I 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4997 

To authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2011 through 2015 for the 

National Science Foundation, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 13, 2010 

Mr. LIPINSKI introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Science and Technology 

A BILL 

To authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2011 through 

2015 for the National Science Foundation, 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 

6 2010’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS 


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Sec. 101. Definitions. 

Sec. 102. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 103. National Science Board administrative amendments. 

Sec. 104. Broader impacts review criterion. 

TITLE II—RESEARCH AND INNOVATION 

Sec. 201. Support for potentially transformative research. 

Sec. 202. Facilitating interdisciplinary collaborations for national needs. 

Sec. 203. National Science Foundation manufacturing research. 

Sec. 204. Strengthening institutional research partnerships. 

Sec. 205. National Science Board report on mid-scale instrumentation. 

Sec. 206. Sense of Congress on overall support for research infrastructure at 

the Foundation. 

TITLE III—STEM EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE TRAINING 

Sec. 301. Graduate student support. 

Sec. 302. Postdoctoral fellowship in STEM education research. 

Sec. 303. Robert Noyce teacher scholarship program. 

Sec. 304. Institutions serving persons with disabilities. 

Sec. 305. Institutional integration. 

Sec. 306. Postdoctoral research fellowships. 

Sec. 307. Broadening participation training and outreach. 

1 TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

2 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

3 In this Act: 

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

5 the Director of the National Science Foundation es6 tablished under section 2 of the National Science 

7 Foundation Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1861). 

8 (2) FOUNDATION.—The term ‘‘Foundation’’ 

9 means the National Science Foundation established 

10 under section 2 of the National Science Foundation 

11 Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1861). 

12 (3) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

13 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 (4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means one of 

4 the several States, the District of Columbia, the 

5 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, 

6 Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the 

7 Northern Mariana Islands, or any other territory or 

8 possession of the United States. 

9 (5) STEM.—The term ‘‘STEM’’ means science, 

10 technology, engineering, and mathematics. 

11 (6) UNITED STATES.—The term ‘‘United 

12 States’’ means the several States, the District of Co13 lumbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Vir14 gin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Common15 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any 

16 other territory or possession of the United States. 

17 SEC. 102. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

18 (a) FISCAL YEAR 2011.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

20 appropriated to the Foundation $8,219,670,000 for 

21 fiscal year 2011. 

22 (2) SPECIFIC ALLOCATIONS.—Of the amount 

23 authorized under paragraph (1)— 

24 (A) $6,600,000,000 shall be made avail25 able for research and related activities; 


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1 (B) $1,104,000,000 shall be made avail2 able for education and human resources; 

3 (C) $166,000,000 shall be made available 

4 for major research equipment and facilities con5 struction; 

6 (D) $330,000,000 shall be made available 

7 for agency operations and award management; 

8 (E) $4,840,000 shall be made available for 

9 the Office of the National Science Board; and 

10 (F) $14,830,000 shall be made available 

11 for the Office of Inspector General. 

12 (b) FISCAL YEAR 2012.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

14 appropriated to the Foundation $8,932,080,000 for 

15 fiscal year 2012. 

16 (2) SPECIFIC ALLOCATIONS.—Of the amount 

17 authorized under paragraph (1)— 

18 (A) $7,128,000,000 shall be made avail19 able for research and related activities; 

20 (B) $1,192,320,000 shall be made avail21 able for education and human resources; 

22 (C) $235,000,000 shall be made available 

23 for major research equipment and facilities con24 struction; 


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1 (D) $356,400,000 shall be made available 

2 for agency operations and award management; 

3 (E) $5,010,000 shall be made available for 

4 the Office of the National Science Board; and 

5 (F) $15,350,000 shall be made available 

6 for the Office of Inspector General. 

7 (c) FISCAL YEAR 2013.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

9 appropriated to the Foundation $9,555,160,000 for 

10 fiscal year 2013. 

11 (2) SPECIFIC ALLOCATIONS.—Of the amount 

12 authorized under paragraph (1)— 

13 (A) $7,626,960,000 shall be made avail14 able for research and related activities; 

15 (B) $1,275,780,000 shall be made avail16 able for education and human resources; 

17 (C) $250,000,000 shall be made available 

18 for major research equipment and facilities con19 struction; 

20 (D) $381,350,000 shall be made available 

21 for agency operations and award management; 

22 (E) $5,180,000 shall be made available for 

23 the Office of the National Science Board; and 

24 (F) $15,890,000 shall be made available 

25 for the Office of Inspector General. 


