School Principal Recruitment and Training Act of 2013 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to establish a principal recruitment and training grant program awarding renewable, matching grants to states, local educational agencies (LEAs), and states and LEAs that partner with each other or with nonprofit organizations or institutions of higher education to recruit, prepare, place, and support principals in eligible schools.
Defines "eligible schools" as high-need schools, persistently low-achieving schools, achievement gap schools, schools with middle grades that feed students to high schools with low graduation rates, and rural schools served by high-need LEAs.
Requires grantees to work with experts and stakeholders to develop, during the first year of a grant, a leadership training program for principals, mentors, and other school leaders that prepares and supports them in leading effective school reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools.
Requires grantees to use the grants, after that first year, to: (1) implement their leadership training program; (2) ensure that their training program is informed, on an ongoing basis, by consultations with experts and stakeholders and by tracking the performance of program graduates; (3) select cohorts of experienced principals to lead school reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools; (4) support and encourage interaction among principals who have completed the training program; and (5) disseminate information to principals, mentors, and other school leaders engaging in reform efforts in persistently low-achieving schools.
Makes grant renewal decisions dependent on the Secretary of Education's evaluation of the extent to which the principals recruited, prepared, placed, or supported by the grantee have improved school-level student outcomes in eligible schools.
Directs the Secretary to: (1) evaluate the programs funded by this Act, and (2) identify and disseminate research and best practices related to those programs.
[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1736 Introduced in House (IH)]
113th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1736
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to recruit,
prepare, and support principals through capacity-building measures that
will improve student academic achievement in high-need schools.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 25, 2013
Mrs. Davis of California (for herself, Mr. Polis, Mr. Ben Ray Lujan of
New Mexico, Ms. Bordallo, and Ms. Roybal-Allard) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and
the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to recruit,
prepare, and support principals through capacity-building measures that
will improve student academic achievement in high-need schools.
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 ``School Principal Recruitment and
Training Act of 2013''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to recruit, prepare, and support
principals through capacity-building measures that will improve student
academic achievement in high-need schools.
SEC. 3. PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT AND ACTIVITIES.
Part A of title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``Subpart 6--Principal Recruitment and Training
``SEC. 2161. PRINCIPAL RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING GRANT PROGRAM.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Current principal.--The term `current principal'
means an individual who, as of the date of the determination of
participation in a program under this section, is employed as a
principal or has been employed as a principal.
``(2) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' means--
``(A) a local educational agency that serves an
eligible school or a consortium of such agencies;
``(B) a State educational agency or a consortium of
such agencies;
``(C) a State educational agency in partnership
with one or more local educational agencies that serve
an eligible school; or
``(D) an entity described in subparagraph (A) or
(B), or in partnership with one or more nonprofit
organizations or institutions of higher education.
``(3) Eligible school.--The term `eligible school' means a
public school, including a public charter school, that meets
one or more of the following criteria:
``(A) Is a high-need school.
``(B) Is a persistently low-achieving school, as
described in section 1116.
``(C) Is an achievement gap school, as described in
section 1116.
``(D) In the case of a public school containing
middle grades, feeds into a public high school that has
less than a 60-percent graduation rate.
``(E) Is a rural school served by a local
educational agency that is eligible to receive
assistance under part B of title VI.
``(4) Mentor principal.--The term `mentor principal' means
an individual with the following characteristics:
``(A) Strong instructional leadership skills in an
elementary school or secondary school setting.
``(B) Strong verbal and written communication
skills, which may be demonstrated by performance on
appropriate assessments.
``(C) Knowledge, skills, and attitudes to--
``(i) establish and maintain a professional
learning community that effectively extracts
information from data to improve the school
culture and personalize instruction for all
students to result in improved student
achievement;
``(ii) create and maintain a learning
culture within the school that provides a
climate conducive to the development of all
members of the school community, including one
of continuous learning for adults tied to
student learning and other school goals;
``(iii) engage in continuous professional
development, utilizing a combination of
academic study, developmental simulation
exercises, self-reflection, mentorship and
internship;
``(iv) understand youth development
appropriate to the age level served by the
school and from this knowledge sets high
expectations and standards for the academic,
social, emotional and physical development of
all students; and
``(v) actively engage the community to
create shared responsibility for student
academic performance and successful
development.
