I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 6328 
To promote equity in advanced coursework and programs at elementary 
and secondary schools. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 9, 2023 
Mr. CASTRO of Texas (for himself, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. CROCK-
ETT, Ms. NORTON, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. ESPAILLAT, and Mr. RUIZ) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Edu-
cation and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To promote equity in advanced coursework and programs 
at elementary and secondary schools. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Advanced Coursework 
Equity Act’’. 
SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 
The purposes of this Act are— 
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(1) to expand access to advanced courses and 
programs at under-resourced elementary and sec-
ondary schools; 
(2) to advance equitable enrollment practices, 
so that all students who are ready to engage in more 
rigorous coursework can benefit from advanced 
courses and programs; and 
(3) to equip dramatically more students, espe-
cially students from historically underrepresented 
groups, with twenty-first century skills in the fields 
of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics 
(referred to in this Act as ‘‘STEM’’) needed to suc-
ceed in college and a competitive global workforce. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Black, Latino, and Native American stu-
dents, students with disabilities, English learners, 
and students from low-income families are underrep-
resented in advanced programs and courses. 
(2) While 1 in 10 students in schools in the 
United States participate in the Advanced Place-
ment (AP) program, just over 1 in 20 low-income, 
Black, and Native American students participate in 
Advanced Placement, 1 in 50 English learners par-
ticipate, and fewer than 1 in 50 students with dis-
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abilities participate. One in 10 White students, 1 in 
15 Latino students, and 1 in 20 Black students par-
ticipate in dual enrollment programs. 
(3) Taking the mathematics course Algebra 1 
in grade 8 is necessary for most students to be on 
track for enrolling in advanced math courses in high 
school. If Black and Latino students had a fair op-
portunity to participate in eighth grade Algebra I 
across the country, schools would enroll an addi-
tional 43,019 Black students and 59,452 Latino stu-
dents in eighth grade Algebra I courses. The De-
partment of Education reported that in the 2015– 
2016 school year, only 48 percent of schools with 
high concentrations of English learners offered Alge-
bra I compared with 70 percent of schools with low 
concentrations of English learner students. In the 
same year, just 2 percent of English learner stu-
dents nationwide were enrolled in Algebra I in grade 
8. 
(4) A low-income student with reading and 
math achievement levels equal to those of a high-in-
come student is half as likely to receive gifted serv-
ices as the high-income student. Black students are 
approximately half as likely as White peers with the 
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same mathematics and reading achievement levels to 
be referred to gifted services. 
(5) A major barrier for Black and Latino stu-
dents and students with disabilities to access ad-
vanced courses and programs is the over-reliance on 
subjective criteria, such as the recommendation of 
teachers and counselors, in the advanced course ad-
mittance process. When Denver Public Schools im-
plemented universal screening for gifted and talented 
programs, Latino students were identified for the 
program at twice the rate as the year before. 
(6) Just 1 in 12 students in the United States 
scored in the top 2 proficiency levels on the 2018 
PISA 
math 
assessment. 
This 
is 
below 
the 
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Devel-
opment (OECD) average and less than half the rate 
of South Korea, Japan, and Switzerland. 
(7) Public elementary schools and secondary 
schools face a $305,000,000,000 budget shortfall 
due to COVID–19 related tax revenue decreases and 
new COVID–19 related expenses. As school districts 
prepare to make drastic cuts to educational pro-
gramming, access to advanced coursework and pro-
grams is in jeopardy for millions of students, espe-
cially students from underrepresented groups and 
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students attending under-resourced schools. Addi-
tional funding and reforms are needed to maintain 
and expand access to advanced coursework and pro-
grams, especially for marginalized students in com-
munities hit hardest by the COVID–19 pandemic. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) TERMS FROM THE ELEMENTARY AND SEC-
ONDARY
EDUCATION
ACT
OF
1965.—The terms 
‘‘early college high school’’, ‘‘elementary school’’, 
‘‘English learner’’, ‘‘gifted and talented’’, ‘‘institu-
tion of higher education’’, ‘‘parent’’, ‘‘school leader’’, 
‘‘secondary school’’, and ‘‘State educational agency’’ 
have the meaning given those terms in section 8101 
of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 
(2) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 
‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given 
the term in section 8101 of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801), 
and includes a public charter school that is a local 
educational agency. 
