G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML ..................................................................... (Original Signature of Member) H. R. ll 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION To authorize the Secretary of Education to make grants to support educational programs in American civics and history, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Ms. DELAURO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on llllllllllllll A BILL To authorize the Secretary of Education to make grants to support educational programs in American civics and history, and for other purposes. 1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Educating for Democ- 5 racy Act of 2020’’. 6 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 7 The purposes of this Act are— g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 2 1 (1) to support local educational agencies, ele- 2 mentary schools, and secondary schools in selecting 3 and making available to all students innovative, en- 4 gaging curricula and programs in American civics 5 and history that prepare them to understand Amer- 6 ican Government and engage in American demo- 7 cratic practices as citizens and residents of the 8 United States; 9 (2) to provide resources to institutions of higher 10 education for the purposes of offering effective pro- 11 fessional development opportunities to enable and 12 encourage teachers to deliver instruction that en- 13 gages students in learning American civics and his- 14 tory; 15 (3) to provide resources to nonprofit organiza- 16 tions that have developed, or are developing, pro- 17 grams in civic education that incorporate practices 18 that are proven to be effective in engaging students, 19 and to assist in making such curricula and programs 20 more widely available to schools and students, par- 21 ticularly in rural and inner-city urban areas that 22 have traditionally been underserved by civic learning 23 programs; and 24 (4) to provide resources to continue and expand 25 research into practices, methods, and approaches g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 3 1 that are effective in instructing elementary and sec- 2 ondary school students in American civics and his- 3 tory; and 4 (5) to encourage participation in the National 5 Assessment of Educational Progress assessments in 6 American civics and history in grades 4, 8, and 12, 7 using a methodology sufficient to provide accurate 8 State-level data on student proficiency in American 9 civics and history disaggregated so as to have statis- 10 11 tical significance for every State. SEC. 3. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 12 (a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available 13 under section 9 the Secretary of Education is authorized 14 to carry out the civics education grant programs described 15 in sections 4 through 7. 16 (b) APPLICATION.—To be considered for a grant 17 under this Act, an eligible entity shall submit to the Sec18 retary of Education an application at such time, in such 19 manner, and containing such information as the Secretary 20 may require. 21 (c) GRANT DURATION.—Each grant under this Act 22 shall be awarded for a period of not less than three years. 23 (d) PRIORITY.—Except as otherwise provided in this 24 Act, the Secretary shall prioritize the award of grants to g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 4 1 eligible entities that demonstrate the greatest potential 2 to— 3 (1) improve knowledge and engagement among 4 students traditionally underserved by comprehensive 5 civic education and American history programs, in- 6 cluding rural and inner-city urban students, English 7 language learners, students who have not completed 8 high school, and other such students; 9 (2) close gaps in civic knowledge and achieve- 10 ment among students of different income levels, ra- 11 cial and ethnic groups, and native languages; 12 (3) improve performance on the National As- 13 sessment of Educational Progress assessments in 14 American civics and history among students in 15 grades 4, 8, and 12; 16 (4) integrate evidence-based practices for pro- 17 moting student proficiency and engagement in civics; 18 and 19 (5) provide cost-effective, scalable delivery of 20 21 programs and services. SEC. 4. GRANTS TO STATES. 22 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of Edu- 23 cation is authorized to make grants to States, on a com24 petitive basis, to support educational programs in Amer25 ican civics and history in accordance with this section. g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 5 1 (b) GRANT AMOUNT.—The amount of each grant to 2 a State under this section shall be proportional to the 3 amount received by all local educational agencies in the 4 State under part A of title I of the Elementary and Sec5 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) 6 for the previous fiscal year relative to the total such 7 amount received by all local educational agencies in every 8 State that receives a grant under this section. 