Accelerating the Creation of Teachers of Influence for Our Nation Act - Directs the National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish a program providing competitive scholarships to undergraduate students who study science, engineering, or mathematics and earn their elementary or secondary teaching certificate. Requires such students to serve as elementary or secondary school science or mathematics teachers for five years, if they have received at least three years of assistance, and three years, if the assistance was of shorter duration. Subtracts one year from such service requirements if the student teaches at a school serving a high proportion of disadvantaged students.
Allows students who have received at least one year of assistance to apply for up to two years of additional assistance in a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics Master's degree program. Increases the teaching service obligation by one year for each additional year of assistance.
Establishes a government trust fund for donations to the NSF scholarship program.
Requires the NSF Director to establish a program awarding competitive annual $1 million grants to institutions of higher education for the development and implementation of programs providing: (1) undergraduate science, mathematics, and engineering degrees; (2) elementary or secondary teacher certification; and (3) professional development and mentoring activities. Requires recipients to kick in an additional $200,000 for the grants. Includes within a list of factors winning preference for applicants, proposals to: (1) provide students with summer internships with researchers in their field; and (2) enter into partnerships with private sector entities and other institutions of higher education.
[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5141 Introduced in House (IH)]
109th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5141
To provide for the establishment of a program at the National Science
Foundation to increase up to 10,000 per year the number of elementary
and secondary science and mathematics teachers through a scholarship
program encouraging students to obtain science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics degrees with teacher certification, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 6, 2006
Mr. Holt (for himself, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, Ms. Zoe
Lofgren of California, Mr. Capuano, Mr. Markey, Mr. Smith of
Washington, Mr. Price of North Carolina, Mr. Owens, Mr. Payne, Mr.
Grijalva, Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas, Mr. Hinojosa, Mr. McDermott, Ms.
Schakowsky, Mr. McIntyre, and Mr. Inslee) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the establishment of a program at the National Science
Foundation to increase up to 10,000 per year the number of elementary
and secondary science and mathematics teachers through a scholarship
program encouraging students to obtain science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics degrees with teacher certification, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Accelerating the Creation of
Teachers of Influence for Our Nation Act''.
SEC. 2. SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--The National Science Foundation shall establish
a program to provide scholarships to students in science, engineering,
or mathematics programs with certification for elementary or secondary
teaching.
(b) Amount of Scholarship.--A scholarship award under this section
shall be an amount sufficient to cover the cost of tuition, room and
board, and fees at the institution of higher education the student is
attending, not to exceed $20,000 per year.
(c) Selection Criteria.--Scholarships shall be awarded under this
section on the basis of merit, with consideration given to financial
need and the goal of providing support to members of underrepresented
groups within the meaning of the Science and Engineering Equal
Opportunities Act.
(d) Limitation.--A student may not receive scholarships under this
section for more than 5 years of undergraduate study.
(e) Probation.--A student that has received scholarship support
under this section for a year who receives a grade of D or fails a
course during that year shall be notified by the National Science
Foundation that the student is being placed on probation.
(f) Termination.--A student that has received scholarship support
under this section for a year who fails a course during that year,
after having been placed on probation under subsection (e), shall
forfeit the scholarship, and all scholarship amounts received by that
student under this section shall be treated as a student loan as
provided in subsection (h).
(g) Service Obligation.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2) or
subsection (i), not later than 6 years after graduation from a
program for which a student has received scholarship assistance
under this section--
(A) if the student has received 3 or more years of
such assistance, the student shall complete 5 years of
service as an elementary or secondary science or
mathematics teacher; and
(B) if the student has received fewer than 3 years
of such assistance, the student shall complete 3 years
of service as an elementary or secondary science or
mathematics teacher.
(2) Special service.--If all service under this subsection
is performed at a school eligible for assistance under section
1114 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 6314), the length of the obligation under paragraph
(1)(A) or (B) shall be reduced by 1 year.
(h) Forfeiture of Scholarship.--
(1) Consequences.--A student who forfeits a scholarship
provided under this section shall be liable to the United
States for repayment of the full amount of scholarship
assistance received, in accordance with paragraph (3).
(2) Grounds for forfeiture.--A student forfeits a
scholarship provided under this section if the student--
(A) withdraws from the degree program for which the
scholarship was awarded without transfer to a
comparable program within the scope of this Act, or in
a comparable program within the scope of this Act at
another institution of higher education;
(B) fails 2 classes as described in subsections (e)
and (f);
(C) declares that the service obligation under
subsection (g) will not be fulfilled; or
(D) fails to fulfill the service obligation under
subsection (g).
(3) Repayment.--
(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph
(B), in the case of forfeiture, repayment shall be
required for the full amount of scholarship assistance
received by the student plus the interest on such
amounts that would be payable if at the time the
amounts were received they were a loan bearing interest
at the prevailing rate for student loans.
