H. R. 6—126
the use of technology in all schools throughout the State in
accordance with the purpose and requirements of section 317
of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act.
‘‘(2) OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.—For the purpose of carry-
ing out coordinated or joint activities consistent with the pur-
poses of this part, the Secretary may accept funds from, and
transfer funds to, other Federal agencies.
‘‘(c) USES
OF FUNDS.—The Secretary shall use funds made
available to carry out this section for activities designed to carry
out the purpose of this part, such as—
‘‘(1) providing assistance to technical assistance providers
to enable such providers to improve substantially the services
such providers offer to educators regarding the uses of tech-
nology for education, including professional development;
‘‘(2) providing development grants to technical assistance
providers, to enable such providers to improve substantially
the services such providers offer to educators on the educational
uses of technology, including professional development;
‘‘(3) consulting with representatives of industry, elementary
and secondary education, higher education, adult and family
education, and appropriate experts in technology and edu-
cational applications of technology in carrying out activities
under this subpart;
‘‘(4) research on, and the development of, guidelines to
facilitate maximum interoperability, efficiency and easy
exchange of data for effective use of technology in education;
‘‘(5) research on, and the development of, applications for
education of the most advanced and newly emerging tech-
nologies which research shall be coordinated, when appropriate,
with the Office of Educational Research and Improvement,
and other Federal agencies;
‘‘(6) the development, demonstration, and evaluation of the
educational aspects of high performance computing and commu-
nications technologies and of the national information infra-
structure, in providing professional development for teachers,
school librarians, and other educators; enriching academic
curricula for elementary and secondary schools; facilitating
communications among schools, local educational agencies,
libraries, parents, and local communities and in other such
areas as the Secretary deems appropriate;
‘‘(7) the development, demonstration, and evaluation of
applications of existing technology in preschool education,
elementary and secondary education, training and lifelong
learning, and professional development of educational person-
nel;
‘‘(8) the development and evaluation of software and other
products, including multimedia television programming, that
incorporate advances in technology and help achieve the
National Education Goals, State content standards and State
student performance standards;
‘‘(9) the development, demonstration, and evaluation of
model strategies for preparing teachers and other personnel
to use technology effectively to improve teaching and learning;
‘‘(10) the development of model programs that demonstrate
the educational effectiveness of technology in urban and rural
areas and economically distressed communities;
H. R. 6—127
‘‘(11) research on, and the evaluation of, the effectiveness
and benefits of technology in education;
‘‘(12) a biennial assessment of, and report to the public
regarding, the uses of technology in elementary and secondary
education throughout the United States upon which private
businesses and Federal, State, tribal, and local governments
may rely for decisionmaking about the need for, and provision
of, appropriate technologies in schools, which assessment and
report shall use, to the extent possible, existing information
and resources;
‘‘(13) conferences on, and dissemination of information
regarding, the uses of technology in education;
‘‘(14) the development of model strategies to promote gender
equity concerning access to, and the use of, technology in the
classroom;
‘‘(15) encouraging collaboration between the Department
and other Federal agencies in the development, implementa-
tion, evaluation and funding of applications of technology for
education, as appropriate; and
‘‘(16) such other activities as the Secretary determines will
meet the purposes of this subpart.
‘‘(d) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the
Secretary may require any recipient of a grant or contract
under this section to share in the cost of the activities assisted
under such grant or contract, which non-Federal share shall
be announced through a notice in the Federal Register and
may be in the form of cash or in-kind contributions, fairly
valued.
‘‘(2) INCREASE.—The Secretary may increase the non-Fed-
eral share that is required of a recipient of a grant or contract
under this section after the first year such recipient receives
funds under such grant or contract.
‘‘(3) MAXIMUM.—The non-Federal share required under this
section shall not exceed 50 percent of the cost of the activities
assisted pursuant to a grant or contract under this section.
‘‘SEC. 3123. STUDY, EVALUATION AND REPORT OF FUNDING ALTER-
NATIVES.
