September 16, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 160 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session

[Pages H4452-H4455]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 21ST CENTURY COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTERS CORONAVIRUS RELIEF ACT OF 2020

  Ms. WILD. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 8162) to express the sense of Congress that the Secretary of 
Education should provide certain waivers to community learning centers, 
and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 8162

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``21st Century Community 
     Learning Centers Coronavirus Relief Act of 2020''.

     SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING FLEXIBLE USE OF SUBGRANT 
                   FUNDS.

       It is the sense of Congress that for school year 2020-2021, 
     notwithstanding each provision in part B of title IV of the 
     Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     7171 et seq.) that requires activities under such part be 
     carried out during nonschool hours or periods when school is 
     not in session, the Secretary of Education should carry out 
     the exceptions included in the notice entitled ``Agency 
     Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; 21st CCLC 
     4201(b)(1) Waiver Request'', published by the Department of 
     Education in the Federal Register on September 3, 2020 (85 
     Fed. Reg. 55002) by providing that each eligible entity that 
     is awarded a subgrant under section 4204 of such Act (20 
     U.S.C. 7174) for community learning centers may use such 
     subgrant funds--
       (1) to carry out activities described in section 4205 of 
     such Act (20 U.S.C. 7175), regardless of whether such 
     activities are conducted in-person or virtually, or during 
     school hours or when school is in session; and
       (2) to provide in-person care during--
       (A) the regular school day for students eligible to receive 
     services under part B of title IV of such Act (20 U.S.C. 7171 
     et seq.); and
       (B) a period in which full-time in-person instruction is 
     not available for all such students served by such eligible 
     entity.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Pennsylvania (Ms. Wild) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Van 
Drew) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania.


                             General Leave

  Ms. WILD. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Pennsylvania?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. WILD. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise to speak in support of passing the 21st Century Community 
Learning Centers Coronavirus Relief Act of 2020, which I recently 
introduced.
  This pandemic and economic crisis have disrupted every aspect of life 
in our society. As a result of the pandemic, many school districts will 
provide academic instruction through remote or hybrid learning models 
this school year. Estimates suggest that this fall, nearly 24 million 
workers with children between the ages of 6 and 14 will have no at-home 
childcare option.

[[Page H4453]]

