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101 records in US in 2016
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2016
Designates the week of September 26-30, 2016, as National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2016
Expresses the Senate's support for the designation of October 20, 2016, as the National Day on Writing.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Holocaust Insurance Accountability Act of 2016 This bill allows a beneficiary of a Holocaust-era life, dowry, education, annuity, property, or other insurance policy to bring a civil action in a U.S. district court against the insurer for the covered policy to recover proceeds due or, otherwise, to enforce any rights under the policy. The bill covers any policy that was: (1) in effect at any time from January 31, 1933, to December 31, 1945; and (2) issued to a policy holder domiciled in any area that was occupied or controlled by Nazi Germany, an ally or friendly government, or the territorial jurisdiction of Switzerland. The bill requires the award: (1) to a prevailing beneficiary of the amount of the proceeds due under the policy, plus prejudgment interest at 6% per year, compounded annually, calculated from the date the amount was originally due; and (2) of treble damages against any insurer that acted in bad faith. A civil action under this bill must be filed within 10 years after enactment of this bill. A prior judgment or release entered for any claim arising under a covered policy in any civil action in a federal or state court shall not impair a claim brought under this bill. Any executive agreement between the United States and a foreign government or any executive foreign policy of the U.S. government shall not supercede or preempt any state law or compromise, settle, extinguish, waive, preclude, bar, or foreclose any claim brought under this bill. A claim brought under state law within 10 years after enactment of this billshall not be deemed untimely on the basis of any state or federal statute of limitations or on the basis of any other legal or equitable rule or doctrine governing timeliness.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
VA Health Care Provider Education Debt Relief Act of 2016 This bill increases the annual and five-year caps on the amount of education debt reduction available to Veterans Health Administration health care professionals under the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) education debt reduction program. The VA may waive such caps for a participant working in a geographical area designated by the Department of Health and Human Services as a health professional shortage area with respect to such participant's specialty or assignment.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Helping Improve Grants for Higher Education & Repayment of Expensive Debt Act or the HIGHER ED Act This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to: modify the Federal Pell Grant program to increase the maximum award and restore year-round grants, make graduate and professional students eligible to receive subsidized Stafford Loans under the Federal Direct Loan program, direct the Department of Education to refinance outstanding federal student loans for Direct Loan and Federal Family Education Loan program borrowers, include a part-time job as a faculty member within the definition of "public service job" for purposes of the public service loan forgiveness program, and establish additional terms and conditions applicable to the income-based and income-contingent repayment plans. Additionally, the bill amends the federal bankruptcy code to permit a borrower to discharge in bankruptcy a nonprofit, government, or private student loan, or an obligation to repay an educational benefit, scholarship, or stipend.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Supports the goals of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Honors those working domestically and internationally to eliminate violence against women and girls. Encourages the President to: address the needs of women and girls experiencing violence through funding for participatory survivor-led programs; prioritize protections for women and children in fragile and conflict zones; address increased rates of violence against marginalized women due to race, ethnicity, gender and sexual identity, and socioeconomic status; and increase opportunities for women and girls worldwide, including opportunities for education and economic participation.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Prepare All Kids Act of 2016 This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require the Department of Education to establish a Prekindergarten Incentive Fund from which matching grants shall be awarded to states and, through them, subgrants to qualified prekindergarten providers for the establishment, expansion, or enhancement of voluntary, high-quality, full-day prekindergarten programs serving children ages three through five. State grantees shall set aside specified portions of grant funds: (1) for quality early childhood development programs for children from birth through age three, and (2) to extend the hours of early childhood development programs to create extended day and year programs. Prekindergarten subgrantees must: (1) maintain a maximum class size of 20 children, with at least 1 prekindergarten teacher per classroom; and (2) ensure that the ratio of children to prekindergarten teachers and teacher aides does not exceed 10 to 1. Program funds may not be used for assessments of children in prekindergarten or early childhood development programs if: (1) the assessments are used to reward or sanction individual children, teachers, programs, or schools; or (2) a single assessment is used as the primary or sole method for assessing program effectiveness.