Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 121.djvu/714

 PUBLIC LAW 110–69—AUG. 9, 2007

121 STAT. 693

be affected by the activities carried out by the Center; and ‘‘(iv) a plan for assessing the effectiveness of the Center at accomplishing the goals described in subparagraph (A)(ii). ‘‘(G) In evaluating the applications submitted under subparagraph (F), the Director shall consider, at a minimum— ‘‘(i) the ability of the applicant to effectively carry out the proposed activities, including the dissemination activities described in subparagraph (C)(ii)(IV); and ‘‘(ii) the extent to which the faculty, staff, and administrators of the applicant institution are committed to improving undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. ‘‘(H) In awarding grants under subparagraph (A)(ii), the Director shall ensure that a wide variety of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields and types of institutions of higher education, including 2-year colleges and minorityserving institutions, are covered, and that— ‘‘(i) at least 1 Center is housed at a Doctoral/Research University as defined by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching; and ‘‘(ii) at least 1 Center is focused on improving undergraduate education in an interdisciplinary area. ‘‘(I) The Director shall convene an annual meeting of the awardees under this paragraph to foster collaboration and to disseminate the results of the Centers and the other activities funded under this paragraph.’’. (b) REPORT ON DATA COLLECTION.—Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall transmit to Congress a report on how the Director is determining whether current grant recipients in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Talent Expansion Program are making satisfactory progress as required by section 8(7)(D)(ii) of the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 and what funding actions have been taken as a result of the Director’s determinations.

Meeting.

SEC. 7026. LABORATORY SCIENCE PILOT PROGRAM.

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(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: (1) To remain competitive in science and technology in the global economy, the United States must increase the number of students graduating from high school prepared to pursue postsecondary education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. (2) There is broad agreement in the scientific community that learning science requires direct involvement by students in scientific inquiry and that laboratory experience is so integral to the nature of science that it must be included in every science program for every science student. (3) In America’s Lab Report, the National Research Council concluded that the current quality of laboratory experiences is poor for most students and that educators and researchers do not agree on how to define high school science laboratories or on their purpose, hampering the accumulation of research on how to improve laboratories. (4) The National Research Council found that schools with higher concentrations of non-Asian minorities and schools with

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