ommendations of a peer review panel, as described 
in paragraph (2). The state panel shall select appli-
cants based on the quality of the application, with 
consideration given to including some applicants—to 
the extent practicable—with the ability to incor-
porate comparison or control groups in their service 
delivery model, recognizing that not all quality pro-
grams will be able to do so but that having some 
such programs would contribute to evaluation. 
(2) PEER
REVIEW
PANEL.—The peer review 
panel shall include not less than— 
(A) 3 individuals who are experts in the 
field of home visitation; 
(B) 2 individuals who are experts in early 
childhood development; 
(C) 1 individual with experience imple-
menting a statewide program of early childhood 
home visitation; 
(D) 1 individual who is a board certified 
pediatrician or a developmental pediatrician; 
and 
(E) 1 individual with experience in admin-
istering public or private (including community- 
based) child maltreatment prevention programs.
(e) DURATION OF GRANTS.—Grants made under this 
section shall be for a period of no more than 3 years. 
(f) STATE USES OF FUNDS.—Each State that re-
ceives a grant under this section shall— 
(1) provide to as many eligible families in the 
State as practicable, voluntary early childhood home 
visitation, on not less frequently than a monthly 
basis with greater frequency of services for those eli-
gible families identified with additional needs, 
through the implementation of quality programs of 
early childhood home visitation that— 
(A) adopt a clear, consistent model that is 
grounded in empirically-based knowledge re-
lated to home visiting and linked to program- 
determined outcomes; 
(B) employ well-trained and competent 
staff, as demonstrated by education or training, 
and the provision of ongoing and specific train-
ing on the model being delivered; 
(C) maintain high quality supervision to 
establish home visitor competencies; 
(D) show strong organizational capacity to 
implement the program;
(E) establish appropriate linkages and re-
ferral networks to other community resources 
and supports; 
(F) monitor fidelity of program implemen-
tation to assure that services are delivered ac-
cording to the specified model; and 
(G) provide parents with— 
(i) knowledge of age appropriate child 
development in cognitive, language, social- 
emotional, and motor domains; 
(ii) knowledge of realistic expectations 
of age-appropriate child behaviors; 
(iii) knowledge of health and wellness 
issues for children and parents; 
(iv) modeling, consulting, and coach-
ing on parenting practices; 
(v) skills to interact with their child to 
enhance age-appropriate development; 
(vi) skills to recognize and seek help 
for issues related to health, developmental 
delays, and social, emotional, and behav-
ioral skills; and 
(vii) activities designed to help par-
ents become full partners in the education 
of their children;
(H) ascertain what health and develop-
mental services the family receives and work 
with these providers to eliminate gaps in service 
by offering annual health, vision, hearing, and 
developmental screening for children from birth 
to entry into kindergarten, when not otherwise 
provided; 
(I) provide referrals for eligible families, as 
needed, to additional resources available in the 
community, such as center-based early edu-
cation programs, child care services, health or 
mental health services, family literacy pro-
grams, employment agencies, social services, 
and child care resource and referral agencies; 
and 
(J) offer group meetings (at program dis-
cretion), on not less frequently than a monthly 
basis, for eligible families that— 
(i) further enhance the information, 
activities, and skill-building addressed dur-
ing home visitation; and 
(ii) offer opportunities for parents to 
meet with and support each other; 
(2) reserve 10 percent of the grant funds to 
provide training and technical assistance, directly or
through contract, to early childhood home visitation 
and early childhood care and education staff relating 
to— 
(A) effective methods of implementing par-
ent education, conducting home visiting, and 
promoting quality early childhood development; 
(B) the relationship of health and well- 
being of pregnant women to prenatal and early 
childhood development; 
(C) early childhood development with re-
spect to children from birth until entry into kin-
dergarten; 
(D) methods to help parents promote 
emergent literacy in their children from birth 
until entry into kindergarten; 
(E) health, vision, hearing, and develop-
mental screenings; 
(F) strategies for helping eligible families 
with special needs or those eligible families cop-
ing with crisis; 
(G) recruiting, supervising, and retaining 
qualified staff; 
(H) increasing services for underserved 
populations;
(I) methods to help parents effectively re-
spond to their children’s needs and behaviors; 
(J) implementation of ongoing program 
quality improvement and evaluation of activities 
and outcomes; and 
(K) relevant issues related to child welfare 
and protective services, with information pro-
vided being consistent with state child welfare 
agency training. 
(3) ensure coordination of programs of early 
childhood home visitation, early childhood education 
and care, and early intervention, through an existing 
or created State-level early childhood coordinating 
body that includes— 
(A) representatives from relevant State 
agencies, including the State agency with re-
sponsibility for carrying out the plan under Sec-
tion 106 of the Child Abuse Prevention and 
Treatment Act; 
(B) representatives from State Head Start 
Associations; 
(C) the State official with responsibility for 
carrying out activities under part C of the Indi-
viduals with Disabilities Education Act (20 
U.S.C. 1431 et seq.);
(D) the State official with responsibility 
for carrying out activities under section 619 of 
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 
(20 U.S.C. 1419); 
(E) representatives from child care re-
source and referral State offices; 
(F) representatives from quality programs 
of early childhood home visitation; and 
(G) a board certified pediatrician or a de-
velopmental pediatrician; and 
(4) not expend more than 5 percent of the 
amount of grant funds received under this section 
for the administration of the grant, including plan-
ning, administration, and annual reporting. 
