II 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1608 

To prepare young people in disadvantaged situations for a competitive future. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 6, 2009 

Ms. STABENOW (for herself, Mr. BROWN, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, and Mr. 

FRANKEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To prepare young people in disadvantaged situations for a 

competitive future. 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘Reengaging Americans in Serious Education by Uniting 

6 Programs Act’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Purpose. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. Grants authorized. 

Sec. 5. Application. 


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Sec. 6. Priority. 

Sec. 7. Selection criteria. 

Sec. 8. Use of funds. 

Sec. 9. Accountability, performance measures, and evaluation. 

Sec. 10. Technical assistance and best practices. 

Sec. 11. Authorization of appropriations. 

1 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

2 The purposes of this Act are— 

3 (1) to prepare young people in disadvantaged 

4 situations for a competitive future; and 

5 (2) to challenge and support young people who 

6 have dropped out of secondary school to— 

7 (A) attain a secondary school diploma; 

8 (B) attain a 2-year or 4-year credential 

9 from a recognized postsecondary educational in10 stitution, an industry recognized credential, or 

11 certification from a registered apprenticeship 

12 program; and 

13 (C) secure and succeed in a family-sup14 porting career. 

15 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

16 In this Act: 

17 (1) DISABILITY.—The term ‘‘disability’’ has the 

18 meaning given the term in section 3 of the Ameri19 cans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

20 12102). 

21 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti22 ty’’ means a partnership that includes— 


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1 (A) a mayor, or appropriate chief executive 

2 officer of general purpose local government, of 

3 the community to be assisted under the grant 

4 awarded under section 4; 

5 (B) a representative of— 

6 (i) each local educational agency serv7 ing the community to be assisted under the 

8 grant; 

9 (ii) the local juvenile justice system 

10 serving the community; 

11 (iii) the local criminal justice system 

12 serving the community; 

13 (iv) the local workforce system serving 

14 the community; 

15 (v) the local housing agency serving 

16 the community; 

17 (vi) the local mental health agency 

18 serving the community; and 

19 (vii) the local child welfare agency 

20 serving the community; 

21 (C) a representative of a State agency 

22 serving youth in the community to be assisted 

23 under the grant; 


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1 (D) not less than 1 representative of an in2 stitution of higher education, which may include 

3 a community college; 

4 (E) a representative of— 

5 (i) a local secondary school; 

6 (ii) not less than 1 community-based 

7 organization; 

8 (iii) a public or private, nonprofit 

9 agency providing services to young people; 

10 (iv) a labor management committee; 

11 and 

12 (v) a business; and 

13 (F) young people in disadvantaged situa14 tions, and parents or caregivers of young people 

15 in disadvantaged situations. 

16 (3) FEDERAL YOUTH DEVELOPMENT COUN17 CIL.—The term ‘‘Federal Youth Development Coun18 cil’’ means the Federal Youth Development Council 

19 established under the Tom Osborne Federal Youth 

20 Coordination Act (Public Law 109–365; 120 Stat. 

21 2594). 

22 (4) HOMELESS CHILDREN AND YOUTHS.—The 

23 term ‘‘homeless children and youths’’ has the mean24 ing given the term in section 725 of the McKinney25 Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a). 


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1 (5) IN A DISADVANTAGED SITUATION.—The 

2 term ‘‘in a disadvantaged situation’’, when referring 

3 to an individual, includes an individual who— 

4 (A) has left secondary school without ob5 taining a secondary school diploma; 

6 (B) is attending secondary school and is at 

7 risk of leaving secondary school without obtain8 ing a secondary school diploma; or 

9 (C)(i) has a secondary school diploma or 

10 its recognized equivalent; and 

11 (ii) faces a barrier to employment or does 

12 not have the skills to obtain employment or 

13 enter postsecondary education. 

14 (6) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

15 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

16 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Higher 

17 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 

18 (7) ONE-STOP CENTER.—The term ‘‘one-stop 

19 center’’ means a one-stop center described in section 

20 134(c) of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29 

21 U.S.C. 2864(c)). 

22 (8) POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION.—The term 

23 ‘‘postsecondary education’’ means— 

24 (A) a 4-year program of instruction, or not 

25 less than a 1-year program of instruction that 


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1 is acceptable for credit toward a baccalaureate 

2 degree, offered by an institution of higher edu3 cation; or 

4 (B) a certificate or registered apprentice5 ship program at the postsecondary level offered 

6 by an institution of higher education or a non7 profit educational institution. 

