II 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 164 

To modernize the education system of the United States. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 4, 2007 

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

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

A BILL 

To modernize the education system of the United States. 

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 ‘‘States Using Collabo5 ration and Coordination to Enhance Standards for Stu6 dents Act of 2007’’ or the ‘‘SUCCESS Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds the following: 

9 (1) Throughout our Nation’s history, the skills 

10 and education of our workforce have been a major 

11 determinant of the standard of living of the people 

12 of the United States. 


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1 (2) According to the most recent National As2 sessment of Educational Progress, only 36 percent 

3 of the students in grade 4 and 30 percent of the stu4 dents in grade 8 reach the proficient level in mathe5 matics. In reading, only 31 percent of the students 

6 in grades 4 and 8 reach the proficient level. In 

7 science, only 29 percent of the students in grades 4 

8 and 8 reach the proficient level. 

9 (3) A State-by-State comparison of the 2005 

10 National Assessment of Educational Progress aver11 age scale scores for 8th grade mathematics reveals 

that 31 States—more than 1 12 ⁄2 of the States in the 

13 Nation—scored more than 10 points (about 1 grade 

14 level) below the highest scoring State, Massachu15 setts. 

16 (4) Student achievement in mathematics and 

17 science in elementary school and secondary school in 

18 the United States lags behind other nations, accord19 ing to the Trends in International Mathematics and 

20 Science study and other studies, including the Pro21 gramme for International Student Assessment, that 

22 recently ranked United States secondary school stu23 dents 28th out of 40 first- and second-world nations, 

24 and tied with Latvia, in mathematics performance 

25 and problem solving. 


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1 (5) According to a report released in August, 

2 2006, the Nation loses more than $3,700,000,000 a 

3 year in the costs of remedial education and in indi4 viduals’ reduced earning potential because students 

5 are not learning the basic skills they need to succeed 

6 after high school. 

7 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

8 The purposes of this Act are the following: 

9 (1) To ensure students receive an education 

10 competitive with other industrialized countries. 

11 (2) To assist States in improving the rigor of 

12 standards and assessments. 

13 (3) To provide for the establishment of pre14 kindergarten through grade 16 student preparedness 

15 councils to better link early childhood education and 

16 school readiness with elementary school success, ele17 mentary student skills with success in secondary 

18 school, and secondary student skills and curricula, 

19 especially with respect to reading, mathematics, and 

20 science, with the demands of higher education, the 

21 21st century workforce, and the Armed Forces, in 

22 order to ensure that greater number of students, es23 pecially low-income and minority students, complete 

24 secondary school with the coursework and skills nec25 essary to enter— 


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1 (A) credit-bearing coursework in higher 

2 education without the need for remediation; 

3 (B) high-paying employment in the 21st 

4 century workforce; or 

5 (C) the Armed Forces. 

6 (4) To establish a system that encourages local 

7 educational agencies to adopt a curriculum that 

8 meets State academic content standards and student 

9 academic achievement standards and prepares all 

10 students for success in elementary school, secondary 

11 school, and post-secondary endeavors in the 21st 

12 century. 

13 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

14 In this Act: 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The terms ‘‘elementary 

16 school’’, ‘‘limited English proficient’’, ‘‘local edu17 cational agency’’, ‘‘scientifically based research’’, 

18 ‘‘secondary school’’, ‘‘Secretary’’, and ‘‘State edu19 cational agency’’ have the meanings given such 

20 terms in section 9101 of the Elementary and Sec21 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

22 (2) 21ST CENTURY CURRICULUM.—The term 

23 ‘‘21st century curriculum’’ means a course of study 

24 identified by a State as preparing secondary school 

25 students for entrance into credit-bearing coursework 


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1 in higher education without the need for remedi2 ation, employment in the 21st century workforce, or 

3 entrance into the Armed Forces. A State shall define 

4 the 21st century curriculum in terms of content as 

5 well as course names. 

6 (3) ACADEMIC CONTENT STANDARDS; STUDENT

7 ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT STANDARDS.—The terms 

8 ‘‘academic content standards’’ and ‘‘student aca9 demic achievement standards’’, when used with re10 spect to a particular State, mean the academic con11 tent standards and student academic achievement 

12 standards adopted by a State under section 

13 1111(b)(1) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu14 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(1)). 

15 (4) CRITICAL-NEED FOREIGN LANGUAGE.—The 

16 term ‘‘critical-need foreign language’’ means a lan17 guage included on the list of critical-need foreign 

18 languages that the Secretary shall develop and up19 date in consultation with the head official, or a des20 ignee of such head official, of the National Security 

21 Council, the Department of Homeland Security, the 

22 Department of Defense, the Department of State, 

23 the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Depart24 ment of Labor, and the Department of Commerce, 

25 and the Director of National Intelligence. 


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1 (5) END OF COURSE EXAMINATION.—The term 

2 ‘‘end of course examination’’ means an assessment 

3 of student learning given at the end of a particular 

4 course that is used to measure student learning of 

5 State academic content standards in the subject 

6 matter of the course. 

7 (6) ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY EDU8 CATION.—The term ‘‘engineering and technology 

9 education’’ means a curriculum and instruction 

10 that— 

11 (A) uses technology as a knowledge base or 

12 as a way of teaching innovation using an engi13 neering design process and context; 

14 (B) develops an appreciation and funda15 mental understanding of technology through de16 sign skills and the use of materials, tools, proc17 esses, and limited resources; 

18 (C) is taught in conjunction with applied 

19 mathematics, science, language arts, fine arts, 

20 and social studies as a part of a comprehensive 

21 education; 

22 (D) applies the use of tools and skills em23 ployed by a globalized skilled 21st century 

24 workforce that are necessary for communica25 tion, manufacturing, construction, energy sysVerDate Aug 31 2005 07:37 Jan 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S164.IS S164

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1 tems, biomedical systems, transportation sys2 tems, and other related fields; and 

3 (E) through the application of engineering 

4 principles and concepts, develops proficiency in 

5 abstract ideas and in problem-solving tech6 niques that build a comprehensive education. 

7 (7) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

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

9 meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the 

10 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 

11 (8) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—The term 

12 ‘‘professional development’’ includes activities that— 

13 (A) improve and increase teachers’ knowl14 edge of the academic subjects the teachers 

15 teach, and enable teachers to become highly 

16 qualified; 

17 (B) are an integral part of broad edu18 cational improvement plans across the school 

19 and across the local educational agency; 

20 (C) give teachers, principals, and adminis21 trators the knowledge and skills to provide stu22 dents with the opportunity to meet the State 

23 academic content standards and student aca24 demic achievement standards and the 21st cen25 tury curriculum demands; 


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1 (D) are high-quality, sustained, intensive, 

2 and classroom-focused, in order to have a posi3 tive and lasting effect on classroom instruction 

4 and the teacher’s performance in the classroom; 

5 (E) advance teacher understanding of ef6 fective instructional strategies that are based on 

7 scientifically based research and are directly 

8 aligned with the State academic content stand9 ards and State assessments; 

10 (F) are designed to give teachers the 

11 knowledge and skills to provide instruction and 

12 appropriate language and academic support 

13 services to limited English proficient students 

14 and students with special needs, including the 

15 appropriate use of curricula and assessments; 

16 (G) are, as a whole, regularly evaluated for 

17 their impact on increased teacher effectiveness 

18 and improved student academic achievement, 

19 with the findings of the evaluations used to im20 prove the quality of professional development; 

21 and 

22 (H) include instruction in the use of data 

23 and assessments to inform and instruct class24 room practice. 


