IIB 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 444 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 3, 2004 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions 

AN ACT 

To amend the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to establish 

a Personal Reemployment Accounts grant program to 

assist Americans in returning to work; to reauthorize 

title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965; to amend 

title VII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to ensure 

graduate opportunities in postsecondary education; and 

for other purposes. 
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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Table of contents. 

TITLE I—WORKER REEMPLOYMENT ACCOUNTS ACT OF 2004 

Sec. 101. Short title. 

Sec. 102. Grants to support personal reemployment accounts. 

TITLE II—TEACHER TRAINING ENHANCEMENT ACT 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Teacher quality enhancement grants. 

Sec. 203. Preparing tomorrow’s teachers to use technology. 

Sec. 204. Centers of Excellence. 

Sec. 205. Transition. 

TITLE III—PRIORITIES FOR GRADUATE STUDIES ACT OF 2004 

Sec. 301. Short title; references. 

Sec. 302. Javits Fellowship Program. 

Sec. 303. Graduate assistance in areas of national need. 

Sec. 304. Thurgood Marshall Legal Educational Opportunity Program. 

Sec. 305. Fund for the improvement of postsecondary education. 

Sec. 306. Urban community service. 

Sec. 307. Demonstration projects to ensure students with disabilities receive a 

quality higher education. 

5 TITLE I—WORKER REEMPLOY6 MENT ACCOUNTS ACT OF 2004 

7 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 

8 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Worker Reemployment 

9 Accounts Act of 2004’’. 

10 SEC. 102. GRANTS TO SUPPORT PERSONAL REEMPLOY11 MENT ACCOUNTS. 

12 Section 171 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 

13 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(e) PERSONAL REEMPLOYMENT ACCOUNTS.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 

2 ‘State’ means each of the several States of the 

3 United States, the District of Columbia, the Com4 monwealth of Puerto Rico, and the United States 

5 Virgin Islands. 

6 ‘‘(2) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.—In addition 

7 to the demonstration projects under subsection (b), 

8 the Secretary may establish and implement a na9 tional demonstration project designed to analyze and 

10 provide data on workforce training programs that 

11 accelerate the reemployment of unemployed individ12 uals, promote the retention in employment of such 

13 individuals, and provide such individuals with en14 hanced flexibility, choice, and control in obtaining 

15 intensive reemployment, training, and supportive 

16 services. 

17 ‘‘(3) GRANTS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the 

19 demonstration project, the Secretary shall make 

20 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible enti21 ties to provide personal reemployment accounts 

22 to eligible individuals. In awarding grants under 

23 this subsection the Secretary shall take into 

24 consideration awarding grants to eligible enti-
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1 ties from diverse geographic areas, including 

2 rural areas. 

3 ‘‘(B) DURATION.—The Secretary shall 

4 make the grants for periods of not less than 2 

5 years and may renew the grant for each of the 

6 succeeding 3 years. 

7 ‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this subsection, the 

8 term ‘eligible entity’ means— 

9 ‘‘(A) a State; or 

10 ‘‘(B) a local board or consortium of local 

11 boards. 

12 ‘‘(5) USE OF FUNDS.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity that 

14 receives a grant under this subsection shall use 

15 the grant funds to provide, through a local area 

16 or areas, eligible individuals with personal re17 employment accounts. An eligible individual 

18 may receive only 1 personal reemployment ac19 count. 

20 ‘‘(B) GEOGRAPHIC AREA AND AMOUNT.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The eligible entity 

22 shall establish the amount of a personal re23 employment account for each eligible indi24 vidual participating, which shall be uni25 form throughout the area represented by 
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1 the eligible entity, and shall not exceed 

2 $3,000. 

3 ‘‘(ii) OPTION FOR STATES.—If the eli4 gible entity is a State, the eligible entity 

5 may choose to use the grant statewide, if 

6 practicable, or only in specified local areas 

7 within a State. 

8 ‘‘(C) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible enti10 ty shall establish eligibility criteria for indi11 viduals for personal reemployment ac12 counts in accordance with this subpara13 graph. 

14 ‘‘(ii) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA REQUIRE15 MENTS.— 

16 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Subject to 

17 subclause (II), an individual shall be 

18 eligible to receive a personal reemploy19 ment account under a grant awarded 

20 under this subsection if, beginning 

21 after the date of enactment of this 

22 subsection, the individual— 

23 ‘‘(aa) is identified by the 

24 State pursuant to section 

25 303(j)(1) of the Social Security 
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1 Act (42 U.S.C. 503(j)(1)) as like2 ly to exhaust regular unemploy3 ment compensation and in need 

4 of job search assistance to make 

5 a successful transition to new 

6 employment, or the individual’s 

7 unemployment can be attributed 

8 in substantial part to unfair com9 petition from Federal Prison In10 dustries, Incorporated; 

11 ‘‘(bb) is receiving regular 

12 unemployment compensation 

13 under any Federal or State un14 employment compensation pro15 gram administered by the State; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(cc) is eligible for not less 

18 than 20 weeks of regular unem19 ployment compensation described 

20 in item (bb). 

21 ‘‘(II) ADDITIONAL ELIGIBILITY

22 AND PRIORITY CRITERIA.—An eligible 

23 entity may establish criteria that are 

24 in addition to the criteria described in 

25 subclause (I) for the eligibility of indi-
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1 viduals to receive a personal reemploy2 ment account under this subsection. 

3 An eligible entity may also establish 

4 criteria for priority in the provision of 

5 a personal reemployment account to 

6 such eligible individuals under a grant 

7 awarded under this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(iii) TRANSITION RULE.— 

9 ‘‘(I) PREVIOUSLY IDENTIFIED AS

10 LIKELY TO EXHAUST UNEMPLOYMENT

11 COMPENSATION.— 

12 ‘‘(aa) IN GENERAL.—At the 

13 option of the eligible entity, and 

14 subject to item (bb), an indi15 vidual may be eligible to receive a 

16 personal reemployment account 

17 under this subsection if the indi18 vidual— 

19 ‘‘(AA) during the 13- 

20 week period ending the week 

21 prior to the date of the en22 actment of the subsection, 

23 was identified by the State 

24 pursuant to section 

25 303(j)(1) of the Social Secu-
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1 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 503(j)(1)) as likely to ex3 haust regular unemployment 

4 compensation and in need of 

5 job search assistance to 

6 make a successful transition 

7 to new employment; and 

8 ‘‘(BB) otherwise meets 

9 the requirements of clause 

10 (ii)(I)(bb) and (cc). 

11 ‘‘(bb) ADDITIONAL ELIGI12 BILITY AND PRIORITY CRI13 TERIA.—An eligible entity may 

14 establish criteria that is in addi15 tion to the criteria described in 

16 item (aa) for the eligibility of in17 dividuals to receive a personal re18 employment account under this 

19 subsection. An eligible entity may 

20 also establish criteria for priority 

21 in the provision of such accounts 

22 to such eligible individuals under 

23 this subsection. 

24 ‘‘(II) PREVIOUSLY EXHAUSTED

25 UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION.—At 
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1 the option of the eligible entity, an in2 dividual may be eligible to receive a 

3 personal reemployment account under 

4 a grant awarded under this subsection 

5 if the individual— 

6 ‘‘(aa) during the 26-week 

7 period ending the week prior to 

8 the date of the enactment of this 

9 subsection, exhausted all rights 

10 to any unemployment compensa11 tion; and 

12 ‘‘(bb)(AA) is enrolled in 

13 training and needs additional 

14 support to complete such train15 ing, with a priority of service to 

16 be provided to such individuals 

17 who are training for shortage oc18 cupations or high-growth indus19 tries; or 

20 ‘‘(BB) is separated from 

21 employment in an industry or oc22 cupation that has experienced de23 clining employment, or no longer 

24 provides any employment, in the 

25 local labor market during the 2- 
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1 year period ending on the date of 

2 the determination of eligibility of 

3 the individual under this sub4 paragraph. 

5 ‘‘(iv) NO INDIVIDUAL ENTITLE6 MENT.—Nothing in this subsection shall be 

7 construed to entitle any individual to re8 ceive a personal reemployment account. 

9 ‘‘(D) LIMITATIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(i) INFORMATION AND ATTESTA11 TION.—Prior to the establishment of a per12 sonal reemployment account for an eligible 

13 individual, the eligible entity receiving a 

14 grant, through the one-stop delivery sys15 tem in the participating local area or 

16 areas, shall ensure that the individual— 

17 ‘‘(I) is informed of the require18 ments applicable to the personal reem19 ployment account, including the allow20 able uses of funds from the account, 

21 the limitations on access to services 

22 described in paragraph (7)(A)(iii) and 

23 a description of such services, and the 

24 conditions for receiving a reemploy25 ment bonus; 
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1 ‘‘(II) has the option to develop a 

2 personal reemployment plan which will 

3 identify the employment goals and ap4 propriate combination of services se5 lected by the individual to achieve the 

6 employment goals; and 

7 ‘‘(III) signs an attestation that 

8 the individual has been given the op9 tion to develop a personal reemploy10 ment plan in accordance with sub11 clause (II), will comply with the re12 quirements under this subsection re13 lating to the personal reemployment 

14 accounts, and will reimburse the ac15 count or, if the account has been ter16 minated, the grant awarded under 

17 this subsection, for any amounts ex18 pended from the account that are not 

19 allowable. 

20 ‘‘(ii) PERIODIC INTERVIEWS.—If a re21 cipient exhausts his or her rights to any 

22 unemployment compensation, and the re23 cipient has a remaining balance in his or 

24 her personal reemployment account, the 

25 one-stop delivery system shall conduct peri-
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1 odic interviews with the recipient to assist 

2 the recipient in meeting his or her indi3 vidual employment goals. 

4 ‘‘(iii) USE OF PERSONAL REEMPLOY5 MENT ACCOUNTS.—The eligible entity re6 ceiving a grant shall ensure that eligible 

7 individuals receiving a personal reemploy8 ment account use the account in accord9 ance with paragraph (7). 

