I found this handy infographic while searching the web for facts and figures to use in my blog posts supporting public education in Cecil County. Notice the maps in the lower left corner of this image. They show the percentage of college undergraduates currently pursuing degrees in science and technology. As you can see, the US lags behind both India and China.
Why is this critical to the U.S.? There are some positions within our national security and military infrastructure that require prospective employees to be U.S. citizens. With our proximity to military installations, government contractors, and similar employers, jobs requiring skills and knowledge in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are a reality for many current county residents and, most likely, for future residents as well.
Why I believe in the importance of science and technology education
Let me start by saying that I am not an educator so I’m not in a position to debate the pros and cons of STEM vs other curricula.
What I will say is that while my education is in communications, I regret not taking college level chemistry (and statistics) because I would be applying that knowledge at my day job on a regular basis. (Yes, I know that I can go back to school and take those classes at Cecil College and I’ll probably do that at some point down the road but not until the kids are out of high school.) Anyway, if I’d have known about some of the possible careers in science and technology, I might’ve taken a different path.
One of my favorite STEM programs
Our two sons are in high school, one is a freshman, the other is a junior. Our older son is in the STEM program and our younger son was just admitted to the STEM program for next year.
I’ve talked before about the resourcefulness of CCPS to get things done even with limited resources and I want to share an example. When our older son finished his freshman year, he and two friends took part in a STEM Day Camp organized by CCPS. Honestly, they weren’t thrilled about spending the first week of summer vacation going to camp but they didn’t have much of a choice. They spent each day visiting local employers and getting hands on examples of the types of jobs that require STEM education. Companies like WL Gore, ATK, and Terumo showed the students how their classroom learning could be applied in the workplace. I was a little jealous.
I am tickled that, despite the budget battles, CCPS will be able to offer this opportunity to this year’s incoming STEM students and our younger son has been accepted to participate. Once again, CCPS is working with area employers who understand the need to have a local workforce trained in science and technology to offer a similar program at no cost to students.
Our public schools are doing great things but they need consistent, adequate funding to continue building a bright future for Cecil County.