II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 882 

To amend part A of title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

Act of 1965. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 26, 2015 

Mr. CASEY (for himself and Mr. REED) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend part A of title II of the Elementary and Secondary 

Education Act of 1965. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Better Educator Sup5 port and Training Act’’ or the ‘‘BEST Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEVELOPING AND SUPPORTING EFFECTIVE EDU7 CATORS FOR DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS. 

8 Part A of title II of the Elementary and Secondary 

9 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.) is amend10 ed to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘TITLE II—DEVELOPING AND 

2 SUPPORTING EFFECTIVE 

3 EDUCATORS FOR DISADVAN4 TAGED STUDENTS 

5 ‘‘PART A—EDUCATOR EQUITY, PROFESSIONAL 

6 DEVELOPMENT, AND RECRUITMENT FUND 

7 ‘‘SEC. 2101. PURPOSES. 

8 ‘‘The purposes of this title are to elevate the teaching 

9 profession, support educators, improve student achieve10 ment, and ensure equity in the schools and early learning 

11 programs of the United States by— 

12 ‘‘(1) increasing the capacity of local educational 

13 agencies, schools, teachers, principals, and other 

14 educators to provide a well-rounded, engaging, and 

15 rigorous education for all students; 

16 ‘‘(2) improving the quality and effectiveness of 

17 teachers, principals, and other educators; 

18 ‘‘(3) increasing the number of teachers, prin19 cipals, and other educators who are effective in im20 proving academic achievement; 

21 ‘‘(4) ensuring that all students, including stu22 dents who are children with disabilities, English lan23 guage learners, and low-income and minority stu24 dents, have equitable access to effective teachers, 

25 principals, and other educators; 


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1 ‘‘(5) increasing the capacity of States and local 

2 educational agencies to develop and sustain a coher3 ent, comprehensive, and aligned professional con4 tinuum for teachers, principals, and other educators 

5 that leads to accomplished practice, leadership op6 portunities, and increased student learning; and 

7 ‘‘(6) enhancing the knowledge of elementary 

8 school teachers, principals, and other educators in— 

9 ‘‘(A) early childhood development and 

10 learning; 

11 ‘‘(B) building ongoing relationships with 

12 early childhood education programs; and 

13 ‘‘(C) creating a continuum of develop14 mentally appropriate and effective learning. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 2102. DEFINITIONS. 

16 ‘‘In this part: 

17 ‘‘(1) CLASSROOM PRACTICE.—The term ‘class18 room practice’ means evidence of practice gathered 

19 from a classroom through multiple measures, includ20 ing the demonstration of effective teaching skills, in21 cluding overall student performance and perform22 ance by the groups described in section 

23 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II), and some or all of the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(A) Classroom observations based on rig2 orous teacher performance standards or rubrics. 

3 ‘‘(B) Student work products and perform4 ance. 

5 ‘‘(C) Student data, including attendance 

6 and rates of discipline. 

7 ‘‘(D) Teacher portfolios. 

8 ‘‘(E) Lesson plans. 

9 ‘‘(F) Information on the extent to which 

10 the teacher collaborates and develops knowledge 

11 and skills with other teachers and instructional 

12 staff. 

13 ‘‘(G) Information on the teacher’s use of 

14 evidence-based practices in the classroom. 

15 ‘‘(H) Evidence of the teacher’s collection, 

16 analysis, and use of student data to inform in17 structional and management decisions. 

18 ‘‘(I) Indicators of professional growth 

19 across a career continuum. 

20 ‘‘(J) Parent, student, and peer feedback. 

21 ‘‘(K) Peer and self assessment and reflec22 tion. 

23 ‘‘(2) EDUCATOR.—The term ‘educator’ 

24 means— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a teacher (including a special edu2 cation teacher), principal, or specialized instruc3 tional support personnel of a preschool, early 

4 childhood education program, kindergarten, ele5 mentary school, or secondary school; or 

6 ‘‘(B) another staff member of a preschool, 

7 early childhood education program, kinder8 garten, elementary school, or secondary school 

9 who provides or directly supports instruction, 

10 such as a school librarian, counselor, or highly 

11 qualified paraprofessional or other early child12 hood instructional staff members. 

13 ‘‘(3) EFFECTIVE EDUCATOR.—The term ‘effec14 tive educator’ means an educator who is rated as ef15 fective or higher, as determined by a State or locally 

16 approved professional growth and improvement sys17 tem. 

18 ‘‘(4) ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNER.—The term 

19 ‘English language learner’ means an individual who 

20 is limited English proficient, as defined in section 

21 9101. 

22 ‘‘(5) INDUCTION PROGRAM.—The term ‘induc23 tion program’ means a formalized program for new 

24 teachers, principals, and other educators during not 

25 less than the first 2 years of teaching or leading a 


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1 school that is designed to provide support for, im2 prove the professional performance and effectiveness 

3 of, and advance the retention of, beginning teachers, 

4 principals, or other educators. Such program shall 

5 promote effective teaching and leadership skills and 

6 shall include the following components: 

7 ‘‘(A) High-quality mentoring, which may 

8 include— 

9 ‘‘(i) the ability to continue teaching 

10 full-time; 

11 ‘‘(ii) the ability to return to the class12 room full-time after a period of 

13 mentorship; and 

14 ‘‘(iii) additional leadership opportuni15 ties for experienced mentors. 

16 ‘‘(B)(i) Frequent, structured time for col17 laboration and classroom observation opportuni18 ties with teachers in the same department, 

19 field, grade, or subject area including mentor 

20 teachers; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) time for information sharing among 

22 teachers, principals, administrators, other ap23 propriate educators, and participating faculty of 

24 an institution of higher education that meets 

25 the requirements of subparagraphs (A) and (B) 


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1 of section 200(17) of the Higher Education Act 

2 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021(17)). 

3 ‘‘(C) The application of evidence-based re4 search and practice on instructional practices 

5 and school climate. 

6 ‘‘(D) Opportunities for new teachers and 

7 principals to draw directly on the expertise of 

8 mentors, faculty, local educational agency per9 sonnel, and researchers to support the integra10 tion of evidence-based research and practice, 

11 which may include release time for beginning 

12 teachers to participate in professional develop13 ment opportunities with their mentors, other 

14 experienced teachers, and peers. 

15 ‘‘(E) The development, through evidence16 based practices, of skills and knowledge in 

17 areas needed for new educators, including con18 tent knowledge and pedagogy, classroom man19 agement, instructional and behavioral interven20 tions, formative assessment of student learning, 

21 and the analysis and use of student assessment 

22 data to improve instruction. 

23 ‘‘(F) Faculty who— 

24 ‘‘(i) model the integration of research 

25 and practice in the classroom; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) assist new teachers, principals, 

2 and other educators with the effective use 

3 and integration of technology in instruc4 tion; and 

5 ‘‘(iii) demonstrate the content knowl6 edge and pedagogical skills necessary to be 

7 effective in advancing student learning. 

8 ‘‘(G) Interdisciplinary collaboration among 

9 exemplary teachers, principals, other educators, 

10 researchers, and other staff who prepare new 

11 teachers, principals, and other educators with 

12 respect to the learning process and the assess13 ment of learning. 

14 ‘‘(H) Assistance with the understanding of 

15 data, particularly student achievement data, 

16 and the application of such data in classroom 

17 instruction. 

18 ‘‘(I) The development of professional 

19 growth and improvement systems for new 

20 teachers, using valid and reliable measures of 

21 teaching and leadership skills. 

22 ‘‘(J) Improving the school culture and cli23 mate related to school leadership and the role 

24 of the principal, including to— 


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1 ‘‘(i) nurture teacher and staff develop2 ment to strengthen classroom practice; 

3 ‘‘(ii) build and sustain a culture of 

4 learning among adults and children; 

5 ‘‘(iii) strengthen communications and 

6 relationships with parents, caregivers, and 

7 community stakeholders; 

8 ‘‘(iv) facilitate the sharing of knowl9 edge, insight, and best practices in the 

10 community served by the school, preschool 

11 program, or early childhood education pro12 gram; and 

13 ‘‘(v) build relationships and commu14 nicate effectively with State and local edu15 cational agency officials. 

16 ‘‘(6) MENTOR TEACHER.—The term ‘mentor 

17 teacher’ means a teacher who— 

18 ‘‘(A) is a profession ready teacher; 

19 ‘‘(B) has a minimum of 3 years of teach20 ing experience; 

21 ‘‘(C) is an effective educator; and 

22 ‘‘(D) is identified by other teachers, prin23 cipals, or other educators, and subject to a 

24 quality selection process, on the basis of— 

25 ‘‘(i) exemplary classroom practice; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) increased student learning; and 

2 ‘‘(iii) excellent communication skills 

3 and demonstrated ability to work with 

4 adult learners. 

5 ‘‘(7) PROFESSIONAL GROWTH AND IMPROVE6 MENT SYSTEM.—The term ‘professional growth and 

7 improvement system’ means a system that— 

8 ‘‘(A) provides clear, timely, and useful 

9 feedback that identifies needs and guides pro10 fessional development for educators; and 

11 ‘‘(B) includes formative and summative 

12 feedback on educator performance based on evi13 dence of student learning, and either evidence 

14 of classroom practice or leadership skills as ap15 plicable. 

16 ‘‘(8) PROFESSION READY.—The term ‘profes17 sion ready’— 

18 ‘‘(A) when used with respect to a principal, 

19 means a principal who— 

20 ‘‘(i) has an advanced degree, or other 

21 appropriate credential; 

22 ‘‘(ii) has completed a principal prepa23 ration process and is fully certified and li24 censed by the State in which the principal 

25 is employed; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) has demonstrated instructional 

2 leadership, including the ability to collect, 

3 analyze, and utilize data on evidence of 

4 student learning and evidence of classroom 

5 practice; and 

6 ‘‘(iv) has demonstrated proficiency in 

7 professionally recognized leadership stand8 ards, such as through— 

9 ‘‘(I) a performance assessment; 

10 ‘‘(II) completion of a residency 

11 program; or 

12 ‘‘(III) other measures of leader13 ship, as determined by the State; 

14 ‘‘(B) when used with respect to a teacher, 

15 means a teacher who— 

16 ‘‘(i) has completed a teacher prepara17 tion program and is fully certified and li18 censed to teach by the State in which the 

19 teacher teaches; 

20 ‘‘(ii) has demonstrated content knowl21 edge in the subject or subjects the teacher 

22 teaches; and 

23 ‘‘(iii) has demonstrated teaching 

24 skills, such as through— 


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1 ‘‘(I) a teacher performance as2 sessment; or 

3 ‘‘(II) other measures of teaching 

4 skills, as determined by the State; and 

5 ‘‘(C) when used with respect to any other 

6 educator not described in subparagraph (A) or 

7 (B), means an educator who has completed an 

8 appropriate preparation program and is fully 

9 certified or licensed by the State in which the 

10 educator is employed. 

