About NSTA

Founded in 1944 (as the National Science Teachers Association), the National Science Teaching Association (NSTA) is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is the largest organization in the world committed to promoting excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all. NSTA's current membership of 50,000 includes science teachers, science supervisors, administrators, scientists, business and industry representatives, and others involved in and committed to science education.

Welcome to the new NSTA!

NSTA has always been the place where teachers go for classroom resources, products, professional learning opportunities, and news that help them to connect, to collaborate, and to grow professionally.

We are the largest organization in the world committed to promoting excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all. And we are happy to announce that the best just got better.

Last year NSTA changed its name and logo to better reflect the numerous stakeholders in the K–16 science teaching community. We also revamped our website and launched an innovative digital engagement strategy that rebranded the association’s quality suite of products and services to provide a better user experience to all educators.

Our new website now features a sleek, modern design and streamlined navigation.

Educators are flocking to the new site and finding great content—including vetted lesson plans, journal articles, and book chapters—for the grade and discipline they teach. They’re also taking advantage of our new low-cost membership benefits and options tailored to fit their unique professional needs.

We invite you to check out the new NSTA and join us as we work to change the future of science and STEM education.

NSTA’s Guiding Principles

• Model excellence;
• Champion science literacy;
• Value scientific excellence;
• Embrace diversity, equity, and respect;
• Enhance teaching and learning through research;
• Collaborate with partners; and
• Exemplify a dynamic professional organization.

NSTA’s Strategic Plan

In the fall of 2014, NSTA unveiled its new strategic plan, NSTA Strategic Goals 2015. The plan identifies six overarching goals that will provide a road map to guide and prioritize the work of the association over the next five years. Goals include:

1. Advocacy – Raise the status of science education and science teaching as a profession by advocating for high-quality science education within national, state, and local contexts.
2. Professional Learning – Enhance the professional learning of science educators by providing a suite of tools, resources, and opportunities that support long-term growth within a collaborative learning environment.
3. Next Generation Science Standards and STEM – Revitalize science education to boost student achievement and science literacy, and bolster U.S. economic standing.
4. Elementary Education – Nurture scientific curiosity among children in the earliest grades.
5. Membership – Enrich the NSTA membership experience through enhanced peer-to-peer engagement and differentiated benefits.
6. Internal Organizational Goals – Fulfilling the goals and objectives outlined in this plan requires updates in infrastructure, as well as certain tactical staff supports.

Journals and Publications

To address subjects of critical interest to science educators, the Association publishes a professional journal for each level of science teaching, the member newspaper NSTA Reports, and many other educational books and professional publications. Publications, books, posters, and other educational tools are available online.

Professional Learning

NSTA offers a wide range of professional learning opportunities for science educators at all levels, including the NSTA Learning Center, NSTA Conferences on Science Education, Research Dissemination Conferences, and much more.

Conferences

To enhance professional learning and provide networking forums for science educators, each year NSTA conducts a national conference, a series of area conferences, and a STEM Forum & Expo. These events attract over 30,000 attendees annually. At the conferences, teachers may choose from hundreds of workshops, demonstrations, and presentations covering every discipline, grade level, and teaching focus. They hear nationally renowned speakers address the hottest topics in science education and learn about the latest breakthroughs from experts in the field.

Awards and Recognition Programs

Each year the Association and its sponsors reward and recognize teachers and students with cash awards, school supplies and materials, trips to our national convention, U.S. savings bonds, and more. NSTA administers a robust awards program and several exciting competitions to recognize the professional efforts of teachers and the innovative talents of their students.

Advocating for Science and Science Teachers

The Association serves as an advocate for science educators by keeping its members and the general public informed about national issues and trends in science education. NSTA disseminates results from nationwide surveys and reports and offers testimony to Congress on science education-related legislation and other issues. The Association develops position statements on issues such as teacher preparation, laboratory science, use of animals in the classroom, laboratory safety, and elementary and middle level science.

Staff

There are approximately one hundred full-time staff at NSTA headquarters managed by the following senior staff:

• Interim Executive Director: Moira Baker
• Conferences Division: Delores Howard