10 ‘‘(6) APPLICATION FOR GRANTS.—To be eligible 

11 to receive a grant under this subsection, an eligible 

12 entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at 

13 such time, in such manner, and containing such in14 formation as the Secretary may require, including— 

15 ‘‘(A) if the eligible entity is a State— 

16 ‘‘(i) assurance that the application 

17 was developed in conjunction with the local 

18 board or boards and chief elected officials 

19 where the personal reemployment accounts 

20 shall be made available; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) a description of the methods and 

22 procedures for providing funds to local 

23 areas where the personal reemployment ac24 counts shall be made available; and 
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1 ‘‘(B) a description of the criteria and 

2 methods to be used for determining eligibility 

3 for the personal reemployment account, includ4 ing whether the eligible entity intends to include 

5 the optional categories described in paragraph 

6 (5)(C)(iii), and the additional criteria and pri7 ority for service that the eligible entity intends 

8 to apply, if any, pursuant to paragraph 

9 (5)(C)(ii)(II); 

10 ‘‘(C) a description of the methods or proce11 dures to be used to provide eligible individuals 

12 information relating to services and providers; 

13 ‘‘(D) a description of safeguards to ensure 

14 that funds from the personal reemployment ac15 counts are used for purposes authorized under 

16 this subsection and to ensure the quality and 

17 integrity of services and providers, consistent 

18 with the purpose of providing eligible individ19 uals with enhanced flexibility, choice, and con20 trol in obtaining intensive reemployment, train21 ing, and supportive services; 

22 ‘‘(E) a description of how the eligible enti23 ty will coordinate the activities carried out 

24 under this subsection with the employment and 

25 training activities carried out under section 134 
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1 and other activities carried out by local boards 

2 through the one-stop delivery system in the 

3 State or local area; and 

4 ‘‘(F) an assurance that the eligible entity 

5 will comply with any evaluation and reporting 

6 requirements the Secretary may require. 

7 ‘‘(7) USE OF PERSONAL REEMPLOYMENT AC8 COUNTS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the re11 quirements contained in clauses (ii) and 

12 (iii), a recipient of a personal reemploy13 ment account may use amounts in a per14 sonal reemployment account to purchase 1 

15 or more of the following: 

16 ‘‘(I) Intensive services, including 

17 those type of services specified in sec18 tion 134(d)(3)(C). 

19 ‘‘(II) Training services, including 

20 those types of services specified in sec21 tion 134(d)(4)(D). 

22 ‘‘(III) Supportive services, except 

23 for needs related payments. 

24 ‘‘(ii) DELIVERY OF SERVICES.—The 

25 following requirements relating to delivery 
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1 of services shall apply to the grants under 

2 this subsection: 

3 ‘‘(I) Recipients may use funds 

4 from the personal reemployment ac5 count to purchase the services de6 scribed in clause (i) through the one7 stop delivery system on a fee-for-serv8 ice basis, or through other providers, 

9 consistent with the safeguards de10 scribed in paragraph (6)(D). 

11 ‘‘(II) The eligible entity, through 

12 the one-stop delivery system in the 

13 participating local area, may pay costs 

14 for such services directly on behalf of 

15 the recipient, through a voucher sys16 tem, or by reimbursement to the re17 cipient upon receipt of appropriate 

18 cost documentation. 

19 ‘‘(III) Each eligible entity, 

20 through the one-stop delivery system 

21 in the participating local area, shall 

22 make available to recipients informa23 tion on training providers specified in 

24 section 134(d)(4)(F)(ii), information 

25 available to the one-stop delivery sys-
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1 tem on providers of the intensive and 

2 supportive services described in clause 

3 (i), and information relating to occu4 pations in demand in the local area. 

5 ‘‘(iii) LIMITATIONS.—The following 

6 limitations shall apply with respect to per7 sonal reemployment accounts under this 

8 subsection: 

9 ‘‘(I) Amounts in a personal reem10 ployment account may be used for up 

11 to 1 year from the date of the estab12 lishment of the account. 

13 ‘‘(II) Each recipient shall submit 

14 cost documentation as required by the 

15 one-stop delivery system. 

16 ‘‘(III) For the 1-year period fol17 lowing the establishment of the ac18 count, recipients may not receive in19 tensive, supportive, or training serv20 ices funded under this title except on 

21 a fee-for-services basis as specified in 

22 clause (ii)(I). 

23 ‘‘(IV) Amounts in a personal re24 employment account shall be non25 transferable. 
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1 ‘‘(B) REEMPLOYMENT BONUS.— 

2 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

3 (ii)— 

4 ‘‘(I) if a recipient determined eli5 gible under paragraph (5)(C)(ii) ob6 tains full-time employment before the 

7 13th week of unemployment for which 

8 unemployment compensation is paid, 

9 the balance of his or her personal re10 employment account shall be provided 

11 directly to the recipient in cash; and 

12 ‘‘(II) if a recipient determined el13 igible under paragraph (5)(C)(iii) ob14 tains full-time employment before the 

15 end of the 13th week after the date 

16 on which the account is established, 

17 the balance of his or her personal re18 employment account shall be provided 

19 directly to the recipient in cash. 

20 ‘‘(ii) LIMITATIONS.—The following 

21 limitations shall apply with respect to a re22 cipient described in clause (i): 

23 ‘‘(I) 60 percent of the remaining 

24 personal reemployment account bal-
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1 ance shall be paid to the recipient at 

2 the time of employment. 

3 ‘‘(II) 40 percent of the remaining 

4 personal reemployment account shall 

5 be paid to the recipient after 26 weeks 

6 of employment retention. 

7 ‘‘(iii) EXCEPTION REGARDING SUBSE8 QUENT EMPLOYMENT.—If a recipient de9 scribed in clause (i) subsequently becomes 

10 unemployed due to a lack of work after re11 ceiving the portion of the reemployment 

12 bonus specified under clause (ii)(I), the in13 dividual may use the amount remaining in 

14 the personal reemployment account for the 

15 purposes described in subparagraph (A) 

16 but may not be eligible for additional cash 

17 payments under this subparagraph. 

18 ‘‘(8) PROGRAM INFORMATION AND EVALUA19 TION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) INFORMATION.—The Secretary may 

21 require from eligible entities the collection and 

22 reporting on such financial, performance, and 

23 other program-related information as the Sec24 retary determines is appropriate to carry out 
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1 this subsection, including the evaluation de2 scribed in subparagraph (B). 

3 ‘‘(B) EVALUATION.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, 

5 pursuant to the authority provided under 

6 section 172, shall, directly or through 

7 grants, contracts, or cooperative agreement 

8 with appropriate entities, conduct an eval9 uation of the activities carried out under 

10 any grants awarded under this subsection. 

11 ‘‘(ii) REPORT.—The report to Con12 gress under section 172(e) relating to the 

13 results of the evaluations required under 

14 section 172 shall include the recommenda15 tion of the Secretary with respect to the 

16 use of personal reemployment account as a 

17 mechanism to assist individuals in obtain18 ing and retaining employment.’’. 

19 TITLE II—TEACHER TRAINING 

20 ENHANCEMENT ACT 

21 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

22 This title may be cited as ‘‘Teacher Training En23 hancement Act’’. 
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1 SEC. 202. TEACHER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT GRANTS. 

2 Part A of title II of the Higher Education Act of 

3 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.) is amended to read as fol4 lows: 

5 ‘‘PART A—TEACHER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT 

6 GRANTS FOR STATES AND PARTNERSHIPS 

7 ‘‘SEC. 201. PURPOSES; DEFINITIONS. 

8 ‘‘(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this part are to— 

9 ‘‘(1) improve student academic achievement; 

10 ‘‘(2) improve the quality of the current and fu11 ture teaching force by improving the preparation of 

12 prospective teachers and enhancing professional de13 velopment activities; 

14 ‘‘(3) hold institutions of higher education ac15 countable for preparing highly qualified teachers; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(4) recruit qualified individuals, including mi18 norities and individuals from other occupations, into 

19 the teaching force. 

20 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this part: 

21 ‘‘(1) ARTS AND SCIENCES.—The term ‘arts and 

22 sciences’ means— 

23 ‘‘(A) when referring to an organizational 

24 unit of an institution of higher education, any 

25 academic unit that offers 1 or more academic 

26 majors in disciplines or content areas cor-
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1 responding to the academic subject matter 

2 areas in which teachers provide instruction; and 

3 ‘‘(B) when referring to a specific academic 

4 subject matter area, the disciplines or content 

5 areas in which academic majors are offered by 

6 the arts and science organizational unit. 

7 ‘‘(2) EXEMPLARY TEACHER.—The term ‘exem8 plary teacher’ has the meaning given such term in 

9 section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu10 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

11 ‘‘(3) HIGHLY QUALIFIED.—The term ‘highly 

12 qualified’ has the meaning given such term in sec13 tion 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu14 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

15 ‘‘(4) HIGH-NEED LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN16 CY.—The term ‘high-need local educational agency’ 

17 means a local educational agency— 

18 ‘‘(A)(i)(I) that serves not fewer than 

19 10,000 children from families with incomes 

20 below the poverty line; or 

21 ‘‘(II) for which not less than 25 percent of 

22 the children served by the agency are from fam23 ilies with incomes below the poverty line; 

24 ‘‘(ii) that is among those serving the high25 est number or percentage of children from fam-
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1 ilies with incomes below the poverty line in the 

2 State, but this clause applies only in a State 

3 that has no local educational agency meeting 

4 the requirements of clause (i); or 

5 ‘‘(iii) with a total of less than 600 students 

6 in average daily attendance at the schools that 

7 are served by the agency and all of whose 

8 schools are designated with a school locale code 

9 of 7, as determined by the Secretary; and 

10 ‘‘(B)(i) for which there is a high percent11 age of teachers not teaching in the academic 

12 subjects or grade levels that the teachers were 

13 trained to teach; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) for which there is a high percentage 

15 of teachers with emergency, provisional, or tem16 porary certification or licensing. 

17 ‘‘(5) POVERTY LINE.—The term ‘poverty line’ 

18 means the poverty line (as defined by the Office of 

19 Management and Budget, and revised annually in 

20 accordance with section 673(2) of the Community 

21 Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2))) ap22 plicable to a family of the size involved. 

23 ‘‘(6) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—The 

24 term ‘professional development’ has the meaning 

25 given such term in section 9101 of the Elementary 
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1 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

2 7801). 

3 ‘‘(7) SCIENTIFICALLY BASED READING RE4 SEARCH.—The term ‘scientifically based reading re5 search’ has the meaning given such term in section 

6 1208 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

7 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6368). 

8 ‘‘(8) SCIENTIFICALLY BASED RESEARCH.—The 

9 term ‘scientifically based research’ has the meaning 

10 given such term in section 9101 of the Elementary 

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

12 7801). 