11 ‘‘(9) RESIDENCY PROGRAM.—The term ‘resi12 dency program’ means a school-based educator prep13 aration program in which a prospective educator 

14 who is not the educator of record— 

15 ‘‘(A) for 1 academic year, teaches or, in 

16 the case of a principal or other educator, works, 

17 alongside a mentor teacher, principal, or other 

18 educator; 

19 ‘‘(B) receives concurrent instruction during 

20 the year described in subparagraph (A) from an 

21 institution of higher education that meets the 

22 requirements of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of 

23 section 200(17) of the Higher Education Act of 

24 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021(17)), which instruction 


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1 may be taught by local educational agency per2 sonnel or residency program faculty, in— 

3 ‘‘(i) the teaching of the content area 

4 in which the prospective educator will be5 come certified or licensed; 

6 ‘‘(ii) pedagogical practices, classroom 

7 management, and school climate; 

8 ‘‘(iii) for prospective principals, lead9 ership, management, organizational, and 

10 instructional skills necessary to serve as a 

11 principal; and 

12 ‘‘(iv) effective teaching or leadership 

13 skills; and 

14 ‘‘(C) prior to completion of the program, 

15 earns a master’s degree or other appropriate 

16 advanced credential and attains full State cer17 tification or licensure as a teacher or educator. 

18 ‘‘(10) STUDENT LEARNING.—The term ‘student 

19 learning’ means multiple measures of student learn20 ing that shall include the following: 

21 ‘‘(A) Valid and reliable student assessment 

22 data, which may include data— 

23 ‘‘(i) based on— 

24 ‘‘(I) student learning gains on 

25 State student academic assessments 


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1 under section 1111(b)(3) and, as ap2 plicable, the State early learning and 

3 development standards for at least the 

4 year prior to kindergarten entry; and 

5 ‘‘(II) student academic achieve6 ment assessments used at the na7 tional, State, or local educational 

8 agency levels, where available and ap9 propriate for the curriculum and stu10 dents taught; 

11 ‘‘(ii) from classroom-based formative 

12 assessments; 

13 ‘‘(iii) from classroom-based summative 

14 assessments; or 

15 ‘‘(iv) from objective performance16 based assessments. 

17 ‘‘(B) Not less than 1 of the following addi18 tional measures: 

19 ‘‘(i) Student work, including measures 

20 of performance criteria and evidence of 

21 student growth. 

22 ‘‘(ii) Teacher-generated information 

23 about student goals and growth. 

24 ‘‘(iii) Parental feedback about student 

25 goals and growth. 


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1 ‘‘(iv) Student feedback about learning 

2 and teaching supports. 

3 ‘‘(v) Student data including attend4 ance and rates of discipline. 

5 ‘‘(vi) Other appropriate measures, as 

6 determined by the State. 

7 ‘‘(11) TEACHER PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT.— 

8 The term ‘teacher performance assessment’ means a 

9 pre-service assessment used to measure whether a 

10 teacher is profession ready that is approved by the 

11 State and is— 

12 ‘‘(A) based on professional teaching stand13 ards; 

14 ‘‘(B) used to measure the effectiveness of 

15 a teacher’s— 

16 ‘‘(i) curriculum planning; 

17 ‘‘(ii) instruction of students, including 

18 appropriate plans and modifications for 

19 students who are limited English proficient 

20 and students who are children with disabil21 ities; 

22 ‘‘(iii) assessment of students, includ23 ing analysis of evidence of student learn24 ing; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) ability to advance student learn2 ing; 

3 ‘‘(v) reframing of teaching based on 

4 assessment of student learning, when ap5 propriate; 

6 ‘‘(vi) sensitivity to the culture and 

7 community in which the teacher teaches; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(vii) ability to contribute to a posi10 tive school climate; 

11 ‘‘(C) validated based on professional as12 sessment standards; 

13 ‘‘(D) reliably scored by trained evaluators, 

14 who are or who have been educators, with ap15 propriate oversight of the process to ensure con16 sistency; and 

17 ‘‘(E) used to support continuous improve18 ment of educator practice. 

19 ‘‘(12) TEACHING SKILLS.—The term ‘teaching 

20 skills’ means skills that enable a teacher to— 

21 ‘‘(A) increase student learning and the 

22 ability to apply knowledge; 

23 ‘‘(B) effectively convey and explain aca24 demic subject matter; 


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1 ‘‘(C) actively engage students and person2 alize learning; 

3 ‘‘(D) effectively teach higher-order analyt4 ical, evaluation, problem-solving, and commu5 nication skills; 

6 ‘‘(E) develop and effectively apply new 

7 knowledge, skills, and practices; 

8 ‘‘(F) employ strategies grounded in the 

9 disciplines of teaching and learning that— 

10 ‘‘(i) are based on empirically based 

11 practice and evidence-based research, 

12 where applicable, related to teaching and 

13 learning; 

14 ‘‘(ii) are specific to academic subject 

15 matter; 

16 ‘‘(iii) focus on the identification of 

17 students’ specific learning needs, including 

18 students who are children with disabilities, 

19 English language learners, students who 

20 are gifted and talented, and students with 

21 low literacy levels, and the tailoring of aca22 demic instruction to such needs; and 

23 ‘‘(iv) enable effective inclusion of stu24 dents who have disabilities and English 


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1 language learners, including the utilization 

2 of— 

3 ‘‘(I) response to intervention; 

4 ‘‘(II) positive behavioral sup5 ports; 

6 ‘‘(III) differentiated instruction; 

7 ‘‘(IV) universal design of learn8 ing; 

9 ‘‘(V) appropriate accommoda10 tions for instruction and assessments; 

11 ‘‘(VI) collaboration skills; 

12 ‘‘(VII) skill in effectively partici13 pating in individualized education pro14 gram meetings required under section 

15 614(d) of the Individuals with Disabil16 ities Education Act; and 

17 ‘‘(VIII) evidence-based strategies 

18 to meet the linguistic and academic 

19 needs of English language learners; 

20 ‘‘(G) conduct an ongoing assessment of 

21 student learning, which may include the use of 

22 formative assessments, performance-based as23 sessments, project-based assessments, or port24 folio assessments, that measures higher-order 

25 thinking skills; 


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1 ‘‘(H) effectively manage a classroom, in2 cluding the ability to implement positive behav3 ioral support strategies; 

4 ‘‘(I) communicate and work with parents, 

5 and involve parents in their children’s edu6 cation; and 

7 ‘‘(J) use age-appropriate and develop8 mentally appropriate strategies and practices. 

9 ‘‘(13) CHILD.—The term ‘child’ means any in10 dividual within the age limits for which the State 

11 provides free public education or a public early child12 hood education program. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 2103. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be ap15 propriated to carry out this part— 

16 ‘‘(1) $3,300,000,000 for fiscal year 2016; 

17 ‘‘(2) $3,600,000,000 for fiscal year 2017; 

18 ‘‘(3) $3,900,000,000 for fiscal year 2018; 

19 ‘‘(4) $4,200,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

20 ‘‘(5) $4,500,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; and 

21 ‘‘(6) $4,800,000,000 for fiscal year 2021. 

22 ‘‘(b) USE OF APPROPRIATED FUNDS.—From the 

23 amount appropriated to carry out this part for a fiscal 

24 year, the Secretary shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) reserve for national activities under section 

2 2151— 

3 ‘‘(A) for any year in which the amount ap4 propriated is $3,300,000,000 or less, not more 

5 than 2 percent of the appropriated amount; or 

6 ‘‘(B) for any year in which the amount ap7 propriated is greater than $3,300,000,000, not 

8 more than 2.3 percent of the appropriated 

9 amount; and 

10 ‘‘(2) use the amount remaining after the res11 ervation described in paragraph (1) to award allot12 ments to States under subpart 1. 

13 ‘‘Subpart 1—Grants to States 

14 ‘‘SEC. 2111. ALLOTMENTS TO STATES. 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make grants 

16 to States with applications approved under section 2112 

17 to pay for the Federal share of the cost of carrying out 

18 the activities specified in section 2113. Each grant shall 

19 consist of the allotment determined for a State under sub20 section (b). 

21 ‘‘(b) DETERMINATION OF ALLOTMENTS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) RESERVATION OF FUNDS.—From the total 

23 amount made available under section 2103(b)(2) for 

24 a fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve— 


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1 ‘‘(A) one-half of 1 percent for allotments 

2 for the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, 

3 American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of 

4 the Northern Mariana Islands, to be distributed 

5 among those outlying areas on the basis of their 

6 relative need, as determined by the Secretary, 

7 in accordance with the purposes of this part; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(B) one-half of 1 percent for the Sec10 retary of the Interior for programs under this 

11 part in schools operated or funded by the Bu12 reau of Indian Education. 

13 ‘‘(2) STATE ALLOTMENTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) HOLD HARMLESS.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to sub16 paragraph (B), from the funds made avail17 able under section 2103(b)(2) for any fis18 cal year and not reserved under paragraph 

19 (1), the Secretary shall allot to each of the 

20 50 States, the District of Columbia, and 

21 the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico an 

22 amount equal to the total amount that 

23 such State received for fiscal year 2001 

24 under— 


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1 ‘‘(I) section 2202(b) of this Act 

2 (as in effect on the day before the 

3 date of enactment of the No Child 

4 Left Behind Act of 2001); and 

5 ‘‘(II) section 306 of the Depart6 ment of Education Appropriations 

7 Act, 2001 (as enacted into law by sec8 tion 1(a)(1) of Public Law 106–554). 

9 ‘‘(ii) RATABLE REDUCTION.—If the 

10 funds described in clause (i) are insuffi11 cient to pay the full amounts that all 

12 States are eligible to receive under such 

13 clause for any fiscal year, the Secretary 

14 shall ratably reduce those amounts for the 

15 fiscal year. 

