POLICY BRIEF

POLICY BRIEF

MAR 2019

Policy Considerations
for STEAM Education

Mary Dell'Erba

Education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics has captured the attention of state
policymakers who are concerned about preparing students for an evolving workforce.1 By 2030,
Institute for the Future estimates that 85 percent of the jobs that today’s K-12 learners will be
doing haven’t been invented — demanding a workforce that is creative and prepared to respond
innovatively to real-world problems.2 Including the arts in STEM learning can further enhance
teaching and student achievement, and build upon existing approaches to STEM that encourage
students to apply creativity to solving real-world problems. As a response to changing workforce
demands, policymakers across the country are increasing their focus on the role of the arts in STEM
and exploring opportunities to create and implement STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts
and mathematics) programs. This report highlights state policies and practices that can help states
to increase student access to STEAM education.

For this report, STEAM education is defined as an approach to teaching in which students
demonstrate innovative and critical thinking and creative problem-solving at the intersection of
these disciplines. STEAM education uses arts integration as an instructional approach — and for
experiential and inquiry-based learning — and provides multiple access points for students to engage
in the creative process and meet objectives in all subject areas.3

STEAM education States recognize access Leadership efforts —

improves student and achievement in including statewide task
achievement and fosters STEAM at the school and forces, committees and
opportunities to apply individual level and have designated leadership
creativity and innovation increased opportunities positions at the state level
to solving real- for STEAM through federal — help advance STEAM
world problems. and state funding. education efforts.

1
www.aep-arts.org
www.ecs.org | @AEP_Arts
| @EdCommission www.aep-arts.org | @AEP_Arts
 This approach represents a shift to an demonstrates that students who participate
emerging ideal of education that values the in STEAM learning experience higher
process of learning in addition to the results. achievement than their peers, high levels of
In STEAM education, students ask questions, learning retention and increased enjoyment
experiment, improvise, innovate and solve in learning.7
real-word problems. Student learning
The following policy components and
experiences involve two or more standards
practices support STEAM education:
from STEAM subjects, and the product of
learning typically leverages the art form itself.4 1| Access

Six core STEAM education practices include: • School certification.

• Diploma endorsement.
1| Leveraging concepts in one or more STEM
disciplines to create meaningful artwork.
2| Finance
2| Focusing on outcomes that have a • Federal funds under the Every Student
personal and/or aesthetic meaning. Succeeds Act (ESSA).

3| C
 onducting open exploration in the • State funds.
context of both science and art.
3| Statewide Coordination
4| D
 esigning with intention.
• Leadership.
5| Iterating through several drafts, • Implementation continuum.
prototypes or models.
These components and practices do not
6| Communicating about the process represent a complete set of policies; but
and outcome. 5 provide examples of support that states have
implemented through statute, regulation,
Though STEAM education is an innovative budgets or other formal guidance. While
model, it is not a new practice; for more than no standard/universal approach exists for
25 years, the National Science Foundation implementation, states may consider the
(NSF) has funded educational projects that following examples to accomplish the goals
integrate the arts and sciences.6 Research of each policy element.

STEAM in Action: Painting With Chemistry

Supported by the NSF, Colors of Nature is a collaboration between the University of Alaska
Fairbanks, the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (Tucson, Ariz.) and the University of
Washington (Bothell, Wash.). The project aims to increase STEM learning and interest through art,
build capacity through professional development, advance research and inspire underrepresented
students to pursue STEM careers. In a lesson titled Painting With Chemistry, students use red
cabbage to investigate how chemical reactions affect color. From discussions of acids and bases,
experimentation and pattern observation, students design a color palette and create paintings.

