cators to teach to those standards, and have held
schools accountable for the achievement of all stu-
dents against those standards.
‘‘(3) Increased teachers’ knowledge of academic
content and effective teaching skills is associated
with increases in student achievement. While other
factors also influence learning, teacher quality makes
a critical difference in how well students learn,
across all categories of students. For example, recent
research has found that teachers’ expertise has a
greater impact on students’ achievement in reading
than any other in-school factor.
‘‘(4) A crucial component of an effective strat-
egy for achieving high standards is ensuring,
through professional development, that all teachers
provide their students with challenging learning ex-
periences in the core academic subjects.
‘‘(5) Recent research has found that teachers
who participate in sustained curriculum-centered
professional development are much more likely to re-
port that their teaching is aligned with high stand-
ards than are teachers who have not received such
training.
‘‘(6) Research has found that high-quality pro-
fessional development is—
‘‘(A) linked to high standards: professional
development activities should improve the abil-
ity of teachers to help all students, including fe-
males, minorities, children with disabilities, chil-
dren with limited English proficiency, and eco-
nomically disadvantaged children, reach high
State academic standards;
‘‘(B) focused on content: professional de-
velopment activities should advance teacher un-
derstanding of 1 or more of the core academic
subject areas and effective instructional strate-
gies for improving student achievement in those
areas;
‘‘(C) collaborative: professional develop-
ment activities should involve collaborative
groups of teachers, principals, administrators,
and other school staff from the same school or
district;
‘‘(D) sustained: professional development
activities should be of sufficient duration to
have a positive and lasting impact on classroom
instruction and, to the greatest extent possible,
should include follow-up and school-based sup-
port such as coaching or study groups;
‘‘(E) embedded in a plan: professional de-
velopment activities should be embedded in
school and district-wide plans designed to raise
student achievement to State academic stand-
ards; and
‘‘(F) informed by research: professional de-
velopment activities should be based on the best
available research on teaching and learning.
‘‘(7) Students who attend schools with large
numbers of poor children are less likely to be taught
by teachers who have met all State requirements for
certification or licensure or who have a solid aca-
demic background in the subject matter they are
teaching.
‘‘(8) Despite the fact that every year the Na-
tion’s colleges and universities produce many more
teachers than are hired and that over 2,000,000 in-
dividuals who possess education degrees are cur-
rently engaged in activities other than teaching,
many school districts experience difficulty recruiting
and hiring enough fully qualified teachers. Among
the reasons researchers have found for districts hir-
ing less than fully qualified teachers are—
‘‘(A) cumbersome and poorly coordinated
State licensing procedures and local hiring
practices;
‘‘(B) the lack of reciprocity of teacher cre-
dentials, pensions, and credited years of experi-
ence across State and school district lines;
‘‘(C) a lack of support for new teachers,
such as high-quality mentoring programs, that
can help reduce the attrition rate and the num-
ber of new teachers that school districts must
hire every year; and
‘‘(D) compensation systems that do not
adequately reward teachers for improving their
knowledge and skills.
‘‘SEC. 2002. PURPOSE.
‘‘The purpose of this part is to support the improve-
ment of classroom instruction, so that all students are able
to achieve to challenging State content and student per-
formance standards in the core academic subjects, by pro-
viding assistance to State and local educational agencies
in their efforts to recruit and retain a fully qualified in-
structional staff by—
‘‘(1) supporting States and local educational
agencies in continuing the task of developing chal-
lenging content and student performance standards
and aligned assessments, revising curricula and
teacher certification requirements, and using chal-
lenging content and student performance standards
to improve teaching and learning;
‘‘(2) assisting high-poverty local educational
agencies and low-performing local educational agen-
cies that have the greatest difficulty in recruiting
and retaining fully qualified teachers;
‘‘(3) supporting States and local educational
agencies in recruiting and retaining teachers in sub-
ject areas in which the State has determined there
to be a shortage of teachers;
‘‘(4) ensuring that all instructional staff have
the subject matter knowledge and teaching skills
necessary to teach effectively in all subjects in which
they provide instruction;
‘‘(5) providing assistance to new teachers dur-
ing their first 3 years in the classroom; and
‘‘(6) ensuring that teachers, principals, admin-
istrators, and other school staff have access to pro-
fessional development that is aligned with chal-
lenging State content and student performance
standards in the core academic subjects.
‘‘SEC. 2003. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
‘‘(a) SUBPART 2.—For the purpose of carrying out
subpart 2, there are authorized to be appropriated
$1,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2000, $1,250,000,000 for
fiscal year 2001, $1,500,000,000 for fiscal year 2002,
$1,750,000,000 for fiscal year 2003, and $2,000,000,000
for fiscal year 2004.
‘‘(b) SUBPART 3.—For the purpose of carrying out
subpart 3, there are authorized to be appropriated
$40,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and such sums as may
be necessary for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2004.
‘‘Subpart 2—State and Local Activities
‘‘SEC. 2011. ALLOCATIONS TO STATES.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of each State that
in accordance with section 2013 submits to the Secretary
an application for a fiscal year, and has that application
approved under section 2013(c), the Secretary shall make
a grant for the year to the State for the uses specified
in section 2012. The grant shall consist of the allocation
determined for the State under subsection (b) or (c).
‘‘(b) RESERVATION OF FUNDS.—From the amount
made available to carry out this subpart for any fiscal
year, the Secretary shall reserve—
‘‘(1) 1⁄2 of 1 percent to provide assistance to the
Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, to
be distributed among these outlying areas on the
basis of their relative need, as determined by the
Secretary in accordance with the purpose of this
part; and
‘‘(2) 1⁄2 of 1 percent for the Secretary of the In-
terior for activities under this subpart for teachers,
principals, administrators, and other school staff in
schools operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian
Affairs.
‘‘(c) STATE ALLOCATIONS.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—After reserving funds
under subsection (b), the Secretary shall allocate the
remaining amount made available to carry out this
subpart for any fiscal year among the 50 States, the
District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico as follows:
‘‘(A) 50 percent of such amount shall be
allocated among such States on the basis of
their relative populations of individuals aged 5
through 17, as determined by the Secretary on
the basis of the most recent satisfactory data.
‘‘(B) 50 percent of such amount shall be
allocated among such States in proportion to
the number of children, aged 5 to 17, who re-
side within the State from families with in-
comes below the poverty line (as defined by the
Office of Management and Budget and revised
annually in accordance with section 673(2) of
the Community Services Block Grant Act (42
U.S.C. 9902(2))) applicable to a family of the
size involved for the most recent fiscal year for
which satisfactory data are available, compared
to the number of such individuals who reside in
all such States for that fiscal year.
‘‘(2) MINIMUM ALLOCATION.—No State receiv-
ing an allocation under paragraph (1) may receive
less than 1⁄4 of 1 percent of the total amount made
available to carry out this subpart for any fiscal year
and not reserved under subsection (b).
‘‘SEC. 2012. WITHIN-STATE ALLOCATIONS.
‘‘(a) SUBGRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN-
CIES.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Each State receiving a
grant under this subpart shall expend at least 92
percent of the amount of the funds provided under
the grant for the purpose of making subgrants to
local educational agencies as follows:
‘‘(A) subject to paragraph (2), 80 percent
of such amount shall be allocated as follows:
‘‘(i) 60 percent shall be allocated
among local educational agencies having an
approved application under section 2017 in
proportion to the number of children, aged
5 to 17, who reside within the jurisdiction
served by the agency from families with in-
comes below the poverty line (as defined by
the Office of Management and Budget as
revised annually in accordance with section
673(2) of the Community Services Block
Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2))) applicable
to a family of the size involved for the
most recent fiscal year for which satisfac-
tory data are available, compared to the
number of such children who reside in all
such jurisdictions for that fiscal year.
‘‘(ii) 40 percent shall be allocated
among local educational agencies having an
approved application under section 2017
on the basis of their relative populations of
children aged 5 to 17, as determined by
the Secretary on the basis of the most re-
cent satisfactory data.
‘‘(B) 20 percent of such amount shall be
used to provide additional funds to local edu-
cational agencies, and partnerships described in
section 2016(b)(1), having an approved applica-
tion under section 2018 in accordance with
such section.
‘‘(2) 
MINIMUM
AMOUNT.—Notwithstanding
paragraph (1)(A), a local educational agency may
not receive an allocation under such paragraph for
any fiscal year that is less than its allocation for fis-
cal year 1999 under section 2203(1) of this Act (as
in effect on the day before the date of the enactment
of the Smart Classrooms Act). If the amount avail-
able for allocations under paragraph (1)(A) is insuf-
ficient to satisfy the preceding sentence, each alloca-
tion under such paragraph shall be ratably reduced.
‘‘(b) SUBGRANTS TO PARTNERSHIPS.—Each State
receiving a grant under this subpart shall expend at least
2 percent of the amount of the funds provided under the
grant for the purpose of making subgrants to partnerships
under section 2016.
‘‘(c) STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.—Each State receiv-
ing a grant under this part may expend not more than
6 percent of the amount of the funds provided under the
grant for one or more of the State-level activities described
in section 2015.
‘‘(d) ADMINISTRATION AND EVALUATIONS.—Subject
to section 2023, each State receiving a grant under this
subpart or part C shall expend not more than 1⁄6 of its
allocation under subsection (c) for—
‘‘(1) its costs of administering this subpart and
part C;
‘‘(2) evaluations of the effectiveness of activities
under this subpart and part C, including effective-
ness as measured using the indicators of program
performance described in section 2401; and
‘‘(3) reports required under section 2208, if the
State receives funds under part C.
‘‘SEC. 2013. STATE APPLICATION.
‘‘(a) APPLICATIONS REQUIRED.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State desiring to re-
ceive its allocation under this subpart shall submit,
through its State educational agency, an application
to the Secretary at such time, in such form, and
containing such information as the Secretary reason-
ably may require.
‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—The State educational
agency shall develop the State application—
‘‘(A) in consultation with the State agency
for higher education, community-based and
other nonprofit organizations of demonstrated
effectiveness in professional development, and
institutions of higher education; and
‘‘(B) with the extensive participation of
teachers, teacher educators, school administra-
tors, and content specialists.
