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Resolution· HRESH.Res. 112 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2015
Expresses support for: (1) the principles and values set forth in the Secondary School Student Athletes' Bill of Rights; and (2) secondary schools that have successfully implemented programs, policies, and practices to emphasize and encourage student athlete safety and well-being. Recognizes the importance of proper safety measures, timely medical assessments, and appropriate environmental conditions, and the role that teachers, parents, coaches, and athletic health care team members play, in ensuring the well-being of secondary school student athletes. Encourages secondary schools to continue to take all available and reasonable efforts to ensure student athlete safety.
Resolution· HRESH.Res. 116 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2015
Supports the goals and ideals of International Mother Language Day.
Law· SS. 524 (114th)enacted
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2015 Directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to convene a Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force to develop: (1) best practices for pain management and prescribing pain medication, and (2) a strategy for disseminating such best practices. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize the Attorney General to make grants to: states (with priority to states that provide civil liability protection for first responders, health professionals, and family members administering naloxone to counteract opioid overdoses), local governments, and nonprofit organizations to expand educational efforts to prevent abuse of opioids, heroin, and other substances of abuse, understand addiction as a chronic disease, and promote treatment and recovery; organizations that have received a grant under the Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997 to implement comprehensive community-wide strategies that address local drug crises; states (with priority to states that provide civil liability protection for administering naloxone), local governments, Indian tribes, and nonprofit organizations for treatment alternative to incarceration programs for individuals who have come into contact with the juvenile or criminal justice system or have been arrested or charged with an offense, who have a substance use disorder, mental illness, or both, and who have been approved for participation in such a program; state, local, or tribal law enforcement agencies to create a demonstration law enforcement program to prevent opioid and heroin overdose death; state, local, or tribal law enforcement agencies, manufacturers, distributors, or reverse distributor of prescription medications, retail pharmacies, registered narcotic treatment programs, hospitals or clinics with an on-site pharmacy, eligible long-term care facilities, or any other entity authorized by the Drug Enforcement Administration to dispose of prescription medications to expand or make available disposal sites for unwanted prescription medications; states (with priority to states that provide civil liability protection for administering naloxone), local governments, and Indian tribes to implement medication assisted treatment programs through their criminal justice agencies; states, local governments, nonprofit organizations, and Indian tribes for educational programs for incarcerated offenders; state substance abuse and criminal justice agencies, jointly, to address the use of opioids and heroin among pregnant and parenting female offenders in a state to promote public safety, public health, family permanence, and well-being; establish or expand veterans treatment court programs, peer to peer services or programs for qualified veterans, practices that identify and provide treatment, rehabilitation, legal, and transitional services to incarcerated veterans, and training programs to teach criminal justice, mental health, and substance abuse personnel how to identify and appropriately respond to incidents involving veterans; and states to prepare a comprehensive plan for and implement an integrated opioid abuse response initiative. Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment to award grants to enable state substance abuse agencies, local governments, nonprofit organizations, and Indian tribes or tribal organizations that have a high rate of, or have had a rapid increase in, the use of heroin or other opioids to expand activities, including medication assisted treatment, for the treatment of addiction in the geographical areas affected. Authorizes the Recovery Branch of the Office of National Drug Control Policy to award grants to: (1) enable high schools and colleges with substance abuse recovery programs and nonprofit organizations to provide substance abuse recovery support services to high school and college students, to help build communities of support for young people in recovery, and to encourage initiatives designed to help young people achieve and sustain recovery; and (2) enable recovery community organizations to develop, expand, and enhance recovery services. Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prohibit the Department of Education from including any question about the conviction of an applicant for the possession or sale of illegal drugs on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid form. Directs HHS to establish a bipartisan Task Force on Recovery and Collateral Consequences to: (1) identify collateral consequences for individuals with drug convictions who are in recovery for a substance use disorder, and (2) determine whether such consequences unnecessarily delay such individuals from resuming their personal and professional activities. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act to direct the Attorney General to report annually on how grants awarded under such Act are used for family-based substance abuse treatment programs that serve as alternatives to incarceration for custodial parents to receive treatment and services as a family. Expresses the sense of Congress that the amounts expended to carry out this Act should be offset by a corresponding reduction in federal non-defense discretionary spending. Directs the Comptroller General to report on the impact that the Medicaid Institutions for Mental Disease exclusion (defined as the prohibition on federal matching payments under Medicaid for patients who have attained age 22, but have not attained age 65, in an institution for mental diseases) has on access to treatment for individuals with a substance use disorder.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 73 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Authorizes expenditures by the following Senate committees for March 1, 2015-September 30, 2015, for FY2016, and for October 1, 2016-February 28, 2017: (1) Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry; (2) Armed Services; (3) Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; (4) Budget; (5) Commerce, Science, and Transportation; (6) Energy and Natural Resources; (7) Environment and Public Works; (8) Finance; (9) Foreign Relations; (10) Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; (11) Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; (12) Judiciary; (13) Rules and Administration; (14) Small Business and Entrepreneurship; (15) Veterans' Affairs; (16) Special Committee on Aging; (17) Select Committee on Intelligence; and (18) Indian Affairs. Authorizes establishment of a special reserve within funds for Inquiries and Investigations, to be available to any committee to meet specified unpaid obligations or expenses.
Bill· SS. 471 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Women Veterans Access to Quality Care Act of 2015 Directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to: (1) establish standards to ensure that all VA medical facilities have the structural characteristics necessary to adequately meet the gender-specific health care needs of veterans at such facilities, including privacy, safety, and dignity; (2) integrate such standards into its prioritization methodology with respect to requests for funding major medical facility projects and major medical facility leases; and (3) report on such standards, including regarding the facilities that fail to meet such standards and the costs of projects and leases required to meet them. Requires the VA to: (1) use health outcomes for women veterans furnished health care by the the VA in evaluating the performance of VA medical center directors, (2) publish on its website information on such performance and on health outcomes for women veterans for each VA medical facility, (3) ensure that every VA medical center has a full-time obstetrician or gynecologist, and (4) carry out a pilot program to increase the number of residency program positions and graduate medical education positions for obstetricians and gynecologists at VA medical facilities in not less than three Veterans Integrated Service Networks. Directs the VA to develop procedures to share information that includes military service and separation data, personal email addresses and telephone numbers, and mailing addresses of veterans with state veterans agencies in electronic format as a means of facilitating the furnishing of assistance and benefits to such veterans. Allows a veteran to elect to prevent their information from being shared. Directs the Government Accountability Office to carry out an examination of whether VA medical centers are able to meet the health care needs of women veterans.
Bill· SS. 523 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
This bill amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to direct the Department of Energy (DOE), acting through the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, to act as the lead federal agency for coordinating and disseminating information on existing federal programs and assistance that may be used to help initiate, develop, and finance energy efficiency, renewable energy, and energy retrofitting projects for schools. DOE must: carry out a review of existing programs and financing mechanisms available in or from appropriate federal agencies with jurisdiction over energy financing and facilitation that are currently used or may be used for such purposes; establish a federal cross-departmental collaborative coordination, education, and outreach effort to streamline communication and promote available federal opportunities and assistance for such projects that enables states, local educational agencies, and schools to use existing federal opportunities more effectively and to form partnerships with appropriate entities to support project initiation; provide technical assistance for states, local educational agencies, and schools to help develop and finance projects that meet specified requirements; develop and maintain a single online resource website with contact information for relevant technical assistance and support staff in the Office for states, local educational agencies, and schools to effectively access and use federal opportunities and assistance to develop such projects; and establish a process for recognition of schools that have successfully implemented such projects and are willing to serve as resources for other local educational agencies and schools to assist initiation of similar efforts.
Bill· HRH.R. 930 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
School Principal Recruitment and Training Act Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to establish a principal recruitment and training grant program awarding renewable, matching grants to states, local educational agencies (LEAs), educational service agencies, nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and partnerships of those entities to recruit, prepare, place, and support principals in eligible schools. Defines "eligible schools" as high-need schools, persistently low-achieving schools, achievement gap schools, schools with middle grades that feed students to high schools with low graduation rates, and rural schools served by high-need LEAs. Requires grantees to work with experts and stakeholders to develop, during the first year of a grant, a leadership training program for principals, mentors, and other school leaders that prepares and supports them in leading effective school reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools. Requires grantees to use the grants, after that first year, to: implement their leadership training program; ensure that their training program is informed, on an ongoing basis, by consultations with experts and stakeholders and by tracking the performance of program graduates; select cohorts of trained or experienced principals to lead school reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools; support and encourage interaction among principals who have completed the training program; and disseminate information to principals, mentors, and other school leaders engaging in reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools. Makes grant renewal decisions dependent on the Secretary of Education's evaluation of the extent to which the principals recruited, prepared, placed, or supported by the grantee have improved school-level student outcomes. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish performance metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of the activities funded by the grant program; and (2) identify, and disseminate research on, best practices to improve school leadership.