‘‘The Secretary, through the Office of Educational Technology,
shall conduct a study to evaluate, and report to the Congress
on, the feasibility of several alternative models for providing sus-
tained and adequate funding for schools throughout the United
States so that such schools are able to acquire and maintain tech-
nology-enhanced curriculum, instruction, and administrative sup-
port resources and services. Such report shall be submitted to
the Congress not later than one year after the date of enactment
of the Improving America’s Schools Act of 1994.
‘‘Subpart 2—State and Local Programs for School
Technology Resources
‘‘SEC. 3131. ALLOTMENT AND REALLOTMENT.
‘‘(a) ALLOTMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in paragraph (2),
each State educational agency shall be eligible to receive a
grant under this subpart for a fiscal year in an amount which
H. R. 6—128
bears the same relationship to the amount made available
under section 3114(a)(1)(C) for such year as the amount such
State received under part A of title I for such year bears
to the amount received for such year under such part by all
States.
‘‘(2) MINIMUM.—No State educational agency shall be
eligible to receive a grant under paragraph (1) in any fiscal
year in an amount which is less than one-half of one percent
of the amount made available under section 3115(a)(1)(C) for
such year.
‘‘(b) REALLOTMENT OF UNUSED FUNDS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of any State educational
agency’s allotment under subsection (a) for any fiscal year
which the Secretary determines will not be required for such
fiscal year to carry out this subpart shall be available for
reallotment from time to time, on such dates during such
year as the Secretary may determine, to other State educational
agencies in proportion to the original allotments to such State
educational agencies under subsection (a) for such year, but
with such proportionate amount for any of such other State
educational agencies being reduced to the extent such amount
exceeds the sum the Secretary estimates such State needs
and will be able to use for such year.
‘‘(2) OTHER REALLOTMENTS.—The total of reductions under
paragraph (1) shall be similarly reallotted among the State
educational agencies whose proportionate amounts were not
so reduced. Any amounts reallotted to a State educational
agency under this subsection during a year shall be deemed
a subpart of such agencies allotment under subsection (a) for
such year.
‘‘SEC. 3132. SCHOOL TECHNOLOGY RESOURCE GRANTS.
‘‘(a) GRANTS TO STATES.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—From amounts made available under
section 3131, the Secretary, through the Office of Educational
Technology, shall award grants to State educational agencies
having applications approved under section 3133.
‘‘(2) USE OF GRANTS.—(A) Each State educational agency
receiving a grant under paragraph (1) shall use such grant
funds to award grants, on a competitive basis, to local edu-
cational agencies to enable such local educational agencies to
carry out the activities described in section 3134.
‘‘(B) In awarding grants under subparagraph (A), each
State educational agency shall ensure that each such grant
is of sufficient duration, and of sufficient size, scope, and qual-
ity, to carry out the purposes of this part effectively.
‘‘(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—Each State educational agency
receiving a grant under paragraph (1) shall—
‘‘(1) identify the local educational agencies served by the
State educational agency that—
‘‘(A) have the highest number or percentage of children
in poverty; and
‘‘(B) demonstrate to such State educational agency the
greatest need for technical assistance in developing the
application under section 3133; and
‘‘(2) offer such technical assistance to such local educational
agencies.
H. R. 6—129
‘‘SEC. 3133. STATE APPLICATION.