16 ‘‘(B) ALLOTMENT OF ADDITIONAL

17 FUNDS.— 

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

19 (ii), for any fiscal year for which the funds 

20 made available under section 2103(b)(2) 

21 and not reserved under paragraph (1) ex22 ceed the total amount required to make al23 lotments under subparagraph (A), the Sec24 retary shall allot to each of the States de25 scribed in subparagraph (A) the sum of— 


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1 ‘‘(I) an amount that bears the 

2 same relationship to 35 percent of the 

3 excess amount as the number of indi4 viduals age 5 through 17 in the State, 

5 as determined by the Secretary on the 

6 basis of the most recent satisfactory 

7 data, bears to the number of those in8 dividuals in all such States, as so de9 termined; and 

10 ‘‘(II) an amount that bears the 

11 same relationship to 65 percent of the 

12 excess amount as the number of indi13 viduals age 5 through 17 from fami14 lies with incomes below the poverty 

15 line, in the State, as determined by 

16 the Secretary on the basis of the most 

17 recent satisfactory data, bears to the 

18 number of those individuals in all 

19 such States, as so determined. 

20 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—No State receiving 

21 an allotment under clause (i) may receive 

22 less than one-half of 1 percent of the total 

23 excess amount allotted under such clause 

24 for a fiscal year. 


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1 ‘‘(3) REALLOTMENT.—If any State does not 

2 apply for an allotment under this subsection for any 

3 fiscal year, the Secretary shall reallot the amount of 

4 the allotment to the remaining States in accordance 

5 with this subsection. 

6 ‘‘(c) WITHHOLDING.—In any fiscal year, if a State 

7 does not meet the requirements of section 207 of the 

8 Higher Education Act of 1965, including any require9 ments described under this part related to such section 

10 207, the Secretary shall withhold an amount of the State’s 

11 allotment equal to a portion of the administrative funds 

12 that would be available to such State under section 

13 2113(a)(4). 

14 ‘‘SEC. 2112. STATE APPLICATIONS. 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For a State to be eligible to re16 ceive an allotment under this subpart, the State edu17 cational agency shall submit— 

18 ‘‘(1) an application to the Secretary at such 

19 time, in such manner, and containing such informa20 tion as the Secretary may reasonably require; and 

21 ‘‘(2) a State educator equity plan described 

22 under subsection (c). 

23 ‘‘(b) CONTENT OF APPLICATION.—Each application 

24 submitted under this section shall include the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) A description of how the activities to be 

2 carried out by the State educational agency under 

3 this subpart will be evidence-based and an expla4 nation of how the activities provide a comprehensive 

5 strategy for addressing teacher, principal, and other 

6 educator development and support that will improve 

7 student learning. 

8 ‘‘(2) A State educator equity analysis, which 

9 shall be an analysis conducted by the State edu10 cational agency of the gaps between all of the school 

11 districts in the State for low-income and minority 

12 students in— 

13 ‘‘(A) access to profession ready educators; 

14 ‘‘(B) rates of first and second year teach15 ers; 

16 ‘‘(C) access to effective educators, as meas17 ured by a State or locally approved professional 

18 growth and improvement system, if applicable; 

19 ‘‘(D) access to teachers who are certified 

20 or licensed to teach the subjects that the teach21 ers have been assigned; 

22 ‘‘(E) rates of chronic educator absentee23 ism; 

24 ‘‘(F) actual teacher salaries; and 

25 ‘‘(G) student-teacher ratios. 


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1 ‘‘(3) A description of how the State educational 

2 agency will ensure that a local educational agency 

3 receiving a subgrant under subpart 2, and the State 

4 agency for higher education receiving a grant under 

5 subpart 3, will comply with the requirements of the 

6 applicable subpart. 

7 ‘‘(4) A description of how the State educational 

8 agency will ensure activities assisted under this sub9 part are aligned with student academic achievement 

10 standards that lead to college and career readiness 

11 by secondary school graduation. 

12 ‘‘(5) A description of a State’s system of certifi13 cation or licensing, support, and development for 

14 educators, including— 

15 ‘‘(A) any clinical experiences provided for 

16 prospective educators; 

17 ‘‘(B) support for new educators; 

18 ‘‘(C) professional development, professional 

19 growth, and leadership opportunities; 

20 ‘‘(D) compensation systems for teachers, 

21 principals, and other educators; and 

22 ‘‘(E) how their certification or licensing re23 quirements reflect the specialized knowledge 

24 and skills, particularly in child development, 

25 needed for teachers of children in the early eleVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:59 Apr 07, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S882.IS S882

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1 mentary grades and younger, and elementary 

2 school principals. 

3 ‘‘(6) A description of how the State educational 

4 agency will coordinate professional development ac5 tivities authorized under this subpart with profes6 sional development activities provided under other 

7 Federal, State, and local programs. 

8 ‘‘(7) A description of how the State educational 

9 agency will encourage the development of evidence10 based and innovative strategies to deliver high-qual11 ity professional development and induction programs 

12 that are both cost-effective and easily accessible, in13 cluding ensuring that teachers, principals, and other 

14 educators are trained in the effective use of tech15 nology to support student learning. 

16 ‘‘(8) A description of how the State educational 

17 agency, in collaboration with other agencies that 

18 oversee early childhood development and education 

19 programs and the State Advisory Council on Early 

20 Childhood Education and Care designated or estab21 lished under 642B of the Head Start Act, will en22 sure that high-quality, evidence-based professional 

23 development activities assisted under this subpart re24 flect research and best practices across all domains 

25 of child development and learning. 


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1 ‘‘(9) A description of how the State educational 

2 agency will ensure compliance with the requirements 

3 of professional development activities described in 

4 section 9101 and how the activities to be carried out 

5 under the grant will be developed collaboratively and 

6 based on the input of teachers, principals, their rep7 resentatives, and other educators. 

8 ‘‘(10) A description of how the State edu9 cational agency will increase the diversity of the 

10 teaching and leadership pipeline, develop culturally 

11 responsive pedagogy, and support the ability of 

12 teachers to address the individual learning needs 

13 and backgrounds of all students. 

14 ‘‘(11) A description of how the State edu15 cational agency will ensure that activities under this 

16 subpart will also provide complementary support for 

17 teachers, principals, and other educators who par18 ticipate in State preschool programs, and how the 

19 State educational agency will ensure that such ac20 tivities are aligned with State early learning and de21 velopment standards. 

22 ‘‘(12) An assurance that the State educational 

23 agency will comply with section 9501 (regarding par24 ticipation by private school children and teachers). 


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1 ‘‘(c) STATE EDUCATOR EQUITY PLAN.—Each State 

2 desiring an allotment under this subpart shall prepare a 

3 State educator equality plan, which shall be a description 

4 of— 

5 ‘‘(1) how the State educational agency will use 

6 State and local funds, and funds under this part, to 

7 address gaps identified in the State educator equity 

8 analysis described in subsection (b)(2); and 

9 ‘‘(2) how the State educational agency will sup10 port local educational agencies and other publicly 

11 funded entities, as appropriate, in meeting such re12 quirements, including public charter schools. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 2113. STATE USE OF FUNDS. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State educational agency 

15 that receives an allotment under this subpart shall use the 

16 funds to improve and address gaps in educator equity 

17 by— 

18 ‘‘(1) using 95 percent of the allotment to make 

19 subgrants to local educational agencies as described 

20 in subpart 2; 

21 ‘‘(2) using not less than 2 percent and not more 

22 than 5 percent of the allotment to develop and im23 plement a State plan, with appropriate stakeholders 

24 and based on the analysis of relevant data, to— 


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1 ‘‘(A) improve the effectiveness of principals 

2 in high-need schools, and at the discretion of 

3 the State educational agency, other school lead4 ers within a school building; 

5 ‘‘(B) ensure that students from low-income 

6 families and minority students have equitable 

7 access to profession ready principals, and at the 

8 State’s discretion, other school leaders who are 

9 profession ready within a school building; and 

10 ‘‘(C) implement a comprehensive strategy 

11 for educator development and support through 

12 carrying out the required activities described in 

13 subsection (b) and not less than 1 of the per14 missible activities under subsection (c), which 

15 may be carried out through a grant or contract 

16 with a nonprofit entity; 

17 ‘‘(3) from the amount of the allotment not used 

18 under paragraphs (1) and (2), using any portion of 

19 such amount for activities under subpart 3; and 

20 ‘‘(4) from the amount of the allotment not used 

21 paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), using not more than 

22 1 percent of the allotment for planning and adminis23 tration related to carrying out activities under sub24 sections (b) and (c) and subpart 3. 


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1 ‘‘(b) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—A State educational 

2 agency receiving an allotment under this subpart shall use 

3 the grant funds described in subsection (a)(2) to carry 

4 out, directly or through grant or contract with a nonprofit 

5 entity, all of the following: 

6 ‘‘(1) Fulfilling the State educational agency’s 

7 responsibilities concerning proper and efficient ad8 ministration of the programs carried out under this 

9 part, including the provision of technical assistance 

10 to local educational agencies. 

11 ‘‘(2) Implementing the State educator equity 

12 plan described in section 2112(c). 

13 ‘‘(3)(A) Applying the requirements of section 

14 207 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to all 

15 teacher preparation programs in the State, including 

16 programs operated by institutions of higher edu17 cation (whether such institutions are public, private, 

18 or for-profit), and any other program in the State 

19 which provides teacher preparation; and 

20 ‘‘(B) developing and soliciting public comment 

21 on criteria used to assess or identify low-performing 

22 teacher preparation programs under section 207 of 

23 the Higher Education Act of 1965 and making any 

24 such criteria publicly available. 