(g) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—A State is entitled 
to receive its full allotment of funds under this section for 
any fiscal year if the Secretary finds that the aggregate 
expenditures within the State for quality programs of 
early childhood home visitation for the fiscal year pre-
ceding the fiscal year for which the determination is made 
was not less than 100 percent of such aggregate expendi-
tures for the second fiscal year preceding the fiscal year 
for which the determination is made. 
(h) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Each State that 
receives a grant under this section shall submit an annual
report to the Secretary regarding the State’s progress in 
addressing the purposes of this Act. Such report shall in-
clude, at a minimum, a description of— 
(1) actual service delivery provided under the 
grant including— 
(A) program characteristics including de-
scriptive information on the service model used 
and actual program performance; 
(B) provider characteristics including staff 
qualifications, work experience, and demo-
graphic characteristics; 
(C) 
recipient 
characteristics 
including 
number, demographic characteristics, and fam-
ily retention; and 
(D) an estimate of annual program imple-
mentation costs; 
(2) recipient outcomes that are consistent with 
program goals including, where appropriate given 
the program being evaluated— 
(A) parental practices; 
(B) child health and development indica-
tors; 
(C) child maltreatment indicators 
(D) school readiness indicators; and 
(E) links to community services;
(3) the research-based instruction, materials, 
and activities being used in the activities funded 
under the grant; 
(4) the effectiveness of the training and ongoing 
professional development provided— 
(A) to staff supported under the grant; 
and 
(B) to the broader early childhood commu-
nity; and 
(5) beginning at the end of the second year of 
the grant, the results of evaluations described in 
subsection (c)(6)(H). 
SEC. 6. STRENGTHENING EARLY HEAD START HOME VISI-
TATION. 
Section 645A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 
9840a) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘provide 
services to parents to support their role as par-
ents’’ and inserting ‘‘provide additional services 
to parents to support their role as parents (in-
cluding training in parenting skills, basic child 
development, and sensitivity to cultural vari-
ations in parenting norms and attitudes toward 
formal supports)’’;
(B) in paragraph (5)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘(including home- 
based services)’’ after ‘‘with services’’; and 
(ii) by inserting ‘‘, and family support 
services’’ after ‘‘health services’’; 
(C) by redesignating paragraphs (7), (8), 
and (9) as paragraphs (9), (10), and (11), re-
spectively; and 
(D) by inserting after paragraph (6) the 
following: 
‘‘(7) develop and implement a systematic proce-
dure for transitioning children and parents from an 
Early Head Start program into a Head Start pro-
gram or another local early childhood education pro-
gram; 
‘‘(8) establish channels of communication be-
tween staff of Early Head Start programs and staff 
of Head Start programs or other local early child-
hood education programs, to facilitate the coordina-
tion of programs;’’; 
(2) in subsection (g)(2)(B), by striking clause 
(iv) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(iv) providing professional develop-
ment and personnel enhancement activi-
ties, including the provision of funds to re-
cipients of grants under subsection (a), re-
lating to effective methods of implementing 
parent education, conducting home vis-
iting, and promoting quality early child-
hood development.’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(h) STAFF QUALIFICATIONS AND DEVELOPMENT.— 
‘‘(1) HOME VISITOR STAFF.— 
‘‘(A) STANDARDS.—In order to further en-
hance the quality of home visiting services pro-
vided to families of children participating in 
home-based, center-based, or combination pro-
gram options under this subchapter, the Sec-
retary shall establish standards for training, 
qualifications, and the conduct of home visits 
for home visitor staff in Early Head Start pro-
grams. 
‘‘(B) 
CONTENTS.—The 
standards 
for 
training, qualifications, and the conduct of 
home visits shall include content related to— 
‘‘(i) structured child-focused home vis-
iting that promotes parents’ ability to sup-
port the child’s cognitive, social, emotional, 
and physical development;
‘‘(ii) effective strengths-based parent 
education, including methods to encourage 
parents as their child’s first teachers; 
‘‘(iii) early childhood development 
with respect to children from birth through 
age 3; 
‘‘(iv) methods to help parents promote 
emergent literacy in their children from 
birth through age 3; 
‘‘(v) ascertaining what health and de-
velopmental services the family receives 
and working with these providers to elimi-
nate gaps in service by offering annual 
health, vision, hearing, and developmental 
screening for children from birth to entry 
into kindergarten, when needed; 
‘‘(vi) strategies for helping families 
coping with crisis; and 
‘‘(vii) the relationship of health and 
well-being of pregnant women to prenatal 
and early child development.’’.
