Linking Leaders for Systemic Improvement (Linking Leaders) is a three-year program co-sponsored by NASSMC and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Initiated in 1996 to support NASA’s Implementation Plan for Education and to promote coalition-building work in the states, the program's primary goals are:
- To provide resources and opportunities for state-level leadership groups to collaborate with NASA and its affiliates to align NASA resources with the state's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education agenda and to build stronger links between NASA and the state's business, education and policy communities; and
- To build the commitment to establish and strengthen a broad-based coalition to address the state's STEM needs over the long-term.
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Linking Leaders states to date. Click image to enlarge map. |
Linking Leaders has revealed and underscored the complementary agendas, the overlapping constituencies, and the power of a coalition-NASA-NASSMC partnership in catalyzing and focusing STEM education change efforts at the state level. Linking Leaders activities and NASA collaboration is structured to accommodate the specific needs of a coalition at any stage in its development.
To participate in Linking Leaders, state
representatives submit an application and, upon acceptance,
attend the workshops of states currently in the program.
In-state meetings are held during Year Two, culminating
with a Linking Leaders Workshop to develop a preliminary
state Action Plan. The Linking Leaders Workshop is
a central element of the program and provides the team
the opportunity to review the condition of STEM education
in its state, propose a long-term strategy to advance
the state’s agenda for improving STEM education,
and identify specific actions to implement that strategy.
In Year Two of the project, participants will have the opportunity to submit a proposal for an Action Plan Implementation Award of up to $7,000. Throughout Year Three of Linking Leaders, NASSMC will continue to offer assistance as state leaders work to meet their implementation goals, paying specific attention to the state's success in developing an independent statewide coalition.
Linking Leaders States
The Linking Leaders program has engaged state leadership teams in twenty three states to date: Mississippi, Ohio, Colorado, Alabama, Florida, Washington, New Mexico, Wisconsin, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Virginia, West Virginia, Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Wyoming, Idaho, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Minnesota, Maryland, Illinois, Kentucky, California, and Missouri.
Applying
for Linking Leaders XI
In order to be considered for participation in Linking
Leaders X, assemble and submit an application package
according to the guidelines stated
in the Linking Leaders Program Solicitation. The package
must include:
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A cover letter, on your organization’s
letterhead, clearly asserting its commitment to
participate in the program for three years and
to form a collaborative
working relationship with the NASA Center or Affiliate
assigned to the state, thus building or strengthening
the coalition of state business, education and
public policy leadership towards STEM education
improvement.
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A one-page statement containing
a brief synopsis of the state’s STEM education agenda, the coalition’s
role in supporting this agenda and the expected outcomes
desired from the coalition’s participation
in the program.
The 2006 solicitation will be posted here when it becomes available.
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The Program Solicitation is an Adobe Acrobat document. Please take a moment to update your version of the free Acrobat Reader by downloading the latest version of the software. |
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Contact Information
If you have any questions regarding the Linking Leaders program solicitation package, please contact:
Jim McMurtray
Executive Director
703-516-5973
jmcmurtray@nassmc.org
Member Coalitions
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