2
www.ecs.org | @EdCommission
 POLICY BRIEF

Access

School Certification The Ohio designation process is guided

by state statute that designates STEAM as
a type of STEM school and authorizes the
Georgia and Ohio expanded their systems
STEM committee within the department of
for STEM school certification to include the
education to review proposals.8 Unlike Ohio,
arts — recognizing schools and programs for
Georgia’s certification process is not included
their commitment to STEAM education. The
in statute but is instead authorized by the
rubric that states use to evaluate schools for
state department of education.9
certification articulates a standard of quality
for programs to maintain and, in the case of
Ohio, qualify for STEAM funding.
Diploma Endorsement
While Georgia and Ohio established different
processes for STEAM certification, both Diploma endorsements or seals recognize
states include similar considerations in the individual high school students who surpass
application, such as: standard graduation requirements. While
some state diploma endorsements recognize
• Goals for student participation, including
advanced academic achievement generally,
access for nontraditional students.
other states require students to demonstrate
• A rigorous, integrated and project-based advanced achievement in a particular area,
curriculum. including STEAM coursework.
• Plans for or evidence of public/private
Although several states have established
partnerships.
requirements for students to earn a STEM
• An overview of school leadership and diploma (Idaho) or STEM endorsement to
plans for teacher professional learning and the standard diploma (Colorado, Hawaii,
collaboration. Michigan, Ohio, Texas, Virginia), Nevada
• Curriculum guidance. is the only state that offers a STEAM

• Examples of accountability and plans for endorsement to the diploma. Nevada

sustainability (in-kind, financial support). statute requires the superintendent of public

instruction to establish a State Seal of STEAM
Ohio offers guidance to schools based on
awarded to students who achieve a 3.25
a Quality Model for STEM and STEAM
GPA (3.85 weighted); earning three credits
Schools, and the Ohio STEM Learning
in science, four credits in mathematics, one
Network offers technical assistance to
credit in computer science, engineering or
schools interested in the designation process.
related subjects; one credit in fine arts; and
Similarly, Georgia offers guidance to schools
either receiving qualifying scores on specified
seeking certification, provides them with a
exams or earning a B or higher in a dual
self-assessment tool and requires a visit prior
enrollment math and/or science course.10
to submitting an application.

3
www.aep-arts.org | @AEP_Arts
 Finance
Limited funding for STEAM education include STEAM programming as a strategy to
can create barriers that hamper program address these gaps.12
offerings, student participation, staffing,
TITLE IV, PART B: This competitive grant
professional development, resources or
funds the development of 21st Century
access to after-school programs. States
Community Learning Centers that provide
have taken innovative approaches to fund
academic enrichment opportunities outside
programs through a variety of federal and
of the school day, particularly for students
state sources to help address these issues.
who attend high-poverty and low-performing
schools. Districts can use this funding

Federal Funds Under ESSA for after-school STEAM activities.13 The

Alaska Department of Education & Early
Development currently funds two district
TITLE II, PART A: Title II funds support
21st CCLC programs in Anchorage and
educators’ professional learning opportunities
Fairbanks, with plans to provide additional
to help ensure that all students have access to
activities in coming grant years.
educators who can help them meet the state’s
academic standards. The broad language in
ESSA allows states to use Title II funding for
State Funds
programs for arts educators and to provide
non-arts educators with arts-based techniques
States have identified creative ways to fund
to improve effectiveness.11
STEAM education through formula funding,
TITLE IV, PART A: This funding provides career and technical education (CTE) funds,
districts with the opportunity to support state grants and specific line items in their
greater access to a well-rounded education, education budgets.
a safe and healthy learning environment,
and a personalized learning experience
through the effective use of technology.
FORMULA FUNDING
Districts must complete a needs assessment States generally fund public education
to identify gaps in these areas and submit an through two basic models: 1) providing a
application explaining how the district will school district with a set amount of funding
address them. In this application, districts can per pupil (commonly called foundation
funding) or 2) funding a number of positions
(teachers, principals, counselors, etc.) per
Arts Opportunities school.14 Ohio funds STEAM schools through
Under ESSA the foundation funding formula for education,
the same formula as community schools.15
For more on how states and Ohio statute designates STEAM as a type of
districts can engage the arts STEM school, and the STEM committee of
under ESSA, refer to this the state department of education oversees
Special Report. school financial reporting requirements. 16

