A strong economy requires a highly educated workforce, especially in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. In the United States, STEM degree production has stagnated, despite employment projections forecasting a 17% growth in the field over the next decade. Two key criteria influence progression through the STEM education…

Efforts by federal and state governments to increase the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) workforce in support of innovation and competitiveness are frustrated by a shortage of adequately prepared and interested students. Less than half of 12th graders meet the math proficiency benchmark that indicates college readiness.…

The Business-Higher Education Forum's (BHEF's) Securing America's Leadership in STEM Initiative has broken new ground in addressing one of the nation's most critical challenges--increasing the number of students who are interested in and pursue careers in science, technology, engineering or mathematics, the so-called "STEM" fields. The…

The Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) is an organization of Fortune 500 chief executive officers (CEOs,) prominent college and university presidents, and foundation leaders working to advance innovative solutions to the nation's education challenges in order to enhance U.S. competitiveness. This paper presents questions and answers about the…

Across the country, cities and regions have used community-wide partnerships to improve the educational attainment of their citizens. The most established of these partnerships have seen substantial education gains during their tenure. The community of Louisville, Kentucky has embarked on a similar effort to improve educational attainment. Nearly…

Business-Higher Education Forum's study of the Seamless Education Partnership began with a theory of action for cross-sector efforts to increase alignment from Pre-K through graduate school (P-20) and improve educational outcomes. BHEF's theory of action posits that community leaders coalesce around a shared vision that is shaped by local context…

Although private philanthropic dollars in education make up just a fraction of overall education financial support, strategically targeted corporate philanthropic resources can serve as a vital catalyst for positive, lasting, and high-impact change in public education. Recognizing this, the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) and the Harvard…

American students today have limited interest in studying mathematics and science, and academic achievement in these two foundational disciplines is demonstrably low. This reality poses an acute challenge to our ability to keep American society intellectually vibrant and to ensure that our economy is globally competitive. This Business-Higher…

"Forum Focus" was a semi-annual magazine of the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) that featured articles on the role of business and higher education on significant issues affecting the P-16 education system. The magazine typically focused on themes featured at the most recently held semi-annual Forum meeting at the time of…

Congress is taking an active role in understanding and responding to the underlying problems that confront America's competitiveness in the global economy. During the 109th congressional session, legislation has been introduced addressing the importance of mathematics and science in the global economy. The Senate's Protecting America's Competitive…

This report warns that if current trends continue, the United States will lose is preeminence in science and technology and its leadership position in innovation. In this report, the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) proposes a four-part action plan in which business, higher education, and policy leaders support P-12 education leaders in…

This handbook provides P-16 council leaders with a toolkit of background information and proposed procedures for structuring and guiding implementation of Business-Higher Education Forum's (BHEF) proposed action plan. Specifically, it details a four-part nationwide action plan to improve overall pre-kindergarten through high school (P-12)…