 
                  CHAPTER 68--NATIONAL EDUCATION REFORM
 
Part A--General Provisions Regarding Office of Educational Research and 
                               Improvement
 
                  Part C--National Research Institutes
 
Sec. 6031. Establishment within Office of Educational Research 
        and Improvement
        

(a) Establishment of Institutes

    In order to fulfill the research and development purposes of the 
Office, and to carry out a program of high-quality and rigorously 
evaluated research and development that is capable of improving Federal, 
State, Indian tribal, and local education policies and practices, there 
are established within the Office the following Institutes:
        (1) The National Institute on Student Achievement, Curriculum, 
    and Assessment.
        (2) The National Institute on the Education of At-Risk Students.
        (3) The National Institute on Educational Governance, Finance, 
    Policy-Making, and Management.
        (4) The National Institute on Early Childhood Development and 
    Education.
        (5) The National Institute on Postsecondary Education, 
    Libraries, and Lifelong Education.

(b) Directors

                           (1) In general

        Each Institute established by subsection (a) of this section 
    shall be headed by a Director who shall be appointed by the 
    Assistant Secretary from among individuals who have significant 
    experience and expertise in the disciplines relevant to the purposes 
    of such Institute. The Assistant Secretary shall give due 
    consideration to recommendations made by the Board of individuals 
    qualified to fill the position.

                            (2) Reporting

        Each Director shall report directly to the Assistant Secretary 
    regarding the activities of the Institute and shall work with the 
    other directors to promote research synthesis across the Institutes.

(c) Authorities and duties

                           (1) In general

        The Assistant Secretary is authorized to conduct research, 
    development, demonstration, and evaluation activities to carry out 
    the purposes for which such Institute was established--
            (A) directly;
            (B) through grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements 
        with institutions of higher education, regional educational 
        laboratories, public and private organizations, institutions, 
        agencies, and individuals, or a consortium thereof, which may 
        include--
                (i) grants to support research and development centers 
            which are--
                    (I) awarded competitively for a period of 5 years 
                and which may be renewed for an additional 5 years;
                    (II) of sufficient size, scope, and quality, and 
                funded at not less than $1,500,000 annually in order to 
                support a full range of basic research, applied research 
                and dissemination activities, which may also include 
                development activities; and
                    (III) established by institutions of higher 
                education, by institutions of higher education in 
                consortium with public agencies or private nonprofit 
                organizations, or by interstate agencies established by 
                compact which operate subsidiary bodies established to 
                conduct postsecondary educational research and 
                development;

                (ii) meritorious unsolicited proposals for educational 
            research and related activities;
                (iii) proposals that are specifically invited or 
            requested by the Assistant Secretary, on a competitive 
            basis; and
                (iv) dissertation grants, awarded for a period of not 
            more than 2 years and in a total amount not to exceed 
            $20,000 to graduate students in the sciences, humanities, 
            and the arts to support research by such scholars in the 
            field of education;

            (C) through the provision of technical assistance;
            (D) through the award of fellowships to support graduate 
        study in educational research by qualified African-American, 
        Hispanic, American Indian and Alaska Native, and other 
        individuals from groups which have been traditionally 
        underrepresented in the field of educational research which 
        shall--
                (i) be awarded on the basis of merit for a period of 3 
            years; and
                (ii) provide stipends to each fellow in an amount which 
            shall be set at a level of support comparable to that 
            provided by the National Science Foundation Graduate 
            Fellowships, except that such amounts shall be adjusted as 
            necessary so as not to exceed each fellow's demonstrated 
            level of need; and

            (E) through the award of fellowships in the Office for 
        scholars, researchers, policymakers, education practitioners, 
        librarians, and statisticians engaged in the use, collection, 
        and dissemination of information about education and educational 
        research which--
                (i) shall be awarded following the biennial publication 
            in the Federal Register of proposed research priorities and 
            a period of 60 days for public comments and suggestions with 
            respect to such priorities;
                (ii) shall be awarded competitively following the 
            publication of a notice in the Federal Register inviting the 
            submission of applications; and
                (iii) may include such stipends and allowances, 
            including travel and subsistence expenses provided under 
            title 5, as the Assistant Secretary considers appropriate.

