I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2571
To amend section 10105 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
of 1965 to provide for a smaller learning communities grant program.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JULY 19, 2001
Mr. HILL (for himself, Mr. BARRETT of Wisconsin, Ms. SANCHEZ, Mr. SMITH
of New Jersey, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. HOEFFEL, Mr. HOLDEN, Mr. BAIRD,
Ms. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mrs. JONES of
Ohio, Mr. RAHALL, and Mr. SCHIFF) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
A BILL
To amend section 10105 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 to provide for a smaller learning
communities grant program.
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 ‘‘Smaller Schools,
Stronger Communities Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Since World War II, the conventional wis-
dom among educators has been that larger schools
are better than smaller schools, and as a result the
number of secondary schools in the United States
has declined by 70 percent and the average school
size has grown to 5 times the previous average size.
According to the Department of Education, 70 per-
cent of high school students in 2000 attended
schools with more than 1,000 students.
(2) Over the past few years, educators have
begun to question the belief that larger schools are
always better. The National Association of Sec-
ondary School Principals recently recommended that
the high school of the 21st century be much more
student-centered and, above all, much more person-
alized in programs, support services, and intellectual
rigor. Underlying this recommendation are the Asso-
ciation’s beliefs that students take more interest in
school when they have a sense of belonging and that
students benefit from a more intimate setting in
which their presence is more readily and repeatedly
acknowledged.
(3) The National Association of Secondary
School Principals warns that the ‘‘bigness’’ of high
schools shrouds many young people in what the As-
(A) in smaller, more personalized, and less
bureaucratic schools, the gap between high-
achieving and low-achieving students is smaller;
(B) students in smaller schools perform
better in the core subjects of reading, mathe-
matics, history, and science;
(C) students in smaller schools are more
engaged in their courses;
(D) smaller schools have higher attendance
rates and higher rates of participation in school
activities; and
(E) because achievement levels in smaller
schools are more equitably distributed, students
who come from more disadvantaged economic
and educational backgrounds show the greatest
achievement gains in smaller schools.
(6) In 2000, the Bank Street College of Edu-
cation conducted a study, entitled ‘‘Small Schools:
Great Strides’’, of more than 150 small schools in
Chicago, Illinois. In the study, researchers found the
following:
(A) Small schools generated measurable
benefits (including higher attendance rates,
grade point averages, and graduation rates)
even among the most academically disadvan-
taged students.
(B) Teachers and parents reported greater
satisfaction with small schools.
(C) Teachers found that small schools
offer a stronger, more collaborative professional
learning community and provide opportunities
to know students better and to take greater re-
sponsibility for their achievement.
(D) Parents found that small schools are
more accessible, more responsive, and safer.
(7) According to a recent study of 13,600
schools in Georgia, Montana, Ohio, and Texas—
(A) in smaller schools the harmful effects
of poverty on student achievement were greatly
reduced; and
(B) in poorer Texas communities, larger
schools had significantly lower test scores than
smaller schools.
(8) Research shows that smaller schools are
safer and that students in smaller schools are less
likely to join gangs. According to the 1999 report
entitled ‘‘Indicators of School Crime and Safety’’
issued by the National Center for Education Statis-
tics and the Bureau of Justice Statistics—
(A) the number of criminal acts committed
at school and number of incidents of school vio-
lence were much lower in schools enrolling be-
tween 300 to 1,000 students than in larger
schools regardless of location in urban, subur-
ban, or rural areas; and
(B) on the urban fringe, at schools within
metropolitan areas but not in the areas’ central
cities, larger schools experienced as many as 4
times as many incidents of serious violence per
1,000 students than smaller schools.
(9) Many States and local educational agencies
are implementing strategies to reduce the size of
their schools, including Florida, where in 2000 Gov-
ernor Jeb Bush signed a school safety bill that re-
quired new schools to serve smaller student popu-
lations. The legislation limited new high schools to
900 students.
SEC. 3. SMALLER LEARNING COMMUNITIES GRANT PRO-
GRAM.
Section 10105 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8005) is amended to
read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 10105. SMALLER LEARNING COMMUNITIES.
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following
definitions apply:
‘‘(1) SCHOOL.—The term ‘school’ means an ele-
mentary school or a secondary school.
‘‘(2) 
SCHOOL-WITHIN-A-SCHOOL.—The 
term
‘school-within-a-school’ means a unit within a school
that creates a close and consistent academic and ad-
ministrative relationship between a group of stu-
dents and a group of teachers such that the unit
functions as an individualized smaller school, regard-
less of how many such schools-within-a-school exist
within the larger school.
‘‘(3) SMALLER
LEARNING
COMMUNITY.—The
term ‘smaller learning community’ means—
‘‘(A) an independent, small school within a
single building;
‘‘(B) a school-within-a-school; or
‘‘(C) any other grouping of students,
teachers, or administrators that uses effective
or innovative strategies to create a more per-
sonalized school experience for students to im-
prove student achievement or performance, in-
cluding but not limited to strategies that make
use of—
‘‘(i) career academies or clusters;
‘‘(ii) magnet schools;
‘‘(iii) restructured daily or school-year
schedules; or
‘‘(iv) mentoring systems, such as per-
sonal adult advocates or teacher advisory
systems.
‘‘(b) AUTHORITY TO MAKE GRANTS.—In accordance
with this section, the Secretary may—
‘‘(1) make grants to local educational agencies
to enable such agencies to develop plans to create
smaller learning communities; and
‘‘(2) make grants to local educational agencies
to enable such agencies to implement plans to estab-
lish such communities.
‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—In accordance with this
subsection, the Secretary shall require that each
local educational agency seeking a grant under this
section shall submit an application to the Secretary
at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by
such information as the Secretary may require.
