Welcome to the new Great Minds in STEM™ website. Please take a moment to review our vision and mission and read on to understand why we feel this mission is so critical to keeping the United States technologically strong.

The United States is a great civilization that in a relatively short span of time has contributed immensely to global technical progress. From the industrial revolution of the 19th century, through the space race of the mid-20th century and on to the information age we are in the midst of today, American scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs and visionaries have been at the forefront of every major technological advancement the world has seen. But we will not be able to project and expand this legacy into the future unless we draw upon the still untapped power of our largest minority groups. The Manhattan Project harnessed the power of the Atom. It will take that level of collective national focus to unleash the power of the populations in our underrepresented and underserved communities in this country.

For twenty years, HENAAC has been able to showcase the accomplishments of thousands of outstanding Hispanics in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). However, as a collective group, our story is not nearly as inspiring. Demographic data identifies underrepresented and underserved communities are educational weak links in a population that is already being outpaced in technology education by developing countries and is being asked to endure more and more stress every day. Underrepresented and underserved communities are also identified as vital to America's future prosperity due to their growing population. This dichotomy represents a crisis that is well documented but the solutions to it are not, at least not yet. That is where we all come in.

Now, we must each find ways to spread this message outside the familiar confines. We are not facing a minority crisis, but a national crisis. We must spark a new Manhattan Project. In 90 years, as we prepare to leave this century behind, I hope and pray that history will record that this generation's dedication to educating and preparing its largest minority groups for STEM careers proved to be the deciding factor that propelled American technological dominance into the 22nd century.

I hope you take the time to explore this web site, become inspired and get involved. Our country needs us!