[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 959 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 959

    To improve outcomes for students in persistently low-performing 
schools, to create a culture of recognizing, rewarding, and replicating 
educational excellence, to authorize school turnaround grants, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 12, 2011

  Mrs. Hagan (for herself and Mr. Lieberman) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To improve outcomes for students in persistently low-performing 
schools, to create a culture of recognizing, rewarding, and replicating 
educational excellence, to authorize school turnaround grants, and for 
                            other purposes.

    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 ``School Turnaround and Rewards Act of 
2011'' or the ``STAR Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this Act are to--
            (1) significantly improve outcomes for students in 
        persistently low-performing schools by--
                    (A) building the capacity of State educational 
                agencies and local educational agencies to improve 
                student academic achievement in low-performing and 
                persistently low-performing schools;
                    (B) supporting States and local educational 
                agencies in implementing school intervention models; 
                and
                    (C) targeting State and local supports and 
                strategies on the persistently lowest-performing 
                schools in each State; and
            (2) create a culture of recognizing, rewarding, and 
        replicating educational excellence in every State by--
                    (A) providing financial and other incentives and 
                rewards to schools that are identified as Reward 
                Schools; and
                    (B) supporting State educational agency efforts to 
                identify, collect, and disseminate effective practices 
                for increasing student academic achievement used by 
                Reward Schools.

             TITLE I--ADDITIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY PROVISIONS

SEC. 101. ADDITIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY PROVISIONS.

    (a) In General.--The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 1116 the 
following:

``SEC. 1116A. REWARD SCHOOLS.