‘‘(2) SIMPLE, BRIEF APPLICATION.—In devel-
oping applications for the grants described in sub-
section (b), the Secretary shall develop an applica-
tion that is simple and brief in form.
‘‘(3) PLANNING
GRANTS.—Each application
from a local educational agency for a grant under
subsection (b)(1) shall include information relating
to each of the following:
‘‘(A) The need in the area administered by
the local educational agency for 1 or more
smaller learning communities.
‘‘(B) The process the local educational
agency intends to follow in establishing 1 or
more smaller learning communities.
‘‘(C) The steps the local educational agen-
cy intends to follow in order to ensure the via-
bility of each smaller learning community to be
assisted with the grant.
‘‘(D) For each smaller learning community
to be assisted with the grant, the non-Federal
resources that will be available to the local edu-
cational agency from each of the following:
‘‘(i) Any existing school at which the
smaller learning community will be located.
‘‘(ii) The school district, or area ad-
ministered by the local educational agency,
in which the smaller learning community
will be located.
and others involved in the activities for which
the grant is sought.
‘‘(G) The goals and objectives of the activi-
ties for which the grant is sought, including a
description of how such activities will better en-
able all students to reach challenging State con-
tent standards and State student performance
standards.
‘‘(H) The methods by which the local edu-
cational agency will assess progress in meeting
the goals and objectives described in subpara-
graph (G).
‘‘(I) With respect to any smaller learning
community that will be a school-within-a-school,
the relationship, including governance and ad-
ministration, between the smaller learning com-
munity and the rest of the school.
‘‘(J) The administrative and managerial
relationship between the local educational agen-
cy and each smaller learning community, in-
cluding how such agency intends to ensure the
continuity of the smaller learning community
and the continuity of student and teacher as-
signment to such community.
‘‘(K) How the local educational agency in-
tends to coordinate the use of the proceeds of
the grant with the use of other funds provided
under this Act or under other Federal laws.
‘‘(L) The grade levels or ages of students
who will participate in each smaller learning
community.
‘‘(M) The method of placing students in
each smaller learning community.
‘‘(d) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.—
‘‘(1) PLANNING GRANTS.—The proceeds of a
grant made under subsection (b)(1) may be used for
any of the following:
‘‘(A) Study of the feasibility of creating a
smaller learning community.
‘‘(B) Study of effective and innovative or-
ganizational and instructional strategies for use
in 1 or more smaller learning communities.
‘‘(C) Research on and development of
strategies for creating 1 or more smaller learn-
ing communities.
‘‘(D) Research on and development of, for
1 or more smaller learning communities, effec-
tive and innovative curriculums and methods of
instruction designed to meet high State content
standards and State student performance
standards.
‘‘(E) Provision of professional development
in innovative teaching methods that challenge
and engage students to the staff of 1 or more
smaller learning communities.
‘‘(F) Development of strategies for the
participation in 1 or more smaller learning com-
munities of parents, business representatives,
local institutions of higher education, commu-
nity-based organizations, and other community
members, as facilitators of activities that pro-
vide professional development for teachers or
that provide links between students and their
local community.
‘‘(G) Any other reasonable expense, includ-
ing architectural fees to design or remodel
school facilities, but not including the costs di-
rectly associated with the renovation of existing
facilities or the purchase or construction of new
facilities.
‘‘(2) IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS.—The proceeds
of a grant made under subsection (b)(2) may be
used for any of the following:
‘‘(A) Implementing strategies for creating
1 or more smaller learning communities.
‘‘(B) Implementing within 1 or more
smaller learning communities effective and in-
novative curriculums and methods of instruc-
tion designed to meet high State content stand-
ards and State student performance standards.
‘‘(C) Implementing strategies for the par-
ticipation in 1 or more smaller learning commu-
nities of parents, business representatives, local
institutions of higher education, community-
based organizations, and other community
members, as facilitators of activities that pro-
vide professional development for teachers or
that provide links between students and their
local community.
‘‘(D) Any other reasonable expense, includ-
ing architectural fees to design or remodel
school facilities, but not including the costs di-
rectly associated with the renovation of existing
facilities or the purchase or construction of new
facilities.
‘‘(e) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION.—In making grants
under this section, the Secretary shall ensure that the re-
cipients of grants under subsection (b)(1) and the recipi-
ents of grants under subsection (b)(2) are equitably dis-
tributed among urban, suburban, and rural areas of the
United States.
‘‘(f) REPORT TO THE SECRETARY.—The Secretary
shall require as a condition of receipt of each grant under
this section that the grant recipient transmit to the Sec-
retary a report on how the proceeds of the grant were
used.
‘‘(g) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—To further assist
local educational agencies with respect to planning for or
implementation of smaller learning communities, the Sec-
retary may—
‘‘(1) provide technical assistance to such local
educational agencies ; and
‘‘(2) participate in networking activities.
‘‘(h) SECRETARY’S USE OF FUNDS.—In each fiscal
year, the Secretary may use not more than a total of 5
percent of the amount authorized under subsection (j)
for—
‘‘(1) evaluation of the program authorized by
this section;
‘‘(2) the provision of technical assistance under
subsection (g)(1); and
‘‘(3) networking activities under subsection
(g)(2).
‘‘(i) STUDY.—The Secretary shall conduct a study
to—
‘‘(1) build on existing research in the smaller
learning communities field;
‘‘(2) evaluate and compare outcomes at various
types of smaller learning communities, including
smaller learning communities in urban, suburban,
and rural school districts; and
‘‘(3) track the effectiveness of smaller learning
communities.
‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$200,000,000 for fiscal year 2002 and such sums as may
be necessary for the 4 succeeding fiscal years.’’.
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