EHR Assistant Director Karen Marrongelle Testifies on STEM Education in House Appropriations Subcommittee Hearing
EHR Assistant Director Karen Marrongelle Testifies on STEM Education in House Appropriations Subcommittee Hearing
 
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September 2019

On September 19, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) held a hearing on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Engagement. Karen Marrongelle, assistant director of the Education and Human Resources (EHR) Directorate at the National Science Foundation (NSF), and Michael Kincaid, associate administrator for STEM engagement at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), testified before the subcommittee.

In her opening testimony, Marrongelle pointed to the role of NSF in supporting foundational research in STEM education at all levels. She also highlighted the importance of NSF’s providing evidence to ground decisions on how to build STEM literacy and scale up promising programs; imagining and preparing for the STEM education and workforce of the future; and understanding how to broaden participation through programs such as INCLUDES.

Marrongelle and Kincaid discussed their involvement in implementing the most recent five-year strategic plan on STEM education, and how NSF’s and NASA’s priorities are aligned with the plan.

Marrongelle addressed several questions from subcommittee members, including how the NSF investment in STEM education would be impacted by the proposed cut in the president’s budget and barriers in rural areas for STEM teacher recruitment and retention. She also highlighted efforts to increase diversity in STEM, including a partnership with Boeing for reskilling women with a gap in their STEM workforce experience and program officer outreach to minority-serving institutions to help them obtain grants.

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