,i #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #bjjf ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,april #a1 #bjai ,ms4 ,shalala introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,education and ,labor ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife to provide capacity-building assistance to institutions of higher education to examine and address inequities in college student access and success1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,college ,equity ,act of #bjai4 #b4 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that institutions of higher education should examine institutional policies related to admissions1 financial aid1 remedial education1 support services1 coursework1 faculty1 and staff that may have differential impacts on historically underrepresented students4 #c4 ,equity grants ,title ,,vii of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #aacc et seq47 is amended by adding at the end the following3 ,f ,equity ,grants #gia4 ,equity planning grants 7a7 ,authorization 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall award planning grants to institutions of higher education to encourage institutions to conduct equity audits4 7#b7 ,duration ,a grant award under this section shall be #b years in duration4 7#c7 ,minimum grant award ,a grant award under this section shall be in an amount that is not less than #ajj1jjj4 7b7 ,applications ,an institution of higher education that desires to receive a planning grant under this section shall submit an application to the ,secretary at such time1 in such form1 and containing such information1 as the ,secretary may require1 including not less than the following3 7#a7 ,a narrative statement with sufficient detail regarding how the institution intends to conduct the equity audit and that provides examples of certain policies1 practices1 and trends the institution intends to examine4 7#b7 ,a description of all relevant offices and staff who will be involved in implementing the equity audit4 7#c7 ,a description of what specific data and outcome measures the institution will examine and for which student populations4 7c7 ,use of grant funds ,an institution of higher education that receives a planning grant under this section to conduct an equity audit shall undertake a thorough internal review of the institution's policies1 practices1 and resources to identify areas that might produce gaps in outcomes by gender1 race1 ethnicity1 national origin1 income1 criminal justice background1 military service history1 or for first-generation students1 students with disabilities1 student parents1 and transfer students4 ,the equity audit shall examine1 with respect to the institution of higher education1 the following3 7#a7 ,admissions policies1 including the demographics of the ,state or region where the institution is located1 the demographics of communities where the institution recruits1 the makeup of students admitted through early admissions1 early decision1 demonstrated interest1 athletic preference admissions1 and legacy admissions1 and the treatment and admission of transfer students and credit transfer policies4 7#b7 ,outreach1 communication1 and other interactions with students who accept admission to the institution to ensure they officially enroll when the school term begins4 7#c7 ,the financial aid awarding policies and processes1 including presentation of offer letters to students1 handling student accounts if funds are delayed due to verification1 and institutional grant aid policies1 including the distribution of need-based and non-need-based grants1 which students receive institutional support and which students lose institutional support and when that occurs4 7#d7 ,access to1 and participation in1 pre-college and first-year experience offerings1 such as orientation and bridge programs4 7#e7 ,educational supports1 such as remedial placement and success1 academic resource center usage1 advisor to student ratios1 and how students are differentially affected by satisfactory academic progress policies4 7#f7 ,student support services1 including demographics of staff and students served by academic or career advising1 child care centers1 mentoring programs1 and mental health and counseling services4 7#g7 ,access to1 and participation in1 small academic programs1 ,,stem programs1 study abroad1 and undergraduate research opportunities4 7#h7 ,diversity among administrators1 advisers1 faculty overall1 adjunct faculty1 and teachers of core and introductory-level courses1 and the demographics of faculty teaching historically underrepresented students4 7#i7 ,physical accessibility on the grounds of the institution and programmatic accessibility of campus services1 activities1 and programs4 7#aj7 ,demographics of students hired by employers who recruit on campus or that the institution has partnerships with in work-based programs4 7#aa7 ,any other policy1 practice1 or trend the institution deems relevant to identify areas that might produce gaps in access or outcomes4 7d7 ,reporting requirement ,an institution of higher education that receives a grant under this section shall submit a report to the ,secretary detailing findings of the equity audit not later than #ij days after the date that the grant period ends4 #gib4 ,equity implementation grants 7a7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,educational and related expenditures 7,a7 ,in general ,the term educational and related expenditures means1 with respect to an institution of higher education for an academic year1 the total amount that is equal to the sum of-- 7i7 the amount expended by the institution