A wide range of industries throughout the U.S. have openings for workers with knowledge and skills in STEM fields, but it is becoming increasing difficult to find individuals with the background to meet this demand. Without a national effort to improve STEM education and increase the number of graduates in these fields, this trend is likely to continue and even worsen over time.
While this troubling national trend is present in Chicago, the good news is that we have been working hard and making great progress, due in large part to Thrive Chicago, a public/private partnership focused on “collective impact”. I have personally participated in and supported Thrive Chicago activities from its genesis, and am pleased to share with you our guest blog from Arnie Rivera, newly appointed Deputy Chief of Staff for Education for Mayor Rahm Emanuel, and Brian Fabes, CEO of Civic Consulting Alliance, describing the progress and bright future for accelerating STEM skills in Chicago. – Shelley Stern Grach
Chicago has a vision to become the next Silicon Valley, and to support that vision the city is abuzz with activity. From organizations like the HIVE Learning network that connect communities of learning and creativity in STEM fields, to the Tech Hub of 1871 that’s become synonymous with innovation, to Code.org and its wildly successful “Hour of Code” – a sizable portion of the civic landscape in Chicago is investing time and money on STEM projects.
Despite these efforts, a significant number of Chicagoans still find themselves unprepared for a career in a STEM field. In 2018, Chicago will have an estimated 447,000 jobs, almost 70,000 projected to be unfilled at any given time, in STEM fields. More than 80% of these open positions will require a post-secondary degree or credential, but fewer than 5% of public school youth are reaching that milestone. Too many youth in Chicago will miss out on careers in high-paying and fast-growing STEM fields.
“Bending the curve” on a young person’s trajectory often requires multiple organizations to work together, in an act we refer to as collective impact, and in Chicago collective impact strategies are now organized under the banner of Thrive Chicago. Thrive was launched last year in the Mayor’s Office, with the goal of improving improve outcomes for youth through collective impact. Bringing together city agencies, non-profits, community-based organizations, philanthropy, and corporations, many of Thrive Chicago’s initiatives are focused on the goal of preparing youth, starting in pre-K and supporting them all the way through college, for the attractive jobs offered in STEM fields.
For example, Thrive is engaging K-8th grade youth in STEM enrichment and academic activities, that together result in a five-fold increase in students’ likelihood of graduating high school. This cross-organizational Thrive team, co-chaired by Chicago Public Schools and the HIVE Learning Network, is improving improve both access to and the quality of STEM-affiliated out-of-school-time programs.
In another part of the Thrive-STEM effort, data are being shared for the first time between service providers – including the public schools – on youth who are in programs. Today, those serving young people can gain a full picture of a participant’s development, helping to shape the nature of services delivered, or providing just-in-time interventions when necessary.
The extraordinary partnerships that we are supporting through Thrive Chicago – collaborations including the Chicago Public Schools, the out-of-school-time community, philanthropic and corporate partners, and others – are ensuring that Chicago’s youth will be prepared to meet the future in STEM careers. Together we are accomplishing more than any one organization or even sector could on its own.
ABOUT THRIVE
THRIVE’s vision and mission is to see that Chicago is a city where all succeed in education, career, and life and they will do this by preparing all of Chicago for a vibrant future by aligning efforts and outcomes from cradle to career. Thrive Chicago employs a Cradle-to-Career collective impact strategy. Collective impact describes the commitment of a group of influencers from different sectors to a common agenda for solving complex social problems. Currently 188 Organizations are affiliated with Thrive Chicago.
ABOUT ARNIE
Mayor Rahm Emanuel appointed Arnaldo (Arnie) Rivera to be the City of Chicago’s new Deputy Chief of Staff for Education on August 4th, 2014. He is responsible for the coordination of the administration’s education policy agenda for the City of Chicago from early childhood through the City Colleges. Arnie brings over a decade of experience working in education, most recently as the Chief Operating Officer of The Chicago Public Education Fund, where he was responsible for the organizations financial and operations management, as well as overseeing its communications and development strategies. He had previously served as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Chicago Public Schools, where he served on the senior team responsible for the planning and execution of the Full School Day outreach strategy and the expansion of the International Baccalaureate programs in Chicago’s high schools.
ABOUT BRIAN
Since joining Civic Consulting Alliance in 2005, Brian has forged city-wide collaborations that have invested, collectively, more than $100 million of pro bono services in the things that matter most in Chicago. Prior to Civic Consulting, Brian was Senior Vice President at National-Louis University, and before that Associate Principal at McKinsey & Company. Prior to McKinsey, Brian was was Associate Professor at the University of Arizona, where he was part of the leadership team that built a new department of Materials Science and Engineering. Brian received his B.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and lives in Chicago with his wife and 3 children.