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1 ‘‘(4) In the case of a State educational agency 

2 that does not also serve as the State higher edu3 cation agency, assisting the State higher education 

4 agency (if the State higher education agency is not 

5 the State educational agency) in conducting the ac6 tivities described in subpart 3. 

7 ‘‘(c) PERMISSIBLE ACTIVITIES.—A State educational 

8 agency receiving an allotment under this subpart shall use 

9 the grant funds to carry out, directly or through grant 

10 or contract with a nonprofit entity, 1 or more of the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(1) Strengthening teacher, principal, and other 

13 educator certification (including recertification) or li14 censing requirements to ensure that— 

15 ‘‘(A) all new teachers, principals, and other 

16 educators are profession ready prior to becom17 ing the teacher, principal, or educator of record; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(B) teachers, principals, and other edu20 cators working in the early elementary grades 

21 and in preschool and early childhood education 

22 programs have the necessary knowledge in child 

23 development and learning. 

24 ‘‘(2) Implementing evidence-based activities 

25 that provide support to teachers, principals, and 


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1 other educators who are new to the profession, such 

2 as programs that provide comprehensive, multi-year 

3 induction or residency programs for beginning teach4 ers, principals, and other educators. 

5 ‘‘(3) Implementing evidenced-based programs 

6 that establish, expand, or improve alternative routes 

7 for State certification or licensure of teachers, prin8 cipals, and other educators for individuals with dem9 onstrated potential to become effective teachers, 

10 principals, and other educators, including efforts to 

11 diversify the profession, particularly by including 

12 underrepresented individuals, including underrep13 resentation based on race, ethnicity, or gender. 

14 ‘‘(4) Developing, improving, and implementing 

15 evidence-based mechanisms to assist local edu16 cational agencies and schools in effectively recruiting 

17 and retaining effective teacher, principals, and other 

18 educators, which may include additional supports 

19 and resources for teachers in high-poverty schools or 

20 school districts. 

21 ‘‘(5) Developing or assisting local educational 

22 agencies in developing systems that increase teacher 

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1 tive educators who take on additional roles and re2 sponsibilities, which may include— 

3 ‘‘(A) providing school-based professional 

4 development, mentoring, instructional coaching, 

5 peer assessment, or peer review; and 

6 ‘‘(B) distributed leadership, including with 

7 respect to hiring decisions and curriculum de8 velopment. 

9 ‘‘(6) Providing systematic, sustained, targeted, 

10 and coherent professional development for all teach11 ers, principals, and other educators that is collabo12 rative and job-embedded. 

13 ‘‘(7) Encouraging the reciprocity of teacher and 

14 principal certification or licensing between or among 

15 States, except in cases where it would lead to the 

16 weakening of any State teaching or licensing re17 quirement. 

18 ‘‘(8) Implementing or improving a professional 

19 growth and improvement system. 

20 ‘‘(9) Encouraging and supporting local edu21 cational agencies in the training of teachers, prin22 cipals, and other educators in ways to reduce the use 

23 of suspensions and expulsions (especially when re24 sulting in discipline disparities), which could include 


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1 developing tools such as developmentally, culturally, 

2 and linguistically appropriate— 

3 ‘‘(A) positive behavioral intervention sys4 tems; 

5 ‘‘(B) prevention and de-escalation strate6 gies; 

7 ‘‘(C) tiered disciplinary systems; 

8 ‘‘(D) school climate surveys; 

9 ‘‘(E) conflict resolution; 

10 ‘‘(F) restorative justice; and 

11 ‘‘(G) other evidence-based approaches. 

12 ‘‘(10) Encouraging the articulation of early 

13 education coursework between institutions of higher 

14 education to support professional pathways for early 

15 education educators within and between States. 

16 ‘‘(11) Providing or assisting local educational 

17 agencies in providing expanded opportunities for 

18 teachers to participate in professional enhancement 

19 activities through a nationally recognized, standards20 based, advanced certificate or credential. 

21 ‘‘(12) Encouraging a State to align its teacher 

22 preparation program approval process with statewide 

23 certification and licensing. 


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1 ‘‘(13) Providing feedback on the performance of 

2 beginning teachers, principals, and other educators 

3 to local educator preparation programs. 

4 ‘‘(14) Developing high-quality, evidence-based 

5 professional development opportunities for super6 intendents, elementary school principals, teachers, 

7 and other educators to— 

8 ‘‘(A) gain knowledge of— 

9 ‘‘(i) child development and learning 

10 for children from birth through early ele11 mentary grades; 

12 ‘‘(ii) developmentally appropriate 

13 practices and curricula, particularly for 

14 cognitive, social, emotional, and physical 

15 development; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) developmentally appropriate as17 sessments for instructional improvement; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(B) learn to create collaborations with 

20 community-based early childhood education pro21 grams or Head Starts and Early Head Start 

22 programs that focus on transition activities 

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1 sitions, family engagement, and other issues as 

2 determined appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

4 construed to authorize the Secretary or any other officer 

5 or employee of the Federal Government to direct, control, 

6 or prescribe— 

7 ‘‘(1) any elements of a professional growth and 

8 improvement system developed by a State or local 

9 educational agency; or 

10 ‘‘(2) any direction or supervision over an educa11 tor evaluation system. 

12 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec13 tion shall be construed to alter or otherwise affect the 

14 rights, remedies, and procedures afforded to the employees 

15 of local educational agencies under Federal, State, or local 

16 laws (including applicable regulations or court orders) or 

17 under the terms of collective bargaining agreements, 

18 memoranda of understanding, or other agreements be19 tween such employees and their employers. 

20 ‘‘Subpart 2—Subgrants to Local Educational 

21 Agencies 

22 ‘‘SEC. 2121. ALLOCATIONS. 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make an al24 lotment to a State under subpart 1 only if the State edu25 cational agency agrees to distribute the funds described 


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1 in section 2113(a)(1) as subgrants to local educational 

2 agencies under this subpart in accordance with this sec3 tion. 

4 ‘‘(b) HOLD HARMLESS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From the funds described 

6 under section 2113(a)(1), the State educational 

7 agency shall allocate to each local educational agency 

8 in the State an amount equal to the total amount 

9 that such agency received for fiscal year 2001 

10 under— 

11 ‘‘(A) section 2203(1)(B) (as in effect on 

12 the day before the date of enactment of the No 

13 Child Left Behind Act of 2001); and 

14 ‘‘(B) section 306 of the Department of 

15 Education Appropriations Act, 2001 (as en16 acted into law by section 1(a)(1) of Public Law 

17 106–554). 

18 ‘‘(2) NONPARTICIPATING AGENCIES.—In the 

19 case of a local educational agency that did not re20 ceive any funds for fiscal year 2001 under one or 

21 both of the provisions referred to in subparagraph 

22 (A) or (B) of paragraph (1), the amount allocated 

23 to the agency under such subparagraph shall be the 

24 total amount that the agency would have received 

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1 ticipate in all of the programs for which the agency 

2 was eligible under each of the provisions referred to 

3 in those subparagraphs. 

4 ‘‘(3) RATABLE REDUCTION.—If the funds de5 scribed in paragraph (1) are insufficient to pay the 

6 full amounts that all local educational agencies in 

7 the State are eligible to receive under such para8 graph for any fiscal year, the State educational 

9 agency shall ratably reduce such amounts for the fis10 cal year. 

11 ‘‘(c) ALLOCATION OF ADDITIONAL FUNDS.—For any 

12 fiscal year for which the funds described in section 

13 2113(a)(1) exceed the total amount required to make allo14 cations under subsection (b), the State educational agency 

15 shall allocate to each of the eligible local educational agen16 cies in the State the sum of— 

17 ‘‘(1) an amount that bears the same relation18 ship to 20 percent of the excess amount as the num19 ber of individuals age 5 through 17 in the geo20 graphic area served by the agency, as determined by 

21 the Secretary on the basis of the most recent satis22 factory data, bears to the number of those individ23 uals in the geographic areas served by all the local 

24 educational agencies in the State, as so determined; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(2) an amount that bears the same relation2 ship to 80 percent of the excess amount as the num3 ber of individuals age 5 through 17 from families 

4 with incomes below the poverty line in the geo5 graphic area served by the agency, as determined by 

6 the Secretary on the basis of the most recent satis7 factory data, bears to the number of those individ8 uals in the geographic areas served by all the local 

9 educational agencies in the State, as so determined. 

10 ‘‘SEC. 2122. LOCAL APPLICATION AND NEEDS ASSESSMENT. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a 

12 subgrant under this subpart, a local educational agency 

13 shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) prior to applying for the subgrant, conduct 

15 a data analysis of each school, and if applicable, 

16 early learning program, served by the local edu17 cational agency, based on data and information col18 lected from student learning, classroom practice, and 

19 the State’s longitudinal data system, in order to— 

20 ‘‘(A) determine school-by-school gaps for 

21 low-income and minority students with respect 

22 to— 

23 ‘‘(i) access to profession ready edu24 cators; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) rates of first and second year 

2 teachers; 

3 ‘‘(iii) access to effective educators, as 

4 measured by a State or locally approved 

5 professional growth and improvement sys6 tem; 

7 ‘‘(iv) access to teachers assigned to 

8 teach in the area for which the teachers 

9 are licensed or certified; 

10 ‘‘(v) rates of chronic educator absen11 teeism; 

12 ‘‘(vi) actual teacher salaries; and 

13 ‘‘(vii) student-teacher ratios; 

14 ‘‘(B) determine which schools and pro15 grams have the most critical teacher, principal, 

16 and other educator quality, effectiveness, and 

17 professional development needs; and 

18 ‘‘(C) identify the specific needs regarding 

19 the quality, effectiveness, and professional de20 velopment needs of the school or early learning 

21 program’s teachers, principals, and other edu22 cators, including with respect to instruction 

23 provided— 


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1 ‘‘(i) for individual student subgroups 

2 (including students who are children with 

3 disabilities and English language learners); 

4 ‘‘(ii) specific grade levels, including 

5 early childhood education if applicable; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) content areas; 

7 ‘‘(2) submit an application described in sub8 section (b) to the State educational agency at such 

9 time, in such manner, and containing such informa10 tion as the State educational agency may reasonably 

11 require; and 

12 ‘‘(3) submit an educator equity plan, as de13 scribed in subsection (d). 

