S 620 IS

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 regarding elementary school and secondary school counseling.

March 26, 2001

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

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 regarding elementary school and secondary school counseling.

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 `Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Improvement Act of 2001'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

(a) FINDINGS- Congress finds that--

(1) elementary and secondary school children are being subjected to unprecedented social stresses, including fragmentation of the family, drug and alcohol abuse, violence, child abuse, and poverty;

(2) an increasing number of elementary and secondary school children are exhibiting symptoms of distress, such as substance abuse, emotional disorders, violent outbursts, disruptive behavior, juvenile delinquency, and suicide;

(3) between 1984 and 1994, the homicide rate for adolescents doubled, while the rate of nonfatal violent crimes committed by adolescents increased by almost 20 percent;

(4) according to the National Institute of Mental Health, up to one in five children and youth have psychological problems severe enough to require some form of professional help, yet only 20 percent of youth with mental disorders or their families receive help;

(5) the Institute of Medicine has identified psychological counseling as the most serious school health need for the normal development of our Nation's children and youth;

(6) school counselors, school psychologists, and school social workers can contribute to the personal growth, educational development, and emotional well-being of elementary and secondary school children by providing professional counseling, intervention, and referral services;

(7) the implementation of well designed school counseling programs has been shown to increase students' academic success;

(8) the national average student-to-counselor ratio in elementary and secondary schools is 531 to 1, and the average student-to-psychologist ratio is 2300 to 1;

(9) it is recommended that to effectively address students' mental health and development needs, schools have 1 full-time counselor for every 250 students, 1 psychologist for every 1,000 students, and 1 school social worker for every 800 students;

(10) the population of elementary and secondary school students in the United States is expected to increase dramatically during the 5 to 10 years beginning with 1999;

(11) the Federal Government can help reduce the risk of academic, social, and emotional problems among elementary and secondary school children by stimulating the development of model school counseling programs; and

(12) the Federal Government can help reduce the risk of future unemployment and assist the school-to-work transition by stimulating the development of model school counseling programs that include comprehensive career development.

(b) PURPOSE- It is the purpose of this Act to enhance the availability and quality of counseling services for elementary and secondary school children by providing grants to local educational agencies to enable such agencies to establish or expand effective and innovative counseling programs that can serve as national models.

SEC. 3. SCHOOL COUNSELING.

Title IV of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) is amended--

(1) in section 4004 (20 U.S.C. 7104)--

(A) in paragraph (1), by striking `and' at the end;

(B) in paragraph (2), by striking the period and inserting `; and'; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

`(3) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2002, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years, for grants under section 4124.'; and

(2) by adding at the end of subpart 2 of part A, the following:

`SEC. 4124. ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND SECONDARY SCHOOL COUNSELING DEMONSTRATION.

`(a) COUNSELING DEMONSTRATION-

`(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary may award grants under this section to local educational agencies to enable the local educational agencies to establish or expand elementary school and secondary school counseling programs.

`(2) PRIORITY- In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall give special consideration to applications describing programs that--

`(A) demonstrate the greatest need for new or additional counseling services among the children in the schools served by the applicant;

`(B) propose the most promising and innovative approaches for initiating or expanding school counseling; and

`(C) show the greatest potential for replication and dissemination.

`(3) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION- In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall ensure an equitable geographic distribution among the regions of the United States and among urban, suburban, and rural areas.

`(4) DURATION- A grant under this section shall be awarded for a period not to exceed three years.

`(5) MAXIMUM GRANT- A grant under this section shall not exceed $400,000 for any fiscal year.

`(b) APPLICATIONS-

`(1) IN GENERAL- Each local educational agency desiring 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 reasonably require.

