I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1578 
To provide grants to States to ensure that all students in the middle grades 
are taught an academically rigorous curriculum with effective supports 
so that students complete the middle grades prepared for success in 
secondary school and postsecondary endeavors, to improve State and 
local educational agency policies and programs relating to the academic 
achievement of students in the middle grades, to develop and implement 
effective middle grades models for struggling students, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 14, 2023 
Mr. GRIJALVA (for himself and Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 
Workforce 
A BILL 
To provide grants to States to ensure that all students in 
the middle grades are taught an academically rigorous 
curriculum with effective supports so that students com-
plete the middle grades prepared for success in secondary 
school and postsecondary endeavors, to improve State 
and local educational agency policies and programs relat-
ing to the academic achievement of students in the mid-
dle grades, to develop and implement effective middle 
grades models for struggling students, and for other 
purposes. 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Success in the Middle 
Act of 2023’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Research shows that Federal funding for 
students in middle school and high school, particu-
larly grades 6 through 12, is significantly lower than 
funding for elementary and postsecondary students. 
(2) International comparisons indicate that stu-
dents in the United States do not start out behind 
students of other nations in mathematics and 
science, but that they fall behind by the end of the 
middle grades. 
(3) In reading, 31 percent of students in grade 
8 read at or above the proficient level on the 2022 
National Assessment of Educational Progress. Aver-
age reading scores were lower at grade 8 for most 
racial/ethnic groups compared to 2019. 
(4) In mathematics, 27 percent of students in 
grade 8 displayed skills at or above the proficient 
level on the 2022 National Assessment of Edu-
cational Progress. 
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(5) Evidence demonstrates unfinished learning 
for the Nation’s students, including students from 
the middle grades, resulting from the COVID–19 
pandemic. Black and Hispanic students, in par-
ticular, were less likely to have access to the pre-
requisites of learning—devices, internet access, and 
live contact with teachers. Left unaddressed, these 
opportunity gaps could translate into wider achieve-
ment gaps. 
(6) By grade 6, a student who attends school 
less than 80 percent of the time, receives unsatisfac-
tory marks for mild but sustained misbehavior, or 
who fails English or mathematics, has only a 10 to 
20 percent chance of graduating on time. Without 
effective interventions and proper supports, these 
students are at risk of subsequent failure in sec-
ondary school, or of dropping out. 
(7) According to Gallup, student engagement is 
strong at the end of elementary school, with nearly 
3⁄4 of 5th graders (74%) reporting high levels of en-
gagement. But similar surveys have shown a gradual 
and steady decline in engagement for older students, 
with approximately 1⁄2 of students in middle school 
reporting high levels of engagement. 
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(8) Student transitions from elementary school 
to the middle grades and to secondary school are 
often complicated by poor curriculum alignment, in-
adequate counseling services, and unsatisfactory 
sharing of student performance and academic 
achievement data between grades. 
(9) Middle grades improvement strategies 
should be tailored based on a variety of performance 
indicators and data, so that— 
(A) educators can create and implement 
successful school improvement strategies to ad-
dress the needs of the middle grades; and 
(B) teachers can provide effective instruc-
tion and adequate assistance to meet the needs 
of at-risk students. 
(10) Middle grade teachers face unique chal-
lenges due to the increased individual subject matter 
focus of the curriculum combined with the physical, 
intellectual, and emotional changes faced by early 
adolescents transitioning from elementary school to 
high school. 
(11) Combining measures of academic achieve-
ment and motivation, social engagement, and self- 
regulation—the behavioral domains essential for suc-
cess across the school and work continuum—pro-
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vides a more holistic picture of students, including 
their likelihood of enrolling in an institution of high-
er education following high school graduation. This 
information, available in middle school, allows for 
early identification of and intervention with students 
who may be less likely to complete secondary school 
and attend an institution of higher education. 
(12) Appropriate academic accommodations, 
age-appropriate discipline, access to assistive tech-
nology, and evidence-based interventions must be 
used with students with disabilities, particularly in 
the middle grades, as— 
(A) the dropout rate for learning disabled 
students is more than twice the dropout rate of 
all students; 
(B) nearly half of young adults with learn-
ing disabilities have been involved in the justice 
system; and 
(C) students with disabilities have a grad-
uation rate nearly 20 percentage points lower 
than the graduation rate for general education 
students. 
(13) Local educational agencies and State edu-
cational agencies often do not have the capacity to 
provide support for school improvement strategies. 
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Successful models do exist for turning around low- 
performing middle grades, and Federal support 
should be provided to increase the capacity to apply 
promising practices based on evidence from success-
ful schools. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ESEA DEFINITIONS.—The terms ‘‘edu-
cational service agency’’, ‘‘elementary school’’, 
‘‘English learner’’, ‘‘evidence-based’’, ‘‘local edu-
cational agency’’, ‘‘outlying area’’, ‘‘high school’’, 
‘‘secondary school’’, and ‘‘State educational agency’’ 
have the meanings given the terms in section 8101 
of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 
(2) 
CHRONIC
ABSENTEEISM.—The 
term 
‘‘chronic absenteeism’’ means the percentage of indi-
vidual students missing 10 percent, or more, of the 
days of school in a school year. 
(3) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti-
ty’’ means a partnership that includes— 
(A) not less than 1 eligible local edu-
cational agency; and 
(B) One of the following: 
(i) An institution of higher education. 
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(ii) An educational service agency. 
(iii) A nonprofit organization with 
demonstrated expertise in high-quality 
middle grades intervention. 
(4) ELIGIBLE LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.— 
The term ‘‘eligible local educational agency’’ means 
a local educational agency that serves not less than 
1 eligible school. 
(5) ELIGIBLE
SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘eligible 
school’’ means an elementary school or secondary 
school that contains not less than 2 successive 
grades of grades 5 through 8 and for which— 
(A) a high proportion of the middle grades 
students attending such school will attend a 
secondary school with a graduation rate of 67 
percent or less; 
(B) more than 25 percent of the students 
who finish grade 6 at such school, or the ear-
liest middle grade level at the school, exhibit 1 
or more of the key risk factors and early risk 
identification signs, including— 
(i) student attendance below 90 per-
cent; 
(ii) a failing grade in a mathematics 
or reading or language arts course; 
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