109th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2149
To authorize resources to provide students with opportunities for
summer learning through summer learning grants.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
December 20, 2005
Mr. OBAMA (for himself and Ms. MIKULSKI) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions
A BILL
To authorize resources to provide students with opportunities for
summer learning through summer learning grants.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Summer Term Education Programs for Upward
Performance Act of 2005' or the `STEP UP Act of 2005'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) All students experience learning losses when they do not engage in
educational activities during the summer.
(2) Students on average lose more than 1 month's worth of reading skills,
and 2 months or more in mathematics facts and skills, during the summer.
(3) The impact of summer learning loss is greatest for children living
in poverty, for children with learning disabilities, and for children
who do not speak English at home.
(4) While middle-class children's test scores plateau or even rise during
the summer months, scores plummet for children living in poverty. Disparities
grow, so that reading scores of disadvantaged students can fall more than
3 months behind the scores of their middle-class peers.
(5) Summer learning losses by children living in poverty accumulate over
the elementary school years, so that their achievement scores fall further
and further behind the scores of their more advantaged peers as the children
progress through school.
(6) This summer slide is costly for American education. Analysis by Professor
Harris Cooper and his colleagues finds that 2 months of the school year
are lost: 1 month spent in reteaching and 1 month spent not providing
new instruction.
(7) Analysis of summer learning programs has demonstrated their effectiveness.
In the BELL programs in Boston, New York, and Washington, DC, students
gained several months' worth of reading and mathematics skills in 6 weeks,
with a majority of those students moving to a higher performance category,
as assessed by standardized mathematics and reading tests. In the Center
for Summer Learning's Teach Baltimore Summer Academy, randomized studies
show that students who regularly attended the program for not less than
2 summers gained advantages of 70 to 80 percent of 1 full grade level
in reading over control-group peers who did not attend summer school.
(8) Summer learning programs are proven to remedy, reinforce, and accelerate
learning, and can serve to close the achievement gap in education.
SEC. 3. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to create opportunities for summer learning by
providing summer learning grants to eligible students, in order to--
(1) provide the students with access to summer learning;
(2) facilitate the enrollment of students in elementary schools or youth
development organizations during the summer;
(3) promote collaboration between teachers and youth development professionals
in order to bridge gaps between schools and youth programs; and
(4) encourage teachers to try new techniques, acquire new skills, and
mentor new colleagues.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
(1) EDUCATIONAL SERVICE AGENCY- The term `educational service agency'
has the meaning given the term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY- The term `eligible entity' means an entity that--
(A) desires to participate in a summer learning grant program under
this Act by providing summer learning opportunities described in section
6(d)(1)(B) to eligible students; and
(i) a local educational agency;
(ii) a for-profit educational provider, nonprofit organization, or
summer enrichment camp, that has been approved by the State educational
agency to provide the summer learning opportunity described in section
6(d)(1)(B), including an entity that is in good standing that has
been previously approved by a State educational agency to provide
supplemental educational services; or
(iii) a consortium consisting of a local educational agency and 1
or more of the following entities:
(I) Another local educational agency.
(II) A community-based youth development organization with a demonstrated
record of effectiveness in helping students learn.
(III) An institution of higher education.
(IV) An educational service agency.
(V) A for-profit educational provider described in clause (ii).
(VI) A nonprofit organization described in clause (ii).
(VII) A summer enrichment camp described in clause (ii)
(3) ELIGIBLE STUDENT- The term `eligible student' means a student who--
(A) is eligible for a free lunch under the Richard B. Russell National
School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.);
(B) is served by a local educational agency identified by the State
educational agency in the application described in section 5(b); or
(C)(i) in the case of a summer learning grant program authorized under
this Act for fiscal year 2006, 2007, or 2008, is eligible to enroll
in any of the grades kindergarten through grade 3 for the school year
following participation in the program; or
(ii) in the case of a summer learning grant program authorized under
this Act for fiscal year 2009 or 2010, is eligible to enroll in any
of the grades kindergarten through grade 5 for the school year following
participation in the program.
(4) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION- The term `institution of higher education'
has the meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the Higher Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)).
(5) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY- The term `local educational agency' has
the meaning given the term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(6) SECRETARY- The term `Secretary' means the Secretary of Education.
(7) STATE- The term `State' means each of the several States of the United
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam,
American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of
the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the
Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau.
(8) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY- The term `State educational agency' has
the meaning given the term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
SEC. 5. DEMONSTRATION GRANT PROGRAM.
(1) IN GENERAL- From the funds appropriated under section 8 for a fiscal
year, the Secretary shall carry out a demonstration grant program in which
the Secretary awards grants, on a competitive basis, to State educational
agencies to enable the State educational agencies to pay the Federal share
of summer learning grants for eligible students.
(2) NUMBER OF GRANTS- For each fiscal year, the Secretary shall award
not more than 5 grants under this section.
(b) Application- A State educational agency that desires to receive a grant
under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such
time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the Secretary
may require. Such application shall identify the areas in the State where
the summer learning grant program will be offered and the local educational
agencies that serve such areas.
(c) Award Basis- In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall
take into consideration an equitable geographic distribution of the grants.
SEC. 6. SUMMER LEARNING GRANTS.
(a) Use of Grants for Summer Learning Grants-
(1) IN GENERAL- Each State educational agency that receives a grant under
section 5 for a fiscal year shall use the grant funds to provide summer
learning grants for the fiscal year to eligible students in the State
who desire to attend a summer learning opportunity offered by an eligible
entity that enters into an agreement with the State educational agency
under subsection (d)(1).
