II 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2794 

To improve elementary and secondary education. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 13, 2004 

Mr. KENNEDY (for himself, Mr. DODD, Mr. HARKIN, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. 

BINGAMAN, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. REED, and Mrs. CLINTON) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To improve elementary and secondary education. 

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 ‘‘No Child Left Behind 

5 Improvement Act of 2004’’. 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 TITLE I—PUBLIC SCHOOL 

2 CHOICE, SUPPLEMENTAL 

3 EDUCATIONAL SERVICES, 

4 AND TEACHER QUALITY 

5 SEC. 101. PUBLIC SCHOOL CHOICE CAPACITY. 

6 (a) SCHOOL CAPACITY.—Section 1116(b)(1)(E) of 

7 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

8 U.S.C. 6316(b)) is amended— 

9 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘In the case’’ and 

10 inserting ‘‘Subject to clauses (ii) and (iii), in the 

11 case’’; 

12 (2) by redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); 

13 (3) by inserting after clause (i) the following: 

14 ‘‘(ii) SCHOOL CAPACITY.—The obliga15 tion of a local educational agency to pro16 vide the option to transfer to students 

17 under clause (i) is subject to all applicable 

18 State and local health and safety code re19 quirements regarding facility capacity.’’; 

20 and 

21 (4) in clause (iii) (as redesignated by paragraph 

22 (2)), by inserting ‘‘and subject to clause (ii),’’ after 

23 ‘‘public school,’’. 

24 (b) GRANTS FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION AND REN25 OVATION.—Subpart 1 of part A of title I of the Elemen-
3 

•S 2794 IS 

1 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

2 6311 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol3 lowing: 

4 ‘‘SEC. 1120C. GRANTS FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION AND 

5 RENOVATION. 

6 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From funds appro7 priated under subsection (g), the Secretary is authorized 

8 to award grants to local educational agencies experiencing 

9 overcrowding in the schools served by the local educational 

10 agencies, for the construction and renovation of safe, 

11 healthy, high-performance school buildings. 

12 ‘‘(b) APPLICATION.—Each local educational agency 

13 desiring a grant under this section shall submit an appli14 cation to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 

15 accompanied by such additional information as the Sec16 retary may require. 

17 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec18 tion, the Secretary shall give priority to local educational 

19 agencies— 

20 ‘‘(1) who have documented difficulties in meet21 ing the public school choice requirements of para22 graph (1)(E), (5)(A), (7)(C)(i), or (8)(A)(i) of sec23 tion 1116(b), or section 1116(c)(10)(C)(vii); and 

24 ‘‘(2) with the highest number of schools at or 

25 above capacity. 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 ‘‘(d) AWARD BASIS.—From funds remaining after 

2 awarding grants under subsection (c), the Secretary shall 

3 award grants to local educational agencies that are experi4 encing overcrowding in the schools served by the local edu5 cational agencies. 

6 ‘‘(e) PREVAILING WAGES.—Any laborer or mechanic 

7 employed by any contractor or subcontractor in the per8 formance of work on any construction funded by a grant 

9 awarded under this section will be paid wages at rates not 

10 less than those prevailing on similar construction in the 

11 locality as determined by the Secretary of Labor under 

12 subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United States 

13 Code (commonly referred to as the Davis-Bacon Act). 

14 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 ‘‘(1) AT OR ABOVE CAPACITY.—The term ‘at or 

16 above capacity’, in reference to a school, means a 

17 school in which 1 additional student would increase 

18 the average class size of the school above the aver19 age class size of all schools in the State in which the 

20 school is located. 

