,,ii #aacth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #bgec ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,july #ca1 #bjad ,mr4 ,tester introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to increase the recruitment and retention of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists by low-income local educational agencies4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,increasing ,student ,achievement by ,increasing ,student ,support ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,research shows that socioeconomic status and family background characteristics are highly correlated with educational outcomes1 with a concentration of low-performing schools in low-income and under-served communities4 7#b7 ,teachers cite poor working conditions1 student behavior1 lack of student motivation1 and lack of administrative support as key reasons why they choose to leave the teaching profession4 7#c7 ,teachers and principals working for low-income local educational agencies are increasingly tasked with addressing not only the academic needs of a child1 but also the social1 emotional1 and behavioral needs of a child that require the services of a school counselor1 school social worker1 and school psychologist1 and these needs often interfere with delivering quality instruction and raising student achievement4 7#d7 ,only #af percent of children who need mental health services receive such services4 #gj to #hj percent of these children access mental health services at school4 7#e7 ,students are more likely to seek help when they need it if school-based mental health services are available4 7#f7 ,rates of abuse and neglect of young children in military families have doubled with the increased military involvement of the ,united ,states abroad since ,october #bjjb2 likewise1 adolescents with deployed parents report increased perceptions of uncertainty and loss1 role ambiguity1 negative changes in mental and behavioral health1 and increased relationship conflict1 raising concerns about the impact of deployment on military personnel and their families and whether schools that serve a large number of children with deployed parents have sufficient staff and expertise to meet these challenges4 7#g7 ,children of military families in rural communities are often geographically isolated1 and schools that were already experiencing understaffing of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists face even greater challenges meeting the increased needs of students enduring the stress that comes along with having a deployed parent or parents4 7#h7 ,schools served by low-income local educational agencies suffer disproportionately from a lack of services1 with many schools sharing a single school counselor1 school social worker1 or school psychologist with neighboring schools4 7#i7 ,too few school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists per student means that such personnel are often unable to effectively address the needs of students4 7#aj7 ,the ,american ,school ,counselor ,association and ,american ,counseling ,association recommend having at least #a school counselor for every #bej students4 7#aa7 ,the ,school ,social ,work ,association of ,america recommends having at least #a school social worker for every #djj students4 7#ab7 ,the ,national ,association of ,school ,psychologists recommends having at least #a school psychologist for every #ejj-gjj students4 7#ac7 ,recent research of victimization of children ages #b to #ag suggests that more than one-half of the children experienced a physical assault in the study year4 ,more than #a in #d experienced a property offense1 more than #a in #h experienced a form of child maltreatment1 #a in #ab experienced a sexual victimization1 and more than #a in #c had been a witness to violence or experienced another form of indirect victimization4 ,only #bi percent of the children had no direct or indirect victimization4 7#ad7 ,principals and teachers see signs of trauma-related stress in many students including hostile outbursts1 sliding grades1 poor test performance1 and the inability to pay attention4 7#ae7 ,there were more than #dbc1jjj children in foster care in #bjji1 and studies have revealed these children to have higher rates of placement in special education1 dropping out of school1 discipline problems1 and poorer academic skills than their non-foster care peers4 #c4 ,purpose ,the purpose of this ,act is to increase the recruitment and retention of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists by low-income local educational agencies in order to-- 7#a7 support all students who are at risk of negative educational outcomes2 7#b7 improve student achievement1 which may be measured by growth in academic achievement on tests required by the applicable ,state educational agency1 persistence rates1 graduation rates1 and other appropriate measures2 7#c7 improve retention of teachers who are highly qualified2 7#d7 increase and improve outreach and collaboration between school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists and parents and families served by low-income local educational agencies2 7#e7 increase and improve collaboration among teachers1 principals1 school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists and improve professional development opportunities for teachers and principals in the area of strategies related to improving classroom climate and classroom management2 and 7#f7 improve working conditions for all school personnel4 #d4 ,grant program to increase the number