Star Schools Program Assistance Act

Star Schools Program Assistance Act - Amends the Education for Economic Security Act to add a title establishing a star schools program. Cites the new title as the Star Schools Program Act.

Empowers the Secretary of Education to make demonstration grants of up to a fiscal year maximum of $20,000,000 per grant to eligible telecommunications partnerships for the development, construction, and acquisition of telecommunications facilities and equipment and for technical assistance.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1988 through 1992, subject to fiscal year limitations.

Sets forth eligibility criteria to identify eligible telecommunications partnerships, which must be organized on a statewide or multistate regional basis and be either: (1) a public agency or corporation established to provide education-related telecommunications networks to certain educational or health institutions or to industries; or (2) a partnership that will provide a telecommunications network and whose membership includes specified educational entities or public or private nonprofit organizations experienced with telecommunications.

Authorizes eligible partnerships to submit a grant application: (1) describing the telecommunications facilities, equipment, and technical assistance for which assistance is being sought; (2) providing assurances that the services offered will increase the availability of courses of instruction in mathematics, science, and foreign languages; and (3) containing other assurances and information as required by the Secretary.

Directs the Secretary, in approving applications, to give priority to certain applicants, including those partnerships that: (1) have the capacity to serve the broadest range of targeted institutions; (2) have substantial academic and teaching capabilities; (3) will serve a multistate area; and (4) demonstrate strength in mathematics, science, and foreign language resources which by distribution through the partnership will offer new educational opportunities.

Requires each grantee to report to the Secretary concerning courses and materials to be transmitted by satellite to educational institutions and teacher training centers and to specify the locus and time of such transmissions. Directs the Secretary to: (1) compile and prepare for dissemination a listing and description of the courses and materials submitted by each grantee; and (2) distribute such list to all State educational agencies.

Requires the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) to conduct a thorough investigation of the use of the telecommunications systems supported by the grants awarded under this Act and to submit quarterly reports to the Congress.

Directs the OTA to: (1) carry out, by September 30, 1991, a study and evaluation of the cost of designing, building, and launching a satellite for educational purposes, including an analysis of potential users' ability to repay such costs; and (2) study the demand for the use of such a satellite to find out whether potential users would be able to repay such costs within ten years. States that, if potential users can repay costs within ten years, the Congress should appropriate the funds necessary to launch a satellite for use in a space-based satellite education system.