NSTA New Science Teacher Academy, co-founded by the Amgen Foundation, is a professional development initiative created to help promote quality science teaching, enhance teacher confidence and classroom excellence, and improve teacher content knowledge. According to a 2003 study by Richard Ingersoll, nearly 50 percent of beginning teachers leave their jobs in the first five years. The NSTA New Science Teacher Academy endeavors to use mentoring and other professional development resources to support science teachers during the often challenging, initial teaching years and to help them stay in the profession.