Our Issues
Education and 21st Century Workforce Initiatives
In the competitive global economy, the most serious threat to continued U.S. leadership is our nation's declining commitment to math, science and engineering education relative to other nations. On par with their international peers in math and science at lower grade levels, American students begin falling behind in secondary school. Declining numbers of Americans are pursuing undergraduate degrees in the physical sciences and engineering. Women and minorities are underrepresented in science and engineering courses. Meanwhile, Europe, China and other Asian countries are heavily investing in their own science and engineering education and workforce capacity.
America is not adequately preparing the next generation to lead our country and the world in science and innovation and we must work diligently to strengthen the nation's talent pool in order to continue as a leader in the global marketplace. TechNet believes that public policies and private sector practices that best promote and advance the teaching of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) are the key to achieving this goal.
TechNet works to develop initiatives to improve science and math education and increase the number of Americans attaining degrees in STEM through new programs and resources that strengthen our public schools.
In addition, TechNet promotes comprehensive highly skilled immigration reform including an increase in the H-1B visa cap and reforms to the employment-based green card process to ensure the U.S. has a highly skilled workforce. TechNet advocates for legislative and administrative remedies to address the nation's broken high-skilled immigration problem including:
- A recapture of the some 200,000 green card slots not used from previous years;
- A streamlined system to keep foreign-born STEM graduates of U.S. colleges and universities in the country; and
- An elimination of the per country limits on EB green card distribution to remove artificial bottlenecks for employees from high-demand countries.
Tapping America's Potential: The Education for Innovation Initiative
TechNet is committed to continuing to work with the Administration and Congress in support of efforts to ensure that all Americans have the tools and skills to compete in the Innovation Economy. Specifically, TechNet urges Congress to implement the recommendations of the report, Tapping America's Potential: The Education for Innovation Initiative. The TAP Report recommends policies and appropriations to:
- Build public support for making improvement in science, technology, engineering and mathematics a national priority;
- Motivate U.S. students and adults, using a variety of incentives, to study and enter science, technology, engineering and mathematics careers, with a special effort geared to those in currently underrepresented groups;
- Upgrade K-12 mathematics and science teaching to foster higher student achievement, including differentiated pay scales for mathematics and science teachers;
- Reform visa and immigration policies; and
- Boost and sustain funding for basic research, especially in the physical sciences and engineering.
Other Resources
Tapping Massachusetts' Potential: The Massachusetts Employers' STEM Agenda, Summer 2009
TechNet Press Release in Support of ACI, July 6, 2006
American Competitiveness Initiative, January 31, 2006
TechNet Letter in Support of The National Innovation Act, December 14, 2005
TechNet Hails Partnership with U.S. Department of Education to Strengthen Math and Science Skills, September 28, 2005
Tapping America's Potential: The Education for Innovation Initiative, July 2005
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