- Alignment with the No Child Left Behind Act
- Discipline
- Disproportionality
- Early Intervening Services (EIS)
- Evaluation and Reevaluation
- Funding
- Highly Qualified Teachers (HQT)
- Identification of Specific Learning Disabilities
- Individualized Education Program (IEP)
- Monitoring and Enforcement
- National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS)
- Part C Option
- Private Schools
- Procedural Safeguards
- Secondary Transition
- Statewide and Districtwide Assessments
TITLE II -- NATIONAL CENTER FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH
SEC. 201. NATIONAL CENTER FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH.
(a) Amendment.--The Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20
U.S.C. 9501 et seq.) is amended--
(1) by redesignating part E as part F; and
(2) by inserting after part D the following:
PART E--NATIONAL CENTER FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH
SEC. 175. NOTE: 20 USC 9567. ESTABLISHMENT.
(a) Establishment.--There is established in the Institute a
National Center for Special Education Research (in this part
referred to as the `Special Education Research Center').
(b) Mission.--The mission of the Special Education Research
Center is--
(1) to sponsor research to expand knowledge and understanding
of the needs of infants, toddlers, and children with
disabilities in order to improve the developmental,
educational, and transitional results of such individuals;
(2) to sponsor research to improve services provided under, and
support the implementation of, the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.); and
(3) to evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in coordination
with the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional
Assistance.
(c) Applicability of Education Sciences Reform Act of
2002.--Parts A and F, and the standards for peer review of
applications and for the conduct and evaluation of research
under sections 133(a) and 134, respectively, shall apply to the
Secretary, the Director, and the Commissioner in carrying out
this part.
SEC. 176. NOTE: 20 USC 9567a. COMMISSIONER FOR SPECIAL
EDUCATION RESEARCH.
The Special Education Research Center shall be headed by a Commissioner for Special Education Research (in this part referred to as the `Special Education Research Commissioner') who [[Page 118 STAT. 2800]] shall have substantial knowledge of the Special Education Research Center's activities, including a high level of expertise in the fields of research, research management, and the education of children with disabilities.
SEC. 177. NOTE: 20 USC 9567b. DUTIES.
(a) General Duties.--The Special Education Research Center
shall carry out research activities under this part consistent
with the mission described in section 175(b), such as
activities that--
(1) improve services provided under the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act in order to improve--
(A) academic achievement, functional outcomes, and educational
results for children with disabilities; and
(B) developmental outcomes for infants or toddlers with
disabilities;
(2) identify scientifically based educational practices that
support learning and improve academic achievement, functional
outcomes, and educational results for all students with
disabilities;
(3) examine the special needs of preschool aged children,
infants, and toddlers with disabilities, including factors that
may result in developmental delays;
(4) identify scientifically based related services and
interventions that promote participation and progress in the
general education curriculum and general education settings;
(5) improve the alignment, compatibility, and development of
valid and reliable assessments, including alternate
assessments, as required by section 1111(b) of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b));
(6) examine State content standards and alternate assessments
for students with significant cognitive impairment in terms of
academic achievement, individualized instructional need,
appropriate education settings, and improved post-school
results;
(7) examine the educational, developmental, and transitional
needs of children with high incidence and low incidence
disabilities;
(8) examine the extent to which overidentification and
underidentification of children with disabilities occurs, and
the causes thereof;
(9) improve reading and literacy skills of children with
disabilities;
(10) examine and improve secondary and postsecondary education
and transitional outcomes and results for children with
disabilities;
(11) examine methods of early intervention for children with
disabilities, including children with multiple or complex
developmental delays;
(12) examine and incorporate universal design concepts in the
development of standards, assessments, curricula, and
instructional methods to improve educational and transitional
results for children with disabilities;
(13) improve the preparation of personnel, including early
intervention personnel, who provide educational and related
services to children with disabilities to increase the academic
achievement and functional performance of students with
disabilities;
(14) examine the excess costs of educating a child with a
disability and expenses associated with high cost special
education and related services;
(15) help parents improve educational results for their
children, particularly related to transition issues;
(16) address the unique needs of children with significant
cognitive disabilities; and
(17) examine the special needs of limited English proficient
children with disabilities.
