I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1569 

To improve the calculation of, the reporting of, and the accountability for, 

secondary school graduation rates. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 17, 2009 

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia (for himself, Mr. HINOJOSA, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. 

FATTAH, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. MEEKS of New York, Ms. CORRINE BROWN

of Florida, Mr. POLIS of Colorado, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. CONYERS, 

Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. HONDA, Ms. CLARKE, Mr. ORTIZ, Ms. 

FUDGE, Ms. LEE of California, and Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor 

A BILL 

To improve the calculation of, the reporting of, and the 

accountability for, secondary school graduation rates. 

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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Every Student Counts 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 


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1 (1) To retain the competitive edge of the 

2 United States in the world economy, it is essential 

3 that America’s youth be prepared for the jobs of 

4 today and for the jobs of the future. Such jobs in5 creasingly require a postsecondary education, and al6 most 90 percent of the fastest growing and best pay7 ing jobs require some postsecondary education ac8 cording to a 2008 Department of Labor report. 

9 (2) Individuals without a secondary school di10 ploma experience higher rates of unemployment, in11 carceration, living in poverty, and receiving public 

12 assistance than individuals with at least a secondary 

13 school diploma. 

14 (3) According to the 2009 Center for Public 

15 Education report ‘‘Better late than never? Exam16 ining late high school graduates’’, on-time gradua17 tion with a regular secondary school diploma leads 

18 to the best outcomes for students, and students who 

19 graduate late with a regular secondary school di20 ploma are more likely to earn an associate’s or a 

21 bachelor’s degree, to be employed full-time, and to 

22 obtain a job with retirement benefits and health in23 surance than either secondary school dropouts or 

24 GED recipients. 


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1 (4) About 1,230,000 secondary school students, 

2 which is approximately one-third of all secondary 

3 school students, fail to graduate with their peers 

4 every year. According to the Department of Edu5 cation, the United States secondary school gradua6 tion rate is the lowest the rate has been since 2002. 

7 (5) The graduation rates for historically dis8 advantaged minority groups are far lower than that 

9 of their White peers. Little more than half of all Af10 rican-American and Hispanic students will finish 

11 secondary school on time with a regular secondary 

12 school diploma compared to over three-quarters of 

13 White students. 

14 (6) Nearly 2,000 secondary schools (about 10 

15 percent of all secondary schools in the United 

16 States) produce about half of the Nation’s secondary 

17 school dropouts. In these schools, the number of sen18 iors is routinely 60 percent or less than the number 

19 of freshmen 3 years earlier. While almost half of the 

20 Nation’s African-American students and nearly 40 

21 percent of Latino students attend these dropout fac22 tories, only 11 percent of White students do. 

23 (7) The graduation rate calculations used by 

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1 scure the graduation rate crisis, particularly for poor 

2 and minority students, but it also makes it impos3 sible to compare graduation rates across schools, 

4 school districts, and States. 

5 (8) The average gap between State-reported 

6 and independently reported graduation rates is ap7 proximately 12 percent. 

8 (9) In 2005, all 50 of the Nation’s Governors 

9 signed the National Governors Association’s Gradua10 tion Rate Compact, pledging to use a common, accu11 rate graduation rate. 

12 (10) In 2008, the Secretary of Education re13 leased final regulations that also require States to 

14 report a common graduation rate calculation. How15 ever, since the Department of Education did not 

16 specify in the regulations what graduation rate goals 

17 and growth targets are appropriate and how States 

18 should include 4-year rates and extended year rates 

19 in calculating adequate yearly progress, it is nec20 essary to clarify these goals, targets and rates in 

21 order to create a meaningful Federal accountability 

22 system for secondary schools. 

23 (11) The most accurate graduation rate calcula24 tions are reliant on high-quality longitudinal data 

25 systems that track individual student data from the 


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1 time a student enters the kindergarten through 

2 grade 12 educational system until the student leaves 

3 the kindergarten through grade 12 educational sys4 tem. In 2008, 42 States had the 4 elements of a 

5 statewide longitudinal data system that are nec6 essary to calculate the National Governor’s Associa7 tion Compact rate at the school level. 