    ``(a) In General.--Notwithstanding section 1116 or any other 
provision of this part, each State educational agency that receives 
funds under this part shall identify Reward Schools in the State and 
take the actions described with respect to those schools, in accordance 
with this section.
    ``(b) Identification of Reward Schools.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each State educational agency that 
        receives funds under this part shall annually identify as 
        Reward Schools public elementary schools or secondary schools 
        served by the State that are making significant progress, as 
        determined by the State educational agency, in closing the 
        achievement gap and increasing student academic achievement, 
        student growth, and, at the high school level, graduation 
        rates, for students in the aggregate and for 1 or more 
        subgroups of students identified under section 
        1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II).
            ``(2) Reward schools.--Each school that is identified as a 
        Reward School under paragraph (1)--
                    ``(A) is eligible for recognition and rewards under 
                subsection (c); and
                    ``(B) may use funds provided under this Act, except 
                for those funds related to serving special populations 
                under parts C and D of title I, title III, and title 
                VII, in a comprehensive and coordinated manner, to 
                design innovative programs consistent with the 
                requirements of title IX.
    ``(c) Reward Schools.--
            ``(1) Allotments; allocation to states.--
                    ``(A) In general.--
                            ``(i) Allotment.--In accordance with clause 
                        (ii), the Secretary shall allot among each of 
                        the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the 
                        Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the Secretary 
                        of the Interior for programs under this 
                        subsection in schools operated or funded by the 
                        Bureau of Indian Education, the total amount 
                        made available to carry out this subsection 
                        under paragraph (6) for any fiscal year, to 
                        carry out activities under this subsection.
                            ``(ii) Determination of allotments.--The 
                        Secretary shall use the amount made available 
                        under clause (i) for a fiscal year to award a 
                        grant to each entity described in clause (i) in 
                        an amount that bears the same relation to such 
                        amount made available under clause (i) as the 
                        amount the entity received under this part for 
                        the preceding fiscal year bears to the amount 
                        received by all the entities described in 
                        clause (i) under this part for the preceding 
                        fiscal year.
                    ``(B) Reallotment.--If an entity described in 
                subparagraph (A)(i) does not receive funds under this 
                subsection, the Secretary shall reallot those funds to 
                other entities described in subparagraph (A)(i) in the 
                same proportion in which funds are allotted under 
                subparagraph (A).
            ``(2) State application.--Each State educational agency 
        desiring to receive a grant under this subsection shall submit 
        an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 
        and containing such information as the Secretary may require. 
        At a minimum, each application shall include--
                    ``(A) a description of how the State educational 
                agency will distribute funds under this program, by 
                formula or through a competitive process, to local 
                educational agencies serving Reward Schools identified 
                under subsection (b);
                    ``(B) a description of how the State educational 
                agency will take into account poverty rates within 
                local educational agencies and schools proposed to be 
                served when distributing funds under this program;
                    ``(C) an assurance that the State educational 
                agency will provide rewards and incentives under this 
                subsection that are large enough to motivate changes in 
                behavior by schools throughout the State;
                    ``(D) a description of how the State educational 
                agency will identify, collect, and disseminate 
                information on effective practices for increasing 
                student achievement that are used by the Reward Schools 
                and how the State will create communities of practice 
                among Reward Schools, in order to share best practices 
                and replicate successful strategies to assist lower-
                performing schools and districts; and
                    ``(E) a description of how the State will create 
                mentoring partnerships between Reward Schools and other 
                schools and local educational agencies in the State.
            ``(3) State use of funds.--
                    ``(A) State reservation.--A State educational 
                agency that receives a grant under paragraph (1) shall 
                use not less than 90 percent of the grant funds to make 
                subgrants to local educational agencies serving Reward 
                Schools to carry out the activities described in 
                paragraph (4).
                    ``(B) State activities.--A State educational agency 
                that receives a grant under paragraph (1) shall use any 
                portion of its grant funds that it does not use under 
                subparagraph (A) to carry out activities, which may 
                include the following:
                            ``(i) Identifying, collecting, and 
                        disseminating information on effective 
                        practices that are used by Reward Schools to 
                        increase student achievement.
                            ``(ii) Supporting mentoring partnerships 
                        between Reward Schools and other schools and 
                        local educational agencies.
                            ``(iii) Creating communities of practice 
                        among Reward Schools.
                            ``(iv) Administration of this subsection.
            ``(4) Subgrants to local educational agencies.--
                    ``(A) In general.--From funds available under 
                paragraph (3), a State educational agency shall make 1-
                year subgrants to local educational agencies serving 
                Reward Schools.
                    ``(B) Activities.--A local educational agency that 
                receives a subgrant under this subsection shall use the 
                funds--
                            ``(i) to provide financial rewards for 
                        principals, teachers, and other staff in Reward 
                        Schools; and
                            ``(ii) to provide financial rewards to 
                        Reward Schools, which may be used at the 
                        school's discretion, including for financial 
                        rewards or to improve or enrich the school's or 
                        local educational agency's program.
            ``(5) Other rewards for reward schools.--A local 
        educational agency may provide Reward Schools with increased 
        flexibility in making budgeting and staffing decisions, by--
                    ``(A) providing Reward Schools with priority in 
                receiving Federal or State funds;
                    ``(B) reducing reporting requirements of Reward 
                Schools; or
                    ``(C) taking other actions to provide Reward 
                Schools with greater autonomy.
            ``(6) Authorization of appropriations.--There are 
        authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection 
        $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2012 and such sums as may be 
        necessary for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years.''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents in section 2 of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to section 1116 the following:

``Sec. 1116A. Reward schools.''.

                   TITLE II--SCHOOL TURNAROUND GRANTS

SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS.

    The terms used in this title have the meanings given the terms in 
section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 7801).

SEC. 202. IDENTIFICATION OF PERSISTENTLY LOW-PERFORMING SCHOOLS.

