I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6137 

To direct the Director of the National Science Foundation to award grants 

for, and support research on, the development of makerspaces, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 2, 2021 

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia (for himself, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. RYAN, Mr. FERGUSON, Mr. COHEN, and Mr. FITZPATRICK) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

A BILL 

To direct the Director of the National Science Foundation 

to award grants for, and support research on, the development of makerspaces, 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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Making Advances Ki5 netic Education, Research, and Skills Act’’ or the ‘‘MAK6 ERS Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Maker communities can be found in both 

2 rural and urban communities throughout the Na3 tion. 

4 (2) Making has been shown to engage and mo5 tivate children and adults in STEM disciplines. 

6 (3) Informal education and makerspaces pro7 mote skills that employers desire, such as technical 

8 skills, problem-solving skills, teamwork, and analyt9 ical skills. 

10 (4) Studies have shown that underrepresented 

11 populations often have better successes in informal 

12 and out-of-school STEM than in formal STEM pro13 grams. 

14 (5) Some studies have shown that makerspaces 

15 help to build not only technical hard skills but also 

16 collaboration and other soft skills that employers de17 sire. 

18 SEC. 3. PURPOSE. 

19 The purpose of this Act is to encourage the formation 

20 and study of makerspaces to— 

21 (1) engage populations within community col22 leges and community environments in STEM pro23 grams; 

24 (2) develop desirable STEM technical and other 

25 skills including collaboration; and 


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1 (3) build a STEM-capable workforce. 

2 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

3 In this Act, the following definitions apply: 

4 (1) HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGE OR UNI5 VERSITY.—The term ‘‘historically Black college or 

6 university’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘part B 

7 institution’’ under section 322 of the Higher Edu8 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1061). 

9 (2) MAKERSPACE.—The term ‘‘makerspace’’ 

10 means a community space that— 

11 (A) provides access to tools, technology, 

12 and knowledge for learners and entrepreneurs; 

13 (B) results in the prototyping or creation 

14 of physical goods, interdisciplinary learning, 

15 and educational innovation; and 

16 (C) supports the development of edu17 cational opportunities for personal growth, 

18 workforce training, and early stage business 

19 ventures. 

20 (3) MINORITY-SERVING INSTITUTION.—The 

21 term ‘‘minority-serving institution’’ means an insti22 tution listed in section 371(a) of the Higher Edu23 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067q(a)). 

24 (4) RURAL COMMUNITY.—The term ‘‘rural 

25 community’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘rural 


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1 area’’ in section 520 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 

2 U.S.C. 1490). 

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

4 subjects of science, technology, engineering, and 

5 mathematics. 

6 (6) WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT COMPO7 NENT.—The term ‘‘workforce development compo8 nent’’ means— 

9 (A) an economic development board or cor10 poration, including a State board or local work11 force board; 

12 (B) an internship program; 

13 (C) a certificate program; 

14 (D) employers or an employer or industry 

15 partnership representing multiple employers; 

16 (E) a community-based organization; or 

17 (F) any other program considered accept18 able by the Director of the National Science 

19 Foundation. 

20 SEC. 5. GRANT PROGRAM FOR RESEARCH AND CAPACITY 

21 BUILDING OF MAKERSPACES. 

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director of the National 

23 Science Foundation shall award grants on a competitive 

24 basis to institutions of higher education, or consortia of 

25 such institutions, to support the research and development 


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1 of makerspaces to assist in the formation of a STEM-ca2 pable workforce. 

3 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—A grant awarded under this 

4 section may be used for— 

5 (1) research on the effectiveness of makerspaces 

6 in engaging students and the community in STEM 

7 skills and in teaching and learning, and the develop8 ment, compilation, and dissemination of best prac9 tices on the use of makerspaces for STEM learning 

10 and workforce preparedness; 

11 (2) equipment to achieve the purpose under 

12 paragraph (1); and 

13 (3) any other activities the Director considers 

14 appropriate. 

15 (c) PRIORITY.—In selecting grant recipients under 

16 this section, the Director shall give priority to applicants 

17 that— 

18 (1) apply in partnership with 1 or more entities 

19 that are— 

20 (A) a workforce development component; 

21 (B) a high-need local education agency as 

22 described in section 9(b)(3) of the National 

23 Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 

24 (42 U.S.C. 1862n(b)(3)); or 


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1 (C) an independent nonprofit or academic 

2 makerspace; 

3 (2) consist of 1 or more entities that are— 

4 (A) a community college; or 

5 (B) a historically Black college or univer6 sity or other minority-serving institution of 

7 higher education; or 

8 (3) apply in partnership with or consist of an 

9 entity that is— 

10 (A) described in paragraph (1) or (2); and 

11 (B) operates within a rural community. 

12 (d) LIMITATION.—Funds provided through a grant 

13 under this section may not be used for the construction 

14 of a physical building or facility to hold a makerspace un15 less the Director determines that such construction is nec16 essary for reasons of safety or the use of relevant equip17 ment. 

18 (e) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Director may 

19 provide to entities receiving a grant or entities seeking 

20 such a grant under this section with technical assistance. 

Æ 


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