of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists employed by low-income local educational agencies 7a7 ,grant ,program authorized ,the ,secretary of ,education shall award grants on a competitive basis to eligible partnerships that receive recommendations from the peer review panel established under subsection 7d71 to enable such partnerships to carry out pipeline programs to increase the number of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists employed by low-income local educational agencies by carrying out any of the activities described by subsection 7g74 7b7 ,grant ,period ,a grant awarded under this section shall be for a #e-year period and may be renewed for additional #e-year periods upon a showing of adequate progress1 as the ,secretary determines appropriate4 7c7 ,application ,to be eligible to receive a grant under this section1 an eligible graduate institution1 on behalf of an eligible partnership1 shall submit to the ,secretary a grant application1 including-- 7#a7 an assessment of the existing ratios of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists to students enrolled in schools in each low-income local educational agency that is part of the eligible partnership2 and 7#b7 a detailed description of-- 7,a7 a plan to carry out a pipeline program to train1 place1 and retain school counselors1 school social workers1 or school psychologists1 or any combination thereof1 as applicable1 in low-income local educational agencies2 and 7,b7 the proposed allocation and use of grant funds to carry out activities described by subsection 7g74 7d7 ,peer ,review ,panel 7#a7 ,establishment of ,panel ,the ,secretary shall establish a peer review panel to evaluate applications for grants under subsection 7c7 and make recommendations to the ,secretary regarding such applications4 7#b7 ,evaluation of ,applications ,in making its recommendations1 the peer review panel shall take into account the purpose of this ,act and the application requirements under subsection 7c71 including the quality of the proposed pipeline program4 7#c7 ,recommendation of ,panel ,the ,secretary may award grants under this section only to eligible partnerships whose applications receive a recommendation from the peer review panel4 7#d7 ,membership of panel 7,a7 ,in general ,the peer review panel shall include at a minimum the following members3 7i7 ,one clinical1 tenured1 or tenure track faculty member at an institution of higher education with a current appointment to teach courses in the subject area of school counselor education4 7ii7 ,one clinical1 tenured1 or tenure track faculty member at an institution of higher education with a current appointment to teach courses in the subject area of school social worker education4 7iii7 ,one clinical1 tenured1 or tenure track faculty member at an institution of higher education with a current appointment to teach courses in the subject area of school psychology education4 7iv7 ,one clinical1 tenured1 or tenure track faculty member at an institution of higher education with a current appointment to teach courses in the subject area of teacher education4 7v7 ,one individual with expertise in school counseling who works or has worked in public schools4 7vi7 ,one individual with expertise in school social work who works or has worked in public schools4 7vii7 ,one individual with expertise in school psychology who works or has worked in public schools4 7viii7 ,one administrator who works or has worked for a low-income local educational agency4 7ix7 ,one highly qualified teacher who has substantial experience working for a low-income local educational agency4 7,b7 ,clinical faculty member ,at least #a of the members described in subparagraph 7,a7 shall be a clinical faculty member4 7e7 ,distribution of grants ,from among the applications receiving a recommendation by the peer review panel1 the ,secretary shall-- 7#a7 award the first #e grants to eligible partnerships from #e different ,states2 7#b7 award not less than #a grant to a partnership that serves a high percentage of ,native ,american1 ,alaska ,native1 or ,native ,hawaiian students2 7#c7 award not less than #a grant to a partnership focused on serving students in highly rural areas2 7#d7 to the extent practicable1 distribute grants equitably among eligible partnerships that propose to train graduate students in each of the #c professions of school counseling1 school social work1 and school psychology2 and 7#e7 to the extent practicable1 equitably distribute the grants among eligible partnerships that include an urban low-income local educational agency and eligible partnerships that include a rural low-income local educational agency1 with1 at a minimum1 a percentage of the funds1 equal to the percentage of low-income children in the ,united ,states who are served by rural local educational agencies 7based on the ,small ,area ,income and ,poverty ,estimates of the ,bureau of ,census1 for the most recent year such information is available71 awarded to eligible partnerships that include a rural low-income local educational agency4 7f7 ,priority ,the ,secretary shall give priority to eligible partnerships that-- 7#a7 propose to use the grant funds to carry out the activities described under paragraphs 7#a7 through 7#c7 of subsection 7g7 in schools that have higher numbers or percentages of low-income students and students not meeting the proficient level of achievement 7as described by section #aaaa of the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #fcaa77 in comparison to other schools that are served by the