II 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1043 

To promote innovative practices for the education of English learners and 

to help States and local educational agencies with English learner populations build capacity to ensure that English learners receive high-quality 

instruction that enables them to become proficient in English, access 

the academic content knowledge needed to meet State challenging academic content standards, and be prepared for postsecondary education 

and careers. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 23, 2013 

Mr. BENNET introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To promote innovative practices for the education of English 

learners and to help States and local educational agencies 

with English learner populations build capacity to ensure 

that English learners receive high-quality instruction that 

enables them to become proficient in English, access 

the academic content knowledge needed to meet State 

challenging academic content standards, and be prepared 

for postsecondary education and careers. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘English Learning and 

3 Innovation Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. ENGLISH LEARNER COMPETITIVE GRANTS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Elementary and 

6 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6801 et 

7 seq.) is amended— 

8 (1) in section 3001(a)— 

9 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘and 

10 part C’’ after ‘‘part B’’; and 

11 (B) by adding at the end of the following: 

12 ‘‘(3) ENGLISH LEARNER COMPETITIVE

13 GRANTS.—There are authorized to be appropriated 

14 to carry out part C, $100,000,000 for fiscal year 

15 2014 and each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years.’’; 

16 (2) by redesignating part C as part D; 

17 (3) by redesignating sections 3301 through 

18 3304 as sections 3401 through 3404, respectively; 

19 (4) in section 3111(c)(1)(C), by striking 

20 ‘‘3303’’ each place the term appears and inserting 

21 ‘‘3403’’; and 

22 (5) in section 3116(d)(1), by striking ‘‘3302’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘3402’’; 

24 (6) by inserting after part B the following: 


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1 ‘‘PART C—ENGLISH LEARNER COMPETITIVE 

2 GRANTS. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 3301. PURPOSE. 

4 ‘‘The purposes of this part are— 

5 ‘‘(1) to support eligible entities and eligible 

6 agencies in developing and strengthening innovative 

7 systems that support high-quality instruction for a 

8 diverse group of English learners, including English 

9 learners who have entered a school in the United 

10 States after elementary school or English learners 

11 who have been in schools in the United States for 

12 more than 5 years without achieving English lan13 guage proficiency (as determined through the assess14 ment described in section 1111(b)(7)), or both; and 

15 ‘‘(2) to encourage successful strategies in pro16 viding coordinated literacy and parent engagement 

17 service models for low-literate limited English pro18 ficient parents of English learners. 

19 ‘‘SEC. 3302. INNOVATION GRANTS. 

20 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From amounts ap21 propriated under section 3001(a)(3), the Secretary may 

22 award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities 

23 that have demonstrated progress in establishing and com24 mitting to provide high-quality instruction that results in 

25 the ability of English learners to achieve English language 

26 proficiency and to demonstrate content mastery in core 


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1 academic subjects to enable such eligible entities to carry 

2 out the activities described in subsection (f). 

3 ‘‘(b) DURATION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Grants awarded under this 

5 section shall be for a period of not more than 4 

6 years. 

7 ‘‘(2) RENEWAL.—The Secretary may renew a 

8 grant under this section for an additional 2-year pe9 riod, if the eligible entity demonstrates success in— 

10 ‘‘(A) improving the English language pro11 ficiency of students served by the grant pro12 gram, as measured by the assessment described 

13 in section 1111(b)(7); 

14 ‘‘(B) increasing the percentage of English 

15 learners who achieve proficiency on the State 

16 academic assessment in mathematics, reading 

17 or language arts, and science, as described in 

18 section 1111(b)(3); 

19 ‘‘(C) increasing the percentage of sec20 ondary school students who achieve proficiency 

21 in core academic subjects; 

22 ‘‘(D) increasing the awareness and knowl23 edge of the education system for parents of 

24 English learners; 


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1 ‘‘(E) improving the English language pro2 ficiency and literacy skills of parents served by 

3 the grant program; and 

4 ‘‘(F) increasing the graduation rate, as de5 fined in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(vi) and clarified 

6 in section 200.19(b)(1) of title 34, Code of Fed7 eral Regulations, for English learners. 

8 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible entity’ 

9 means— 

10 ‘‘(1) a State educational agency; 

11 ‘‘(2) a local educational agency; or 

12 ‘‘(3) a public charter school or a charter school 

13 management organization. 

14 ‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity desiring a 

16 grant under this section shall submit an application 

17 to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 

18 containing such information as the Secretary may 

19 require. 

