Title: Transition-to-Success Mentoring Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Transition-to-Success Mentoring Act
This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to reauthorize educational programs that assist at-risk middle school students.
The bill establishes a transition-to-success mentoring program requiring the Department of Education to award grants to local educational agencies or certain community-based nonprofit organizations to provide school-based mentoring programs and assist at-risk students in transitioning from middle to high school.
Grantees must assign each at-risk student in his or her middle school a success coach who creates a plan of success for the student and serves as the student's advocate between the student's parents and teachers.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 647 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 647

 To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to award 
  grants to eligible entities to establish, expand, or support school-
based mentoring programs to assist at-risk middle school students with 
           the transition from middle school to high school.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 24, 2017

    Mr. Carson of Indiana (for himself, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Ellison, Mr. 
Langevin, Ms. Lee, Mr. Loebsack, Ms. Moore, Ms. Norton, Mr. Payne, and 
Mr. Ryan of Ohio) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
              the Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to award 
  grants to eligible entities to establish, expand, or support school-
based mentoring programs to assist at-risk middle school students with 
           the transition from middle school to high school.

    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 ``Transition-to-Success Mentoring 
Act''.

SEC. 2. TRANSITION-TO-SUCCESS MENTORING PROGRAM.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 1002(d) of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6553) is 
amended to read as follows: ``There are authorized to be appropriated 
to carry out the activities described in part D, $50,000,000 for fiscal 
year 2018 and such sums as may be necessary for each succeeding fiscal 
year.''.
    (b) Transition-to-Success Mentoring Program.--Part D of title I of 
such Act (20 U.S.C. 6421 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

          ``Subpart 4--Transition-to-Success Mentoring Program

``SEC. 1441. TRANSITION-TO-SUCCESS MENTORING PROGRAM.

