Latest Action: 09/26/2008 - Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.

Bill Text
To authorize the Secretary of Education to make grants to implement the Total Learning curriculum.

9/26/2008--Introduced.

Total Learning Curriculum Implementation Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award up to 20 competitive grants to states and local educational agencies to implement the Total Learning curriculum in classrooms for children in kindergarten through age nine.

Defines the "Total Learning curriculum" as a multi-sensory, arts-infused curriculum in an enhanced learning environment featuring small classes, an extended day, extensive professional development, and family support services.

Latest Action: 11/18/2008 - Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 1124 under authority of the order of the Senate of 11/17/2008.

Bill Text
Making supplemental appropriations for job creation and preservation, infrastructure investment, and economic and energy assistance for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009, and for other purposes. 9/26/2008--Passed House without amendment.    (There is 1 other summary) (This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.) Job Creation and Unemployment Relief Act of 2008 - Title I: Infrastructure Investments - Chapter I: Transportation - Makes supplemental appropriations for FY2009 for infrastructure investments to the Department of Transportation (DOT) for: (1) the Federal Aviation Administration, grants-in-aid for airports; (2) Federal Highway Administration, highway infrastructure investment; (3) Federal Railroad Administration, capital and debt service grants to the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK); (4) Federal Transit Administration,[...]

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Latest Action: 03/13/2008 - Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR 3/14/2008 S2142)

Bill Text
A bill to provide for Kindergarten Plus programs. 3/13/2008--Introduced. Kindergarten Plus Act of 2008 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award competitive grants to states to provide Kindergarten Plus (K+) programs of voluntary full days of kindergarten during the summer before and the summer after their traditional kindergarten school year. Directs the Secretary to ensure, to the extent possible, that each grant is of sufficient size to enable the state to provide K+ to all eligible students served by the local educational agencies (LEAs) within the state with the highest concentrations of eligible students. Makes children eligible to participate in such programs if they are: (1) five-years old or will be eligible to attend kindergarten at the beginning of the next school year; (2) from a family with an income at or below 185% of the poverty line; and (3) not already served by a high-quality program in the summer before or the summer after the child enters [...]

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Latest Action: 01/15/2008 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.

Bill Text
To assist States in establishing a universal prekindergarten program to ensure that all children 3, 4, and 5 years old have access to a high-quality full-day, full-calendar-year prekindergarten education.

11/1/2007--Introduced.

Universal Prekindergarten Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide grants to a designated state agency for development of universal prekindergaten programs for all children three, four, and five years old in the state.

Requires the state to: (1) match federal funds by at least 20%; and (2) submit with its grant application a plan to establish, coordinate, and implement a statewide universal prekindergarten program.

Authorizes state agencies to set aside up to 5% of a grant for ongoing professional development activities for teachers and staff of prekindergarten programs that wish to participate.

Latest Action: 10/24/2007 - Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Bill Text
A bill to provide grants to States to ensure that all students in the middle grades are taught an academically rigorous curriculum with effective supports so that students complete the middle grades prepared for success in high school and postsecondary endeavors, to improve State and district policies and programs relating to the academic achievement of students in the middle grades, to develop and implement effective middle school models for struggling students, and for other purposes. 10/24/2007--Introduced. Success in the Middle Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Education to make matching grants to states, based on their proportion of poor children aged 5 to 17, to: (1) implement state middle school needs analyses and, on the basis of such analyses, improvement plans that describe what students must master to successfully complete the middle grades and succeed in academically rigorous high school coursework; and (2) award competitive matching subgrants to local educational [...]

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Latest Action: 10/17/2007 - Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S12990-12991)

Bill Text
A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to improve standards for physical education. 10/17/2007--Introduced. Fitness Integrated with Teaching Kids Act or the FIT Kids Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require annual state and local educational agency report cards to include specified information on school health and physical education programs. Includes the promotion of healthy, active lifestyles by students within ESEA grant programs that support school counseling, smaller learning communities, community learning centers, and parental involvement in their childrens' education. Revises the professional development program for teachers and principals to include training for physical and health education teachers, and training on improving students' health habits and participation in physical activities. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to fund a study by the National Academy of [...]

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Latest Action: 10/17/2007 - Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S13000)

Bill Text
A bill to provide for educational opportunities for all students in State public school systems, and for other purposes. 10/17/2007--Introduced. Student Bill of Rights - Directs the Secretary of Education to make annual determinations as to whether each state's public school system provides all its students with educational resources to succeed academically and in life. Requires such education to enable students to: (1) acquire knowledge and skills necessary for responsible citizenship; (2) meet challenging academic achievement standards; and (3) compete and succeed in a global economy. Requires each system to do so by: (1) providing specified fundamentals of educational opportunity to students at each public elementary and secondary school; (2) providing educational services in school districts that receive funds for disadvantaged students that are at least comparable to educational services provided in school districts not receiving such funds; and (3) complying with [...]

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Latest Action: 10/04/2007 - Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.

Bill Text
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to foster community involvement, and for other purposes. 10/4/2007--Introduced. Working to Encourage Community Action and Responsibility in Education Act or the WE CARE Act - Amends title I (Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require states and local educational agencies (LEAs) to assess the nonacademic factors affecting student academic performance and work with other public, private, nonprofit, and community-based entities to address those factors. Requires the annual report cards issued by states and LEAs to include additional performance data, including information on their efforts to increase community and parental involvement in students' education. Establishes a new program requiring the Secretary of Education to award matching grants to LEAs for the development and implementation of community involvement policies [...]

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Latest Action: 10/01/2007 - Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Bill Text
A bill to amend title V of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to reduce class size through the use of highly qualified teachers, and for other purposes. 10/1/2007--Introduced. Facilitating Outstanding Classrooms Using Size reduction Act (FOCUS Act) - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act to require the Secretary of Education to award formula grants to states for allocation to their local educational agencies (LEAs) to: (1) reduce class size, particularly in the early elementary grades, by using highly qualified teachers; and (2) create a continuum of small classes from kindergarten through third grade for all their students. Permits LEAs to use such funds to recruit highly qualified teachers, test new teachers, and provide professional development that enables teachers to teach effectively in their content areas. Requires 80% of an LEA's allocation to be based on its proportion of the state's low-income students, with the remainder [...]

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Latest Action: 09/19/2007 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.

Bill Text
To provide grants to States to ensure that all students exit the middle grades prepared for success in a high school with an academically rigorous curriculum that prepares students for postsecondary education and the workplace. 8/3/2007--Introduced. Success in the Middle Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Education to make matching grants to states, based on their proportion of poor children aged 5 to 17, to: (1) implement state middle school improvement plans that describe what students must master to successfully complete the middle grades and matriculate to an academically rigorous high school; and (2) award competitive matching subgrants to local educational agencies (LEAs) to develop and implement a comprehensive local middle school improvement plan for each eligible school. Favors LEAs with high proportions of poor children and eligible schools. Defines "eligible schools" as those where: (1) a majority of middle grade students matriculate to high [...]

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Latest Action: 06/25/2008 - Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Discharged.

Bill Text
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to improve early education. 8/1/2007--Introduced. Providing Resources Early for Kids Act of 2007 or the PRE-K Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to award matching grants to states to enhance or improve state-funded preschool programs. Sets forth a grant formula favoring states that: (1) have curricula aligned with state early learning standards; (2) follow nationally-established best practices for class size and teacher-to-student ratios; (3) require each teacher to hold at least an associate degree in early childhood education or a related field; and (4) have a plan for meeting the requirement, within five years of receiving such grant, that teachers hold at least a baccalaureate degree in early childhood education or a related field. Directs the Secretary to establish a competitive process for awarding grants to other states that demonstrate [...]

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Latest Action: 09/19/2007 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.