8 (9) REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM.— 

9 The term ‘‘registered apprenticeship program’’ 

10 means an industry skills training program at the 

11 postsecondary level that combines technical and the12 oretical training through structured on-the-job learn13 ing with related instruction (in a classroom or 

14 through distance learning) while an individual is em15 ployed, working under the direction of qualified per16 sonnel or a mentor, and earning incremental wage 

17 increases aligned to enhanced job proficiency, result18 ing in the acquisition of a nationally recognized and 

19 portable certificate, under a plan approved by the 

20 Office of Apprenticeship of the Department of Labor 

21 or by a State agency recognized by the Department 

22 of Labor. 

23 (10) SECONDARY SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘sec24 ondary school’’ has the meaning given the term in 


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1 section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu2 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

3 (11) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

4 means the Secretary of Labor. 

5 (12) YOUNG PEOPLE.—The term ‘‘young peo6 ple’’ means individuals who are between the ages of 

7 14 and 24, inclusive, at the time of commencement 

8 of participation in services funded through a grant 

9 under section 4. 

10 SEC. 4. GRANTS AUTHORIZED. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consultation 

12 with the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Health 

13 and Human Services, the Secretary of Housing and Urban 

14 Development, the Attorney General of the United States, 

15 the Federal Youth Development Council, and leaders in 

16 the field of working with young people in disadvantaged 

17 situations, shall award grants, on a competitive basis, to 

18 eligible entities to enable the eligible entities to pay the 

19 costs of— 

20 (1) developing and implementing a strategy to 

21 identify young people in disadvantaged situations; 

22 and 

23 (2) providing such young people with support 

24 needed to— 

25 (A) graduate from secondary school; 


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1 (B) attain a postsecondary credential, in2 cluding a 2-year or 4-year credential from an 

3 institution of higher education, an industry-rec4 ognized credential, or certification from a reg5 istered apprenticeship program; and 

6 (C) secure and succeed in a family-sup7 porting career. 

8 (b) MINIMUM GRANT AMOUNT.—The Secretary shall 

9 award a grant under this section in an amount that— 

10 (1) is appropriate to achieve the goals and im11 plement the activities described in the application 

12 submitted under section 5; and 

13 (2) is not less than $1,000,000 per year. 

14 (c) DURATION OF GRANT.—A grant under this sec15 tion shall be awarded for a period of 5 years, and may 

16 be renewed at the discretion of the Secretary based on the 

17 effective performance of the eligible entity under the pre18 ceding grant in accordance with the levels of performance 

19 determined by the eligible entity and the Secretary pursu20 ant to section 9(b). 

21 (d) EQUITABLE GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF

22 FUNDS.—The Secretary shall ensure an equitable and ap23 propriate distribution of grants awarded under this section 

24 among eligible entities— 


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1 (1) serving urban, rural, and suburban areas; 

2 and 

3 (2) with varying degrees of experience and ex4 pertise in serving young people in disadvantaged sit5 uations. 

6 (e) FISCAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE AGENTS.—An eli7 gible entity shall choose an entity to be the fiscal agent 

8 and an entity to be the administrative agent for the grant 

9 funds received under this section. 

10 (f) EXISTING PARTNERSHIP.—An existing workforce, 

11 education, or youth development partnership, coalition, or 

12 organization may serve as the eligible entity for the pur13 poses of grants under this section if the partnership, coali14 tion, or organization includes, or modifies the members of 

15 the partnership, coalition, or organization to include, the 

16 individuals required to be included in the eligible entity 

17 under section 3(2). 

18 SEC. 5. APPLICATION. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity that desires a 

20 grant under section 4 shall submit an application to the 

21 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing 

22 such information as the Secretary may require. 

