June 2022
Monthly News
IN THIS ISSUE

Twelve Schools Grow Workplace Experience through STEM BEST Program

80 Iowa Teachers to Bring World of Work to Iowa Classrooms

Educators Gear Up for STEM Scale-Up Programs

Forging Connections and Opportunities through BEST STEMposium

August 21, 2022 - 9:00 a.m.
STEM Day at the Iowa State Fair

September 21, 2022 - 9:00 a.m.
Future Ready Iowa Summit: All Options on the Table
Twelve Schools Grow
Workplace Experience through
STEM BEST Program
Students from the Central Community School District, a 2021 STEM BEST Program
model, are paired with community and business volunteers to work on real-world
projects using their makerspace.
The STEM BEST (Businesses Engaging Students and Teachers) Program of the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council drives partnerships of K-12 schools and community employers. Twelve new partnerships were established this spring to provide new experiences in STEM careers for students and emphasize the necessary skills required in today’s workforce during the 2022-2023 academic year. The program encourages collaboration between schools and businesses to develop outstanding STEM coursework. A total of 147 new or expanded partnerships have been created since STEM BEST launched in 2014.

“High-demand STEM jobs in Iowa have grown by 10 percent in just the last two years and are expected to double by 2029,” said Jeff Weld, executive director of the STEM Council. “Our STEM BEST partners are producing the wave of talent the state needs to remain competitive and economically vibrant.”

The 2022 STEM BEST Program awardees are:

  • Cedar Rapids Community School District – Metro High School
  • MOC-Floyd Valley Community School District – Hospers Elementary School
  • MOC-Floyd Valley Community School District – High School
  • Muscatine Community School District – High School
  • Sioux Center Community School District – Middle School and High School
  • Starmont Community School District – Elementary and Middle School
  • Storm Lake Community School District – Early Elementary School
  • Turkey Valley Community School District – Junior and Senior High School
  • Waukee Community School District – Innovation and Learning Center
  • West Des Moines Community School District – High School
  • Woodbine Community School District – Elementary School
  • Woodbine Community School District – High School

The awards are used for curriculum development and coordination, educator training and development in workplace-classroom integration and preparing the career-linked learning environment.

Visit www.IowaSTEM.org/STEMBEST for more information about the STEM BEST Program.
80 Iowa Teachers to Bring World of Work to Iowa Classrooms
Susan Clark Junior High School Computer Science Teacher Casey Edkin is a
2022 STEM Teacher Extern at HNI in Muscatine where he works on preparing,
modeling and 3D printing parts.
A total of 80 teachers from across Iowa were matched with local STEM workplaces through the Iowa STEM Teacher Externship Program. These teachers will have the opportunity to work side-by-side with industry professionals and experience workplace scenarios to apply to school courses.

Projects range across career field and subject area, including: Susan Clark Junior High School Computer Science Teacher Casey Edkin preparing, modeling and 3D printing parts at HNI using multiple machines available in this facility; MFL MarMac Algebra Teacher Madyson Larson working with McGregor Municipal Utilities to evaluate and improve their current solar policy; Madrid High School Mathematics Teacher Bob Grant working at Pratum in Ankeny with the Security Operations Center team to use statistical analytics for risk assessments and apply refined logic to enhance the results for clients.

Meghan Lang, Program Coordinator, stated the program has organized more than 750 externship experiences since 2009 when the program was first launched.

“These partnerships between teachers and workplaces highlight the vital role that STEM plays in today’s workforce and emphasizes the skills required in a workplace setting,” said Meghan Lang. “It’s been rewarding to see many educators and extern hosts come together to elevate classroom experiences and open their eyes to career opportunities here in Iowa.”

The program started in 2009 and this is the 12th year the Council has administered the program. 

For more information about Iowa STEM Teacher Externships, visit http://www.iowastem.org/Externships or view a map of all the externships taking place this summer. 
Educators Gear Up for STEM Scale-Up Programs
CAM South Elementary Teacher Tasia Scott taught Light and Shadow, a 2021-2022 STEM Scale-Up Program, to her first-grade students.
Nearly 2,000 educators are expected to attend professional development training on 13 selected STEM Scale-Up Programs during the next month. More than 112,000 Iowa students, grades PreK through 12, will have the opportunity to engage with these 13 high-quality STEM experiences in-school, after school and in other educational settings.

“The kids of Iowa ought to come in second place to no one when it comes to access to the top STEM learning opportunities available,” said Jeff Weld, executive director of the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council. “Through the STEM Council’s Scale-Up program, we are able to bring outstanding educational opportunities and a positive impact to about one-fifth of all K-12 students and their educators each year.”

Program recipients are selected by regional STEM advisory boards guided by regional STEM managers. Selection criteria is based on need, student diversity, geographic location and distribution, as well as plans to sustain the program, among other factors. Since 2012, funding from the Iowa legislature has enabled more than one million PreK-12 Iowa students to participate in STEM Scale-Up Programs.

For 11 years, the STEM Scale-Up Program has offered Iowa educators access to exemplary educational STEM content and tools. This statewide Program has demonstrated success in increasing student interest and achievement in STEM across all demographics. The results of the annual Iowa STEM Evaluation Report show students participating in STEM Scale-Up Programs score higher on statewide testing and are more likely to pursue a career in a STEM field.

A complete list of 2022-2023 STEM Scale-Up Program recipients can be found at: iowastem.org/scale-up.
Forging Connections and Opportunities through BEST STEMposium
STEM BEST Programs participated in the BEST STEMposium, a collaborative professional development experience geared towards enhancing career-linked learning in Iowa schools.
More than 70 educators, administrators and business partners of STEM BEST Programs across the state attended the first-ever BEST STEMposium, held at the University of Northern Iowa. The event fostered meaningful conversations with STEM BEST Program leaders to enhance career-linked learning in communities across Iowa.

BEST STEMposium attendees had the opportunity to connect with potential resources to support and grow their programs and to meet with other models during a gallery walk where they learned about best practices in engaging students. “Mashup” sessions fostered discussions with other STEM BEST Program models based on region, size of the school and by roles within the schools. Challenge mapping guided attendees to have solution-focused conversations and identify potential customized solutions and systemic changes to overcome shared challenges for further growth and sustainability.
 
Aaron Broshar, owner of Blue Barn BBQ, was featured as the event keynote speaker. He serves as a culinary mentor at the Waterloo Career Center, a STEM BEST Program model. Of his mentorship role, Broshar said, “I hope to help create avenues that students can directly connect with careers in a controlled environment and continue to pursue that which they are passionate about in Iowa. These students have an opportunity to do that very thing.”
 
Of the BEST STEMposium professional development experience, attendees overwhelmingly agreed that the event achieved the goal of networking and sent them home with ideas for growth and improvement in their STEM BEST Program.

“Creating opportunities for this network of impassioned innovators to intentionally connect with each other is why we developed the BEST STEMposium,” said Tanya Hunt, Project Coordinator for the STEM BEST Program. “Our hope is that the connections forged will lead to future partnerships and collaborations with the intent of growing opportunities for Iowa’s teachers and students.”

To learn more about the STEM BEST Program and the supports in place for these models, visit www.IowaSTEM.org/STEMBEST.
Contact the Iowa STEM Operations Center by phone at (319) 273-2959
or by email at info@IowaSTEM.org.