20 U.S.C. § 9514 — Office of the Director

Page 1706 TITLE 20—EDUCATION § 9514 (5) sections 9515 and 9516 of this title shall not apply to the National Assessment Gov- erning Board. (b) Other activities The Secretary may assign the Institute re- sponsibility for administering other activities, if those activities are consistent with— (1) the Institute’s priorities, as approved by the National Board for Education Sciences under section 9516 of this title, and the Insti- tute’s mission, as described in section 9511(b) of this title; or (2) the Institute’s mission, but only if those activities do not divert the Institute from its priorities. (Pub. L. 107–279, title I, § 113, Nov. 5, 2002, 116 Stat. 1945.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The National Education Statistics Act of 1994, re- ferred to in subsec. (a)(1), is title IV of Pub. L. 103–382, Oct. 20, 1994, 108 Stat. 4029, which was classified gen- erally to chapter 71 (§ 9001 et seq.) of this title, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 107–279, title IV, § 403(1), Nov. 5, 2002, 116 Stat. 1985. Provisions relating to education statis- tics are now contained in part C (§ 9541 et seq.) of this subchapter. This Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(3), means Pub. L. 107–279, Nov. 5, 2002, 116 Stat. 1940, which enacted this chapter and section 3419 of this title, amended sections 1232j, 3412, 3461, 6194, 6311, 6312, 7013, 7451, 7703, 7909, 9007, 9010, 9011, 9573, 9623, and 9624 and former sections 6317, 6491, 6932, 7253c, 7283b, and 7283d of this title and section 5315 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employ- ees, transferred sections 9010 and 9011 of this title to sections 9621 and 9622 of this title, respectively, re- pealed sections 3419, 6011, 6021, 6031, 6041, 6051, 6053 to 6053e, 6054 to 6054b, 6055 to 6055h, 6056, 6056a, 9001 to 9009, and 9012 of this title, enacted provisions set out as notes under section 7703 and 9501 of this title, and re- pealed provisions set out as notes under sections 1221e and 9001 of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Tables. § 9514. Office of the Director (a) Appointment Except as provided in subsection (b)(2), the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint the Director of the In- stitute. (b) Term (1) In general The Director shall serve for a term of 6 years, beginning on the date of appointment of the Director. (2) First Director The President, without the advice and con- sent of the Senate, may appoint the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Educational Re- search and Improvement (as such office ex- isted on the day before November 5, 2002) to serve as the first Director of the Institute. (3) Subsequent Directors The Board may make recommendations to the President with respect to the appointment of a Director under subsection (a), other than a Director appointed under paragraph (2). (c) Pay The Director shall receive the rate of basic pay for level II of the Executive Schedule. (d) Qualifications The Director shall be selected from individuals who are highly qualified authorities in the fields of scientifically valid research, statistics, or evaluation in education, as well as management within such areas, and have a demonstrated ca- pacity for sustained productivity and leadership in these areas. (e) Administration The Director shall— (1) administer, oversee, and coordinate the activities carried out under the Institute, in- cluding the activities of the National Edu- cation Centers; and (2) coordinate and approve budgets and oper- ating plans for each of the National Education Centers for submission to the Secretary. (f) Duties The duties of the Director shall include the following: (1) To propose to the Board priorities for the Institute, in accordance with section 9515(a) of this title. (2) To ensure the methodology applied in conducting research, development, evaluation, and statistical analysis is consistent with the standards for such activities under this sub- chapter. (3) To coordinate education research and re- lated activities carried out by the Institute with such research and activities carried out by other agencies within the Department and the Federal Government. (4) To advise the Secretary on research, evaluation, and statistics activities relevant to the activities of the Department. (5) To establish necessary procedures for technical and scientific peer review of the ac- tivities of the Institute, consistent with sec- tion 9516(b)(3) of this title. (6) To ensure that all participants in re- search conducted or supported by the Institute are afforded their privacy rights and other rel- evant protections as research subjects, in ac- cordance with section 9573 of this title, section 552a of title 5, and sections 1232g and 1232h of this title. (7) To ensure that activities conducted or supported by the Institute are objective, sec- ular, neutral, and nonideological and are free of partisan political influence and racial, cul- tural, gender, or regional bias. (8) To undertake initiatives and programs to increase the participation of researchers and institutions that have been historically under- utilized in Federal education research activi- ties of the Institute, including historically Black colleges or universities or other institu- tions of higher education with large numbers of minority students. (9) To coordinate with the Secretary to pro- mote and provide for the coordination of re- search and development activities and tech- nical assistance