‘‘(b) CONTENTS.—Each such application shall in-
clude the following:
‘‘(1) A description of how the State educational
agency will use all funds received under this subpart
to implement State plans or policies that support
comprehensive standards-based education reform
through the following strategies:
‘‘(A) Supporting the alignment of curricula
and assessments with challenging State content
and student performance standards.
‘‘(B) Supporting local educational agencies
in their efforts to recruit and retain fully quali-
fied teachers, with special consideration given to
recruiting highly qualified teachers from minor-
ity and other historically underrepresented
groups, including bilingual teachers.
‘‘(C) Ensuring that teachers employed by
local educational agencies are proficient in con-
tent knowledge and teaching skills in all sub-
jects in which they provide instruction.
‘‘(D) Providing professional development,
aligned with State content and student per-
formance standards, in core academic subjects.
‘‘(2) A plan for ensuring that all teachers
teaching in schools served under this part are fully
qualified not later than November 1, 2003.
‘‘(3) An assurance that teacher aides or other
paraprofessionals who are not fully qualified teach-
ers provide instruction to students only under the di-
rect and immediate supervision of a fully qualified
teacher, and have received the professional develop-
ment necessary to perform their duties.
‘‘(4) A description of the process the State edu-
cational agency will use to make competitive awards
to local educational agencies under section 2018, in-
cluding a description of—
‘‘(A) the State’s criteria for classifying
local educational agencies as among those hav-
ing the greatest need for services provided
under this subpart and its justification for
those criteria;
‘‘(B) the State’s strategies for ensuring
that local educational agencies that have his-
torically had little success in competing for
funds are provided a reasonable opportunity to
compete for subgrants;
‘‘(C) the State’s criteria for determining
the amounts that it will award to recipients and
the criteria for providing noncompetitive renew-
als of subgrants; and
‘‘(D) the technical assistance that the
State educational agency will provide, under
section 2018(e)(2), to local educational agencies
that it identifies as having the greatest need for
services and that fail to receive an award under
section 2018.
‘‘(5) A description of how the State educational
agency will ensure that all recipients of funds under
this subpart will report on their level of performance
based on the program performance indicators de-
scribed in section 2401.
‘‘(6) A list of any additional indicators of pro-
gram performance, beyond those described in section
2401, on which the State educational agency and the
State agency for higher education will require recipi-
ents to report.
‘‘(7) A set of specific, numerical, annual goals
for each of the performance indicators required
under section 2401 and for any additional indicators
that the State elects to use for measuring the
progress of the State and local educational agencies
receiving funds under this subpart.
‘‘(8) A description of how the State will coordi-
nate professional development activities authorized
under this subpart with professional development ac-
tivities provided under other Federal, State, and
local programs, including those authorized under
title I, title III, title IV, part A of title VII, and
(where applicable) the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act and the Carl D. Perkins Vocational
and Technical Education Act. The application shall
also describe the comprehensive strategy that the
State will take as part of such coordination effort,
to ensure that teachers are trained in the utilization
of technology so that technology and its applications
are effectively used in the classroom to improve
teaching and learning in all curriculum and content
areas, as appropriate.
‘‘(c) APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall, using a peer-
review process, approve a State application if it meets the
requirements of this section and holds reasonable promise
of achieving the purpose described in section 2002.
‘‘SEC. 2014. STATE ACCOUNTABILITY.
‘‘(a) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Each State educational
agency that receives funds under this subpart and part
C shall, beginning in fiscal year 2002, annually compile,
publish, submit to the Secretary, and distribute to the
public, a report including the following information:
‘‘(1) The percentage of teachers teaching in the
State who have not met State qualifications and li-
censing criteria for the grade levels and subject
areas in which they provide instruction.
‘‘(2) The percentage of teachers teaching in the
State under emergency or other provisional status
through which State qualifications or licensing cri-
teria have been waived.
‘‘(3) The percentage of teachers teaching in the
State who do not hold a postsecondary degree with
a major in the subject areas in which they provide
instruction.
‘‘(4) The average class size.
‘‘(5) The percentage of teachers with certifi-
cation from the National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards.
‘‘(6) Information on the progress of recipients
of subgrants under this subpart, measured based on
the program performance indicators described in
section 2041 and any additional indicators included
in the State’s application.
‘‘(7) Such other information as the Secretary
may reasonably require.
‘‘(b) DISAGGREGATED DATA.—Data collected for the
purpose of carrying out this section shall be disaggregated
by State, local educational agency, and school.
‘‘SEC. 2015. STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.
‘‘Each State shall use funds it reserves under section
2012(c) to carry out activities described in its approved
application that promote high-quality classroom instruc-
tion, such as—
‘‘(1) supporting the continued improvement of
State content and student performance standards
and assessments aligned with those standards;
‘‘(2) providing technical assistance and other
services to increase the capacity of local educational
agencies and schools to develop and implement sys-
temic local improvement plans, implement State and
local assessments, and develop curricula consistent
with State content and performance standards;
‘‘(3) supporting the development and implemen-
tation, at the local educational agency and school-
building level, of improved systems for recruiting, se-
lecting, hiring, mentoring, supporting, evaluating,
and rewarding principals and fully qualified teach-
ers;
‘‘(4) redesigning and strengthening professional
licensure systems for educators;
‘‘(5) developing performance-based assessment
systems for full teacher licensure;
‘‘(6) establishing, expanding, or improving rig-
orous alternative routes to State certification or li-
censure that lead to certification within 2 years and
require applicants to meet the same standards and
pass the same tests as other applicants;
‘‘(7) developing or strengthening assessments to
test the content knowledge and teaching skills of
new teachers;
‘‘(8) developing and implementing professional
development opportunities for teachers, principals,
administrators, and other school staff based on
State content and student performance standards;
‘‘(9) operating a teacher academy that estab-
lishes and demonstrates models for local educational
agencies to improve teaching and learning through
activities such as—
‘‘(A) using master teachers to mentor and
train student teachers; and
‘‘(B) providing ongoing professional devel-
opment opportunities and support for teachers;
‘‘(10) providing professional development pro-
grams that enable teachers to effectively commu-
nicate with parents in the education process to sup-
port classroom instruction and work effectively with
parent volunteers;
‘‘(11) executing policies and practices that will
ensure that low-income and minority students are
not taught by emergency certified or unqualified
teachers at rates higher than other students; and
‘‘(12) increasing the portability of teacher pen-
sions and reciprocity of teaching credentials across
State lines.
‘‘SEC. 2016. SUBGRANTS TO PARTNERSHIPS.
‘‘(a) ADMINISTRATION.—From the funds made avail-
able to it under section 2012(b) for any fiscal year, a State
agency for higher education may use not more than 5 per-
cent for its expenses in administering this section, includ-
ing conducting evaluations and reporting under subsection
(g).
‘‘(b) SUBGRANTS TO PARTNERSHIPS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(A) PARTNERSHIPS.—For the purpose of
providing professional development to elemen-
tary and secondary school teachers in a local
educational agency that is both a high-poverty
local educational agency and a low-performing
local educational agency, a State agency for
higher education, subject to subsection (a) and
in conjunction with the State educational agen-
cy, shall use the funds made available to it
under section 2012(b) for any fiscal year to
make subgrants to partnerships consisting of—
‘‘(i) one or more institutions of higher
education (including historically Black col-
leges and universities and Hispanic-serving
institutions), or nonprofit organizations of
demonstrated effectiveness in providing
professional development in the core aca-
demic subjects; and
‘‘(ii) a local educational agency that is
both a high-poverty local educational agen-
cy and a low-performing local educational
agency, or more than one such agency.
‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT FOR INSTITUTIONS OF
HIGHER EDUCATION.—Participating institutions
of higher education shall meet the criteria
under section 203(a)(2)(A)(i) of the Higher
Education Act of 1965.
‘‘(2) SIZE, DURATION, AND
PEER
REVIEW.—
Each subgrant under this section shall be—
‘‘(A) of sufficient size and duration to
carry out the purpose of this subpart effec-
tively; and
‘‘(B) awarded, using a peer-review process,
on a competitive basis.
‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—In making subgrants under
this section, a State agency for higher education
shall give a priority to projects that focus on induc-
tion programs for new teachers.
‘‘(4) OTHER FACTORS.—In making subgrants
under this section, a State agency for higher edu-
cation shall consider—
‘‘(A) the need for the proposed professional
development activities in the jurisdiction of the
local educational agency; and
‘‘(B) the quality of the proposed program
and its likelihood of success in improving class-
room instruction and student academic achieve-
ment.
‘‘(c) PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENTS.—No institution of
higher education or nonprofit organization may receive a
subgrant under this section unless it enters into a written
agreement with at least one local educational agency that
is both a high-poverty local educational agency and a low-
performing local educational agency to provide profes-
sional development to elementary and secondary school
teachers in the schools of that agency in the core academic
subjects. Each such agreement shall identify specific goals
for how the professional development that the subgrantee
provides will enhance the ability of those teachers to pre-
pare all students, including females, minorities, students
with disabilities, students with limited English proficiency,
and economically disadvantaged students, to achieve to
challenging State content and student performance stand-
ards in all subjects in which those teachers provide in-
struction.
‘‘(d) COORDINATION.—Any professional development
activities carried out under this section by a partnership
shall be coordinated with activities carried out under title
II of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021
et seq.), if any member of the partnership is participating
in programs funded under that title.
‘‘(e) JOINT EFFORTS WITHIN INSTITUTIONS
OF
HIGHER EDUCATION.—In the case of a partnership that
includes an institution of higher education, each activity
assisted under this section shall involve the joint effort of
the institution’s school or department of education and the
schools or departments responsible for the specific dis-
ciplines in which the professional development will be pro-
vided.
