§ 1151. — Grants to States for workplace and community transition training for incarcerated youth offenders.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 20USC1151]
TITLE 20--EDUCATION
CHAPTER 28--HIGHER EDUCATION RESOURCES AND STUDENT ASSISTANCE
SUBCHAPTER VIII--MISCELLANEOUS
Sec. 1151. Grants to States for workplace and community
transition training for incarcerated youth offenders
(a) Findings
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Over 150,000 youth offenders age 21 and younger are
incarcerated in the Nation's jails, juvenile facilities, and
prisons.
(2) Most youth offenders who are incarcerated have been
sentenced as first-time adult felons.
(3) Approximately 75 percent of youth offenders are high school
dropouts who lack basic literacy and life skills, have little or no
job experience, and lack marketable skills.
(4) The average incarcerated youth has attended school only
through grade 10.
(5) Most of these youths can be diverted from a life of crime
into productive citizenship with available educational, vocational,
work skills, and related service programs.
(6) If not involved with educational programs while
incarcerated, almost all of these youths will return to a life of
crime upon release.
(7) The average length of sentence for a youth offender is about
3 years. Time spent in prison provides a unique opportunity for
education and training.
(8) Even with quality education and training provided during
incarceration, a period of intense supervision, support, and
counseling is needed upon release to ensure effective reintegration
of youth offenders into society.
(9) Research consistently shows that the vast majority of
incarcerated youths will not return to the public schools to
complete their education.
(10) There is a need for alternative educational opportunities
during incarceration and after release.
(b) ``Youth offender'' defined
For purposes of this section, the term ``youth offender'' means a
male or female offender under the age of 25, who is incarcerated in a
State prison, including a prerelease facility.
(c) Grant program
The Secretary of Education (in this section referred to as the
``Secretary'') shall establish a program in accordance with this section
to provide grants to the State correctional education agencies in the
States, from allocations for the States under subsection (i) of this
section, to assist and encourage incarcerated youths to acquire
functional literacy, life, and job skills, through the pursuit of a
postsecondary education certificate, or an associate of arts or
bachelor's degree while in prison, and employment counseling and other
related services which start during incarceration and continue through
prerelease and while on parole.
(d) Application
To be eligible for a grant under this section, a State correctional
education agency shall submit to the Secretary a proposal for a youth
offender program that--
(1) identifies the scope of the problem, including the number of
incarcerated youths in need of postsecondary education and
vocational training;
(2) lists the accredited public or private educational
institution or institutions that will provide postsecondary
educational services;
(3) lists the cooperating agencies, public and private, or
businesses that will provide related services, such as counseling in
the areas of career development, substance abuse, health, and
parenting skills;
(4) describes the evaluation methods and performance measures
that the State correctional education agency will employ, which
methods and measures--
(A) shall be appropriate to meet the goals and objectives of
the proposal; and
(B) shall include measures of--
(i) program completion;
(ii) student academic and vocational skill attainment;
(iii) success in job placement and retention; and
(iv) recidivism;
(5) describes how the proposed programs are to be integrated
with existing State correctional education programs (such as adult
education, graduate education degree programs, and vocational
training) and State industry programs;
(6) addresses the educational needs of youth offenders who are
in alternative programs (such as boot camps); and
(7) describes how students will be selected so that only youth
offenders eligible under subsection (f) of this section will be
enrolled in postsecondary programs.
(e) Program requirements
Each State correctional education agency receiving a grant under
this section shall--
(1) integrate activities carried out under the grant with the
objectives and activities of the school-to-work programs of such
State, including--
(A) work experience or apprenticeship programs;
(B) transitional worksite job training for vocational
education students that is related to the occupational goals of
such students and closely linked to classroom and laboratory
instruction;
(C) placement services in occupations that the students are
preparing to enter;
(D) employment-based learning programs; and
(E) programs that address State and local labor shortages;
(2) annually report to the Secretary and the Attorney General on
the results of the evaluations conducted using the methods and
performance measures contained in the proposal; and
(3) provide to each State for each student eligible under
subsection (f) of this section not more than $1,500 annually for
tuition, books, and essential materials, and not more than $300
annually for related services such as career development, substance
abuse counseling, parenting skills training, and health education,
for each eligible incarcerated youth.
(f) Student eligibility
A youth offender shall be eligible for participation in a program
receiving a grant under this section if the youth offender--
(1) is eligible to be released within 5 years (including a youth
offender who is eligible for parole within such time); and
(2) is 25 years of age or younger.
(g) Length of participation
A State correctional education agency receiving a grant under this
section shall provide educational and related services to each
participating youth offender for a period not to exceed 5 years, 1 year
of which may be devoted to study in a graduate education degree program
or to remedial education services for students who have obtained a
secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent. Educational and
related services shall start during the period of incarceration in
prison or prerelease and may continue during the period of parole.
(h) Education delivery systems
State correctional education agencies and cooperating institutions
shall, to the extent practicable, use high-tech applications in
developing programs to meet the requirements and goals of this section.
(i) Allocation of funds
From the funds appropriated pursuant to subsection (j) of this
section for each fiscal year, the Secretary shall allot to each State an
amount that bears the same relationship to such funds as the total
number of students eligible under subsection (f) of this section in such
State bears to the total number of such students in all States.
(j) Authorization of appropriations
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$17,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and such sums as may be necessary for
each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.
(Pub. L. 105-244, title VIII, Sec. 821, Oct. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1813.)
Codification
Section was enacted as part of the Higher Education Amendments of
1998, and not as part of the Higher Education Act of 1965 which
comprises this chapter.
