[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1020 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.R.1020

                     One Hundred Fourteenth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE FIRST SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
           the sixth day of January, two thousand and fifteen


                                 An Act


 
  To define STEM education to include computer science, and to support 
  existing STEM education programs at the National Science Foundation.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
    This Act may be cited as the ``STEM Education Act of 2015''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF STEM EDUCATION.
    For purposes of carrying out STEM education activities at the 
National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, the National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology, and the Environmental Protection Agency, the term ``STEM 
education'' means education in the subjects of science, technology, 
engineering, and mathematics, including computer science.
SEC. 3. INFORMAL STEM EDUCATION.
    (a) Grants.--The Director of the National Science Foundation, 
through the Directorate for Education and Human Resources, shall 
continue to award competitive, merit-reviewed grants to support--
        (1) research and development of innovative out-of-school STEM 
    learning and emerging STEM learning environments in order to 
    improve STEM learning outcomes and engagement in STEM; and
        (2) research that advances the field of informal STEM 
    education.
    (b) Uses of Funds.--Activities supported by grants under this 
section may encompass a single STEM discipline, multiple STEM 
disciplines, or integrative STEM initiatives and shall include--
        (1) research and development that improves our understanding of 
    learning and engagement in informal environments, including the 
    role of informal environments in broadening participation in STEM; 
    and
        (2) design and testing of innovative STEM learning models, 
    programs, and other resources for informal learning environments to 
    improve STEM learning outcomes and increase engagement for K-12 
    students, K-12 teachers, and the general public, including design 
    and testing of the scalability of models, programs, and other 
    resources.
SEC. 4. NOYCE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM AMENDMENTS.
    (a) Amendments.--Section 10A of the National Science Foundation 
Authorization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n-1a) is amended--
        (1) in subsection (a)(2)(B), by inserting ``or bachelor's'' 
    after ``master's'';
        (2) in subsection (c)--
            (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (2)(B);
            (B) in paragraph (3)--
                (i) by inserting ``for teachers with master's degrees 
            in their field'' after ``Teaching Fellowships''; and
                (ii) by striking the period at the end of subparagraph 
            (B) and inserting ``; and''; and
            (C) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
        ``(4) in the case of National Science Foundation Master 
    Teaching Fellowships for teachers with bachelor's degrees in their 
    field and working toward a master's degree--
            ``(A) offering academic courses leading to a master's 
        degree and leadership training to prepare individuals to become 
        master teachers in elementary and secondary schools; and
            ``(B) offering programs both during and after matriculation 
        in the program for which the fellowship is received to enable 
        fellows to become highly effective mathematics and science 
        teachers, including mentoring, training, induction, and 
        professional development activities, to fulfill the service 
        requirements of this section, including the requirements of 
        subsection (e), and to exchange ideas with others in their 
        fields.'';
        (3) in subsections (e) and (f), by striking ``subsection (g)'' 
    each place it appears, and inserting ``subsection (h)'';
        (4) by redesignating subsections (g) through (i) as subsections 
    (h) through (j), respectively; and
        (5) by inserting after subsection (f) the following new 
    subsection:
    ``(g) Support for Master Teaching Fellows While Enrolled in a 
Master's Degree Program.--A National Science Foundation Master Teacher 
Fellow may receive a maximum of 1 year of fellowship support while 
enrolled in a master's degree program as described in subsection 
(c)(4)(A), except that if such fellow is enrolled in a part-time 
program, such amount shall be prorated according to the length of the 
program.''.
    (b) Definition.--Section 10(i)(5) of the National Science 
Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n-1(i)(5)) is 
amended by inserting ``computer science,'' after ``means a science,''.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.