[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2681 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2681
To promote and ensure delivery of high-quality special education and
related services to students with visual disabilities or who are deaf
or hard of hearing or deaf-blind through instructional methodologies
meeting their unique learning needs, to enhance accountability for the
provision of such services, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
October 23, 2019
Mr. Markey (for himself and Mrs. Capito) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To promote and ensure delivery of high-quality special education and
related services to students with visual disabilities or who are deaf
or hard of hearing or deaf-blind through instructional methodologies
meeting their unique learning needs, to enhance accountability for the
provision of such services, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Alice Cogswell and
Anne Sullivan Macy Act''.
(b) References.--Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever
in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an
amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference
shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.).
(c) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; references; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Purposes.
Sec. 3. Findings.
TITLE I--IMPROVING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RELATED
SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING
Subtitle A--General Provisions
Sec. 101. Identifying students who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Sec. 102. State plans.
Sec. 103. Evaluations.
Sec. 104. Individualized education program team.
Sec. 105. Consideration of special factors.
Sec. 106. Monitoring.
Sec. 107. Continuum of service delivery options.
Sec. 108. Technical assistance for parents and educators of students
who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Subtitle B--Improving the Effectiveness of Early Intervention for Deaf
or Hard of Hearing Infants and Toddlers and Their Families
Sec. 111. Qualified personnel.
Sec. 112. Natural environment.
Sec. 113. Content of plan.
Subtitle C--National Activities To Improve Education of Children With
Disabilities
Sec. 121. Personnel development to improve services and results for
children with disabilities.
TITLE II--IMPROVING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RELATED
SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WITH VISUAL DISABILITIES
Subtitle A--General Provisions
Sec. 201. Identifying students with visual disabilities.
Sec. 202. State plans.
Sec. 203. Evaluations.
Sec. 204. Consideration of special factors.
Sec. 205. Technical assistance for parents and educators of students
with visual disabilities.
Subtitle B--Anne Sullivan Macy Center on Visual Disability and
Educational Excellence
Sec. 211. Center establishment and mission.
Sec. 212. Administration; eligibility; governance; structure.
Sec. 213. Activities.
Sec. 214. Relationship to other programs and activities.
Sec. 215. Definitions.
Sec. 216. Authorization of appropriations and carryover.
TITLE III--IMPROVING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RELATED
SERVICES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH WHO ARE DEAF-BLIND
Subtitle A--General Provisions
Sec. 301. Identifying children who are deaf-blind.
Sec. 302. Related services.
Sec. 303. State plans.
Sec. 304. Evaluations.
Sec. 305. Consideration of special factors.
Sec. 306. Technical assistance for parents and educators of children
who are deaf-blind.
Sec. 307. Conforming regulations.
Subtitle B--Improving the Effectiveness of Early Intervention for
Infants and Toddlers With Deaf-Blindness and Their Families
Sec. 311. Content of plan.
Subtitle C--National Activities To Improve the Education of Children
With Disabilities
Sec. 321. Personnel development to improve services and results for
children with disabilities; ensuring
sufficient teachers of the deaf-blind and
early intervention specialists.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are as follows:
(1) To better ensure delivery of high-quality special
education and related services to students with visual
disabilities or who are deaf or hard of hearing or who are
deaf-blind through specialized instructional services and
methodologies designed to meet their unique language,
communication, and learning needs.
(2) To better ensure delivery of high-quality early
intervention services to infants and toddlers who are deaf or
hard of hearing or who are deaf-blind and their families
through specialized services and methodologies designed to meet
their unique language, communication, and other developmental
needs.
(3) To foster the proliferation of research supporting the
development and evaluation of effective and innovative
assessments and instructional methodologies consonant with the
unique learning needs of students with visual disabilities.
(4) To enhance accountability for the provision of such
services.
(5) To support the development of personnel serving
students with visual disabilities or who are deaf or hard of
hearing or who are deaf-blind.
SEC. 3. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) When American author, Mark Twain, immortalized Helen
Keller's teacher, Anne Sullivan Macy, with the moniker ``the
miracle worker'', his words, though meant as praise, reflect
the misconception that educating individuals with disabilities
is a nearly insurmountable task requiring extraordinary feats
performed by gifted and saintly persons. Rather, the work of
teaching children with disabilities can and does occur when
committed and qualified but everyday special educators are
properly prepared and supported to practice their professions.
Yet, the educational systems within which they act must also be
held accountable for results.
(2) In 1817, Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and a deaf teacher,
Laurent Clerc, opened the first American school for deaf
students--the American School for the Deaf--with young Alice
Cogswell as its first pupil. Ultimately the school grew into a
national institution and the mother of many other schools. As
Alice demonstrated, deaf and hard of hearing children can learn
and achieve to high levels when they have full access to
language and communication; are taught by professionals with
specialized training; and have access to educational placements
that recognize and provide for their language, communication,
social-emotional, and academic needs.
(3) Deaf and hard of hearing children who are identified
early and receive appropriate early intervention from
specialized, qualified providers achieve higher language and
communication outcomes. However, currently, early intervention
services typically are not provided in a timely manner and
severe shortages of specialized early intervention
professionals result in many deaf and hard of hearing children
not reaching their developmental potential. Similarly, research
demonstrates that students with visual disabilities are among
the highest performing students with disabilities in terms of
academic achievement, and yet they are among the least
employed, even after successful accomplishment of postsecondary
academic objectives.