23 (b) CONTENTS.—An application submitted under this 

24 section shall include— 


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1 (1) a description of the eligible entity submit2 ting the application, including a description of the 

3 fiscal agent and the administrative agent for the 

4 grant; 

5 (2) a description of the strategy that the eligi6 ble entity will use to carry out the purpose of this 

7 Act, which shall include— 

8 (A) a well-developed education component, 

9 which may include an emphasis on basic lit10 eracy and the skills needed in science, tech11 nology, engineering, and mathematics; 

12 (B) a work preparation component, which 

13 may include a hands-on internship, work experi14 ence, or national or community service, that 

15 promotes the development of applied skills such 

16 as oral and written communication, teamwork, 

17 leadership, and critical thinking; and 

18 (C) a youth support component, including 

19 the array of comprehensive support services 

20 that will— 

21 (i) address the challenges that caused 

22 the young people in disadvantaged situa23 tions to leave school without a secondary 

24 school diploma; 


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1 (ii) remove barriers to and support 

2 the attainment of— 

3 (I) the graduation of such young 

4 people from secondary school; 

5 (II) a postsecondary credential, 

6 including a 2-year or 4-year credential 

7 from an institution of higher edu8 cation, an industry-recognized creden9 tial, or certification from a registered 

10 apprenticeship program; and 

11 (III) success in a family-sup12 porting career; and 

13 (iii) provide appropriate case manage14 ment to ensure young people achieve the 

15 purposes described in section 2; 

16 (3) a needs assessment of the community to be 

17 assisted under the grant, including— 

18 (A) an estimate of the number of young 

19 people in disadvantaged situations in the com20 munity; and 

21 (B) an assessment of resources available in 

22 the community that can help such young peo23 ple— 


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1 (i) address the challenges that caused 

2 such young people to leave school without 

3 a secondary school diploma; 

4 (ii) return to an appropriate edu5 cational setting; 

6 (iii) attain a secondary school di7 ploma; 

8 (iv) attain a postsecondary credential, 

9 including a 2-year or 4-year credential 

10 from an institution of higher education, an 

11 industry-recognized credential, or certifi12 cation from a registered apprenticeship 

13 program; and 

14 (v) secure and succeed in a family15 supporting career; 

16 (4) a plan for identifying and engaging young 

17 people in disadvantaged situations and connecting 

18 such young people with a continuum of comprehen19 sive and coordinated resources that can help such 

20 young people attain a secondary school diploma, a 

21 recognized postsecondary credential, including a 2- 

22 year or 4-year credential from an institution of high23 er education, an industry-recognized credential, or 

24 certification from a registered apprenticeship proVerDate Nov 24 2008 00:45 Aug 08, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1608.IS S1608

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1 gram, and secure and succeed in a family-supporting 

2 career, including a description of— 

3 (A) the needs of such young people that 

4 will be met by the eligible entity through the 

5 grant; 

6 (B) the identities, roles, and capacity of 

7 the partners in the eligible entity to fulfill the 

8 needs described in subparagraph (A), including 

9 a description of the role to be played by— 

10 (i) secondary schools and postsec11 ondary institutions in constructing edu12 cation programming; 

13 (ii) the local workforce system, includ14 ing one-stop career centers and businesses, 

15 in developing and implementing the work16 force preparation activities; and 

17 (iii) youth serving systems, including 

18 the juvenile justice system, and other com19 munity-based organizations in providing 

20 outreach, support, and direct service; 

21 (C) a plan to leverage non-Federal (includ22 ing in-kind) resources and a plan for sustain23 ability beyond the grant period; 

24 (D) the services to be provided through the 

25 grant to carry out the strategy described in 


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1 paragraph (2) and a description of the process 

2 that will be used to award subgrants and con3 tracts under section 7 for the provision of such 

4 services; 

5 (E) the research and evidence base indi6 cating why the selected strategy and selection of 

7 services will be effective in meeting the com8 prehensive needs of the young people in dis9 advantaged situations identified in the commu10 nity; 

11 (F) the goals, intended outcomes, and per12 formance measures of the eligible entity’s strat13 egy in accordance with the performance meas14 ures under section 9(b); 

15 (G) a statement of concurrence on the ap16 plication, signed by the partners in the eligible 

17 entity, that outlines the specific roles and re18 sponsibilities of the partners as the roles and 

19 responsibilities relate to the functioning of the 

20 eligible entity; and 

21 (H) a plan to create, or include an exist22 ing, youth advisory council, that is composed of 

23 young people in disadvantaged situations from 

24 the community to be served, to make recVerDate Nov 24 2008 00:45 Aug 08, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1608.IS S1608

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1 ommendations regarding the services to be pro2 vided under the grant; 

3 (5) a description of the system that will be put 

4 in place to— 

5 (A) provide case management, counseling, 

6 intensive placement and follow-up services, 

7 adult advocacy, or mentoring to help young peo8 ple in disadvantaged situations and their fami9 lies access the various systems, resources, and 

10 supports necessary to ensure such young peo11 ple’s success; and 

12 (B) ensure that young people receiving 

13 services through the grant will receive individ14 ualized case management to ensure that the 

15 young people achieve the purposes described in 

16 section 2(2), including— 

17 (i) an assessment of needs; 

18 (ii) coordination of appropriate serv19 ices; and 

20 (iii) academic preparation and support 

21 for entry, persistence, and completion of 

22 postsecondary education; 

23 (6) a description of how the eligible entity will 

24 ensure that every young person served under the 

25 grant receives comprehensive services, including reVerDate Nov 24 2008 00:45 Aug 08, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1608.IS S1608

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1 ceiving not less than 1 workforce preparation service 

2 as described in section 7(b)(1), not less than 1 edu3 cation support service as described in section 

4 7(b)(2), and not less than 1 youth support service 

5 as described in section 7(b)(3), until the young per6 son— 

7 (A) attains a secondary school diploma, a 

8 2-year or 4-year credential from an institution 

9 of higher education, an industry-recognized cre10 dential, or certification from a registered ap11 prenticeship program; and 

12 (B) secures and succeeds in a family-sup13 porting career; 

14 (7) a description of how the strategy to be im15 plemented under the grant will identify, engage, and 

16 provide services to young people in disadvantaged 

17 situations who— 

18 (A) are or were previously homeless chil19 dren and youths; 

20 (B) were previously under the care and 

21 placement responsibility of the State agency re22 sponsible for administering a plan under parts 

23 B and E of title IV of the Social Security Act 

24 (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq., 670 et seq.); 


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1 (C) were under the custody of the State’s 

2 juvenile justice system or criminal justice sys3 tem; or 

4 (D) have a disability; 

5 (8) a description of how public and private serv6 ices that exist on the date of submission of the ap7 plication will be coordinated and integrated in order 

8 to implement and sustain the strategy under the 

9 grant; 

10 (9) a description of how Federal, State, and 

11 local private and public funds will be leveraged, co12 ordinated, and integrated in order to implement the 

13 strategy under the grant; 

14 (10) a description of how the strategy to be im15 plemented under the grant strengthens, and does not 

16 duplicate, efforts within the community to be served 

17 under the grant that are funded under chapter 4 of 

18 subtitle B of title I of the Workforce Investment Act 

19 of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2851 et seq.); and 

20 (11) a description of how the strategy to be im21 plemented under the grant aligns with the efforts of 

22 the local educational agency serving the community 

23 assisted under the grant to improve secondary 

24 schools, including efforts focused on— 


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1 (A) students who are off-track to an on2 time graduation; and 

3 (B) recuperative strategies. 

4 (c) EXISTING PLANS, ASSESSMENTS, AND STRATE5 GIES.—Plans, needs assessments, and strategies that have 

6 been developed by an eligible entity or the partners in the 

7 eligible entity may be used to satisfy the requirements of 

8 this section if such plans, needs assessments, or strate9 gies— 

10 (1) include the information required by this sec11 tion, or can be modified to include the information 

12 required by this section; and 

13 (2) are submitted to the Secretary with such 

14 modifications. 

15 SEC. 6. PRIORITY. 

16 In awarding grants to eligible entities under section 

17 4, the Secretary shall give priority to applications from 

18 eligible entities proposing— 

19 (1) to serve areas with disproportionately high 

20 numbers or percentages of young people who have 

21 left secondary school without obtaining a secondary 

22 school diploma or its recognized equivalent; 

23 (2) to serve areas with high concentrations of 

24 young people in families whose family income is not 

25 more than 200 percent of the poverty line (as deterVerDate Nov 24 2008 00:45 Aug 08, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1608.IS S1608

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1 mined under section 673(2) of the Community Serv2 ices Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2))); and 

3 (3) to serve areas with high numbers or per4 centages of young people who are unemployed or un5 deremployed. 