    (a) In General.--Each State educational agency that receives funds 
under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) shall annually identify as a 
Persistently Low-Performing School a public elementary school or 
secondary school that, based on the percentage of students scoring at 
or above the proficient level in each of the subjects included in a 
State's accountability system under such part, is not making progress 
and--
            (1) if the school is an elementary school, is in the bottom 
        5 percent of the State's public elementary schools;
            (2) if the school is a secondary school that does not award 
        a high school diploma, is in the bottom 5 percent of the 
        State's public secondary schools that do not award a high 
        school diploma; or
            (3) if the school is a secondary school that does award a 
        high school diploma, is in the bottom 5 percent of the State's 
        public secondary schools that award a high school diploma or 
        has a graduation rate below 60 percent, or both.
    (b) Ranking.--
            (1) Schools that do not award high school diplomas.--To 
        determine if a school that does not award a high school diploma 
        is a Persistently Low-Performing School, the State educational 
        agency shall, not less frequently than once every 3 years, rank 
        all such public elementary schools and secondary schools served 
        by the State on the basis of the combined or averaged 
        percentages across subjects of students who are proficient or 
        above on the reading or language arts and mathematics 
        assessments required under section 1111(b)(3) of the Elementary 
        and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(3)).
            (2) Schools that award high school diplomas.--To determine 
        if a school that awards a high school diploma is a Persistently 
        Low-Performing school, the State educational agency shall, not 
        less frequently than once every 3 years, rank all such schools 
        on the basis of--
                    (A) the combined or averaged percentages across 
                subjects of students who are proficient or above on the 
                reading or language arts and mathematics assessments 
                required by section 1111(b)(3) of the Elementary and 
                Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(3)); 
                and
                    (B) the graduation rate, with such rate given 
                weight equal to the weight of the factor described in 
                subparagraph (A).
    (c) Schools Making Progress.--The State educational agency shall 
not identify as a Persistently Low-Performing school a school that is 
making significant progress as defined by the State, subject to any 
limitations specified in regulation by the Secretary.
    (d) No Identification of Certain Schools.--The State may choose not 
to identify those schools in which the total number of students 
assessed is below the minimum group size used by the State to ensure 
the validity and reliability of State assessments or to protect the 
privacy of individual students.
    (e) School Intervention Models.--Each local educational agency that 
serves a school identified as a Persistently Low-Performing School 
under this section and receives a grant under this title shall select 
and implement 1 of the 4 school intervention models described in 
section 207 in such school, and provide for family and community 
engagement in the choice and implementation of the model selected in 
each case.

SEC. 203. RESERVATION AND ALLOTMENTS.

    (a) Reservation for Activities of National Significance.--From the 
total amount appropriated under section 208 for a fiscal year, the 
Secretary may reserve not more than 10 percent to carry out activities 
of national significance, such as--
            (1) building State and local educational agency turnaround 
        capacity, including through technical assistance and support, 
        identification and dissemination of best practices, and 
        facilitating the creation and operation of communities of 
        practice;
            (2) supporting the use of school quality review teams by 
        making grants to State educational agencies, consortia of such 
        agencies, or partnerships of State educational agencies or 
        State consortia and public or private nonprofit organizations 
        to develop and implement school quality review teams that 
        review and provide support and technical assistance to local 
        educational agencies and schools for activities such as 
        expanded learning time;
            (3) identifying and disseminating effective rural 
        turnaround practices, making available targeted technical 
        assistance, and expanding the availability and capacity of 
        turnaround partners that operate in rural areas;
            (4) identifying schools and school improvement partners 
        that are effectively implementing school intervention models 
        and other effective strategies to improve schools, and making 
        information on those schools available to State educational 
        agencies, local educational agencies, and schools in a manner 
        that facilitates replication of effective practices; and
            (5) other activities designed to support State and local 
        efforts to turn around persistently low-performing schools.
    (b) Allotment to States.--
            (1) In general.--
                    (A) Allotment.--In accordance with subparagraph 
                (B), the Secretary shall allot among each of the 50 
                States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 
                Puerto Rico, the outlying areas, and the Secretary of 
                the Interior for programs under this title in schools 
                operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian Education, 
                the total amount made available to carry out this title 
                under section 208 for any fiscal year and not reserved 
                under subsection (a), to carry out activities under 
                this title.
                    (B) Determination of allotments.--The Secretary 
                shall use the amount made available under subparagraph 
                (A) for a fiscal year to award a grant to each entity 
                described in subparagraph (A) in an amount that bears 
                the same relation to such amount made available under 
                subparagraph (A) as the amount the entity received 
                under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
                Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) for the 
                preceding fiscal year bears to the amount received by 
                all the entities described in subparagraph (A) under 
                such part for the preceding fiscal year.
            (2) Reallotment.--If an entity described in paragraph 
        (1)(A) does not receive funds under this title, the Secretary 
        shall reallot those funds to other entities described in 
        paragraph (1)(A) in the same proportion in which funds are 
        allotted under paragraph (1).

SEC. 204. APPLICATION.

    Each State educational agency that desires to receive a grant under 
this title shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, 
in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may 
reasonably require. At a minimum, each application shall include--
            (1) a copy of the application form and instructions that 
        the State will use in making competitive subgrants under this 
        title;
            (2) the criteria the State educational agency will use to 
        determine whether each eligible applicant applying for a 
        subgrant under section 206--
                    (A) has analyzed the needs of each school the 
                eligible applicant seeks to serve and has selected an 
                appropriate intervention model;
                    (B) has the capacity to implement fully and 
                effectively the selected school intervention model; and
                    (C) has submitted a budget that includes sufficient 
                funds to implement fully and effectively the selected 
                school intervention model;
            (3) a description of how the State educational agency will 
        set priorities for subgrants if the State educational agency 
        does not have sufficient funds to support all persistently low-
        performing schools that eligible applicants have applied to 
        serve;
            (4) the criteria the State educational agency will use to 
        determine the quality of applications the State educational 
        agency receives;
            (5) a description of how the State educational agency 
        will--
                    (A) monitor each subgrantee to ensure that the 
                subgrantee is fully and effectively implementing the 
                selected school intervention model and is improving 
                student achievement and making progress on leading 
                indicators; and
                    (B) communicate to each subgrantee in a timely 
                fashion about what expectations the State has for the 
                subgrantee to make progress;
            (6) a description of how the State educational agency, 
        subject to section 205(b)(1), will use the funds it reserves at 
        the State level to provide technical assistance and other 
        support to subgrantees; and
            (7) a description of how the State will--
                    (A) help develop pipelines of teachers and leaders 
                trained for turnaround schools;
                    (B) collect and report data that inform the work of 
                subgrantees;
                    (C) encourage the clustering of turnaround schools 
                under a turnaround office or other lead turnaround 
                partner;
                    (D) support effective extended learning time 
                strategies; and
                    (E) build capacity in the State educational agency 
                for assisting turnaround schools.

SEC. 205. STATE USE OF FUNDS.

    (a) State Reservation.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), a 
        State educational agency that receives a grant under section 
        203(b) shall use not less than 90 percent of the grant funds to 
        make competitive subgrants to eligible applicants under section 
        206 to carry out the purposes of this title.
            (2) Exception for school taken over by the state.--
        Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a State may, subject to 
        regulations of the Secretary, reserve from the amount to be 
        used to make subgrants under paragraph (1) such funds as are 
        necessary to implement a school intervention model, either 
        directly or through a turnaround partner designated by the 
        State, in a school that has been taken over by the State.
    (b) State Activities.--A State educational agency that receives a 
grant under section 203(b) shall use any portion of the grant funds 
that the State educational agency does not use to make subgrants under 
subsection (a) to carry out activities designed to build State capacity 
to support school improvement. These activities may include--
            (1) providing technical assistance and other support, 
        either directly, or through the creation of a school turnaround 
        office, or through turnaround partners, to eligible applicants, 
        which may include the use of school quality review teams or 
        regular site visits to monitor the implementation of selected 
        models;
            (2) evaluating State and local implementation of school 
        intervention models and other improvement activities, and using 
        the results to improve State strategies for supporting and 
        providing flexibility for targeted schools;
            (3) providing subgrants to turnaround partners and expanded 
        learning time partners to enable the partners to increase their 
        capacity to help turn around schools;
            (4) developing pipelines of teachers and leaders trained 
        for turnaround schools;
            (5) collecting and reporting data that inform the work of 
        subgrantees;
            (6) clustering turnaround schools; and
            (7) building capacity in the State educational agency for 
        assisting turnaround schools.

SEC. 206. SUBGRANTS TO ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.