(4) Likewise, children who are deaf-blind have the same
capacity to learn and achieve as any other children. However,
they must have ongoing access to the same environmental and
educational information that their sighted and hearing peers
can access automatically. These children require direct
learning experiences, including hands-on experiences and
intense involvement in educational routines and activities.
They must receive specialized direct instruction in their
preferred mode of communication in a range of academic and
functional areas.
(5) Students who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind
require more language and communication access and support to
acquire skills than they are currently receiving. It has been
the Department of Education's position since 1992 that ``[a]ny
educational setting that does not meet the communication and
related needs of a child who is deaf does not allow for the
provision of [a Free Appropriate Public Education] and cannot
be considered the [Least Restrictive Environment] for that
child''.
(6) Moreover, a principal way that sighted, hearing
students acquire knowledge and skills is through incidental
learning, naturally observing others and the environment.
Deficits in incidental learning leave students with sensory
disabilities behind in an array of skill areas. In addition to
core academics, deaf and hard of hearing students, for example,
must also receive specialized instruction and services designed
to maximize their capacity to learn effectively and live
productively and independently. Similarly, students who are
blind or visually impaired must also receive instruction in the
expanded core curriculum, a comprehensive array of specialized
instruction and services maximizing the capacity of students
with visual disabilities to learn effectively and live
productively and independently.
(7) The widespread use by States of the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act's disability categories has led to a
sizable undercount of students with sensory disabilities and,
consequently, a lack of recognition of the extent of the
systemic need for the delivery of appropriate instructional
services meeting their unique needs. This occurs in large
measure because students with sensory disabilities who also
have additional disabilities are frequently formally classified
as having multiple disabilities. Consequently, their vision,
hearing, or concomitant vision and hearing disabilities and
related support needs are not fully acknowledged.
(8) Children who are deaf-blind should receive one-to-one
services from interveners, who have training and specialized
skills in deaf-blindness. Interveners play a critical role in
the provision of a Free and Appropriate Public Education,
because they provide access to the information these children
need in order to learn and develop concepts, to facilitate
their communication development and interactions in their
preferred mode of communication, and to promote their social
and emotional well-being.
(9) A national resource in visual disabilities is needed to
supplement the work of State and local educational agencies
through student enrichment activities; to support teachers of
students with visual impairments and related services personnel
through state-of-the-art continuing education opportunities;
and to spur the further advancement of instructional services
for students with visual disabilities through scientific
research and evidence-based best practices.
TITLE I--IMPROVING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RELATED
SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING
Subtitle A--General Provisions
SEC. 101. IDENTIFYING STUDENTS WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING.
(a) Serving All Children Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing Regardless
of Classification.--Section 612(a)(3) (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(3)) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``(C) Serving children who are deaf or hard of
hearing.--When a State classifies children by
disability, the State, in complying with this
subsection, identifies, locates, and evaluates children
who are deaf or hard of hearing and who are, or may be,
classified in a disability category other than hearing
impairment and provides (without prejudice to such
classification) special education and related services
to such children, including such services determined
appropriate based on proper evaluation as would be
provided to children classified in the State as deaf or
hard of hearing.''.
(b) Data Collection and Reporting.--Section 618 (20 U.S.C. 1418) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(e) Accounting for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students.--In
addition to the data collection and reporting requirements of
subsections (a) through (d) and subject to such provisions, the State
and the Secretary of the Interior shall, with respect to children
classified in a disability category other than hearing impairment or
deafness, include the number and percentage of such children in each
disability category who are also deaf or hard of hearing.''.
(c) Child With a Disability.--Section 602(3)(A)(i) (20 U.S.C.
1401(3)(A)(i)) is amended by striking ``hearing impairments (including
deafness), speech'' and inserting ``who is deaf or hard of hearing, or
with speech''.
SEC. 102. STATE PLANS.
Section 612 (20 U.S.C. 1412) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(g) Addendum Concerning Students Who Are Deaf or Hard of
Hearing.--
``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding the provisions of
subsection (c), a State shall not be considered in compliance
with this section unless, not later than two years after the
date of the enactment of the Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan
Macy Act, the State files with the Secretary a written addendum
to the plan required by this section describing how the State
ensures that--
``(A) children who are deaf or hard of hearing
(regardless of the State's use of disability categories
or the extent to which deaf or hard of hearing children
may be classified in disability categories other than
hearing impairment or deafness) are evaluated by
qualified professionals, using valid and reliable
assessments, for such children's need for instruction
and services meeting their unique language and
communication, literacy, academic, social and related
learning needs, including instruction which may be
needed by children without disabilities or with other
disabilities but which must be specifically designed,
modified, or delivered to meet the unique language and
communication and academic and related learning needs
of children who are deaf or hard of hearing;
``(B) there is sufficient availability of personnel
within the State qualified to provide the evaluation
and instruction described in subparagraph (A) to all
children within the State requiring such instruction;
and
``(C) all children who are deaf or hard of hearing
within the State who need special education and related
services, whether or not such children have other
disabilities, receive such instruction and are not
being served solely in accordance with section 504 of
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794).
``(2) Contents.--In preparing the addendum described in
paragraph (1), the State shall--
``(A) specifically address how the State meets the
needs of deaf and hard of hearing students to support
appropriate, measurable progress in language
development, including American Sign Language and
spoken English with or without visual supports, and
including the provision of school-related opportunities
for direct communications with peers and professional
personnel in the child's language and opportunities for
direct instruction in the child's language, as well as
instruction in audiology, age appropriate career
education, communication and language, social skills,
functional skills for academic success, self-
determination and advocacy (including preparation for
transition to work or higher education), social
emotional skills, technology, and support for the
student through family education; and
``(B) consult with individuals and organizations
with expertise in the education of children who are
deaf or hard of hearing, including parents, schools for
the deaf, consumer and advocacy organizations, State
commissions of the deaf, researchers, teachers of
students who are deaf or hard of hearing, and others
the State may identify.''.
