In Dallas, Texas last month, approximately 1,500 experts in business, education and government put their heads together to address the country’s critical need for a globally competitive workforce that is skilled in science, technology, engineering and math. Exceeding attendance expectations by 50 percent, the inaugural U.S. News STEM Solutions 2012 Leadership Summit trained a national spotlight on the issue, called for the “scaling up” of successful STEM programs and sought a national consensus on the initiative’s next steps.  Among those in attendance were Dean Kamen, inventor and founder of FIRST Robotics and active collaborator in the creation of national competitions and programs that ignite kids’ interest in STEM from an early age. Kamen, who was joined by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar during his Keynote presentation, drew comparisons between STEM and sports, and engaged participants on the need to “change the culture by making science cool for kids.”Also on hand to lend their support and expertise were actor Tim Daley; television newsman Jack Ford: Miss America 2012 Laura Kaeppeler: Dupont CEO Ellen Kullman; Northrup Gumman’s Wes Bush; Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, president of the University of Maryland; as well as key players from sponsor companies including Lockheed Martin, Monster, NSF, AT&T, Ingersoll Rand, Kraft and many more.

MDG was responsible for event marketing and public relations. VP International, led by Vincent Polito managed the event.