(1) IN
GENERAL.—From the amounts made 
available under section 10 and not reserved under sec-
tion 3 for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall award 
grants in accordance with subsection (b) to eligible 
entities to develop or implement plans to improve di-
versity and reduce or eliminate racial or socio-
economic isolation in covered schools. 
(2) TYPES OF GRANTS.—The Secretary may, in 
any fiscal year, award— 
(A) planning grants to carry out the activi-
ties described in section 6(a); 
(B) implementation grants to carry out the 
activities described in section 6(b); or 
(C) both such planning grants and imple-
mentation grants. 
(b) AWARD BASIS.— 
(1) CRITERIA FOR EVALUATING APPLICATIONS.— 
The Secretary shall award grants under this section 
on a competitive basis, based on— 
(A) the quality of the application submitted 
by an eligible entity under section 5; and 
(B) the likelihood, as determined by the Sec-
retary, that the eligible entity will use the grant 
to improve student outcomes or outcomes on 
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other performance measures described in section 
7. 
(2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 
section, the Secretary shall give priority to the fol-
lowing eligible entities: 
(A) First, to an eligible entity that pro-
poses, in an application submitted under section 
5, to use the grant to support a program that 
addresses racial isolation. 
(B) Second, to an eligible entity that pro-
poses, in an application submitted under section 
5, to use the grant to support a program that ex-
tends beyond one local educational agency, such 
as an inter-district or regional program. 
(c) DURATION OF GRANTS.— 
(1) 
PLANNING
GRANT.—A 
planning 
grant 
awarded under this section shall be for a period of not 
more than 1 year. 
(2) IMPLEMENTATION GRANT.—An implementa-
tion grant awarded under this section shall be for a 
period of not more than 3 years, except that the Sec-
retary may extend an implementation grant for an 
additional 2-year period if the eligible entity receiv-
ing the grant demonstrates to the Secretary that the 
eligible entity is making significant progress, as de-
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termined by the Secretary, on the program perform-
ance measures described in section 7. 
SEC. 5. APPLICATIONS. 
In order to receive a grant under section 4, an eligible 
entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 
time and in such manner as the Secretary may require. 
Such application shall include— 
(1) a description of the program for which the el-
igible entity is seeking a grant, including— 
(A) how the eligible entity proposes to use 
the grant to improve the academic and life out-
comes of students in racial or socioeconomic iso-
lation in covered schools by supporting interven-
tions that increase diversity in such covered 
schools; 
(B) in the case of an implementation grant, 
the implementation grant plan described in sec-
tion 6(b)(1); and 
(C) evidence, or if such evidence is not 
available, a rationale based on current research, 
regarding how the program will increase diver-
sity; 
(2) in the case of an eligible entity proposing to 
use any of the grant to benefit covered schools that are 
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racially isolated, a description of how the eligible en-
tity will identify and define racial isolation; 
(3) in the case of an eligible entity proposing to 
use any portion of the grant to benefit high-poverty 
covered schools, a description of how the eligible entity 
will identify and define income level and socio-
economic status; 
(4) a description of the plan of the eligible entity 
for continuing the program after the grant period 
ends; 
(5) a description of how the eligible entity will 
assess, monitor, and evaluate the impact of the activi-
ties funded under the grant on student achievement 
and student enrollment diversity; 
(6) an assurance that the eligible entity has con-
ducted, or will conduct, robust parent and community 
engagement, while planning for and implementing the 
program, such as through— 
(A) consultation with appropriate officials 
from Indian Tribes or Tribal organizations ap-
proved by the Tribes located in the area served 
by the eligible entity; 
(B) consultation with other community en-
tities, including local housing or transportation 
authorities; 
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(C) public hearings or other open forums to 
inform the development of any formal strategy to 
increase diversity; and 
(D) outreach to parents and students, in a 
language that parents and students can under-
stand, and consultation with students and fami-
lies in the targeted district or region that is de-
signed to ensure participation in the planning 
and development of any formal strategy to in-
crease diversity; 
(7) an estimate of the number of students that 
the eligible entity plans to serve under the program 
and the number of students to be served through addi-
tional expansion of the program after the grant pe-
riod ends; 
(8) an assurance that the eligible entity will— 
(A) cooperate with the Secretary in evalu-
ating the program, including any evaluation 
that might require data and information from 
multiple recipients of grants under section 4; 
and 
(B) engage in the best practices developed 
under section 3(2); 
(9) an assurance that, to the extent possible, the 
eligible entity has considered the potential implica-
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tions of the grant activities on the demographics and 
student enrollment of nearby covered schools not in-
cluded in the activities of the grant; and 
(10) in the case of an eligible entity applying for 
an implementation grant, a description of how the el-
igible entity will— 
(A) implement, replicate, or expand a strat-
egy based on a strong or moderate level of evi-
dence (as described in subclause (I) or (II) of sec-
tion 8101(21)(A)(i) of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
7801(21)(A)(i))); or 
(B) test a promising strategy to increase di-
versity in covered schools. 
SEC. 6. USES OF FUNDS. 
(a) PLANNING GRANTS.—Each eligible entity that re-
ceives a planning grant under section 4 shall use the grant 
to support students in covered schools through the following 
activities: 
(1) Completing a comprehensive assessment of, 
with respect to the geographic area served by such eli-
gible entity— 
(A) the educational outcomes and racial 
and socioeconomic stratification of children at-
tending covered schools; and 
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(B) an analysis of the location and capac-
ity of program and school facilities and the ade-
quacy of local or regional transportation infra-
structure. 
