I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 467 

To direct the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to 

carry out programs and activities to ensure that Federal science agencies 

and institutions of higher education receiving Federal research and development funding are fully engaging their entire talent pool, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 22, 2015 

Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas (for herself, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Mr. HINOJOSA, Ms. NORTON, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. 

KENNEDY, Mr. HONDA, Ms. LOFGREN, Ms. BONAMICI, Ms. SLAUGHTER, 

Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. EDWARDS, and Ms. DELAURO) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Science, Space, and Technology 

A BILL 

To direct the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to carry out programs and activities to 

ensure that Federal science agencies and institutions of 

higher education receiving Federal research and development funding are fully engaging their entire talent pool, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘STEM Opportunities Act of 2015’’. 

4 (b) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) Many reports over the past decade have 

6 found that it is critical to our Nation’s economic 

7 leadership and global competitiveness that we edu8 cate and train more scientists and engineers. 

9 (2) Research shows that women and minorities 

10 who are interested in STEM careers are dispropor11 tionately lost at nearly every educational transition. 

12 (3) The National Center for Science and Engi13 neering Statistics at the National Science Founda14 tion collects, compiles, and publishes data on the de15 mographics of STEM degrees and STEM jobs in the 

16 United States. 

17 (4) Women now earn nearly 40 percent of all 

18 STEM bachelor’s degrees, but major variations per19 sist among fields. In 2012, women earned only 19 

20 percent of all bachelor’s degrees awarded in engi21 neering and 18 percent in computer sciences. Based 

22 on Bureau of Labor Statistics data, jobs in com23 puting occupations are expected to account for about 

2 24 ⁄3 of the projected annual growth of newly created 

25 STEM job openings from 2012 to 2022. 


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1 (5) In 2012, underrepresented minority groups 

2 comprised 36.4 percent of the college-age population 

3 of the United States, but only 14.7 percent of stu4 dents earning bachelor’s degrees in STEM fields. 

5 The Higher Education Research Institute at the 

6 University of California, Los Angeles, found that, 

7 while freshmen from underrepresented minority 

8 groups express an interest in pursuing a STEM un9 dergraduate degree at the same rate as all other 

10 freshmen, only 22.1 percent of Latino students, 18.4 

11 percent of African-American students, and 18.8 per12 cent of Native American students studying in STEM 

13 fields complete their degree within 5 years, com14 pared to approximately 33 percent and 42 percent 5- 

15 year completion rate for White and Asian students, 

16 respectively. 

17 (6) In some STEM fields, including the com18 puter sciences, women persist at about the same rate 

19 through doctorate degrees. In other fields, including 

20 the physical sciences, their numbers decrease by as 

21 much as 1 in 4. Overall, women earned 35 percent 

22 of STEM doctorate degrees in 2012. The number of 

23 minority students earning STEM doctorate degrees 

drops by nearly 2 24 ⁄3. Students from underrepresented 


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1 minority groups accounted for only 5.5 percent of 

2 STEM doctorate degrees awarded in 2012. 

3 (7) The representation of women in STEM 

4 drops significantly again at the faculty level. Overall, 

5 women hold only 25 percent of all tenured and ten6 ure-track positions and 17 percent of full professor 

7 positions in STEM fields in our Nation’s universities 

8 and 4-year colleges. Black and Hispanic faculty to9 gether hold about 6.5 percent of all tenured and ten10 ure-track positions and 5 percent of full professor 

11 positions. Many of the numbers in the American In12 dian or Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian or 

13 Other Pacific Islander categories for different fac14 ulty ranks were too small for the National Science 

15 Foundation to report publicly without potentially 

16 compromising confidential information about the in17 dividuals being surveyed. 

18 (8) The representation of women is especially 

19 low at our Nation’s top research universities. Even 

20 in the biological sciences, in which women now earn 

21 more than 50 percent of the doctorates and passed 

22 the 25 percent level 35 years ago, women make up 

23 only 25 percent of the full professors at the 100 or 

24 so most research-intensive universities. In the phys25 ical sciences and mathematics, they make up only 11 


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1 percent of these senior positions, in computer 

2 sciences only 10 percent, and across engineering 

3 fields only 7 percent. The data suggest that approxi4 mately 6 percent of all tenure-track STEM faculty 

5 members at the most research intensive universities 

6 are from underrepresented minority groups, but in 

7 some fields the numbers are too small to report pub8 licly. 

9 (9) By 2050 underrepresented minorities will 

10 comprise 52 percent of the college-age population of 

11 the United States. If the percentage of female stu12 dents and students from underrepresented minority 

13 groups earning bachelor’s degrees in STEM fields 

14 does not significantly increase, the United States 

15 will face an acute shortfall in the overall number of 

16 students who earn degrees in STEM fields just as 

17 United States companies are increasingly seeking 

18 students with those skills. With this impending 

19 shortfall, the United States will almost certainly lose 

20 its competitive edge in the 21st century global econ21 omy. 