                  (2) Scope and focus of activities

        In carrying out the purposes for which each Institute is 
    established, the Assistant Secretary shall--
            (A) maintain an appropriate balance between applied and 
        basic research;
            (B) significantly expand the role of field-initiated 
        research in meeting the education research and development needs 
        of the United States by reserving not less than 20 percent of 
        the amounts available to each Institute in fiscal years 1996 and 
        1997 and 25 percent in fiscal years 1998 and 1999 to support 
        field-initiated research;
            (C) provide for and maintain a stable foundation of long-
        term research and development on core issues and concerns 
        conducted through university-based research and development 
        centers by reserving not less than one-third of the amounts 
        available to each Institute in any fiscal year to support such 
        research and development centers;
            (D) support and provide research information that leads to 
        policy formation by State legislatures, State and local boards 
        of education, schools funded by the Bureau, and other policy and 
        governing bodies, to assist such entities in identifying and 
        developing effective policies to promote student achievement and 
        school improvement;
            (E) promote research that is related to the core content 
        areas;
            (F) plan and coordinate syntheses that provide research 
        knowledge related to each level of the education system (from 
        preschool to postsecondary education) to increase understanding 
        of student performance across different educational levels;
            (G) conduct and support research in early childhood, 
        elementary and secondary, vocational, adult and postsecondary 
        education (including the professional development of teachers) 
        to the extent that such research is related to the purposes for 
        which such Institute has been established;
            (H) conduct sustained research and development on improving 
        the educational achievement of poor and minority individuals as 
        an integral part of its work; and
            (I) coordinate the Institute's activities with the 
        activities of the regional educational laboratories and with 
        other educational service organizations in designing the 
        Institute's research agenda and projects in order to increase 
        the responsiveness of such Institute to the needs of teachers 
        and the educational field and to bring research findings 
        directly into schools to ensure greatest access at the local 
        level to the latest research developments.

           (3) Requirements regarding financial assistance

        No grant, contract, or cooperative agreement may be made under 
    this subchapter unless--
            (A) sufficient notice of the availability of, and 
        opportunity to compete for, assistance has first been provided 
        to potential applicants through notice published in the Federal 
        Register or other appropriate means;
            (B) such grant, contract, or agreement has been evaluated 
        through peer review in accordance with the standards developed 
        pursuant to section 6011(i) of this title;
            (C) such grant, contract, or agreement will be evaluated in 
        accordance with the standards developed pursuant to section 
        6011(i) of this title;
            (D) in the case of a grant, contract, or cooperative 
        agreement which exceeds $500,000 for a single fiscal year or 
        $1,000,000 for more than one fiscal year, the Secretary has 
        complied with the requirements of paragraph (4); and
            (E) in the case of a grant, contract, or cooperative 
        agreement to support a research and development center, all 
        applications for such assistance have been evaluated by 
        independent experts according to standards and criteria which 
        include--
                (i) whether applicants have assembled a group of high 
            quality researchers sufficient to achieve the mission of the 
            center;
                (ii) whether the proposed organizational structure and 
            arrangements will facilitate achievement of the mission of 
            the center;
                (iii) whether there is a substantial staff commitment to 
            the work of the center;
                (iv) whether the directors and support staff will devote 
            a majority of their time to the activities of the center;
                (v) review of the contributions of primary researchers 
            (other than researchers at the proposed center) to evaluate 
            the appropriateness of such primary researcher's experiences 
            and expertise in the context of the proposed center 
            activities, and the adequacy of such primary researcher's 
            time commitment to achievement of the mission of the center; 
            and
                (vi) the manner in which the results of education 
            research will be disseminated for further use, including how 
            the center will work with the Office of Reform Assistance 
            and Dissemination.

      (4) Board review of certain proposed grant and contract 
                                   actions

        The Assistant Secretary may not solicit any contract bid or 
    issue a request for proposals or applications for any grant or 
    cooperative agreement the amount of which exceeds $500,000 in any 
    single fiscal year or which exceeds an aggregate amount of 
    $1,000,000 for more than one fiscal year unless the Board has had an 
    opportunity to review such proposed grant, contract, or cooperative 
    agreement and to provide written comments to the Assistant Secretary 
    with respect to whether--
            (A) the purposes and scope of the proposed action are 
        consistent with the Research Priorities Plan; and
            (B) the methodology and approach of the proposed action are 
        sound and adequate to achieve the objectives of such grant, 
        contract, or cooperative agreement.

     (5) Historically underutilized researchers and institutions

        The Assistant Secretary shall establish and maintain initiatives 
    and programs to increase the participation in the activities of each 
    Institute of groups of researchers and institutions that have been 
    historically underutilized in Federal educational research 
    activities, including--
            (A) researchers who are women, African-American, Hispanic, 
        American Indian and Alaska Native, or other ethnic minorities;
            (B) promising young or new researchers in the field, such as 
        postdoctoral students and recently appointed assistant or 
        associate professors;
            (C) Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribally 
        Controlled Community Colleges, and other institutions of higher 
        education with large numbers of minority students;
            (D) institutions of higher education located in rural areas; 
        and
            (E) institutions and researchers located in States and 
        regions of the United States which have historically received 
        the least Federal support for educational research and 
        development.