9 (c) STATE RESERVATION.—A State that receives a 10 grant under this section may reserve not more than five 11 percent of the amount of the grant for— 12 (1) administrative costs of carrying out the 13 State’s responsibilities under this section; and 14 (2) monitoring and evaluating programs and 15 activities supported with the grant. 16 (d) SUBGRANTS 17 CIES.—A TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN- State that receives a grant under this section 18 shall use not less than 95 percent of the amount of the 19 grant to make subgrants, on a competitive or formula 20 basis, to local educational agencies within the State to as21 sist such agencies in carrying out programs to improve 22 the achievement of elementary and secondary school stu23 dents in the fields of American civics and history. 24 (e) SUPPLEMENT NOT SUPPLANT.—A State shall use 25 a grant under this section only to supplement the level g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 6 1 of Federal, State, and local public funds that would, in 2 absence of such grant, be made available for the activities 3 supported by the grant, and not to supplant such funds. 4 (f) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—As part of the ap- 5 plication required under section 3(b), a State shall include 6 a plan describing how the State intends to use the grant 7 under this section. Each State plan shall include, at a min8 imum, the following: 9 (1) An explanation of how the State will use the 10 grant to supplement, and not supplant, other public 11 funds provided for educational programs in Amer- 12 ican civics and history. 13 (2) Plans to address civics and history achieve- 14 ment gaps among students of different income lev- 15 els, racial and ethnic backgrounds, and native lan- 16 guages. 17 (3) Plans to improve civics and history achieve- 18 ment among traditionally underserved students, in- 19 cluding rural and urban students and English learn- 20 ers. 21 (4) Plans for making subgrants to local edu- 22 cational agencies as required under subsection (d), 23 including— 24 (A) details of how the State intends to dis- 25 tribute funding to local educational agencies, g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 7 1 whether by competition or through a formula- 2 based system; 3 (B) how the State’s approach to distrib- 4 uting funds to local educational agencies will 5 take into account requirements of paragraphs 6 (1) through (3); 7 (C) criteria by which local education agen- 8 cies’ applications for funding will be evaluated, 9 including how such applications will take into 10 account the requirements of paragraphs (1) 11 through (3); 12 (D) how the State will ensure that local 13 educational agencies will use grant funds to 14 supplement, and not supplant, other public 15 funding for educational programs in American 16 civics and history; and 17 (E) how the State will evaluate and hold 18 local educational agencies accountable for im- 19 proved student knowledge and achievement in 20 American civics and history. 21 (5) An assurance that the State will participate 22 in the National Assessment of Educational Progress 23 assessments in American civics and history in grades 24 4, 8, and 12. g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 8 1 (6) In the case of a State applying to renew a 2 grant previously received under this section, an eval- 3 uation of the effectiveness of the activities carried 4 out using the previous grant, which shall be based 5 on the results of the most recent National Assess- 6 ment of Educational Progress assessment in Amer- 7 ican civics and history, to the extent the results of 8 such assessment are available at the time of the 9 State’s application. 10 SEC. 5. GRANTS TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. 11 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of Edu- 12 cation is authorized to make grants to qualified nonprofit 13 organizations, on a competitive basis, to assist such orga14 nizations in developing or expanding access to evidence15 based curricula, instructional models, and other edu16 cational programs to enhance student knowledge and 17 achievement in American civics and history in elementary 18 schools and secondary schools. 19 (b) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—As part of the ap- 20 plication required under section 3(b), a qualified nonprofit 21 organization shall include a proposal that demonstrates 22 how the activities proposed to be carried out with the 23 grant under this section will enhance student knowledge 24 and achievement in American civics and history in elemen25 tary schools and secondary schools. g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 9 1 (c) PRIORITY OF AWARDS.