,,ii #aadth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #adai ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,may #ba1 #bjae,mr4 ,tester 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,schatz1 ,mr4 ,udall1 ,mr4 ,heinrich1 and ,ms4 ,heitkamp7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,indian ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to promote the academic achievement of ,american ,indian1 ,alaska ,native1 and ,native ,hawaiian children with the establishment of a ,native ,american language grant program4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,native ,language ,immersion ,student ,achievement ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,congress established the unique status of ,native ,american languages and distinctive policies supporting their use as a medium of education in the ,native ,american ,languages ,act 7,public ,law #aja-dgg74 7#b7 ,reports from the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs and tribal1 public1 charter1 and private schools and colleges that use primarily ,native ,american languages to deliver education1 have indicated that students from these schools have generally had high school graduation and college attendance rates above the norm for their peers4 7#c7 ,such successful schools include ,native ,american language medium schools focusing on both children who enter school speaking ,native ,american languages and children who enter school with little or no knowledge of a ,native ,american language1 as well as ,native ,american ,language ,nests and ,native ,american ,language ,survival ,schools4 7#d7 ,the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #fcja et seq47 includes policy barriers to schools taught through ,native ,american languages and a lack of adequate funding to support such opportunities4 7#e7 ,there is a critical need that requires immediate action to support education through ,native ,american languages to revitalize and maintain these languages4 #c4 ,native ,american language schools ,title ,,vii of the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #gdja et seq47 is amended by adding at the end the following3 ,d ,native ,american language schools #gdja4 ,native ,american language schools 7a7 ,purposes ,the purposes of this section are-- 7#a7 to establish a grant program to support schools using ,native ,american languages as the primary language of instruction of all curriculum taught at the schools that will improve high school graduation rates1 college attainment1 and career readiness2 and 7#b7 to further integrate into this ,act1 ,federal policy for such schools1 as established in the ,native ,american ,languages ,act 7,public ,law #aja-dgg74 7b7 ,program authorized 7#a7 ,in general ,from the amounts made available to carry out this section1 the ,secretary may award grants to eligible entities to develop and maintain1 or to improve and expand1 programs that support schools1 including prekindergarten through postsecondary education sites and streams1 using ,native ,american languages as the primary language of instruction of all curriculum taught4 7#b7 ,eligible entities ,in this section1 the term eligible entity means any of the following entities that has a plan to develop and maintain1 or to improve and expand1 programs that support the entity's use of one or more ,native ,american languages as the primary language of instruction in a school3 7,a7 ,an ,indian tribe 7as defined in section #ajc of the ,native ,american ,languages ,act 7#be ,u4,s4,c4 #bijb774 7,b7 ,a ,tribal ,college or ,university 7as defined in section #caf of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife74 7,c7 ,a tribal education agency4 7,d7 ,a public elementary school or secondary school 7including a public charter school74 7,e7 ,a private and accredited elementary school or secondary school4 7,f7 ,a school operated by the ,bureau of ,indian ,education4 7,g7 ,a ,regional ,corporation 7as defined in section #c of the ,alaska ,native ,claims ,settlement ,act 7#dc ,u4,s4,c4 #afjb774 7,h7 ,a private or tribal nonprofit organization4 7,i7 ,a consortium of any of the entities described in subparagraphs 7,a7 through 7,h74 7c7 ,application 7#a7 ,in general ,an eligible entity that desires to receive a grant under this section shall submit an application to the ,secretary at such time1 in such manner1 and containing such information as the ,secretary may require1 including the following3 7,a7 ,the name of the ,native ,american language to be used for instruction at the school supported by the eligible entity4 7,b7 ,the number of students attending such school4 7,c7 ,the number of present hours of instruction in or through #a or more ,native ,american languages being provided to targeted students at such school1 if any4 7,d7 ,the status of such school with regard to any applicable tribal education department or agency1 public education system1 indigenous language schooling research and cooperative1 or accrediting body4 7,e7 ,a statement that such school-- 7i7 is engaged in meeting targeted academic proficiency