14 ‘‘(b) CONTENTS.—Each application to a State edu15 cational agency shall include the following: 

16 ‘‘(1) A description of how the local educational 

17 agency will address the gaps identified in subsection 

18 (a)(1) and assist schools and programs identified 

19 with the greatest need, according to such subjection. 

20 ‘‘(2) A description of how the local educational 

21 agency will ensure that activities funded under the 

22 subgrant are integrated and aligned pursuant to 

23 subsection (c) to provide a comprehensive strategy 

24 for teacher, principal, and other educator develop25 ment and support. 


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1 ‘‘(3) A description of how the local educational 

2 agency will use subgrant funds to target and support 

3 the schools and programs identified with the great4 est need, pursuant to subsection (a)(1), before using 

5 funds for other schools. 

6 ‘‘(4) A description of how the local educational 

7 agency will enable effective inclusion of all students, 

8 including students who are children with disabilities 

9 and English language learners through utilization by 

10 the teachers, principals, and other educators of the 

11 local educational agency of— 

12 ‘‘(A) multi-tiered system of supports; 

13 ‘‘(B) response to intervention; 

14 ‘‘(C) positive behavioral supports; 

15 ‘‘(D) school climate surveys; 

16 ‘‘(E) differentiated instruction; 

17 ‘‘(F) universal design for learning; 

18 ‘‘(G) appropriate accommodations for in19 struction and assessments; 

20 ‘‘(H) social and emotional learning com21 petencies; 

22 ‘‘(I) collaboration skills; 

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1 quired under section 614 of the Individuals with 

2 Disabilities Education Act; 

3 ‘‘(K) evidence-based strategies to meet the 

4 linguistic and academic needs of English lan5 guage learners; and 

6 ‘‘(L) effective transitions of children en7 rolled in preschool programs, including those 

8 receiving services under section 619 or part B 

9 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education 

10 Act. 

11 ‘‘(5) A description of how the local educational 

12 agency will assist schools and early learning pro13 grams in utilizing real-time student learning data, 

14 based on changes in student learning and classroom 

15 practice, to inform instruction and target profes16 sional development for teachers, principals, and 

17 other educators. 

18 ‘‘(6) A description of how the local educational 

19 agency will work with institutions of higher edu20 cation and local teacher and principal preparation 

21 programs to improve the performance of beginning 

22 teachers and principals, improve residency and in23 duction programs, and strengthen professional devel24 opment. 


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1 ‘‘(7) A description of how the local educational 

2 agency will train teachers, principals, and other edu3 cators in ways to reduce the use of suspensions and 

4 expulsions (especially when resulting in discipline 

5 disparities), which could include developing tools 

6 such as developmentally, culturally, and linguistically 

7 appropriate— 

8 ‘‘(A) positive behavioral intervention sys9 tems; 

10 ‘‘(B) prevention and deescalation strate11 gies; 

12 ‘‘(C) tiered disciplinary systems; 

13 ‘‘(D) conflict resolution; 

14 ‘‘(E) restorative justice; 

15 ‘‘(F) school climate surveys; and 

16 ‘‘(G) other evidence-based approaches. 

17 ‘‘(8) A description of how the local educational 

18 agency will train elementary school teachers, prin19 cipals, and other educators to understand and imple20 ment effective, developmentally appropriate curricula 

21 and instructional assessment practices for children 

22 in early elementary grades and early childhood edu23 cation programs in all domains of learning and de24 velopment. 


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1 ‘‘(9) A description of how the local educational 

2 agency will ensure that activities under this subpart 

3 will also provide complementary support for teach4 ers, principals, and other educators who participate 

5 in State preschool programs, and how the local edu6 cational agency will ensure that such activities are 

7 aligned with State early learning and development 

8 standards. 

9 ‘‘(c) JOINT DEVELOPMENT AND SUBMISSION.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A local educational agency 

11 shall— 

12 ‘‘(A) jointly develop the data analysis 

13 framework required under subsection (a)(1) and 

14 the application under subsection (b) (except for 

15 the requirements of subsection (b)(3)) with 

16 local organizations representing the teachers, 

17 principals, and other educators in the local edu18 cational agency, and the community-based orga19 nizations representing parents and students 

20 served by the local educational agency (includ21 ing, where applicable, local civil rights groups); 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(B) submit the application and data anal24 ysis in partnership with such community-based 

25 organizations. 


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1 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—A State may, after consulta2 tion with the Secretary, consider an application from 

3 a local educational agency that is not jointly devel4 oped and submitted in accordance with paragraph 

5 (1) if the application includes documentation of the 

6 local educational agency’s extensive attempt to work 

7 jointly with local teacher, principal, educator, and 

8 community-based organizations, and the community 

9 being served. 

10 ‘‘(d) EDUCATOR EQUITY PLAN.—Each local edu11 cational agency desiring an allocation under this subpart 

12 shall provide a description of how the local educational 

13 agency will use State and local funds, in addition to funds, 

14 provided under this subpart, to address gaps identified in 

15 the data analysis described in subsection (a)(1) and assist 

16 programs identified with the greatest need under sub17 section (a)(1)(B). 

18 ‘‘SEC. 2123. LOCAL USE OF FUNDS. 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A local educational agency that 

20 receives a grant under this subpart shall use the funds 

21 to improve and address gaps in educator equity and target 

22 assistance to schools identified with the greatest need, as 

23 identified by the data analysis required under section 

24 2122(a)(1), by implementing a comprehensive strategy for 

25 educator development and support through implementing 


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1 all of the required activities described in subsection (b) 

2 and not less than 1 of the permissible activities described 

3 in subsection (c). 

4 ‘‘(b) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—A local educational 

5 agency receiving an allocation under this subpart shall use 

6 the allocation to carry out all of the following: 

7 ‘‘(1) Addressing gaps in access, as identified by 

8 the data analysis described in section 2122(a)(1). 

9 ‘‘(2) Targeting assistance to schools identified 

10 with the greatest need, as identified by such data 

11 analysis. 

12 ‘‘(3) Implementing evidence-based activities 

13 that provide support to teachers, principals, and 

14 other educators who are new to the profession, such 

15 as programs that provide comprehensive, multi-year 

16 induction programs for beginning teachers, prin17 cipals, and other educators. 

18 ‘‘(4) Providing systematic, sustained, targeted, 

19 and coherent professional development for all teach20 ers, principals, and other educators that is collabo21 rative, developmentally appropriate for grade levels 

22 taught, job-embedded, and differentiated according 

23 to specific job responsibilities in the school building. 


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1 ‘‘(5) Providing feedback on the performance of 

2 beginning teachers, principals, and other educators 

3 to local educator preparation programs. 

4 ‘‘(6) Developing and implementing a profes5 sional growth and improvement system. 

6 ‘‘(c) PERMISSIBLE ACTIVITIES.—A local educational 

7 agency receiving an allocation under this subpart shall use 

8 the allocation to carry out 1 or more of the following: 

9 ‘‘(1) Developing systems that increase teacher 

10 leadership opportunities and career pathways, in11 cluding compensation above base salaries for effec12 tive educators who take on new roles in providing 

13 school-based professional development, mentoring, 

14 instructional coaching, and shared decisionmaking, 

15 including hiring and curriculum development. 

16 ‘‘(2) Recruitment of profession ready teachers 

17 and principals, particularly underrepresented indi18 viduals who demonstrate strong potential to become 

19 effective educators. 

20 ‘‘(3) Reducing class size by an amount and to 

21 a level consistent with what evidence-based research 

22 has found to improve student learning. 

23 ‘‘(4) Developing or implementing rigorous en24 trance examinations into the teacher, principal, or 

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1 ance assessments that are aligned with challenging 

2 State academic content and student academic 

3 achievement standards under section 1111(b)(1) 

4 that evaluate content knowledge and other com5 petencies that lead to increased student learning. 

6 ‘‘(5) Encouraging and supporting schools in the 

7 training of teachers, principals, and other educators 

8 in ways to reduce the use of suspensions and expul9 sions, (especially when resulting in discipline dispari10 ties), which may include developing tools such as de11 velopmentally, culturally, and linguistically appro12 priate— 

13 ‘‘(A) positive behavioral intervention sys14 tems; 

15 ‘‘(B) prevention and deescalation strate16 gies; 

17 ‘‘(C) tiered disciplinary systems; 

18 ‘‘(D) conflict resolution; 

19 ‘‘(E) restorative justice; 

20 ‘‘(F) school climate surveys; and 

21 ‘‘(G) other evidence-based approaches. 

22 ‘‘(6) Training and support for supervisors of 

23 teachers and principals in effectively evaluating, ob24 serving, providing feedback, and targeting support to 


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1 build the capacity of the teachers and principals they 

2 are supervising. 

3 ‘‘(7) Providing joint professional learning activi4 ties for preschool teachers in community-based set5 tings and elementary school staff, especially kinder6 garten teachers, in order to improve transitions for 

7 students and families. 

8 ‘‘(8) Developing or strengthening partnerships 

9 with 1 or more local teacher and principal prepara10 tion programs that ensure that each preparation 

11 program includes— 

12 ‘‘(A) clinical experiences consistent with 

13 section 202(d)(2) of the Higher Education Act 

14 of 1965; 

15 ‘‘(B) residency programs; 

16 ‘‘(C) models of accomplished practice; and 

17 ‘‘(D) clinical instructors with exemplary 

18 teaching skills. 

19 ‘‘(9) Expanding opportunities for teachers to 

20 participate in professional enhancement activities 

21 through a nationally recognized standards-based ad22 vanced certificate or advanced credential. 

23 ‘‘(10) Developing high-quality, evidence-based 

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1 tary school principals, administrators, teachers, and 

2 other educators to— 

3 ‘‘(A) gain knowledge of— 

4 ‘‘(i) child development and learning 

5 for children from ages birth through early 

6 elementary grades; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) developmentally appropriate 

8 practices and curricula, particularly for 

9 cognitive, social, emotional, and physical 

10 development; and developmentally appro11 priate assessments for instructional im12 provement; and 

13 ‘‘(B) learn to create collaborations with 

14 community-based early childhood education pro15 grams or Head Start and Early Head Start 

16 programs that focus on transition activities 

17 from early learning to kindergarten or elemen18 tary grades, shared expectations for those tran19 sitions, family engagement, and other issues as 

20 determined appropriate by the local educational 

21 agency or State, as appropriate. 