—In awarding grants 2 under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to 3 qualified nonprofit organizations that propose to use the 4 grant to develop or expand access to curricula, instruc5 tional models, and other educational programs that— 6 (1) address the learning needs of traditionally 7 underserved students, including rural and inner-city 8 urban students and English learners; and 9 (2) incorporate evidence-based practices to en- 10 hance student learning and engagement in civics and 11 history. 12 SEC. 6. GRANTS TO INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION. 13 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of Edu- 14 cation is authorized to make grants to institutions of high15 er education, on a competitive basis, to assist such institu16 tions in developing and implementing programs to train 17 elementary and secondary school teachers in methods for 18 instructing and engaging students in American civics and 19 history. 20 (b) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—As part of the ap- 21 plication required under section 3(b), an institution of 22 higher education shall include a proposal demonstrating 23 that the institution— g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 10 1 (1) has the ability to train elementary and sec- 2 ondary school teachers to provide comprehensive 3 civics education; 4 (2) is familiar with research on practices that 5 are proven to contribute to effective instruction in 6 civics and history and will incorporate such research 7 into the training provided to teachers using the 8 grant; and 9 (3) will use the grant to make training in civics 10 education available to elementary and secondary 11 school teachers in the State or geographic region 12 served by the institution. 13 (c) PRIORITY OF AWARDS.—In awarding grants 14 under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to in15 stitutions of higher education that propose to use the 16 grant to carry out training programs for teachers that— 17 (1) address the specific needs of teachers work- 18 ing with traditionally underserved students, includ- 19 ing rural and inner-city urban students and English 20 learners; and 21 (2) incorporate evidence-based practices for im- 22 proving the ability of teachers to provide effective in- 23 struction in civics and history. g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 11 1 SEC. 7. RESEARCH GRANTS. 2 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of Edu- 3 cation is authorized to make grants, on a competitive 4 basis, to qualified researchers to research and evaluate— 5 (1) elementary and secondary school students’ 6 knowledge of American civics and history; and 7 (2) effective instructional practices and educa- 8 tor professional development in the fields of Amer- 9 ican civics and history. 10 (b) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—As part of the ap- 11 plication required under section 3(b), a qualified re12 searcher shall include a description of the project to be 13 funded with the grant under this section. The description 14 of the project shall include a separate section that de15 scribes how the project may directly or indirectly affect 16 civics education generally, which may include effects such 17 as— 18 (1) achieving the full participation of women, 19 persons with disabilities, and underrepresented mi- 20 norities in American civics and history education; 21 22 (2) increasing public civic literacy and civic engagement; 23 (3) developing a diverse educator workforce; or 24 (4) other such effects. 25 (c) PRIORITY OF AWARDS.—In awarding grants 26 under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 12 1 qualified researchers who propose carry out activities that 2 will benefit historically underserved communities, includ3 ing rural and inner-city urban communities and commu4 nities of English learners. 5 SEC. 8. 6 7 NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS. Section 303(b) of the Education Sciences Reform Act 8 of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9622(b)) is amended— 9 (1) in paragraph (2)— 10 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (D) 11 through (H) as subparagraphs (E) through (I) 12 respectively; 13 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (C) 14 the following: 15 ‘‘(D) conduct a national assessment, using 16 a methodology sufficient to provide accurate, 17 disaggregated, statistically significant State- 18 level data on student proficiency for every 19 State, on student academic achievement in pub- 20 lic and private elementary schools and sec- 21 ondary schools at least once every 2 years, in 22 grades 4, 8, and 12 in civics and history;’’; and 23 (C) in subparagraph (E), as so redesig- 24 nated, by striking ‘‘history, geography, civics’’ 25 and inserting ‘‘geography’’; and g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 13 1 (2) in paragraph (3)(A)— 2 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘(2)(E)’’ and 3 inserting ‘‘(2)(F)’’; 4 (B) by redesignating clauses (iii) and (iv) 5 as clauses (iv) and (v), respectively; 6 (C) by inserting after clause (ii) the fol- 7 lowing: 8 ‘‘(iii) shall conduct biennial State aca- 9 demic assessments of student achievement 10 in civics and history in grades 4, 8, and 11 12, as described in paragraph (2)(D)’’; and 12 (D) in clause (iv), as so redesignated, by 13 striking ‘‘(2)(D)’’ and inserting ‘‘(2)(E)’’. 