I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3078 
To support after-school programs in rural areas of the United States by 
establishing a pilot program to assist communities establish, enhance, 
or expand rural after-school programs. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 26, 2009 
Mr. HARE (for himself and Mr. LUETKEMEYER) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor 
A BILL 
To support after-school programs in rural areas of the 
United States by establishing a pilot program to assist 
communities establish, enhance, or expand rural after- 
school programs. 
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 ‘‘Investment in Rural 
After-School Programs Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDING. 
Congress finds that— 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
(1) 21 percent of the children in the United 
States attend public schools in rural areas; 
(2) more than 14,000,000 school-age children 
(25 percent of all school-age children) are left alone 
after school, including more than 40,000 kinder-
gartners; 
(3) only 6,500,000 (11 percent) of children in 
kindergarten through twelfth grade participate in 
after-school 
programs, 
although 
an 
additional 
15,000,000 would participate if a quality program 
were available in the communities of the children; 
(4) in rural areas of the United States, 
2,500,000 children live in deep and persistent pov-
erty; 
(5) among children living in rural areas, 19 
percent live in poverty, compared to 15 percent 
among non-rural children; 
(6) rural schools have fewer financial resources 
than non-rural schools, largely as a result of dimin-
ished local property tax bases and inequitable dis-
tributions of State funds; 
(7) low literacy rates among parents in poor 
rural communities affect the early language develop-
ment and educational aspirations of children; 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
(8) children living in poverty experience less 
cognitive stimulation and enrichment than children 
living in middle-income households; 
(9) the poorer and more diverse the rural popu-
lation, the lower the scores of the students of the 
population are on the National Assessment of Edu-
cational Progress; 
(10) academic outcomes that are linked to 
after-school programs include— 
(A) better performance in school as meas-
ured by achievement test scores and grades; 
(B) better attitudes toward school and 
higher educational aspirations; 
(C) higher school attendance; and 
(D) less disciplinary action; 
(11) investing in after-school programs helps 
children in rural communities break out of the cycle 
of poverty and creates opportunities for at-risk 
youth; 
(12) in areas in which resources are limited, 
after-school programs are often the only source of 
supplemental enrichment in literacy, nutrition edu-
cation, technology, and preparation for college en-
trance exams; 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
(13) children attending rural schools have the 
lowest median per-student funding for after-school 
programs under the 21st century community learn-
ing center program under part B of title IV of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 7171 et seq.), as compared to children 
attending urban and suburban schools; 
(14) after-school program providers in rural 
communities face unique barriers that include— 
(A) higher transportation costs; 
(B) fewer economies of scale, because of 
the smaller population base, which results in 
less funding per child; and 
(C) fewer trained staff and community- 
based organizations with whom to partner; 
(15) in the 30 years before the date of enact-
ment of this Act— 
(A) the percentage of children in the 
United States who are overweight has more 
than doubled; and 
(B) the number of teenagers who are over-
weight has nearly tripled; 
(16) rural, low-income children represent the 
highest obesity group among all children in the 
United States; and 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
(17) after-school programs provide— 
(A) much-needed opportunities to promote 
and support healthy lifestyles in youth in addi-
tion to constructive learning environments; and 
(B) effective venues for improving nutri-
tion, nutrition education, and physical activity. 
SEC. 3. AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS. 
Subtitle D of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De-
velopment Act is amended by inserting after section 365 
(7 U.S.C. 2008) the following: 
‘‘SEC. 366. AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS. 
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to en-
hance after-school programs in rural areas by helping 
communities— 
‘‘(1) to establish after-school programs; and 
‘‘(2) to improve existing programs by over-
coming barriers to service. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) AFTER-SCHOOL
PROGRAM.—The term 
‘after-school program’ means a program that carries 
out a broad array of activities during periods when 
school is not in session (such as before school, after 
school, or during summer recess and other vacation 
periods) that advance student academic achievement 
and promote positive youth development. 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en-
tity’ means a local educational agency (as such term 
is defined in section 9101 of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
7801)), educational service agency, community-based 
organization, another public or private entity, or a 
consortium of 2 or more such agencies, organiza-
tions, or entities. 
‘‘(3) RURAL
AREA.—The term ‘rural area’ 
means an area that is served by an elementary or 
secondary school that is designated with a school lo-
cale code of Distant Town, Remote Town, Fringe 
Rural, Distant Rural, or Remote Rural, as deter-
mined by the Secretary of Education. 