21 ‘‘(2) HEALTHY, HIGH-PERFORMANCE SCHOOL

22 BUILDING.—The term ‘healthy, high-performance 

23 school building’ has the meaning given such term in 

24 section 5586. 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

3 $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2005, and such sums as may 

4 be necessary for each of the 2 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 

5 SEC. 102. SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL SERVICES. 

6 Section 1116(e) of the Elementary and Secondary 

7 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316(e)) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

9 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 

10 semicolon and inserting ‘‘, including criteria 

11 that— 

12 ‘‘(i) ensure that personnel delivering 

13 supplemental educational services to stu14 dents have adequate qualifications; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) may, at the State’s discretion, 

16 ensure that personnel delivering supple17 mental educational services to students are 

18 teachers that are highly qualified, as such 

19 term is defined in section 9101;’’; 

20 (B) in subparagraph (D), by striking 

21 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

22 (C) in subparagraph (E), by striking the 

23 period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

24 (D) by adding at the end the following: 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 ‘‘(F) ensure that the list of approved pro2 viders of supplemental educational services de3 scribed in subparagraph (C) includes a choice 

4 of providers that have sufficient capacity to pro5 vide effective services for children who are lim6 ited English proficient and children with dis7 abilities.’’; 

8 (2) in paragraph (5)(C)— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘applicable’’; and 

10 (B) by inserting before the period ‘‘, and 

11 acknowledge in writing that, as an approved 

12 provider in the relevant State educational agen13 cy program of providing supplemental edu14 cational services, the provider is deemed to be 

15 a recipient of Federal financial assistance’’; 

16 (3) by redesignating paragraphs (6), (7), (8), 

17 (9), (10), (11), and (12) as paragraphs (7), (8), (9), 

18 (10), (11), (12), and (13), respectively; 

19 (4) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(6) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

22 this section shall be construed to prohibit a local 

23 educational agency from being considered by a State 

24 educational agency as a potential provider of supple25 mental educational services under this subsection, if 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 such local educational agency meets the criteria 

2 adopted by the State educational agency in accord3 ance with paragraph (5).’’; 

4 (5) in paragraph (13) (as redesignated by para5 graph (3))— 

6 (A) in subparagraph (B)— 

7 (i) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

8 after the semicolon; 

9 (ii) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

10 after the semicolon; and 

11 (iii) by adding at the end the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(iv) may employ teachers who are 

14 highly qualified as such term is defined in 

15 section 9101; and 

16 ‘‘(v) pursuant to its inclusion on the 

17 relevant State educational agency’s list de18 scribed in paragraph (4)(C), is deemed to 

19 be a recipient of Federal financial assist20 ance; and’’; and 

21 (B) in subparagraph (C)— 

22 (i) in the matter preceding subclause 

23 (i), by striking ‘‘are’’; 

24 (ii) in subclause (i)— 
8 

•S 2794 IS 

1 (I) by inserting ‘‘are’’ before ‘‘in 

2 addition’’; and 

3 (II) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the 

4 semicolon; 

5 (iii) in subclause (ii), by striking the 

6 period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

9 ‘‘(iii) if provided by providers that are 

10 included on the relevant State educational 

11 agency’s list described in paragraph 

12 (4)(C), shall be deemed to be programs or 

13 activities of the relevant State educational 

14 agency.’’; and 

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

16 ‘‘(14) CIVIL RIGHTS.—In providing supple17 mental educational services under this subsection, no 

18 State educational agency or local educational agency 

19 may, directly or through contractual, licensing, or 

20 other arrangements with a provider of supplemental 

21 educational services, engage in any form of discrimi22 nation prohibited by— 

23 ‘‘(A) title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 

24 1964; 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 ‘‘(B) title IX of the Education Amend2 ments of 1972; 

3 ‘‘(C) section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act 

4 of 1973; 

5 ‘‘(D) titles II and III of the Americans 

6 with Disabilities Act; 

7 ‘‘(E) the Age Discrimination Act of 1975; 

8 ‘‘(F) regulations promulgated under the 

9 authority of the laws listed in subparagraphs 

10 (A) through (E); or 

11 ‘‘(G) other Federal civil rights laws.’’. 

