IMPROVING SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING,

AND MATHEMATICS (STEM) EDUCATION

Developing high-quality skills in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics 

(STEM) is increasingly important for student success at all levels of education. These same skills are 

also crucial for workforce success, as a growing number of jobs will be located in the STEM fields 

or require at least some STEM skills. And in the 21st century, our economy will be driven even 

more by contributions that come from discoveries and innovations in the STEM fields.

President Obama has identified an overarching goal to improve our STEM education compared to 

other nations, and identified three overarching priorities to ensure more students develop the skills 

needed to succeed in the STEM fields: improving the quality of math and science teachers so more 

students have opportunities for high-quality STEM learning and are motivated to pursue STEM 

degrees and careers; improving undergraduate teaching practices so more well-prepared STEM 

students persist to a degree in these fields; and expanding STEM education and career opportunities 

for underrepresented groups, including women and minorities. 

The President’s 2013 budget request for the Department of Education and Blueprint for Reform of the 

Elementary and Secondary Education Act will help to strengthen America’s leadership in the 21st century 

by improving STEM education.

 $150 million for Effective Teaching and Learning: STEM, which would replace the 

current Mathematics and Science Partnerships program. This new program would support 

the transition to college- and career-ready standards by helping States improve teaching and 

learning in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and it would be connected to 

the math-science partnership program at NSF. Funds would be used to support State 

implementation of comprehensive, evidence-based plans; professional development that 

aligns Federal, State, and local resources to promote high-quality STEM instruction; and for 

subgrants to high-need LEAs to support comprehensive STEM instruction in the grades and 

schools with the greatest needs. 

 The President has announced an ambitious goal of preparing 100,000 excellent 

STEM teachers over the next decade. To move toward this goal, programs in the 

President’s budget would support existing STEM teachers, improve the quality of STEM 

teacher preparation programs, and recruit the best STEM undergraduates to careers in

teaching through investments such as: 

o $80 million for the STEM teacher and leader training and professional 

development set aside from the Effective Teachers and Leaders program. This 

program would provide competitive awards to create or expand high-quality 

pathways to teacher certification and other innovative approaches for recruiting, 
training, and placing talented recent college graduates and mid-career professionals in 

the STEM fields in high-need schools. 

o A new Presidential Teaching Fellows program ($190 million) to fund formula 

grants to States to support scholarships for talented students to attend top-tier 

teacher preparation programs and work in high-need schools and subjects, including 

STEM. Presidential Teaching Fellows would be selected on the basis of grade-point 

average, major in a high-need academic subject, and commitment to working in highneed schools, with a priority for low-income students. 

 Targeted support for STEM projects in the $150 million Investing in Innovation (i3) 

program, which makes competitive awards to develop, validate, and scale up innovative 

programs, practices, and strategies that are effective in improving education outcomes for 

students. Funds within i3 will also be used to support the new Advanced Research 

Projects Agency for Education, which will foster breakthrough developments in 

educational technology and learning systems, support systems for educators, and tools that 

result in improvements in student outcomes.

 $30 million for STEM innovation from the Fund for the Improvement of Education to 

run an evidence-based grant competition focused on developing, evaluating, and scaling 

proven practices that can help increase student achievement in K-12 STEM. This 

competition, similar in structure to the i3 program, would also carry a priority for 

implementing college- career-ready standards that are common to a significant number of 

states in STEM subjects, particularly mathematics. A portion of these funds would support 

the joint development of joint evidence standards and frameworks around STEM education 

at the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and the National Science Foundation (NSF).

 $175 million across higher education programs. From preparing more students to 

succeed in college-level courses to helping institutions increase their capacity and programs, 

the President’s budget contains many investments to improve STEM in postsecondary 

education. This includes investments in students, such as $34 million through the Upward 

Bound Math-Science program to increase the number of high school students who are 

prepared to succeed in college-level STEM courses. It also provides investments in 

institutions to build their capacity and offerings through programs such as the $100 million 

Hispanic-Serving Institutions STEM and Articulation Program or the $9.5 million Minority 

Science and Engineering Improvement Program. 

 Race to the Top: College Affordability and Completion ($1 billion) will support STEM 

investments by pushing States to better align standards between high schools and colleges 

and providing funds to institutions to improve the quality and success of their introductory 
courses, particularly those like remedial mathematics that are roadblocks to completion.

 An ambitious research & development effort, led by IES, in mathematics and science 

education. Our budget request supports new investments in research to accomplish the 

following: expand our understanding of how students learn; promote the development of 

better mathematics and science curricula and assessments; provide more effective 

professional development for teachers in these areas; and enhance the use of technology to 

expand student access to, and achievement in, mathematics and science courses. Common 

evidence standards with NSF will bring clarity to the field and make it easier for entities to 

apply for different grants across agencies.

 Funding for statistics on student achievement in mathematics and science, including 

increased support for the IES National Center for Education Statistics, which will collect 

and analyze information on student achievement in mathematics and science, and help States 

participate in a pilot Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) study that will 

enable states to compare the academic performance of their students to the performance of 

students in other countries.