‘‘To receive funds under this subpart, each State educational
agency shall submit a statewide educational technology plan which
may include plans submitted under the Goals 2000: Educate Amer-
ica Act or other statewide technology plans which meet the require-
ments of this section. Such application shall be submitted to the
Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such
information as the Secretary may reasonably require. Each such
application shall contain a systemic statewide plan that—
‘‘(1) outlines long-term strategies for financing technology
education in the State and describes how business, industry,
and other public and private agencies, including libraries,
library literacy programs, and institutions of higher education,
can participate in the implementation, ongoing planning, and
support of the plan; and
‘‘(2) meets such other criteria as the Secretary may estab-
lish in order to enable such agency to provide assistance to
local educational agencies that have the highest numbers or
percentages of children in poverty and demonstrate the greatest
need for technology, in order to enable such local educational
agencies, for the benefit of school sites served by such local
educational agencies, to carry out activities such as—
‘‘(A) purchasing quality technology resources;
‘‘(B) installing various linkages necessary to acquire
connectivity;
‘‘(C) integrating technology into the curriculum in order
to improve student learning and achievement;
‘‘(D) providing teachers and library media personnel
with training or access to training;
‘‘(E) providing administrative and technical support
and services that improve student learning through
enriched technology-enhanced resources, including library
media resources;
‘‘(F) promoting in individual schools the sharing, dis-
tribution, and application of educational technologies with
demonstrated effectiveness;
‘‘(G) assisting schools in promoting parent involvement;
‘‘(H) assisting the community in providing literacy-
related services;
‘‘(I) establishing partnerships with private or public
educational providers or other entities to serve the needs
of children in poverty; and
‘‘(J) providing assurances that financial assistance pro-
vided under this part shall supplement, not supplant, State
and local funds.
‘‘SEC. 3134. LOCAL USES OF FUNDS.
‘‘Each local educational agency, to the extent possible, shall
use the funds made available under section 3132(a)(2) for—
‘‘(1) developing, adapting, or expanding existing and new
applications of technology to support the school reform effort;
‘‘(2) funding projects of sufficient size and scope to improve
student learning and, as appropriate, support professional
development, and provide administrative support;
‘‘(3) acquiring connectivity linkages, resources, and services,
including the acquisition of hardware and software, for use
by teachers, students and school library media personnel in
H. R. 6—130
the classroom or in school library media centers, in order to
improve student learning by supporting the instructional pro-
gram offered by such agency to ensure that students in schools
will have meaningful access on a regular basis to such linkages,
resources and services;
‘‘(4) providing ongoing professional development in the
integration of quality educational technologies into school
curriculum and long-term planning for implementing edu-
cational technologies;
‘‘(5) acquiring connectivity with wide area networks for
purposes of accessing information and educational program-
ming sources, particularly with institutions of higher education
and public libraries; and
‘‘(6) providing educational services for adults and families.
‘‘SEC. 3135. LOCAL APPLICATIONS.
‘‘Each local educational agency desiring assistance from a State
educational agency under section 3132(a)(2) shall submit an applica-
tion, consistent with the objectives of the systemic statewide plan,
to the State educational agency at such time, in such manner
and accompanied by such information as the State educational
agency may reasonably require. Such application, at a minimum,
shall—
‘‘(1) include a strategic, long-range (three- to five-year),
plan that includes—
‘‘(A) a description of the type of technologies to be
acquired, including specific provisions for interoperability
among components of such technologies and, to the extent
practicable, with existing technologies;
‘‘(B) an explanation of how the acquired technologies
will be integrated into the curriculum to help the local
educational agency enhance teaching, training, and student
achievement;
‘‘(C) an explanation of how programs will be developed
in collaboration with existing adult literacy services provid-
ers to maximize the use of such technologies;
‘‘(D)(i) a description of how the local educational agency
will ensure ongoing, sustained professional development
for teachers, administrators, and school library media
personnel served by the local educational agency to further
the use of technology in the classroom or library media
center; and
‘‘(ii) a list of the source or sources of ongoing training
and technical assistance available to schools, teachers and
administrators served by the local educational agency, such
as State technology offices, intermediate educational sup-
port units, regional educational laboratories or institutions
of higher education;
‘‘(E) a description of the supporting resources, such
as services, software and print resources, which will be
acquired to ensure successful and effective use of tech-
nologies acquired under this section;
‘‘(F) the projected timetable for implementing such plan
in schools;
‘‘(G) the projected cost of technologies to be acquired
and related expenses needed to implement such plan; and
H. R. 6—131
‘‘(H) a description of how the local educational agency
will coordinate the technology provided pursuant to this
subpart with other grant funds available for technology
from State and local sources;
‘‘(2) describe how the local educational agency will involve
parents, public libraries, business leaders and community lead-
ers in the development of such plan;
‘‘(3) describe how the acquired instructionally based tech-
nologies will help the local educational agency—
‘‘(A) promote equity in education in order to support
State content standards and State student performance
standards that may be developed; and
‘‘(B) provide access for teachers, parents and students
to the best teaching practices and curriculum resources
through technology; and
‘‘(4) describe a process for the ongoing evaluation of how
technologies acquired under this section—
‘‘(A) will be integrated into the school curriculum; and
‘‘(B) will affect student achievement and progress
toward meeting the National Education Goals and any
challenging State content standards and State student
performance standards that may be developed.
