Rural STEM Education Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4972 To direct the Director of the National Science Foundation to support STEM education and workforce development research focused on rural areas, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES DECEMBER 8, 2020 Mr. WICKER (for himself and Ms. ROSEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To direct the Director of the National Science Foundation to support STEM education and workforce development research focused on rural areas, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Rural STEM Edu- 4 cation Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) The supply of STEM workers is not keeping 8 pace with the rapidly evolving needs of the public 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4972 IS and private sector, resulting in a deficit often re- 1 ferred to as a STEM skills shortage. 2 (2) According to the Bureau of Labor Statis- 3 tics, the United States will need 1,000,000 more 4 STEM professionals than the United States is on 5 track to produce in the coming decade. 6 (3) Many STEM occupations offer higher 7 wages, more opportunities for advancement, and a 8 higher degree of job security than non-STEM jobs. 9 (4) The 60,000,000 individuals in the United 10 States who live in rural settings are significantly 11 under-represented in STEM. 12 (5) According to the National Center for Edu- 13 cation Statistics, 9,000,000 students in the United 14 States, an amount equal to nearly 20 percent of the 15 total population of students in kindergarten through 16 grade 12, attend rural schools, and for reasons rang- 17 ing from teacher quality to shortages of resources, 18 these students often have fewer opportunities for 19 high-quality STEM learning than their peers in the 20 Nation’s urban and suburban schools. 21 (6) Rural areas represent one of the most 22 promising, yet underutilized, opportunities for 23 STEM education to impact workforce development 24 and regional innovation, including agriculture. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4972 IS (7) The study of agriculture, food, and natural 1 resources involves biology, engineering, physics, 2 chemistry, mathematics, geology, computer science, 3 and other scientific fields. 4 (8) It is estimated that by 2020 that there will 5 be a projected 1,000,000 more computing jobs than 6 applicants who can fill them. To meet this demand, 7 rural students must acquire computing skills 8 through exposure to computer science learning in 9 prekindergarten through grade 12 and in informal 10 learning settings. 11 (9) More than 293,000,000 individuals in the 12 United States use high-speed broadband to work, 13 learn, access healthcare, and operate their busi- 14 nesses, while 19,000,000 individuals in the United 15 States still lack access to high-speed broadband. 16 Rural areas are hardest hit, with over 26 percent of 17 individuals in rural areas in the United States lack- 18 ing access to high-speed broadband compared to 1.7 19 percent of individuals in urban areas in the United 20 States. 21 SEC. 3. NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION RURAL STEM AC- 22 TIVITIES. 23 (a) PREPARING RURAL STEM EDUCATORS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4972 IS (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall provide 1 grants on a merit-reviewed, competitive basis to in- 2 stitutions of higher education or nonprofit organiza- 3 tions (or a consortium thereof) for research and de- 4 velopment to advance innovative approaches to sup- 5 port and sustain high-quality STEM teaching in 6 rural schools. 7 (2) USE OF FUNDS.— 8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Grants awarded under 9 this subsection shall be used for the research 10 and development activities referred to in para- 11 graph (1), which may include— 12 (i) engaging rural educators of stu- 13 dents in prekindergarten through grade 12 14 in professional learning opportunities to 15 enhance STEM knowledge, including com- 16 puter science, and develop best practices; 17 (ii) supporting research on effective 18 STEM teaching practices in rural settings, 19 including the use of rubrics and mastery- 20 based grading practices to assess student 21 performance when employing the transdis- 22 ciplinary teaching approach for STEM dis- 23 ciplines; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4972 IS (iii) designing and developing pre- 1 service and in-service training resources to 2 assist such rural educators in adopting 3 transdisciplinary teaching practices across 4 STEM courses; 5 (iv) coordinating with local partners 6 to adapt STEM teaching practices to lever- 7 age local natural and community assets in 8 order to support in-place learning in rural 9 areas; 10 (v) providing hands-on training and 11 research opportunities for rural educators 12 described in clause (i) at Federal labora- 13 tories, institutions of higher education, or 14 in industry; 15 (vi) developing training and best prac- 16 tices for educators who teach multiple 17 grade levels within a STEM discipline; 18 (vii) designing and implementing pro- 19 fessional development courses and experi- 20 ences, including mentoring, for rural edu- 21 cators described in clause (i) that combine 22 face-to-face and online experiences; and 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:03 Dec 13, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 4972 IS (viii) any other activity the Director 1 determines will accomplish the goals of this 2 subsection. 3 (B) RURAL STEM COLLABORATIVE.—The 4 Director shall establish a pilot program of re- 5 gional cohorts in rural areas that will provide 6 peer support, mentoring, and hands-on research 7 experiences for rural STEM educators of stu- 8 dents in prekindergarten through grade 12, in 9 order to build an ecosystem of cooperation 10 among educators, researchers, academia, and 11 local industry. 12 (b) BROADENING PARTICIPATION OF RURAL STU- 13 DENTS IN STEM.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall provide 15 grants on a merit-reviewed, competitive basis to in- 16 stitutions of higher education or nonprofit organiza- 17 tions (or a consortium thereof) for— 18 (A) research and development of program- 19 ming to identify the barriers rural students face 20 in accessing high-quality STEM education; and 21 (B) development of innovative solutions to 22 improve the participation and advancement of 23 rural students in prekindergarten through 24 grade 12 in STEM studies. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 4972 IS (2) USE OF FUNDS.