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[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1675 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1675

   To provide for school dropout prevention, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 30, 1999

Mr. Bingaman (for himself and Mr. Reid) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
   To provide for school dropout prevention, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Dropout Prevention Act of 
1999''.

                      TITLE I--DROPOUT PREVENTION

SEC. 101. DROPOUT PREVENTION.

    Part C of title V of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7261 et seq.) is amended to read as follows:

        ``PART C--ASSISTANCE TO ADDRESS SCHOOL DROPOUT PROBLEMS

               ``Subpart 1--Coordinated National Strategy

``SEC. 5311. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES.

    ``(a) National Priority.--It shall be a national priority, for the 
5-year period beginning on the date of enactment of the National 
Dropout Prevention Act of 1999, to lower the school dropout rate, and 
increase school completion, for middle school and secondary school 
students in accordance with Federal law. As part of this priority, all 
Federal agencies that carry out activities that serve students at risk 
of dropping out of school or that are intended to help address the 
school dropout problem shall make school dropout prevention a top 
priority in the agencies' funding priorities during the 5-year period.
    ``(b) Enhanced Data Collection.--The Secretary shall collect 
systematic data on the participation of different racial and ethnic 
groups (including migrant and limited English proficient students) in 
all Federal programs.

``SEC. 5312. NATIONAL SCHOOL DROPOUT PREVENTION STRATEGY.

    ``(a) Plan.--The Director shall develop, implement, and monitor an 
interagency plan (in this section referred to as the `plan') to assess 
the coordination, use of resources, and availability of funding under 
Federal law that can be used to address school dropout prevention, or 
middle school or secondary school reentry. The plan shall be completed 
and transmitted to the Secretary and Congress not later than 180 days 
after the first Director is appointed.
    ``(b) Coordination.--The plan shall address inter- and intra-agency 
program coordination issues at the Federal level with respect to school 
dropout prevention and middle school and secondary school reentry, 
assess the targeting of existing Federal services to students who are 
most at risk of dropping out of school, and the cost-effectiveness of 
various programs and approaches used to address school dropout 
prevention.
    ``(c) Available Resources.--The plan shall also describe the ways 
in which State and local agencies can implement effective school 
dropout prevention programs using funds from a variety of Federal 
programs, including the programs under title I of this Act and the 
School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994.
    ``(d) Scope.--The plan will address all Federal programs with 
school dropout prevention or school reentry elements or objectives, 
programs under title I of this Act, the School-to-Work Opportunities 
Act of 1994, part B of title IV of the Job Training Partnership Act, 
subtitle C of title I of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, and 
other programs.

``SEC. 5313. NATIONAL CLEARINGHOUSE.

    ``Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of the 
National Dropout Prevention Act of 1999, the Director shall establish a 
national clearinghouse on effective school dropout prevention, 
intervention and reentry programs. The clearinghouse shall be 
established through a competitive grant or contract awarded to an 
organization with a demonstrated capacity to provide technical 
assistance and disseminate information in the area of school dropout 
prevention, intervention, and reentry programs. The clearinghouse 
shall--
            ``(1) collect and disseminate to educators, parents, and 
        policymakers information on research, effective programs, best 
        practices, and available Federal resources with respect to 
        school dropout prevention, intervention, and reentry programs, 
        including dissemination by an electronically accessible 
        database, a worldwide Web site, and a national journal; and
            ``(2) provide technical assistance regarding securing 
        resources with respect to, and designing and implementing, 
        effective and comprehensive school dropout prevention, 
        intervention, and reentry programs.

``SEC. 5314. NATIONAL RECOGNITION PROGRAM.

    ``(a) In General.--The Director shall carry out a national 
recognition program that recognizes schools that have made 
extraordinary progress in lowering school dropout rates under which a 
public middle school or secondary school from each State will be 
recognized. The Director shall use uniform national guidelines that are 
developed by the Director for the recognition program and shall 
recognize schools from nominations submitted by State educational 
agencies.
    ``(b) Eligible Schools.--The Director may recognize any public 
middle school or secondary school (including a charter school) that has 
implemented comprehensive reforms regarding the lowering of school 
dropout rates for all students at that school.
    ``(c) Support.--The Director may make monetary awards to schools 
recognized under this section, in amounts determined by the Director. 
Amounts received under this section shall be used for dissemination 
activities within the school district or nationally.

