On July 19, the House approved, 221-207, the Student Success Act (H.R. 5). The bill, sponsored by Rep. John Kline (R-MN), previously was approved by the House Committee on Education and the Workforce on June 19. The bill would reauthorize nearly $17 billion through FY2019 for the law commonly known as No Child Left Behind (P.L. 107-110), which expires September 30.
According to the committee report and summary, the Student Success Act would require states to establish and maintain academic standards in reading, math, and science for all students and at all schools; states would be able to establish standards for other subjects at their discretion. States also would be required to establish student assessments in reading, math, and science. The requirement that students be proficient in reading and math at the end of the school year, also known as adequate yearly progress (AYP), would be eliminated. Instead, schools would be required to measure the academic achievement of all students against the state’s standards and to evaluate each school’s performance in comparison to the state’s standards for academic achievement.
The Student Success Act would reauthorize the Education for Homeless Children and Youths program, which is the primary federal program that provides funding for the education of homeless children, and continue funding for a program that “improves educational services for students in state and local correctional institutions or for those children who are transferring out of institutionalization.”
The bill also would provide grants for schools committed to encouraging the interest of underrepresented students, including females and minorities, in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education.
The House also approved an amendment by Rep. Michael Fitzpatrick (R-PA) to prohibit states or local educational agencies from being eligible for funds if they have facilitated the transfer of an employee they know, or have probable cause to believe, has engaged in sexual misconduct with a minor. Agencies must require that employees be subjected to background checks in compliance with the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act.