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Don't Block LGBTQ Act of 2016 This bill amends the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit elementary schools, secondary schools, or libraries that receive discount rates for telecommunications services under the universal service support program from blocking Internet access to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer resources. The bill does not prohibit schools or libraries from blocking content that is obscene, child pornography, or harmful to minors.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Relief and Investment for Student Entrepreneurs Act or the RISE Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 by allowing a qualified entrepreneur with a loan under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan program to defer loan payments for up to 3 years. A "qualified entrepreneur" is a borrower who: (1) has received a degree during the 10-year period before the date of the deferment, (2) has at least one registered business entity, (3) has raised capital of not less than $30,000 for such business entity, and (4) has an outstanding loan balance of not less than $5,000. The Department of Education may cancel up to $17,500 of federal direct and unsubsidized Stafford loans for a borrower who: (1) has operated a small business located in a historically underutilized business zone for at least three years, and (2) is not currently in default on the loan.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
American Opportunity Tax Credit Reform Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the American Opportunity Tax Credit, to provide that any credit amount which is attributable to a federal Pell Grant under the Higher Education Act of 1965 shall be reduced by the amount of expenses (other than qualified tuition and related expenses) which are taken into account in determining the cost of attendance at an institution of higher education for the academic period for which the credit amount is being determined. The bill also modifies the definition of "qualified scholarship," for purposes of the tax exclusion for such scholarships, to include a federal Pell Grant as a qualified scholarship.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Innovations to Recruit and Retain Excellent Teachers Act This bill establishes a teacher support grant program through which the Department of Education (ED) shall award grants to educational agencies on a competitive basis. If funds for the program are authorized above a specified amount with respect to a given fiscal year, ED shall also award grants on a formula basis. A grantee that is a state education agency (SEA) shall use the grant funds to: (1) make subgrants to local educational agencies (LEAs), (2) provide technical assistance, (3) reduce bureaucratic barriers, and (4) conduct program evaluation. In awarding subgrants, an SEA must give priority to LEAs that: (1) serve a high proportion of low-income students, (2) have either a teacher shortage or a high proportion of schools identified for support and improvement, and (3) demonstrate the capacity to carry out program activities. An LEA shall use grant or subgrant funds to carry out a teacher support program in the elementary and secondary schools that it serves. The program must strengthen teaching careers by: (1) collaboratively reforming and improving compensation structures, (2) creating opportunities for personalized professional learning and enhancement for teachers, (3) creating leadership pathways, (4) using strategies such as innovative scheduling to support teacher improvement, and (5) implementing teacher-led initiatives. In addition, the program must carry out specified activities to strengthen teacher selection or induction. The bill establishes requirements for grant applications, program evaluation, and reporting.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Making College More Affordable Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 by creating federal interest-free education loans for undergraduate students. The loans must have the same terms and conditions and benefits to borrowers as federal direct Stafford Loans. Interest on these loans may only accrue during periods when a borrower is not earning taxable income due to professional negligence, professional incompetence, or malicious action on the part of the borrower. The Department of Education (ED) must carry out a repayment plan program for the interest-free loans under which loans payments are automatically withheld from the pre-tax income of the borrower. ED must cancel any outstanding balance of principal or interest due on those interest-free loans made to a borrower who has made 300 monthly payments. The borrower must be taxed on the amount canceled. Those taxes must be applied to carry out the federal direct loan program.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Military Injury Surgical Systems Integrated Operationally Nationwide to Achieve ZERO Preventable Deaths Act or the MISSION ZERO Act This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response to award grants to certain trauma centers to enable military trauma care providers and trauma teams to provide trauma care and related acute care at those trauma centers. Funds may be used to train and incorporate military trauma care providers into the trauma center, including expenditures for malpractice insurance, office space, information technology, specialty education and supervision, trauma programs, and state license fees. Grantees must allow the military trauma care providers to be deployed for military operations, training, or response to a mass casualty incident.