Steel, Carbajal Establish the Bipartisan STARBASE Caucus
PHOTOS: Rep. Steel tours STARBASE Los Alamitos and speaks with students about their experiences in March of 2023
Today, co-chairs Rep. Michelle Steel (R-CA) and Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-CA) re-established the bipartisan STARBASE Caucus for the 118th Congress. The caucus serves as a bipartisan hub of members focused on supporting the vital role that the Department of Defense’s (DOD) STARBASE youth STEM Education program performs for students across the country. The caucus will also seek to provide Members with current information and address issues regarding the STARBASE Program.
“Inspiring students to pursue an education in STEM is absolutely vital, not only to students’ careers, but our country’s long-term progress,” said Steel. “Our nation faces a critical labor shortage in the STEM field. To invest in our students’ STEM education, is to invest in the next generation of our America’s leaders. I am proud to support the STARBASE program and their invaluable, hands-on educational experiences.”
"Our next generation is critical to keeping our nation on the cutting edge of technological innovation, scientific breakthroughs, and exploration of new frontiers as large as the universe and as small as the atom," said Carbajal. "That's why programs like STARBASE are indispensable. Through STARBASE, the DoD is already helping to deliver high-quality STEM education to more than 1,200 schools across our nation–including to students the Central Coast–inspiring our future inventors, explorers, and pioneers. And in Congress, I'm proud to be working with Congresswoman Steel to ensure Congress continues to support and help improve this program."
Background
There are six STARBASE locations in California.
The Department of Defense’s (DOD) STARBASE program is an effective DOD outreach and STEM education awareness program for elementary and secondary school students. Students learn the importance of STEM skills in real world situations and develop essential math and science fundamentals, while fostering positive relationships between the military bases and local communities.
Evaluations of STARBASE participants show significant improvement in the students’ understanding, interest, and ability in math and science, which has led to increased enthusiasm in pursuing STEM education. Recent surveys of students showed knowledge scores of chemistry, engineering, math, physics and technology increased by 27.6%, while favorability scores of math and science showed clear improvement.
Nationwide, the program is one of the most cost-effective programs across the federal government, costing an average of only $328 per student in 2017. In the 2021-2022 school year, the program served more than 79,618 students in 1,558 schools, across 611 school districts. Nationwide, the program documented 10,435 volunteers, who contributed over 131,281 hours of labor to the program, valued at over $3.88 million dollars