II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1556

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to strengthen the involvement of parents in the education of their children, and

for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

AUGUST 5, 1999

Mr. REED (for himself, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. HARKIN, and Mr.

BINGAMAN) 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 to strengthen the involvement of parents in

the education of their children, 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 ‘‘Parental Account5 ability, Recruitment, and Education National Training

6 Act of 1999’’.

7 SEC. 2. REFERENCES.

8 Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in

9 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms
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1 of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other

2 provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to

3 a section or other provision of the Elementary and Sec4 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.).

5 SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

6 Congress makes the following findings:

7 (1) Parents are the first and most influential

8 educators of their children.

9 (2) The Federal Government must provide lead10 ership, technical assistance, and financial support to

11 States and local educational agencies, as partners, in

12 helping the agencies implement successful and effec13 tive parental involvement policies and programs that

14 lead to improved student achievement.

15 (3) State and local education officials, as well

16 as teachers, principals, and other staff at the school

17 level, must work as partners with the parents of the

18 children they serve.

19 (4) Research has documented that, regardless

20 of the economic, ethnic, or cultural background of

21 the family, parental involvement in a child’s edu22 cation is a major factor in determining success in

23 school.

24 (5) Parental involvement in a child’s education

25 contributes to positive outcomes such as improved
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1 grades and test scores, higher expectations for stu2 dent achievement, better school attendance, im3 proved homework completion rates, decreased vio4 lence and substance abuse, and higher rates of grad5 uation and enrollment in postsecondary education.

6 (6) Numerous education laws now require

7 meaningful parental involvement, including title I of

8 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of

9 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), the Goals 2000:

10 Educate America Act (20 U.S.C. 5801 et seq.), the

11 Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.), and the

12 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20

13 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), and elements of these laws

14 should be extended to other Federal education pro15 grams.

16 SEC. 4. BASIC PROGRAMS.

17 (a) STATE PLAN.—Section 1111 (20 U.S.C. 6311)

18 is amended—

19 (1) in subsection (b)(2)(B)(ii), by striking

20 ‘‘other measures’’ and inserting ‘‘academic achieve21 ment and other measures, such as a school or local

22 educational agency’s responsibilities under sections

23 1118 and 1119’’;
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1 (2) in subsection (c)(1)(B), by inserting before

2 the semicolon the following: ‘‘, and parental involve3 ment under section 1118’’;

4 (3) by redesignating subsections (d) through (g)

5 as subsections (e) through (h), respectively; and

6 (4) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol7 lowing:

8 ‘‘(d) PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT.—Each State plan

9 shall demonstrate that the State has identified or devel10 oped effective research-based best practices designed to

11 foster meaningful parental involvement. Such best prac12 tices shall—

13 ‘‘(1) be disseminated to all schools and local

14 educational agencies in the State;

15 ‘‘(2) be implemented in all schools in the State;

16 and

17 ‘‘(3) address the full range of parental involve18 ment activities required under section 1118.’’.

19 (b) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY PLANS.—Section

20 1112 (20 U.S.C. 6312) is amended—

21 (1) in subsection (c)(1)—

22 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (D)

23 through (H) as subparagraphs (E) through (I);

24 and
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1 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (C)

2 the following:

3 ‘‘(D) work in consultation with schools as

4 the schools develop and implement their plans

5 or activities under sections 1118 and 1119;’’;

6 and

7 (2) in subsection (e)(3), by inserting before the

8 period the following: ‘‘and if such agency’s parental

9 involvement activities are in accordance with section

10 1118’’.

11 (c) SCHOOLWIDE PROGRAMS.—Section 1114 (20

12 U.S.C. 6314) is amended—

13 (1) in subsection (b)(1)(E), by inserting after

14 ‘‘involvement’’ the following: ‘‘in accordance with

15 section 1118’’; and

16 (2) in subsection (b)(2)(A)(iv), by inserting

17 after ‘‘results’’ the following: ‘‘in a language the

18 family can understand’’.

