Put School Counselors Where They’re Needed Act
Bill: H.R.614 | Sponsor: Rep. Sánchez, Linda T. (D-CA)
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Put School Counselors Where They're Needed Act
This bill directs the Department of Education to implement a demonstration project providing competitive, four-year grants to at least 10 secondary schools that have a four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate of 60% or lower, for the provision of additional school counselors and counselor resources.
The additional school counselors must primarily serve students identified as being at risk of not graduating in four years.
Grantees that demonstrate progress in improving their graduation rates shall be eligible for subsequent grants.

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to create a 
demonstration project to fund additional secondary school counselors in 
          troubled title I schools to reduce the dropout rate.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Put School Counselors Where They're 
Needed Act''.

SEC. 2. DEMONSTRATION PROJECT FOR ADDITIONAL SECONDARY SCHOOL 
              COUNSELORS.

    Part D of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 6421 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

  ``Subpart 4--Demonstration Project for Additional Secondary School 
                               Counselors

``SEC. 1441. FINDINGS.

    ``The Congress finds the following:
            ``(1) Nationally, only 85 percent of students graduate from 
        high school with a regular high school diploma.
            ``(2) Every school year, 523,000 American high school 
        students drop out without earning a high school diploma or an 
        alternative credential.
            ``(3) Only about 67 percent of American students with 
        limited English proficiency graduated on time from high school.
            ``(4) Only about 79 percent of Black students, 81 percent 
        of Hispanic students, and 74 percent of American Indian/Alaska 
        Native students graduate on time from high school with a 
        regular diploma, compared to 89 percent of White students and 
        92 percent of Asian/Pacific Islander students.
            ``(5) Only about 67 percent of American students with 
        disabilities graduated on time from high school.
            ``(6) High school is the final transition into adulthood 
        and the world of work as students begin defining their 
        independence and forging their own pathways. As our next 
        generation of leaders, our youth, are deciding their futures, 
        they are faced with many challenges, including peer pressure 
        and bullying, high-stakes testing, the challenges of college 
        admissions, the scholarship and financial aid application 
        process, and entrance into an ever more competitive job market. 
        Students need guidance and skills to help them navigate these 
        complex decisions, which have serious and life changing 
        consequences.
            ``(7) School counseling programs are essential for students 
        to achieve optimal personal growth, acquire positive social 
        skills and values, set appropriate career goals, and realize 
        full academic potential to become productive, contributing 
        members of the world community.
            ``(8) Professional secondary school counselors are highly 
        qualified educators with a mental health perspective who 
        understand and respond to the challenges presented by today's 
        diverse student population.
            ``(9) The professional secondary school counselor holds a 
        master's degree or higher in school counseling (or the 
        substantial equivalent), and is certified or licensed by the 
        State in which the counselor works.
            ``(10) Professional secondary school counselors are 
        integral to the total educational program. They provide 
        proactive leadership that engages all stakeholders in the 
        delivery of programs and services to help the student achieve 
        success in school. Professional secondary school counselors 
        align and work with the school's mission to support the 
        academic achievement of all students as they prepare for the 
        ever-changing world of the 21st century.
            ``(11) Professional secondary school counselors' 
        opportunities to assist students are often hindered by 
        extraordinarily high student-to-counselor ratios. Currently, 
        the average student-to-counselor ratio in America's public 
        schools is 430 to 1. The American School Counselor Association, 
        the American Counseling Association, and the National 
        Association for College Admissions Counseling all recommend a 
        ratio of one school counselor to 250 students and a lower ratio 
        for counselors working primarily with students at risk.

