Coalition Urges Senate Offices to Sign Merkley-Franken Dear Colleague Letter
To All Senate Offices:
On behalf of the STEM Education Coalition, I urge you to sign the Merkley-Franken Dear Colleague letter in support of FY2014 Appropriations for the Math and Science Partnership program at the Department of Education and a pilot initiative to establish a STEM Master Teacher Corps. The letter is attached. Current signers include: Gillibrand, Shaheen, Stabenow, Levin, Menendez. The text of the letter is attached. To sign on, contact Susan Lexer in Sen. Merkley’s office or Amanda Beaumont in Sen. Franken’s office. Deadline for signers is tomorrow.
Please see this letter signed by more than 70 organizations in support of the proposed STEM Master Teacher Corps initiative. Also attached is a fact sheet on the Math and Science Partnership program, which provides funding to each state to support STEM education efforts at the K-12 level. Attached is a chart showing funding for each state over the past 10 years.
The central mission our Coalition is to inform federal and state policymakers on the critical role that STEM education plays in U.S. competitiveness and future economic prosperity and to advocate for policies that will improve STEM education at every level.
STEM education must be elevated as a national priority as reflected through education reforms, policies to drive innovation, and federal and state spending priorities. STEM education is also closely linked with our nation’s economic prosperity in the modern global economy; strong STEM skills are a central element of a well-rounded education and essential to effective citizenship. Our nation must expand the capacity and diversity of the STEM workforce pipeline to prepare more students for the best jobs of the future that will keep the U.S. innovative, secure and competitive.
Why is STEM Education a National Priority?
Council on Foreign Relations: “60 percent of U.S. employers are having difficulties finding qualified workers to fill vacancies at their companies.”
Change the Equation: “In the current overall employment market, unemployed people outnumber job postings 3.6 to one. In the STEM occupations, job postings outnumbered unemployed people by 1.9 to one.”
National Governors Association Center for Best Practices: “At all levels of educational attainment, STEM job holders earn 11 percent higher wages compared with their same-degree counterparts in other jobs.”
Georgetown Center for Education and the Workforce: “47 percent of Bachelor’s degrees in STEM occupations earn more than PhDs in non-STEM occupations.”
Thank you for your consideration.
Respectfully,
-James