of higher education in the academic year for instruction and student services2 and 7ii7 the amount determined under subparagraph 7,b7 with respect to the institution of higher education for the academic year4 7,b7 ,education share ,with respect to an institution of higher education for an academic year1 the amount determined under this subparagraph is equal to the product of-- 7i7 the percentage that is equal to-- 7,i7 the amount expended by the institution of higher education in the academic year for instruction and student services2 divided by 7,,ii7 the amount expended by the institution of higher education in the academic year for instruction1 student services1 research1 and public service2 and 7ii7 the amount expended by the institution of higher education in the academic year for instruction1 student services1 and operation maintenance4 7#b7 ,eligible entity ,the term eligible entity means an institution of higher education that has received an equity planning grant under section #gia4 7#c7 ,full-time equivalent undergraduate students ,the term full-time equivalent undergraduate students means the sum of the number of undergraduate students enrolled full time at an institution of higher education1 plus the full-time equivalent of the number of undergraduate students enrolled part time 7determined on the basis of the quotient of the sum of the credit hours of all part-time students divided by #ab7 at such institution4 7b7 ,authorization of grants 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall award1 on a competitive basis1 implementation grants to enable eligible entities to develop and execute an improvement plan to address the findings of the equity audit4 7#b7 ,determination of grant size ,the ,secretary shall award implementation grants under this section in an amount based on-- 7,a7 the eligible entity's enrollment size2 and 7,b7 the severity of equity audit findings1 including low overall performance outcomes or large performance gaps between groups of students4 7#c7 ,duration ,a grant award under this section shall be #e years in duration4 7c7 ,application 7#a7 ,in general ,an eligible entity that desires to receive an implementation grant under this section shall submit an application to the ,secretary at such time1 in such form1 and containing such information1 as the ,secretary may require4 7#b7 ,contents ,each application submitted under paragraph 7#a7 shall include the following3 7,a7 ,demographic information and data about the eligible entity1 including a description of the entity's mission1 history1 enrollment size1 the student population it serves1 and educational and related expenditures4 7,b7 ,a description of equity audit findings1 including the gaps in outcomes identified and for which group of students4 7,c7 ,an improvement plan that includes a description of the specific activities the eligible entity will carry out with the funds made available by such grant to address the specific gaps or problems identified by the equity audit4 7,d7 ,a description of how the eligible entity will annually monitor and assess its progress in closing achievement gaps4 7,e7 ,a description of the level of institutional commitment and which institutional leaders and offices will be involved in the planning1 improvement1 and assessment process4 7#c7 ,priority ,an application submitted under paragraph 7#a7 shall receive priority based on the following3 7,a7 ,the average educational and related expenditures per full-time equivalent undergraduate student of the eligible entity is low in comparison with the average educational and related expenditures per full-time equivalent undergraduate student of institutions that offer similar instruction4 7,b7 ,the eligible entity demonstrates low overall performance outcomes or large performance gaps between groups of students and submits additional written statements from select executive-level institutional leaders1 including members of any governing board of trustees1 to demonstrate their interest and commitment to executing the improvement plan4 7,c7 ,the eligible entity has an enrollment of students not less than #cj percent of whom are eligible to receive a ,federal ,pell ,grant4 7d7 ,reporting requirements 7#a7 ,progress reports ,an eligible entity awarded an implementation grant under this section shall submit a report detailing progress on its improvement plan to the ,secretary not later than #c years after being awarded the grant and again not later than #e years after being awarded the grant4 7#b7 ,final report ,not later than #ij days after the date a grant period awarded under this section ends1 the ,secretary shall submit to ,congress a report detailing the grantee's initial equity audit findings and progress in addressing identified equity gaps4 #gic4 ,authorization of appropriations ,there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this part such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year #bjai and each succeeding fiscal year4 4 #d4 ,accreditation ,section #dif7;a7 of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ajii;b7a77 is amended-- 7#a7 in paragraph 7#g71 by striking and after the semicolon2 7#b7 in paragraph 7#h71 by striking the period at the end and inserting 2 and2 and 7#c7 by adding at the end the following3 7#i7 such agency or association shall-- 7,a7 assess findings from an equity audit conducted under section #gia of any institution of higher education the agency or association accredits2 and 7,b7 provide ongoing feedback and technical assistance to help such institutions address the findings from the equity audit and share best practices from the equity audits4 4