SEC. 103. EVALUATIONS.
Section 614(b) (20 U.S.C. 1414(b)) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(7) Children who are deaf or hard of hearing.--
``(A) In general.--In conducting the assessments
prescribed in paragraph (3)(B), children who are deaf
or hard of hearing (including children who may have
additional disabilities) shall be evaluated on language
and communication proficiency levels, including
expressive, receptive, and pragmatic skills, and
ability to access grade level content in the student's
primary language, including American Sign Language and
spoken English with or without visual supports or
hearing assistance technology, and written English.
Determination of the need for special education and
related services shall include evaluation of such
children's unique learning needs, including needs for
direct communication, without an intermediary such as
an interpreter, with peers and professionals in the
child's primary language, including American Sign
Language and spoken English with or without visual
supports, and instruction which may be needed by
students without disabilities or with other
disabilities but which must be specifically designed,
modified, or delivered to meet the unique learning
needs of students who are deaf or hard of hearing.
``(B) Content of evaluations.--The evaluations
described in subparagraph (A) shall, at a minimum,
include evaluations assessing the need for services and
settings to assist the child in developing or
maintaining age appropriate language and communication
levels in the student's primary language, including
American Sign Language and spoken English with or
without visual supports, social development, literacy
instruction, instruction in assistive technology
proficiency, self sufficiency and interaction self-
determination, socialization, recreation and fitness,
and independent living skills, and age appropriate
career education.''.
SEC. 104. INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM TEAM.
Section 614(d)(1)(B) (20 U.S.C. 1414(d)(1)(B)) is amended--
(1) in clause (v), by striking ``(vi);'' and inserting
``(vii);'';
(2) in clause (vi), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(3) by redesignating clause (vii) as clause (viii); and
(4) by inserting after clause (vi) the following:
``(vii) at the discretion of the parent or
the agency, a representative of a State-
operated, State-supported, or State-aided
school for the deaf; and''.
SEC. 105. CONSIDERATION OF SPECIAL FACTORS.
Section 614(d)(3)(B)(iv) (20 U.S.C. 1414(d)(3)(B)(iv)) is amended
to read as follows:
``(iv) consider the communication needs of
the child, and in the case of a child who is
deaf or hard of hearing, provide for--
``(I) the child's language and
communication needs, opportunities for
direct communications, without an
intermediary such as an interpreter,
with peers and professional personnel
in the child's primary language and
communication mode, including American
Sign Language and spoken language with
or without visual supports, academic
level, and full range of needs,
including opportunities for direct
instruction in the child's language;
and
``(II) instruction meeting the
child's unique learning needs,
including services and settings to
assist the child in developing or
maintaining age appropriate language
and communication levels in the
student's primary language and
communication mode, including American
Sign Language and spoken language with
or without visual supports, literacy
instruction, and instruction which may
be needed by students without
disabilities or with other disabilities
but which must be specifically
designed, modified, or delivered to
meet the unique learning needs of
students who are deaf or hard of
hearing. Such instruction includes
assistive technology proficiency, self
sufficiency and interaction, self-
determination, socialization,
independent living skills, and age
appropriate career education;''.
SEC. 106. MONITORING.
Section 616(a) (20 U.S.C. 1416(a)) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(5) Enhanced monitoring of services for certain
students.--In carrying out the responsibilities of this
subsection, the Secretary shall specifically monitor compliance
with paragraphs (3) and (5) of section 612(a), section 614(b),
and clauses (iii) and (iv) of section 614(d)(3)(B), and shall
regularly report findings to the Congress.''.
SEC. 107. CONTINUUM OF SERVICE DELIVERY OPTIONS.
(a) Ensuring Continuum Availability.--Section 612(a)(5) (20 U.S.C.
1412(a)(5)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(C) Continuum of alternative placements.--The
State shall ensure that a full continuum of alternative
placements is available to meet the needs of children
with disabilities for special education and related
services. Such continuum must include instruction in
regular classes, special classes, special schools, home
instruction, and instruction in hospitals and
institutions, and must make provision for supplementary
services (such as resource room or itinerant
instruction) to be provided in conjunction with regular
class placement.''.
(b) Maintenance of Specialized Services and Settings for Students
With Sensory Disabilities.--Section 612(a)(18) (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(18))
is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(E) Maintaining a continuum of placement
options.--A State's closure of a special school serving
children who are blind or a special school serving
children who are deaf (or the consolidation or merger
of such school with another school), shall be
considered a reduction of the State's financial support
for special education and related services within the
meaning of subparagraph (A).''.
SEC. 108. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR PARENTS AND EDUCATORS OF STUDENTS
WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING.
Section 616 (20 U.S.C. 1416) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(j) Maintaining Current Deaf Students Education Service Policy
Guidance.--The Secretary shall ensure that not later than one year
after the date of the enactment of the Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan
Macy Act (and periodically thereafter but at least within five-year
intervals), policy guidance concerning the provision of special
education and related services to deaf and hard of hearing students
(published in the Federal Register on October 30, 1992 (57 Fed. Reg.