12 SEC. 103. QUALIFICATIONS FOR TEACHERS AND PARA13 PROFESSIONALS. 

14 (a) HIGH OBJECTIVE UNIFORM STATE STANDARD

15 OF EVALUATION.—Section 1119 of the Elementary and 

16 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6319) is 

17 amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (a)(2)— 

19 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 

20 through (C) as clauses (i) through (iii), respec21 tively, and indenting as appropriate; 

22 (B) by striking ‘‘(2) STATE PLAN.—As 

23 part’’ and inserting the following: 

24 ‘‘(2) STATE PLAN.— 

25 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As part’’; and 
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1 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY OF STATE STAND3 ARDS.—Each State educational agency shall 

4 make available to teachers in the State the high 

5 objective uniform State standard of evaluation, 

6 as described in section 9101(23)(C)(ii), for the 

7 purpose of meeting the teacher qualification re8 quirements established under this section.’’; 

9 (2) by redesignating subsections (e), (f), (g), 

10 (h), (i), (j), (k), and (l) as subsections (f), (g), (h), 

11 (i), (j), (k), (l), and (m), respectively; 

12 (3) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(e) STATE RESPONSIBILITIES.—Each State edu15 cational agency shall ensure that local educational agen16 cies in the State make available all options described in 

17 subparagraphs (A) through (C) of subsection (c)(1) to 

18 each new or existing paraprofessional for the purpose of 

19 demonstrating the qualifications of the paraprofessional, 

20 consistent with the requirements of this section.’’; and 

21 (4) in subsection (l) (as redesignated in para22 graph (2)), by striking ‘‘subsection (l)’’ and insert23 ing ‘‘subsection (m)’’. 

24 (b) DEFINITION OF HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACH25 ERS.—Section 9101(23)(B)(ii) is amended— 
11 

•S 2794 IS 

1 (1) in subclause (I), by striking ‘‘or’’ after the 

2 semicolon; 

3 (2) in subclause (II), by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

4 the semicolon; and 

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

6 ‘‘(III) in the case of a middle 

7 school teacher, passing a State-ap8 proved middle school generalist exam 

9 when the teacher receives a license to 

10 teach middle school in the State; 

11 ‘‘(IV) obtaining a State middle 

12 school or secondary school social stud13 ies certificate that qualifies the teach14 er to teach history, geography, eco15 nomics, civics, and government in 

16 middle schools or in secondary 

17 schools, respectively, in the State; or 

18 ‘‘(V) obtaining a State middle 

19 school or secondary school science cer20 tificate that qualifies the teacher to 

21 teach earth science, biology, chem22 istry, and physics in middle schools or 

23 secondary schools, respectively, in the 

24 State; and’’. 
12 

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1 TITLE II—ADEQUATE YEARLY 

2 PROGRESS DETERMINATIONS 

3 SEC. 201. REVIEW OF ADEQUATE YEARLY PROGRESS DE4 TERMINATIONS FOR SCHOOLS FOR THE 2002–

5 2003 SCHOOL YEAR. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require each 

7 local educational agency to provide each school served by 

8 the agency with an opportunity to request a review of a 

9 determination by the agency that the school did not make 

10 adequate yearly progress for the 2002–2003 school year. 

11 (b) FINAL DETERMINATION.—Not later than 30 days 

12 after receipt of a request by a school for a review under 

13 this section, a local educational agency shall issue and 

14 make publicly available a final determination on whether 

15 the school made adequate yearly progress for the 2002– 

16 2003 school year. 

17 (c) EVIDENCE.—In conducting a review under this 

18 section, a local educational agency shall— 

19 (1) allow the principal of the school involved to 

20 submit evidence on whether the school made ade21 quate yearly progress for the 2002–2003 school 

22 year; and 

23 (2) consider that evidence before making a final 

24 determination under subsection (b). 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 (d) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—In conducting a review 

2 under this section, a local educational agency shall revise, 

3 consistent with the applicable State plan under section 

4 1111 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

5 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311), the local educational agency’s 

6 original determination that a school did not make ade7 quate yearly progress for the 2002–2003 school year if 

8 the agency finds that the school made such progress, tak9 ing into consideration— 

10 (1) the amendments made to part 200 of title 

11 34, Code of Federal Regulations (68 Fed. Reg. 

12 68698) (relating to accountability for the academic 

13 achievement of students with the most significant 

14 cognitive disabilities); or 

15 (2) any regulation or guidance that, subsequent 

16 to the date of such original determination, was 

17 issued by the Secretary relating to— 

18 (A) the assessment of limited English pro19 ficient children; 

20 (B) the inclusion of limited English pro21 ficient children as part of the subgroup de22 scribed in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II)(dd) of 

23 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

24 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(C)(v)(II)(dd)) 
14 

•S 2794 IS 

1 after such children have obtained English pro2 ficiency; or 

3 (C) any requirement under section 

4 1111(b)(2)(I)(ii) of the Elementary and Sec5 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

6 6311(b)(2)(I)(ii)). 

7 (e) EFFECT OF REVISED DETERMINATION.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—If pursuant to a review 

9 under this section a local educational agency deter10 mines that a school made adequate yearly progress 

11 for the 2002–2003 school year, upon such deter12 mination— 

13 (A) any action by the Secretary, the State 

14 educational agency, or the local educational 

15 agency that was taken because of a prior deter16 mination that the school did not make such 

17 progress shall be terminated; and 

18 (B) any obligations or actions required of 

19 the local educational agency or the school be20 cause of the prior determination shall cease to 

21 be required. 

22 (2) EXCEPTIONS.—Notwithstanding paragraph 

23 (1), a determination under this section shall not af24 fect any obligation or action required of a local edu25 cational agency or school under the following: 
15 

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1 (A) Section 1116(b)(13) of the Elementary 

2 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

3 U.S.C. 6316(b)(13)) (requiring a local edu4 cational agency to continue to permit a child 

5 who transferred to another school under such 

6 section to remain in that school until comple7 tion of the highest grade in the school). 

8 (B) Section 1116(e)(9) of the Elementary 

9 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (as re10 designated by section 102(3)) (20 U.S.C. 

11 6316(e)(9)) (requiring a local educational agen12 cy to continue to provide supplemental edu13 cational services under such section until the 

14 end of the school year). 

15 (3) SUBSEQUENT DETERMINATIONS.—In deter16 mining whether a school is subject to school im17 provement, corrective action, or restructuring as a 

18 result of not making adequate yearly progress, the 

19 Secretary, a State educational agency, or a local 

20 educational agency may not take into account a de21 termination that the school did not make adequate 

22 yearly progress for the 2002–2003 school year if 

23 such determination was revised under this section 

24 and the school received a final determination of hav-
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•S 2794 IS 

1 ing made adequate yearly progress for the 2002– 

2 2003 school year. 

3 (f) NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary— 

4 (1) shall require each State educational agency 

5 to notify each school served by the agency of the 

6 school’s ability to request a review under this sec7 tion; and 

8 (2) not later than 30 days after the date of the 

9 enactment of this section, shall notify the public by 

10 means of the Department of Education’s website of 

11 the review process established under this section. 

12 SEC. 202. REVIEW OF ADEQUATE YEARLY PROGRESS DE13 TERMINATIONS FOR LOCAL EDUCATIONAL 

14 AGENCIES FOR THE 2002–2003 SCHOOL YEAR. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require each 

16 State educational agency to provide each local educational 

17 agency in the State with an opportunity to request a re18 view of a determination by the State educational agency 

19 that the local educational agency did not make adequate 

20 yearly progress for the 2002–2003 school year. 

21 (b) APPLICATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS.—Except 

22 as inconsistent with, or inapplicable to, this section, the 

23 provisions of section 201 shall apply to review by a State 

24 educational agency of a determination described in sub25 section (a) in the same manner and to the same extent 
17 

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1 as such provisions apply to review by a local educational 

2 agency of a determination described in section 201(a). 

3 SEC. 203. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this title: 

5 (1) The term ‘‘adequate yearly progress’’ has 

6 the meaning given to that term in section 

7 1111(b)(2)(C) of the Elementary and Secondary 

8 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(C)). 

9 (2) The term ‘‘local educational agency’’ means 

10 a local educational agency (as that term is defined 

11 in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 

12 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)) receiving 

13 funds under part A of title I of such Act (20 U.S.C. 

14 6311 et seq.). 

15 (3) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

16 of Education. 

17 (4) The term ‘‘school’’ means an elementary 

18 school or a secondary school (as those terms are de19 fined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Sec20 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)) 

21 served under part A of title I of such Act (20 U.S.C. 

22 6311 et seq.). 

23 (5) The term ‘‘State educational agency’’ means 

24 a State educational agency (as that term is defined 

25 in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
18 

•S 2794 IS 

1 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)) receiving 

2 funds under part A of title I of such Act (20 U.S.C. 

3 6311 et seq.). 

4 TITLE III—IMPROVING ASSESS5 MENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY 

6 SEC. 301. GRANTS FOR INCREASING DATA CAPACITY FOR 

7 PURPOSES OF ASSESSMENT AND ACCOUNT8 ABILITY. 

9 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From funds appro10 priated under subsection (g) for a fiscal year, the Sec11 retary may award grants, on a competitive basis, to State 

12 educational agencies— 

13 (1) to enable the State educational agencies to 

14 develop or increase the capacity of data systems for 

15 assessment and accountability purposes, including 

16 the collection of graduation rates; and 

17 (2) to award subgrants to increase the capacity 

18 of local educational agencies to upgrade, create, or 

19 manage longitudinal data systems for the purpose of 

20 measuring student academic progress and achieve21 ment. 

22 (b) STATE APPLICATION.—Each State educational 

23 agency desiring a grant under this section shall submit 

24 an application to the Secretary at such time, in such man-
19 

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1 ner, and containing such information as the Secretary may 

2 require. 

3 (c) STATE USE OF FUNDS.—Each State educational 

4 agency that receives a grant under this section shall use— 

5 (1) not more than 20 percent of the grant 

6 funds for the purpose of— 

7 (A) increasing the capacity of, or creating, 

8 State databases to collect, disaggregate, and re9 port information related to student achieve10 ment, enrollment, and graduation rates for as11 sessment and accountability purposes; and 

12 (B) reporting, on an annual basis, for the 

13 elementary schools and secondary schools with14 in the State, on— 

15 (i) the enrollment data from the be16 ginning of the academic year; 

17 (ii) the enrollment data from the end 

18 of the academic year; and 

19 (iii) the twelfth grade graduation 

20 rates; and 

21 (2) not less than 80 percent of the grant funds 

22 to award subgrants to local educational agencies 

23 within the State to enable the local educational 

24 agencies to carry out the authorized activities de25 scribed in subsection (e). 
20 

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1 (d) LOCAL APPLICATION.—Each local educational 

2 agency desiring a subgrant under this section shall submit 

3 an application to the State educational agency at such 

4 time, in such manner, and containing such information as 

5 the State educational agency may require. Each such ap6 plication shall include, at a minimum, a demonstration of 

7 the local educational agency’s ability to put a longitudinal 

8 data system in place. 

9 (e) LOCAL AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Each local 

10 educational agency that receives a subgrant under this 

11 section shall use the subgrant funds to increase the capac12 ity of the local educational agency to upgrade or manage 

13 longitudinal data systems consistent with the uses in sub14 section (c)(1), by— 

15 (1) purchasing database software or hardware; 

16 (2) hiring additional staff for the purpose of 

17 managing such data; 

18 (3) providing professional development or addi19 tional training for such staff; and 

20 (4) providing professional development or train21 ing for principals and teachers on how to effectively 

22 use such data to implement instructional strategies 

23 to improve student achievement and graduation 

24 rates. 

