Mathematical and Statistical Modeling Education Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, this is a real honor and a delight to be speaking on behalf of and in support of the Mathematical and Statistical Modeling Education Act, otherwise known as H.R. 730.

We have here in the House Chamber gallery an audience of about 75 people. It is really quite amazing to have the outside public in the Hall of the House of Representatives watch this debate today, because if you are interested in government, maybe sometimes you are attuned to what is going on, on social media or the cable news, and sometimes that really misses the mark of what we are doing here in the Nation's Capital, which is bipartisan legislation committed to moving this Nation forward.

Mr. Speaker, I don't say that lightly. I look at Representative Houlahan and Representative Baird, two Members of the class of 2018, both in their fourth term. I have passed legislation with both of them. Now they have joined together to pass H.R. 730, a STEM bill, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. You don't have STEM without mathematics.

We call on the National Science Foundation to support mathematical and statistical modeling education starting in elementary school and secondary schools. These activities include providing grants to academic institutions and nonprofit organizations that improve data, science skills, enhance computational thinking, and enable access to professional development opportunities. My friends, this is how we compete and win on the world's stage.

It is so very important to me, as somebody who worked in a manufacturing research lab. I have brought in expert witnesses to the Science Committee that, yes, our great chairman has been a part of for his whole tenure in Congress. We have heard this from the researchers. I have heard this since before I came to Congress. We need this skill set.

This is what we want to say to the young people we have observing the floor right now. I don't know the full curriculum that they are in and whatnot. I imagine there is an interest in government. STEM is also of note. When we were doing STEM education in the lab I was in, we had a great researcher. This man had a great engineering degree, and we would do the STEM education. He would tell the students that he didn't always pass his math classes the first round, but he had the surrounding cushion to help him go back for a second round.

That is what it is all about in America. If you want to be an engineer or if you want to contribute to our advanced manufacturing economy, we want your talent. With the Baird-Houlahan bill, what we are going to do is see NSF do what it is already doing but double down for a continuing educational experience at the NSF so that students can thrive.

What we don't want is a bunch of one-offs and all of a sudden you are graduating high school and maybe you had some exposure to these computational skills. We are competing across the world with talent. Our schools need to have the best ability to thrive. I urge everybody in this data-driven, AI, exciting world that the United States is leading, and encourage our colleagues on both sides of the aisle to say, yes, we want this bill, H.R. 730, to move forward.

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Ms. STEVENS. Houlahan) for her remarks.

Mr. Speaker, I thank our wonderful sponsors of this bill. It is really quite exciting. We continue to move toward urging colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 730, the Mathematical and Statistical Modeling Education Act.

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