4
www.ecs.org | @EdCommission
 POLICY BRIEF

CTE FUNDS fund coordinator positions to help expand

the quantity and quality of course offerings.19
Since 2013, states have experienced
significant legislative activity related Alternatively, states may dedicate a portion of
to CTE in efforts to align high school STEM funds to STEAM activities. Since fiscal
and postsecondary programs to meet year 2013, the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory
workforce demand.17 Ohio supplements Council has been supported by a legislative
STEAM foundation funding with CTE funds. appropriation. While STEAM education is
By law, the state requires that districts not a stand-alone line item in the advisory
spend 75 percent of the funds on program council’s finances, advisory council funds
implementation, including curriculum have supported programs as part of broader
development or purchase; instructional advisory council expenditures, including:
resources and supplies; work-based learning
experiences; professional development; and • STEM Scale-Up, which receives about
other costs directly associated with CTE $3 million annually to support a menu
programs, including the development of of vetted programs (including STEAM
new programs. 18 offerings) for pre-kindergarten through
12th-grade learners both during and
outside the school day.
STATE GRANTS
• STEM BEST, which provides start-
States may establish grant programs that up funds for local educator/business
permit funds to be applied toward STEAM partnerships approved through a rigorous
implementation. In 2018, the Georgia application process and rubric.
Department of Education launched the
Partnership for Rural Growth to expand
available STEAM resources to public school
districts in rural Georgia, including grants to

STEAM in Action: Using ESSA Funding

The Anchorage School District received $500,000 to fund after-school programs at four school
sites over a five-year period. The Alaska Botanical Garden partners with the school sites to offer
STEAM activities and academic enrichment aligned with school-day curricula.

The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District received close to $500,000 to fund programs
at three school sites over a five-year period. The program offers STEAM-focused enrichment
opportunities, with the goal of improving academic performance, motivation, behavior, class
participation and credits earned for high school participants.

5
www.aep-arts.org | @AEP_Arts
 Statewide Coordination

Leadership and many Georgia districts and schools have

established similar leadership positions.24

Leaders at the state, district and local levels The Rhode Island STEAM Now Coalition is
have contributed to the implementation of an alliance of over 300 representatives from
STEAM-related polices across the country. education, business and industry, community-
Seventeen legislators supported Nevada based groups, nonprofit organizations,
S.B. 241 to establish the Nevada STEAM funding agencies and government offices.25
graduation endorsement, which the Nevada The coalition makes policy recommendations
Legislature unanimously approved. In Ohio, to help increase the number of students
the state superintendent, the chancellor of who participate in programming and pursue
the Ohio Board of Regents, the director of degrees and careers in STEAM fields.26 In an
the Ohio Development Services Agency and effort to further its objectives, the coalition
four members of the public appointed by the is working toward formalizing the Governor’s
governor support STEAM education through STEAM Council.27
the STEM Committee of the Department
of Education.20 District and school leaders,
such as the STEAM program specialists at Implementation Continuum
the Georgia Department of Education and
program specialists for STEAM schools,
The South Carolina Department of Education
offer guidance on implementation and
developed a STEAM Implementation
sustainability, as well as curriculum and
Continuum, in partnership with the Center on
lesson assistance.21
Standards and Assessment Implementation.
States have also established new leadership The purpose of the continuum is to provide
entities to inform STEAM education. In statewide guidance and consistency for
Georgia, former Gov. Nathan Deal established STEAM education in elementary, middle
the Arts Learning Task Force by executive and high school. Similarly, the Georgia
order. The task force was charged with Department of Education developed STEM
setting recommendations for improving and STEAM implementation continua for
educational achievement of students through elementary, middle and high school, as well
arts education and arts integration.22 The as a self-assessment and reflection tool
task force recommendations included based on criteria within the continuum. Both
STEAM education as a priority and tools establish a common language and allow
prompted increased coordination between educators to assess the progress and quality
the fine arts program specialist and STEM of STEAM implementation, or both tools can
coordinator at the Georgia Department of be used to plan quality implementation
Education. This resulted in the creation of
23 of programming.28
the statewide STEAM program specialist,

6
www.ecs.org | @EdCommission
 POLICY BRIEF

The implementation continua for Georgia and South

Carolina include the following elements:
1| STEAM vision, culture and outreach.

2| Program development (rigor through the arts, project- and process-based thinking).

3| S
 TEAM connections with business and community.

4| T
 eacher planning and professional growth.

5| Connections with postsecondary education.

6| Recognizing STEAM accomplishments and innovations.

7| Program evaluation and sustainability.29

The continua include elements related to policy implementation, such as resource allocation
and funding, academic standards, work-based experiences, professional learning and
recognizing achievement in STEAM education at the school and individual level.30

CREATIVE

STEAM EXPERIENTIAL

is ... INQUIRY-BASED

Click here to
INTERDISCIPLINARY

download
CREATIVE
Students leverage content from
science, technology, engineering and
mathematics to create meaningful
artwork that focuses on outcomes

this shareable
with a personal or aesthetic meaning.

EXPERIENTIAL

STEAM
Students conduct open exploration
in the context of both science and
art, communicating about the
processes and outcomes.

infographic.
INQUIRY-BASED
Using scientific and creative
processes, students ask questions,
design and experiment with intention,
and improvise and solve real-world
problems.

INTERDISCIPLINARY
Student learning occurs at the
intersection of science, technology,

Tweet this graphic now. engineering, arts and mathematics —

incorporating standards in all subjects.

@EdCommission | @AEP_Arts
www.ecs.org | www.aep-arts.org

7
www.aep-arts.org | @AEP_Arts
 Author

Mary Dell'Erba

Mary Dell’Erba is a project manager with the Arts Education Partnership at Education
Commission of the States. In this role, she primarily focuses on STEAM initiatives and
the intersection of school choice and arts education. Mary holds a master’s degree
in public policy from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Contact Mary at
[email protected] or 202.844.6283.

About the Arts Education Partnership

AEP at Education Commission of the States is a national coalition of more than
100 education, arts, cultural, government, business and philanthropic organizations
that was created in 1995 by the National Endowment for the Arts and the U.S.
Department of Education.

8
www.ecs.org | @EdCommission
 POLICY BRIEF

ENDNOTES

1. Jennifer Zinth and Tami Goetz, A State Policymaker’s 9. “Certification Process,” STEM Georgia, accessed
STEM Playbook (Denver: Education Commission of November 15, 2018, http://www.stemgeorgia.org/
the States, 2016), https://www.ecs.org/wp-content/ certification/.
uploads/A_State_Policymaker_s_STEM_Playbook.pdf.
10. N
 ev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 388.5975. Effective July 1, 2018.
2. Danah Henriksen, “Creating STEAM With Design
Thinking: Beyond STEM and Arts Integration,” The 11. Kate Wolff, ESSA: Mapping Opportunities for the Arts
STEAM Journal 3(1) no.11 (2017), accessed October 2018, (Denver: Education Commission of the States, 2019),
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/steam/vol3/iss1/11/. https://www.ecs.org/essa-mapping-opportunities-
for-the-arts/.
3. “ Defining Arts Integration,” The John F. Kennedy
Center for the Performing Arts, last modified 2010, 12. Ibid.
http://www.kennedy-center.org/education/partners/
defining_arts_integration.pdf; “What is STEAM?” 13. Ibid.
Education Closet, accessed November 2018, https://
educationcloset.com/steam/what-is-steam/; Global 14. Michael Griffith, Understanding State School
Arts Integration Network, accessed November Funding (Denver: Education Commission
2018, http://www.gain-edu.org/; and Innovation of the States, 2012), https://www.ecs.org/
Collaborative, accessed November 2018, https://www. clearinghouse/01/02/86/10286.pdf.
innovationcollaborative.org/.
15. Ohio House Bill 49, (2017).
4. “What is STEAM?” Education Closet.
16. Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 3326.03. Effective September
5. Laura D. Carsten Conner et al., “Designing STEAM for 29, 2017; and Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 3301.07. Effective
Broad Participation in Science,” Creative Education September 29, 2013.
8 (2017): 2222-2231, accessed November 2018,
17. Jennifer Zinth, Aligning K-12 and Postsecondary
http://fosteringsteam.org/wp-content/uploads/
Career Pathways With Workforce Needs (Denver:
sites/2/2018/05/Carsten2017-STEAM.pdf.
Education Commission of the States, 2015), https://
6. Christopher D. Davidson and Willard Simms, “Science www.ecs.org/aligning-k-12-and-postsecondary-
Theater as STEAM: A Case Study of ‘Save it Now’,” career-pathways-with-workforce-needs/.
The STEAM Journal 3, no. 14 (November 2017)
18. Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 3326.39. Effective September
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgi/viewcontent.
29, 2013.
cgi?article=1160&context=steam.