6 SEC. 7. SELECTION CRITERIA. 

7 The Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities 

8 under section 4 based on selection criteria that includes 

9 the following: 

10 (1) BEST PRACTICES OR RESEARCH.—The ex11 tent to which the application submitted by an eligi12 ble entity under section 5 is rooted in documented 

13 best practices or research. 

14 (2) INTEGRATION.—The extent to which the 

15 application demonstrates the integration of multiple 

16 services into a comprehensive, coordinated con17 tinuum that meets the holistic needs of young peo18 ple, including health services, mental health services, 

19 housing, civic opportunities, job readiness, work ex20 perience, school readiness, reenrollment in school, 

21 and connections to family and community. 

22 (3) LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY INVOLVE23 MENT.—The extent to which the application dem24 onstrates the leadership and substantive involvement 

25 of the business community, the mayor or appropriate 


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1 chief executive officers of the general purpose local 

2 government, and the public and nonprofit sectors of 

3 the community served by the grant. 

4 (4) LEVERAGING AND SUSTAINABILITY.—The 

5 extent to which the application demonstrates that re6 sources from multiple sources will be leveraged to 

7 implement the grant, and the extent to which the 

8 application demonstrates a plan for sustainability 

9 beyond the grant period. 

10 SEC. 8. USE OF FUNDS. 

11 (a) SUBGRANTS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible entity receiving 

13 a grant under section 4 shall use the grant funds— 

14 (A) to award subgrants and contracts to 

15 community-based organizations and other enti16 ties to enable the organizations and entities to 

17 provide a comprehensive array of coordinated 

18 activities that will— 

19 (i) support the educational, vocational, 

20 social, emotional, and civic needs of young 

21 people in disadvantaged situations; and 

22 (ii) allow such young people to grad23 uate from secondary school, attain a post24 secondary credential, including a 2-year or 

25 4-year credential from an institution of 


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1 higher education, an industry-recognized 

2 credential, or certification from a reg3 istered apprenticeship program, and secure 

4 and succeed in a family-supporting career; 

5 (B) for training, technical assistance, and 

6 professional development for the organizations 

7 and entities that is offered by local or national 

8 organizations; 

9 (C) for coordinating the overall effort of 

10 the eligible entity; or 

11 (D) for the reasonable costs associated 

12 with the administration and oversight of the 

13 grants under section 4. 

14 (2) USE OF SUBGRANT FUNDS.—Each organi15 zation or entity receiving a subgrant or contract 

16 under this Act— 

17 (A) shall use the subgrant or contract 

18 funds to carry out a workforce preparation 

19 service, an education support service, or a youth 

20 support service, described in paragraphs (1), 

21 (2), and (3) of subsection (b), respectively; and 

22 (B) may use the subgrant or contract 

23 funds to carry out an activity described in para24 graph (4) or (5) of subsection (b). 


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1 (b) ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES.—The services and ac2 tivities referred to in subsection (a)(2) include the fol3 lowing: 

4 (1) WORK AND CAREER PREPARATION.— 

5 (A) WORKFORCE PREPARATION.—Job 

6 training, youth entrepreneurship, technological 

7 and vocational skill building, meaningful intern8 ship and apprenticeship opportunities, and 

9 other workforce preparation activities developed 

10 in partnership with the business community and 

11 other employers. 

12 (B) EXPOSURE AND PREPARATION FOR

13 CAREERS.—Strategies that will expose young 

14 people in disadvantaged situations to, and pre15 pare such young people for, careers, including 

16 careers in high-growth, high-demand industries 

17 that require the use of science, technology, engi18 neering, and mathematics skills. 

19 (C) APPLIED SKILLS.—Strategies that pro20 mote the development of applied skills in such 

21 young people, including oral and written com22 munication, teamwork, leadership, critical 

23 thinking, and a commitment to social and civic 

24 responsibility, including service-learning activi25 ties. 


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1 (D) COMPENSATION.—Compensation for 

2 employment opportunities for such young peo3 ple, including summer and year-round employ4 ment opportunities, national and community 

5 service, service-learning, and work experience. 

