Fostering Postsecondary Success for Foster and Homeless Youth Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2028 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to authorize a program to recognize institutions of higher education that offer outstanding services and programs for foster and homeless youth, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 18, 2021 Mr. KILDEE (for himself, Mr. BACON, Ms. BASS, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. GARBARINO, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. KATKO, Mr. LAN- GEVIN, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. MEIJER, Mr. POSEY, Mr. SAN NICOLAS, and Mr. SOTO) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to authorize a program to recognize institutions of higher education that offer outstanding services and programs for foster and homeless youth, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Fostering Postsec- 4 ondary Success for Foster and Homeless Youth Act of 5 2021’’. 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2028 IH SEC. 2. RECOGNITION OF FOSTER AND HOMELESS YOUTH 1 FRIENDLY INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDU- 2 CATION. 3 Title VIII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 4 U.S.C. 1161a et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 5 the following new part: 6 ‘‘PART BB—FOSTER AND HOMELESS YOUTH 7 FRIENDLY INSTITUTIONS 8 ‘‘SEC. 899. RECOGNITION OF FOSTER CARE YOUTH AND 9 HOMELESS YOUTH FRIENDLY INSTITUTIONS 10 OF HIGHER EDUCATION. 11 ‘‘(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—The Secretary shall 12 recognize eligible institutions that offer outstanding sup- 13 port services and other programs tailored to the needs of 14 foster care youth and homeless youth. 15 ‘‘(b) DESIGNATION.—An eligible institution recog- 16 nized by the Secretary under subsection (a) shall be des- 17 ignated as ‘Foster and Homeless Youth Friendly’. 18 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—To be considered for recognition 19 under subsection (a), an eligible institution shall submit 20 to the Secretary an application at such time, in such man- 21 ner, and containing such information as the Secretary may 22 require. At a minimum, each application shall include a 23 detailed description of the programs and services for foster 24 care youth and homeless youth that are offered by the in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2028 IH stitution, which may include programs and services such 1 as— 2 ‘‘(1) mentorship programs that formally match 3 foster care youth and homeless youth with a peer or 4 adult mentor; 5 ‘‘(2) academic support services to supplement 6 or complement the classroom instruction provided to 7 foster care youth and homeless youth; 8 ‘‘(3) housing assistance programs under which 9 the institution provides— 10 ‘‘(A) on-campus or off-campus housing di- 11 rectly to foster care youth and homeless youth; 12 or 13 ‘‘(B) financial support to cover the housing 14 costs of foster care youth and homeless youth; 15 ‘‘(4) life and workforce skills development pro- 16 grams that teach or enhance the skills that foster 17 care youth and homeless youth may require to be 18 successful in their personal and professional lives; 19 ‘‘(5) financial aid or scholarships available ex- 20 clusively to foster care youth and homeless youth; 21 ‘‘(6) counseling or mental health services pro- 22 vided by a licensed professional with expertise in 23 serving foster care youth and homeless youth; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2028 IH ‘‘(7) case management services and efforts to 1 facilitate participation in other Federal assistance 2 programs for which students may be eligible; and 3 ‘‘(8) such other programs and services as the 4 Secretary determines to be appropriate in consulta- 5 tion with the individuals and entities described in 6 subsection (e). 7 ‘‘(d) SELECTION PROCESS.— 8 ‘‘(1) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.— 9 ‘‘(A) ANNUAL, MERIT-BASED SELEC- 10 TION.—On an annual basis, the Secretary shall 11 select eligible institutions for recognition under 12 subsection (a) from among institutions that 13 submit applications to the Secretary under sub- 14 section (c). The Secretary shall select such in- 15 stitutions on a competitive basis, based solely 16 on merit. 17 ‘‘(B) GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY NOT RE- 18 QUIRED.—The Secretary shall not consider geo- 19 graphic diversity among the States as a factor 20 in the selection of eligible institutions for rec- 21 ognition under subsection (a). 22 ‘‘(2) CRITERIA AND PROCEDURES.—Consistent 23 with paragraph (1), the Secretary shall issue guide- 24 lines setting forth criteria and procedures for the se- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2028 IH lection of institutions for recognition under sub- 1 section (a). The guidelines shall be developed and 2 implemented as follows: 3 ‘‘(A) DRAFT GUIDELINES.—Not later than 4 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 5 section, the Secretary shall issue draft guide- 6 lines, which shall be made available for public 7 comment for a period of not less than 90 days. 8 ‘‘(B) REVISED GUIDELINES.—Not later 9 than 90 days after the end of the public com- 10 ment period specified in subparagraph (A), the 11 Secretary shall issue revised guidelines, which 12 shall be made available for public comment for 13 a period of not less than 30 days. 14 ‘‘(C) FINAL GUIDELINES.—Not later than 15 30 days after the end of the public comment pe- 16 riod specified in subparagraph (B), the Sec- 17 retary shall publish and implement the final 18 guidelines. 19 ‘‘(e) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out the program 20 under this section, the Secretary shall consult with appro- 21 priate individuals and entities outside the Department of 22 Education, which may include— 23 ‘‘(1) other Federal agencies; 24 ‘‘(2) State agencies; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2028 IH ‘‘(3) institutions of higher education; 1 ‘‘(4) nonprofit and advocacy organizations; 2 ‘‘(5) current and former foster care youth; and 3 ‘‘(6) students who have experienced homeless- 4 ness. 5 ‘‘(f) INFORMATION SHARING.—On an annual basis, 6 the Secretary shall publish, on a publicly accessible 7 website of the Department of Education— 8 ‘‘(1) a profile of each institution recognized 9 under subsection (a) in the most recent year; and 10 ‘‘(2) a comprehensive list of all institutions pre- 11 viously recognized under subsection (a). 12 ‘‘(g) ENSURING CONTINUITY OF QUALITY PROGRAMS 13 AND SERVICES FOR FOSTER AND HOMELESS YOUTH.