25 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 (1) The term ‘‘graduation rate’’ means the per2 centage that— 

3 (A) the total number of students who— 

4 (i) graduate from a secondary school 

5 with a regular diploma (which shall not in6 clude the recognized equivalent of a sec7 ondary school diploma or an alternative de8 gree) in an academic year; and 

9 (ii) graduated on time by progressing 

10 1 grade per academic year; represents of 

11 (B) the total number of students who en12 tered the secondary school in the entry level 

13 academic year applicable to the graduating stu14 dents. 

15 (2) The terms ‘‘State educational agency’’ and 

16 ‘‘local educational agency’’ have the meanings given 

17 such terms in section 9101 of the Elementary and 

18 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

19 (3) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

20 of Education. 

21 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

22 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

23 $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2005, and such sums as may 

24 be necessary for each of the 2 succeeding fiscal years. 
22 

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1 SEC. 302. GRANTS FOR ASSESSMENT OF CHILDREN WITH 

2 DISABILITIES AND CHILDREN WHO ARE LIM3 ITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT. 

4 Part E of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 

5 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6491 et seq.) is amend6 ed by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 1505. GRANTS FOR ASSESSMENT OF CHILDREN WITH 

8 DISABILITIES AND CHILDREN WHO ARE LIM9 ITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT. 

10 ‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From amounts author11 ized under subsection (e) for a fiscal year, the Secretary 

12 shall award grants, on a competitive basis, to State edu13 cational agencies, or to consortia of State educational 

14 agencies, to enable the State educational agencies or con15 sortia to collaborate with institutions of higher education, 

16 research institutions, or other organizations— 

17 ‘‘(1) to design and improve State academic as18 sessments for students who are limited English pro19 ficient and students with disabilities; and 

20 ‘‘(2) to ensure the most accurate, valid, and re21 liable means to assess academic content standards 

22 and student academic achievement standards for 

23 students who are limited English proficient and stu24 dents with disabilities. 

25 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—A State educational 

26 agency or consortium that receives a grant under this sec-
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•S 2794 IS 

1 tion shall use the grant funds to carry out 1 or more of 

2 the following activities: 

3 ‘‘(1) Developing alternate assessments for stu4 dents with disabilities, consistent with section 1111 

5 and the amendments made on December 9, 2003, to 

6 part 200 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations 

7 (68 Fed. Reg. 68698) (relating to accountability for 

8 the academic achievement of students with the most 

9 significant cognitive disabilities), including— 

10 ‘‘(A) the alignment of such assessments, as 

11 appropriate and consistent with such amend12 ments, with— 

13 ‘‘(i) State academic achievement 

14 standards and State academic content 

15 standards for all students; or 

16 ‘‘(ii) alternate State academic achieve17 ment standards that reflect the intended 

18 instructional construct for students with 

19 disabilities; 

20 ‘‘(B) activities to ensure that such assess21 ments do not reflect the disabilities, or associ22 ated characteristics, of the students that are ex23 traneous to the intent of the measurement; 

24 ‘‘(C) the development of an implementation 

25 plan for pilot tests for such assessments, in 
24 

•S 2794 IS 

1 order to determine the level of appropriateness 

2 and feasibility of full-scale administration; and 

3 ‘‘(D) activities that provide for the reten4 tion of all feasible standardized features in the 

5 alternate assessments. 

