About

The Association of American Universities (AAU) is engaged in an initiative to improve the quality of undergraduate teaching and learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields at its member institutions. The overall objective is to influence the culture of STEM departments at AAU universities so that faculty members are encouraged to use teaching practices proven to be effective in engaging students in STEM education and in helping students learn.

All AAU institutions have the opportunity to engage in the Undergraduate STEM Education Initiative.  If you are interested in getting involved with the initiative, please email AAU.STEM@aau.edu for further details.

To date, AAU efforts include:

· Creating a framework outlining key elements to guide institutional and faculty commitment to evidence-based teaching in STEM.

· Convening STEM Network workshops and conferences to discuss common themes campuses confront when reforming undergraduate STEM education.

· Maintaining an online community platform for AAU members to post publications, webinars, events, and employment opportunities related to               undergraduate STEM education reform.

· Supporting eight project sites implement reforms that address the core elements of the AAU framework.

· Studying how a national higher education association can help campuses scale and institutionalize systemic reforms to improve the quality of                undergraduate STEM teaching and learning.

AAU is a nonprofit association of 60 U.S. and two Canadian preeminent public and private research universities. Founded in 1900, AAU focuses on national and institutional issues that are important to research-intensive universities, including funding for research, research and education policy, and graduate and undergraduate education.

 

AAU STEM Project Team

Emily R. Miller, Ph.D., Associate Vice President for Policy, Director of the AAU STEM Initiative

James S. Fairweather, Ph.D. Co-Principal Investigator

Linda L. Slakey, Ph.D. AAU Senior Adviser for STEM Education

Toby Smith, AAU Vice President for Policy, Co-Principal Investigator

Tara King, AAU Higher Education Project Coordinator

 

Funding

The AAU  Undergraduate STEM Education Initiative is generously funded by:

	The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust aspires to improve lives by supporting effective nonprofits in a variety of selected areas. In post-secondary education, the Trust is primarily interested in increasing the number of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) graduates who can participate in high growth sectors of the economy. The Trust also focuses on policy levers that improve post-secondary completion, particularly for underrepresented populations.
	The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 "to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense..." In many fields such as mathematics, computer science and the social sciences, NSF is the major source of federal backing.

The Burroughs Wellcome Fund is an independent private foundation dedicated to advancing the biomedical sciences by supporting research and other scientific and educational activities.	Elsevier B.V. is an academic publishing company that publishes medical and scientific literature.	Research Corporation for Science Advancement (RCSA) is a foundation providing catalytic and opportunistic funding for innovative scientific research and the development of academic scientists.