22 (10) According to a recent Association for 

23 Women in Science survey of over 4,000 scientists 

24 across the globe, 70 percent of whom were men, 

25 STEM researchers face significant challenges in 


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1 work-life integration. Researchers in the United 

2 States were among the most likely to experience a 

3 conflict between work and their personal life at least 

4 weekly. One-third of researchers surveyed said that 

5 ensuring good work-life integration has negatively 

6 impacted their careers, and, of researchers intending 

7 to leave their current job within the next year, 9 

8 percent indicated it was because they were unable to 

9 balance work and life demands. 

10 (11) Female students and students from under11 represented minority groups at institutions of higher 

12 education who see few others ‘‘like themselves’’ 

13 among faculty and student populations often do not 

14 experience the social integration that is necessary for 

15 success in all disciplines, including STEM. 

16 (12) A substantial body of evidence establishes 

17 that most people hold implicit biases. Decades of 

18 cognitive psychology research reveal that most peo19 ple carry prejudices of which they are unaware but 

20 that nonetheless play a large role in evaluations of 

21 people and their work. Unintentional biases and out22 moded institutional structures are hindering the ac23 cess and advancement of women and minorities in 

24 science and engineering. 


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1 (13) Workshops held to educate faculty about 

2 unintentional biases have demonstrated success in 

3 raising awareness of such biases. 

4 (14) In 2012 the National Aeronautics and 

5 Space Administration’s Office of Diversity and 

6 Equal Opportunity completed a report specifically 

7 designed to help NASA grant recipients identify why 

8 the dearth of women in STEM fields continues and 

9 to ensure that it is not due to discrimination. The 

10 report provides guidance to institutions of higher 

11 education on how to conduct meaningful self-evalua12 tions of campus culture and policies. This report and 

13 its guidance are equally applicable to all institutions 

14 of higher education receiving significant Federal re15 search funding. 

16 (15) The Federal Government provides over 60 

17 percent of research funding at institutions of higher 

18 education and, through its grant-making policies, 

19 has had significant influence on institution of higher 

20 education policies, including policies related to insti21 tutional culture and structure. 

22 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director, acting through the 

24 Federal science agencies, shall carry out programs and ac25 tivities with the purpose of ensuring that Federal science 


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1 agencies and institutions of higher education receiving 

2 Federal research and development funding are fully en3 gaging their entire talent pool. 

4 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol5 lows: 

6 (1) To promote research on and increase under7 standing of the participation and trajectories of 

8 women and underrepresented minorities in STEM 

9 careers at institutions of higher education and Fed10 eral science agencies, including Federal laboratories. 

11 (2) To raise awareness within Federal science 

12 agencies, including Federal laboratories, and institu13 tions of higher education about cultural and institu14 tional barriers limiting the recruitment, retention, 

15 promotion, and other indicators of participation and 

16 achievement of women and underrepresented minori17 ties in academic and Government STEM research 

18 careers at all levels. 

19 (3) To identify, disseminate, and implement 

20 best practices at Federal science agencies, including 

21 Federal laboratories, and at institutions of higher 

22 education to remove or reduce cultural and institu23 tional barriers limiting the recruitment, retention, 

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1 ties in academic and Government STEM research 

2 careers. 

3 (4) To provide grants to institutions of higher 

4 education to recruit, retain, and advance STEM fac5 ulty members from underrepresented minority 

6 groups and to implement or expand reforms in un7 dergraduate STEM education in order to increase 

8 the number of students from underrepresented mi9 nority groups receiving degrees in these fields. 

10 SEC. 3. FEDERAL SCIENCE AGENCY POLICIES FOR CARE11 GIVERS. 

12 (a) OSTP GUIDANCE.—Not later than 6 months 

13 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall 

14 provide guidance to Federal science agencies to establish 

15 policies that— 

16 (1) apply to all— 

17 (A) intramural and extramural research 

18 awards; and 

19 (B) primary investigators who have 

20 caregiving responsibilities, including care for a 

21 newborn or newly adopted child and care for an 

22 immediate family member who is sick or dis23 abled; and 

24 (2) provide— 


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1 (A) flexibility in timing for the initiation of 

2 approved research awards; 

3 (B) no-cost extensions of research awards; 

4 (C) grant supplements as appropriate to 

5 research awards for research technicians or 

6 equivalent to sustain research activities; and 

7 (D) any other appropriate accommodations 

8 at the discretion of the director of each agency. 

9 (b) UNIFORMITY OF GUIDANCE.—In providing such 

10 guidance, the Director shall encourage uniformity and 

11 consistency in the policies across all agencies. 