6 ‘‘(2) Developing alternate assessments that 

7 meet the requirements of section 1111 for students 

8 who are limited English proficient, including— 

9 ‘‘(A) the alignment of such assessments 

10 with State academic achievement standards and 

11 State academic content standards for all stu12 dents; 

13 ‘‘(B) the development of parallel native 

14 language assessments or linguistically modified 

15 assessments for limited English proficient stu16 dents that meet the requirements of section 

17 1111(b)(3)(C)(ix)(III); 

18 ‘‘(C) the development of an implementation 

19 plan for pilot tests for such assessments, in 

20 order to determine the level of appropriateness 

21 and feasibility of full-scale administration; and 

22 ‘‘(D) activities that provide for the reten23 tion of all feasible standardized features in the 

24 alternate assessments. 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 ‘‘(3) Developing, modifying, or revising State 

2 policies and criteria for appropriate accommodations 

3 to ensure the full participation of students who are 

4 limited English proficient and students with disabil5 ities in State academic assessments, including— 

6 ‘‘(A) developing a plan to ensure that as7 sessments provided with accommodations are 

8 fully included and integrated into the account9 ability system, for the purpose of making the 

10 determinations of adequate yearly progress re11 quired under section 1116; 

12 ‘‘(B) ensuring the validity, reliability, and 

13 appropriateness of such accommodations, such 

14 as— 

15 ‘‘(i) a modification to the presentation 

16 or format of the assessment; 

17 ‘‘(ii) the use of assistive devices; 

18 ‘‘(iii) an extension of the time allowed 

19 for testing; 

20 ‘‘(iv) an alteration of the test setting 

21 or procedures; 

22 ‘‘(v) the administration of portions of 

23 the test in a method appropriate for the 

24 level of language proficiency of the test 

25 taker; 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 ‘‘(vi) the use of a glossary or dic2 tionary; and 

3 ‘‘(vii) the use of a linguistically modi4 fied assessment; 

5 ‘‘(C) ensuring that State policies and cri6 teria for appropriate accommodations take into 

7 account the form or program of instruction pro8 vided to students, including the level of dif9 ficulty, reliability, cultural difference, and con10 tent equivalence of such form or program; 

11 ‘‘(D) ensuring that such policies are con12 sistent with the standards prepared by the 

13 Joint Committee on Standards for Educational 

14 and Psychological Testing of the American 

15 Educational Research Association, the Amer16 ican Psychological Association, and the Na17 tional Council on Measurement in Education; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(E) developing a plan for providing train20 ing on the use of accommodations to school in21 structional staff, families, students, and other 

22 appropriate parties. 

23 ‘‘(4) Developing universally designed assess24 ments that can be accessible to all students, includ25 ing— 
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•S 2794 IS 

1 ‘‘(A) examining test item or test perform2 ance for students with disabilities and students 

3 who are limited English proficient, to determine 

4 the extent to which the test item or test is uni5 versally designed; 

6 ‘‘(B) using think aloud and cognitive lab7 oratory procedures, as well as item statistics, to 

8 identify test items that may pose particular 

9 problems for students with disabilities or stu10 dents who are limited English proficient; 

11 ‘‘(C) developing and implementing a plan 

12 to ensure that developers and reviewers of test 

13 items are trained in the principles of universal 

14 design; and 

15 ‘‘(D) developing computer-based applica16 tions of universal design principles. 

17 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—Each State educational agency, 

18 or consortium of State educational agencies, desiring to 

19 apply for a grant under this section shall submit an appli20 cation to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 

21 containing such information as the Secretary may require, 

22 including— 

23 ‘‘(1) information regarding the institutions of 

24 higher education, research institutions, or other or25 ganizations that are collaborating with the State 
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1 educational agency or consortium, in accordance 

2 with subsection (a); 

3 ‘‘(2) in the case of a consortium of State edu4 cational agencies, the designation of 1 State edu5 cational agency as the fiscal agent for the receipt of 

6 grant funds; 

7 ‘‘(3) a description of the process and criteria by 

8 which the State educational agency will identify stu9 dents that are unable to participate in general State 

10 content assessments and are eligible to take alter11 nate assessments, consistent with the amendments 

12 made to part 200 of title 34, Code of Federal Regu13 lations (68 Fed. Reg. 68698); 

14 ‘‘(4) in the case of a State educational agency 

15 or consortium carrying out the activity described in 

16 subsection (b)(1)(A), a description of how the State 

17 educational agency plans to fulfill the requirement of 

18 subsection (b)(1)(A); 

