[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2727 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
2d Session
S. 2727
To amend part A of title VI of the Higher Education Act of 1965
regarding international and foreign language studies.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 22, 2004
Mr. Dodd (for himself, Mr. Cochran, Mr. Durbin, and Mr. Feingold)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and
PensionsYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend part A of title VI of the Higher Education Act of 1965
regarding international and foreign language studies.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``International and Foreign Language
Studies Act of 2004''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) In recent years, foreign language needs have
significantly increased throughout the Federal Government due
to the presence of a wider range of security threats, the
emergence of new nation states, and the globalization of the
United States economy.
(2) Likewise, American businesses increasingly need
internationally and multiculturally experienced employees to
compete in the global economy and to manage a culturally
diverse workforce.
(3) Currently, the Federal Government requires 34,000
employees with foreign language skills across more than 70
Federal agencies.
(4) Federal agency officials have stated that, over the
years, translator and interpreter shortfalls have adversely
affected agency operations and hindered United States military,
law enforcement, intelligence, counterterrorism, and diplomatic
efforts.
(5) In a 2002 General Accounting Office report, the United
States Army reported that it was experiencing serious
shortfalls of translators and interpreters in 5 of its 6
critical languages: Arabic, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Persian-
Farsi, and Russian.
(6) The number of Foreign Language and Area Studies
Fellowships awarded in 2003 was 30 percent less than the number
awarded at its high point in 1967.
(7) In the 2000-2001 school year, the number of foreign
language degrees conferred was 1 percent of the total
undergraduate degrees conferred, less than .05 percent of the
total masters degrees conferred, and 1 percent of the total
doctoral degrees conferred.
(8) In the 2003 National Survey of Student Engagement, only
\2/5\ of undergraduates reported taking foreign language
coursework, while only 1 in 5 reported having studied abroad.
(9) Only 1 percent of all United States undergraduates
studied abroad in the 2001-2002 school year.
(10) In 2002, 79 percent of Americans agreed that students
should have a study-abroad experience sometime during college.
(11) More than 40 percent of Americans said they were more
likely to favor an increase in State funding for foreign
language education at their local college or university after
September 11, 2001.
SEC. 3. REFERENCES.
Except as otherwise expressly provided, wherever in this Act an
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal
of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to
be made to a section or other provision of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.).
SEC. 4. GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE LANGUAGE AND AREA CENTERS AND
PROGRAMS.
Section 602 (20 U.S.C. 1122) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(2)--
(A) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``and'' after
the semicolon;
(B) in subparagraph (H), by striking the period and
inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(I) support for instructors of the less commonly
taught languages.'';
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) in the subsection heading, by inserting ``and
Undergraduate'' after ``Graduate''; and
(B) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the
following:
``(2) Eligible student.--A student receiving a stipend
described in paragraph (1) shall be engaged--
``(A) in an instructional program with stated
performance goals for functional foreign language use
or in a program developing such performance goals, in
combination with area studies, international studies,
or the international aspects of a professional studies
program; and
``(B)(i) in the case of an undergraduate student,
in the intermediate or advanced study of a less
commonly taught language; or
``(ii) in the case of a graduate student, in
graduate study work in connection with a program
described in subparagraph (A), including
predissertation level study, preparation for
dissertation research, dissertation research abroad, or
dissertation writing.''; and
(3) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the
following:
``(d) Allowances.--
``(1) Graduate level recipients.--A stipend awarded to a
graduate level recipient may include allowances for dependents
and for travel for research and study in the United States and
abroad.
``(2) Undergraduate level recipients.--A stipend awarded to
an undergraduate level recipient may include an allowance for
educational programs in the United States or abroad that--
``(A) are closely linked to the overall goals of
the recipient's course of study; and
``(B) have the purpose of promoting foreign
language fluency and cultural knowledge.''.
SEC. 5. USE OF FUNDS IN UNDERGRADUATE INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND FOREIGN
LANGUAGE PROGRAMS.
Section 604 (20 U.S.C. 1124) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (2)--
(i) by redesignating subparagraphs (I)
through (M) as subparagraphs (J) through (N),
respectively; and
(ii) by inserting after subparagraph (H)
the following:
``(I) providing subgrants to undergraduate students
for educational programs abroad that--
(i) are closely linked to the overall goals
of the program for which the grant is awarded;
and
(ii) have the purpose of promoting foreign
language fluency and cultural knowledge;''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(9) Limitation on undergraduate grants.--An institution
of higher education, a combination of such institutions, or a
partnership awarded a grant under this section shall use not
more than 10 percent of the grant funds for the use described
in paragraph (2)(I).''; and
(2) by striking subsection (c).
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.
Section 605(a) (20 U.S.C. 1125(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (8), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period and inserting
``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(10) the systematic collection, analysis, and
dissemination of data that contribute to achieving the purposes
of this part.''.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 610 (20 U.S.C. 1128b) is amended by striking ``$80,000,000
for fiscal year 1999'' and inserting ``$120,000,000 for fiscal year
2005''.
<all>