  For parents struggling to care for their children while maintaining 
their professional responsibilities or trying to return to the 
workforce, this time has been an unprecedented challenge. Those of us 
who have the honor of representing our communities in Congress must 
act. My commonsense, bipartisan legislation offers a path forward.
  My bill expresses a sense of Congress that the flexibility provided 
to States through the Department of Education's recent waiver for 21st 
Century Community Learning Centers, the only federally funded 
initiative dedicated to supporting after-school, before-school, and 
summer learning programs, allows subgrantees to provide virtual 
programming and school-aged childcare during the workday to help meet 
the need of students and families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  These learning centers, which typically operate out of Boys & Girls 
Clubs, YMCAs, schools, and other community centers, have existing 
trusted partnerships with the school districts that they serve. The 
flexibility expressed in my legislation will help school districts 
leverage these partnerships to create options for families and to 
cultivate environments in which K-12 students could receive additional 
academic support, school-aged children could receive safe care during 
the workday, schoolday, and working parents would be able to return to 
and stay in the workforce.
  Over the last several months, I have heard from dozens of parents 
across my community who are concerned about how they are going to 
tackle this school year, how they will find affordable childcare, how 
they make sure their children don't fall behind academically, and how 
they will stay in the workforce. I am proud that my legislation 
supports flexible, affordable, school-aged childcare options to create 
safe, structured learning environments for students to thrive and to 
enable parents to get back to work.
  Right now, families need options and flexibility. Without it, our 
students, our workers, and our economy will all pay the price. Putting 
forward solutions to these issues is a national priority, not just for 
the sake of children and families across our communities, but also for 
businesses trying to retain employees or hire new workers.
  I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in passing 
this legislation with a resounding, bipartisan vote.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. VAN DREW. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I rise today in strong support of H.R. 8162, the 21st Century 
Community Learning Centers Coronavirus Relief Act, bipartisan 
legislation that expresses Congress' support for actions the Department 
of Education is taking to expand access to in-person care and academic 
support for students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  The 2020-2021 school year looks very different for parents, teachers, 
and students. Schools are operating on varying schedules of in-person, 
remote, and hybrid instruction to ensure that students remain safe 
while not falling behind academically.
  Most students will be saddled with the challenges of beginning a new 
year of school while making up for lost learning caused by the 
disruptions from COVID-19.
  Working parents of school-aged children face unique challenges during 
the pandemic. Finding childcare when in-person instruction is not 
offered has become a burdensome task for many families, especially low-
income families.
  If these hardworking families aren't able to return to work, our 
Nation's economic recovery will be severely impeded. Today, we are here 
to address this growing problem by passing the bipartisan 21st Century 
Community Learning Centers Coronavirus Relief Act.
  The 21st Century Community Learning Center, CCLC, program, is a 
federally funded after-school program. The grantees are locally 
operated, often by school districts and community-based organizations, 
and primarily serve students attending schools with high concentrations 
of low-income families.
  Students at 21st CCLCs participate in academic and enrichment 
programs, receive support services such as tutoring and mentoring, and 
their families are encouraged to actively participate in their 
children's studies.
  Since after-school program staff have established relationships with 
students and have experience providing supportive services, they are 
uniquely qualified to assist students during the 2020-2021 school year.
  Under current law, 21st CCLCs must operate during ``non-school 
hours,'' such as before and after school or during summer breaks. The 
Department of Education announced plans to address this by offering 
waivers to States to allow 21st CCLCs to expand their hours of 
operation during the 2020-2021 school year.
  The legislation under consideration today expresses Congress' support 
for the Department of Education to grant flexibility for 21st CCLCs to 
operate outside of this year's constraint for the upcoming school year.
  With these new flexibilities, 21st CCLCs will be able to provide 
programming during regular school hours and offer in-person care to 
students who cannot be in school throughout the regular day. Further, 
21st CCLCs will be able to serve students in person or virtually in 
order to better accommodate the various needs of the families during 
the year.
  I thank Representative Wild for leading this important legislation, 
and I strongly urge a ``yes'' vote on H.R. 8162.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WILD. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the 
gentlewoman from Nevada (Mrs. Lee).
  Mrs. LEE of Nevada. Madam Speaker, on behalf of the people of 
Nevada's Third Congressional District, I rise today in support of the 
21st Century Community Learning Centers Coronavirus Relief Act.
  We are now over 3 weeks into the school year in my district, and it 
is clear that we need to do so much more to support our students, 
parents, and schools.
  Whether it is at-home or in-person learning, the pandemic is throwing 
challenges at our kids that make learning more difficult and, in some 
cases, nearly impossible. This isn't just a struggle for students, but 
also for parents who are also juggling work while supervising remote 
learning for their kids.
  We can't just ask parents to make the best of a bad situation. It 
should be on Congress to help our working families. Whether in a school 
building or in a living room, we need to create a supportive, engaging 
environment for our students, while giving parents the flexibility to 
still work and provide for their families--and that is what this bill 
does.
  It will provide additional academic support for K-12 students by 
offering access to safe, supervised learning during the day to take 
some weight off the shoulders of working parents. This will be done by 
bringing together schools, community organizations, nonprofits, local 
government, and after-school providers to expand access to academic 
resources and create flexibility for families.
  I urge my colleagues to vote for the 21st Century Community Learning 
Centers Coronavirus Relief Act to give our students and parents the 
flexibility and the resources they need to make this school year count.
  Mr. VAN DREW. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WILD. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline).
  Mr. CICILLINE. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 8162, 
the 21st Century Community Learning Centers Coronavirus Relief Act.
  As the coronavirus pandemic continues, schools throughout Rhode 
Island and all across America have been forced to close their doors, 
some for the rest of the year.

