[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 76 (Thursday, June 9, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6304-S6305]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. GREGG:
  S. 1209. A bill to establish and strengthen postsecondary programs 
and courses in the subjects of traditional American history, free 
institutions, and Western civilization, available to students preparing 
to teach these subjects, and to other students; to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, today I am proud to introduce the Higher 
Education for Freedom Act. This bill will establish a competitive grant 
program making funds available to institutions of higher education, 
centers within such institutions, and associated nonprofit foundations 
to promote both graduate and undergraduate programs focused on the 
teaching and study of traditional American history and government, and 
the history and achievements of Western Civilization. The program will 
help ensure that more postsecondary students have the opportunity to 
participate in programs focused on these critical subjects and that 
prospective teachers of history and government have access to a solid 
foundation of content knowledge.
  Today, more than ever, it is important to preserve and defend our 
common heritage of freedom and civilization, and to ensure that future 
generations of Americans understand the importance of traditional 
American history and the principles of free government upon which this 
Nation was founded. This knowledge is not only essential to the full 
participation of our citizenry in America's civic life, but also to the 
continued success of the American experiment in self-government, which 
binds together a diverse people into a single Nation with common 
purposes.
  However, college students' lack of historical literacy is quite 
startling, and too few of our colleges and universities are focused on 
the task of imparting this fundamental knowledge to the next 
generation. A survey of students at America's top colleges found that 
seniors could not identify Valley Forge, words from the Gettysburg 
Address, or even the basic tenets of the U.S. Constitution. Given high 
school-level American history questions, 81 percent of the college 
seniors would have received a D or F, the report found. One college 
professor informed me that her students did not know which side Lee was 
on during the Civil War, or whether the Russians were allies or enemies 
in World War II. A student of hers asked why anyone should care what 
the Founding Fathers wrote.
  As unfortunate as these findings are, they are perhaps not 
surprising. A survey conducted several years ago found that not one of 
America's top fifty colleges and universities required its students to 
take a course in American history. More recently, another report 
documented the extent to which our top postsecondary institutions have 
abandoned the traditional core requirements that once gave students a 
systemic grasp of our nation's ideals, institutions, and origins. 
Indeed, only about a dozen undergraduate programs at major American 
colleges and universities have a central focus on American 
constitutional history and principles.
  We are doing our students a disservice if we allow them to graduate 
from an institution of higher education without a solid understanding 
of and appreciation for our democratic heritage. We cannot hope to 
preserve our democracy without taking action to remedy our students' 
historical illiteracy. As Thomas Jefferson once wrote, ``If a nation 
expects to be ignorant--and free--in a state of civilization, it 
expects what never was and never will be.'' I believe the time has come 
for Congress to do something to promote the teaching and study of 
traditional American history at the postsecondary level, and I urge my 
colleagues to support this legislation.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1209

       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 ``Higher Education for Freedom 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       (1) Given the increased threat to American ideals in the 
     trying times in which we live, it is important to preserve 
     and defend our common heritage of freedom and civilization 
     and to ensure that future generations of Americans understand 
     the importance of traditional American history and the 
     principles of free government on which this Nation was 
     founded in order to provide the basic knowledge that is 
     essential to full and informed participation in civic life 
     and to the larger vibrancy of the American experiment in 
     self-government, binding together a diverse people into a 
     single Nation with a common purpose.
       (2) However, despite its importance, most of the Nation's 
     colleges and universities no longer require United States 
     history or systematic study of Western civilization and free 
     institutions as a prerequisite to graduation.
       (3) In addition, too many of our Nation's elementary school 
     and secondary school history teachers lack the training 
     necessary to effectively teach these subjects, due largely to 
     the inadequacy of their teacher preparation.
       (4) Distinguished historians and intellectuals fear that 
     without a common civic memory and a common understanding of 
     the remarkable individuals, events, and ideals that have 
     shaped our Nation and its free institutions, the people in 
     the United States risk losing much of what it means to be an 
     American, as well as the ability to fulfill the fundamental 
     responsibilities of citizens in a democracy.
       (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are to promote and 
     sustain postsecondary academic centers, institutes, and 
     programs that offer undergraduate and graduate courses, 
     support research, sponsor lectures, seminars, and 
     conferences, and develop teaching materials, for the purpose 
     of developing and imparting a knowledge of traditional 
     American history, the American Founding, and the history and 
     nature of, and threats to, free institutions, or of the 
     nature, history, and achievements of Western civilization, 
     particularly for--
       (1) undergraduate students who are enrolled in teacher 
     education programs, who may consider becoming school 
     teachers, or who wish to enhance their civic competence;
       (2) elementary school, middle school, and secondary school 
     teachers in need of additional training in order to 
     effectively teach in these subject areas; and
       (3) graduate students and postsecondary faculty who wish to 
     teach about these subject areas with greater knowledge and 
     effectiveness.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Eligible institution.--The term ``eligible 
     institution'' means--
       (A) an institution of higher education;
       (B) a specific program within an institution of higher 
     education; and
       (C) a non-profit history or academic organization 
     associated with higher education whose mission is consistent 
     with the purposes of this Act.
       (2) Free institution.--The term ``free institution'' means 
     an institution that emerged out of Western civilization, such 
     as democracy, constitutional government, individual rights, 
     market economics, religious freedom and tolerance, and 
     freedom of thought and inquiry.
       (3) Institution of higher education.--The term 
     ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the 
     term under section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
     (20 U.S.C. 1001).
       (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of Education.
       (5) Traditional american history.--The term ``traditional 
     American history'' means--

