BUILDING BRIDGES TO SUCCESS - REGIONAL BUSINESS-HIGHER EDUCATION PARTNERSHIPS TO GROW AND DIVERSIFY THE STEM WORKFORCE

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Mia

Building Bridges to Success details how the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) used an NSF-funded initiative to expand regional partnerships between STEM-driven businesses and higher education. The report explains the program’s goals to create innovative STEM pathways that improve educational opportunity and economic mobility for underrepresented students, including veterans and women. It summarizes grant design, site impacts, collaboration examples, and evaluation insights, concluding with findings and calls to action for sustainability and institutionalization.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages48

Reading Time2 h 1 min

AccessFree to download

01 Letter from the Business-Higher Education Forum

04 Introduction

06 BHEF’s National Science Foundation Grant

10 Grant Impact Among the Sites

12 The City University of New York and IBM

16 Miami Dade College and NextEra Energy

20 Northeastern University, Raytheon, IBM, and Others

24 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and The Water Council

28 Washington University in St. Louis and Boeing

34 Insights from the Evaluation

36 Looking Forward to Sustainability and Institutionalization

38 Grant Impact on BHEF’s Focus

40 Findings

44 Call to Action

References

Creating Solutions. Inspiring Action. —Building Bridges to Success REGIONAL BUSINESS-HIGHE R E DUCAT ION PART NE RSHIPS TO GROW AND DIVERSIFY THE STEM WORKFORCE 01 Letter from the Business-Higher Education Forum 04 Introduction 06 BHEF’s National Science Foundation Grant 10 Grant Impact Among the Sites 12 The City University of New York and IBM 16 Miami Dade College and NextEra Energy 20 Northeastern University, Raytheon, IBM, and Others 24 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and The Water Council 28 Washington University in St. Louis and Boeing 34 Insights from the Evaluation 36 Looking Forward to Sustainability and Institutionalization 38 Grant Impact on BHEF’s Focus 40 Findings 44 Call to Action References ABOUT THE BUSINESS-HIGHER EDUCATION FORUM The Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) is a private, nonprofit membership organization of leading C-Suite business executives and university presidents who employ the latest market intelligence to inform strategic partnerships that create innovative talent solutions in high-demand emerging fields. Members provide leadership by encouraging their peers to act on critical talent needs. For more information about BHEF, [visit www.bhef.com](visit www.bhef.com). ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS BHEF would like to thank all of the USI2 consortium members, including representatives from NORC atthe University of Chicago, The City University of New York, Miami Dade College, Northeastern University, University of Wisconsin System, Washington University in St. Louis with University of Missouri-St. Louis, NextEra Energy, Boeing Company, IBM, Raytheon Company, and The Water Council, for their work on the NSF grant and/or providing detailed information and insights on their respective roles, partnerships, and programs. Lead BHEF staff members for this publication include Steve Barkanic, Stephanie Blochinger, Janet Chen, Brian Fitzgerald, and Jennifer Thornton. This work was funded by the National Science Foundation under Award DUE-1331063. However, any opinions, findings, conclusions, and/or recommendations are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation. | | | | --- | --- | | We hope that this report will give its readers a sense of the impact of NSF’s grant in demonstrating the power of business-higher education partnerships to create new kinds of STEM pathways that provide educational opportunity and economic mobility for underrepresented students. We also hope that it can inform NSF’s strategic plans for innovative, pro-active solutions for U.S. STEM education. | | | BUILDING BRIDGES TO SUCCESS: REGIONAL BUSINESS-HIGHER EDUCATION PARTNERSHIPS TO GROW AND DIVERSIFY THE STEM WORKFORCE 1 | | | | | | --- | --- | | LETTER FROM THE BUSINESS-HIGHER EDUCATION FORUM
— | | | The Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) was excited and energized when the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced a major, bold initiative in 2017 to push the boundaries of scientific research and education. Those “10 Big Ideas” touch on critical questions regarding the future of work, convergence of research disciplines, research infrastructure, need for data-capable professionals across sectors, and other areas. NSF has made important investments in these areas that further the its mission of promoting the progress of science, securing national defense, and advancing national health, prosperity, and welfare.
Soon after this announcement, the National Science Board (NSB) released the report, Our Nation’s Future Competitiveness Relies on Building a STEM-Capable Workforce: A Policy Companion to Science and Engineering Indicators 2018, which noted that the number of jobs in the United States requiring“substantial science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) expertise” has increased 34 percent over the past decade. Additionally, a 2019 NSB report, The Skilled Technical Workforce: Crafting America’s Science & Engineering Enterpris

FAQs

What is the purpose of the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) in this report?

BHEF is described as a private, nonprofit membership organization that connects C-suite business executives and university presidents to form strategic partnerships for innovative talent solutions in high-demand emerging fields.

What funding source supports this initiative?

The work is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under Award DUE-1331063.

Which kinds of regional partners are highlighted as working together?

The report emphasizes partnerships between STEM-driven businesses and institutions of higher education, with examples including City University of New York and IBM, Miami Dade College and NextEra Energy, and universities working with companies such as Boeing and Raytheon.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Mia