SEC. 2. MINORITY SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING IMPROVE-
MENT PROGRAM. 
(a) AUTHORIZED USE OF FUNDS.—Section 353(b) of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067c(b)) 
is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1)— 
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘or’’; 
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 
period and inserting a semicolon; and 
(C) by adding the following at the end: 
‘‘(C) providing direct financial assistance to 
students who are underrepresented in STEM; or 
‘‘(D) improving institutional capacity to pro-
vide— 
‘‘(i) guidance counseling and academic ad-
vising; 
‘‘(ii) work-study and work-based learning 
opportunities that are aligned to a student’s 
chosen field of study; 
‘‘(iii) 
faculty, 
peer, 
and 
near-peer 
mentorship; 
‘‘(iv) summer bridge programs; 
‘‘(v) undergraduate research opportunities; 
or 
‘‘(vi) individualized academic support and 
tutoring.’’; and 
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(2) in paragraph (2)— 
(A) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘or’’; 
(B) in subparagraph (D), by striking the 
period and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 
(C) by adding the following at the end: 
‘‘(E) any of the activities described in subpara-
graphs (A) through (D) of paragraph (1).’’. 
(b) STEM FIELDS.—Section 356 of the Higher Edu-
cation Act of 1965 is amended by striking ‘‘science’’ and 
inserting ‘‘science (including computer science)’’. 
(c) CROSS-PROGRAM AND CROSS-AGENCY COOPERA-
TION.—Section 363 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1067i) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 363. CROSS-PROGRAM AND CROSS-AGENCY COOPERA-
TION. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall cooperate 
and consult with other programs within the Department 
and within Federal, State, and private agencies which 
carry out programs to improve the quality of science, com-
puter science, mathematics, and engineering education. 
‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after the 
date of enactment of Supporting Diverse STEM Students 
Act, the Secretary shall, in consultation with all Federal 
agencies that have STEM education activities, prepare 
and submit to the authorizing committees a coordination 
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strategy report on expanding access and opportunity for 
postsecondary students who are underrepresented in 
science and engineering that— 
‘‘(1) outlines efforts to coordinate Federal grant 
programs for these populations to more effectively 
achieve the Federal Government’s objective to diver-
sify the STEM fields; and 
‘‘(2) outlines strategies to align Federal Gov-
ernment research opportunities, internships, and de-
ferred hiring programs from minority institutions re-
ceiving a grant under this part for students who are 
underrepresented in science and engineering.’’. 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—Section 365 of the Higher Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067k) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘science and 
engineering’’ and inserting ‘‘STEM’’; 
(2) by striking paragraph (4) and redesignating 
paragraphs (5) through (9) as paragraphs (4) 
through (8), respectively; 
(3) in paragraph (4), as so redesignated— 
(A) by striking ‘‘science and engineering’’ 
and inserting ‘‘STEM’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘scientists and engineers’’ 
in both places and inserting ‘‘individuals in 
STEM’’; and 
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(4) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(9) STEM.—The term ‘STEM’ means the 
fields of science (including computer science), tech-
nology, engineering, and mathematics as described 
in section 356(a).’’. 
(e) OTHER FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—Section 480(i) 
of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1087vv(i)), as amended by section 702 of the FAFSA 
Simplification Act (title VII of division FF of Public Law 
116–260), is further amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(6) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), direct fi-
nancial assistance provided to the student under sec-
tion 353(b)(1)(C), shall not be treated as other fi-
nancial assistance for purposes of section 471(3).’’. 
(f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this Act shall take effect on July 1, 2023, and as if in-
cluded in the FAFSA Simplification Act (title VII of divi-
sion FF of Public Law 116–260). 
Æ 
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