disadvantaged individuals have the opportunity to
achieve challenging State performance standards in
the core academic subjects by, for example, encour-
aging girls, young women, and minorities to pursue
advanced courses in mathematics and science;
‘‘(8) designing professional development activi-
ties that increase the numbers of members of minor-
ity and other underrepresented groups in the teach-
ing force in the core subjects;
‘‘(9) developing high quality curriculum that is
aligned with State or local content and performance
standards; and
‘‘(10) providing financial or other incentives for
teachers to become certified by the National Board
for Professional Teaching Standards.
‘‘SEC. 2126. LOCAL PLAN AND APPLICATION FOR IMPROV-
ING TEACHING AND LEARNING.
‘‘(a) LOCAL APPLICATION.—(1) Each local edu-
cational agency that wishes to receive a subgrant under
this subpart shall submit an application (singly or as a
consortia as described in section 2123(b)) to the State
educational agency at such time as the State educational
agency shall require, but not less frequently than every
3rd year.
‘‘(2) If the local educational agency has an applica-
tion approved by the State under title III of the Goals
2000: Educate America Act, the application required by
this section shall be a component of (or, if necessary, an
addemdum to) its Goals 2000 application.
‘‘(3) A local education agency shall set specific per-
formance indicators for improving teaching and learning
through professional development and curriculum develop-
ment.
‘‘(4) A local educational agency shall submit, as part
of its application, the results of the needs assessment con-
ducted under subsection (b), and the local educational
agency plan developed in accordance with subsection (c).
‘‘(b) NEEDS ASSESSMENT.—(1) A local educational
agency that wishes to receive a subgrant under this sub-
part shall include in its application an assessment of such
agency’s need for professional development, for the devel-
opment of high quality curricula that are aligned with
State or local content and performance standards.
‘‘(2) Such needs assessment shall be carried out with
the involvement of teachers and shall take into account
what activities need to be conducted in order to give teach-
ers and administrators the means, including the knowl-
edge and skills, to provide students with the opportunity
to meet challenging State or local performance standards.
‘‘(c) PLAN DEVELOPMENT.—(1) The plan required
under this subsection shall be developed jointly by the local
educational agency and by teachers from the core aca-
demic disciplines.
‘‘(2) Such teachers shall also be representative of the
grade spans within schools to be served.
‘‘(3) Based on the needs assessment required under
subsection (b), the local educational agency’s plan shall
include the following—
‘‘(A) a description of the local educational agen-
cy’s strategy to improve teaching and learning in
every school;
‘‘(B) a description of how the plan contributes
to the local educational agency’s overall efforts for
school reform and educational improvement;
‘‘(C) a description of the activities the local
educational agency intends to undertake under this
subpart consistent with such agency’s needs assess-
ment conducted under subsection (b);
‘‘(D) a description of how the plan has main-
tained funding for professional development activi-
ties in mathematics and science education;
‘‘(E) a description of how programs in all core
academic subjects, but especially in mathematics and
science, will take into account the need for greater
access to, and participation in, such disciplines by
students from historically underrepresented groups,
including females, minorities, individuals with lim-
ited-English proficiency, the economically disadvan-
taged, and the disabled;
‘‘(F) an assurance that the activities conducted
with funds received under this program will be as-
sessed at least every 3 years using the performance
indicators; and
‘‘(G) a description of how the program funded
under this subpart will be coordinated, as appro-
priate, with—
‘‘(i) activities conducted under section
2130 and other services of institutions of higher
education;
‘‘(ii) similar State and local activities;
‘‘(iii) resources provided under part A of
title I and other parts of this Act, particularly
part B of title II;
‘‘(iv) resources from business, industry,
private nonprofit organizations (including muse-
ums, libraries, educational television stations,
professional organizations and associations spe-
cializing in, or with a demonstrated expertise in
the core academic disciplines);
‘‘(v) funds or programming from other
Federal agencies, such as the National Science
Foundation, the Department of Energy, the
Department of Health and Human Services, the
National Endowment for the Humanities, and
the National Endowment for the Arts; and
‘‘(vi) an identification of funding that will
provide the local educational agency’s contribu-
tion under section 2127.
‘‘SEC. 2127. LOCAL COST SHARING.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each local educational agency
shall bear not less than 33 percent of the cost of any pro-
gram carried out under this subpart, but not including the
cost of services provided to private school teachers.
‘‘(b) AVAILABLE RESOURCES FOR COST-SHARING.—
A local educational agency may meet the requirements of
subsection (a) through one or more of the following:
‘‘(1) Cash expenditures from non-Federal
sources, including private contributions, directed to-
ward professional development and curriculum devel-
opment activities.
‘‘(2) Release time for teachers participating in
professional development or curricula development
funded under this subpart.
‘‘(3) Funds received under one or more of the
following programs, if used for professional develop-
ment or curricula development activities consistent
with this subpart and the statutes under which such
funds were received, and used to benefit students
and teachers in schools that otherwise would have
been served with such funds:
‘‘(A) Part A of title I of this Act.