Bill· HRH.R. 922 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Professional Readiness Education Preparation Act or the STEM PREP Act of 2015 This bill amends the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 to replace the TECH prep grant program with a STEM prep grant program for career and technical education programs focused on training students to enter the STEM (science, technology, engineering, or mathematics) fields. A grant-receiving consortium may include a nonprofit institution of higher education offering a one-year certificate program or a one-year apprenticeship program. The duration of a STEM program, currently 4- to 6-years, may extend from a 3-year to a 6-year length. Special consideration shall be given to consortium applications showcasing curricula that lead to greater critical thinking and problem solving skills by incorporating fine arts into the STEM prep program. A matching grant requirement is established for program eligibility.
Bill· HRH.R. 953 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2015 Directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to convene a Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force to develop: (1) best practices for pain management and prescribing pain medication, and (2) a strategy for disseminating such best practices. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize the Attorney General to make grants to: states (with priority to states that provide civil liability protection for first responders, health professionals, and family members administering naloxone to counteract opioid overdoses), local governments, and nonprofit organizations to expand educational efforts to prevent abuse of opioids, heroin, and other substances of abuse, understand addiction as a chronic disease, and promote treatment and recovery; organizations that have received a grant under the Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997 to implement comprehensive community-wide strategies that address local drug crises; states (with priority to states that provide civil liability protection for administering naloxone), local governments, Indian tribes, and nonprofit organizations for treatment alternative to incarceration programs for individuals who have come into contact with the juvenile or criminal justice system or have been arrested or charged with an offense, who have a substance use disorder, mental illness, or both, and who have been approved for participation in such a program; state, local, or tribal law enforcement agencies to create a demonstration law enforcement program to prevent opioid and heroin overdose death; state, local, or tribal law enforcement agencies, manufacturers, distributors, or reverse distributor of prescription medications, retail pharmacies, registered narcotic treatment programs, hospitals or clinics with an on-site pharmacy, eligible long-term care facilities, or any other entity authorized by the Drug Enforcement Administration to dispose of prescription medications to expand or make available disposal sites for unwanted prescription medications; states (with priority to states that provide civil liability protection for administering naloxone), local governments, and Indian tribes to implement medication assisted treatment programs through their criminal justice agencies; states, local governments, nonprofit organizations, and Indian tribes for educational programs for incarcerated offenders; state substance abuse and criminal justice agencies, jointly, to address the use of opioids and heroin among pregnant and parenting female offenders in a state to promote public safety, public health, family permanence, and well-being; establish or expand veterans treatment court programs, peer to peer services or programs for qualified veterans, practices that identify and provide treatment, rehabilitation, legal, and transitional services to incarcerated veterans, and training programs to teach criminal justice, mental health, and substance abuse personnel how to identify and appropriately respond to incidents involving veterans; and states to prepare a comprehensive plan for and implement an integrated opioid abuse response initiative. Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment to award grants to enable state substance abuse agencies, local governments, nonprofit organizations, and Indian tribes or tribal organizations that have a high rate of, or have had a rapid increase in, the use of heroin or other opioids to expand activities, including medication assisted treatment, for the treatment of addiction in the geographical areas affected. Authorizes the Recovery Branch of the Office of National Drug Control Policy to award grants to: (1) enable high schools and colleges with substance abuse recovery programs and nonprofit organizations to provide substance abuse recovery support services to high school and college students, to help build communities of support for young people in recovery, and to encourage initiatives designed to help young people achieve and sustain recovery; and (2) enable recovery community organizations to develop, expand, and enhance recovery services. Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prohibit the Department of Education from including any question about the conviction of an applicant for the possession or sale of illegal drugs on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid form. Directs HHS to establish a bipartisan Task Force on Recovery and Collateral Consequences to: (1) identify collateral consequences for individuals with drug convictions who are in recovery for a substance use disorder, and (2) determine whether such consequences unnecessarily delay such individuals from resuming their personal and professional activities. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act to direct the Attorney General to report annually on how grants awarded under such Act are used for family-based substance abuse treatment programs that serve as alternatives to incarceration for custodial parents to receive treatment and services as a family. Expresses the sense of Congress that the amounts expended to carry out this Act should be offset by a corresponding reduction in federal non-defense discretionary spending. Directs the Comptroller General to report on the impact that the Medicaid Institutions for Mental Disease exclusion (defined as the prohibition on federal matching payments under Medicaid for patients who have attained age 22, but have not attained age 65, in an institution for mental diseases) has on access to treatment for individuals with a substance use disorder.
Bill· HRH.R. 939 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Pell Grant Funding Act Directs the Secretary of Education to use any excess revenue generated by the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan program during a fiscal year to carry out the Federal Pell Grant program in the next fiscal year.
Bill· HRH.R. 927 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Keeping All Students Safe Act Directs the Department of Education (ED) to establish minimum standards that: prohibit elementary and secondary school personnel from managing any student by using any mechanical or chemical restraint, physical restraint or escort that restricts breathing, or aversive behavioral intervention that compromises student health and safety; prohibit such personnel from using physical restraint or seclusion, unless such measures are required to eliminate an imminent danger of physical injury to the student or others and certain precautions are taken; require states and local educational agencies (LEAs) to ensure that a sufficient number of school personnel receive state-approved crisis intervention training and certification in first aid and certain safe and effective student management techniques; prohibit physical restraint or seclusion from being written into a student's education plan, individual safety plan, behavioral plan, or individual education program as a planned intervention; and require schools to establish procedures to notify parents in a timely manner if physical restraint or seclusion is imposed on their child. Authorizes ED to award grants to states and, through them, competitive subgrants to LEAs to: (1) establish, implement, and enforce policies and procedures to meet such standards; (2) improve their capacity to collect and analyze data related to physical restraint and seclusion; and (3) implement school-wide positive behavior supports. Requires LEAs to allow private school personnel to participate, on an equitable basis, in activities supported by such grants and subgrants. Directs ED to conduct a national assessment of this Act's effectiveness. Gives Protection and Advocacy Systems the authorities and rights provided under the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 to investigate, monitor, and enforce this Act's protections for students. Directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish standards for Head Start agencies that are consistent with the minimum standards for the management of elementary and secondary school students. Authorizes ED to allocate funds to HHS to assist Head Start agencies in establishing, implementing, and enforcing policies and procedures to meet such standards.
Bill· HRH.R. 937 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Fast Track to College Act of 2015 Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award matching six-year grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) that partner with institutions of higher education (IHEs) to establish or support dual enrollment programs, such as early college high schools, that allow secondary school students to earn credit simultaneously toward a secondary school diploma and a postsecondary degree or certificate. Gives grant priority to applicants: (1) that propose to establish or support a dual enrollment program for a student body at least 40% of which is impoverished; and (2) from states that provide assistance to dual enrollment programs, such as assistance defraying the costs of higher education. Requires applicants to make assurances that: (1) students will not be required to pay tuition or fees for postsecondary courses, and (2) those courses will be taught by faculty that meet their partner IHE's normal standards. Authorizes the Secretary to award matching five-year grants to states to: (1) plan and implement statewide strategies to make dual enrollment programs more accessible to students who are underrepresented in postsecondary education; (2) provide technical assistance to dual enrollment programs; and (3) engage in outreach, assessment, and teacher training activities designed to strengthen such programs. Directs the Secretary to: (1) contract for an independent evaluation of this Act's programs, and (2) provide technical assistance to LEAs and their partners and disseminate information concerning best practices in dual enrollment programs.
Bill· HRH.R. 933 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Head Start on Vaccinations Act Amends the Head Start Act to prohibit the enrollment of a child in a Head Start or Early Head Start program unless the child's parent or guardian: (1) provides the program with information establishing that the child is vaccinated in accordance with the pediatric vaccine list; or (2) submits a signed agreement to provide such information and consents to the provision, by a program employee or other health care provider, of any vaccines on the pediatric vaccine list that the child has not yet received. Requires that information to be provided on an annual basis in order for a child to maintain enrollment in such program. Requires any child who is not in compliance with such requirements to be removed from such program, but provides for the exemption of children for whom the administration of such vaccines is medically contraindicated. Authorizes the director of a Head Start or Early Head Start agency to use program funds to: (1) administer the required vaccines to children, at the request of the parent or guardian; or (2) assist the parent or guardian in gaining access to the required vaccines.
Bill· HRH.R. 938 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act Reauthorization of 2015 Amends the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize and revise a research, training, and technical assistance resource center to prevent suicides (the Suicide Prevention Resource Center). Expands the program's focus from youth suicides to suicides among all ages, particularly among groups that are at high risk for suicide. Repeals authority for grants to establish research, training, and technical assistance centers related to mental health, substance abuse and the justice system. Reauthorizes a program of grants for the development of state or tribal youth suicide early intervention and prevention strategies. Reauthorizes and revises a grant program to enhance services for students with mental health or substance use disorders at institutions of higher education. Requires the Center for Mental Health Services to award grants to enhance such services and to develop best practices for the delivery of such services. Permits grant funds to be used for the provision of such services to students and to employ appropriately trained staff. Requires special consideration be given to applications for grants that describe programs that demonstrate the greatest need for new or additional mental and substance use disorder services and the greatest potential for replication.