6 (2) EDUCATION SUPPORT.— 

7 (A) EDUCATION PROGRAMMING.—Edu8 cation programming for such young people, in9 cluding assessment, instruction, tutoring, and 

10 technology supports to academic instruction. 

11 (B) CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDU12 CATION.—Career and technical education. 

13 (C) DUAL ENROLLMENT PROGRAMS AND

14 EARLY COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOLS.—Participation 

15 in dual enrollment programs, early college high 

16 schools, and other proven models for supporting 

17 the educational achievement of disadvantaged 

18 youth. 

19 (D) POSTSECONDARY CREDENTIALS.—Pro20 grams that provide young people with a postsec21 ondary credential from an institution of higher 

22 education, a non-profit educational institution 

23 that offers an industry recognized credential, or 

24 a registered apprenticeship program, which may 

25 include attainment of a GED, only if the GED 


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1 attainment is an element of the pathway toward 

2 achieving such credential or certification. 

3 (E) TRANSITION SUPPORT.—Support for 

4 young people in their transition into and their 

5 successful completion of postsecondary edu6 cation. 

7 (F) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—Financial 

8 assistance for such young people for education 

9 support services and for higher education. 

10 (3) YOUTH SUPPORT.— 

11 (A) CASE MANAGEMENT.—Case manage12 ment, including using subgrant or contract 

13 funds for youth centers to serve as points of ac14 cess and continued support. 

15 (B) HEALTH, MENTAL HEALTH, OR DRUG

16 TREATMENT SERVICES.—Health services, men17 tal health services, or drug treatment services. 

18 (C) HOUSING.—Housing. 

19 (D) TRANSPORTATION.—Transportation. 

20 (E) CHILDCARE OR FAMILY SUPPORT

21 SERVICES.—Childcare services or family sup22 port services. 

23 (F) MENTORING ACTIVITIES.—Mentoring 

24 activities for such young people, including one25 to-one relationship building and tutoring. 


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1 (4) CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT.—Curriculum 

2 development that promotes contextual learning. 

3 (5) OTHER SERVICES OR OPPORTUNITIES.— 

4 Other services or opportunities that the Secretary or 

5 the eligible entity determine will help carry out the 

6 purposes of this Act. 

7 (c) ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS.—An eligible entity re8 ceiving a grant under section 4 shall ensure that, of the 

9 group of young people in disadvantaged situations who re10 ceive the services and participate in the activities described 

11 in subsections (a) and (b) under the grant, not less than 

12 75 percent of the group shall be young people who— 

13 (1) left secondary school without receiving a 

14 secondary school diploma; and 

15 (2) regardless of educational status— 

16 (A) face a barrier to employment or do not 

17 have the skills to obtain employment or enter 

18 postsecondary education; and 

19 (B)(i) are or were previously homeless chil20 dren and youths; 

21 (ii) were previously under the care and 

22 placement responsibility of the State agency re23 sponsible for administering a plan under parts 

24 B and E of title IV of the Social Security Act 

25 (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq., 670 et seq.); 


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1 (iii) were under the custody of the juvenile 

2 justice or criminal justice system; or 

3 (iv) have a disability. 

4 (d) WAIVER OF MULTIPLE SERVICE REQUIRE5 MENT.—The Secretary may waive the requirement of sub6 section (a) regarding the provision of a comprehensive 

7 array of coordinated activities for an eligible entity receiv8 ing a grant under section 4 to permit not more than 25 

9 percent of the young people served by the eligible entity 

10 under the grant to receive only 1 or more services among 

11 the allowable activities described in subsection (b) if the 

12 eligible entity determines that such young people only need 

13 1 or more such services in order to— 

14 (1) attain a secondary school diploma; 

15 (2) attain a recognized postsecondary creden16 tial, including a 2-year or 4-year credential from an 

17 institution of higher education, an industry-recog18 nized credential, or certification from a registered 

19 apprenticeship program; and 

20 (3) secure and succeed in a family-supporting 

21 career. 


