[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 19 (Friday, January 30, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Page 5687]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-2004]


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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION


Notice of Public Meeting and Request for Stakeholder Input

SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) is requesting 
stakeholder input on Section 7033 of the America COMPETES Act, which 
authorizes the NSF Director to establish a new program to award grants 
on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis to Hispanic-serving institutions 
to enhance the quality of undergraduate science, technology, 
engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education at such institutions and 
to increase the retention and graduation rates of students pursuing 
associate or baccalaureate degrees in STEM.

DATES: The meeting will be held on Sunday, March 1, 2009, from 2 p.m. 
to 5 p.m. All comments not presented or submitted for the record at the 
meeting must be received by close of business Monday, March 23, 2009, 
to be considered.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Madison Hotel in Washington, 
DC, at 1177 15th Street Northwest, Washington, DC 20005. You may submit 
comments, identified by the title NSF-HSI, using any of the following 
methods:
    E-mail: [email protected]. Please include NSF-HSI in the 
subject line of the message.
    Fax: 703-292-9232. Please address the cover sheet to Dr. Fae 
Korsmo.
    Mail: Paper, disk or CD-ROM submissions should be submitted to: Dr. 
Fae Korsmo, Senior Advisor, Office of the Director, National Science 
Foundation, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1205, Arlington, VA 22230.
    All comments received will be posted to a publicly available Web 
page on http://www.nsf.gov, including any personal information 
provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Fae Korsmo, (703) 292-8002 
(phone), (703) 292-9232 (fax), or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Additional Meeting and Comment Procedures

    Persons wishing to present oral comments at the March 1, 2009 
meeting are requested to pre-register by e-mail to: [email protected]. Participants may reserve one 5-minute comment 
period each. More time may be available, depending on the number of 
people wishing to make oral comments and the time needed for questions 
following those comments. Reservations will be confirmed on a first-
come, first-served basis. Written comments may also be submitted for 
the record at the meeting. All other attendees may register at the 
meeting. All comments not presented or submitted for the record at the 
meeting must be received by close of business Monday, March 23, 2009, 
to be considered. All comments and the official transcript of the 
meeting, when they become available, may be reviewed on the NSF Web 
page for six months. Participants who require a sign language 
interpreter or other special accommodations should contact Dr. Korsmo 
as directed above. A Spanish language interpreter will be present.

Background and Purpose

    Section 7033 of the America Competes Act states the following:
    (a) In General.--The Director is authorized to establish a new 
program to award grants on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis to 
Hispanic-serving institutions (as defined in section 502 of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1101a)) to enhance the quality of 
undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics 
education at such institutions and to increase the retention and 
graduation rates of students pursuing associate's or baccalaureate 
degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
    (b) Program Components.--Grants awarded under this section shall 
support--
    (1) Activities to improve courses and curriculum in science, 
technology, engineering, and mathematics;
    (2) Faculty development;
    (3) Stipends for undergraduate students participating in research; 
and
    (4) Other activities consistent with subsection (a), as determined 
by the Director.
    (c) Instrumentation.--Funding for instrumentation is an allowed use 
of grants awarded under this section.
    NSF is requesting stakeholder input on promising evidence-based 
practices that have enhanced the quality of undergraduate science, 
technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education at Hispanic-
serving institutions and increased the retention and graduation rates 
of Hispanic students pursuing associate or baccalaureate degrees in 
STEM. NSF is interested in learning more about successful partnership 
activities that have contributed to the increased participation and 
success of Hispanics in undergraduate STEM education. These might 
involve partnerships that include two-year and four-year institutions, 
state and local government organizations, K-12 institutions, private-
sector firms, community groups, and other organizations involved in the 
science and technology enterprise. Research findings and experiential 
information are especially welcome; NSF would like to learn about 
strategies that have worked to increase Hispanic retention and 
graduation rates in STEM, as well as those strategies that have not 
proven effective.

Implementation Plans

    NSF plans to consider the stakeholder input received at the meeting 
and in the written comments to develop the agency's programmatic 
response to Section 7033 of the America Competes Act.

    Dated: January 27, 2009.
Suzanne H. Plimpton,
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation.
 [FR Doc. E9-2004 Filed 1-29-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555-01-P