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1 (d) FISCAL YEAR 2014.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

3 appropriated to the Foundation $10,112,940,000 for 

4 fiscal year 2014. 

5 (2) SPECIFIC ALLOCATIONS.—Of the amount 

6 authorized under paragraph (1)— 

7 (A) $8,084,580,000 shall be made avail8 able for research and related activities; 

9 (B) $1,352,330,000 shall be made avail10 able for education and human resources; 

11 (C) $250,000,000 shall be made available 

12 for major research equipment and facilities con13 struction; 

14 (D) $404,230,000 shall be made available 

15 for agency operations and award management; 

16 (E) $5,370,000 shall be made available for 

17 the Office of the National Science Board; and 

18 (F) $16,440,000 shall be made available 

19 for the Office of Inspector General. 

20 (e) FISCAL YEAR 2015.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

22 appropriated to the Foundation $10,704,180,000 for 

23 fiscal year 2015. 

24 (2) SPECIFIC ALLOCATIONS.—Of the amount 

25 authorized under paragraph (1)— 


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1 (A) $8,569,650,000 shall be made avail2 able for research and related activities; 

3 (B) $1,433,470,000 shall be made avail4 able for education and human resources; 

5 (C) $250,000,000 shall be made available 

6 for major research equipment and facilities con7 struction; 

8 (D) $428,480,000 shall be made available 

9 for agency operations and award management; 

10 (E) $5,550,000 shall be made available for 

11 the Office of the National Science Board; and 

12 (F) $17,020,000 shall be made available 

13 for the Office of Inspector General. 

14 SEC. 103. NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD ADMINISTRATIVE 

15 AMENDMENTS. 

16 (a) STAFFING AT THE NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD.— 

17 Section 4(g) of the National Science Foundation Act of 

18 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1863(g)) is amended by striking ‘‘not 

19 more than 5’’. 

20 (b) SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING INDICATORS DUE

21 DATE.—Section 4(j)(1) of the National Science Founda22 tion Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1863(j)(1)) is amended by 

23 striking ‘‘January 15’’ and inserting ‘‘May 31’’. 

24 (c) NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD REPORTS.—Section 

25 4(j)(2) of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950 


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1 (42 U.S.C. 1863(j)(2)) is amended by inserting ‘‘within 

2 the authority of the Foundation (or otherwise as requested 

3 by the Congress or the President)’’ after ‘‘individual policy 

4 matters’’. 

5 (d) BOARD ADHERENCE TO SUNSHINE ACT.—Sec6 tion 15(a) of the National Science Foundation Authoriza7 tion Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–5(a)) is amended— 

8 (1) by striking paragraph (3) and redesignating 

9 paragraphs (4) and (5) as paragraphs (3) and (4), 

10 respectively; 

11 (2) in paragraph (3), as so redesignated by 

12 paragraph (1) of this subsection— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘February 15’’ and insert14 ing ‘‘April 15’’; and 

15 (B) by striking ‘‘audit required under 

16 paragraph (3) along with’’; and 

17 (3) in paragraph (4), as so redesignated by 

18 paragraph (1) of this subsection, by striking ‘‘To fa19 cilitate the audit required under paragraph (3) of 

20 this subsection, the’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’. 

21 SEC. 104. BROADER IMPACTS REVIEW CRITERION. 

22 (a) GOALS.—The Foundation shall apply a Broader 

23 Impacts Review Criterion to achieve the following goals: 

24 (1) Increased economic competitiveness of the 

25 United States. 


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1 (2) Development of a globally competitive 

2 STEM workforce. 

3 (3) Increased participation of women and 

4 underrepresented minorities in STEM. 

5 (4) Increased partnerships between academia 

6 and industry. 

7 (5) Improved K–12 STEM education and 

8 teacher development. 

9 (6) Improved undergraduate STEM education. 

10 (7) Increased public scientific literacy. 

11 (8) Increased national security. 

