Beyond100K

One of the clearest emerging trends in #STEMeducation is not about interest. It is about cost. In her new Forbes article, Talia Milgrom-Elcott, Founder and Executive Director, Beyond100K, points to a shift that is gaining momentum. For many aspiring teachers, the barrier is not whether they want to enter the profession. It is whether they can afford to. Preparation programs are expensive, clinical training often goes unpaid, and salaries lag comparable fields. What has long been treated as an individual burden is starting to be addressed as a policy problem. This is one of four shifts pointing to where #STEM education is heading next, and how the teacher workforce will be shaped in the years ahead. Read the full article to see all four trends and what they mean for the future of the field: https://lnkd.in/emzxiZ5J

The biggest shifts in #STEMeducation are not the ones dominating headlines. They are happening underneath, reshaping who enters teaching, who stays, and whether the system can hold. In a new Forbes article, Talia Milgrom-Elcott, Founder and Executive Director, Beyond100K identifies four education trends that are reshaping the #STEM teacher workforce, teacher retention, and long term system stability. This is not a list of ideas. It is a pattern. The cost of becoming a teacher is no longer something individuals are expected to carry on their own. It is increasingly being recognized as a policy problem, with real momentum behind earn while you learn pathways and apprenticeship models that can open access to the profession. At the same time, mentorship is being rethought. It is moving beyond one to one relationships and taking shape as a broader system of support, built across cohorts, peer networks, and shared learning communities that more realistically reflect how teachers stay and grow over time. There is also a shift happening inside organizations themselves. #Belonging is no longer framed as an aspiration. It is being operationalized, with metrics, accountability, and intentional design, because it has become one of the clearest signals of whether educators remain in the field. And as #AI accelerates into classrooms, the conversation is evolving. The question is no longer whether to adopt it, but whether it will be integrated in ways that strengthen STEM access and rigorous learning, or pull attention away from what matters most. Taken together, these shifts mark a move away from isolated interventions and toward systems designed to last. If you are shaping programs, funding strategies, or policy in STEM education, this is not a piece to skim. It is a signal to act. Read it, share it with your team, and decide what you are building toward. https://lnkd.in/emzxiZ5J

The Beyond100K network is headed west and we are bringing the conversation with us. This April in Los Angeles, we are gathering educators, partners, and leaders in #STEMeducation for informal meetups alongside the National Science Teaching Association National Conference and the American Educational Research Association's Annual Meeting. These are not panels or presentations. They are something more valuable. Real conversations about what is working, what is not, and how we move forward together to support the educators who inspire the next generation of #STEM leaders. Whether you are attending a conference or simply based in Los Angeles, we would love to have you join us on April 8, or April 15. There is no need to be registered for NSTA or AERA; just bring your perspective, your questions, and a willingness to connect. Spots are limited, so we encourage you to register soon for : -the April 8th session https://lnkd.in/exyzABFR -the April 15th session https://lnkd.in/e2Dcx-mT. What is one question or challenge about STEM teaching and learning you would want to explore together in the room?

At Beyond100K, we spend a lot of time listening. We listen to educators navigating the realities of the classroom. We listen to universities preparing the next generation of teachers. We listen to school systems and nonprofits testing new approaches to strengthen and support STEM educators. Across these conversations, a pattern is emerging. The future of STEM education will depend not only on programs, but on the systems that help teachers enter the profession, stay in it, and thrive. Our 2026 Beyond100K Trends Report captures what organizations across the field are seeing right now. Financial barriers continue to shape who can become a teacher. Mentorship is growing into meaningful communities of support. Belonging is emerging as a critical factor in retention. Artificial intelligence literacy is quickly becoming part of everyday teaching and learning. Together, these shifts point to something larger. A redefinition of how we support and sustain the educators shaping the future. Read the full report. https://lnkd.in/gexbaNRw What #trends are you seeing among #STEM educators right now?

