[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5458 Introduced in House (IH)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5458

 To provide for the National Science Foundation to make grants for the 
establishment of summer science and mathematics camps for middle school 
                       and high school students.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 23, 2006

   Mr. Al Green of Texas (for himself, Mr. Gordon, Ms. Eddie Bernice 
Johnson of Texas, Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas, and Ms. Matsui) introduced 
   the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide for the National Science Foundation to make grants for the 
establishment of summer science and mathematics camps for middle school 
                       and high school students.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SUMMER CAMPS.

    (a) Program.--
            (1) In general.--The Director shall carry out a program to 
        award grants to institutions of higher education or eligible 
        nonprofit organizations (or consortia of such institutions and 
        organizations) to develop and operate summer science and 
        mathematics camps for middle school and high school students. 
        The camps shall be designed to promote the interest of children 
        in science, mathematics, and technology and to increase their 
        knowledge of these subjects.
            (2) Distribution of awards.--The Director shall, in 
        awarding grants under this section, consider the distribution 
        of awards among institutions and organizations of different 
        sizes and geographic locations.
            (3) Merit review.--Grants shall be provided under this 
        section on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis.
            (4) Use of grants.--Grant funds may be used to--
                    (A) develop educational programs and materials for 
                use in the summer science and mathematics camps; and
                    (B) cover the costs of operating the summer camps, 
                including the cost of attendance for students selected 
                to attend the camps in accordance with subsection 
                (b)(3).
    (b) Selection Process.--
            (1) Application.--An applicant for an award under this 
        section shall submit an application to the Director at such 
        time, in such manner, and containing such information as the 
        Director may require. The application shall include, at a 
        minimum--
                    (A) a description of the educational program that 
                will be offered by the science or mathematics summer 
                camp that the applicant intends to operate;
                    (B) a description of the process by which students 
                will be selected to attend the summer camp;
                    (C) the duration of the camp and the number of 
                students who can be accommodated in the program each 
                year;
                    (D) identification of the individuals who will be 
                involved in designing and implementing the educational 
                program at the summer camp; and
                    (E) evidence of the agreement required under 
                paragraph (3).
            (2) Review of applications.--In evaluating the applications 
        submitted under paragraph (1), the Director shall consider, at 
        a minimum--
                    (A) the ability of the applicant to effectively 
                carry out the program;
                    (B) the novelty and educational value of the 
                program to be offered at the summer camp;
                    (C) the number of the students that will be served 
                by the program; and
                    (D) the extent to which the program is tailored to 
                the needs of individuals from groups underrepresented 
                in science and technology careers.
            (3) Eligibility requirement.--To be eligible to receive a 
        grant under this section, an institution of higher education or 
        eligible nonprofit organization (or consortia of such 
        institutions and organizations) must enter into an agreement 
        with one or more urban high-need local educational agencies to 
        develop a process for selecting students from schools 
        administered by the educational agencies to attend the science 
        or mathematics summer camp.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) The term ``Director'' means the Director of the 
        National Science Foundation.
            (2) The term ``eligible nonprofit organization'' means a 
        nonprofit organization, such as a museum or science center, 
        that has expertise and experience in providing informal science 
        and mathematics education for the public.
            (3) The term ``urban high-need local educational agency'' 
        means a local educational agency that--
                    (A) is located in one of the 25 United States 
                cities with the greatest numbers of children aged 5 to 
                17 living in poverty, based on data from the Census 
                Bureau; and
                    (B) has at least 1 school in which 50 percent or 
                more of the enrolled students are eligible for 
                participation in the free and reduced price lunch 
                program established by the Richard B. Russell National 
                School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.).
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the National Science Foundation for the purposes of 
this section, $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, $2,050,000 for fiscal 
year 2008, $2,100,000 for fiscal year 2009, $2,150,000 for fiscal year 
2010, and $2,200,000 for fiscal year 2011.
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