II 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1127 

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 regarding 

school libraries, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 10, 2013 

Mr. REED (for himself, Mr. COCHRAN, Mrs. MURRAY, and Mr. WHITEHOUSE) 

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

of 1965 regarding school libraries, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Strengthening Kids’ 

5 Interest in Learning and Libraries Act’’ or the ‘‘SKILLS 

6 Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 

8 Except as otherwise expressly provided, wherever in 

9 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

10 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other proviVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:56 Jun 13, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1127.IS S1127

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1 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 

2 section or other provision of the Elementary and Sec3 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.). 

4 TITLE I—IMPROVING EDU5 CATION THROUGH SCHOOL 

6 LIBRARIES 

7 SEC. 101. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

8 Section 1002(b)(4) (20 U.S.C. 6302(b)(4)) is amend9 ed to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘(4) IMPROVING LITERACY THROUGH SCHOOL

11 LIBRARIES.—For the purpose of carrying out sub12 part 4 of part B, there are authorized to be appro13 priated such sums as may be necessary for fiscal 

14 year 2014 and for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal 

15 years.’’. 

16 SEC. 102. STATE PLANS. 

17 Section 1111(b)(8) (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(8)) is amend18 ed— 

19 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 

20 by inserting ‘‘or include’’ after ‘‘describe’’; 

21 (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

22 after the semicolon; 

23 (3) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as sub24 paragraph (F); and 


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1 (4) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(E) an assurance that the State edu4 cational agency will assist local educational 

5 agencies in developing effective school library 

6 programs to provide students an opportunity to 

7 develop digital literacy skills and the knowledge 

8 and skills described in the challenging academic 

9 content standards adopted by the State; and’’. 

10 SEC. 103. LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY PLANS. 

11 Section 1112(c)(1) (20 U.S.C. 6312(c)(1)) is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) in subparagraph (N), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

14 after the semicolon; 

15 (2) in subparagraph (O), by striking the period 

16 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

18 ‘‘(P) assist each school served by the agen19 cy and assisted under this part in developing ef20 fective school library programs consistent with 

21 section 1111(b)(8)(E).’’. 

22 SEC. 104. SCHOOLWIDE PROGRAMS. 

23 Section 1114(b)(1)(D) (20 U.S.C. 6314(b)(1)(D)) is 

24 amended by inserting ‘‘school librarians,’’ after ‘‘teach25 ers,’’. 


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1 SEC. 105. TARGETED ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS. 

2 Section 1115(c)(1)(F) (20 U.S.C. 6315(c)(1)(F)) is 

3 amended by inserting ‘‘school librarians,’’ after ‘‘teach4 ers,’’. 

5 SEC. 106. IMPROVING LITERACY AND COLLEGE AND CA6 REER READINESS THROUGH EFFECTIVE 

7 SCHOOL LIBRARY PROGRAMS. 

8 Subpart 4 of part B of title I (20 U.S.C. 6383) is 

9 amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘Subpart 4—Improving Literacy and College and Ca11 reer Readiness Through Effective School Li12 brary Programs 

13 ‘‘SEC. 1251. IMPROVING LITERACY AND COLLEGE AND CA14 REER READINESS THROUGH EFFECTIVE 

15 SCHOOL LIBRARY PROGRAMS. 

16 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this subpart is to 

17 improve students’ literacy skills and readiness for higher 

18 education and careers, by providing students with effective 

19 school library programs. 

20 ‘‘(b) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this sec21 tion, the term ‘eligible entity’ means— 

22 ‘‘(1) a local educational agency in which 20 per23 cent of the students served by the local educational 

24 agency are from families with incomes below the 

25 poverty line; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) a consortia of such local educational agen2 cies. 

3 ‘‘(c) RESERVATION.—From the funds appropriated 

4 under section 1002(b)(4) for a fiscal year, the Secretary 

5 shall reserve— 

6 ‘‘(1) one-half of 1 percent to award assistance 

7 under this section to the Bureau of Indian Edu8 cation to carry out activities consistent with the pur9 pose of this subpart; and 

10 ‘‘(2) one-half of 1 percent to award assistance 

11 under this section to the outlying areas according to 

12 their respective needs for assistance under this sub13 part. 

14 ‘‘(d) GRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts appro16 priated under section 1002(b)(4) and not reserved 

17 under subsection (c), the Secretary shall award 

18 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities to 

19 enable such entities to carry out the authorized ac20 tivities described in subsection (e). 

21 ‘‘(2) SUFFICIENT SIZE AND SCOPE.—The Sec22 retary shall award grants under this section of suffi23 cient size and scope to allow the eligible entities to 

24 carry out effective school library programs for which 

25 the grant funds are provided. 