49274)) is reviewed and updated (with particular attention to
explanation of relevant amendments to this Act or to its implementing
regulations) and is published in the Federal Register.''.
Subtitle B--Improving the Effectiveness of Early Intervention for Deaf
or Hard of Hearing Infants and Toddlers and Their Families
SEC. 111. QUALIFIED PERSONNEL.
Section 632(4)(F) (20 U.S.C. 1432(4)(F)) is amended--
(1) in clause (xi), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in clause (xii), by adding ``and'' at the end; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(xiii) teachers of infants and toddlers
with sensory disabilities;''.
SEC. 112. NATURAL ENVIRONMENT.
Section 632(4)(G) (20 U.S.C. 1432(4)(G)) is amended to read as
follows:
``(G) to the maximum extent appropriate, are
provided in--
``(i) natural environments, including the
home and, for infants and toddlers with sensory
disabilities, such as deafness, blindness, or
deaf-blindness, including--
``(I) specialized schools, centers,
and other programs where the child's
language, including American Sign
Language and spoken English with or
without visual supports, is the primary
language and mode of communication; or
``(II) any other environment where
services meeting unique needs are
available; and
``(ii) community settings in which children
without disabilities participate;''.
SEC. 113. CONTENT OF PLAN.
Section 636(d)(3) (20 U.S.C. 1436(d)(3)) is amended by striking the
semicolon at the end and inserting the following: ``and--
``(A) in the case of an infant or toddler who is
deaf or hard of hearing, a statement of the ongoing
language and communication assessment that will be
provided to the child, language and communication
development goals commensurate with the child's
cognitive abilities, the language and communication
access that will be provided, including ongoing
opportunities for direct language learning and
communication access to peers, early intervention
service providers, and other professional personnel in
the child's language, including American Sign Language
and spoken English with or without visual supports, and
the support and instruction that will be provided to
families to learn and support the child's language and
communication mode; and''.
Subtitle C--National Activities To Improve Education of Children With
Disabilities
SEC. 121. PERSONNEL DEVELOPMENT TO IMPROVE SERVICES AND RESULTS FOR
CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES.
(a) Licensing of Educational Interpreters.--Section 662(c)(2)(E)
(20 U.S.C. 1462(c)(2)(E)) is amended to read as follows:
``(E) Preparing personnel to be qualified
educational interpreters, as licensed by the
appropriate licensing body, to assist children with low
incidence disabilities, particularly deaf and hard of
hearing children, in school and school related
activities, and deaf and hard of hearing infants and
toddlers and preschool children in early intervention
and preschool programs.''.
(b) Ensuring Sufficient Teachers of the Deaf and Early Intervention
Specialists.--Section 662(c)(2) (20 U.S.C. 1462(c)(2)), as amended by
subsection (a), is further amended--
(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (F) and (G) as
subparagraphs (G) and (H), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (E) the following:
``(F) Preparing personnel to be qualified teachers
of the deaf and early intervention specialists, to
assist--
``(i) children with low incidence
disabilities, particularly deaf and hard of
hearing children, to develop age appropriate
language, including American Sign Language and
spoken English with or without visual supports,
and age appropriate literacy skills in school
and school related activities; and
``(ii) deaf and hard of hearing infants and
toddlers and preschool children in early
intervention and preschool programs.''.
TITLE II--IMPROVING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RELATED
SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WITH VISUAL DISABILITIES
Subtitle A--General Provisions
SEC. 201. IDENTIFYING STUDENTS WITH VISUAL DISABILITIES.
(a) Serving All Children With Visual Disabilities Regardless of
Classification.--Section 612(a)(3) (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(3)), as amended
by section 101 of this Act, is further amended at the end by adding the
following:
``(D) Serving children with visual disabilities.--
When a State classifies children by disability, the
State, in complying with this subsection, identifies,
locates, and evaluates children with visual
disabilities who are, or may be, classified in a
disability category other than blindness and provides
(without prejudice to such classification) special
education and related services to such children,
including such services determined appropriate based on
proper evaluation as would be provided to children
classified in the State as having blindness.''.
(b) Data Collection and Reporting.--Section 618 (20 U.S.C. 1418),
as amended by section 101 of this Act, is further amended by adding at
the end the following:
``(f) Accounting for Visual Disabilities.--In addition to the data
collection and reporting requirements of subsections (a) through (d)
and subject to such provisions, the State and the Secretary of the
Interior shall, with respect to children classified in a disability
category other than blindness, include the number and percentage of
such children in each disability category who are also blind or
otherwise have visual disabilities.''.
SEC. 202. STATE PLANS.
Section 612 (20 U.S.C. 1412), as amended by section 102 of this
Act, is further amended at the end by adding the following:
``(h) Addendum Concerning Students With Visual Disabilities.--
``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding the provisions of
subsection (c), a State shall not be considered in compliance
with this section unless, not later than 2 years after the date
of the enactment of the Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy
Act, the State files with the Secretary a written addendum to
the plan required by this section describing how the State
ensures that--
``(A) children with visual disabilities (regardless
of the State's use of disability categories or the
extent to which children with visual disabilities may
be classified in disability categories other than
blindness) are evaluated for such children's need for
instruction and services meeting their unique academic
and related learning needs, including instruction which
may be needed by children without disabilities or with
other disabilities but which must be specifically
designed, modified, or delivered to meet the unique
academic and related learning needs of children with
visual disabilities;
``(B) there is sufficient availability of personnel
within the State qualified to provide the instruction
described in subparagraph (A) to all children within
the State requiring such instruction; and
``(C) all children with visual disabilities within
the State who need special education and related
services, whether or not such children have other
disabilities, receive such instruction and are not
being served solely in accordance with section 504 of
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794).
