The Secretary is authorized—
(1) to promote, coordinate, and evaluate gender equity policies, programs, activities, and initiatives in all Federal education programs and offices;
(2) to develop, maintain, and disseminate materials, resources, analyses, and research relating to education equity for women and girls;
(3) to provide information and technical assistance to assure the effective implementation of gender equity programs;
(4) to coordinate gender equity programs and activities with other Federal agencies with jurisdiction over education and related programs;
(5) to assist the Director of the Institute of Education Sciences in identifying research priorities related to education equity for women and girls; and
(6) to perform any other activities consistent with achieving the purposes of this subpart.
The Secretary is authorized to award grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with, public agencies, private nonprofit agencies, organizations, institutions, student groups, community groups, and individuals, for a period not to exceed 4 years, to—
(A) provide grants to develop model equity programs; and
(B) provide funds for the implementation of equity programs in schools throughout the Nation.
To achieve the purposes of this subpart, the Secretary is authorized to provide support and technical assistance—
(A) to implement effective gender-equity policies and programs at all educational levels, including—
(i) assisting educational agencies and institutions to implement policies and practices to comply with title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 [20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.];
(ii) training for teachers, counselors, administrators, and other school personnel, especially preschool and elementary school personnel, in gender equitable teaching and learning practices;
(iii) leadership training for women and girls to develop professional and marketable skills to compete in the global marketplace, improve self-esteem, and benefit from exposure to positive role models;
(iv) school-to-work transition programs, guidance and counseling activities, and other programs to increase opportunities for women and girls to enter a technologically demanding workplace and, in particular, to enter highly skilled, high paying careers in which women and girls have been underrepresented;
(v) enhancing educational and career opportunities for those women and girls who suffer multiple forms of discrimination, based on sex, and on race, ethnic origin, limited English proficiency, disability, socioeconomic status, or age;
(vi) assisting pregnant students and students rearing children to remain in or to return to secondary school, graduate, and prepare their preschool children to start school;
(vii) evaluating exemplary model programs to assess the ability of such programs to advance educational equity for women and girls;
(viii) introduction into the classroom of textbooks, curricula, and other materials designed to achieve equity for women and girls;
(ix) programs and policies to address sexual harassment and violence against women and girls and to ensure that educational institutions are free from threats to the safety of students and personnel;
(x) nondiscriminatory tests of aptitude and achievement and of alternative assessments that eliminate biased assessment instruments from use;
(xi) programs to increase educational opportunities, including higher education, vocational training, and other educational programs for low-income women, including underemployed and unemployed women, and women receiving assistance under a State program funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act [42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.];
(xii) programs to improve representation of women in educational administration at all levels; and
(xiii) planning, development, and initial implementation of—
(I) comprehensive institutionwide or districtwide evaluation to assess the presence or absence of gender equity in educational settings;
(II) comprehensive plans for implementation of equity programs in State educational agencies and local educational agencies and institutions of higher education, including community colleges; and
(III) innovative approaches to school-community partnerships for educational equity; and
(B) for research and development, which shall be coordinated with each of the National Education Centers of the Institute of Education Sciences to avoid duplication of research efforts, designed to advance gender equity nationwide and to help make policies and practices in educational agencies and institutions, and local communities, gender equitable, including—
(i) research and development of innovative strategies and model training programs for teachers and other education personnel;
(ii) the development of high-quality and challenging assessment instruments that are nondiscriminatory;
(iii) the development and evaluation of model curricula, textbooks, software, and other educational materials to ensure the absence of gender stereotyping and bias;
(iv) the development of instruments and procedures that employ new and innovative strategies to assess whether diverse educational settings are gender equitable;
(v) the development of instruments and strategies for evaluation, dissemination, and replication of promising or exemplary programs designed to assist local educational agencies in integrating gender equity in their educational policies and practices;
(vi) updating high-quality educational materials previously developed through awards made under this subpart;
(vii) the development of policies and programs to address and prevent sexual harassment and violence to ensure that educational institutions are free from threats to safety of students and personnel;
(viii) the development and improvement of programs and activities to increase opportunity for women, including continuing educational activities, vocational education, and programs for low-income women, including underemployed and unemployed women, and women receiving assistance under the State program funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act [42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.]; and
(ix) the development of guidance and counseling activities, including career education programs, designed to ensure gender equity.
(Pub. L. 89–10, title V, §5613, as added Pub. L. 107–110, title V, §501, Jan. 8, 2002, 115 Stat. 1868; amended Pub. L. 107–279, title IV, §404(d)(7), Nov. 5, 2002, 116 Stat. 1986.)
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