Title: Smaller Class Sizes for Students and Educators Act of 2019
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Smaller Class Sizes for Students and Educators Act of 2019
This bill directs the Department of Education to award grants for local educational agencies in high-poverty school districts to reduce class sizes in the early elementary grades (kindergarten through third grade) by recruiting, training, and hiring qualified teachers.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 579 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 579

To provide grants to eligible local educational agencies to help public 
schools reduce class size in the early elementary grades, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 27, 2019

Mr. Merkley (for himself, Mr. Bennet, Mrs. Gillibrand, Ms. Harris, Mr. 
 Blumenthal, and Ms. Warren) introduced the following bill; which was 
 read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
                              and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide grants to eligible local educational agencies to help public 
schools reduce class size in the early elementary grades, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Smaller Class Sizes for Students and 
Educators Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) ESEA terms.--The terms ``elementary school'', ``local 
        educational agency'', and ``poverty line'' have the meanings 
        given the terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
            (2) Early elementary grades.--The term ``early elementary 
        grades'' means kindergarten through grade 3.
            (3) Eligible local educational agency.--The term ``eligible 
        local educational agency'' means a local educational agency--
                    (A) for a school district in which 75 percent or 
                more of the population have incomes below the poverty 
                line; and
                    (B) that is within a State, as such term is defined 
                in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
                Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Education.
            (5) Targeted school.--The term ``targeted school'' means a 
        public elementary school in which not less than 75 percent of 
        the students attending the elementary school are from families 
        with incomes below the poverty line.

SEC. 3. REDUCING CLASS SIZE IN KINDERGARTEN THROUGH GRADE 3 CLASSROOMS.

