I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3685
To authorize the Secretary of Education to make grants to reduce the size 
of core curriculum classes in public elementary and secondary schools, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 8, 2003
Mr. MEEK of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To authorize the Secretary of Education to make grants 
to reduce the size of core curriculum classes in public 
elementary and secondary schools, and for other pur-
poses.
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 ‘‘High-Quality Edu-
cation Act of 2003’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds as follows:
(1) Tennessee’s wide-ranging and research-in-
tensive STAR project began in the mid-1980’s when 
the Tennessee legislature funded an initial 4-year 
study seeking to compare achievements for early 
grade students who would be assigned randomly to 
a standard-sized class, a standard-sized class with a 
teacher aide, or a class with reduced size. Several 
new analyses of the Tennessee STAR program show 
that reducing class size has both immediate and 
long-term benefits. 
(2) Research shows that the benefits of partici-
pating in small classes increase from year to year, 
both in the early grades when classes are small and 
in subsequent years when students are placed in 
larger classes. 
(3) Further, follow-up studies of the same stu-
dents show that high-school students who were in 
small classes in first through third grades beginning 
in 1985 were less likely to be held back a year or 
suspended compared with their peers from larger 
classes. 
(4) The students from small classes were found 
to be making better grades in high school and taking 
more advanced courses.
(5) The State of Wisconsin passed legislation in 
1995 to phase in reduction of classes to 15 students 
in low-wealth schools. A January 2003 study of that 
program, called SAGE, revealed that average test 
scores in smaller first grade classes increased 12 to 
14 percent more than scores of students in regular 
classes. 
(6) Research further shows that at the end of 
fifth grade, students who were in small classes in 
first through third grades were about half a school 
year (5 months) ahead of students from larger class-
es in all core subjects--reading, language arts, math, 
and science. 
(7) In 1999, the Department of Education re-
ported that studies have consistently identified a 
positive relationship between reduced class size and 
improved student performance. The National Assess-
ment on Educational Progress, the Economic Policy 
Institute, RAND, the Educational Testing Service, 
the American Institute of Research, and many other 
respected organizations have reached similar conclu-
sions. 
(8) In smaller classes, teachers spend more 
time on instruction and less time on discipline prob-
lems, reporting that they know their students better,
know where each child is in the learning process, 
and can provide more individualized instruction. 
(9) Smaller classes lead to better identification 
of students who need special help, increased student 
participation and engagement, improved student be-
havior, and reduced retention of students in the 
same grade. 
(10) Outcomes associated with small classes are 
the foundation of safe schools: improved student be-
havior and human relations skills, increased partici-
pation in schooling and school-sanctioned events, in-
creased sense of community in small classes, and 
generally improved school climate where students, 
teachers, and parents feel more comfortable. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to assist 
States to proactively attempt to lower class size in order 
to provide students and teachers with an educational envi-
ronment more conducive to optimal student performance. 
SEC. 3. CLASS SIZE REDUCTION MATCHING GRANT PRO-
GRAM. 
(a) GRANTS.—The Secretary of Education may make 
grants to eligible entities to reduce the size of core cur-
riculum classes in public elementary and secondary 
schools.
(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—In this section, 
the term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means any State, or any local 
educational agency in a State that is not a grantee under 
this section, that meets the following: 
(1) The State or local educational agency has in 
effect a class size reduction program that—
(A) applies to all public elementary and 
secondary schools served by the State or local 
educational agency, respectively; and 
(B) may be targeted to specific school pop-
ulations based on need, socioeconomic factors, 
or school-age population. 
(2) The State or local educational agency has 
funding in its annual budget specifically allocated 
for the program described in paragraph (1). 
(3) The average core curriculum class size at 
schools served by the State or local educational 
agency—
(A) in kindergarten through third grade, is 
greater than 18 students; 
(B) in fourth through eighth grade, is 
greater than 22 students; or 
(C) in ninth through twelfth grade, is 
greater than 25 students.
(c) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary may not make 
a grant under this section unless the grantee agrees to 
use the grant for the following: 
(1) Constructing new classroom space. 
(2) Hiring additional teachers. 
(3) Purchasing portable structures to replace 
administrative offices converted into classroom 
space. 
(d) RESTRICTIONS.—The Secretary may not make a 
grant under this section unless the grantee agrees that 
funds received under the grant will not be used for any 
of the following: 
(1) To pay any long-term financing obligations 
such as bonding. 
(2) To pay any administrative costs or fees. 
(e) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec-
tion, the Secretary may give priority to eligible entities 
that serve schools in which—
(1) more than 17 percent of the students older 
than 4 and younger than 18 years of age are from 
families with incomes below the poverty line; or 
(2) the average core curriculum class size is 
higher, particularly in the primary grades, than the 
average core curriculum class size at schools served 
by other grant applicants for the fiscal year.
(f) MATCHING FUNDS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary may not 
make a grant under this section unless the grantee 
agrees to make available (directly or through dona-
tions from public or private entities) non-Federal 
contributions toward the costs of the activities under 
the grant in an amount that is not less than $2 for 
each $1 provided by the Secretary in the grant. 
(2) DETERMINATION
OF
AMOUNT
CONTRIB-
UTED.—Non-Federal contributions required in para-
graph (1) may be in cash or in kind, fairly evalu-
ated, including plant, equipment, or services. 
Amounts provided by the Federal Government, or 
services assisted or subsidized to any significant ex-
tent by the Federal Government, may not be in-
cluded in determining the amount of such non-Fed-
eral contributions. 
(g) APPLICATION.—
(1) SUBMISSION.—To seek a grant under this 
section, an eligible entity shall submit an application 
to the Secretary in such form, in such manner, and 
containing such information as the Secretary may 
require. 
(2) CONTENTS.—An application for a grant 
under this section shall include the following:
(A) Certification of the average core cur-
riculum class size at schools served by the eligi-
ble entity for each of the grade ranges that—
(i) are described in subsection (b)(3); 
and 
(ii) will be served by the entity’s class 
size reduction program. 
(B) Certification of the eligible entity’s ac-
tual and expected expenditures for the entity’s 
class size reduction program for the fiscal year 
involved. 
(C) A description of the eligible entity’s 
class size reduction program and the program’s 
goals. 
(D) A description of how the eligible entity 
intends to use funds received under the grant. 
(E) In the case of an eligible entity that 
has already received a grant under this section, 
the entity’s progress in achieving the goals of 
its class size reduction program, particularly 
relative to high poverty areas. 
(3) DEADLINE.—The Secretary shall establish a 
deadline for the submission of applications for a 
grant under this section. 
(h) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
(1) The term ‘‘average core curriculum class 
size’’ means the number that is—
(A) equal to the sum of the number of stu-
dents in each core curriculum class (including 
for each school term and period of instruction) 
divided by the total number of such classes; and 
(B) is based on the ratio of physical class 
rooms to students, irrespective of the ratio of 
teachers to students. 
(2) The term ‘‘core curriculum class’’ means a 
class in any of the following subjects: 
(A) Mathematics. 
(B) Science. 
(C) Reading, language arts, or English, in-
cluding English for speakers of other languages. 
(D) Social studies, including history, civics, 
political science, government, geography, and 
economics. 
(E) Foreign language. 
(3) The terms ‘‘local educational agency’’ and 
‘‘poverty line’’ have the meanings given those terms 
in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 
(4) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 
of Education.
(5) The term ‘‘State’’ includes the several 
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 
of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern 
Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Vir-
gin Islands, any other territory or possession of the 
United States, and any Indian tribe (as that term is 
defined in section 4(e) of the Indian Self-Determina-
tion and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 
450b(e)). 
(i) FUNDING.—
(1) BIANNUAL PAYMENTS.—The Secretary shall 
make payments to each grantee under this section 
on a biannual basis. 
(2) LIMITATION.—For any fiscal year, the Sec-
retary may not make a payment to any grantee 
under this section in an amount that exceeds the 
lesser of the following: 
(A) An amount that is 20 percent of the 
total amount appropriated to carry out this sec-
tion for the fiscal year. 
(B) $200,000,000.
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