‘‘(f) USES OF FUNDS.—A recipient of funds under
this section shall use those funds for—
‘‘(1) research-based programs to assist new
teachers during their first 3 years in the classroom,
which may include—
‘‘(A) mentoring and coaching by appro-
priately trained and certified teachers;
‘‘(B) team teaching with experienced
teachers;
‘‘(C) observation by, and consultation with,
experienced teachers;
‘‘(D) assignment of fewer course prepara-
tions; and
‘‘(E) provision of additional time for prep-
aration;
‘‘(2) professional development in the core aca-
demic subjects, aligned with State content and stu-
dent performance standards, for teams of teachers
from a school or local educational agency and, where
appropriate, principals, administrators, and other
school staff; and
‘‘(3) providing technical assistance to school
and local educational agency staff for planning, im-
plementing, and evaluating professional development.
‘‘(g) ANNUAL REPORTS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning with fiscal year
2002, each subgrantee under this section shall sub-
mit an annual report to the State agency for higher
education, by a date set by that agency, on its
progress, as measured using the indicators of part-
nership performance described in section 2041.
‘‘(2) CONTENT.—Each such report—
‘‘(A) shall include a copy of each written
agreement required by subsection (c); and
‘‘(B) shall describe how the partners have
collaborated to achieve the specific goals set out
in the agreement, and the results of that col-
laboration.
‘‘(3) COPY.—The State agency for higher edu-
cation shall provide the State educational agency
with a copy of each subgrantee’s annual report.
‘‘(h) SPECIAL RULE.—No single participant in a
partnership receiving a subgrant under this section may
retain more than 50 percent of the funds made available
to the partnership under this section.
‘‘SEC. 2017. LOCAL APPLICATIONS FOR FORMULA SUB-
GRANTS.
‘‘(a) APPLICATION
REQUIRED.—Each local edu-
cational agency desiring to receive its allocation from
funds made available under section 2012(a)(1)(A) for any
fiscal year shall submit an application to the State edu-
cational agency at such time, in such form, and containing
such information as the State educational agency reason-
ably may require. Each such application shall include an
agency-wide plan for raising student achievement against
State standards through each of the following strategies:
‘‘(1) Supporting the alignment of curricula, as-
sessments, classroom instructional strategies, and
professional development with challenging State con-
tent and student performance standards.
‘‘(2) Carrying out activities to recruit fully
qualified teachers, particularly in subject areas and
in schools in which there is a shortage of such teach-
ers with special consideration given to recruiting
fully qualified teachers from minority and other his-
torically underrepresented groups, including bilin-
gual teachers.
‘‘(3) Ensuring that teachers employed by the
local educational agency are proficient in teaching
skills and in the content knowledge necessary to ef-
fectively teach the content called for by State and
local standards in all subjects in which they provide
instruction and are prepared to integrate technology
into the classroom.
‘‘(4) Targeting funds to schools within the ju-
risdiction of the local educational agency that—
‘‘(A) have the highest proportion of teach-
ers who are not fully qualified;
‘‘(B) have the largest average class size; or
‘‘(C) are identified for school improvement
under section 1116(c).
‘‘(5) Carrying out activities to assist new teach-
ers during their first 3 years in the classroom.
‘‘(6) Providing professional development in core
academic subjects.
‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL CONTENTS.—Each such applica-
tion shall also—
‘‘(1) identify specific, measurable goals for
achieving the purpose described in section 2002
that, at a minimum, reflect the performance indica-
tors described in section 2041;
‘‘(2) describe how the local educational agency
will use funds received under this subpart to help
implement the plan described in subsection (a);
‘‘(3) include an assurance that the local edu-
cational agency will collect data that measure
progress toward the indicators of program perform-
ance described in section 2041;
‘‘(4) describe how the local educational agency
will address the needs of high-poverty, low-per-
forming schools within its jurisdiction;
‘‘(5) describe how the local educational agency
will address the needs of teachers of students with
limited English proficiency and other students with
special needs; and
‘‘(6) describe how the local educational agency
will coordinate funds under this subpart with the
professional development activities funded through
other State and Federal programs.
‘‘(c) 
APPROVAL.—Notwithstanding 
section
2012(a)(1)(A), a State educational agency shall approve
a local educational agency’s application under this section
only if the application satisfies the requirements of this
section and the State educational agency determines that
the application holds reasonable promise of achieving the
purpose described in section 2002.
‘‘(d) CONSOLIDATED
APPLICATION.—Local edu-
cational agencies may consolidate applications under this
section and section 2018.
‘‘SEC. 2018. LOCAL APPLICATIONS FOR COMPETITIVE SUB-
GRANTS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State educational agency
shall use the funds described in section 2012(A)(1)(B) for
competitive grants to local educational agencies, and part-
nerships described in section 2016(b)(1), that focus pri-
marily on those agencies and partnerships with the great-
est need for—
‘‘(1) activities related to the development, and
effective implementation, of curricula aligned with
state content and student performance standards;
and
‘‘(2) professional development activities that are
aligned with those standards.
‘‘(b) SELECTION PROCESS.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The State educational
agency shall award subgrants under this section
through a peer-review process that includes review-
ers who are knowledgeable in the academic content
areas.
‘‘(2) PUBLIC
AVAILABILITY.—The State edu-
cational agency—
‘‘(A) shall provide local educational agen-
cies and the general public with a list of the se-
lection criteria that the State educational agen-
cy will use in making subgrants under this sec-
tion; and
‘‘(B) at the completion of the awards proc-
ess, make public a complete list of applicants
and of the applicants that received awards.
‘‘(c) DEMONSTRATION OF NEED.—The State edu-
cational agency shall identify the applicants with the
greatest need for services, based on the following objective
data supplied by the applicant:
‘‘(1) The number or percentage of children who
fail to meet State performance standards on assess-
ments used for part A of title I.
‘‘(2) The number or percentage of schools iden-
tified for school improvement under section 1116(c).
‘‘(3) The number or percentage of teachers em-
ployed who have not received full State certification
or licensure.
‘‘(4) The number or percentage of secondary
school teachers who do not have an academic major
in a subject area directly related to the area in
which they provide instruction.
‘‘(5) The number or percentage of students liv-
ing in poverty.
‘‘(6) The number or percentage of students who
have limited English proficiency.
‘‘(7) The applicant’s fiscal capacity to fund pro-
grams described in section 2019 without Federal as-
sistance.
‘‘(d) SELECTION OF SUBGRANTEES.—The State edu-
cational agency shall make awards to applicants based
on—
‘‘(1) the quality of the applicant’s proposal and
the likelihood of its success in improving classroom
instruction and student academic achievement;
‘‘(2) the demonstrated need of the applicant
under subsection (c); and
‘‘(3) the applicant’s need for professional devel-
opment in mathematics and science.
‘‘(e) OPPORTUNITY TO COMPETE.—
‘‘(1) STRATEGIES.—To ensure that local edu-
cational agencies that have the greatest need are
provided a reasonable opportunity to compete for an
award, State educational agencies shall adopt at
least one of the following strategies:
‘‘(A) Holding more than one competition
for funds for a fiscal year and, before each such
competition, providing technical assistance in
developing a high-quality application to local
educational agencies that have demonstrated
the greatest need but were unsuccessful in the
previous grant competition.
‘‘(B) Holding a competition restricted to
local educational agencies that it has identified
under subsection (c) as having the greatest
need for services.
‘‘(C) Requiring recipients seeking a re-
newal of a subgrant under this section to form
a partnership with an applicant that applied
for, but failed to receive, such a subgrant.
‘‘(D) Providing a competitive priority to
those local educational agencies the State edu-
cational agency has identified under subsection
(c) as having the greatest need for services.
‘‘(2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—At a minimum,
a State educational agency shall, after the comple-
tion of an award cycle and before the start of the
next cycle, provide technical assistance in developing
a high-quality application for future competitions to
any local educational agency identified under sub-
section (c) as having the greatest need for services
that did not receive a subgrant.
‘‘(f) SCOPE OF PROJECTS.—The State educational
agency shall award a subgrant under this section only for
projects that are of sufficient size, scope, and quality to
achieve the purpose of this part.
‘‘SEC. 2019. USES OF FUNDS.
‘‘(a) PRIORITY FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
IN MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE.—
‘‘(1) APPROPRIATION EQUAL TO OR LESS THAN
$300,000,000.—Except 
as 
provided 
in 
section
2020(d), in any fiscal year for which the amount ap-
propriated for this subpart is $300,000,000 or less,
each local educational agency shall ensure that all
funds received by the agency under this subpart are
used for professional development in mathematics
and science.
‘‘(2) 
APPROPRIATION
GREATER
THAN
$300,000,000.—Except 
as 
provided 
in 
section
2020(d), in any fiscal year for which the amount ap-
propriated 
for 
this 
subpart 
is 
greater 
than
$300,000,000, each local educational agency shall
ensure that the amount of funds under this subpart
that the agency uses for professional development in
mathematics and science is at least as much as the
amount that would have been made available to the
agency if the amount appropriated had been
$300,000,000.
‘‘(3) 
INTERDISCIPLINARY
ACTIVITIES.—In
meeting the requirement under paragraph (1) or (2),
a local educational agency may use funds under this
subpart for activities that focus on more than one
core academic subject if those activities focus pre-
dominantly on improving instruction in mathematics
or science.
‘‘(4) WAIVER.—
‘‘(A) APPLICATION.—A local educational
agency, in consultation with teachers and prin-
cipals, may seek a waiver of the requirements
under paragraph (1) or (2) from a State in
order to allow the local educational agency to
use such funds for professional development in
academic subjects other than mathematics and
science.
‘‘(B) STANDARD FOR GRANTING.—A State
may not approve such a waiver unless the local
educational agency is able to demonstrate
that—
‘‘(i) 
the 
professional 
development
needs of mathematics and science teachers,
including elementary teachers responsible
for teaching mathematics and science, have
been adequately met and will continue to
be adequately met if the waiver is ap-
proved;
‘‘(ii) State assessments in mathe-
matics and science demonstrate that each
school within the local educational agency
has made and will continue to make
progress toward meeting the challenging
State content standards and student per-
formance standards in these areas; and
‘‘(iii) State assessments in other aca-
demic subjects demonstrate a need to focus
on subjects other than mathematics and
science.