    (a) Authority.--
            (1) In general.--From the funds available under section 
        205(a), a State educational agency shall make subgrants, on a 
        competitive basis, to eligible applicants.
            (2) Eligible applicant.--In this title, the term ``eligible 
        applicant'' means--
                    (A) a local educational agency that receives funds 
                under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
                Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) and 
                serves at least 1 persistently low-performing school; 
                or
                    (B) a local educational agency described in 
                subparagraph (A) in partnership with a turnaround 
                partner or an expanded learning time partner, or both, 
                with experience supporting successful school turnaround 
                efforts.
    (b) Duration.--A State educational agency--
            (1) shall award subgrants under this section for a period 
        of not more than 3 years; and
            (2) may extend such a subgrant for an additional 2-year 
        period if the State educational agency determines that schools 
        served by the subgrantee are making significant progress, as 
        described in subsection (h).
    (c) Criteria.--Subgrants awarded under this section shall be of 
sufficient size to enable subgrantees to implement the selected 
intervention model fully and effectively.
    (d) Application.--In order to receive a subgrant under this 
section, an eligible applicant shall submit an application to the State 
educational agency at such time, in such form, and including such 
information as the State educational agency may reasonably require. 
Each application shall include, at a minimum--
            (1) a description of the process the applicant has used for 
        selecting an appropriate school intervention model for each 
        school to be served (which process shall include family and 
        community input as to which of the school intervention models 
        is most likely to improve student achievement), including how 
        the applicant has analyzed the needs of each such school;
            (2) the school intervention model to be used in each school 
        to be served and the timeline for implementing the selected 
        school intervention model in each school to be served;
            (3) a detailed budget covering the grant period, including 
        planned expenditures at the school level and by the eligible 
        applicant for activities supporting full and effective 
        implementation of the selected intervention model;
            (4) a description of how the eligible applicant will--
                    (A) design and implement interventions consistent 
                with the requirements of the selected school 
                intervention model, including how the applicant will 
                use appropriate leading indicators and student 
                achievement measures to monitor the effectiveness of 
                implementation;
                    (B) use a rigorous review process to recruit, 
                screen, and select turnaround partners with which the 
                local educational agency will partner;
                    (C) align other Federal, State, and local resources 
                with the interventions;
                    (D) modify practices and policies, if necessary, to 
                provide operational flexibility that enables full and 
                effective implementation of the selected school 
                intervention model;
                    (E) collect and use data on an ongoing basis to 
                adjust implementation of the school intervention model 
                during implementation (while maintaining consistency 
                with the requirements of section 207) in order to 
                achieve the desired outcomes;
                    (F) ensure that the implementation of the school 
                intervention model addresses the needs of all subgroups 
                described in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II) of the 
                Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
                U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(C)(v)(II)) in each school to be 
                served; and
                    (G) sustain successful reforms and practices after 
                the funding period ends;
            (5) a description of the technical assistance and other 
        support that the eligible applicant will provide to ensure 
        effective implementation of intervention models in eligible 
        schools, which may include--
                    (A) assistance in data analysis;
                    (B) recruiting staff;
                    (C) teacher evaluation;
                    (D) professional development;
                    (E) coordination of services to address students' 
                social, emotional, and health needs;
                    (F) facilitating the creation and operation of 
                professional learning communities and communities of 
                practice; and
                    (G) progress monitoring;
            (6) an assurance that each school the applicant proposes to 
        serve will receive all of the State and local funds it would 
        have received in the absence of these funds; and
            (7) a description of how the eligible applicant will 
        strengthen its capacity improvement for the implementation of 
        intervention models, including through partnerships with 
        entities that have demonstrated the ability to effectively 
        support school improvement efforts.
    (e) Priority.--In making subgrants under this section, a State 
educational agency shall give priority to an eligible applicant if the 
applicant--
            (1) demonstrates that it has a sufficient pool of effective 
        educators within or outside the local educational agency to 
        staff low-performing schools or a comprehensive plan to recruit 
        retain, reward, and improve staff using comprehensive 
        evaluation systems;
            (2) demonstrates the support of school management, 
        teachers, parents, community partners, and public stakeholders 
        to implement strategies described in section 207;
            (3) demonstrates a commitment to an expanded school day, 
        expanded school week, or expanded school year schedule that 
        increases the total number of school hours for the school year 
        at a school by not fewer than 300 hours (which shall include 
