Establishing White House Initiative for STEM Educational Excellence & Workforce Development at the U.S. Department of Education
Our national security and competitive edge rely on our science and technological innovation. Now more than ever every child deserves access to a well-rounded and high-quality education that provides them with the critical thinking, problem solving skills that will enable them to access science and technology jobs and contribute to solving global challenges. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics education (STEM). For the purposes of this memo STEM includes computer science, data science, AI and other emerging technology fields in addition to science, engineering and mathematics education. Education and workforce development must be at the forefront of the next administration.
The next administration’s Department of Education (ED) has an incredible opportunity to support our nation’s youth, America’s current and future workforce, to succeed and thrive. Students, families and communities want and need more STEM learning experiences to realize the American Dream, and yet they cannot access them.
In the FY25 President’s Budget, ED called for four full time employees to focus on STEM in the Office of the Deputy Secretary, yet the out-going Administration failed to support this imperative. We hope that this imperative is funded and staffed by the new Administration.
Challenge and Opportunity
Now more than ever our economy and national defense call for every child to have access to a well-rounded and high-quality education that sets them up for success and provides them with the critical thinking and problem solving skills that will enable them to access economic opportunities and contribute to solving global challenges. A well-rounded education must include science, technology, engineering and mathematics education (STEM) and especially STEM learning experiences both in- and out-of-school that provide students with technical skills through hands-on, problem/project-based learning.
The Invest in America package of bills (CHIPS + Science, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act) have created decades of employment opportunities that unfortunately may in some regions of the nation go lacking for talent unless we significantly invest in providing a strong well-rounded STEM education to every child.
The future workforce is not the only reason that ED must prioritize STEM teaching as part of their agenda. Kids and families are voting with their feet. Chronic absenteeism, defined as missing 10 or more days of school, has more than doubled since pre-pandemic rates. We must modernize STEM learning opportunities and ensure they are rigorous, relevant and aligned to what kids and families want.
Most teens report math or science as their favorite subject in school. Seventy-five percent of Gen Z youth are interested in STEM occupations. Two-thirds of parents think computer science should be required for learning in schools. According to the Afterschool Alliance, “More than 7 in 10 parents (72 percent) report that STEM and computer science learning opportunities were important in their selection of an afterschool program, up 19 percentage points from 2014 (53 percent).”
Simply put, students want more STEM opportunities and families want more STEM opportunities for their children.
Yet, we know that despite students’ interest in STEM and natural proclivity towards problem solving, too many students don’t have access to STEM learning experiences both in- and out-of-school. Strategic industries ranging from aerospace to communications and agriculture to energy, and many more presently clamor for and compete unproductively to chase talented new employees. The federal government owes it to them to take any and all actions to meet their employment needs, prominently including casting a wider net across the nation’s entire young population for talent.
For example, across the board, NAEP results consistently show that students of color, students who are eligible for free and reduced-price lunch, students with disabilities and English language learners are not well served by our current system. On the 2018 NAEP Technology and Engineering Literacy Assessment, 13% of 8th grade students with disabilities scored at or above proficient compared to 53% of students without a disability. Fifty-nine percent of 8th grade White students scored at or above proficient compared to 23% Black students, 31% Hispanic, 29% of American Indian/Alaska Native. On the 2018 TEL assessment, 30% of students who are eligible for free or reduced-priced lunch scored at or above proficient compared to 60% who are not eligible for the program. These gaps also play out in Math and Science leading to just 6% of Black 12th graders, 9% of Hispanic 12th graders, 13% of American Indian/Alaska Native 12th graders, 7% of 12th graders with disabilities, and 1% of English Learners leaving high school proficient in science. The reality in math is just as stark with only 8% of Black 12th graders, 11% of Hispanic 12th graders, 9% of American Indian/Alaska Native 12th graders, 7% of 12th graders with disabilities, and 3% of English Learners finishing high school proficient in mathematics. The United States can ill afford to half-heartedly serve the educational needs of many of our students in this era of great demand. It is a profound responsibility of the federal government.
While progress is being made to provide more students with high-quality STEM learning during out-of-school time, we know that access is unequal. Children whose families have lower incomes are often the ones missing out on these engaging and enriching opportunities. It is estimated that there are 25 million children who would like access to an afterschool program, but are not able to access any program, let alone a STEM focused program.
We must change this reality quickly. Prioritizing STEM education must be an urgent priority for the Federal government. Luckily, the Federal government has built up significant infrastructure to try to better align federal resources to support this issue. The Federal Coordination on STEM (FC-STEM) effort aligns agencies to support the implementation of key priorities related to STEM.
While STEM has been prioritized across Federal Agencies, STEM has not been a consistent priority at ED. ED should be leading. The Department must establish a structure that persists between administrations and can support deploying financial resources, technical assistance and other tools of the Department to support States, Districts and their partners to increase access, participation and success in STEM learning both in and out-of-school.
In the FY25 President’s Budget, ED called for four full time employees to focus on STEM in the Office of the Deputy Secretary, yet the out-going Administration failed to support this imperative. We hope that this imperative is funded and staffed by the new Administration.
Plan of Action
There are two logical paths forward to ensuring STEM is a priority at ED both of which require establishing dedicated STEM capacity at ED.
First, the new administration could sign an inaugural executive order, similar to this example, but modified for STEM, that establishes a new White House Initiative for STEM Education and Workforce (WHISEW) that could stand alongside other White House initiatives and elevate STEM across the Department. This initiative would establish a STEM team at ED and could also name a list of advisors to ensure that ED could benefit from the expertise of non-government organizations.
Or, a new Congress could appropriate the necessary funds to ensure adequate staffing and direct ED to establish the STEM team as requested in the former President’s FY25 Budget.