‘‘(C) GRANDFATHER OF OLD WAIVERS.—A
waiver provided to a local educational agency
under part D of title XIV prior to the date of
the enactment of the Smart Classrooms Act
shall be deemed effective until such time as it
otherwise would have ceased to be effective.
‘‘(b) OTHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ACTIVI-
TIES.—Each local educational agency shall ensure that
funds under this subpart that the agency uses for profes-
sional development, in areas other than mathematics or
science, are used to provide professional development ac-
tivities in one or more of the other core academic subjects.
‘‘(c) OTHER USES OF FUNDS.—Subject to subsection
(a), a local educational agency that receives funds under
this subpart may use those funds for activities to raise
student achievement against challenging State standards,
in accordance with its plan described in section 2017(a),
which may include the following:
‘‘(1) Activities to recruit fully qualified teach-
ers, including teachers from historically underrep-
resented groups, such as the provision of signing bo-
nuses and other financial incentives.
‘‘(2) Providing the necessary education and
training, including paying (for programs that meet
the criteria under section 203(b)(2)(A)(i) of the
Higher 
Education 
Act 
of 
1965 
(20 
U.S.C.
1023(b)(2)(A)(i))) the costs of college tuition and
other student fees to assist current teachers or other
school personnel who are not fully qualified teachers
to become fully qualified, except that, to receive
funds under this paragraph, an individual must be
within 2 years of completing an undergraduate de-
gree and must agree to teach in a high-poverty, low-
performing school for a period of at least 3 years.
‘‘(3) Programs to assist new teachers during
their first 3 years in the classroom, such as—
‘‘(A) mentoring and coaching by trained
mentor teachers;
‘‘(B) team teaching with experienced
teachers;
‘‘(C) observation by, and consultation with,
experienced teachers;
‘‘(D) assignment of fewer course prepara-
tions; and
‘‘(E) provision of additional time for prep-
aration.
‘‘(4) Provision of professional development
aligned with State content and student performance
standards.
‘‘(5) Provision of professional development pro-
grams that enable teachers to effectively commu-
nicate with parents and involve parents in the edu-
cational process to support classroom instruction
and to work effectively with parent volunteers.
‘‘(6) Participation by teams of teachers in sum-
mer institutes and summer immersion activities that
focus on preparing teachers to bring all students to
high standards in one or more of the core academic
subjects.
‘‘(7) Subsidizing fees for teachers who partici-
pate in the assessment process of the National
Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
‘‘(8) Teacher participation in working groups,
task forces, or committees, charged with adapting
and implementing high standards for all students,
including district-wide and school-based teams of
teachers charged with aligning curricula and lesson
plans with State content and student performance
standards and assessments.
‘‘(9) Programs to implement peer-assistance
peer-review processes for teachers, principals, admin-
istrators, and other school staff.
‘‘(10) Establishment and maintenance of local
professional networks that provide a forum for inter-
action among teachers and that allow for the ex-
change of information on advances in content and
pedagogy.
‘‘(11) Development of incentives to encourage
teachers employed by the agency, and other qualified
individuals, to obtain proficiency in content knowl-
edge in a core academic subject area identified by
the agency as having a shortage of qualified teach-
ers.
‘‘(12) Development and acquisition of curricular
materials and other instructional aids, if they are
not normally provided by the local educational agen-
cy or the State as part of the regular instructional
program, that will advance local reform efforts to
raise student achievement against State content and
student performance standards.
‘‘(13) Providing increased opportunities for mi-
norities, individuals with disabilities, and other indi-
viduals underrepresented in the teaching profession.
‘‘SEC. 2020. LOCAL ACCOUNTABILITY.
‘‘(a) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Each local educational
agency that receives funds under this subpart shall, begin-
ning in fiscal year 2002, annually compile, publish, and
submit to the State educational agency a report on its ac-
tivities under this subpart, at such time, in such form,
and containing such information as the State educational
agency may reasonably require.
‘‘(b) CONTENTS.—Each report shall include the fol-
lowing information:
‘‘(1) The percentage of teachers teaching in the
jurisdiction of the agency who have not met State
qualifications and licensing criteria for the grade lev-
els and subject areas in which they provide instruc-
tion.
‘‘(2) The percentage of teachers teaching in the
jurisdiction of the agency under emergency or other
provisional status through which State qualifications
or licensing criteria have been waived.
‘‘(3) The percentage of teachers teaching in the
jurisdiction of the agency who do not hold a postsec-
ondary degree with a major in the subject areas in
which they provide instruction.
‘‘(4) The average class size.
‘‘(5) Information on the progress of schools and
teachers under this subpart, measured based on the
program performance indicators described in section
2041 and any additional indicators included in the
local educational agency’s application.
‘‘(6) Such other information as the State edu-
cational agency may reasonably require.
‘‘(c) DISAGGREGATED DATA.—Data collected for the
purpose of carrying out this section shall be disaggregated
by local educational agency and school.
‘‘(d) FUNDING.—A local educational agency may re-
serve up to 5 percent of the amount it receives under sec-
tion 2012(a)(1)(A) to carry out this section.
‘‘SEC. 2021. PARENTS’ RIGHT TO KNOW.
‘‘Each local educational agency that receives funds
under this subpart shall provide, upon request, to any par-
ent of a student attending any school receiving funds
under this subpart, in an understandable and uniform for-
mat, information regarding the professional qualifications
of the student’s teacher, including—
‘‘(1) whether the teacher has met State quali-
fication and licensing criteria for the grade levels
and subject areas in which the teacher provides in-
struction;
‘‘(2) whether the teacher is teaching under
emergency or other provisional status through which
the State qualifications or licensing criteria have
been waived;
‘‘(3) the college major of the teacher and any
other graduate certification or degree held by the
teacher, and the field or discipline of the certificate
or degree; and
‘‘(4) the school or local educational agency’s
hiring policy.
‘‘SEC. 2022. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.
‘‘The State educational agency shall provide technical
assistance to local educational agencies receiving a
subgrant under this subpart that fail for 2 consecutive
years to meet their goals, as measured using the perform-
ance indicators described in section 2041.
‘‘SEC. 2023. CORRECTIVE ACTION.
‘‘The State educational agency shall take corrective
action, against any local educational agency that does not
make sufficient effort to comply with this subpart within
the time specified. In a case in which a State fails to take
corrective action, the Secretary shall withhold funds from
such State up to an amount equal to that described in
section 2012(d).
‘‘SEC. 2024. MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.
‘‘No funds may be provided to a local educational
agency for a fiscal year under this subpart unless the
State educational agency is satisfied that the local edu-
cational agency will spend, from other sources, at least
as much for activities described in this subpart as the av-
erage amount it spent from other sources for those activi-
ties over the previous 3 fiscal years.
‘‘SEC. 2025. EQUIPMENT AND TEXTBOOKS.
‘‘A local educational agency may not use subgrant
funds under this subpart for equipment, computer hard-
ware, textbooks, telecommunications fees, or other items,
that would otherwise be provided by the local educational
agency, the State, or a private school whose students re-
ceive services under this part.
‘‘SEC. 2026. SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.
‘‘A local educational agency that receives funds under
this subpart shall use those funds only to supplement the
amount of funds or resources that would, in the absence
of those Federal funds, be made available from non-Fed-
eral sources for the purposes of the program authorized
under this subpart, and not to supplant those non-Federal
funds or resources.
‘‘Subpart 3—National Activities for the Improvement
of Teaching and School Leadership
‘‘SEC. 2031. ACTIVITIES OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may make grants
to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements
with, local educational agencies, educational service agen-
cies, State educational agencies, State agencies for higher
education, institutions of higher education, and other pub-
lic and private nonprofit agencies, organizations, and insti-
tutions to carry out subsection (b).
‘‘(b) ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary—
‘‘(1) may support activities of national signifi-
cance that are not supported through other sources
and that the Secretary determines will contribute to
the improvement of teaching and school leadership
in the Nation’s schools, such as—
‘‘(A) supporting collaborative efforts by
States, or consortia of States, to review and
benchmark the quality, rigor, and alignment of
State standards and assessments;
‘‘(B) supporting collaborative efforts by
States, or consortia of States, to develop per-
formance-based systems for assessing content
knowledge and teaching skills prior to full
teacher licensure;
‘‘(C) efforts to increase the portability of
teacher pensions and reciprocity of teaching
credentials across State lines; and
‘‘(D) research, evaluation, and dissemina-
tion activities related to effective strategies for
increasing the portability of teachers’ credited
years of experience across State and local edu-
cational agency lines;
‘‘(2) may support activities of national signifi-
cance that the Secretary determines will contribute
to the recruitment and retention of fully qualified
teachers and principals in high-poverty local edu-
cational agencies and low-performing local edu-
cational agencies, such as—
‘‘(A) providing States with assistance in
the development of alternative certification pro-
grams that lead to certification within 2 years
and require applicants to meet the same stand-
ards and pass the same tests as other appli-
cants;
‘‘(B) the development and implementation
of a national teacher recruitment clearinghouse
and job bank, which shall be coordinated and,
to the extent feasible, integrated with the Amer-
ica’s Job Bank administered by the Secretary
of Labor—
‘‘(i) to disseminate information and
resources nationwide on entering the
teaching profession to persons interested in
becoming teachers;
‘‘(ii) to serve as a national resource
center for effective practices in teacher re-
cruitment and retention;
‘‘(iii) to link prospective teachers to
local educational agencies and training re-
sources with particular attention to high-
poverty local educational agencies and low-
performing local educational agencies with
critical teacher shortages; and
‘‘(iv) to provide information and tech-
nical assistance to prospective teachers
about certification and other State and
local requirements related to teaching; and
‘‘(C) the development and implementation,
or expansion, of programs that recruit talented
individuals to become principals, including such
programs that employ alternative routes to
State certification, and that prepare both new
and experienced principals to serve as instruc-
tional leaders, which may include the creation
and operation of a national center for the prep-
aration and support of principals as leaders of
school reform; and
‘‘(3) may support the National Board for Pro-
fessional Teaching Standards.
‘‘SEC. 2032. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR PRIN-
CIPALS AS LEADERS OF SCHOOL REFORM.
