Gateway to the Future: STEM Summit 2014 to be held in Worcester
The City of Worcester will host more than 1,300 attendees, representing business, education, and government at the 11th annual Massachusetts STEM Summit, themed “Gateway to the Future.” Organized by The Governor’s STEM Advisory Council, the Massachusetts Business Roundtable, and the UMass Donahue Institute, this year’s statewide event continues the Summit’s tradition of promoting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education throughout the Commonwealth and developing the highly-skilled workforce that the global innovation economy demands. The one-day conference will be held on Wednesday, October 22, 2014.
“We are thrilled to bring this exciting and important event to Worcester this year,” said Lynn Griesemer, Executive Director of the UMass Donahue Institute. “As a Gateway city, Worcester exhibits a lot of the promise and potential that underlie the goals of Massachusetts’ STEM initiative. With the collaboration and support of Destination Worcester, the DCU Center, and the local hospitality community, we’re looking forward to sharing the city’s assets with people from throughout the state and shedding light on the evolving profile of Massachusetts’ Gateway cities.”
Worcester is home to ten colleges and universities, including Worcester Polytechnic Institute, home of the STEM Education Center; the University of Massachusetts Medical School; and Becker College, home of MassDigi (Massachusetts Digital Games Institute).
“Technology and innovation are key drivers to economic growth and jobs,” said Tim Murray, President and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce and former Lt. Governor, who chaired The Governor’s STEM Advisory Council. “The Worcester region is fortunate to have some of the best technical high schools in the country—Worcester Technical High School, Bay Path Regional Vocational High School, Blackstone Valley Technical High School—to stimulate the interest of high school students and create a feeder to the many STEM programs in our post-secondary educational institutions.”
At the upcoming 2014 Summit, panel presentations, plenary speakers, and exhibitors will showcase STEM initiatives, share innovative thinking, and highlight the state’s goals, plans, and progress on STEM policies and programs.
“Over the past decade we’ve put a lot of work into understanding the obstacles and challenges that prevent students from pursuing STEM careers, while at the same time developing creative strategies and setting impressive goals for increasing interest and achievement in STEM,” said JD Chesloff, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Business Roundtable and Chair of the Executive Committee of the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council. “We are very much looking forward to addressing this issue, continuing this work, and expanding upon all that’s been accomplished.”
April 16, 2014