Bill Text
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to improve standards for physical education. 7/31/2007--Introduced. Fitness Integrated with Teaching Kids Act or the FIT Kids Act - Requires state accountability systems, required under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), to measure not only student academic progress, but their progress toward a national goal of 150 minutes of weekly physical education in elementary school and 225 minutes of weekly physical education in middle and high schools. Amends the ESEA to require annual state and local educational agency report cards to include specified information on school health and physical education programs. Includes the promotion of healthy, active lifestyles by students within ESEA grant programs that support school counseling, safe and drug-free schools and communities, smaller learning communities, community learning centers, parental involvement in their [...]

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Latest Action: 07/19/2007 - Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S9616-9617)

Bill Text
A bill to set the United States on track to ensure children are ready to learn when they begin kindergarten. 7/19/2007--Introduced. Ready to Learn Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary of Education to award competitive matching grants to states and, through them, subgrants to schools, child care entities, Head Start programs, or other community-based prekindergarten providers for full day voluntary prekindergarten programs that prepare four-year olds for school. Requires that such programs: (1) first serve children whose family income is no higher than 200% of the poverty level or who are limited English proficient; (2) ensure that, within two years of grant receipt, each classroom is taught by a teacher who has at least a baccalaureate degree in early childhood education or such a degree and specialized training in early childhood development; (3) use curricula that are aligned with state early learning standards;[...]

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Latest Action: 08/01/2008 - Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Bill Text
To direct the Secretary of Education to make grants to State educational agencies for the modernization, renovation, or repair of public school facilities, and for other purposes. 6/4/2008--Passed House amended.    (There are 2 other summaries) 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act - Title I: Grants for Modernization, Renovation, or Repair of School Facilities - (Sec. 102) Requires the Secretary of Education to make grants to states for the modernization, renovation, or repair of public schools, including public charter schools, to make them safe, healthy, high-performing, and technologically up-to-date. Allocates grant funds among states on the basis of the relative portion of school improvement funds provided to local educational agencies (LEAs) in each state under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Reserves 1% of the grant funds for assistance to outlying areas and Indian [...]

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Latest Action: 09/11/2007 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.

Bill Text
To assist States in making voluntary high quality full-day prekindergarten programs available and economically affordable for the families of all children for at least 1 year preceding kindergarten. 6/26/2007--Introduced. Prepare All Kids Act of 2007 - Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Prekindergarten Incentive Fund from which matching grants shall be awarded to states and, through them, subgrants to qualified prekindergarten providers to establish, expand, or enhance voluntary high quality full-day prekindergarten programs serving children ages three through five. Requires prekindergarten providers to target children from families with incomes at or below 200% of the poverty line and provide them with program services free of charge. Directs state grantees to set aside: (1) at least 10% of a grant for quality early childhood development programs for children ages zero through [...]

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Latest Action: 07/24/2007 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.

Bill Text
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to reduce class size through the use of fully qualified teachers, and for other purposes.

6/11/2007--Introduced.

Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to establish a grants program to reduce class size through the use of fully-qualified teachers.

Allots funds to states and local educational agencies to recruit, hire, and train additional teachers, in order to: (1) reduce class sizes nationally, in grades one through three, to an average of 18 students per classroom; and (2) improve teaching in those grades so that all students can learn to read independently and well by the end of the third grade.

Latest Action: 07/17/2007 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.

Bill Text
To provide for adequate and equitable educational opportunities for students in State public school systems, and for other purposes. 5/17/2007--Introduced. Student Bill of Rights - Directs the Secretary of Education to make annual determinations as to whether each state's public school system provides all its students with educational resources to succeed academically and in life. Requires such education to enable students to: (1) acquire knowledge and skills necessary for responsible citizenship; (2) meet challenging academic achievement standards; and (3) compete and succeed in a global economy. Requires each system to do so through: (1) providing specified fundamentals of educational opportunity to students at each public elementary and secondary school; (2) providing educational services in school districts that receive funds for disadvantaged students that are, taken as a whole, at least comparable to educational services provided in school districts not receiving [...]

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