12 (b) POLICY.—Not later than 6 months after the date 

13 of enactment of this Act, the Director shall develop and 

14 implement a policy for the Broader Impacts Review Cri15 terion that— 

16 (1) provides for educating professional staff at 

17 the Foundation, merit review panels, and applicants 

18 for Foundation research grants on the policy devel19 oped under this subsection; 

20 (2) clarifies that the activities of grant recipi21 ents undertaken to satisfy the Broader Impacts Re22 view Criterion shall— 

23 (A) to the extent practicable employ proven 

24 strategies and models and draw on existing pro25 grams and activities; and 


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1 (B) when novel approaches are justified, 

2 build on the most current research results; 

3 (3) allows for some portion of funds allocated to 

4 broader impacts under a research grant to be used 

5 for assessment and evaluation of the broader im6 pacts activity; 

7 (4) encourages institutions of higher education 

8 and other nonprofit organizations to develop and 

9 provide, either as individual institutions or in part10 nerships thereof, appropriate training and programs 

11 to assist Foundation-funded principal investigators 

12 at their institutions in achieving the goals of the 

13 Broader Impacts Review Criterion as described in 

14 subsection (a); and 

15 (5) requires principal investigators applying for 

16 Foundation research grants to provide evidence of 

17 institutional support for the portion of the investiga18 tor’s proposal designed to satisfy the Broader Im19 pacts Review Criterion, including evidence of rel20 evant training, programs, and other institutional re21 sources available to the investigator from either their 

22 home institution or organization or another institu23 tion or organization with relevant expertise. 


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1 TITLE II—RESEARCH AND 

2 INNOVATION 

3 SEC. 201. SUPPORT FOR POTENTIALLY TRANSFORMATIVE 

4 RESEARCH. 

5 (a) POLICY.—The Director shall establish a policy 

6 that requires the Foundation to use at least 5 percent of 

7 its research budget to fund basic, high-risk, high-reward 

8 research proposals. Support for facilities and infrastruc9 ture, including preconstruction design and operations and 

10 maintenance of major research facilities, shall not be 

11 counted as part of the research budget for the purposes 

12 of this section. 

13 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—In implementing such policy, 

14 the Foundation may— 

15 (1) develop solicitations specifically for high16 risk, high-reward research; 

17 (2) establish review panels for the primary pur18 pose of selecting high-risk, high-reward proposals or 

19 modify instructions to standard review panels to re20 quire identification of high-risk, high-reward pro21 posals; and 

22 (3) support workshops and participate in con23 ferences with the primary purpose of identifying new 

24 opportunities for high-risk, high-reward research, es25 pecially at interdisciplinary interfaces. 


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1 (c) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

2 term ‘‘high-risk, high-reward research’’ means research 

3 driven by ideas that have the potential to radically change 

4 our understanding of an important existing scientific or 

5 engineering concept, or leading to the creation of a new 

6 paradigm or field of science or engineering, and that is 

7 characterized by its challenge to current understanding or 

8 its pathway to new frontiers. 

9 SEC. 202. FACILITATING INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORA10 TIONS FOR NATIONAL NEEDS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall award competi12 tive, merit-based awards in amounts not to exceed 

13 $5,000,000 over a period of up to 5 years to interdiscipli14 nary research collaborations that are likely to assist in ad15 dressing critical challenges to national security, competi16 tiveness, and societal well-being and that— 

17 (1) involve at least 2 co-equal principal inves18 tigators at the same or different institutions; 

19 (2) draw upon well-integrated, diverse teams of 

20 investigators, including students or postdoctoral re21 searchers, from one or more disciplines; and 

22 (3) foster creativity and pursue high-risk, high23 reward research. 

24 (b) PRIORITY.—In selecting grant recipients under 

25 this section, the Director shall give priority to applicants 


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1 that propose to use advances in cyberinfrastructure and 

2 simulation-based science engineering. 

3 SEC. 203. NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION MANUFAC4 TURING RESEARCH. 

5 The Director shall carry out a program to award 

6 merit-reviewed, competitive grants to institutions of higher 

7 education to support fundamental research leading to 

8 transformative advances in manufacturing technologies, 

9 processes, and enterprises that will support United States 

10 manufacturing through improved performance, produc11 tivity, sustainability, and competitiveness. Research areas 

12 may include— 

13 (1) nanomanufacturing; 

14 (2) manufacturing and construction machines 

15 and equipment, including robotics, automation, and 

16 other intelligent systems; 

17 (3) manufacturing enterprise systems; 

18 (4) advanced sensing and control techniques; 

19 (5) materials processing; and 

20 (6) information technologies for manufacturing, 

21 including predictive and real-time models and sim22 ulations, and virtual manufacturing. 


