February 6, 2025 by Daniel Hancock (‘26)
On Thursday, January 30th, Saratoga Springs High School’s Science in the Community Club hosted Congressional Representative Paul Tonko, for a discussion on STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) education. He discussed his experiences, then opened the meeting to any questions the students might have.
The meeting began with Representative Tonko explaining his background and current work. Out of all the 435 representatives in Congress, he stands out as one of the only ones with a background in engineering and STEM fields. He was trained in industrial and mechanical engineering, providing him with an analytical background, due to the skills needed in the engineering field.
Tonko was elected to Congress in 2009, now serving the 20th Congressional district of New York, including much of the Capital District. During the meeting at Saratoga High School, he reflected that through his time in Congress, he has gained a lot of experience from serving for over 25 years. Because of that experience, he commented that he has had the opportunity to serve on many committees.
At the meeting, Representative Tonko discussed the Energy and Communication committee he currently serves on. Through this committee, he deals with many bills dealing with science and technology. These include ones handling funding for scientific
research.
As he spoke, Tonko stressed the importance of research at facilities across the country, such as the Albany Nanocomplex. The research done at those facilities creates new scientific developments, aiding the scientific community. Many of the facilities-public or private-, receive state and federal funding to do research. He shared that through his job, he has helped to make sure that those facilities receive that funding.
When asked about how the federal government gets involved in STEM education, Tonko said that even though curriculum is decided by the states, the government works to partner with them to help these states include STEM in their education. If a state is willing to provide STEM programs, the federal government can provide funding to them.
A problem Representative Tonko brought up to the Science in the Community Club members was the concerningly low number of engineers by percentage in our country. He mentioned that we sit at a single digit percent of engineers by population in our country, and that is why it is so important to get U.S. states to teach STEM programs; to increase the numbers of engineers and scientists in our country.
For students and anyone wishing to get involved in our government, no matter what issue, he suggested reaching out to their representative, wherever they are, who is currently working on that issue, and asking questions to try and inform yourself. By informing yourself, you can help to inform others and spread awareness of the issue. By reaching out to your local representative, you can help to make a difference. An informed voice is one of the strongest ways to bring change.
photo source: @reppaultonko