Bill· SS. 514 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Promise Neighborhoods Authorization Act of 2015 Amends title IV (21st Century Schools) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to establish a new part D, entitled "the Promise Neighborhoods Act of 2015." Directs the Secretary, under subpart 1 (Promise Neighborhood Partnership Grants), to award renewable, competitive, matching grants to institutions of higher education (IHEs), Indian tribes or tribal organizations, or nonprofit organizations to implement a comprehensive continuum of coordinated services and supports that engage community partners in improving the academic achievement, health and social development, and college and career readiness of children who live in distressed neighborhoods with persistently low-achieving schools or schools with an achievement gap. Directs the Secretary, under subpart 2 (Promise School Grants), to award renewable, competitive, matching grants to high-need local educational agencies (LEAs) that partner with nonprofit organizations or IHEs, and to Indian schools that partner with nonprofit organizations or IHEs, to implement school-centered strategies and integrated student supports that leverage community partnerships to improve student achievement and development in schools with high concentrations of low-income children. Gives priority to applicants that propose to: (1) include significant investments in high-quality early learning programs, and (2) give schools the operational flexibility to carry out grant activities. Requires part D grantees to evaluate their programs continuously and improve them based on data and outcomes. Directs the Secretary to use certain performance metrics to determine the eligibility of part D grantees for continued funding and renewal of their grant. Directs the Secretary to evaluate this part's grant programs and disseminate research on best practices for improving the academic and developmental outcomes of children living in our most distressed communities.
Bill· SS. 517 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Secure Rural Schools and Payment in Lieu of Taxes Repair Act This bill extends the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Program through FY2016 at FY2011 funding levels. This Program provides payments to state jurisdictions to compensate for the cost of providing services in tax-exempt federal lands within such jurisdictions. The bill also eliminates the fiscal year limitation on funding for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes Program. This program compensates local governments for tax revenue lost due to tax-exempt federal lands within their boundaries.
Bill· SS. 486 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Head Start on Vaccinations Act Amends the Head Start Act to prohibit the enrollment of a child in a Head Start or Early Head Start program unless the child's parent or guardian: (1) provides the program with information establishing that the child is vaccinated in accordance with the pediatric vaccine list; or (2) submits a signed agreement to provide such information and consents to the provision, by a program employee or other health care provider, of any vaccines on the pediatric vaccine list that the child has not yet received. Requires that information to be provided on an annual basis in order for a child to maintain enrollment in such program. Requires any child who is not in compliance with such requirements to be removed from such program, but provides for the exemption of children for whom the administration of such vaccines is medically contraindicated. Authorizes the director of a Head Start or Early Head Start agency to use program funds to: (1) administer the required vaccines to children, at the request of the parent or guardian; or (2) assist the parent or guardian in gaining access to the required vaccines.
Bill· SS. 478 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Career Ready Act of 2015 Amends the school improvement program under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow states to include certain career readiness indicators in their determination as to whether students are making adequate yearly progress toward state academic performance standards. Allows states to include on their annual report cards on student progress toward those standards: the number and percentage of their public secondary school students who attain state and local adjusted levels of career and technical education performance, as defined by the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006; the number and percentage of their public secondary school students that attain a recognized postsecondary credential, as defined by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act; and high school graduation, enrollment, remediation, persistence, and completion rates. Requires local educational agencies awarded a grant for elementary and secondary school counseling programs under part D of title V of the ESEA to use the funds for additional activities that include: developing and implementing comprehensive school counseling programs that are aligned with their grant applications; identifying regional workforce trends, in collaboration with entities experienced in identifying such trends, and enabling school counselor programs at the secondary school level to access that data; training counselors to effectively provide labor market information to secondary school students; developing and implementing integrated, job-embedded, and ongoing professional development programs for educators who prepare students for postsecondary opportunities and careers; and developing personalized learning plans for each student that map a defined program of study based on the student's academic and career goals.
Bill· SS. 474 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Protecting Students from Sexual and Violent Predators Act Requires states that receive funds under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to: require criminal background checks for each school employee that include searches of the criminal registry or repository of the state in which the employee resides, the child abuse and neglect registries and databases of that state, the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the National Sex Offender Registry; prohibit the employment of an individual who refuses to consent to, or who makes a false statement in connection with, a background check or who has been convicted of one of specified felonies or of a violent or sexual crime against a minor; require background checks to be periodically repeated or updated in accordance with state law or the policies of the state's local educational agencies (LEAs); provide school employees who have had a background check with a copy of the background check if they request one and a timely process to appeal the results of the background check if it blocks their service as a school employee; ensure that such policies and procedures are published on state and LEA websites; and allow an LEA to share the results of a recent background check on a school employee with another LEA that is considering that individual for employment. Prohibits states and LEAs from knowingly transferring or facilitating the transfer of any school employee if they know, or have substantive reason to believe, that such employee engaged in sexual misconduct with an elementary or secondary school student. Allows: (1) the Attorney General and state law enforcement officials to charge reasonable fees for conducting the background checks, and (2) states and LEAs to use ESEA administrative funds to pay such fees.
Bill· SS. 470 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Safeguarding Classrooms Hurt by ObamaCare's Obligatory Levies Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude any elementary or secondary school, state or local educational agency, and institution of higher education from the definition of "applicable large employer" for purposes of the employer mandate to provide health care coverage for employees. Directs the Secretary of Education to study and report on the impact of the employer health insurance mandate on educational agencies and institutions before and after the enactment of this Act.
Bill· SS. 528 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Empowering Parents and Students Through Information Act Amends the school improvement program under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require each state that elects to use alternate academic achievement standards for students that have the most significant cognitive disabilities to: establish and monitor the implementation of clear and appropriate guidelines for individualized education program (IEP) teams to apply in determining, on an annual and subject-by-subject basis, when a child's significant cognitive disability justifies assessment using alternate standards; ensure that the parents of students the state plans to assess using alternate assessments are involved in, and provide informed consent to, the decision to apply such alternate standards; provide evidence that students with the most significant cognitive disabilities are making progress in the general curriculum for the grade in which the students are enrolled and in assessments aligned with that curriculum; develop and promote the use of reasonable accommodations to increase the number of such students participating in grade-level academic instruction and assessments aligned with grade-level academic standards; promote the use of such accommodations to increase the number of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who are tested against grade-level academic achievement standards; ensure that general and special education teachers and other appropriate staff know how to administer assessments for disabled students; require separate annual determinations about whether a student should be assessed using an alternate assessment based on alternate academic achievement standards for each subject assessed; and ensure that students who take such alternate assessments are not precluded from attempting to complete the state requirements for a regular secondary school diploma. Prohibits states from using any student's IEP in the state accountability system. Requires states' annual report cards to: (1) include the number and percentage of disabled students who take the alternate assessments; and (2) break that information down by grade and subject matter and by the disability categories described in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Bill· SS. 473 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Saving Our Next Generation Act or the SONG Act Expresses the sense of the Senate that the federal programs most critical to improving child well-being should be fully funded. Establishes the President's Commission on Children. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to contract with the Institute of Medicine to study evidence-based best practices and innovations for fostering safe and stable families, including implementing mentoring programs. Requires the Secretary to award grants to eligible entities to implement best practices and innovations identified in the study. Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the federal minimum wage for employees to: (1) $8.20 an hour six months after enactment of this Act; (2) $9.15 an hour one year later; (3) $10.10 an hour two years later; and (4) amounts determined three years later and annually thereafter based on increases in the Consumer Price Index. Increases the federal minimum wage for tipped employees to $3.00 an hour for one year six months after enactment of this Act, with a formula for subsequent annual adjustments to ensure that it remains equal to 70% of the wage in effect under FLSA for other employees. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the reduction in the income eligibility threshold (from $10,000 to $3,000) for determining the refundable portion of the child tax credit, (2) eliminate the inflation adjustment to such amount, but (3) require an annual inflation adjustment to the allowable amount of such credit (i.e., $1,000) after 2014. Modifies the earned income tax credit to: (1) make permanent the increase in the rate of such credit for taxpayers with three or more children; (2) increase the earned income amount, phaseout amounts, and the credit for taxpayers with no qualifying children; (3) reduce from 25 to 21 the qualifying age for such credit for individuals without a qualifying child; (4) revise eligibility rules for married individuals living apart and qualifying children claimed by another family member; and (5) repeal the denial of such credit for taxpayers with excess investment income. Reauthorizes the Assets for Independence Act through FY2020, and prescribes requirements under it for newborn development account demonstration projects. Amends the Community Services Block Grant Act to reauthorize the Community Services Block Grant Program through FY2014. Directs HHS to award: (1) community service block grants to states to establish Governors Working Groups on Children; and (2) national technical assistance grants to certain institutions of higher education, national nonprofit organizations, or foundations to provide technical assistance to states and Indian tribes to identify best practices for improving the health status of children and improve efforts at capacity building. Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSAct), SSAct title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI), the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (for the supplemental nutrition assistance program), and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981 to exclude interest in, and distribution from, a qualified tuition program or a child savings account from income resources for eligibility purposes under their respective programs. Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) to provide eligible employees leave to care for a domestic partner or his or her child, parent-in-law, adult child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law (as well as for a spouse, child, or parent), if such person has a serious health condition. Includes within the FMLA purview a same-sex spouse. Amends federal civil service law to apply the same leave allowance to federal employees. Allows an eligible employee during any 12-month period to take up to 24 hours of parental involvement leave to: participate in an academic activity of his or her child's school, such as a parent-teacher conference or an interview for a school; participate in an extracurricular activity at, or sponsored by, the child's school; or transport or accompany his or her spouse, son or daughter, or parent to a medical or dental appointment. Allows an employee to elect, or an employer to require, substitution of any of the employee's paid or family leave for such parental involvement leave. Extends an eligible employee's entitlement to family leave to situations where: it is necessary to care for a son, daughter, or parent, if the individual is addressing domestic violence and its effects; or the employee is unable to perform the functions of his or her position because the employee is addressing these issues. Entitles eligible employees to bereavement leave because of the death of a son, daughter, parent, or sibling. Allows the employee to substitute any available paid leave for bereavement leave. Applies the same leave allowances for parental involvement and bereavement to federal employees. Amends SSAct title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services and Elder Justice) and SSAct title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) with respect to demonstration projects addressing health professions workforce needs and maternal, infant, and early childhood home visiting programs. Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to direct HHS to implement a program to enable dental hygienists and nurses to be National Health Service Corps members if they serve in a health professional shortage area that is a school. Directs HHS to award grants to eligible entities to enable such entities to provide behavioral health screening and behavioral health services, including to students. Requires each state plan approved under SSAct title XIX (Medicaid) to make a direct certification for medical assistance and school meals of supplemental nutrition-eligible children and Head Start and early Head Start-eligible children. Directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress on the feasibility of creating a public health insurance pathway for children who do not receive health insurance coverage through an employer plan maintained by a family member. Assures Medicaid coverage continuity for former foster care children up to age 26. Authorizes comprehensive mental health assessments under the state Medicaid plan of juveniles without regard to whether they are inmates of a public institution. Directs GAO to identify evidence-based intervention strategies that divert juveniles from incarceration to community behavioral health assessment and treatment. Directs the Attorney General to establish a coordinated grant program to enable states, territories, and tribes to implement such diversion programs. Reauthorizes mental health courts and drug courts through FY2019 under the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968. Directs HHS to issue regulations to ensure continuity of care for children undergoing an active course of treatment who involuntarily change coverage under health insurance, the state plan under Medicaid, or the state child health plan under SSAct title XXI (CHIP) during such course of treatment for any reason. Amends SSAct title XIX to allow, at state option, the Medicaid plan to continue for up to 12 months the benefit eligibility of a child or a non-elderly adult. Requires that managed care organizations provide language services to enrollees. Covers specified preventive health services under Medicaid and CHIP, subject to certain cost-sharing prohibitions. Reauthorizes maternal, infant, and early childhood home visiting programs through FY2019. Reauthorizes the Pediatric Accountable Care Organization Demonstration Project through calendar 2019. Includes therapeutic foster care as medical assistance under Medicaid. Directs HHS to establish a child welfare innovation grant program. Amends part B (Child and Family Services) of SSAct title IV to prohibit federal payment or reimbursement to a state under such part unless it is for state expenditures for evidence-based child welfare programs or their services. Amends SSAct title XI to declare that there shall be no limit on the number of demonstration projects authorized by the Secretary of HHS for any fiscal year after FY2014. Directs HHS to recommend to Congress legislative or administrative action necessary to eliminate the requirement that a child be deemed to be a recipient of TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) under SSAct title IV (as in effect as of July 16, 1996) for purposes of foster care maintenance payments under SSAct title IV part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance). Establishes the Presidential Task Force on K-12 Education to advise the President regarding methods to improve graduation rates. Directs the Secretary of Education (Secretary, for the rest of this bill) to award competitive grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) or nonprofit childhood education program providers to improve parental support for preschool home learning. Directs the Secretary to award competitive grants to states to plan, develop, and provide free, voluntary, high-quality prekindergarten programs to children whose family income does not exceed a specified amount. Requires those programs to be offered to other children for a fee that is based on their family income. Requires the Secretary to allot matching grants to states and, through them, subgrants to LEAs to offer free or reduced-price high-quality prekindergarten programs to low-income children. Amends the Head Start Act to direct HHS to develop and implement a plan to provide Head Start and Early Head Start services to children from states or communities that provide sustained access to high-quality prekindergarten programs to children whose family income does not exceed 200% of the poverty line. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to reauthorize appropriations for the William F. Goodling Even Start Family Literacy programs through FY2021. Directs the Secretary to award competitive grants to enable states to expand the school calendar for their public elementary and secondary schools. Authorizes the Secretary to make formula grants to states and, through them, competitive subgrants to LEAs to establish or enhance educational programs and related services that enable pregnant and parenting students to enroll in, attend, and succeed in school. Requires subgrantees to: provide academic support services to pregnant and parenting students; assist such students in accessing quality, affordable child care, and early childhood education services; provide transportation services or assistance to such students and their children; educate students, parents, and community members regarding the educational rights of such students; train school personnel regarding the challenges facing pregnant and parenting students and their educational rights; revise school policies and practices that hinder or discourage such students from continuing their education; provide student parents with training and support in parenting, healthy relationship skills, unplanned pregnancy prevention strategies, and other life skills; and provide educational and career mentoring services and peer groups to pregnant and parenting students. Amends the school improvement program under part A of title I of the ESEA to require states to include in their annual state report cards data regarding their pregnant and parenting students. Adds physical education and health education as "core academic subjects" under the ESEA. Allows funding under the Carol M. White Physical Education Program for instruction in healthy eating habits and good nutrition to be used to train healthy food chefs who serve as innovative cooks, as chef trainers, and as a nutrition resource for public elementary and secondary schools and their communities. Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to direct the Department of Agriculture to establish a program that awards competitive grants to school food authorities and child care providers to provide family meals during non-school hours to households that have at least one child who is: (1) enrolled with the grantee, and (2) eligible to receive free or reduced price meals under the school lunch or breakfast program. Amends part A (Teacher and Principal Training and Recruiting Fund) of title II of the ESEA to allow LEAs to use their part A subgrants to train teachers in the topics of nutrition, fitness, and wellness. Directs the Secretary to provide technical assistance and award competitive grants to LEAs to replicate the best practices in enabling elementary and secondary school students to achieve grade-level work, graduate from secondary school on a timely basis, and obtain employment. Requires the Secretary to conduct a study of extended learning time models. Amends the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 to include among the uses of funds to support career and technical education programs: (1) school adoption, mentoring, or entrepreneurship programs for students; and (2) mentoring programs that connect school leaders with local business representatives. Reauthorizes appropriations through FY2020 for the programs under the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of Labor to establish jointly an interagency committee to coordinate programs, activities, and services under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act with those carried out under the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006. Requires the Secretary to award competitive grants to states and local educational agencies to support parents of children in prekindergarten programs or elementary schools by: (1) building parents' capacity to evaluate and select appropriate childcare, (2) building parents' capacity to serve as partners with school teachers and administrators, and (3) providing parents with access to the job skills and training needed for successful employment. Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to direct the Secretary to establish a program to refinance: (1) the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loans (DLs) of qualified borrowers if the DLs were first disbursed or, in the case of Direct Consolidation Loans, applied for before July 1, 2013; and (2) the Federal Family Education Loans (FFELs) of qualified borrowers as DLs. Refinances the FFELs as Federal Direct Stafford, Unsubsidized Stafford, PLUS, or Consolidated Loans depending on the categorization of the FFEL. Sets the interest rate on the refinanced loans, other than the Federal Direct Consolidation Loans, at the rate for the 12 months beginning on July 1, 2013, based on: (1) the DL's categorization; and (2) in the case of Stafford Loans, whether the loan was issued to an undergraduate or graduate student. Establishes a formula for determining the interest rate on refinanced Consolidation Loans. Fixes the interest rate on the refinanced loans for the period of such loans. Directs the Secretary to establish eligibility requirements that are based on a borrower's income or debt-to-income ratio and that take into consideration providing access to refinancing for borrowers who have the greatest financial need. Requires the Secretary to establish a program to refinance as Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans private education loans that were first disbursed to qualified borrowers before July 1, 2013, for postsecondary educational expenses. Sets the interest rate on Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans at the rate applicable for the 12 months beginning on July 1, 2013, to: (1) Direct Stafford and Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued to undergraduates if the private education loan was issued for undergraduate expenses, (2) Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued to graduate or professional students if the private education loan was issued for graduate or professional studies, or (3) Direct PLUS Loans if the private education loan was issued for undergraduate and graduate or professional studies. Fixes the interest rate for the period of such loans. Directs the Secretary to establish eligibility requirements that: (1) are based on a borrower's income or debt-to-income ratio and take into consideration providing access to refinancing for borrowers who have the greatest financial need, (2) ensure eligibility only for borrowers in good standing, (3) minimize inequities between Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans and other federal student loans, and (4) preclude windfall profits for private educational lenders. Requires qualified borrowers of such loans to undergo loan counseling before their private education loan is refinanced. Requires private educational lenders to report specified loan information to the Secretary, Congress, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in order to allow for an assessment of the private education loan market. Directs the Secretary to undertake a campaign to alert borrowers that they may be eligible for refinancing. Requires the Secretary to increase publicity about the DL repayment plan for public service employees that allows for the cancellation of the remaining principal and interest due on such loans if 120 monthly payments are made on such loans after October 1, 2007. Revises federal bankruptcy law to make the hardship exception to the exemption of educational debts from discharge in bankruptcy applicable to: (1) private education loans; (2) an educational benefit overpayment or loan made, insured, or guaranteed by a governmental unit or made under any program funded in whole or in part by a governmental unit; and (3) an obligation to repay funds received from a governmental unit as an educational benefit, scholarship, or stipend. Amends the Truth in Lending Act to require a private educational lender to include in a private education loan for which the cosigner is jointly liable a process for releasing the cosigner from obligations on such loan. States that neither the estate of the borrower nor any cosigner of such private education loan shall be obligated to repay the outstanding principle and interest on the loan in the event of the borrower's death, disability, or inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity. Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to prohibit: (1) consumer reporting agencies from making any consumer report containing information on a default on a private education loan resulting from accelerated repayment terms of the loan after the death, disability, inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity, or bankruptcy of a jointly liable cosigner, and (2) the lender or servicer of a private education loan from furnishing loan information to a consumer reporting agency if the consumer defaulted on the loan due to accelerated repayment terms after the death, disability, inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity, or bankruptcy of such a cosigner. Amends title IV of the HEA to require IHEs to ensure that a student completes an assessment demonstrating the student's understanding of the terms and conditions of a DL before certifying the loan for disbursement to the student. Directs the Secretary to award competitive grants to nonprofit or educational entities to develop and pilot measures of accountability for value and cost-effectiveness in higher education.
Bill· SS. 516 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Every Child Counts Act Amends the school improvement program under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow states to establish alternate academic achievement standards and assessments for students who have the most significant cognitive disabilities. Requires the alternate standards to meet certain conditions, including that they: are aligned with the state's challenging academic content and achievement standards; provide access to the general curriculum for the grade in which the student is enrolled; and establish, at a minimum, two levels of achievement (on-target and advanced) that indicate that a student meets or exceeds the state's proficient level of academic achievement; and establish, at a minimum, a third level of achievement (catch-up) that provides information about a student's progress toward proficiency. Requires each state using alternate assessments to ensure that: (1) not more than 1% of the total number of all students in each grade level in the state who are assessed in a subject are assessed using the alternate assessments, (2) the state's regular academic assessments remain accessible to all students, and (3) the alternate assessments are peer reviewed and based on the best available evidence. Allows each state to count students who are determined to be proficient using such alternate assessments in its determination of the percentage of the state's students who are meeting or exceeding the state's academic content and achievement standards. Requires states' annual report cards to: (1) include the number and percentage of disabled students who take the alternate assessments; and (2) break that information down by grade, subject matter, and disability type.
Bill· SS. 492 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
No Child Left Inside Act of 2015 Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to direct the Secretary of Education to award grants to states and, through them, competitive subgrants to eligible partnerships to support the implementation of state environmental literacy plans that include environmental education standards and teacher training. Includes in the eligible partnerships a local educational agency (LEA) and at least one institution of higher education, another LEA, an elementary or secondary school, or a government or nonprofit entity experienced in environmental literacy. Requires use of the subgrants for one or more of the following activities: providing targeted, job-embedded professional development that improves teachers' environmental content knowledge and pedagogical skills; establishing and operating environmental education summer workshops or institutes for teachers; developing or redesigning more rigorous environmental education curricula; designing programs that prepare teachers to provide environmental education mentoring and training to other teachers in their school; establishing and operating programs to bring teachers and students into contact with working professionals in environmental fields; creating initiatives that incorporate environmental education within teacher training programs or accreditation standards; and promoting the integration of outdoor environmental education lessons into the regular school curriculum and schedule. Authorizes the Secretary to award competitive matching grants to eligible partnerships for one or more of the following activities: developing and implementing state curriculum frameworks for environmental education that meet challenging state academic content and achievement standards for environmental education, replicating or disseminating information about proven and tested model environmental education programs, and developing and implementing new approaches to advancing environmental education and the adoption and use of environmental education content standards. Amends part B (Mathematics and Science Partnerships) of title II of the ESEA to: (1) include nonprofit environmental education organizations and government science, environmental, or natural resource management agencies among the entities eligible to participate in part B partnerships; and (2) allow the use of part B funds to train teachers to use environmental education to enhance student understanding of science and mathematics. Amends part B (21st Century Community Learning Centers) of title IV of the ESEA to include environmental literacy activities among the before and after school activities that such program funds at community learning centers. Directs the Secretary to: request all federal agencies to provide information on any environmental literacy assistance program that they operate, sponsor, or support; make that information searchable and accessible through the Department of Education's website and cross-referenced with the United States Green Ribbon School application information; coordinate environmental literacy activities between the Department of Education, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of the Interior, and the Department of Commerce; and appoint an advisory panel of stakeholders to advise and support interagency environmental literacy planning and assessment activities.
Bill· SS. 476 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
School Principal Recruitment and Training Act Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to establish a principal recruitment and training grant program awarding renewable, matching grants to states, local educational agencies (LEAs), educational service agencies, nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and partnerships of those entities to recruit, prepare, place, and support principals in eligible schools. Defines "eligible schools" as high-need schools, persistently low-achieving schools, achievement gap schools, schools with middle grades that feed students to high schools with low graduation rates, and rural schools served by high-need LEAs. Requires grantees to work with experts and stakeholders to develop, during the first year of a grant, a leadership training program for principals, mentors, and other school leaders that prepares and supports them in leading effective school reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools. Requires grantees to use the grants, after that first year, to: implement their leadership training program; ensure that their training program is informed, on an ongoing basis, by consultations with experts and stakeholders and by tracking the performance of program graduates; select cohorts of trained or experienced principals to lead school reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools; support and encourage interaction among principals who have completed the training program; and disseminate information to principals, mentors, and other school leaders engaging in reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools. Makes grant renewal decisions dependent on the Secretary of Education's evaluation of the extent to which the principals recruited, prepared, placed, or supported by the grantee have improved school-level student outcomes. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish performance metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of the activities funded by the grant program; and (2) identify, and disseminate research on, best practices to improve school leadership.
Bill· HRH.R. 958 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Clyde Kennard Congressional Gold Medal Act Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the posthumous presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal in commemoration of Clyde Kennard in recognition of his sacrifice for education equality. Requires the medal, following its presentation, to be awarded to the Mississippi State Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to be available for display or temporary loan for display elsewhere.
Bill· SS. 454 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
Exascale Computing for Science, Competitiveness, Advanced Manufacturing, Leadership, and the Economy Act of 2015 or the ExaSCALE Computing Leadership Act of 2015 Renames the Department of Energy High-End Computing Revitalization Act of 2004 as the Exascale Computing for Science, Competitiveness, Advanced Manufacturing, Leadership, and the Economy Act of 2015. Defines "exascale computing" as computing through the use of a computing machine that performs near or above 10 to the 18th power floating point operations per second. Directs the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to: conduct a research program to develop exascale computing machine architectures to promote DOE missions; establish national laboratory partnerships with industry partners and institutions of higher education (IHEs) for the research and development of exascale computing systems across all applicable DOE organizations; provide, on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis, access for researchers in U.S. industries, IHEs, National Laboratories, and other federal agencies to the exascale computing systems developed under this Act; select members for such partnerships through a competitive, peer-review process; and execute the program through an integration of application, computer science, and computer hardware architecture using those partnerships to ensure that exascale computing machine architectures are capable of solving DOE target applications and broader scientific problems.