20 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—At a minimum, the applica21 tion described in paragraph (1) shall include the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(A) A description of how the eligible enti24 ty will use grant funds to implement English 

25 language proficiency standards, and the acaVerDate Mar 15 2010 05:13 May 30, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1043.IS S1043

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1 demic content standards and student academic 

2 achievement standards required under section 

3 1111(b)(1), to assist English learners in— 

4 ‘‘(i) improving English language pro5 ficiency, academic achievement, and 

6 achievement in core academic subject 

7 areas; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) improving preparation for post9 secondary education and careers. 

10 ‘‘(B) A description of the benchmarks, con11 sistent with section 3304(b)(1), that the eligible 

12 entity will establish to demonstrate improve13 ments in outcomes for students who are 

14 English learners. 

15 ‘‘(C) A description of how the eligible enti16 ty has used the metrics described in subpara17 graphs (A) through (D) of subsection (b)(2) 

18 and the benchmarks described in subparagraph 

19 (B) to create a data-driven needs assessment 

20 that the eligible entity will use to determine 

21 how grant funds will be used. 

22 ‘‘(D) A description of how the eligible enti23 ty will use Federal funds received under this 

24 section only to supplement the funds that 

25 would, in the absence of such Federal funds, be 


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1 made available from non-Federal sources for 

2 the education of students participating in pro3 grams assisted under this section, and not to 

4 supplant such funds. 

5 ‘‘(e) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec6 tion, the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities 

7 that— 

8 ‘‘(1) use funds, or propose to use grant funds 

9 under this section, to— 

10 ‘‘(A) implement evidence-based strategies, 

11 as determined by the Secretary, for activities 

12 described in subsection (f); 

13 ‘‘(B) provide educational opportunities for 

14 English learners who have entered a school in 

15 the United States after elementary school or 

16 English learners who have been in schools in 

17 the United States for more than 5 years with18 out achieving English language proficiency (as 

19 determined through the assessment described in 

20 section 1111(b)(7)), or both; 

21 ‘‘(C) provide a continuum of literacy, par22 enting, and parent engagement services for low23 literate limited English proficient parents of 

24 young English learners; or 


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1 ‘‘(D) serve populations of rural students 

2 and students who are migratory children, as de3 fined in section 1309(2); 

4 ‘‘(2) form partnerships with entities to carry 

5 out activities under the grant; or 

6 ‘‘(3) work with an educational research entity 

7 that is, at the time of the application, implementing 

8 research-based programs or interventions in schools 

9 that serve a significant percentage of English learn10 ers. 

11 ‘‘(f) USE OF FUNDS.—Each eligible entity that re12 ceives a grant under this section shall use the grant funds 

13 to carry out activities that lead to English learners becom14 ing proficient in English in order to access the academic 

15 content knowledge that English learners need to meet the 

16 State challenging academic content standards under sec17 tion 1111(b)(1) and to be ready for postsecondary edu18 cation and careers, which may include— 

19 ‘‘(1) improving instructional programs by— 

20 ‘‘(A) implementing evidence-based lan21 guage instruction programs, including— 

22 ‘‘(i) technology-based programs; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) early childhood education pro24 grams, if applicable; 


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1 ‘‘(B) consistent with State law, imple2 menting a program that uses instruction in the 

3 native language as a basis for English language 

4 acquisition, such as— 

5 ‘‘(i) a dual-language program; or 

6 ‘‘(ii) a bilingual education program; or 

7 ‘‘(C) obtaining technical assistance from 

8 an expert to develop or implement materials for 

9 English learner instruction; 

10 ‘‘(2) ensuring that English learners are taught 

11 by effective teachers and attend schools that are ad12 ministered by effective principals, by— 

13 ‘‘(A) developing or implementing a strat14 egy to recruit effective teachers and principals; 

15 ‘‘(B) developing or implementing a strat16 egy to retain effective teachers and principals; 

17 or 

18 ‘‘(C) developing or implementing a strategy 

19 to improve the effectiveness of teachers and 

20 principals; 

21 ‘‘(3) increasing the ability of families of English 

22 learners to be engaged in their child’s education and 

23 development; 


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1 ‘‘(4) expanding best practices to other schools 

2 or local educational agencies that are served by the 

3 eligible entity; or 

4 ‘‘(5) carrying out other activities consistent 

5 with the purpose of this part. 

6 ‘‘SEC. 3303. CAPACITY BUILDING GRANTS. 

