,i #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #acdc ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,march #ba1 #bjac ,ms4 ,fudge introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,education and the ,workforce ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife to direct the ,secretary of ,education to award grants for science1 technology1 engineering1 and math education programs4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,project ,ready ,,stem ,act4 #b4 ,findings and ,purpose 7a7 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,employment projections forecast a #ag percent growth in the ,,stem fields over the next decade4 7#b7 ,ninety-two percent of ,,stem occupations will require at least some post-secondary education4 7#c7 ,while the number of degrees awarded in ,,stem fields has increased steadily since the #aifjs1 the overall share of ,,stem degrees awarded has actually shrunk in comparison to all degrees conferred4 7#d7 ,internationally1 a larger proportion of all degrees awarded are in the ,,stem fields4 ,while #af percent of degrees awarded in the ,united ,states are in ,,stem fields1 nearly #ej percent of degrees awarded in ,china1 #ch percent in ,south ,korea1 and #bh percent in ,germany are in ,,stem fields4 7#e7 ,minorities are seriously underrepresented in the science and engineering workforce in the ,united ,states1 with just under #f percent of ,blacks and over #e percent of ,hispanics participating in the ,,stem workforce4 7#f7 ,twenty-one percent of ,black college students enter college with ,,stem majors1 but only #af percent actually receive a bachelor's degree in a ,,stem major4 7#g7 ,over of ,black students that enroll in a #d-year university are interested in ,,stem1 but are not proficient in math4 7#h7 ,since #aiij1 mathematic scores on the assessments conducted by the ,national ,assessment of ,education ,progress have increased for all students1 but ,white students have average scores #bg points higher than ,black and ,hispanic students4 7#i7 ,after school programs play an important role in addressing the achievement gap in underserved communities4 ,studies demonstrate that ,,stem learning during the school day is necessary but not sufficient for life-long ,,stem literacy4 7#aj7 ,as many as #h1djj1jjj students are enrolled in after school programs4 ,ethnic minority children are more likely than non-minority children to participate in after school programs4 ,while #ae percent of all students are enrolled in after school programs1 #bd percent of ,black students and #ba percent of ,hispanic students are enrolled in such programs4 7b7 ,purpose ,the purpose of this ,act is to prepare middle school and secondary school students to be ready for opportunities in the ,,stem fields in college and in careers through strong after school1 summer1 and weekend programs that focus on ,,stem education4 #c4 ,amendment to ,,esea for ,,stem grants ,title ,,ii of the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aifd 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ffja et seq47 is amended-- 7#a7 in the heading1 by inserting and ,,stem ,grants after ,partnerships2 7#b7 by inserting after the heading of part ,b the following3 #a ,math and ,science ,partnerships 2 and 7#c7 by inserting after section #bbjc the following new subpart3 #b ,,stem ,grants #bbaa4 ,project ready ,,stem grant program 7a7 ,authorization ,the ,secretary is authorized to award grants1 to be known as ,project ,ready ,,stem ,program grants1 to national and regional intermediaries to establish in-school1 after school1 summer1 and weekend programs that focus on science1 technology1 engineering1 and math 7referred to in this section as ,,stem7 education4 7b7 ,application ,a national or regional intermediary seeking a grant under this section shall submit an application to the ,secretary at such time1 in such form1 and containing such information as the ,secretary may reasonably require1 including the following3 7#a7 ,the amount requested and the proposed use of the funds4 7#b7 ,a description of how the national or regional intermediary will require a community-based affiliate operating a ,project ,ready ,,stem ,program to provide the following3 7,a7 ,a program description1 including a description of-- 7i7 the project-based learning that the program will use and the applicability of such projects to students' lives after graduation from secondary school2 7ii7 the academic instruction1 research model1 or curriculum that the program will use2 and 7iii7 any service-learning opportunities that will be available to students4 7,b7 ,evidence that the ,project ,ready ,,stem ,program will primarily serve students who are traditionally underrepresented in ,,stem field careers4 7,c7 ,a description of the student recruitment plan1 student retention plan1 and parental engagement plan4 7,d7 ,a description of the professional development and training that the community-based affiliate will provide to its ,project ,ready ,,stem ,program staff4 7,e7 ,a description of the community-based affiliate's collaboration with an institution of higher education 7as defined in section #aja of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ajjja774 7,f7 ,a description of how the community-based affiliate will enable students who participate in the program to achieve the goals in subsection 7c74 7c7 ,goals ,the goals of the ,project ,ready ,,stem ,programs are the following3 7#a7 ,to increase awareness of and exposure to current science content1 scientific processes1 and tools for students who are traditionally underrepresented in ,,stem field careers4 7#b7 ,to provide ,,stem learning that is connected to workforce skills that are essential in the #bast century4 7#c7 ,to increase on time grade promotion1 the number of students who graduate high school1 and the number of