Requires that such grants be used for projects only in the predominately rural and agriculture-centered counties and communities of that region. Gives priority to applications for projects in counties where: (1) there is no single incorporated municipality having a population of more than 75,000 people; (2) the local school districts serve populations of which more than half of all students are eligible for free or reduced priced lunches; and (3) more than half of the population is medically underserved.
Requires grantees to use such funds for activities that focus on research, development, and dissemination of programs, plans or demonstration projects designed to improve: school-wide performance; teacher and administrator training; teacher retention; parent and mentor education; assessment; cultural-based education and regional-identity building; workforce; family literacy; preschool learning readiness; and birth-to-kindergarten components of early preventative health care, educational intervention, and immunization delivery.