New nonprofit invites educators and parents to
nominate mathematically extraordinary Texas students in 2nd and 3rd grade, and will
support each student with over $100,000 in resources over ten years
HOUSTON, May 1, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- National Math Stars (NMS) has just closed
substantial seed funding of $16.5
million for their first three years, with the mission to
ensure mathematically extraordinary students from all communities
have the resources they need to reach the frontiers of math and
science.
NMS is actively recruiting 2nd and 3rd grade students who lack
access to sufficiently advanced instruction and community. NMS will
recruit its first cohort of 50 - 60 students from Texas. NMS is asking Texas schools to nominate the top 2 - 3% of
their students, and will then run a selection process to find the
most mathematically extraordinary students whose trajectories are
likely to be changed by this program. Parents and others are also
able to nominate or apply on behalf of students directly. The
application window is open until June 30,
2024. Future cohorts will come from both Texas and other states as the program
grows.
They will give each admitted, mathematically extraordinary
student over $100,000 in resources.
The innovative program provides students and their families with 10
years of support (through high school graduation), including math
coaching, advanced courses, summer experiences in STEM, family
advising, community building events, and financial assistance. The
program is free for students and families.
"Math fuels innovation. It enables us to tackle the world's
biggest challenges," said CEO Ilana
Walder-Biesanz. "More kids from more communities have the
potential to be a part of that progress – but many don't receive
the support they need to develop their mathematical talent.
National Math Stars is changing that."
NMS is designed to eliminate the resource barrier that some
extraordinary students experience relative to their wealthier
peers. Families in the top 20% of earners spend $8,600 annually on student enrichment activities,
while those in the bottom 20% spend $1,700, according to the Georgetown Center on
Education and the Workforce's report "Born to Win, Schooled to
Lose." NMS fills that investment gap through a decade of
support for their Stars.
NMS has led a pilot cohort of students from across the country
this school year. Parents resoundingly express hope and relief
being part of the Stars community. "Being a part of this has been
like a dream come true . . . I've had this background noise in my
head since [my son] was little and have been so worried about how
to make sure I could support him, and I finally feel like we can,"
said Erica A. from Colorado.
Eminent figures in the country's math world are also supporting
NMS: "By investing in advanced, underserved students, National Math
Stars isn't just giving them a brighter future. They're giving all
of us a brighter future, as well," said Richard Rusczyk, founder of the Art of Problem
Solving, which has taught the country's top math students for over
20 years. Dr. Ravi Vakil, a
Professor of Mathematics at Stanford
University, said, "There are a huge number of brilliant
minds out there that, for reasons that surprise no one, do not have
the chance to catch fire and change the world. Although no age is
too late, by far the best time to catch people is when they are
young."
Carina Initiatives and The Polynera Fund are leading the
philanthropic commitment of $16.5
million for National Math Stars' first three years.
National Math Stars is a nonprofit organization that fully funds
a ten-year program to support and inspire Stars' love of
mathematics from as early as third grade through the end of high
school. Over the ten years, National Math Stars invests more than
$100,000 in support and resources in
each Star to create a unique pathway for them to reach the
frontiers of math and science.
Carina Initiatives is a foundation focused on strengthening the
USA math talent systems by
investing in organizations that are working to inspire, unearth,
and train exceptional young math students.
The Polynera Fund is a foundation focused on supporting
low-income and minority populations to unlock the vast pool of
future leaders that will help us solve the immense challenges
facing society.
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SOURCE National Math Stars