STEM Summit IV

The Summit meeting provided an opportunity for educators (both PK-12 and higher education), community and business leaders, and state and local-level policy makers to show their commitment to preparing Massachusetts’ students for STEM careers.  The Summit program included a range of topics: policy sessions, curriculum, instruction, and planning.  The Summit also included opportunities to network and plan with colleagues.  Dr. Johanne Kaplan, Vice President of Genzyme, gave the morning keynote in which she reiterated the need for student training for STEM careers.  Marty Meehan, Chancellor of UMass Lowell, gave the afternoon keynote in which he restated UMass Lowell’s commitment to providing support for the educators who are preparing students in STEM.

I was lucky enough to attend two breakout sessions that provided opportunities for educators to connect with employers in order to collaborate on developing student interest in both Environmental and Alternate Energy Sciences, and Biotechnology.  The representatives from the various companies stated their support for education in these fields, and provided contact information to educators interested in connecting their classrooms to industry through presentations and field trip tours.

Here are some of the companies who expressed interest in supporting education for STEM careers:

Environmental and Alternative Energy

PowerHouse Enterprises
Siemens
Ze Gen

Biotechnology

Abbott Laboratories
Biogen Idec' s Community Lab
Genzyme Corporation

More information, including contact names and email addresses, is available from http://www.massachusetts.edu/stem/.  In addition, for those unable to attend a “virtual summit” is now available http://www.massachusetts.edu/stem/virtual_summit.html.