Education - Maryland STEM Program - Established

HB 1447 establishes the Maryland STEM Program, which provides additional compensation to public school educators who teach STEM subjects (science, math, technology, or computer science) at private schools. Nonpublic schools must partner with eligible public school teachers and apply to the State Department of Education to participate, while local school systems can object if teaching hours conflict with public school duties or impact instruction quality. The program requires annual reporting from participating schools, shares teacher interest surveys with educators, and aims to improve statewide STEM access to meet workforce demands. It takes effect for the 2025-2026 school year.