Rural Stem Education Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. BAIRD. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4979, the Rural STEM Education Act. I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this legislation.

As one of only two Members of Congress with a Ph.D. in science, I understand the importance of teaching science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and computer science at an early age.

Quality STEM education is essential to train the next generation of American minds. Fostering children's natural curiosity is critical to expanding their interest in STEM.

More than 9 million students in the United States attend rural schools, so investing in rural areas represents one of the most significant opportunities for STEM education.

H.R. 4979 will support research and development to identify the barriers rural students face in accessing high-quality STEM education, and it will develop innovative solutions to improve rural students' participation and advancement in the STEM fields.

In a time when our rural students are facing more barriers than ever before because of COVID, this bill can play an important role in helping these students remain in the STEM pipeline.

With the shift to online learning in recent months, it is more important than ever that we invest in the best practices and the scalability of online STEM education courses for our rural communities.

In addition to examining opportunities for online education, this legislation also promotes the importance of place-based learning. Place-based learning is a tremendous tool to broaden participation by rural students in STEM.

It uses local heritage, geography, and opportunities to study STEM. By connecting them with the science that is right outside their front door, rural students will have hands-on learning opportunities, even while the courses remain online.

I would be remiss if I did not mention one of the greatest barriers our rural students face, which is broadband access. Over 20 million Americans lack access to broadband, and the majority live in these rural areas. This bill prioritizes connectivity for all students and supports technologies to deploy broadband to these underserved rural areas.

We must also recognize the key role educators play, especially rural teachers who teach multiple grade levels within a STEM discipline. H.R. 4979 provides rural STEM educators with resources and experiences that they can bring back to the classroom and use with their students.

I would like to thank Ranking Member Lucas for his leadership on this bill. By improving access to STEM opportunities in rural schools, the Rural STEM Education Act will ensure that communities in less populated areas are not overlooked and that the intellectual power of our next generation continues to grow.

I encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this bill.

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