‘‘(a) COMPETITIVE GRANTS.—The Secretary may re-
serve not more than 5 percent of the amount appropriated
under section 2003(b) for competitive grants to eligible
partnerships—
‘‘(1) consisting of—
‘‘(A) one or more institutions of higher
education that provide professional development
for principals and other school administrators;
and
‘‘(B) one or more local educational agen-
cies; and
‘‘(2) that may include other entities, agencies,
and organizations, such as a State educational agen-
cy, a State agency for higher education, or profes-
sional organizations for principals, administrators,
teachers, and parents.
‘‘(b) APPLICATION.—An eligible partnership that de-
sires to receive a grant under this section shall submit an
application at such time, in such form, and containing
such information as the Secretary may require. Each such
application shall include—
‘‘(1) a description of the activities the partner-
ship will carry out to meet the purpose of this part;
‘‘(2) a description of how those activities will
build on and be coordinated with other professional
development activities, including activities under this
title and title II of the Higher Education Act of
1965;
‘‘(3) a description of how principals, teachers,
and other interested parties were involved in devel-
oping the application and will be involved in plan-
ning and carrying out the activities under this sec-
tion; and
‘‘(4) a description of how the professional devel-
opment will result in the acquisition of a license, de-
gree, or continuing education unit.
‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible partnership that
receives a grant under this section shall use the grant
funds to provide professional development to principals
and other school administrators to enable them to be effec-
tive school leaders and prepare all students to achieve to
challenging State content and student performance stand-
ards, including professional development on—
‘‘(1) comprehensive school reform;
‘‘(2) leadership skills;
‘‘(3) recruitment, assignment, retention and
evaluation of teacher and other instructional staff;
‘‘(4) State content standards;
‘‘(5) effective instructional practice;
‘‘(6) using smaller classes effectively; and
‘‘(7) parental and community involvement.
‘‘SEC. 2033. SCHOOL TECHNOLOGY CENTERS.
‘‘(a) COMPETITIVE GRANTS.—The Secretary may re-
serve not more than 5 percent of the amount appropriated
under section 2003(b) for competitive grants to eligible
partnerships consisting of—
‘‘(1) one or more institutions of higher edu-
cation;
‘‘(2) one or more technology-deficient local edu-
cational agencies or schools;
‘‘(3) one or more technology-proficient local
educational agencies or schools; and
‘‘(4) such other entities, agencies, and organiza-
tions, such as a State educational agency, a State
agency for higher education, nonprofit organizations,
or businesses, as the partners described in para-
graphs (1), (2), and (3) determine to be appropriate.
‘‘(b) APPLICATION.—An eligible partnership that de-
sires to receive a grant under this section shall submit an
application at such time, in such form, and containing
such information as the Secretary may require. Each such
application shall include—
‘‘(1) a description of the activities the partner-
ship will carry out under this section;
‘‘(2) a description of how the partners will work
together to build the capacity to use technology to
improve teaching and learning in the partners de-
scribed in subsection (a)(2); and
‘‘(3) a description of the goals of each partner
and how progress toward those goals will be meas-
ured.
‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible partnership that
receives a grant under this section shall use the grant
funds to develop or expand a technology center serving
the partners described in subsection (a)(2).
‘‘SEC. 2034. EISENHOWER NATIONAL CLEARINGHOUSE FOR
MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE EDUCATION.
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT
OF CLEARINGHOUSE.—The
Secretary shall award a competitive grant or contract to
establish the Eisenhower National Clearinghouse for
Mathematics and Science Education (hereafter in this sec-
tion referred to as the ‘Clearinghouse’).
‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—
‘‘(1) APPLICATION AND AWARD BASIS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each entity desiring
to establish and operate the Clearinghouse shall
submit an application to the Secretary at such
time, in such manner, and containing such in-
formation as the Secretary may require.
‘‘(B) PEER REVIEW.—The Secretary shall
establish a peer review process to make rec-
ommendations on the recipient of the award for
the Clearinghouse.
‘‘(C) MERIT.—The Secretary shall make
the award for the Clearinghouse on the basis of
merit.
‘‘(2) DURATION.—The Secretary shall award
the grant or contract for the Clearinghouse for a pe-
riod of 5 years.
‘‘(3) ACTIVITIES.—The award recipient shall
use the award funds to—
‘‘(A) maintain a permanent collection of
such mathematics and science education in-
structional materials and programs for elemen-
tary and secondary schools as the Secretary
finds appropriate, with a priority for such mate-
rials and programs that have been identified as
promising or exemplary, through a systematic
approach such as the use of expert panels re-
quired under the Educational Research, Devel-
opment, Dissemination, and Improvement Act
of 1994;
‘‘(B) disseminate the materials and pro-
grams described in paragraph (1) to the public,
State educational agencies, local educational
agencies, and schools (particularly high-poverty,
low-performing schools), including through the
maintenance of an interactive national elec-
tronic information management and retrieval
system accessible through the Worldwide Web
and other advanced communications tech-
nologies;
‘‘(C) coordinate with other databases con-
taining mathematics and science curriculum
and instructional materials, including Federal,
non-Federal, and, where feasible, international
databases;
‘‘(D) support the development and dissemi-
nation of model professional development mate-
rials in mathematics and science education;
‘‘(E) contribute materials or information,
as appropriate, to other national repositories or
networks; and
‘‘(F) gather qualitative and evaluative data
on submissions to the Clearinghouse, and dis-
seminate that data widely, including through
the use of electronic dissemination networks.
‘‘(4) SUBMISSION TO CLEARINGHOUSE.—Each
Federal agency or department that develops mathe-
matics or science education instructional materials
or programs, including the National Science Foun-
dation and the Department, shall submit copies of
that material and those programs to the Clearing-
house.
‘‘(5) STEERING
COMMITTEE.—The Secretary
may appoint a steering committee to recommend
policies and activities for the Clearinghouse.
‘‘(6) APPLICATION OF COPYRIGHT LAWS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this sec-
tion shall be construed to allow the use or copy-
ing, in any medium, of any material collected by
the Clearinghouse that is protected under the
copyright laws of the United States unless the
permission of the owner of the copyright is ob-
tained.
‘‘(B) COMPLIANCE.—In carrying out this
section, the Clearinghouse shall ensure compli-
ance with title 17 of the United States Code.
‘‘SEC. 2035. DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION ON RE-
SEARCH-BASED 
PROFESSIONAL 
DEVELOP-
MENT.
‘‘The Secretary shall gather and disseminate infor-
mation related to comprehensive, research-based profes-
sional development.
‘‘SEC. 2036. SCHOOL COUNSELING PROGRAM.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may award grants
under this section to establish or expand elementary and
secondary school counseling programs.
‘‘(b) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec-
tion, the Secretary shall give special consideration to appli-
cations describing programs that—
‘‘(1) demonstrate the greatest need for new or
additional counseling services among the children in
the elementary and secondary schools served by the
applicant;
‘‘(2) propose the most promising and innovative
approaches for initiating or expanding elementary
and secondary school counseling; and
‘‘(3) show the greatest potential for replication
and dissemination.
‘‘PART B—TRANSITION OF CAREER-CHANGING
PROFESSIONALS TO TEACHING; TROOPS TO
TEACHERS
‘‘SEC. 2101. FINDINGS.
‘‘The Congress finds as follows:
‘‘(1) School districts will need to hire more than
2,000,000 teachers during the first decade of the
21st century.
‘‘(2) The need for teachers in the areas of
math, science, foreign languages, special education,
and bilingual education, and for teachers able to
teach in high-poverty school districts, will be particu-
larly high. To meet this need, talented Americans of
all ages should be recruited to become successful,
qualified teachers.
‘‘(3) Nearly 13 percent of teachers of academic
subjects have neither an undergraduate major nor
minor in their main assignment fields. This problem
is most acute in high-poverty local educational agen-
cies, where the out-of-field teaching percentage is 22
percent.
‘‘(4) The Third International Math and Science
Study (TIMSS) ranked United States high school
seniors last among 16 countries in physics and next
to last in math. It is also evident, mainly from the
TIMSS data, that based on academic scores, a
stronger emphasis needs to be placed on the aca-
demic preparation of our children in math and
science.
‘‘(5) One-fourth of high-poverty local edu-
cational agencies find it very difficult to fill bilingual
teaching positions, and nearly half of public school
teachers have students in their classrooms for whom
English is a second language.
‘‘(6) Many career-changing professionals with
strong content-area skills are interested in a teach-
ing career, but they need assistance in getting the
appropriate pedagogical training and classroom ex-
perience.
‘‘(7) The teacher placement program known as
the ‘troops-to-teachers program’, which was estab-
lished by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary
of Transportation under section 1151 of title 10,
United States Code, has been highly successful in
securing high-quality teachers for teaching positions
in high-poverty local educational agencies.
‘‘SEC. 2102. PURPOSE.
‘‘The purpose of this part is to address the need of
local educational agencies that are high-poverty local edu-
cational agencies or low-performing local educational
agencies for fully qualified teachers in particular subject
areas, such as mathematics, science, foreign languages, bi-
lingual education, and special education, by—
‘‘(1) continuing and enhancing the troops-to-
teachers program for recruiting and supporting the
placement of former members of the Armed Forces
as teachers in such local educational agencies; and
‘‘(2) recruiting, preparing, placing, and sup-
porting career-changing professionals who have
knowledge and experience that will help them be-
come such teachers.
‘‘SEC. 2103. CONTINUATION AND SUPPORT FOR TROOPS-TO-
TEACHERS PROGRAM.
‘‘(a) CONTINUATION.—The Secretary may enter into
a written agreement with the Secretary of Defense and
the Secretary of Transportation, or take such other steps
as the Secretary determines are appropriate, to ensure ef-
fective continuation of the troops-to-teachers program,
notwithstanding the duration of the program specified in
section 1151(c)(1)(A) of title 10, United States Code.
‘‘(b) SUPPORT.—Before providing any assistance
under section 2104 for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall
first—
‘‘(1) consult with the Secretary of Defense and
the Secretary of Transportation regarding the ap-
propriate amount of funding needed to continue and
enhance the troops-to-teachers program; and
‘‘(2) upon agreement, transfer that amount to
the Secretary of Defense to carry out the troops-to-
teachers program.
