United States HR 981: Put School Counselors Where They’re Needed Act

Bill Text

I
116TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 981
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to create
a demonstration project to fund additional secondary school counselors
in troubled title I schools to reduce the dropout rate.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 5, 2019
Ms. SA ́NCHEZ introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and Labor
A BILL
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
of 1965 to create a demonstration project to fund addi-
tional secondary school counselors in troubled title I
schools to reduce the dropout rate.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Put School Counselors 4
Where They’re Needed Act’’. 5
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SEC. 2. DEMONSTRATION PROJECT FOR ADDITIONAL SEC-1
ONDARY SCHOOL COUNSELORS. 2
Part D of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 3
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6421 et seq.) is amend-4
ed by adding at the end the following: 5
‘‘Subpart 4—Demonstration Project for Additional 6
Secondary School Counselors 7
‘‘SEC. 1441. FINDINGS. 8
‘‘The Congress finds the following: 9
‘‘(1) Nationally, only 70 percent of students 10
graduate from high school with a regular high school 11
diploma. 12
‘‘(2) Every school day, 7,000 American high 13
school students become dropouts. 14
‘‘(3) High school students living in low-income 15
families drop out of school at three times the rate 16
of their peers from high-income families. 17
‘‘(4) Only about 55 percent of African Amer-18
ican students and 52 percent of Hispanic students 19
graduate on time from high school with a regular di-20
ploma, compared to 78 percent of white students. 21
‘‘(5) The dropout rate for students with disabil-22
ities is approximately twice that of general education 23
students. 24
‘‘(6) High school is the final transition into 25
adulthood and the world of work as students begin 26
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defining their independence and forging their own 1
pathways. As our next generation of leaders, our 2
youth, are deciding their futures, they are faced with 3
many challenges, including peer pressure and bul-4
lying, high-stakes testing, the challenges of college 5
admissions, the scholarship and financial aid appli-6
cation process, and entrance into an ever more com-7
petitive job market. Students need guidance and 8
skills to help them navigate these complex decisions, 9
which have serious and life-changing consequences. 10
‘‘(7) School counseling programs are essential 11
for students to achieve optimal personal growth, ac-12
quire positive social skills and values, set appropriate 13
career goals, and realize full academic potential to 14
become productive, contributing members of the 15
world community. 16
‘‘(8) Professional secondary school counselors 17
are highly qualified educators with a mental health 18
perspective who understand and respond to the chal-19
lenges presented by today’s diverse student popu-20
lation. 21
‘‘(9) The professional secondary school coun-22
selor holds a master’s degree or higher in school 23
counseling (or the substantial equivalent), and is 24
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certified or licensed by the State in which the coun-1
selor works. 2
‘‘(10) Professional secondary school counselors 3
are integral to the total educational program. They 4
provide proactive leadership that engages all stake-5
holders in the delivery of programs and services to 6
help the student achieve success in school. Profes-7
sional secondary school counselors align and work 8
with the school’s mission to support the academic 9
achievement of all students as they prepare for the 10
ever-changing world of the 21st century. 11
‘‘(11) Professional secondary school counselors’ 12
opportunities to assist students are often hindered 13
by extraordinarily high student-to-counselor ratios. 14
Currently, the average student-to-counselor ratio in 15
America’s public schools is 471 to 1. The American 16
School Counselor Association, the American Coun-17
seling Association, and the National Association for 18
College Admissions Counseling all recommend a 19
ratio of one school counselor to 250 students and a 20
lower ratio for counselors working primarily with 21
students at risk. 22
‘‘SEC. 1442. DEMONSTRATION PROJECT. 23
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available to 24
carry out this subpart, the Secretary shall carry out a 25
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