[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 155 (Wednesday, December 5, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7459-S7460]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE RESOLUTION 610--COMMEMORATING THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 
GRADUATE RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM OF THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

  Mr. ROCKEFELLER (for himself and Mrs. Hutchison) submitted the 
following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 610

       Whereas the United States is a world leader in science, 
     technology, engineering, and

[[Page S7460]]

     mathematics (STEM) fundamental research and related 
     education;
       Whereas an excellent STEM higher-education system is 
     critical to the development of a robust and inclusive U.S. 
     STEM workforce and to U.S. global science and engineering 
     preeminence;
       Whereas Congress and President Harry S. Truman created the 
     National Science Foundation (NSF), an independent Federal 
     agency, 62 years ago specifically to advance scientific 
     discovery and innovation through the Nation's basic research 
     and STEM education infrastructure;
       Whereas fundamental research supported by NSF across all 
     scientific disciplines have resulted in many significant 
     contributions to Americans' health and security, as well as 
     to technological innovation and U.S. economic prosperity;
       Whereas advances in knowledge are made possible by 
     researchers who focus on the fundamental properties of 
     nature, and who mentor and educate the next generation of 
     scientists and engineers;
       Whereas 60 years ago, NSF purposefully created the Graduate 
     Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) as an instrument to 
     prepare the Nation's reservoir of science and engineering 
     talent;
       Whereas the GRFP, the country's oldest graduate fellowship 
     program, supports outstanding graduate students pursuing 
     masters and doctoral degrees in research at accredited U.S. 
     institutions;
       Whereas the GRFP has contributed to the development of 
     outstanding U.S. scholars, entrepreneurs, teachers, mentors, 
     and inventors who continue to support and promote the 
     Nation's science and engineering enterprise and the next 
     generation of scientists and engineers;
       Whereas this flagship program helps maintain high-quality 
     and highly skilled graduates who enter the Nation's STEM 
     workforce prepared to innovate and collaborate in the global 
     scientific arena;
       Whereas NSF has funded more than 46,500 competitive 
     graduate research fellows with selection criteria based on 
     the intellectual merit of their research and its potential 
     broader impacts for society;
       Whereas of the more than 200 NSF-supported Nobel laureates, 
     40 were selected as graduate research fellows, and more than 
     440 graduate research fellows have become members of the 
     National Academy of Sciences;
       Whereas graduate research fellows have an exceptionally 
     high rate of doctorate completion;
       Whereas since 2001, graduate research fellows have filed 
     more than 1,000 patents while working toward their graduate 
     degrees, thus contributing directly to scientific advancement 
     and discovery;
       Whereas since 2007, 1145 graduate research fellows were 
     selected from Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive 
     Research jurisdictions; and
       Whereas NSF's GRFP continues to be an essential component 
     of the Nation's discovery and innovation ecosystem, and is 
     instrumental in STEM workforce development: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) commemorates the 60th anniversary of the Graduate 
     Research Fellowship Program of the National Science 
     Foundation; and
       (2) continues to recognize U.S. STEM graduate education as 
     central to U.S. workforce competitiveness and our country's 
     international leadership and economic prosperity.

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