(3) OPEN ENROLLMENT.—The term ‘‘open en-
rollment’’ means an enrollment mechanism through 
which any student that chooses to enroll in an ad-
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vanced course or program is allowed to do so, with-
out regard to previous academic performance or test 
scores. 
(4) SUBGROUP OF STUDENTS.—The term ‘‘sub-
group of students’’ has the meaning given that term 
in section 1111(c)(2) of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary 
Education 
Act 
of 
1965 
(20 
U.S.C. 
6311(c)(2)). 
(5) UNIVERSAL SCREENING.—The term ‘‘uni-
versal screening’’ means an enrollment mechanism 
through which all students in a grade are screened 
for enrollment in advanced courses and programs. 
Students that are determined to be qualified for ad-
vanced courses or programs are automatically en-
rolled in those courses or programs, unless a parent 
chooses to opt out a student. The determination of 
which students are qualified for advanced courses or 
programs— 
(A) shall be made after consideration of 
not less than 2 objective assessments (except 
that a student may qualify based on only 1 
such assessment)— 
(i) that are combined in a reasoned 
way that is not biased against any par-
ticular subgroup of students; 
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(ii) that provide appropriate accom-
modations for students with disabilities; 
(iii) that may be administered not ex-
plicitly for the primary purpose of deter-
mining enrollment in an advanced course 
or program (such as through a statewide 
exam that all students in a grade will 
take), so long as students with disabilities 
have equal access to the assessment and 
are provided appropriate accommodations 
in accordance with the Individuals with 
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 
1400 et seq.) and section 504 of the Reha-
bilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794); 
and 
(iv) that may include— 
(I) a standardized assessment 
that provides appropriate accommoda-
tions for students with disabilities in 
accordance with the Individuals with 
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 
1400 et seq.) and section 504 of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 
794); 
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(II) a statewide, districtwide, or 
schoolwide assessment; or 
(III) 
grades 
from 
relevant 
courses, a portfolio of relevant work, 
or class ranking; and 
(B) may be partially based upon a subjec-
tive measure (such as a teacher’s recommenda-
tion) in addition to the required 2 objective 
measures. 
SEC. 5. GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall— 
(1) conduct 3 separate grant programs, by— 
(A) awarding not less than 80 percent of 
the amounts authorized to be appropriated 
under section 9 to State educational agencies to 
allow those State educational agencies to award 
subgrants to participating local educational 
agencies, including public charter schools, to en-
able those local educational agencies to carry 
out the activities described in section 7; 
(B) awarding not less than 15 percent of 
the amounts authorized to be appropriated 
under section 9 to participating local edu-
cational agencies to allow those local edu-
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cational agencies to carry out the activities de-
scribed in section 7; and 
(C) awarding not more than 4 percent of 
the amounts authorized to be appropriated 
under section 9 to an institution of higher edu-
cation or other nonprofit entity that has a dem-
onstrated record of effectiveness in delivering or 
designing advanced coursework or programs 
(such as by previously executing a successful 
project that was part of the Jacob K. Javits 
Gifted and Talented Students Education Pro-
gram under section 4644 of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 7294)), to enable that institution or en-
tity to provide services to students in rural 
areas and students who otherwise lack access to 
advanced courses or programs; and 
(2) reserve not more than 1 percent of the 
amounts authorized to be appropriated under section 
9 for the Department of Education to administer the 
program under this Act, provide technical assistance 
to grantees, evaluate grantees’ performance (as re-
quired by this Act), and disseminate information 
about findings and best practices related to the ac-
tivities authorized under this Act. 
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(b) APPLICATION.— 
(1) STATE
EDUCATIONAL
AGENCY.—A State 
educational agency desiring to receive a grant under 
subsection (a)(1)(A) shall submit an application to 
the Secretary during the first year of the 3-year 
grant cycle, and at such time and in such manner 
as the Secretary may require. The application shall 
include the following: 
(A) An assurance that memoranda of un-
derstanding, as described in section 6(c), have 
been executed between the State educational 
agency and not less than 50 percent of the local 
educational agencies in the State, representing 
not less than 50 percent of all students in the 
State, to participate in the grant program and 
fulfill the program obligations. 
(B) A list of the participating local edu-
cational agencies that have executed such 
memoranda, and the percentage of the State’s 
public school students who are served by those 
local educational agencies. 