8 (12) Forty-nine States should have secondary 

9 school data that will allow the States to use the Na10 tional Governor’s Association Compact rate formula 

11 not later than school year 2011–2012. 

12 (13) An accountability system with meaningful 

13 graduation rate goals— 

14 (A) holds schools, school districts, and 

15 States responsible for both student achievement 

16 and outcomes; and 

17 (B) ensures that low-performing students 

18 are not unnecessarily held back or pushed out 

19 (encouraged to leave school without a diploma). 

20 (14) Prior to the 2008 regulations, the amend21 ments to the Elementary and Secondary Education 

22 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) made by the 

23 No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 

24 107–110) did not require consistent calculations, 

25 meaningful goals, or disaggregation of graduation 


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1 rates. Without clear guidance from the Department 

2 of Education, most secondary schools can continue 

3 to make adequate yearly progress by making as little 

4 as 0.1 percent improvement or less in secondary 

5 school graduation rates each year and can do so 

6 with a consistent, or even growing, secondary school 

7 graduation gap. 

8 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

9 The purposes of this Act are— 

10 (1) to require consistent calculations and re11 porting of secondary school graduation rates across 

12 schools, school districts, and States; 

13 (2) to provide educators with critical informa14 tion about students’ progress toward secondary 

15 school graduation; and 

16 (3) to ensure meaningful accountability for the 

17 improvement of secondary school graduation rates 

18 for all students, particularly those rates for poor and 

19 minority students. 

20 SEC. 4. SECONDARY SCHOOL GRADUATION RATES. 

21 Subpart 1 of part A of title I of the Elementary and 

22 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et 

23 seq.) is amended by inserting after section 1111 (20 

24 U.S.C. 6311) the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 1111A. SECONDARY SCHOOL GRADUATION RATES. 

2 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

3 ‘‘(1) ADJUSTED COHORT; TRANSFERRED IN; 

4 TRANSFERRED OUT.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara6 graphs (C)(ii) through (F), the term ‘adjusted 

7 cohort’ means the difference of— 

8 ‘‘(i) the sum of— 

9 ‘‘(I) the number of first-time 

10 ninth graders; plus 

11 ‘‘(II) any students that trans12 ferred in to the cohort in any of 

13 grades 9 through 12; minus 

14 ‘‘(ii) any students removed from the 

15 cohort. 

16 ‘‘(B) TRANSFERRED IN.—The term ‘trans17 ferred in’ when used with respect to a sec18 ondary school student, means a student who en19 rolls after the beginning of the entering cohort’s 

20 first year in secondary school, up to and includ21 ing enrolling in grade 12. 

22 ‘‘(C) TRANSFERRED OUT.— 

23 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘trans24 ferred out’ when used with respect to a 

25 secondary school student, means a student 

26 who the secondary school or local eduVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:09 Mar 18, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1569.IH H1569

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1 cational agency confirms has transferred to 

2 another school or another educational pro3 gram for which the student is expected to 

4 receive a regular secondary school diploma. 

5 ‘‘(ii) CONFIRMATION REQUIRE6 MENTS.— 

7 ‘‘(I) DOCUMENTATION RE8 QUIRED.—The confirmation of a stu9 dent’s transfer to another school or 

10 educational program described in 

11 clause (i) requires documentation 

12 from the receiving school or program 

13 that the student enrolled in the receiv14 ing school or program. 

15 ‘‘(II) LACK OF CONFIRMATION.— 

16 A student who was enrolled, but for 

17 whom there is no confirmation of 

18 transfer or completion, shall not be 

19 considered a transfer or an error, but 

20 shall remain in the cohort as a non21 graduate for reporting and account22 ability purposes under this section. 

23 ‘‘(iii) PROGRAMS NOT PROVIDING

24 CREDIT.—A student enrolled in a GED or 

25 other alternative educational program that 


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1 does not issue or provide credit toward the 

2 issuance of a regular secondary school di3 ploma shall not be considered transferred 

4 out. 