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Raising Accountability to Improve School Excellence Act This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to: (1) require a charter school grant application to include additional information and assurances related to oversight of authorizing activity by a public chartering agency; and (2) expand grant selection criteria and priorities to include consideration of the number of times a state entity has applied for, and been denied, such a grant.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Combating European Anti-Semitism Act of 2016 This bill expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) it is in the U.S. national interest to combat anti-Semitism at home and abroad; (2) there is a need to ensure the security of European Jewish communities, including synagogues, schools, and cemeteries; and (3) the United States should continue to emphasize the importance of combating anti-Semitism in multilateral bodies. The International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 is amended to require the Department of State's Annual Report on International Religious Freedom to include, for each European country in which threats or attacks against Jewish persons, schools, and religious institutions are particularly significant, a description of: the security challenges and needs of European Jewish communities and European law enforcement agencies; U.S. efforts to partner with European law enforcement agencies and civil society groups to combat anti-Semitic incidents; educational programming and public awareness initiatives that impart values of pluralism and tolerance, showcase the positive contributions of Jews, and pay special attention to population segments that exhibit a high degree of anti-Semitic animus; and efforts by European governments to adopt and apply a working definition of anti-Semitism.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Second Chance for Students Act This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to modify federal student aid eligibility for a student who is convicted of a drug offense involving marijuana possession. Under current law, a drug offense conviction involving the sale or possession of a controlled substance triggers a suspension of federal student aid eligibility for a specified period of time. This bill allows a student who is convicted of a drug offense involving marijuana possession, without the intent to distribute, to resume or retain federal student aid eligibility while completing a drug rehabilitation program.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Public Service Loan Forgiveness Inclusion Act of 2016 This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to broaden the types of repayment plans under which an eligible public service employee may make qualifying payments for purposes of the public service loan forgiveness program.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
No Cost Educational Resources Act This bill amends the Museum and Library Services Act of 1996 to modify the National Leadership Grants for Libraries Program. Specifically, it expands the purposes of the grant program to include providing funds for open educational reading material courses. Additionally, the bill authorizes the Institute of Museum and Library Service to award grants to institutions of higher education to facilitate the adoption, adaption, and creation of open educational reading materials, and to establish more open educational reading material courses.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Partnerships for Progress and Prosperity Act or the P3 Act This bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to award grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) and institutions of higher education for the improvement of students' education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Each grantee shall partner with an employer in a STEM field to: assist students in obtaining internships or apprenticeships, develop STEM coursework curricula and metrics, carry out dual-credit courses, provide tutoring and mentoring, enable students and teachers to attend STEM events outside of the classroom, provide after-school and summer STEM programs, and purchase educational materials or equipment to facilitate STEM instruction. In awarding grants under the program, ED shall give special consideration to applicants that: promote in-classroom engagement between STEM professionals and students; use technology-based materials and content; pair mentors and tutors with students struggling to meet curriculum benchmarks; in the case of LEA applicants, serve schools in which most students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch; and propose to use grant funds to target interventions for populations that are traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields. Each grantee shall provide matching funds equal to 50% of the grant amount.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Supporting America's Young Entrepreneurs Act of 2016 This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make eligible for deferment and cancellation under the Federal Direct Loan program a borrower who is an employee or founder of a small business start-up in a distressed area. It also amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from an individual's gross income the amount of such canceled student loan debt. The bill establishes a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan program to refinance private education loans. Finally, it establishes a young entrepreneurs business center within the Small Business Administration to certify small business start-ups, identify distressed areas, and approve loan cancelation for founders of small business start-ups.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Supports the goals and ideals of National Domestic Violence Action Month.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) Program should be protected and sustained. (The THCGME Program awards grants to health centers for primary care residency programs.)
