# Understanding the Keeping Girls in School Act

This bill is about getting more girls in developing countries to finish secondary school (middle and high school). Right now, around 130 million girls worldwide don't go to school at all, and millions more drop out before completing their education. The bill directs the U.S. government to fund and coordinate programs that remove the obstacles keeping girls from staying in school.

The bill identifies some serious barriers that girls face. These include child marriage, early pregnancy, violence and harassment at school, the cost of attending school, lack of proper bathrooms and sanitation facilities, and cultural beliefs that boys' education matters more than girls'. It also recognizes that girls with disabilities, those living in poverty, and girls in conflict zones face even bigger challenges. The bill essentially says the U.S. should help tackle these problems through targeted programs in countries where girls drop out of school at much higher rates than boys.

To make this happen, the bill gives the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) authority to create partnerships and programs addressing these barriers. These programs would use modern approaches like digital learning and distance education, especially important after COVID-19 disrupted schooling worldwide. The bill requires careful tracking of whether these programs actually work and whether they're closing the gap between boys' and girls' education. It also requires the State Department to create and regularly update a global strategy for empowering adolescent girls, consulting with civil society groups and local organizations that work on these issues.

The bill is essentially an investment in girls' futures. Research shows that when girls complete secondary education, they earn more money, have healthier children, and are less likely to be forced into early marriage. The bill requires the government to report back to Congress every two years on what programs are being funded and whether they're making a real difference in girls' lives.

Keeping Girls in School Act

Frankel, Lois

Keeping Girls in School Act This bill authorizes the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to enter into agreements to address social, cultural, health, and other barriers that adolescent girls face in accessing quality secondary education. The USAID shall seek to ensure that such activities meet various requirements related to monitoring and evaluating outcomes, collecting data, and using specified indicators and methodologies for international basic education. The Department of State shall periodically update and report to Congress a publicly available U.S. global strategy to empower adolescent girls, and the USAID shall periodically report to Congress on the activities initiated under this bill and efforts to monitor and evaluate such activities.