                              {time}  1215

  This trend means that high-quality after-school and summer programs 
will be even more necessary to provide young people with a safe, 
enriching place to learn and grow. We have an obligation to ensure that 
these programs have the resources and flexibility needed to meet the 
needs of America's children.
  Currently, more than 2 million children and families rely on Nita M.

[[Page H4454]]

Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers for after-school and 
summer learning programming. With schools across the country closing, 
many students are unable to obtain services provided by out-of-school 
programs, including academic assistance, a safe place to be when their 
parents are working, and access to a hot meal or healthy snack.
  We know after-school programming provides one of the most effective 
ways to keep children safe in the late afternoon and early evening 
hours and keeps them on the right path to completing school. These 
programs help students develop essential life skills such as problem-
solving, critical thinking, and healthy living.
  Additional flexibility for 21st Century Community Learning Centers 
will help improve access to these critical programs and will make sure 
that after-school programming is available to students and families to 
keep children safe and engaged and to strengthen families and 
communities throughout the pandemic.
  Madam Speaker, I urge passage of the bill, and I thank the 
gentlewoman for yielding me the time.
  Mr. VAN DREW. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to 
close.
  Madam Speaker, working parents across the country are currently 
grappling with the challenge of finding affordable childcare as COVID-
19-related school closures force many students to stay home. Parents 
are eager to return to work, but without reliable, affordable childcare 
options, students, workers, and the economy will be impacted 
significantly.
  H.R. 8162, the bipartisan 21st Century Community Learning Centers 
Coronavirus Relief Act, supports the Department of Education's efforts 
to extend a commonsense solution that will help parents return to the 
workforce by increasing access to safe, supportive environments for 
students. By giving 21st CCLCs greater flexibility to provide normal 
programming during school hours and in-person care to students during 
the regular school day, parents can return to work with peace of mind, 
knowing that their children are in good hands and not falling behind 
academically.
  Again, Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Wild for introducing 
this legislation. I strongly urge a ``yes'' vote on H.R. 8162, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. WILD. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague across the aisle, Mr. 
Van Drew, for supporting this very important piece of legislation.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to 
support H.R. 8162. It is legislation that will provide vital support 
for students, for parents, for employers, for schools, and for our 
economy as we all grapple with the effects of this pandemic.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Speaker, I rise to speak in support of H.R. 
8162, the ``21st Century Community Learning Centers Coronavirus Relief 
Act''.
  H.R. 8162, expands the allowable uses for subgrants provided under 
the 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program for the 2020-2021 
school year.
  Specifically, the bill allows eligible entities that are awarded 
program subgrants for community learning centers to use these subgrants 
to: (1) carry out activities that advance student academic achievement 
and support student success, regardless of whether such activities are 
conducted in person, virtually, during school hours, or when school is 
in session; and (2) provide in-person care during the regular school 
day and when full-time in-person instruction is not available to 
students. (Currently, the program only supports academic enrichment 
opportunities for children during non-school hours or periods when 
school is not in session.)
  Because of the ongoing COVID-19 threat to health, the spring of 2020, 
saw the forced closure of all K-12 and post-secondary education 
institutions in the Nation.
  There is an urgent need to meet the education crisis the Nation is 
facing with an adequate response.
  Data from the National Center for Education Statistics shows that one 
out of every four households in Texas does not have access to broadband 
internet, and some 8 million homes do not have a computer or a 
smartphone.
  Because of this bill, Community Learning Centers will provide 
academic enrichment opportunities during school and non-school hours 
for children, particularly students who attend high-poverty and low-
performing schools.
  The program helps students meet state and local student standards in 
core academic subjects, such as reading and math; offers students a 
broad array of enrichment activities that can complement their regular 
academic programs; and offers literacy and other educational services 
