Bill > HR1409

This bill establishes a competitive grant program administered by the Secretary of Education to help colleges develop and implement a "skills-for-success" course for first-year students. The program will provide grants to eligible higher education institutions for a 5-year period, with priority given to schools where at least half the students receive Pell Grants. The skills-for-success course is a pass-fail or ungraded class with a low student-to-teacher ratio, designed to help first-year students develop essential life skills including mental wellbeing, time management, stress coping, goal setting, interpersonal relationship building, and campus resource engagement. The grant process involves four phases: preparation (developing course infrastructure), pilot (testing the course), full implementation (offering the course to all first-year students), and evaluation. Institutions receiving grants must submit a comprehensive report at the end of the 5-year period detailing how the grant was used and the course's effectiveness. The bill authorizes $50 million in funding to support these grants. The overall goal is to help first-year college students develop critical personal and academic skills that can improve their college experience and likelihood of success.