S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                   1562
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 15, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. BICHOTTE, RICHARDSON -- read once and referred to
   the Committee on Economic Development
 
 AN ACT to amend the New York state urban development corporation act, in
   relation  to  creating  a  grant  program for school districts, insti-
   tutions of higher education,  nonprofit  organizations,  other  public
   agencies  and  businesses  to  prepare students for postsecondary STEM
   education and careers; and making an appropriation therefor
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision 1 of section 16-m of section 1 of chapter 174
 of the laws of 1968, constituting the New York state  urban  development
 corporation  act,  is  amended  by adding a new paragraph (o) to read as
 follows:
   (O) ASSISTANCE  TO  EFFECTIVELY  PREPARE  STUDENTS  FOR  POSTSECONDARY
 EDUCATION AND CAREERS IN SCIENCE AND COMPUTER SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGI-
 NEERING AND MATHEMATICS (STEM) BY PROVIDING STEM GRANTS.
   (I)  THE  CHAIRMAN OF THE CORPORATION, IN COOPERATION WITH THE COMMIS-
 SIONER  OF  THE  STATE  EDUCATION  DEPARTMENT,  SHALL  ENCOURAGE  SCHOOL
 DISTRICTS  AND OTHER QUALIFIED APPLICANTS TO ESTABLISH NEW STEM PROGRAMS
 AND EXPAND EXISTING STEM PROGRAMS, AND SHALL ESTABLISH CRITERIA FOR  THE
 DEVELOPMENT  AND  SUBMISSION OF GRANT APPLICATIONS AND PROPOSALS AND FOR
 THE SELECTION OF RECIPIENTS OF STEM GRANTS, AS PROVIDED  IN  THIS  PARA-
 GRAPH.
   (II) ANY SCHOOL DISTRICT OR OTHER QUALIFIED APPLICANT THAT APPLIES FOR
 FUNDING  UNDER  THIS PARAGRAPH, SHALL WORK WITH RELEVANT STATE AND LOCAL
 EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES TO DEVELOP  COMPREHENSIVE  PLANS  FOR  IDENTIFYING,
 DEVELOPING,   TESTING,  AND  IMPLEMENTING  EVIDENCE-BASED  PRACTICES  TO
 PROVIDE STEM LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENTS AND SUPPORT THE  IMPLE-
 MENTATION OF SUCH PLANS BY EMPLOYING A WIDE RANGE OF STRATEGIES, INCLUD-
 ING THE RECRUITMENT, PREPARATION, AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF EFFEC-
 TIVE  STEM  EDUCATORS.    QUALIFIED APPLICANTS INCLUDE SCHOOL DISTRICTS,
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD00791-01-9

