Finman to join STEM Action Center board
Post Falls business leader and STEM education advocate Lorna Finman will join a nine-member board of directors overseeing the state's new STEM Action Center.
Gov. Butch Otter announced Finman and the board's other members earlier this week.
The STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) Action Center was created through the passage of House Bill 302 and calls for an initial board consisting of nine members including five representatives of business and industry.
The move to establish a STEM Action Center was spearheaded by the Legislature's STEM Caucus led by Sen. Bob Nonini, R-Coeur d'Alene.
"Idaho is fortunate to have strong industry partners including Micron Technology, the Idaho National Laboratory and members of the Idaho Business for Education and Idaho Technology Council who supported passage of HB 302," Nonini said in a press release. "With their help, Idaho can ensure we have the workforce needed to fill the fast-growing, high-paying jobs of the future."
Those who have agreed to serve on the board are:
* Jeff Sayer, Director, Department of Commerce
* Ken Edmunds, Director, Department of Labor
* Dave Hill, Idaho State Board of Education
* Tim Corder, Special Assistant, Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction
* Todd Allen, Deputy Director, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls
* Lorna Finman, CEO, LCF Enterprises, Post Falls
* Dee Mooney, Executive Director, Micron Foundation, Boise
* Von Hansen, CEO AlertSense Inc., Boise
The Idaho statute creating the board calls for five members representing "manufacturing or STEM related industries." The fifth member is still to be determined and will be named at a later date.
The STEM Action Center will coordinate and promote STEM programs and best practices to build a workforce pipeline offering more employment opportunities for Idaho students and better align with industry needs.
"We are excited to get the STEM Action Center underway. A focus on science, technology, engineering and math is essential to Idaho's economic prosperity," Otter said in a press release. "As we continue to enhance our 'K-through-Career' initiative, our STEM Action Center will work closely with state government, industry partners and economic development organizations to help students understand the opportunities in STEM careers."
"We have a serious shortage of qualified applicants in jobs that require higher level skills and education in STEM," said Idaho Commerce Director Jeff Sayer. "This means Idaho companies leave positions unfilled, recruit out-of-state or move their businesses to another state or country. The STEM Action Center will help address this critical need in the economy we want to grow in Idaho."
A search for an executive director for the STEM Action Center is currently underway. The board is expected to hold an initial meeting in late July.