How are #STEM teachers really navigating #AI in their classrooms right now? Not in theory. In the real, daily work of teaching and learning. Beyond100K is launching a new series of Educator Empathy Interviews to listen directly to K–12 STEM educators about how artificial intelligence is shaping instruction, student learning, and equity in their classrooms. These 30 to 45-minute conversations will help inform our Classrooms of #Belonging and AI strategy, ensuring that educators remain at the center of how this work evolves. We are seeking 20 current, classroom-based #STEMeducators across grade levels and communities whose experiences can help shape how schools, districts, and partners support teachers as they navigate AI in education. The goal is simple: ensure the people closest to students are also closest to the decisions shaping the future of learning. If you are a STEM teacher, or know one whose perspective should be part of this conversation, we would love to hear from you. Nominate or share with a STEM educator here: https://lnkd.in/eWgKVHs6

This Women’s History Month, we are proud to celebrate Reshma Saujani, founder of our partner Girls Who Code, named one of TIME’s 2026 Women of the Year. Reshma has spent more than a decade challenging the narrative that tech is not for girls. Through Girls Who Code, hundreds of thousands of young women have gained not only computer science skills, but confidence, community, and a sense of belonging in #STEM. That work has fundamentally expanded who enters the innovation pipeline. At #Beyond100K, we know that expanding access is only one part of the equation. Sustaining that momentum requires inclusive classrooms where students continue to see themselves as capable and welcome. Access programs and classroom systems must move together. Recognition like this signals something larger. Gender equity in STEM is not peripheral. It is integral/key to the future of our workforce and education systems. Who are the women in your community who are reshaping STEM opportunities right now? We would love to recognize them in the comments. #womenshistorymonth https://lnkd.in/eEzskuMD

Last month, Beyond100K was recognized by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship for Collective Social Innovation. That moment still feels significant for the future of the #STEM teacher workforce. It signals that lasting progress in #STEMeducation will not come from isolated programs. It will come from coordinated action that strengthens teacher preparation, retention, and belonging in STEM classrooms. This recognition reflects the collective work of partners across the country who are redesigning systems that recruit, support, and sustain STEM teachers so more students see themselves as future innovators and problem solvers. We would truly value your perspective. What is the most urgent STEM teacher workforce challenge we should be solving together right now? https://lnkd.in/gBaac8Rs

A new The Brookings Institution article reframes how we should understand the #STEM teacher workforce in high need schools. Staffing levels have been more stable than many assume, yet persistent gaps in qualifications and in the teacher pipeline continue to shape which students have access to rigorous STEM learning. The analysis also points to Beyond100K as contributing to sustaining and expanding the STEM teacher pipeline in recent years. We see that not as a conclusion, but as a call to keep strengthening preparation, placement, and long term support so stability translates into real equity for students. Have you read the piece? What stood out most to you about the implications for strengthening the STEM teacher pipeline in high need schools? Read and join the conversation: https://lnkd.in/er86BUjn #STEMeducation #TeacherPipeline #EducationPolicy #ThinkBeyond

As Black History Month reaches its centennial, we are reminded that this moment is not only about reflection. It is about responsibility. At Beyond100K, we hold that Black history IS American history and foundational to the story of learning, leadership, and innovation. How history is taught shapes who feels seen as a future educator, scientist, or leader. A recent AP News article on the centennial speaks to this same conviction by highlighting how educators and cultural leaders are working to ensure that Black history is taught not as an addition, but as integral to understanding our nation and its future. If this perspective resonates, we invite you to read the article and share your reflections. These conversations matter because they influence how the next generation understands #belonging in #STEM and beyond. What responsibility do we hold right now to ensure that the histories taught in our classrooms reflect the full story of who we are and who we can become. Delve in. #BlackHistory365 #BHM100 https://lnkd.in/gAMqRsYF

Much of the coverage coming out of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2026 focused on fracture and American retrenchment. Our Founder and Executive Director, Talia Milgrom-Elcott Milgrom experienced something far more consequential on the ground. She was there as a 2026 Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship Awardee for Collective Social Innovation, recognized for building the connective infrastructure that enables large-scale change. In Three Signals From Davos 2026 That The Headlines Missed, Talia steps back from the noise to name the deeper shifts unfolding in plain sight. She points to the rise of collective infrastructure at a moment when cooperation is being questioned. She observes nations and companies positioning for a younger and more distributed global economy. And she describes an AI conversation that centers human judgment, empathy, and trust rather than dominance alone. Taken together, these signals suggest that the world is not waiting for clarity. It is actively redesigning how cooperation works, how markets evolve, and how humans and technology partner. For Beyond100K and for those working at the intersection of #STEM, workforce, and belonging, this framing matters. If new global architecture is being built, the question is not simply who leads, but whose values shape what comes next. We believe this is essential reading for leaders thinking about competitiveness, innovation, and collective progress in a rapidly changing world. Drop a note in the comments with the signal that stayed with you. https://lnkd.in/e9zdYbgt