligible local 
        entity will use to determine--
                    (A) if grant funds are being used effectively; and
                    (B) the impact of grant funds on improving 
                teaching, learning, and student outcomes.
            (9) Such other information as the Secretary may reasonably 
        require.
    (d) Awarding of Grants.--
            (1) In general.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
        Secretary shall--
                    (A) use a peer review process, as described in 
                paragraph (2);
                    (B) select applications that demonstrate technical 
                quality, validity, and reliability; and
                    (C) protect student and educator privacy, 
                consistent with the requirements of Federal, State, and 
                local privacy laws (including section 444 of the 
                General Education Provisions Act (commonly known as the 
                ``Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974'') 
                (20 U.S.C. 1232g)).
            (2) Peer review process.--In awarding grants under this 
        section, the Secretary shall, to the extent practicable, use a 
        peer review process that--
                    (A) ensures technical quality, validity, and 
                reliability;
                    (B) ensures that applications protect student and 
                educator privacy, consistent with the requirements of 
                Federal, State, and local privacy laws (including 
                section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act 
                (commonly known as the Family Educational Rights and 
                Privacy Act of 1974) (20 U.S.C. 1232g)); and
                    (C) includes--
                            (i) educators;
                            (ii) users and consumers of a local 
                        educational data systems;
                            (iii) individuals with demonstrated 
                        technical expertise in data system 
                        construction, integration, or implementation; 
                        and
                            (iv) representatives of business and the 
                        workforce.
            (3) Considerations.--In awarding grants under this section, 
        the Secretary shall ensure, to the greatest extent possible, 
        that grants are awarded to eligible local entities that are 
        diverse in terms of geography, size, and location within an 
        urban, rural, or suburban area.
    (e) Uses of Funds.--
            (1) Required uses of funds.--An eligible local entity 
        receiving a grant under this section shall use grant funds to 
        develop and implement a comprehensive plan for using data to 
        improve teaching, learning, and student outcomes. Such plan 
        shall include strategies designed to--
                    (A) provide teachers, school leaders, parents, 
                students, researchers, external partners, and the 
                public with access to student education data in a way 
                that ensures the quality and integrity of data 
                contained in data systems and respects student and 
                educator privacy, including through compliance with the 
                requirements of Federal, State, and local privacy laws 
                (including section 444 of the General Education 
                Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g));
                    (B) regularly analyze and share appropriate student 
                data with educators, counselors, school staff, parents, 
                students, and external partners in a way that ensures 
                the quality and integrity of data contained in data 
                systems and respects student and educator privacy, 
                including through compliance with the requirements of 
                Federal, State, and local privacy laws (including 
                section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act (20 
                U.S.C. 1232g)); and
                    (C) improve the ability of school leaders to--
                            (i) use student data to guide school 
                        improvement efforts; and
                            (ii) support classroom use of data through 
                        high-quality training and professional 
                        development;
                    (D) improve the ability of teachers to effectively 
                use student data through on-going, sustainable, and 
                high-quality professional development activities in 
                order to ensure that educators have the capacity to--
                            (i) analyze data and monitor academic 
                        outcomes;
                            (ii) modify instructional activities as 
                        needed; and
                            (iii) differentiate student instructions.
            (2) Allowable uses of funds.--An eligible local entity 
        receiving a grant under this section may use grant funds to 
        carry out any of the following activities:
                    (A) Supplementing statewide longitudinal data 
                systems existing at the time of the application by 
                improving local data systems through--
                            (i) the collection of local data elements 
                        that support decisionmaking about school 
                        improvement;
                            (ii) enhancing the ability of educators to 
                        manage, analyze, disaggregate, or report 
                        student, teacher, and school data; or
                            (iii) standardization through use of openly 
                        developed common education data standards.
                    (B) Using new assessment tools that provide timely 
                data to educators, which can be used to identify the 
                learning needs of individual students and guide 
                appropriate, personalized instructional interventions.
                    (C) Using external partners, central office staff, 
                or data specialists in order to build educator capacity 
                to effectively use data to improve teaching and 
                learning.
                    (D) Analyzing and disseminating best practices, 
                strategies, and approaches regarding pedagogical 
                advancement that will leverage the local educational 
                agency's or State educational agency's data system to 
                enhance teaching and learning, including opportunities 
                for individualized instruction.
                    (E) Analyzing data and realigning existing 
                resources to maximize impact on student achievement, 
                including the use of early warning data to target 
                resources.
                    (F) Coordinating activities with other local 
                agencies providing services to students.
                    (G) Coordinating activities with educator 
                preparation programs in order to build educators' 
                capacity to use data.

SEC. 5. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES TO SUPPORT EFFECTIVE DATA USE.

    From the funds appropriated under section 8 for a fiscal year, the 
Secretary may carry out the following national activities:
            (1) Providing technical and policy assistance to grantees 
        and non-grantees in order to facilitate implementation, and 
        improve the quality of, student longitudinal data systems, 
        including technical assistance to ensure the protection of 
        personally identifiable information.
            (2) Identifying or promoting activities that improve data 
        coordination, quality, and use at the national, State, and 
        local levels (including activities that improve the 
        coordination, quality, and use of education data for Indian 
        tribes, tribal organizations, and schools operated or funded by 
        the Bureau of Indian Education).
            (3) Implementing innovative strategies to advance the use 
        of data.
            (4) Conducting research on emerging trends and challenges 
        relating to the collection and use of education data.
            (5) Awarding prizes (consistent with section 24 of the 
        Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 
        3719)).
            (6) Providing funding to support the innovative use of data 
        for pilot programs, in order to identify and promote models of 
        effective data use in emerging areas.

SEC. 6. REPORT.

    Not later than 3 years after the Secretary awards a grant under 
this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall make publicly 
available a report on the implementation, actual costs, and 
effectiveness of the activities carried out through grants under this 
Act, including efforts to protect student and educator privacy.

SEC. 7. TRANSPARENCY.

    (a) Reporting Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall make publicly 
        available a comprehensive and searchable description of all 
        reporting requirements of the Department that apply to State 
        educational agencies, local educational agencies, or schools. 
        Such description shall include, for each reporting requirement, 
        the following information:
                    (A) The definition of the required data element or 
                indicator.
                    (B) The purpose of the particular data collection.
                    (C) The legislative or regulatory source of the 
                reporting requirement.
                    (D) The level of data (such as the State 
                educational agency, local educational agency, 
                institution of postsecondary education, or school).
                    (E) The mechanism of data collection.
                    (F) Information about whether data relating to the 
                reporting requirement is publicly available.
            (2) Updates.--The Secretary shall update the description 
        required under subsection (a) annually.
    (b) Assurance.--The Secretary shall ensure that if a new reporting 
requirement becomes effective, or if a reporting requirement is 
changed, on or after the date of enactment of this Act, each State 
shall have not less than 90 days to comply with such requirement.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 
$100,000,000 for fiscal year 2012 and such sums as may be necessary for 
each succeeding fiscal year.
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