GRAVETTE — Two Northwest Arkansas schools will use a combined $155,690 in grants to buy equipment and provide teacher training for the governor’s initiative to prepare students for careers in science, technology, engineering and math.
Gravette and Prairie Grove are among 15 districts and one technical center in Arkansas designated this week as Project Lead the Way schools for2012-13. The designation comes from the Governor’s Workforce Cabinet.
Gravette will receive $75,782 and Prairie Grove will get $79,908 to implement the national Project Lead the Way curriculum in their high schools.
“We feel fortunate to get this,” said Allen Williams, Prairie Grove superintendent. “It’s another way to get students interested in these fields.”
The money will purchase the software and hardware necessary for the curriculum and provide professional development for theteacher who will instruct students, Williams said.
Project Lead The Way includes several introductory courses in engineering or biomedical sciences that show how basic concepts taught in the classroom are used in the work world, according to a news release from the Arkansas Department of Education.
Other Project Lead The Way districts are Jonesboro, Riverview, Star City and the Northark Technical Center.
Andrea Kelly, Gravette superintendent, said themoney will help the district get a head start on Common Core curriculum mandates.
“I do commend our high school staff for wanting to take this first step because this puts them two years ahead of the state implementation of Common Core in the high school,” Kelly said.
Common Core refers to state standards adopted by 48 states and territories designed to be relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills young people need for success in college and careers.
The state money will pay for equipment for project-based learning, Kelly said. She said the goal is to integrate academic core subjects like science and literature classes.
“We want to emulate an environment students will find in the workplace,” Kelly said.
Jaron Porter, a teacher at the high school, said the money will help design a biomedical sciences curriculum at the school.
“We have a really strong medical professions program here at Gravette,” Porter said. “The rigor was already there. Our classes are very much hands-on.”
Equipment such as heart monitors, stethoscopes and computer software and hardware will be purchased for the program.
“We are creating an environment where students use medical tools in the same way they would use it in the work force,” Porter said.
Gov. Mike Beebe created the STEM Works program, from which the grantsare coming, last summer with the goal of training students in fields that have the most potential for expanding the state’s economy.
STEM refers to science, technology, engineering and math. Another goal is to equip colleges with the tools they need to better educate future teachers in these core areas.
The Workforce Cabinet also named New Tech districts to include Arkadelphia, Dumas, El Dorado, Highland, Hope, Marked Tree, Riverview, Russellville and Van Buren.
Lincoln and Cross County school districts began participating in New Tech this school year.
The New Tech model integrates STEM education and extensive projectbased learning throughout the curriculum.
School News, Pages 11 on 01/18/2012