(C) A plan for supporting participating 
local educational agencies with implementing 
programs and activities to improve enrollment 
in all advanced courses or programs offered by 
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the local educational agency and improving stu-
dent preparation for and participation in path-
ways to postsecondary education in STEM 
fields, which may include— 
(i) using data from evidence-based 
early warning indicator systems; and 
(ii) other evidence-based activities, in-
cluding 
open 
enrollment 
or 
universal 
screening. 
(D) A plan to assemble a statewide advi-
sory council of students from underrepresented 
subgroups of students, and parents or guard-
ians of students from those subgroups, with at 
least 2 members of each subgroup of students. 
The plan shall explain how the council will be 
involved in the State educational agency’s im-
plementation of the grant, as well as oversight 
and evaluation of the grant. 
(E) A plan for supporting participating 
local educational agencies in collecting and re-
porting data about advanced coursework enroll-
ment and student performance data, including 
data disaggregated and cross-tabulated by race 
and ethnicity, sex, disability status, socio-
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economic status, and status as an English 
learner. 
(F) A description of ambitious 3-year en-
rollment and performance goals for each sub-
group of students, and intermediate annual tar-
gets for each subgroup of students, to bridge 
statewide inequities (according to race and eth-
nicity, sex, disability status, socioeconomic sta-
tus, and status as an English learner) in ad-
vanced coursework or program participation 
and performance. 
(G) A proposed budget for how the State 
educational agency will spend funding awarded 
through the grant. 
(2) LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL
AGENCY.—A local 
educational agency desiring to receive a grant under 
subsection (a)(1)(B) shall be eligible to apply for a 
grant if the local educational agency is not also seek-
ing a subgrant from a State educational agency that 
receives a grant under this Act. A local educational 
agency shall submit an application to the Secretary 
at such time and in such manner as the Secretary 
may require. The application shall include the fol-
lowing: 
(A) An assurance that— 
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(i) the local educational agency is not 
also seeking a subgrant from a State edu-
cational agency that receives a grant under 
this Act during the applicable grant cycle; 
and 
(ii) the local educational agency has a 
high student poverty ratio (as measured by 
comparing the number of students meeting 
at least one measure of poverty described 
in section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 6313(a)(5)) to the total number of 
students in the school). 
(B) A description of the enrollment mecha-
nism that the participating local educational 
agency will use for its various advanced courses 
or programs, which shall include open enroll-
ment or universal screening, including in the 
case of universal screening, a description of 
what assessments will be used to determine en-
rollment as described in section 4(5), and a jus-
tification for why each assessment was selected. 
(C) A plan to assemble a local advisory 
council of students from underrepresented sub-
groups of students, and parents or guardians of 
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students from those subgroups, with at least 2 
members of each subgroup of students. The 
plan shall explain how the council will be in-
volved in the local educational agency’s imple-
mentation of the grant, as well as oversight and 
evaluation of the grant. 
(D) A plan to train school leaders, aca-
demic advisors or counselors, and teachers on 
strategies for bridging inequities (according to 
race and ethnicity, sex, socioeconomic status, 
disability status, and status as an English 
learner) in advanced coursework or STEM pro-
gram participation and performance. 
(E) A plan to communicate to students 
and families, in multiple languages and through 
multiple formats, the process and requirements 
to enroll in advanced courses. 
(F) An agreement to carry out the activi-
ties described in section 7. 
(G) A plan for collecting and reporting 
data about advanced coursework enrollment and 
student performance data, including data 
disaggregated and cross-tabulated by race and 
ethnicity, sex, disability status, socioeconomic 
status, and status as an English learner. 
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(H) A description of ambitious 3-year en-
rollment and performance goals for each sub-
group of students, and intermediate annual tar-
gets for each subgroup of students, to bridge 
districtwide inequities (according to race and 
ethnicity, sex, socioeconomic status, disability 
status, and status as an English learner) in ad-
vanced coursework or STEM program partici-
pation and performance. 
(I) A proposed budget for how the partici-
pating local educational agency will spend fund-
ing awarded through the grant. 
