I 
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5502 
To improve the academic competitiveness of students in the United States. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 25, 2006 
Miss MCMORRIS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To improve the academic competitiveness of students in the 
United States. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Strengthening Amer-
ica’s Innovation and Competitiveness Act’’. 
SEC. 2. ADVANCED PLACEMENT TEACHER PREPARATION. 
(a) STATE GRANTS.—Section 202(d) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1022(d)) is amended 
by adding at the end of the subsection the following new 
paragraph: 
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‘‘(8) ADVANCED
PLACEMENT.—Implementing 
strategies to increase the number of teachers quali-
fied to teach advanced placement and pre-advanced 
placement courses in mathematics, science, and crit-
ical foreign languages, and other strategies to in-
crease the availability of those courses, particularly 
for low-income students.’’. 
(b) PARTNERSHIP GRANTS.—Section 203(e) of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1023(e)) is 
amended by adding at the end of the subsection the fol-
lowing new paragraph: 
‘‘(5) ADVANCED
PLACEMENT.—Implementing 
strategies to increase the number of teachers quali-
fied to teach advanced placement and pre-advanced 
placement courses in mathematics, science, and crit-
ical foreign languages, and other strategies to in-
crease the availability of those courses, particularly 
for low-income students.’’. 
(c) DEFINITION.—Section 201(b) of the Higher Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021(b)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(4) CRITICAL FOREIGN LANGUAGE.—The term 
‘critical foreign language’ includes the languages of 
Arabic, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Pashto, Persian- 
Farsi, Serbian-Croatian, Russian, Portuguese, and 
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any other language identified by the Secretary of 
Education, in consultation with the Defense Lan-
guage Institute, the Foreign Service Institute, and 
the National Security Education Program, as a crit-
ical foreign language need.’’. 
SEC. 3. ROBERT C. BYRD HONORS SCHOLARSHIP PRO-
GRAM. 
Subpart 6 of part A of title IV of the Higher Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070d–31 et seq.) is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘Subpart 6—Robert C. Byrd American 
Competitiveness Program 
‘‘SEC. 419A. ROBERT C. BYRD MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 
HONORS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to 
award scholarships to students who are enrolled in studies 
leading to baccalaureate and advanced degrees in physical, 
life, or computer sciences, mathematics, and engineering. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘computer science’ means the 
branch of knowledge or study of computers, includ-
ing such fields of knowledge or study as computer 
hardware, computer software, computer engineering, 
information systems, and robotics; 
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‘‘(2) the term ‘critical foreign language’ in-
cludes the languages of Arabic, Korean, Japanese, 
Chinese, Pashto, Persian-Farsi, Serbian-Croatian, 
Russian, Portuguese, and any other language identi-
fied by the Secretary of Education, in consultation 
with the Defense Language Institute, the Foreign 
Service Institute, and the National Security Edu-
cation Program, as a critical foreign language need; 
‘‘(3) the term ‘eligible student’ means a student 
who— 
‘‘(A) is a citizen of the United States; 
‘‘(B) is selected by the managing agent to 
receive a scholarship; 
‘‘(C) is enrolled full-time in an institution 
of higher education, other than a United States 
service academy; and 
‘‘(D) has shown a commitment to and is 
pursuing a major in studies leading to a bacca-
laureate, masters, or doctoral degree (or a com-
bination thereof) in physical, life, or computer 
sciences, mathematics, or engineering; 
‘‘(4) the term ‘engineering’ means the science 
by which the properties of matter and the sources of 
energy in nature are made useful to humanity in 
structures, machines, and products, as in the con-
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struction of engines, bridges, buildings, mines, and 
chemical plants, including such fields of knowledge 
or study as aeronautical engineering, chemical engi-
neering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, in-
dustrial engineering, materials engineering, manu-
facturing engineering, and mechanical engineering; 
‘‘(5) the term ‘life sciences’ means the branch 
of knowledge or study of living things, including 
such fields of knowledge or study as biology, bio-
chemistry, biophysics, microbiology, genetics, physi-
ology, botany, zoology, ecology, and behavioral biol-
ogy, except that the term does not encompass social 
psychology or the health professions; 
‘‘(6) the term ‘managing agent’ means an enti-
ty to which an award is made under subsection (c) 
to manage a program of Mathematics and Science 
Honors Scholarships; 
‘‘(7) the term ‘mathematics’ means the branch 
of knowledge or study of numbers and the system-
atic treatment of magnitude, relationships between 
figures and forms, and relations between quantities 
expressed symbolically, including such fields of 
knowledge or study as statistics, applied mathe-
matics, and operations research; and 
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‘‘(8) the term ‘physical sciences’ means the 
branch of knowledge or study of the material uni-
verse, including such fields of knowledge or study as 
astronomy, atmospheric sciences, chemistry, earth 
sciences, ocean sciences, physics, and planetary 
sciences. 
‘‘(c) AWARD.— 
‘‘(1)(A) From funds authorized under section 
419F to carry out this section, the Secretary is au-
thorized, through a grant or cooperative agreement, 
to make an award to a private, non-profit organiza-
tion, other than an institution of higher education or 
system of institutions of higher education, to man-
age, through a public and private partnership, a pro-
gram of Mathematics and Science Honors Scholar-
ships under this section. 
‘‘(B) The award under subparagraph (A) shall 
be for a five-year period. 
‘‘(2)(A) One hundred percent of the funds 
awarded under paragraph (1)(A) for any fiscal year 
shall be obligated and expended solely on scholar-
ships to eligible students. 
‘‘(B) No Federal funds shall be used to provide 
more than 50 percent of the cost of any scholarship 
to an eligible student. 
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‘‘(C) The maximum scholarship award shall be 
the difference between an eligible student’s cost of 
attendance minus any non-loan based aid such stu-
dent receives. 
‘‘(3)(A) The secretary may establish— 
‘‘(i) eligibility criteria for applicants for 
managing agent, including criteria regarding fi-
nancial and administrative capability; and 
‘‘(ii) operational standards for the man-
aging agent, including management and per-
formance requirements, such as audit, record-
keeping, record retention, and reporting proce-
dures and requirements. 
‘‘(B) The Secretary, as necessary, may review 
and revise any criteria, standards, and rules estab-
lished under this paragraph and, through the agree-
ment with the managing agent, see that any revi-
sions are implemented. 
‘‘(4) If the managing agent fails to meet the re-
quirements of this section the Secretary may termi-
nate the award to the managing agent. 
‘‘(5) The Secretary shall conduct outreach ef-
forts to help raise awareness of the Mathematics and 
Science Honors Scholarships. 
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‘‘(d) DUTIES OF THE MANAGING AGENT.—The man-
aging agent shall— 
‘‘(1) develop criteria to award Mathematics and 
Science Honors Scholarships based on established 
measurements available to secondary students who 
wish to pursue degrees in physical, life, or computer 
sciences, mathematics, and engineering; 
‘‘(2) establish a Mathematics and Science Hon-
ors Scholarship Fund in a separate, named account 
that clearly discloses the amount of Federal and 
non-Federal funds deposited in the account and used 
for scholarships under this section; 
‘‘(3) solicit funds for scholarships and for the 
administration of the program from non-Federal 
sources; 
‘‘(4) solicit applicants for scholarships; 
‘‘(5) from the amounts in the Fund, award 
scholarships to eligible students and transfer such 
funds to the institutions of higher education that 
they attend; 
‘‘(6) annually submit to the Secretary a finan-
cial audit and a report on the progress of the pro-
gram, and such other documents as the Secretary 
may require to determine the effective management 
of the program; and 
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‘‘(7) shall not develop a criteria that discrimi-
nates against a student based on the type of pro-
gram in which the student completed his or her sec-
ondary education. 
‘‘(e) APPLICATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) Any eligible entity that desires to be the 
managing agent under this section shall submit an 
application to the Secretary, in such form and con-
taining such information, as the Secretary may re-
quire. 
‘‘(2) Each application shall include a descrip-
tion of— 
‘‘(A) how the applicant meets or will meet 
requirements established under subsections 
(c)(3)(A) and (d); 
‘‘(B) how the applicant will solicit funds 
for scholarships and for the administration of 
the program from non-Federal sources; 
‘‘(C) how the applicant will provide nation-
wide outreach to inform students about the pro-
gram and to encourage students to pursue de-
grees in physical, life, or computer sciences, 
mathematics, and engineering; 
‘‘(D) how the applicant will solicit applica-
tions for scholarships, including how the appli-
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cant will balance efforts in urban and rural 
areas; 
‘‘(E) the selection criteria based on estab-
lished measurements available to secondary stu-
dents the applicant will use to award scholar-
ships and to renew those awards; 
‘‘(F) how the applicant will inform the in-
stitution of higher education chosen by the re-
cipient of the name and scholarship amount of 
the recipient; 
‘‘(G) what procedures and assurances the 
applicant and the institution of higher edu-
cation that the recipient attends will use to 
verify student eligibility, attendance, degree 
progress, and academic performance and to de-
liver and account for payments to such institu-
tion; 
‘‘(H) the management (including audit and 
accounting) procedures the applicant will use 
for the program; 
‘‘(I) the human, financial, and other re-
sources that the applicant will need and use to 
manage the program; 
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‘‘(J) how the applicant will evaluate the 
program and report to the Secretary annually; 
and 
‘‘(K) a description of how the entity will 
coordinate with, complement, and build on simi-
lar public and private mathematics and science 
programs. 