13 ‘‘(9) TEACHING SKILLS.—The term ‘teaching 

14 skills’ means skills that— 

15 ‘‘(A) are based on scientifically based re16 search; 

17 ‘‘(B) enable teachers to effectively convey 

18 and explain subject matter content; 

19 ‘‘(C) lead to increased student academic 

20 achievement; and 

21 ‘‘(D) use strategies that— 

22 ‘‘(i) are specific to subject matter; 

23 ‘‘(ii) include ongoing assessment of 

24 student learning; 
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1 ‘‘(iii) focus on identification and tai2 loring of academic instruction to students’s 

3 specific learning needs; and 

4 ‘‘(iv) focus on classroom management. 

5 ‘‘SEC. 202. STATE GRANTS. 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available 

7 under section 210(1) for a fiscal year, the Secretary is 

8 authorized to award grants under this section, on a com9 petitive basis, to eligible States to enable the eligible 

10 States to carry out the activities described in subsection 

11 (d). 

12 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE STATE.— 

13 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION.—In this part, the term ‘eligi14 ble State’ means— 

15 ‘‘(A) the Governor of a State; or 

16 ‘‘(B) in the case of a State for which the 

17 constitution or law of such State designates an18 other individual, entity, or agency in the State 

19 to be responsible for teacher certification and 

20 preparation activity, such individual, entity, or 

21 agency. 

22 ‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—The Governor or the in23 dividual, entity, or agency designated under para24 graph (1)(B) shall consult with the Governor, State 

25 board of education, State educational agency, or 
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1 State agency for higher education, as appropriate, 

2 with respect to the activities assisted under this sec3 tion. 

4 ‘‘(3) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sub5 section shall be construed to negate or supersede the 

6 legal authority under State law of any State agency, 

7 State entity, or State public official over programs 

8 that are under the jurisdiction of the agency, entity, 

9 or official. 

10 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

11 under this section, an eligible State shall submit an appli12 cation to the Secretary that— 

13 ‘‘(1) meets the requirement of this section; 

14 ‘‘(2) demonstrates that the State is in full com15 pliance with sections 207 and 208; 

16 ‘‘(3) includes a description of how the eligible 

17 State intends to use funds provided under this sec18 tion; 

19 ‘‘(4) includes measurable objectives for the use 

20 of the funds provided under the grant; 

21 ‘‘(5) demonstrates the State has submitted and 

22 is actively implementing a plan that meets the re23 quirements of sections 1111(h)(1)(C)(viii) and 1119 

24 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

25 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(h)(1)(C)(viii) and 6319); and 
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1 ‘‘(6) contains such other information and assur2 ances as the Secretary may require. 

3 ‘‘(d) USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible State that re4 ceives a grant under this section shall use the grant funds 

5 to reform teacher preparation requirements, to coordinate 

6 with State activities under section 2113(c) of the Elemen7 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

8 6613(c)), and to ensure that current and future teachers 

9 are highly qualified, by carrying out one or more of the 

10 following activities: 

11 ‘‘(1) REFORMS.—Ensuring that all teacher 

12 preparation programs in the State are preparing 

13 teachers who are highly qualified, are able to under14 stand scientifically based research and its applica15 bility, and are able to use advanced technology effec16 tively in the classroom, including use for instruc17 tional techniques to improve student academic 

18 achievement, by assisting such programs— 

19 ‘‘(A) to retrain faculty; and 

20 ‘‘(B) to design (or redesign) teacher prepa21 ration programs so they— 

22 ‘‘(i) are based on rigorous academic 

23 content, scientifically based research (in24 cluding scientifically based reading re-
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1 search), and challenging State student aca2 demic content standards; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) promote strong teaching skills. 

4 ‘‘(2) CERTIFICATION OR LICENSURE REQUIRE5 MENTS.—Reforming teacher certification (including 

6 recertification) or licensing requirements to ensure 

7 that— 

8 ‘‘(A) teachers have the subject matter 

9 knowledge and teaching skills in the academic 

10 subjects that the teachers teach that are nec11 essary to help students meet challenging State 

12 student academic achievement standards; and 

13 ‘‘(B) such requirements are aligned with 

14 challenging State academic content standards. 

15 ‘‘(3) ALTERNATIVES TO TRADITIONAL TEACHER

16 PREPARATION AND STATE CERTIFICATION.—Pro17 viding prospective teachers with alternative routes to 

18 State certification and traditional preparation to be19 come highly qualified teachers through— 

20 ‘‘(A) innovative approaches that reduce un21 necessary barriers to State certification while 

22 producing highly qualified teachers; 

23 ‘‘(B) programs that provide support to 

24 teachers during their initial years in the profes25 sion; and 
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1 ‘‘(C) alternative routes to State certifi2 cation of teachers for qualified individuals, in3 cluding mid-career professionals from other oc4 cupations, former military personnel, and recent 

5 college graduates with records of academic dis6 tinction. 

7 ‘‘(4) INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS.—Planning and 

8 implementing innovative programs to enhance the 

9 ability of institutions of higher education to prepare 

10 highly qualified teachers, such as charter colleges of 

11 education or university and local educational agency 

12 partnership schools, that— 

13 ‘‘(A) permit flexibility in meeting State re14 quirements as long as graduates, during their 

15 initial years in the profession, increase student 

16 academic achievement; 

17 ‘‘(B) provide long-term data gathered from 

18 teachers’ performance over multiple years in the 

19 classroom on the ability to increase student aca20 demic achievement; 

21 ‘‘(C) ensure high-quality preparation of 

22 teachers from underrepresented groups; and 

23 ‘‘(D) create performance measures that 

24 can be used to document the effectiveness of in-
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1 novative methods for preparing highly qualified 

2 teachers. 

3 ‘‘(5) MERIT PAY.—Developing, or assisting 

4 local educational agencies in developing— 

5 ‘‘(A) merit-based performance systems that 

6 reward teachers who increase student academic 

7 achievement; and 

8 ‘‘(B) strategies that provide differential 

9 and bonus pay in high-need local educational 

10 agencies to retain— 

11 ‘‘(i) principals; 

12 ‘‘(ii) highly qualified teachers who 

13 teach in high-need academic subjects, such 

14 as reading, mathematics, and science; 

15 ‘‘(iii) highly qualified teachers who 

16 teach in schools identified for school im17 provement under section 1116(b) of the 

18 Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

19 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316(b)); 

20 ‘‘(iv) special education teachers; 

21 ‘‘(v) teachers specializing in teaching 

22 limited English proficient children; and 

23 ‘‘(vi) highly qualified teachers in 

24 urban and rural schools or districts. 
30 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(6) TEACHER ADVANCEMENT.—Developing, or 

2 assisting local educational agencies in developing, 

3 teacher advancement and retention initiatives that 

4 promote professional growth and emphasize multiple 

5 career paths (such as paths to becoming a highly 

6 qualified mentor teacher or exemplary teacher) and 

7 pay differentiation. 

8 ‘‘(7) TEACHER REMOVAL.—Developing and im9 plementing effective mechanisms to ensure that local 

10 educational agencies and schools are able to remove 

11 expeditiously incompetent or unqualified teachers 

12 consistent with procedures to ensure due process for 

13 the teachers. 

14 ‘‘(8) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—Providing tech15 nical assistance to low-performing teacher prepara16 tion programs within institutions of higher education 

17 identified under section 208(a). 

18 ‘‘(9) TEACHER EFFECTIVENESS.—Developing— 

19 ‘‘(A) systems to measure the effectiveness 

20 of teacher preparation programs and profes21 sional development programs; and 

22 ‘‘(B) strategies to document gains in stu23 dent academic achievement or increases in 

24 teacher mastery of the academic subjects the 

25 teachers teach as a result of such programs. 
31 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(10) TEACHER RECRUITMENT AND RETEN2 TION.—Undertaking activities that— 

3 ‘‘(A) develop and implement effective 

4 mechanisms to ensure that local educational 

5 agencies and schools are able effectively to re6 cruit and retain highly qualified teachers; or 

7 ‘‘(B) are described in section 204(d). 

8 ‘‘(11) PRESCHOOL TEACHERS.—Developing 

9 strategies— 

10 ‘‘(A) to improve the qualifications of pre11 school teachers, which may include State certifi12 cation for such teachers; and 

13 ‘‘(B) to improve and expand preschool 

14 teacher preparation programs. 

15 ‘‘(e) EVALUATION.— 

16 ‘‘(1) EVALUATION SYSTEM.—An eligible State 

17 that receives a grant under this section shall develop 

18 and utilize a system to evaluate annually the effec19 tiveness of teacher preparation programs and profes20 sional development activities within the State in pro21 ducing gains in— 

22 ‘‘(A) the teacher’s annual contribution to 

23 improving student academic achievement, as 

24 measured by State academic assessments re25 quired under section 1111(b)(3) of the Elemen-
32 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

2 U.S.C. 6311(b)(3)); and 

3 ‘‘(B) teacher mastery of the academic sub4 jects they teach, as measured by pre- and post5 participation tests of teacher knowledge, as ap6 propriate. 

7 ‘‘(2) USE OF EVALUATION SYSTEM.—Such eval8 uation system shall be used by the State to evalu9 ate— 

10 ‘‘(A) activities carried out using funds pro11 vided under this section; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the quality of its teacher education 

13 programs. 

14 ‘‘(3) PUBLIC REPORTING.—The State shall 

15 make the information described in paragraph (1) 

16 widely available through public means, such as post17 ing on the Internet, distribution to the media, and 

18 distribution through public agencies. 

19 ‘‘SEC. 203. PARTNERSHIP GRANTS. 