low-income local educational agency that is part of the eligible partnership2 7#b7 include #a or more low-income local educational agencies that have fewer school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists per student than other eligible partnerships2 7#c7 include #a or more eligible graduate institutions that offer graduate programs in the greatest number of the following areas3 7,a7 school counseling2 7,b7 school social work2 and 7,c7 school psychology2 and 7#d7 propose to collaborate with other institutions of higher education with similar programs1 including sharing facilities1 faculty members1 and administrative costs4 7g7 ,use of grant funds ,grant funds awarded under this section may be used-- 7#a7 to pay the administrative costs 7including supplies1 office and classroom space1 supervision1 mentoring1 and transportation stipends as necessary and appropriate7 related to-- 7,a7 having graduate students of school counseling1 school social work1 and school psychology placed in schools served by participating low-income local educational agencies to complete required field work1 credit hours1 internships1 or related training as applicable for the degree1 license1 or credential program of each such student2 and 7,b7 offering required graduate course work for graduate students of school counseling1 school social work1 and school psychology on the site of a participating low-income local educational agency2 7#b7 for not more than the first #c years after participating graduates receive a masters or other graduate degree or obtain a ,state license or credential in school counseling1 school social work1 or school psychology1 to hire and pay all or part of the salaries of such participating graduates to work as school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists in schools served by participating low-income local educational agencies2 7#c7 to increase the number of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists per student in schools served by participating low-income local educational agencies to work towards the student support personnel target ratios2 7#d7 to recruit1 hire1 and retain culturally or linguistically under-represented graduate students in school counseling1 school social work1 and school psychology for placement in schools served by participating low-income educational agencies2 7#e7 to recruit1 hire1 and pay faculty as necessary to increase the capacity of a participating eligible graduate institution to train graduate students in the fields of school counseling1 school social work1 and school psychology2 7#f7 to develop coursework that will-- 7,a7 encourage a commitment by graduate students in school counseling1 school social work1 or school psychology to work for low-income local educational agencies2 7,b7 give participating graduates the knowledge and skill sets necessary to meet the needs of-- 7i7 students and families served by low-income local educational agencies2 and 7ii7 teachers1 administrators1 and other staff who work for low-income local educational agencies2 7,c7 enable participating graduates to meet the unique needs of students at-risk of negative educational outcomes1 including students who-- 7i7 are ,english language learners2 7ii7 have a parent or caregiver who is a migrant worker2 7iii7 have a parent or caregiver who is a member of the ,armed ,forces or ,national ,guard who has been deployed or returned from deployment2 7iv7 are homeless1 including unaccompanied youth2 7v7 have come into contact with the juvenile justice system or adult criminal justice system1 including students currently or previously held in juvenile detention facilities or adult jails and students currently or previously held in juvenile correctional facilities or adult prisons2 7vi7 have been identified as eligible for services under the ,individuals with ,disabilities ,education ,act 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #adjj et seq47 or the ,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #gja et seq472 7vii7 have been a victim to or witnessed domestic violence or violence in their community2 and 7viii7 are foster care youth1 youth aging out of foster care1 or former foster youth2 and 7,d7 utilize best practices determined by the ,american ,school ,counselor ,association1 ,national ,association of ,social ,workers1 ,school ,social ,work ,association of ,america1 and ,national ,association of ,school ,psychologists2 7#g7 to provide tuition credits to graduate students participating in the program2 7#h7 for student loan forgiveness for participating graduates who are employed as school counselors1 school social workers1 or school psychologists by participating low-income local educational agencies for a minimum of #e consecutive years2 and 7#i7 for similar activities to fulfill the purpose of this ,act1 as the ,secretary determines appropriate4 7h7 ,supplement not supplant ,funds made available under this section shall be used to supplement1 not supplant1 other ,federal1 ,state1 or local funds for the activities described in subsection 7g74 7i7 ,reporting requirements ,each eligible partnership that receives a grant under this section shall submit an annual report to the ,secretary on the progress of such partnership in carrying out the purpose of this ,act4 ,such report shall include a description of-- 7#a7 actual service delivery provided through grant funds1 including-- 7,a7 characteristics of the participating eligible graduate institution1 including descriptive information on the model used and actual program performance2 7,b7 characteristics