(San Antonio • October 23, 2024) A new investment in San Antonio promises to inspire the next generation of STEM innovators. The Department of Defense announced its 10-year award of the Defense STEM Education Consortium (DSEC) to IDRA to help prepare a workforce ready for the challenges of the future.
San Antonio is ranked Number 2 in the country for cybersecurity. But in the city’s southern half that is over 90% Latino, fewer than 1% of adults work in any computer-related fields.
“With four out of five of jobs requiring STEM skills over the next decade, there is a global priority of preparing students for STEM college and careers” said Dr. Stephanie Garcia, IDRA’s STEM and gender equity education specialist. “We look forward to accelerating our work to advance STEM learning opportunities for historically marginalized students, including students of color and girls.
This grant award builds on the previous collaboration launched in 2023 when San Antonio was named as one of only four STEM Education Hubs in the nation. With IDRA’s co-leadership, the Alamo STEM Ecosystem brought together educators, community leaders and industry partners to expand opportunities for K-16 students.
In the initial phase of this new initiative, IDRA will convene partners to host a STEM youth summit to provide meaningful STEM activities for underrepresented students in and around San Antonio. We also will coordinate teacher externships to increasing college and career awareness and real-world STEM connections in classrooms.
Contact: For more information about this program, contact said Dr. Stephanie Garcia at stephanie.garcia@idra.org.
Media contact: Thomas Marshall III, M.Ed., thomas.marshall@idra.org.
About IDRA – IDRA is an independent, national non-profit organization that has impacted millions of students’ lives. Our mission is to achieve equal educational opportunity for every child through strong public schools that prepare all students to access and succeed in college. For 51 years, IDRA has uniquely concentrated on all four domains that affect systemic equity: policy and legal analysis, educator and student support, research and data analysis, and family and community engagement. Learn more at https://www.idra.org.
About DoDSTEM – Department of Defense Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (DoDSTEM) comprises the Department’s collective efforts in STEM talent development, including programs from the Departments of the Army, Navy, Air Force, other Defense Agencies, and NDEP. The DoDSTEM mission is to inspire, cultivate, and develop exceptional STEM talent through a continuum of opportunities across the Pre-K–20 grade levels, to enrich the nation’s current and future DoD workforce poised to tackle evolving defense technological challenges. Learn more at https://dodstem.us/.