Press Release  Healey-Driscoll Administration Announces 2,300 New STEM Internships as Part of STEM Week

WALTHAM — Today, on the third day of Mass STEM Week, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that they will add 2,300 new STEM internship opportunities for high schoolers in the Commonwealth. Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler and Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Lauren Jones announced that the administration will invest $4.5 million to increase the number of paid internships with the Work-Based Learning Alliance (WBLA), a nonprofit that connects Massachusetts high school students to paid, virtual internships in STEM. 

Joined by a group of students from Waltham High School and Bellingham High School, Secretary Tutwiler and Secretary Jones toured Dassault Systèmes, a global software company with their North American headquarters in Waltham. Dassault Systèmes’ philanthropic mission, called La Fondation Dassault Systèmes, has also awarded WBLA a grant to design a short-format 20-hour virtual experience project to drive career exploration in engineering, with a key focus on Computer-Aided Design. This programming will be delivered across the Commonwealth in Spring of 2024 as part of WBLA’s offering supported by the administration. 

“STEM Week is all about highlighting the incredible opportunities available to students, like the paid internships available with WBLA. We’re thrilled to be delivering $4.5 million to add more than 2,300 paid internship spots for students,” said Governor Maura Healey. “By creating partnerships between our industry leaders, nonprofit organizations, and students, we can make more high-quality opportunities available for students, drive equity through wider participation across the state, and support hands-on learning of the cutting-edge skills needed to build the future workforce.” 

“Our commitment to youth engagement and the development of tomorrow’s workforce are a critical components of Mass STEM Week 2023,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “By exploring STEM internships and other high-caliber pathway programs, Massachusetts students have a chance to discover their passions while developing employable, industry-specific skills and learning more about a growing industry in their own state.” 

This $4.5 million grant will increase Massachusetts high schoolers’ access to highly engaging STEM internships that allow them to explore and prepare for a STEM career in the Commonwealth and will incentivize strong partnerships between industry leaders and students. Employer and school partnerships are a critical aspect of the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s STEM strategy and approach to workforce development. This STEM Week, the Administration has partnered with LEGO Education, Google, New Balance, Museum of Science, Vertex, the New England Patriots, the Northeast Clean Energy Council, GMGI, Mass Maritime, the New England Aquarium, and other businesses in Massachusetts who have volunteered to be “STEMbassadors” helping make that connection between what’s learned in the classroom and the work world.  

“When students earn real-life STEM skills in an internship, there’s a benefit for the student and their school, there’s a benefit for the employing company, and there’s a benefit for the economy. It’s a clear win for all involved, and I am just so grateful that we’re able to extend the opportunity for a work-based, paid STEM internship to 2,300 additional high school students as part of STEM Week,” said Secretary of Education Tutwiler.

Expanding youth employment including STEM internships is a priority for the Workforce Skills Cabinet, an effort that aligns the Executive Offices of Education, Labor and Workforce Development, Economic Development, and Health and Human Services toward a comprehensive agenda to close workforce skills gaps in Massachusetts. The Cabinet is charged with creating and implementing a strategy to ensure individuals gain the skills needed to be competitive in the labor market and also meet the varying hiring needs of employers in industries across the Commonwealth. The Workforce Skills Cabinet is chaired by Labor and Workforce Development Secretary Lauren Jones. 

“Massachusetts is a leader in STEM careers and we want to ensure students today see themselves in STEM and our innovative workforce now and in the future,” said Labor and Workforce Development Secretary and Workforce Skills Cabinet Chair Lauren E. Jones. “By partnering with Work-based Learning Alliance and Massachusetts STEM companies, we will unlock amazing opportunities for high school students to hopefully spark interest in pursuing college and career paths in science, technology, engineering, and math and, in turn, build a strong talent pipeline in Massachusetts.” 

During the tour of Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE Lab, Secretary Tutwiler, Secretary Jones, and students were able to tour exciting STEM innovations that support climate resiliency and are directly applicable to Massachusetts industry. One project they explored was LiftLabs, a lineless, self-surfacing, modular lobster trap that eliminates some of the major environmental hazards of lobster fishing in order to protect other wildlife, particularly the North Atlantic right whale. They also interacted with the Fab-in-a-Box, a machine-writing and digital fabrication platform that can be a tool for technical education and innovation designed by the Fab Foundation, in collaboration with the Center for Bits & Atoms at MIT, La Fondation and SOLIDWORKS of Dassault Systèmes. 

“We’re thrilled to support the Work-Based Learning Alliance’s mission to cultivate STEM education and career pathways,” said Deborah Dean, President, La Fondation Dassault Systèmes US. “This is a fantastic opportunity to ensure the workforce of the future is immersed in the collaborative virtual environments that will define the jobs of tomorrow, and the opportunity to ‘learn by doing’ through real-world projects is the ideal way to catalyze interest in STEM careers.”

Updated 10/25/2023

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