12 (c) ESTABLISHMENT OF POLICIES.—Consistent with 

13 the guidance provided under this section, Federal science 

14 agencies shall maintain or develop and implement policies 

15 for caregivers and shall broadly disseminate such policies 

16 to current and potential grantees. 

17 (d) DATA ON USAGE.—Federal science agencies 

18 shall— 

19 (1) collect data on the usage of the policies 

20 under subsection (c), by gender, at both institutions 

21 of higher education and Federal laboratories; and 

22 (2) report such data on an annual basis to the 

23 Director in such form as required by the Director. 


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1 SEC. 4. COLLECTION AND REPORTING OF DATA ON FED2 ERAL RESEARCH GRANTS. 

3 (a) COLLECTION OF DATA.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each Federal science agency 

5 shall collect standardized record-level annual infor6 mation on demographics, primary field, award type, 

7 review rating (as practicable), budget request, fund8 ing outcome, and awarded budget for all applications 

9 for merit-reviewed research and development grants 

10 to institutions of higher education and Federal lab11 oratories supported by that agency. 

12 (2) UNIFORMITY AND STANDARDIZATION.—The 

13 Director shall establish a policy to ensure uniformity 

14 and standardization of the data collection required 

15 under paragraph (1). 

16 (3) RECORD-LEVEL DATA.— 

17 (A) REQUIREMENT.—On an annual basis, 

18 beginning with the deadline under subpara19 graph (C), each Federal science agency shall 

20 submit to the Director of the National Science 

21 Foundation record-level data collected under 

22 paragraph (1) in the form required by such Di23 rector. 

24 (B) PREVIOUS DATA.—As part of the first 

25 submission under subparagraph (A), each Fed26 eral science agency, to the extent practicable, 


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1 shall also submit comparable record-level data 

2 for the 5 years preceding the deadline under 

3 subparagraph (C). 

4 (C) DEADLINE.—The deadline under this 

5 paragraph is a date that is not later than 2 

6 years after the date of enactment of this Act. 

7 (b) REPORTING OF DATA.—The Director of the Na8 tional Science Foundation shall publish statistical sum9 mary data collected under this section, disaggregated and 

10 cross-tabulated by race, ethnicity, gender, age, and years 

11 since completion of doctoral degree, including in conjunc12 tion with the National Science Foundation’s report re13 quired by section 37 of the Science and Technology Equal 

14 Opportunities Act (42 U.S.C. 1885d; Public Law 96– 

15 516). 

16 SEC. 5. POLICIES FOR REVIEW OF FEDERAL RESEARCH 

17 GRANTS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director, in collaboration 

19 with the Director of the National Science Foundation, 

20 shall identify information and best practices useful for 

21 educating program officers and members of standing peer 

22 review committees at Federal science agencies about— 

23 (1) research on implicit bias based on gender, 

24 race, or ethnicity; and 


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1 (2) methods to minimize the effect of such bias 

2 in the review of extramural and intramural Federal 

3 research grants. 

4 (b) GUIDANCE TO ALL FEDERAL SCIENCE AGEN5 CIES.—The Director shall disseminate the information 

6 and best practices identified in subsection (a) to all Fed7 eral science agencies and provide guidance as necessary 

8 on policies to implement such practices within each agen9 cy. 

10 (c) ESTABLISHMENT OF POLICIES.—Consistent with 

11 the guidance provided in subsection (b), Federal science 

12 agencies shall maintain or develop and implement policies 

13 and practices to minimize the effects of implicit bias in 

14 the review of extramural and intramural Federal research 

15 grants. 

16 (d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years 

17 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall 

18 report to Congress on what steps all Federal science agen19 cies have taken to implement policies and practices to min20 imize the effects of bias in the review of extramural and 

21 intramural Federal research grants. 

22 SEC. 6. COLLECTION OF DATA ON DEMOGRAPHICS OF FAC23 ULTY. 

24 (a) COLLECTION OF DATA.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act, and at least every 

3 5 years thereafter, the Director of the National 

4 Science Foundation shall carry out a survey to col5 lect institution-level data on the demographics of 

6 STEM faculty, by broad fields of STEM, at dif7 ferent types of institutions of higher education. 

8 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—To the extent prac9 ticable, the Director of the National Science Foun10 dation shall consider, by gender, race, ethnicity, citi11 zenship status, age, and years since completion of 

12 doctoral degree— 

13 (A) the number and percentage of faculty; 

14 (B) the number and percentage of faculty 

15 at each rank; 

16 (C) the number and percentage of faculty 

17 who are in nontenure-track positions, including 

18 teaching and research; 

19 (D) the number and percentage of faculty 

20 who are reviewed for promotion, including ten21 ure, and the percentage of that number who are 

22 promoted, including being awarded tenure; 

23 (E) faculty years in rank; 

24 (F) the number and percentage of faculty 

25 to leave tenure-track positions; 


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1 (G) the number and percentage of faculty 

2 hired, by rank; and 

3 (H) the number and percentage of faculty 

4 in leadership positions. 

