[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 22 (Thursday, February 15, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1509-S1511]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. REED:
  S. 371. A bill to establish and expand child opportunity zone family 
centers in public elementary schools and secondary schools, and for 
their purposes; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation that 
seeks to remove barriers to learning by encouraging communities to 
coordinate community services through school-based or school-linked 
family centers. These centers would provide a comprehensive array of 
information, support, services, and activities to improve the 
education, health, mental health, safety, and economic well-being of 
children and their families.
  As we strive to ensure the academic and future success of our 
students, we must recognize that the increasingly complex needs of 
children cannot be met by our schools and teachers alone. Children 
bring many social, health, and family problems to school, which leaves 
them in no shape to learn.
  Some facts to illustrate this point:
  Today, 7.5 million children under the age of 18 require mental health 
services, while the National Institute of Mental Health estimates that 
fewer than one in five receive the help they need.
  11.3 million children--more than 90 percent of them in working 
families--have no health insurance.
  It is estimated that nearly five million school-age children spend 
time without adult supervision during a typical week. Meanwhile, FBI 
data show that the peak hours for violent juvenile crime occur during 
the after-school hours of 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
  Also according to the FBI, juveniles accounted for 17 percent of all 
violent crime arrests in 1997, and juveniles are victims in nearly 25 
percent of all crimes.
  Programs and services exist to deal with these and other needs facing 
children--SCHIP, WIC, and after school programs, to name a few. 
However, too many children can't access such programs and services, 
and, consequently, too many children don't get the help they need. This 
is because these services are often too disjointed and fragmented, 
making it difficult for many families to find a point of entry. This 
problem is especially acute in low-income urban and rural areas.
  To address these and other serious issues facing our children and 
families, a few states and localities have established centers and 
developed programs designed to provide families with access and 
linkages to needed social services, like health and mental health care, 
nutritional programs, child care, housing, and job training, in a 
location that is easily accessed by families--their children's school. 
The aim of my legislation is to support and expand such efforts.
  Research indicates that school-linked family center programs are a 
cost-effective way to provide supports to children and families. 
According to a report by the Department of Education's Northeast and 
Islands Regional Educational Laboratory, school-linked services can 
also ``help to increase student achievement, save money and reduce 
overlapping services, reach those children and families most in need, 
make schools more welcoming to families, increase community support for 
the school, and help at-risk families develop the capacity to manage 
their own lives successfully.'' Moreover, according to a 1999 American 
Association of School Administrators Nationwide Survey, 82 percent of 
parents would like family centers in their schools to help improve 
their schools.
  My legislation, the Child Opportunity Zone Family Center Act, builds 
on a successful model in my home state of Rhode Island, the Rhode 
Island Child Opportunity Zone (COZ) Family Center initiative, as well 
as Kentucky's Family Resource and Youth Service Centers, and 
Minnesota's Family Service program.
  The Child Opportunity Zone Family Center Act, which is supported by 
more than 30 health, education, and children's organizations, would 
provide grants on a competitive basis to partnerships consisting of a 
high poverty public school; school district; other public agency, such 
as a department of health or social services; and non-profit community 
organizations. Partnerships would be required to complete a needs 
assessment, and then use this information to provide children and 
families with linkages to existing community prevention and 
intervention services in core areas such as education, child care, non-
school hours care and enrichment programs, health services, mental 
health services, nutrition, family support, literacy services, 
parenting skills, and dropout prevention. In addition, partnerships 
would provide violence prevention education to children and families, 
as well as training to enable families to help their children meet 
challenging standards and succeed in school.
  The guiding principle of Rhode Island's COZ Family Centers is to help 
children and families get the assistance they need so children are 
ready to learn in the classroom. This principle is reflected in my 
legislation, which contains accountability provisions to ensure that 
partnerships focus on improvements in student achievement, family 
participation in schools, access to health care, mental health care, 
child care, as well as family support services, and work to reduce 
violence among youth, truancy, suspension, and dropout rates in order 
to continue to receive funding.
  As we again begin to consider the reauthorization of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act, I believe that it is critical that we do 
all we can to provide a seamless, integrated system of support for 
children and families. By giving families an opportunity to get the 
support they need, we can truly help children come to school ready to 
learn and in turn help children succeed in school and life. I urge my 
colleagues to cosponsor this important legislation and work for its 
inclusion in the upcoming reauthorization of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record along with a letter of support.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                 S. 371

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. CHILD OPPORTUNITY ZONE FAMILY CENTERS.

       Title X of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 8001 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
     the following:

            ``Part L--Child Opportunity Zone Family Centers

     ``SEC. 10995A. SHORT TITLE.

       ``This part may be cited as the `Child Opportunity Zone 
     Family Center Act of 2001'.

     ``SEC. 10995B. PURPOSE.

       ``The purpose of this part is to encourage eligible 
     partnerships to establish or expand child opportunity zone 
     family centers in public elementary schools and secondary 
     schools in order to provide comprehensive support services 
     for children and their families, and to improve the 
     children's educational, health, mental health, and social 
     outcomes.

     ``SEC. 10995C. DEFINITIONS.

