20 U.S.C. § 7118

Current through P.L. 118-107 (published on www.congress.gov on 11/21/2024)

Section 7118 - Activities to support safe and healthy students

Subject to section 7116(f) of this title, each local educational agency, or consortium of such agencies, that receives an allocation under section 7115(a) of this title shall use a portion of such funds to develop, implement, and evaluate comprehensive programs and activities that-

(1) are coordinated with other schools and community-based services and programs;

(2) foster safe, healthy, supportive, and drug-free environments that support student academic achievement;

(3) promote the involvement of parents in the activity or program;

(4) may be conducted in partnership with an institution of higher education, business, nonprofit organization, community-based organization, or other public or private entity with a demonstrated record of success in implementing activities described in this section; and

(5) may include, among other programs and activities-

(A) drug and violence prevention activities and programs that are evidence-based (to the extent the State, in consultation with local educational agencies in the State, determines that such evidence is reasonably available) including-

(i) programs to educate students against the use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, smokeless tobacco products, and electronic cigarettes; and

(ii) professional development and training for school and specialized instructional support personnel and interested community members in prevention, education, early identification, intervention mentoring, recovery support services and, where appropriate, rehabilitation referral, as related to drug and violence prevention;

(B) in accordance with sections 7101 and 7121 of this title-

(i) school-based mental health services, including early identification of mental health symptoms, drug use, and violence, and appropriate referrals to direct individual or group counseling services, which may be provided by school-based mental health services providers; and

(ii) school-based mental health services partnership programs that-

(I) are conducted in partnership with a public or private mental health entity or health care entity; and

(II) provide comprehensive school-based mental health services and supports and staff development for school and community personnel working in the school that are-

(aa) based on trauma-informed practices that are evidence-based (to the extent the State, in consultation with local educational agencies in the State, determines that such evidence is reasonably available);

(bb) coordinated (where appropriate) with early intervening services provided under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.); and

(cc) provided by qualified mental and behavioral health professionals who are certified or licensed by the State involved and practicing within their area of expertise;

(C) programs or activities that-

(i) integrate health and safety practices into school or athletic programs;

(ii) support a healthy, active lifestyle, including nutritional education and regular, structured physical education activities and programs, that may address chronic disease management with instruction led by school nurses, nurse practitioners, or other appropriate specialists or professionals to help maintain the well-being of students;

(iii) help prevent bullying and harassment;

(iv) improve instructional practices for developing relationship-building skills, such as effective communication, and improve safety through the recognition and prevention of coercion, violence, or abuse, including teen and dating violence, stalking, domestic abuse, and sexual violence and harassment;

(v) provide mentoring and school counseling to all students, including children who are at risk of academic failure, dropping out of school, involvement in criminal or delinquent activities, or drug use and abuse;

(vi) establish or improve school dropout and re-entry programs; or

(vii) establish learning environments and enhance students' effective learning skills that are essential for school readiness and academic success, such as by providing integrated systems of student and family supports;

(D) high-quality training for school personnel, including specialized instructional support personnel, related to-

(i) suicide prevention;

(ii) effective and trauma-informed practices in classroom management;

(iii) crisis management and conflict resolution techniques;

(iv) human trafficking (defined, for purposes of this subparagraph, as an act or practice described in paragraph (9) or (10) ¹ of section 7102 of title 22);

(v) school-based violence prevention strategies;

(vi) drug abuse prevention, including educating children facing substance abuse at home; and

(vii) bullying and harassment prevention;

(E) in accordance with sections 7101 and 7121 of this title, child sexual abuse awareness and prevention programs or activities, such as programs or activities designed to provide-

(i) age-appropriate and developmentally-appropriate instruction for students in child sexual abuse awareness and prevention, including how to recognize child sexual abuse and how to safely report child sexual abuse; and

(ii) information to parents and guardians of students about child sexual abuse awareness and prevention, including how to recognize child sexual abuse and how to discuss child sexual abuse with a child;

(F) designing and implementing a locally-tailored plan to reduce exclusionary discipline practices in elementary and secondary schools that-

(i) is consistent with best practices;

(ii) includes strategies that are evidence-based (to the extent the State, in consultation with local educational agencies in the State, determines that such evidence is reasonably available); and

(iii) is aligned with the long-term goal of prison reduction through opportunities, mentoring, intervention, support, and other education services, referred to as a "youth PROMISE plan"; or

(G) implementation of schoolwide positive behavioral interventions and supports, including through coordination with similar activities carried out under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), in order to improve academic outcomes and school conditions for student learning;

(H) designating a site resource coordinator at a school or local educational agency to provide a variety of services, such as-

(i) establishing partnerships within the community to provide resources and support for schools;

(ii) ensuring that all service and community partners are aligned with the academic expectations of a community school in order to improve student success; and

(iii) strengthening relationships between schools and communities; or

(I) pay for success initiatives aligned with the purposes of this section.

¹ See References in Text note below.

20 U.S.C. § 7118

Pub. L. 89-10, title IV, §4108, as added Pub. L. 114-95, §4101, 129 Stat. 1978.