‘‘(d) FORMATION
OF CONSORTIA.—A local educational agency
for any fiscal year may apply for financial assistance as part of
a consortium with other local educational agencies, institutions
of higher education, intermediate educational units, libraries, or
other educational entities appropriate to provide local programs.
The State educational agency may assist in the formation of consor-
tia among local educational agencies, providers of educational serv-
ices for adults and families, institutions of higher education, inter-
mediate educational units, libraries, or other appropriate edu-
cational entities to provide services for the teachers and students
in a local educational agency at the request of such local educational
agency.
‘‘(e) COORDINATION OF APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—If a local
educational agency submitting an application for assistance under
this section has developed a comprehensive education improvement
plan, in conjunction with requirements under this Act or the Goals
2000: Educate America Act, the State educational agency may
approve such plan, or a component of such plan, notwithstanding
the requirements of subsection (e) if the State educational agency
determines that such approval would further the purposes of this
subpart.
‘‘SEC. 3136. NATIONAL CHALLENGE GRANTS FOR TECHNOLOGY IN EDU-
CATION.
‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—From amounts made available under
section 3115(b)(1) for any fiscal year the Secretary is authorized
to award grants, on a competitive basis, to consortia having
applications approved under subsection (d), which consortia
shall include at least one local educational agency with a high
percentage or number of children living below the poverty line
and may include other local educational agencies, State edu-
cational agencies, institutions of higher education, businesses,
academic content experts, software designers, museums, librar-
ies, or other appropriate entities.
H. R. 6—132
‘‘(2) DURATION.—Grants under this section shall be
awarded for a period of 5 years.
‘‘(b) USE OF GRANTS.—Grants awarded under subsection (a)
shall be used for activities similar to the activities described in
section 3134.
‘‘(c) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this section, the Sec-
retary shall give priority to consortia which demonstrate in the
application submitted under subsection (d) that—
‘‘(1) the project for which assistance is sought is designed
to serve areas with a high number or percentage of disadvan-
taged students or the greatest need for educational technology;
‘‘(2) the project will directly benefit students by, for exam-
ple, integrating the acquired technologies into curriculum to
help the local educational agency enhance teaching, training,
and student achievement;
‘‘(3) the project will ensure ongoing, sustained professional
development for teachers, administrators, and school library
media personnel served by the local educational agency to
further the use of technology in the classroom or library media
center;
‘‘(4) the project will ensure successful, effective, and
sustainable use of technologies acquired under this subsection;
and
‘‘(5) members of the consortia or other appropriate entities
will contribute substantial financial and other resources to
achieve the goals of the project.
‘‘(d) APPLICATION.—Each local educational agency desiring a
grant under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary
at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information
as the Secretary may reasonably require.
‘‘SEC. 3137. FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION.
‘‘(a) EVALUATION PROCEDURES.—The Secretary shall develop
procedures for State and local evaluations of the programs under
this subpart.
‘‘(b) EVALUATION SUMMARY.—The Secretary shall submit to the
Congress four years after the enactment of the Improving America’s
Schools Act of 1994 a summary of the State evaluations of programs
under this subpart in accordance with the provisions of section
14701.
Subpart 3—Regional Technical Support and
Professional Development
‘‘SEC. 3141. REGIONAL TECHNICAL SUPPORT AND PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT.
‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—
‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary, through the Office of Edu-
cational Technology, shall make grants in accordance with the
provisions of this section, to regional entities such as the Eisen-
hower Mathematics and Science Regional Consortia under part
C of title XIII, the regional education laboratories, the com-
prehensive regional assistance centers, or such other regional
entities as may be designated or established by the Secretary.
In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall
give priority to such consortia and shall ensure that each
H. R. 6—133
geographic region of the United States shall be served by such
a consortium.
‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—Each consortium receiving a grant
under this section shall—
‘‘(A) be composed of State educational agencies, institu-
tions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, or a
combination thereof;
‘‘(B) in cooperation with State and local educational
agencies, develop a regional program that addresses profes-
sional development, technical assistance, and information
resource dissemination, with special emphasis on meeting
the documented needs of educators and learners in the
region; and
‘‘(C) foster regional cooperation and resource and
coursework sharing.
‘‘(b) FUNCTIONS.—
‘‘(1) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—Each consortium receiving a
grant under this section shall, to the extent practicable—
‘‘(A) collaborate with State educational agencies and
local educational agencies requesting collaboration, particu-
larly in the development of strategies for assisting those
schools with the highest numbers or percentages of dis-
advantaged students with little or no access to technology
in the classroom;
‘‘(B) provide information, in coordination with informa-
tion available from the Secretary, to State educational
agencies, local educational agencies, schools and adult edu-
cation programs, on the types and features of various edu-
cational technology equipment and software available,
evaluate and make recommendations on equipment and
software that support the National Education Goals and
are suited for a school’s particular needs, and compile
and share information regarding creative and effective
applications of technology in the classroom and school
library media centers in order to support the purposes
of this part;
‘‘(C) collaborate with such State educational agencies,
local educational agencies, or schools requesting to partici-
pate in the tailoring of software programs and other
supporting materials to meet challenging State content
standards or challenging State student performance stand-
ards that may be developed; and
‘‘(D) provide technical assistance to facilitate use of
the electronic dissemination networks by State and local
educational agencies and schools throughout the region.
‘‘(2) 
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT.—Each 
consortium
receiving a grant under this section shall, to the extent prac-
ticable—
‘‘(A) develop and implement, in collaboration with State
educational agencies and institutions of higher education,
technology-specific, ongoing professional development, such
as—
‘‘(i) intensive school year and summer workshops
that use teachers, school librarians, and school library
personnel to train other teachers, school librarians,
and other school library media personnel; and
‘‘(ii) distance professional development, including—
H. R. 6—134
‘‘(I) interactive training tele-courses using
researchers, educators, and telecommunications
personnel who have experience in developing,
implementing, 
or 
operating 
educational 
and
instructional technology as a learning tool;
‘‘(II) onsite courses teaching teachers to use
educational and instructional technology and to
develop their own instructional materials for effec-
tively incorporating technology and programming
in their own classrooms;
‘‘(III) methods for successful integration of
instructional technology into the curriculum in
order to improve student learning and achieve-
ment;
‘‘(IV) video conferences and seminars which
offer professional development through peer inter-
action with experts as well as other teachers using
technologies in their classrooms; and
‘‘(V) mobile education technology and training
resources;
‘‘(B) develop training resources that—
‘‘(i) are relevant to the needs of the region and
schools within the region;
‘‘(ii) are relevant to the needs of adult literacy
staff and volunteers, including onsite courses on how
to—
‘‘(I) use instructional technology; and
‘‘(II) develop instructional materials for adult
learning; and
‘‘(iii) are aligned with the needs of teachers and
administrators in the region;
‘‘(C) establish a repository of professional development
and technical assistance resources;
‘‘(D) identify and link technical assistance providers
to State and local educational agencies, as needed;
‘‘(E) ensure that training, professional development,
and technical assistance meet the needs of educators, par-
ents, and students served by the region;
‘‘(F) assist colleges and universities within the region
to develop and implement preservice training programs
for students enrolled in teacher education programs; and
‘‘(G) assist local educational agencies and schools in
working with community members and parents to develop
support from communities and parents for educational tech-
nology programs and projects.
