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 The Global STEM Education Center, Inc 501(c) (3) non-profit corporation  brings together K-12 and institutions of higher education, as well as  business and industry partners to contribute to developing the 21st  century global workforce. Our programs enable the next generation  workforce to be effective in and with other countries/cultures in  solving the problems urgently confronting the world’s populations and  working successfully across global cultural differences. Our programs  engage students from elementary school through higher education in  authentic international science, engineering and technology (STEM)  learning experiences.

The need and urgency for the development  of the next generation STEM global competency have been clearly  underscored by Patricia Galloway, former president of the American  Society of Civil Engineers, in her book, The 21st-Century Engineer, A  Proposal for Engineering Reform, [1] where she writes,

"A solid  understanding of globalization is key to an engineer’s success in  today’s global society. Globalization involves the ability to understand  that the world economy has become tightly linked with much of the  change triggered by technology; to understand other cultures, especially  the societal elements of these cultures; to work effectively in  multinational teams; to communicate effectively—both orally and in  writing—in the international business language of English; to recognize  and understand issues of sustainability; to understand the importance of  transparency while working with local populations; and to understand  public policy issues around the world and in the country in which one is  working. It will be these fundamental capacities that will enable  21st-century engineers to develop into professionals capable of working  successfully both domestically and globally, highly respected by the  general public..."

It is with the realization of this need and  urgency, particularly as they apply to engineering education, that the  Global STEM Education Center has developed its approach and strategy for  the 21st century STEM workforce.

The uniqueness and  strength of the Global STEM Education Center’s approach to the  development of the next century global engineer lie in the choice of the  population it works with. Multiple studies have shown that cultural  differences begin developing in early childhood and continue over the  years. Thus the Global STEM Education Center involves students as early  as K-12 school years in authentic international STEM learning  experiences with continued fostering of students’ development through  higher education (@ Global STEM Education Center copyright 2008-2017).

The  Global STEM Education Center’s diversity and STEM curriculum and the  innovative pedagogy supported by the unique mentorship structure (by  professionals and college students) will lead to a generation of STEM  workforce with an in-depth, coherent global diversity education and  practical training on international STEM projects. By designing,  implementing, and evaluating a program for international STEM teams  working in common on design projects that are supported by in-depth  global diversity instructions, we allow students to experience authentic  STEM practice while also supplying them with tools, skills, and  knowledge to do so.

A rigorous study of the effects the  diversity training may have on the cross-cultural student team  performance will allow for further development and refinement of the  program, as well as offer solutions for scaling up the program to serve  larger numbers of middle, high and college students on track to the STEM  professions. Furthermore, this research will provide insight and  recommendations for local and international corporations as they tackle  the issues of global diversity training for their STEM, management and  R&D workforce.

[1] P. D. Galloway, The 21st Century Engineer, A Proposal for Engineering Reform, ASCE Press, 2008