# 119-s-4535: Strength in Diversity Act of 2026

119-s-4535, Strength in Diversity Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Murphy, Christopher [D-CT] (D-CT); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-18).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4535
- As of: 2026-09-18
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-4535
- Congress: 119
- Title: Strength in Diversity Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-05-14
- Sponsor: Sen. Murphy, Christopher [D-CT] (D-CT)
- Cosponsors: 12
- Policy area: Education
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-18

## Summary

**The Strength in Diversity Act of 2026 would create a federal grant program aimed at addressing racial isolation and concentrated poverty by increasing the presence of** **racial and socioeconomic diversity in covered schools**. The bill would fund competitive planning and implementation grants for state and local education agencies and regional consortia that serve segregated or high‑need student populations. - Families and students: Grants would fund actions to expand access to more diverse schools, including one‑stop enrollment systems and transportation planning. Funding targets improved outcomes for students of color and low‑income students and requires family and community engagement. - Schools and educators: Implementation grants could pay for recruiting, hiring, and training staff and for setting and reporting on teacher diversity goals. Recipients must collect data, run rigorous evaluations, and report annually on academic and noncognitive outcomes and disciplinary and enrollment impacts. - State and federal administration: The Secretary could reserve up to 5% for national activities and up to 10% for State planning and implementation support. Planning grants may last up to 1 year and implementation grants up to 3 years.

## Cosponsors (12)

- Sen. Baldwin, Tammy [D-WI] (D-WI), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT] (D-CT), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL] (D-IL), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA] (D-MA), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA] (D-CA), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] (I-VT), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Schiff, Adam B. [D-CA] (D-CA), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD] (D-MD), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Warren, Elizabeth [D-MA] (D-MA), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Duckworth, Tammy [D-IL] (D-IL), 2026-06-02T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Alsobrooks, Angela D. [D-MD] (D-MD), 2026-07-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] (D-NJ), 2026-09-16T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Grants for planning and implementation: benefit, medium. If enacted, planning grants would last up to one year and pay for assessments, facilities and transportation analyses, and diversity assignment options. Implementation grants would last up to three years and could be extended two more years if the Secretary finds significant progress. Implementatio…
- New Strength in Diversity Grants: benefit, medium. If enacted, this would create the Strength in Diversity competitive grant program at the Department of Education. The program would award planning and implementation grants to state and local education agencies and consortia that serve segregated or high-need areas. The Secretary could reserve up t…
- No federal control over schools: benefit, low. If enacted, the Act would say that no federal official may direct or control curriculum, instruction, administration, or personnel of any school or school system. This provision would only clarify limits on federal authority and would not create new federal duties or programs.
- Application rules and data reporting: mixed, medium. If enacted, applicants must submit detailed plans showing how they will identify racial isolation, improve outcomes, engage families, and sustain the work after the grant. The Secretary would set performance measures tracking subgroup achievement, graduation, discipline, mental health access, and c…

## Related bills

- 119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-s-2823: FAMILY Act
- 119-s-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act
- 119-s-5108: Right to IVF Act of 2026
- 119-s-1503: Equality Act

## Sources
- [119-s-4535 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/4535)

## Related
- [119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5066)
- [119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3990)
- [119-s-2823: FAMILY Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2823)
- [119-s-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-51)
- [119-s-5108: Right to IVF Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5108)
- [119-s-1503: Equality Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1503)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4535 (as of 2026-09-18).