‘‘(c) GRANTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make 
grants to eligible entities to improve, expand, or es-
tablish after-school programs in rural areas. 
‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—Each grant under this 
section shall be in an amount of not less than 
$25,000. 
‘‘(d) DURATION.— 
‘‘(1) TERM OF GRANT.—The term of a grant 
under this section may not be for less than 3 years. 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
‘‘(2) RENEWAL.—The Secretary may renew a 
grant under this section for a period of not less than 
3 years, based on the performance of the eligible en-
tity during the previous grant term. 
‘‘(e) USES.—As a condition of the receipt of a grant 
under this section, an eligible entity shall use the grant 
to fund projects and activities described in subsection (c), 
including transportation, professional development, train-
ing, recruitment and retention of staff, increasing access 
to technology, and planning. 
‘‘(f) EVALUATION.—The Secretary may use not more 
than 1 percent of the funds under this section— 
‘‘(1) to conduct evaluations of the effectiveness 
of programs and activities assisted under subsection 
(c); and 
‘‘(2) to disseminate the results of those evalua-
tions for the purpose of refining, improving, and 
strengthening programs. 
‘‘(g) OUTREACH, TRAINING, AND TECHNICAL AS-
SISTANCE.—The Secretary may use not more than 3 per-
cent of the funds made available to carry out this sec-
tion— 
‘‘(1) to conduct outreach, including bidders’ 
conferences, to ensure widespread knowledge of the 
availability of resources described in subsection (c); 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
‘‘(2) to disseminate information on best prac-
tices and successful program models for serving chil-
dren and youth in rural areas; and 
‘‘(3) to provide capacity building, training, and 
technical assistance to after-school programs and 
providers in rural areas. 
‘‘(h) APPLICATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—To be considered for a 
grant under this section, each eligible entity shall 
submit to the Secretary an application at such time, 
in such manner, and accompanied by such informa-
tion as the Secretary may require. 
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—An application submitted 
pursuant to paragraph (1) shall include— 
‘‘(A) a description of the after-school pro-
gram to be funded, including— 
‘‘(i) an assurance that the program 
will take place in a safe and easily acces-
sible facility; 
‘‘(ii) a description of how children and 
youth participating in the program will 
travel safely between the program site and 
home; 
‘‘(iii) a description of how the eligible 
entity will disseminate information about 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
the program, including the location of the 
program, to the community in a manner 
that is understandable and accessible; 
‘‘(iv)(I) a description of the services to 
be provided to children and youth, which 
may include a broad array of activities, 
such as— 
‘‘(aa) academic enrichment and 
youth development activities; 
‘‘(bb) drug and violence preven-
tion programs; 
‘‘(cc) counseling programs; 
‘‘(dd) art, music, physical fitness, 
and recreational programs; 
‘‘(ee) technology education pro-
grams; 
‘‘(ff) character education pro-
grams; and 
‘‘(gg) service-learning programs; 
‘‘(II) the roles and responsibilities of 
the partners in providing the services; and 
‘‘(III) how the services enhance an ex-
isting after-school program; and 
‘‘(v) an assurance that the program 
will provide a nutritious snack or meal that 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
meets nutrition standards established by 
the Secretary; 
‘‘(B) an assurance that the proposed pro-
gram was developed, and will be carried out, in 
active collaboration with the schools the stu-
dents attend; 
‘‘(C) an assurance that funds provided 
under this section will be used to increase the 
level of State, local, and other non-Federal 
funds that would, in the absence of funds under 
this section, be made available for programs 
and activities authorized under this section, and 
in no case supplant Federal, State, local, or 
non-Federal funds; 
‘‘(D) a description of the partnership be-
tween a local educational agency, a community- 
based organization, or another public entity or 
private entity, if applicable; and 
‘‘(E) such additional assurances as the 
Secretary determines to be necessary to ensure 
compliance with this section. 
‘‘(i) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall give priority to 
applications that— 
‘‘(1) propose partnerships between 2 or more el-
igible entities; or 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00010
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
‘‘(2) propose that a majority of the students 
participating in the after-school program are eligible 
for free or reduced price school meals under the 
Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 
U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) and section 4 of the Child Nu-
trition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773). 
‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this sec-
tion— 
‘‘(1) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; 
‘‘(2) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2011; and 
‘‘(3) such sums as are necessary for each of fis-
cal years 2012 through 2014.’’. 
Æ 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:17 Jul 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00011
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\H3078.IH
H3078
wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS