While US President Barack Obama has placed an emphasis on getting students interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics careers through the Educate to Innovate Initiative and a series of White House science fairs, Kenneth Chang at the New York Times writes that the goal has been "elusive."
National Lab Day — which later became National Lab Network — was started by entrepreneur Jack Hidary to match teachers to scientists willing to help with classroom projects. The first year kicked off with help from administration officials, but the "effort has been winding down for the last year and a half" Hidary tells Chang.
Still “[w]e know we had direct influence on thousands and thousands of teachers,” Hidary says.
However, Chang notes that how US students scored on the Program of International Student Assessment hasn't changed much, and Hidary adds that such improvements may take time.