‘‘(3) INFORMATION
AND
RESOURCE
DISSEMINATION.—Each
consortium receiving a grant under this section shall, to the
extent practicable—
‘‘(A) assist State and local educational agencies in the
identification and procurement of financial, technological
and human resources needed to implement technology
plans;
‘‘(B) provide outreach and, at the request of a State
or local educational agency, work with such agency to assist
in the development and validation of instructionally based
technology education resources; and
H. R. 6—135
‘‘(C) coordinate activities and establish partnerships
with organizations and institutions of higher education that
represent the interests of the region as such interests per-
tain to the application of technology in teaching, learning,
instructional management, dissemination, collection and
distribution of educational statistics, and the transfer of
student information.
‘‘(4) COORDINATION.—Each consortium receiving a grant
under this section shall work collaboratively, and coordinate
the services the consortium provides, with appropriate regional
and other entities assisted in whole or in part by the Depart-
ment.
‘‘Subpart 4—Product Development
‘‘SEC. 3151. EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT.
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this subpart to—
‘‘(1) support development of curriculum-based learning
resources using state-of-the-art technologies and techniques
designed to improve student learning; and
‘‘(2) support development of long-term comprehensive
instructional programming and associated support resources
that ensure maximum access by all educational institutions.
‘‘(b) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall provide assistance,
on a competitive basis, to eligible consortia to enable such
entities to develop, produce, and distribute state-of-the-art tech-
nology-enhanced instructional resources and programming for
use in the classroom or to support professional development
for teachers.
‘‘(2) GRANTS AND LOANS AUTHORIZED.—In carrying out the
purposes of this section, the Secretary is authorized to pay
the Federal share of the cost of the development, production,
and distribution of state-of-the-art technology enhanced instruc-
tional resources and programming—
‘‘(A) by awarding grants to, or entering into contracts
or cooperative agreements with, eligible consortia; or
‘‘(B) by awarding loans to eligible consortia which—
‘‘(i) shall be secured in such manner and be repaid
within such period, not exceeding 20 years, as may
be determined by the Secretary;
‘‘(ii) shall bear interest at a rate determined by
the Secretary which shall be not more than the total
of one-quarter of 1 percent per annum added to the
rate of interest paid by the Secretary on funds obtained
from the Secretary of the Treasury; and
‘‘(iii) may be forgiven by the Secretary, in an
amount not to exceed 25 percent of the total loan,
under such terms and conditions as the Secretary may
consider appropriate.
‘‘(3) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary may require
any recipient of a grant or contract under this subpart to
share in the cost of the activities assisted under such grant
or contract, which non-Federal share shall be announced
through a notice in the Federal Register and may be in the
form of cash or in-kind contributions, fairly valued.
H. R. 6—136
‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE CONSORTIUM.—For the purpose of this sub-
section, the term ‘eligible consortium’ means a consortium—
‘‘(A) that shall include—
‘‘(i) a State or local educational agency; and
‘‘(ii) a business, industry, or telecommunications
entity; and
‘‘(B) that may include—
‘‘(i) a public or private nonprofit organization; or
‘‘(ii) a postsecondary institution.
‘‘(5) PRIORITIES.—In awarding assistance under this section,
the Secretary shall give priority to applications describing pro-
grams or systems that—
‘‘(A) promote the acquisition of higher-order thinking
skills and promise to raise the achievement levels of all
students, particularly disadvantaged students who are not
realizing their potential;
‘‘(B) are aligned with challenging State content stand-
ards and State and local curriculum frameworks;
‘‘(C) may be adapted and applied nationally at a reason-
able cost over a broad technology platform;
‘‘(D) convert technology resources developed with sup-
port from the Department of Defense and other Federal
agencies for effective use in the classroom;
‘‘(E) show promise of reducing the costs of providing
high-quality instruction;
‘‘(F) show promise of expanding access to high-quality
instruction in content areas which would otherwise not
be available to students in rural and urban communities
or who are served by other educational agencies with lim-
ited financial resources;
‘‘(G) are developed in consultation with classroom
teachers;
‘‘(H) are developed through consultation and collabora-
tion with appropriate education entities in designing the
product to ensure relevance to the voluntary national con-
tent standards, the voluntary national student performance
standards and State curriculum frameworks; and
‘‘(I) are developed so that the product can be adapted
for use by adults in need of literacy services, including
English as a second language and preparation for a second-
ary school diploma or its recognized equivalent.
