[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3564 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3564

  To promote the potential of women in academic science, technology, 
                     engineering, and mathematics.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 12, 2010

 Mr. Udall of New Mexico introduced the following bill; which was read 
     twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
                          Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To promote the potential of women in academic science, technology, 
                     engineering, and mathematics.

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

SECTION 1. FULFILLING THE POTENTIAL OF WOMEN IN ACADEMIC SCIENCE, 
              TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, AND MATHEMATICS.

    (a) Definition of Federal STEM Agency.--In this Act, the term 
``Federal STEM agency'' means any Federal agency that is responsible 
for not less than 2 percent of total Federal research and development 
funding in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (referred 
to in this Act as ``STEM'') to institutions of higher education, 
according to the most recent data available from the National Science 
Foundation.
    (b) Workshops To Enhance Gender Equity in Academic STEM.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce, in 
        consultation with the Director of the Office of Science and 
        Technology Policy, shall develop a uniform policy for all 
        Federal STEM agencies to carry out a program of workshops that 
        educate program officers, members of grant review panels, and 
        institution of higher education STEM department chairs on how 
        to implement methods that minimize the influence of gender bias 
        in evaluation of Federal research grants and in the related 
        academic advancement of actual and potential recipients of 
        these grants, including hiring, tenure, promotion, and 
        selection for any honor based in part on the recipient's 
        research record.
            (2) Interagency coordination.--The Secretary of Commerce, 
        in consultation with the Director of the Office of Science and 
        Technology Policy, shall ensure that programs of workshops 
        across the Federal STEM agencies are coordinated and supported 
        jointly as appropriate. As part of this process, the Secretary 
        of Commerce, in consultation with the Director of the Office of 
        Science and Technology Policy, shall ensure that at least 1 
        workshop is supported every 2 years among the Federal STEM 
        agencies.
            (3) Organizations eligible to carry out workshops.--Federal 
        STEM agencies may carry out the program of workshops under this 
        subsection by making grants to eligible organizations. In 
        addition to any other organizations made eligible by the 
        Federal STEM agencies, the following organizations are eligible 
        for grants under this subsection:
                    (A) Nonprofit scientific and professional societies 
                and organizations that represent 1 or more STEM 
                disciplines.
                    (B) Nonprofit organizations that have a primary 
                mission or program focus of advancing the participation 
                of women in STEM.
            (4) Characteristics of workshops.--The workshops shall have 
        the following characteristics:
                    (A) Invitees to workshops shall include at least--
                            (i) the chairs of departments in the 
                        relevant discipline from at least the top 50 
                        institutions of higher education, as determined 
                        by the amount of Federal STEM research and 
                        development funds obligated to each institution 
                        of higher education in the prior year based on 
                        data available from the National Science 
                        Foundation;
                            (ii) members of any standing research grant 
                        review panel appointed by the Federal STEM 
                        agencies; and
                            (iii) Federal STEM agency program officers 
                        in the relevant discipline, other than program 
                        officers that participate in comparable 
                        workshops organized and run specifically for 
                        that agency's program officers.
                    (B) Activities at the workshops shall include 
                research presentations and interactive discussions or 
                other activities that increase the awareness of the 
                influence of gender bias in the grant-making process 
                and the development of the academic record necessary to 
                qualify as a grant recipient, including recruitment, 
                hiring, tenure review, promotion, and other forms of 
                formal recognition of individual achievement.
                    (C) Research presentations and other workshop 
                programs, as appropriate, shall include a discussion of 
                the unique challenges faced by women who are members of 
                historically underrepresented groups and 
                recommendations for increasing the numbers of women 
                represented in these groups.
            (5) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of Science 
        and Technology Policy shall transmit to the Secretary of 
        Commerce who shall transmit to the Committee on Science and 
        Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
        Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 
        determining--
                    (A) the effectiveness of the program carried out 
                under this subsection to reduce gender bias towards 
                women engaged in STEM research funded by the Federal 
                Government;
                    (B) any recommendations for improving the workshop 
                evaluation process;