5 (b) EXISTING SURVEYS.—The Director of the Na6 tional Science Foundation— 

7 (1) may carry out the requirements under sub8 section (a) by collaborating with statistical centers 

9 at other Federal agencies to modify or expand, as 

10 necessary, existing Federal surveys of higher edu11 cation; or 

12 (2) may award a grant or contract to an insti13 tution of higher education or other nonprofit organi14 zation to design and carry out the requirements 

15 under subsection (a). 

16 (c) REPORTING DATA.—The Director of the National 

17 Science Foundation shall publish statistical summary data 

18 collected under this section, including as part of the Na19 tional Science Foundation’s report required by section 37 

20 of the Science and Technology Equal Opportunities Act 

21 (42 U.S.C. 1885d; Public Law 96–516). 

22 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

23 are authorized to be appropriated to the Director of the 

24 National Science Foundation $3,000,000 in each of fiscal 


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1 years 2016 through 2018 to develop and carry out the 

2 initial survey required in subsection (a). 

3 SEC. 7. CULTURAL AND INSTITUTIONAL BARRIERS TO EX4 PANDING THE ACADEMIC AND FEDERAL 

5 STEM WORKFORCE. 

6 (a) BEST PRACTICES AT INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER

7 EDUCATION.— 

8 (1) DEVELOPMENT OF GUIDANCE.—Not later 

9 than 6 months after the date of enactment of this 

10 Act, the Director of the National Science Founda11 tion shall develop written guidance for institutions of 

12 higher education on the best practices for— 

13 (A) conducting periodic campus culture 

14 surveys of STEM departments, with a par15 ticular focus on identifying any cultural or in16 stitutional barriers to or successful enablers for 

17 the recruitment, retention, promotion, and 

18 other indicators of participation and achieve19 ment, of women and underrepresented minori20 ties in STEM degree programs and academic 

21 STEM careers; and 

22 (B) providing educational opportunities, in23 cluding workshops as described in subsection 

24 (c), for STEM faculty and administrators to 

25 learn about current research on implicit bias in 


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1 recruitment, evaluation, and promotion of fac2 ulty in STEM and recruitment and evaluation 

3 of undergraduate and graduate students in 

4 STEM degree programs. 

5 (2) EXISTING GUIDANCE.—In developing the 

6 guidance in paragraph (1), the Director of the Na7 tional Science Foundation shall utilize guidance al8 ready developed by the National Aeronautics and 

9 Space Administration, the Department of Energy, 

10 and the Department of Education. 

11 (3) DISSEMINATION OF GUIDANCE.—The Direc12 tor of the National Science Foundation shall broadly 

13 disseminate the guidance developed in paragraph (1) 

14 to institutions of higher education that receive Fed15 eral research funding. 

16 (4) REPORTS TO THE NATIONAL SCIENCE

17 FOUNDATION.—The Director of the National Science 

18 Foundation shall develop a policy that— 

19 (A) applies to, at a minimum, the institu20 tions classified under the Indiana University 

21 Center for Postsecondary Research Carnegie 

22 Classification on January 1, 2015, as a doc23 torate-granting university with a very high level 

24 of research activity; and 


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1 (B) requires each institution identified in 

2 subparagraph (A), not later than 3 years after 

3 the date of enactment of this Act, to report to 

4 the Director of the National Science Founda5 tion on activities and policies developed and im6 plemented based on the guidance provided in 

7 paragraph (1). 

8 (b) BEST PRACTICES AT FEDERAL LABORA9 TORIES.— 

10 (1) DEVELOPMENT OF GUIDANCE.—Not later 

11 than 6 months after the date of enactment of this 

12 Act, the Director shall develop written guidance for 

13 Federal laboratories to develop and implement prac14 tices and policies to— 

15 (A) conduct periodic laboratorywide culture 

16 surveys of research personnel at all levels, with 

17 a particular focus on identifying any cultural or 

18 institutional barriers to the recruitment, reten19 tion, and success of women and underrep20 resented minorities in STEM careers at Federal 

21 laboratories; and 

22 (B) provide educational opportunities, in23 cluding workshops as described in subsection 

24 (c), for STEM research personnel to learn 

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1 cruitment, evaluation, and promotion of re2 search personnel at Federal laboratories. 

3 (2) ESTABLISHMENT OF POLICIES.—Consistent 

4 with the guidance provided in paragraph (1), Fed5 eral science agencies with Federal laboratories shall 

6 maintain or develop and implement policies for their 

7 respective Federal laboratories. 