of graduate students participating in the program1 including performance on any tests required by the ,state educational agency for credentialing or licensing1 demographic characteristics1 and graduate student retention rates2 7,c7 characteristics of students of the participating low-income local educational agency1 including performance on any tests required by the ,state educational agency1 demographic characteristics1 and promotion1 persistence1 and graduation rates1 as appropriate2 7,d7 an estimate of the annual implementation costs of the program2 and 7,e7 the numbers of students1 schools1 and graduate students participating in the program2 7#b7 outcomes that are consistent with the purpose of the grant program1 including-- 7,a7 internship and post-graduation placement2 7,b7 graduation and professional career readiness indicators2 and 7,c7 characteristics of the participating low-income local educational agency1 including changes in hiring and retention of highly qualified teachers and school counselors1 school psychologists1 and school social workers2 7#c7 the instruction1 materials1 and activities being funded under the grant program2 and 7#d7 the effectiveness of any training and ongoing professional development provided-- 7,a7 to students and faculty in the appropriate departments or schools of the participating eligible graduate institution2 7,b7 to the faculty1 administration1 and staff of the participating low-income local educational agency2 and 7,c7 to the broader community of providers of social1 emotional1 behavioral1 and related support to students and to those who train such providers4 7j7 ,evaluations 7#a7 ,interim evaluations ,the ,secretary may conduct interim evaluations to determine whether each eligible partnership receiving a grant is making adequate progress as the ,secretary considers appropriate4 ,the contents of the annual report submitted to the ,secretary under subsection 7i7 may be used by the ,secretary to determine whether an eligible partnership receiving a grant is demonstrating adequate progress4 7#b7 ,final evaluation ,the ,secretary shall conduct a final evaluation to-- 7,a7 determine the effectiveness of the grant program in carrying out the purpose of this ,act2 and 7,b7 compare the relative effectiveness of each of the various activities described by subsection 7g7 for which grant funds may be used4 7k7 ,report ,not earlier than #e years nor later than #f years after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary shall submit to ,congress a report containing the findings of the evaluation conducted under subsection 7j77#b71 and such recommendations as the ,secretary considers appropriate4 7l7 ,authorization of ,appropriations 7#a7 ,in general ,there is authorized to be appropriated to the ,secretary to carry out the program under this section1 #cj1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjae and for each succeeding fiscal year4 7#b7 ,reservation for evaluation ,from the total amount appropriated to carry out this section each fiscal year1 the ,secretary shall reserve not more than #c percent for evaluations under subsection 7j74 #e4 ,student loan forgiveness for individuals who are employed for #e or more consecutive school years as school counselors1 school social workers1 school psychologists1 or other qualified psychologists or psychiatrists by low-income local educational agencies 7a7 ,establishment of program ,the ,secretary shall establish a program to provide student loan forgiveness to individuals who are not and have never been participants in the grant program established under section #d and who have been employed for #e or more consecutive school years as school counselors1 school social workers1 school psychologists1 other qualified psychologists1 or child and adolescent psychiatrists by low-income local educational agencies4 7b7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there are authorized to be appropriated to the ,secretary such sums as may be necessary to carry out the program under this section4 #f4 ,future designation study 7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall conduct a study to identify a formula for future designation of regions with a shortage of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists to use in implementing grant programs and other programs such as the programs established under this ,act or for other purposes related to any such designation1 based on the latest available data on-- 7#a7 the number of residents under the age of #ah in an area served by a low-income local educational agency2 7#b7 the percentage of the population of an area served by a low-income local educational agency with incomes below the poverty line2 7#c7 the percentage of residents age #ah or older in an area served by a low-income local educational agency with secondary school diplomas2 7#d7 the percentage of students identified as eligible for special education services in an area served by a low-income local educational agency2 7#e7 the youth crime rate in an area served by a low-income local educational agency2 7#f7 the current number of full-time-equivalent and active school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists employed by a low-income local educational agency2 7#g7 the number of students in an area served by a low-income local education agency in military families 7active duty and reserve duty7 with parents who have been alerted for deployment1 are currently deployed1 or have returned from a deployment in the previous school year2 and 7#h7 such other criteria as the ,secretary considers appropriate4 7b7 ,report ,not later than #b years after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary shall submit to ,congress a report containing the findings of the study conducted under subsection 7a74 #g4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,school counseling program definitions ,the terms child and adolescent psychiatrist1 school counselor1 school psychologist1 school social worker1 and other qualified psychologist have the meaning given the terms in section #edba of the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #gbde74 7#b7 ,,esea general definitions ,the terms ,state educational agency1 local educational agency1 and highly qualified have the meaning given the terms in section #iaja of the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ghja74 7#c7 ,best practices ,the term best practices means a technique or methodology that1 through experience and research related to the practice of school counseling1 school psychology1 or school social work1 has proven to reliably lead to a desired result4 7#d7 ,eligible graduate institution ,the term eligible graduate institution means an institution of higher education that offers a program of study that leads to a masters or other graduate degree-- 7,a7 in school psychology that is accredited or nationally recognized by the ,national ,association of ,school ,psychologists ,program ,approval ,board and that prepares students in such program for the ,state licensing or certification exam in school psychology2 7,b7 in school counseling that prepares students in such program for the ,state licensing or certification exam in school counseling2 7,c7 in school social work that is accredited by the ,council on ,social ,work ,education and that prepares students in such program for the ,state licensing or certification exam in school social work2 or 7,d7 in any combination of study described in subparagraphs 7,a71 7,b71 or 7,c74 7#e7 ,eligible partnership ,the term eligible partnership means-- 7,a7 a partnership between #a or more low-income local educational agencies and #a or more eligible graduate institutions2 or 7,b7 in regions in which local educational agencies may not have a sufficient elementary school and secondary school student population to support the placement of all participating graduate students1 a partnership between a ,state educational agency1 on behalf of #a or more low-income local educational agencies1 and #a or more eligible graduate institutions4 7#f7 ,institution of higher education ,the term institution of higher education has the meaning given such term in section #ajb of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ajjb71 but excludes any institution of higher education described in section #ajb7;a77#a77;,c7 of such ,act4 7#g7 ,low-income local educational agency ,the term low-income local educational agency means a local educational agency-- 7,a7 in which not less than #bj percent of the students served by such agency are from families with incomes below the poverty line as determined by the ,bureau of the ,census on the basis of the most recent satisfactory data available2 7,b7 that has existing ratios of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists to students served by the agency that are not more than #a school counselor per #bge students1 not more than #a school psychologist per #ggj students1 and not more than #a school social worker per #ddj students4 7#h7 ,participating eligible graduate institution ,the term participating eligible graduate institution means an eligible graduate institution that is part of an eligible partnership awarded a grant under section #d4 7#i7 ,participating graduate ,the term participating graduate means an individual who-- 7,a7 has received a masters or other graduate degree in elementary or secondary school counseling1 school social work1 or school psychology from a participating eligible graduate institution and has obtained a ,state license or credential in school counseling1 school social work1 or school psychology2 and 7,b7 as a graduate student of school counseling1 school social work1 or school psychology was placed in a school served by a participating low-income local educational agency to complete required field work1 credit hours1 internships1 or related training as applicable4 7#aj7 ,participating low-income local educational agency ,the term participating low-income local educational agency means a low-income local educational agency that is part of an eligible partnership awarded a grant under section #d4 7#aa7 ,secretary ,the term ,secretary means the ,secretary of ,education4 7#ab7 ,student support personnel target ratios ,the term student support personnel target ratios means the ratios of school counselors1 school social workers1 and school psychologists to students recommended to enable such personnel to effectively address the needs of students including-- 7,a7 at least #a school counselor for every #bej students 7as recommended by the ,american ,school ,counselors ,association and ,american ,counseling ,association72 7,b7 at least #a school psychologist for every #ejj-gjj students 7as recommended by the ,national ,association of ,school ,psychologists72 and 7,c7 at least #a school social worker for every #djj students 7as recommended by the ,school ,social ,work ,association of ,america74 7#ac7 ,unaccompanied youth ,the term unaccompanied youth has the meaning given such term in section #gbe of the ,mc,kinney-,vento ,homeless ,assistance ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #aadcd;a74