Partners will include high need or rural school districts, a college or university and the private sector.  Grants will be used to improve the teaching of science through the integration of hands-on learning into science education programs at high school laboratories as part of a comprehensive plan to improve the quality of science instruction and student learning outcomes.

According to the United States Government Accountability Office, it has been found that approximately 40 percent of those college students who left the science fields reported some problems related to high school science preparation.  Cited problems included a lack of laboratory experience and no introduction to theoretical or to analytical modes of thought.  The GAO also found that 49.1 percent of schools where the minority student population is greater than 50.5 percent reported not meeting functional requirements for laboratory science well or not at all.

This legislation has the support of the American Chemical Society and the National Science Teachers Association.