       ``Subpart 2--National School Dropout Prevention Initiative

``SEC. 5321. FINDINGS.

    ``Congress finds that, in order to lower dropout rates and raise 
academic achievement levels, improved and redesigned schools must--
            ``(1) challenge all children to attain their highest 
        academic potential; and
            ``(2) ensure that all students have substantial and ongoing 
        opportunities to--
                    ``(A) achieve high levels of academic and technical 
                skills;
                    ``(B) prepare for college and careers;
                    ``(C) learn by doing;
                    ``(D) work with teachers in small schools within 
                schools;
                    ``(E) receive ongoing support from adult mentors;
                    ``(F) access a wide variety of information about 
                careers and postsecondary education and training;
                    ``(G) use technology to enhance and motivate 
                learning; and
                    ``(H) benefit from strong links among middle 
                schools, secondary schools, and postsecondary 
                institutions.

``SEC. 5322. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

    ``(a) Allotments to States.--
            ``(1) In general.--From the sum made available under 
        section 5332(b) for a fiscal year the Secretary shall make an 
        allotment to each State in an amount that bears the same 
        relation to the sum as the amount the State received under 
        title I for the preceding fiscal year bears to the amount 
        received by all States under such title for the preceding 
        fiscal year.
            ``(2) Definition of state.--In this subpart, the term 
        `State' means each of the several States of the United States, 
        the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 
        United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the 
        Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of 
        the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and 
        the Republic of Palau.
    ``(b) Grants.--From amounts made available to a State under 
subsection (a), the State educational agency may award grants to public 
middle schools or secondary schools, that have school dropout rates 
which are in the highest \1/3\ of all school dropout rates in the 
State, to enable the schools to pay only the startup and implementation 
costs of effective, sustainable, coordinated, and whole school dropout 
prevention programs that involve activities such as--
            ``(1) professional development;
            ``(2) obtaining curricular materials;
            ``(3) release time for professional staff;
            ``(4) planning and research;
            ``(5) remedial education;
            ``(6) reduction in pupil-to-teacher ratios;
            ``(7) efforts to meet State student achievement standards; 
        and
            ``(8) counseling for at-risk students.
    ``(c) Intent of Congress.--It is the intent of Congress that the 
activities started or implemented under subsection (a) shall be 
continued with funding provided under part A of title I.
    ``(d) Amount.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to subsection (d) and except as 
        provided in paragraph (2), a grant under this subpart shall be 
        awarded--
                    ``(A) in the first year that a school receives a 
                grant payment under this subpart, in an amount that is 
                not less than $50,000 and not more than $100,000, based 
                on factors such as--
                            ``(i) school size;
                            ``(ii) costs of the model being 
                        implemented; and
                            ``(iii) local cost factors such as poverty 
                        rates;
                    ``(B) in the second such year, in an amount that is 
                not less than 75 percent of the amount the school 
                received under this subpart in the first such year;
                    ``(C) in the third year, in an amount that is not 
                less than 50 percent of the amount the school received 
                under this subpart in the first such year; and
                    ``(D) in each succeeding year in an amount that is 
                not less than 30 percent of the amount the school 
                received under this subpart in the first such year.
            ``(2) Increases.--The Director shall increase the amount 
        awarded to a school under this subpart by 10 percent if the 
        school creates smaller learning communities within the school 
        and the creation is certified by the State educational agency.
    ``(e) Duration.--A grant under this subpart shall be awarded for a 
period of 3 years, and may be continued for a period of 2 additional 
years if the State educational agency determines, based on the annual 
reports described in section 5328(a), that significant progress has 
been made in lowering the school dropout rate for students 
participating in the program assisted under this subpart compared to 
students at similar schools who are not participating in the program.

``SEC. 5323. STRATEGIES AND ALLOWABLE MODELS.