SEC. 7. TARGETED GRANTS FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD HOME 
VISITATION FOR FAMILIES WITH ENGLISH 
LANGUAGE LEARNERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in collaboration 
with the Secretary of Education, shall make grants, on 
a competitive basis, to eligible applicants to enable such 
applicants to support and expand local efforts to deliver 
services under quality programs of early childhood home 
visitation to eligible families with English language learn-
ers. 
(b) ELIGIBLE APPLICANT.—In this section, the term 
‘‘eligible applicant’’ means— 
(1) 1 or more local educational agencies (as de-
fined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)); 
and 
(2) 1 or more public or private community- 
based organizations or agencies that serve eligible 
families and are capable of establishing and imple-
menting programs of early childhood home visita-
tion. 
(c) APPLICATIONS.—An eligible applicant that de-
sires to receive a grant under this section shall submit an 
application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 
and containing such information as the Secretary may re-
quire. The application shall include a description of—
(1) the results of a communitywide needs as-
sessment that describes— 
(A) 
community 
demographics 
dem-
onstrating the need for outreach and services to 
eligible families with English language learners; 
(B) the quality and capacity of existing 
programs of early childhood home visitation for 
eligible families with English language learners 
in the community; 
(C) the gaps in programs of early child-
hood home visitation for eligible families with 
English language learners in the community; 
and 
(D) the type of program of early childhood 
home visitation necessary to address the gaps 
identified; 
(2) the program of early childhood home visita-
tion that will be supported by the grant under this 
section; 
(3) how the proposed program of early child-
hood home visitation will promote positive parenting 
skills and children’s early learning and development; 
(4) how the proposed program of early child-
hood home visitation will incorporate the authorized 
activities described in subsection (f);
(5) how services provided through a grant 
under this section will use materials that are geared 
toward eligible families with English language learn-
ers; 
(6) how the activities under this section will 
build on and promote coordination among existing 
programs of early childhood home visitation, if such 
programs exist in the community, in an effort to 
promote an array of home visitation that ensures 
more eligible families with English language learners 
are being served and are getting the most appro-
priate services to meet their needs; 
(7) how the program will ensure that— 
(A) eligible families with English language 
learners are linked to schools; and 
(B) the activities under this section will 
support the preparation of children for school; 
(8) how channels of communication will be es-
tablished between staff of programs of early child-
hood home visitation and staff of other early child-
hood education programs, such as Head Start pro-
grams carried out under the Head Start Act (42 
U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) and Early Head Start pro-
grams carried out under section 645A of such Act, 
preschool programs, and child care programs, to fa-
cilitate the coordination of services for eligible fami-
lies with English language learners; 
(9) how eligible families with English language 
learners will be recruited and retained to receive 
services under this section; 
(10) how training and technical assistance will 
help the staff of programs of early childhood home 
visitation involved in activities under this section to 
more effectively serve eligible families with English 
language learners; 
(11) how the eligible applicant will evaluate the 
activities supported under this section in order to 
demonstrate outcomes related to the— 
(A) increase in number of eligible families 
with English language learners served by pro-
grams of early childhood home visitation; 
(B) enhancement of participating parents’ 
knowledge of early learning and development; 
(C) enhancement of positive parenting 
practices related to early learning and develop-
ment; and 
(D) enhancement of children’s cognitive, 
language, social-emotional, and physical devel-
opment; and
(12) such other information as the Secretary 
may require. 
(d) APPROVAL OF APPLICATIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall select 
applicants for funding under this section based on 
the quality of the applications and the recommenda-
tions of a peer review panel, as described in para-
graph (2). 
(2) PEER
REVIEW
PANEL.—The peer review 
panel shall include not less than— 
(A) 2 individuals who are experts in the 
field of home visitation; 
(B) 2 individuals who are experts in early 
childhood development; 
(C) 2 individuals who are experts in serv-
ing eligible families with English language 
learners; 
(D) 1 individual who is a board certified 
pediatrician or a developmental pediatrician; 
and 
(E) 1 individual with experience in admin-
istering public or private (including community- 
based) child maltreatment prevention programs. 
(e) DURATION OF GRANTS.—Grants made under this 
section shall be for a period of no more than 3 years.
(f) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Each eligible appli-
cant that receives a grant under this section shall carry 
out the following activities: 
(1) Providing to as many eligible families with 
English language learners as practicable, voluntary 
early childhood home visitation, on not less fre-
quently than a monthly basis, through the imple-
mentation of quality programs of early childhood 
home visitation that are research-based that provide 
parents with— 
(A) knowledge of age appropriate child de-
velopment in cognitive, language, social-emo-
tional, and motor domains; 
(B) knowledge of realistic expectations of 
age-appropriate child behaviors; 
(C) knowledge of health and wellness 
issues for children and parents; 
(D) modeling, consulting, and coaching on 
parenting practices; 
(E) skills to interact with their child to en-
hance age-appropriate development; 
(F) skills to recognize and seek help for 
issues related to health, developmental delays, 
and social, emotional, and behavioral skills; and