‘‘(f) SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS.— 
‘‘(1) A student receiving a scholarship under 
this section shall be known as a ‘Byrd Mathematics 
and Science Honors Scholar’. 
‘‘(2) Any student desiring to receive a scholar-
ship under this section shall submit an application 
to the managing agent in such form, and containing 
such information, as the managing agent may re-
quire. 
‘‘(3) Any student that receives a scholarship 
under this section shall enter into an agreement with 
the managing agent to complete 5 consecutive years 
of service to begin no later than 12 months following 
completion of the final degree in a position related 
to the field in which the student obtained the degree. 
‘‘(4) If any student that receives a scholarship 
under this section fails to earn at least a bacca-
laureate degree in physical, life, or computer 
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sciences, mathematics, or engineering as defined 
under this section, the student shall repay to the 
managing agent the amount of any financial assist-
ance paid to such student. 
‘‘(5) If any student that receives a scholarship 
under this section fails to meet the requirements of 
paragraph (3), the student shall repay to the man-
aging agent the amount of any financial assistance 
paid to such student. 
‘‘(6)(A) Scholarships shall be awarded for only 
one academic year of study at a time. 
‘‘(B)(i) A scholarship shall be renewable on an 
annual basis for the established length of the aca-
demic program if the student awarded the scholar-
ship remains eligible. 
‘‘(ii) The managing agent may condition re-
newal of a scholarship on measures of academic 
progress and achievement, with the approval of the 
Secretary. 
‘‘(C)(i) If a student fails to either remain eligi-
ble or meet established measures of academic 
progress and achievement, the managing agent shall 
instruct the student’s institution of higher education 
to suspend payment of the student’s scholarship. 
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‘‘(ii) A suspension of payment shall remain in 
effect until the student is able to demonstrate to the 
satisfaction of the managing agent that he or she is 
again eligible and meets the established measures of 
academic progress and achievement. 
‘‘(iii) A student’s eligibility for a scholarship 
shall be terminated if a suspension period exceeds 
12 months. 
‘‘(D)(i)(I) A student awarded a scholarship 
may, in a manner and under the terms established 
by, and with the approval of, the managing agent, 
postpone or interrupt his or her enrollment at an in-
stitution of higher education for up to 12 months. 
‘‘(II) Such a postponement or interruption shall 
not be considered a suspension for purposes of sub-
paragraph (C). 
‘‘(ii) Neither a student nor the student’s insti-
tution of higher education shall receive the student’s 
scholarship payments during the period of postpone-
ment or interruption, but such payments shall re-
sume upon enrollment or reenrollment. 
‘‘(iii) In exceptional circumstances, such as seri-
ous injury or illness or the necessity to care for fam-
ily members, the student’s postponement or inter-
ruption may, upon notification and approval of the 
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managing agent, be extended beyond the 12 month 
period described in clause (i)(I). 
‘‘(g) RESPONSIBILITIES OF INSTITUTION OF HIGHER 
EDUCATION.— 
‘‘(1) The managing agent shall require any in-
stitution of higher education that enrolls a student 
who receives a scholarship under this section to an-
nually provide an assurance, prior to making any 
payment, that the student— 
‘‘(A) is eligible in accordance with subsection 
(b)(2); and 
‘‘(B) has provided the institution with a written 
commitment to attend, or is attending, classes and 
is satisfactorily meeting the institution’s academic 
criteria for enrollment in its program of study. 
‘‘(2)(A) The managing agent shall provide the 
institution of higher education with payments from 
the Fund for selected recipients in at least two in-
stallments. 
‘‘(B) An institution of higher education shall re-
turn prorated amounts of any scholarship payment 
to the managing agent, who shall deposit it in to the 
Fund, if a recipient declines a scholarship, does not 
attend courses, transfers to another institution of 
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higher education, or becomes ineligible for a scholar-
ship. 
‘‘SEC. 419B. MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE INCENTIVE PRO-
GRAM. 
‘‘(a) PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 
to carry out a program of assuming the obligation 
to pay, pursuant to the provisions of this section, the 
interest on a loan made, insured, or guaranteed 
under part B or D of this title. 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBILITY.—The Secretary may assume 
interest payments under paragraph (1) only for a 
borrower who— 
‘‘(A) has submitted an application in com-
pliance with subsection (d); 
‘‘(B) obtained one or more loans described 
in paragraph (1) as an undergraduate student; 
‘‘(C) is a new borrower (within the mean-
ing of section 103(7) of this Act) on or after 
the date of enactment of the College Access and 
Opportunity Act of 2006; 
‘‘(D) is a highly qualified teacher (as de-
fined in section 9101 of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965) of science, 
technology, engineering or mathematics at an 
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elementary or secondary school in a high need 
local educational agency, or is a mathematics, 
science, or engineering professional; and 
‘‘(E) enters into an agreement with the 
Secretary to complete 5 consecutive years of 
service in a position described in subparagraph 
(D), starting on the date of the agreement. 
‘‘(3) PRIOR INTEREST LIMITATIONS.—The Sec-
retary shall not make any payments for interest 
that— 
‘‘(A) accrues prior to the beginning of the 
repayment period on a loan in the case of a 
loan made under section 428H or a Federal Di-
rect Unsubsidized Stafford Loan; or 
‘‘(B) has accrued prior to the signing of an 
agreement under paragraph (2)(E). 
‘‘(4) INITIAL SELECTION.—In selecting partici-
pants for the program under this section, the Sec-
retary— 
‘‘(A) shall choose among eligible applicants 
on the basis of— 
‘‘(i) the national security, homeland 
security, and economic security needs of 
the United States, as determined by the 
Secretary, in consultation with other Fed-
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eral agencies, including the Departments 
of Labor, Defense, Homeland Security, 
Commerce, and Energy, the Central Intel-
ligence Agency, and the National Science 
Foundation; and 
‘‘(ii) the academic record or job per-
formance of the applicant; and 
‘‘(B) may choose among eligible applicants 
on the basis of— 
‘‘(i) the likelihood of the applicant to 
complete the 5-year service obligation; 
‘‘(ii) the likelihood of the applicant to 
remain in science, mathematics, or engi-
neering after the completion of the service 
requirement; or 
‘‘(iii) other relevant criteria deter-
mined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(5) AVAILABILITY
SUBJECT
TO
APPROPRIA-
TIONS.—Loan interest payments under this section 
shall be subject to the availability of appropriations. 
If the amount appropriated for any fiscal year is not 
sufficient to provide interest payments on behalf of 
all qualified applicants, the Secretary shall give pri-
ority to those individuals on whose behalf interest 
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payments were made during the preceding fiscal 
year. 
‘‘(6) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary is author-
ized to prescribe such regulations as may be nec-
essary to carry out the provisions of this section. 
‘‘(b) DURATION AND AMOUNT OF INTEREST PAY-
MENTS.—The period during which the Secretary shall pay 
interest on behalf of a student borrower who is selected 
under subsection (a) is the period that begins on the effec-
tive date of the agreement under subsection (a)(2)(E), 
continues after successful completion of the service obliga-
tion, and ends on the earlier of— 
‘‘(1) the completion of the repayment period of 
the loan; 
‘‘(2) payment by the Secretary of a total of 
$5,000 on behalf of the borrower; 
‘‘(3) if the borrower ceases to fulfill the service 
obligation under such agreement prior to the end of 
the 5-year period, as soon as the borrower is deter-
mined to have ceased to fulfill such obligation in ac-
cordance with regulations of the Secretary; or 
‘‘(4) 6 months after the end of any calendar 
year in which the borrower’s gross income equals or 
exceeds 4 times the national per capita disposable 
personal income (current dollars) for such calendar 
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year, as determined on the basis of the National In-
come and Product Accounts Tables of the Bureau of 
Economic Analysis of the Department of Commerce, 
as determined in accordance with regulations pre-
scribed by the Secretary. 
‘‘(c) REPAYMENT TO ELIGIBLE LENDERS.—Subject 
to the regulations prescribed by the Secretary by regula-
tion under subsection (a)(6), the Secretary shall pay to 
each eligible lender or holder for each payment period the 
amount of the interest that accrues on a loan of a student 
borrower who is selected under subsection (a). 
‘‘(d) APPLICATION FOR REPAYMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible individual de-
siring loan interest payment under this section shall 
submit a complete and accurate application to the 
Secretary at such time, in such manner, and con-
taining such information as the Secretary may re-
quire. 
‘‘(2) FAILURE TO COMPLETE SERVICE AGREE-
MENT.—Such application shall contain an agreement 
by the individual that, if the individual fails to com-
plete the 5 consecutive years of service required by 
subsection (a)(2)(E), the individual agrees to repay 
the Secretary the amount of any interest paid by the 
Secretary on behalf of the individual. 
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‘‘(e) TREATMENT
OF CONSOLIDATION LOANS.—A 
consolidation loan made under section 428C of this Act, 
or a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan made under part 
D of title IV of this Act, may be a qualified loan for the 
purpose of this section only to the extent that such loan 
amount was used by a borrower who otherwise meets the 
requirements of this section to repay— 
‘‘(1) a loan made under section 428 or 428H 
of this Act; or 
‘‘(2) a Federal Direct Stafford Loan, or a Fed-
eral Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, made under 
part D of title IV of this Act. 
‘‘(f) PREVENTION OF DOUBLE BENEFITS.—No bor-
rower may, for the same service, receive a benefit under 
both this section and— 
‘‘(1) any loan forgiveness program under title 
IV of this Act; or 
‘‘(2) subtitle D of title I of the National and 
Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12601 
et seq.). 
‘‘(g) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘high need local educational agen-
cy’ has the same meaning given such term in section 
201(b)(4); and 
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‘‘(2) the term ‘mathematics, science, or engi-
neering professional’ means a person who— 
‘‘(A) holds a baccalaureate, masters, or 
doctoral degree (or a combination thereof) in 
science, mathematics, or engineering; and 
‘‘(B) works in a field the Secretary deter-
mines is closely related to that degree, which 
shall include working as a professor at a two- 
or four-year institution of higher education. 
‘‘SEC. 419C. MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE EDUCATION CO-
ORDINATING COUNCIL GRANTS. 
‘‘(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section in-
clude— 
‘‘(1) supporting programs that encourage stu-
dents to enroll in and successfully complete bacca-
laureate and advanced degrees in science, tech-
nology, engineering, and mathematics; 
‘‘(2) achieving the common objective of orga-
nizing, leading, and implementing State-based re-
form agendas that support the continuing improve-
ment of mathematics and science education; 
‘‘(3) improving collaboration in a State among 
the State educational agency, 2-year and 4-year in-
stitutions of higher education, and the business com-
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munity through the development or improvement of 
a coordinating council; and 
‘‘(4) supporting regional workshops designed to 
permit the sharing of successful research-based 
strategies to improve the achievement of students in 
mathematics and science. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section: 
‘‘(1) the term ‘eligible State’ means— 
‘‘(A) the Governor of a State; or 
‘‘(B) in the case of a State for which the 
constitution or laws of the State designate an 
individual, entity, or agency in the State, other 
than the Governor, to be responsible for coordi-
nation among segments of the State’s edu-
cational systems, such individual, entity, or 
agency. 
‘‘(2) the term ‘mathematics and science edu-
cation coordinating council’ means an organization 
that is charged by a State with coordinating mathe-
matics and science education in the State. Such a 
council shall be composed of education, business, 
and community leaders working together to increase 
student participation and academic achievement in 
mathematics and science. 
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‘‘(c) STATE GRANTS.—From amounts authorized 
under section 419D for this section, the Secretary is au-
thorized to use not more than $5,000,000 to award grants 
on a competitive basis to eligible States for the purpose 
of carrying out activities described in subsection (d). 
‘‘(d) USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible State that re-
ceives a grant under this section is authorized to use grant 
funds to carry out one or more of the following activities: 
‘‘(1) In a State in which a mathematics and 
science education coordinating council does not exist, 
planning and establishing such a council. 
‘‘(2) In a State in which such a council exists, 
reforming or expanding the activities of the council, 
including implementing State-based reform agendas 
that support the continuing improvement of mathe-
matics and science education, and support services 
that lead to better teacher recruitment and training, 
increased student academic achievement, and in-
creased student enrollment and degree attainment in 
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. 
‘‘(3) Coordinating with activities under part B 
of title II of the Elementary and Secondary Edu-
cation Act of 1965 and with title II of this Act, es-
pecially pertaining to the recruitment and prepara-
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tion of highly qualified mathematics and science 
teachers. 
‘‘(4) Supporting regional workshops designed to 
permit educators, administrators responsible for pro-
fessional development and curriculum development, 
and faculty of teacher preparation programs to 
share successful research based strategies for— 
‘‘(A) carrying out the activities described 
in section 2202(c) of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
6662(c)) (as amended by the No Child Left Be-
hind Act of 2001); and 
‘‘(B) otherwise improving student achieve-
ment in mathematics and science instruction in 
elementary and secondary schools. 
‘‘(e) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant 
under this section, an eligible State shall submit an appli-
cation to the Secretary that— 
‘‘(1) describes the activities the State will carry 
out with the funds, which may include a plan for es-
tablishing a regional working group to conduct re-
gional workshops to share research-based informa-
tion and approaches to improving the achievements 
of students in mathematics and science; 
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