I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3551 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 by strengthening and expanding 

the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) in order to facilitate the transition of low-income 

high school students into post-secondary education. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 28, 2005 

Mr. FATTAH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 by strengthening and expanding the Gaining Early Awareness and 

Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) in 

order to facilitate the transition of low-income high 

school students into post-secondary education. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘GEAR UP & GO Act’’. 

6 (b) REFERENCES.—Except as otherwise expressly 

7 provided, whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal 
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1 is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, 

2 a section or other provision, the reference shall be consid3 ered to be made to a section or other provision of the 

4 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.). 

5 SEC. 2. CONTINUUM OF SERVICES. 

6 (a) AWARDS.—Section 404A(b)(2)(B) (20 U.S.C. 

7 1070a–21(b)(2)(B)) is amended by inserting after 

8 ‘‘through the completion of secondary school’’ the fol9 lowing: ‘‘or through the first year of attendance at a post10 secondary education institution’’. 

11 (b) COHORT APPROACH.—Section 404B(g)(1)(B) 

12 (20 U.S.C. 1070a–22(g)(1)(B)) is amended by inserting 

13 after ‘‘through the 12th grade’’ the following ‘‘or through 

14 the first year of attendance at a postsecondary education 

15 institution to students in the participating grade level’’. 

16 (c) SPECIAL RULE.—Section 404B(g) is further 

17 amended by adding at the end the following new para18 graph: 

19 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwithstanding para20 graph (1)(A), the Secretary shall allow eligible enti21 ties identified in section 404A(c) to provide services 

22 described in section 404D to students who have re23 ceived services under a previous grant award under 

24 this chapter but have not yet completed the 12th 

25 grade.’’. 
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1 (d) EARLY INTERVENTION.— 

2 (1) USES OF FUNDS.—Section 404D(b)(2) (20 

3 U.S.C. 1070a–24(b)(2)) is amended by inserting 

4 after ‘‘through grade 12’’ the following: ‘‘or through 

5 the first year of attendance at a postsecondary edu6 cation institution’’. 

7 (2) PRIORITY STUDENTS.—Section 404D(c) is 

8 amended by inserting after ‘‘through grade 12’’ the 

9 following ‘‘or through the first year of attendance at 

10 a postsecondary education institution’’. 

11 SEC. 3. CONTINUING ELIGIBILITY. 

12 Section 404A (20 U.S.C. 1070a–21) is amended by 

13 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

14 ‘‘(d) CONTINUING ELIGIBILITY.—An eligible entity 

15 shall not cease to be an eligible entity upon the expiration 

16 of any grant under this chapter (including a continuation 

17 award). The Secretary shall require any such entity seek18 ing a new grant to demonstrate the effectiveness of the 

19 prior programs under this chapter in its plan submitted 

20 under section 404C.’’. 

21 SEC. 4. FINANCIAL EDUCATION AND COUNSELING. 

22 Section 404D (20 U.S.C. 1070a–24) is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (a)(1)(B)(i), by inserting be24 fore the semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, and 
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1 counseling and education regarding financial cost re2 quirements for college’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (b)(2)(A)(ii), by striking ‘‘ca4 reer mentoring’’ inserting ‘‘career planning and 

5 mentoring, academic counseling, and financial lit6 eracy, education, or counseling pertaining to the 

7 process of going to college’’. 

8 SEC. 5. SCHOLARSHIP COMPONENT. 

9 Section 404E(b) (20 U.S.C. 1070a–25(b)(2)) is 

10 amended by striking the last sentence and inserting the 

11 following: ‘‘The minimum amount of scholarship under 

12 this section shall be not less than the minimum award for 

13 a Federal Pell Grant, as described in section 401(b)(5).’’. 

14 SEC. 6. DUAL/CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT. 

15 (a) AMENDMENT.—Chapter 2 of part A of title IV 

16 is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating section 404G and 404H 

18 (20 U.S.C. 1070a–27) as sections 404H and 404I, 

19 respectively; and 

20 (2) by inserting after section 404F the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 404G. DUAL/CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT. 

23 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORITY.—The Secretary is au24 thorized to carry out a program to be known as ‘GEAR 

25 UP & GO’, to provide growing opportunities for dual/con-
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1 current enrollment, which shall be designed to provide low2 income high school students participating in GEAR UP 

3 partnerships or State programs the opportunity to enroll 

4 in college courses while still enrolled in high school. In 

5 such program, students shall not be required to apply for 

6 admission to the institution of higher education in order 

7 to participate, but may receive college credit. 

8 ‘‘(b) STUDENT ELIGIBILITY.—Except as provided in 

9 subsection (e)(2), a student shall be eligible for the pur10 pose of this section, if the student— 

11 ‘‘(1) is enrolled in GEAR UP partnerships or 

12 State programs; 

13 ‘‘(2) is enrolled in 10th, 11th, or 12th grade; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(3) has demonstrated academic readiness for 

16 college courses as determined by the applying entity. 