7. Liane Brouillette and Nicholas James Graham, 19. Meghan Frick, “Georgia Department of Education
Launches Partnership for Rural Growth, Dedicating an
“Using Arts Integration to Make Science Learning
Additional $1.6 Million to Education in Rural Georgia,”
Memorable in the Upper Elementary Grades: A
Georgia Department of Education, Oct. 24, 2018,
Quasi-Experimental Study,” Journal for Learning
Through the Arts, 12, no. 1 (2016), https://www. http://www.gadoe.org/External-Affairs-and-Policy/
communications/Pages/PressReleaseDetails.
artsedsearch.org/study/using-arts-integration-to-
aspx?PressView=default&pid=655.
make-science-learning-memorable-in-the-upper-
elementary-grades-a-quasi-experimental-study/;
20. O
 hio Rev. Code Ann. § 3326.02. Effective September
and Sheena Ghanbari, “Learning Across Disciplines: A
11, 2014.
Collective Case Study of Two University Programs That
Integrate the Arts With STEM," International Journal 21. Frick, “Georgia Department of Education Launches
of Education & the Arts, 16 no. 7 (2015): https://eric. Partnership for Rural Growth."
ed.gov/?id=EJ1069829.

8. Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 3326.01. Effective September

29, 2017.

9
www.aep-arts.org | @AEP_Arts
 22. G
 eorgia Exec. Order No. 06.11.14.01, June 11, 2014. 27. “ Proposed Rhode Island Governor’s STEAM Council,”
Rhode Island STEAM Center at Rhode Island College,
23.  Arts Learning Task Force: Final Recommendations accessed October 2018, http://www.risteamcenter.
to Governor Nathan Deal From the Arts Learning org/coalition/proposed-steam-council/.
Task Force (Atlanta: Georgia Council for the Arts,
2015), https://www.georgia.org/sites/default/files/ 28. “South Carolina STEAM Implementation
wp-uploads/2015/08/ALTF-Report-Final-with-links- Continuum,” The Center on Standards & Assessment
revised.pdf. Implementation, accessed Nov. 16, 2018, https://www.
csai-online.org/resources/south-carolina-steam-
24. F
 rick, “Georgia Department of Education Launches implementation-continuum.
Partnership for Rural Growth."
29. “Certification Process,” STEM Georgia, accessed Nov.
25. “ RI STEAM Now Coalition,” Rhode Island STEAM 15, 2018, http://www.stemgeorgia.org/certification/.
Center at Rhode Island College, accessed November
2018, http://www.risteamcenter.org/coalition/. 30. “STEM and STEAM,” South Carolina Department of
Education, accessed Nov. 16, 2018, https://ed.sc.gov/
26. “ Rhode Island STEAM Now Coalition,”( Providence: instruction/standards-learning/stem-steam/.
Rhode Island STEAM Center at Rhode Island
College, October 2015), http://www.risteamcenter.
org/wp-content/uploads/RI-STEAM-Now-
Coalition_1pager_Oct2015-REV.pdf.

© 2019 by Education Commission of the States. All rights reserved. Education Commission of the States encourages its readers to share our
information with others. To request permission to reprint or excerpt our material, please contact us at 303.299.3609 or email [email protected].

Education Commission of the States | 700 Broadway Suite 810 Denver, CO 80203