    ``(a) Strategies.--Each school receiving a grant under this subpart 
shall implement research-based, sustainable, and widely replicated, 
strategies for school dropout prevention and reentry that address the 
needs of an entire school population rather than a subset of students. 
The strategies may include--
            ``(1) specific strategies for targeted purposes; and
            ``(2) approaches such as breaking larger schools down into 
        smaller learning communities and other comprehensive reform 
        approaches, creating alternative school programs, developing 
        clear linkages to career skills and employment, and addressing 
        specific gatekeeper hurdles that often limit student retention 
        and academic success.
    ``(b) Allowable Models.--The Director shall annually establish and 
publish in the Federal Register the principles, criteria, models, and 
other parameters regarding the types of effective, proven program 
models that are allowed to be used under this subpart, based on 
existing research.
    ``(c) Capacity Building.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Director, through a contract with a 
        non-Federal entity, shall conduct a capacity building and 
        design initiative in order to increase the types of proven 
        strategies for dropout prevention on a schoolwide level.
            ``(2) Number and duration.--
                    ``(A) Number.--The Director shall award not more 
                than 5 contracts under this subsection.
                    ``(B) Duration.--The Director shall award a 
                contract under this section for a period of not more 
                than 5 years.
    ``(d) Support for Existing Reform Networks.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Director shall provide appropriate 
        support to eligible entities to enable the eligible entities to 
        provide training, materials, development, and staff assistance 
        to schools assisted under this subpart.
            ``(2) Definition of eligible entity.--The term `eligible 
        entity' means an entity that, prior to the date of enactment of 
        the National Dropout Prevention Act of 1999--
                    ``(A) provided training, technical assistance, and 
                materials to 100 or more elementary schools or 
                secondary schools; and
                    ``(B) developed and published a specific 
                educational program or design for use by the schools.

``SEC. 5324. SELECTION OF SCHOOLS.

    ``(a) School Application.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each school desiring a grant under this 
        subpart shall submit an application to the State educational 
        agency at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such 
        information as the State educational agency may require.
            ``(2) Contents.--Each application submitted under paragraph 
        (1) shall--
                    ``(A) contain a certification from the local 
                educational agency serving the school that--
                            ``(i) the school has the highest number or 
                        rates of school dropouts in the age group 
                        served by the local educational agency;
                            ``(ii) the local educational agency is 
                        committed to providing ongoing operational 
                        support, for the school's comprehensive reform 
                        plan to address the problem of school dropouts, 
                        for a period of 5 years; and
                            ``(iii) the local educational agency will 
                        support the plan, including--
                                    ``(I) release time for teacher 
                                training;
                                    ``(II) efforts to coordinate 
                                activities for feeder schools; and
                                    ``(III) encouraging other schools 
                                served by the local educational agency 
                                to participate in the plan;
                    ``(B) demonstrate that the faculty and 
                administration of the school have agreed to apply for 
                assistance under this subpart, and provide evidence of 
                the school's willingness and ability to use the funds 
                under this subpart, including providing an assurance of 
                the support of 80 percent or more of the professional 
                staff at the school;
                    ``(C) describe the instructional strategies to be 
                implemented, how the strategies will serve all 
                students, and the effectiveness of the strategies;
                    ``(D) describe a budget and timeline for 
                implementing the strategies;
                    ``(E) contain evidence of interaction with an 
                eligible entity described in section 5323(d)(2);
                    ``(F) contain evidence of coordination with 
                existing resources;
                    ``(G) provide an assurance that funds provided 
                under this subpart will supplement and not supplant 
                other Federal, State, and local funds;
                    ``(H) describe how the activities to be assisted 
                conform with an allowable model described in section 
                5323(b); and
                    ``(I) demonstrate that the school and local 
                educational agency have agreed to conduct a schoolwide 
                program under 1114.
    ``(b) State Agency Review and Award.--The State educational agency 
shall review applications and award grants to schools under subsection 
(a) according to a review by a panel of experts on school dropout 
prevention.
    ``(c) Criteria.--The Director shall establish clear and specific 
selection criteria for awarding grants to schools under this subpart. 
Such criteria shall be based on school dropout rates and other relevant 
factors for State educational agencies to use in determining the number 
of grants to award and the type of schools to be awarded grants.
    ``(d) Eligibility.--A school is eligible to receive a grant under 
this subpart if the school is--
            ``(1) a public school (including a public alternative 
        school)--
                    ``(A) that is eligible to receive assistance under 
                part A of title I, including a comprehensive secondary 
                school, a vocational or technical secondary school, and 
                a charter school; and
                    ``(B)(i) that serves students 50 percent or more of 
                whom are low-income individuals; or
                    ``(ii) with respect to which the feeder schools 
                that provide the majority of the incoming students to 
                the school serve students 50 percent or more of whom 
                are low-income individuals; or
            ``(2) participating in a schoolwide program under section 
        1114 during the grant period.
    ``(e) Community-Based Organizations.--A school that receives a 
grant under this subpart may use the grant funds to secure necessary 
services from a community-based organization, including private sector 
entities, if--
            ``(1) the school approves the use;
            ``(2) the funds are used to provide school dropout 
        prevention and reentry activities related to schoolwide 
        efforts; and
            ``(3) the community-based organization has demonstrated the 
        organization's ability to provide effective services as 
        described in section 107(a) of the Job Training Partnership 
        Act, or section 122 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.
    ``(f) Coordination.--Each school that receives a grant under this 
subpart shall coordinate the activities assisted under this subpart 
with other Federal programs, such as programs assisted under chapter 1 
of subpart 2 of part A of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
and the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994.