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1 (9) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

2 the several States of the United States, the District 

3 of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 

4 United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American 

5 Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

6 Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the 

7 Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of 

8 Palau. 

9 (10) STATE ASSESSMENT.—The term ‘‘State 

10 assessment’’, when used with respect to a particular 

11 State, means the student academic assessments im12 plemented by the State pursuant to section 

13 1111(b)(3) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu14 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(3)). 

15 (11) STUDENT PREPAREDNESS.—The term 

16 ‘‘student preparedness’’ means preparedness based 

17 on the knowledge and skills that— 

18 (A) are prerequisites for entrance into— 

19 (i) credit-bearing coursework in higher 

20 education without the need for remedi21 ation; 

22 (ii) the 21st century workforce; and 

23 (iii) the Armed Forces; 


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1 (B) can be measured and verified objec2 tively using widely accepted professional assess3 ment standards; and 

4 (C) are consistent with widely accepted 

5 professional assessment standards and competi6 tive with international levels of preparedness of 

7 students for postsecondary success. 

8 SEC. 5. ALIGNING STATE STANDARDS WITH NATIONAL 

9 BENCHMARKS. 

10 (a) REPORT ON RESULTS OF STATE ASSESSMENTS

11 AND NATIONAL ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 90 days 

12 after each release of the results of the National Assess13 ment of Educational Progress (as carried out under sec14 tion 303(b)(2) of the National Assessment of Educational 

15 Progress Authorization Act (20 U.S.C. 9622(b)(2)) and 

16 section 1111(c)(2) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu17 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(c)(2))) in reading or 

18 mathematics (or, beginning in 2009, science) in grades 4 

19 and 8, the Secretary shall— 

20 (1) prepare and submit to Congress the report 

21 described in subsection (b) on the results of the 

22 State assessments and the assessments of reading 

23 and mathematics, and, beginning in 2009, science, 

24 in grades 4 and 8, required under section 1111(c)(2) 


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1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

2 1965; and 

3 (2) identify States with significant discrepancies 

4 in performance between the 2 assessments, as de5 scribed in subsection (b)(3). 

6 (b) CONTENTS OF REPORT.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The report described in this 

8 subsection shall include the following information for 

9 each subject area and grade described in subsection 

10 (a)(1) in each State: 

11 (A) The percentage of students who per12 formed at or above the basic level on the State 

13 assessment— 

14 (i) for the most recent applicable year; 

15 (ii) for the preceding year; and 

16 (iii) for the previous year in which the 

17 assessment required under section 

18 1111(c)(2) of the Elementary and Sec19 ondary Education Act of 1965 was given 

20 in such subject, 

21 and the change in such percentages between 

22 those assessments. 

23 (B) The percentage of students who per24 formed at or above the proficient level on the 

25 State assessment— 


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1 (i) for the most recent applicable year; 

2 (ii) for the preceding year; and 

3 (iii) for the previous year in which the 

4 assessment required under section 

5 1111(c)(2) of the Elementary and Sec6 ondary Education Act of 1965 was given 

7 in such subject, 

8 and the change in such percentages between 

9 those assessments. 

10 (C) The percentage of students who per11 formed at or above the basic level on the assess12 ment required under section 1111(c)(2) of the 

13 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

14 1965— 

15 (i) for the most recent applicable year; 

16 and 

17 (ii) for the previous such assessment, 

18 and the change in such percentages between 

19 those assessments. 

20 (D) The percentage of students who per21 formed at or above the proficient level on the 

22 assessment required under section 1111(c)(2) 

23 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

24 Act of 1965— 


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1 (i) for the most recent applicable year; 

2 and 

3 (ii) for the previous such assessment, 

4 and the change in such percentages between 

5 those assessments. 

6 (E) The difference between— 

7 (i) the percentage of students who 

8 performed at or above the basic level for 

9 the most recent applicable year on the as10 sessment required under section 

11 1111(c)(2) of the Elementary and Sec12 ondary Education Act of 1965; and 

13 (ii) the percentage of students who 

14 performed at or above the basic level on 

15 the State assessment for such year. 

16 (F) The difference between— 

17 (i) the percentage of students who 

18 performed at or above the proficient level 

19 for the most recent applicable year on the 

20 assessment required under section 

21 1111(c)(2) of the Elementary and Sec22 ondary Education Act of 1965; and 

23 (ii) the percentage of students who 

24 performed at or above the proficient level 

25 on the State assessment for such year. 


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1 (2) ANALYSIS.—In addition to the information 

2 described in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall in3 clude in the report— 

4 (A) an analysis of how the achievement of 

5 students in grades 4, 8, and 12, and the pre6 paredness of students in grade 12 (when such 

7 data on preparedness exists from assessments 

8 described in section 303 of the National Assess9 ment of Educational Progress Authorization 

10 Act (as amended by this Act)), in the United 

11 States compares to the achievement and pre12 paredness of students in other industrialized 

13 countries; and 

14 (B) possible reasons for any deficiencies 

15 identified in the achievement or preparedness of 

16 United States students compared to students in 

17 other industrialized countries. 

18 (3) RANKING.—The Secretary shall— 

19 (A) using the information described in 

20 paragraph (1), rank the States according to the 

21 degree to which student performance on State 

22 assessments differs from performance on the 

23 assessments required under section 1111(c)(2) 

24 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

25 Act of 1965; and 


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1 (B) identify those States with the most 

2 significant discrepancies in performance be3 tween the State assessments and the assess4 ments required under section 1111(c)(2) of the 

5 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

6 1965. 

7 (c) REPORT ON STATE PROGRESS.—Beginning 5 

8 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec9 retary shall include in the report described in subsection 

10 (a)(1) the following: 

11 (1) Information about the progress made by 

12 States to decrease discrepancies in student perform13 ance on the State assessments and the assessments 

14 required under section 1111(c)(2) of the Elementary 

15 and Secondary Education Act of 1965. 

16 (2) The differences that exist in States across 

17 subject areas and grades. 