7 ‘‘(a) CAPACITY BUILDING GRANTS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts appro9 priated under section 3001(a)(3), the Secretary may 

10 award capacity-building grants, on a competitive 

11 basis, to eligible agencies that demonstrate a com12 mitment to establishing and maintaining a system of 

13 high-quality instruction for English learners to en14 able such eligible agencies to carry out the activities 

15 described in subsection (g). 

16 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS.—The Secretary shall not 

17 award a grant under this section to an eligible agen18 cy that has received a grant under section 3302. 

19 ‘‘(b) DURATION.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Grants awarded under this 

21 section shall be for a period of not more than 4 

22 years. 

23 ‘‘(2) RENEWAL.—The Secretary shall not renew 

24 a grant under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE AGENCY.—The term ‘eligible agency’ 

2 means a State educational agency or local educational 

3 agency that has experienced a significant increase, as de4 termined by the Secretary, in the number of English learn5 ers that the State educational agency or local educational 

6 agency, respectively, serves. 

7 ‘‘(d) FUNDING REQUIREMENT.—Continued funding 

8 after the second year of the grant period for a grant 

9 awarded under this section shall be contingent on the eligi10 ble agency’s progress in— 

11 ‘‘(1) meeting the benchmarks described in sub12 section (e)(2)(B); 

13 ‘‘(2) improving the English language proficiency 

14 of students served by the grant program, as meas15 ured by the assessment described in section 

16 1111(b)(7); 

17 ‘‘(3) increasing the percentage of English learn18 ers who achieve proficiency on State academic as19 sessments in mathematics, reading or language arts, 

20 and science, as described in section 1111(b)(3); 

21 ‘‘(4) increasing the percentage of secondary 

22 school students who achieve proficiency in core aca23 demic subjects; 

24 ‘‘(5) increasing the graduation rate, as defined 

25 in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(vi) and clarified in section 


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1 200.19(b)(1) of title 34, Code of Federal Regula2 tions, for English learners; 

3 ‘‘(6) increasing the awareness and knowledge of 

4 the education system for parents of English learners; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(7) improving the English language proficiency 

7 and literacy skills of parents of English learners. 

8 ‘‘(e) APPLICATIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible agency desiring 

10 a grant under this section shall submit an applica11 tion to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 

12 and containing such information as the Secretary 

13 may require. 

14 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—At a minimum, the applica15 tion described in paragraph (1) shall include the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(A) A description of how the eligible enti18 ty will use grant funds to implement English 

19 language proficiency standards and challenging 

20 student academic achievement standards and 

21 academic content standards under section 

22 1111(b)(1) to assist English learners in— 

23 ‘‘(i) improving English language pro24 ficiency; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) improving preparation for post2 secondary education and careers; 

3 ‘‘(iii) improving the English language 

4 proficiency and literacy skills of their par5 ents; and 

6 ‘‘(iv) improving the knowledge and 

7 ability of their parents to navigate the edu8 cation system. 

9 ‘‘(B) A description of the benchmarks, con10 sistent with section 3304(b), that the eligible 

11 agency will establish to demonstrate improve12 ments in outcomes for students who are 

13 English learners. 

14 ‘‘(C) A description of how the eligible 

15 agency will efficiently use funds to build upon 

16 previous efforts to educate English learners and 

17 their parents. 

18 ‘‘(D) A description of how the eligible enti19 ty will use Federal funds received under this 

20 section only to supplement the funds that 

21 would, in the absence of such Federal funds, be 

22 made available from non-Federal sources for 

23 the education of students participating in pro24 grams assisted under this section, and not to 

25 supplant such funds. 


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1 ‘‘(f) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec2 tion, the Secretary shall give priority to eligible agencies 

3 that propose to use grant funds to implement evidence4 based strategies, as determined by the Secretary, in order 

5 to become competitive in the application process for a 

6 grant described in section 3302. 

7 ‘‘(g) USE OF FUNDS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible 

9 agency that receives a grant under this section shall 

10 use the grant funds to carry out activities that— 

11 ‘‘(A) build the eligible agency’s capacity to 

12 provide quality instruction to English learners 

13 and their parents; and 

14 ‘‘(B) will allow the eligible agency to be15 come competitive in the application process for 

16 a grant described in section 3302. 