(3) OTHER
NONPROFIT
ENTITY.—An institu-
tion of higher education or other nonprofit entity de-
siring to receive a grant under subsection (a)(1)(C) 
shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such informa-
tion as the Secretary may require, including, at a 
minimum— 
(A) at least one memorandum of under-
standing that the applicant has already estab-
lished with a school, local educational agency, 
or State educational agency that the applicant 
intends to work with, and a description of the 
services the applicant would provide to that 
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school, local educational agency, or State edu-
cational agency; 
(B) materials that demonstrate the appli-
cant’s record of effectiveness in designing or de-
livering advanced coursework or programs and 
providing academic supports for students that 
belong to underrepresented subgroups; 
(C) a description of ambitious 3-year en-
rollment and performance goals for each sub-
group of students that the applicant intends to 
serve, and intermediate annual targets for each 
such subgroup of students, to bridge statewide 
inequities (according to race and ethnicity, sex, 
socioeconomic status, disability status, and sta-
tus as an English learner) in advanced 
coursework or program participation and per-
formance; 
(D) a plan for collecting and reporting 
data about advanced coursework enrollment and 
student performance data, including data 
disaggregated and cross-tabulated by race and 
ethnicity, sex, disability status, socioeconomic 
status, and status as an English learner; and 
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(E) a proposed budget for how the appli-
cant will spend funding awarded through the 
grant. 
(c) CRITERIA FOR AWARDING GRANTS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—In evaluating applications 
for a grant under subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), 
of subsection (a)(1), respectively, the Secretary shall 
consider— 
(A) the 3-year goals, and intermediate an-
nual targets, for bridging statewide inequities 
(according to race and ethnicity, sex, socio-
economic status, disability status, and status as 
an English learner) in advanced coursework or 
program participation and performance; 
(B) the level of detail and feasibility of the 
plan for implementing (or supporting a partici-
pating State educational agency, local edu-
cational agency, or school in implementing, as 
applicable) open enrollment or universal screen-
ing for all advanced courses or programs of-
fered by the local educational agency; 
(C) the level of detail and feasibility of the 
plan for assembling an advisory council of stu-
dents from underrepresented subgroups of stu-
dents, and parents or guardians of students 
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from those subgroups, and involving that advi-
sory council in the implementation of the grant, 
as well as oversight and evaluation of the grant; 
and 
(D) the level of detail and feasibility of the 
plan for collecting and reporting (or supporting 
a participating State educational agency, local 
educational agency, or school in collecting or re-
porting, as applicable) data by subgroup of stu-
dents about advanced coursework enrollment 
and performance. 
(2) PRIORITIES.— 
(A) STATE
EDUCATIONAL
AGENCY.—In 
awarding a grant under subsection (a)(1)(A), 
the Secretary shall give priority to— 
(i) States that established memoranda 
of understanding, as described in section 
6(c), with a high percentage of the local 
educational agencies in the State and cov-
ering a high percentage of total students in 
the State; 
(ii) States with large gaps in equitable 
access, enrollment, and performance in ad-
vanced coursework across subgroups of 
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students, as described in the grant applica-
tions of the State educational agencies; 
(iii) States that prioritize evidence- 
based strategies to ensure subgroups of 
students have equitable access to pathways 
to postsecondary education in STEM 
fields; and 
(iv) States that made recent improve-
ments to equitable participation and per-
formance in advanced coursework among 
historically underrepresented subgroups of 
students based on data collection from the 
Office of Civil Rights of the Department of 
Education, and demonstrate a need for ad-
ditional funds to expand improvements. 
(B) LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL
AGENCY.—In 
awarding a grant under subsection (a)(1)(B), 
the Secretary shall give priority to— 
(i) local educational agencies that 
have made recent improvements to equi-
table participation and performance in ad-
vanced 
coursework 
among 
historically 
underrepresented subgroups of students 
based on data collection from the Office of 
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Civil Rights of the Department of Edu-
cation; 
(ii) local educational agencies that 
provide pathways to postsecondary edu-
cation in STEM fields to a high proportion 
of students who are enrolled in high 
schools served by the local educational 
agency; and 
(iii) local educational agencies that 
prioritize evidence-based strategies to en-
sure subgroups of students have equitable 
access to pathways to postsecondary edu-
cation in STEM fields. 
(d) AMOUNT; DURATION.— 
(1) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.— 
(A) AMOUNT.—A grant awarded under 
subsection (a)(1)(A) shall be in an amount that 
is not less than $15,000,000 and not more than 
$60,000,000. 