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Empowering Partners to Counter Violent Extremism Act of 2016 This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) the Office for Partnerships Against Violent Extremism (OPAVE), to be headed by an Assistant Secretary. The Assistant Secretary shall be responsible for: leading DHS efforts to counter violent extremism; developing a digital engagement strategy that expands DHS outreach efforts to counter violent extremist messaging; serving as DHS's primary representative in coordinating countering violent extremism efforts with the CVE Task Force and with other federal agencies and nongovernmental organizations; serving as the primary DHS-level representative in coordinating with the Department of State on international countering violent extremism issues; providing guidance to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) regarding the use of grants made under the Urban Area Security Initiative and the State Homeland Security Grant Program to state, local, and tribal governments under the allowable uses guidelines related to countering violent extremism; developing a plan to expand philanthropic support for domestic efforts related to countering violent extremism; and awarding grants to, or entering into cooperative agreements with, state, local, and tribal governments and institutions of higher education to support the efforts of local communities in the United States to counter violent extremism. DHS's Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties shall conduct an annual review to ensure that OPAVE's activities that relate to countering violent extremism respect the privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties of all persons. DHS shall submit to Congress a comprehensive DHS strategy and an implementation plan to counter violent extremism in the United States. DHS's Under Secretary for Science and Technology, in coordination with the OPAVE, may: (1) establish one or more countering violent extremism labs, and (2) reprioritize grants to centers for homeland security to fund each lab. DHS and the Department of State shall incorporate into their efforts to combat terrorist recruitment and communications the public testimonials of former or estranged violent extremists. The OPAVE may implement a program that facilitates groups of students at institutions of higher education throughout the world in designing, piloting, implementing, and measuring the success of a social or digital initiative, product, or tool that counters the messaging of terrorist organizations communications and narratives.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
ADA Education and Reform Act of 2016 This bill requires the Disability Rights Section of the Department of Justice to develop a program to educate state and local governments and property owners on strategies for promoting access to public accommodations for persons with a disability. The program may include training for professionals to provide guidance about remediation for potential violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). The bill prohibits civil actions based on the failure to remove an architectural barrier to access into an existing public accommodation unless: (1) the aggrieved person has provided to the owners or operators a written notice specific enough to identify the barrier, and (2) the owners or operators fail to provide the person with a written description outlining improvements that will be made to improve the barrier or they fail to remove the barrier or make substantial progress after providing such a description. The aggrieved person's notice must specify: (1) the address of the property, (2) the specific ADA sections alleged to have been violated, (3) whether a request for assistance in removing an architectural barrier was made, and (4) whether the barrier was permanent or temporary. The Judicial Conference of the United States must develop a model program to promote alternative dispute resolution mechanisms to resolve such claims. The model program should include an expedited method for determining relevant facts related to such barriers and steps to resolve accessibility issues before litigation.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Education Support Professional Family Medical Leave Act This bill amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to provide that employees who are education support professionals will be considered as meeting the hours of service requirement to become eligible for family or medical leave under the Act, if they have worked, during the previous 12-month period, at least an average of: 60 hours a month for the employer from whom the leave is requested, or 60% of the total monthly hours expected for the employee's job description and duties with regard to that employer. The bill defines an "education support professional" as an employee of a public elementary or secondary school or public institution of higher education that may include: (1) a paraeducator who provides instructional or noninstructional support; and (2) a member of the secretarial, clerical, or administrative support staff (e.g., bus drivers, janitors, kitchen workers, and security guards). The Department of Labor may provide a method for calculating leave under the Act for education support professionals.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Holocaust Insurance Accountability Act of 2016 This bill allows a beneficiary of a Holocaust-era life, dowry, education, annuity, property, or other insurance policy to bring a civil action in a U.S. district court against the insurer for the covered policy to recover proceeds due or, otherwise, to enforce any rights under the policy. The bill covers any policy that was: (1) in effect at any time from January 31, 1933, to December 31, 1945; and (2) issued to a policy holder domiciled in any area that was occupied or controlled by Nazi Germany, an ally or friendly government, or the territorial jurisdiction of Switzerland. The bill requires the award: (1) to a prevailing beneficiary of the amount of the proceeds due under the policy, plus prejudgment interest at 6% per year, compounded annually, calculated from the date the amount was originally due; and (2) of treble damages against any insurer that acted in bad faith. A civil action under this bill must be filed within 10 years after enactment of this bill. A prior judgment or release entered for any claim arising under a covered policy in any civil action in a federal or state court shall not impair a claim brought under this bill. Any executive agreement between the United States and a foreign government or any executive foreign policy of the U.S. government shall not supercede or preempt any state law or compromise, settle, extinguish, waive, preclude, bar, or foreclose any claim brought under this bill. A claim brought under state law within 10 years after enactment of this bill shall not be deemed untimely on the basis of any state or federal statute of limitations or on the basis of any other legal or equitable rule or doctrine governing timeliness.