Research grants

(a) Grants authorized The Secretary is authorized to award grants to institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations, in partnership with local educational agencies, in order to enable those recipients to evaluate and scale promising practices regarding— (1) educator preparation strategies and instructional and leadership practices that improve student achievement, including closing achievement gaps among— (A) each major racial and ethnic group; (B) economically disadvantaged students as compared to students who are not economically disadvantaged; (C) children with disabilities as compared to children without disabilities; (D) English proficiency status; (E) gender; and (F) migrant status; (2) evidence-based staffing, residency, induction, mentoring, and career advancement models that improve educator recruitment and retention; (3) strategies to expand access to high-quality educator preparation programs in rural, high-need, and underserved communities; (4) high-impact tutoring as a clinical component of educator preparation; and (5) emerging technology tools, such as AI-driven tutoring platforms, virtual-reality classroom simulations, and avatar-based coaching tools to improve candidate readiness and reduce training costs. (b) Authorization of appropriations There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section. (c) Rule of construction Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the use of technology to supplant or replace educators in the classroom.