(B) DURATION.—A grant awarded under 
subsection (a)(1)(A) shall be for a 3-year pe-
riod. 
(2) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.— 
(A) AMOUNT.—A grant awarded under 
subsection (a)(1)(B) shall be in an amount that 
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is not less than $1,000,000 and not more than 
$20,000,000. 
(B) DURATION.—A grant awarded under 
subsection (a)(1)(B) shall be for a 3-year pe-
riod. 
(3) OTHER NONPROFIT ENTITY.— 
(A) AMOUNT.—A grant awarded under 
subsection (a)(1)(C) shall be in an amount that 
is not more than $3,000,000. 
(B) DURATION.—A grant awarded under 
subsection (a)(1)(C) shall be for a 3-year pe-
riod. 
(e) NUMBER OF GRANTS AWARDED.— 
(1) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B), the Secretary shall award not less 
than 6 and not more than 10 grants under sub-
section (a)(1)(A) per 3-year grant cycle period. 
(B) EXCEPTIONS.—Notwithstanding sub-
paragraph (A), if the amount appropriated to 
carry out this Act is— 
(i) less than $233,000,000 in any 
year, the Secretary may award fewer than 
6 awards under subsection (a)(1)(A) per 
cycle; and 
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(ii) more than $300,000,000 in any 
year, the Secretary may award more than 
10 awards under subsection (a)(1)(A) per 
cycle. 
(2) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B), the Secretary shall award not less 
than 8 and not more than 16 grants under sub-
section (a)(1)(B) per 3-year grant cycle period. 
(B) EXCEPTIONS.—Notwithstanding sub-
paragraph (A), if the amount appropriated to 
carry out this Act is— 
(i) less than $233,000,000 in any 
year, the Secretary may award fewer than 
8 awards under subsection (a)(1)(B) per 
cycle; and 
(ii) more than $300,000,000 in any 
year, the Secretary may award more than 
16 awards under subsection (a)(1)(B) per 
cycle. 
(f) SPECIAL RULE.—In the event a local educational 
agency that is receiving a subgrant cannot carry out one 
or more of the activities described in section 7, a State 
educational agency receiving a grant under subsection 
(a)(1)(A) may use not more than 4 percent of the grant 
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funds to carry out high-quality technical assistance for 
local educational agencies in the State. 
SEC. 6. SUBGRANTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—A State educational agency re-
ceiving a grant under this Act shall use the grant funds 
to award subgrants to local educational agencies in the 
State. 
(b) REQUIREMENT.—A State educational agency 
shall award not less than 65 percent of grant funds to— 
(1) local educational agencies that have a high 
student poverty ratio (as measured by comparing the 
number of students meeting at least one measure of 
poverty described in section 1113(a)(5) of the Ele-
mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 6313(a)(5)) to the total number of children 
in the school); and 
(2) local educational agencies that will support 
elementary schools and secondary schools that offer 
fewer advanced course or program offerings (or 
fewer available slots in those courses or programs) 
than the average for the State. 
(c) SUBGRANT AGREEMENT.—As part of a memo-
randum of understanding described in section 5(b)(1)(A), 
and as a requirement for receiving a subgrant under this 
Act, a participating local educational agency shall— 
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(1) establish ambitious 3-year enrollment and 
performance goals for each subgroup of students, 
and intermediate annual targets for each subgroup 
of students to bridge districtwide inequities (accord-
ing to race, sex, socioeconomic status, disability sta-
tus, and status as an English learner) in— 
(A) advanced coursework; 
(B) STEM program participation and per-
formance; or 
(C) both advanced coursework and STEM 
program participation and performance; 
(2) specify the enrollment mechanism that the 
local educational agency will use for its various ad-
vanced courses or programs, which shall include 
open enrollment or universal screening, including in 
the case of universal screening, a description of what 
assessments will be used to determine enrollment as 
described in section 4(5), and a justification for why 
each assessment was selected; 
(3) submit a plan to train school leaders, aca-
demic counselors or advisors, and teachers on strate-
gies for bridging inequities (according to race and 
ethnicity, sex, socioeconomic status, disability status, 
and status as an English learner) in advanced 
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coursework or program participation and perform-
ance; 
(4) submit a plan to assemble a local advisory 
council of students from underrepresented subgroups 
of students, and parents or guardians of students 
from those subgroups, with at least 2 members of 
each subgroup of students, including an explanation 
of how the council will be involved in the local edu-
cational agency’s implementation of the grant, as 
well as oversight and evaluation of the grant; 
(5) submit a plan to communicate to students 
and families, in multiple languages and through 
multiple formats, the process and requirements to 
enroll in advanced courses; and 
(6) an agreement to carry out the activities de-
scribed in section 7. 