levels for students1 as may be required by applicable ,federal1 ,state1 or tribal law1 including the availability of coursework for students to fulfill the requirements necessary to obtain a high school diploma2 7ii7 will strive to achieve high level language fluency in students in the ,native ,american language of the school2 and 7iii7 provides assessments of students using the ,native ,american language of instruction1 where appropriate4 7,f7 ,a list of the qualifications of the staff to deliver effective education through the ,native ,american language of the school4 7#b7 ,additional application materials ,in addition to the application described in paragraph 7#a71 an eligible entity that desires to receive a grant under this section shall submit to the ,secretary the following3 7,a7 ,tribal certification 7i7 ,in general ,a certification from a ,federally recognized ,indian tribe1 or a letter from any ,state or community recognized ,native ,american entity1 on whose land the school supported by the eligible entity is located1 or which is served by such school1 indicating that the school has an endorsement to provide education primarily through the ,native ,american language and that there are sufficient speakers of such ,native ,american language at the school or available to be hired by the school4 7ii7 ,inability to secure certification ,if neither a certification nor a letter can be secured as described in clause 7i71 the eligible entity may submit to the ,secretary an explanation of why such certification and letter cannot be obtained4 ,the ,secretary may waive the certification and letter requirement under clause 7i7 if the explanation is deemed acceptable4 7,b7 ,collection of data ,a statement that such school will collect data relative to high school graduation1 college attendance1 or other data relevant to student achievement1 career readiness1 or community participation of students who matriculate through its programs1 and will participate in data collection conducted by the ,secretary that will determine best practices and further academic evaluation of the school4 7,c7 ,demonstration of capacity ,a demonstration of the capacity to have speakers of its ,native ,american language provide instruction in the content curriculum offered by such school4 7,d7 ,native language education plan ,a ,native language education plan that integrates high achievement in the ,native ,american language with improved student academic achievement1 high school graduation rates1 college attainment1 and career readiness by carrying out the activities authorized in subsection 7e74 7d7 ,awarding of grants ,in awarding grants under this section1 the ,secretary shall-- 7#a7 determine the amount and length of each grant2 and 7#b7 ensure1 to the maximum extent feasible1 that diversity in languages is represented4 7e7 ,activities authorized ,an eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall carry out the following activities3 7#a7 ,support ,native ,american language education and development4 7#b7 ,develop or refine instructional curriculum for the school supported by the eligible entity1 including distinctive teaching materials and activities1 as appropriate4 7#c7 ,fund training opportunities for teachers and1 as appropriate1 staff and administrators1 that would strengthen the overall language and academic goals of such school4 7#d7 ,develop a ,native language alignment plan to create or refine assessments of student proficiency on ,state or tribally developed academic standards for ,native ,american language schools1 aligned with the ,native language of instruction in such schools1 as appropriate4 7#e7 ,other activities that promote ,native ,american language education and development1 as appropriate4 7f7 ,report to secretary ,each eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall provide an annual report to the ,secretary in such form and manner as the ,secretary may require4 7g7 ,building native language immersion evidence base 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary1 in consultation with the ,commissioner of the ,national ,center for ,education ,statistics1 shall compile and analyze data and reports provided under subsection 7f7 to evaluate the outcomes of the grant program and contribute to the evidence base of ,native language immersion student outcomes4 7#b7 ,dissemination ,not later than #ahj days after the date the ,secretary receives all reports under subsection 7f71 the information described in paragraph 7#a7 shall be disseminated to ,congress1 including the ,subcommittee on ,indian1 ,insular and ,alaska ,native ,affairs and the ,committee on ,education and the ,workforce of the ,house of ,representatives1 and the ,committee on ,indian ,affairs and the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor and ,pensions of the ,senate4 7h7 ,authorization of appropriation ,there is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section #e1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjaf1 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the #d succeeding fiscal years4 4