19 (d) TARGETED ASSISTANCE.—Section 1115(c)(1)(H)

20 (20 U.S.C. 6315(c)(1)(H)) is amended by inserting after

21 ‘‘involvement’’ the following: ‘‘in accordance with section

22 1118’’.

23 (e) ASSESSMENTS.—Section 1116 (20 U.S.C. 6317)

24 is amended—

25 (1) in subsection (a)—
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1 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and

2 (4) as paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively;

3 (B) by inserting after paragraph (2) the

4 following:

5 ‘‘(3) review the effectiveness of the actions and

6 activities the schools are carrying out under this

7 part with respect to parental involvement, profes8 sional development, and other activities assisted

9 under this Act;’’; and

10 (C) in paragraph (4) (as redesignated by

11 subparagraph (3))—

12 (i) by inserting ‘‘of yearly progress’’

13 after ‘‘annual review’’; and

14 (ii) by striking ‘‘of all’’ and inserting

15 ‘‘and the review conducted under para16 graph (3), with respect to all’’;

17 (2) in subsection (c)(4), by inserting after ‘‘ele18 ments of student performance problems’’ the fol19 lowing: ‘‘, that addresses school problems, if any, in

20 implementing the parental involvement requirements

21 in section 1118 and the professional development re22 quirements in section 1119,’’; and

23 (3) in subsection (d)(1)—

24 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking

25 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon;
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1 (B) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as

2 subparagraph (C);

3 (C) by inserting after subparagraph (A)

4 the following:

5 ‘‘(B) annually review the effectiveness of

6 the action or activities carried out under this

7 part by each local educational agency receiving

8 funds under this part with respect to parental

9 involvement, professional development, and

10 other activities assisted under this Act; and’’;

11 and

12 (D) in subparagraph (C) (as redesignated

13 by subparagraph (B))—

14 (i) by inserting ‘‘of yearly progress’’

15 after ‘‘State review’’; and

16 (ii) by inserting ‘‘, and of the review

17 conducted under subparagraph (B)’’ after

18 ‘‘1111(b)(3)(I)’’.

19 (f) STATE ASSISTANCE.—Section 1117 (20 U.S.C.

20 6318) is amended—

21 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting ‘‘parental

22 involvement,’’ after ‘‘including’’; and

23 (2) in subsection (c)—

24 (A) in paragraph (1)(C)—
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1 (i) by inserting ‘‘parents,’’ after ‘‘in2 cluding’’; and

3 (ii) by inserting ‘‘parental involvement

4 programs,’’ after ‘‘successful’’; and

5 (B) by inserting at the end the following:

6 ‘‘(4) PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT.—Each State

7 shall collect and disseminate effective parental in8 volvement practices to local educational agencies and

9 schools. Such practices shall—

10 ‘‘(A) be based on the most current re11 search on effective parental involvement that

12 fosters achievement to high standards for all

13 children;

14 ‘‘(B) be geared toward lowering barriers to

15 greater participation in school planning, review,

16 and improvement experienced by parents; and

17 ‘‘(C) be implemented by the State in local

18 educational agencies and schools requesting

19 such assistance from the State.’’.

20 (g) PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT.—Section 1118 (20

21 U.S.C. 6319) is amended—

22 (1) in subsection (a)(2)(B), by inserting before

23 the semicolon the following: ‘‘activities that will lead

24 to improved student achievement for all students’’;
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1 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting before the

2 last sentence the following: ‘‘Parents shall be noti3 fied of the policy in their own language.’’;

4 (3) in subsection (e)(1), by striking ‘‘partici5 pating parents’’ and inserting ‘‘all parents of chil6 dren served by the school or agency, as appro7 priate,’’;

8 (4) in subsection (g), by adding at the end the

9 following: ‘‘Such local educational agencies and

10 schools may use information, technical assistance,

11 and other support from the parental information

12 and resource centers to create parent resource cen13 ters in schools.’’; and

14 (5) by adding at the end the following:

15 ‘‘(h) STATE REVIEW.—The State educational agency

16 shall review the local educational agency’s parental in17 volvement policies and practices to determine if such poli18 cies and practices are meaningful and targeted to improve

19 home and school communication, student achievement,

20 and parental involvement in school planning, review, and

21 improvement.’’.