``(2) Contents.--In preparing the addendum described in
paragraph (1), the State shall--
``(A) specifically address how the State meets the
needs of students with visual disabilities for
instruction in communication and productivity
(including Braille instruction and assistive technology
proficiency), self sufficiency and interaction
(including orientation and mobility, self-
determination, sensory efficiency, socialization,
recreation and fitness, and independent living skills),
and age appropriate career education;
``(B) describe both the methods to be used within
the State to properly evaluate students' need for low
vision devices and the process by which such devices
will be provided to each student for whom such devices
are determined appropriate by the IEP Team; and
``(C) consult with individuals and organizations
with expertise in the education of children with visual
disabilities, including parents, consumer and advocacy
organizations, and teachers of students with visual
impairments and others the State may identify.''.
SEC. 203. EVALUATIONS.
Section 614(b) (20 U.S.C. 1414(b)), as amended by section 103 of
this Act, is further amended by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(8) Visual disabilities.--
``(A) In general.--In conducting the assessments
prescribed in paragraph (3)(B), determination of the
need of children with visual disabilities (including
children who may have additional disabilities) for
special education and related services shall include
evaluation of such children's unique learning needs,
including needs for instruction which may be needed by
students without disabilities or with other
disabilities but which must be specifically designed,
modified, or delivered to meet the unique learning
needs of students with visual disabilities.
``(B) Content of evaluations.--The evaluations
described in subparagraph (A) shall, at a minimum,
include evaluations assessing the need for instruction
in assistive technology proficiency (inclusive of low
vision devices), self sufficiency and interaction
(including orientation and mobility, self-
determination, sensory efficiency, socialization,
recreation and fitness, and independent living skills),
and age-appropriate career education.''.
SEC. 204. CONSIDERATION OF SPECIAL FACTORS.
Section 614(d)(3)(B)(iii) (20 U.S.C. 1414(d)(3)(B)(iii)) is amended
by striking the semicolon and inserting the following: ``and provide
instruction meeting the child's unique learning needs, including
instruction that--
``(I) may be needed by students
without disabilities or with other
disabilities but which shall be
specifically designed, modified, or
delivered to meet the unique learning
needs of students with visual
disabilities; and
``(II) includes assistive
technology proficiency (inclusive of
low vision devices), self sufficiency
and interaction (including orientation
and mobility, self-determination,
sensory efficiency, socialization,
recreation and fitness, and independent
living skills), and age appropriate
career education;''.
SEC. 205. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR PARENTS AND EDUCATORS OF STUDENTS
WITH VISUAL DISABILITIES.
Section 616 (20 U.S.C. 1416), as amended by section 108 of this
Act, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
``(k) Maintaining Current Policy Guidance for Parents and Educators
of Students With Visual Disabilities.--The Secretary shall ensure that
not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of the Alice
Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act (and periodically thereafter but at
least within 5-year intervals), policy guidance concerning the
provision of special education and related services to students with
visual disabilities (last published in the Federal Register on June 8,
2000 (65 Fed. Reg. 36586)) is reviewed and updated (with particular
attention to explanation of relevant amendments made by the Alice
Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act or to its implementing regulations)
and is published in the Federal Register.''.
Subtitle B--Anne Sullivan Macy Center on Visual Disability and
Educational Excellence
SEC. 211. CENTER ESTABLISHMENT AND MISSION.
(a) Establishment.--There is established within the Department of
Education a national program named the Anne Sullivan Macy Center on
Visual Disability and Educational Excellence (referred to in this
subtitle as the ``Anne Sullivan Macy Center''), which shall carry out
the activities described in section 213 in furtherance of the mission
described in subsection (b).
(b) Mission.--The mission of the program established in subsection
(a) is to better support students with visual disabilities receiving
special education and related services to learn effectively and live
productively and independently through--
(1) development and dissemination of curricula, courses,
materials, and methods supporting the continuing education of
personnel qualified under State law to serve as teachers of
students with visual impairments and related services personnel
serving such children;
(2) support for the establishment of new programs within
institutions of higher education to prepare teachers of
students with visual impairments to serve students with visual
disabilities who also have additional disabilities;
(3) modeling local, regional, and national enrichment
projects open to students with visual disabilities that are
intended to supplement State educational agency and local
educational agency provision of specialized instruction and
services meeting such students' unique learning needs; and
(4) research identifying, developing, and evaluating valid
assessments and effective interventions measuring and
addressing the unique needs of students with visual
disabilities, including need for instruction and services which
may be needed by students without disabilities or with other
disabilities but which must be specifically designed, modified,
or delivered to meet the unique learning needs of students with
visual disabilities. At a minimum, such instruction and
services include communication and productivity (including
braille instruction, and assistive technology proficiency
inclusive of low vision devices), self sufficiency and
interaction (including orientation and mobility, self-
determination, sensory efficiency, socialization, recreation
and fitness, and independent living skills), and age
appropriate career education.
SEC. 212. ADMINISTRATION; ELIGIBILITY; GOVERNANCE; STRUCTURE.
(a) Administration.--To carry out the provisions of section 211,
the Secretary of Education shall enter into a contract or cooperative
agreement (of no less than 5 years in duration) with a consortium of
entities described in subsection (b) which shall, with oversight by the
Secretary, have primary responsibility for administering the program
described in this subtitle. The Secretary shall have ongoing authority
to enter into such contracts or cooperative agreements.