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1 SEC. 9. ACCOUNTABILITY, PERFORMANCE MEASURES, AND 

2 EVALUATION. 

3 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to es4 tablish an accountability system, comprised of the activi5 ties described in this section, in order to— 

6 (1) assess the effectiveness of grants under sec7 tion 4 in helping disadvantaged youth— 

8 (A) attain a secondary school diploma; 

9 (B) attain a 2-year or 4-year credential 

10 from an institution of higher education, an in11 dustry recognized credential, or certification 

12 from a registered apprenticeship program; and 

13 (C) secure and succeed in a family-sup14 porting career; 

15 (2) identify and disseminate effective practices 

16 to strengthen performance; and 

17 (3) maximize the return on investment of Fed18 eral funds in activities assisted pursuant to a grant 

19 under section 4. 

20 (b) PERFORMANCE MEASURES.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—For each eligible entity, per22 formance measures shall consist of the indicators of 

23 performance described in paragraph (2) and the 

24 level of performance described in paragraph (3). 


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1 (2) INDICATORS OF PERFORMANCE.—The indi2 cators of performance referred to in paragraph (1) 

3 shall consist of the following: 

4 (A) INTERIM INDICATORS.— 

5 (i) YOUTH PARTICIPATION.—Youth 

6 participation in activities funded under sec7 tion 4. 

8 (ii) YOUTH PROGRESS.—Youth 

9 progress towards attainment of a sec10 ondary school diploma. 

11 (iii) YOUTH ATTAINMENT.—Youth at12 tainment of a secondary school diploma. 

13 (B) TRANSITIONAL INDICATORS.— 

14 (i) DIPLOMA, AND ENTRANCE INTO

15 EDUCATION OR EMPLOYMENT.—Youth ac16 quisition of a secondary school diploma, 

17 and entrance into postsecondary education 

18 or employment. 

19 (ii) CREDENTIAL.—Youth attainment 

20 of 1 or more recognized postsecondary cre21 dentials, which may include a certificate, a 

22 license, a journey-status card, or an asso23 ciate degree or baccalaureate degree. 

24 (C) LONG-TERM INDICATORS.— 


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1 (i) EMPLOYMENT, DIPLOMA, AND CRE2 DENTIAL.—Employment of individuals who 

3 participated in activities funded under sec4 tion 4, attained a secondary school di5 ploma, and attained 1 or more recognized 

6 credentials, which may include a certifi7 cate, license, journey-status card, or asso8 ciate degree or baccalaureate degree. 

9 (ii) INITIAL WAGE OR SALARY

10 LEVEL.—The initial wage or salary level of 

11 individuals described in clause (i). 

12 (3) LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE.—For each indi13 cator of performance described in paragraph (2), the 

14 Secretary, in coordination with the eligible entity, 

15 shall determine a level of performance expressed in 

16 objective, quantifiable, and measurable form and in 

17 a way to show the progress of the eligible entity to18 ward continuously improving performance. 

19 (4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY MEASURES.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible entity 

21 that receives a grant under section 4 shall reach 

22 agreement with the Secretary on the levels of 

23 performance for the years covered by the grant. 

24 The levels of performance shall take into ac25 count the economic conditions of the area 


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1 served, youth characteristics, secondary school 

2 graduation rates, and the activities or services 

3 provided under the grant. 

4 (B) ADJUSTMENTS.—If unanticipated cir5 cumstances arise resulting in a significant 

6 change in the economic conditions, youth char7 acteristics, secondary school graduation rates, 

8 or activities or services provided in the commu9 nity served under the grant, then the eligible 

10 entity may request that the Secretary adjust 

11 the level of performance for the eligible entity. 

12 (c) ASSURANCE.—Each eligible entity that receives a 

13 grant under section 4 shall provide an assurance to the 

14 Secretary, as part of the application submitted under sec15 tion 5, that the eligible entity will— 

16 (1) report progress toward achieving the indica17 tors under subsection (b) beyond the grant period 

18 for young people served under the grant; and 

19 (2) use funds provided under the grant for such 

20 progress reporting. 

