Governor Snyder to proclaim October STEM Awareness Month (Update: Michigan STEM Partnership)

Gov. Rick Snyder to visit SVSU to proclaim October STEM Awareness Month

Gov. Rick Snyder

KOCHVILLE TOWNSHIP, MI — Gov. Rick Snyder will visit Saginaw Valley State University Friday Oct. 4 to promote science, technology, engineering and math education and jobs in Michigan.

The governor will formally name October STEM Awareness Month in Michigan at the Igniting STEM Excellence Summit at SVSU.

The summit is 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday. Registration is required.

Other speakers include John Calabrese, vice president of global vehicle engineering for General Motors Co.

There is a projected shortfall of nearly 274,000 STEM professionals by 2018 in Michigan, according to the Michigan STEM Partnership, a public-private, business and education collaboration focused on addressing STEM needs.

The demand for STEM-educated professionals is high while the supply is low, the partnership states.

“Not only do we need to make students aware of the significance of STEM, we need to keep students interested in STEM throughout their schooling,” said Barbara Bolin, the partnership's executive director. “Out of every 100 students in ninth grade, only six graduate college in a STEM field. This is perhaps the single greatest threat to our economic competitiveness in the global market, but one that we can and must overcome.”

Michigan STEM Partnership, nonprofit organizations, universities and employers are hosting events such as the “STEM & Me Contest” for students to show how they are making STEM education part of their lives.