to the families of participating children.
  Technological difficulty is just one of the reasons students could 
become disengaged from the virtual learning environment.
  Learning Centers are needed because despite being one of the most 
developed countries in the world, the United States has one of the 
highest rates of childhood poverty globally.
  Preliminary data on the Huston Independent School District (HISD) 
from the Texas Education Agency shows 23.4 percent of students lost 
contact or stopped engaging with learning during the Spring.
  This is more than twice statewide average, the total statewide for 
unengaged students is nearly 500,000.
  One key factor is poverty, children born or raised in poverty face a 
number of disadvantages, most evidently in education.
  Poverty reduces a child's readiness for school because it leads to 
poor physical health and motor skills, diminishes a child's ability to 
concentrate and remember information, and reduces attentiveness, 
curiosity and motivation.
  Children in poverty are also finding the challenge of keeping up with 
school work more difficult due to COVID-19.
  One of the most severe effects of poverty in the United States is 
that poor children enter school with this readiness gap, and it grows 
as they get older.
  Children feel alienated from society; suffer insecurities because of 
their socioeconomic status; fear the consequences of their poverty; 
endure feelings of powerlessness; and are angry at society's inability 
to aid in their struggles.
  Children from lower-income families are more likely than students 
from wealthier backgrounds to have lower test scores, and they are at 
higher risk of dropping out of school.
  Students with low income backgrounds who complete high school are 
less likely to attend college than students from higher-income 
families.
  For some children, the effects of poverty on education present unique 
challenges in breaking the cycle of generational poverty and reduce 
their chances of leading rewarding, productive lives.
  In addition to these challenges' children living in poverty often do 
not have access to necessary computer technology, broadband internet 
connection to participate in remote learning, or the nutritional 
support that provides adequate food, which is essential to learning.
  We know that this crisis created by COVID-19 was difficult for the 
Nation's approximately 56.6 million students, 3.5 million full- and 
part-time public school teachers, and parents.
  This bill is necessary as the beginning of the fall school year 
continues to pose challenges to educating the nation's children.
  To meet the challenges created by COVID-19, the HISD school board 
passed a budget amendment earlier this month to spend $31 million on 
devices for students. By the end of the year, the district says it 
plans to have distributed nearly 125,000 devices and hotspots to 
students.
  The statute being amended only allows learning centers and related 
grants to be funded when schools are in session.
  At a time when learning centers are more important to education 
because COVID-19 is impacting schools' functioning as the primary 
source of full time learning we need to act to support this education 
resource.
  Children are depending on Congress to make education possible during 
COVID-19.
  There are: 50.8 million students in public schools, and 5.8 million 
students in private schools.
  Among the 50.8 million students enrolled in elementary and secondary 
public schools: 1.4 million were in prekindergarten; 3.7 million were 
in kindergarten; 35.5 million attended elementary through middle school 
(K and 8th grade); and 15.3 million attended high school (9 through 
12th grade).
  Through 2028, enrollment is projected to increase to 51.4 million.
  In 2018, 3.3 million students graduated from high school, marking 
nearly a 1 percent increase from 2017; 3.7 million were expected to 
graduate in 2020; 3.3 million from public high schools; and 0.4 million 
from private schools.
  The average per-student expenditure in public schools is $13,440.
  In 2019, there are approximately 16,800 school districts in the 
United States.
  13 percent of all public school students were served by the 
Individuals with Disabilities Act for the 2015-2016 school year.
  Between 2000 and 2016, total public school enrollment increased for 
32 states.

[[Page H4455]]

  The following saw increases of 15 percent or more: Florida, Delaware, 
North Carolina, Idaho, Georgia, Colorado, Arizona, Texas, Utah, and 
Nevada.
  The following states saw decreases of 10 percent or more: Michigan, 
Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
  In 2018, 7 million or 13.7 percent of public school students received 
special education services.
  In 2017, 9.6 percent of public school students were learning English 
as a second language.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 8162.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Wild) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 8162, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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