BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Classes involving science, technology, engineering and math often evoke long and complicated problems with dizzying formulas.

Hardly the stuff for little children, right? Maybe not.

“We need to capture their imagination very, very early,” said Suzanne Jenniches, vice president of the government systems division at Northrop Grumman Corp.

“I believe the STEM foundation begins long before middle school.”

Jenniches has been a strong supporter of engineering and education during her 34-year career with Northrop Grumman and is a past president of the national Society of Women Engineers.

Educators, business leaders, and science, technology, engineering and math experts agree students need early exposure to these career paths.

“We must ... talk about the fun and interesting things that science, technology, engineering and math will allow them to do — even as children, but certainly as they grow older,” said Army Col. Kenneth McCreedy, Fort Meade’s commander.

Superintendent Sydney Cousin, who visited South Korea this past year, said students there attend classes six days per week and have longer days than students in the United States,

“If we’re going to be more successful in promoting STEM initiatives, we can’t wait until kids get to high school,” he said.

The school system has begun capitalizing on this theme by creating 21 extended-day and weekend STEM programs in elementary, middle and high schools with the help of $160,000 in STEM grants, said Robert Glascock, assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and technology in Howard.

Schools in Howard have many STEM opportunities for students, including Project Lead the Way, a pre-engineering program where students can earn college credit.

“Our vision is to take what we have and build upon it, to expand and enrich,” he said.

jkowalkowski@balimoreexaminer.com

Comments from Examiner Readers

11:04 PM MST on Mon., Apr. 14, 2008 re: "Brisbane to gauge baylands wind flow"

Examiner Reader said:
Wind turbines certainly generate clean energy (preferrable), but I wish leaders would allocate some of their design engineers to study how to protect the wildlife (birds) fatalities. It seems easy enough to place a cage around the turbines, just like the smaller, domestic models that protect children from getting their fingers clipped by the fan blades. I'm sure there's a way to make this look attractive in a super-size turbine.

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11:46 AM MST on Thu., Apr. 10, 2008 re: "Defense, technology firms� needs make Baltimore the place to be for IT positions"

Examiner Reader said:
The Dice Report. �Baltimore-Washington has the third-highest average salary for IT professionals at $81,750 a year, ahead of the national average of $74,570.� WOW and yet the jobs which I applied for are paying way below the average. Usually a company asked what salary range I'm looking for, and usually that's a sign of we can't afford you. I answered negotiable, they pursuit for a number. When I give them a number I don't hear from them. Most of the positions I come across are bombarded with responsibilities and has a failure of matching the pay.

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11:07 AM MST on Mon., Mar. 24, 2008 re: "U.Md. study shows MBAs lead to higher salaries in IT sector"

Terence said:
What the article failed to address is that if you have an a non-business major and have an engineering or computer science degree, it is advisable to pursue an MBA degree and as such you would tend to pursue something like an IT degree and in that case, the jump in salary is significant. If you have a business undergrad in IT and pursue an MBA, that jump is significantly less. I still do not understand why students would do both an undergrad and grad in business. Really the textbooks are almost the same, the delivery is the difference. In some cases, classes are cross-taught at both the undergrad and grad. Pursuing a masters of science in marketing, operations and IT is the appropriate route not an MBA for undegrad in business. Just IMHO

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7:34 AM MST on Thu., Mar. 13, 2008 re: "Businesses, educators agree they must unite to address tech job shortage"

Iconic Xer. said:
I find this story missing a critical and informative element. Sure, tech companies and institutions such as NASA may be losing *employees* to retirement. But that doesn't mean there aren't *lots* of tech professionals around. Quite the opposite. There's an abundance of them. Companies have got to change their cultures, compensation and engagement of workers to be in alignment with the preference of many tech professionals to work outside of organizations, to work for multiple companies, to be flexible, nimble and not dependent on one industry or company for survival. It's a generational thing, really, with your GenXers (27-47 in 2008) heavily leaning in this direction. Re: the lack of kids entering STEM. It has nothing to do with them not wanting to be cool. They are achievement, affluence and team-oriented. Sing their song and they'll come in droves. Sing *your* song & they won't hear you ... or even bother trying. And, mistakenly, you'll conclude they're not interested. What

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10:17 AM MST on Fri., May. 11, 2007 re: "Schools to lease land for phone towers"

Examiner Reader said:
Possible health risk of cancer too! See international studies.

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9:26 AM MST on Fri., May. 11, 2007 re: "Schools to lease land for phone towers"

Examiner Reader said:
You can't stop it now and usually there is a reason its done that way

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