A Presidential Pat for Young Scientists
Stephen Crowley/The New York Times
The president helped Payton
Karr, left, and Kiona Elliot of Oakland Park, Fla., with their
bicycle-powered water filtration system.
By ASHLEY SOUTHALL
Published: April 22, 2013
Praising the work of young scientists and inventors at the third White House Science Fair, President Obama
on Monday announced a broad plan to create and expand federal and
private-sector initiatives designed to encourage children to study
science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
After browsing the 30 or so projects on display in the White House’s
public rooms and the East Garden, Mr. Obama said he was committed to
giving students the resources they need to pursue education in the
disciplines, collectively known as STEM.
Earlier, the White House announced efforts aimed at increasing
participation in those fields, particularly among female and minority
students, as well as those from low-income and military families.
“This is not the time to gut investments that keep our businesses on the
cutting edge, that keep our economy humming, that improve the quality
of our lives,” Mr. Obama told an audience in the East Room that included
100 students from 40 states, business leaders and science-minded
celebrities, among them Bill Nye, the television host and science
educator, and LeVar Burton, who appeared in “Star Trek: The Next
Generation.”
“This is the time to reach a level of research and development that we
haven’t seen since the height of the space race,” he said.
According to a summary in his 2014 budget request, Mr. Obama has
designated $180 million for programs to increase opportunities for
participation in STEM programs, from kindergarten through graduate
school, for groups historically underrepresented in those fields.
An additional $265 million would be directed to support networks of
school districts, universities, science agencies, museums, businesses
and other educational entities focused on STEM education, and to finance
the creation of a corps of master teachers. Of that, $80 million would
go toward furthering the president’s goal of adding 100,000 math and
science teachers over a decade.
The White House is promoting the programs as part of an “all hands on
deck” effort that includes an AmeriCorps program that places volunteers
in STEM-focused nonprofit organizations; a summer camp for children to
design and build projects; a corporate mentorship program; and the
expansion of a program to increase access to Advanced Placement courses
for students in military families.
In an effort to reach more low-income students, AmeriCorps plans to
place 50 volunteers in For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and
Technology, or First, a nonprofit
organization that sponsors robotics competitions and technology
challenges. Technology companies including SanDisk and Cisco have formed
the US2020 mentoring campaign with the goal of having at least 20
percent of the firms’ employees spending at least 20 hours a year
mentoring or teaching by 2020.
This summer, the Maker Education Initiative will host Makers Corps for students to design and build projects that are personally meaningful.
Among the projects on display at the White House were a cloud computing
program that improves cancer detection; a fully functional prosthetic
arm that costs only $250 to build; an emergency water sanitation system
powered by a bicycle; video game designs, which were included at the
fair for the first time; and a robot shaped like an Etch A Sketch that
paints with watercolors.
Sylvia Todd, 11, a sixth-grader from Auburn, Calif., who built the
robot, explained to Mr. Obama and, later, Interior Secretary Sally
Jewell that her project had been inspired by similar robots displayed at
an earlier competition.
“Everyone was using pens and pencils, and I just wanted to get really creative,” she said.
Afterward, Sylvia summed up her experience: “mind-boggling.”