5 ‘‘(D) COHORT REMOVAL.—To remove a 

6 student from a cohort, a school or local edu7 cational agency shall confirm that the student 

8 has transferred out, emigrated, or is deceased. 

9 ‘‘(E) TREATMENT OF OTHER LEAVERS

10 AND WITHDRAWALS.—A student who was re11 tained in a grade, enrolled in a GED program, 

12 aged-out of a secondary school or secondary 

13 school program, or left secondary school for any 

14 other reason, including expulsion, shall not be 

15 considered transferred out, and shall remain in 

16 the adjusted cohort. 

17 ‘‘(F) SPECIAL RULE.—For those secondary 

18 schools that start after grade 9, the cohort shall 

19 be calculated based on the earliest secondary 

20 school grade at the secondary school. 

21 ‘‘(2) ALTERNATIVE EDUCATIONAL SETTING.— 

22 The term ‘alternative educational setting’ means— 

23 ‘‘(A) a secondary school or secondary 

24 school educational program that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) is designed for students who are 

2 under-credited or have dropped out of sec3 ondary school; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) awards a regular secondary 

5 school diploma; or 

6 ‘‘(B) a secondary school or secondary 

7 school educational program designed to issue a 

8 regular secondary school diploma concurrently 

9 with a postsecondary degree or not more than 

10 2 years of college credit. 

11 ‘‘(3) CUMULATIVE GRADUATION RATE.—The 

12 term ‘cumulative graduation rate’ means, for each 

13 school year, the percent obtained by calculating the 

14 product of— 

15 ‘‘(A) the result of— 

16 ‘‘(i) the sum of— 

17 ‘‘(I) the number of students 

18 who— 

19 ‘‘(aa) formed the adjusted 

20 cohort 4 years earlier; and 

21 ‘‘(bb) graduate in 4 years or 

22 less with a regular secondary 

23 school diploma (which shall not 

24 include a GED or other certifi25 cate of completion or alternative 


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1 to a diploma except as provided 

2 in paragraph (6)(B)); plus 

3 ‘‘(II) the number of additional 

4 students from previous cohorts who 

5 graduate in more than 4 years with a 

6 regular secondary school diploma 

7 (which shall not include a GED or 

8 other certificate of completion or al9 ternative to a diploma except as pro10 vided in paragraph (6)(B)); divided by 

11 ‘‘(ii) the sum of— 

12 ‘‘(I) the number of students who 

13 formed the adjusted cohort for that 

14 graduating class 4 years earlier; plus 

15 ‘‘(II) the number of additional 

16 student graduates described in clause 

17 (i)(II); multiplied by 

18 ‘‘(B) 100. 

19 ‘‘(4) 4-YEAR ADJUSTED COHORT GRADUATION

20 RATE.—The term ‘4-year adjusted cohort graduation 

21 rate’ means the percent obtained by calculating the 

22 product of— 

23 ‘‘(A) the result of— 

24 ‘‘(i) the number of students who— 


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1 ‘‘(I) formed the adjusted cohort 4 

2 years earlier; and 

3 ‘‘(II) graduate in 4 years or less 

4 with a regular secondary school di5 ploma (which shall not include a GED 

6 or other certificate of completion or 

7 alternative to a diploma except as pro8 vided in paragraph (6)(B)); divided by 

9 ‘‘(ii) the number of students who 

10 formed the adjusted cohort for that grad11 uating class 4 years earlier; multiplied by 

12 ‘‘(B) 100. 

13 ‘‘(5) ON-TRACK STUDENT.—The term ‘on-track 

14 student’ means a student who— 

15 ‘‘(A) has accumulated the number of cred16 its necessary to promote to the next grade, in 

17 accordance with State and local educational 

18 agency policies; and 

19 ‘‘(B) has failed not more than 1 semester 

20 in English or language arts, mathematics, 

21 science, or social studies. 