        hours in which a student is engaged in academic activities, 
        experiential learning, work-based learning, and enrichment) and 
        that includes a strong partnership with a quality expanded 
        learning time partner;
            (4) demonstrates that the school leaders serving the school 
        that will be supported through the subgrant, have sufficient 
        flexibility in making budgeting, staffing, and program 
        decisions; and
            (5) demonstrates the ability to collect, report, and use 
        data to inform decisionmaking and to target resources at the 
        school level.
    (f) Local Activities.--An eligible applicant that receives a 
subgrant under this section--
            (1) shall use the subgrant funds to implement 1 or more of 
        the school intervention models described in section 207 in 
        persistently low-performing schools; and
            (2) may use such funds to carry out local educational 
        agency-level activities that directly support the 
        implementation of the school intervention model selected for 
        implementation, such as--
                    (A) carrying out pre-implementation activities at 
                the school or local educational agency level during the 
                school year prior to the school year in which the local 
                educational agency will fully implement the school 
                intervention model;
                    (B) recruiting effective teachers and principals 
                for the schools at which the local educational agency 
                will fully implement the school intervention model;
                    (C) implementing a rigorous process to evaluate the 
                quality of charter management organizations or 
                education management organizations applying to operate 
                restart schools as described in section 206;
                    (D) developing rigorous, transparent, and equitable 
                teacher and principal evaluation systems; or
                    (E) in the case of a school closing, establishing 
                and supporting a local transition team, composed of 
                parents from both the closing school community and any 
                receiving school community, to ensure a smooth 
                transition and mutual academic benefit for all students 
                as a result of the school closing.
    (g) Reporting.--Each eligible applicant that receives a subgrant 
under this section shall--
            (1) comply with the reporting and accountability 
        requirements of part A of title I of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) for 
        each of the schools the eligible applicant serves with subgrant 
        funds; and
            (2) monitor and report data that include, with respect to 
        students served by the applicant with grant funds received 
        under this section--
                    (A) core academic indicators, such as--
                            (i) percentage of students at or above each 
                        proficiency level on State assessments in 
                        reading or language arts and mathematics;
                            (ii) progress toward core academic 
                        benchmarks, as determined under the State's 
                        accountability system;
                            (iii) average scale scores on State 
                        assessments in reading or language arts and in 
                        mathematics;
                            (iv) percentage of English language learner 
                        students who attain English language 
                        proficiency on the State's summative language 
                        assessments;
                            (v) graduation rates; and
                            (vi) college enrollment rates, including 
                        data for all students and for all subgroups of 
                        students identified under section 
                        1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II) of the Elementary and 
                        Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
                        6311(b)(2)(C)(v)(II)); and
                    (B) leading indicators such as--
                            (i) student attendance rates;
                            (ii) number and percentage of students 
                        completing advanced coursework;
                            (iii) student participation rates on State 
                        assessments in reading or language arts and 
                        mathematics;
                            (iv) dropout rates;
                            (v) discipline incident rates;
                            (vi) teacher attendance rates;
                            (vii) distribution of teachers by 
                        performance level on the applicant's teacher 
                        evaluation system; and
                            (viii) reduction in the percentage of 
                        students in the bottom level of achievement on 
                        State assessments in reading or language arts 
                        and mathematics, including data for all 
                        students and all subgroups of students 
                        identified under such section 
                        1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II).
    (h) Accountability.--
            (1) In general.--Each eligible applicant that receives a 
        subgrant under this section shall demonstrate sufficient 
        progress, as defined by the State, on the core academic 
        indicators and leading indicators described in subsection (g).
            (2) Additional two-year grant period for sufficient 
        progress.--An eligible applicant that makes sufficient 
        progress, as described under paragraph (1) and determined by 
        the State educational agency, shall be eligible for an 
        extension of the applicant's subgrant for an additional 2-year 
        period.
            (3) Insufficient progress.--An eligible applicant that does 
        not make sufficient progress, as described under paragraph (1) 
        and determined by the State educational agency, shall be 
        required to--
                    (A) modify its existing school intervention model;
                    (B) restart the school using the restart model 
                described in section 207(a)(2); or
                    (C) close the school using the school closure model 
                described in section 207(a)(3).

