Equitable STEM Teacher Pathways

K-12 STEAM education

City of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a citywide benefit)

Research (initial work to identify and understand the problem)

The STEM teacher shortages in Los Angeles/ California greatly impact the quality of education for the future generation of workers, leaders, and active citizens. FIN seeks to identify more innovative ways to recruit and sustain STEM teachers and leverage the use of technology to shore up the learning gaps for students. With the need for more than 33,000 new math and science teachers in the next 10 years our current design of the profession needs to shift in order to entice math and science majors to actively pursue teaching as a career of choice instead of one that is a back up option. Currently few new teachers especially in the STEM fields seek out teaching as a first career pathway option; many pursue positions in industry or government sectors where the work conditions are perceived better and the pay is significantly higher. Less than 20% of university graduates pursue education careers.

FIN seeks to partner with local universities (UCLA Center X, CSU Dominguez Hills and CSU Los Angeles), high schools and industry partners and unions to identify ways to redesign both the educational setting and the role of the teachers to improve STEM teacher recruitment and retention.
A redesign model is needed because while universities train teachers, the number of new graduates pursuing the field is declining. This mismatch stems from factors making teaching less appealing than industry.
Our project addresses this by bringing together key stakeholders: university programs (who prepare teachers), high-need LA County schools (where the shortage is most acute and impacts students disproportionately, local teacher unions (advocating for better work conditions and pay), and industry partners (representing the competing career options for STEM talent and offering alternative professional environment models.)
Together we will co-design and pilot innovative models for the teaching profession. Activities will include:
◦ Establishing collaborative workgroups involving representatives from all partner types.
◦ Conducting deep-dive sessions to analyze factors driving STEM professionals away from teaching.
◦ Developing concrete proposals for redesigning the teacher role (e.g., integrated industry collaboration, different support structures, leveraging technology) and the educational setting (e.g., addressing resource/support gaps, exploring different professional arrangements)

Successful work will give Los Angeles County a working model to improve the STEM teacher recruitment pipeline in partnership with local universities and a model for how to effectively redesign the teaching role and educational setting working with local union partnerships and public schools. The current severe shortage disproportionately impacts high-need schools and requires innovation.
Our one-year pilot (Oct 2025-26) will prototype this in a minimum of 3 high-need LA high schools, partnering with 4 local higher education institutions and industry.
Success means this model, once studied, will be able to expand to improve impact on high-need schools and communities across LA County. This will ensure equitable access to credentialed STEM teachers, combat the achievement gap, and help prepare a diverse local STEM workforce, transforming teaching into a more sustainable, first-choice career for STEM talent.