[[Page S6305]]

       (A) the significant constitutional, political, 
     intellectual, economic, and foreign policy trends and issues 
     that have shaped the course of American history; and
       (B) the key episodes, turning points, and leading figures 
     involved in the constitutional, political, intellectual, 
     diplomatic, and economic history of the United States.

     SEC. 4. GRANTS TO ELIGIBLE INSTITUTIONS.

       (a) In General.--From amounts appropriated to carry out 
     this Act, the Secretary shall award grants, on a competitive 
     basis, to eligible institutions, which grants shall be used 
     for--
       (1) history teacher preparation initiatives, that--
       (A) stress content mastery in traditional American history 
     and the principles on which the American political system is 
     based, including the history and philosophy of free 
     institutions, and the study of Western civilization; and
       (B) provide for grantees to carry out research, planning, 
     and coordination activities devoted to the purposes of this 
     Act; and
       (2) strengthening postsecondary programs in fields related 
     to the American founding, free institutions, and Western 
     civilization, particularly through--
       (A) the design and implementation of courses, lecture 
     series, and symposia, the development and publication of 
     instructional materials, and the development of new, and 
     supporting of existing, academic centers;
       (B) research supporting the development of relevant course 
     materials;
       (C) the support of faculty teaching in undergraduate and 
     graduate programs; and
       (D) the support of graduate and postgraduate fellowships 
     and courses for scholars related to such fields.
       (b) Selection Criteria.--In selecting eligible institutions 
     for grants under this section for any fiscal year, the 
     Secretary shall establish criteria by regulation, which 
     shall, at a minimum, consider the education value and 
     relevance of the institution's programming to carrying out 
     the purposes of this Act and the expertise of key personnel 
     in the area of traditional American history and the 
     principles on which the American political system is based, 
     including the political and intellectual history and 
     philosophy of free institutions, the American Founding, and 
     other key events that have contributed to American freedom, 
     and the study of Western civilization.
       (c) Grant Application.--An eligible institution that 
     desires to receive a grant under this Act shall submit to the 
     Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and 
     containing such information as the Secretary may prescribe by 
     regulation.
       (d) Grant Review.--The Secretary shall establish procedures 
     for reviewing and evaluating grants made under this Act.
       (e) Grant Awards.--
       (1) Maximum and minimum grants.--The Secretary shall award 
     each grant under this Act in an amount that is not less than 
     $400,000 and not more than $6,000,000.
       (2) Exception.--A subgrant made by an eligible institution 
     under this Act to another eligible institution shall not be 
     subject to the minimum amount specified in paragraph (1).
       (f) Multiple Awards.--For the purposes of this Act, the 
     Secretary may award more than 1 grant to an eligible 
     institution.
       (g) Subgrants.--An eligible institution may use grant funds 
     provided under this Act to award subgrants to other eligible 
     institutions at the discretion of, and subject to the 
     oversight of, the Secretary.

     SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       For the purpose of carrying out this Act, there are 
     authorized to be appropriated--
       (1) $140,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; and
       (2) such sums as may be necessary for each of the 
     succeeding 5 fiscal years.
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