To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to reserve funds to provide special training, technical assistance, and professional development to eligible entities implementing Even Start programs and to the staff of such programs, and for other purposes.

Summary: Even Start Quality Improvement Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to reserve certain funds for grants and contracts to eligible organizations to provide special training, technical assistance, and professional development to eligible entities implementing Even Start programs and to the staff of such programs.Directs the Secretary to contract with a qualified entity with experience and expertise in family literacy services to conduct a study and assess the impact of the William F. Goodling Even Start Family Literacy Program on children who participated in it and who are in the third or fourth grade during the study, and on their parents and other adults who participated with them.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Even Start Quality Improvement 
Act''.

SEC. 2. RESERVATION FOR SPECIAL TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) In General.--Section 1232(b) of Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6381a(b)) is amended by adding at the 
end the following:
            ``(3) Special Training and Technical Assistance.--
                    ``(A) In general.--For the first fiscal year after 
                fiscal year 2002 for which the amount appropriated 
                under section 1002(b)(3) exceeds the amount 
                appropriated under such section for the preceding 
                fiscal year by $8,000,000 or more, the Secretary shall 
                reserve from such excess amount $5,000,000. The 
                Secretary shall use such reserved amount to provide 
                special training, technical assistance, and 
                professional development to eligible entities 
                implementing Even Start programs, and to the staff of 
                such programs, in order to improve the quality of 
                services for eligible participants, and to assist 
                personnel in meeting the professional development 
                requirements described in section 1235(5).
                    ``(B) Grant or contract.--The Secretary shall carry 
                out subparagraph (A) by entering into a grant or 
                contract with not less than 2 eligible organizations 
                with experience and expertise in the provision of 
                training, technical assistance, and professional 
                development to family literacy providers, particularly 
                eligible organizations with experience in the provision 
                of such services to Even Start programs. Such entities 
                may include the National Even Start Association, the 
                National Center for Family Literacy, and the William F. 
                Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy. In 
                awarding grants or contracts under this subparagraph, 
                the Secretary shall give priority to eligible 
                organizations that work cooperatively with other 
                eligible organizations.
                    ``(C) Activities.--Activities carried out with 
                amounts reserved under this paragraph shall include--
                            ``(i) training and technical assistance;
                            ``(ii) assistance to personnel in meeting 
                        the professional development requirements 
                        described in section 1235(5); and
                            ``(iii) training and the development of 
                        materials to ensure that instructional programs 
                        are based on scientifically based reading 
                        research.
                    ``(D) Identification of programs.--States shall 
                identify, based on the indicators of program quality 
                developed by the State under section 1240 and other 
                information available to the State, a list of the Even 
                Start programs in the State that are in need of 
                training, technical assistance, and professional 
                development.
                    ``(E) Application for assistance.--Even Start 
                programs identified under subparagraph (D) may submit 
                an application for assistance under this paragraph to 
                the Secretary. Based on need and the quality of the 
                application, the Secretary shall select the programs to 
                be assisted and refer each approved application to an 
                eligible organization described in subparagraph (B) 
                that has expertise and experience in providing the type 
                of assistance required by such Even Start programs.
                    ``(F) Consultation.--In providing services under 
                this paragraph, eligible organizations shall consult 
                with the National Institute of Child Health and Human 
                Development and the National Institute for Literacy for 
                guidance in identifying--
                            ``(i) literacy and reading instructional 
                        approaches and practices that are based on 
                        scientifically based reading research; and
                            ``(ii) best practices for serving adult 
                        learners.''.
    (b) Eligible Organization Defined.--Section 1232(e)(2) of 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6381a(e)(2)) 
is amended by inserting ``the National Even Start Association,'' after 
``Center for Family Literacy,''.

SEC. 3. STUDY OF EVEN START PARTICIPANTS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall contract with a qualified 
entity (such as a private organization, governmental agency, or 
institution of higher education) with experience and expertise in 
family literacy services (as defined in section 9101 of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)) to conduct a 
study of--
            (1) children who participated in the program known as the 
        ``William F. Goodling Even Start Family Literacy Program'' 
        (authorized, on the date of the enactment of this Act, under 
        subpart 3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6381-6381k)) and are in the 
        3rd or 4th grade during the study;
            (2) the parents of such children; and
            (3) other adults who participated with such children in 
        such program.
    (b) Assessing Results of Children's Participation.--
            (1) In general.--The study shall assess the impact of 
        participation by such children in such program with respect 
        to--
                    (A) whether or not such children are reading on 
                grade level and otherwise performing on a level equal 
                to or better than their peers;
                    (B) school attendance; and
                    (C) whether or not such children have been retained 
                for more than 1 year in any grade and the reasons for 
                such retention, if applicable.
            (2) Parental consent.--The consent of a child's parent (as 
        defined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)) shall be obtained prior 
        to commencing any effort to obtain data under paragraph (1) 
        with respect to the child.
    (c) Assessing Results of Adults' Participation.--
            (1) In general.--The study shall also assess the long-term 
        impact of participation by parents (or other adults) in such 
        program, through methods such as--
                    (A) personal interviews; and
                    (B) testing of such individuals for retained or 
                improved literacy skills (but only in cases in which 
                there are baseline test results for an individual 
                available for comparison that were obtained just prior 
                to the individual's commencing or ceasing participation 
                in such program).
            (2) Information included.--The study shall gather 
        information regarding adult participants' current educational 
        and employment endeavors and the perceived impact of 
        participation in such program on the adult's ability to 
        participate in their child's education.