SEC. 7. USES OF FUNDS. 
(a) REQUIRED USES OF FUNDS.—A local educational 
agency receiving a grant or subgrant under this Act shall 
use the grant or subgrant funds to carry out 2 or more 
of the following activities: 
(1) Conducting community engagement (includ-
ing by assembling a local advisory council) with re-
gard to changes to advanced courses or programs. 
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(2) Not later than 1 year after funding is re-
ceived, training school leaders, academic counselors 
or advisors, and teachers on strategies for bridging 
inequities (according to race and ethnicity, sex, so-
cioeconomic status, disability status, and status as 
an English learner) in advanced coursework or pro-
gram participation and performance. 
(3) Expanding enrollment in advanced courses 
or programs for underrepresented students. 
(4) Not later than 1 year after funding is re-
ceived, implementing open enrollment or universal 
screening for all advanced courses and programs, in-
cluding— 
(A) gifted and talented programs, 8th 
grade Algebra I, Advanced Placement, Inter-
national Baccalaureate, dual enrollment, early 
college high school, and any similarly advanced 
courses or programs; and 
(B) training individuals involved in the as-
sessment process in the administration of the 
assessments and the interpretation of the re-
sults. 
(5) Launching advanced courses or programs, 
or expand enrollment capacity in advanced courses 
or programs, which may include gifted and talented 
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programs, 8th grade Algebra I, Advanced Place-
ment, International Baccalaureate, dual enrollment, 
early college high school, or any similarly advanced 
courses or programs. 
(6) Providing direct services, such as tutoring, 
to students from underrepresented groups to enable 
those students to thrive academically in advanced 
courses and programs, and if applicable, prioritize 
services to be delivered by paraprofessionals or other 
qualified school personnel. 
(b) PERMITTED USES
OF FUNDS.—A local edu-
cational agency receiving a grant or subgrant under this 
Act may (in addition to the required uses described in sub-
section (a)) use the grant or subgrant funds to carry out 
one or more of the following activities: 
(1) Launching innovative advanced coursework 
models that allow all students to benefit from ad-
vanced coursework, such as embedded enrichment 
(for elementary and middle school students), and 
open honors (for high school students). 
(2) Purchasing curricula and materials for ad-
vanced courses and programs, such as calculators, 
books, and laboratory materials. 
(3) Covering the cost of advanced coursework 
fees for low-income students. 
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(4) Using funds to train or hire teachers to 
teach advanced coursework. 
(5) Strengthening or developing a positive 
school climate through teacher training and profes-
sional development, including implicit bias training, 
identity-affirming curricula, peer mentoring, pro-
grams to recruit and retain diverse educators, en-
gaging and supporting families, and expanding alter-
natives to punitive and exclusionary discipline prac-
tices. 
(c) NONPROFIT ENTITY.—An institution of higher 
education or other nonprofit entity receiving a grant under 
section 5(a)(1)(C) may use the grant to carry out one or 
more of the following activities for students in rural areas 
and students who otherwise lack access to advanced 
courses or programs: 
(1) Providing direct services, such as tutoring, 
to students from underrepresented groups to enable 
those students to thrive academically in advanced 
courses and programs, which may include gifted and 
talented programs, 8th grade Algebra I, Advanced 
Placement, International Baccalaureate, dual enroll-
ment, early college high school, embedded enrich-
ment (for elementary and middle school students), 
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open honors (for high school students), or any simi-
larly advanced courses or programs. 
(2) Purchasing curricula and materials for ad-
vanced courses and programs, such as calculators, 
books, and laboratory materials. 
(3) Covering the cost of advanced coursework 
exams for low-income students. 
SEC. 8. REPORTING; BONUS GRANT. 