``SEC. 5325. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES.

    ``Each school that receives a grant under this subpart shall 
provide information and technical assistance to other schools within 
the school district, including presentations, document-sharing, and 
joint staff development.

``SEC. 5326. PROGRESS INCENTIVES.

    ``Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each local 
educational agency that receives funds under title I shall use such 
funding to provide assistance to schools served by the agency that have 
not made progress toward lowering school dropout rates after receiving 
assistance under this subpart for 2 fiscal years.

``SEC. 5327. SCHOOL DROPOUT RATE CALCULATION.

    ``For purposes of calculating a school dropout rate under this 
subpart, a school shall use--
            ``(1) the annual event school dropout rate for students 
        leaving a school in a single year determined in accordance with 
        the National Center for Education Statistics' Common Core of 
        Data, if available; or
            ``(2) in other cases, a standard method for calculating the 
        school dropout rate as determined by the State educational 
        agency.

``SEC. 5328. REPORTING AND ACCOUNTABILITY.

    ``(a) Reporting.--In order to receive funding under this subpart 
for a fiscal year after the first fiscal year a school receives funding 
under this subpart, the school shall provide, on an annual basis, to 
the Director a report regarding the status of the implementation of 
activities funded under this subpart, the disaggregated outcome data 
for students at schools assisted under this subpart such as dropout 
rates, and certification of progress from the eligible entity whose 
strategies the school is implementing.
    ``(b) Accountability.--On the basis of the reports submitted under 
subsection (a), the Director shall evaluate the effect of the 
activities assisted under this subpart on school dropout prevention 
compared to a control group.

``SEC. 5329. PROHIBITION ON TRACKING.

    ``(a) In General.--A school shall be ineligible to receive funding 
under this subpart for a fiscal year, if the school--
            ``(1) has in place a general education track;
            ``(2) provides courses with significantly different 
        material and requirements to students at the same grade level; 
        or
            ``(3) fails to encourage all students to take a core 
        curriculum of courses.
    ``(b) Regulations.--The Secretary shall promulgate regulations 
implementing subsection (a).

       ``Subpart 3--Definitions; Authorization of Appropriations

``SEC. 5331. DEFINITIONS.

    ``In this Act:
            ``(1) Director.--The term `Director' means the Director of 
        the Office of Dropout Prevention and Program Completion 
        established under section 220 of the General Education 
        Provisions Act.
            ``(2) Low-income.--The term `low-income', used with respect 
        to an individual, means an individual determined to be low-
        income in accordance with measures described in section 
        1113(a)(5).
            ``(3) School dropout.--The term `school dropout' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 4(17) of the School-to-Work 
        Opportunities Act of 1994.