``(5) Middle grades.--The term `middle grades' means any of
grades 5 through 8.
``(6) School-level student outcomes.--The term `school-
level student outcomes' means, at the whole school level and
for each subgroup of students described in section
1111(a)(2)(B)(ix) served by the school--
``(A) student academic achievement and student
growth; and
``(B) additional outcomes, including, at the high
school level, graduation rates and the percentage of
students taking college-level coursework.
``(b) Program Authorized.--
``(1) Principal, recruitment and training grant program.--
The Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities to enable
such entities to recruit, prepare, place, and support
principals in eligible schools.
``(2) Duration.--
``(A) In general.--
``(i) Not more than 5 year duration.--A
grant awarded under this section shall be not
more than 5 years in duration.
``(ii) Renewal.--The Secretary may--
``(I) renew a grant awarded under
this section based on performance; and
``(II) in renewing a grant under
subclause (I), award the grantee
increased funding to scale up or
replicate the grantee's program.
``(B) Performance.--In evaluating performance for
purposes of subparagraph (A)(ii)(1)--
``(i) the Secretary's primary consideration
shall be the extent to which the principals
recruited, prepared, placed, or supported by
the grantee have improved school-level student
outcomes in eligible schools; and
``(ii) the Secretary shall also consider
the percentage of program graduates--
``(I) who become principals in
eligible schools;
``(II) who remain principals in
eligible schools for multiple years;
and
``(III) who are highly rated
principals under a teacher and
principal evaluation system, if
applicable.
``(c) Application and Selection Criteria.--
``(1) Application.--An eligible entity that desires a grant
under this section shall submit to the Secretary an application
at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such
information as the Secretary may require.
``(2) Selection criteria.--In awarding grants under this
section, the Secretary shall consider--
``(A) the extent to which the entity has the
capacity to implement the activities described in
subsection (e) that the entity proposes to implement;
``(B) the extent to which the entity has a
demonstrated record of effectiveness or an evidenced-
based plan for preparing principals to improve school-
level student outcomes in eligible schools;
``(C) the extent to which the entity has a
demonstrated record of effectiveness or an evidence-
based plan for providing principals trained by the
entity with the guidance, support, and tools they need
to improve school-level student outcomes in eligible
schools, including providing principals with resources,
such as funding to ensure supports for quality
teaching, and decisionmaking authority over areas such
as personnel, budget, curriculum, or scheduling; and
``(D) the likelihood of the entity sustaining the
project with funds other than funds provided under this
section, which other funds may include funds provided
under this title other than this section, once the
grant is no longer available to the entity.
``(d) Awarding Grants.--
``(1) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the
Secretary shall, give priority to an eligible entity that has
the ability to provide data on principal preparation or a
record of preparing or developing principals who--
``(A) have improved school-level student outcomes;
``(B) have become principals in eligible schools;
and
``(C) remain principals in eligible schools for
multiple years.
``(2) Grants for rural schools and low-performing
schools.--In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary
shall, consistent with the quality of applications--
``(A) award not less than one grant to an eligible
entity that intends to establish a program that focuses
on training or supporting principals and other school
leaders for rural schools; and
``(B) award not less than one grant to an eligible
entity that intends to establish a program to train and
support principals and other school leaders to lead
reform efforts in a State or more than one State, as
determined under section 1116.
