(a) Establishment.—There is established in the Treasury of the United States, in tribute to the dedicated crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger, a trust fund to be known as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Endeavor Teacher Fellowship Trust Fund (hereafter in this section referred to as the “Trust Fund”). The Trust Fund shall consist of amounts which may from time to time, at the discretion of the Administrator, be transferred from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Gifts and Donations Trust Fund.
Terms Used In 51 USC 40902
- Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- Public debt: Cumulative amounts borrowed by the Treasury Department or the Federal Financing Bank from the public or from another fund or account. The public debt does not include agency debt (amounts borrowed by other agencies of the Federal Government). The total public debt is subject to a statutory limit.
(b) Investment of Trust Fund.—The Administrator shall direct the Secretary of the Treasury to invest and reinvest funds in the Trust Fund in public debt securities with maturities suitable for the needs of the Trust Fund, and bearing interest at rates determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration the current average market yield on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States of comparable maturities. Interest earned shall be credited to the Trust Fund.
(c) Purpose.—Income accruing from the Trust Fund principal shall be used to create the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Endeavor Teacher Fellowship Program, to the extent provided in advance in appropriation Acts. The Administrator is authorized to use such funds to award fellowships to selected United States nationals who are undergraduate students pursuing a course of study leading to certified teaching degrees in elementary education or in secondary education in mathematics, science, or technology disciplines. Awards shall be made pursuant to standards established for the fellowship program by the Administrator.
(d) Availability of Funds.—The interest accruing from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Endeavor Teacher Fellowship Trust Fund principal shall be available in fiscal year 2012 for the purpose of the Endeavor Science Teacher Certificate Program.