``SEC. 1442. DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

    ``(a) In General.--From amounts made available to carry out this 
subpart, the Secretary shall carry out a demonstration project under 
which the Secretary makes grants on a competitive basis to secondary 
schools that receive funds under this title and have a four-year 
adjusted cohort graduation rate of 60 percent or lower.
    ``(b) Grants.--A grant under this subpart shall be for a period of 
4 years and may be used--
            ``(1) to provide additional school counselors during that 
        period; and
            ``(2) to provide additional resources (such as professional 
        development expenses or travel expenses for home visits, and 
        any services and materials referred to in subsection (d)) and 
        to pay overhead expenses.
    ``(c) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that a 
participating school should aim to provide, under subsection (b)(1), 
one additional counselor per 250 students at risk.
    ``(d) Scope of Counseling.--The additional school counselors shall 
identify students who are at risk of not graduating in 4 years and 
shall provide counseling primarily to those students. The counselors 
may identify such students at any time, but shall strive to identify 
them before they enter grade 9. Services shall be provided as long as 
necessary, including to the extent allowable and appropriate, after the 
student's cohort graduation date. The counseling provided--
            ``(1) may include a full panoply of services, including an 
        individual graduation plan and other resources, such as 
        appropriate course placement and supplemental services (to 
        include not only supplemental educational services tutoring if 
        available at the school site, but also other tutoring as 
        necessary, along with supplemental books and materials); and
            ``(2) shall include meetings with each student so 
        identified and with the teachers, tutors, supplemental 
        educational services providers, and parents of the student, and 
        may also include meetings with other relevant individuals, such 
        as a probation officer, mentor, coach, or employer of the 
        student.
    ``(e) Supplement Not Supplant.--Funds under this subpart shall be 
used to supplement, not supplant, funds from non-Federal sources. The 
additional school counselors provided through funds under this subpart 
must be in addition to any employees who work in the secondary school 
guidance or counseling office, such as counselors, college admissions 
specialists, career development specialists, guidance information 
specialists, or any other professional or paraprofessional.
    ``(f) Additional Grant Periods.--
            ``(1) In general.--A school that receives a grant under 
        this subpart and demonstrates adequate improvement over the 
        period of the grant is eligible to receive a second grant for a 
        second period. If the school again demonstrates adequate 
        improvement over that second period, the school is eligible to 
        receive a third grant for a third period. The third grant shall 
        provide amounts that decrease for each year of the third period 
        and require the school to provide corresponding increases in 
        non-Federal funds.
            ``(2) Adequate improvement.--For purposes of paragraph (1), 
        a school demonstrates adequate improvement over a grant period 
        if the four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate increases (or 
        is projected to increase) by 10 percent or more over that 
        period.
    ``(g) Selection.--The Secretary shall carry out the demonstration 
project in at least 10 schools. The first five schools selected to 
participate shall each be from a different State.

``SEC. 1443. DEFINITION.

    ``(a) In General.--For purposes of this subpart. the term `regular 
high school diploma' means the standard high school diploma awarded to 
the preponderance of students in the State that is fully aligned with 
State standards, or a higher diploma, and does not include GEDs, 
certificates of attendance, or any lesser diploma award.
    ``(b) Special Rule.--For those students who have significant 
cognitive disabilities and are assessed using an alternate assessment 
aligned to alternate achievement standards, receipt of a regular high 
school diploma or State-defined alternate diploma aligned with 
completion of their entitlement under the Individuals with Disabilities 
Education Act shall be counted as graduates with a regular high school 
diploma for the purposes of this Act. No more than 1 percent of 
students can be counted as graduates with a regular high school diploma 
under this subparagraph.

``SEC. 1444. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    ``There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subpart 
$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2024.''.

SEC. 3. CONFORMING AMENDMENT; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Conforming Amendment.--Section 1002(d) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6302(d)) is amended by 
inserting ``(other than subpart 4)'' after ``part D,''.
    (b) TOC.--The table of contents in section 2 of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 1432 the following:

  ``Subpart 4--Demonstration Project for Additional Secondary School 
                               Counselors

``Sec. 1441. Findings.
``Sec. 1442. Demonstration project.
``Sec. 1443. Definition.
``Sec. 1444. Authorization of appropriations.''.
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