Given the ever changing nature of STEM education and workforce, the STEM structure at ED should be a lean and nimble hub of talent that can staff up or down depending on the high-priority issue areas such as math, data science, computational thinking, AI and other emergent technologies.
Whatever structure is established, the primary priorities of the Initiative should include:
- Advancing educational and economic opportunities for all students
- Addressing lack of access, participation and success in STEM education for our nation’s students, which could include things like lack of access to low cost options, lack of access to courses offered in their school, etc.
- Elevating student, family and community voices and needs to ensure STEM learning is improved and modernized aligned to what students want and need
- Increasing data collection related to STEM learning by utilizing new and existing tools to provide more accurate and timely understanding of where STEM learning is and is not occurring
- Interagency coordination and regular engagement of non-government entities to drive a compelling STEM education agenda.
In the next administration, the team should focus on the following four priorities:
- Interagency Coordination and Increasing Access to public non-ED investments: P-12 educators, schools, districts and community based organizations have largely been left out of the funding opportunities available as a result of CHIPS and Science Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and Inflation Reduction Act. A STEM team should prioritize connection with the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Defense to ensure P-12 STEM education is not an afterthought in these investments and grant opportunities. The STEM Team at ED should provide technical assistance to State Education Agencies, local education agencies and community-based organizations to ensure these entities know how to partner and access the resources available in their communities.
- Translation of Evidence and Transparency of Outcomes: Despite STEM being a lower priority for ED, resources are still spent regularly on STEM teaching and learning through the Education Innovation and Research grant program, Institute of Education Sciences investments, 21st Century Community Learning Centers, and more. The STEM team should invest in codifying lessons learned and supporting the dissemination of evidence-based practices in coordination with IES and NSF. Additional recommendations for increasing transparency and improving research translation can be found here.
- Support deeper integration of Career-Connected and Academic Learning: every child needs access to career-connected learning and many states are leading the way to ensure students graduate from high school with career-connected credentials and a diploma. The Team should learn more from Indiana, Delaware, and Alabama and coordinate with the Office of Career Technical and Adult Education, U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of Commerce to spotlight and accelerate these examples through grant funding, additional challenge opportunities, a bright spot campaign and joint guidance on use of ESSA and WIOA funds. Additional ideas for increasing work-based learning for educators and students can be found here.
- Issuing an all-hands on deck call to action to support the STEM educator workforce: At least 55,000 teaching positions went unfilled this year, with long-term annual shortages set to double to 100,000 annually. Moreover, teachers have little confidence in their self-assessed ability to teach critical digital skills needed for an AI enabled future and in the profession at large. ED must work with the National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Labor, AmeriCorps and other agencies to launch an urgent talent strategy. This includes investing in underlying research and development to ensure we find innovative models of teaching that are more sustainable, enjoyable and impactful. (See: More details on a national talent surge.)
- Expanding well-developed afterschool and summer STEM learning opportunities: It is estimated that there are 25 million children who would like access to an afterschool program, but are not able to access any program, let alone a STEM focused program. We need to pull kids away from screens and ensure they are connected to each other and caring adults, with opportunities to explore their interests. The ED team should coordinate with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, AmeriCorps, U.S. Department of Defense and National Science Foundation to dramatically expand access to high-quality out-of-school time STEM programs. This could look like establishing a White House Initiative on Community Learning Ecosystems or reestablishing the White House Council on Community Solutions and ensuring these initiatives emphasize STEM explicitly.
Regardless of pathway, it is estimated that the cost to the Department would be equivalent to four full time employees, one of whom would be appointed (Executive Director) and three of whom would be a GS-15 civil servant. This staff could be bolstered by STEM field leaders through fellowships, reimbursed by ED, or funded through partner institutions. The total cost of this investment would be estimated at ~$2.5M annually.
Conclusion
A relatively modest investment (~$2.5M annually) has the potential to impact generations of children, families and their communities by increasing access, participation and success in STEM learning experiences both in and out-of-school. The time is now to establish a permanent and consistent focus on STEM education and workforce at the U.S. Department of Education.
This action-ready policy memo is part of Day One 2025 — our effort to bring forward bold policy ideas, grounded in science and evidence, that can tackle the country’s biggest challenges and bring us closer to the prosperous, equitable and safe future that we all hope for whoever takes office in 2025 and beyond.
It is estimated that to support a small team (3 FTEs plus Fellows) it would cost approximately $5M annually. This cost would cover salary, benefits, travel, technology needs and also a modest events and programming budget.
The US Department of Education’s mission is to “promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.” STEM education is critical for supporting students’ global competitiveness. As outlined above, STEM education is not equally accessible to all students. The Department has a critical role to play in supporting STEM education and closing persistent access gaps in STEM.
STEM education cuts across PreK-12 and higher education priorities. Existing White House Initiatives have prior experience coordinating efforts across the department and across student learning experiences from cradle to career. Standing up a new White House Initiative would enable a more holistic and crosscutting view of STEM at the Department. It would also support further coordination between the other White House Initiatives as well. STEM is a priority in the governing documents of many of the current White House Initiatives and it would support collaboration and coherence to have a White House STEM Initiative with the same reporting structure.
One of the critical structure elements of STEM E3 is that the Executive Director of the Initiative is a politically appointed role, enabling each administration to select someone that aligns with their priorities and campaign promises. There should be at least one career staff member to provide continuity and sustainability across administrations. The flexible capacity of Fellows or IPAs allows the team to bring in expertise aligned to the priorities of each administration.
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Students, families and communities want and need more STEM learning experiences to realize the American Dream, and yet they cannot access them. Prioritizing STEM education must be an urgent priority for the federal government and the Department of Education.