 A. 1562                             2
 
 INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION, NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, OTHER  PUBLIC
 AGENCIES  AND  BUSINESSES  PROVIDING  EDUCATIONAL  SERVICES  TO  PREPARE
 STUDENTS FOR POSTSECONDARY STEM EDUCATION AND CAREERS.
   (III)  STEM  GRANTS  SHALL  BE  AWARDED ON A COMPETITIVE BASIS.  FIRST
 PRIORITY SHALL BE GIVEN TO HIGH NEED  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS  AND  HIGH  NEED
 SCHOOLS.  GRANTS  SHALL  BE  AWARDED BASED ON FACTORS INCLUDING, BUT NOT
 LIMITED TO, THE FOLLOWING:
   (A) MEASURES OF SCHOOL DISTRICT NEED;
   (B) MEASURES OF THE NEED OF STUDENTS TO BE  SERVED  BY  EACH  APPLYING
 SCHOOL DISTRICTS;
   (C)  THE SCHOOL DISTRICT'S PROPOSAL TO TARGET THE HIGHEST NEED SCHOOLS
 AND STUDENTS;
   (D) THE EXTENT TO WHICH THE DISTRICT'S PROPOSAL WOULD PRIORITIZE FUNDS
 TO MAXIMIZE THE TOTAL NUMBER OF ELIGIBLE CHILDREN IN THE DISTRICT SERVED
 IN STEM PROGRAMS; AND
   (E) THE QUALITY OF THE PROPOSAL.
   (IV) RECIPIENTS OF STEM GRANTS SHALL USE THE FUNDS TO:
   (A) PROMOTE AND DEVELOP IN-SCHOOL AND OUT-OF-SCHOOL  CURRICULAR  TOOLS
 AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR STEM EDUCATORS AT THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
 AND SECONDARY SCHOOL LEVELS;
   (B) PROVIDE INSTRUCTION AND MENTORING SERVICES TO NEW TEACHERS IN STEM
 SUBJECTS;
   (C)  PROMOTE  AND  DEVELOP  RIGOROUS UNDERGRADUATE PRE-SERVICE TEACHER
 PROGRAMS  AT  INSTITUTIONS  OF  HIGHER  EDUCATION  THAT  EMPHASIZE  STEM
 CONTACT;
   (D)  SUPPORT  THE  PARTICIPATION  OF  ELEMENTARY  SCHOOL AND SECONDARY
 SCHOOL STUDENTS IN COMPETITIONS,  OUT-OF-SCHOOL  ACTIVITIES,  AND  FIELD
 EXPERIENCES RELATED TO STEM SUBJECTS;
   (E)  DEVELOP STEM RELATED EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE TRAINING PROGRAMS IN
 SECONDARY SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY COLLEGES TO REFLECT  THE  NEEDS  OF  THE
 LOCAL COMMUNITY; AND
   (F)  CREATE  AFTER  SCHOOL  PROGRAMS  TO  PROMOTE  STEM  EDUCATION AND
 CAREERS.
   (V) GRANTS SHALL BE  MADE  FOR  A  RECURRENT  PERIOD  OF  FIVE  YEARS,
 COMMENCING  WITH  THE  TWO  THOUSAND NINETEEN-TWO THOUSAND TWENTY SCHOOL
 YEAR. AT THE END OF THE FIVE YEAR PERIOD, THE  CHAIRMAN  OF  THE  CORPO-
 RATION  SHALL  EVALUATE  THE  EFFECTIVENESS  OF THE STEM GRANTS BASED ON
 CRITERIA DEVELOPED IN COOPERATION WITH THE  COMMISSIONER  OF  THE  STATE
 EDUCATION DEPARTMENT.
   (VI) THIS GRANT PROGRAM WILL NOT MANDATE A TESTING OR EVALUATIVE MODEL
 THAT  IS SEPARATE FROM CURRENT STATE TESTING AND EVALUATIVE REQUIREMENTS
 FOR PRIMARY AND SECONDARY STUDENTS.
   § 2. The sum of fifty million dollars ($50,000,000), or so much there-
 of as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the urban  development
 corporation  out of the moneys in the state treasury in the general fund
 to the credit of the empire state economic development fund  established
 pursuant  to section 16-m of the New York state urban development corpo-
 ration act not otherwise appropriated, and made  immediately  available,
 for  the  purpose of STEM grants and carrying out the provisions of this
 act. Funds for STEM grants  shall  be  distributed  to  each  qualifying
 school  district  in installments upon successful implementation of each
 phase of the school district's approved  proposal.  No  school  district
 shall  receive  more  than  forty  percent of the total STEM grant allo-
 cation. Within a school district, each individual  STEM  site  shall  be
 limited  to a maximum grant of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).
 Any portion of funding that is not awarded in a particular  school  year

 A. 1562                             3
 
 shall  remain  available for awards in subsequent school years; provided
 that in the event that the chairman of the urban development corporation
 elects to discontinue the program after the  initial  five  year  period
 described  in  section  one  of this act, and remaining funding shall be
 returned to the state treasury to the credit of the general fund.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the  amend-
 ments  to  subdivision  1 of section 16-m of section 1 of chapter 174 of
 the laws of 1968, constituting the  New  York  state  urban  development
 corporation  act  made  by section one of this act, shall not affect the
 expiration of such section and shall be deemed to expire therewith.