activities between the Insti- tute and comprehensive centers. (10) To solicit and consider the recommenda- tions of education stakeholders, in order to ensure that there is broad and regular public and professional input from the educational Page 1707 TITLE 20—EDUCATION § 9515 field in the planning and carrying out of the Institute’s activities. (11) To coordinate the wide dissemination of information on scientifically valid research. (12) To carry out and support other activi- ties consistent with the priorities and mission of the Institute. (g) Expert guidance and assistance The Director may establish technical and sci- entific peer-review groups and scientific pro- gram advisory committees for research and evaluations that the Director determines are necessary to carry out the requirements of this subchapter. The Director shall appoint such per- sonnel, except that officers and employees of the United States shall comprise no more than 1⁄4 of the members of any such group or committee and shall not receive additional compensation for their service as members of such a group or committee. The Director shall ensure that re- viewers are highly qualified and capable to ap- praise education research and development projects. Chapter 10 of title 5 shall not apply to a peer-review group or an advisory committee established under this subsection. (h) Review The Director may, when requested by other of- ficers of the Department, and shall, when di- rected by the Secretary, review the products and publications of other offices of the Department to certify that evidence-based claims about those products and publications are scientif- ically valid. (Pub. L. 107–279, title I, § 114, Nov. 5, 2002, 116 Stat. 1946; Pub. L. 117–286, § 4(a)(153), Dec. 27, 2022, 136 Stat. 4322.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Level II of the Executive Schedule, referred to in sub- sec. (c), is set out in section 5313 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. AMENDMENTS 2022—Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 117–286 substituted ‘‘Chapter 10 of title 5’’ for ‘‘The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.)’’. § 9515. Priorities (a) Proposal The Director shall propose to the Board prior- ities for the Institute (taking into consideration long-term research and development on core issues conducted through the national research and development centers). The Director shall identify topics that may require long-term re- search and topics that are focused on under- standing and solving particular education prob- lems and issues, including those associated with the goals and requirements of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), and the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), such as— (1) closing the achievement gap between high-performing and low-performing children, especially achievement gaps between minority and nonminority children and between dis- advantaged children and such children’s more advantaged peers; and (2) ensuring— (A) that all children have the ability to ob- tain a high-quality education (from early childhood through postsecondary education) and reach, at a minimum, proficiency on challenging State academic achievement standards and State academic assessments, particularly in mathematics, science, and reading or language arts; (B) access to, and opportunities for, post- secondary education; and (C) the efficacy, impact on academic achievement, and cost-effectiveness of tech- nology use within the Nation’s schools. (b) Approval The Board shall approve or disapprove the pri- orities for the Institute proposed by the Direc- tor, including any necessary revision of those priorities. The Board shall transmit any prior- ities so approved to the appropriate congres- sional committees. (c) Consistency The Board shall ensure that priorities of the Institute and the National Education Centers are consistent with the mission of the Institute. (d) Public availability and comment (1) Priorities Before submitting to the Board proposed pri- orities for the Institute, the Director shall make such priorities available to the public for comment for not less than 60 days (includ- ing by means of the Internet and through pub- lishing such priorities in the Federal Reg- ister). The Director shall provide to the Board a copy of each such comment submitted. (2) Plan Upon approval of such priorities, the Direc- tor shall make the Institute’s plan for address- ing such priorities available for public com- ment in the same manner as under paragraph (1). (Pub. L. 107–279, title I, § 115, Nov. 5, 2002, 116 Stat. 1948; Pub. L. 108–446, title II, § 201(b)(2)(C), Dec. 3, 2004, 118 Stat. 2802.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, referred to in subsec. (a), is Pub. L. 89–10, Apr. 11, 1965, 79 Stat. 27, which is classified generally to chapter 70 (§ 6301 et seq.) of this title. For complete classifica- tion of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 6301 of this title and Tables. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, re- ferred to in subsec. (a), is title VI of Pub. L. 91–230, Apr. 13, 1970, 84 Stat. 175, which is classified generally to chapter 33 (§ 1400 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 1400 of this title and Tables. The Higher Education Act of 1965, referred to in sub- sec. (a), is Pub. L. 89–329, Nov. 8, 1965, 79 Stat. 1219, which is classified generally to chapter 28 (§ 1001 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 1001 of this title and Tables.