                     (6) Additional authorities

        The Assistant Secretary--
            (A) may obtain (in accordance with section 3109 of title 5 
        but without regard to the limitation in such section on the 
        period of service) the services of experts or consultants with 
        scientific or professional qualifications in the disciplines 
        relevant to the purposes of such Institute;
            (B) may use, with their consent, the services, equipment, 
        personnel, information, and facilities of other Federal, State, 
        or local public agencies, with or without reimbursement 
        therefore; and
            (C) may accept voluntary and uncompensated services.

(d) National Institute on Student Achievement, Curriculum, and 
        Assessment

                            (1) Findings

        The Congress finds as follows:
            (A) The current achievement levels of students in the United 
        States are far below those that might indicate competency in 
        challenging subject matter in core content areas.
            (B) During the last 20 years, relatively little changed in 
        how students were taught. Despite much research suggesting 
        better alternatives, classrooms continue to be dominated by 
        textbooks, teacher lectures, short-answer activity sheets, and 
        unequal patterns of student attention.
            (C) Despite progress in narrowing the gaps, the differences 
        in performance between Caucasian students and their minority 
        counterparts remain unacceptably large. While progress has been 
        made in reducing the gender gap in mathematics, such gap still 
        remains at higher levels of problem solving. Too little progress 
        has been made in reducing gender performance gaps favoring males 
        in science and females in writing.

                             (2) Purpose

        The purpose of the National Institute on Student Achievement, 
    Curriculum, and Assessment is to carry out a coordinated and 
    comprehensive program of research and development to provide 
    research-based leadership to the United States as it seeks to 
    improve student achievement in core content areas and the 
    integration of such areas. Such program shall--
            (A) identify, develop, and evaluate innovative and exemplary 
        methods to improve student knowledge at all levels in the core 
        content areas, such as--
                (i) student learning and assessment in various subject 
            matters;
                (ii) the effects of organizational patterns on the 
            delivery of instruction, including issues of grouping and 
            tracking, ungraded classrooms, and on the effects of various 
            pedagogies, including the issues of technology in education;
                (iii) standards for what students should know and be 
            able to do, particularly standards of desired performance 
            set to internationally competitive levels;
                (iv) methods to improve the process of reading, the 
            craft of writing, the growth of reasoning skills, and the 
            development of information-finding skills;
                (v) enabling students to develop higher order thinking 
            skills;
                (vi) methods to teach effectively all students in mixed-
            ability classrooms;
                (vii) curriculum, instruction, and assessment, in 
            vocational education and school-to-work transition;
                (viii) the impact and effectiveness of Federal, State, 
            and local efforts to provide gender-fair educational 
            opportunities to elementary and secondary students;
                (ix) programs, policies, and approaches which promote 
            gender equity in elementary and secondary education;
                (x) improving the working conditions of teachers and 
            other educational practitioners, which may include such 
            topics as--
                    (I) teacher isolation;
                    (II) professional resources available to teachers;
                    (III) continuing educational and professional 
                opportunities available to teachers;
                    (IV) physical facilities and equipment, such as 
                office space, telephone, computer access, and fax 
                machines and television cable access available to 
                teachers in the work environment;
                    (V) opportunities for teachers to share information 
                and resources with other teachers and education 
                professionals;
                    (VI) opportunities for advanced learning experience; 
                and
                    (VII) the reduction of stress in the teaching 
                profession;

                (xi) curriculum development designed to meet challenging 
            standards, including State efforts to develop such 
            curriculum;
                (xii) the need for, and methods of delivering, teacher 
            education, development, and inservice training;
                (xiii) educational methods and activities to reduce and 
            prevent violence in schools;
                (xiv) the use of technology in learning, teaching and 
            testing; and
                (xv) other topics relevant to the mission of the 
            institute; \1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ So in original. Probably should be capitalized.

            (B) conduct basic and applied research in the areas of human 
        learning, cognition, and performance, including research and 
        development on the education contexts which promote excellence 
        in learning and instruction, and motivational issues related to 
        learning;
            (C) identify, develop, and evaluate programs designed to 
        enhance academic achievement and narrow racial and gender 
        performance gaps in a variety of subject areas, including 
        research and development on methods of involving parents in 
        their children's education and ways to involve business, 
        industry and other community partners in promoting excellence in 
        schools; and
            (D) include a comprehensive, coordinated program of research 
        and development in the area of assessment which--
                (i) addresses issues such as--
                    (I) the validity, reliability, generalizability, 
                costs, relative merits, and most appropriate uses of 
                various approaches and methods of assessing student 
                learning and achievement;
                    (II) methods and approaches to assessing student 
                opportunities to learn (including the quality of 
                instruction and the availability of resources necessary 
                to support learning) and evaluating the quality of 
                school environment;
                    (III) the impact of high-stakes uses of assessment 
                on student performance and motivation, narrowing of 
                curriculum, teaching practices, and test integrity;
                    (IV) the impact of various methods of assessment on 
                children of different races, ethnicities, gender, 
                socioeconomic status, and English language 
                proficiencies, and children with other special needs;
                    (V) standards of performance, quality, and validity 
                for various methods of assessment and the means by which 
                such standards should be developed;
                    (VI) current and emerging testing practices of State 
                and local education agencies within the United States, 
                as well as other nations;
                    (VII) the diverse effects, both intended and 
                unintended, of assessments as actually used in the 
                schools, including effects on curriculum and 
                instruction, effects on equity in the allocation of 
                resources and opportunities, effects on equity of 
                outcomes, effects on other procedures and standards for 
                judging students and practitioners and possible 
                inflation of test scores;
                    (VIII) identifying and evaluating how students with 
                limited-English proficiency and students with 
                disabilities are included and accommodated in the 
                various assessment programs of State and local education 
                agencies;
                    (IX) the feasibility and validity of comparing or 
                equating the results of different assessments;
                    (X) test security, accountability, validity, 
                reliability, and objectivity;
                    (XI) relevant teacher training and instruction in 
                giving a test, scoring a test, and in the use of test 
                results to improve student achievement;
                    (XII) developing, identifying, or evaluating new 
                educational assessments, including performance-based and 
                portfolio assessments which demonstrate skill and a 
                command of knowledge; and
                    (XIII) other topics relevant to the purposes of the 
                Institute; and

                (ii) may reflect recommendations made by the National 
            Education Goals Panel.

(e) National Institute on the Education of At-Risk Students

                            (1) Findings

        The Congress finds as follows:
            (A) The rate of decline in our urban schools is escalating 
        at a rapid pace. Student performance in most inner city schools 
        grows worse each year. At least half of all students entering 
        ninth grade fail to graduate 4 years later and many more 
        students from high-poverty backgrounds leave school with skills 
        that are inadequate for today's workplace. Student performance 
        in many inner city neighborhoods grows worse each year. At least 
        half of all students entering ninth grade fail to graduate in 4 
        years. In 1992, the average National Assessment of Educational 
        Progress reading score of Caucasian 17 year-olds was 
        approximately 25 points higher than that of African-American 17 
        year-olds and 20 points higher than that of Hispanic 17 year-
        olds.
            (B) Rural schools enroll a disproportionately large share of 
        the poor and at-risk students of the United States and yet often 
        lack the means to address effectively the needs of these 
        children. Intensive efforts should be made to overcome the 
        problems of geographic isolation, declining population, 
        inadequate financial resources and other impediments to the 
        educational success of children residing in rural areas.
            (C) By the year 2000, an estimated 3,400,000 school age 
        children with limited-English proficiency will be entering the 
        school system. The Federal Government should develop effective 
        policies and programs to address the educational needs of this 
        growing population of children who are at increased risk of 
        educational failure.
            (D) An educational emergency exists in those urban and rural 
        areas where there are large concentrations of children who live 
        in poverty. The numbers of disadvantaged children will 
        substantially increase by the year 2020, when the number of 
        impoverished children alone will be 16,500,000, a 33 percent 
        increase over the 12,400,000 children in poverty in 1987.
            (E) American Indian and Alaska Native students have high 
        dropout, illiteracy and poverty rates, and experience cultural, 
        linguistic, social and geographic isolation. The estimated 
        400,000 Indian and Alaska Native student population from over 
        500 Indian and Alaska Native tribes, is small and scattered 
        throughout remote reservations and villages in 32 States, and in 
        off-reservation rural and urban communities where Indians 
        constitute but a small percentage of public school student 
        bodies. To meaningfully address the special educational needs of 
        this historically under-served population, the existing research 
        and development system should be opened to Indian and Alaska 
        Native people to identify needs and design ways to address such 
        needs.
            (F) Minority scholars as well as institutions and groups 
        that have been historically committed to the improvement of the 
        education of at-risk students need to be more fully mobilized in 
        the effort to develop a new generation of programs, models, 
        practices, and schools capable of responding to the urgent needs 
        of students who are educationally at-risk.

                             (2) Purpose

        It shall be the purpose of the Institute on the Education of At-
    Risk Students to carry out a coordinated and comprehensive program 
    of research and development to provide nonpartisan, research-based 
    leadership to the United States as it seeks to improve educational 
    opportunities for at-risk students. Such program shall--
            (A) undertake research necessary to provide a sound basis 
        from which to identify, develop, evaluate, and assist others to 
        replicate and adapt interventions, programs, and models which 
        promote greater achievement and educational success by at-risk 
        students, such as--
                (i) methods of instruction and educational practices 
            (including community services) which improve the achievement 
            and retention of at-risk students;
                (ii) the quality of educational opportunities afforded 
            at-risk students, particularly the quality of educational 
            opportunities afforded such students in highly concentrated 
            urban areas and sparsely populated rural areas;
                (iii) methods for overcoming the barriers to learning 
            that may impede student achievement;
                (iv) innovative teacher training and professional 
            development methods to help at-risk students meet 
            challenging standards;
                (v) methods to improve the quality of the education of 
            American Indian and Alaska Native students not only in 
            schools funded by the Bureau, but also in public elementary 
            and secondary schools located on or near Indian 
            reservations, including--
                    (I) research on mechanisms to facilitate the 
                establishment of tribal departments of education that 
                assume responsibility for all education programs of 
                State educational agencies operating on an Indian 
                reservation and all education programs funded by the 
                Bureau on an Indian reservation;
                    (II) research on the development of culturally 
                appropriate curriculum for American Indian and Alaska 
                Native students, including American Indian and Alaska 
                Native culture, language, geography, history and social 
                studies, and graduation requirements related to such 
                curriculum;
                    (III) research on methods for recruiting, training 
                and retraining qualified teachers from American Indian 
                and Alaska Native communities, including research to 
                promote flexibility in the criteria for certification of 
                such teachers;
                    (IV) research on techniques for improving the 
                educational achievement of American Indian and Alaska 
                Native students, including methodologies to reduce 
                dropout rates and increase graduation by such students; 
                and
                    (V) research concerning the performance by American 
                Indian and Alaska Native students of limited-English 
                proficiency on standardized achievement tests, and 
                related factors;

                (vi) means by which parents and community resources and 
            institutions (including cultural institutions) can be 
            utilized to support and improve the achievement of at-risk 
            students;
                (vii) the training of teachers and other educational 
            professionals and paraprofessionals to work more effectively 
            with at-risk students;
                (viii) the most effective uses of technology in the 
            education of at-risk students;
                (ix) programs designed to promote gender equity in 
            schools that serve at-risk students;
                (x) improving the ability of classroom teachers and 
            schools to assist new and diverse populations of students in 
            successfully assimilating into the classroom environment;
                (xi) methods of assessing the achievement of students 
            which are sensitive to cultural differences, provide 
            multiple methods of assessing student learning, support 
            student acquisition of higher order capabilities, and enable 
            identification of the effects of inequalities in the 
            resources available to support the learning of children 
            throughout the United States; and
                (xii) other topics relevant to the purpose of the 
            Institute; and

            (B) maximize the participation of those schools and 
        institutions of higher education that serve the greatest number 
        of at-risk students in inner city and rural areas, and on Indian 
        reservations, including model collaborative programs between 
        schools and school systems, institutions of higher education, 
        cultural institutions, and community organizations.

      (3) Consultation with Indian and Alaska Native educators

        All research and development activities supported by the 
    Institute which relate to the education of Indian and Alaska Native 
    students shall be developed in close consultation with Indian and 
    Alaska Native researchers and educators, Tribally Controlled 
    Community Colleges, tribal departments of education, and others with 
    expertise in the needs of Indian and Native Alaska students.

(f) National Institute on Early Childhood Development and Education

                            (1) Findings

        The Congress finds as follows:
            (A) Despite efforts to expand and improve preschool 
        programs, many children still reach school age unprepared to 
        benefit from formal education programs.
            (B) Early intervention for disadvantaged children from birth 
        to age five has been shown to be a highly cost-effective 
        strategy for reducing later expenditures on a wide variety of 
        health, developmental, and educational problems that often 
        interfere with learning. Long-term studies of the benefits of 
        preschool education have a demonstrated return on investment 
        ranging from three to six dollars for every one dollar spent.
            (C) The Federal Government should play a central role in 
        providing research-based information on early childhood 
        education models which enhance children's development and 
        ultimately their success in school.

                             (2) Purpose

        The purpose of the National Institute on Early Childhood 
    Development and Education is to carry out a comprehensive program of 
    research and development to provide nonpartisan, research-based 
    leadership to the United States as it seeks to improve early 
    childhood development and education. Such program shall undertake 
    research necessary to provide a sound basis from which to identify, 
    develop, evaluate, and assist others to replicate methods and 
    approaches that promise to improve early childhood development and 
    education, such as--
            (A) social and educational development of infants, toddlers, 
        and preschool children;
            (B) the role of parents and the community in promoting the 
        successful social and educational development of children from 
        birth to age five;
            (C) topics relating to children's readiness to learn, such 
        as prenatal care, nutrition, and health services;
            (D) family literacy and parental involvement in student 
        learning;
            (E) methods for integrating learning in settings other than 
        the classroom, particularly within families and communities;
            (F) practices and approaches which sustain the benefits of 
        effective preschool and child care programs;
            (G) effective learning methods and curriculum for early 
        childhood learning, including access to current materials in 
        libraries;
            (H) the importance of family literacy and parental 
        involvement in student learning;
            (I) effective teaching and learning methods, and curriculum;
            (J) instruction that considers the cultural environment of 
        children;
            (K) access to current materials in libraries;
            (L) the impact that outside influences have on learning, 
        including television, and drug and alcohol abuse;
            (M) the structure and environment of early childhood 
        education and child care settings which lead to improved social 
        and educational development;
            (N) training and preparation of teachers and other 
        professional and paraprofessional preschool and child care 
        workers;
            (O) the use of technology, including methods to help parents 
        instruct their children; and
            (P) other topics relevant to the purpose of the Institute.

                      (3) Certain requirements

        In carrying out the activities of the Institute, the Assistant 
    Secretary shall ensure that the Institute's research and development 
    program provides information that can be utilized in improving the 
    major Federal early childhood education programs.

(g) National Institute on Educational Governance, Finance, Policy-
        Making, and Management

                            (1) Findings

        The Congress finds as follows:
            (A) Many elementary and secondary schools in the United 
        States--
                (i) are structured according to models that are 
            ineffective and rely on notions of management and governance 
            that may be outdated or insufficient for the challenges of 
            the next century; and
                (ii) are unsuccessful in equipping all students with the 
            knowledge and skills needed to succeed as citizens and in 
            the working world.

            (B) New approaches are needed in the governance and 
        management of elementary and secondary education within the 
        United States at the State, local, school building and classroom 
        level.
            (C) Not enough is known about the effects of various systems 
        of school governance and management on student achievement to 
        provide sound guidance to policymakers as such policymakers 
        pursue school restructuring and reform.
            (D) A concentrated Federal effort is needed to support 
        research, development, demonstration, and evaluation of 
        approaches to school governance, finance and management which 
        promise to improve education equity and excellence throughout 
        the United States.

                             (2) Purpose

        It shall be the purpose of the National Institute on Educational 
    Governance, Finance, Policy-Making, and Management to carry out a 
    coordinated and comprehensive program of research and development to 
    provide nonpartisan, research-based leadership to the United States 
    as it seeks to improve student achievement through school 
    restructuring and reform. Such program shall undertake research 
    necessary to provide a sound basis from which to identify, develop 
    and evaluate approaches in elementary and secondary school 
    governance, finance, policy-making, and management at the State, 
    local, tribal, school building and classroom level which promise to 
    improve educational equity and excellence, such as--
            (A) open enrollment programs, public school choice, magnet 
        schools and other systems through which parents may select the 
        public schools and educational programs in which their children 
        are enrolled;
            (B) innovative school design, including lengthening the 
        school day and the school year, reducing class size and building 
        professional development into the weekly school schedule and, as 
        appropriate, conducting such further research as may be 
        recommended or suggested by the report issued by the National 
        Education Commission on Time and Learning pursuant to section 
        102 of the Education Council Act of 1991 (20 U.S.C. 1221-1 
        note);
            (C) effective approaches to organizing learning;
            (D) effective ways of grouping students for learning so that 
        a student is not labeled or stigmatized in ways that may impede 
        such student's achievement;
            (E) effective approaches to organizing, structuring, and 
        financing vocational education;
            (F) the provision of financial and other rewards and 
        incentives to schools and educators based on performance to 
        improve student achievement;
            (G) the use of regulatory flexibility on the State or school 
        district level to promote innovation and school restructuring;
            (H) policy decisions at all levels and the impact of such 
        decisions on school achievement and other student outcomes;
            (I) the effective use of dollars for classroom construction;
            (J) expanding the role of teachers in policymaking and 
        administration at the school and school district-wide level;
            (K) disparity in school financing among States, school 
        districts, schools, and schools funded by the Bureau;
            (L) the use of technology in areas such as assisting in 
        school-based management or ameliorating the effects of disparity 
        in school financing among States, school districts, and schools 
        funded by the Bureau;
            (M) the involvement of parents and families in the 
        management and governance of schools and the education of their 
        children;
            (N) effective approaches to increasing the representation of 
        women and minorities among leadership and management positions 
        in education;
            (O) approaches to systemic reforms involving the 
        coordination of multiple policies of each level of government to 
        promote higher levels of student achievement;
            (P) approaches to coordinated services for children;
            (Q) teacher certification at the State and tribal levels;
            (R) school-based management, shared decisionmaking and other 
        innovative school structures, and State and local reforms and 
        educational policies, which show promise for improving student 
        achievement;
            (S) policies related to school-to-work transitions and 
        preparing non-college-bound students; and
            (T) other topics relevant to the mission of the Institute.