18 SEC. 6. NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL 

19 PROGRESS CHANGES. 

20 (a) NATIONAL ASSESSMENT GOVERNING BOARD.— 

21 Section 302 of the National Assessment of Educational 

22 Progress Authorization Act (20 U.S.C. 9621) is amend23 ed— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘shall formu2 late’’ and all that follows through the period at the 

3 end and inserting ‘‘shall— 

4 ‘‘(1) formulate policy guidelines for the Na5 tional Assessment of Educational Progress (carried 

6 out under section 303); and 

7 ‘‘(2) carry out, upon the request of a State, an 

8 alignment analysis (under section 304) comparing a 

9 State’s academic content standards and student aca10 demic achievement standards adopted under section 

11 1111(b)(1) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu12 cation Act of 1965, assessment specifications, as13 sessment questions, and performance standards with 

14 national benchmarks reflected in the assessments 

15 authorized under this Act.’’; 

16 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by adding at the end 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(O) One representative of the Armed 

19 Forces with expertise in military personnel re20 quirements and military preparedness, who 

21 shall serve as an ex-officio, nonvoting mem22 ber.’’; 

23 (3) in subsection (c), by striking paragraph (4); 

24 (4) in subsection (e)— 

25 (A) in paragraph (1)— 


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1 (i) in subparagraph (B), by inserting 

2 ‘‘and grade 12 student preparedness lev3 els’’ after ‘‘achievement levels’’; 

4 (ii) in subparagraph (D), by inserting 

5 ‘‘members of the business and military 

6 communities,’’ after ‘‘parents,’’; 

7 (iii) in subparagraph (E), by inserting 

8 ‘‘and’’ after ‘‘subject matter,’’; 

9 (iv) by redesignating subparagraphs 

10 (G), (H), (I), and (J) as subparagraphs 

11 (H), (I), (K), and (L), respectively; 

12 (v) by inserting after subparagraph 

13 (F) the following: 

14 ‘‘(G) consistent with section 303, measure 

15 grade 12 student preparedness;’’; 

16 (vi) by inserting after subparagraph 

17 (I) (as redesignated by clause (iv)) the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(J) ensure the rigor of the National As20 sessment of Educational Progress framework 

21 and assessments, taking into consideration— 

22 ‘‘(i) the knowledge and skills that are 

23 prerequisite to credit-bearing coursework 

24 in higher education without the need for 


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1 remediation, the 21st century workforce, 

2 and the Armed Forces; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) rigorous international content 

4 and performance standards, and how the 

5 achievement of students in grades 4, 8, 

6 and 12, and the preparedness of students 

7 in grade 12, in the United States compare 

8 to the achievement and the preparedness of 

9 students in other industrialized coun10 tries;’’; 

11 (vii) in subparagraph (K) (as redesig12 nated by clause (iv)), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

13 after the semicolon; 

14 (viii) in subparagraph (L) (as redesig15 nated by clause (iv)), by striking the period 

16 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

17 (ix) by inserting after subparagraph 

18 (L) the following: 

19 ‘‘(M) conduct an alignment analysis as de20 scribed in section 304 for each State that re21 quests such analysis.’’; and 

22 (x) in the flush matter at the end— 

23 (I) by inserting ‘‘for an assess24 ment’’ after ‘‘data’’; 


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1 (II) by inserting ‘‘Assessment 

2 Board’s’’ after ‘‘prior to the’’; and 

3 (III) by striking ‘‘(J)’’ and in4 serting ‘‘(L)’’; 

5 (B) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘of 

6 Educational Progress’’ after ‘‘National Assess7 ment’’; 

8 (C) in paragraph (5), in the paragraph 

9 heading, by inserting ‘‘ADVICE’’ after ‘‘TECH10 NICAL’’; and 

11 (D) in paragraph (6), by inserting ‘‘or 

12 grade 12 student preparedness levels’’ after 

13 ‘‘student achievement levels’’; and 

14 (5) in subsection (g)(1), by inserting ‘‘of Edu15 cational Progress’’ after ‘‘National Assessment’’. 

16 (b) NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL

17 PROGRESS.—Section 303 of the National Assessment of 

18 Educational Progress Authorization Act (20 U.S.C. 9622) 

19 is amended— 

20 (1) in subsection (b)— 

21 (A) in the subsection heading, by striking 

22 ‘‘PURPOSE’’ and inserting ‘‘PURPOSES’’; 

23 (B) by striking paragraph (1) and insert24 ing the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section 

2 are— 

3 ‘‘(A) to provide, in a timely manner, a fair 

4 and accurate measurement of student achieve5 ment and grade 12 student preparedness in 

6 reading, mathematics, science, and other sub7 ject matter as specified in this section; and 

8 ‘‘(B) to report trends in student achieve9 ment and grade 12 student preparedness in 

10 reading, mathematics, science, and other sub11 ject matter as specified in this section.’’; 

12 (C) in paragraph (2)— 

13 (i) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

14 ‘‘reading and mathematics’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘reading, mathematics, and science’’; 

16 (ii) by striking subparagraph (C) and 

17 inserting the following: 

18 ‘‘(C) conduct a national assessment and 

19 collect and report assessment data, including 

20 achievement and student preparedness data 

21 trends, in a valid and reliable manner on stu22 dent academic achievement and student pre23 paredness in public and private schools in read24 ing, mathematics, and science at least once 

25 every 2 years in grade 12;’’; 


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1 (iii) in subparagraph (D)— 

2 (I) by striking ‘‘subparagraph 

3 (B) are implemented and the require4 ments described in subparagraph (C) 

5 are met,’’ and inserting ‘‘subpara6 graphs (B) and (C) are imple7 mented,’’; and 

8 (II) by striking ‘‘science,’’; 

9 (iv) in subparagraph (E)— 

10 (I) by striking ‘‘reading and 

11 mathematics’’ and inserting ‘‘reading, 

12 mathematics, and science’’; and 

13 (II) by striking ‘‘subparagraph 

14 (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraphs 

15 (B) and (C)’’; and 

16 (v) in subparagraph (H), by striking 

17 ‘‘achievement data’’ and inserting ‘‘student 

18 achievement data and grade 12 student 

19 preparedness data’’; 

20 (D) in paragraph (3)— 

21 (i) in subparagraph (A)— 

22 (I) in clause (i), by striking 

23 ‘‘reading and mathematics’’ and in24 serting ‘‘reading, mathematics, and 

25 science’’; 


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1 (II) in clause (ii)— 

2 (aa) by inserting ‘‘and grade 

3 12 student preparedness’’ after 

4 ‘‘achievement’’; and 

5 (bb) by striking ‘‘reading 

6 and mathematics’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘reading, mathematics, and 

8 science’’; and 

9 (III) in clause (iv), by striking 

10 ‘‘an evaluation’’ and inserting ‘‘a re11 view’’; and 

12 (ii) in subparagraph (C)(ii), by strik13 ing ‘‘reading and mathematics’’ and insert14 ing ‘‘reading, mathematics, and science’’; 

15 (E) in paragraph (4)(B), by striking ‘‘, re16 quire, or influence’’ and inserting ‘‘or require’’; 

17 and 

18 (F) in paragraph (5)(B), by striking ‘‘aca19 demic achievement’’ and inserting ‘‘academic 

20 achievement or grade 12 student prepared21 ness’’; 

22 (2) in subsection (c)(3)(A), by striking ‘‘aca23 demic achievement’’ and inserting ‘‘academic 

24 achievement or grade 12 preparedness’’; 

25 (3) in subsection (d)(3)— 


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

2 ‘‘reading and mathematics in grades 4 and 8’’ 

3 and inserting ‘‘reading, mathematics, and 

4 science in grades 4 and 8’’; and 

5 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

6 ‘‘reading and mathematics assessments in 

7 grades 4 and 8’’ and inserting ‘‘reading, mathe8 matics, and science assessments in grades 4 

9 and 8’’; 

10 (4) in subsection (e)— 

11 (A) in the subsection heading, by inserting 

12 ‘‘AND GRADE 12 STUDENT PREPAREDNESS

13 LEVELS’’ after ‘‘LEVELS’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

15 (i) by striking the paragraph heading 

16 and inserting ‘‘DEVELOPMENT.—’’; and 

17 (ii) by inserting ‘‘, and develop grade 

18 12 student preparedness levels’’ after 

19 ‘‘subsection (b)(2)(F)’’; 

20 (C) in paragraph (2)— 

21 (i) by striking subparagraph (A) and 

22 inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(A) STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND GRADE

24 12 PREPAREDNESS LEVELS.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT LEV2 ELS.—The student achievement levels de3 scribed in paragraph (1) shall be deter4 mined by— 

5 ‘‘(I) identifying the knowledge 

6 and skills that— 

7 ‘‘(aa) are prerequisite to 

8 credit-bearing coursework in 

9 higher education without the 

10 need for remediation in English, 

11 mathematics, or science, partici12 pation in the 21st century work13 force, and the Armed Forces or, 

14 in the case of grade 4 and grade 

15 8 students, are prerequisite to 

16 grade 12 preparedness; 

17 ‘‘(bb) are competitive with 

18 rigorous international content 

19 and performance standards; and 

20 ‘‘(cc) can be measured and 

21 verified objectively using widely 

22 accepted professional assessment 

23 standards; and 

24 ‘‘(II) developing student achieve25 ment levels that are— 


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1 ‘‘(aa) based on the knowl2 edge and skills identified in sub3 clause (I); 

4 ‘‘(bb) based on the appro5 priate level of subject matter 

6 knowledge for the grade levels to 

7 be assessed, or the age of the 

8 students, as the case may be; and 

9 ‘‘(cc) consistent with rel10 evant widely accepted profes11 sional assessment standards. 

12 ‘‘(ii) GRADE 12 STUDENT PREPARED13 NESS LEVELS.—The grade 12 student pre14 paredness levels described in paragraph (1) 

15 shall be determined by— 

16 ‘‘(I) identifying the knowledge 

17 and skills that— 

18 ‘‘(aa) are prerequisite to 

19 credit-bearing coursework in 

20 higher education without the 

21 need for remediation in English, 

22 mathematics, or science, partici23 pation in the 21st century work24 force, and the Armed Forces; 


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1 ‘‘(bb) are competitive with 

2 rigorous international content 

3 and performance standards; and 

4 ‘‘(cc) can be measured and 

5 verified objectively using widely 

6 accepted professional assessment 

7 standards; and 

8 ‘‘(II) developing grade 12 student 

9 preparedness levels that are— 

10 ‘‘(aa) based on the knowl11 edge and skills identified in sub12 clause (I); and 

13 ‘‘(bb) consistent with widely 

14 accepted professional assessment 

15 standards.’’; and 

16 (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

17 ‘‘achievement levels’’ and inserting ‘‘stu18 dent achievement levels and grade 12 stu19 dent preparedness levels’’; 

20 (D) in paragraph (3)— 

21 (i) by striking ‘‘After determining 

22 that such levels’’ and inserting ‘‘After de23 termining that the student achievement 

24 levels and grade 12 student preparedness 

25 levels’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘an evaluation’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘a review’’; and 

3 (E) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘or 

4 grade 12 student preparedness levels’’ after 

5 ‘‘achievement levels’’; and 

6 (5) in subsection (f)(1)— 

7 (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 

8 ‘‘and grade 12 student preparedness levels’’ 

9 after ‘‘student achievement levels’’; and 

10 (B) in subparagraph (B)— 

11 (i) in clause (i), by inserting ‘‘or 

12 grade 12 student preparedness’’ after 

13 ‘‘achievement’’; 

14 (ii) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘and 

15 grade 12 student preparedness levels’’ 

16 after ‘‘achievement levels’’; 

17 (iii) by striking clause (iii) and insert18 ing the following: 

19 ‘‘(iii) whether any authorized assess20 ment is being administered as a random 

21 sample and is reporting the trends in stu22 dent achievement or grade 12 student pre23 paredness in a valid and reliable manner in 

24 the subject areas being assessed;’’; 


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1 (iv) in clause (iv), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

2 after the semicolon; 

3 (v) in clause (v), by striking ‘‘and 

4 mathematical knowledge.’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘and mathematical knowledge and sci6 entific knowledge; and’’; and 

7 (vi) by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(vi) whether the appropriate author10 ized assessments are measuring, consistent 

11 with this section, the preparedness of stu12 dents in grade 12 in the United States for 

13 entry into— 

14 ‘‘(I) credit-bearing coursework in 

15 higher education without the need for 

16 remediation in English, mathematics, 

17 or science; 

18 ‘‘(II) the 21st century workforce; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(III) the Armed Forces.’’. 

21 (c) NATIONAL BENCHMARKS.—The National Assess22 ment of Educational Progress Authorization Act (20 

23 U.S.C. 9621 et seq.) is amended— 

24 (1) by redesignating sections 304 and 305 as 

25 sections 305 and 306, respectively; and 


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1 (2) by inserting after section 303 the following: 

2 ‘‘SEC. 304. NATIONAL BENCHMARKS. 

3 ‘‘(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are— 

4 ‘‘(1) to encourage the coordination of, and con5 sistency between— 

6 ‘‘(A) a State’s academic content standards 

7 and student academic achievement standards 

8 adopted under section 1111(b)(1) of the Ele9 mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 

10 assessment specifications, and assessment ques11 tions; and 

12 ‘‘(B) national benchmarks, as reflected in 

13 the National Assessment of Educational 

14 Progress; 

15 ‘‘(2) to assist States in increasing the rigor of 

16 their State academic content standards, student aca17 demic achievement standards, assessment specifica18 tions, and assessment questions, to ensure that such 

19 standards, specifications, and questions are competi20 tive with rigorous national and international bench21 marks; and 

22 ‘‘(3) to improve the instruction and academic 

23 achievement of students, beginning in the early 

24 grades, to ensure that secondary school graduates 

25 are well-prepared to enter— 


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1 ‘‘(A) credit-bearing coursework in higher 

2 education without the need for remediation; 

3 ‘‘(B) the 21st century workforce; or 

4 ‘‘(C) the Armed Forces. 

