Addressing the under-representation of women,
minorities, and persons with disabilities in science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)
fields has been an initiative of the U.S. Congress
for the past 30 years, but the challenge still
remains unresolved. The National Science
Foundation (NSF) and the Congressional Committee
on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering
(CEOSE) have been assigned to work together in an
attempt to broaden the diversity of the U.S. STEM
workforce across the past three decades (Martens
& Hopkins, 2006). As diversity continues to
increase among the U.S. population and since many
STEM professionals are nearing retirement, this
initiative has never been more important for the
economic success of the country.