42 U.S.C. § 19112 — Entrepreneurial fellowships

Page 9306 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 19112 1 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘(C)’’. (6) develop seminars, courses, and other edu- cational opportunities for students, post-doc- toral researchers, faculty, and other relevant staff at institutions of higher education to in- crease awareness and understanding of entre- preneurship, patenting, business planning, re- search security, and other areas relevant to technology transfer, and connect students and researchers to relevant resources, including mentors in the private sector; and (7) create, support, or fund entities or com- petitions to allow entrepreneurial students and faculty to illustrate the commercializa- tion potential of their ideas, including through venture funds of institution of higher education. (d) Limitations on funding (1) Awards made under this section shall be at least 3 years in duration and shall not exceed $1,000,000 per fiscal year. (2) Awards made under this section shall not support the development or operation of capital investment funds. (e) Application An eligible entity seeking funding under this section shall submit an application to the Direc- tor at such time, in such manner, and con- taining such information and assurances as such Director may require. The application shall in- clude, at a minimum, a description of— (1) how the eligible entity submitting an ap- plication plans to sustain the proposed activi- ties beyond the duration of the award; (2) the steps the applicant will take to en- able technology transfer and adoption and why such steps are likely to be effective; (3) how the applicant will encourage the training and participation of students and po- tential entrepreneurs and the transition of re- search results to practice, including the devel- opment of new businesses; (4) as relevant, potential steps to drive eco- nomic growth in a particular region, by col- laborating with industry, venture capital enti- ties, non-profit organizations, and State and local governments within that region; and (5) background information that the Direc- tor determines is relevant to demonstrate the success of the innovation and entrepreneur- ship support models proposed by the applicant to commercialize technologies. (f) Collaborative innovation resource center pro- gram (1) In general The Director shall make awards under this section to eligible entities to establish col- laborative innovation resource centers that promote regional technology transfer and technology development activities available to more than one institution of higher edu- cation and to other entities in a region. (2) Use of funds An eligible entity that receives an award under this subsection shall use award funds to carry out one or more of the following activi- ties, to the benefit of the region in which the center is located: (A) Providing start-ups and small business concerns (as defined in section 632 of title 15) within the region with access to facilities, scientific infrastructure, personnel, and other assets as required for technology mat- uration. (B) Supporting entrepreneurial training for start-up and small business personnel. (3) 1 Providing engineering and entrepre- neurial experiences and hands-on training for students enrolled in participating institutions of higher education. (g) Reporting on commercialization metrics The Director shall establish— (1) metrics related to commercialization for an award under this section; and (2) a reporting schedule for recipients of such awards that takes into account both short- and long-term goals of the programs under this section. (h) Geographic diversity The Director shall ensure regional and geo- graphic diversity in issuing awards under this section. (i) Authorization of appropriations From within funds authorized for the Direc- torate for Technology, Innovation, and Partner- ships, there are authorized to carry out the ac- tivities under this section $3,100,000,000 for fiscal years 2023 through 2027. (Pub. L. 117–167, div. B, title III, § 10391, Aug. 9, 2022, 136 Stat. 1586.) § 19112. Entrepreneurial fellowships (a) In general The Director, acting through the Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships, shall award fellowships to scientists and engi- neers to help develop leaders capable of matur- ing promising ideas and technologies from lab to market or other use and forge connections be- tween academic research and the government, industry, financial sectors, and other end users. (b) Application An applicant for a fellowship under this sec- tion shall submit to the Director an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director may require. At a minimum, the Director shall require that applicants— (1) have completed a doctoral degree in a STEM field no more than 5 years prior to the date of the application, or have otherwise demonstrated significant postbaccalaureate scientific research experience and are consid- ered early career, according to requirements established by the Director; and (2) have included in the application a pro- posal for how the fellow will be embedded in a host institution’s research environment. (c) Outreach The Director shall conduct program outreach to recruit fellowship applicants— (1) from diverse research institutions; (2) from