8 (c) WORKSHOPS TO ADDRESS CULTURAL BARRIERS

9 TO EXPANDING THE ACADEMIC AND FEDERAL STEM 

10 WORKFORCE.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months 

12 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director 

13 of the National Science Foundation shall recommend 

14 a uniform policy for Federal science agencies to 

15 carry out a program of workshops that educate 

16 STEM department chairs at institutions of higher 

17 education, senior managers at Federal laboratories, 

18 and other federally funded researchers about meth19 ods that minimize the effects of implicit bias in the 

20 career advancement, including hiring, tenure, pro21 motion, and selection for any honor based in part on 

22 the recipient’s research record, of academic and Fed23 eral STEM researchers. 

24 (2) INTERAGENCY COORDINATION.—The Direc25 tor of the National Science Foundation shall ensure 


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1 that workshops supported under this subsection are 

2 coordinated across Federal science agencies and 

3 jointly supported as appropriate. 

4 (3) MINIMIZING COSTS.—To the extent prac5 ticable, workshops shall be held in conjunction with 

6 national or regional STEM disciplinary meetings to 

7 minimize costs associated with participant travel. 

8 (4) PRIORITY FIELDS FOR ACADEMIC PARTICI9 PANTS.—In considering the participation of STEM 

10 department chairs and other academic researchers, 

11 the Director shall prioritize workshops for the broad 

12 fields of STEM in which the national rate of rep13 resentation of women among tenured or tenure-track 

14 faculty or non-faculty researchers at doctorate15 granting institutions of higher education is less than 

16 25 percent, according to the most recent data avail17 able from the National Center for Science and Engi18 neering Statistics. 

19 (5) ORGANIZATIONS ELIGIBLE TO CARRY OUT

20 WORKSHOPS.—Federal science agencies may carry 

21 out the program of workshops under this subsection 

22 by making grants to eligible organizations. In addi23 tion to any other organizations made eligible by the 

24 Federal science agencies, the following organizations 

25 are eligible for grants under this subsection: 


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1 (A) Nonprofit scientific and professional 

2 societies and organizations that represent one 

3 or more STEM disciplines. 

4 (B) Nonprofit organizations that have the 

5 primary mission of advancing the participation 

6 of women or underrepresented minorities in 

7 STEM. 

8 (6) CHARACTERISTICS OF WORKSHOPS.—The 

9 workshops shall have the following characteristics: 

10 (A) Invitees to workshops shall include at 

11 least— 

12 (i) the chairs of departments in the 

13 relevant STEM discipline or disciplines 

14 from at least the top 50 institutions of 

15 higher education, as determined by the 

16 amount of Federal research and develop17 ment funds obligated to each institution of 

18 higher education in the prior year based on 

19 data available from the National Science 

20 Foundation; and 

21 (ii) in the case of Federal laboratories, 

22 individuals with personnel management re23 sponsibilities comparable to those of an in24 stitution of higher education department 

25 chair. 


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1 (B) Activities at the workshops shall in2 clude research presentations and interactive dis3 cussions or other activities that increase the 

4 awareness of the existence of implicit bias in re5 cruitment, hiring, tenure review, promotion, and 

6 other forms of formal recognition of individual 

7 achievement for faculty and other federally 

8 funded STEM researchers and shall provide 

9 strategies to overcome such bias. 

10 (C) Research presentations and other 

11 workshop programs, as appropriate, shall in12 clude a discussion of the unique challenges 

13 faced by underrepresented sub-groups, includ14 ing minority women, minority men, and first 

15 generation minority graduates in research. 

16 (D) Workshop programs shall include in17 formation on best practices for mentoring un18 dergraduate and graduate women and under19 represented minority students. 

20 (7) DATA ON WORKSHOPS.—Any proposal for 

21 funding by an organization seeking to carry out a 

22 workshop under this subsection shall include a de23 scription of how such organization will— 

24 (A) collect data on the rates of attendance 

25 by invitees in workshops, including information 


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1 on the home institution and department of 

2 attendees, and the rank of faculty attendees; 

3 (B) conduct attitudinal surveys on work4 shop attendees before and after the workshops; 

5 and 

6 (C) collect follow-up data on any relevant 

7 institutional policy or practice changes reported 

8 by attendees not later than one year after at9 tendance in such a workshop. 

10 (8) REPORT TO NSF.—Organizations receiving 

11 funding to carry out workshops under this sub12 section shall report the data required in paragraph 

13 (7) to the Director of the National Science Founda14 tion in such form as required by such Director. 

15 (d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 4 years 

16 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of 

17 the National Science Foundation shall submit a report to 

18 Congress that includes— 

19 (1) a summary and analysis of the types and 

20 frequency of activities and policies developed and 

21 carried out under subsection (a) based on the re22 ports submitted under paragraph (4) of such sub23 section; and 

24 (2) a description and evaluation of the status 

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1 quired under subsection (c), including a summary of 

2 any data reported under paragraph (8) of such sub3 section. 