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1 SEC. 204. STRENGTHENING INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH 

2 PARTNERSHIPS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—For any Foundation research 

4 grant, in an amount greater than $2,000,000, to be car5 ried out through a partnership that includes one or more 

6 minority-serving institutions or predominantly under7 graduate institutions and one or more institutions de8 scribed in subsection (b), the Director shall award funds 

9 directly, according to the budget justification described in 

10 the grant proposal, to at least two of the institutions of 

11 higher education in the partnership, including at least one 

12 minority-serving institution or one predominantly under13 graduate institution, to ensure a strong and equitable 

14 partnership. 

15 (b) INSTITUTIONS.—The institutions referred to in 

16 subsection (a) are institutions of higher education that are 

17 among the 100 institutions receiving, over the 3-year pe18 riod immediately preceding the awarding of grants, the 

19 highest amount of research funding from the Foundation. 

20 SEC. 205. NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD REPORT ON MID21 SCALE INSTRUMENTATION. 

22 (a) MID-SCALE RESEARCH INSTRUMENTATION

23 NEEDS.—The National Science Board shall evaluate the 

24 needs, across all disciplines supported by the Foundation, 

25 for mid-scale research instrumentation that falls between 

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1 tation program and the very large projects funded by the 

2 Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction 

3 program. 

4 (b) REPORT ON MID-SCALE RESEARCH INSTRUMEN5 TATION PROGRAM.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

6 of enactment of this Act, the National Science Board shall 

7 submit to Congress a report on mid-scale research instru8 mentation at the Foundation. At a minimum, this report 

9 shall include— 

10 (1) the findings from the Board’s evaluation of 

11 instrumentation needs required under subsection (a), 

12 including a description of differences across dis13 ciplines and Foundation research directorates; 

14 (2) a recommendation or recommendations re15 garding how the Foundation should set priorities for 

16 mid-scale instrumentation across disciplines and 

17 Foundation research directorates; 

18 (3) a recommendation or recommendations re19 garding the appropriateness of expanding existing 

20 programs, including the Major Research Instrumen21 tation program or the Major Research Equipment 

22 and Facilities Construction program, to support 

23 more instrumentation at the mid-scale; 

24 (4) a recommendation or recommendations re25 garding the need for and appropriateness of a new, 


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1 Foundation-wide program or initiative in support of 

2 mid-scale instrumentation, including any rec3 ommendations regarding the administration of and 

4 budget for such a program or initiative and the ap5 propriate scope of instruments to be funded under 

6 such a program or initiative; and 

7 (5) any recommendation or recommendations 

8 regarding other options for supporting mid-scale re9 search instrumentation at the Foundation. 

10 SEC. 206. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON OVERALL SUPPORT FOR 

11 RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE AT THE FOUN12 DATION. 

13 It is the sense of Congress that the Foundation 

14 should strive to keep the percentage of the Foundation 

15 budget devoted to research infrastructure in the range of 

16 24 to 27 percent, as recommended in the 2003 National 

17 Science Board report entitled ‘‘Science and Engineering 

18 Infrastructure for the 21st Century’’. 

19 TITLE III—STEM EDUCATION 

20 AND WORKFORCE TRAINING 

21 SEC. 301. GRADUATE STUDENT SUPPORT. 

22 (a) FINDING.—The Congress finds that— 

23 (1) the Integrative Graduate Education and Re24 search Traineeship program is an important pro25 gram for training the next generation of scientists 


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1 and engineers in team-based interdisciplinary re2 search and problem solving, and for providing them 

3 with the many additional skills, such as communica4 tion skills, needed to thrive in diverse STEM ca5 reers; and 

6 (2) the Integrative Graduate Education and Re7 search Traineeship program is no less valuable to 

8 the preparation and support of graduate students 

9 than the Foundation’s Graduate Research Fellow10 ship program. 

11 (b) EQUAL TREATMENT OF IGERT AND GRF.—Be12 ginning in fiscal year 2011, the Director shall increase or, 

13 if necessary, decrease funding for the Foundation’s Inte14 grative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship 

15 program (or any program by which it is replaced) at least 

16 at the same rate as it increases or decreases funding for 

17 the Graduate Research Fellowship program. 

