The STEM Education Institute and the School of Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst propose to hold a conference entitled Science, Technology, Engineering and Math -Alternative Certification for Teachers (STEM-ACT) in May 2006 in the Washington D.C. area. The conference will focus on alternative certification programs for the preparation of science teachers. The overall purpose of the conference is to identify key features and issues relating to the alternative certification of science teachers as a basis for developing a more systematic approach to the study of these efforts. In particular, the conference asks, What do we know and what more do we need to know to incorporate the results of more than 30 years of research on science teaching and learning into alternative certification programs? The intellectual merit of the conference is that it will provide a forum for the exploration of what is known about the alternative preparation of science teachers and identify the agenda for future research. There are two broader impacts of the proposed conference. (1) By bringing together experts in science education, teacher education, and educational policy with educational administrators and policy makers it will help to shape the national conversation on the pros and cons of alternative and traditional certification programs for teachers of science.  (2) The conference will have effects on the development, implementation and evaluation of alternative certification programs for science teachers.