       ``In this part:
       ``(1) Child opportunity zone family center.--The term 
     `child opportunity zone family center' means a school-based 
     or school-linked community service center that provides and 
     links children and their families with comprehensive 
     information, support, services, and activities to improve the 
     education, health, mental health, safety, and economic well-
     being of the children and their families.
       ``(2) Eligible partnership.--The term `eligible 
     partnership' means a partnership--
       ``(A) that contains--
       ``(i) at least 1 public elementary school or secondary 
     school that--

[[Page S1510]]

       ``(I) receives assistance under title I and for which a 
     measure of poverty determination is made under section 
     1113(a)(5) with respect to a minimum of 40 percent of the 
     children in the school; and
       ``(II) demonstrates parent involvement and parent support 
     for the partnership's activities;

       ``(ii) a local educational agency;
       ``(iii) a public agency, other than a local educational 
     agency, such as a local or State department of health, mental 
     health, or social services; and
       ``(iv) a nonprofit community-based organization, providing 
     health, mental health, or social services;
       ``(v) a local child care resource and referral agency; and
       ``(vi) a local organization representing parents; and
       ``(B) that may contain--
       ``(i) an institution of higher education; and
       ``(ii) other public or private nonprofit entities with 
     experience in providing services to disadvantaged families.

     ``SEC. 10995D. GRANTS AUTHORIZED.

       ``(a) In General.--The Secretary may award, on a 
     competitive basis, grants to eligible partnerships to pay for 
     the Federal share of the cost of establishing and expanding 
     child opportunity zone family centers.
       ``(b) Duration.--The Secretary shall award grants under 
     this section for periods of 5 years.

     ``SEC. 10995E. REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.

       ``Each eligible partnership receiving a grant under this 
     part shall use the grant funds--
       ``(1) in accordance with the needs assessment described in 
     section 10995F(b)(1), to provide or link children and their 
     families with information, support, activities, or services 
     in core areas such as education, child care, before- and 
     after-school care and enrichment programs, health services, 
     mental health services, family support, nutrition, literacy 
     services, parenting skills, and drop-out prevention;
       ``(2) to provide intensive, high-quality, research-based 
     programs that--
       ``(A) provide violence prevention education for families 
     and developmentally appropriate instructional services to 
     children (including children below the age of compulsory 
     school attendance); and
       ``(B) provide effective strategies for nurturing and 
     supporting the emotional, social, and cognitive growth of 
     children; and
       ``(3) to provide training, information, and support to 
     families to enable the families to participate effectively in 
     their children's education, and to help their children meet 
     challenging standards, including assisting families to--
       ``(A) understand the applicable accountability systems, 
     including State and local content standards, performance 
     standards, and assessments, their children's educational 
     performance in comparison to the standards, and the steps the 
     school is taking to address the children's needs and to help 
     the children meet the standards; and
       ``(B) communicate effectively with personnel responsible 
     for providing educational services to the families' children, 
     and to participate in the development and implementation of 
     school-parent compacts, parent involvement policies, and 
     school plans.

     ``SEC. 10995F. APPLICATIONS.

       ``(a) In General.--Each eligible partnership desiring a 
     grant under this part shall submit an application to the 
     Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
     information as the Secretary may require.
       ``(b) Contents.--Each application submitted pursuant to 
     subsection (a) shall--
       ``(1) include a needs assessment, including a description 
     of how the partnership will ensure that the activities to be 
     assisted under this part will be tailored to meet the 
     specific needs of the children and families to be served;
       ``(2) describe arrangements that have been formalized 
     between the participating public elementary school or 
     secondary school, and other partnership members;
       ``(3) describe how the partnership will effectively 
     coordinate with the centers under section 1118 and utilize 
     Federal, State, and local sources of funding that provide 
     assistance to families and their children;
       ``(4) describe the partnership's plan to--
       ``(A) develop and carry out the activities assisted under 
     this part with extensive participation of parents, 
     administrators, teachers, pupil services personnel, social 
     and human service agencies, and community organizations and 
     leaders; and
       ``(B) coordinate the activities assisted under this part 
     with the education reform efforts of the participating public 
     elementary school or secondary school, and the participating 
     local educational agency;
       ``(5) describe how the partnership will ensure that 
     underserved populations such as families of students with 
     limited English proficiency, or families of students with 
     disabilities, are effectively involved, informed, and 
     assisted;
       ``(6) describe how the partnership will collect and analyze 
     data, and will utilize specific performance measures and 
     indicators to--
       ``(A) determine the impact of activities assisted under 
     this part as described in section 10995I(a); and
       ``(B) improve the activities assisted under this part; and
       ``(7) describe how the partnership will protect the privacy 
     of families and their children participating in the 
     activities assisted under this part.

     ``SEC. 10995G. FEDERAL SHARE.

       ``The Federal share of the cost of establishing and 
     expanding child opportunity zone family centers--
       ``(1) for the first year for which an eligible partnership 
     receives assistance under this part shall not exceed 90 
     percent;
       ``(2) for the second such year, shall not exceed 80 
     percent;
       ``(3) for the third such year, shall not exceed 70 percent;
       ``(4) for the fourth such year, shall not exceed 60 
     percent; and
       ``(5) for the fifth such year, shall not exceed 50 percent.

