           CHAPTER 31--GENERAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING EDUCATION
 
                 SUBCHAPTER V--READY TO LEARN TELEVISION
 
Sec. 1235b. Duties of Secretary

    The Secretary is authorized--
        (1) to establish and administer a Special Projects of National 
    Significance program to award contracts, cooperative agreements, or 
    grants to public and nonprofit private entities, or local public 
    television stations or such public television stations that are part 
    of a consortium with one or more State educational agencies, local 
    educational agencies, local schools, institutions of higher 
    education, or community-based organizations of demonstrated 
    effectiveness, for the purpose of--
            (A) addressing the learning needs of young children in 
        limited English proficient households, and developing 
        appropriate educational and instructional television programming 
        to foster the school readiness of such children;
            (B) developing programming and support materials to increase 
        family literacy skills among parents to assist parents in 
        teaching their children and utilizing educational television 
        programming to promote school readiness; and
            (C) identifying, supporting, and enhancing the effective use 
        and outreach of innovative programs that promote school 
        readiness;

        (2) to establish within the Department a clearinghouse to 
    compile and provide information, referrals and model program 
    materials and programming obtained or developed under this 
    subchapter to parents, child care providers, and other appropriate 
    individuals or entities to assist such individuals and entities in 
    accessing programs and projects under this subchapter; and
        (3) to develop and disseminate training materials, including--
            (A) interactive programs and programs adaptable to distance 
        learning technologies that are designed to enhance knowledge of 
        children's social and cognitive skill development and positive 
        adult-child interactions; and
            (B) support materials to promote the effective use of 
        materials developed under paragraph (2);

    among parents, Head Start providers, in-home and center based day 
    care providers, early childhood development personnel, and 
    elementary school teachers, public libraries, and after school 
    program personnel caring for preschool and elementary school 
    children;
        (4) coordinate activities with the Secretary of Health and Human 
    Services in order to--
            (A) maximize the utilization of quality educational 
        programming by preschool and elementary school children, and 
        make such programming widely available to federally funded 
        programs serving such populations; and
            (B) provide information to grantees of Federal programs that 
        have major training components for early childhood development, 
        including Head Start, Even Start, and State training activities 
        funded under the Child Care Development Block Grant Act of 1990 
        [42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.] regarding the availability and 
        utilization of materials developed under paragraph (3) to 
        enhance parent and child care provider skills in early childhood 
        development and education.

(Pub. L. 90-247, title IV, Sec. 473, formerly Pub. L. 89-10, title IV, 
Sec. 4703, as added Pub. L. 102-545, Sec. 3, Oct. 27, 1992, 106 Stat. 
3587; renumbered Sec. 473 of Pub. L. 90-247, Pub. L. 103-252, title I, 
Sec. 121(a)(1), May 18, 1994, 108 Stat. 649.)

                       References in Text

    The Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990, referred to 
in par. (4)(B), is subchapter C (Sec. 658A et seq.) of chapter 8 of 
subtitle A of title VI of Pub. L. 97-35, as added by Pub. L. 101-508, 
title V, Sec. 5082(2), Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1388-236, as amended, 
which is classified generally to subchapter II-B (Sec. 9858 et seq.) of 
chapter 105 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare. For complete 
classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out 
under section 9801 of Title 42 and Tables.

                          Codification

    Section was formerly classified to section 3161b of this title prior 
to renumbering by Pub. L. 103-252.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 1235c, 1235d, 1235e of this 
title.