22 SEC. 5. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.

23 (a) PURPOSES.—Section 2002(2) (20 U.S.C.

24 6602(2)) is amended—
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1 (1) in subparagraph (E), by striking ‘‘and’’

2 after the semicolon;

3 (2) in subparagraph (F), by striking the period

4 and inserting a semicolon; and

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

6 ‘‘(G) incorporates training in effective

7 practices in order to encourage and offer oppor8 tunities to get parents involved in their child’s

9 education in ways that will foster student

10 achievement and well-being; and

11 ‘‘(H) includes special training for teachers

12 and administrators to develop the skills nec13 essary to work most effectively with parents.’’.

14 (b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Section 2102(c) (20

15 U.S.C. 6622(c)) is amended—

16 (1) in paragraph (13), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

17 the semicolon;

18 (2) in paragraph (14), by striking the period

19 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

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

21 ‘‘(15) the development and dissemination of

22 model programs that teach teachers and administra23 tors how best to work with parents and how to en24 courage the parent’s involvement in the full range of
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1 parental involvement activities described in section

2 1118.’’.

3 (c) STATE APPLICATIONS.—Section 2205(b)(2) (20

4 U.S.C. 6645(b)(2)) is amended—

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

6 after the semicolon;

7 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (O) as sub8 paragraph (P); and

9 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (N) the fol10 lowing:

11 ‘‘(O) describe how the State will train

12 teachers to foster relationships with parents

13 and encourage parents to become collaborators

14 with schools in their children’s education; and’’.

15 (d) STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.—Section 2207 (20

16 U.S.C. 6647) is amended—

17 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (12) and (13)

18 as (13) and (14), respectively; and

19 (2) by inserting after paragraph (11) the fol20 lowing:

21 ‘‘(12) providing professional development pro22 grams that enable teachers, administrators, and

23 pupil services personnel to effectively communicate

24 with and involve parents in the education process to

25 support school planning, review, improvement, and
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1 classroom instruction, and to work effectively with

2 parent volunteers;’’.

3 (e) LOCAL PLAN AND APPLICATION FOR IMPROVING

4 TEACHING AND LEARNING.—Section 2208 (20 U.S.C.

5 6648) is amended—

6 (1) in subsection (c)(2), by inserting ‘‘parents,’’

7 after ‘‘administrators,’’; and

8 (2) in subsection (d)(1)—

9 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (I)

10 and (J) as subparagraphs (J) and (K), respec11 tively; and

12 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (H)

13 the following:

14 ‘‘(I) describe the specific professional de15 velopment strategies that will be implemented

16 to improve parental involvement in education

17 and how such agency will be held accountable

18 for implementing such strategies.’’.

19 (f) LOCAL ALLOCATION.—Section 2210(b)(3) (20

20 U.S.C. 6650(b)(3)) is amended—

21 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (P) and

22 (Q) as subparagraphs (Q) and (R), respectively; and

23 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (O) the fol24 lowing:
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1 ‘‘(P) professional development activities de2 signed to enable teachers, administrators, and

3 pupil services personnel to communicate with

4 parents regarding student achievement on as5 sessments.’’.

6 SEC. 6. TECHNOLOGY FOR EDUCATION.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Section 3111 (20 U.S.C. 6811) is

8 amended—

9 (1) in paragraph (6), by inserting ‘‘and by fa10 cilitating mentor relationships,’’ after ‘‘by means of

11 telecommunications,’’;

12 (2) in paragraph (14), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

13 the semicolon;

14 (3) in paragraph (15), by striking the period

15 and inserting a semicolon; and

16 (4) by adding at the end the following:

17 ‘‘(16) access to education technology and teach18 ers trained in how to incorporate the technology into

19 their instruction leads to improved student achieve20 ment, motivation, and school attendance;

21 ‘‘(17) the use of technology in education can

22 enhance the educational opportunities schools can

23 offer students with special needs; and
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1 ‘‘(18) the introduction of education technology

2 increases parental involvement, which has been

3 shown to improve student achievement.’’.