`(2) CONTENTS- Each application for a grant under this section shall--

`(A) describe the school population to be targeted by the program, the particular personal, social, emotional, educational, and career development needs of such population, and the current school counseling resources available for meeting such needs;

`(B) describe the activities, services, and training to be provided by the program and the specific approaches to be used to meet the needs described in subparagraph (A);

`(C) describe the methods to be used to evaluate the outcomes and effectiveness of the program;

`(D) describe the collaborative efforts to be undertaken with institutions of higher education, businesses, labor organizations, community groups, social service agencies, and other public or private entities to enhance the program and promote school-linked services integration;

`(E) describe collaborative efforts with institutions of higher education which specifically seek to enhance or improve graduate programs specializing in the preparation of school counselors, school psychologists, and school social workers;

`(F) document that the applicant has the personnel qualified to develop, implement, and administer the program;

`(G) describe how any diverse cultural populations, if applicable, would be served through the program;

`(H) assure that the funds made available under this part for any fiscal year will be used to supplement and, to the extent practicable, increase the level of funds that would otherwise be available from non-Federal sources for the program described in the application, and in no case supplant such funds from non-Federal sources; and

`(I) assure that the applicant will appoint an advisory board composed of parents, school counselors, school psychologists, school social workers, other pupil services personnel, teachers, school administrators, and community leaders to advise the local educational agency on the design and implementation of the program.

`(c) USE OF FUNDS-

`(1) IN GENERAL- From amounts made available under section 4004(3) to carry out this section, the Secretary shall award grants to local education agencies to be used to initiate or expand elementary or secondary school counseling programs that comply with the requirements of paragraph (2).

`(2) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS- Each program assisted under this section shall--

`(A) be comprehensive in addressing the personal, social, emotional, and educational needs of all students;

`(B) use a developmental, preventive approach to counseling;

`(C) increase the range, availability, quantity, and quality of counseling services in the schools of the local educational agency;

`(D) expand counseling services only through qualified school counselors, school psychologists, and school social workers;

`(E) use innovative approaches to increase children's understanding of peer and family relationships, work and self, decisionmaking, or academic and career planning, or to improve social functioning;

`(F) provide counseling services that are well-balanced among classroom group and small group counseling, individual counseling, and consultation with parents, teachers, administrators, and other pupil services personnel;

`(G) include inservice training for school counselors, school social workers, school psychologists, other pupil services personnel, teachers, and instructional staff;

`(H) involve parents of participating students in the design, implementation, and evaluation of a counseling program;

`(I) involve collaborative efforts with institutions of higher education, businesses, labor organizations, community groups, social service agencies, or other public or private entities to enhance the program and promote school-linked services integration; and

`(J) evaluate annually the effectiveness and outcomes of the counseling services and activities assisted under this section.

`(3) REPORT- The Secretary shall issue a report evaluating the programs assisted pursuant to each grant under this subsection at the end of each grant period in accordance with section 14701.

`(4) DISSEMINATION- The Secretary shall make the programs assisted under this section available for dissemination, either through the National Diffusion Network or other appropriate means.

`(5) LIMIT ON ADMINISTRATION- Not more than 5 percent of the amounts made available under this section in any fiscal year shall be used for administrative costs to carry out this section.

`(d) DEFINITIONS- For purposes of this section:

`(1) SCHOOL COUNSELOR- The term `school counselor' means an individual who has documented competence in counseling children and adolescents in a school setting and who--

`(A) possesses State licensure or certification granted by an independent professional regulatory authority;

`(B) in the absence of such State licensure or certification, possesses national certification in school counseling or a specialty of counseling granted by an independent professional organization; or

`(C) holds a minimum of a master's degree in school counseling from a program accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs or the equivalent.

`(2) SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGIST- The term `school psychologist' means an individual who--

`(A) possesses a minimum of 60 graduate semester hours in school psychology from an institution of higher education and has completed 1,200 clock hours in a supervised school psychology internship, of which 600 hours shall be in the school setting;

`(B) possesses State licensure or certification in the State in which the individual works; or

`(C) in the absence of such State licensure or certification, possesses national certification by the National School Psychology Certification Board.

`(3) SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKER- The term `school social worker' means an individual who--

`(A)(i) holds a master's degree in social work from a program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education; and

`(ii) is licensed or certified by the State in which services are provided; or

`(B) in the absence of such licensure or certification, possess a national certification or credential as a school social work specialist that has been awarded by an independent professional organization.

`(4) SUPERVISOR- The term `supervisor' means an individual who has the equivalent number of years of professional experience in such individual's respective discipline as is required of teaching experience for the supervisor or administrative credential in the State of such individual.'.

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