5 ‘‘(b) ALIGNMENT ANALYSIS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—When the chief State 

7 school officer of a State identifies a need for, and re8 quests the Assessment Board to conduct, an align9 ment analysis for the State in reading, mathematics, 

10 or science in grades 4 and 8, the Assessment Board 

11 shall perform an alignment analysis of the State’s 

12 academic content standards and student academic 

13 achievement standards adopted under section 

14 1111(b)(1) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu15 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(1)), assess16 ment specifications, and assessment questions, for 

17 the identified subject in grades 4 and 8. Such anal18 ysis shall begin not later than 180 days after the 

19 alignment analysis is requested. 

20 ‘‘(2) ASSESSMENT BOARD RESPONSIBILITIES.— 

21 As part of the alignment analysis, the Assessment 

22 Board shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) identify the differences between the 

24 State’s academic content standards and student 

25 academic achievement standards, assessment 


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1 specifications, and assessment questions for the 

2 subject identified by the State, and national 

3 benchmarks reflected in the National Assess4 ment of Educational Progress in such subject in 

5 grades 4 and 8; 

6 ‘‘(B) at the State’s request, recommend 

7 steps for, and policy questions such State 

8 should consider regarding, the alignment of the 

9 State’s academic content standards and student 

10 academic achievement standards in the identi11 fied subject, with national benchmarks reflected 

12 in the National Assessment of Educational 

13 Progress in such subject in grades 4 and 8; and 

14 ‘‘(C) at the State’s request, and in con15 junction with a State prekindergarten through 

16 grade 16 student preparedness council estab17 lished under section 7 of the States Using Col18 laboration and Coordination to Enhance Stand19 ards for Students Act of 2007, assist in the de20 velopment of a plan described in section 

21 7(e)(1)(C) of such Act. 

22 ‘‘(3) CONTRACT.—At the discretion of the As23 sessment Board, the Assessment Board may enter 

24 into a contract with an entity that possesses the 


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1 technical expertise to conduct the analysis described 

2 in this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(4) STATE PANEL.—The chief State school of4 ficer of a State participating in an alignment anal5 ysis described in this subsection shall appoint a 

6 panel of not less than 6 individuals to partner with 

7 the Assessment Board in conducting the alignment 

8 analysis. Such panel— 

9 ‘‘(A) shall include— 

10 ‘‘(i) local and State curriculum ex11 perts; 

12 ‘‘(ii) relevant content and pedagogy 

13 experts, including representatives of enti14 ties with widely accepted national edu15 cational standards and assessments; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) not less than 1 entity that pos17 sesses the technical expertise to assist the 

18 State in implementing standards-based re19 form, which may be the same entity with 

20 which the Assessment Board contracts to 

21 conduct the analysis under paragraph (3); 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(B) may include other State and local 

24 representatives and representatives of organiza25 tions with relevant expertise.’’. 


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1 (d) DEFINITION OF SECRETARY.—Section 305 of the 

2 National Assessment of Educational Progress Authoriza3 tion Act (as redesignated by subsection (c)(1)) is amend4 ed— 

5 (1) by redesignating paragraph (2) as para6 graph (3); and 

7 (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means 

10 the Secretary of Education.’’. 

11 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

12 306(a) of the National Assessment of Educational 

13 Progress Authorization Act (as redesignated by subsection 

14 (c)(1)) is amended— 

15 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(1) for fiscal year 2008— 

18 ‘‘(A) $7,500,000 to carry out section 302; 

19 ‘‘(B) $200,000,000 to carry out section 

20 303; and 

21 ‘‘(C) $10,000,000 to carry out section 304; 

22 and’’; and 

23 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

24 (A) by striking ‘‘5 succeeding’’ and insert25 ing ‘‘4 succeeding’’; and 


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1 (B) by striking ‘‘and 303, as amended by 

2 section 401 of this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘, 303, 

3 and 304’’. 

4 (f) CONFORMING CHANGES AND AMENDMENTS.— 

5 (1) CONFORMING CHANGES TO THE ELEMEN6 TARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT OF 1965.— 

7 (A) STATE PLANS.—Section 1111(c)(2) of 

8 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

9 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(c)(2)) is amended by 

10 striking ‘‘and mathematics’’ and inserting ‘‘, 

11 mathematics, and science’’. 

12 (B) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY

13 PLANS.—Section 1112(b)(1)(F) of the Elemen14 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

15 U.S.C. 6312(b)(1)(F)) is amended by striking 

16 ‘‘reading and mathematics’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘reading, mathematics, and science’’. 

18 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

19 113(a)(1) of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 

20 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9513(a)(1)) is amended by striking 

21 ‘‘section 302(e)(1)(J)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

22 302(e)(1)(L)’’. 

23 SEC. 7. PREKINDERGARTEN THROUGH GRADE 16 STUDENT 

24 PREPAREDNESS COUNCIL GRANTS. 

25 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts appropriated 

2 under subsection (g) for a fiscal year, the Secretary 

3 is authorized to award, on a competitive basis, 

4 grants to States for the purpose of allowing the 

5 States to establish State prekindergarten through 

6 grade 16 student preparedness councils (referred to 

7 in this section as ‘‘councils’’) that— 

8 (A) convene stakeholders within the State 

9 and create a forum for identifying and delib10 erating on educational issues that cut across 

11 prekindergarten through grade 12 education 

12 and higher education, and transcend any single 

13 system of education’s ability to address; 

14 (B) develop and implement a plan for im15 proving the rigor of a State’s academic content 

16 standards, student academic achievement stand17 ards, assessment specifications, and assessment 

18 questions as necessary, to ensure such stand19 ards and assessments meet national and inter20 national benchmarks as reflected in the assess21 ments required under section 303(b)(2) of the 

22 National Assessment of Educational Progress 

23 Authorization Act (20 U.S.C. 9622(b)(2)) or as 

24 defined by the council as necessary for success 

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1 cation without the need for remediation, the 

2 21st century workforce, or the Armed Forces; 

3 (C) inform the design and implementation 

4 of integrated prekindergarten through grade 16 

5 data systems, which— 

6 (i) will allow the State to track the 

7 progress of individual students from pre8 kindergarten through grade 12 and into 

9 higher education; and 

10 (ii) shall be capable of being linked 

11 with appropriate databases on service in 

12 the Armed Forces and participation in the 

13 21st century workforce; and 

14 (D) develop challenging— 

15 (i) school readiness standards; 

16 (ii) curricula for elementary schools 

17 and middle schools; and 

18 (iii) 21st century curricula for sec19 ondary schools. 

20 (2) DURATION.—The Secretary shall award 

21 grants under this section for a period of not more 

22 than 5 years. 