4 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

5 are authorized to be appropriated to the Director of the 

6 National Science Foundation $2,000,000 in each of fiscal 

7 years 2016 through 2020 to carry out this section. 

8 SEC. 8. RESEARCH AND DISSEMINATION AT THE NATIONAL 

9 SCIENCE FOUNDATION. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the National 

11 Science Foundation shall award research grants and carry 

12 out dissemination activities consistent with the purposes 

13 of this Act, including— 

14 (1) research grants to analyze the record-level 

15 data collected under section 4 and section 6, con16 sistent with policies to ensure the privacy of individ17 uals identifiable by such data; 

18 (2) research grants to study best practices for 

19 work-life accommodation; 

20 (3) research grants to study the impact of poli21 cies and practices that are implemented under this 

22 Act or that are otherwise consistent with the pur23 poses of this Act; 

24 (4) collaboration with other Federal science 

25 agencies and professional associations to exchange 


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1 best practices, harmonize work-life accommodation 

2 policies and practices, and overcome common bar3 riers to work-life accommodation; and 

4 (5) collaboration with institutions of higher 

5 education in order to clarify and catalyze the adop6 tion of a coherent and consistent set of work-life ac7 commodation policies and practices. 

8 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

9 are authorized to be appropriated to the Director of the 

10 National Science Foundation $5,000,000 in each of fiscal 

11 years 2016 through 2020 to carry out this section. 

12 SEC. 9. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

13 Not later than 4 years after the date of enactment 

14 of this Act, the Director shall submit a report to Congress 

15 that includes— 

16 (1) a description and evaluation of the status 

17 and usage of caregiver policies at all Federal science 

18 agencies, including any recommendations for revis19 ing or expanding such policies; 

20 (2) a description of any significant updates to 

21 the policies for review of Federal research grants re22 quired under section 5, and any evidence of the im23 pact of such policies on the review or awarding of 

24 Federal research grants; and 


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1 (3) a description and evaluation of the status of 

2 Federal laboratory policies and practices required 

3 under section 7(b), including any recommendations 

4 for revising or expanding such policies. 

5 SEC. 10. NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION SUPPORT FOR 

6 INCREASING DIVERSITY AMONG STEM FAC7 ULTY AT INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDU8 CATION. 

9 (a) GRANTS.—The Director of the National Science 

10 Foundation shall award grants to institutions of higher 

11 education (or consortia thereof) for the development of in12 novative reform efforts designed to increase the recruit13 ment, retention, and advancement of individuals from 

14 underrepresented minority groups in academic STEM ca15 reers. 

16 (b) MERIT REVIEW; COMPETITION.—Grants shall be 

17 awarded under this section on a merit-reviewed, competi18 tive basis. 

19 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Activities supported by grants 

20 under this section may include— 

21 (1) institutional assessment activities, such as 

22 data analyses and policy review, in order to identify 

23 and address specific issues in the recruitment, reten24 tion, and advancement of faculty members from 

25 underrepresented minority groups; 


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1 (2) implementation of institution-wide improve2 ments in workload distribution, such that faculty 

3 members from underrepresented minority groups are 

4 not disadvantaged in the amount of time available to 

5 focus on research, publishing papers, and engaging 

6 in other activities required to achieve tenure status 

7 and run a productive research program; 

8 (3) development and implementation of training 

9 courses for administrators and search committee 

10 members to ensure that candidates from underrep11 resented minority groups are not subject to implicit 

12 biases in the search and hiring process; 

13 (4) development and hosting of intra- or inter14 institutional workshops to propagate best practices 

15 in recruiting, retaining, and advancing faculty mem16 bers from underrepresented minority groups; 

17 (5) professional development opportunities for 

18 faculty members from underrepresented minority 

19 groups; 

20 (6) activities aimed at making undergraduate 

21 STEM students from underrepresented minority 

22 groups aware of opportunities for academic careers 

23 in STEM fields; 

24 (7) activities to identify and engage exceptional 

25 graduate students from underrepresented minority 


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1 groups at various stages of their studies and to en2 courage them to enter academic careers; and 

3 (8) other activities consistent with subsection 

4 (a), as determined by the Director of the National 

5 Science Foundation. 

6 (d) SELECTION PROCESS.— 

7 (1) APPLICATION.—An institution of higher 

8 education (or consortia thereof) seeking funding 

9 under this section shall submit an application to the 

10 Director of the National Science Foundation at such 

11 time, in such manner, and containing such informa12 tion and assurances as such Director may require. 