20 ‘‘(a) GRANTS.—From amounts made available under 

21 section 210(2) for a fiscal year, the Secretary is author22 ized to award grants under this section, on a competitive 

23 basis, to eligible partnerships to enable the eligible part24 nerships to carry out the activities described in subsections 

25 (d) and (e). 
33 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIPS.—In this part, 

3 the term ‘eligible partnership’ means an entity 

4 that— 

5 ‘‘(A) shall include— 

6 ‘‘(i) a partner institution; 

7 ‘‘(ii) a school of arts and sciences; 

8 ‘‘(iii) a high-need local educational 

9 agency; and 

10 ‘‘(iv) a public or private educational 

11 organization; and 

12 ‘‘(B) may include a Governor, State edu13 cational agency, the State board of education, 

14 the State agency for higher education, an insti15 tution of higher education not described in sub16 paragraph (A), a public charter school, a public 

17 or private elementary school or secondary 

18 school, a public or private educational organiza19 tion, a business, a science-, mathematics-, or 

20 technology-oriented entity, a faith-based or 

21 community organization, a prekindergarten pro22 gram, a teacher organization, an education 

23 service agency, a consortia of local educational 

24 agencies, or a nonprofit telecommunications en25 tity. 
34 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(2) PARTNER INSTITUTION.—In this section, 

2 the term ‘partner institution’ means an institution of 

3 higher education, the teacher training program of 

4 which demonstrates that— 

5 ‘‘(A) graduates from the teacher training 

6 program exhibit strong performance on State7 determined qualifying assessments for new 

8 teachers through— 

9 ‘‘(i) demonstrating that the graduates 

10 of the program who intend to enter the 

11 field of teaching have passed all of the ap12 plicable State qualification assessments for 

13 new teachers, which shall include an as14 sessment of each prospective teacher’s sub15 ject matter knowledge in the content area 

16 or areas in which the teacher intends to 

17 teach; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) being ranked among the highest19 performing teacher preparation programs 

20 in the State as determined by the State— 

21 ‘‘(I) using criteria consistent with 

22 the requirements for the State report 

23 card under section 207(a); and 
35 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(II) using the State report card 

2 on teacher preparation required under 

3 section 207(a); or 

4 ‘‘(B) the teacher training program requires 

5 all the students of the program to participate in 

6 intensive clinical experience, to meet high aca7 demic standards, and— 

8 ‘‘(i) in the case of secondary school 

9 candidates, to successfully complete an 

10 academic major in the subject area in 

11 which the candidate intends to teach or to 

12 demonstrate competence through a high 

13 level of performance in relevant content 

14 areas; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) in the case of elementary school 

16 candidates, to successfully complete an 

17 academic major in the arts and sciences or 

18 to demonstrate competence through a high 

19 level of performance in core academic sub20 ject areas. 

21 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—Each eligible partnership desir22 ing a grant under this section shall submit an application 

23 to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accom24 panied by such information as the Secretary may require. 

25 Each such application shall— 
36 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(1) contain a needs assessment of all the part2 ners with respect to teaching and learning and a de3 scription of how the partnership will coordinate with 

4 other teacher training or professional development 

5 programs, and how the activities of the partnership 

6 will be consistent with State, local, and other edu7 cation reform activities that promote student aca8 demic achievement; 

9 ‘‘(2) contain a resource assessment that de10 scribes the resources available to the partnership, 

11 the intended use of the grant funds, including a de12 scription of how the grant funds will be used in ac13 cordance with subsection (f), and the commitment of 

14 the resources of the partnership to the activities as15 sisted under this part, including financial support, 

16 faculty participation, time commitments, and con17 tinuation of the activities when the grant ends; 

18 ‘‘(3) contain a description of— 

19 ‘‘(A) how the partnership will meet the 

20 purposes of this part; 

21 ‘‘(B) how the partnership will carry out 

22 the activities required under subsection (d) and 

23 any permissible activities under subsection (e); 

24 ‘‘(C) the partnership’s evaluation plan pur25 suant to section 206(b); 
37 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(D) how faculty of the teacher prepara2 tion program at the partner institution will 

3 serve, over the term of the grant, with highly 

4 qualified teachers in the classrooms of the high5 need local educational agency included in the 

6 partnership; 

7 ‘‘(E) how the partnership will ensure that 

8 teachers, principals, and superintendents in pri9 vate elementary and secondary schools located 

10 in the geographic areas served by an eligible 

11 partnership under this section will participate 

12 equitably in accordance with section 9501 of 

13 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

14 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7881); 

15 ‘‘(F) how the partnership will design and 

16 implement a clinical program component that 

17 includes close supervision of student teachers by 

18 faculty of the teacher preparation program at 

19 the partner institution and mentor teachers; 

20 ‘‘(G) how the partnership will design and 

21 implement an induction program to support all 

22 new teachers through the first 3 years of teach23 ing that includes mentors who are trained and 

24 compensated by the partnership for their work 

25 with new teachers; and 
38 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(H) how the partnership will collect, ana2 lyze, and use data on the retention of all teach3 ers in schools located in the geographic areas 

4 served by the partnership to evaluate the effec5 tiveness of its teacher support system; and 

6 ‘‘(4) contain a certification from the high-need 

7 local educational agency included in the partnership 

8 that it has reviewed the application and determined 

9 that the grant proposed will comply with subsection 

10 (f). 

11 ‘‘(d) REQUIRED USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible part12 nership that receives a grant under this section shall use 

13 the grant funds to reform teacher preparation require14 ments, to coordinate with State activities under section 

15 2113(c) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

16 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6613(c)), and to ensure that current 

17 and future teachers are highly qualified, by carrying out 

18 one or more of the following activities: 

19 ‘‘(1) REFORMS.—Implementing reforms within 

20 teacher preparation programs to ensure that such 

21 programs are preparing teachers who are highly 

22 qualified, are able to understand scientifically based 

23 research and its applicability, and are able to use 

24 advanced technology effectively in the classroom, in-
39 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 cluding use for instructional techniques to improve 

2 student academic achievement, by— 

3 ‘‘(A) retraining faculty; and 

4 ‘‘(B) designing (or redesigning) teacher 

5 preparation programs so they— 

6 ‘‘(i) are based on rigorous academic 

7 content, scientifically based research (in8 cluding scientifically based reading re9 search), and challenging State student aca10 demic content standards; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) promote strong teaching skills. 

12 ‘‘(2) CLINICAL EXPERIENCE AND INTER13 ACTION.—Providing sustained and high-quality 

14 preservice and in-service clinical experience, includ15 ing the mentoring of prospective teachers by exem16 plary teachers, substantially increasing interaction 

17 between faculty at institutions of higher education 

18 and new and experienced teachers, principals, and 

19 other administrators at elementary schools or sec20 ondary schools, and providing support for teachers, 

21 including preparation time and release time, for such 

22 interaction. 

23 ‘‘(3) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—Creating 

24 opportunities for enhanced and ongoing professional 

25 development that improves the academic content 
40 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 knowledge of teachers in the subject areas in which 

2 the teachers are certified to teach or in which the 

3 teachers are working toward certification to teach, 

4 and that promotes strong teaching skills. 

5 ‘‘(4) TEACHER PREPARATION.—Developing, or 

6 assisting local educational agencies in developing, 

7 professional development activities that— 

8 ‘‘(A) provide training in how to teach and 

9 address the needs of students with different 

10 learning styles, particularly students with dis11 abilities, limited English proficient students, 

12 and students with special learning needs; and 

13 ‘‘(B) provide training in methods of— 

14 ‘‘(i) improving student behavior in the 

15 classroom; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) identifying early and appropriate 

17 interventions to help students described in 

18 subparagraph (A) learn. 

19 ‘‘(e) ALLOWABLE USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible 

20 partnership that receives a grant under this section may 

21 use such funds to carry out the following activities: 

22 ‘‘(1) ALTERNATIVES TO TRADITIONAL TEACHER

23 PREPARATION AND STATE CERTIFICATION.—Pro24 viding prospective teachers with alternative routes to 
41 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 State certification and traditional preparation to be2 come highly qualified teachers through— 

3 ‘‘(A) innovative approaches that reduce un4 necessary barriers to teacher preparation while 

5 producing highly qualified teachers; 

6 ‘‘(B) programs that provide support during 

7 a teacher’s initial years in the profession; and 

8 ‘‘(C) alternative routes to State certifi9 cation of teachers for qualified individuals, in10 cluding mid-career professionals from other oc11 cupations, former military personnel, and recent 

12 college graduates with records of academic dis13 tinction. 

14 ‘‘(2) DISSEMINATION AND COORDINATION.— 

15 Broadly disseminating information on effective prac16 tices used by the partnership, and coordinating with 

17 the activities of the Governor, State board of edu18 cation, State higher education agency, and State 

19 educational agency, as appropriate. 

20 ‘‘(3) MANAGERIAL AND LEADERSHIP SKILLS.— 

21 Developing and implementing professional develop22 ment programs for principals and superintendents 

23 that enable them to be effective school leaders and 

24 prepare all students to meet challenging State aca-
42 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 demic content and student academic achievement 

2 standards. 

3 ‘‘(4) TEACHER RECRUITMENT.—Activities— 

4 ‘‘(A) to encourage students to become 

5 highly qualified teachers, such as extra6 curricular enrichment activities; and 

7 ‘‘(B) activities described in section 204(d). 

8 ‘‘(5) CLINICAL EXPERIENCE IN SCIENCE, MATH9 EMATICS, AND TECHNOLOGY.—Creating opportuni10 ties for clinical experience and training, by participa11 tion in the business, research, and work environ12 ments with professionals, in areas relating to 

13 science, mathematics, and technology for teachers 

14 and prospective teachers, including opportunities for 

15 use of laboratory equipment, in order for the teacher 

16 to return to the classroom for at least 2 years and 

17 provide instruction that will raise student academic 

18 achievement. 

19 ‘‘(6) COORDINATION WITH COMMUNITY COL20 LEGES.—Coordinating with community colleges to 

21 implement teacher preparation programs, including 

22 through distance learning, for the purposes of allow23 ing prospective teachers— 

24 ‘‘(A) to attain a bachelor’s degree and 

25 State certification or licensure; and 
43 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(B) to become highly qualified teachers. 

2 ‘‘(7) TEACHER MENTORING.—Establishing or 

3 implementing a teacher mentoring program that— 

4 ‘‘(A) includes minimum qualifications for 

5 mentors; 

6 ‘‘(B) provides training and stipends for 

7 mentors; 

8 ‘‘(C) provides mentoring programs for 

9 teachers in their first 3 years of teaching; 

10 ‘‘(D) provides regular and ongoing oppor11 tunities for mentors and mentees to observe 

12 each other’s teaching methods in classroom set13 tings during the school day; 

14 ‘‘(E) establishes an evaluation and ac15 countability plan for activities conducted under 

16 this paragraph that includes rigorous objectives 

17 to measure the impact of such activities; and 

18 ‘‘(F) provides for a report to the Secretary 

19 on an annual basis regarding the partnership’s 

20 progress in meeting the objectives described in 

21 subparagraph (E). 

22 ‘‘(8) COMPUTER SOFTWARE FOR MULTI23 LINGUAL EDUCATION.—Training teachers to use 

24 computer software for multilingual education to ad-
44 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 dress the needs of limited English proficient stu2 dents. 

3 ‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULE.—At least 50 percent of the 

4 funds made available to an eligible partnership under this 

5 section shall be used directly to benefit the high-need local 

6 educational agency included in the partnership. Any entity 

7 described in subsection (b)(1)(A) may be the fiscal agent 

8 under this section. 

9 ‘‘(g) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall 

10 be construed to prohibit an eligible partnership from using 

11 grant funds to coordinate with the activities of more than 

12 one Governor, State board of education, State educational 

13 agency, local educational agency, or State agency for high14 er education. 

