The Policy Forum is a 501(c) non-profit entity created by the STEM Education Coalition to bring a deeper focus to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education policy issues through public events, partnerships with state and local education stakeholders, policy roundtables, and other activities designed to improve our understanding of key STEM issues.
Recent Events and Updates
On Wednesday, April 19, the STEM Education provided recommendations to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee on priorities in the Education Science Reform Act reauthorization process. “A key aspect of elevating the STEM subjects as a national priority is developing a betterunderstanding about which students, teachers, schools and communities have access andopportunity to have high-quality STEM learning opportunities, both in and outside theirclassrooms. The Institute for Education Sciences (IES) at the Department of Education can playan important role in helping both policymakers and education leaders at the state and locallevel have greater insights into how best to employ their limited resources to benefit thegreatest number of students in STEM subjects and experiences,” the letter states. Read the full letter below: Letter-STEM-Ed-Coalition-to-HELP-on-ESRA-4-19-1Download
The STEM Education Coalition invites interested stakeholders to sign-on to a statement of principles document calling for policymakers to prioritize science education. As the principles state, a “scientifically literate society is essential to both a healthy democracy and to our future economic prosperity. Unfortunately, our nation is falling behind in science education at a time when its critical importance is rapidly rising. Our policymakers can and must act to elevate the priority of science education in our nation’s federal and state level education laws.” Please view the full document below along with a link to sign-on as a supporting organization. View document here. Sign-on here.
The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) will host a series of virtual listening sessions to inform the development of the 2023- 2028 Federal Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Strategic Plan. As part of a robust public engagement plan, OSTP encourages input from all interested parties, including students, teachers, administrators, parents, researchers, employers, and others to provide information and perspectives on the challenges faced by – and within – the STEM ecosystem in the United States and solutions that might be implemented by the U.S. Government. The six upcoming listening sessions will be as follows: STEM Education: Support learners and educators in and across all science and technology disciplines. Wednesday, March 15, 2023 from 3pm-5pm ET Register at: https://ida-org.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJIsceGqrjgjGNrFGmA3UrJz-XyEDItVXbA STEM Workforce Development: Prepare and recruit our Nation’s future STEM workforce. Friday, March 17, 2023 from 2pm-4pm ET Register at: https://ida-org.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJIsduGrqjwuHYhvjoro9itcpDyMX91kvPY STEM Workforce: Foster inclusive STEM learning and working spaces to retain STEM learners and workers. Monday, March 20, 2023 from 3pm-5pm ET Register at: https://ida-org.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJItdeugpzMuHAySQQNgawSNMJOHLX2iiao STEM Engagement: Foster meaningful community and public engagement in science and technology. Wednesday, March 22, 2023 from 4pm-6pm ET Register at: https://ida-org.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJItcOuvqT8tGytFhXGPtQ9cukAhdagCAcQ STEM Research and Innovation Capacity: Build and drive capacity and cutting-edge STEM (and STEM education) research and development. Friday, March 24, 2023 from 2pm-4pm ET Register at: https://ida-org.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJIsf-qvpjooE3je94jU9nosqi4Vjyy-vCk The National STEM Ecosystem Monday, March 27, 2023 from 6pm-8pm ET Register at: https://ida-org.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJIscOysrTwtGY64BQqMATzWSBdMBU-H810
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On Wednesday, March 1, the STEM Education Coalition delivered a letter to Congressional appropriations leaders outlining FY 2024 priorities for federal STEM education investments. The letter touches on appropriations for programs that support STEM education programming in out-of-school settings, competitive grants to support STEM innovation and research, professional development for STEM educators, and programs to support STEM workforce development in the CHIPS and Science Act enacted last year. View the full letter below. Letter – STEM Education Coalition Funding Priorities 2-23-23Download
On Tuesday, February 21st the STEM Education Coalition hosted a Congressional briefing to provide an overview STEM education issues facing the 118th Congress. The speakers were Karen Horting, the CEO and Executive Director of the Society of Women Engineers; Allyson Knox the Senior Director of Education Policy and Programs at Microsoft; Dr. Yvonne Lai a Milton Mohr Associate Professor at the University of Nebraska; and, Rhonda Foxx the Head of Global Corporate Affairs at Solidigm. James Brown, Executive Director of the Coalition, moderated the panel. The speakers discussed the challenges of supporting a diverse STEM workforce to meet the demand of STEM employers, ensuring all school districts have well-qualified educators in STEM subjects and the professional development they need, and how Congress can better align systems and efforts so stakeholders have more flexibility to respond to these challenges at a larger scale. A special thanks to our sponsors for making this briefing possible. STEM 101 Poster Final 2 – Feb. 21, 2023 (9)Download
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