Riley Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Recruit STEM Teachers to Rural Schools in Upstate New York
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Josh Riley (NY-19) and Congressman Mike Kennedy (UT-03) introduced the ‘Boosting the Rural STEM Pipeline Act,’ a bipartisan bill to help rural schools hire well-trained STEM teachers. The bill strengthens the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program, which provides National Science Foundation (NSF) grants to colleges to train STEM majors to become STEM teachers in high-need school districts.
“For too long, rural schools have been told to make do with less,” Rep Riley said. “Not anymore. Students in our small towns have talent, drive, and big dreams, and they deserve the same opportunities as everyone else, but too many rural schools are struggling to recruit and retain enough STEM teachers. Our bill fixes that problem by supporting STEM teachers who work in the rural communities that politicians have overlooked for too long. Our kids deserve a fair shot and our teachers deserve a helping hand — and I’ll be in their corner every day to make sure they have both.”
“As a representative of Utah's vast rural communities, I understand the vital importance of ensuring our rural communities play a key role in America's fast-growing STEM economy, Rep. Kennedy said. “The Boosting the Rural STEM Pipeline Act reflects a strong, bipartisan commitment to placing high quality STEM teachers in rural school districts to inspire the next generation of innovators. By expanding the pipeline of future STEM educators, we’re taking a practical step to invest in rural classrooms and secure the future success of our students.”
“Across New York, rural schools are working hard to give students access to strong STEM programs, but they can only do that if we have a stable pipeline of well-prepared teachers. This legislation recognizes that reality and takes a smart, targeted step toward recruitment and retention. By removing unnecessary barriers for higher education institutions sending educators to rural areas, we’re not just expanding opportunity — we’re strengthening the future of our entire state,” said Melinda Person, President of New York State United Teachers.
Rural K-12 schools need more STEM teachers, but the colleges that train those teachers haven’t been able to fully participate in the federal Noyce program. For years, Noyce required colleges to contribute matching funds to receive a grant. Many rural colleges do not have the budgets to meet that requirement, so they were effectively shut out.
In 2022, the CHIPS and Science Act temporarily removed the matching requirement. Once that barrier was lifted, additional rural colleges began applying for and receiving Noyce grants, and more of their graduates are now teaching in rural classrooms. In the most recent funding round, several universities and colleges in New York’s 19th Congressional District received grants totaling $2,570,978, including:
- $1,199,744 for SUNY Oneonta
- $700,033 for Binghamton University
- $671,201 for Ithaca College
The Boosting the Rural STEM Pipeline Act makes this fix permanent, so rural colleges can keep training STEM teachers without running into a financial wall — and rural schools can keep hiring the talent they’ve been missing.
The bipartisan bill is supported by the State University of New York System, the New York State School Boards Association, New York State United Teachers, and the Center for Excellence in Education, an advisor to the Congressional STEM Education Caucus, of which Congressman Riley is a member.
Full bill text can be found HERE.
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