‘‘SEC. 2104. TRANSITION OF CAREER-CHANGING PROFES-
SIONALS TO TEACHING.
‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO SUPPORT TRANSITION PRO-
GRAMS.—The Secretary may use funds appropriated pur-
suant to the authorization of appropriations in section
2108 to award grants to, and enter into contracts or coop-
erative agreements with, institutions of higher education,
including historically Black colleges and universities and
Hispanic-serving institutions, and public and private non-
profit agencies or organizations to recruit, prepare, place,
and support career-changing professionals as teachers in
local educational agencies that are high-poverty local edu-
cational agencies or low-performing local educational
agencies.
‘‘(b) APPLICATION.—Each entity described in sub-
section (a) that desires assistance under subsection (a)
shall submit an application to the Secretary containing
such 
information 
as 
the 
Secretary 
may 
require,
including—
‘‘(1) a description of the target group of career-
changing professionals upon which the applicant will
focus in carrying out its program under this part,
including a description of the characteristics of that
target group that shows how the knowledge and ex-
perience of its members are relevant to meeting the
purpose of this part;
‘‘(2) a description of how the applicant will
identify and recruit career-changing professional for
its program under this part;
‘‘(3) a description of the training that career-
changing professionals will receive in the program
and how that training will relate to their certifi-
cation as teachers;
‘‘(4) a description of how the applicant will en-
sure that career-changing professionals are placed
and teach in high-poverty local educational agencies
or low-performing local educational agencies;
‘‘(5) a description of the teacher induction serv-
ices (which may be provided through existing induc-
tion programs) that the career-changing profes-
sionals in the program will receive throughout at
least their first year of teaching;
‘‘(6) a description of how the applicant will col-
laborate, as needed, with other institutions, agencies,
or organizations to recruit, train, place, and support
career-changing professionals under this part, in-
cluding evidence of the commitment of those institu-
tions, agencies, or organizations to the applicant’s
program;
‘‘(7) a description of how the applicant will
evaluate the progress and effectiveness of its pro-
gram, including—
‘‘(A) the program’s goals and objectives;
‘‘(B) the performance indicators the appli-
cant will use to measure the program’s
progress; and
‘‘(C) the outcome measures that will be
used to determine the program’s effectiveness;
and
‘‘(8) an assurance that the applicant will pro-
vide to the Secretary such information as the Sec-
retary determines necessary to determine the overall
effectiveness of programs under this part.
‘‘SEC. 2105. USES OF FUNDS AND PERIOD OF SERVICE.
‘‘(a) AUTHORIZED
ACTIVITIES.—Funds provided
under section 2104 may be used for—
‘‘(1) recruiting career-changing professionals,
including informing them of opportunities under the
program and putting them in contact with other in-
stitutions, agencies, or organizations that would
train, place, and support them;
‘‘(2) training stipends and other financial incen-
tives for career-changing professional in the pro-
gram, such as moving expenses, not to exceed
$5,000, in the aggregate, per participant;
‘‘(3) assisting institutions of higher education
or other providers of teacher training to tailor their
training to meet the particular needs of career-
changing professionals;
‘‘(4) placement activities, including identifying
high-poverty, low-performing local educational agen-
cies with needs for the particular skills and charac-
teristics of the newly trained career-changing profes-
sionals and assisting those persons to obtain employ-
ment in those local educational agencies; and
‘‘(5) post-placement induction or support activi-
ties.
‘‘(b) PERIOD OF SERVICE.—A career-changing pro-
fessional selected to participant in a program under this
part who completes his or her training shall serve in a
high-poverty local educational agency or a low-performing
local educational agency for at least three years.
‘‘(c) REPAYMENT.—The Secretary shall establish
such requirements as the Secretary determines appro-
priate to ensure that career-changing professionals who
receive a training stipend or other financial incentive
under subsection (a)(2), but who fail to complete their
service obligation under subsection (b), repay all or a por-
tion of such stipend or other incentive.
‘‘SEC. 2106. EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION.
‘‘To the extent practicable, the Secretary shall make
awards and enter into contracts and cooperative agree-
ments under section 2104 to support teacher placement
programs for career-changing professionals in different
geographic regions of the United States.
‘‘SEC. 2107. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
‘‘For the purpose of carrying out this part, there is
authorized 
to 
be 
appropriated 
to 
the 
Secretary
$18,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.
‘‘PART C—CLASS SIZE REDUCTION
‘‘SEC. 2201. FINDINGS.
‘‘The Congress finds as follows:
‘‘(1) Rigorous research has shown that students
attending small classes in the early grades make
more rapid educational progress than students in
larger classes, and that these achievement gains per-
sist through at least the elementary grades.
‘‘(2) The benefits of smaller classes are greatest
for lower achieving, minority, poor, and inner-city
children. One study found that urban fourth-graders
in smaller-than-average classes were 3/4 of a school
year ahead of their counterparts in larger-than-aver-
age classes.
‘‘(3) Teachers in small classes can provide stu-
dents with more individualized attention, spend more
time on instruction and lesson other tasks, cover
more material effectively, and are better able to
work with parents to further their children’s edu-
cation.
‘‘(4) Smaller classes allow teachers to identify
and work more effectively with students who have
learning disabilities and, potentially, can reduce
those students’ need for special education services in
the later grades.
‘‘(5) Students in smaller classes are able to be-
come more actively engaged in learning than their
peers in large classes.
‘‘(6) Efforts to improve educational achieve-
ment by reducing class sizes in the early grades are
likely to be more successful if—
‘‘(A) well-prepared teachers are hired and
appropriately assigned to fill additional class-
room positions; and
‘‘(B) teachers receive intensive, continuing
training in working effectively in smaller class-
room settings.
‘‘(7) Several States have begun a serious effort
to reduce class sizes in the early elementary grades,
but these actions may be impeded by financial limi-
tations or difficulties in hiring well-prepared teach-
ers.
‘‘(8) The Federal Government can assist in this
effort by providing funding for class-size reductions
in grades 1 through 3, and by helping to ensure that
the new teachers brought into the classroom are well
prepared.
‘‘SEC. 2202. PURPOSE.
‘‘The purpose of this part is to help States and local
educational agencies recruit, train, and hire 100,000 addi-
tional fully qualified teachers over a 7-year period in order
to—
‘‘(1) reduce class sizes nationally, in grades 1
through 3, to an average of 18 students per class-
room; and
‘‘(2) improve teaching in the early grades so
that all students can learn to read independently
and well by the end of the third grade.
‘‘SEC. 2203. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.
‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For the
purpose of carrying out this part, there are authorized to
be appropriated, $1,400,000,000 for fiscal year 2000,
$1,500,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, $1,700,000,000 for
fiscal year 2002, $1,735,000,000 for fiscal year 2003,
$2,300,000,000 for fiscal year 2004, and $2,800,000,000
for fiscal year 2005.
‘‘(b) ALLOTMENTS.—From the amount appropriated
under subsection (a) for a fiscal year, the Secretary—
‘‘(1) shall make a total of 1 percent available to
the Secretary of the Interior (on behalf of the Bu-
reau of Indian Affairs) and the outlying areas for
activities that meet the purpose of this part; and
‘‘(2) shall allot to each State the same percent-
age of the remaining funds as the percentage it re-
ceived of funds allocated to States for the previous
fiscal year under section 1122 or section 2011(c)
(or, as applicable, section 2202(b) (as in effect on
the day before the date of the enactment of the
Smart Classrooms Act)), whichever percentage is
greater, except that such allotments shall be ratably
decreased as necessary.
‘‘(c) WITHIN-STATE DISTRIBUTION.——
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State that receives an
allotment under this section shall distribute the
amount of the allotted funds that remain after using
funds in accordance with subsection (b)(3) to local
educational agencies in the State, of which—
‘‘(A) 80 percent of such remainder shall be
allocated to such local educational agencies in
proportion to the relative number of children,
aged 5 to 17, who reside in the jurisdiction
served by such local educational agency and are
from families with incomes below the poverty
line (as defined by the Office of Management
and Budget and revised annually in accordance
with section 673(2) of the Community Services
Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) applica-
ble to a family of the size involved) for the most
recent fiscal year for which satisfactory data is
available compared to the number of such indi-
viduals who reside in the jurisdictions served by
all the local educational agencies in the State
for that fiscal year; and
‘‘(B) 20 percent of such remainder shall be
allocated to such local educational agencies in
accordance with the relative enrollments of chil-
dren, aged 5 to 17, in public and private non-
profit elementary schools and secondary schools
in the jurisdictions within the boundaries of
such agencies.
‘‘(2) AWARD
RULE.—Notwithstanding para-
graph (1), if the award to a local educational agency
under this section is less than the starting salary for
a new teacher in that agency, the State shall not
make the award unless—
‘‘(A) the local educational agency agrees to
form a consortium with not less than 1 other
local educational agency for the purpose of re-
ducing class size;
‘‘(B) the local educational agency agrees to
supplement the award with non-Federal funds
sufficient to pay the cost of hiring a teacher; or
‘‘(C) the local educational agency agrees to
use the funds for professional development re-
lated to teaching smaller classes.
‘‘SEC. 2204. USE OF FUNDS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each local educational agency
that receives funds under this part shall use such funds
to carry out effective approaches to reducing class size
with fully qualified teachers to improve educational
achievement for both regular and special-needs children,
with particular consideration given to reducing class size
in the early elementary grades for which research has
shown class size reduction is most effective.
‘‘(b) CLASS REDUCTION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each such local educational
agency may pursue the goal of reducing class size
through—
‘‘(A) recruiting, hiring, and training fully
qualified regular and special education teachers
and teachers of special-needs children;
‘‘(B) testing new teachers for academic
content knowledge, and to meet the State quali-
fications and licensing criteria in the areas in
which they teach; and
‘‘(C) providing professional development to
teachers, including special education teachers
and teachers of special-needs children.