13 The application shall include, at a minimum, a de14 scription of— 

15 (A) the reform effort that is being pro16 posed for implementation by the institution of 

17 higher education; 

18 (B) any available evidence of specific dif19 ficulties in the recruitment, retention, and ad20 vancement of faculty members from underrep21 resented minority groups in STEM academic 

22 careers within the institution of higher edu23 cation submitting an application, and how the 

24 proposed reform effort would address such 

25 issues; 


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1 (C) how the institution of higher education 

2 submitting an application plans to sustain the 

3 proposed reform effort beyond the duration of 

4 the grant; and 

5 (D) how the success and effectiveness of 

6 the proposed reform effort will be evaluated and 

7 assessed in order to contribute to the national 

8 knowledge base about models for catalyzing in9 stitutional change. 

10 (2) REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.—In selecting 

11 grant recipients under this section, the Director of 

12 the National Science Foundation shall consider, at a 

13 minimum— 

14 (A) the likelihood of success in under15 taking the proposed reform effort at the institu16 tion of higher education submitting the applica17 tion, including the extent to which the adminis18 trators of the institution are committed to mak19 ing the proposed reform effort a priority; 

20 (B) the degree to which the proposed re21 form effort will contribute to change in institu22 tional culture and policy such that greater value 

23 is placed on the recruitment, retention, and ad24 vancement of faculty members from underrep25 resented minority groups; 


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1 (C) the likelihood that the institution of 

2 higher education will sustain or expand the pro3 posed reform effort beyond the period of the 

4 grant; and 

5 (D) the degree to which evaluation and as6 sessment plans are included in the design of the 

7 proposed reform effort. 

8 (3) GRANT DISTRIBUTION.—The Director of 

9 the National Science Foundation shall ensure, to the 

10 extent practicable, that grants awarded under this 

11 section are made to a variety of types of institutions 

12 of higher education. 

13 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

14 are authorized to be appropriated to the Director of the 

15 National Science Foundation $10,000,000 in each of fiscal 

16 years 2016 through 2020 to carry out this section. 

17 SEC. 11. NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION SUPPORT FOR 

18 BROADENING PARTICIPATION IN UNDER19 GRADUATE STEM EDUCATION. 

20 (a) GRANTS.—The Director of the National Science 

21 Foundation shall award grants to institutions of higher 

22 education (or consortia thereof) to implement or expand 

23 research-based reforms in undergraduate STEM edu24 cation for the purpose of recruiting and retaining students 

25 from minority groups who are underrepresented in STEM 


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1 fields, with a priority focus on natural science and engi2 neering fields. 

3 (b) MERIT REVIEW; COMPETITION.—Grants shall be 

4 awarded under this section on a merit-reviewed, competi5 tive basis. 

6 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Activities supported by grants 

7 under this section may include— 

8 (1) implementation or expansion of innovative, 

9 research-based approaches to broaden participation 

10 of underrepresented minority groups in STEM 

11 fields; 

12 (2) implementation or expansion of bridge, co13 hort, tutoring, or mentoring programs designed to 

14 enhance the recruitment and retention of students 

15 from underrepresented minority groups in STEM 

16 fields; 

17 (3) implementation or expansion of outreach 

18 programs linking institutions of higher education 

19 and K–12 school systems in order to heighten 

20 awareness among pre-college students from under21 represented minority groups of opportunities in col22 lege-level STEM fields and STEM careers; 

23 (4) implementation or expansion of faculty de24 velopment programs focused on improving retention 


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1 of undergraduate STEM students from underrep2 resented minority groups; 

3 (5) implementation or expansion of mechanisms 

4 designed to recognize and reward faculty members 

5 who demonstrate a commitment to increasing the 

6 participation of students from underrepresented mi7 nority groups in STEM fields; 

8 (6) expansion of successful reforms aimed at in9 creasing the number of STEM students from under10 represented minority groups beyond a single course 

11 or group of courses to achieve reform within an en12 tire academic unit, or expansion of successful reform 

13 efforts beyond a single academic unit to other 

14 STEM academic units within an institution of high15 er education; 

16 (7) expansion of opportunities for students from 

17 underrepresented minority groups to conduct STEM 

18 research in industry, at Federal labs, and at inter19 national research institutions or research sites; 

20 (8) provision of stipends for students from 

21 underrepresented minority groups participating in 

22 research; 

23 (9) development of research collaborations be24 tween research-intensive universities and primarily 

25 undergraduate minority-serving institutions; 


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1 (10) support for graduate students and post2 doctoral fellows from underrepresented minority 

3 groups to participate in instructional or assessment 

4 activities at primarily undergraduate institutions, in5 cluding primarily undergraduate minority-serving in6 stitutions and two-year institutions of higher edu7 cation; and 

8 (11) other activities consistent with subsection 

9 (a), as determined by the Director of the National 

10 Science Foundation. 

11 (d) SELECTION PROCESS.— 

12 (1) APPLICATION.—An institution of higher 

13 education (or consortia thereof) seeking a grant 

14 under this section shall submit an application to the 

15 Director of the National Science Foundation at such 

16 time, in such manner, and containing such informa17 tion and assurances as such Director may require. 