14 SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS. 15 In this Act: 16 (1) The term ‘‘civics’’, when used with respect 17 to an educational program, means a program that 18 addresses the following: 19 (A) Acquisition of civic knowledge, includ- 20 ing an understanding of the history, heritage, 21 civic life, and civic institutions of the United 22 States. 23 (B) Acquisition of civic skills, such as the 24 ability to analyze text and determine the reli- 25 ability of sources and an understanding of the g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 14 1 ways in which civic institutions operate and how 2 individuals may be involved in civic life. 3 (C) Acquisition of civic dispositions, values 4 such as appreciation for free speech, civil dis- 5 course, and understanding perspectives that dif- 6 fer from one’s own as well as a disposition to 7 be civically engaged. 8 (D) Development of civic behaviors, includ- 9 ing civic habits and practices such as voting, 10 serving on juries, engagement in deliberative 11 discussions, 12 meetings, and other activities related to civic 13 life. 14 (2) The term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means— 15 attending public (A) with respect to grant program under 16 section 4, a State; 17 (B) with respect to the grant program 18 under section 5, a qualified nonprofit organiza- 19 tion; 20 (C) with respect to the grant program 21 under section 6, an institution of higher edu- 22 cation; and 23 (D) with respect to the grant program 24 under section 7, a qualified researcher. g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 volunteering, 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 15 1 (3) The term ‘‘evidence-based practices’’ means 2 practices proven to contribute to the effectiveness of 3 educational programs in civics, including— 4 (A) innovative and engaging classroom in- 5 struction in American civics, Government, and 6 history; 7 (B) service learning and student civic 8 projects linked to classroom learning; 9 (C) learning through participation in mod- 10 els and simulations of democratic processes and 11 experiential learning; 12 (D) guided classroom discussion of current 13 issues and events; 14 (E) meaningful participation in school gov- 15 ernance; and 16 (F) instruction in media literacy. 17 (4) The term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ 18 has the meaning given that term in section 101 of 19 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 20 1001). 21 (5) The term ‘‘National Assessment of Edu- 22 cational Progress’’ means the National Assessment 23 of Educational Progress carried out under section 24 303(b) of the National Assessment of Educational 25 Progress Authorization Act (20 U.S.C. 9622(b)). g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 16 1 (6) The term ‘‘qualified nonprofit organization’’ 2 means an organization that— 3 (A) is described in section 501(c)(3) of the 4 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and which is ex- 5 empt from taxation under section 501(a) of 6 such Code; and 7 (B) has experience developing curricula, in- 8 structional models, and other educational pro- 9 grams for students in elementary schools and 10 secondary schools. 11 (7) The term ‘‘qualified researcher’’ means— 12 (A) a nonprofit organization that has abil- 13 ity and capacity to carry out scientifically valid 14 research; or 15 (B) individual affiliated with such an orga- 16 nization. 17 (8) The terms ‘‘English language learner’’, ‘‘el- 18 ementary school’’, ‘‘local educational agency’’, ‘‘sec- 19 ondary school’’, and ‘‘State’’ have the meanings 20 given those terms in section 8101 of the Elementary 21 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 22 7801). 23 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 24 There are authorized to be appropriated for fiscal 25 year 2021 and each of the five succeeding fiscal years— g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR G:\M\16\DELAUR\DELAUR_074.XML 17 1 (1) $600,000,000 to carry out section 4; 2 (2) $200,000,000 to carry out section 5; 3 (3) $150,000,000 to carry out section 6; and 4 (4) $50,000,000 to carry out section 7. g:\VHLC\061520\061520.141.xml June 15, 2020 (12:02 p.m.) VerDate Mar 15 2010 12:02 Jun 15, 2020 Jkt 000000 (756597 8) PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:\USERS\BJGALLAGHER\APPDATA\ROAMING\SOFTQUAD\XMETAL\7.0\GEN\C\DELAUR