``(3) Reform efforts.--An eligible entity that receives a
grant under this section to carry out a program described in
paragraph (2)(B)--
``(A) during the first year of the grant, shall use
grant funds--
``(i) to bring together experts and
stakeholders who are committed to dramatic and
effective reform of persistently low-achieving
schools who can provide input about what the
evidence base shows regarding effective school
leadership in such schools;
``(ii) to collect and develop, in
consultation with experts and stakeholders, a
core body of knowledge regarding effective
school reform leadership in persistently low-
achieving schools, which is evidence based;
``(iii) to develop, drawing on the core
body of knowledge developed in clause (ii), a
leadership training program for principals,
mentors, and other school leaders, to prepare
and support the principals, mentors, and
leaders to lead effective school reform efforts
in persistently low achieving schools; and
``(B) during each year of the grant after the first
year, shall use grant funds--
``(i) to carry out the leadership training
program described in subparagraph (A)(iii);
``(ii) to ensure that the leadership
training program described in subparagraph
(A)(iii) is informed, on an ongoing basis, by
consultation with experts and stakeholders, and
by the program's tracking of the performance of
its graduates in leading school reform efforts
in persistently low-achieving schools;
``(iii) to select cohorts of experienced
principals to lead school reform efforts in
persistently low-achieving schools;
``(iv) to provide support for, and
encourage interaction among, cohorts of
principals after completion of the leadership
training program described in subparagraph
(A)(iii); and
``(v) to disseminate information to
principals, mentors, and other school leaders
engaging in reform efforts in persistently low-
achieving schools.
``(e) Activities.--Each eligible entity that receives a grant under
this section shall use grant funds to carry out the following:
``(1) To recruit and select, using rigorous, competency-
based, selection criteria, and train and support a diverse
group of aspiring or current principals, or both, for work in
eligible schools.
``(2) Tracking participants to determine if such
individuals are attaining, or have attained, the competencies
needed to complete the training and enter into an effective
leadership role, and provide counseling and, if appropriate,
separation, to participants who the entity determines will not
attain, or have not attained, those competencies.
``(3) If the eligible entity provides a program for
aspiring principals--
``(A) candidates must demonstrate awareness of and
have experience with the knowledge, skills and
attitudes to--
``(i) establish and maintain a professional
learning community that effectively extracts
information from data to improve the school
culture and personalize instruction for all
students to result in improved student
achievement;
``(ii) create and maintain a learning
culture within the school that provides a
climate conductive to the development of all
members of the school community, including one
of continuous learning for adults tied to
student learning and other school goals;
``(iii) engage in continuous professional
development, utilizing a combination of
academic study, developmental simulation
exercises, self-reflection, mentorship and
internship;
``(iv) understand youth development
appropriate to the age level served by the
school and from this knowledge set high
expectations and standards for the academic,
social, emotional and physical development of
all students; and
``(v) actively engage the community to
create shared responsibility for student
academic performance and successful
development; a preservice residency that is not
less than 1 year in length, and that includes
coaching from a mentor principal, and
instructional leadership and organizational
management experience; and
``(B) the program shall provide aspiring principals
with--
``(i) a preservice residency that is not
less than 1 year in length, and that includes
coaching from a mentor principal, and
instructional leadership and organizational
management experience;
``(ii) focused coursework on instructional
leadership, organizational management, and the
use of a variety of data for purposes of--
``(I) instruction;
``(II) evaluation and development
of teachers; and
``(III) development of highly
effective school organizations; and
``(iii) ongoing support, mentoring, and
professional development for not less than 2
years after the aspiring principals complete
the residency and commence work as assistant
principals and principals.
``(4) To train mentors for principals and assistant
principals who are serving or who wish to serve in eligible
schools or for aspiring principals who wish to serve in such
eligible schools, or for both.