(b) Standards.--The Special Education Research Commissioner
shall ensure that activities assisted under this section--
(1) conform to high standards of quality, integrity, accuracy,
validity, and reliability;
(2) are carried out in accordance with the standards for the
conduct and evaluation of all research and development
established by the National Center for Education Research; and
(3) are objective, secular, neutral, and nonideological, and
are free of partisan political influence, and racial, cultural,
gender, regional, or disability bias.
(c) Plan.--The Special Education Research Commissioner shall
propose to the Director a research plan, developed in
collaboration with the Assistant Secretary for Special
Education and Rehabilitative Services, that--
(1) is consistent with the priorities and mission of the
Institute and the mission of the Special Education Research
Center;
(2) is carried out, updated, and modified, as appropriate;
(3) is consistent with the purposes of the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act;
(4) contains an appropriate balance across all age ranges and
types of children with disabilities;
(5) provides for research that is objective and uses measurable
indicators to assess its progress and results; and
(6) is coordinated with the comprehensive plan developed under
section 681 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
(d) Grants, Contracts, and Cooperative Agreements.--
(1) In general.--In carrying out the duties under this section,
the Director may award grants to, or enter into contracts or
cooperative agreements with, eligible applicants.
(2) Eligible applicants.--Activities carried out under this
subsection through contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements
shall be carried out only by recipients with the ability and
capacity to conduct scientifically valid research.
(3) Applications.--An eligible applicant that wishes to receive
a grant, or enter into a contract or cooperative agreement,
under this section shall submit an application to the Director
at such time, in such manner, and containing such information
as the Director may require.
(e) Dissemination.--The Special Education Research Center
shall--
(1) synthesize and disseminate, through the National Center for
Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, the findings and
results of special education research conducted or supported by
the Special Education Research Center; and
(2) assist the Director in the preparation of a biennial
report, as described in section 119.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to
be appropriated to carry out this part such sums as may be
necessary for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2010.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Amendments to the table of contents.--The table of contents
in section 1 of the Act entitled An Act to provide for
improvement of Federal education research, statistics,
evaluation, information, and dissemination, and for other
purposes'', approved November 5, 2002 (116 Stat. 1940; Public
Law 107-279), is amended--
(A) by redesignating the item relating to part E as the item
relating to part F; and
(B) by inserting after the item relating to section 174 the
following:
Part E--National Center for Special Education Research
Sec. 175. Establishment.
Sec. 176. Commissioner for Special Education Research.
Sec. 177. Duties.''.
(2) Education sciences reform act of 2002.--The Education
Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9501 et seq.) is
amended--
(A) in section 111(b)(1)(A) (20 U.S.C. 9511(b)(1)(A)), by
inserting and special education'' after early childhood
education'';
(B) in section 111(c)(3) (20 U.S.C. 9511(c)(3))--
(i) in subparagraph (B), by striking and'' after the semicolon;
(ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period and inserting
; and''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following: (D) the National
Center for Special Education Research (as described in part
E).'';
(C) in section 115(a) (20 U.S.C. 9515(a)), by striking
including those'' and all that follows through such as'' and
inserting including those associated with the goals and
requirements of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), and the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), such
as''; and
(D) in section 116(c)(4)(A)(ii) (20 U.S.C. 9516(c)(4)(A)(ii),
by inserting special education experts,'' after early childhood
experts,''.
(3) Elementary and secondary education act of 1965.--Section
1117(a)(3) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 6317(a)(3)) is amended by striking part E'' and
inserting part D''.
SEC. 202. NATIONAL BOARD FOR EDUCATION SCIENCES.
Section 116(c)(9) of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9516(c)(9)) is amended by striking the third sentence and inserting the following: Meetings of the Board are subject to section 552b of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Government in the Sunshine Act).''.
SEC. 203. REGIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES.
Section 206(d)(3) of the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9605(d)(3)) is amended by striking Academy'' and inserting Institute''.