The STEM Educator Initiative

New Name, Same Mission

“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet” is a line from Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. It means that a name is just a label and doesn't change the nature of something. Since 2018, the STEM Educator Initiative (SEI) operated as the STEM Equity Initiative. On February the 7th, SEI’s Board of Trustees approved the name change to highlight better our work directly with educators without getting hung up on the word “equity.”

Words, like the fragrance of a rose, can evoke different experiences. Some love the smell of a rose; others see only the thorns. It’s not that anyone is right or wrong, but sometimes we need to take time to clarify what we mean to gain a shared understanding.

The mission of the SEI remains the same. We are committed to increasing the workforce preparedness of significantly more students for careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, including Career and Technical Education. Increasing the number of students prepared to enter STEM careers will strengthen the workforce, raise the standard of living for many individuals and families, and help to assure that STEM addresses the needs and expands the possibilities for our communities and our lives. Our vision is that all educators are empowered to ensure every student has the full knowledge, access, and support to follow a STEM career path, and all U.S. businesses have access to a highly skilled, reliable, motivated, and empathetic STEM workforce. This is not a small thing to do, but we believe we have the secret sauce to support every teacher to be highly effective. 

In our work, SEI uses fairness as synonymous with equity. Making sure the classroom is experienced by students as fair is up to the teacher. We have all heard the child on the playground or in our homes yell out “That’s not fair!” What the research tells us is that having classrooms where teachers can help students understand and experience a sense of fairness can strengthen student learning. In fact, decades of research have demonstrated that fair or equitable classrooms lead to improved mental health and well-being, a stronger sense of belonging, increased trust, enhanced cooperation, and positive social interactions.   These are important outcomes for our future adult STEM workers!

While providing a healthy, balanced, and effective learning environment is critical to student academic success, the key to achieving that environment is in the hands of our educators. Many educators are already doing all the work they need to create an equitable learning environment, while others may need a bit more help and guidance. We believe in all of our educators to be the heroes in their classrooms.  That has been SEI’s focus and remains our priority. 

Won’t you join us?

Visit www.stemeducatorinitiative.org to learn more

or contact info@stemeducatorinitiative.org