all regions of the country; and (3) from groups historically underrep- resented in STEM fields. Page 9307 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 19113 (d) Administration agreements The Director may enter into an agreement with a qualified third-party entity to administer the fellowships, subject to the provisions of this section. (e) Authorization of appropriations There are authorized to be appropriated to the Director a total of $125,000,000 for fiscal years 2023 through 2027, to carry out the activities outlined in this section. (Pub. L. 117–167, div. B, title III, § 10392, Aug. 9, 2022, 136 Stat. 1588.) § 19113. Scholarships and fellowships (a) In general The Director, acting through the Directorate, shall fund undergraduate scholarships (including at community colleges), graduate fellowships and traineeships, and postdoctoral awards in the key technology focus areas. (b) Implementation The Director may carry out subsection (a) by making awards— (1) directly to students; and (2) to institutions of higher education or consortia of institutions of higher education, including those institutions or consortia in- volved in operating Regional Innovation En- gines established under section 19108 of this title. (c) Broadening participation In carrying out this section, the Director shall take steps to increase the participation of popu- lations that are underrepresented in STEM, which may include— (1) establishing or augmenting programs tar- geted at populations that are underrep- resented in STEM; (2) supporting traineeships or other relevant programs at historically Black colleges and universities, Tribal Colleges or Universities, and minority-serving institutions; (3) enabling low-income populations to pur- sue associate, undergraduate, or graduate level degrees in STEM; (4) addressing current and expected gaps in the availability or skills of the STEM work- force, or addressing needs of the STEM work- force, including by increasing educational ca- pacity at institutions and by prioritizing awards to United States citizens, permanent residents, and individuals that will grow the domestic workforce; and (5) addressing geographic diversity in the STEM workforce. (d) Encouraging innovation In carrying out this section, the Director shall encourage innovation in graduate education, in- cluding through encouraging institutions of higher education to offer graduate students op- portunities to gain experience in industry or Government as part of their graduate training, and through support for students in professional master’s programs related to the key tech- nology focus areas or to the societal, national, and geostrategic challenges. (e) Areas of funding support Subject to the availability of funds to carry out this section, the Director shall— (1) issue— (A) postdoctoral awards, (B) graduate fellowships and traineeships, inclusive of the NSF Research Traineeships and fellowships awarded under the Graduate Research Fellowship Program; and (C) scholarships, including undergraduate scholarships, research experiences, and in- ternships, including— (i) scholarships to attend community colleges; and (ii) research experiences and internships under sections 1862p–5, 1862p–6, and 1862p–7 of this title; (2) ensure that not less than 10 percent of the funds made available to carry out this sec- tion are used to support additional awards that focus on community college training, education, and teaching programs that in- crease the participation of populations that are historically underrepresented in STEM, in- cluding technical programs through programs such as the Advanced Technological Education program; and (3) if funds remain after carrying out para- graphs (1) and (2) make awards to institutions of higher education to enable the institutions to fund the development and establishment of new or specialized programs of study for grad- uate, undergraduate, or technical college stu- dents and the evaluation of the effectiveness of those programs of study. (f) Low-income scholarship program (1) In general The Director shall award scholarships to low-income individuals to enable such individ- uals to pursue associate, undergraduate, or graduate level degrees in STEM fields. (2) Eligibility (A) In general To be eligible to receive a scholarship under this subsection, an individual— (i) must be a citizen of the United States, a national of the United States (as defined in section 1101(a) of title 8), an alien admitted as a refugee under section 1157 of title 8, or an alien lawfully admit- ted to the United States for permanent residence; (ii) shall prepare and submit to the Di- rector an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director may require; and (iii) shall certify to the Director that the individual intends to use amounts received under the scholarship to enroll or continue enrollment at an institution of higher edu- cation (as defined in section 1001(a) of title 20) in order to pursue an associate, under- graduate, or graduate level degree in STEM fields designated by the Director. (B) Ability Awards of scholarships under this sub- section shall be made by the Director solely on the basis of the ability of the applicant, except that in any case in which 2 or more applicants for scholarships are deemed by the Director to be possessed of substantially