Bill· HRH.R. 874 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
American Super Computing Leadership Act Amends the Department of Energy High-End Computing Revitalization Act of 2004 with respect to: (1) exascale computing (computing system performance at or near 10 to the 18th power floating point operations per second), and (2) a high-end computing system with performance substantially exceeding that of systems commonly available for advanced scientific and engineering applications. Directs the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to: (1) coordinate the development of high-end computing systems across DOE; (2) partner with universities, National Laboratories, and industry to ensure the broadest possible application of the technology developed in the program to other challenges in science, engineering, medicine, and industry; and (3) include among the multiple architectures researched, at DOE discretion, any computer technologies that show promise of substantial reductions in power requirements and substantial gains in parallelism of multicore processors, concurrency, memory and storage, bandwidth, and reliability. Repeals authority for establishment of at least one High-End Software Development Center. Directs the Secretary to conduct a coordinated research program to develop exascale computing systems to advance DOE missions. Requires establishment through competitive merit review of two or more DOE National Laboratory-industry-university partnerships to conduct integrated research, development, and engineering of multiple exascale architectures. Requires the Secretary to conduct mission-related co-design activities in developing such exascale platforms. Defines "co-design" as the joint development of application algorithms, models, and codes with computer technology architectures and operating systems to maximize effective use of high-end computing systems. Directs the Secretary to develop any advancements in hardware and software technology required to realize fully the potential of an exascale production system in addressing DOE target applications and solving scientific problems involving predictive modeling and simulation and large-scale data analytics and management. Requires DOE also to explore the use of exascale computing technologies to advance a broad range of science and engineering. Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress an integrated strategy and program management plan. Requires the Secretary, before initiating construction or installation of an exascale-class computing facility, to transmit to Congress a separate plan detailing: (1) the proposed facility's cost projections and capabilities to significantly accelerate the development of new energy technologies; (2) technical risks and challenges that must be overcome to achieve successful completion and operation of the facility; and (3) an independent assessment of the scientific and technological advances expected from such a facility relative to those expected from a comparable investment in expanded research and applications at terascale-class and petascale-class computing facilities, including an evaluation of where investments should be made in the system software and algorithms to enable these advances.
Bill· HRH.R. 882 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
No Child Left Inside Act of 2015 Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to direct the Secretary of Education to award grants to states and, through them, competitive subgrants to eligible partnerships to support the implementation of state environmental literacy plans that include environmental education standards and teacher training. Includes in the eligible partnerships a local educational agency (LEA) and at least one institution of higher education, another LEA, an elementary or secondary school, or a government or nonprofit entity experienced in environmental literacy. Requires use of the subgrants for one or more of the following activities: providing targeted, job-embedded professional development that improves teachers' environmental content knowledge and pedagogical skills; establishing and operating environmental education summer workshops or institutes for teachers; developing or redesigning more rigorous environmental education curricula; designing programs that prepare teachers to provide environmental education mentoring and training to other teachers in their school; establishing and operating programs to bring teachers and students into contact with working professionals in environmental fields; creating initiatives that incorporate environmental education within teacher training programs or accreditation standards; and promoting the integration of outdoor environmental education lessons into the regular school curriculum and schedule. Authorizes the Secretary to award competitive matching grants to eligible partnerships for one or more of the following activities: developing and implementing state curriculum frameworks for environmental education that meet challenging state academic content and achievement standards for environmental education, replicating or disseminating information about proven and tested model environmental education programs, and developing and implementing new approaches to advancing environmental education and the adoption and use of environmental education content standards. Amends part B (Mathematics and Science Partnerships) of title II of the ESEA to: (1) include nonprofit environmental education organizations and government science, environmental, or natural resource management agencies among the entities eligible to participate in part B partnerships; and (2) allow the use of part B funds to train teachers to use environmental education to enhance student understanding of science and mathematics. Amends part B (21st Century Community Learning Centers) of title IV of the ESEA to include environmental literacy activities among the before and after school activities that such program funds at community learning centers. Directs the Secretary to: request all federal agencies to provide information on any environmental literacy assistance program that they operate, sponsor, or support; make that information searchable and accessible through the Department of Education's website and cross-referenced with the United States Green Ribbon School application information; coordinate environmental literacy activities between the Department of Education, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of the Interior, and the Department of Commerce; and appoint an advisory panel of stakeholders to advise and support interagency environmental literacy planning and assessment activities.
Bill· HRH.R. 881 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
Bringing Awareness and Knowledge to Exempt Schools Against Legislative Encroachment Act Prohibits the Secretary of Agriculture from applying the rule entitled "National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program: Nutrition Standards for All Foods Sold in School as Required by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010" to food sold as a fundraiser that takes place on the grounds of a school, including by limiting the number of such fundraisers by state agencies or the Secretary. (The rule requires the Secretary to set nutrition standards for all foods sold in schools that are not foods sold under the school lunch and breakfast programs.)
Bill· HRH.R. 895 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
Native Hawaiian Education Reauthorization Act of 2015 Amends the Native Hawaiian Education Act to revise the duties and composition of the Native Hawaiian Education Council. (The Native Hawaiian Education Council coordinates the educational and related services and programs available to Native Hawaiians.) Requires the Council to be composed of 15 members who: (1) are from certain educational, governmental, Trust, and grant-making entities; and (2) demonstrate at least five years of experience as consumers or providers of Native Hawaiian education or cultural activities. Directs the Council, in addition to its existing duties, to: (1) serve as a clearinghouse for the educational and related services and programs available to Native Hawaiians, and (2) provide technical assistance to Native Hawaiian organizations that apply for or receive Native Hawaiian Education program grants. Requires the Council to hold at least one community consultation each year on each of the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Oahu, and Kauai regarding Native Hawaiian education program grants and other education issues. Eliminates the requirement that the council meet at least four times each year with an island council composed of parents, students, and other Native Hawaiian education stakeholders. Includes charter schools as eligible recipients of Native Hawaiian Education program grants, in addition to Native Hawaiian education organizations, Native Hawaiian community-based organizations, and public and private nonprofit entities. Gives grant priority to programs that: (1) meet the educational priorities established by the Council; (2) repair and renovate public schools that serve high concentrations of Native Hawaiian students; (3) meet the unique cultural and language needs of Native Hawaiian students in order to help them meet challenging state academic achievement standards; and (4) involve states, local educational agencies, or institutions of higher education in partnerships or consortia. Requires the Secretary of Education to use funds made available for Native Hawaiian Education program grants before this Act's enactment to support: (1) the development of a body of Native Hawaiian law; (2) the repair and renovation of public schools that serve high concentrations of Native Hawaiian students; (3) access to Hawaiian culture and history through digital archives; (4) informal education programs that connect traditional Hawaiian knowledge, science, astronomy, and the environment through state museums or learning centers; and (5) public charter schools serving high concentrations of Native Hawaiian students. Authorizes appropriations for such grants through FY2021.
Bill· HRH.R. 860 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
FAFSA Fairness Act of 2015 Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require the Secretary of Education to disclose, on the form notifying students of their expected family contribution, the special circumstances under which students may qualify as independent for purposes of the determination regarding their need and eligibility for title IV assistance. Allows students who may qualify as independent on the basis of those special circumstances to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid as independent students for purposes of the initial determination of their title IV assistance by a financial aid administrator at an institution of higher education to which they are applying. Requires the financial aid administrators to: (1) provide those students with an initial determination regarding their title IV assistance in the same manner as, and by no later than the date that, they provide other independent students with that determination; and (2) use, in making a final determination regarding that assistance, the discretion provided to them under title IV to verify whether such students meet the special circumstances to qualify as independent students.
Bill· HJRESH.J.Res. 31 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment specifying individual citizens or public election financing or voter education systems as the only sources of funding to directly or indirectly support or oppose campaigns for election to public office or state ballot measures. The amendment requires Congress, the states, and local jurisdictions to establish limits on the amount of contributions individuals may make with respect to a single campaign for election to public office. States and local jurisdictions shall establish limits on the amount of contributions individuals may make with respect to a ballot measure. The total of combined contributions to the principal campaign committee of a candidate from citizens who are not eligible to vote for the candidate is limited to the total of combined contributions from citizens who are eligible to vote for the candidate.
