Improved U.S. Arctic Energy Development Starts in the Classroom

_{In this April 17, 2015 file photo, with the Olympic Mountains in the background, a small boat crosses in front of an oil drilling rig as it arrives in Port Angeles, Wash. aboard a transport ship after traveling across the Pacific. Royal Dutch Shell hopes to use the rig for exploratory drilling during the summer open-water season in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska's northwest coast, if it can get the permits.(Daniella Beccaria/seattlepi.com via AP, File)}

RCEd Commentary

A record-breaking energy resurgence has catapulted the U.S. to No. 1 in the world in oil and natural gas production. But our workforce has not adapted to this new reality. Hundreds of thousands of jobs remain unfilled, and the pipeline of future workers isn’t nearly what we need to meet future energy needs.

While we’re graduating greater numbers of students from college, many graduates lack the basic science, technology, engineering, and mathematics skills that advanced industrial jobs now require. This is especially true in the energy sector, which has used technological advancements like horizontal drilling and upgrades in hydraulic fracturing to spearhead a revitalization that is yielding more revenue, security, and jobs than ever.

And according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, the number of STEM-related positions is expected to balloon. By 2018, STEM jobs will grow 17 percent, about double the growth of non-STEM jobs. This means that the U.S. will have more than 1.2 million unfilled STEM jobs because of a lack of qualified workers.

These alarming statistics illustrate that the absence of a qualified workforce, now and in the future, is perhaps the greatest threat to the nation’s potential for dominance in manufacturing and energy production. Devoid of the right labor force, the all-important energy sector, which now supports more than 12 million jobs and continues to be the backbone of the American economy, will lose the engine that best fuels its robust production – our minds. 

According to the Level Playing Field Institute, here is how the U.S. compares to other countries in STEM education:

-- The World Economic Forum ranks the United States 52nd in the quality of mathematics and science education, and 5th (and declining) in overall global competitiveness

-- The United States ranks 27th among developed nations in the proportion of college students receiving undergraduate degrees in science or engineering

-- There are more foreign than U.S. students studying in U.S. graduate schools, and over 2/3 of the engineers who receive Ph.D.’s from United States universities are not United States citizens

The realization that the American education system is not producing enough math- and science-oriented minds should be especially concerning for top energy-producing states. Texas, the national leader in overall energy production, might eventually be hit hard, as could the other Gulf of Mexico states, where over 45 percent of total U.S. petroleum refining capacity is located, as well as 51 percent of total natural gas processing plant capacity. Failure to develop a high-skilled STEM workforce to meet these demands threatens overall energy production and refining capacity and, equally important, threatens continued economic development and job production across the nation.

The STEM gap may also affect energy production in Alaska, arguably the U.S. leader in yet-to-be tapped energy potential, thanks to the 27 billion barrels of oil and 132 trillion cubic feet of natural gas estimated to rest under its Arctic waters. According to Consumer Energy Alliance, 30 billion barrels of Alaskan oil could fuel every domestic flight for 120 years, and 141 trillion cubic feet of its natural gas could heat every American house for 34 years. Several energy companies, like Shell, see this potential and have reacted accordingly.  In Texas alone, Shell has invested more than $760 million in 116 local companies that provide services and products to support drilling activities in Alaska.

Without the right, educated workforce, these efforts could be all for naught over the long-term. By better educating our current schoolchildren -- who will become tomorrow’s workforce, in science and math -- we can help construct and operate the technology that in the near future will extract resources previously deemed unreachable. That, in turn, will allow the U.S. the opportunity to reinforce its security, increase its geopolitical standing, and put out-of-work Americans back to work or create more higher-paying jobs to help underemployed Americans move into the middle class.

Schools can take proactive steps by utilizing grant tools such as the Robert Noyse Teacher Scholarship Program to develop a quality STEM teaching staff, getting STEM certified through Project Lead the Way, or joining the STEM Education Coalition to further public policies that support STEM education.

Consumer Energy Education Foundation and Consumer Energy Alliance have taken their own steps in recent years to help right this wrong. In addition to raising awareness and organizing scholarships, education workshops, and teacher development courses, the two have paired up annually to host Energy Day, the largest STEM-oriented family festival in Houston, equipped with dozens upon dozens of exhibits and interactive demonstrations that spark students’ interest in energy and manufacturing career choices.

In order to efficiently fuel the minds of tomorrow’s workforce, we need many more Energy Day-like events across the country year-round, a near impossible feat for us – but not for families. That’s because STEM education, while starting in the classroom, can and must continue at home, with parents who engage daily with those who will power us into the next decade and beyond. By helping with math and science studies at home, parents can help ensure that their children’s future and America’s energy future alike is bright and thriving.

Involving nonprofit organizations and corporate sponsored activities, such as Project Lead the Way and Energy Day, are vitally important to accelerate improvements in America’s classrooms. Public funding for education and the slowness of formal curriculum changes to address STEM deficiencies remain barriers to advancing student success. Teachers, the most important people in the educational ecosystem outside of the home, often struggle to bring the best instructional practices and tools into the classroom due to a lack of time to develop their skills and prepare active project based activities for their students. Communities, businesses, and community leaders must all support classroom teachers by providing opportunities for professional development and STEM-focused extracurricular activities to enhance student engagement and learning.

Tackling this challenge cannot be a part-time exercise.  It requires sustained efforts of committed individuals to make STEM education a local, regional or national priority who are dedicated to aligning all of our available resources to achieve collective impact.