‘‘(2) 
RESTRICTION(S).—A 
local 
educational
agency may use not more than a total of 15 percent
of the funds received under this part for each of the
fiscal years 2000 through 2005, to carry out activi-
ties described in subparagraphs (B) and (C) of sec-
tion 2204(b)(1).
‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE.—A local educational agen-
cy that has already reduced class size in the early
grades to 18 or fewer children may use funds re-
ceived under this part—
‘‘(A) to make further class-size reductions
in grades 1 through 3;
‘‘(B) to reduce class size in kindergarten
or other grades; or
‘‘(C) to carry out activities to improve
teacher quality, including providing—
‘‘(i) professional development;
‘‘(ii) financial incentives to new or vet-
eran fully qualified teachers to join the in-
structional staff of schools in which at
least 50 percent of the students are from
low-income families; and
‘‘(iii) financial incentives to fully
qualified teachers who are currently teach-
ing in schools in which at least 50 percent
of the students are from low-income fami-
lies,
‘‘(c) SUPPLEMENT NOT SUPPLANT.—A local edu-
cational agency shall use funds under this part only to
supplement, and not to supplant, State and local funds
that, in the absence of such funds, would otherwise be
spent for activities under this part.
‘‘(d) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—If a local edu-
cational agency uses funds made available under this part
for professional development activities, the agency shall
ensure the equitable participation of private nonprofit ele-
mentary and secondary schools in such activities.
‘‘(e) ADMINISTRATIVE
EXPENSES.—A local edu-
cational agency that receives funds under this part may
use not more than 3 percent of such funds for local admin-
istrative expenses.
‘‘(f) CONSORTIA REQUIREMENT.—Notwithstanding
subsection (b)(3), if a local educational agency has already
reduced class size in the early grades to 18 or fewer chil-
dren and intends to use funds provided under this section
to carry out professional development activities, including
activities to improve teacher quality, then the State shall
make the award under subsection (b) to the local edu-
cational agency without requiring the formation of a con-
sortium.
‘‘SEC. 2205. COST-SHARING REQUIREMENT.
‘‘(a) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the
cost of activities carried out under this part—
‘‘(1) may be up to 100 percent in local edu-
cational agencies with child-poverty levels of 50 per-
cent or greater; and
‘‘(2) shall be no more than 65 percent for local
educational agencies with child-poverty rates of less
than 50 percent.
‘‘(b) LOCAL SHARE.—A local educational agency
shall provide the non-Federal share of a project under this
part through cash expenditures from non-Federal sources,
except that if an agency has allocated funds under section
1113(c) to one or more schoolwide programs under section
1114, it may use those funds for the non-Federal share
of activities under this program that benefit those
schoolwide programs, to the extent consistent with section
1120A(c) and notwithstanding section 1114(a)(3)(B).
‘‘SEC. 2206. REQUEST FOR FUNDS.
‘‘Each local educational agency that desires to receive
funds under this part shall include in the application sub-
mitted under section 2017 a description of the agency’s
program under this part to reduce class size by hiring ad-
ditional fully qualified teachers.
‘‘SEC. 2207. REPORTS.
‘‘Each State educational agency receiving funds
under this part shall report on activities in the State under
this section as a part of its report under section 2014.’’.
(b) NATIONAL
WRITING
PROJECT; SABBATICAL
LEAVE
FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT; GENERAL
PROVISIONS.—Title II of such Act is amended by striking
part E and inserting the following:
‘‘PART E—NATIONAL WRITING PROJECT
‘‘SEC. 2301. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
‘‘(1) the United States faces a continuing crisis
in writing in schools and in the workplace;
‘‘(2) the writing problem has been magnified by
the rapidly changing student population, the growing
number of at-risk students due to limited English
proficiency, the shortage of adequately trained
teachers, and the specialized knowledge required of
teachers to teach students with special needs who
are now part of mainstream classrooms;
‘‘(3) nationwide reports from universities and
colleges show that entering students are unable to
meet the demands of college level writing, almost all
2-year institutions of higher education offer remedial
writing courses, and three-quarters of public 4-year
institutions of higher education and half of all pri-
vate 4-year institutions of higher education must
provide remedial courses in writing;
‘‘(4) American businesses and corporations are
concerned about the limited writing skills of both
entry-level workers and executives whose promotions
are denied due to inadequate writing abilities;
‘‘(5) writing is fundamental to learning, includ-
ing learning to read, yet writing has been neglected
historically in schools and in teacher training institu-
tions;
‘‘(6) writing is a central feature in State and
school district education standards in all disciplines;
‘‘(7) since 1973, the only national program to
address the writing problem in the Nation’s schools
has been the National Writing Project, a network of
collaborative university-school programs the goals of
which are to improve student achievement in writing
and student learning through improving the teaching
and uses of writing at all grade levels and in all dis-
ciplines;
‘‘(8) the National Writing Project is a nation-
ally recognized and honored nonprofit organization
that improves the quality of teaching and teachers
through developing teacher leaders who teach other
teachers in summer and school year programs;
‘‘(9) evaluations of the National Writing
Project document the positive impact the project has
had on improving the teaching of writing, student
performance in writing, and student learning;
‘‘(10) the National Writing Project has become
a model for programs to improve teaching in such
other fields as mathematics, science, history, reading
and literature, performing arts and foreign lan-
guages;
‘‘(11) each year over 150,000 participants ben-
efit from National Writing Project programs in 1 of
156 United States sites located in 46 States and the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; and
‘‘(12) the National Writing Project is a cost-ef-
fective program and leverages over 6 dollars for
every 1 Federal dollar.
‘‘(b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this part—
‘‘(1) to support and promote the expansion of
the National Writing Project network of sites so
that teachers in every region of the United States
will have access to a National Writing Project pro-
gram;
‘‘(2) to ensure the consistent high quality of the
sites through ongoing review, evaluation and tech-
nical assistance;
‘‘(3) to support and promote the establishment
of programs to disseminate effective practices and
research findings about the teaching of writing; and
‘‘(4) to coordinate activities assisted under this
part with activities assisted under this Act.
‘‘SEC. 2302. AUTHORIZATION.
‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary is authorized
to make a grant to the National Writing Project (hereafter
in this section referred to as the ‘grantee’), a nonprofit
educational organization that has as its primary purpose
the improvement of the quality of student writing and
learning, to improve the teaching and uses of writing to
learn in our Nation’s classrooms.
‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS OF GRANT.—The grant shall
provide that—
‘‘(1) the grantee will enter into contracts with
institutions of higher education or other nonprofit
educational providers (hereafter in this section re-
ferred to as ‘contractors’) under which the contrac-
tors will agree to establish, operate, and provide the
non-Federal share of the cost of teacher training
programs in effective approaches and processes for
the teaching of writing;
‘‘(2) funds made available by the Secretary to
the grantee pursuant to any contract entered into
under this section will be used to pay the Federal
share of the cost of establishing and operating teach-
er training programs as provided in paragraph (1);
and
‘‘(3) the grantee will meet such other conditions
and standards as the Secretary determines to be
necessary to assure compliance with the provisions
of this section and will provide such technical assist-
ance as may be necessary to carry out the provisions
of this section.
‘‘(c) TEACHER TRAINING PROGRAMS.—The teacher
training programs authorized in subsection (a) shall—
‘‘(1) be conducted during the school year and
during the summer months;
‘‘(2) train teachers who teach grades kinder-
garten through college;
‘‘(3) select teachers to become members of a
National Writing Project teacher network whose
members will conduct writing workshops for other
teachers in the area served by each National Writing
Project site; and
‘‘(4) encourage teachers from all disciplines to
participate in such teacher training programs.
‘‘(d) FEDERAL SHARE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2) or (3) and for purposes of subsection (a),
the term ‘Federal share’ means, with respect to the
costs of teacher training programs authorized in
subsection (a), 50 percent of such costs to the con-
tractor.
‘‘(2) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the
provisions of paragraph (1) on a case-by-case basis
if the National Advisory Board described in sub-
section (e) determines, on the basis of financial
need, that such waiver is necessary.
‘‘(3) MAXIMUM.—The Federal share of the
costs of teacher training programs conducted pursu-
ant to subsection (a) may not exceed $100,000 for
any one contractor, or $200,000 for a statewide pro-
gram administered by any one contractor in at least
five sites throughout the State.
‘‘(e) NATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The National Writing
Project shall establish and operate a National Advi-
sory Board.
‘‘(2) COMPOSITION.—The National Advisory
Board established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall
consist of—
‘‘(A) national educational leaders;
‘‘(B) leaders in the field of writing; and
‘‘(C) such other individuals as the National
Writing Project deems necessary.
‘‘(3) DUTIES.—The National Advisory Board
established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall—
‘‘(A) advise the National Writing Project
on national issues related to student writing
and the teaching of writing;
‘‘(B) review the activities and programs of
the National Writing Project; and
‘‘(C) support the continued development of
the National Writing Project.
‘‘(f) EVALUATION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall con-
duct an independent evaluation by grant or contract
of the teacher training programs administered pur-
suant to this Act in accordance with section 14701.
Such evaluation shall specify the amount of funds
expended by the National Writing Project and each
contractor receiving assistance under this section for
administrative costs. The results of such evaluation
shall be made available to the appropriate commit-
tees of the Congress.
‘‘(2) FUNDING
LIMITATION.—The Secretary
shall reserve not more than $150,000 from the total
amount appropriated pursuant to the authority of
subsection (h) for fiscal year 1994 and the four suc-
ceeding fiscal years to conduct the evaluation de-
scribed in paragraph (1).
‘‘(g) APPLICATION REVIEW.—
‘‘(1) REVIEW
BOARD.—The National Writing
Project shall establish and operate a National Re-
view Board that shall consist of—
‘‘(A) leaders in the field of research in
writing; and
‘‘(B) such other individuals as the Na-
tional Writing Project deems necessary.
‘‘(2) DUTIES.—The National Review Board
shall—
‘‘(A) review all applications for assistance
under this subsection; and
‘‘(B) recommend applications for assist-
ance under this subsection for funding by the
National Writing Project.
‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
are authorized to be appropriated for the grant to the Na-
tional Writing Project, $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2000
and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years
2001 through 2004.