15 ‘‘(h) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—Funds made 

16 available under this section shall be used to supplement, 

17 and not supplant, other Federal, State, and local funds 

18 that would otherwise be expended to carry out the pur19 poses of this section. 

20 ‘‘SEC. 204. TEACHER RECRUITMENT GRANTS. 

21 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From amounts made 

22 available under section 210(3) for a fiscal year, the Sec23 retary is authorized to award grants, on a competitive 

24 basis, to eligible applicants to enable the eligible applicants 

25 to carry out activities described in subsection (d). 
45 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE APPLICANT DEFINED.—In this part, 

2 the term ‘eligible applicant’ means— 

3 ‘‘(1) an eligible State described in section 

4 202(b); or 

5 ‘‘(2) an eligible partnership described in section 

6 203(b). 

7 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—Any eligible applicant desiring 

8 to receive a grant under this section shall submit an appli9 cation to the Secretary at such time, in such form, and 

10 containing such information as the Secretary may require, 

11 including— 

12 ‘‘(1) a description of the assessment that the el13 igible applicant, and the other entities with whom 

14 the eligible applicant will carry out the grant activi15 ties, have undertaken to determine the most critical 

16 needs of the participating high-need local edu17 cational agencies; 

18 ‘‘(2) a description of the activities the eligible 

19 applicant will carry out with the grant, including the 

20 extent to which the applicant will use funds to re21 cruit minority students to become highly qualified 

22 teachers; and 

23 ‘‘(3) a description of the eligible applicant’s 

24 plan for continuing the activities carried out with 

25 the grant, once Federal funding ceases. 
46 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(d) USES OF FUNDS.—Each eligible applicant re2 ceiving a grant under this section shall use the grant 

3 funds— 

4 ‘‘(1)(A) to award scholarships to help students, 

5 such as individuals who have been accepted for their 

6 first year, or who are enrolled in their first or second 

7 year, of a program of undergraduate education at an 

8 institution of higher education, pay the costs of tui9 tion, room, board, and other expenses of completing 

10 a teacher preparation program; 

11 ‘‘(B) to provide support services, if needed to 

12 enable scholarship recipients— 

13 ‘‘(i) to complete postsecondary education 

14 programs; or 

15 ‘‘(ii) to transition from a career outside of 

16 the field of education into a teaching career; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(C) for followup services provided to former 

19 scholarship recipients during the recipients first 3 

20 years of teaching; or 

21 ‘‘(2) to develop and implement effective mecha22 nisms to ensure that high-need local educational 

23 agencies and schools are able effectively to recruit 

24 highly qualified teachers. 
47 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(e) ADDITIONAL DISCRETIONARY USES OF

2 FUNDS.—In addition to the uses described in subsection 

3 (d), each eligible applicant receiving a grant under this 

4 section may use the grant funds— 

5 ‘‘(1) to develop and implement effective mecha6 nisms to recruit into the teaching profession employ7 ees from— 

8 ‘‘(A) high-demand industries, including 

9 technology industries; and 

10 ‘‘(B) the fields of science, mathematics, 

11 and engineering; and 

12 ‘‘(2) to conduct outreach and coordinate with 

13 inner city and rural secondary schools to encourage 

14 students to pursue teaching as a career. 

15 ‘‘(f) SERVICE REQUIREMENTS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab17 lish such requirements as the Secretary determines 

18 necessary to ensure that recipients of scholarships 

19 under this section who complete teacher education 

20 programs— 

21 ‘‘(A) subsequently teach in a high-need 

22 local educational agency for a period of time 

23 equivalent to— 

24 ‘‘(i) one year; increased by 
48 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(ii) the period for which the recipient 

2 received scholarship assistance; or 

3 ‘‘(B) repay the amount of the scholarship. 

4 ‘‘(2) USE OF REPAYMENTS.—The Secretary 

5 shall use any such repayments to carry out addi6 tional activities under this section. 

7 ‘‘(g) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall give priority 

8 under this section to eligible applicants who provide an 

9 assurance that they will recruit a high percentage of mi10 nority students to become highly qualified teachers. 

11 ‘‘SEC. 205. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS. 

12 ‘‘(a) DURATION; ONE-TIME AWARDS; PAYMENTS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) DURATION.— 

14 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE STATES AND ELIGIBLE AP15 PLICANTS.—Grants awarded to eligible States 

16 and eligible applicants under this part shall be 

17 awarded for a period not to exceed 3 years. 

18 ‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIPS.—Grants 

19 awarded to eligible partnerships under this part 

20 shall be awarded for a period of 5 years. 

21 ‘‘(2) ONE-TIME AWARD.—An eligible partner22 ship may receive a grant under each of sections 203 

23 and 204, as amended by the Teacher Training En24 hancement Act, only once. 
49 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(3) PAYMENTS.—The Secretary shall make 

2 annual payments of grant funds awarded under this 

3 part. 

4 ‘‘(b) PEER REVIEW.— 

5 ‘‘(1) PANEL.—The Secretary shall provide the 

6 applications submitted under this part to a peer re7 view panel for evaluation. With respect to each ap8 plication, the peer review panel shall initially rec9 ommend the application for funding or for dis10 approval. 

11 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—In recommending applications 

12 to the Secretary for funding under this part, the 

13 panel shall— 

14 ‘‘(A) with respect to grants under section 

15 202, give priority to eligible States that— 

16 ‘‘(i) have initiatives to reform State 

17 teacher certification requirements that are 

18 based on rigorous academic content, sci19 entifically based research, including sci20 entifically based reading research, and 

21 challenging State student academic content 

22 standards; 

23 ‘‘(ii) have innovative reforms to hold 

24 institutions of higher education with teach25 er preparation programs accountable for 
50 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 preparing teachers who are highly qualified 

2 and have strong teaching skills; or 

3 ‘‘(iii) have innovative efforts aimed at 

4 reducing the shortage of highly qualified 

5 teachers in high poverty urban and rural 

6 areas; and 

7 ‘‘(B) with respect to grants under section 

8 203— 

9 ‘‘(i) give priority to applications from 

10 broad-based eligible partnerships that in11 volve businesses and community organiza12 tions; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) take into consideration— 

14 ‘‘(I) providing an equitable geo15 graphic distribution of the grants 

16 throughout the United States; and 

17 ‘‘(II) the potential of the pro18 posed activities for creating improve19 ment and positive change. 

20 ‘‘(3) SECRETARIAL SELECTION.—The Secretary 

21 shall determine, based on the peer review process, 

22 which application shall receive funding and the 

23 amounts of the grants. In determining grant 

24 amounts, the Secretary shall take into account the 

25 total amount of funds available for all grants under 
51 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 this part and the types of activities proposed to be 

2 carried out. 

3 ‘‘(c) MATCHING REQUIREMENTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) STATE GRANTS.—Each eligible State re5 ceiving a grant under section 202 or 204 shall pro6 vide, from non-Federal sources, an amount equal to 

7 50 percent of the amount of the grant (in cash or 

8 in kind) to carry out the activities supported by the 

9 grant. 

10 ‘‘(2) PARTNERSHIP GRANTS.—Each eligible 

11 partnership receiving a grant under section 203 or 

12 204 shall provide, from non-Federal sources (in cash 

13 or in kind), an amount equal to 25 percent of the 

14 grant for the first year of the grant, 35 percent of 

15 the grant for the second year of the grant, and 50 

16 percent of the grant for each succeeding year of the 

17 grant. 

18 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 

19 An eligible State or eligible partnership that receives a 

20 grant under this part may not use more than 2 percent 

21 of the grant funds for purposes of administering the grant. 

22 ‘‘SEC. 206. ACCOUNTABILITY AND EVALUATION. 

23 ‘‘(a) STATE GRANT ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT.—An 

24 eligible State that receives a grant under section 202 shall 

25 submit an annual accountability report to the Secretary, 
52 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pen2 sions of the Senate, and the Committee on Education and 

3 the Workforce of the House of Representatives. Such re4 port shall include a description of the degree to which the 

5 eligible State, in using funds provided under such section, 

6 has made substantial progress in meeting the following 

7 goals: 

8 ‘‘(1) PERCENTAGE OF HIGHLY QUALIFIED

9 TEACHERS.—Increasing the percentage of highly 

10 qualified teachers in the State as required by section 

11 1119 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

12 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6319). 

13 ‘‘(2) STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT.—In14 creasing student academic achievement for all stu15 dents as defined by the eligible State. 

16 ‘‘(3) RAISING STANDARDS.—Raising the State 

17 academic standards required to enter the teaching 

18 profession as a highly qualified teacher. 

19 ‘‘(4) INITIAL CERTIFICATION OR LICENSURE.— 

20 Increasing success in the pass rate for initial State 

21 teacher certification or licensure, or increasing the 

22 numbers of qualified individuals being certified or li23 censed as teachers through alternative programs. 
53 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(5) DECREASING TEACHER SHORTAGES.—De2 creasing shortages of highly qualified teachers in 

3 poor urban and rural areas. 

4 ‘‘(6) INCREASING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PROFES5 SIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—Increasing opportunities 

6 for enhanced and ongoing professional development 

7 that— 

8 ‘‘(A) improves the academic content knowl9 edge of teachers in the subject areas in which 

10 the teachers are certified or licensed to teach or 

11 in which the teachers are working toward cer12 tification or licensure to teach; and 

13 ‘‘(B) promotes strong teaching skills. 

14 ‘‘(7) TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION.—Increasing 

15 the number of teachers prepared effectively to inte16 grate technology into curricula and instruction and 

17 who use technology to collect, manage, and analyze 

18 data to improve teaching, learning, and decision19 making for the purpose of increasing student aca20 demic achievement. 

21 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP EVALUATION.—Each 

22 eligible partnership applying for a grant under section 203 

23 shall establish, and include in the application submitted 

24 under section 203(c), an evaluation plan that includes 
54 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 strong performance objectives. The plan shall include ob2 jectives and measures for— 

3 ‘‘(1) increased student achievement for all stu4 dents, as measured by the partnership; 

5 ‘‘(2) increased teacher retention in the first 3 

6 years of a teacher’s career; 

7 ‘‘(3) increased success in the pass rate for ini8 tial State certification or licensure of teachers; 

9 ‘‘(4) increased percentage of highly qualified 

10 teachers; and 

11 ‘‘(5) increasing the number of teachers trained 

12 effectively to integrate technology into curricula and 

13 instruction and who use technology to collect, man14 age, and analyze data to improve teaching, learning, 

15 and decisionmaking for the purpose of improving 

16 student academic achievement. 

17 ‘‘(c) REVOCATION OF GRANT.— 

18 ‘‘(1) REPORT.—Each eligible State or eligible 

19 partnership receiving a grant under section 202 or 

20 203 shall report annually on the progress of the eli21 gible State or eligible partnership toward meeting 

22 the purposes of this part and the goals, objectives, 

23 and measures described in subsections (a) and (b). 

24 ‘‘(2) REVOCATION.— 
55 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE STATES AND ELIGIBLE AP2 PLICANTS.—If the Secretary determines that an 

3 eligible State or eligible applicant is not making 

4 substantial progress in meeting the purposes, 

5 goals, objectives, and measures, as appropriate, 

6 by the end of the second year of a grant under 

7 this part, then the grant payment shall not be 

8 made for the third year of the grant. 

9 ‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIPS.—If the 

10 Secretary determines that an eligible partner11 ship is not making substantial progress in 

12 meeting the purposes, goals, objectives, and 

13 measures, as appropriate, by the end of the 

14 third year of a grant under this part, then the 

15 grant payments shall not be made for any suc16 ceeding year of the grant. 

17 ‘‘(d) EVALUATION AND DISSEMINATION.—The Sec18 retary shall evaluate the activities funded under this part 

19 and report annually the Secretary’s findings regarding the 

20 activities to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 

21 and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Edu22 cation and the Workforce of the House of Representatives. 

23 The Secretary shall broadly disseminate successful prac24 tices developed by eligible States and eligible partnerships 
56 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 under this part, and shall broadly disseminate information 

2 regarding such practices that were found to be ineffective. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 207. ACCOUNTABILITY FOR PROGRAMS THAT PRE4 PARE TEACHERS. 

5 ‘‘(a) STATE REPORT CARD ON THE QUALITY OF

6 TEACHER PREPARATION.—Each State that receives funds 

7 under this Act shall provide to the Secretary annually, in 

8 a uniform and comprehensible manner that conforms with 

9 the definitions and methods established by the Secretary, 

10 a State report card on the quality of teacher preparation 

11 in the State, both for traditional certification or licensure 

12 programs and for alternative certification or licensure pro13 grams, which shall include at least the following: 

14 ‘‘(1) A description of the teacher certification 

15 and licensure assessments, and any other certifi16 cation and licensure requirements, used by the 

17 State. 

18 ‘‘(2) The standards and criteria that prospec19 tive teachers must meet in order to attain initial 

20 teacher certification or licensure and to be certified 

21 or licensed to teach particular subjects or in par22 ticular grades within the State. 

23 ‘‘(3) A description of the extent to which the 

24 assessments and requirements described in para-
57 

•HR 444 RFS 

1 graph (1) are aligned with the State’s standards and 

2 assessments for students. 

3 ‘‘(4) The percentage of students who have com4 pleted at least 50 percent of the requirements for a 

5 teacher preparation program at an institution of 

6 higher education or alternative certification program 

7 and who have taken and passed each of the assess8 ments used by the State for teacher certification and 

9 licensure, and the passing score on each assessment 

10 that determines whether a candidate has passed that 

11 assessment. 

12 ‘‘(5) For students who have completed at least 

13 50 percent of the requirements for a teacher prepa14 ration program at an institution of higher education 

15 or alternative certification program, and who have 

16 taken and passed each of the assessments used by 

17 the State for teacher certification and licensure, 

18 each such institution’s and each such program’s av19 erage raw score, ranked by teacher preparation pro20 gram, which shall be made available widely and pub21 licly. 

22 ‘‘(6) A description of each State’s alternative 

23 routes to teacher certification, if any, and the num24 ber and percentage of teachers certified through 
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1 each alternative certification route who pass State 

2 teacher certification or licensure assessments. 

3 ‘‘(7) For each State, a description of proposed 

4 criteria for assessing the performance of teacher 

5 preparation programs in the State, including indica6 tors of teacher candidate skills and academic content 

7 knowledge and evidence of gains in student academic 

8 achievement. 

9 ‘‘(8) For each teacher preparation program in 

10 the State, the number of students in the program, 

11 the average number of hours of supervised practice 

12 teaching required for those in the program, and the 

13 number of full-time equivalent faculty and students 

14 in supervised practice teaching. 

15 ‘‘(b) REPORT OF THE SECRETARY ON THE QUALITY

16 OF TEACHER PREPARATION.— 

17 ‘‘(1) REPORT CARD.—The Secretary shall pro18 vide to Congress, and publish and make widely avail19 able, a report card on teacher qualifications and 

20 preparation in the United States, including all the 

21 information reported in paragraphs (1) through (8) 

22 of subsection (a). Such report shall identify States 

23 for which eligible States and eligible partnerships re24 ceived a grant under this part. Such report shall be 

25 so provided, published and made available annually. 
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1 ‘‘(2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary 

2 shall report to Congress— 

3 ‘‘(A) a comparison of States’ efforts to im4 prove teaching quality; and 

5 ‘‘(B) regarding the national mean and me6 dian scores on any standardized test that is 

7 used in more than 1 State for teacher certifi8 cation or licensure. 

9 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE.—In the case of programs 

10 with fewer than 10 students who have completed at 

11 least 50 percent of the requirements for a teacher 

12 preparation program taking any single initial teacher 

13 certification or licensure assessment during an aca14 demic year, the Secretary shall collect and publish 

15 information with respect to an average pass rate on 

16 State certification or licensure assessments taken 

17 over a 3-year period. 

18 ‘‘(c) COORDINATION.—The Secretary, to the extent 

19 practicable, shall coordinate the information collected and 

20 published under this part among States for individuals 

21 who took State teacher certification or licensure assess22 ments in a State other than the State in which the indi23 vidual received the individual’s most recent degree. 

24 ‘‘(d) INSTITUTION AND PROGRAM REPORT CARDS ON

25 QUALITY OF TEACHER PREPARATION.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) REPORT CARD.—Each institution of higher 

2 education or alternative certification program that 

3 conducts a teacher preparation program that enrolls 

4 students receiving Federal assistance under this Act 

5 shall report annually to the State and the general 

6 public, in a uniform and comprehensible manner 

7 that conforms with the definitions and methods es8 tablished by the Secretary, both for traditional cer9 tification or licensure programs and for alternative 

10 certification or licensure programs, the following in11 formation: 

12 ‘‘(A) PASS RATE.—(i) For the most recent 

13 year for which the information is available, the 

14 pass rate of each student who has completed at 

15 least 50 percent of the requirements for the 

16 teacher preparation program on the teacher cer17 tification or licensure assessments of the State 

18 in which the institution is located, but only for 

19 those students who took those assessments 

20 within 3 years of receiving a degree from the 

21 institution or completing the program. 

22 ‘‘(ii) A comparison of the institution or 

23 program’s pass rate for students who have com24 pleted at least 50 percent of the requirements 

25 for the teacher preparation program with the 
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1 average pass rate for institutions and programs 

2 in the State. 

3 ‘‘(iii) A comparison of the institution or 

4 program’s average raw score for students who 

5 have completed at least 50 percent of the re6 quirements for the teacher preparation program 

7 with the average raw scores for institutions and 

8 programs in the State. 

9 ‘‘(iv) In the case of programs with fewer 

10 than 10 students who have completed at least 

11 50 percent of the requirements for a teacher 

12 preparation program taking any single initial 

13 teacher certification or licensure assessment 

14 during an academic year, the institution shall 

15 collect and publish information with respect to 

16 an average pass rate on State certification or li17 censure assessments taken over a 3-year period. 

18 ‘‘(B) PROGRAM INFORMATION.—The num19 ber of students in the program, the average 

20 number of hours of supervised practice teaching 

21 required for those in the program, and the 

22 number of full-time equivalent faculty and stu23 dents in supervised practice teaching. 

24 ‘‘(C) STATEMENT.—In States that require 

25 approval or accreditation of teacher education 
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1 programs, a statement of whether the institu2 tion’s program is so approved or accredited, 

3 and by whom. 

4 ‘‘(D) DESIGNATION AS LOW-PER5 FORMING.—Whether the program has been des6 ignated as low-performing by the State under 

7 section 208(a). 

8 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—The information de9 scribed in paragraph (1) shall be reported through 

10 publications such as school catalogs and promotional 

11 materials sent to potential applicants, secondary 

12 school guidance counselors, and prospective employ13 ers of the institution’s program graduates, including 

14 materials sent by electronic means. 

15 ‘‘(3) FINES.—In addition to the actions author16 ized in section 487(c), the Secretary may impose a 

17 fine not to exceed $25,000 on an institution of high18 er education for failure to provide the information 

19 described in this subsection in a timely or accurate 

20 manner. 

21 ‘‘(e) DATA QUALITY.—Either— 

22 ‘‘(1) the Governor of the State; or 

23 ‘‘(2) in the case of a State for which the con24 stitution or law of such State designates another in25 dividual, entity, or agency in the State to be respon-
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1 sible for teacher certification and preparation activ2 ity, such individual, entity, or agency; 

3 shall attest annually, in writing, as to the reliability, valid4 ity, integrity, and accuracy of the data submitted pursuant 

5 to this section. 

6 ‘‘SEC. 208. STATE FUNCTIONS. 

7 ‘‘(a) STATE ASSESSMENT.—In order to receive funds 

8 under this Act, a State shall have in place a procedure 

9 to identify and assist, through the provision of technical 

10 assistance, low-performing programs of teacher prepara11 tion within institutions of higher education. Such State 

12 shall provide the Secretary an annual list of such low-per13 forming institutions that includes an identification of 

14 those institutions at risk of being placed on such list. Such 

15 levels of performance shall be determined solely by the 

16 State and may include criteria based upon information col17 lected pursuant to this part. Such assessment shall be de18 scribed in the report under section 207(a). 

19 ‘‘(b) TERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY.—Any institu20 tion of higher education that offers a program of teacher 

21 preparation in which the State has withdrawn the State’s 

22 approval or terminated the State’s financial support due 

23 to the low performance of the institution’s teacher prepa24 ration program based upon the State assessment described 

25 in subsection (a)— 
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1 ‘‘(1) shall be ineligible for any funding for pro2 fessional development activities awarded by the De3 partment of Education; and 

4 ‘‘(2) shall not be permitted to accept or enroll 

5 any student who receives aid under title IV of this 

6 Act in the institution’s teacher preparation program. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 209. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 

8 ‘‘(a) METHODS.—In complying with sections 207 and 

9 208, the Secretary shall ensure that States and institu10 tions of higher education use fair and equitable methods 

11 in reporting and that the reporting methods do not allow 

12 identification of individuals. 

13 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL RULE.—For each State in which there 

14 are no State certification or licensure assessments, or for 

15 States that do not set minimum performance levels on 

16 those assessments— 

17 ‘‘(1) the Secretary shall, to the extent prac18 ticable, collect data comparable to the data required 

19 under this part from States, local educational agen20 cies, institutions of higher education, or other enti21 ties that administer such assessments to teachers or 

22 prospective teachers; and 

23 ‘‘(2) notwithstanding any other provision of this 

24 part, the Secretary shall use such data to carry out 
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1 requirements of this part related to assessments or 

2 pass rates. 

3 ‘‘(c) LIMITATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL CONTROL PROHIBITED.—Noth5 ing in this part shall be construed to permit, allow, 

6 encourage, or authorize any Federal control over any 

7 aspect of any private, religious, or home school, 

8 whether or not a home school is treated as a private 

9 school or home school under State law. This section 

10 shall not be construed to prohibit private, religious, 

11 or home schools from participation in programs or 

12 services under this part. 

13 ‘‘(2) NO CHANGE IN STATE CONTROL ENCOUR14 AGED OR REQUIRED.—Nothing in this part shall be 

15 construed to encourage or require any change in a 

16 State’s treatment of any private, religious, or home 

17 school, whether or not a home school is treated as 

18 a private school or home school under State law. 

19 ‘‘(3) NATIONAL SYSTEM OF TEACHER CERTIFI20 CATION PROHIBITED.—Nothing in this part shall be 

21 construed to permit, allow, encourage, or authorize 

22 the Secretary to establish or support any national 

23 system of teacher certification. 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 210. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

3 this part $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 and such sums 

4 as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal 

5 years, of which— 

6 ‘‘(1) 45 percent shall be available for each fiscal 

7 year to award grants under section 202; 

8 ‘‘(2) 45 percent shall be available for each fiscal 

9 year to award grants under section 203; and 

10 ‘‘(3) 10 percent shall be available for each fiscal 

11 year to award grants under section 204.’’. 

12 SEC. 203. PREPARING TOMORROW’S TEACHERS TO USE 

13 TECHNOLOGY. 

14 (a) ELIGIBILITY.—Section 222(a)(3)(D) of the High15 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1042(a)(3)(D)) is 

16 amended by inserting ‘‘nonprofit telecommunications enti17 ty,’’ after ‘‘community-based organization,’’. 

18 (b) PERMISSIBLE USES OF FUNDS.—Section 

19 223(b)(1)(E) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

20 U.S.C. 1043(b)(1)(E)) is amended to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(E) To use technology to collect, manage, 

22 and analyze data to improve teaching, learning, 

23 and decisionmaking for the purpose of increas24 ing student academic achievement.’’. 

25 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

26 224 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
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1 1044) is amended by striking ‘‘each of fiscal years 2002 

2 and 2003.’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal year 2004 and each of 

3 the 4 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 

4 SEC. 204. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE. 

5 Title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

6 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

7 the following: 

8 ‘‘PART C—CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE 

9 ‘‘SEC. 231. PURPOSES; DEFINITIONS. 

10 ‘‘(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this part are— 

11 ‘‘(1) to help recruit and prepare teachers, in12 cluding minority teachers, to meet the national de13 mand for a highly qualified teacher in every class14 room; and 

15 ‘‘(2) to increase opportunities for Americans of 

16 all educational, ethnic, class, and geographic back17 grounds to become highly qualified teachers. 

18 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this part: 

19 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.—The term ‘eligi20 ble institution’ means— 

21 ‘‘(A) an institution of higher education 

22 that has a teacher preparation program that 

23 meets the requirements of section 203(b)(2) 

24 and that is— 
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1 ‘‘(i) a part B institution (as defined in 

2 section 322); 

3 ‘‘(ii) a Hispanic-serving institution (as 

4 defined in section 502); 

5 ‘‘(iii) a Tribal College or University 

6 (as defined in section 316); 

7 ‘‘(iv) an Alaska Native-serving institu8 tion (as defined in section 317(b)); or 

9 ‘‘(v) a Native Hawaiian-serving insti10 tution (as defined in section 317(b)); 

11 ‘‘(B) a consortium of institutions described 

12 in subparagraph (A); or 

13 ‘‘(C) an institution described in subpara14 graph (A), or a consortium described in sub15 paragraph (B), in partnership with any other 

16 institution of higher education, but only if the 

17 center of excellence established under section 

18 232 is located at an institution described in 

19 subparagraph (A). 

20 ‘‘(2) HIGHLY QUALIFIED.—The term ‘highly 

21 qualified’ has the meaning given such term in sec22 tion 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu23 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

24 ‘‘(3) SCIENTIFICALLY BASED READING RE25 SEARCH.—The term ‘scientifically based reading re-
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1 search’ has the meaning given such term in section 

2 1208 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

3 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6368). 

4 ‘‘(4) SCIENTIFICALLY BASED RESEARCH.—The 

5 term ‘scientifically based research’ has the meaning 

6 given such term in section 9101 of the Elementary 

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

8 7801). 

9 ‘‘SEC. 232. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE. 

10 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From the amounts 

11 appropriated to carry out this part, the Secretary is au12 thorized to award competitive grants to eligible institu13 tions to establish centers of excellence. 

14 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—Grants provided by the Sec15 retary under this part shall be used to ensure that current 

16 and future teachers are highly qualified, by carrying out 

17 one or more of the following activities: 

18 ‘‘(1) Implementing reforms within teacher prep19 aration programs to ensure that such programs are 

20 preparing teachers who are highly qualified, are able 

21 to understand scientifically based research, and are 

22 able to use advanced technology effectively in the 

23 classroom, including use for instructional techniques 

24 to improve student academic achievement, by— 

25 ‘‘(A) retraining faculty; and 
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1 ‘‘(B) designing (or redesigning) teacher 

2 preparation programs that— 

3 ‘‘(i) prepare teachers to close student 

4 achievement gaps, are based on rigorous 

5 academic content, scientifically based re6 search (including scientifically based read7 ing research), and challenging State stu8 dent academic content standards; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) promote strong teaching skills. 

10 ‘‘(2) Providing sustained and high-quality 

11 preservice clinical experience, including the men12 toring of prospective teachers by exemplary teachers, 

13 substantially increasing interaction between faculty 

14 at institutions of higher education and new and ex15 perienced teachers, principals, and other administra16 tors at elementary schools or secondary schools, and 

17 providing support, including preparation time, for 

18 such interaction. 

19 ‘‘(3) Developing and implementing initiatives to 

20 promote retention of highly qualified teachers and 

21 principals, including minority teachers and prin22 cipals, including programs that provide— 

23 ‘‘(A) teacher or principal mentoring from 

24 exemplary teachers or principals; or 
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1 ‘‘(B) induction and support for teachers 

2 and principals during their first 3 years of em3 ployment as teachers or principals, respectively. 

4 ‘‘(4) Awarding scholarships based on financial 

5 need to help students pay the costs of tuition, room, 

6 board, and other expenses of completing a teacher 

7 preparation program. 

8 ‘‘(5) Disseminating information on effective 

9 practices for teacher preparation and successful 

10 teacher certification and licensure assessment prepa11 ration strategies. 

12 ‘‘(6) Activities authorized under sections 202, 

13 203, and 204. 

14 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—Any eligible institution desiring 

15 a grant under this section shall submit an application to 

16 the Secretary at such a time, in such a manner, and ac17 companied by such information the Secretary may require. 

18 ‘‘(d) MINIMUM GRANT AMOUNT.—The minimum 

19 amount of each grant under this part shall be $500,000. 

20 ‘‘(e) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 

21 An eligible institution that receives a grant under this part 

22 may not use more than 2 percent of the grant funds for 

23 purposes of administering the grant. 
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1 ‘‘(f) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

2 such regulations as may be necessary to carry out this 

3 part. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 233. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

5 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

6 this part $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 and such sums 

7 as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal 

8 years.’’. 

9 SEC. 205. TRANSITION. 

10 The Secretary of Education shall take such actions 

11 as the Secretary determines to be appropriate to provide 

12 for the orderly implementation of this title. 

13 TITLE III—PRIORITIES FOR 

14 GRADUATE STUDIES ACT OF 2004 

15 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES. 

16 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This title may be cited as the 

17 ‘‘Priorities for Graduate Studies Act of 2004’’. 

18 (b) REFERENCES.—Except as otherwise expressly 

19 provided, whenever in this title an amendment or repeal 

20 is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, 

21 a section or other provision, the reference shall be consid22 ered to be made to a section or other provision of the 

23 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.). 
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1 SEC. 302. JAVITS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM. 

2 (a) INTERRUPTIONS OF STUDY.—Section 701(c) (20 

3 U.S.C. 1134(c)) is amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing new sentence: ‘‘In the case of other exceptional cir5 cumstances, such as active duty military service or per6 sonal or family member illness, the institution of higher 

7 education may also permit the fellowship recipient to in8 terrupt periods of study for the duration of the tour of 

9 duty (in the case of military service) or not more than 

10 12 months (in any other case), but without payment of 

11 the stipend.’’. 

12 (b) ALLOCATION OF FELLOWSHIPS.—Section 

13 702(a)(1) (20 U.S.C. 1134a(a)(1)) is amended— 

14 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘from di15 verse geographic regions’’ after ‘‘higher education’’; 

16 and 

17 (2) by adding at the end the following new sen18 tence: ‘‘The Secretary shall also assure that at least 

19 one representative appointed to the Board represents 

20 an institution that is eligible for a grant under title 

21 III or V of this Act.’’. 

22 (c) STIPENDS.—Section 703 (20 U.S.C. 1134b(a)) is 

23 amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (a)— 

25 (A) by striking ‘‘1999–2000’’ and inserting 

26 ‘‘2004–2005’’; 
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1 (B) by striking ‘‘shall be set’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘may be set’’; and 

3 (C) by striking ‘‘Foundation graduate fel4 lowships’’ and inserting ‘‘Foundation Graduate 

5 Research Fellowship Program’’; and 

6 (2) in subsection (b), by amending paragraph 

7 (1)(A) to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—(A) The Secretary shall (in 

9 addition to stipends paid to individuals under this 

10 subpart) pay to the institution of higher education, 

11 for each individual awarded a fellowship under this 

12 subpart at such institution, an institutional allow13 ance. Except as provided in subparagraph (B), such 

14 allowance shall be, for 2004–2005 and succeeding 

15 academic years, the same amount as the institu16 tional payment made for 2003–2004 adjusted for 

17 2004–2005 and annually thereafter in accordance 

18 with inflation as determined by the Department of 

19 Labor’s Consumer Price Index for the previous cal20 endar year.’’. 

21 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

22 705 (20 U.S.C. 1134d) is amended by striking ‘‘fiscal year 

23 1999 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 

24 4 succeeding fiscal years’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal year 2004 
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1 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 5 suc2 ceeding fiscal years’’. 