Bill· HRH.R. 878 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
United States Customs and Border Protection Authorization Act Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish formally, in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) (formerly the U.S. Customs Service), headed by the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Establishes in the CBP: a Deputy Commissioner; the U.S. Border Patrol; an Office of Air and Marine Operations; an Office of Field Operations, including a National Targeting Center; an Office of Intelligence and Investigative Liaison; an Office of International Affairs; and an Office of Internal Affairs. Requires the CBP Commissioner to establish, and update triennially, certain standard operating procedures for CBP personnel. Directs the CBP Commissioner to require all CBP agents and officers to participate in a specified amount of continuing education to maintain an understanding of federal legal rulings, court decisions, and departmental policies, procedures, and guidelines. Requires the CBP Commissioner to ensure that: adequate access to food and water is provided as soon as possible to individuals apprehended and detained between a U.S. port of entry, and detainee rights are provided at CBP processing centers. Directs the CBP Commissioner to publish wait times at the 20 U.S. airports with the highest volume of international travel and make this information available to the public on the CBP website. Declares that the Transportation Security Administration shall be maintained as a distinct entity within DHS. Removes the Office for Domestic Preparedness from within the Directorate of Border and Transportation Security and establishes it simply within DHS. Transfers all functions of the Under Secretary for Border and Transportation Security to the DHS Secretary. Authorizes the DHS Secretary (currently, the Under Secretary) to impose disciplinary action on any employee of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and CBP who willfully deceives Congress or agency leadership on any matter. Directs the CBP Commissioner to report to Congress on: the CBP Business Transformation Initiative, and supervisor-approved personal searches conducted in the previous year by CBP personnel. Requires the CBP Commissioner to assess CBP's physical infrastructure and technology needs at the 20 busiest land ports of entry. Prohibits the DHS Secretary from entering into or renewing an agreement with a foreign country government for a CBP administered trusted traveler program unless that government certifies that it: routinely submits information about lost and stolen passports of its citizens and nationals to INTERPOL's Stolen and Lost Travel Document database, or makes such information available to the United States through another comparable means of reporting. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Foreign Language Award Program (FLAP) incentivizes CBP officers and agents to attain and maintain competency in a foreign language. Declares that no additional appropriations are authorized to carry out this Act. Requires this Act to be carried out using amounts otherwise available.
Bill· SS. 446 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
Right Start Child Care and Education Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) increase the rates and maximum allowable amount of the tax credit for employer-provided child care facilities; (2) increase the eligibility threshold amount and rate of the household and dependent care tax credit and make such credit refundable; (3) allow a new $2,000 tax credit for child care providers who hold a bachelor's degree in early childhood education, child care, or a related degree and who provide at least 1,200 hours of child care services in a taxable year; and (4) increase the tax exclusion for employer-provided dependent care assistance.
Bill· SS. 464 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
Native Hawaiian Education Reauthorization Act of 2015 Amends the Native Hawaiian Education Act to revise the duties and composition of the Native Hawaiian Education Council. (The Native Hawaiian Education Council coordinates the educational and related services and programs available to Native Hawaiians.) Requires the Council to be composed of 15 members who: (1) are from certain educational, governmental, Trust, and grant-making entities; and (2) demonstrate at least five years of experience as consumers or providers of Native Hawaiian education or cultural activities. Directs the Council, in addition to its existing duties, to: (1) serve as a clearinghouse for the educational and related services and programs available to Native Hawaiians, and (2) provide technical assistance to Native Hawaiian organizations that apply for or receive Native Hawaiian Education program grants. Requires the Council to hold at least one community consultation each year on each of the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Oahu, and Kauai regarding Native Hawaiian education program grants and other education issues. Eliminates the requirement that the council meet at least four times each year with an island council composed of parents, students, and other Native Hawaiian education stakeholders. Includes charter schools as eligible recipients of Native Hawaiian Education program grants, in addition to Native Hawaiian education organizations, Native Hawaiian community-based organizations, and public and private nonprofit entities. Gives grant priority to programs that: (1) meet the educational priorities established by the Council; (2) repair and renovate public schools that serve high concentrations of Native Hawaiian students; (3) meet the unique cultural and language needs of Native Hawaiian students in order to help them meet challenging state academic achievement standards; and (4) involve states, local educational agencies, or institutions of higher education in partnerships or consortia. Requires the Secretary of Education to use funds made available for Native Hawaiian Education program grants before this Act's enactment to support: (1) the development of a body of Native Hawaiian law; (2) the repair and renovation of public schools that serve high concentrations of Native Hawaiian students; (3) access to Hawaiian culture and history through digital archives; (4) informal education programs that connect traditional Hawaiian knowledge, science, astronomy, and the environment through state museums or learning centers; and (5) public charter schools serving high concentrations of Native Hawaiian students. Authorizes appropriations for such grants through FY2021.
Bill· SS. 451 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2015
Enhancing Education Through Technology Act of 2015 Replaces part D (Enhancing Education Through Technology) of title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) with a new part D (Achievement Through Technology and Innovation). Directs the Secretary of Education to award matching grants to states and, through them, subgrants to local educational agencies (LEAs) to strengthen state and local technological infrastructure and professional learning that supports digital learning. Allocates grant funds among states in proportion to each state's share of school improvement funds under part A of title I of the ESEA. Requires states to use at least 90% of their grant to award subgrants to LEAs. Requires LEAs to use: (1) at least 40% of those funds to support the acquisition of technology that addresses their technology infrastructure and access needs; and (2) at least 40% of those funds to provide digital age professional learning opportunities for teachers, principals, school leaders, paraprofessionals, library and media personnel, specialized instructional support personnel, technology coordinators, and administrators. Allows states to form purchasing consortia with other states, and allows LEAs to form purchasing consortia with other LEAs, to carry out grant and subgrant activities, including the purchase of technology.
Bill· HRH.R. 858 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation Act or the LEARN Act Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants to states to develop or improve a comprehensive plan to improve the literacy of children from birth through grade 12. Directs the Secretary to award grants to states to implement their comprehensive literacy plans for such children through: competitive subgrants to local educational agencies (LEAs) or early learning programs for specified activities that support early language and literacy development in children from birth through kindergarten entry; competitive subgrants to LEAs that have the highest numbers or percentages of disadvantaged students and students reading or writing below grade level for specified activities to improve the literacy of students in kindergarten through grade 12, including the provision of family literacy services; and additional state activities that include providing technical assistance to subgrantees, coordinating literacy programs and resources throughout the state, disseminating information on promising literacy programs, and enhancing the credentials of literacy instructors. Allots implementation grants to states on the basis of each state's share of disadvantaged students. Requires the Secretary to: (1) perform a five-year national evaluation of the implementation and effect of the literacy initiatives supported by this Act, and (2) provide technical assistance and information on literacy instruction to educational entities. Authorizes the Secretary to withhold this Act's funding from states and subgrantees, and states to withhold funding from subgrantees, whose initiatives are not making significant progress in improving student literacy.
Bill· SS. 442 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Innovation Inspiration School Grant Program Act Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award competitive matching grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) through an Innovation Inspiration grant program to: (1) promote science, technology, engineering (including robotics), and mathematics (STEM) in secondary schools and after school programs; (2) support the participation of secondary school students in nontraditional STEM teaching methods; and (3) broaden secondary school students' access to STEM careers. Directs the Secretary to give priority to grant applications that target: (1) a rural or urban school, (2) a low-performing school or LEA, or (3) an LEA or school that serves students who are eligible for free or reduced price lunches under the school lunch program. Authorizes the Secretary to waive all or part of the matching requirement for financially-strapped LEAs. Directs the Secretary to evaluate the efficacy of the grant program.
Bill· SS. 439 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Student Non-Discrimination Act of 2015 Prohibits public school students from being excluded from participating in, or subject to discrimination under, any federally-assisted educational program on the basis of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity or that of their associates. Considers harassment to be a form of discrimination. Prohibits retaliation against anyone for opposing conduct made unlawful under this Act. Authorizes federal departments and agencies to enforce these prohibitions by cutting off the educational assistance of recipients found to be violating them. Allows an aggrieved individual to assert a violation of this Act in a judicial proceeding and recover reasonable attorney's fees should they prevail. Authorizes the Attorney General to institute a civil action in any appropriate U.S. district court for a violation of this Act. Deems a state's receipt of federal educational assistance for a program to constitute a waiver of sovereign immunity for conduct prohibited under this Act regarding such program.
Bill· SS. 445 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Simplifying Access to Student Loan Information Act of 2015 Amends the Truth in Lending Act to require private educational lenders to submit to the Secretary of Education information regarding each private education loan they make. Requires that such information: (1) be placed in the National Student Loan Data System (System), and (2) allow for the electronic exchange of data between the borrowers of those loans and the System. (The System currently contains information regarding loans made, insured, or guaranteed under the Federal Family Education Loan program and loans made under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan and Federal Perkins Loan programs.) Requires the private education loan information to include, if determined appropriate by the Secretary: the total amount and type of each loan; the interest rate on each loan; information regarding the borrower that the Secretary deems necessary to ensure the electronic exchange of data between the borrower and the System; contact information regarding the lender and servicer of each loan; information concerning the date of any default on the loan and the collection of the loan, including any information concerning the repayment status of any defaulted loan; and the date the borrower completes repayment. Requires private educational lenders to ensure the privacy of borrowers and update the loan information they submit to the System on the same schedule as information is updated under the System. Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require the Secretary to ensure that: (1) a cosigner of a private education loan for which information is included in the System has access only to that information, and (2) a private educational lender has access to the System only to submit information regarding the lender's loans. Directs the Secretary to establish a functionality within the System that enables student borrowers of loans made, insured, or guaranteed under title IV to input the information necessary to compare the repayment plans available to them under that title.
