California is the world's leader in the creation of high technology industry and employment, and in the underlying research in science and technology. However, the infrastructure that has helped establish this status, although extensive, may not be adequate for the future. _Getting the right information and understanding the potential implications of science and technology policy at the outset is critical for effective planning. The difficulty of long-term strategic thinking and planning when so many short-term issues are urgently pressing is significant. CCST strives to take a balanced approach, offering rapid responses to requests from policymakers on urgently pressing issues while at the same time seeking to provide a longer-term view and presenting a bigger picture.

"It is easy to do a "quick fix" in the face of an immediate problem, but meaningful solutions often require an understanding of the system as a whole." Susan Hackwood Executive Director

This is particularly true in education. CCST's 2002 Critical Path Analysis of California's Science and Technology Education System documented a shortfall in the production of qualified science and engineering baccalaureates. There are hints that California's predominance in science and technology is already threatened by this shortfall; at least one set of science and technology indicators this year, produced by the Milken Institute, failed to give California the top spot for the first time, citing its education system as a significant problem.

It is easy to do a "quick fix" in the face of an immediate problem, but meaningful solutions often require an understanding of the system as a whole. California needs to be managing its education system proactively as a whole, rather than reacting to isolated issues without taking a systemic view. Reducing class size in K-12 classrooms, for example, impacts the teacher credentialing process, and consequently the university systems. No system can be viewed alone: they are fundamentally interconnected.

It is for this reason that CCST, in cooperation with the National Academies, plans to initiate three interrelated education projects, each of which is designed to enable California to make effective decisions in improving its science and technology education systems for the long-term. The first of these projects will be a critical path analysis for the production and retention of science and math elementary and secondary school teachers. The second project will focus on the California Community College System, where nearly half of the state's science and engineering baccalaureates begin their academic careers. The third will institute the first state equivalent of the landmark National Teacher Advisory Council instituted by the National Academies in 2002, integrating accomplished teachers' "wisdom of practice" in CCST's education research and in the discussion of education related policy at the state level.

By many measures, California remains the nation's high-tech leader, and we are workng to ensure that the state has the information it needs to make effective long-term decisions that will enable it to maintain and build upon this leadership. Today's students are the bridge to California's future, and we need to ensure that they have every opportunity of success. Long-term planning can be difficult for a state to undertake, but it can have the best return on investment.