ASU researcher appointed to NSF STEM Education Advisory Panel

Kimberly Scott, ASU professor of women and gender studies and founding director of Arizona State University's Center for Gender Equity in Science and Technology, has been appointed to a new National Science Foundation panel focused on innovation in science, technology, engineering and math education.

The NSF STEM Education Advisory Panel was created in consultation with the U.S. Department of Education, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In total, 18 appointees joined the panel from nonprofit, business, academic and educational organizations.  

“I am excited to work with other committed individuals who have a demonstrated history of exploring ways we can collectively change the face of STEM,” Scott said. “This opportunity is integral to informing policy at the highest level. I am honored to be part of such a prestigious group.”

Trained as a sociologist of education and childhoods, Scott’s interdisciplinary work examines the social and academic development of girls of color in informal spaces and their technosocial innovations. Scott previously worked as an urban educator with international and national institutions including a center for girls in Chiang Mai, Thailand; the Educational Law Center in Newark, New Jersey; and the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African Art.

Congress authorized creation of the panel to advise a group of federal organizations called the Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education, or CoSTEM, on matters related to STEM education. In particular, Congress authorized the panel to identify opportunities to update that 2013-2018 Federal STEM Education 5-Year Strategic Plan, which CoSTEM developed to improve the efficiency, coordination and impact of federally supported STEM investments.

“This new panel has an opportunity to bring fresh eyes and novel approaches to CoSTEM’s next five-year strategic plan, which will help enhance the nation’s STEM ecosystem,” said NSF Director France Córdova, who co-chairs CoSTEM. “NSF continues to generate benefits for society through STEM research. To fulfill that mission, we and our federal partners need to make strategic investments to create new generations of discoverers.”