OSTP Releases Data on STEM Education

Today, OSTP publishes a trove of data on federal STEM education activities, the 2010 Federal STEM Education Inventory Data Set. The data set is accessible on the OSTP site and also at data.gov. The data set includes information on what STEM education programs the government funded in 2010, what audiences were targeted, what outcomes were monitored, and much more. The data set, which includes information from 13 Federal agencies that support education programs focused on STEM subjects, is the most comprehensive description of Federal STEM education programs.

 In December, the White House released the National Science and Technology Council’s first analysis of the 252 STEM education programs that Federal agencies fund, cataloguing how our $3.4 billion investment is distributed across agencies, programs, and target groups.  Now, the data that formed the foundation of that report are available online for researchers, schools, and citizens to explore. This publicly available data can be used by anyone to further analyze how the Federal government is addressing STEM education issues and needs and find programs that can be of value to them.  These data on Federal STEM education programs will be collected and made publically available annually. 

 Investing in STEM education is a critical part of the Obama Administration’s mission to keep America competitive in engineering, science, technology and math through supporting high-quality education and workforce development. Today’s data set is just one of many housed at the data.gov Education Data Community, where new data tools and information are being contributed by Federal agencies for public use. By collecting and disseminating data sets like this one, we can make resources more available to the public, ensure transparency in where Federal funds are going, spread best practices, and identify gaps where additional attention is needed.

Elizabeth Robinson is a Student Volunteer at OSTP