(h) National Institute on Postsecondary Education, Libraries, and 
        Lifelong Learning

                            (1) Findings

        The Congress finds as follows:
            (A) The American system of postsecondary education is 
        foremost in the world in such system's achievement of both 
        academic excellence and equity in access, but maintaining that 
        preeminence requires renewed efforts to strengthen the quality 
        of postsecondary education. Disappointing student performance on 
        achievement tests and licensure examinations, declining rates of 
        postsecondary education persistence and completion among 
        minorities, and other troubling trends in the quality of 
        postsecondary education should be addressed by the United States 
        as part of its overall drive to improve American education.
            (B) The need to improve our economic productivity of the 
        United States to meet the competitive challenges of a new, 
        international economy, coupled with high levels of mobility in 
        the United States labor market and demographic changes in the 
        workforce, now demands more and higher quality programs of 
        learning and training in the American workplace.
            (C) The more than 1,000,000 men and women incarcerated in 
        the prisons and jails in the United States are among the most 
        severely educationally disadvantaged in the United States, with 
        high rates of functional illiteracy and extremely low levels of 
        educational attainment. Since an estimated 90 percent of these 
        individuals are expected to be released by the end of the 
        decade, the United States must act to assure that our 
        correctional system has the means to equip these Americans with 
        the knowledge and skills they will need to participate 
        productively in our society.
            (D) The development of a ``Nation of Students'' capable of 
        and committed to the pursuit of formal and informal lifelong 
        learning and literacy is essential to sustain both national and 
        individual economic success and to provide a nurturing 
        environment in which all children and youth can learn and 
        achieve. Historically the most effective community resource for 
        lifelong learning, the public library system of the United 
        States, should expand and restructure its delivery of services 
        to take full advantage of the potential of new information 
        technologies to meet the needs of learning communities.

                             (2) Purpose

        The purpose of the National Institute on Postsecondary 
    Education, Libraries, and Lifelong Learning is to promote greater 
    coordination of Federal research and development on issues related 
    to adult learning and to carry out a program of research and 
    development in adult learning to provide nonpartisan, research-based 
    leadership to the United States as it seeks to improve libraries, 
    postsecondary education, literacy, and lifelong learning throughout 
    the United States. Such program--
            (A) shall only support research and development in those 
        areas of postsecondary education, libraries, literacy, and 
        lifelong learning which are not being addressed by other 
        entities within the Federal Government;
            (B) may include basic and applied research, development, 
        replication, and evaluation activities in areas such as--
                (i) methods of assessing and evaluating individual, 
            program, and institutional performance;
                (ii) the uses and applications of new technologies to 
            improve program effectiveness and enhance student learning;
                (iii) the most effective training methods for adults to 
            upgrade education and vocational skills;
                (iv) opportunities for adults to continue their 
            education beyond higher education and graduate school, in 
            the context of lifelong learning and information-finding 
            skills;
                (v) adult literacy and effective methods, including 
            technology, to eliminate illiteracy;
                (vi) preparing students for a lifetime of work, the 
            ability to adapt through retraining to the changing needs of 
            the work force and the ability to learn new tasks;
                (vii) the use of technology to develop and deliver 
            effective training methods for adults to upgrade their 
            education and their vocational skills; and
                (viii) institutional and classroom policies and 
            practices at the postsecondary level necessary to improve 
            matriculation, persistence, achievement and graduation by 
            students who are economically disadvantaged, ethnic and 
            racial minorities, women, older, working, and who have 
            children;
                (ix) instructional practices and programs which are 
            effective in correctional settings;
                (x) new models of service delivery for public library 
            systems which expand opportunities for lifelong learning;
                (xi) effective programs and approaches which promote 
            greater access to and success by minorities in postsecondary 
            programs which prepare such minorities for scientific, 
            technical, teaching, and health career fields;
                (xii) effective teaching for the preparation and 
            continuing education of teachers;
                (xiii) the development and evaluation of curricular 
            materials for the initial and continuing education of 
            teachers and teacher educators;
                (xiv) the role of Historically Black Colleges and 
            Universities, Tribally Controlled Indian Community Colleges, 
            women's colleges, and other special mission institutions in 
            providing access, excellence, and equal opportunity in 
            higher education;
                (xv) methods for evaluating the quality of education at 
            different types of institutions of higher education at all 
            levels and the roles and responsibilities of regional and 
            national accrediting agencies;
                (xvi) methods for evaluating the productivity of 
            different types of institutions of higher education;
                (xvii) financial barriers to postsecondary educational 
            opportunity, including--
                    (I) the role of Federal programs authorized under 
                title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 [20 U.S.C. 
                1070 et seq. and 42 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.] and State grant 
                and work programs in mitigating such barriers;
                    (II) the impact of the rising total cost of 
                postsecondary education on access to higher education; 
                and
                    (III) the extent and impact of student reliance on 
                loans to meet the costs of higher education;