‘‘(6) 
REQUIREMENTS
FOR
FEDERAL
ASSISTANCE.—Each
eligible consortium desiring Federal assistance under this sec-
tion shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time
and in such manner as the Secretary may prescribe. Each
application shall include—
‘‘(A) a description of how the product will improve
the achievement levels of students;
‘‘(B) a description of how the activities assisted under
this section will promote professional development of teach-
ers and administrators in the uses and applications of
the product, including the development of training mate-
rials;
‘‘(C) a description of design, development, field testing,
evaluation, and distribution of products, where appropriate;
H. R. 6—137
‘‘(D) an assurance that the product shall effectively
serve a significant number or percentage of economically
disadvantaged students;
‘‘(E) plans for dissemination of products to a wide
audience of learners;
‘‘(F) a description of how the product can be adapted
for use by students with disabilities including provisions
for closed captioning or descriptive video, where appro-
priate;
‘‘(G) a description of how ownership and rights to the
use and marketing of any product developed by the consor-
tium, including intellectual property rights, will be allo-
cated among consortium participants; and
‘‘(H) a description of the contributions, including serv-
ices and funds, to be made by each member of the consor-
tium, and how any revenues derived from the sale of any
product developed by the consortium shall be distributed.
‘‘(c) CONSUMER REPORT.—The Secretary shall provide for the
independent evaluation of products developed under this section
and shall disseminate information about products developed pursu-
ant to provisions of this section to State and local educational
agencies, and other organizations or individuals that the Secretary
determines to be appropriate, through print and electronic media
that are accessible to the education community at large.
‘‘(d) PROCEEDS.—The Secretary shall not prohibit an eligible
consortium or any of the members of such consortium from receiving
financial benefits from the distribution of any products resulting
from the assistance received under this section. Notwithstanding
any other provision of law, any profits or royalties received by
a State educational agency, local educational agency, or other non-
profit member of an eligible consortium receiving assistance under
this section shall be used to support further development of curricu-
lum-based learning resources, services, and programming or to pro-
vide access to such products for a wider audience.
‘‘PART B—STAR SCHOOLS PROGRAM
‘‘SEC. 3201. SHORT TITLE.
‘‘This part may be cited as the ‘Star Schools Act’.
‘‘SEC. 3202. FINDINGS.
‘‘The Congress finds that—
‘‘(1) the Star Schools program has helped to encourage
the use of distance learning strategies to serve multi-State
regions primarily by means of satellite and broadcast television;
‘‘(2) in general, distance learning programs have been used
effectively to provide students in small, rural, and isolated
schools with courses and instruction, such as science and foreign
language instruction, that the local educational agency is not
otherwise able to provide; and
‘‘(3) distance learning programs may also be used to—
‘‘(A) provide students of all ages in all types of schools
and educational settings with greater access to high-quality
instruction in the full range of core academic subjects that
will enable such students to meet challenging, internation-
ally competitive, educational standards;
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‘‘(B) expand professional development opportunities for
teachers;
‘‘(C) contribute to achievement of the National Edu-
cation Goals; and
‘‘(D) expand learning opportunities for everyone.
‘‘SEC. 3203. PURPOSE.
‘‘It is the purpose of this part to encourage improved instruction
in mathematics, science, and foreign languages as well as other
subjects, such as literacy skills and vocational education, and to
serve underserved populations, including the disadvantaged, illit-
erate, limited-English proficient, and individuals with disabilities,
through a star schools program under which grants are made
to eligible telecommunication partnerships to enable such partner-
ships to—
‘‘(1) develop, construct, acquire, maintain and operate tele-
communications audio and visual facilities and equipment;
‘‘(2) develop and acquire educational and instructional
programming; and
‘‘(3) obtain technical assistance for the use of such facilities
and instructional programming.
