The U.S. National STEM Solutions Conference is just around the cornerandthe Cisco CSR team will be among the more than 2,000 business, education, and government leaders from around the United States in attendance at the Austin Convention Center from June 17 to 19, in efforts to continue change in STEM (science, technology, engineering, or math) education, policy, and workforce development.

Cisco CSR, along with its partner STEMconnector, will use the conference to advocate for more STEM education to better equip the students of today with the education and resources necessary to become the leaders of tomorrow.

During the three-day conference, the Cisco CSR-fundedEdTech: Revolution in Education and 100 CEO Leaders in STEMreports will be showcased.EdTech: Revolution in Educationis a first-of-its kind effort to create an inventory of education technology resources. The100 CEO leaders in STEMreport features interviews with 100 CEOs, including Cisco CEO John Chambers, which highlight the committed leadership necessary to win the STEM education battle.

On Tuesday, June 18, Cisco's Senior Director of Corporate Affairs, Harbrinder Kang, will give brief remarks during the release announcement of the EdTech report and later during the 100 CEO Leaders in STEM dinner. On Wednesday, June 19, Cisco Networking Academy Director, Gary Coman will participate on the panel Bridging the Gap: the Pivotal Role of Community Colleges and Career and Technical Education. With 10,000 Networking Academies in 165 countries, Cisco has long been a pioneer in training students around the world to become ICT professionals.

In the United States, the next generation of our leaders will be solving national and global problems against a backdrop of constant technological change. It is essential that our nation's schools provide the proper learning in science, technology, engineering, or math to keep pace. According to Media Planet, "Fewer than 15 percent of high school graduates have enough math and science to pursue scientific/technical degrees in college... By 2018 we will need 22 million new college degrees but will fall short by at least three million post-secondary degrees, associate's or better."

By 2018, 234,700 new jobs are projected to be added in the IT field. Employment growth of 19 to 28 percent is expected for the fastest-growing IT jobs from 2010 to 2020. With such a high demand for IT professionals, Cisco is eager to share our knowledge of the Networking Academy program and a vision for a brighter future in STEM education at the U.S. National STEM Solutions Conference.

Check out the conference schedule and join the discussion before it all starts by following#STEMsolutions13 on Twitter.

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