EDITORIAL NOTES

REFERENCES IN TEXTThe Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, referred to in par. (5)(B)(ii)(II)(bb), (G), is title VI of Pub. L. 91-230, Apr. 13, 1970, 84 Stat. 175, which is classified generally to chapter 33 (§1400 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 1400 of this title and Tables.Paragraphs (9) and (10) of section 7102 of title 22, referred to in par. (5)(D)(iv), were redesignated pars. (11) and (12), respectively, of section 7102 of title 22 by Pub. L. 115-427, §2(1), Jan. 9, 2019, 132 Stat. 5503.

PRIOR PROVISIONSA prior section 7118, Pub. L. 89-10, title IV, §4118, as added Pub. L. 103-382, §101, 108 Stat. 3685, related to programs for Native Hawaiians, and was omitted in the general amendment of this subchapter by Pub. L. 107-110.A prior section 4108 of Pub. L. 89-10 was classified to section 3068 of this title, prior to the general amendment of Pub. L. 89-10 by Pub. L. 103-382.

STATUTORY NOTES AND RELATED SUBSIDIARIES

EFFECTIVE DATESection effective Dec. 10, 2015, except with respect to certain noncompetitive programs and competitive programs, see section 5 of Pub. L. 114-95, set out as an Effective Date of 2015 Amendment note under section 6301 of this title.

State: The term "State" means each of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and each of the outlying areas.
child: The term "child" means any person within the age limits for which the State provides free public education.
community-based organization: The term "community-based organization" means a public or private nonprofit organization of demonstrated effectiveness that-(A) is representative of a community or significant segments of a community; and(B) provides educational or related services to individuals in the community.
professional development: The term "professional development" means activities that-(A) are an integral part of school and local educational agency strategies for providing educators (including teachers, principals, other school leaders, specialized instructional support personnel, paraprofessionals, and, as applicable, early childhood educators) with the knowledge and skills necessary to enable students to succeed in a well-rounded education and to meet the challenging State academic standards; and(B) are sustained (not stand-alone, 1-day, or short term workshops), intensive, collaborative, job-embedded, data-driven, and classroom-focused, and may include activities that-(i) improve and increase teachers'-(I) knowledge of the academic subjects the teachers teach;(II) understanding of how students learn; and(III) ability to analyze student work and achievement from multiple sources, including how to adjust instructional strategies, assessments, and materials based on such analysis;(ii) are an integral part of broad schoolwide and districtwide educational improvement plans;(iii) allow personalized plans for each educator to address the educator's specific needs identified in observation or other feedback;(iv) improve classroom management skills;(v) support the recruitment, hiring, and training of effective teachers, including teachers who became certified through State and local alternative routes to certification;(vi) advance teacher understanding of-(I) effective instructional strategies that are evidence-based; and(II) strategies for improving student academic achievement or substantially increasing the knowledge and teaching skills of teachers;(vii) are aligned with, and directly related to, academic goals of the school or local educational agency;(viii) are developed with extensive participation of teachers, principals, other school leaders, parents, representatives of Indian tribes (as applicable), and administrators of schools to be served under this chapter;(ix) are designed to give teachers of English learners, and other teachers and instructional staff, the knowledge and skills to provide instruction and appropriate language and academic support services to those children, including the appropriate use of curricula and assessments;(x) to the extent appropriate, provide training for teachers, principals, and other school leaders in the use of technology (including education about the harms of copyright piracy), so that technology and technology applications are effectively used in the classroom to improve teaching and learning in the curricula and academic subjects in which the teachers teach;(xi) as a whole, are regularly evaluated for their impact on increased teacher effectiveness and improved student academic achievement, with the findings of the evaluations used to improve the quality of professional development;(xii) are designed to give teachers of children with disabilities or children with developmental delays, and other teachers and instructional staff, the knowledge and skills to provide instruction and academic support services, to those children, including positive behavioral interventions and supports, multi-tier system of supports, and use of accommodations;(xiii) include instruction in the use of data and assessments to inform and instruct classroom practice;(xiv) include instruction in ways that teachers, principals, other school leaders, specialized instructional support personnel, and school administrators may work more effectively with parents and families;(xv) involve the forming of partnerships with institutions of higher education, including, as applicable, Tribal Colleges and Universities as defined in section 316(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)), to establish school-based teacher, principal, and other school leader training programs that provide prospective teachers, novice teachers, principals, and other school leaders with an opportunity to work under the guidance of experienced teachers, principals, other school leaders, and faculty of such institutions;(xvi) create programs to enable paraprofessionals (assisting teachers employed by a local educational agency receiving assistance under part A of subchapter I) to obtain the education necessary for those paraprofessionals to become certified and licensed teachers;(xvii) provide follow-up training to teachers who have participated in activities described in this paragraph that are designed to ensure that the knowledge and skills learned by the teachers are implemented in the classroom; and(xviii) where practicable, provide jointly for school staff and other early childhood education program providers, to address the transition to elementary school, including issues related to school readiness.
specialized instructional support personnel: The term "specialized instructional support personnel" means-(i) school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists; and(ii) other qualified professional personnel, such as school nurses, speech language pathologists, and school librarians, involved in providing assessment, diagnosis, counseling, educational, therapeutic, and other necessary services (including related services as that term is defined in section 1401 of this title) as part of a comprehensive program to meet student needs.