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Military Injury Surgical Systems Integrated Operationally Nationwide to Achieve ZERO Preventable Deaths Act or the MISSION ZERO Act This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response to award grants to certain trauma centers to enable military trauma care providers and trauma teams to provide trauma care and related acute care at those trauma centers. Funds may be used to train and incorporate military trauma care providers into the trauma center, including expenditures for malpractice insurance, office space, information technology, specialty education and supervision, trauma programs, and state license fees. Grantees must allow the military trauma care providers to be deployed for military operations, training, or response to a mass casualty incident.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Congratulates Reformed Theological Seminary for 50 years of faith-inspired service.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Recognizes October 2016 as National Principals Month, and honors the contribution of principals in elementary and secondary schools.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Commemorates the 100th anniversary of the 1916 opening of the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences and the opening of the new Texas A&M Veterinary & Biomedical Education complex in College Station, Texas.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Veterans-Specific Education for Tomorrow's Medical Doctors Act or the VET MD Act This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to carry out a three-year pilot program at at least five VA medical centers to provide undergraduate students a clinical observation experience. The VA shall ensure that such program: increases the awareness, knowledge, and empathy of future medical professionals toward the medical conditions common to veterans; increases the diversity of the recruitment pool of future VA physicians; provides a diverse clinical observation experience commensurate with the standard expectations for medical school applications; and expands clinical observation opportunities for all students by encouraging students of all backgrounds to consider a career in medicine. The VA shall select undergraduate students who are U.S. citizens enrolled in an accredited science or medical program of study to participate in the program, with priority to students who resided in a health professional shortage area and who are the first in their immediate family to attend an undergraduate institution.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Funding Local Schools Act This bill allows the state of Utah to select lands under the administrative jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) of the Department of the Interior and identified as available for disposal by land exchange in the Record of Decision for the Pony Express Resource Management Plan and Rangeland Program Summary for Utah County, as amended by the Pony Express Plan Amendment (November 1997), in fulfillment of certain land grants made to Utah upon being admitted as a state, including for the establishment of certain state institutions, including certain local schools, under the Act of July 16, 1894, without further land use planning action by the BLM. The criteria listed in Decision 3 of the Lands Program of the resource management plan shall not apply to any lands selected by Utah pursuant to this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Sets forth the rule for consideration of H.R. 5303 (Water Resources Development Act of 2016) and H.R. 6094 (Regulatory Relief for Small Businesses, Schools, and Nonprofits Act).
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Serving our Rural Veterans Act of 2016 This bill authorizes payment by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for the costs associated with service by Veterans Health Administration medical residents and interns at facilities operated by Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or the Indian Health Service (covered facilities). The bill requires the VA to carry out a pilot program to establish graduate medical education residency training programs at such facilities that have an existing reimbursement agreement with the VA under the Indian Health Care Improvement Act and that are located in rural or remote areas, including at one facility in each of Alaska and Montana. The VA shall reimburse each covered facility participating in the program for costs of: curriculum development; recruitment, training, and retention of residents and faculty; accreditation of programs of education; faculty salaries; and certain other expenses relating to providing medical education under the program. Each medical resident who participates in the program must agree to two years of obligated service at a covered facility or a VA facility for each year in the program. A program participant who fails to satisfy the period of obligated service shall be liable to the United States for prorated portion of the amount paid for program participation. A medical resident who participates in the program shall be eligible for participation in the Indian Health Service Loan Repayment Program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Transparency in Student Lending Act This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to expand disclosure requirements for an institution of higher education (IHE) that participates in the Direct Loan program. Specifically, it requires an IHE to disclose, prior to disbursement, the annual percentage rate applicable to a Direct Loan.