(a) REPORT TO SECRETARY.— 
(1) STATES AND LEAS.—Not later than 60 days 
after the end of each year of the grant, each State 
educational agency or local educational agency re-
ceiving a grant shall prepare and submit to the Sec-
retary a report containing the following: 
(A) A description of the training that the 
local educational agency receiving a grant, or 
local educational agencies receiving a subgrant 
in the State, as applicable, conducted to train 
school leaders, academic counselors or advisors, 
and teachers on strategies for bridging inequi-
ties (according to race and ethnicity, sex, socio-
economic status, disability status, and status as 
an English learner) in advanced coursework or 
program participation and performance, includ-
ing the number of people trained and what 
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schools those trained individuals are affiliated 
with. 
(B) A listing of the advanced courses or 
programs available at the local educational 
agency receiving a grant, or at each local edu-
cational agency that received a subgrant, as ap-
plicable, and the student enrollment mechanism 
for each of those courses or programs. If a local 
educational agency uses universal screening in-
stead of open enrollment, then the list shall in-
clude a description of what assessments will be 
used to determine enrollment as described in 
section 4(5). 
(C) The number and percentages of stu-
dents in the State (or in the local educational 
agency, in the case of a local educational agen-
cy receiving a grant) that are enrolled in ad-
vanced courses or programs, disaggregated and 
cross-tabulated by race and ethnicity, sex, dis-
ability status, socioeconomic status, and status 
as an English learner. 
(D) The academic outcomes (such as 
grades or exam scores) of students enrolled in 
advanced courses or programs in the State (or 
in the local educational agency, in the case of 
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a local educational agency receiving a grant), 
disaggregated and cross-tabulated by race and 
ethnicity, sex, disability status, socioeconomic 
status, and status as an English learner. 
(E) A final budget for how the State or 
local educational agency spent funding awarded 
through the grant. 
(F) A narrative articulating whether the 
State or local educational agency receiving a 
grant met its annual intermediate targets for 
equitable enrollment and performance among 
underrepresented subgroups of students in ad-
vanced coursework or programs, including anal-
ysis for why the State did or did not meet these 
targets across underrepresented subgroups of 
students, and a plan to remediate any gaps for 
the coming grant year. This narrative shall also 
include the analysis from the local advisory 
council (in the case of a grantee that is a local 
educational agency) or the State advisory coun-
cil (in the case of a grantee that is a State edu-
cational agency). 
(G) A description of communication with 
families, including how parents were notified 
of— 
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(i) advanced coursework opportunities; 
(ii) the value of the programs; and 
(iii) the ability to opt out. 
(2) OTHER
NONPROFIT
ENTITIES.—Not later 
than 60 days after the end of each year of the grant, 
each nonprofit entity receiving a grant under section 
5(a)(1)(C) shall prepare and submit to the Secretary 
a report containing the information described in sub-
paragraph (C) through (F) of paragraph (1) with re-
spect to students that are enrolled in advanced 
courses or programs provided by the nonprofit entity 
and the nonprofit entity’s targets. 
(b) BONUS.— 
(1) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The State 
educational agency receiving a grant under section 
5(a)(1)(A) that achieves the greatest growth toward 
that State’s advanced coursework enrollment and 
performance equity goals described in section 
5(b)(1)(F) at the end of the first or second grant 
year shall receive a bonus payment of 5 percent of 
the original grant amount (to be used during the 
subsequent grant year). A State educational agency 
shall direct not less than 50 percent of the bonus 
funds to local educational agency subgrantees that 
achieved the greatest growth toward the local edu-
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cational agency’s advanced coursework equity goals 
described in section 6(c)(1). 
(2) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The local 
educational agency receiving a grant under section 
5(a)(1)(B) that achieves the greatest growth toward 
that local educational agency’s advanced coursework 
enrollment and performance equity goals described 
in section 5(b)(2)(H) at the end of the first grant 
year shall receive a bonus payment of 5 percent of 
the original grant amount (to be used during the 
subsequent grant year). A local educational agency 
shall direct not less than 50 percent of the bonus 
funds to the schools that achieved the greatest 
growth toward the local educational agency’s ad-
vanced coursework equity goals described in section 
5(b)(2)(H). 
(c) EVALUATION.—At the end of the 3-year grant pe-
riod, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to Congress 
a report containing an evaluation of the grant program 
under this Act and a summary of the reports submitted 
under subsection (a). The evaluation shall contain an anal-
ysis of the effectiveness of the program, including the im-
pact of the grants on equitable enrollment and perform-
ance in advanced courses and programs. This evaluation 
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