SEC. 207. SCHOOL INTERVENTION MODELS.

    (a) In General.--Each eligible applicant that receives a subgrant 
under section 206 may choose to implement any 1 of the following 4 
school intervention models:
            (1) Transformation model.--A transformation model is one in 
        which the local educational agency--
                    (A) if the principal has led the school for 2 or 
                more years, replaces the principal with a new principal 
                who has demonstrated effectiveness in turning around a 
                low-performing school;
                    (B) uses rigorous, transparent, and equitable 
                evaluation systems to--
                            (i) identify and reward school leaders, 
                        teachers, and other staff who, in implementing 
                        the model, increase student achievement and, if 
                        applicable, high school graduation rates; and
                            (ii) identify and remove school leaders, 
                        teachers, and other staff who, after ample 
                        opportunities have been provided for such 
                        individuals to improve their professional 
                        practice--
                                    (I) do not increase student 
                                achievement;
                                    (II) if applicable, do not increase 
                                high school graduation rates; and
                                    (III) have not demonstrated 
                                effectiveness according to the local 
                                educational agency's evaluation system;
                    (C) provides staff with ongoing, high-quality, job-
                embedded professional development that is aligned with 
                the school's instructional program and evaluation 
                system and facilitates effective teaching and learning, 
                and supports the implementation of school-reform 
                strategies;
                    (D) implements strategies, such as financial 
                incentives, increased opportunities for promotion and 
                career growth, and more flexible work conditions that 
                are designed to recruit, place, and retain staff with 
                the skills necessary to meet the needs of the students 
                in the school;
                    (E) uses data to identify and implement a research-
                based instructional program that--
                            (i) is aligned with State challenging 
                        academic content standards and challenging 
                        student academic achievement standards; and
                            (ii) has proven to raise student academic 
                        achievement by not less than 10 percent in 1 
                        year;
                    (F) establishes schedules and strategies that 
                provide increased learning time, which may include 
                offering full-day kindergarten or a high-quality 
                preschool program or using a longer school day, week, 
                or year that increases the total number of school hours 
                for the school year at a school by not fewer than 300 
                hours to significantly increase the total number of 
                school hours to include additional time for--
                            (i) instruction in core academic subjects, 
                        instructions in such core academic subjects as, 
                        English, reading or language arts, mathematics, 
                        science, foreign languages, civics and 
                        government, economics, arts, history, and 
                        geography; and
                            (ii) instruction in other subjects and 
                        enrichment activities that contribute to a 
                        well-rounded education, such as physical 
                        education, service learning, and experiential 
                        and work-based learning opportunities that are 
                        provided by partnering, as appropriate, with 
                        other organizations;
                    (G) promotes the continuous use of student data to 
                provide instruction that meets the academic needs of 
                individual students, which may include, in elementary 
                school, individual students' levels of school 
                readiness;
                    (H) establishes schedules and strategies that 
                provide increased learning time, which may include 
                expanding the school program to offer full-day 
                kindergarten or a high-quality preschool program;
                    (I) provides ongoing mechanisms for family and 
                community engagement;
                    (J) gives the school sufficient operational 
                flexibility in programming, staffing, budgeting, and 
                scheduling to fully implement a comprehensive strategy 
                designed to substantially improve student achievement 
                and, if applicable, increase the graduation rate;
                    (K) ensures that the school receives ongoing, 
                intensive technical assistance and related support from 
                the local educational agency, the State educational 
                agency, or a designated external lead partner 
                organization; and
                    (L) provides appropriate social-emotional and 
                community-oriented services and supports for students 
                and, at the discretion of the local educational agency, 
                uses not more than 10 percent of the funds available 
                for such school under this part to provide services to 
                meet those needs.
            (2) Restart model.--A restart model is one in which the 
        local educational agency--
                    (A) converts a school or closes and reopens the 
                school--
                            (i) under a charter school operator, a 
                        charter management organization, or an 
                        education management organization; or
                            (ii) as an autonomous or redesigned school;
                    (B) implements a rigorous review process to select 