22 ‘‘(d) INTEGRATION AND ALIGNMENT.—The strategy 

23 described in subsection (a) shall— 

24 ‘‘(1) integrate and align all of the activities de25 scribed in such subsection; 


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1 ‘‘(2) be aligned with the State’s school improve2 ment efforts under sections 1116 and 1117; and 

3 ‘‘(3) be aligned with the programs funded 

4 under title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

5 and other professional development programs au6 thorized under this Act. 

7 ‘‘(e) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—The assistance required 

8 to be provided under this section may be provided— 

9 ‘‘(1) by the local educational agency; or 

10 ‘‘(2) by the local educational agency, in collabo11 ration with— 

12 ‘‘(A) the State educational agency; 

13 ‘‘(B) an institution of higher education; 

14 ‘‘(C) a nonprofit organization; 

15 ‘‘(D) a teacher organization; 

16 ‘‘(E) a principal or school leader organiza17 tion; 

18 ‘‘(F) an educational service agency; 

19 ‘‘(G) a teaching residency program; 

20 ‘‘(H) an early learning provider; or 

21 ‘‘(I) another nonprofit entity with experi22 ence in helping schools and early learning pro23 grams improve student learning. 


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1 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

2 construed to authorize the Secretary or any other officer 

3 or employee of the Federal Government to prescribe— 

4 ‘‘(1) any elements of a professional growth and 

5 improvement system developed by a State or local 

6 educational agency; and 

7 ‘‘(2) any direction or supervision over an educa8 tor evaluation system. 

9 ‘‘(g) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec10 tion shall be construed to alter or otherwise affect the 

11 rights, remedies, and procedures afforded to the employees 

12 of local educational agencies under Federal, State, or local 

13 laws (including applicable regulations or court orders) or 

14 under the terms of collective bargaining agreements, 

15 memoranda of understanding, or other agreements be16 tween such employees and their employers. 

17 ‘‘Subpart 3—State Educational Agency or State 

18 Agency for Higher Education Grants 

19 ‘‘SEC. 2131. GRANTS AND SUBGRANTS. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The State agency for higher edu21 cation for a State that receives an allotment under subpart 

22 1, working in conjunction with the State educational agen23 cy (if such agencies are separate), shall use the funds pro24 vided under section 2113(a)(3) to carry out activities deVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:59 Apr 07, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00054 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S882.IS S882

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1 scribed in section 2132, either directly or through sub2 grants to eligible entities, as described in this subpart. 

3 ‘‘(b) DISTRIBUTION.—In making subgrants to eligi4 ble entities under this subpart, the State agency for higher 

5 education shall ensure that such subgrants are equitably 

6 distributed by geographic area within the State. 

7 ‘‘(c) SUBGRANT APPLICATIONS.—An eligible entity 

8 desiring a subgrant under this section from a State agency 

9 for higher education that elects to carry out the require10 ments of this subpart through such subgrants shall submit 

11 an application to the State agency for higher education 

12 at such time, in such manner, and containing such infor13 mation as the State agency may require. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 2132. USE OF FUNDS AND WITHHOLDING. 

15 ‘‘(a) REQUIRED USES OF FUNDS.—In using the 

16 funds reserved under section 2113(a)(3), the State agency 

17 for higher education shall, directly or through subgrants 

18 to eligible entities as described in section 2131, use such 

19 funds for all of the following activities: 

20 ‘‘(1) Providing technical assistance to or closing 

21 low-performing teacher preparation programs, as 

22 identified under section 207 of the Higher Edu23 cation Act of 1965, by— 

24 ‘‘(A) assisting each teacher preparation 

25 program in the State that are at risk of being 


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1 identified as low performing, or have been iden2 tified as low performing, under such section, 

3 through— 

4 ‘‘(i) technical assistance designed to 

5 identify the reasons such program is at 

6 risk of being identified, or has been identi7 fied, as low performing; 

8 ‘‘(ii) the development of an improve9 ment plan to address the reasons identified 

10 under clause (i); 

11 ‘‘(iii) technical assistance to imple12 ment the plan described under clause (ii); 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(iv) other such assistance that re15 sponds to the reasons for such identifica16 tion; and 

17 ‘‘(B) if a program described in subpara18 graph (A) is identified as low-performing after 

19 such technical assistance and a period of time 

20 for program improvement (as determined by the 

21 State), terminating the eligibility of such a pro22 gram as described in section 207 of the Higher 

23 Education Act of 1965 or if the State agency 

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1 gram, assisting such other State agency in ter2 minating such eligibility. 

3 ‘‘(2) Developing a system for assessing the 

4 quality and effectiveness of professional development 

5 offered throughout the State (in conjunction with 

6 the appropriate State agency, if an agency other 

7 than the State agency for higher education is re8 sponsible for professional development of teachers in 

9 such State). 

10 ‘‘(b) ALLOWABLE USES OF FUNDS.—In using the 

11 funds provided under section 2113(a)(3), the State agency 

12 for higher education may, directly or through subgrants 

13 to eligible entities, use such funds for any of the following 

14 activities: 

15 ‘‘(1) Developing and implementing a valid, reli16 able, and rigorous teacher performance assessment 

17 for entry into the teacher, principal or other educa18 tor profession. 

19 ‘‘(2) Developing and implementing a valid and 

20 reliable principal performance assessment based on 

21 the following factors: 

22 ‘‘(A) Student growth and achievement. 

23 ‘‘(B) School planning and progress. 

24 ‘‘(C) School culture. 

25 ‘‘(D) Stakeholder support and engagement. 


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1 ‘‘(E) Professional qualities and practices. 

2 ‘‘(F) Professional growth and learning. 

3 ‘‘(3) Providing systematic, sustained, targeted, 

4 and coherent professional development for all teach5 ers, principals, and other educators that is collabo6 rative, job-embedded, and developmentally appro7 priate for grade levels taught. 

8 ‘‘(4) Developing and providing assistance to 

9 local educational agencies and individuals who are 

10 teachers, principals, and other educators for sus11 tained, high-quality, evidence-based professional de12 velopment activities. 

13 ‘‘(5) Carrying out evidence-based activities that 

14 provide support to teachers, principals, and edu15 cators that are new to the profession, such as pro16 grams that provide comprehensive, multi-year induc17 tion or residency programs for beginning teachers, 

18 principals, and other educators. 

19 ‘‘(6) Developing partnerships between 1 or 

20 more local educational agencies, 1 or more schools 

21 served by such local educational agencies, and 1 or 

22 more institutions of higher education for the purpose 

23 of improving teaching and learning at low-achieving 

24 schools. 


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1 ‘‘(7) Training and supporting supervisors of 

2 teachers, principals, and other educators in effec3 tively evaluating, observing, providing feedback, and 

4 targeting support to build the capacity of the teach5 ers, principals, and other educators that they are su6 pervising. 

7 ‘‘(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sub8 part shall be construed to alter or otherwise affect the 

9 rights, remedies, and procedures afforded to the employees 

10 of local educational agencies under Federal, State, or local 

11 laws (including applicable regulations or court orders) or 

12 under the terms of collective bargaining agreements, 

13 memoranda of understanding, or other agreements be14 tween such employees and their employers. 

15 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this 

16 subpart, the term ‘eligible entity’ means— 

17 ‘‘(1) an institution of higher education, as de18 fined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act 

19 of 1965; 

20 ‘‘(2) a local educational agency; 

21 ‘‘(3) a school or college of education; 

22 ‘‘(4) a nonprofit organization; or 

23 ‘‘(5) a partnership of any of the entities de24 scribed in paragraphs (1) through (4). 


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1 ‘‘Subpart 4—Accountability 

2 ‘‘SEC. 2141. ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING. 

3 ‘‘(a) STATE REPORT.—Each State that receives a 

4 grant under subpart 1 shall annually submit to the Sec5 retary, in a manner prescribed by the Secretary, and make 

6 public, a State report on program performance and results 

7 under such grant. Such State report shall provide the fol8 lowing information: 

9 ‘‘(1) A report on uses of program funds, includ10 ing ways funds were used to elevate the profession, 

11 ensure equity, support educators, and improve stu12 dent achievement. 

13 ‘‘(2) An educator equity report that shows dem14 onstrated progress toward greater educator equity 

15 by local educational agency, as measured by— 

16 ‘‘(A) access to profession ready educators; 

17 ‘‘(B) rates of first and second year teach18 ers; 

19 ‘‘(C) access to effective educators, as meas20 ured by a State or locally approved professional 

21 growth and improvement system, if applicable; 

22 ‘‘(D) rates of chronic educator absentee23 ism; 

24 ‘‘(E) access to teachers assigned within 

25 their license area; 

26 ‘‘(F) actual teacher salaries; and 


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1 ‘‘(G) student-teacher ratios. 

2 ‘‘(3) A report on the demographic makeup of 

3 teachers, principals, and other educators within a 

4 State. 

5 ‘‘(b) WITHHOLDING.—If a State does not dem6 onstrate progress on its educator equity report, as de7 scribed in subsection (a)(2), for 3 consecutive academic 

8 years, the Secretary shall reserve the right to withhold a 

9 portion of the administrative funds that would be available 

10 to such State under section 2113(a)(4). 

11 ‘‘(c) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY REPORT.—Each 

12 local educational agency that receives a subgrant under 

13 subpart 2 shall annually submit to the State, in a manner 

14 prescribed by the State, and make public, a local edu15 cational agency report on program performance and re16 sults under such subgrant. Such local educational agency 

17 report shall provide the following information: 

18 ‘‘(1) A report on the uses of program funds 

19 provided under such subpart, including ways funds 

20 were used to elevate the profession, ensure equity, 

21 support educators, and improve student learning. 