23 (3) EXISTING STATE COUNCIL.—A State with 

24 an existing State council may qualify for the pur25 poses of a grant under this section if— 


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1 (A) such council— 

2 (i) has the authority to carry out this 

3 section; and 

4 (ii) includes the members required 

5 under subsection (b); or 

6 (B) the State amends the membership or 

7 responsibilities of the existing council to meet 

8 the requirements of subparagraph (A). 

9 (b) COMPOSITION.— 

10 (1) REQUIRED MEMBERS.—The members of a 

11 council described in subsection (a) shall include— 

12 (A) the Governor of the State or the des13 ignee of the Governor; 

14 (B) the chief executive officer of the State 

15 public institution of higher education system, if 

16 such a position exists; 

17 (C) the chief executive officer of the State 

18 higher education coordinating board; 

19 (D) the chief State school officer; 

20 (E) not less than 1 representative each 

21 from— 

22 (i) the business community; and 

23 (ii) the Armed Forces; 

24 (F) a public elementary school teacher em25 ployed in the State; and 


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1 (G) a public secondary school teacher em2 ployed in the State. 

3 (2) OPTIONAL MEMBERS.—The council de4 scribed in subsection (a) may also include— 

5 (A) a representative from— 

6 (i) a private institution of higher edu7 cation; 

8 (ii) the Chamber of Commerce for the 

9 State; 

10 (iii) a civic organization; 

11 (iv) a civil rights organization; 

12 (v) a community organization; or 

13 (vi) an organization with expertise in 

14 world cultures; 

15 (B) the State official responsible for eco16 nomic development, if such a position exists; or 

17 (C) a dean or similar representative for a 

18 school of education at an institution of higher 

19 education or a similar teacher certification or li20 censure program. 

21 (c) TIMELINE.—A State receiving a grant under this 

22 section shall establish a council (or use or amend an exist23 ing council in accordance with subsection (a)(3)) not later 

24 than 60 days after the receipt of the grant. 

25 (d) APPLICATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each State desiring a grant 

2 under this section shall submit an application to the 

3 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accom4 panied by such information as the Secretary may 

5 reasonably require. 

6 (2) CONTENTS.—Each application submitted 

7 under paragraph (1) shall— 

8 (A) demonstrate that the opinions of the 

9 larger education, business, and military commu10 nity, including parents, students, teachers, 

11 teacher educators, principals, school administra12 tors, and business leaders, will be represented 

13 during the determination of the State academic 

14 content standards and student academic 

15 achievement standards, assessment specifica16 tions, assessment questions, and the develop17 ment of curricula, if applicable; 

18 (B) include a comprehensive plan to pro19 vide high-quality professional development for 

20 teachers, paraprofessionals, principals, and 

21 school administrators; 

22 (C) explain how the State will provide as23 sistance to local educational agencies in imple24 menting rigorous State standards through sub25 stantive curricula, including scientifically based 


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1 remediation and acceleration opportunities for 

2 students; and 

3 (D) explain how the State and the council 

4 will leverage additional State, local, and other 

5 funds to pursue curricular alignment and stu6 dent success. 

7 (e) USE OF FUNDS.— 

8 (1) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—A State receiving 

9 a grant under this section shall use the grant funds 

10 to establish a council that shall carry out the fol11 lowing: 

12 (A) Design and implement an integrated 

13 prekindergarten through grade 16 longitudinal 

14 data system for the State, if such system does 

15 not exist, that will allow the State to track the 

16 progress of students from prekindergarten, 

17 through grade 12, and into higher education, 

18 the 21st century workforce, and the Armed 

19 Forces. The data system shall— 

20 (i) include— 

21 (I) a unique statewide student 

22 identifier for each student; 

23 (II) student-level enrollment, de24 mographic, and program participation 


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1 information, including race or eth2 nicity, gender, and income status; 

3 (III) the ability to match indi4 vidual students’ test records from year 

5 to year to measure academic growth; 

6 (IV) information on untested stu7 dents; 

8 (V) a teacher identifier system 

9 with the ability to match teachers to 

10 students; 

11 (VI) student-level transcript in12 formation, including information on 

13 courses completed and grades earned; 

14 (VII) student-level college pre15 paredness examination scores; 

16 (VIII) student-level graduation 

17 and dropout data; 

18 (IX) the ability to match student 

19 records between the prekindergarten 

20 through grade 12 and the postsec21 ondary systems; 

22 (X) a State data audit system as23 sessing data quality, validity, and reli24 ability; 


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1 (XI) rates of student attendance 

2 at institutions of higher education; 

3 (XII) rates of student enrollment 

4 and retention in the Armed Forces; 

5 and 

6 (XIII) student nonmilitary post7 secondary employment information; 

8 (ii) to the extent possible, coordinate 

9 with other relevant State databases, such 

10 as criminal justice or social services data 

11 systems; 

12 (iii) allow the State to analyze correla13 tions between course-taking patterns in 

14 prekindergarten through grade 12 and out15 comes after secondary school graduation, 

16 including— 

17 (I) entry into higher education; 

18 (II) the need for, and cost of, re19 mediation in higher education; 

20 (III) graduation from higher edu21 cation; 

22 (IV) entry into the 21st century 

23 workforce; 

24 (V) entry into the Armed Forces; 

25 and 


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1 (VI) to the extent possible 

2 through linkages with appropriate 

3 databases on service in the Armed 

4 Forces and participation in the 21st 

5 century workforce, persistence in the 

6 Armed Forces and continued partici7 pation in the 21st century workforce; 

8 and 

9 (iv) ensure that the use of any avail10 able data does not allow for the public 

11 identification of the individual student’s 

12 personally identifiable information, and 

13 that all data shall be collected and main14 tained in accordance with section 444 of 

15 the General Education Provisions Act (20 

16 U.S.C. 1232g; commonly referred to as the 

17 Family Educational Rights and Privacy 

18 Act of 1974). 

19 (B) If an integrated prekindergarten 

20 through grade 16 longitudinal data system ex21 ists or is currently being built, ensure that it 

22 complies with the requirements described in 

23 subparagraph (A). 

