NASA updates equity action plan, adds focus on STEM education and more

Washington, February 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — NASA announced Wednesday its 2023 Equity Action Plan. This plan outlines key achievements in increasing equity across government agencies and new efforts to continue removing inequitable barriers and challenges faced by underserved communities. There is.

“At NASA, we are committed to advancing equity to ensure that our work benefits all humanity,” the NASA administrator said. bill nelson. “The Equity Action Plan strengthens our long-term commitment to recognizing and overcoming systemic barriers that limit opportunity for underserved and underrepresented communities. has identified STEM education as an area that engages and inspires the diverse talent of future leaders, and we invite the next generation of Artemis to take on the bold missions of the future in space and here on Earth.”

Stock plan is Biden-Harris administration A whole-of-government approach to increasing equity. We support Executive Order 14091 on “Advancing Racial Equity and Supporting Underserved Communities through the Federal Government.”

NASA's The 2023 Equity Action Plan sets out strategies to enable more individuals to work with and learn from agencies:

• Enhance the use and integration of contractors and businesses from underserved communities and expand equity in local communities. NASA's Procurement procedures.
• Strengthen grants and cooperative agreements to advance opportunity, access, and representation for underserved communities.
• Improving the accessibility and use of geoscience data.
• Improve language access policies and expand access to NASA programs and activities for those who are proficient in English.
• Engage more students in building the diverse science, technology, engineering and mathematics workforce of the future.

The 2023 Equity Action Plan builds on the success of the 2022 plan.Several NASA's Achievements since this publication include:

• of Small Business Program Secretariat We have increased our outreach events by 80% since 2021, exceeding our goal of 50% by 2029. Additionally, starting in fiscal year 2021-2022, NASA mandated that: $1.9 billion Contracts based on product service lines reserved for the small business category and the AbilityOne program, which are the largest sources of employment for people with disabilities.
• Developed resources to raise awareness of the grant program and published notices of funding opportunities in the agency's Minority Serving Institution Exchange Newsletter. The agency also increased grant funding to historically black colleges and universities by 39.9% from fiscal year 2021 to fiscal year 2022.
• A total of 39 proposals were awarded. $6.9 million They span up to three years and cover topics such as air quality, climate change and extreme heat.
• opened for the first time Earth Information Center at the headquarters of the government agency of Washingtonprovides accessible resources, easy-to-use information, and data for the public and decision makers to use, both online and on-site.
• We created and updated language access plans in all 10 centers to establish a more equitable communication strategy to reach people with limited English proficiency.

To learn more about the 2023 Equity Action Plan and how NASA continues to move towards mission equity, visit:

https://nasa.gov/mission-equity

View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nasa-updates-equity-action-plan-adds-focus-on-stem-education- more-302061975.html

Source NASA