Federal Spotlight: The White House Announces New STEM Initiatives

September 28, 2017

President Donald Trump has signed a memorandum that orders the Department of Education to allocate at least $200 million dollars into grant funding each year for new Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) and computer science education initiatives. The order, which was signed on Monday, is being spearheaded by the president’s daughter, Ivanka. The directive does not require additional legislation to be passed by Congress. Gov. Kim Reynolds praised the initiative in a press release saying, “This will help us meet our Future Ready Iowa goal of 70 percent of the workforce having education or training beyond high school by the year 2025.” The governor has been a leader in promoting STEM programs, and the Iowa Legislature passed a bill last year that supports the expansion of computer science education at all levels of schools.