21 (d) REPORTS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible entity that re23 ceives a grant under section 4 shall annually, for 

24 each year of the grant, provide a report to the Sec25 retary that includes the progress of the eligible entiVerDate Nov 24 2008 00:45 Aug 08, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1608.IS S1608

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1 ty in accomplishing the performance measures for 

2 the eligible entity. The annual report shall include— 

3 (A) information on the progress each eligi4 ble entity made in accomplishing its perform5 ance measures, disaggregated by the subgroups 

6 described in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II) of the 

7 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

8 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(C)(v)(II)); 

9 (B) the costs of the activities supported 

10 under the grant under section 4, including— 

11 (i) the type of cost, such as cash, per12 sonnel, equipment, supplies, or materials, 

13 or other cost; 

14 (ii) the sources used to pay such 

15 costs, such as— 

16 (I) funding from other Federal, 

17 State, or local public programs; or 

18 (II) private sector or philan19 thropic contributions; and 

20 (iii) the dollar value of the resources 

21 leveraged to cover such costs and support 

22 the activities; 

23 (C) any fiscal and management account24 ability information required by the Secretary, 


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1 which information shall use sound financial and 

2 management practices; 

3 (D) the characteristics and number of 

4 young people in disadvantaged situations served 

5 by the services and activities provided under the 

6 grant; and 

7 (E) the services and supports provided 

8 under the grant. 

9 (2) VALID AND RELIABLE INFORMATION.—In 

10 preparing the reports under this subsection, each eli11 gible entity shall establish procedures, consistent 

12 with guidelines issued by the Secretary, to ensure 

13 that the information contained in the reports is valid 

14 and reliable. 

15 (e) EVALUATION.—Not later than 90 days after the 

16 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall award 

17 a grant or a contract to an entity outside the Department 

18 of Labor for an evaluation of the activities assisted under 

19 the grants awarded under section 4. Such evaluation 

20 shall— 

21 (1) evaluate a subgroup of eligible entities that 

22 received a grant under section 4; 

23 (2) include an analysis and documentation of 

24 the strategies implemented by the eligible entities as25 sisted under the grants awarded under section 4 and 


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1 the key lessons learned, as such lessons relate to 

2 program design, systems coordination, and imple3 mentation; 

4 (3) measure the outcomes, and progress toward 

5 the outcomes, of the strategies implemented under 

6 the grants under section 4 in terms of the interim 

7 and transitional indicators of performance under 

8 subsection (b)(2), and if feasible, the long-term indi9 cators of performance under such subsection; 

10 (4) document the incremental progress of such 

11 young people over time on the outcomes measured 

12 under paragraph (3); 

13 (5) measure the return on investment resulting 

14 from the activities funded with grants under section 

15 4; and 

16 (6) begin as soon as practicable after the 

17 awarding of the grant or contract under this section 

18 and continue throughout the duration of the periods 

19 of the grants under section 4 so that the plans in20 cluded in the applications under section 5 may be in21 formed by, and conducive to, the evaluation. 

22 SEC. 10. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND BEST PRACTICES. 

23 The Secretary shall— 

24 (1) in consultation with the Federal Youth De25 velopment Council and the Coordinating Council on 


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1 Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention estab2 lished under section 206 of the Juvenile Justice and 

3 Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 

4 5616), the Shared Youth Vision, and other related 

5 agencies, disseminate best practices that emerge 

6 from the program assisted under this Act in identi7 fying young people in disadvantaged situations, and 

8 in implementing effective public and private strate9 gies for preparing such young people to be successful 

10 students, workers, and citizens during and after im11 plementation of the program; and 

12 (2) provide, directly or through a grant or con13 tract with 1 or more nonprofit organizations selected 

14 through a competitive process, training, technical as15 sistance, and professional development for organiza16 tions serving young people in disadvantaged situa17 tions, including organizations serving such young 

18 people that do not receive funding under this Act. 

19 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro21 priated to carry out this Act $1,000,000,000 for fiscal 

22 year 2010 and such sums as may be necessary for each 

23 of the fiscal years 2011 through 2014. 


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1 (b) ALLOCATION.—Of the amounts appropriated to 

2 carry out this section for each fiscal year, the Secretary 

3 shall use— 

4 (1) not less than 90 percent of such amount for 

5 grants to eligible entities under section 4; and 

6 (2) a total of not more than 10 percent of such 

7 amount for the evaluation under section 9(b) and 

8 the training, technical assistance, and dissemination 

9 of best practices under section 10. 

Æ 


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