‘‘(B) The Safe and Drug Free Schools pro-
gram under title IV of this Act.
‘‘(C) The bilingual education program
under title VII of this Act.
‘‘(D) Title III of the Goals 2000: Educate
America Act.
‘‘(E) Programs that are related to the pur-
poses of this Act that are administered by other
agencies, including the National Science Foun-
dation, the National Endowment for the Hu-
manities, the National Endowment for the Arts,
and the Department of Energy.
‘‘(c) WAIVER.—The State educational agency may
approve an application which has not fully met the re-
quirements of subsection (a) and waive the requirements
of subsection (a) if a local educational agency can dem-
onstrate that it is unable to meet the requirements of sub-
section (a) due to economic hardship and that compliance
with such requirements would preclude its participation in
the program.
‘‘SEC. 2128. LOCAL ALLOCATION OF FUNDS AND ALLOW-
ABLE ACTIVITIES.
‘‘(a) LOCAL ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—Each local
educational agency that receives funds under this subpart
for any fiscal year—
‘‘(1) shall use not less than 80 percent of such
funds for—
‘‘(A) professional development of teachers,
administrators, and other staff; and
‘‘(B) engaging teachers and other staff in
the development of high quality curricula
aligned with State and local content and per-
formance standards, in a manner that is deter-
mined by such teachers and staff and is consist-
ent with the provisions of such local educational
agency’s application under section 2126, any
school plan under part A of title I of this Act,
and any other plan for professional development
or curricula development carried out with Fed-
eral, State, or local funds; and
‘‘(2) may use not more than 20 percent of such
funds for district-level professional or curricula de-
velopment activities, which may include the partici-
pation of administrators and policymakers.
‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Each local edu-
cational agency and school that receives funds under this
subpart shall use such funds for activities that give teach-
ers and administrators the knowledge and skills to provide
students with the opportunity to meet challenging State
or local content and performance standards. Funds re-
ceived by local educational agencies under this subpart
only shall be used only for the activities specified under
subsections (c) and (d).
‘‘(c) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—If a needs as-
sessment conducted under section 2126(b) determines
that funds under this subpart should be used to provide
professional development in the core academic subjects for
teachers and other school staff, the local educational agen-
cy shall use such funds for professional development for
teachers and other staff to support teaching consistent
with State, or local content standards, and shall, to the
extent practicable, coordinate such activities with institu-
tions of higher education and activities under section
2129:
‘‘(1) Professional development activities funded
under this subpart shall—
‘‘(A) be tied to challenging State or local
curriculum content and student performance
standards;
‘‘(B) reflect recent research on teaching
and learning;
‘‘(C) include strong academic content and
pedagogical components;
‘‘(D) be of sufficient intensity and duration
to have a positive and lasting impact on the
teacher’s performance in the classroom; and
‘‘(E) be part of the everyday life of the
school and create an orientation toward contin-
uous improvement throughout the school.
‘‘(2) Funds under this subpart may be used for
professional development activities such as—
‘‘(A) professional development for teams of
teachers, administrators, or other staff from in-
dividual schools, to support teaching consistent
with State or local content standards;
‘‘(B) support and time for teachers and
other school staff to participate in professional
development in the core subjects offered
through professional associations, universities,
and other providers including museums and
educational partnership organizations;
‘‘(C) activities that provide followup for
teachers who have participated in professional
development activities that are designed to en-
sure that knowledge and skills learned by the
teacher are implemented in the classroom;
‘‘(D) the establishment and maintenance of
local professional networks that provide a forum
for interaction among teachers and that allow
exchange of information on advances in content
and pedagogy;
‘‘(E) activities to prepare teachers in the
effective use of educational technology as an in-
structional tool for increasing student under-
standing of the core academic subject areas;
‘‘(F) activities to enable teachers to ensure
that girls, young women, minorities, limited-
English proficient students, individuals with
disabilities, and economically disadvantaged in-
dividuals the opportunity to achieve the chal-
lenging State performance standards in the core
academic subjects;
‘‘(G) professional development activities
designed to increase the number of minorities,
individuals 
with 
disabilities, 
and 
other
underrepresented groups teaching in the core
academic subjects, particularly in mathematics
and science;
‘‘(H) the development of incentive strate-
gies for rewarding schools where a substantial
portion of the teachers achieve certification by
the National Board for Professional Teaching
Standards; and
‘‘(I) other sustained and intensive high-
quality professional development activities in
the core academic subjects.
‘‘(d) CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT.—(1) If the needs
assessment of a local educational agency determines that
funds under this subpart should be used for development
curricula, such agency shall use the funds provided to de-
velop high quality curricula that is aligned with State or
local content and performance standards.
‘‘(2) Funds may be used to purchase the curriculum
materials to the extent such materials are essential compo-
nents of the local educational agency’s plan to improve
teaching and learning in the core academic subjects.
