Army awards STEM cooperative agreement

By Dennis Neal, RDECOM Public AffairsOctober 16, 2015

Army awards STEM cooperative agreement
1 / 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Students take part in the U.S. Army's Research & Engineering Apprenticeship Program, a summer STEM program that places talented high school students from groups historically under-represented and underserved in STEM, in research apprenticeships at ar... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Army awards STEM cooperative agreement
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Army awards STEM cooperative agreement
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Army awards STEM cooperative agreement
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ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. (Oct. 16, 2015) -- The U.S. Army awarded a 10-year Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics cooperative agreement worth up to $185 million to a consortium headed up by Battelle Memorial Institute Sept. 30, 2015.

The agreement is designed to collaboratively advance Army-sponsored STEM programs across the United States, Puerto Rico and Department of Defense locations in Europe and the Pacific.

Army STEM programs, known collectively as the Army Educational Outreach Program or AEOP, are administered by the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command on behalf of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology.

"We celebrate innovation, but before we can do that we have to nurture it," said Dr. Jagadeesh Pamulapati, director for Integration and Laboratory Management Policy for the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Research and Technology. "We have to invest in the minds of our future leaders and we have to do it collaboratively with our academic and industry partners."

Louie Lopez is the AEOP cooperative agreement manager.

"The Army Educational Outreach Program's mission is to provide both students and teachers a collaborative, cohesive portfolio of Army-sponsored STEM programs that actively engage, inspire and attract the next generation of STEM talent," Lopez said.

"The Army's STEM programs for kindergarten through college also expose the students to DOD STEM careers," he said. "AEOP strives to help develop a diverse, agile, highly competent STEM talent pool, representative of our nation's demographics to provide DOD enduring access to the best and the brightest."

The need for STEM literacy -- the ability to understand and apply concepts from science, technology, engineering and mathematics in order to solve our nation's most complex problems -- is growing exponentially Lopez said.

"The Army also has a growing need for highly qualified, STEM-literate technicians and skilled workers in advanced manufacturing, logistics, management and other technology-driven fields," he said. "Success and sustainment for the Army's Science and Technology enterprise heavily depends on the continuous development of innovative solutions that protect the greatest asset -- our Soldier -- and our nation against current and emerging threats."

The AEOP consortium was formed to leverage STEM education expertise from academia, for profit, non-profit, and government organizations. In partnership with RDECOM, Battelle will provide leadership, management and oversight for all consortium members.

"In addition to Battelle's subject matter expertise in project management and STEM education," Lopez said, "Battelle administers its own STEM network and is part of a growing multi-state STEM learning network that currently reaches 20 states, over 9,000 teachers and educators, and about 5 million students nationally. Therefore, Battelle and its consortium are uniquely positioned to significantly impact increased awareness of, and participation in AEOP."

The other organizations that form the consortium are the Academy of Applied Science, the Technology Student Association, the National Science Teacher Association, Widmeyer Communications, Education First, Purdue University, MetriKs Amérique and Tennessee Technological University.

Related Links:

Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology

Army.mil: Science and Technology News

U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command

Army Educational Outreach Program