House of Representatives Passes ‘Simon Bill’

On June 5th, the House of Representatives passed the ‘Simon Bill’, named after late Sen. Paul Simon (D-IL). The Bill (available in full here) was created to address certain features of the American student population. Above all, the fact that US students score below their foreign counterparts on indicators of international knowledge is something the Bill emphasizes and seeks to correct. It also proposes sending US students to ‘nontraditional study abroad destinations’ as the perhaps most efficient method of fulfilling this purpose.

The bill calls for the establishment of a corporation named 'The Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation'. This Foundation is to be governed by a Board of Directors chaired by the Secretary of State. According to the directives stated in the Bill, the Foundation will be responsible for raising funds from the private sector to supplement those made available under the Act itself.

The Bill presents three main objectives for the Foundation:

· Within 10 years to have not less than one million undergraduate US students studying abroad annually within ten years.
· To have the student population studying abroad reflect the demographics of the undergraduate population as a whole
· To increase the percentage of study abroad students opting for nontraditional destinations

The passing of the Bill has generated a considerable amount of attention. Congressman Tom Lantos (D-CA), Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, is among those who has acknowledged the significance of the Bill in a written statement. Lantos' understanding of the Bill's potential is echoed by Senator Richard Durbin, who promises to follow up in the Senate. The American Council of Education reports: "The strong support that the Paul Simon Study Abroad Act received as it passed in the House was very encouraging," Durbin said in a written statement. "An international study abroad program will help provide the next generation of Americans a deeper understanding of the cultures and histories of other nations. I will work to see that this legislation is considered in the Senate”. To read more, click here.