     ``SEC. 10995H. FUNDING.

       ``(a) Continuation of Funding.--Each eligible partnership 
     that receives a grant under this part shall, after the third 
     year for which the partnership receives funds through the 
     grant, be eligible to continue to receive the funds if the 
     Secretary determines that the partnership has made 
     significant progress in meeting the performance measures used 
     for the partnership's local evaluation under section 
     10995I(a).
       ``(b) Limitation on Use of Funds to Offset Other 
     Programs.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, none 
     of the funds received under a grant under this part may be 
     used to pay for expenses related to any other Federal 
     program, including treating such funds as an offset against 
     such a Federal program.

     ``SEC. 10995I. EVALUATIONS AND REPORTS.

       ``(a) Local Evaluations.--Each partnership receiving funds 
     under this part shall conduct annual evaluations and submit 
     to the Secretary reports containing the results of the 
     evaluations. The reports shall include the results of the 
     partnership's performance assessment effectiveness in 
     reaching and meeting the needs of families and children 
     served under this part, including performance measures 
     demonstrating--
       ``(1) improvements in areas such as student achievement, 
     family participation in schools, and access to health care, 
     mental health care, child care, and family support services, 
     resulting from activities assisted under this part; and
       ``(2) reductions in such areas as violence among youth, 
     truancy, suspension, and dropout rates, resulting from 
     activities assisted under this part.
       ``(b) National Evaluations.--The Secretary shall reserve 
     not more than 3 percent of the amount appropriated under this 
     part to carry out a national evaluation of the effectiveness 
     of the activities assisted under this part. Such evaluation 
     shall be completed not later than 3 years after the date of 
     enactment of the Child Opportunity Zone Family Center Act of 
     2001, and every year thereafter and shall be submitted to 
     Congress.
       ``(c) Exemplary Activities.--The Secretary shall broadly 
     disseminate information on exemplary activities developed 
     under this part.

     ``SEC. 10995J. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       ``There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
     part $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2002, and such sums as may 
     be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2003 through 
     2005.''.
                                  ____

                                              American Association


                                          of University Women,

                                Washington, DC, February 15, 2001.

       Dear Senator Reed: The undersigned organizations, 
     representing parents, educators, early childhood 
     professionals, health professionals, pupil services 
     personnel, and education advocates thank you for introducing 
     the Child Opportunity Zone Family Center Act (COZ). The Reed 
     COZ bill would ensure the coordination of services in order 
     to remove barriers to learning. According to a report of the 
     Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory, 
     school-linked services ``help to increase student 
     achievement, save money, and reduce overlapping services, 
     reach those children and families most in need, make schools 
     more welcoming to families, increase community support for 
     the school, and help at-risk families develop the capacity to 
     manage their own lives successfully.''
       Unfortunately, too many children today are struggling with 
     a variety of problems that make their ability to meet 
     challenging academic standards much more difficult. 
     Inadequate access to health care, lack of family and child 
     mental health services, poor nutrition, abuse, and other 
     social ills undercut these children's ability to succeed in 
     the classroom and in their daily lives. The coordination of 
     schools with the range of supportive services that children 
     and families need is particularly important in low-income 
     urban and rural areas. Families that need and would otherwise 
     be eligible to receive services simply cannot access them 
     without coordination at or through the schools.
       The Reed COZ bill draws on successful efforts already 
     underway in some areas. Kentucky's Family Resource and Youth 
     Service Centers, Minnesota's Family Service program, and 
     Rhode Island's Child Opportunity Zone Family Center 
     Initiative need to be replicated more widely. The current 
     barriers to these important services are pervasive in every 
     state. We believe that these proposed grants are critical to 
     helping schools and school districts partner with communities 
     and parents to make possible the school-

[[Page S1511]]

     linked or school-based coordination of the necessary services 
     for strengthening our nation's children.
       Once again, we thank you for introducing the Reed Child 
     Opportunity Zone Family Center Act. We look forward to 
     working with you on this and many other important issues in 
     the future.
           Sincerely,
       American Association of University Women.
       American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.
       American Association of School Administrators.
       American Counseling Association.
       American Federation of Teachers.
       American Psychological Association.
       American School Counselor Association.
       Association of Educational Service Agencies.
       Council for Exceptional Children.
       General Federation of Women's Clubs.
       National Alliance of Black School Educators.
       National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity.
       National Association for Bilingual Education.
       National Association for the Education of Young Children.
       National Association of Elementary School Principals.
       National Association of Pupil Services Administrators.
       National Association of school Psychologists.
       National Association of Secondary School Principals.
       National Association of Social Workers.
       National Association of State Directors of Special 
     Education.
       National Coalition for Sex Equity in Education.
       National Council of Administrative Women in Education.
       National Council of La Raza.
       National Education Association.
       National Education Knowledge Industry Association.
       National PTA.
       National Rural Education Association.
       National School Boards Association.
       School Social Work Association of America.
       Wider Opportunities for Women.
       Women & Philanthropy.
                                 ______