22 ‘‘(6) REGULAR SECONDARY SCHOOL DI23 PLOMA.— 

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1 ondary school diploma awarded to the prepon2 derance of students in the State that is fully 

3 aligned with State standards, or a higher di4 ploma. Such term shall not include GEDs, cer5 tificates of attendance, or any lesser diploma 

6 award. 

7 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE.—For a student who 

8 has a significant cognitive disability and is as9 sessed using an alternate assessment aligned to 

10 an alternate achievement standard, receipt of a 

11 regular secondary school diploma or a State-de12 fined alternate diploma aligned with completion 

13 of the student’s right to a free and appropriate 

14 public education under the Individuals with 

15 Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et 

16 seq.) shall be counted as graduating with a reg17 ular secondary school diploma for the purposes 

18 of this section, except that not more than 1 per19 cent of students served by the State or local 

20 educational agency, as appropriate, shall be 

21 counted as graduates with a regular secondary 

22 school diploma under this subparagraph. 

23 ‘‘(7) UNDER-CREDITED STUDENT.—The term 

24 ‘under-credited student’ means a secondary school 

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1 pected accumulation of credits or courses toward an 

2 on-time graduation as determined by the relevant 

3 local educational agency’s and State educational 

4 agency’s secondary school graduation requirements 

5 for an on-time graduation. 

6 ‘‘(b) CALCULATING AND REPORTING ACCURATE

7 GRADUATION RATES.— 

8 ‘‘(1) CALCULATING GRADUATION RATES.—Not 

9 later than school year 2010–2011, and every school 

10 year thereafter, each State educational agency and 

11 local educational agency that is assisted under this 

12 part shall calculate, using a statewide longitudinal 

13 data system with individual student identifiers for 

14 each school served by the State or local educational 

15 agency, as the case may be— 

16 ‘‘(A) the 4-year adjusted cohort graduation 

17 rate; and 

18 ‘‘(B) the cumulative graduation rate. 

19 ‘‘(2) CALCULATION AT SCHOOL, LEA, AND

20 STATE LEVELS; DISAGGREGATION.—The 4-year ad21 justed cohort graduation rate and the cumulative 

22 graduation rate shall be calculated at the school, 

23 local educational agency, and State levels in the ag24 gregate and disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, 

25 disability status, migrant status, English proficiency, 


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1 and status as economically disadvantaged, except 

2 that such disaggregation shall not be required in a 

3 case in which the number of students in a subgroup 

4 is insufficient to yield statistically reliable informa5 tion or the results would reveal personally identifi6 able information about an individual student. 

7 ‘‘(3) REPORTING GRADUATION RATES.—Subject 

8 to paragraph (4), not later than school year 2010– 

9 2011, and every school year thereafter, each State 

10 educational agency, local educational agency and 

11 school that is assisted under this part shall report 

12 annually, as part of the State and local educational 

13 agency report cards required under section 1111(h), 

14 each of the following: 

15 ‘‘(A) 4-YEAR ADJUSTED COHORT GRADUA16 TION RATE.—The 4-year adjusted cohort grad17 uation rate, in the aggregate and disaggregated 

18 by each of the subgroups described in para19 graph (2). 

20 ‘‘(B) CUMULATIVE GRADUATION RATE.— 

21 The cumulative graduation rate, in the aggre22 gate and disaggregated by each of the sub23 groups described in paragraph (2). 

24 ‘‘(C) NUMBER AND PERCENTAGE OF STU25 DENTS GRADUATING IN MORE THAN 4 YEARS.— 


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1 The number and percentage of secondary school 

2 students graduating in more than 4 years with 

3 a regular secondary school diploma as described 

4 in subsection (a)(3)(A)(i)(II), disaggregated by 

5 the number of years accounted for in the cumu6 lative graduation rate and by each of the sub7 groups described in paragraph (2). 

8 ‘‘(D) NUMBER AND PERCENTAGE OF STU9 DENTS REMOVED FROM COHORT.—The number 

10 and percentage of secondary school students 

11 who have been removed from the adjusted co12 hort, in the aggregate and disaggregated by 

13 each of the subgroups described in paragraph 

14 (2). 

