(a) The Secretary of Defense shall authorize the director of each defense laboratory to enter into one or more education partnership agreements with educational institutions in the United States for the purpose of encouraging and enhancing study in scientific disciplines at all levels of education. The educational institutions referred to in the preceding sentence are local educational agency, colleges, universities, and any other nonprofit institutions that are dedicated to improving science, mathematics, business, law, technology transfer or transition and engineering education.

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(b) Under a partnership agreement entered into with an educational institution under this section, the director of a defense laboratory may provide, and is encouraged to provide, assistance to the educational institution by—

(1) loaning defense laboratory equipment to the institution for any purpose and duration in support of such agreement that the director considers appropriate;

(2) notwithstanding the provisions of subtitle I of title 40 and division C (except sections 3302, 3501(b), 3509, 3906, 4710, and 4711) of subtitle I of title 41 or any provision of law or regulation relating to transfers of surplus property, transferring to the institution any computer equipment, or other scientific equipment, that is—

(A) commonly used by educational institutions;

(B) surplus to the needs of the defense laboratory; and

(C) determined by the director to be appropriate for support of such agreement;

(3) making laboratory personnel available to teach science courses or to assist in the development of science courses and materials for the institution;

(4) providing in the defense laboratory sabbatical opportunities for faculty and internship opportunities for students;

(5) involving faculty and students of the institution in defense laboratory projects, including research and technology transfer or transition projects;

(6) cooperating with the institution in developing a program under which students may be given academic credit for work on defense laboratory projects, including research and technology transfer or transition projects; and

(7) providing academic and career advice and assistance to students of the institution.

(c) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the director of each defense laboratory shall give a priority under this section to entering into an education partnership agreement with one or more historically Black colleges and universities and other minority institutions referred to in paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) of section 312(b) ¹ of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1058(b)).

(d) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that, in entering into education partnership agreements under this section, the director of a defense laboratory gives a priority to providing assistance to educational institutions serving women, members of minority groups, and other groups of individuals who traditionally are involved in the engineering and science professions in disproportionately low numbers.

(e) The Secretary of Defense may permit the director of a defense laboratory to enter into a cooperative agreement with an appropriate entity to act as an intermediary and assist the director in carrying out activities under this section.

(f) In this section:

(1) The term “defense laboratory” means any laboratory, product center, test center, depot, training and educational organization, or operational command under the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense.

(2) The term “local educational agency” has the meaning given such term in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.

(3) The term “United States” includes the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any other territory or possession of the United States.