Author Archives: Marge Piercy

NSF STEM Grants are bringing practical changes to two-year colleges, especially where students need research access, mentoring, financial support, and clearer routes into four-year programs or skilled technical work. The strongest reading of the 2026 grant news is not that results are already proven. Many projects were newly awarded, so long-term completion and transfer data will take time. What can be said now is more careful: the grant designs point … Read the rest

The White House STEM initiatives announced across 2025 and 2026 gave schools, libraries, homeschool groups, and community partners a clearer signal about where federal science and technology priorities were moving. The emphasis was not only on laboratories and advanced research. It also touched K–12 enrichment, pre-college talent development, hands-on training, skilled technical pathways, and student exposure to emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum science, biotechnology, and mission-driven research.

For … Read the rest

Public libraries have become practical homes for early childhood STEM because they already welcome babies, toddlers, preschoolers, caregivers, and educators in the same place. A library program does not need to look like a school lab to be serious science learning. For children from birth through age six, sorting shells, testing ramps, noticing shadows, listening to a story about weather, or programming a small screen-free robot can build the habits … Read the rest

AI Privacy Standards became a sharper concern for STEM educators after Microsoft, the American Federation of Teachers, and the United Federation of Teachers announced a new national school agreement on September 9, 2026. The announcement matters because many science, math, engineering, and computer science teachers are already being asked to use AI-supported tools for planning, feedback, productivity, and student support, while families are asking fair questions about student data, safety, … Read the rest

West Virginia’s AI entrepreneurship pilot offers a practical case for high schools trying to connect artificial intelligence, student app design, and local problem-solving. The pilot concluded on September 10, 2026, and the research notes report that about 120 students in grades 9 through 12 took part across four schools in Monongalia, Kanawha, and Berkeley counties. Students used a no-code platform and produced roughly 80 mobile applications, giving educators a useful … Read the rest