Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 122.djvu/1252

 12 2 STA T . 122 9PUBLIC LA W 11 0– 2 34—M A Y 22, 200 8SEC.713 7. N E W E RA R U RA LT EC H N O LO GYP ROGRA M . Subti t leKof t h e Na tio n al Agr i c ultural R e s earch ,Ex tension, an dT eaching P olic y Act of 197 7 ( 7 U. S. C . 3 31 0 et se q . ) isa m ended by adding at the end the follo w ing

‘SEC. 1 4 73E. NEW ERA RURAL TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM. ‘ ‘(a) DEFIN I T I O NOFCO M M U NIT Y CO L LE G E. —I n this section, the term ‘community college ’ means an institution of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the H igher Education Act of 19 65 ( 2 0 U.S.C. 1001))— ‘‘(1) that admits as regular students indi v iduals who— ‘‘(A) are beyond the age of com p ulsory school attend - ance in the State in which the institution is located and ‘‘( B ) have the ability to benefit from the training offered by the institution; ‘‘(2) that does not provide an educational program for which the institution awards a bachelor’s degree or an equivalent degree; and ‘‘(3) that— ‘‘(A) provides an educational program of not less than 2 years that is acceptable for full credit toward such a degree; or ‘‘(B) offers a 2-year program in engineering, technology, mathematics, or the physical, chemical, or biological sciences, designed to prepare a student to wor k as a techni- cian or at the semiprofessional level in engineering, sci- entific, or other technological fields requiring the under- standing and application of basic engineering, scientific, or mathematical principles of knowledge. ‘‘(b) F UN C TION S .— ‘‘(1) EST AB LIS H MENT.— ‘‘(A) IN GENE R AL.—The Secretary shall establish a pro- gram to be known as the ‘New Era Rural Technology Program’, to make grants available for technology develop- ment, applied research, and training to aid in the develop- ment of an agriculture-based renewable energy workforce. ‘‘(B) SU P PORT.—The initiative under this section shall support the fields of— ‘‘(i) bioenergy; ‘‘(ii) pulp and paper manufacturing; and ‘‘(iii) agriculture-based renewable energy resources. ‘‘(2) RE Q UIREMENTS FOR FUN D ING.—To receive funding under this section, an entity shall— ‘‘(A) be a community college or advanced technological center, located in a rural area and in existence on the date of the enactment of this section, that participates in agricultural or bioenergy research and applied research; ‘‘(B) have a proven record of development and implementation of programs to meet the needs of students, educators, and business and industry to supply the agri- culture-based, renewable energy or pulp and paper manu- facturing fields with certified technicians, as determined by the Secretary; and ‘‘(C) have the ability to leverage existing partnerships and occupational outreach and training programs for sec- ondary schools, 4 -year institutions, and relevant nonprofit organi z ations. Grants.7USC3 3 19e .

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