Chicago Inno – Karis Hustad
“The reason representatives from over 200 organizations such as University of California- Los Angeles, TeachForAmerica, and the US Department of Energy are descending on Chicago the next few days dates back to 2011. At his 2011 State of the Union speech, President Obama made a call for an increased number of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) educators to meet the growing need of the employers, as well as higher ed requirements which push for more STEM preparation in high school than ever before. Specifically, he made a call to increase the number of qualified STEM teachers to 100,000 by 2021. Talia Milgrom-Elcott, executive director of 100Kin10, knew a goal like that wouldn’t be possible if those who wanted a solution remained fragmented. “It won’t be solved from New York or Chicago, or even DC,” she said. “What we needed was to create a platform for everyone who wants to solve this problem, and use each other to get to this commitment.” With that, 100Kin10 was born. The organization seeks to connect like-minded organizations creating solutions for the STEM educator void, with the hopes of hitting the 100,000 teachers recruited or retained by 2021. This year their summit will be held May 13 through 15 at the Museum of Science and Industry. The setting is appropriate, said Milgrom-Elcott, as Chicago’s STEM education push is noticeable around the country.”(more)