STEM supports; committee for STEM.

Sec. 36a. (1) From the state school aid fund money appropriated in section 11, there is allocated for 2026-2027 only an amount not to exceed $5,000,000.00 for the purposes described in this section, including payments to improve educational outcomes in STEM. (2) The department shall create the committee for STEM achievement, which must include representatives of higher education and STEM educators who have expertise in STEM instruction and research. The committee for STEM achievement shall exist until at least September 2029. The department shall appoint the members of the committee for STEM achievement. The department shall develop a process to identify and assemble experts for the committee for STEM achievement. The primary focus of the committee for STEM achievement is to recommend tools and strategies with the goal of increasing student academic outcomes in the areas of STEM. The committee for STEM achievement is encouraged to collaborate with entities with expertise on the subject of STEM. The department shall determine the size and benchmarks of the committee for STEM achievement. The committee for STEM achievement shall do both of the following: (a) Critically evaluate applicable STEM tools or services for classroom instruction for pupils in grades 3 to 8 that the committee for STEM achievement determines to have a high likelihood or demonstrated history of increasing student STEM outcomes. The committee for STEM achievement may perform an evaluation under this subdivision based on submissions from a vendor, but must independently verify the validity of information provided by the vendor. The committee for STEM achievement is also strongly encouraged to evaluate available materials not submitted to the department by a vendor. (b) Create, maintain, and post annually on a publicly available website a rankings list of all STEM items that the committee for STEM achievement has evaluated. This includes items from each part of the rankings list, items evaluated in the 2026-2027 school year, and any subsequent items evaluated going forward. The committee for STEM achievement shall denote on the list whether major changes have been made to a STEM item on the list since the STEM item was evaluated by the committee for STEM achievement and if the STEM item has not been evaluated since the last ranking. (3) An individual on the committee for STEM achievement shall recuse themselves from evaluating STEM items that the individual has helped create, that the individual would benefit from financially, or for which the individual has any other conflict of interest. (4) From the funds allocated in subsection (1), the department shall make payments to districts and intermediate districts in an amount determined by the department. The department shall not make payments under this subsection until the committee for STEM achievement has critically evaluated as many STEM items from subsection (2) as possible. If funding remains after all payments have been made to districts and intermediate districts, the department may open a second round of applications. The department shall award funding under this subsection as a formula grant in an amount equal to the amount necessary for the district or intermediate district to implement the chosen STEM item until funding is depleted. The department may place a cap on the total award per district or intermediate district. Funds under this subsection may not be used to purchase curricula that may be purchased using funds under section 36. (5) From the funding allocated in subsection (1), the department may pay an annual stipend of up to $8,000.00 for each member of the committee for STEM achievement who is employed by or at a public institution of higher education, a district, or an intermediate district. A stipend paid under this subsection must be commensurate with the committee member's contribution to the committee for STEM achievement. Funding must be paid to the public institution of higher education, the district, or the intermediate district where the committee member is employed, and the public institution of higher education, the district, or the intermediate district must then use funding received to award the stipend directly to the individual committee member. A committee member who is not employed by or at a public institution of higher education, a district, or an intermediate district is not eligible to receive a stipend under this subsection. (6) To be eligible for funding under this section, a district or intermediate district must apply in a form and manner determined by the department. As a condition of receiving the funding, the district or intermediate district must agree to provide to the department information twice per year, on or before May 1 and October 1, on the STEM items used for the previous and current school years, and the STEM items to be used for the next school year. The STEM items used by districts and intermediate districts must be added to the annual rankings required under subsection (2). (7) Except as otherwise provided in this section and notwithstanding section 17b, the department shall make payments under this section on a schedule determined by the department. (8) Funds allocated under subsection (1) for 2026-2027 are a work project appropriation, and any unexpended funds for 2026-2027 are carried forward into 2027-2028. The purpose of the work project is to improve STEM instructional practices. The estimated completion date of the work project is September 30, 2029. (9) As used in this section, "STEM" means science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.