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1 ‘‘(3) DISTRIBUTION.—The Secretary shall en2 sure that grants under this section are equitably dis3 tributed among the different geographic regions of 

4 the United States, and among eligible entities serv5 ing urban and rural areas. 

6 ‘‘(4) DURATION.—The Secretary shall award 

7 grants under this section for a period of 3 years. 

8 ‘‘(5) LOCAL APPLICATIONS.—An eligible entity 

9 desiring to receive a grant under this section shall 

10 submit an application to the Secretary at such time, 

11 in such manner, and containing such information as 

12 the Secretary may require. Such application shall in13 clude, for each school that the eligible entity identi14 fies as participating in a grant program under this 

15 section, the following information: 

16 ‘‘(A) a needs assessment relating to the 

17 need for literacy improvement at all grade levels 

18 and the need for effective school library pro19 grams, based on the age and condition of school 

20 library resources, including— 

21 ‘‘(i) book collections; 

22 ‘‘(ii) access to advanced technology; 

23 ‘‘(iii) the availability of well-trained, 

24 State certified or licensed school librarians; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) the current level of coordination 

2 and shared planning time among school li3 brarians and classroom teachers; 

4 ‘‘(B) a description of which grade spans 

5 will be served, and an assurance that funding 

6 will be distributed to serve students in elemen7 tary, middle, and high schools; 

8 ‘‘(C) how the eligible entity will extensively 

9 involve school librarians, teachers, administra10 tors, and parents in the activities assisted under 

11 this section, and the manner in which the eligi12 ble entity will carry out the activities described 

13 in subsection (e) using programs and materials 

14 that are grounded in scientifically valid re15 search; 

16 ‘‘(D) the manner in which the eligible enti17 ty will effectively coordinate the funds and ac18 tivities provided under this section with Fed19 eral, State, and local funds and activities under 

20 this subpart and other literacy, library, tech21 nology, and professional development funds and 

22 activities, including those funded through the 

23 Institute of Museum and Library Services; and 

24 ‘‘(E) the manner in which the eligible enti25 ty will collect and analyze data on the quality 


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1 and impact of activities carried out under this 

2 section by schools served by the eligible entity. 

3 ‘‘(e) LOCAL ACTIVITIES.—Funds under this section 

4 may be used to develop and enhance effective school li5 brary programs, which may include activities to— 

6 ‘‘(1) acquire up-to-date school library resources, 

7 including books and reading materials that— 

8 ‘‘(A) are appropriate for students in all 

9 grade levels to be served and for students with 

10 special learning needs, including students who 

11 are limited English proficient; and 

12 ‘‘(B) engage the interest of readers at all 

13 reading levels; 

14 ‘‘(2) acquire and use advanced technology, in15 corporated into the curricula of the school, to de16 velop and enhance the digital literacy skills of stu17 dents; 

18 ‘‘(3) facilitate Internet links and other resource19 sharing networks among schools and school libraries, 

20 and public and academic libraries, where possible; 

21 ‘‘(4) provide— 

22 ‘‘(A) professional development in the ac23 quisition of digital literacy skills and literacy in24 struction that is appropriate for all grades, in25 cluding the assessment of student literacy 


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1 needs, the coordination of reading and writing 

2 instruction across content areas, and training in 

3 literacy strategies in all content areas for school 

4 librarians; and 

5 ‘‘(B) activities that foster increased col6 laboration among school librarians, teachers, 

7 and administrators; and 

8 ‘‘(5) provide students with access to school li9 braries during nonschool hours, including the hours 

10 before and after school, during weekends, and dur11 ing summer vacation periods. 

12 ‘‘(f) SUPPLEMENT NOT SUPPLANT.—Funds made 

13 available under this section shall be used to supplement, 

14 and not supplant, other Federal, State, and local funds 

15 expended to carry out activities relating to library, tech16 nology, or professional development activities. 

17 ‘‘(g) ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING.—Each eligi18 ble entity that receives funds under this section for a fiscal 

19 year shall prepare and submit a report to the Secretary 

20 regarding how the funding was used and the extent to 

21 which the availability of, the access to, and the use of, 

22 up-to-date school library resources in the elementary 

23 schools and secondary schools served by the eligible entity 

24 was increased.’’. 