3 SEC. 303. GRADUATE ASSISTANCE IN AREAS OF NATIONAL 

4 NEED. 

5 (a) DESIGNATION OF AREAS OF NATIONAL NEED; 

6 PRIORITY.—Section 712 (20 U.S.C. 1135a) is amended— 

7 (1) in the last sentence of subsection (b)— 

8 (A) by striking ‘‘and an assessment’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘an assessment’’; and 

10 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

11 end the following: ‘‘, and the priority described 

12 in subsection (c) of this section’’; and 

13 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub14 section: 

15 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall establish a pri16 ority for grants in order to prepare individuals for the pro17 fessoriate who will train highly-qualified elementary and 

18 secondary school teachers of math, science, and special 

19 education, and teachers who provide instruction for lim20 ited English proficient individuals. Such grants shall offer 

21 program assistance and graduate fellowships for— 

22 ‘‘(1) post-baccalaureate study related to teacher 

23 preparation and pedagogy in math and science for 

24 students who have completed a master’s degree or 
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1 are pursuing a doctorate of philosophy in math and 

2 science; 

3 ‘‘(2) post-baccalaureate study related to teacher 

4 preparation and pedagogy in special education and 

5 English language acquisition and academic pro6 ficiency for limited English proficient individuals; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(3) support of dissertation research in the 

9 fields of math, science, special education, or second 

10 language pedagogy and second language acquisi11 tion.’’. 

12 (b) COLLABORATION REQUIRED FOR CERTAIN AP13 PLICATIONS.—Section 713(b) (20 U.S.C. 1135b) is 

14 amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

16 (9); 

17 (2) by redesignating paragraph (10) as para18 graph (11); and 

19 (3) by inserting after paragraph (9) the fol20 lowing new paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(10) in the case of an application for a grant 

22 by a department, program, or unit in education or 

23 teacher preparation, contain assurances that such 

24 department, program, or unit collaborates with de25 partments, programs, or units in all content areas to 
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1 assure a successful combination of training in both 

2 teaching and such content; and’’. 

3 (c) STIPENDS.—Section 714(b) (20 U.S.C. 1135c(b)) 

4 is amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘1999–2000’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘2004–2005’’; 

7 (2) by striking ‘‘shall be set’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘may be set’’; and 

9 (3) by striking ‘‘Foundation graduate fellow10 ships’’ and inserting ‘‘Foundation Graduate Re11 search Fellowship Program’’. 

12 (d) ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE.—Section 715(a)(1) 

13 (20 U.S.C. 1135d(a)(1)) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘1999–2000’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘2004–2005’’; and 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘1998–1999’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘2003–2004’’. 

18 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

19 716 (20 U.S.C. 1135e) is amended by striking ‘‘fiscal year 

20 1999 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 

21 4 succeeding fiscal years’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal year 2004 

22 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 5 suc23 ceeding fiscal years’’. 

24 (f) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 714(c) (20 

25 U.S.C. 1135c(c)) is amended— 
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1 (1) by striking ‘‘section 716(a)’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘section 715(a)’’; and 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘section 714(b)(2)’’ and insert4 ing ‘‘section 713(b)(2)’’. 

5 SEC. 304. THURGOOD MARSHALL LEGAL EDUCATIONAL OP6 PORTUNITY PROGRAM. 

7 (a) CONTRACT AND GRANT PURPOSES.—Section 

8 721(c) (20 U.S.C. 1136(c)) is amended— 

9 (1) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol10 lows: 

11 ‘‘(2) to prepare such students for study at ac12 credited law schools and assist them with the devel13 opment of analytical skills and study methods to en14 hance their success and promote completion of law 

15 school;’’; 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

17 (4); 

18 (3) by striking the period at the end of para19 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

20 (4) by adding at the end the following new 

21 paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(6) to award Thurgood Marshall Fellowships 

23 to eligible law school students— 
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1 ‘‘(A) who participated in summer institutes 

2 authorized by subsection (d) and who are en3 rolled in an accredited law school; or 

4 ‘‘(B) who are eligible law school students 

5 who have successfully completed a comparable 

6 summer institute program certified by the 

7 Council on Legal Educational Opportunity.’’. 

8 (b) SERVICES PROVIDED.—Section 721(d)(1)(D) (20 

9 U.S.C. 1136(d)(1)(D)) is amended by inserting ‘‘in ana10 lytical skills and study methods’’ after ‘‘courses’’. 

11 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

12 721(h) (20 U.S.C. 1136(h)) is amended by striking ‘‘1999 

13 and each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘2004 and each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years’’. 

15 (d) GENERAL PROVISIONS.—Subsection (e) of section 

16 731 (20 U.S.C. 1137(e)) is repealed. 

17 SEC. 305. FUND FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF POSTSEC18 ONDARY EDUCATION. 

19 (a) CONTRACT AND GRANT PURPOSES.—Section 

20 741(a) (20 U.S.C. 1138(a)) is amended— 

21 (1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol22 lows: 

23 ‘‘(1) the encouragement of the reform and im24 provement of, and innovation in, postsecondary edu25 cation and the provision of educational opportunity 
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1 for all, especially for the non-traditional student pop2 ulations;’’; 

3 (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting before the 

4 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘for postsec5 ondary students, especially those that provide aca6 demic credit for programs’’; 

7 (3) by amending paragraph (3) to read as fol8 lows: 

9 ‘‘(3) the establishment of institutions and pro10 grams based on the technology of communications, 

11 including delivery by distance education;’’; and 

12 (4) by amending paragraph (6) to read as fol13 lows: 

14 ‘‘(6) the introduction of institutional reforms 

15 designed to expand individual opportunities for en16 tering and reentering postsecondary institutions and 

17 pursuing programs of postsecondary study tailored 

18 to individual needs;’’. 

19 (b) AREAS OF NATIONAL NEED.—Section 744(c) (20 

20 U.S.C. 1138c(c)) is amended by striking paragraph (4) 

21 and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘(4) International cooperation, partnerships, or 

23 student exchange among postsecondary educational 

24 institutions in the United States and abroad. 
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1 ‘‘(5) Establishment of academic programs in2 cluding graduate and undergraduate courses, semi3 nars and lectures, support of research, and develop4 ment of teaching materials for the purpose of sup5 porting faculty and academic programs that teach 

6 traditional American history (including significant 

7 constitutional, political, intellectual, economic, diplo8 matic, and foreign policy trends, issues, and docu9 ments; the history, nature, and development of 

10 democratic institutions of which American democ11 racy is a part; and significant events and individuals 

12 in the history of the United States). 

13 ‘‘(6) Support for planning, applied research, 

14 training, resource exchanges or technology transfers, 

15 the delivery of services, or other activities the pur16 pose of which is to design and implement programs 

17 to enable institutions of higher education to work 

18 with private and civic organizations to assist commu19 nities to meet and address their pressing and severe 

20 problems, including economic development, commu21 nity infrastructure and housing, crime prevention, 

22 education, healthcare, self sufficiency, and workforce 

23 preparation.’’. 

24 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

25 745 (20 U.S.C. 1138d) is amended by striking 
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1 ‘‘$30,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and such sums as may 

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

3 inserting ‘‘$40,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 and such 

4 sums as may be necessary for each of the 5 succeeding 

5 fiscal years’’ . 

6 SEC. 306. URBAN COMMUNITY SERVICE. 

7 Part C of title VII (20 U.S.C. 1139 et seq.) is re8 pealed. 

9 SEC. 307. DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS TO ENSURE STU10 DENTS WITH DISABILITIES RECEIVE A QUAL11 ITY HIGHER EDUCATION. 

12 (a) SERVING ALL STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES.— 

13 Section 762(a) (20 U.S.C. 1140a(a)) is amended by strik14 ing ‘‘students with learning disabilities’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘students with disabilities’’. 

16 (b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.— 

17 (1) AMENDMENT.—Section 762(b)(2) is amend18 ed— 

19 (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘in 

20 order to improve retention and completion’’ 

21 after ‘‘disabilities’’; 

22 (B) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) 

23 and (C) as subparagraphs (C) and (E), respec24 tively; 
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•HR 444 RFS 

1 (C) by inserting after subparagraph (A) 

2 the following new subparagraph: 

3 ‘‘(B) EFFECTIVE TRANSITION PRAC4 TICES.—The development of innovative, effec5 tive, and efficient teaching methods and strate6 gies to ensure the smooth transition of students 

7 with disabilities from high school to postsec8 ondary education.’’; and 

9 (D) by inserting after subparagraph (C) 

10 (as redesignated by subparagraph (B) of this 

11 paragraph) the following new subparagraph: 

12 ‘‘(D) DISTANCE LEARNING.—The develop13 ment of innovative, effective, and efficient 

14 teaching methods and strategies to provide fac15 ulty and administrators with the ability to pro16 vide accessible distance education programs or 

17 classes that would enhance access of students 

18 with disabilities to higher education, including 

19 the use of electronic communication for instruc20 tion and advisement.’’. 

21 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

22 762(b)(3) is amended by striking ‘‘subparagraphs 

23 (A) through (C)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraphs (A) 

24 through (E)’’. 
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•HR 444 RFS 

1 (c) APPLICATIONS.—Section 763 (20 U.S.C. 1140b) 

2 is amended— 

3 (1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol4 lows: 

5 ‘‘(1) a description of how such institution plans 

6 to address the activities allowed under this part;’’; 

7 (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

8 (2); 

9 (3) by striking the period at the end of para10 graph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

11 (4) by adding at the end the following new 

12 paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(4) a description of the extent to which an in14 stitution will work to replicate the best practices of 

15 institutions of higher education with demonstrated 

16 success in serving students with disabilities.’’. 

17 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

18 765 (20 U.S.C. 1140d) is amended by striking ‘‘fiscal year 

19 1999 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 

20 4 succeeding fiscal years’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal year 2004 

21 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 5 suc22 ceeding fiscal years’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives June 3, 2004. 

Attest: JEFF TRANDAHL, 

Clerk.