(b) Eligibility.--The consortium of entities described in
subsection (a) shall include--
(1) at least two national nonprofit organizations with
demonstrated experience publishing materials, offering direct
professional development opportunities, and disseminating
course curricula supporting the preparation or continuing
education of teachers of students with visual impairments and
related services personnel;
(2) at least one national nonprofit organization (which may
include a special school serving students who are blind) with
demonstrated experience directly serving students with visual
disabilities (including students who may or may not have
additional disabilities) through in-person instruction and
services meeting their unique learning needs;
(3) at least one institution of higher education that--
(A) has consistently maintained for at least 10
years a program of instruction preparing teachers of
students with visual impairments or orientation and
mobility instructors; and
(B) offers a program of doctoral study in special
education; and
(4) any other entity or entities with which the entities
described in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) choose to partner
(with approval of the Secretary).
(c) Governance.--As part of the Secretary's oversight
responsibilities, the Secretary shall appoint an advisory board (of no
more than 12 individual members who do not have a concurrent fiscal,
fiduciary, or employment relationship with any of the entities
comprising the consortium described in subsection (b)) which shall
advise the Secretary and such consortium of entities with respect to
strategic planning and annual program performance. The advisory board
shall be comprised of individuals with personal or professional
experience with the needs of students with visual disabilities and
shall include parents of students with visual disabilities,
administrators of special education programs, and representatives of
national organizations of individuals who are blind or visually
impaired. The Secretary is authorized to compensate the members of the
advisory board for reasonable expenses incurred for travel related to
in-person meetings of the advisory board which shall occur no more
frequently than three times within a calendar year. The provisions of
the Federal Advisory Committee Act shall not apply to meetings or other
activities of the advisory board. Prior to the appointment of any
individual to the advisory board, the Secretary shall consult with such
consortium of entities which may also nominate individuals to the
Secretary for advisory board membership.
(d) Structure.--The Secretary, as part of the contract or
cooperative agreement described in subsection (a), shall ensure that
such contract or cooperative agreement specifies any and all necessary
fiscal and other responsibilities between and among the entities
described in subsection (b) whom shall propose such responsibilities to
the Secretary in an application for award of such contract or
cooperative agreement containing such information as the Secretary may
require.
SEC. 213. ACTIVITIES.
Subject to the provisions of this subtitle, the Anne Sullivan Macy
Center on Visual Disability and Educational Excellence is authorized--
(1) to conduct or fund original quantitative and
qualitative research and publish or otherwise disseminate such
research;
(2) to conduct or fund in-person and online continuing
education opportunities for teachers of students with visual
impairments and related services personnel specifically trained
to meet the unique learning needs of such students, and
prepare, publish, or otherwise disseminate supporting
materials;
(3) to conduct or fund in-person or online enrichment
projects for students with visual disabilities (including those
who may also have additional disabilities) to offer direct
instruction and services intended to improve the capacity of
such students to learn effectively and live both productively
and independently for the purpose of--
(A) supplementing the availability of such
instruction and services offered by State educational
agencies and local educational agencies; and
(B) evaluating, through appropriate quantitative
and qualitative methods, the effectiveness of
instruction and services offered by such projects;
(4) to fund, in accordance with regulations otherwise
applicable to personnel preparation programs supported under
part D of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20
U.S.C. 1450 et seq.), the establishment of programs within
institutions of higher education preparing teachers of students
with visual impairments (which have not been previously funded
under such part) to specifically prepare such teachers to
provide expert instruction to students with visual disabilities
who also have additional disabilities; and
(5) to enter into cooperative agreements, contracts, or
grants (or other arrangements which may be permitted by the
Secretary) with nonprofit organizations possessing demonstrable
expertise and experience serving students with visual
disabilities or the professionals trained to work with such
students, institutions of higher education, State educational
agencies, local educational agencies, public and private
specialized schools serving students with visual disabilities,
and consortia of such entities, for the purpose of carrying out
activities authorized in this subsection that are not otherwise
directly conducted, in whole or in part, by the Anne Sullivan
Macy Center.
SEC. 214. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES.
(a) Maximizing Resources.--No funds made available pursuant to this
subtitle may be used to fund programs or activities otherwise
concurrently funded under part D of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act.
(b) Coordination of Research.--The Secretary shall ensure that
research activities authorized and carried out pursuant to this title
are conducted or funded in coordination as appropriate with the
National Center for Special Education Research and other divisions
within the Department of Education responsible for research activities.
(c) Relationship to Services Offered by the American Printing House
for the Blind.--Nothing in this subtitle shall be construed to limit or
otherwise condition the use of any funds appropriated pursuant to the
Act entitled ``An Act to Promote the Education of the Blind'', approved
March 3, 1879 (20 U.S.C. 101 et seq.), and no funds made available
pursuant to this subtitle shall be used by any State educational agency
or local educational agency to supplant the use of funds appropriated
under such Act.
(d) Relationship to Funding for National Center on Deaf-Blindness,
State Deaf-Blind Projects, and the Helen Keller National Center.--The
Secretary shall ensure that any activities conducted or funded by the
Anne Sullivan Macy Center directly serving individuals who are deaf-
blind are coordinated as appropriate with the National Center on Deaf-
Blindness, State deaf-blind projects, and the Helen Keller National
Center. No funds made available pursuant to this title may be used to
support or supplant activities that are otherwise the sole
responsibility of the National Center on Deaf-Blindness and State deaf-
blind projects pursuant to sections 663(c)(8)(A) and 682(d)(1)(A) of
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C.