18 (c) SUPPORT FOR GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH

19 FROM THE RESEARCH ACCOUNT.—For each of the fiscal 

20 years 2011 through 2015, at least 50 percent of the total 

21 Foundation funds allocated to the Integrative Graduate 

22 Education and Research Traineeship program and the 

23 Graduate Research Fellowship program shall come from 

24 funds appropriated for Research and Related Activities. 


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1 (d) COST OF EDUCATION ALLOWANCE FOR GRF 

2 PROGRAM.—Section 10 of the National Science Founda3 tion Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1869) is amended— 

4 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘The Foundation 

5 is authorized’’; and 

6 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub7 section: 

8 ‘‘(b) The Director shall establish for each year the 

9 amount to be awarded for scholarships and fellowships 

10 under this section for that year. Each such scholarship 

11 and fellowship shall include a cost of education allowance 

12 of at least the lesser of $12,000 or the cost of education 

13 at the institution in which the scholarship or fellowship 

14 recipient is matriculated, subject to any restrictions on the 

15 use of cost of education allowance as determined by the 

16 Director.’’. 

17 SEC. 302. POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP IN STEM EDU18 CATION RESEARCH. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall establish 

20 postdoctoral fellowships in STEM education research to 

21 provide recent doctoral degree graduates in STEM fields 

22 with the necessary skills to assume leadership roles in 

23 STEM education research, program development, and 

24 evaluation in our Nation’s diverse educational institutions. 

25 (b) AWARDS.— 


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1 (1) DURATION.—Fellowships may be awarded 

2 under this section for a period of up to 24 months 

3 in duration, renewable for an additional 12 months. 

4 The Director shall establish criteria for eligibility for 

5 renewal of the fellowship. 

6 (2) STIPEND.—The Director shall determine 

7 the amount of the award for a fellowship, which 

8 shall include a stipend and a research allowance, and 

9 may include an educational allowance. 

10 (3) LOCATION.—A fellowship shall be awarded 

11 for research at any institution of higher education 

12 that offers degrees in fields supported by the Foun13 dation, or at any institution or organization that the 

14 Director determines is eligible for education research 

15 grants from the Foundation. 

16 (4) NUMBER OF AWARDS.—The Director may 

17 award up to 20 new fellowships per year. 

18 (c) RESEARCH.—Fellowships under this section shall 

19 be awarded for research on STEM education at any edu20 cational level, including grades K–12, undergraduate, 

21 graduate, and general public education, in both formal and 

22 informal settings. Research topics may include— 

23 (1) learning processes; 

24 (2) knowledge transfer, including curriculum 

25 development; 


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1 (3) uses of technology as teaching and learning 

2 tools; 

3 (4) integrating STEM fields; and 

4 (5) student assessment and program evaluation. 

5 (d) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible for a fellowship 

6 under this section, an individual must— 

7 (1) be a United States citizen or national, or an 

8 alien lawfully admitted to the United States for per9 manent residence, at the time of application; and 

10 (2) have received a doctoral degree in one of the 

11 STEM fields supported by the Foundation within 3 

12 years prior to the fellowship application deadline. 

13 SEC. 303. ROBERT NOYCE TEACHER SCHOLARSHIP PRO14 GRAM. 

15 (a) SECTION 10 AMENDMENTS.—Section 10 of the 

16 National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 

17 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–1) is amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (c)(4), by striking ‘‘Service re19 quired under this paragraph shall be performed in a 

20 high-need local educational agency.’’; and 

21 (2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end a 

22 new paragraph as follows: 

23 ‘‘(5) EXCEPTION.—The period of service obliga24 tion under paragraph (4) shall be reduced by 1 year 

25 for scholarship recipients whose service is performed 


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1 in a high-need local educational agency. The Direc2 tor shall establish and maintain a central clearing3 house of information on teaching opportunities avail4 able in high-need local educational agencies through5 out the United States, which shall be made available 

6 to individuals having a service obligation under this 

7 section.’’. 

8 (b) SECTION 10A AMENDMENTS.—Section 10A of 

9 the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 

10 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–1a) is amended in subsection 

11 (h)(1) by striking ‘‘50’’ and inserting ‘‘30’’. 

12 SEC. 304. INSTITUTIONS SERVING PERSONS WITH DISABIL13 ITIES. 

14 For the purposes of the activities and programs sup15 ported by the Foundation, institutions of higher education 

16 chartered to serve large numbers of students with disabil17 ities, including Gallaudet University, Landmark College, 

18 and the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, shall 

19 be designated as minority-serving institutions. 