‘‘SEC. 2129. HIGHER EDUCATION ACTIVITIES.
‘‘(a) GENERAL.—(1) The State agency for higher
education, working in conjunction with the State edu-
cational agency (if it is a separate agency), shall make
grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agree-
ments with, institutions of higher education and nonprofit
organizations including museums and educational partner-
ship organizations, working in conjunction with local edu-
cational agencies, for—
(A) professional development activities in the
core academic subject areas that contribute to the
State plan for professional development; and
(B) engaging teachers in the development of
high-quality curricula that are aligned with State or
local content and performance standards.
‘‘(2) All such awards shall be made on a competitive
basis.
‘‘(3) Each project funded under this section shall in-
volve a joint effort of the recipient’s school or department
of education and the schools or departments in the specific
disciplines in which assistance may be provided.
‘‘(b) ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES.—A recipient of funds
under this section shall use those funds for—
‘‘(1) sustained and intensive high-quality pro-
fessional development for teams of teachers, or
teachers and administrators from individual schools
or districts;
‘‘(2) other sustained and intensive professional
development activities related to achievement of the
State plan for professional development such as—
‘‘(A) establishment and maintenance of
professional networks of teachers that provide a
forum for interaction among teachers and that
allow exchange of information on advances in
content and pedagogy;
‘‘(B) programs that prepare teachers to be
effective users of information technology, able
to integrate technology into their pedagogy and
their instructional practices, and able to en-
hance their curricular offerings by appropriate
applications of technology;
‘‘(C) programs that utilize information
technology to deliver sustained and intensive
high quality professional development activities
for teachers;
‘‘(D) activities to enable teachers to ensure
that girls, young women, minorities, limited-
English proficient students, individuals with
disabilities, and economically disadvantaged in-
dividuals have the opportunity to achieve the
challenging State performance standards in the
core academic subjects;
‘‘(E) professional development activities
designed to increase the number of minorities,
individuals 
with 
disabilities, 
and 
other
underrepresented groups teaching in the core
academic subjects, particularly in mathematics
and science;
‘‘(F) establishment of professional develop-
ment academies operated as partnerships be-
tween one or more elementary or secondary
schools and one or more institutions of higher
education to provide school-based teacher train-
ing that provides prospective and novice teach-
ers with an opportunity to work under the guid-
ance of master teachers and college faculty
members; and
‘‘(G) technical assistance to local edu-
cational agencies in providing sustained and in-
tensive high quality professional development
activities for teachers.
‘‘Subpart 3—General Provisions
‘‘SEC. 2131. REPORTING AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
‘‘(a) STATES.—Each State that receives funds under
this part shall submit a report to the Secretary every 3
years on the State’s progress toward the performance indi-
cator identified in its State plan, as well as on the effec-
tiveness of State and local activities under this part.
‘‘(b) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.—Each local
educational agency that receives funds under this part
shall submit a report to the State every 3 years on its
progress toward the outcome performance indicators in its
plan.
‘‘(c) FEDERAL EVALUATION.—The Secretary shall
report to the President and Congress on the effectiveness
of programs and activities funded under this part.
‘‘(d) PROHIBITION
ON FUNDS BEING USED
FOR
CONSTRUCTION OR RENOVATION.—Funds received under
this part shall not be used for construction or renovation
of buildings, rooms, or any other facilities.
‘‘SEC. 2132. DEFINITIONS
‘‘As used in this part, the following terms have the
following meanings:
‘‘(1) The term ‘core academic subjects’ means
those subjects listed in the State plan under title III
of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act or under
National Education Goal Three as set out in section
102(3) of such Act.
‘‘(2) The term ‘performance indicators’ means
measures of specific outcomes that the State or local
educational agency identifies as assessing progress
toward the goal of ensuring that all teachers have
the knowledge and skills to assist their students to
meet challenging State standards in the core aca-
demic subject areas. Examples of such indicators in-
clude—
‘‘(A) the degree to which licensure require-
ments are tied to State standards;
‘‘(B) specific increases in the number of el-
ementary and secondary teachers with strong
content backgrounds in the core academic sub-
jects; and
‘‘(C) specific increases in the number of
Board certified teachers licensed in each core
subject.
‘‘(3) The term ‘sustained and intensive high-
quality professional development’ means professional
development activities that—
‘‘(A) are tied to challenging State or vol-
untary national content and performance stand-
ards;
‘‘(B) reflect up-to-date research in teach-
ing and learning and include integrated content
and pedagogical components;
‘‘(C) are of sufficient intensity and dura-
tion to have a positive and lasting impact on
the teacher’s performance in the classroom or
the administrator’s performance on the job; and
‘‘(D) recognize teachers as an important
source of knowledge that should inform and
help shape professional development.
‘‘(4) The term ‘local standard’ means challeng-
ing content and performance standards in the core
subjects (in addition to State content and perform-
ance standards approved by the State for title I).
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HR 3730 IH——2
HR 3730 IH——3