1463(d)(1)(A); 20 U.S.C. 1482(d)(1)(A)). No funds made available
pursuant to this title may be used to support activities that are
otherwise the sole responsibility of the Helen Keller National Center
or may be used to supplant funds for such Center.
(e) Work Product.--All matter produced by the Anne Sullivan Macy
Center shall be the property of the United States Government, except
that entities comprising the consortium of entities described in
section 212(b) shall be individually free, within the terms of the
contract or cooperative agreement described in section 212(a), to
reproduce, or author copyrighted derivative works, using such matter.
SEC. 215. DEFINITIONS.
In this subtitle:
(1) IDEA terms.--The terms ``institution of higher
education'', ``local educational agency'', ``related
services'', ``special education'', and ``State educational
agency'' have the meanings given the terms in section 602 of
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C.
1401).
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Education.
SEC. 216. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS AND CARRYOVER.
(a) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out the provisions
of this subtitle, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as
may be necessary, provided that for the fiscal year immediately
following the date of enactment of this Act and for each succeeding
fiscal year, the amount appropriated shall be an amount equal to no
less than 0.2 percent of funds appropriated in the previous fiscal year
for grants to States under part B of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1411 et seq.).
(b) Carryover.--Funds appropriated pursuant to subsection (a) that
have not been expended during the fiscal year for which they were
appropriated shall remain available in the subsequent fiscal year,
provided that no more than 15 percent of a given fiscal year's
appropriation may be so carried over.
TITLE III--IMPROVING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RELATED
SERVICES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH WHO ARE DEAF-BLIND
Subtitle A--General Provisions
SEC. 301. IDENTIFYING CHILDREN WHO ARE DEAF-BLIND.
(a) Serving All Children With Deaf-Blindness Regardless of
Classification.--Section 612(a)(3) (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(3)), as amended
by sections 101 and 201 of this Act, is further amended by adding at
the end the following:
``(E) Serving children with deaf-blindness.--When a
State classifies children by disability, the State, in
complying with this subsection, identifies, locates and
evaluates children with concomitant vision and hearing
losses who are, or may be, classified in a disability
category other than deaf-blindness, meaning concomitant
hearing and visual impairments, the combination of
which causes severe communication and other
developmental and educational needs that adversely
affect a child's educational performance (and including
children who are deaf-blind with additional
disabilities), and provides (without prejudice to such
classification) special education and related services
to such children, including such services determined
appropriate based on proper evaluation as would be
provided to children classified in the State as having
deaf-blindness.''.
(b) Data Collection and Reporting.--Section 618 (20 U.S.C. 1418),
as amended by sections 101 and 201 of this Act, is further amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(g) Accounting for Children With Deaf-Blindness.--In addition to
the data collection and reporting requirements of subsections (a)
through (d) and subject to such provisions, the State and the Secretary
of the Interior shall, with respect to children classified in a
disability category other than deaf-blindness, include the number and
percentage of such children in each disability category who are also
deaf-blind.''.
(c) Child With a Disability.--Section 602(3)(A)(i) (20 U.S.C.
1401(3)(A)(i)) is amended by inserting ``deaf-blindness,'' after
``visual impairments (including blindness),''.
SEC. 302. RELATED SERVICES.
Section 602(26)(A) (20 U.S.C. 1401(26)(A)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``and medical services'' and inserting ``,
medical services''; and
(2) by inserting ``, and intervener services, which are
provided to children who are deaf-blind by a qualified
intervener'' after ``for diagnostic and evaluation purposes
only''.
SEC. 303. STATE PLANS.
Section 612 (20 U.S.C. 1412), as amended by sections 102 and 202 of
this Act, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
``(i) Addendum Concerning Children Who Are Deaf-Blind.--
``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding the provisions of
subsection (c), a State shall not be considered in compliance
with this section unless, not later than two years after the
date of the enactment of the Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan
Macy Act, the State files with the Secretary a written addendum
to the plan required by this section describing how the State
ensures that--
``(A) children with deaf-blindness (regardless of
the State's use of disability categories or the extent
to which children with deaf-blindness may be classified
in disability categories other than deaf-blindness) are
evaluated by qualified professionals including teachers
of deaf-blind, using valid and reliable assessments,
for such children's need for instruction and services
meeting their unique language and communication,
literacy, academic, social, and related learning needs,
including instruction which may be needed by children
without disabilities or with other disabilities but
which must be specifically designed, modified, or
delivered to meet the unique language and
communication, academic, and related learning needs of
children with deaf-blindness;
``(B) there is sufficient availability of
personnel, including teachers of the deaf-blind and
interveners, within the State qualified to provide the
evaluation, instruction, and services described in
subparagraph (A) to all children within the State
requiring such instruction; and
``(C) all children with deaf-blindness within the
State who need special education and related services,
whether or not such children have other disabilities,
receive such instruction and are not being served
solely in accordance with section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794).
``(2) Contents.--In preparing the addendum described in
paragraph (1), the State shall--
``(A) specifically address how the State meets the
needs of children with deaf-blindness to support
ongoing progress in language development and in the
child's preferred mode of communication, and including
the provision of school-related opportunities for
direct communications with peers and professional
personnel in the child's preferred mode of
communication and opportunities for direct instruction
in (but not limited to) concept development, functional
skills for academic success, self-determination and
advocacy, social-emotional skills, visual and auditory
sensory efficiency skills, orientation and mobility,
assistive technology proficiency, independent living
skills, age-appropriate career education, and support
for the student through family education; and
``(B) consult with individuals and organizations
with expertise in the education of children with deaf-
blindness including parents, consumers, advocacy
organizations, national and State organizations focused
on deaf-blindness, and others the State may
identify.''.