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Student Loan Repayment Act of 2016 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a work opportunity tax credit for employers who hire a qualified student loan repayer. A "qualified student loan repayer" is any individual who is certified by the designated local agency as: (1) having at least an associate's degree, and (2) having outstanding education loans of at least $10,000. The bill also allows a business tax credit equal to 50% of the student loan program startup costs paid by employers during the year, subject to a limit of $500 per employee participating in the program. The credit applies to the ordinary and necessary expenses for the establishment or administration of a student loan repayment plan through which the employer provides specified annual matching contributions to each employee. The credit does not apply to payments made to, or on behalf of, any employee pursuant to the plan. An employer may claim the credit for three years if the employer has not established or maintained a plan for substantially the same employees during the three-year period immediately preceding the first year in which the credit is otherwise allowable.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Early STEM Achievement Act This bill requires the Department of Education to award competitive grants to eligible entities for the purpose of assisting early childhood education programs in carrying out science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs and activities. A grant recipient must use the grant for necessary materials and equipment or for specified activities related to professional development in early childhood STEM activities.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Expresses support for Lights On Afterschool, a national celebration of after-school programs held on October 20, 2016.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Designates October 2016 as National Dyslexia Awareness Month, and calls on Congress, schools, and educational agencies to recognize that dyslexia has significant educational implications that must be addressed.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Retirement Security Week, including raising public awareness of the importance of saving adequately for retirement. Acknowledges the need to raise public awareness of a variety of tax-preferred retirement vehicles. Calls on states, localities, schools, universities, nonprofit organizations, businesses, other entities, and the people of the United States to observe National Retirement Security Week with appropriate programs and activities.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Campus Fire Safety Education Act of 2016 This bill directs the Department of Education (ED) to establish a program to award grants, on a competitive basis, to institutions of higher education or consortiums of such institutions, in a collaborative partnership with a nonprofit organization or a public safety department (eligible entity), for: (1) initiating, expanding, or improving fire safety education programs; and (2) increasing fire safety awareness among enrolled students. ED shall give priority to institutions that plan to use funds to initiate, expand, or improve fire safety education programs that include educational material specifically prepared for students with physical, sensory, or cognitive disabilities. The bill sets forth provisions regarding grant periods and matching and other requirements. An eligible entity may not be awarded more than $250,000 per fiscal year under this bill. An eligible entity shall use grant funds to initiate, expand, or improve a fire safety education program that: reaches all enrolled students (for an institution of higher education); ensures maximum exposure to, increases awareness of, and effectuates change in behavior regarding, fire safety by students through conducting outreach to students a minimum of twice per academic year and through measures that provide fire safety information to any student upon request; includes minimum instruction regarding fire behavior, fire injury and death, ignition scenarios, fire safety systems and equipment, the importance of means of egress, fire prevention techniques, and actions to be taken if a fire occurs to minimize the potential for death, injury, and property damage; and includes a mechanism for carrying out evaluations of program effectiveness. ED shall publish a report of best practices for initiating, expanding, or improving fire safety education programs.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Academic Success Centers and Education Networks for Dreamers (ASCEND) Act This bill directs the Department of Education to award grants to not-for-profit institutions of higher education to develop programs that support Dreamer students in successfully completing postsecondary education. A "Dreamer student" is an individual who is a beneficiary of, or eligible for, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Inclusive Campuses Act This bill amends title III (Institutional Aid) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to allow historically black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions of higher education to use title III funds to establish resource centers on campus that provide support to and education about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer students.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Expresses support for the designation of National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Recognizes school principals' and assistant principals' contribution to the success of elementary and secondary students, and encourages the observation of National Principals Month in a manner that promotes awareness of the importance of school leadership in ensuring that every child has access to a high-quality education.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