24 (C) Develop and implement a plan to in25 crease the rigor of standards or assessments in 


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1 reading, mathematics, or science in order to 

2 better align such standards or assessments with 

3 national benchmarks reflected in the National 

4 Assessment of Educational Progress in grades 4 

5 and 8 (in accordance with the results of the 

6 alignment analysis conducted under section 304 

7 of the National Assessment of Educational 

8 Progress Authorization Act), and in other 

9 grades to ensure the alignment of kindergarten 

10 through grade 12 standards or assessments 

11 with the revisions made in grades 4 and 8, or 

12 to align such standards or assessments with the 

13 demands of higher education, the 21st century 

14 workforce, or the Armed Forces or other na15 tional and international benchmarks identified 

16 by the council. Such plan may include— 

17 (i) an articulation of the steps nec18 essary— 

19 (I) for revising the State aca20 demic content standards and student 

21 academic achievement standards, as22 sessment specifications, and assess23 ment questions for the identified sub24 ject; and 


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1 (II) to better align the standards 

2 and the assessment specifications and 

3 questions described in subclause (I) 

4 with— 

5 (aa) national benchmarks as 

6 reflected in the National Assess7 ment of Educational Progress re8 quired under section 303 of the 

9 National Assessment of Edu10 cational Progress Authorization 

11 Act (20 U.S.C. 9622) for the 

12 identified subject; or 

13 (bb) the demands of higher 

14 education, the 21st century work15 force, or the Armed Forces or 

16 other national or international 

17 benchmarks identified by the 

18 council; 

19 (ii) an articulation of the steps nec20 essary and the process the State will un21 dertake to revise standards or assessments, 

22 or both, in the identified subject; 

23 (iii) a description of the partners the 

24 State will work with to revise standards or 

25 assessments, or both; and 


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1 (iv) a description of the activities the 

2 State will undertake to implement the re3 vised standards or assessments, or both, at 

4 the State educational agency level and the 

5 local educational agency level, which activi6 ties may include— 

7 (I) preservice and in-service 

8 teacher, paraprofessional, principal, 

9 and school administrator training; 

10 (II) statewide meetings to pro11 vide professional development oppor12 tunities for teachers and administra13 tors; 

14 (III) development of curricula 

15 and instructional methods and mate16 rials; 

17 (IV) the redesign of existing as18 sessments, or the development or pur19 chase of new high-quality assess20 ments, with a focus on ensuring that 

21 such assessments are rigorous, meas22 ure significant depth of knowledge, 

23 use multiple measures and formats 

24 (such as student portfolios), and are 

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1 based, or differentiated instruction; 

2 and 

3 (V) other activities necessary for 

4 the effective implementation of the 

5 new State standards or assessments, 

6 or both. 

7 (D) Analyze the State’s level of prekinder8 garten through grade 16 curricular alignment 

9 and the success of the State’s education system 

10 in preparing students for higher education, the 

11 21st century workforce, and the Armed Forces 

12 by— 

13 (i) using the data produced by a data 

14 system described in subparagraph (A) or 

15 (B), or other information as appropriate; 

16 and 

17 (ii) exploring a possible agreement be18 tween the State educational agency and 

19 the higher education system in the State 

20 on a common assessment or assessments 

21 that— 

22 (I) shall follow established guide23 lines to guarantee reliability and va24 lidity; 


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1 (II) shall provide adequate ac2 commodations for students who are 

3 limited English proficient and stu4 dents with disabilities; and 

5 (III) may be a placement exam6 ination, end of course examination, 

7 college, workforce, or Armed Forces 

8 preparedness examination, or admis9 sions examination, that measures sec10 ondary students’ preparedness to suc11 ceed in postsecondary, credit-bearing 

12 courses. 

13 (E) If the State has an officially des14 ignated college preparatory curriculum at the 

15 time the State applies for a grant under this 

16 section— 

17 (i) describe the extent to which stu18 dents who completed the college pre19 paratory curriculum are more or less suc20 cessful than other students, including stu21 dents who did not complete a college pre22 paratory curriculum, in entering and grad23 uating from a program of study at an in24 stitution of higher education or entering 


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1 the 21st century workforce or the Armed 

2 Forces; 

3 (ii) examine the extent to which the 

4 expectations of the college preparatory cur5 riculum are aligned with the entry stand6 ards of the State’s institutions of higher 

7 education, including whether such cur8 riculum enables secondary school students 

9 to enter credit-bearing coursework in high10 er education without the need for remedi11 ation; and 

12 (iii) examine the extent to which the 

13 curriculum allows graduates to attain the 

14 skills necessary to enter the 21st century 

15 workforce or the Armed Forces. 

16 (F) If the State has not designated a col17 lege preparatory curriculum at the time the 

18 State applied for a grant under this section, or 

19 if the curriculum described in subparagraph (E) 

20 does not result in a higher number of students 

21 enrolling in and graduating from institutions of 

22 higher education or entering the 21st century 

23 workforce or the Armed Forces, or is not 

24 aligned with the entry standards described in 


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1 subparagraph (E)(ii), develop a 21st century 

2 curriculum that— 

3 (i) may be adopted by the local edu4 cational agencies in the State for use in 

5 secondary schools; 

6 (ii) enables secondary school students 

7 to enter credit-bearing coursework in high8 er education without the need for remedi9 ation; 

10 (iii) allows graduates to attain the 

11 skills necessary to enter the 21st century 

12 workforce or the Armed Forces; 

13 (iv) reflects the input of teachers, 

14 principals, school administrators, and col15 lege faculty; and 

16 (v) focuses on providing rigorous core 

17 courses that reflect the State academic 

18 content standards and student academic 

19 achievement standards. 

20 (G) Develop and make available specific 

21 opportunities for extensive professional develop22 ment for teachers, paraprofessionals, principals, 

23 and school administrators, to improve instruc24 tion and support mechanisms for students using 


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1 a curriculum described in subparagraph (E) or 

2 (F). 

3 (H) Develop a plan to provide remediation 

4 and additional learning opportunities for stu5 dents below grade level to ensure that all stu6 dents will have the opportunity to meet the cur7 ricular standards of a curriculum described in 

8 subparagraph (E) or (F). 

9 (I) Use data gathered by the council to im10 prove instructional methods, better tailor stu11 dent support services, and serve as the basis for 

12 all school reform initiatives. 

13 (J) Implement activities designed to ensure 

14 the enrollment of all students in rigorous 

15 coursework, which may include— 

16 (i) specifying the courses and per17 formance levels required for acceptance 

18 into public institutions of higher education; 

19 (ii) collaborating with institutions of 

20 higher education or other State educational 

21 agencies to develop assessments aligned to 

22 State academic content standards and a 

23 curriculum described in subparagraph (E) 

24 or (F), which assessments may be used as 

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1 ondary school as well as for entrance or 

2 placement at institutions of higher edu3 cation; 

4 (iii) creating ties between elementary 

5 schools and secondary schools, and institu6 tions of higher education, to offer— 

7 (I) accelerated learning opportu8 nities, particularly with respect to 

9 mathematics, science, engineering, 

10 technology, and critical-need foreign 

11 languages to secondary school stu12 dents, which may include— 

13 (aa) granting postsecondary 

14 credit for secondary school 

15 courses; 

16 (bb) providing early enroll17 ment opportunities in postsec18 ondary education for secondary 

19 students enrolled in postsec20 ondary-level coursework; 

21 (cc) creating dual enrollment 

22 programs; 

23 (dd) creating satellite sec24 ondary school campuses on the 


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1 campuses of institutions of high2 er education; and 

3 (ee) providing opportunities 

4 for higher education faculty who 

5 are highly qualified, as such term 

6 is defined in section 9101 of the 

7 Elementary and Secondary Edu8 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

9 7801), to teach credit-bearing 

10 postsecondary courses in sec11 ondary schools; and 

12 (II) professional development ac13 tivities for teachers, which may in14 clude— 

15 (aa) mentoring opportuni16 ties; and 

17 (bb) summer institutes; 

18 (iv) expanding or creating higher edu19 cation awareness programs for middle 

20 school and secondary school students; 

21 (v) expanding opportunities for stu22 dents to enroll in highly rigorous postsec23 ondary preparatory courses, such as Ad24 vanced Placement and International Bac25 calaureate courses; and 


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1 (vi) developing a high-quality profes2 sional development curriculum to provide 

3 professional development opportunities for 

4 paraprofessionals, teachers, principals, and 

5 administrators. 