    (a) Program Authorized.--
            (1) In general.--From amounts made available under 
        subsection (g), the Secretary shall award grants, on a 
        competitive basis, to eligible local educational agencies to 
        enable the eligible local educational agencies to reduce class 
        sizes in the early elementary grades.
            (2) Duration of grant.--A grant awarded under this section 
        shall be for a period of 5 years.
    (b) Application.--
            (1) In general.--An eligible local educational agency that 
        desires a grant under this section shall submit an application 
        to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing 
        such information as the Secretary may require.
            (2) Contents.--The application required under paragraph (1) 
        shall include an evidence-based plan to lower class sizes in 
        the early elementary grades that includes the following:
                    (A) A description of--
                            (i) how the eligible local educational 
                        agency will reduce the class size for early 
                        elementary grade classes in the targeted 
                        schools served by the eligible local 
                        educational agency to not more than 18 students 
                        per class, recognizing that class size maximums 
                        must be based on type of students, grade level, 
                        subject area, physical facilities, and workload 
                        maximums for educators; and
                            (ii) the continuum of small class sizes 
                        based on grade level the eligible local 
                        educational agency will provide for students in 
                        the early elementary grades in targeted 
                        schools.
                    (B) A description of how the eligible local 
                educational agency will recruit, hire, and retain 
                individuals, including individuals from populations 
                underrepresented in the teaching profession, as 
                teachers for the early elementary grades.
                    (C) A description of how the eligible local 
                educational agency will provide additional professional 
                development and training for teachers hired for class 
                size reduction.
                    (D) A description of how the eligible local 
                educational agency will provide time for collaboration 
                between teachers at the targeted schools for activities 
                such as analyzing student work, instruction and 
                assessment planning, or curriculum and instruction-
                specific professional development.
                    (E) A description of how the eligible local 
                educational agency will ensure that any new teachers 
                hired using grant funds are certified to teach in the 
                field of hire, qualified, effective, and able to teach 
                to State standards, as determined by the State for 
                purposes of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
                of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.).
                    (F) In the case of an eligible local educational 
                agency that is using funds available under part A of 
                title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
                of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6611 et seq.) for class size 
                reduction, information regarding such use and the 
                extent to which the funds are being used to reduce 
                class size in the early elementary grades in targeted 
                public schools.
                    (G) The average class size, by grade, in the early 
                elementary grades of the public schools served by the 
                eligible local educational agency at the time the 
                application is submitted and during the prior 2 
                academic years.
                    (H) A description of how the eligible local 
                educational agency will determine or define class size.
    (c) Award Basis.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
Secretary shall give priority to eligible local educational agencies 
with the greatest number of students from families with incomes below 
the poverty line.
    (d) Use of Funds.--
            (1) Administrative expenses.--An eligible local educational 
        agency receiving a grant under this section may use not more 
        than 3 percent of the grant funds for the administrative 
        expenses of the grant.
            (2) Reducing class size.--
                    (A) In general.--An eligible local educational 
                agency shall use not less than 97 percent of the grant 
                funds to reduce class sizes in the early elementary 
                grades at targeted schools by--
                            (i) recruiting, training, and hiring 
                        qualified teachers, both general education 
                        teachers and teachers of special-needs 
                        children, for the early elementary grades at 
                        targeted schools;
                            (ii) in the case of an eligible local 
                        educational agency for which all targeted 
                        schools have class sizes at or less than the 
                        levels established by the local educational 
                        agency in the plan submitted under subsection 
                        (b)(2), obtaining additional space, or 
                        renovating school buildings, to provide more 
                        classroom space, except that not more than 15 
                        percent of the funds provided under the grant 
                        may be used for this purpose; and
                            (iii) in the case of an eligible local 
                        educational agency for which all targeted 
                        schools have class sizes at or less than the 
                        levels established by the local educational 
                        agency in the plan submitted under subsection 
                        (b)(2), providing professional development for 
                        teachers of the early elementary grades at 
                        targeted schools, except that not more than 15 
                        percent of the funds provided under the grant 
                        may be used for this purpose.
                    (B) Highest need.--In carrying out activities under 
                the grant, the eligible local educational agency shall 
                first prioritize targeted schools that serve the 
                highest percentage of students from families with 
                incomes below the poverty line and then prioritize 
                schools with the highest average class sizes in the 
                early elementary grades.
    (e) Reporting.--
            (1) Annual reports by eligible local educational 
        agencies.--Each eligible local educational agency receiving a 
        grant under this section shall prepare and submit to the 
        Secretary an annual report that includes an evaluation of the 
        activities carried out under grant, including an evaluation 
        of--
                    (A) the progress of the eligible local educational 
                agency in reducing class size in the early elementary 
                grades at the targeted schools served by the local 
                educational agency;
                    (B) student academic achievement, which may include 
                locally developed assessments, in the early elementary 
                grades of the targeted schools receiving support 
                through the local educational agency under the grant 
                where pre- and post-assessment data is available;
                    (C) a climate study of teachers in such targeted 
                schools that addresses working conditions, job 
                satisfaction, and teacher stress;
                    (D) teacher qualifications for newly hired teachers 
                in such targeted schools for class size reduction;
                    (E) targeted professional development and training 
                provided to newly hired teachers in targeted schools 
                for class size reduction;
                    (F) the time added to be used for teachers to 
                collaborate in targeted schools;
                    (G) teacher retention and turnover rates pre- and 
                post-class size reduction efforts; and
                    (H) a description of rates of student discipline 
                problems and in chronic student absenteeism.
            (2) Annual reports by the secretary.--By not later than 30 
        days after the date by which the reports under paragraph (1) 
        are first due, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall 
        prepare and submit a report to the Committee on Health, 
        Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee 
        on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives 
        regarding the grants awarded under this section.
    (f) Supplement, Not Supplant.--A local educational agency receiving 
funds under this section shall use such funds to supplement, and not 
supplant, any other funds available to the local educational agency for 
the purposes of reducing class size in the early elementary grades.
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $2,000,000,000 for the first 
fiscal year and such sums as are necessary for each succeeding fiscal 
year.
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