State applications
In general
Application
In such application, the Governor shall—
include the assurances described in subsection (d);
provide baseline data that demonstrates the State’s current status in each of the areas described in such assurances; and
describe how the State intends to use its allocation, including whether the State will use such allocation to meet maintenance of effort requirements under the ESEA and IDEA and, in such cases, what amount will be used to meet such requirements.
Incentive grant application
The Governor of a State seeking a grant under section 10006 of this title shall—
submit an application for consideration;
describe the status of the State’s progress in each of the areas described in subsection (d), and the strategies the State is employing to help ensure that students in the subgroups described in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II) 1
describe the achievement and graduation rates (as described in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(vi) 1 of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(C)(vi)) and as clarified in section 200.19(b)(1) of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations) of public elementary and secondary school students in the State, and the strategies the State is employing to help ensure that all subgroups of students identified in section 1111(b)(2) of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)) in the State continue making progress toward meeting the State’s student academic achievement standards;
describe how the State would use its grant funding to improve student academic achievement in the State, including how it will allocate the funds to give priority to high-need local educational agencies; and
include a plan for evaluating the State’s progress in closing achievement gaps.
Assurances
An application under subsection (b) shall include the following assurances:
Maintenance of effort
Elementary and secondary education
Higher education
Achieving equity in teacher distribution
Improving collection and use of data
Standards and assessments
The State—
will enhance the quality of the academic assessments it administers pursuant to section 1111(b)(3) of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(3)) through activities such as those described in section 6112(a) 1 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 7301a(a));
will comply with the requirements of paragraphs (3)(C)(ix) and (6) of section 1111(b) 1 of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)) and section 612(a)(16) of the IDEA (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(16)) related to the inclusion of children with disabilities and limited English proficient students in State assessments, the development of valid and reliable assessments for those students, and the provision of accommodations that enable their participation in State assessments; and
will take steps to improve State academic content standards and student academic achievement standards consistent with section 9871(e)(1)(A)(ii) of this title.
Supporting struggling schools
Improving early childhood care and education
The State will take actions to—
increase the number and percentage of low-income and disadvantaged children in each age group of infants, toddlers, and pre-schoolers who are enrolled in high-quality early learning programs;
design and implement an integrated system of high-quality early learning programs and services; and
ensure that any use of assessments conforms with the recommendations of the National Research Council’s reports on early childhood.