Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 112 Part 5.djvu/334

 112 STAT. 3092 PUBLIC LAW 105-332—OCT. 31, 1998 "(i) IN GENERAL.— The Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate— "(I) an interim report regarding the assessment on or before January 1, 2002; and "(II) a final report, summarizing all studies and analyses that relate to the assessment and that are completed after the assessment, on or before July 1, 2002. "(ii) PROHIBITION. — Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the reports required by this subsection shall not be subject to any review outside the Department of Education before their transmittal to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate, and the Secretary, but the President, the Secretary, and the independent advisory panel established under paragraph (2) may make such additional recommendations to Congress with respect to the assessment as the President, the Secretary, or the panel determine to be appropriate. "(4) COLLECTION OF STATE INFORMATION AND REPORT.— "(A) IN GENERAL. —The Secretary may collect and disseminate information from States regarding State efforts to meet State adjusted levels of performance described in section 113. "(B) REPORT. —The Secretary shall gather any information collected pursuant to subparagraph (A) and submit a report to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate. "(5) RESEARCH. — "(A) IN GENERAL.— The Secretary, after consulting with the States, shall award grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements on a competitive basis to an institution of higher education, a public or private nonprofit organization or agency, or a consortium of such institutions, organizations, or agencies to establish a national research center or centers— "(i) to carry out research for the purpose of developing, improving, and identifying the most successful methods for successfully addressing the education, employment, and training needs of participants in vocational and technical education programs, including research and evaluation in such activities as— "(I) the integration of vocational and technical instruction, and academic, secondary and postsecondary instruction; "(II) education technology and distance learning approaches and strategies that are effective with respect to vocational and technical education; "(III) State adjusted levels of performance and State levels of performance that serve to improve vocational and technical education programs and student achievement; and

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