S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7088
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              March 20, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of A. BICHOTTE HERMELYN -- 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  (p)  to  read  as
 follows:
   (P)  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 CHAIR OF THE CORPORATION, IN COOPERATION WITH THE COMMISSIONER
 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 PARAGRAPH.
   (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,
 INSTITUTIONS  OF HIGHER EDUCATION, NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, OTHER PUBLIC
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD10986-01-5
              

 A. 7088                             2
 
 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 TWENTY-FIVE--TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-SIX
 SCHOOL YEAR. AT THE END OF THE FIVE YEAR PERIOD, THE CHAIR 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
 shall remain available for awards in subsequent school  years;  provided
 A. 7088                             3
 
 that  in  the  event that the chair 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.