18 The application shall include, at a minimum— 

19 (A) a description of the proposed reform 

20 effort; 

21 (B) a description of the research findings 

22 that will serve as the basis for the proposed re23 form effort or, in the case of applications that 

24 propose an expansion of a previously imple25 mented reform, a description of the previously 


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1 implemented reform effort, including data about 

2 the recruitment, retention, and academic 

3 achievement of students from underrepresented 

4 minority groups; 

5 (C) evidence of an institutional commit6 ment to, and support for, the proposed reform 

7 effort, including a long-term commitment to im8 plement successful strategies from the current 

9 reform beyond the academic unit or units in10 cluded in the grant proposal; 

11 (D) a description of existing or planned in12 stitutional policies and practices regarding fac13 ulty hiring, promotion, tenure, and teaching as14 signment that reward faculty contributions to 

15 improving the education of students from 

16 underrepresented minority groups in STEM; 

17 and 

18 (E) how the success and effectiveness of 

19 the proposed reform effort will be evaluated and 

20 assessed in order to contribute to the national 

21 knowledge base about models for catalyzing in22 stitutional change. 

23 (2) REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.—In selecting 

24 grant recipients under this section, the Director of 


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1 the National Science Foundation shall consider, at a 

2 minimum— 

3 (A) the likelihood of success of the pro4 posed reform effort at the institution submit5 ting the application, including the extent to 

6 which the faculty, staff, and administrators of 

7 the institution are committed to making the 

8 proposed institutional reform a priority of the 

9 participating academic unit or units; 

10 (B) the degree to which the proposed re11 form effort will contribute to change in institu12 tional culture and policy such that greater value 

13 is placed on faculty engagement in the retention 

14 of students from underrepresented minority 

15 groups; 

16 (C) the likelihood that the institution will 

17 sustain or expand the proposed reform effort 

18 beyond the period of the grant; and 

19 (D) the degree to which evaluation and as20 sessment plans are included in the design of the 

21 proposed reform effort. 

22 (3) PRIORITY.—For applications that include 

23 an expansion of existing reforms beyond a single 

24 academic unit, the Director of the National Science 

25 Foundation shall give priority to applications for 


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1 which a senior institutional administrator, such as a 

2 dean or other administrator of equal or higher rank, 

3 serves as the principal investigator. 

4 (4) GRANT DISTRIBUTION.—The Director of 

5 the National Science Foundation shall ensure, to the 

6 extent practicable, that grants awarded under this 

7 section are made to a variety of types of institutions 

8 of higher education, including two-year and minor9 ity-serving institutions of higher education. 

10 (e) EDUCATION RESEARCH.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—All grants made under this 

12 section shall include an education research compo13 nent that will support the design and implementa14 tion of a system for data collection and evaluation 

15 of proposed reform efforts in order to build the 

16 knowledge base on promising models for increasing 

17 recruitment and retention of students from under18 represented minority groups in STEM education at 

19 the undergraduate level across a diverse set of insti20 tutions. 

21 (2) DISSEMINATION.—The Director of the Na22 tional Science Foundation shall coordinate with rel23 evant Federal agencies in disseminating the results 

24 of the research under this subsection to ensure that 

25 best practices in broadening participation in STEM 


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1 education at the undergraduate level are made read2 ily available to all institutions of higher education, 

3 other Federal agencies that support STEM pro4 grams, non-Federal funders of STEM education, 

5 and the general public. 

6 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

7 are authorized to be appropriated to the Director of the 

8 National Science Foundation $15,000,000 in each of fiscal 

9 years 2016 through 2020 to carry out this section. 

10 SEC. 12. DEFINITIONS. 

11 In this Act: 

12 (1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

13 the Director of the Office of Science and Technology 

14 Policy (‘‘OSTP’’). 

15 (2) FEDERAL LABORATORY.—The term ‘‘Fed16 eral laboratory’’ has the meaning given such term in 

17 section 4 of the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Inno18 vation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3703). 

19 (3) FEDERAL SCIENCE AGENCY.—The term 

20 ‘‘Federal science agency’’ means any Federal agency 

21 with at least $100,000,000 in research and develop22 ment expenditures in fiscal year 2014. 

23 (4) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

24 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 


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1 meaning given such term in section 101(a) of the 

2 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 

3 (5) STEM.—The term ‘‘STEM’’ means the 

4 academic and professional disciplines of science, 

5 technology, engineering, and mathematics. 

Æ 


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