15 ‘‘(E) NUMBER AND PERCENTAGE OF CON16 TINUING STUDENTS.—The number and percent17 age of students from each previous adjusted co18 hort that began 4 years or more earlier who 

19 have not graduated from and are still enrolled 

20 in secondary school. 

21 ‘‘(4) USE OF INTERIM GRADUATION RATE.—In 

22 the case of a State that does not have an individual 

23 student identifier longitudinal data system, with re24 spect to each graduation rate calculation or report25 ing requirement under this section, the State and 


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1 local educational agencies and secondary schools in 

2 the State shall temporarily carry out this section by 

3 using an interim graduation rate calculation that 

4 meets the following conditions: 

5 ‘‘(A) NUMBER OF GRADUATES COMPARED

6 TO NUMBER OF STUDENTS.—The calculation 

7 shall measure or estimate the number of sec8 ondary school graduates compared to the num9 ber of students in the secondary school’s enter10 ing grade. 

11 ‘‘(B) DROPOUT DATA.—The calculation 

12 shall not use dropout data. 

13 ‘‘(C) REGULAR SECONDARY SCHOOL DI14 PLOMA.—The calculation shall count as grad15 uates only those students who receive a regular 

16 secondary school diploma. 

17 ‘‘(D) DISAGGREGATION.—The calculation 

18 shall be disaggregated by each of the subgroups 

19 described in paragraph (2). 

20 ‘‘(E) ANNUAL BASIS AND RATE OF

21 GROWTH.—The calculation shall be used on an 

22 annual basis to determine a rate of growth, as 

23 described in subsection (c). 

24 ‘‘(F) TIMEFRAME LIMITATION.—The in25 terim graduation rate calculation may only be 


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1 used through the end of school year 2010– 

2 2011. 

3 ‘‘(G) REPORTING USE OF INTERIM GRAD4 UATION RATE.—Each State that receives assist5 ance under this part shall describe in the 

6 State’s plan submitted under section 1111 the 

7 interim graduation rate used in accordance with 

8 this paragraph. 

9 ‘‘(5) REPORTING ON ALTERNATIVE SET10 TINGS.—Not later than school year 2010–2011, and 

11 every school year thereafter, each State educational 

12 agency and local educational agency that receives as13 sistance under this part and contains an alternative 

14 education setting which establishes an alternative 4- 

15 year completion requirement as described in sub16 section (c)(3)(C)(iii), shall report annually as part of 

17 the State and local educational agency report cards 

18 required under section 1111(h), the following: 

19 ‘‘(A) The name of each alternative edu20 cation setting that establishes an alternative 4- 

21 year completion requirement. 

22 ‘‘(B) A description of the program pro23 vided at each setting and the population served. 

24 ‘‘(C) The enrollment of such settings in 

25 the aggregate and disaggregated by each of the 


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1 subgroups described in paragraph (2), including 

2 as a percent of overall enrollment. 

3 ‘‘(D) Whether the setting is a new school 

4 or setting. 

5 ‘‘(E) The alternative 4-year completion re6 quirement as described in subsection 

7 (c)(3)(C)(iii). 

8 ‘‘(6) REPORTING PERCENT OF ON-TRACK STU9 DENTS.—Not later than school year 2010–2011, and 

10 every school year thereafter, every State educational 

11 agency, local educational agency, and school that re12 ceives assistance under this part shall report annu13 ally, as part of the State and local educational agen14 cy report cards required under section 1111(h), the 

15 percent of on-track students for each secondary 

16 school grade served by the State educational agency, 

17 local educational agency, and school, respectively, 

18 other than the graduating grade for the secondary 

19 school, in the aggregate and disaggregated by each 

20 of the subgroups described in paragraph (2). 

21 ‘‘(7) REPORTING ADDITIONAL INDICATORS.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State may report 

23 additional complementary indicators of sec24 ondary school completion, such as— 

25 ‘‘(i) a college-ready graduation rate; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a dropout rate; 

2 ‘‘(iii) in-grade retention rates; 

3 ‘‘(iv) percentages of students receiving 

4 GEDs, certificates of completion, or alter5 natives to a diploma; and 

6 ‘‘(v) in the case of a State with exit 

7 examinations, students who have completed 

8 course requirements but failed a State 

9 exam required for secondary school grad10 uation. 

11 ‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS FOR INDICATORS.—The 

12 Secretary shall promulgate and publish in the 

13 Federal Register regulations containing defini14 tions for the indicators described in clauses (i), 

15 (ii), and (iii) of subparagraph (A) that are con16 sistent with the definitions used by the National 

17 Center for Educational Statistics, in order to 

18 ensure that the indicators are comparable 

19 across schools and school districts within a 

20 State. 

21 ‘‘(C) PROHIBITION.—For purposes of re22 porting or accountability under this section, the 

23 additional indicators shall not replace the 4- 

24 year adjusted cohort graduation rate or the cu25 mulative graduation rate. 


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1 ‘‘(D) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing 

2 in this Act shall be construed to prohibit a 

3 State from reporting indicators of secondary 

4 school completion that are not described in sub5 paragraph (A). 

6 ‘‘(8) DATA ANOMALIES.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—When an individual 

8 student record indicates a student was enrolled 

9 in more than 1 secondary school or a student 

10 record shows enrollment in a secondary school 

11 but no subsequent information, such student 

12 record shall be assigned to 1 adjusted cohort 

13 for the purposes of calculating and reporting 

14 school, local educational agency, and State 4- 

15 year adjusted cohort graduation rates and cu16 mulative graduation rates under this sub17 section. 

18 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE.—A student who re19 turns to secondary school after dropping out of 

20 secondary school, or receives a diploma from 

21 more than 1 school or educational program 

22 served by any 1 local educational agency, shall 

23 be counted— 


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1 ‘‘(i) only once for purposes of report2 ing and accountability under this section; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(ii) as part of the student’s original 

5 adjusted cohort. 

6 ‘‘(9) MONITORING OF DATA COLLECTION.— 

7 Each State that receives assistance under this part 

8 shall conduct regular audits of data collection, re9 porting, and calculations by local educational agen10 cies in the State. The Secretary shall assist States 

11 in their efforts to develop and retain the capacity for 

12 collection, analysis, and public reporting of 4-year 

13 adjusted cohort graduation rate and cumulative 

14 graduation rate data. 

15 ‘‘(c) SCHOOL, LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY, AND

16 STATE ACCOUNTABILITY.— 

17 ‘‘(1) GRADUATION RATE GOAL.—Each State 

18 that receives assistance under this part shall seek to 

19 have all students graduate from secondary school 

20 prepared for success in college and work. 

21 ‘‘(2) GRADUATION RATE CALCULATION.—Each 

22 State that receives assistance under this part shall 

23 use aggregate and disaggregated cumulative gradua24 tion rates as the additional indicator described in 

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1 mining each secondary school’s and local educational 

2 agency’s adequate yearly progress. 

3 ‘‘(3) ANNUAL MEASURABLE OBJECTIVES.—The 

4 Secretary shall require a State, local educational 

5 agency, or school that receives assistance under this 

6 part and has a cumulative graduation rate below 90 

7 percent in the aggregate or for any subgroup de8 scribed in subsection (b)(2), to increase the cumu9 lative graduation rate, in the aggregate or for such 

10 subgroup, respectively, in order to make adequate 

11 yearly progress under section 1111(b)(2), as follows: 

12 ‘‘(A) BASELINE FOR CUMULATIVE GRAD13 UATION RATES.—Subject to subparagraph (B), 

14 the cumulative graduation rate calculated and 

15 reported in accordance with this section for the 

16 first school year that begins after the date of 

17 enactment of Every Student Counts Act shall 

18 serve as the baseline graduation rate. Each 

19 school year thereafter, cumulative graduation 

20 rates calculated at the school, local educational 

21 agency, and State levels in the aggregate and 

22 disaggregated by each subgroup described in 

23 subsection (b)(2) shall be evaluated for annual 

24 growth in accordance with subparagraph (C). 