Bill· SS. 444 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Supporting Afterschool STEM Act Requires the Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish an afterschool STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant program awarding competitive grants to afterschool or STEM networks to: develop quality standards for STEM programming in afterschool programs and provide those programs with technical assistance in implementing such standards, work with state education stakeholders to define and promote appropriate measurable outcomes for afterschool programs that include STEM content, provide technical assistance to afterschool programs to start or grow their afterschool STEM efforts and define appropriate learning outcomes for such efforts, coordinate professional development for afterschool program educators, help afterschool program providers form strategic partnerships to advance STEM learning in afterschool programs, create and disseminate tool kits to afterschool programs wanting to form partnerships and incorporate STEM professionals as mentors and role models, and provide technical assistance to federally funded STEM researchers and professionals who wish to engage with afterschool programs. Requires the Director to reserve 20% of the funds appropriated for such grant program to develop and support new afterschool or STEM networks in states or areas where they do not exist. Defines: (1) an "afterschool program" as a structured program offered for elementary, middle, or secondary school students when school is not in session, such as before or after school, on the weekend, or during the summer; and (2) an "afterschool or STEM network" as a coalition that fosters partnerships and provides support to afterschool program providers and STEM education providers. Includes as goals of the grant program: (1) to support the development and delivery of high-quality STEM education to populations underrepresented in STEM fields, and (2) to provide hands-on learning and exposure to STEM research facilities and businesses through in-person or virtual distance-learning experiences. Requires the Director to provide each recipient of a STEM research grant who is under the Director's authority with information on opportunities to engage with students in out-of-school-time programs, such as through mentorships.
Bill· SS. 436 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Supporting Athletes, Families and Educators to Protect the Lives of Athletic Youth Act or the SAFE PLAY Act Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to develop public education and awareness materials and resources concerning cardiac health, including: information to increase education and awareness of high risk cardiac conditions and genetic heart rhythm abnormalities that may cause sudden cardiac arrest in children, adolescents, and young adults; sudden cardiac arrest and cardiomyopathy risk assessment worksheets to increase awareness of warning signs of, and increase the likelihood of early detection and treatment of, life-threatening cardiac conditions; training materials for emergency interventions and use of life-saving emergency equipment; and recommendations for how schools, childcare centers, and local youth athletic organizations can develop and implement cardiac emergency response plans. Requires the CDC to: (1) provide for dissemination of such information to school personnel, coaches, and families; and (2) develop data collection methods to determine the degree to which such persons have an understanding of cardiac issues. Directs the Department of Health and Human Services to award grants to enable eligible local educational agencies (LEAs) and schools served by such LEAs to purchase AEDs and implement nationally recognized CPR and AED training courses. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require a state, as a condition of receiving funds under such Act, to certify that it requires: (1) LEAs to implement a standard plan for concussion safety and management for public schools; (2) public schools to post information on the symptoms of, the risks posed by, and the actions a student should take in response to, a concussion; (3) public school personnel who suspect a student has sustained a concussion in a school-sponsored activity to notify the parents and prohibit the student from participating in such activity until they receive a written release from a health care professional; and (4) a public school's concussion management team to ensure that a student who has sustained a concussion is receiving appropriate academic supports. Directs the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to develop public education and awareness materials and resources to be disseminated to schools regarding risks from exposure to excessive heat and humidity and recommendations for how to avoid heat-related illness. Requires public schools to develop excessive heat action plans for school-sponsored athletic activities. Requires the CDC to develop guidelines for the development of emergency action plans for youth athletics. Authorizes the Food and Drug Administration to develop information about the ingredients used in energy drinks and their potential side effects, and recommend guidelines for the safe use of such drinks by youth, for dissemination to public schools. Requires the CDC to: (1) expand, intensify, and coordinate its activities regarding cardiac conditions, concussions, and heat-related illnesses among youth athletes; and (2) report on fatalities and catastrophic injuries among youths participating in athletic activities.
Bill· HRH.R. 851 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Amends part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to eliminate the current reservation of 1% of the school improvement funds for outlying areas and Indian education. Reserves .67% of the school improvement funds for Indian education, but raises that reservation to .75% beginning with the fiscal year the allocations to states equal or surpass FY2015 levels after subtracting .75% of those allocations for Indian education. Establishes formulae for determining the minimum allotment to American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands of school improvement funds for: (1) basic grants to local educational agencies (LEAs), (2) concentration grants to LEAs, (3) targeted grants to LEAs, and (4) grants under the education finance incentive grant program.
Bill· HRH.R. 847 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Investing in Innovation for Education Act of 2015 Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to award competitive grants to local educational agencies (LEAs), educational service agencies, and nonprofit organizations that partner with an LEA or consortium of schools to support school innovations. Requires at least 25% of the grant funds to be awarded for projects in rural areas. Requires each grant applicant to demonstrate that it has partnered with at least one private entity that will provide matching funds. Allows the Secretary to waive the matching funds requirement upon a showing of exceptional circumstances. Requires each grant to be used to address at least one of the following areas of school innovation: improving the effectiveness and distribution of teachers or principals, strengthening the use of data to improve teaching and learning, providing high-quality instruction that is based on rigorous standards and measuring students' proficiency using high-quality assessments that are aligned to those standards, turning around the lowest-performing schools, supporting the effective use of technology to improve teaching or principals and learning, and any other area of school innovation the Secretary chooses. Directs the Secretary to establish performance measures for tracking each grantee's progress in: (1) improving the academic performance of public elementary and secondary school students, and specified subgroups of those students; and (2) implementing its project in rural schools, as applicable. Requires grantees to use grant funds to develop or expand strategies to improve high-need students' showing on those performance measures.
Bill· HRH.R. 850 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning Act of 2015 Amends title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to include teacher and principal training in practices that address the social and emotional development needs of students among the activities funded under the Teacher and Principal Training and Recruiting Fund program. Allows funded training to include training in classroom instruction and schoolwide initiatives that enable students to acquire the knowledge, attitudes, and skills most conducive to social and emotional competency.
Bill· HRH.R. 846 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Student Non-Discrimination Act of 2015 Prohibits public school students from being excluded from participating in, or subject to discrimination under, any federally-assisted educational program on the basis of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity or that of their associates. Considers harassment to be a form of discrimination. Prohibits retaliation against anyone for opposing conduct they reasonably believe to be unlawful under this Act. Authorizes federal departments and agencies to enforce these prohibitions by cutting off the educational assistance of recipients found to be violating them. Allows an aggrieved individual to assert a violation of this Act in a judicial proceeding and recover reasonable attorney's fees should they prevail. Deems a state's receipt of federal educational assistance for a program to constitute a waiver of sovereign immunity for conduct prohibited under this Act regarding such program.
Bill· HRH.R. 834 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Helping Military Children Succeed in Schools Act Amends the school improvement program under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require states to include in their annual state report cards, by the 2015-2016 school year, information on: (1) the number of their military-connected students, and (2) how those students performed in comparison to all their other students on the assessments of student progress toward state academic achievement standards.
Bill· HRH.R. 823 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Educating Tomorrow's Engineers Act of 2015 Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require states to incorporate engineering design skills and practices into their academic content standards and academic achievement standards and assessments in science. Requires states and local educational agencies (LEAs) to use grants and subgrants under the Teacher and Principal Training and Recruiting Fund program to develop and provide professional development and instructional materials for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subject areas, including computer science and engineering. Changes current references to the mathematics and science partnerships program to references to the STEM partnerships program, which provides funding to states, institutions of higher education, and high-need LEAs to recruit and train STEM teachers and improve STEM curricula. Amends the 21st century community learning centers program to include STEM activities (currently, mathematics and science activities) within the before- and after-school activities funded under that program. Amends the rural and low-income school program to include professional development in engineering education among the uses of the funds provided to rural LEAs. Amends the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 to direct the Secretary of Education to support research on engineering education and use that research to provide information to the public, and technical assistance to states, on best practices and promising innovations in kindergarten through grade 12 engineering education. Requires the National Center for Education Research to sponsor and conduct research geared toward improving STEM, rather than just mathematics and science, teaching and learning.
Bill· HRH.R. 833 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Diverse Teachers Recruitment Act of 2015 Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to award competitive matching grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) or nonprofits, educational service agencies, institutions of higher education, or states that enter into partnerships with such LEAs to: (1) recruit individuals from underrepresented groups as public elementary and secondary school teachers, and (2) provide training and retention incentives to public elementary and secondary school teachers. Prohibits grants to applicants that do not serve schools that have difficulty recruiting, training, and retaining individuals from underrepresented groups as teachers. Gives priority to applicants that serve the most high-need schools and those that serve schools with high concentrations of poor, minority, disabled, or limited English proficient students. Requires the Secretary to evaluate the success of the grantees and compile a database of best practices for recruiting, training, and retaining individuals from underrepresented groups as public elementary and secondary school teachers.
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