The Advocate
The Baton Rouge Area Chamber and several industry giants have partnered with the school systems in East and West Baton Rouge parishes to launch a regional STEM collaborative called Gen Ready.
The partnership is one of 68 nationwide designated as STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) Ecosystems, BRAC said in a news release. The national initiative encourages cross-sector collaboration to provide STEM learning opportunities.
The partnership in Baton Rouge is between BRAC, ExxonMobil, Dow Chemical, BASF, the Foundation for East Baton Rouge Schools and the West Baton Rouge School System.
Gen Ready aims to increase student interest and participation in STEM, bolstering the STEM teaching pipeline and increasing workforce and education awareness, among other things.
“Economic development is contingent on a region’s skilled workforce pipeline,” Monique Scott-Spaulding, chair of BRAC’s Education and Workforce Issue Council, said in a statement. “… It’s our hope that Gen Ready will align all stakeholders who are committed to preparing our students for strong careers after high school.”
Bolstering the region’s STEM education and workforce pipeline has long been a goal of local business and economic development leaders.