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1 ‘‘(B) BASELINE ADJUSTMENT.—In the 

2 case of a State that uses an interim graduation 

3 rate, after the State has implemented an indi4 vidual student identifier longitudinal data sys5 tem and can calculate the 4-year adjusted co6 hort graduation rate and the cumulative grad7 uation rate, but not later than the 2010–2011 

8 school year, the State shall use the cumulative 

9 graduation rate as the baseline graduation rate 

10 for reporting and accountability under this sec11 tion. 

12 ‘‘(C) ANNUAL GROWTH.— 

13 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In order for a 

14 State, local educational agency, or school 

15 to make adequate yearly progress under 

16 section 1111(b)(2), the State, local edu17 cational agency, or school, respectively, 

18 shall demonstrate increases in the cumu19 lative graduation rate from the baseline 

20 graduation rate, in the aggregate and for 

21 each subgroup described in subsection 

22 (b)(2), by an average of 3 percent per 

23 school year, until the cumulative gradua24 tion rate, in the aggregate and for each 


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1 such subgroup, equals or exceeds 90 per2 cent. 

3 ‘‘(ii) AYP NOT MADE.—A secondary 

4 school shall not be considered to have 

5 made adequate yearly progress under sec6 tion 1111(b)(2) if— 

7 ‘‘(I) the school’s 4-year adjusted 

8 cohort graduation rate, in the aggre9 gate or for any subgroup described in 

10 subsection (b)(2), falls below the co11 hort’s initial baseline graduation rate 

12 or shows no improvement over a 4- 

13 year period; or 

14 ‘‘(II) fewer than 90 percent of 

15 the students included in the cumu16 lative graduation rate, in the aggre17 gate or for any subgroup described in 

18 subsection (b)(2), are students who 

19 graduate from secondary school in 4 

20 years. 

21 ‘‘(iii) SPECIAL RULE.—A secondary 

22 school or secondary school educational pro23 gram that is an alternative education set24 ting may apply to the State to establish an 

25 alternative 4-year completion requirement 


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1 for purposes of determinations under 

2 clause (ii)(II) if— 

3 ‘‘(I) the secondary school or edu4 cational program submits to the 

5 State— 

6 ‘‘(aa) a description of the 

7 secondary school or educational 

8 program; and 

9 ‘‘(bb) an alternative 4-year 

10 completion requirement; and 

11 ‘‘(II) the State approves the use 

12 of the alternative 4-year completion 

13 requirement for such purposes. 

14 ‘‘(4) DELAYED APPLICABILITY TO SCHOOLS.— 

15 Paragraphs (2) and (3)(C) shall not apply to a sec16 ondary school until the beginning of school year 

17 2011–2012. 

18 ‘‘(d) REPORTING REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 90 

19 days after the date of the enactment of the Every Student 

20 Counts Act, and annually thereafter, each State edu21 cational agency that receives assistance under this part 

22 shall submit to the Secretary, and make publicly available, 

23 a report on the implementation of this section. Such report 

24 shall include— 


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27 

•HR 1569 IH

1 ‘‘(1) a description of each category, code, and 

2 the corresponding definition that the State has au3 thorized for identifying, tracking, calculating, and 

4 publicly reporting student status; and 

5 ‘‘(2) if using an interim graduation rate pursu6 ant to subsection (b)(4), a description of the efforts 

7 of the State to implement the cumulative graduation 

8 rate and the expected date of implementation, which 

9 date shall not be later than the beginning of school 

10 year 2011–2012.’’. 

11 SEC. 5. AYP CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

12 Section 1111(b)(2)(C) of the Elementary and Sec13 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(C)) 

14 is amended— 

15 (1) in clause (vi), by striking ‘‘and’’ after the 

16 semicolon; 

17 (2) in clause (vii), by striking the period and in18 serting ‘‘; and’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(viii) complies with the requirements 

21 of section 1111A.’’. 

Æ 


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