17 ‘‘(c) PERMISSIBLE SERVICES.—An entity receiving 

18 funding under this section may provide services such as— 

19 ‘‘(1) the offering of core non-remedial college 

20 courses as determined by the post secondary institu21 tion in which participating students— 

22 ‘‘(A) receive instruction from a postsec23 ondary institution faculty member at the sec24 ondary site; 
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1 ‘‘(B) take courses from a postsecondary in2 stitution faculty member on-site at the postsec3 ondary institution; 

4 ‘‘(C) receive college level instruction from 

5 high school faculty who hold the same creden6 tials as postsecondary faculty or who meet 

7 qualifications and standards approved by the 

8 postsecondary institution; or 

9 ‘‘(D) enroll in an early/middle college high 

10 school in which students may earn college credit 

11 through a coherent course of study leading to 

12 a postsecondary degree and high school diploma 

13 in an accelerated timeframe; 

14 ‘‘(2) underwriting the per-credit costs of college 

15 courses; 

16 ‘‘(3) assistance with the selection of core non17 remedial college courses by students; 

18 ‘‘(4) tutorial services pertaining to the core 

19 non-remedial college courses in which students are 

20 enrolled; and 

21 ‘‘(5) purchasing books, supplies, and transpor22 tation. 

23 ‘‘(d) REQUIREMENTS FOR APPROVAL OF APPLICA24 TIONS.—In approving applications for GEAR UP & GO 
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1 under this section for any fiscal year, the Secretary 

2 shall— 

3 ‘‘(1) award funds under this program on an an4 nual basis and determine the average award; 

5 ‘‘(2) take into consideration whether partici6 pating students in a dual/concurrent enrollment pro7 gram will receive college credit; 

8 ‘‘(3) require an assurance that an entity apply9 ing for funding under this section meet the require10 ments of section 404A(c); and 

11 ‘‘(4) not approve a plan unless such a plan— 

12 ‘‘(A) details the criteria used for deter13 mining student academic readiness or qualifica14 tions for participation in the dual/concurrent 

15 enrollment program; and 

16 ‘‘(B) specifies the methods by which funds 

17 will be spent for carrying out the program. 

18 ‘‘(e) EARLY/MIDDLE COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL.— 

19 ‘‘(1) RESERVATION FOR GRANTS.—The Sec20 retary of Education shall reserve, at a maximum, 25 

21 percent of the funds appropriated under subsection 

22 (f) for any fiscal year for a program of grants to 

23 early/middle college high school. 

24 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE PROGRAMS.—For purposes of 

25 this subsection, an early/middle college high school is 
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1 a school that is designed to provide 9th through 

2 12th grade low-income and first-generation college 

3 students with a coherent course of study enabling 

4 them to earn simultaneously a high school diploma 

5 and college credit toward a postsecondary degree. 

6 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS.—Except as provided in 

7 paragraph (4), the programs provided funds under 

8 this subsection shall comply with the requirements of 

9 subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this section. 

10 ‘‘(4) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding subsections 

11 (b)(1) and (d)(3)— 

12 ‘‘(A) a student served in a program funded 

13 by a grant under this subsection is not required 

14 to be enrolled in a GEAR UP partnership or 

15 State program; and 

16 ‘‘(B) an entity applying for funding under 

17 this subsection is not required to meet the re18 quirements of section 404A(c). 

19 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In addi20 tion to the sums authorized by section 404I, there are au21 thorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

22 $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2005 and such sums necessary 

23 for each of the 5 succeeding years.’’. 
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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Chapter 2 of part 

2 A of title IV is further amended by striking ‘‘section 

3 404H’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘section 404I’’. 

4 SEC. 7. EVALUATION, REPORT, AND TECHNICAL ASSIST5 ANCE. 

6 Section 404H (20 U.S.C. 1070a–27), as redesignated 

7 by section 5(1) of this Act, is amended by adding at the 

8 end the following new subsection: 

9 ‘‘(e) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—In order to improve 

10 the impact of the activities assisted under this chapter, 

11 the Secretary shall, from not more than 0.75 percent of 

12 the funds appropriated under section 404I for a fiscal 

13 year, award one or more grants, contracts, or cooperative 

14 agreements to or with public and private institutions and 

15 organizations— 

16 ‘‘(1) to enable the institutions and organiza17 tions to strengthen and promote the success of such 

18 activities and eligible entities; 

19 ‘‘(2) to disseminate and replicate best practices 

20 of activities assisted and eligible entities; and 

21 ‘‘(3) to provide technical assistance regarding 

22 activities and eligible entities assisted under this sec23 tion.’’. 
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1 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 Section 404I (20 U.S.C. 1070a–28), as redesignated 

3 by section 5(1) of this Act, is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘SEC. 404I. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

5 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

6 this chapter $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 and such 

7 sums as may be necessary for each of the 5 succeeding 

8 fiscal years.’’. 

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