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1 TITLE II—PREPARING, TRAIN2 ING, AND RECRUITING HIGH3 LY EFFECTIVE TEACHERS, 

4 SCHOOL LIBRARIANS, AND 

5 PRINCIPALS 

6 SEC. 201. TEACHER, SCHOOL LIBRARIAN, AND PRINCIPAL 

7 TRAINING AND RECRUITING FUND. 

8 Title II (20 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.) is amended— 

9 (1) in the title heading, by striking ‘‘HIGH 

10 QUALITY TEACHERS AND PRIN11 CIPALS’’ and inserting ‘‘HIGHLY EFFEC12 TIVE TEACHERS, SCHOOL LIBRAR13 IANS, AND PRINCIPALS’’; and 

14 (2) in the part heading for part A, by striking 

15 ‘‘TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘TEACHER, SCHOOL LIBRARIAN, AND PRIN17 CIPAL’’. 

18 SEC. 202. PURPOSE. 

19 Section 2101(1) (20 U.S.C. 6601(1)) is amended to 

20 read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(1) increase student achievement through 

22 strategies such as— 

23 ‘‘(A) improving teacher, school librarian, 

24 and principal quality; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) increasing the number of highly effec2 tive teachers in the classroom, highly effective 

3 school librarians in the library, and highly effec4 tive principals and assistant principals in the 

5 school; and’’. 

6 SEC. 203. STATE APPLICATIONS. 

7 Section 2112(b)(4) (20 U.S.C. 6612(b)(4)) is amend8 ed by inserting ‘‘, school librarians,’’ before ‘‘and prin9 cipals’’. 

10 SEC. 204. STATE USE OF FUNDS. 

11 Section 2113(c) (20 U.S.C. 6613(c)) is amended— 

12 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

13 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

14 (A), by striking ‘‘principals,’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘highly effective school librarians, and highly 

16 qualified principals and’’; and 

17 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘, 

18 principals,’’ and inserting ‘‘, highly effective 

19 school librarians, and highly qualified prin20 cipals’’; and 

21 (2) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘teachers and 

22 principals’’ each place the term appears and insert23 ing ‘‘teachers, school librarians, and principals’’. 


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1 SEC. 205. LOCAL USE OF FUNDS. 

2 Section 2123(a) (20 U.S.C. 6623(a)) is amended by 

3 inserting after paragraph (8) the following: 

4 ‘‘(9)(A) Developing and implementing strategies 

5 to assist in recruiting and retaining highly effective 

6 school librarians; and 

7 ‘‘(B) providing appropriate professional devel8 opment for school librarians, particularly related to 

9 skills necessary to assist students to improve the 

10 students’ academic achievement, including digital lit11 eracy skills and preparation for higher education 

12 and careers.’’. 

13 TITLE III—GENERAL 

14 PROVISIONS 

15 SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS. 

16 Section 9101 (20 U.S.C. 7801) is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (16), (17), and 

18 (18) through (43) as paragraphs (17), (18), and 

19 (20) through (45), respectively; 

20 (2) by inserting after paragraph (15) the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(15) DIGITAL LITERACY SKILLS.—The term 

23 ‘digital literacy skills’ has the meaning given the 

24 term in section 202 of the Museum and Library 

25 Services Act.’’; and 


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1 (3) by inserting after paragraph (18) (as redes2 ignated by paragraph (1)) the following: 

3 ‘‘(19) EFFECTIVE SCHOOL LIBRARY PRO4 GRAM.—The term ‘effective school library program’ 

5 means a school library program that— 

6 ‘‘(A) is staffed by a State certified or li7 censed school librarian; 

8 ‘‘(B) has up-to-date books, materials, 

9 equipment, and technology (including broad10 band); 

11 ‘‘(C) includes regular collaboration between 

12 classroom teachers and school librarians to as13 sist with development and implementation of 

14 the curriculum and other school reform efforts; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(D) supports the development of digital 

17 literacy skills.’’. 

18 SEC. 302. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

19 (a) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents in 

20 section 2 of the Act is amended— 

21 (1) by striking the items relating to subpart 4 

22 of part B of title I and inserting the following: 

‘‘SUBPART 4—IMPROVING LITERACY AND COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS

THROUGH EFFECTIVE SCHOOL LIBRARY PROGRAMS

‘‘Sec. 1251. Improving literacy and college and career readiness through effective school library programs.’’; 


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1 (2) by striking the item relating to title II and 

2 inserting the following: 

‘‘TITLE II—PREPARING, TRAINING, AND RECRUITING HIGHLY 

EFFECTIVE TEACHERS, SCHOOL LIBRARIANS, AND PRINCIPALS’’; 

3 and 

4 (3) by striking the item relating to part A of 

5 title II and inserting the following: 

‘‘PART A—TEACHER, SCHOOL LIBRARIAN, AND PRINCIPAL TRAINING AND

RECRUITING FUND.’’. 

Æ 


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