``SEC. 5332. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    ``(a) Subpart 1.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry 
out subpart 1, $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and such sums as may be 
necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.
    ``(b) Subpart 2.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry 
out subpart 2, $145,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and such sums as may 
be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years, of which--
            ``(1) $125,000,000 shall be available to carry out section 
        5322; and
            ``(2) $20,000,000 shall be available to carry out section 
        5323.''.

SEC. 102. OFFICE OF DROPOUT PREVENTION AND PROGRAM COMPLETION.

    Title II of the Department of Education Organization Act (20 U.S.C. 
3411) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 216 (as added by Public Law 
        103-227) as section 218; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:

         ``office of dropout prevention and program completion

    ``Sec. 220. (a) Establishment.--There shall be in the Department of 
Education an Office of Dropout Prevention and Program Completion 
(hereafter in this section referred to as the `Office'), to be 
administered by the Director of the Office of Dropout Prevention and 
Program Completion. The Director of the Office shall report directly to 
the Secretary and shall perform such additional functions as the 
Secretary may prescribe.
    ``(b) Duties.--The Director of the Office of Dropout Prevention and 
Program Completion (hereafter in this section referred to as the 
`Director'), through the Office, shall--
            ``(1) help coordinate Federal, State, and local efforts to 
        lower school dropout rates and increase program completion by 
        middle school, secondary school, and college students;
            ``(2) recommend Federal policies, objectives, and 
        priorities to lower school dropout rates and increase program 
        completion;
            ``(3) oversee the implementation of subpart 2 of part C of 
        title V of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965;
            ``(4) develop and implement the National School Dropout 
        Prevention Strategy under section 5312 of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965;
            ``(5) annually prepare and submit to Congress and the 
        Secretary a national report describing efforts and recommended 
        actions regarding school dropout prevention and program 
        completion;
            ``(6) recommend action to the Secretary and the President, 
        as appropriate, regarding school dropout prevention and program 
        completion; and
            ``(7) consult with and assist State and local governments 
        regarding school dropout prevention and program completion.
    ``(c) Scope of Duties.--The scope of the Director's duties under 
subsection (b) shall include examination of all Federal and non-Federal 
efforts related to--
            ``(1) promoting program completion for children attending 
        middle school or secondary school;
            ``(2) programs to obtain a secondary school diploma or its 
        recognized equivalent (including general equivalency diploma 
        (GED) programs), or college degree programs; and
            ``(3) reentry programs for individuals aged 12 to 24 who 
        are out of school.
    ``(d) Detailing.--In carrying out the Director's duties under this 
section, the Director may request the head of any Federal department or 
agency to detail personnel who are engaged in school dropout prevention 
activities to another Federal department or agency in order to 
implement the National School Dropout Prevention Strategy.''.

                    TITLE II--STATE RESPONSIBILITIES

SEC. 201. STATE RESPONSIBILITIES.

    Title XIV of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 8801 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

                      ``PART I--DROPOUT PREVENTION

``SEC. 14851. DROPOUT PREVENTION.

    ``In order to receive any assistance under this Act, a State 
educational agency shall comply with the following provisions regarding 
school dropouts:
            ``(1) Uniform data collection.--Within 1 year after the 
        date of enactment of the National Dropout Prevention Act of 
        1999, a State educational agency shall report to the Secretary 
        and statewide, all school district and school data regarding 
        school dropout rates in the State, and demographic breakdowns, 
        according to procedures that conform with the National Center 
        for Education Statistics' Common Core of Data.
            ``(2) Attendance-neutral funding policies.--Within 2 years 
        after the date of enactment of the National Dropout Prevention 
        Act of 1999, a State educational agency shall develop and 
        implement education funding formula policies for public schools 
        that provide appropriate incentives to retain students in 
        school throughout the school year, such as--
                    ``(A) a student count methodology that does not 
                determine annual budgets based on attendance on a 
                single day early in the academic year; and
                    ``(B) specific incentives for retaining enrolled 
                students throughout each year.
            ``(3) Suspension and expulsion policies.--Within 2 years 
        after the date of enactment of the National Dropout Prevention 
        Act of 1999, a State educational agency shall develop uniform, 
        long-term suspension and expulsion policies for serious 
        infractions resulting in more than 10 days of exclusion from 
        school per academic year so that similar violations result in 
        similar penalties.''.
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