149 
‘‘(o) To support enhanced early language and 
preliteracy development of children in Head Start pro-
grams, and to provide the children with high-quality oral 
language skills, and environments that are rich in lit-
erature, in which to acquire language and preliteracy skills, 
each Head Start agency shall ensure that— 
‘‘(1) all of the agency’s Head Start teachers re-
ceive ongoing training in language and emergent lit-
eracy (referred to in this subsection as ‘literacy train-
ing’), and including appropriate curricula and as-
sessment to improve instruction and learning; 
‘‘(2) such literacy training shall include training 
in methods to promote vocabulary development and 
phonological awareness (including phonemic aware-
ness) in a developmentally, culturally, and linguis-
tically appropriate manner and support children’s 
development in their home language; 
‘‘(3) the literacy training shall include training 
in how to work with parents to enhance positive lan-
guage and early literacy development at home; 
‘‘(4) the literacy training shall include specific 
methods to best address the needs of children who are 
limited English proficient; and 
‘‘(5) the literacy training shall include training 
on how to best address the language and literacy 
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needs of children with disabilities, including training 
on how to work with specialists in language develop-
ment. 
‘‘(p) The Secretary is encouraged to contract, on a 
competitive basis, with an institution of higher education 
(as defined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 
1965) to develop an on-line graduate-level professional de-
velopment program with the goal of improving the leader-
ship of those working in Head Start programs and improv-
ing teacher quality and the capacity of effective Head Start 
teachers. 
‘‘(q) INDOOR AIR QUALITY.—The Secretary shall con-
sult with experts on issues of air quality related to chil-
dren’s health and inform Head Start agencies of existing 
programs or combination of programs that provide methods 
for improving indoor air quality. 
‘‘(r) DEMONSTRATION FOR CAREER LADDER PART-
NERSHIPS WITH TRIBAL COLLEGES AND HISPANIC-SERV-
ING INSTITUTIONS.— 
‘‘(1) TRIBAL
COLLEGE
CAREER
LADDER
DEM-
ONSTRATION PROGRAM.—The Secretary is authorized 
to award demonstration grants, for periods of not less 
than 5 years, to tribal colleges and universities to— 
‘‘(A) implement education programs that 
include education concerning tribal culture and 
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language and increase the number of associate, 
baccalaureate, and graduate degrees in early 
childhood and related fields that are earned by 
Indian Head Start agency staff members, par-
ents of children served by such an agency, and 
members of the tribal community involved; 
‘‘(B) develop and implement the programs 
under subparagraph (A) in technology-mediated 
formats, including providing the programs 
through such means as distance learning and use 
of advanced technology, as appropriate; and 
‘‘(C) provide technology literacy programs 
for Indian Head Start agency staff members and 
children and families of children served by such 
an agency. 
‘‘(2) HISPANIC-SERVING
INSTITUTIONS
CAREER 
LADDER DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.—The Secretary 
is authorized to award demonstration grants, for pe-
riods of not less than 5 years, to Hispanic-serving in-
stitutions to— 
‘‘(A) provide assistance for stipends and 
costs related to tuition, fees, and books for enroll-
ing Head Start agency staff members and par-
ents of children served by such an agency in 
courses required to complete the degree and cer-
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tification requirements to become bilingual 
teachers in early childhood education and related 
fields; 
‘‘(B) develop career ladder program cur-
ricula to increase the number of associate’s, 
bachelor’s, and graduate degrees earned by Head 
Start agency staff who have the linguistic skills 
and expertise to teach in programs serving a 
large number of limited English proficient chil-
dren and parents of children served by such an 
agency; and 
‘‘(C) other activities to upgrade the skills 
and qualifications of noncertified educational 
personnel to meet the professional standards in 
section 648A(a)(1), including certification and 
licensure as bilingual education teachers and 
other educational personnel who serve limited 
English proficient children. 
‘‘(3) REQUIREMENT.—Individuals who receive 
assistance under paragraphs (1) and (2) shall subse-
quently teach in a Head Start center for a period of 
time equivalent to the period for which they received 
assistance or repay the amount of funds.’’. 
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SEC. 18. STAFF QUALIFICATIONS AND DEVELOPMENT. 
Section 648A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9843a) 
is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘(a)’’ and all that follows 
through paragraph (2), and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(a) CLASSROOM TEACHERS.— 
‘‘(1) PROFESSIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—The Sec-
retary shall ensure that each Head Start classroom in 
a center-based program is assigned 1 teacher who has 
demonstrated competency to perform functions that 
include— 
‘‘(A) planning and implementing learning 
experiences that advance the intellectual and 
physical development of children, including im-
proving the readiness of children for school by 
developing their literacy, phonemic, and print 
awareness, their understanding and use of lan-
guage, their understanding and use of increas-
ingly complex and varied vocabulary, their ap-
preciation of books, their understanding of early 
math and early science, their problem solving 
abilities, and their approaches to learning; 
‘‘(B) establishing and maintaining a safe, 
healthy learning environment; 
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‘‘(C) supporting the social and emotional 
development of children; and 
‘‘(D) encouraging the involvement of the 
families of the children in a Head Start pro-
gram and supporting the development of rela-
tionships between children and their families. 
‘‘(2) DEGREE REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall en-
sure that not later than September 30, 2013, at 
least 50 percent of all Head Start teachers na-
tionwide in center-based programs have— 
‘‘(i) a baccalaureate, or advanced de-
gree in early childhood education; 
‘‘(ii) a baccalaureate or advanced de-
gree in a field related to early childhood 
education, with experience in teaching pre-
school children; or 
‘‘(iii) except that teachers providing 
services in migrant and seasonal Head 
Start classrooms that serve children under 
age 3 shall be required to meet the teacher 
requirements described in section 645A(h). 
‘‘(B) PROGRESS REPORT.— 
‘‘(i) On an annual basis, each Head 
Start agency shall provide to the Secretary 
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a report indicating the number and per-
centage of classroom instructors with child 
development/ early childhood education as-
sociate credentials and associate, bacca-
laureate, or advanced degrees, and number 
of classroom instructors who successfully 
transferred associate credit and completed a 
baccalaureate degree disaggregated by race, 
ethnicity, and proficiency in a language 
other than English, with a description of 
those languages. 
‘‘(ii) Not later than September 30, 
2008 the Secretary shall compile and trans-
mit reports received under (i) to the Com-
mittee on Education and Labor of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee 
on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 
of the Senate. 
‘‘(C) PROGRESS.—Each Head Start agency 
shall provide to the Secretary a report indicating 
the number and percentage of teachers and teach-
er’s aides with child development associate cre-
dentials and associate, baccalaureate, or ad-
vanced degrees. The Secretary shall compile all 
program reports and make them available to the 
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