I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1821 
To strengthen families’ engagement in the education of their children. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 10, 2011 
Mr. PLATTS (for himself and Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 
Workforce 
A BILL 
To strengthen families’ engagement in the education of their 
children. 
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 ‘‘Family Engagement 
in Education Act of 2011’’. 
SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title. 
Sec. 2. Table of contents. 
Sec. 3. Findings; purpose. 
Sec. 4. Amendment references. 
Sec. 5. Family engagement in education. 
Sec. 6. State plans. 
Sec. 7. Local educational agency plans. 
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Sec. 8. Family engagement in education policy. 
Sec. 9. Prevention and intervention programs for children and youth who are 
neglected, delinquent, or at risk. 
Sec. 10. High-quality teachers and principals. 
Sec. 11. Family engagement in education programs. 
Sec. 12. Definitions. 
Sec. 13. Conforming amendments. 
Sec. 14. Government Accountability Office study and report. 
Sec. 15. Federal coordination of family engagement in education programming. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) Family engagement in a child’s education 
raises student achievement, improves behavior and 
attendance, decreases drop-out rates, and improves 
the emotional and physical well-being of children. 
(2) Families are critical determinants of chil-
dren’s school readiness as well as of students’ deci-
sion to pursue higher education. 
(3) Effective family engagement is a great 
equalizer for students, contributing to their in-
creased academic achievement, regardless of parents’ 
education level, ethnicity, or socioeconomic back-
ground. 
(4) Family engagement can raise student aca-
demic achievement so substantially that schools 
would need to increase spending by more than 
$1,000 per pupil to gain the same results. 
(5) Positive benefits for children, youth, fami-
lies, and schools are maximized through effective 
family engagement that— 
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(A) is a shared responsibility in which 
schools and other community agencies and or-
ganizations are committed to reaching out to 
engage families in meaningful ways and families 
are committed to actively supporting their chil-
dren’s learning and development; 
(B) is continuous across a child’s life from 
birth to young adulthood; and 
(C) reinforces learning that takes place in 
all settings. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to 
strengthen families’ engagement in the education of their 
children. 
SEC. 4. AMENDMENT REFERENCES. 
Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 
this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 
of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi-
sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 
section or other provision of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.). 
SEC. 5. FAMILY ENGAGEMENT IN EDUCATION. 
(a) FAMILY ENGAGEMENT
AND RESPONSIBILITY 
FUND.—Title I (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) is amended by 
adding after section 1004 the following: 
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‘‘SEC. 1005. FAMILY ENGAGEMENT AND RESPONSIBILITY 
FUND. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State educational agency 
may reserve 1 percent or more of such agency’s allocated 
funds under section 1122 for each fiscal year for use as 
provided in subsection (b). 
‘‘(b) USE OF RESERVED FUNDS.—From the amounts 
reserved for each fiscal year under subsection (a), each 
State educational agency shall— 
‘‘(1) reserve not less than 85 percent for Local 
Family Engagement Centers under section 1006; 
and 
‘‘(2) reserve not more than 15 percent for State 
educational agency capacity for family engagement 
activities under section 1007.’’. 
(b) LOCAL FAMILY ENGAGEMENT CENTERS PRO-
GRAM.—Title I (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) is amended by 
adding after section 1005, as added by subsection (a), the 
following: 
‘‘SEC. 1006. LOCAL FAMILY ENGAGEMENT CENTERS PRO-
GRAM. 
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to es-
tablish and operate Local Family Engagement Centers 
and to evaluate the usefulness and effectiveness of innova-
tive approaches demonstrated by these centers in engaging 
families in their children’s education by providing training, 
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