The National Defense Education Act was a spending bill that lasted from 1958 to 1962 when it was repealed. It poured money into education at all levels. Politicians felt it was necessary because the
Soviet Union, thought to be essentially backward in terms of science and mathematics, successfully launched
Sputnik.
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From '
Encroaching Control':
The foot in the door of education has been the $900 million National Defense Education Act of 1958. The excuse, once again, was the Cold War, Russia had put a Sputnik into the heavens, obviously something must be wrong with our education system. And so we are presented with a picture of overcrowded classrooms, of destitute teachers and of bankrupt school districts.
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National Defense Education Act (Wikipedia)