— 1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Grants awarded under 2 this subsection shall be used for the research 3 and development activities referred to in para- 4 graph (1), which may include— 5 (i) developing partnerships with com- 6 munity colleges to offer advanced STEM 7 course work, including computer science, to 8 rural high school students; 9 (ii) supporting research on effective 10 STEM practices in rural settings; 11 (iii) implementing a school-wide 12 STEM approach; 13 (iv) improving the National Science 14 Foundation’s Advanced Technology Edu- 15 cation program’s coordination and engage- 16 ment with rural communities; 17 (v) collaborating with existing commu- 18 nity partners and networks, such as the 19 Cooperative Extension System services and 20 extramural research programs of the De- 21 partment of Agriculture and youth serving 22 organizations like 4–H, after school STEM 23 programs, and summer STEM programs, 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 4972 IS to leverage community resources and de- 1 velop place-based programming; 2 (vi) connecting rural school districts 3 and institutions of higher education, to im- 4 prove precollegiate STEM education and 5 engagement; 6 (vii) supporting partnerships that 7 offer hands-on inquiry-based science activi- 8 ties, including coding, and access to lab re- 9 sources for students studying STEM in 10 prekindergarten through grade 12 in a 11 rural area; 12 (viii) evaluating the role of broadband 13 connectivity and its associated impact on 14 the STEM and technology literacy of rural 15 students; 16 (ix) building capacity to support ex- 17 tracurricular STEM programs in rural 18 schools, including mentor-led engagement 19 programs, STEM programs held during 20 nonschool hours, STEM networks, maker- 21 spaces, coding activities, and competitions; 22 and 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 4972 IS (x) any other activity the Director de- 1 termines will accomplish the goals of this 2 subsection. 3 (c) APPLICATION.—An applicant seeking a grant 4 under subsection (a) or (b) shall submit an application at 5 such time, in such manner, and containing such informa- 6 tion as the Director may require. The application may in- 7 clude the following: 8 (1) A description of the target population to be 9 served by the research activity or activities for which 10 such grant is sought. 11 (2) A description of the process for recruitment 12 and selection of students, educators, or schools from 13 rural areas to participate in such activity or activi- 14 ties. 15 (3) A description of how such activity or activi- 16 ties may inform efforts to promote the engagement 17 and achievement of rural students in prekinder- 18 garten through grade 12 in STEM studies. 19 (4) In the case of a proposal consisting of a 20 partnership or partnerships with one or more rural 21 schools and one or more researchers, a plan for es- 22 tablishing a sustained partnership that is jointly de- 23 veloped and managed, draws from the capacities of 24 each partner, and is mutually beneficial. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 4972 IS (d) PARTNERSHIPS.—In awarding grants under sub- 1 section (a) or (b), the Director shall— 2 (1) encourage applicants which, for the purpose 3 of the activity or activities funded through the grant, 4 include or partner with a nonprofit organization or 5 an institution of higher education (or a consortium 6 thereof) that has extensive experience and expertise 7 in increasing the participation of rural students in 8 prekindergarten through grade 12 in STEM; 9 (2) encourage applicants which, for the purpose 10 of the activity or activities funded through the grant, 11 include or partner with a consortium of rural schools 12 or rural school districts; and 13 (3) encourage applications which, for the pur- 14 pose of the activity or activities funded through the 15 grant, include commitments from school principals 16 and administrators to making reforms and activities 17 proposed by the applicant a priority. 18 (e) EVALUATIONS.—All proposals for grants under 19 subsections (a) and (b) shall include an evaluation plan 20 that includes the use of outcome-oriented measures to as- 21 sess the impact and efficacy of the grant. Each recipient 22 of a grant under this section shall include results from 23 these evaluative activities in annual and final projects. 24 (f) ACCOUNTABILITY AND DISSEMINATION.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:03 Dec 13, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 4972 IS (1) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—The Director 1 shall evaluate the portfolio of grants awarded under 2 subsections (a) and (b). Such evaluation shall— 3 (A) use a common set of benchmarks and 4 tools to assess the results of research conducted 5 under such grants and identify best practices; 6 and 7 (B) to the extent practicable, integrate the 8 findings of research resulting from the activity 9 or activities funded through such grants with 10 the findings of other research on rural student’s 11 pursuit of degrees or careers in STEM. 12 (2) REPORT ON EVALUATIONS.—Not later than 13 180 days after the completion of the evaluation 14 under paragraph (1), the Director shall submit to 15 Congress and make widely available to the public a 16 report that includes— 17 (A) the results of the evaluation; and 18 (B) any recommendations for administra- 19 tive and legislative action that could optimize 20 the effectiveness of the grants awarded under 21 this section. 22 (g) REPORT BY COMMITTEE ON EQUAL OPPORTUNI- 23 TIES IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 4972 IS (1) IN GENERAL.—As part of the first report 1 required by section 36(e) of the Science and Engi- 2 neering Equal Opportunities Act (42 U.S.C. 3 1885c(e)) transmitted to Congress after the date of 4 enactment of this Act, the Committee on Equal Op- 5 portunities in Science and Engineering shall in- 6 clude— 7 (A) a description of past and present poli- 8 cies and activities of the Foundation to encour- 9 age full participation of students in rural com- 10 munities in science, mathematics, engineering, 11 and computer science fields; and 12 (B) an assessment of trends in participa- 13 tion of rural students in prekindergarten 14 through grade 12 in Foundation activities, and 15 an assessment of the policies and activities of 16 the Foundation, along with proposals for new 17 strategies or the broadening of existing success- 18 ful strategies towards facilitating the goals of 19 this Act. 20 (2) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.— 21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 313 of the 22 American Innovation and Competitiveness Act 23 (Public Law 114–329) is amended by striking 24 ‘‘Section 204(e) of the National Science Foun- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4972.IS S4972 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 4972 IS dation Authorization Act of 1988’’ and ins [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]