Title: Making Education Affordable and Accessible Act of 2021
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Making Education Affordable and Accessible Act of 2021
This bill reauthorizes through FY2027 and revises the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) program.
The bill also authorizes new grants under the FIPSE program. Specifically, the Department of Education may award grants to institutions of higher education for dual or concurrent enrollment programs or early college high school programs that allow high school students to earn postsecondary credits.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2620 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2620

 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make college affordable 
  and accessible by expanding access to dual or concurrent enrollment 
            programs and early college high school programs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             August 5, 2021

   Mr. Peters (for himself, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Kaine, and Mr. Boozman) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
          Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make college affordable 
  and accessible by expanding access to dual or concurrent enrollment 
            programs and early college high school programs.

    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 ``Making Education Affordable and 
Accessible Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. DUAL OR CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT PROGRAMS AND EARLY COLLEGE HIGH 
              SCHOOL.

    Part B of title VII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1138 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 745 as section 746;
            (2) in section 746, as redesignated by paragraph (1), by 
        striking ``fiscal year 2009'' and inserting ``fiscal year 
        2022''; and
            (3) by inserting after section 744 the following:

``SEC. 745. DUAL OR CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT PROGRAMS AND EARLY COLLEGE 
              HIGH SCHOOL.

    ``(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to expand access for 
high school students to the opportunities offered in dual or concurrent 
enrollment programs and early college high school programs established 
through partnerships between local educational agencies and 
institutions of higher education that enable such students to earn 
postsecondary credits while enrolled in a public high school.
    ``(b) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) ESEA definitions.--The terms `dual or concurrent 
        enrollment program', `early college high school', and `high 
        school' have the same meaning given to those terms in section 
        8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
            ``(2) Eligible institution.--The term `eligible 
        institution' means an institution of higher education that 
        carries out or plans to carry out a dual or concurrent 
        enrollment program or an early college high school program.
    ``(c) Grants Authorized.--The Secretary may award grants to 
eligible institutions to carry out dual or concurrent enrollment 
programs or early college high school programs.
    ``(d) Application.--An eligible institution that desires to receive 
a grant under this section shall submit to the Secretary an application 
at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the 
Secretary may require. Such application shall include a description 
of--
            ``(1) the partnership between the eligible institution and 
        each local educational agency involved in carrying out the dual 
        or concurrent enrollment program or early college high school 
        program; and
            ``(2) how the eligible institution will expand student 
        access to a dual or concurrent enrollment program or an early 
        college high school program, especially for students described 
        in subsection (e).
    ``(e) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
Secretary shall give priority to eligible institutions that will use 
grant funds for dual or concurrent enrollment programs or early college 
high school programs that serve students from low-income families, 
students from rural communities, or first-generation college students 
(as defined in section 402A(h)).
    ``(f) Use of Funds.--An eligible institution that receives a grant 
under this section shall use the grant funds to carry out a dual or 
concurrent enrollment program or an early college high school program 
for students enrolled in a public high school, which may include 
activities such as--
            ``(1) providing educators, principals, and other school 
        leaders with professional development activities that enhance 
        or enable the provision of postsecondary coursework through a 
        dual or concurrent enrollment program or an early college high 
        school program;
            ``(2) designing the curriculum and sequence of courses for 
        a dual or concurrent enrollment program or an early college 
        high school program in collaboration with educators from the 
        local educational agency and faculty from the eligible 
        institution;
            ``(3) establishing a course articulation process for 
        defining and approving courses for high school and 
        postsecondary credit or credentials for both 2-year and 4-year 
        institutions of higher education in the State;
            ``(4) establishing outreach programs to provide elementary 
        school and secondary school students, especially those students 
        in middle grades, and their parents, educators, school 
        counselors, and principals information about and academic 
        preparation for a dual or concurrent enrollment program or an 
        early college high school program;
            ``(5) helping students meet eligibility criteria for 
        postsecondary courses and ensuring that students understand how 
        credits earned will transfer to institutions of higher 
        education in the State; or
            ``(6) coordinating high school transition and postsecondary 
        support services and academic calendars.
    ``(g) Flexibility of Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), an eligible 
        institution that receives a grant under this section may use 
        grant funds for any of the costs associated with carrying out a 
        dual or concurrent enrollment program or an early college high 
        school program, including the costs of--
                    ``(A) tuition and fees, books, and required 
                instructional materials for the program so that 
                students will not be required to pay tuition or fees 
                for postsecondary courses; and
                    ``(B) transportation to and from the program.
            ``(2) Limitation.--An eligible institution may use not more 
        than 20 percent of grant funds received under this section for 
        transportation costs described in paragraph (1)(B).
    ``(h) Evaluation and Report.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each eligible institution receiving a 
        grant under this section shall--
                    ``(A) conduct an independent evaluation of the 
                effectiveness of the activities carried out by such 
                eligible institution under this section; and
                    ``(B) prepare and submit to the Secretary a report 
                containing the results of the evaluation described in 
                subparagraph (A).
            ``(2) Requirements.--The Secretary may establish 
        requirements for program evaluations.''.
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