                such a charter school operator, charter management 
                organization, or education management organization, as 
                applicable, which includes an assurance from such 
                operator or organization that it will make significant 
                changes in the leadership and staffing of the school; 
                and
                    (C) enrolls in the school, within the grades it 
                serves, any former student who wishes to attend the 
                school.
            (3) School closure.--A school closure model is one in which 
        the local educational agency--
                    (A) closes a school and enrolls the students who 
                attended such school in other public schools served by 
                the local educational agency that are higher 
                performing, provided the other schools are within 
                reasonable proximity to the closed school; and
                    (B) provides information, in a timely fashion, in 
                the appropriate language, and prior to closing the 
                school, to children who attended such closed school and 
                their parents, about high-quality educational options 
                and transition and support services.
            (4) Turnaround model.--A turnaround model is one in which 
        the local educational agency--
                    (A) if the principal has led the school for 2 or 
                more years, replaces the principal with a new principal 
                who has demonstrated effectiveness in turning around a 
                low-performing school;
                    (B) gives the new principal sufficient operational 
                flexibility (including over staffing, the school day 
                and school calendar, and budgeting) to fully implement 
                a comprehensive approach to improve student outcomes;
                    (C) using comprehensive evaluation systems, 
                including the use of student achievement data to 
                measure the effectiveness of staff who can work within 
                the turnaround environment to meet the needs of 
                students--
                            (i) screens all existing staff and retains 
                        not more than 50 percent of such staff; and
                            (ii) requires the principal to justify 
                        personnel decisions, such as hiring, dismissal, 
                        and providing rewards, based on results of such 
                        evaluations;
                    (D) provides staff with ongoing, high-quality, job-
                embedded professional development that is aligned with 
                the school's instructional program, facilitates 
                effective teaching and learning, and supports the 
                implementation of school-reform strategies;
                    (E) adopts a new governance structure for the 
                school, which may include requiring the school to 
                report to a new turnaround office in the local 
                educational agency or State educational agency, hire a 
                turnaround leader who reports directly to the 
                Superintendent or Chief Academic Officer, or enter into 
                a multi-year agreement with the local educational 
                agency or State educational agency to obtain added 
                flexibility in exchange for greater accountability;
                    (F) uses data to identify and implement a research-
                based instructional program and promotes the continuous 
                use of data to evaluate school improvement strategies 
                and to inform the differentiated instruction in order 
                to meet the academic needs of individual students;
                    (G) encourages the use of extended learning time 
                partnerships;
                    (H) establishes schedules and strategies that 
                provide increased learning time, which may include 
                offering full-day kindergarten or a high-quality 
                preschool program or using a longer school day, week, 
                or year that increases the total number of school hours 
                for the school year at a school by not fewer than 300 
                hours to significantly increase the total number of 
                school hours to include additional time for--
                            (i) instruction in such core academic 
                        subjects as English, reading or language arts, 
                        mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics 
                        and government, economics, arts, history, and 
                        geography;
                            (ii) instruction in other subjects and 
                        enrichment activities that contribute to a 
                        well-rounded education, such as physical 
                        education, service learning, and experiential 
                        and work-based learning opportunities that are 
                        provided by partnering, as appropriate, with 
                        other organizations; and
                            (iii) teachers to collaborate, plan, and 
                        engage in professional development within and 
                        across grades and subjects;
                    (I) provides ongoing mechanisms for family and 
                community engagement;
                    (J) provides appropriate social-emotional and 
                community-oriented services and supports for students; 
                and
                    (K) may include any of the strategies described in 
                paragraph (1).
    (b) Using Funds for Comprehensive Services To Address Issues.--In 
implementing any of the school intervention models described in 
subsection (a), the local educational agency--
            (1) shall identify and address issues that may contribute 
        to low academic achievement in those schools; and
            (2) may use funds under this title to provide comprehensive 
        services to address those issues and meet the full range of 
        student needs.

SEC. 208. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this title 
$600,000,000 for fiscal year 2012 and such sums as may be necessary for 
each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years.
                                 <all>