    ``(a) In General.--From the amounts appropriated to carry out this 
section, the Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities to 
establish, expand, or support school-based mentoring programs to assist 
eligible students with the transition from middle school to high 
school.
    ``(b) Application.--To receive a grant under this section, an 
eligible entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary 
may require.
    ``(c) Uses of Funds.--
            ``(1) Required uses of funds.--An eligible entity that 
        receives a grant under this section shall use the grant funds 
        to establish a mentoring program, or to expand or provide 
        technical support to an existing mentoring program, in all 
        middle schools served by the entity, under which each eligible 
        student is assigned to a success coach who--
                    ``(A) creates a plan for success for the student 
                that--
                            ``(i) is created with the student, 
                        teachers, mentor, and parents of the student;
                            ``(ii) includes, for each academic year, 
                        the student's academic, personal, and career 
                        exploration goals, and a strategy on how to 
                        accomplish such goals; and
                            ``(iii) identifies the student's strengths, 
                        weaknesses, and academic progress;
                    ``(B) enters into a signed, written agreement with 
                the parents of the student that describes how the 
                parents should assist the student in carrying out the 
                plan for success;
                    ``(C) meets with the student at least once per 
                month to--
                            ``(i) assist the student in achieving the 
                        goals under the plan for success;
                            ``(ii) identify the student's academic 
                        areas of weaknesses;
                            ``(iii) provide the student with the tools 
                        necessary to improve the student's potential 
                        for academic excellence, and ensure the 
                        student's successful transition from middle 
                        school to high school by identifying improved 
                        attitude, behavior, coursework, and social 
                        involvement; and
                            ``(iv) in the case of a student with 
                        behavioral issues, assist the student in 
                        behavior management techniques;
                    ``(D) at least monthly, meets with the student and 
                the parents, teachers, or counselors of the student 
                to--
                            ``(i) evaluate the student's progress in 
                        achieving the goals under the plan for the 
                        current academic year; and
                            ``(ii) revise or establish new goals for 
                        the next academic year; and
                    ``(E) serves as the student's advocate between the 
                teachers and parents of the student to ensure that the 
                teachers and parents understand the student's plan.
            ``(2) Authorized uses of funds.--An eligible entity that 
        receives a grant under this section may use such funds to--
                    ``(A) develop and carry out a training program for 
                success coaches, including providing support to match 
                success coaches with eligible students;
                    ``(B) cover the cost of any materials used by 
                success coaches under the mentoring program; and
                    ``(C) hire staff to perform or support the program 
                objectives.
    ``(d) Grant Duration.--A grant under this section shall be awarded 
for a period of not more than 5 years.
    ``(e) Reporting Requirements.--
            ``(1) Eligible entities.--An eligible entity receiving a 
        grant under this section shall submit to the Secretary, at the 
        end of each academic year during the grant period, a report 
        that includes--
                    ``(A) the number of students who participated in 
                the school-based mentoring program that was funded in 
                whole or in part with the grant funds under this 
                section;
                    ``(B) data on the academic achievement of such 
                students;
                    ``(C) the number of contact hours between such 
                students and their success coaches; and
                    ``(D) any other information that the Secretary may 
                require to evaluate the success of the school-based 
                mentoring program.
            ``(2) Secretary.--
                    ``(A) Interim report.--At the end of the third 
                fiscal year for which funds are made available to carry 
                out this section, the Secretary shall submit to 
                Congress an interim report on the success of the 
                school-based mentoring programs funded under this 
                section that includes the information received under 
                paragraph (1).
                    ``(B) Final report.--At the end of the fifth fiscal 
                year for which funds are made available to carry out 
                this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 
                final report on the success of the school-based 
                mentoring programs funded under this section that 
                includes the information received under paragraph (1).
    ``(f) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) At-risk student.--The term `at-risk student' means a 
        student who has been identified as a student who has below a 
        2.0 grade point average or the equivalent or who has been 
        determined by parents, teachers, or other school officials to--
                    ``(A) be at-risk of academic failure;
                    ``(B) have expressed interest in dropping out of 
                school;
                    ``(C) show signs of a drug or alcohol problem;
                    ``(D) be pregnant or a parent;
                    ``(E) have come into contact with the juvenile 
                justice system in the past;
                    ``(F) have limited English proficiency;
                    ``(G) be a gang member; or
                    ``(H) have a high absenteeism rate at school.
            ``(2) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' means--
                    ``(A) a local educational agency that--
                            ``(i) receives, or is eligible to receive, 
                        funds under part A of this title; or
                            ``(ii) is a high-need local educational 
                        agency; or
                    ``(B) a partnership between a local educational 
                agency described in subparagraph (A) and a nonprofit, 
                community-based organization.
            ``(3) Eligible student.--The term `eligible student' means 
        a student who--
                    ``(A) is enrolled in a middle school served by an 
                eligible entity; and
                    ``(B) is an at-risk student.
            ``(4) High-need local educational agency.--The term `high-
        need local educational agency' means a local educational agency 
        that serves at least one high-need school.
            ``(5) High-need school.--The term `high-need school' has 
        the meaning given the term in section 2211(b)(2).
            ``(6) Middle school.--The term `middle school' means a 
        nonprofit institutional day or residential school, including a 
        public charter school, that provides middle school education, 
        as determined under State law, except that the term does not 
        include any education below grade 6 or beyond grade 9.
            ``(7) School-based mentoring.--The term `school-based 
        mentoring' refers to mentoring activities that--
                    ``(A) are closely coordinated with a school by 
                involving teachers, counselors, and other school staff 
                who may identify and refer students for mentoring 
                services; and
                    ``(B) assist at-risk students in improving academic 
                achievement, reducing disciplinary referrals, and 
                increasing positive regard for school.
            ``(8) Success coach.--The term `success coach' means an 
        individual who--
                    ``(A) is--
                            ``(i) an employee or volunteer of a local 
                        educational agency in which a mentoring program 
                        receiving support under this section is being 
                        carried out; or
                            ``(ii) a volunteer or employee from a 
                        nonprofit, community-based organization that 
                        provides volunteers for mentoring programs in 
                        secondary schools; and
                    ``(B) prior to becoming a success coach--
                            ``(i) received training and support in 
                        mentoring from an eligible entity, which, at a 
                        minimum, was 2 hours in length and covered the 
                        roles and responsibilities of a success coach; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) underwent a screening by an eligible 
                        entity that included--
                                    ``(I) appropriate job reference 
                                checks;
                                    ``(II) child and domestic abuse 
                                record checks; and
                                    ``(III) criminal background 
                                checks.''.

SEC. 3. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    The table of contents in section 2 of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to section 1432 the following:

          ``subpart 4--transition-to-success mentoring program

``Sec. 1441. Transition to success mentoring program.''.
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