19 ‘‘(5) in the case of a State educational agency 

20 or consortium carrying out the activities described in 

21 paragraphs (1), (2), and (4) of subsection (b), infor22 mation regarding the proposed techniques for the 

23 development of alternate assessments, including a 

24 description of the technical adequacy of, technical 

25 aspects of, and scoring for, such assessments; 
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1 ‘‘(6) a plan for providing training for school in2 structional staff, families, students, and other appro3 priate parties on the use of alternate assessments; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(7) information on how the scores of students 

6 participating in alternate assessments will be re7 ported to the public and to parents. 

8 ‘‘(d) EVALUATION AND REPORTING REQUIRE9 MENTS.—Each State educational agency receiving a grant 

10 under this section shall submit an annual report to the 

11 Secretary describing the activities carried out under the 

12 grant and the result of such activities, including— 

13 ‘‘(1) details on the effectiveness of the activities 

14 supported under this section in helping students 

15 with disabilities, or students who are limited English 

16 proficient, better participate in State assessment 

17 programs; and 

18 ‘‘(2) information on the change in achievement, 

19 if any, of students with disabilities and students who 

20 are limited English proficient, as a result of a more 

21 accurate assessment of such students. 

22 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

23 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

24 $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2005, and such sums as may 

25 be necessary for each of the 2 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 
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1 SEC. 303. REPORTS ON STUDENT ENROLLMENT AND GRAD2 UATION RATES. 

3 Part E of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 

4 Education Act of 1965 (as amended by section 302) (20 

5 U.S.C. 6491 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 1506. REPORTS ON STUDENT ENROLLMENT AND 

8 GRADUATION RATES. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Education shall 

10 collect from each State educational agency, local edu11 cational agency, and school, on an annual basis, the fol12 lowing data: 

13 ‘‘(1) The number of students enrolled in each 

14 of grades 7 through 12 at the beginning of the most 

15 recent school year. 

16 ‘‘(2) The number of students enrolled in each 

17 of grades 7 through 12 at the end of the most recent 

18 school year. 

19 ‘‘(3) The graduation rate for the most recent 

20 school year. 

21 ‘‘(4) The data described in paragraphs (1) 

22 through (3), disaggregated by the groups of students 

23 described in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II). 

24 ‘‘(b) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Secretary shall report 

25 the information collected under subsection (a) on an an26 nual basis.’’. 
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1 TITLE IV—CIVIL RIGHTS 

2 SEC. 401. CIVIL RIGHTS. 

3 Section 9534 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu4 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7914) is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating subsections (a) and (b) as 

6 subsections (b) and (c), respectively; and 

7 (2) by inserting before subsection (b) (as redes8 ignated by paragraph (1)) the following: 

9 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION.—Discrimi10 nation on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (except as 

11 otherwise permitted under title IX of the Education 

12 Amendments of 1972), national origin, or disability in any 

13 program funded under this Act is prohibited.’’. 

14 TITLE V—TECHNICAL 

15 ASSISTANCE 

16 SEC. 501. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. 

17 Part F of title IX of the Elementary and Secondary 

18 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7941) is amended— 

19 (1) in the part heading, by inserting ‘‘AND 

20 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE’’ after ‘‘EVAL21 UATIONS’’; and 

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

23 ‘‘SEC. 9602. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. 

24 ‘‘The Secretary shall ensure that the technical assist25 ance provided by, and the research developed and dissemi-
32 

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1 nated through, the Institute of Education Sciences and 

2 other offices or agencies of the Department provide edu3 cators and parents with the needed information and sup4 port for identifying and using educational strategies, pro5 grams, and practices, including strategies, programs, and 

6 practices available through the clearinghouses supported 

7 under the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 

8 U.S.C. 9501 et seq.) and other federally-supported clear9 inghouses, that have been successful in improving edu10 cational opportunities and achievement for all students.’’. 

Æ