students who pursue opportunities in ,,stem fields4 7#d7 ,to increase enrollment in and completion of more ,,stem related coursework in school for students who are traditionally underrepresented in ,,stem field careers4 7#e7 ,to increase awareness of students who are traditionally underrepresented in ,,stem field careers of the opportunities after graduation from secondary school in ,,stem fields1 including college majors in ,,stem and careers in ,,stem4 7#f7 ,for students to have the experience of interacting with staff who demonstrate a positive attitude toward ,,stem fields4 7#g7 ,to facilitate project-based learning and service-learning4 7d7 ,allocation ,a national or regional intermediary that receives a grant under this section shall reserve-- 7#a7 not more than #be percent to provide technical and administrative assistance to and collect data from its community-based affiliates to which it makes subgrants2 7#b7 not less than #ej percent for subgrants to community-based affiliates that have demonstrated effectiveness in operating ,,stem programs in order for such affiliates to expand such ,,stem programs to reach more students who are traditionally underrepresented in ,,stem field careers2 and 7#c7 not less than #be percent for subgrants to community-based affiliates that do not operate ,,stem programs in order for such affiliates that seek to develop new ,,stem programs that are consistent with the goals of this section to develop and establish such new ,,stem programs4 7e7 ,subgrants to community-,based affiliates 7#a7 ,application ,a community-based affiliate seeking a subgrant shall submit an application to its national or regional intermediary at such time1 in such form1 and containing such information as the national or regional intermediary may reasonably require4 7#b7 ,uses of funds ,a community-based affiliate that receives a subgrant under this section to operate a ,project ,ready ,,stem ,program shall operate an in-school1 after school1 summer1 or weekend program that focuses on ,,stem education and primarily serves students who are traditionally underrepresented in ,,stem field careers4 ,such program shall include the following3 7,a7 ,educational services that include-- 7i7 an initial assessment of students' progress in math1 science1 and reading2 7ii7 remediation and educational enrichment services2 and 7iii7 helping students to improve their study skills4 7,b7 ,project-based learning opportunities4 7,c7 ,individualized instruction and tracking of student progress that is aligned with in-school performance4 7#c7 ,collaboration ,a community-based affiliate that receives a subgrant under this section shall collaborate with an institution of higher education to provide the services described in paragraph 7#b74 7f7 ,reports 7#a7 ,secretary report to ,congress ,the ,secretary shall submit a report annually to the ,committee on ,education and the ,workforce in the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions in the ,senate on the progress that national and regional intermediaries and their community-based affiliates operating ,project ,ready ,,stem ,programs have made toward achieving the goals in subsection 7c74 7#b7 ,national or regional intermediary report to the ,secretary ,a national or regional intermediary receiving a grant under this section shall submit a report annually to the ,secretary at such time1 in such manner1 and containing such information as the ,secretary may require1 including the progress that its community-based affiliates operating ,project ,ready ,,stem ,programs have made toward achieving the goals in subsection 7c74 7#c7 ,community-based affiliate report to its national or regional intermediary ,a community-based affiliate that receives a subgrant under this section shall submit a report annually to the national or regional intermediary that awarded such subgrant at such time1 in such manner1 and containing such information as the intermediary may require1 including the progress its ,project ,ready ,,stem ,program has made toward achieving the goals in subsection 7c74 7g7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,community-based affiliate ,the term community-based affiliate means a community-based organization 7as defined in section #iaja7 that is an affiliate of a national or regional intermediary4 7#b7 ,national intermediary ,the term national intermediary means a national private nonprofit organization that-- 7,a7 has a network comprised of community-based affiliates in not less than #ej urban communities2 7,b7 has demonstrated expertise and effectiveness in overseeing programs to help middle school and secondary school students succeed1 including programs to help such students become college-ready and career-ready2 and 7,c7 has operated in not less than #be ,states continuously for not less than #bj years4 7#c7 ,project-based learning ,the term project-based learning means learning through a broad project that includes instruction1 substantive content1 and reflection1 with the goal that students who participate in the project will achieve a concrete goal or complete a project4 7#d7 ,regional intermediary ,the term regional intermediary means a private nonprofit community-based organization that-- 7,a7 has a network comprised of community-based affiliates in a prescribed region2 and 7,b7 has demonstrated expertise and effectiveness in conducting outreach and providing education activities to middle school and secondary school students4 7h7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated to the ,secretary to carry out this section-- 7#a7 #bj1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjad2 7#b7 #cj1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjae2 7#c7 #dj1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjaf2 and 7#d7 #ej1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjag4 4