4 (b) STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.—Section 3112 (20

5 U.S.C. 6812) is amended—

6 (1) in paragraph (11), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

7 the semicolon;

8 (2) in paragraph (12), by striking the period

9 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

10 (3) by adding after paragraph (12), the fol11 lowing:

12 ‘‘(13) development and support for technology

13 and technology programming that will enhance and

14 facilitate meaningful parental involvement.’’.

15 (c) NATIONAL LONG-RANGE TECHNOLOGY PLAN.—

16 Section 3121(c)(4) (20 U.S.C. 6831(c)(4)) is amended—

17 (1) in subparagraph (E), by striking ‘‘and’’

18 after the semicolon;

19 (2) in subparagraph (F), by inserting ‘‘and’’

20 after the semicolon; and

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

22 ‘‘(G) increased parental involvement in

23 schools through the use of technology;’’.

24 (d) FEDERAL LEADERSHIP.—Section 3122(c) (20

25 U.S.C. 6832(c)) is amended—
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1 (1) in paragraph (15), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

2 the semicolon;

3 (2) in paragraph (16), by striking the period

4 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

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

6 ‘‘(17) the development, demonstration, and

7 evaluation of model technology programs designed to

8 improve parental involvement.’’.

9 (e) LOCAL USES OF FUNDS.—Section 3134 (20

10 U.S.C. 6844) is amended—

11 (1) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

12 the semicolon;

13 (2) in paragraph (6), by striking the period and

14 inserting a semicolon; and

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

16 ‘‘(7) utilizing technology to develop or expand

17 efforts to connect schools and teachers with parents

18 to promote meaningful parental involvement and fos19 ter increased communication about curriculum, as20 signments, and assessments; and

21 ‘‘(8) providing ongoing training and support for

22 parents to help the parents learn and use the tech23 nology being applied in their children’s education, so

24 as to equip the parents to reinforce and support

25 their children’s learning.’’.
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1 (f) LOCAL APPLICATIONS.—Section 3135 (20 U.S.C.

2 6845) is amended—

3 (1) in paragraph (1)(D)—

4 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

5 the semicolon;

6 (B) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘and’’ after

7 the semicolon; and

8 (C) by adding at the end the following:

9 ‘‘(iii) a description of how parents will be

10 informed of, and trained in, the use of tech11 nologies, so that the parents will be equipped to

12 reinforce at home the instruction their children

13 receive at school;’’;

14 (2) in paragraph (3)—

15 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking

16 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; and

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

18 ‘‘(C) improve parental involvement in

19 schools;’’;

20 (3) in paragraph (4)(B), by striking the period

21 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

22 (4) by adding at the end the following:

23 ‘‘(5) describe how the local educational agency

24 will effectively use technology to promote parental
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1 involvement and increase communication with par2 ents.’’.

3 (g) NATIONAL CHALLENGE GRANTS.—Section

4 3136(c) (20 U.S.C. 6846(c)) is amended—

5 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

6 the semicolon;

7 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period and

8 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

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

10 ‘‘(6) the project will enhance parental involve11 ment by providing parents the means and the skills

12 needed to more fully participate in their child’s

13 learning.’’.

14 SEC. 7. DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES.

15 (a) STATE APPLICATIONS.—Section 4112 (20 U.S.C.

16 7112) is amended—

17 (1) in subsection (b)—

18 (A) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘, in19 cluding how the agency will receive input from

20 parents regarding the use of such funds’’ after

21 ‘‘4113(b)’’; and

22 (B) in paragraph (6), by inserting ‘‘, and

23 how such review will include input from par24 ents’’ after ‘‘4115’’; and

25 (2) in subsection (c)—
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1 (A) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘and’’

2 after the semicolon;

3 (B) in paragraph (6), by striking the pe4 riod and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

5 (C) by adding at the end the following:

6 ‘‘(7) a specific description of how input from

7 parents will be sought regarding the use of funds

8 under section 4114(a).’’.

9 (b) EVALUATION AND REPORTING.—Section 4117

10 (20 U.S.C. 7117) is amended—

11 (1) in subsection (b)(1)—

12 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking

13 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon;

14 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the

15 period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

16 (C) by adding at the end the following:

17 ‘‘(C) on the State’s efforts to inform par18 ents of and include parents in violence and drug

19 prevention efforts.’’; and

20 (2) in the first sentence of subsection (c), by

21 striking the period and inserting ‘‘and a description

22 of how parents were informed of and participated in

23 violence and drug prevention efforts.’’.
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1 SEC. 8. INNOVATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAM STRATEGIES.

2 (a) DEFINITION.—Section 6003 (20 U.S.C. 7303) is

3 amended—

4 (1) by striking ‘‘children, and (3)’’ and insert5 ing ‘‘children, (3) adopting meaningful parental in6 volvement policies and practices, and (4)’’; and

7 (2) by adding at the end the following:

8 ‘‘(F) A climate that promotes meaningful

9 parental involvement in the classroom and in

10 site-based activities.’’.

11 (b) STATE APPLICATIONS.—Section 6202(a) (20

12 U.S.C. 7332(a)) is amended—

13 (1) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

14 the semicolon;

15 (2) in paragraph (7), by striking the period and

16 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

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

18 ‘‘(8) provides information on the parental in19 volvement policies and practices promoted by the

20 State.’’.

21 (c) TARGETED USES OF FUNDS.—Section 6301(b)

22 (20 U.S.C. 7351(b)) is amended—

23 (1) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

24 the semicolon;

25 (2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period and

26 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
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1 (3) by inserting after paragraph (9) the fol2 lowing:

3 ‘‘(10) programs to promote the meaningful in4 volvement of parents.’’.

5 (d) LOCAL APPLICATIONS.—Section 6303(a)(1)(A)

6 (20 U.S.C. 7353(a)(1)(A)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, in7 cluding parental involvement,’’ before ‘‘designed’’.

8 SEC. 9. GENERAL PROVISIONS.

9 (a) DEFINITION.—Section 14101 (20 U.S.C. 8801)

10 is amended—

11 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (23) through

12 (29) as paragraphs (24) through (30), respectfully;

13 and

14 (2) by inserting after paragraph (22) the fol15 lowing:

16 ‘‘(23) PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT.—The term

17 ‘parental involvement’ means the participation of

18 parents on all levels of a school’s operation, includ19 ing all of the activities described in section 1118.’’.

20 (b) PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT.—Title XIV (20

21 U.S.C. 8801 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end

22 the following:
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1 ‘‘PART H—PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

2 ‘‘SEC. 14901. PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT.

3 ‘‘(a) STATE PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT PLAN.—In

4 order to receive Federal funding for any program author5 ized under this Act, a State educational agency shall (as

6 part of a consolidated application, or other State plan or

7 application submitted under this Act) submit to the

8 Secretary—

9 ‘‘(1) a description of the agency’s parental in10 volvement policies, consistent with section 1118, in11 cluding specific details about—

12 ‘‘(A) how Federal funds will be used to im13 plement such policies; and

14 ‘‘(B) successful research-based practices in

15 schools throughout the State; and

16 ‘‘(2) a description of how such policies will be

17 evaluated with respect to increased parental involve18 ment in the schools throughout the State.

19 ‘‘(b) PARENTAL REVIEW OF STATE PARENTAL IN20 VOLVEMENT PLAN.—Prior to making the submission de21 scribed in subsection (a), a State educational agency shall

22 involve parents in the development of the policies described

23 in such subsection by—

24 ‘‘(1) providing public notice of the policies in a

25 manner and language understandable to parents;
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1 ‘‘(2) providing the opportunity for parents and

2 other interested individuals to comment on the poli3 cies; and

4 ‘‘(3) including the comments received with the

5 submission.

6 ‘‘(c) LANGUAGE APPLICABILITY.—Each State edu7 cational agency and local educational agency that is re8 quired to establish a parental involvement plan or policy

9 under a program assisted under this Act shall make avail10 able, to the parents of children eligible to participate in

11 the program, the plan or policy in the language most fa12 miliar to the parents and in an easily understandable man13 ner.’’.

Æ