22 ‘‘(2) An educator equity report that shows dem23 onstrated progress toward educator equity by school, 

24 as measured by— 

25 ‘‘(A) access to profession ready educators; 


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1 ‘‘(B) rates of first and second year teach2 ers; 

3 ‘‘(C) access to effective educators, as meas4 ured by a State or locally approved professional 

5 growth and improvement system, if applicable; 

6 ‘‘(D) rates of chronic educator absentee7 ism; 

8 ‘‘(E) access to teachers assigned within 

9 their license area; 

10 ‘‘(F) actual teacher salaries; and 

11 ‘‘(G) student-teacher ratios. 

12 ‘‘(3) A report on evidence of increased student 

13 learning for the schools and early learning programs 

14 with the greatest need targeted for assistance within 

15 a local educational agency. 

16 ‘‘(4) A report on evidence of increased student 

17 learning for all schools and early learning programs 

18 within a local educational agency. 

19 ‘‘(5) A report on the demographics of the teach20 ers, principals, and other educators employed by the 

21 local educational agency. 

22 ‘‘(d) FERPA COMPLIANCE.—Each State and local 

23 educational agency that submits a report under this sec24 tion shall collect, report, and disseminate information con25 tained in such report in compliance with section 444 of 


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1 the General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g, 

2 commonly known as the ‘Family Educational Rights and 

3 Privacy Act of 1974’). 

4 ‘‘(e) TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL PRIVACY.—No State 

5 or local educational agency shall publicly report informa6 tion under this section that reveals personally identifiable 

7 information about an individual teacher or principal. 

8 ‘‘Subpart 5—National Activities 

9 ‘‘SEC. 2151. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES. 

10 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF HIGH-NEED LOCAL EDU11 CATIONAL AGENCY.—In this section, the term ‘high-need 

12 local educational agency’ means a local educational agen13 cy— 

14 ‘‘(1)(A) that serves not fewer than 10,000 chil15 dren from families with incomes below the poverty 

16 line; or 

17 ‘‘(B) for which not less than 20 percent of the 

18 children served by the agency are from families with 

19 incomes below the poverty line; and 

20 ‘‘(2)(A) for which there is a high percentage of 

21 teachers not teaching in the academic subjects or 

22 grade levels that the teachers were trained to teach; 

23 or 


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1 ‘‘(B) for which there is a high percentage of 

2 teachers with emergency, provisional, or temporary 

3 certification or licensing. 

4 ‘‘(b) GRANTS TO SUPPORTING EFFECTIVE EDUCA5 TOR DEVELOPMENT.—The Secretary is authorized to 

6 award grants to national nonprofit organizations for 

7 projects that are supported by not less than moderate evi8 dence to— 

9 ‘‘(1) recruit and select teachers, principals, and 

10 other educators; or 

11 ‘‘(2) prepare or provide professional enhance12 ment activities for teachers, principals, and other 

13 educators. 

14 ‘‘(c) SCHOOL LEADERSHIP.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

16 to establish and carry out a national principal re17 cruitment program to assist high-need local edu18 cational agencies in recruiting and training prin19 cipals through such activities as— 

20 ‘‘(A) providing financial incentives to as21 piring new principals; 

22 ‘‘(B) providing stipends to principals who 

23 mentor new principals; 


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1 ‘‘(C) carrying out professional development 

2 programs in instructional leadership and man3 agement; and 

4 ‘‘(D) providing incentives that— 

5 ‘‘(i) are appropriate for teachers or 

6 individuals from other fields who want to 

7 become principals; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) are effective in retaining new 

9 principals. 

10 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.—If the Secretary uses sums 

11 made available under section 2103(b)(1) to carry out 

12 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall carry out such 

13 paragraph by making grants, on a competitive basis, 

14 to— 

15 ‘‘(A) high-need local educational agencies; 

16 ‘‘(B) consortia of high-need local edu17 cational agencies; and 

18 ‘‘(C) partnerships of high-need local edu19 cational agencies, nonprofit organizations, and 

20 institutions of higher education. 

21 ‘‘(d) ADVANCED CERTIFICATION OR ADVANCED

22 CREDENTIALING.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

24 to support activities to encourage and support teach25 ers seeking advanced certification or advanced 


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1 credentialing through high-quality professional 

2 teacher enhancement programs designed to improve 

3 teaching and learning. 

4 ‘‘(2) IMPLEMENTATION.—In carrying out para5 graph (1), the Secretary shall make grants to eligi6 ble entities to— 

7 ‘‘(A) develop teacher standards that in8 clude measures tied to increased student aca9 demic achievement; and 

10 ‘‘(B) promote outreach, teacher recruit11 ment, teacher subsidy, or teacher support pro12 grams, related to teacher certification or 

13 credentialing by the National Board for Profes14 sional Teaching Standards, the National Coun15 cil on Teacher Quality, or other nationally rec16 ognized certification or credentialing organiza17 tions. 

18 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—In this subsection, 

19 the term ‘‘eligible entity’’ includes— 

20 ‘‘(A) a State educational agency; 

21 ‘‘(B) a local educational agency; 

22 ‘‘(C) the National Board for Professional 

23 Teaching Standards, in partnership with a 

24 high-need local educational agency or a State 

25 educational agency; 


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1 ‘‘(D) the National Council on Teacher 

2 Quality, in partnership with a high-need local 

3 educational agency or a State educational agen4 cy; or 

5 ‘‘(E) another recognized entity, including 

6 another recognized certification or credentialing 

7 organization, in partnership with a high-need 

8 local educational agency or a State educational 

9 agency. 

10 ‘‘(e) EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATOR PROFESSIONAL

11 DEVELOPMENT.— 

12 ‘‘(1) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this subsection 

13 is to enhance the school readiness of young children, 

14 particularly disadvantaged young children, and to 

15 prevent young children from encountering difficulties 

16 once the children enter school, by improving the 

17 knowledge and skills of early childhood educators 

18 who work in communities that have high concentra19 tions of children living in poverty. 

20 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 

21 ‘‘(A) GRANTS TO PARTNERSHIPS.—The 

22 Secretary is authorized to carry out the purpose 

23 of this subsection by awarding grants, on a 

24 competitive basis, to partnerships consisting 

25 of— 


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1 ‘‘(i)(I) one or more institutions of 

2 higher education that provide professional 

3 development for early childhood educators 

4 who work with children from low-income 

5 families in high-need communities; or 

6 ‘‘(II) another public or private entity 

7 that provides such professional develop8 ment; 

9 ‘‘(ii) one or more public agencies (in10 cluding local educational agencies, State 

11 educational agencies, State human services 

12 agencies, and State and local agencies ad13 ministering programs under the Child Care 

14 and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 

15 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.)), Head Start 

16 agencies, or private organizations; and 

17 ‘‘(iii) to the extent feasible, an entity 

18 with demonstrated experience in providing 

19 training to educators in early childhood 

20 education programs concerning identifying 

21 and preventing behavior problems or work22 ing with children identified as or suspected 

23 to be victims of abuse. 

24 ‘‘(B) DURATION AND NUMBER OF

25 GRANTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) DURATION.—A grant awarded 

2 under this subsection shall be for a period 

3 of not more than 4 years. 

4 ‘‘(ii) NUMBER.—No partnership may 

5 receive more than one grant under this 

6 subsection. 

7 ‘‘(3) APPLICATIONS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) APPLICATIONS REQUIRED.—Any 

9 partnership that desires to receive a grant 

10 under this subsection shall submit an applica11 tion to the Secretary at such time, in such man12 ner, and containing such information as the 

13 Secretary may require. 

14 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each such application 

15 shall include— 

16 ‘‘(i) a description of the high-need 

17 community to be served by the project pro18 posed to be carried out through the grant, 

19 including such demographic and socio20 economic information as the Secretary may 

21 request; 

22 ‘‘(ii) information on the quality of the 

23 early childhood educator professional devel24 opment program currently conducted (as of 

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1 tion) by the institution of higher education 

2 or another provider in the partnership; 

3 ‘‘(iii) the results of a needs assess4 ment that the entities in the partnership 

5 have undertaken to determine the most 

6 critical professional development needs of 

7 the early childhood educators to be served 

8 by the partnership and in the broader com9 munity, and a description of how the pro10 posed project will address those needs; 

11 ‘‘(iv) a description of how the pro12 posed project will be carried out, including 

13 a description of— 

14 ‘‘(I) how individuals will be se15 lected to participate; 

16 ‘‘(II) the types of professional de17 velopment activities, based on scientif18 ically based research, that will be car19 ried out; 

20 ‘‘(III) how research on effective 

21 professional development and on adult 

22 learning will be used to design and de23 liver project activities; 

24 ‘‘(IV) how the project will be co25 ordinated with and build on, and will 


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1 not supplant or duplicate, early child2 hood education professional develop3 ment activities in the high-need com4 munity; 

5 ‘‘(V) how the project will train 

6 early childhood educators to provide 

7 developmentally appropriate school8 readiness services that are based on 

9 the best available research on early 

10 childhood pedagogy and child develop11 ment and learning domains; 

12 ‘‘(VI) how the project will train 

13 early childhood educators to meet the 

14 diverse educational needs of children 

15 in the community, including children 

16 who are English learners, children 

17 with disabilities, or children with 

18 other special needs; and 

19 ‘‘(VII) how the project will train 

20 early childhood educators in identi21 fying and preventing behavioral prob22 lems in children or working with chil23 dren identified as or suspected to be 

24 victims of abuse; 

25 ‘‘(v) a description of— 


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1 ‘‘(I) the specific objectives that 

2 the partnership will seek to attain 

3 through the project, and the methods 

4 that the partnership will use to meas5 ure progress toward attainment of 

6 those objectives; and 

7 ‘‘(II) how the objectives and the 

8 measurement methods align with the 

9 achievement indicators established by 

10 the Secretary under paragraph (6)(A); 

11 ‘‘(vi) a description of the partnership’s 

12 plan for continuing the activities carried 

13 out under the project after Federal fund14 ing ceases; 

15 ‘‘(vii) an assurance that, where appli16 cable, the project will provide appropriate 

17 professional development to volunteers 

18 working directly with young children, as 

19 well as to paid staff; and 

20 ‘‘(viii) an assurance that, in devel21 oping the application and in carrying out 

22 the project, the partnership has consulted 

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1 tions, and early childhood providers that 

2 are not members of the partnership. 