6 (2) PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION.—A 

7 State receiving a grant under this section may use 

8 grant funds received for the first fiscal year to form 

9 the council and plan the activities described in para10 graph (1). Grant funds received for subsequent fiscal 

11 years shall be used for the implementation of the ac12 tivities described in such paragraph. 

13 (f) REPORTS AND PUBLICATION.— 

14 (1) REPORTS.— 

15 (A) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 9 

16 months after a State receives a grant under 

17 this section, the State shall submit a report to 

18 the Secretary that includes— 

19 (i) an analysis of alignment and ar20 ticulation across the State’s systems of 

21 public education for prekindergarten 

22 through grade 16, including data that indi23 cates the percent of students who— 


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1 (I) graduate from secondary 

2 school with a regular diploma in the 

3 standard number of years; 

4 (II) complete a curriculum de5 scribed in subparagraph (E) or (F) of 

6 subsection (e)(1); 

7 (III) matriculate into an institu8 tion of higher education 

9 (disaggregated by 2-year and 4-year 

10 degree-granting programs); 

11 (IV) are secondary school grad12 uates who need remediation in read13 ing, writing, mathematics, or science 

14 before pursuing credit-bearing post15 secondary courses in English, mathe16 matics, or science; 

17 (V) persist in an institution of 

18 higher education into the second year; 

19 and 

20 (VI) graduate from an institution 

21 of higher education within 150 per22 cent of the expected time for degree 

23 completion (within 3 years for a 2- 

24 year degree program and within 6 

25 years for a baccalaureate degree); 


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1 (ii) an analysis of the strengths and 

2 weaknesses of the State— 

3 (I) in transitioning students from 

4 the prekindergarten through grade 12 

5 education system into higher edu6 cation, the 21st century workforce, 

7 and the Armed Forces; and 

8 (II) in transitioning students 

9 from the prekindergarten through 

10 grade 12 education system into math11 ematics, science, engineering, tech12 nology, and critical-need foreign lan13 guage degree programs at institutions 

14 of higher education; 

15 (iii) an analysis of the quality and 

16 rigor of the State’s curriculum described in 

17 subparagraph (E) or (F) of subsection 

18 (e)(1), and the accessibility of the cur19 riculum to all students in prekindergarten 

20 through grade 12; 

21 (iv) an analysis of the strengths and 

22 weaknesses of the State in recruiting, re23 taining, and supporting qualified teachers, 

24 including— 


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1 (I) whether the State needs to re2 cruit additional teachers at the sec3 ondary level for specific subjects (such 

4 as mathematics, science, engineering 

5 and technology education, and critical6 need foreign languages), particular 

7 schools, or local educational agencies; 

8 and 

9 (II) recommendations on how to 

10 set and achieve goals in this pursuit; 

11 and 

12 (v) a detailed action plan that de13 scribes how the council will accomplish the 

14 goals and tasks required by the grant 

15 under this section, including a timeline for 

16 accomplishing all activities under the 

17 grant. 

18 (B) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 1 

19 year following the submission of the initial re20 port described in subparagraph (A), and annu21 ally thereafter for the duration of the grant, a 

22 State receiving a grant under this section shall 

23 prepare and submit to the Secretary a report 

24 that describes the State’s progress in accom25 plishing the goals and tasks required by the 


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1 grant, including progress on each item de2 scribed in subparagraph (A). The final annual 

3 report under this subparagraph shall be sub4 mitted 1 year after the expiration of the grant. 

5 (2) PUBLICATION.—A State submitting a re6 port in accordance with this subsection shall publish 

7 and widely disseminate the report to the public, in8 cluding posting the report on the Internet. 

9 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

10 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

11 $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, and such sums as may 

12 be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years. 

13 SEC. 8. COLLABORATIVE STANDARDS AND ASSESSMENTS 

14 GRANTS. 

15 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

16 (1) ELIGIBLE STATE.—The term ‘‘eligible 

17 State’’ means a State that demonstrates that it has 

18 analyzed and, where applicable, revised the State 

19 standards and assessments, through participation in 

20 a prekindergarten through grade 16 student pre21 paredness council described in section 7 or through 

22 other State action, to ensure the standards and as23 sessments— 

24 (A) are aligned with the demands of the 

25 21st century; and 


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1 (B) prepare students for entry into— 

2 (i) credit-bearing coursework in higher 

3 education without the need for remedi4 ation; 

5 (ii) the 21st century workforce; and 

6 (iii) the Armed Forces 

7 (2) ELIGIBLE CONSORTIUM.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible con9 sortium’’ means a consortium of 2 or more eli10 gible States that agrees to allow the Secretary, 

11 under subsection (e), to make available any as12 sessment developed by the consortium under 

13 this section to a State that so requests, includ14 ing a State that is not a member of the consor15 tium. 

16 (B) ADDITIONAL MEMBERS.—An eligible 

17 consortium may include, in addition to 2 or 

18 more eligible States, an entity with the tech19 nical expertise to carry out a grant under this 

20 section. 

21 (b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From amounts author22 ized under subsection (f), the Secretary shall award 

23 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible consortia to en24 able the eligible consortia to develop common standards 

25 and assessments that— 


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1 (1) are highly rigorous, internationally competi2 tive, and aligned with the demands of higher edu3 cation, the 21st century workforce, and the Armed 

4 Forces; and 

5 (2) in the case of assessments, set rigorous per6 formance standards comparable to rigorous national 

7 and international benchmarks. 

8 (c) APPLICATION.—An eligible consortium desiring a 

9 grant under this section shall submit an application to the 

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

11 such information as the Secretary may require. 

12 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the end 

13 of the grant period, an eligible consortium receiving a 

14 grant under this section shall prepare and submit a report 

15 to the Secretary describing the grant activities. 

16 (e) AVAILABILITY OF ASSESSMENTS.—The Secretary 

17 shall— 

18 (1) make available, to a State that so requests 

19 and at no charge to the State, any rigorous, high20 quality assessment developed by an eligible consor21 tium under this section; and 

22 (2) notify potential eligible States, at reasonable 

23 intervals, of all assessments currently under develop24 ment by eligible consortia under this section. 


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1 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

3 $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2008 and such sums as are 

4 necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years. 

Æ 


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