                (xviii) opportunities for adults to continue their 
            education beyond higher education and graduate school, in 
            the context of lifelong learning and information-finding 
            skills;
                (xix) preparing students for a lifetime of work, the 
            ability to adapt through retraining to the changing needs of 
            the work force and the ability to learn new tasks; and
                (xx) other topics relevant to the mission of the 
            Institute.

        (3) Involvement of certain agencies and organizations

        In promoting coordination and collaboration on research and 
    development on issues related to postsecondary education, literacy, 
    libraries, and lifelong learning, the Institute shall, as 
    appropriate, seek the involvement--
            (A) within the Department of Education of--
                (i) the Office of Library Programs;
                (ii) the Office of Correctional Education;
                (iii) the Office of Vocational and Adult Education;
                (iv) the National Institute on Disability and 
            Rehabilitation Research; and
                (v) the Office of Postsecondary Education;

            (B) of the National Institute for Literacy;
            (C) of the National Board for Professional Teaching 
        Standards;
            (D) of the Employment and Training Administration of the 
        Department of Labor;
            (E) of the Administration for Children and Families within 
        the Department of Health and Human Services;
            (F) of the National Institutes of Health;
            (G) of the National Endowment for the Humanities;
            (H) of the National Endowment for the Arts;
            (I) of the Bureau of Prisons of the Department of Justice;
            (J) of the Department of Commerce;
            (K) of the Department of Defense; and
            (L) of the Office of Indian Education Programs of the 
        Department of the Interior.

                   (4) Additional responsibilities

        In addition to the responsibilities described in paragraph (2), 
    the Assistant Secretary shall ensure that the activities of the 
    National Center on Literacy are fully coordinated with those of the 
    National Institute for Literacy.

(i) Coordination and research synthesis

    The Assistant Secretary shall promote and provide for research 
syntheses and the coordination of research and development activities 
among the Institutes established by this section to investigate those 
cross-cutting disciplines and areas of inquiry which are relevant to the 
missions of more than one of the Institutes. Such activities--
        (1) may be carried out jointly by any one of the Institutes 
    and--
            (A) one (or more) of the Institutes;
            (B) the National Center for Education Statistics; or
            (C) any research and development entity administered by 
        other offices of the Department of Education or by any other 
        Federal agency or department; and

        (2) shall meet all the standards developed by the Assistant 
    Secretary and approved by the Board for other research and 
    development conducted by the Office.

(j) Dates for establishment of Institutes

    The National Institute on the Education of At-Risk Students, the 
National Institute on Educational Governance, Finance, Policy-Making, 
and Management, the National Institute on Early Childhood Development 
and Education, the National Institute on Student Achievement, 
Curriculum, and Assessment and the National Institute on Postsecondary 
Education, Libraries, and Lifelong Learning shall each be established on 
October 1, 1995.

(Pub. L. 103-227, title IX, Sec. 931, Mar. 31, 1994, 108 Stat. 227.)

                       References in Text

    Section 102 of the Education Council Act of 1991, referred to in 
subsec. (g)(2)(B), is section 102 of Pub. L. 102-62, which is set out as 
a note under section 1221-1 of this title.
    The Higher Education Act of 1965, referred to in subsec. 
(h)(2)(B)(xvii)(I), is Pub. L. 89-329, Nov. 8, 1965, 79 Stat. 1219, as 
amended. Title IV of the Act is classified generally to subchapter IV 
(Sec. 1070 et seq.) of chapter 28 of this title and part C (Sec. 2751 et 
seq.) of subchapter I of chapter 34 of Title 42, The Public Health and 
Welfare. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short 
Title note set out under section 1001 of this title and Tables.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 6011, 6021, 6041, 8677 of 
this title.