``(5) Providing differentiated training to participants in
competencies that evidence shows are critical to improving
school-level student outcomes in eligible schools, such as--
``(A) recruiting, training, supervising,
supporting, and evaluating teachers and other staff;
``(B) establishing learning communities where
principals and teachers--
``(i) share a school mission and goals with
an explicit vision of quality teaching and
learning that guides all instructional
decisions;
``(ii) commit to improving student outcomes
and performances;
``(iii) set a continuous cycle of
collective inquiry and improvement;
``(iv) foster a culture of collaboration
where teachers and principals work together on
a regular basis to analyze and improve teaching
and learning; and
``(v) support and share leadership;
``(C) where applicable for participants serving
elementary schools, offering high-quality early
childhood education to the students such participants
are serving and facilitating the transition of children
from early learning settings to elementary school;
``(D) setting high expectations for student
achievement that will prepare them for college and
career;
``(E) addressing the unique needs of specific
student populations served, such as students with
disabilities, students who are English learners, and
students who are homeless or in foster care;
``(F) managing budget resources and school time to
support high-quality instruction and improvements in
student achievement, such as by extending the school
day and year and providing common planning time to
teachers and staff;
``(G) working effectively with students' parents
and other members of the community;
``(H) using technology and multiple sources of data
to personalize instruction;
``(I) monitoring and improving the alignment and
effectiveness of curriculum, instruction, and
assessment, using a variety of data providing evidence
of student and school outcomes; and
``(J) developing and maintaining a positive school
culture where students, teachers and other staff are
motivated to collaborate and work together to achieve
goals.
``(6) Delivering high-quality, differentiated, school-level
support services and training to current principals of eligible
schools, if the eligible entity provides a program for current
principals, or during the period described in paragraph
(3)(B)(iii) to individuals who have completed the aspiring
principal residency, if the eligible entity provides a program
for aspiring principals, to help meet the specific needs of the
eligible schools they serve, which may include--
``(A) training and support for the design of
school-wide improvement plans based on the diagnosis of
school conditions and needs informed by data and
analysis of classroom and school practices; and
``(B) support in organizing and training the teams
described in paragraph (5)(B).
``(7) Making available any training materials funded under
the grant, such as syllabi, assignments, or selection rubrics,
to the department for public dissemination.
``(8) Tracking the effectiveness of the program based on,
at a minimum--
``(A) school-level student outcomes at the schools
where program graduates have served as principals;
``(B) the percentage of program graduates who
become principals in eligible schools;
``(C) the percentage of program graduates who
remain principals or assistant principals in eligible
schools for multiple years; and
``(D) the percentage of program graduates who are
highly rated under a teacher and principal evaluation
system, if applicable.
``(9) Using the data on the effectiveness of the program
for, among other purposes, the continuous improvement of the
program.
``(f) Annual Report.--An eligible entity that receives a grant
under this section shall submit an annual report, beginning in the
third year of the grant, to the Secretary regarding--
``(1) school-level student outcomes resulting from
implementation of the grant activities; and
``(2) data on--
``(A) the percentage of program graduates who
become principals or assistant principals in eligible
schools;
``(B) the percentage of graduates who remain
principals or assistant principals in eligible schools
for multiple years; and
``(C) the percentage of program graduates who are
highly rated under a teacher and principal evaluation
system, if applicable.
``(g) Matching Requirement.--
``(1) Matching requirement.--
``(A) In general.--An eligible entity that receives
a grant under this section shall contribute annually to
the activities assisted under such grant matching funds
in an amount equal to not less than 20 percent of the
amount of the grant from non-Federal sources.
``(B) Matching funds.--The matching funds
requirement under subparagraph (A) may be met by--
``(i) contributions that are in cash or in-
kind, fairly evaluated; and
``(ii) payments of a salary or stipend to
an aspiring principal during the aspiring
principal's residency year.
``(2) Waiver.--The Secretary may waive or reduce the
matching requirement under paragraph (1) if the eligible entity
demonstrates a need for such waiver or reduction due to
financial hardship.
``(h) Supplement, Not Supplant.--Grant funds provided under this
section shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, any other
Federal, State, or local funds otherwise available to carry out the
activities described in this section.
``(i) Evaluation and Dissemination of Best Practices.--In
accordance with section 9601, the Secretary shall--
``(1) carry out an evaluation of programs funded under this
section; and
``(2) identify and disseminate research and best practices
related to such programs.
``(j) Report to Congress.--Not later than 5 years after the date of
the enactment of the School Principal Recruitment and Training Act of
2013, the Secretary shall submit a report to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, the Committee on
Appropriations of the Senate, the Committee on Education and the
Workforce of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives on lessons learned
through programs funded with grants awarded under this section.
``(k) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section such sums as may be necessary
for fiscal year 2014 and each of the succeeding 5 years.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.
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