‘‘PART F—SABBATICAL LEAVE FOR
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
‘‘SEC. 2351. GRANTS FOR SALARY DURING SABBATICAL
LEAVE.
‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may
make grants to State educational agencies and local edu-
cational agencies to pay such agencies for one-half of the
amount of the salary that otherwise would be earned by
an eligible teacher described in subsection (b), if, in lieu
of fulfilling the teacher’s ordinary teaching assignment,
the teacher completes a course of study described in sub-
section (c) during a sabbatical term described in sub-
section (d).
‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE TEACHERS.—An eligible teacher de-
scribed in this subsection is a teacher who—
‘‘(1) has been employed for the 3 previous years
by a local educational agency that is both a high-
poverty local educational agency and a low-per-
forming local educational agency;
‘‘(2) has secured from such agency, and any
other person or agency whose approval is required
under State law, approval to take sabbatical leave
for a sabbatical term described in subsection (d);
and
‘‘(3) has submitted to the agency an application
for a subgrant at such time, in such manner, and
containing such information as the agency may re-
quire, including—
‘‘(A) written proof—
‘‘(i) of the approval described in para-
graph (2); and
‘‘(ii) of the teacher’s having been ac-
cepted for enrollment in a course of study
described in subsection (c); and
‘‘(B) assurances that the teacher—
‘‘(i) will notify the agency in writing
within a reasonable time if the teacher ter-
minates enrollment in the course of study
described in subsection (c) for any reason;
‘‘(ii) in the discretion of the agency,
will reimburse to the agency some or all of
the amount of the subgrant if the teacher
fails to complete the course of study; and
‘‘(iii) otherwise will provide the agency
with proof of having completed such course
of study not later than 60 days after such
completion;
‘‘(4) has agreed to continue teaching in the
high-poverty, low-performing local educational agen-
cy for a period of 3 years following the sabbatical;
‘‘(5) has agreed to collaborate with other teach-
ers of the same subject in the local educational agen-
cy following the sabbatical to share the skills and
knowledge obtained through the sabbatical; and
‘‘(6) has been selected by the agency to receive
a subgrant based on the agency’s plan for meeting
its classroom needs.
‘‘(c) COURSE OF STUDY.—A course of study de-
scribed in this subsection is a course of study at an institu-
tion of higher education that—
‘‘(1) requires not less than one academic semes-
ter and not more than one academic year to com-
plete;
‘‘(2) is open for enrollment for professional de-
velopment purposes to an eligible teacher described
in subsection (b); and
‘‘(3) is designed to improve the classroom
teaching of such teachers through academic and
child development studies.
‘‘(d) SABBATICAL TERM.—A sabbatical term de-
scribed in this subsection is a leave of absence from teach-
ing duties granted to an eligible teacher for not less than
one academic semester and not more than one academic
year, during which period the teacher receives—
‘‘(1) one-half of the amount of the salary that
otherwise would be earned by the teacher, if the
teacher had not been granted a leave of absence,
from State or local funds made available by a State
educational agency or a local educational agency;
and
‘‘(2) one-half of such amount from Federal
funds received by such agency through a grant
under this section.
‘‘(e) PAYMENTS.—
‘‘(1) TO
ELIGIBLE
TEACHERS.—In making a
subgrant to an eligible teacher under this section, a
State educational agency or a local educational agen-
cy shall agree to pay the teacher, for tax and admin-
istrative purposes, as if the teacher’s regular em-
ployment and teaching duties had not been sus-
pended.
‘‘(2) REPAYMENT
OF
SECRETARY.—A State
educational agency or a local educational agency re-
ceiving a grant under this section shall agree to pay
over to the Secretary the Federal share of any
amount recovered by the agency pursuant to sub-
section (b)(3)(B)(ii).
‘‘(f) FUNDING.—For the purpose of carrying out this
section, there are authorized to be appropriated
$20,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and such sums as may
be necessary for fiscal years 2001 through 2004.
‘‘PART G—GENERAL PROVISIONS
‘‘SEC. 2401. PERFORMANCE INDICATORS.
‘‘(a) MINIMUM INDICATORS.—At a minimum, the in-
dicators of program performance under this title, against
which recipients of funds under this title shall report their
progress in such manner as the Secretary may determine,
are the following:
‘‘(1) Improvement in student achievement.
‘‘(2) Closing of the achievement gap between
groups of students.
‘‘(3) An increase in the percentage of fully
qualified teachers, including teachers from minority
and other historically underrepresented groups.
‘‘(4) An equalization, between high- and low-
poverty schools in a local educational agency, of
classes in core academic areas taught by fully quali-
fied teachers.
‘‘(5) An increase in the percentage of new
teachers receiving support during their first 3 years
of teaching.
‘‘(6) An increase in the percentage of teachers
participating in high-quality professional develop-
ment.
‘‘(7) An increase in the percentage of para-
professionals enrolled in certification programs.
‘‘(8) A decrease in the average class size.
‘‘SEC. 2402. DEFINITIONS.
‘‘As used in this title:
‘‘(1) CAREER-CHANGING
PROFESSIONAL.—The
term ‘career-changing professional’ means a person
who—
‘‘(A) holds at least a baccalaureate degree;
‘‘(B) 
demonstrates 
a 
commitment 
to
changing the person’s current professional ca-
reer and becoming a teacher; and
‘‘(C) has knowledge and experience that is
relevant to teaching a high-need subject area in
a high-poverty local educational agency.
‘‘(2) CORE
ACADEMIC
SUBJECTS.—The term
‘core academic subjects’ means—
‘‘(A) mathematics;
‘‘(B) science;
‘‘(C) reading (or language arts) and
English;
‘‘(D) social studies (history, civics/govern-
ment, geography, and economics);
‘‘(E) foreign languages; and
‘‘(F) fine arts (music, dance, drama, and
the visual arts).
‘‘(3) FULLY
QUALIFIED.—The term ‘fully
qualified’—
‘‘(A) when used with respect to an elemen-
tary or secondary school teacher, means that
the teacher has obtained certification or passed
the State licensing exam and holds a license;
and
‘‘(B) when used with respect to—
‘‘(i) an elementary school teacher,
means that the teacher holds a bachelor’s
degree and demonstrates general knowl-
edge, teaching skill, and subject matter
knowledge required to teach at the elemen-
tary school level the academic subjects de-
scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (D)
of paragraph (2); or
‘‘(ii) a middle or secondary school
teacher, means that the teacher holds a
bachelor’s degree and demonstrates a high
level of competency in all subject areas in
which he or she teaches through—
‘‘(I) a high level of performance
on a rigorous academic subject area
test; or
‘‘(II) completion of an academic
major in each of the subject areas in
which he or she provides instruction.
‘‘(4) 
HIGH-POVERTY
LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL
AGENCY.—The term ‘high-poverty local educational
agency’ means a local educational agency in which—
‘‘(A) the percentage of children, ages 5
through 17, from families below the poverty
level (as defined by the Office of Management
and Budget and revised annually in accordance
with section 673(2) of the Community Services
Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2))) applica-
ble to a family of the size involved for the most
recent fiscal year for which satisfactory data
are available is 33 percent or greater; or
‘‘(B) the number of such children exceeds
10,000.
‘‘(5) LOW-PERFORMING
LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL
AGENCY.—The term ‘low-performing local edu-
cational agency’ means—
‘‘(A) a local educational agency that in-
cludes a school identified by the agency for
school improvement under section 1116(c); or
‘‘(B) a local educational agency that in-
cludes a school in which at least 50 percent of
the students fail to meet State student perform-
ance standards based on assessments the agen-
cy is using under part A of title I.
‘‘(6) 
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT.—The
term ‘professional development’ means sustained and
intensive activities that improve teachers’ content
knowledge and teaching skills and that—
‘‘(A) enhance the ability of teachers to help
all students, including females, minorities, chil-
dren with disabilities, children with limited
English proficiency and economically disadvan-
taged children, reach high State and local con-
tent and student performance standards;
‘‘(B) advance teacher understanding of one
or more of the core academic subject areas and
effective instructional strategies for improving
student achievement in those areas, including
technology;
‘‘(C) are directly related to the subject
area in which the teacher provides instruction;
‘‘(D) are of sufficient duration to have a
positive and lasting impact on classroom in-
struction;
‘‘(E) are an integral part of broader school
and district-wide plans for raising student
achievement to State and local standards;
‘‘(F) are aligned with State content and
student performance standards;
‘‘(G) are based on the best available re-
search on teaching and learning;
‘‘(H) include professional development ac-
tivities that involve collaborative groups of
teachers and administrators from the same
school or district and, to the greatest extent
possible, include follow-up and school-based
support such as coaching or study groups; and
‘‘(I) as a whole, are regularly evaluated for
their impact on increased teacher effectiveness
and improved student achievement, with the
findings of such evaluations used to improve the
quality of professional development.
‘‘(7) 
TECHNOLOGY
DEFICIENT.—The 
term
‘technology deficient’, when used with respect to a
local educational agency or a school, means that the
agency or school does not possess the equipment,
networking, or skills to use technology to enhance
teaching and learning.
‘‘(8) TECHNOLOGY
PROFICIENT.—The term
‘technology proficient’, when used with respect to a
local educational agency or a school, means that the
agency or school possesses the equipment, net-
working, and skills to use technology to enhance
teaching and learning.
‘‘(9) 
TROOPS-TO-TEACHERS
PROGRAM.—The
term ‘troops-to-teachers program’ means the teach-
ers and teachers’ aide placement program for sepa-
rated members of the Armed Forces that was estab-
lished by the Secretary of Defense, and the Sec-
retary of Transportation with respect to the Coast
Guard, under section 1151 of title 10, United States
Code.
‘‘(10) UNQUALIFIED TEACHER.—The term ‘un-
qualified teacher’ means a teacher who is not fully
qualified.’’.
(c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
(1) NATIONAL WRITING PROJECT.—Part K of
title X of the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8331 et seq.) is repealed.
(2) REFERENCE TO NATIONAL CLEARINGHOUSE
FOR MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE EDUCATION.—Sec-