[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 85 (Wednesday, June 16, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7127-S7128]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. SNOWE:
  S. 1224. A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 to encourage students, including young women, to pursue 
demanding careers and higher education degrees in mathematics, science, 
engineering and technology; to the Committee on Health, Education, 
Labor, and Pensions.
 Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce 
legislation that will ensure our nation's students, and young women in 
particular, are encouraged to pursue degrees and careers in math, 
science, engineering, and technology.
  Mr. President, if our children are to be prepared for the globally 
competitive economy of the next century, they must not only have access 
to the technologies that will dominate the workforce and job market 
that they will enter--but they should also be encouraged to pursue 
degrees in the fields that underlie these technologies.
  We simply cannot ignore that six out of ten new jobs require 
technological skills--skills that are seriously lacking in our 
workforce today. The impact of this technological illiteracy is 
devastating for our nation's businesses, with an estimated loss in 
productivity of $30 billion every year, and the inability of companies 
across the nation to fill an estimated 190,000 technology jobs in mid- 
to large-sized companies. In fact, these very job vacancies led to 
Congress passing legislation last year that increased the number of H1-
B visas that could be issued to foreign workers to enter the United 
States.
  Furthermore, according to a 1994 report by the American School 
Counselors Association, 65 percent of all jobs will require technical 
skills in the year 2000, with 20 percent being professional and only 15 
percent relying on unskilled labor. In addition, between 1996 and 2006, 
all occupations expect a 14 percent increase in jobs, but Information 
Technology occupations should jump by 75 percent. As this data implies, 
today's students must gain a different knowledge base than past 
generations of students if they are to be prepared for, and competitive 
in, the global job market of the 21st Century.
  Mr. President, even as we should seek to increase student access and 
exposure

[[Page S7128]]

to advanced technologies in our nation's schools and classrooms through 
the E-rate and other programs, we should also seek to increase the 
interest of our students in the fields that are the backbone of these 
technologies: namely, math, science, engineering, and other technology-
related fields. Clearly, if technology will be the cornerstone of the 
job market of the future, then it is vital that our nation's students--
who will be tomorrow's workers--be the architects that build that 
cornerstone.
  Accordingly, the legislation I am offering today is designed to 
ensure that our nation's students are encouraged to pursue degrees in 
these demanding fields. In particular, my legislation will ensure that 
young girls--who are currently less likely to enter these fields than 
their male counterparts--be encouraged to enter these fields of study.
  Mr. President, as was highlighted in the American Association of 
University Women report, ``Gender Gaps: Where Schools Still Fail Our 
Children,'' when compared to boys, girls might be at a significant 
disadvantage as technology is increasingly incorporated into the 
classroom. Not only do girls tend to come into the classroom with less 
exposure to computers and other technology, but they also tend to 
believe that they are less adept at using technology than boys.
  In light of these findings, it should come as no surprise that girls 
are dramatically underrepresented in advanced computer science courses 
after graduation from high school. Furthermore, it should come as no 
surprise that girls tend to gravitate toward the fields of social 
sciences, health services, and education, while boys disproportionately 
gravitate toward the fields of engineering and business.
  In fact, data gathered in 1997 on the intended majors of college-
bound students found that a larger proportion of female than male SAT 
test-takers intended to major in visual and performing arts, biological 
sciences, education, foreign or classical languages, health and allied 
services, language and lierature, and the social sciences. In contrast, 
a larger portion of boys than girls intended to major in agriculture 
and natural resources, business and commerce, engineering, mathematics, 
and physical sciences.
  While all of these fields are invaluable--and students should always 
be encouraged to choose the fields of study and careers that interest 
them most--I believe it is critical that we ensure students do not balk 
at entering a particular field of study or career simply because it has 
typically been associated with ``males'' or ``females.'' Instead, all 
students should be aware of the multitude of opportunities that are 
available to them, and encouraged to enter those fields that they find 
of interest.
  Mr. President, young women should not shy away from technical careers 
simply because they are more often associated with men--and they should 
not avoid higher education courses that would give them the knowledge 
and skills they need for these jobs simply because they are more 
typically taken by young men. Accordingly, my legislation will ensure 
that fields relying on skills in math, science, engineering, and 
technology will be promoted to all students--and especially girls--to 
ensure that the numerous opportunities and demands of the job market in 
the 21st Century are met.
  Specifically, the ``High Technology for Girls Act'' will expand the 
possible uses of monies provided under the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 to ensure young women are encouraged to 
pursue demanding careers and higher education degrees in mathematics, 
science, engineering, and technology. As a result, monies provided for 
Professional Development Activities, the National Teacher Training 
Project, and the Technology for Education programs can be used by 
schools to ensure these fields of study and careers are presented in a 
favorable manner to all students.

  Of critical importance, schools will be able to use these monies for 
the development of mentoring programs, model programs, or other 
appropriate programs in partnership with local businesses or 
institutions of higher education. As a result, programs will be created 
that meld the best ideas from educators and the private sector, thereby 
improving the manner in which these fields are presented and taught--
and ultimately putting a positive ``face'' on fields that may otherwise 
be shunned by young women.
  Mr. President, as Congress moves forward in its effort to reauthorize 
the ESEA, I believe the provisions contained in this legislation would 
be a positive and much-needed step toward preparing our students for 
the jobs of the 21st Century. We cannot afford to let any of our 
nation's students overlook the fields of study that will be the 
cornerstone of the global job market of the future, and my legislation 
will help ensure that does not happen.
  Accordingly, I urge that my colleagues support the ``High Technology 
for Girls Act,'' and look forward to working for its adoption during 
the consideration of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act.
                                 ______