(B) Partial failure to meet service obligation.--In
the case of a forfeiture on grounds described in
paragraph (2)(C) or (D)--
(i) if the student received 3 or more years
of scholarship assistance under this section,
repayment shall be required for the amount of
assistance received reduced by \1/5\ of the
total amount for each year of service
obligation completed, plus the interest on such
reduced amounts that would be payable if at the
time the amounts were received they were a loan
bearing interest at the prevailing rate for
student loans; and
(ii) if the student received fewer than 3
years of scholarship assistance under this
section, repayment shall be required for the
amount of assistance received reduced by \1/3\
of the total amount for each year of service
obligation completed, plus the interest on such
reduced amounts that would be payable if at the
time the amounts were received they were a loan
bearing interest at the prevailing rate for
student loans.
(C) Waiver.--The Director of the National Science
Foundation may provide a partial or complete waiver of
the requirement under this paragraph if a student will
suffer extreme hardship, if compliance is impossible,
or if requiring repayment would be unconscionable.
(i) Master's Degree Option.--
(1) Availability.--A student who has received 1 or more
years of scholarship assistance under this section may apply
for additional scholarship assistance for up to 2 years in a
Master's program in science, technology, engineering, or
mathematics.
(2) Service obligation.--For each year of scholarship
assistance received under paragraph (1), a student's service
obligation under subsection (g) shall increase by 1 year. If
all service under this paragraph and subsection (g) combined is
performed at a school eligible for assistance under section
1114 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 6314), the length of the obligation under this paragraph
shall be reduced by 1 year.
(j) Scholarship Trust Fund.--There shall be established in the
Treasury of the United States a trust fund, into which shall be
deposited all gifts and donations received by the National Science
Foundation in support of the program under this section. Amounts in the
trust fund may be used, to the extent provided in appropriations Acts,
for carrying out this section.
(k) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to the National Science Foundation for carrying out this
section--
(1) $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2007;
(2) $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2008;
(3) $600,000,000 for fiscal year 2009;
(4) $800,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; and
(5) $1,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2011.
SEC. 3. UNIVERSITY GRANTS.
(a) Establishment of Program.--The Director of the National Science
Foundation shall establish a program to award annual grants of
$1,000,000 to institutions of higher education (or a consortia of such
institutions) to develop and implement programs that will provide all
of the following:
(1) Undergraduate science, mathematics, and engineering
degrees.
(2) Elementary or secondary teacher certification.
(3) Professional development and mentoring activities.
(b) Selection Criteria.--The Director shall annually award grants
under this section on a competitive basis. The Director shall seek to
achieve a balanced distribution of awards on the basis of geographic
location and the size of the institutions of higher education. In
weighing the merits of grant proposals, the Director shall consider--
(1) the ability of the applicant to carry out the proposed
program;
(2) the size and quality of education and science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics faculty, and
postdoctoral fellows in those departments;
(3) the degree to which the proposed program will enable
students to become and remain successful elementary and
secondary mathematics and science teachers; and
(4) the ability of the applicant to recruit students who
would otherwise not pursue a career in teaching.
(c) Preference.--The Director shall give preference to applicants
whose proposals include--
(1) curriculum based on cognitive psychology and the
science of how students learn;
(2) structured mentoring program with a highly qualified
teacher in the field of the student;
(3) summer internships with researchers in the science,
mathematics, or engineering field of the student;
(4) mentored classroom teaching experience;
(5) use of educational technology with instruction included
within the curriculum;
(6) practical courses in the teaching of science and
mathematics;
(7) partnerships with private sector entities that
include--
(A) financial or in-kind contributions to the
financing of the internships;
(B) mentoring activities;
(C) professional development programs including
professional meetings; and
(D) collaboration with local schools, education
groups, youth organizations, museums, and libraries;
(8) partnerships with other institutions of higher
education to facilitate the sharing of faculty and
implementation of mentoring activities; and
(9) mechanisms to recruit underrepresented groups into the
program.
(d) Matching Funds.--An institution of higher education may only
receive a grant under this section if it will provide at least $200,000
during the fiscal year for which the grant is awarded toward the
development and implementation of the program for which the grant is
awarded.
(e) Limitation.--An institution of higher education may not receive
more than 3 annual grants under this section.
(f) Monitoring.--The Director shall monitor the success of the each
program receiving assistance under this section to determine
eligibility for competitive renewal, including site visits when
necessary.
(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to the National Science Foundation--
(1) $500,000,000 for fiscal year 2007;
(2) $600,000,000 for fiscal year 2008;
(3) $700,000,000 for fiscal year 2009;
(4) $900,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; and
(5) $1,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2011.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E551)
Referred to the House Committee on Science.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Research.
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