(6) in innovation, entrepreneurship, and busi-
ness ethics; and 
(7) in program management. 
(e) GRADUATE STUDENT INPUT.—The participants 
in the workshop or roundtable shall include current or re-
cent STEM graduate students. 
(f) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the National Research Council 
shall submit to Congress a summary report of the findings 
and recommendations of the workshop or roundtable con-
vened under this section. 
SEC. 111. PERMISSIBLE SUPPORT. 
A grant made by the Education and Human Re-
sources Directorate to support informal education may be 
used— 
(1) to support the participation of underrep-
resented students in nonprofit competitions, out-of- 
school activities, and field experiences related to 
STEM subjects (such as robotics, science research, 
invention, mathematics, and technology competi-
tions), including— 
(A) the purchase of parts and supplies 
needed to participate in such competitions; and 
(B) incentives and stipends for teachers 
and instructional leaders who are involved in
assisting students and preparing students for 
such competitions, if such activities fall outside 
the regular duties and responsibilities of such 
teachers and instructional leaders; and 
(2) to broaden underrepresented secondary 
school students’ access to, and interest in, careers 
that require academic preparation in STEM sub-
jects. 
SEC. 112. EXPANDING STEM OPPORTUNITIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Within the Directorate for Edu-
cation and Human Resources (or any successor thereto), 
under existing programs targeting broadening participa-
tion, the Director shall provide grants on a merit-reviewed, 
competitive basis for research on programming that en-
gages underrepresented students in grades kindergarten 
through 8 in STEM. 
(b) USE OF FUNDS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Grants awarded under this 
section shall be used for research to advance the en-
gagement of underrepresented students in grades 
kindergarten through 8 in STEM through the devel-
opment and implementation of innovative before- 
school, after-school, out-of-school, or summer activi-
ties, including programs (if applicable to the target 
population) provided in a single-gender environment,
that are designed to encourage interest, engagement, 
and skills development of underrepresented students 
in STEM. Such research shall be conducted in learn-
ing environments that actively provide programming 
to underrepresented students in grades kindergarten 
through 8 in STEM. 
(2) PERMITTED
ACTIVITIES.—Such activities 
may include— 
(A) the development and implementation of 
programming described in subsection (a) for the 
purpose of research; 
(B) the use of a variety of engagement 
methods, including cooperative and hands-on 
learning; 
(C) exposure of underrepresented youth to 
role models in the fields of STEM, including re-
searchers in the National Laboratories, and 
nearpeer mentors; 
(D) training of informal learning educators 
and youth-serving professionals using evidence- 
based methods consistent with the target stu-
dent population being served; 
(E) education of students on the relevance 
and significance of STEM careers, provision of 
academic advice and assistance, and activities
designed to help students make real-world con-
nections to STEM content activities; 
(F) the attendance of underrepresented 
youth at events, competitions, and academic 
programs to provide content expertise and en-
courage career exposure in STEM; 
(G) activities designed to engage parents of 
underrepresented youth; 
(H) innovative strategies to engage under-
represented youth, such as using leadership 
skill outcome measures to encourage youth with 
the confidence to pursue STEM coursework and 
academic study; 
(I) coordination with STEM-rich environ-
ments, including other nonprofit, nongovern-
mental organizations, classroom and out-of- 
classroom settings, institutions of higher edu-
cation, vocational facilities, corporations, muse-
ums, National Laboratories, or science centers; 
(J) the acquisition of instructional mate-
rials or technology-based tools to conduct appli-
cable grant activity; 
(K) efforts to effectively expand, broaden, 
or scale-up existing activities or programs;
(L) creating State and regional workshops 
to train K–12 teachers in science and tech-
nology project-based learning to provide instruc-
tion in how to initiate robotics and other STEM 
competition team development programs; and 
(M) encouraging and supporting efforts led 
by institutions of higher education, businesses, 
and local public and private educational agen-
cies to establish collaborative efforts to provide 
K–12 students residing in areas with unemploy-
ment rates that exceed the national average by 
1 percent or more. 
(c) APPLICATION.—An applicant seeking funding 
under the section shall submit an application at such time, 
in such manner, and containing such information as may 
be required. The application shall include, at a minimum, 
the following: 
(1) A description of the target audience to be 
served by the program. 
(2) A description of the process for recruitment 
and selection of students, as appropriate. 
(3) A description of how such research activity 
may inform programming that engages underrep-
resented students in grades kindergarten through 8 
in STEM.
(4) A description of how such research activity 
may inform programming that promotes student 
academic achievement in STEM. 
(5) An evaluation plan that includes, at a min-
imum, the use of outcome-oriented measures to de-
termine the impact and efficacy of activities being 
researched. 
(d) AWARDS.—In awarding grants under this section, 
the Director shall give priority to applicants which, for the 
purpose of grant activity, include or partner with a non-
profit, nongovernmental organization that has extensive 
experience and expertise in increasing the participation of 
underrepresented students in STEM. 
(e) ACCOUNTABILITY AND DISSEMINATION.— 
(1) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—Not later than 5 
years after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Director shall evaluate the grants provided under 
this section. In addition to evaluating the effective-
ness of the grant activities, such evaluation shall— 
(A) use a common set of benchmarks and 
assessment tools to identify best practices and 
materials developed or demonstrated by the re-
search; and 
(B) to the extent practicable, combine the 
research resulting from the grant activity with