3 ‘‘(4) SELECTION OF GRANT RECIPIENTS.— 

4 ‘‘(A) CRITERIA.—The Secretary shall se5 lect partnerships to receive grants under this 

6 subsection on the basis of the degree to which 

7 the communities proposed to be served require 

8 assistance and the quality of the applications 

9 submitted under paragraph (3). 

10 ‘‘(B) GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION.—In se11 lecting partnerships to receive grants under this 

12 subsection, the Secretary shall seek to ensure 

13 that communities in different regions of the 

14 United States, as well as both urban and rural 

15 communities, are served. 

16 ‘‘(5) USES OF FUNDS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each partnership re18 ceiving a grant under this subsection shall use 

19 the grant funds to carry out activities that will 

20 improve the knowledge and skills of early child21 hood educators who are working in early child22 hood programs that are located in high-need 

23 communities and serve concentrations of chil24 dren from low-income families. 


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1 ‘‘(B) ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES.—Such ac2 tivities may include— 

3 ‘‘(i) professional development for early 

4 childhood educators, particularly to famil5 iarize those educators with the application 

6 of recent research on child, language, and 

7 literacy development and on early child8 hood pedagogy; 

9 ‘‘(ii) professional development for 

10 early childhood educators in working with 

11 parents, so that the educators and parents 

12 can work together to provide and support 

13 developmentally appropriate school-readi14 ness services that are based on scientif15 ically based research on early childhood 

16 pedagogy and child development and learn17 ing domains; 

18 ‘‘(iii) professional development for 

19 early childhood educators to work with 

20 children who are English language learn21 ers, children with disabilities, and children 

22 with other special needs; 

23 ‘‘(iv) professional development to train 

24 early childhood educators in identifying 

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1 dren or working with children identified as 

2 or suspected to be victims of abuse; 

3 ‘‘(v) activities that assist and support 

4 early childhood educators during their first 

5 3 years in the field; 

6 ‘‘(vi) development and implementation 

7 of early childhood educator professional de8 velopment programs that make use of dis9 tance learning and other technologies; 

10 ‘‘(vii) professional development activi11 ties related to the selection and use of 

12 screening and diagnostic assessments to 

13 improve teaching and learning; and 

14 ‘‘(viii) data collection, evaluation, and 

15 reporting needed to meet the requirements 

16 of paragraph (6) relating to accountability. 

17 ‘‘(6) ACCOUNTABILITY.— 

18 ‘‘(A) ACHIEVEMENT INDICATORS.—On the 

19 date on which the Secretary first issues a notice 

20 soliciting applications for grants under this sub21 section, the Secretary shall announce achieve22 ment indicators for this subsection, which shall 

23 be designed— 


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1 ‘‘(i) to measure the quality and acces2 sibility of the professional development 

3 provided; 

4 ‘‘(ii) to measure the impact of that 

5 professional development on the early 

6 childhood education provided by the indi7 viduals who receive the professional devel8 opment; and 

9 ‘‘(iii) to provide such other measures 

10 of program impact as the Secretary deter11 mines to be appropriate. 

12 ‘‘(B) ANNUAL REPORTS; TERMINATION.— 

13 ‘‘(i) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Each part14 nership receiving a grant under this sub15 section shall report annually to the Sec16 retary on the partnership’s progress to17 ward attaining the achievement indicators. 

18 ‘‘(ii) TERMINATION.—The Secretary 

19 may terminate a grant under this sub20 section at any time if the Secretary deter21 mines that the partnership receiving the 

22 grant is not making satisfactory progress 

23 toward attaining the achievement indica24 tors. 

25 ‘‘(7) COST-SHARING.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each partnership car2 rying out a project through a grant awarded 

3 under this subsection shall provide, from 

4 sources other than the program carried out 

5 under this subsection, which may include Fed6 eral sources— 

7 ‘‘(i) at least 50 percent of the total 

8 cost of the project for the grant period; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(ii) at least 20 percent of the project 

11 cost for each year. 

12 ‘‘(B) ACCEPTABLE CONTRIBUTIONS.—A 

13 partnership may meet the requirements of sub14 paragraph (A) by providing contributions in 

15 cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, including 

16 plant, equipment, and services. 

17 ‘‘(C) WAIVERS.—The Secretary may waive 

18 or modify the requirements of subparagraph 

19 (A) for a partnerships in cases of demonstrated 

20 financial hardship. 

21 ‘‘(8) FEDERAL COORDINATION.—The Secretary 

22 and the Secretary of Health and Human Services 

23 shall coordinate activities carried out through pro24 grams under this subsection with activities carried 

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1 tered by the Secretary or the Secretary of Health 

2 and Human Services. 

3 ‘‘(9) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

4 ‘‘(A) EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATOR.—The 

5 term ‘early childhood educator’’ means a person 

6 providing, or employed by a provider of, non7 residential child care services (including center8 based, family-based, and in-home child care 

9 services) that is legally operating under State 

10 law, and that complies with applicable State 

11 and local requirements for the provision of child 

12 care services to children at any age from birth 

13 through the age at which a child may start kin14 dergarten in that State. 

15 ‘‘(B) HIGH-NEED COMMUNITY.— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘high17 need community’ means— 

18 ‘‘(I) a political subdivision of a 

19 State, or a portion of a political sub20 division of a State, in which at least 

21 50 percent of the children are from 

22 low-income families; or 

23 ‘‘(II) a political subdivision of a 

24 State that is among the 10 percent of 

25 political subdivisions of the State havVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:59 Apr 07, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00078 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S882.IS S882

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1 ing the greatest numbers of such chil2 dren. 

3 ‘‘(ii) DETERMINATION.—In deter4 mining which communities are described in 

5 clause (i), the Secretary shall use such 

6 data as the Secretary determines are most 

7 accurate and appropriate. 

8 ‘‘(C) LOW-INCOME FAMILY.—The term 

9 ‘low-income family’ means a family with an in10 come below the poverty line for the most recent 

11 fiscal year for which satisfactory data are avail12 able.’’. 

13 SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. 

14 Section 9101(34) of the Elementary and Secondary 

15 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801(34)) is amended 

16 to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(34) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—The 

18 term ‘professional development’ means job-embedded 

19 comprehensive, sustained, targeted, intensive, evi20 dence-based, and classroom-focused support and ca21 pacity-building for teachers, principals, and other 

22 educators that strengthens classroom practice and 

23 increases student learning, which includes activities 

24 that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) foster collective responsibility for im2 proved student learning; 

3 ‘‘(B) are designed and implemented in a 

4 manner that increases leadership opportunities 

5 for teachers and other educators, and increases 

6 the effectiveness of teachers, principals, and 

7 other educators in improving student learning 

8 and strengthening classroom practice, which 

9 may include expanding opportunities for teach10 ers to participate in professional enhancement 

11 activities through a nationally recognized stand12 ards-based certificate or advanced credential; 

13 ‘‘(C) analyze and use— 

14 ‘‘(i) real-time data and information 

15 collected from— 

16 ‘‘(I) student learning; 

17 ‘‘(II) classroom practice; and 

18 ‘‘(III) the State’s longitudinal 

19 data system; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) other relevant data collected by 

21 the school or local educational agency; 

22 ‘‘(D) are aligned with— 

23 ‘‘(i) rigorous State student academic 

24 achievement standards developed under 


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1 section 1111(b)(1) and State early learn2 ing guidelines; 

3 ‘‘(ii) related academic and school im4 provement goals of the school, local edu5 cational agency, and statewide curriculum; 

6 ‘‘(iii) statewide and local curricula; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(iv) rigorous standards of profes9 sional practice and development; and 

10 ‘‘(E) include ongoing, job-embedded oppor11 tunities determined by established collaborative 

12 teams of teachers, principals, and other edu13 cators in which teams engage in a continuous 

14 cycle of professional learning and improvement 

15 that— 

16 ‘‘(i) identifies, reviews, and analyzes— 

17 ‘‘(I) student learning, including 

18 gaps in performance; 

19 ‘‘(II) classroom practice; and 

20 ‘‘(III) measures of school climate, 

21 including staff, students, and parent 

22 and family feedback; 

23 ‘‘(ii) define a clear set of educator 

24 learning goals to improve school climate 

25 and strengthen classroom practice based 


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1 on the rigorous analysis of evidence of stu2 dent learning and evidence of classroom 

3 practice; 

4 ‘‘(iii) develop and implement coherent, 

5 sustained, targeted, and evidenced-based 

6 strategies to meet such goals (including 

7 through instructional coaching, lesson 

8 study, and study groups organized at the 

9 school, team, or individual levels); 

10 ‘‘(iv) provides learning opportunities 

11 for teachers to collectively develop and re12 fine student learning goals and develop in13 structional strategies to support students 

14 in meeting those goals; 

15 ‘‘(v) provides opportunities for teach16 ers to develop, implement, and utilize the 

17 data from formative assessments to inform 

18 classroom practice; 

19 ‘‘(vi) provides an effective mechanism 

20 to support the transfer of new knowledge 

21 and skills to the classroom (including uti22 lizing teacher leaders, instructional coach23 es, school librarians, and content experts 

24 to support such transfer); 


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1 ‘‘(vii) provides opportunities for fol2 low-up, observation, and formative feed3 back and assessment of the teacher’s class4 room practice, on a regular basis and in a 

5 manner that allows each such teacher to 

6 identify areas of classroom practice that 

7 need to be strengthened, refined, and im8 proved; 

9 ‘‘(viii) regularly assesses the effective10 ness of the support, and uses such assess11 ments to inform ongoing improvements, 

12 in— 

13 ‘‘(I) improving student learning; 

14 ‘‘(II) strengthening classroom 

15 practice; and 

16 ‘‘(III) improving school climate; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(ix) supports the recruiting, hiring, 

19 retaining, and training of profession ready 

20 teachers, including teachers who become li21 censed through State and local alternative 

22 routes to certification or licensure.’’. 

Æ 


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