— 14 ‘‘(1) INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW.— 15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently 16 than once every five years, the Secretary shall 17 review each institution recognized under sub- 18 section (a) to determine whether the programs 19 and services provided by the institution con- 20 tinue to meet the criteria required for such rec- 21 ognition. 22 ‘‘(B) NOTICE.—If the Secretary deter- 23 mines under subparagraph (A) that an institu- 24 tion no longer meets the criteria for recognition 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2028 IH under subsection (a), the Secretary shall trans- 1 mit written notice of such determination to the 2 institution. 3 ‘‘(C) REVOCATION.—After transmitting 4 the notice required under subparagraph (B), 5 the Secretary shall— 6 ‘‘(i) revoke the institution’s recogni- 7 tion under subsection (a); and 8 ‘‘(ii) remove the profile established for 9 the institution under subsection (f)(1) 10 from the website of the Department of 11 Education. 12 ‘‘(D) REAPPLICATION.—An institution 13 that loses recognition under subsection (a) may 14 reapply for such recognition in a subsequent ap- 15 plication year. 16 ‘‘(2) BRIEFING.—Not later than 3 years after 17 the date of enactment of this section, and not less 18 frequently than once every 2 years thereafter, the 19 Secretary shall provide to Congress a briefing that 20 identifies— 21 ‘‘(A) strategies used by institutions that 22 proved effective in meeting the needs of foster 23 care youth and homeless youth; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 2028 IH ‘‘(B) recommendations on how to improve 1 programs and services for foster care youth and 2 homeless youth. 3 ‘‘SEC. 899A. TRAINING, EVALUATION, AND INFORMATION 4 CENTER. 5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than two years after 6 the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall 7 establish a Center for Fostering Postsecondary Success 8 for Foster and Homeless Youth (referred to in this section 9 as the ‘Center’). 10 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.—The duties of the Center shall be to 11 assist institutions of higher education in establishing and 12 maintaining programs for foster care youth and homeless 13 youth, including by— 14 ‘‘(1) providing technical assistance; 15 ‘‘(2) collecting, evaluating, and delivering infor- 16 mation on best practices for such programs; and 17 ‘‘(3) maintaining resources to help foster care 18 youth and homeless youth navigate postsecondary 19 education. 20 ‘‘(c) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT.—For the purpose 21 of carrying out this section, the Secretary may enter into 22 cooperative agreements with one or more organizations 23 with expertise in support services and other programs tai- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 2028 IH lored to the needs of foster care youth and homeless youth, 1 including— 2 ‘‘(1) nonprofit nongovernmental organizations; 3 ‘‘(2) Federal and State government agencies; 4 ‘‘(3) institutions of higher education, including 5 public, private, and land-grant colleges and univer- 6 sities; and 7 ‘‘(4) such other organizations as the Secretary 8 determines to be appropriate. 9 ‘‘(d) PRIORITY.—In entering into agreements with 10 organizations under subsection (c), the Secretary shall 11 give priority to organizations that— 12 ‘‘(1) are capable of engaging with foster care 13 youth and homeless youth and programs that serve 14 such youth and demonstrate expertise in under- 15 standing the unique needs of such youth; 16 ‘‘(2) demonstrate the capacity to effectively im- 17 plement outreach, training, and coordination func- 18 tions; 19 ‘‘(3) are capable of producing instructional ma- 20 terials that can easily be replicated and distributed 21 to institutions of higher education in multiple for- 22 mats; 23 ‘‘(4) have working partnerships with— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:49 Apr 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 2028 IH ‘‘(A) nonprofit and private sector organiza- 1 tions; and 2 ‘‘(B) local, State, and Tribal governments; 3 ‘‘(5) have the ability to work in underserved 4 communities; and 5 ‘‘(6) have an organizational mission aligned 6 with goals of the program under this part. 7 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec- 8 tion shall be construed to provide the Center with the au- 9 thority to issue mandates to, or impose requirements on, 10 any institution of higher education. 11 ‘‘(f) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.— 12 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR ES- 13 TABLISHMENT.—Of the funds made available to 14 carry out this part for each of fiscal years 2021 and 15 2022, the Secretary may use not more than 16 $2,000,000 in each fiscal year to establish the Cen- 17 ter. 18 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR OPER- 19 ATION.—Of the funds made available to carry out 20 this part for each fiscal year beginning after fiscal 21 year 2022, the Secretary may use not more than 22 $1,000,000 in each fiscal year to support the oper- 23 ations of the Center. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:49 Apr 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 2028 IH ‘‘SEC. 899B. DEFINITIONS. 1 ‘‘In this part: 2 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.—The term ‘eligi- 3 ble institution’ means— 4 ‘‘(A) an institution of higher education (as 5 defined in section 101); or 6 ‘‘(B) a postsecondary educational institu- 7 tion operated or controlled by the Bureau of In- 8 dian Education. 9 ‘‘(2) FOSTER CARE YOUTH.—The term ‘foster 10 care youth’ means an individual whose care and 11 placement is the responsibility of the State or Tribal 12 agency that administers a State or Tribal plan 13 under part B or E of title IV of the Social Security 14 Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq.; 670 et seq.), without re- 15 gard to whether foster care maintenance payments 16 are made under section 472 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 17 672) on behalf of the individual, including any such 18 individual who was in such care on or after attaining 19 13 years of age and without regard to the reason the 20 individual left such care. 21 ‘‘(3) HOMELESS YOUTH.—The term ‘homeless 22 youth’ has the meaning given the term ‘homeless 23 children and youths’ in section 725 of the McKin- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 2028 IH ney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 1 11434a).’’. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2028.IH H2028 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS