PRESS RELEASE: Small World Initiative® Announced as New 100Kin10 Partner Ahead of Network Exceeding Goal of Training 100,000 New STEM Teachers by 2021

Small World Initiative® among more than 40 new partners that will become part of the STEM education network 

New York, NY – 100Kin10, a national organization dedicated to solving the STEM teacher shortage by 2021, announced that the Small World Initiative® joins 40 other new programmatic partners in its ranks this year. In addition to the Small World Initiative, new partners include the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Infosys Foundation, Lyda Hill Philanthropies, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, Council of Chief State School Officers, among others.

This is the seventh and final cohort of partners for 100Kin10 during its first 10 years. The organization launched in 2011 as an answer to President Obama’s call during his 2011 State of the Union address to train 100,000 new STEM teachers in a decade. 100Kin10 is on track to exceed their goal of training 100,000 teachers by 2021, with more than 68,000 teachers currently trained.

“We are so thrilled to join this group of incredible partners working to end the STEM teacher shortage. We believe that solving the most pressing challenges in STEM education requires robust collaboration and look forward to advancing bold solutions together,” said Erika Kurt, Small World Initiative’s President and CEO.

The final round of growth specifically focuses on 100Kin10’s latest project: tackling what they’ve identified as the root causes of the STEM teacher shortage. If solved, these ‘catalysts’ – which include bonuses, scholarships or loan forgiveness for STEM teachers, increasing professional development and state tracking of STEM teacher supply and demand – would more sustainably end the teacher shortage.

“This final group, including the Small World Initiative, is a welcome addition as we enter our final push in achieving our goal and look toward the future in solving systemic issues around the teacher shortage in America,” said Talia Milgrom-Elcott, 100Kin10’s executive director. “Each organization is doing incredible, inspiring work to build the movement for better, bolder, and more accessible STEM education. We’re thrilled to have them as our newest partners in collaboration, learning and continuous improvement to creatively solve the STEM teacher crisis.”

Existing partners and an expert panel vetted and selected the 41 new partners, who will join a network of more than 280 current partners that includes the nation’s top academic institutions, nonprofits, foundations, companies, and government agencies. All partners register their commitments to ending the STEM teacher shortage through 100Kin10 and support one another to achieve those commitments by exchanging expertise, learning, and resources.

In addition to the 41 accepted programmatic organizations, 100Kin10 is inviting 16 other organizations to join as “allies” of the network. This is a new opportunity to connect with and share in the learning life of the network to reach its goal.

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The Small World Initiative® (SWI) is an innovative nonprofit dedicated to transforming STEM education while solving pressing real-world health challenges. Each year, SWI trains educators to replace traditional courses with discovery-based courses. Initiated at Yale University in 2012, SWI's primary program engages students in the hunt to find new antibiotics to tackle the growing global health challenge of antibiotic-resistant pathogens, commonly known as “superbugs.” To date, SWI has trained educators at more than 300 schools in 45 states and 15 countries. More information is available at www.smallworldinitiative.org.  

100Kin10 is network of best-in-class organizations collectively responding to the moonshot call to put 100,000 new, excellent STEM teachers in America’s classrooms by 2021. Through their pioneering networked impact approach, 100Kin10 encourages multi-sector collaboration and provides the vision and resources to help nonprofits, foundations, academic institutions, and businesses meet their ambitious commitments to educate the next generation of innovators and problem solvers. More information is available at www.100kin10.org.