(2) AMOUNT; FEDERAL AND NON-FEDERAL SHARES-
(A) AMOUNT- The amount of a summer learning grant provided under this
Act shall be--
(i) for each of the fiscal years 2006 through 2009, $1,600; and
(ii) for fiscal year 2010, $1,800.
(B) FEDERAL SHARE- The Federal share of each summer learning grant shall
be not more than 50 percent of the amount of the summer learning grant
determined under subparagraph (A).
(C) NON-FEDERAL SHARE- The non-Federal share of each summer learning
grant shall be not less than 50 percent of the amount of the summer
learning grant determined under subparagraph (A), and shall be provided
from non-Federal sources, such as State or local sources.
(b) Designation of Summer Scholars- Eligible students who receive summer
learning grants under this Act shall be known as `summer scholars'.
(c) Selection of Summer Learning Opportunity-
(1) DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION- A State educational agency that receives
a grant under section 5 shall disseminate information about summer learning
opportunities and summer learning grants to the families of eligible students
in the State.
(2) APPLICATION- The parents of an eligible student who are interested
in having their child participate in a summer learning opportunity and
receive a summer learning grant shall submit an application to the State
educational agency that includes a ranked list of preferred summer learning
opportunities.
(3) PROCESS- A State educational agency that receives an application under
paragraph (2) shall--
(A) process such application;
(B) determine whether the eligible student shall receive a summer learning
grant;
(C) coordinate the assignment of eligible students receiving summer
learning grants with summer learning opportunities; and
(D) if demand for a summer learning opportunity exceeds capacity--
(i) in a case where information on the school readiness (based on
school records and assessments of student achievement) of the eligible
students is available, give priority for the summer learning opportunity
to eligible students with low levels of school readiness; or
(ii) in a case where such information on school readiness is not available,
rely on randomization to assign the eligible students.
(4) FLEXIBILITY- A State educational agency may assign a summer scholar
to a summer learning opportunity program that is offered in an area served
by a local educational agency that is not the local educational agency
serving the area where such scholar resides.
(5) REQUIREMENT OF ACCEPTANCE- An eligible entity shall accept, enroll,
and provide the summer learning opportunity of such entity to, any summer
scholar assigned to such summer learning opportunity by a State educational
agency pursuant to this subsection.
(d) Agreement With Eligible Entity-
(1) IN GENERAL- A State educational agency shall enter into an agreement
with the eligible entity offering a summer learning opportunity, under
which--
(A) the State educational agency shall agree to make payments to the
eligible entity, in accordance with paragraph (2), for a summer scholar;
and
(B) the eligible entity shall agree to provide the summer scholar with
a summer learning opportunity that--
(i) provides a total of not less than the equivalent of 30 full days
of instruction (or not less than the equivalent of 25 full days of
instruction, if the equivalent of an additional 5 days is devoted
to field trips or other enrichment opportunities) to the summer scholar;
(ii) employs small-group, research-based educational programs, materials,
curricula, and practices;
(iii) provides a curriculum that--
(I) emphasizes reading and mathematics;
(II) is primarily designed to increase the literacy and numeracy
of the summer scholar; and
(III) is aligned with the standards and goals of the school year
curriculum of the local educational agency serving the summer scholar;
(iv) applies assessments to measure the skills taught in the summer
learning opportunity and disaggregates the results of the assessments
for summer scholars by race and ethnicity, economic status, limited
English proficiency status, and disability category, in order to determine
the opportunity's impact on each subgroup of summer scholars;
(v) collects daily attendance data on each summer scholar; and
(vi) meets all applicable Federal, State, and local civil rights laws.
(A) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in subparagraph (B), a State educational
agency shall make a payment to an eligible entity for a summer scholar
in the amount determined under subsection (a)(2)(A).
(B) ADJUSTMENT- In the case in which a summer scholar does not attend
the full summer learning opportunity, the State educational agency shall
reduce the amount provided to the eligible entity pursuant to subparagraph
(A) by a percentage that is equal to the percentage of the summer learning
opportunity not attended by such scholar.
(e) Use of School Facilities- State educational agencies are encouraged
to require local educational agencies in the State to allow eligible entities,
in offering summer learning opportunities, to make use of school facilities
in schools served by such local educational agencies at reasonable or no
cost.
(f) Access of Records- An eligible entity offering a summer learning opportunity
under this Act is eligible to receive, upon request, the school records
and any previous supplemental educational services assessment records of
a summer scholar served by such entity.
(g) Administrative Costs- A State educational agency or eligible entity
receiving funding under this Act may use not more than 5 percent of such
funding for administrative costs associated with carrying out this Act.
SEC. 7. EVALUATIONS; REPORT; WEBSITE.
(a) Evaluation and Assessment- For each year that an eligible entity enters
into an agreement under section 6(d), the eligible entity shall prepare
and submit to the Secretary a report on the activities and outcomes of each
summer learning opportunity that enrolled a summer scholar, including--
(1) information on the design of the summer learning opportunity;
(2) the alignment of the summer learning opportunity with State standards;
and
(3) data from assessments of student mathematics and reading skills for
the summer scholars and on the attendance of the scholars, disaggregated
by the subgroups described in section 6(d)(1)(B)(iv).
(b) Report- For each year funds are appropriated under section 8 for this
Act, the Secretary shall prepare and submit a report to Congress on the
summer learning grant programs, including the effectiveness of the summer
learning opportunities in improving student achievement.
(c) Summer Learning Grants Website- The Secretary shall make accessible,
on the Department of Education website, information for parents and school
personnel on successful programs and curricula, and best practices, for
summer learning opportunities.
SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act $100,000,000
for fiscal year 2006 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal
years 2007 through 2010.
END