‘‘SEC. 3204. GRANTS AUTHORIZED.
‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary, through the Office of Edu-
cational Technology, is authorized to make grants, in accordance
with the provisions of this part, to eligible entities to pay the
Federal share of the cost of—
‘‘(1) the development, construction, acquisition, mainte-
nance and operation of telecommunications facilities and equip-
ment;
‘‘(2) the development and acquisition of live, interactive
instructional programming;
‘‘(3) the development and acquisition of preservice and
inservice teacher training programs based on established
research regarding teacher-to-teacher mentoring, effective skill
transfer, and ongoing, in-class instruction;
‘‘(4) the establishment of teleconferencing facilities and
resources for making interactive training available to teachers;
‘‘(5) obtaining technical assistance; and
‘‘(6) the coordination of the design and connectivity of tele-
communications networks to reach the greatest number of
schools.
‘‘(b) DURATION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award grants pursu-
ant to subsection (a) for a period of 5 years.
‘‘(2) RENEWAL.—Grants awarded pursuant to subsection
(a) may be renewed for one additional three-year period.
‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appropriated
$35,000,000 for fiscal year 1995, and such sums as may be
necessary for each of the four succeeding fiscal years, to carry
out this part.
‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—Funds appropriated pursuant to the
authority of subsection (a) shall remain available until
expended.
‘‘(d) LIMITATIONS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A grant under this section shall not
exceed—
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‘‘(A) five years in duration; and
‘‘(B) $10,000,000 in any one fiscal year.
‘‘(2) INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAMMING.—Not less than 25 per-
cent of the funds available to the Secretary in any fiscal year
under this part shall be used for the cost of instructional
programming.
‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE.—Not less than 50 percent of the funds
available in any fiscal year under this part shall be used
for the cost of facilities, equipment, teacher training or retrain-
ing, technical assistance, or programming, for local educational
agencies which are eligible to receive assistance under part
A of title I.
‘‘(e) FEDERAL SHARE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Federal share of the cost of projects
funded under this section shall not exceed—
‘‘(A) 75 percent for the first and second years for which
an eligible telecommunications partnership receives a grant
under this part;
‘‘(B) 60 percent for the third and fourth such years;
and
‘‘(C) 50 percent for the fifth such year.
‘‘(2) REDUCTION OR WAIVER.—The Secretary may reduce
or waive the requirement of the non-Federal share under para-
graph (1) upon a showing of financial hardship.
‘‘(f) AUTHORITY TO ACCEPT FUNDS FROM OTHER AGENCIES.—
The Secretary is authorized to accept funds from other Federal
departments or agencies to carry out the purposes of this section,
including funds for the purchase of equipment.
‘‘(g) COORDINATION.—The Department, the National Science
Foundation, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Com-
merce, and any other Federal department or agency operating a
telecommunications network for educational purposes, shall coordi-
nate the activities assisted under this part with the activities of
such department or agency relating to a telecommunications net-
work for educational purposes.
‘‘(h) CLOSED CAPTIONING AND DESCRIPTIVE VIDEO.—Each entity
receiving funds under this part is encouraged to provide—
‘‘(1) closed captioning of the verbal content of such program,
where appropriate, to be broadcast by way of line 21 of the
vertical blanking interval, or by way of comparable successor
technologies; and
‘‘(2) descriptive video of the visual content of such program,
as appropriate.
‘‘SEC. 3205. ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.
‘‘(a) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—
‘‘(1) REQUIRED PARTICIPATION.—The Secretary may make
a grant under section 3204 to any eligible entity, if at least
one local educational agency is participating in the proposed
project.
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—For the purpose of this part, the
term ‘eligible entity’ may include—
‘‘(A) a public agency or corporation established for the
purpose of developing and operating telecommunications
networks to enhance educational opportunities provided
by educational institutions, teacher training centers, and
other entities, except that any such agency or corporation