National Trauma Care System Act This bill establishes the Task Force on Eliminating Preventable Deaths or Disabilities due to Traumatic Injuries, which shall: (1) develop a plan to establish a national trauma care system to facilitate the U.S. ability to eliminate preventable deaths related to injuries, eliminate trauma-related disabilities, and respond to mass trauma incidents; and (2) establish specific goals and milestones, and federal responsibilities, to carry out the plan. The task force shall ensure that each budget of the President submitted to Congress requests sufficient funding to develop and support the system, and that the system: includes mechanisms for accountability and a data-driven research agenda, ensures military and civilian trauma systems collect and share common data, is developed and carried out in a manner that reduces regulatory and legal barriers to the full integration of the trauma continuum of care, and is capable of responding domestically to any mass casualty incident. The task force shall develop and implement a national trauma research action plan. The Department of Health and Human Services shall: develop and publish standards for trauma care in pre-hospital and hospital settings; identify, evaluate, and implement policies to ensure coordination between pre-hospital and hospital trauma care; work to facilitate the collection and sharing of data among federal and non-governmental trauma systems; revise and clarify existing regulations to minimize barriers to the use and disclosure of protected health information with respect to trauma care; and ensure the civilian trauma systems participate in a structured trauma quality improvement process. The Department of Defense (DOD) shall: submit and implement a plan to establish a Joint Trauma System within the Defense Health Agency that promotes improved trauma care, seek to contract with a non-governmental entity to conduct a system-wide review of the military trauma system, establish a Joint Trauma Education and Training Directorate to ensure that the military trauma care providers maintain readiness and are able to be rapidly deployed for future armed conflicts, partner with civilian trauma centers, determine the number of military trauma care providers that must be maintained within DOD to meet the requirements of the combatant commands, and report on the activities of the Secretarial Designee Program.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
Federal Funding Accountability for Sexual Harassers Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to address sexual discrimination in institutions of higher education. Institutions must report a finding that an individual who is responsible for the scientific or technical direction of one of the institution's research and development grants awarded by the federal government was engaged in sexual discrimination to each department and agency that has awarded the institution those grants in the past 10 years. Institutions must also report on formal complaints alleging sexual discrimination that were filed, but are incomplete because the institution has not carried out a grievance procedure. Agencies must: (1) consider these reports when deciding if they should fund a grant, and (2) keep the reports for 10 years. The National Academy of Sciences must study, and report on, the prevalence and impact of sexual harassment in higher education in science, engineering, and medical departments and programs.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
Museum and Library Services Act of 2016 This bill makes amendments to and reauthorizes the Museum and Library Services Act. The Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the 21st Century Museum Professional Program established by this bill, may enter into arrangements, including grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, and other forms of assistance, with museum, museum consortia and associations, institutions of higher education, and other entities that are determined appropriate, for projects that further the bill's purposes, such as projects that: increase the number of students from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds enrolled in graduate and undergraduate museum-related programs, as well as other relevant programs offered through other education-focused entities; recruit future museum professionals from such backgrounds; develop new or enhance current professional development and retention programs for museum professionals and the museum workforce; and support and conduct research, needs assessments, pilot programs, and evaluation of education and professional development programs to explore approaches that can successfully recruit, prepare, educate, and retain the next generation of museum professionals.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Program Act of 2016 This bill authorizes the Department of Education to award grants to institutions of higher education under the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Program for encouraging: (1) undergraduate students to study abroad, (2) greater diversity of students studying abroad, and (3) greater diversity in study abroad destinations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
Accreditation Reform and Enhanced Accountability Act of 2016 This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require the Department of Education (ED) to revise standards governing accreditors of institutions of higher education. ED must establish student achievement criteria that accreditors must use when evaluating an institute of higher education, including retention rate, graduation and course completion rates, cohort default rate, repayment rate, transfer rate, student earnings after graduation, and job placement rates, professional and vocational certification and licensing examination pass rates, as applicable. Further, ED must establish criteria for evaluating: (1) the affordability of the institution, (2) actions taken against the institution by any state or the federal government, and (3) enrollment levels of students receiving Pell Grants. ED must establish baseline thresholds for student achievement measures. Accreditors must require institutions to meet or exceed those thresholds. Accreditors must: (1) carry out enhanced accreditation review immediately after learning of investigations or lawsuits by federal or state governments about the institution's fraud or abuse, deceptive practices, or material harm to students; and (2) take action when there are signs of institutional instability. The bill addresses conflicts of interest between accreditors and the institutions. The bill gives ED additional authority with respect to fining or terminating accreditors. ED must establish standards for online accreditation disclosures by institutions of higher education. Accreditors may designate an institution as accredited with distinction or accredited with risk.