17 ‘‘(2) PERMISSIBLE USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible 

18 agency that receives a grant under this section may 

19 use the grant funds to ensure that English learners 

20 are taught by effective teachers and attend schools 

21 that are administered by effective principals, by— 

22 ‘‘(A) developing or implementing a strat23 egy to recruit effective teachers and principals; 


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1 ‘‘(B) developing or implementing a strat2 egy to retain effective teachers and principals; 

3 or 

4 ‘‘(C) developing or implementing a strategy 

5 to improve the effectiveness of teachers and 

6 principals. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 3304. INDICATORS, EVALUATION, TECHNICAL ASSIST8 ANCE, AND RESEARCH. 

9 ‘‘(a) INDICATORS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta11 tion with the Director of the Institute of Education 

12 Sciences, shall establish indicators to measure the 

13 success of grant programs under this part. 

14 ‘‘(2) PRIMARY INDICATOR.—The primary indi15 cator described in paragraph (1) shall be the per16 centage of students who— 

17 ‘‘(A) are English learners; 

18 ‘‘(B) become English language proficient; 

19 ‘‘(C) are on track for postsecondary edu20 cation and a career; 

21 ‘‘(D) have parents who demonstrate im22 proved English language or basic literacy skills; 

23 ‘‘(E) have parents who increase their 

24 knowledge of the education system; and 


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1 ‘‘(F) have parents who increase their par2 ticipation in their children’s education. 

3 ‘‘(b) EVALUATION AND REPORTS BY THE ELIGIBLE

4 ENTITY.—Each eligible entity and eligible agency receiv5 ing a grant under this part shall— 

6 ‘‘(1) develop quantifiable benchmarks to evalu7 ate the activities that the eligible entity or eligible 

8 agency carries out under this part, based on the ap9 plicable indicators described in subsection (a), which 

10 may include— 

11 ‘‘(A) the percentage of students who are 

12 English learners who obtain English pro13 ficiency; 

14 ‘‘(B) the rate of participation of students 

15 who are English learners in the State academic 

16 assessments under section 1111(b); 

17 ‘‘(C) the reduction in the percentage of 

18 students who are English learners and who are 

19 in the lowest level of achievement on such State 

20 assessments in English, reading or language 

21 arts, and mathematics; 

22 ‘‘(D) the percentage of students who are 

23 English learners and who are taking advanced 

24 coursework; 


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1 ‘‘(E) the percentage of parents of English 

2 learners who advance at least one educational 

3 functioning level in English language pro4 ficiency, based on the Department’s National 

5 Reporting System of Adult Education, after a 

6 year of participating in a program supported 

7 under this part; 

8 ‘‘(F) the percentage of parents of English 

9 learners who enter postsecondary education or 

10 job training after a year of participating in 

11 such program; 

12 ‘‘(G) improvement, based on pre- and post13 surveys, of the knowledge of the parents of 

14 English learners regarding the education sys15 tem; or 

16 ‘‘(H) improvement, based on instructor ob17 servation, of child and parent interactions and 

18 reports of parent engagement; 

19 ‘‘(2) submit the benchmarks described in para20 graph (1) to the Secretary for approval; and 

21 ‘‘(3) prepare and submit an annual report to 

22 the Secretary on the progress that the eligible entity 

23 or eligible agency is making toward meeting such 

24 benchmarks. 


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1 ‘‘(c) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary shall 

2 reserve not more than 1 percent from amounts appro3 priated in section 3001(a)(3) to directly, or through grant 

4 or contract, provide technical assistance to eligible entities 

5 and eligible agencies to prepare the entities and agencies 

6 to qualify, apply for, and maintain grants under this part. 

7 ‘‘(d) RESEARCH AND EVALUATION.—The Secretary 

8 shall reserve not more than 0.5 percent from amounts ap9 propriated in section 3001(a)(3) to evaluate grants or pro10 vide technical assistance for activities funded under this 

11 part. 

12 ‘‘SEC. 3305. DEFINITIONS. 

13 ‘‘In this part: 

14 ‘‘(1) DUAL LANGUAGE PROGRAM.—The term 

15 ‘dual language program’ means an instructional 

16 strategy for English learners— 

17 ‘‘(A) in which students are taught literacy 

18 and content in English and another language 

19 and use the other language for at least half of 

20 the instructional day; and 

21 ‘‘(B) that fosters bilingualism, biliteracy, 

22 enhanced awareness of linguistic and cultural 

23 diversity, and high levels of academic achieve24 ment through instruction in 2 languages. 


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1 ‘‘(2) ENGLISH LEARNER.—The term ‘English 

2 learner’ means an individual who is limited English 

3 proficient, as defined in section 9101.’’. 

Æ 


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