STEM: Meeting a Critical Demand for Excellence

“Improving education in math and science is about producing engineers, researchers, scientists, and innovators who are going to help transform our economy and our lives for the better. But, it’s also about something more. It’s about expanding opportunity for all Americans in a world where an education is the key to success."
                                                                                                                                                                 -President Barack Obama (11/23/09)

The Issue

The U.S. still has the strongest scientific and technological enterprise and the best research universities in the world. However, numerous business and government leaders are voicing concern that we are in danger of losing our economic advantage if we fail to re-commit ourselves to increasing the pipeline of U.S. talent into the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). This pipeline of talent must begin with early educational experiences and opportunities. Evidence suggests that not only are K-12 students in the United States falling behind their peers internationally in measures of math and science performance, but the current teacher workforce in the U.S. is not trained to provide a demanding math and science curriculum. As a result, U.S. students are not filling the seats in our nation's post-secondary science and math programs. Our country needs qualified U.S. employees to fill crucial national security, innovative science, and leading technology jobs. Supporting gifted and talented students with appropriate services in every school district would bring promising results in increased college attendance in math and science, resulting in a direct pipeline of talent for the future.

Read more about gifted children and STEM.