§ 1746a — Acquisition Workforce Educational Partnerships

(a) The Secretary of Defense, acting through the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, shall establish a program within Defense Acquisition University to— (1) facilitate the engagement of relevant experts, including with the acquisition research activities established under section 4142 of this title, with the faculty of the Defense Acquisition University to assess and modify the curriculum of the Defense Acquisition University, as appropriate, to enhance the capabilities of the Defense Acquisition University to support educational, training, and research activities in support of acquisition missions of the Department of Defense; (2) establish a cross-discipline, peer mentoring program for academic advising and to address critical retention concerns with respect to the acquisition workforce; (3) partner with extramural institutions and military department functional leadership to offer training and on-the-job learning support to all members of the acquisition workforce addressing operational challenges that affect procurement decisionmaking; (4) support the partnerships between the Department of Defense and extramural institutions with missions relating to the training and continuous development of members of the acquisition workforce; (5) accelerate the adoption, appropriate design and customization, and use of flexible acquisition practices by the acquisition workforce by expanding the availability of training and on-the-job learning and guidance on such practices and incorporating such training into the curriculum of the Defense Acquisition University; and (6) support and enhance the capabilities of the faculty of the Defense Acquisition University, and the currency and applicability of the knowledge possessed by such faculty, by— (A) building partnerships between the faculty of the Defense Acquisition University and the director of, and individuals involved with, the activities established under section 4142 of this title; (B) supporting the preparation and drafting of the reports required under subsection (f)(2); and (C) instituting a program under which each member of the faculty of the Defense Acquisition University shall be detailed to an operational acquisition position in a military department or Defense Agency, or to an extramural institution, for not less than six months out of every five year period. (b) Not later than 180 days after the enactment of this section, the President of the Defense Acquisition University shall designate a senior official to execute activities under this section. (c) The Secretary of Defense may direct other elements of the Department of Defense to provide personnel, resources, and other support to the program established under this section, as the Secretary determines appropriate. (d) Subject to the availability of appropriations, the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment may use amounts available in the Defense Acquisition Workforce and Development Account (as established under section 1705 of this title) to carry out the requirements of this section. (e) Not later than September 30, 2022, and annually thereafter, the President of the Defense Acquisition University shall submit to the Secretary of Defense and the congressional defense committees a report describing the activities conducted under this section during the one-year period ending on the date on which such report is submitted. (f) Section 1080(a) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 114–92; 129 Stat. 1000; 10 U.S.C. 111 note), as amended by section 1061(j) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (Public Law 114–328; 130 Stat. 2405; 10 U.S.C. 111 note), does not apply with respect to the reports required to be submitted to Congress under this section. (g) In this section: (1) The term “acquisition workforce” has the meaning given such term in section 1705(g) of this title. (2) The term “extramural institutions” means participants in an activity established under section 4142 of this title, public sector organizations, and nonprofit credentialing organizations.