**3. STEM literacy divide**

Accessibility issues can no longer be defined in terms of physical access. The pandemic has shown that education organizations must approach the use of distance education and digital learning from an equity lens. Age does not define digital fluencies or abilities to apply digital skills to communicate effectively. The term 'digital divide' traditionally was used to describe inequities in access to devices and broadband, but this definition fails to capture gaps in educational experiences, curricula, social, cultural, and economic realities of many [14]. Texas ranked highest in the nation, with 34% of students lacking broadband connection and 24% of students lacking access to a device [15]. Post COVID-19 presents the immediate need to rethink digital leadership training approaches to begin to address the digital divide presented by lack of quality training, equity and accessibility issues in isolated areas. This project addresses the digital divide challenges facing remote underrepresented and underserved Indigenous and Hispanic communities with limited access to technology and faculty development opportunities. This would be accomplished through a community mobile makerspace program aimed at addressing the digital divide and digital literacy needs of STEM educators. The term 'digital divide' traditionally has been used to describe inequities in access to devices and broadband, but this definition fails to capture gaps in educational experiences, curricula, social, cultural, and economic realities of many [14]. This issue has long been debated in literature but school closures in isolated regions during the pandemic magnified preexisting socio-economic and education disparities on a massive scale, revealing large inequities in access to resources and learning quality [16]. Schools must begin to truly identify gaps in accessibility to include physical access, technology mediums used, equity, resources, digital learning, and digital literacy experiences.

While remote areas of Texas face a digital divide, national employment projections in STEM reported by the Bureau of Labor forecast overall growth in STEM fields to increase by 11% with Austin, Texas leading national STEM indexes over the next 5 years [17]. Nearly 28% of all occupations in the Austin metro area require a bachelor's degree, with salaries of occupations requiring a bachelor's degree double the salary of a position requiring a high school diploma [18]. Seven out of 10 job occupations identified in the Bureau of Labor Statistics report were computer related, with mathematical science occupations expected to grow by 28.2%, with top occupation growth among statisticians, research analysists, cartographers, forensic scientists, biomedical engineers, mathematicians, computer systems analysists, software developers, actuaries, and information security analysts. In addition, in that same report, over 73% of STEM occupations required a bachelors' degree, while only 21% of overall occupations required a bachelor's degree [17].

Main factors contributing to the digital inequities may not be identified as physical access only but rather a divide in digital literacy skills to the extent in which
