NOAA Education Accomplishments Report: Advancing NOAA's Mission through Education, Fiscal Year 2020

Overview & Synopsis

In January 2021, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Education Council released an updated Education Strategic Plan (ED615369). This guiding document outlines the five strategic plan goals and supporting objectives that help advance NOAA's mission through education: (1) Science-Informed Society; (2) Conservation and Stewardship; (3) Ready, Responsive, and Resilient; (4) Future Workforce; and (5) Organizational Excellence. In this report NOAA introduces an education program in Alaska that has been bringing in young students to learn about ocean creatures for five decades, a citizen science project that now engages over 20,000 volunteers around the country in gathering crucial weather data, and dozens of programs that changed directions mid-year in response to the pandemic. Highlighted is the NOAA Diversity and Professional Advancement Working Group and many of the other ongoing efforts to create more equitable and inclusive education programs. These efforts show the depth, breadth, and resiliency of the NOAA Education community. [For the 2019 report, see ED631693.]