On December 15, 100Kin10, alongside about 20 100Kin10 partner organizations*, 100Kin10 launched “Every Student Succeeds with STEM” – the online hub supporting 100Kin10 partners’ collective effort to respond strategically and smartly to the Every Student Succeeds Act, specifically with the aim to ensure that state and local implementation plans include a priority on STEM teaching and learning. On the hub one can find messaging guidelines, easy opportunities to get involved, and helpful resources. This shared campaign grew from a 100Kin10 solution lab – a 100Kin10 convening that moves partners to collaborative action: partners co-funding the creation of a concrete product, strategy, approach, or intervention that’s beyond the capacity of any single partner to afford or design on their own.
The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) became law in late 2015, when President Obama signed the bipartisan reauthorization of the national education law and replaced the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The new law continues to require challenging academic standards and accountability systems in every state, and now puts greater emphasis on ensuring equity and explicitly calls for all students to have access to a well-rounded education. Across the country, every state is developing a new plan to submit to the U.S. Department of Education detailing how they will implement ESSA.
ESSA also includes a significant shift of decision-making to the state and local levels, providing states with flexibility to set new policy and funding priorities. In light of this new flexibility, we must come together as a STEM community and call for STEM teachers and learning to be a priority, in order to ensure all our children have the opportunity for not only a great education, but also to pursue the college or career pathway of their choice.
The hub outlines several ways to get involved. Stakeholders from across the STEM education space are invited to take the following easy steps:
1. Navigate to the Every Student Succeeds with STEM campaign hub to learn more about the law and how to support STEM.
2. Amplify the campaign by using one of the ready-made graphics to tweet or post on Facebook (and follow @success_STEM while you’re at it); you can also send the hub directly to your networks.
3. Contact your Chief State School Officer to promote STEM, using the tools on the campaign hub.
*Co-investing partners include:
* American Federation of Teachers (leadership co-investing partner)
* Arizona Science Center
* Battelle, STEMx (leadership co-investing partner)
* BSCS
* California State University
* Math for America (leadership co-investing partner)
* Math Teachers Circle Network
* Museum of Science and Industry (leadership co-investing partner)
* National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity
* National Center for Technological Literacy, Museum of Science Boston (leadership co-investing partner)
* National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
* National Science Teachers Association (leadership co-investing partner)
* Rider University
* Teach For America
* The UTeach Institute
* TRC - UT Austin
* Washington STEM (leadership co-investing partner)
* Western Governors University
