STEM EDUCATION - Selected Federal Initiatives, Challenges, and Approaches to Supporting Rural Populations - Report to Congressional Committees

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Melati

STEM education for rural K-12 students is examined through selected federal initiatives, reported challenges, and effective approaches. The report describes initiatives from four agencies—the Department of Agriculture, Department of Education, NASA, and the National Science Foundation—and summarizes how they support rural STEM education within broader programs. It identifies staffing shortages and limited access to STEM learning opportunities and materials as key barriers, including travel costs for field trips. It also highlights strategies to improve access through equipment purchases, shared resources, robotics lending, and connecting STEM activities to students’ local environments.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages36

Reading Time1 h 31 min

AccessFree to download

Why GAO Did This Study

What GAO Found

Background

Selected Federal Agencies Reported Supporting Rural Populations as Part of Broader K-12 STEM

Education Initiatives

Stakeholders Cited Limited Staffing and Student Access to Learning Opportunities and Materials as Challenges for Rural K-12 STEM Education

Improving Access to Materials and Connecting STEM to Students’ Lives Were Among the Ways Stakeholders Supported Rural K-12 STEM Education

Agency Comments

Appendix I: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments

STEM EDUCATION Selected Federal Initiatives, Challenges, and Approaches to Supporting Rural Populations Report to Congressional Committees July 2025 GAO-25-107371 United States Government Accountability Office Accessible Version GAO Highlights View GAO-25-107371 . For more information, [contact Melissa Emrey-Arras at](contact Melissa Emrey-Arras at emreyarrasm@gao.gov)[ emreyarrasm@gao.gov](contact Melissa Emrey-Arras at emreyarrasm@gao.gov). Highlights of GAO-25-107371, a report to congressional committees July 2025 STEM EDUCATION Selected Federal Initiatives, Challenges, and Approaches to Supporting Rural Populations Why GAO Did This Study STEM education helps prepare K-12 students for careers in STEM fields to enhance innovation and global competitiveness. About 10 million K-12 students were enrolled in public schools in rural areas in 2022, the most current year of data available. The August 2022 Research and Development, Competition, and Innovation Act includes a provision for GAO to examine issues related to rural STEM education. This report describes (1) selected federal agencies’ initiatives that support rural K- 12 STEM education, (2) challenges selected recipients of federal funds and other stakeholders have reported related to supporting rural K-12 STEM education, and (3) approaches selected recipients of federal funds have found to be effective for supporting rural K-12 STEM education. To conduct this work, GAO examined federal initiatives that support rural K-12 STEM education at four agencies—the Department of Agriculture, Department of Education, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and National Science Foundation. GAO selected these agencies in part based on the number of K-12 STEM education initiatives they administered and their STEM education funding levels as of fiscal year 2022, the most recent year for which data were available when selected. GAO also visited rural school districts in four states—Alabama, Maine, Nevada, and South Dakota—selected to include a variety of geographic regions and rural district characteristics. GAO also interviewed stakeholders from national organizations and local employers in the four states and reviewed relevant federal laws and regulations. What GAO Found All four federal agencies GAO selected for review generally reported supporting K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education for rural populations as part of broader initiatives that served numerous populations. Agency officials provided examples of how these initiatives have supported rural STEM education in various ways. For example, some initiatives have supported recruiting and training STEM educators. Other initiatives have focused on enhancing STEM learning and career exploration for students in rural schools, such as through educational field trips and hands-on activities. School and district officials GAO visited in Alabama, Maine, Nevada, and South Dakota said that staffing challenges and limited access to STEM learning opportunities and materials were barriers to providing K-12 STEM education in rural areas. For example, officials from one district in rural Alabama said their district had no certified math teachers to serve their 300 students in grades seven through 12 in the 2023-24 school year. Stakeholders also said the cost and logistics of traveling long distances in remote rural areas limited opportunities for certain field trips or learning activities. Rural districts GAO visited varied in terms of remoteness and size and experienced these challenges differently. Remoteness and Transportation Costs Can Limit Access to Learning Opportunities School and district officials in the four states GAO visited said that improving access to STEM learning materials and showing students how STEM topics related to their lives were among the ways they effectively supported rural K-12 STEM education. In many cases, their efforts were made possib

FAQs

Which federal agencies were reviewed for rural K-12 STEM education initiatives?

The report examines initiatives at four agencies: the Department of Agriculture, Department of Education, NASA, and the National Science Foundation.

What challenges did school and district officials report for providing K-12 STEM in rural areas?

Officials reported staffing challenges and limited access to STEM learning opportunities and materials. They also cited cost and logistics barriers from traveling long distances in remote rural areas.

How did stakeholders and districts improve access to STEM learning materials and engagement?

They improved access by using federal funds to purchase equipment and sharing materials across rural districts. Examples include a robotics lending library that ships STEM materials and projects connecting STEM activities to students’ local environments.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Melati