(2) Developing and implementing a robust fam-
ily, student, and community engagement plan, in-
cluding, where feasible, public hearings or other open 
forums that would precede and inform the develop-
ment of a formal strategy to improve diversity in cov-
ered schools. 
(3) Developing options, including timelines and 
cost estimates, for improving diversity in covered 
schools, such as weighted lotteries, revised feeder pat-
terns, school boundary redesign, or regional coordina-
tion. 
(4) Developing an implementation plan based on 
community preferences among the options developed 
under paragraph (3). 
(5) Building the capacity to collect and analyze 
data that provide information for transparency, con-
tinuous improvement, and evaluation. 
(6) Developing an implementation plan to com-
ply with a court-ordered school desegregation plan. 
(7) Engaging in best practices developed under 
section 3(2). 
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(b) IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS.— 
(1) IMPLEMENTATION GRANT PLAN.—Each eligi-
ble entity that receives an implementation grant 
under section 4 shall implement a high-quality plan 
to support students in covered schools that includes— 
(A) a comprehensive set of strategies de-
signed to improve academic outcomes for all stu-
dents, particularly students of color and low-in-
come students, by increasing diversity in covered 
schools; 
(B) evidence of strong family and commu-
nity support for such strategies, including evi-
dence that the eligible entity has engaged in 
meaningful family and community outreach ac-
tivities; 
(C) goals to increase diversity in covered 
schools over the course of the grant period; 
(D) collection and analysis of data to pro-
vide transparency and support continuous im-
provement throughout the grant period; and 
(E) a rigorous method of evaluation of the 
effectiveness of the program. 
(2) IMPLEMENTATION GRANT ACTIVITIES.—Each 
eligible entity that receives an implementation grant 
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under section 4 may use the grant to carry out one 
or more of the following activities: 
(A) Recruiting, hiring, or training addi-
tional teachers, administrators, and other in-
structional and support staff in new, expanded, 
or restructured covered schools, or other profes-
sional development activities for staff and ad-
ministrators. 
(B) Investing in specialized academic pro-
grams or facilities designed to encourage inter- 
district school attendance patterns. 
(C) Developing or initiating a transpor-
tation plan for bringing students to and from 
covered schools, if such transportation is sustain-
able beyond the grant period and does not rep-
resent a significant portion of the grant received 
by an eligible entity under section 4. 
(D) Developing innovative and equitable 
school assignment plans. 
(E) Carrying out innovative activities de-
signed to increase racial and socioeconomic 
school diversity and engagement between children 
from different racial, economic, and cultural 
backgrounds. 
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SEC. 7. PERFORMANCE MEASURES. 
The Secretary shall establish performance measures for 
the programs and activities carried out through a grant 
under section 4. These measures, at a minimum, shall track 
the progress of each eligible entity in— 
(1) improving academic and other developmental 
or noncognitive outcomes for each subgroup described 
in section 1111(b)(2)(B)(xi) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
6311(b)(2)(B)(xi)) that is served by the eligible entity 
on measures, including, as applicable, by— 
(A) increasing school readiness; 
(B) increasing student achievement and de-
creasing achievement gaps; 
(C) increasing high school graduation rates; 
(D) increasing readiness for postsecondary 
education and careers; 
(E) reducing school discipline rates; and 
(F) any other indicator the Secretary or eli-
gible entity may identify; and 
(2) increasing diversity and decreasing racial or 
socioeconomic isolation in covered schools. 
SEC. 8. ANNUAL REPORTS. 
An eligible entity that receives a grant under section 
4 shall submit to the Secretary, at such time and in such 
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manner as the Secretary may require, an annual report 
that includes— 
(1) a description of the efforts of the eligible enti-
ty to increase inclusivity; 
(2) information on the progress of the eligible en-
tity with respect to the performance measures de-
scribed in section 7; and 
(3) the data supporting such progress. 
SEC. 9. APPLICABILITY. 
Section 426 of the General Education Provisions Act 
(20 U.S.C. 1228) shall not apply with respect to activities 
carried out under a grant under this Act. 
SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 
this Act such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2020 
and each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years. 
SEC. 11. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) COVERED
SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘covered 
school’’ means— 
(A) a publicly-funded early childhood edu-
cation program; 
(B) a public elementary school; or 
(C) a public secondary school. 
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(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti-
ty’’ means a local educational agency, a consortium 
of such agencies, an educational service agency, or re-
gional educational agency that at the time of the ap-
plication of such eligible entity has significant 
achievement gaps and socioeconomic or racial seg-
regation within or between the school districts served 
by such entity. 
(3) ESEA TERMS.—The terms ‘‘educational serv-
ice agency’’, ‘‘elementary school’’, ‘‘local educational 
agency’’, ‘‘secondary school’’, and ‘‘Secretary’’ have 
the meanings given such terms in section 8101 of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 7801). 
(4) PUBLICLY-FUNDED EARLY CHILDHOOD EDU-
CATION PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘publicly-funded early 
childhood education program’’ means an early child-
hood education program (as defined in section 103(8) 
of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1003(8)) that receives State or Federal funds. 
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Union Calendar No. 397 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 2639 
[Report No. 116–496] 
A BILL 
To establish the Strength in Diversity Program, 
and for other purposes. 
SEPTEMBER 8, 2020 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 
and ordered to be printed 
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