                    (C) the rates of participation by invitees in the 
                workshops authorized under this subsection; and
                    (D) any relevant institutional policy or practice 
                changes implemented by workshop participants.
            (6) Minimizing costs.--To the extent practicable, workshops 
        shall be held in conjunction with national or regional 
        disciplinary meetings to minimize costs associated with 
        participant travel.
    (c) Extended Research Grant Support and Interim Technical Support 
for Caregivers.--
            (1) Policies for caregivers.--Not later than 6 months after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce, 
        in consultation with the Director of the Office of Science and 
        Technology Policy, shall develop a uniform policy to extend the 
        period of grant support for federally funded researchers who 
        have caregiving responsibilities.
            (2) Report.--Upon developing the policy required under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with 
        the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, 
        shall transmit a copy of the policy to the Committee on Science 
        and Technology of the House of Representatives and to the 
        Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
        Senate.
    (d) Collection and Reporting of Data on Federal Research Grants.--
            (1) In general.--Each Federal STEM agency shall collect 
        standardized annual composite information on demographics for 
        all applications and proposals for STEM research and 
        development grants to institutions of higher education 
        supported by that agency, including--
                    (A) rank, gender, race, and age;
                    (B) field;
                    (C) award type and budget request;
                    (D) review score; and
                    (E) funding outcome.
            (2) Reporting of data.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce, in 
                consultation with the Director of the Office of Science 
                and Technology Policy, shall establish a policy to 
                ensure uniformity and standardization of collection, 
                transmittal, and reporting of the data required under 
                paragraph (1).
                    (B) Submission.--Not later than 2 years after the 
                date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 
                each Federal STEM agency shall submit data collected 
                under paragraph (1) to the Director of the National 
                Science Foundation.
                    (C) Responsibilities of the national science 
                foundation.--The Director of the National Science 
                Foundation shall--
                            (i) be responsible for storing and 
                        publishing all of the grant data submitted 
                        under subparagraph (B), in conjunction with the 
                        biennial report required under section 37 of 
                        the Science and Engineering Equal Opportunities 
                        Act (42 U.S.C. 1885d); and
                            (ii) share such data with the Secretary of 
                        Commerce.
    (e) Collection of Data on Demographics of Faculty.--
            (1) Collection of data.--The Director of the National 
        Science Foundation (referred to in this subsection as the 
        ``Director'') shall report, in conjunction with the biennial 
        report required under section 37 of the Science and Engineering 
        Equal Opportunities Act (42 U.S.C. 1885d), statistical summary 
        data on the demographics of STEM discipline faculty at 
        institutions of higher education in the United States. At a 
        minimum, the Director shall consider--
                    (A) the number and percentage of faculty by gender, 
                race, and age;
                    (B) the number and percentage of faculty at each 
                rank, by gender, race, and age;
                    (C) the number and percentage of faculty who are in 
                nontenure-track positions, including teaching and 
                research, by gender, race, and age;
                    (D) the number of faculty who are reviewed for 
                promotion, including tenure, and the percentage of that 
                number who are promoted, by gender, race, and age;
                    (E) faculty years in rank by gender, race, and age;
                    (F) faculty attrition by gender, race, and age;
                    (G) the number and percentage of faculty hired by 
                rank, gender, race, and age; and
                    (H) the number and percentage of faculty in 
                leadership positions, including endowed or named 
                chairs, serving on promotion and tenure committees, by 
                gender, race, and age.
            (2) Recommendations.--The Director shall solicit input and 
        recommendations from relevant stakeholders, including 
        representatives from institutions of higher education and 
        nonprofit organizations, on the collection of data required 
        under paragraph (1), including the development of standard 
        definitions on the terms and categories to be used in the 
        collection of such data.
            (3) Report to congress.--Not later than 2 years after the 
        date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall submit a 
        report to Congress on how the National Science Foundation will 
        gather the demographic data on STEM faculty, including--
                    (A) a description of the data to be reported and 
                the sources of those data;
                    (B) justification for the exclusion of any data 
                described in subparagraph (A); and
                    (C) a list of the definitions for the terms and 
                categories, such as ``faculty'' and ``leadership 
                positions'', to be applied in the reporting of all data 
                described in subparagraph (A).
                                 <all>