20 SEC. 305. INSTITUTIONAL INTEGRATION. 

21 (a) INNOVATION THROUGH INSTITUTIONAL INTE22 GRATION.—The Director shall award grants for the insti23 tutional integration of projects funded by the Foundation 

24 with a focus on education or broadening participation in 

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1 creasing collaboration and coordination across funded 

2 projects and institutions and expanding the impact of such 

3 projects within and among institutions of higher education 

4 in an innovative and sustainable manner. 

5 (b) PROGRAM ACTIVITIES.—The program under this 

6 section shall support integrative activities that involve the 

7 strategic and innovative combination of Foundation-fund8 ed projects and that provide for— 

9 (1) additional opportunities to increase the re10 cruitment, retention, and degree attainment of 

11 underrepresented groups in STEM disciplines; 

12 (2) the inclusion of programming, practices, 

13 and policies that encourage the integration of edu14 cation and research; 

15 (3) seamless transitions from one educational 

16 level to another; and 

17 (4) other activities that expand and deepen the 

18 impact of Foundation-funded projects with a focus 

19 on education or broadening participation in STEM 

20 by underrepresented groups and enhance their sus21 tainability. 

22 (c) REVIEW CRITERIA.—In selecting recipients of 

23 grants under this section, the Director shall consider at 

24 a minimum— 


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1 (1) the extent to which the proposed project ad2 dresses the goals of project and program integration 

3 and adds value to the existing funded projects; 

4 (2) the extent to which there is a proven record 

5 of success for the existing projects on which the pro6 posed integration project is based; and 

7 (3) the extent to which the proposed project ad8 dresses the modification of programming, practices, 

9 and policies necessary to achieve the purpose de10 scribed in subsection (a). 

11 (d) PRIORITY.—In selecting recipients of grants 

12 under this section, the Director shall give priority to pro13 posals for which a senior institutional administrator, in14 cluding a dean or other administrator of equal or higher 

15 rank, serves as the principal investigator. 

16 SEC. 306. POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH FELLOWSHIPS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall establish a 

18 Foundation-wide postdoctoral research fellowship pro19 gram, to award competitive, merit-based postdoctoral re20 search fellowships in any field of research supported by 

21 the Foundation. 

22 (b) DURATION AND AMOUNT.—Fellowships may be 

23 awarded under this section for a period of up to 3 years 

24 in duration. The Director shall determine the amount of 

25 the award for a fellowship, which shall include a stipend 


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1 and a research allowance, and may include an educational 

2 allowance. 

3 (c) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a fellow4 ship under this section, an individual— 

5 (1) must be a United States citizen or national, 

6 or an alien lawfully admitted to the United States 

7 for permanent residence, at the time of application; 

8 (2) must have received a doctoral degree in any 

9 field of research supported by the Foundation within 

10 3 years prior to the fellowship application deadline, 

11 or will complete a doctoral degree no more than 1 

12 year after the application deadline; and 

13 (3) may not have previously received funding as 

14 the principal investigator of a research grant from 

15 the Foundation, unless such funding was received as 

16 a graduate student. 

17 (d) PRIORITY.—In evaluating applications for fellow18 ships under this section, the Director shall give priority 

19 to applications that include— 

20 (1) proposals for interdisciplinary research; or 

21 (2) proposals for high-risk, high-reward re22 search. 

23 (e) ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS.—In evaluating 

24 applications for fellowships under this section, the Direc25 tor shall give consideration to the goal of promoting the 


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25 

•HR 4997 IH

1 participation of individuals identified in section 33 or 34 

2 of the Science and Engineering Equal Opportunities Act 

3 (42 U.S.C. 1885a or 1885b). 

4 (f) NONSUBSTITUTION.—The fellowship program au5 thorized under this section is not intended to replace or 

6 reduce support for postdoctoral research through existing 

7 programs at the Foundation. 

8 SEC. 307. BROADENING PARTICIPATION TRAINING AND 

9 OUTREACH. 

10 The Director shall provide education and training— 

11 (1) to Foundation staff and grant proposal re12 view panels on effective mechanisms and tools for 

13 broadening participation in STEM by underrep14 resented groups, including reviewer selection and 

15 mitigation of implicit bias in the review process; and 

16 (2) to Foundation staff on related outreach ap17 proaches. 

Æ 


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