SEC. 304. EVALUATIONS.
Section 614(b) (20 U.S.C. 1414(b)), as amended by sections 103 and
203 of this Act, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
``(9) Children who are deaf-blind.--
``(A) In general.--In conducting the assessments
prescribed in paragraph (3)(B), children who are deaf-
blind (including children who may have additional
disabilities) shall be evaluated on language and
communication proficiency levels, including expressive,
receptive, and pragmatic skills, and ability to access
grade level content in the child's preferred mode of
communication, including non-symbolic and symbolic
communication and tactile sign language. Qualified
personnel trained in deaf-blindness, who communicate in
the child's preferred mode of communication, shall be
actively involved in assessments and evaluations. Also,
requirements included in paragraphs (7)(A) and (8)(A)
shall apply to children with deaf-blindness.
``(B) Content of evaluations.--The evaluations
described in subparagraph (A) shall, at a minimum,
include evaluations assessing the need for services and
supports to assist children who are deaf-blind in
developing and maintaining language and communication
skills in their preferred mode of communication,
including non-symbolic and symbolic communication and
tactile sign language. Other areas of evaluation for
children who are deaf-blind shall include those found
in paragraphs (7)(B) and (8)(B).''.
SEC. 305. CONSIDERATION OF SPECIAL FACTORS.
Section 614(d)(3)(B) (20 U.S.C. 1414(d)(3)(B)), as amended by
sections 105 and 204 of this Act, is further amended--
(1) by redesignating clause (v) as clause (vi); and
(2) by inserting after clause (iv) the following:
``(v) in the case of a child who is deaf-
blind, provide for the child's language and
communication needs, including, but not limited
to, tactile sign language, tactile and visual
adaptations to sign and fingerspelling, and
object and tangible symbol systems and apply
the requirements included in sections
614(d)(3)(B)(iii) and 614(d)(3)(B)(iv) to each
child with deaf-blindness; and''.
SEC. 306. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR PARENTS AND EDUCATORS OF CHILDREN
WHO ARE DEAF-BLIND.
Section 616 (20 U.S.C. 1416), as amended by sections 108 and 205 of
this Act, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
``(l) Developing Policy Guidance for Parents and Educators of
Children With Deaf-Blindness.--The Secretary shall ensure that not
later than one year after the date of the enactment of the Alice
Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act policy guidance concerning the
provision of special education and related services to children who are
deaf-blind is developed (and periodically thereafter but at least
within five-year intervals, updated), with particular attention to
explanation of relevant amendments to this Act or to its implementing
regulations, and is published in the Federal Register.''.
SEC. 307. CONFORMING REGULATIONS.
Section 617 (20 U.S.C. 1417) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(f) Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of
the Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act, the Secretary shall,
after notice and comment, publish regulations that provide definitions
for `deaf-blindness' and `intervener services', as used in this
title.''.
Subtitle B--Improving the Effectiveness of Early Intervention for
Infants and Toddlers With Deaf-Blindness and Their Families
SEC. 311. CONTENT OF PLAN.
Section 636(d)(3) (20 U.S.C. 1436(d)(3)), as amended by section
113, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
``(B) in the case of an infant or toddler who is
deaf-blind, a statement of the ongoing language and
communication assessment that will be provided to the
child, language and communication development goals
commensurate with the child's cognitive abilities, the
language and communication access that will be
provided, including ongoing opportunities for direct
language learning and communication access to peers,
early intervention service providers, and other
professional personnel trained in the child's preferred
mode of communication, and the support and instruction
that will be provided to families to learn and support
the child's language and communication mode and the
child's full range of needs;''.
Subtitle C--National Activities To Improve the Education of Children
With Disabilities
SEC. 321. PERSONNEL DEVELOPMENT TO IMPROVE SERVICES AND RESULTS FOR
CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES; ENSURING SUFFICIENT TEACHERS
OF THE DEAF-BLIND AND EARLY INTERVENTION SPECIALISTS.
Section 662(c)(2) (20 U.S.C. 1462(c)(2)), as amended by section
121, is further amended--
(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (G) and (H) as
subparagraphs (I) and (J), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the following:
``(G) Preparing personnel to be qualified teachers
of the deaf-blind and early intervention specialists,
to assist children with deaf-blindness in schools and
school related activities, as well as toddlers and
preschool children with deaf-blindness in early
intervention and preschool programs, to develop
communication and literacy skills, and to access,
organize, and utilize information about the environment
and acquire concepts essential for learning.
``(H) Preparing personnel to be qualified
interveners as individualized supports to assist
children with deaf-blindness in school and school
related activities, and infants and toddlers and
preschool children with deaf-blindness in early
intervention and preschool programs.''.
<all>
Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act
#2681 | S Congress #116
Policy Area: Education
Subjects: Academic performance and assessmentsDepartment of EducationDisability and paralysisDisability assistanceEducation programs fundingEducational technology and distance educationElementary and secondary educationExecutive agency funding and structureGovernment information and archivesHealth information and medical recordsHearing, speech, and vision careLanguage artsSpecial educationTeaching, teachers, curricula
Last Action: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (10/23/2019)
Bill Text Source: Congress.gov
Summary and Impacts
Original Text