Odessa School District gets $20,000 STEM grant award

Odessa School District superintendent Suellen White and principal Ken Schutz received the news December 20, 2011, from the Career and Technical Education Program of the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), telling them that they had received a $20,000 STEM (Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics) grant.

“Congratulations to you, your staff, and your community on the selection of Odessa as one of six STEM Lighthouse Schools for 2011-12! Your application was outstanding, and we very much appreciated the excellent information you provided during our site visitation on December 7,” wrote Dennis Milliken, the program administrator for OSPI.

A total of five schools and an entire district will serve as Science, Technology, Engineering and Math mentors to other schools in the state. Known as Lighthouse schools, the six entities were recently awarded $20,000 grants that will promote and develop STEM education, including technical assistance and advice for other middle schools and high schools that are creating their own STEM environment.

STEM Lighthouse schools originated in 2010 with the Legislature's passage of House Bill 2621.The bill directs the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction to designate as many as three middle and three high schools each year as lighthouse schools. The schools “serve as resources and examples of how to combine the following best practices:

*Small, highly personalized learning communities

* An interdisciplinary curriculum with a strong focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), delivered through a project-based instructional approach and

*Active partnerships with businesses and the local community to connect learning beyond the classroom.”

The complete list of selected STEM Lighthouse Schools for 2011-12 follows:

• Eastmont Junior High School, Eastmont School District

• Secondary Academy for Success, Northshore School District

• Odessa School District

• Science and Math Institute, Tacoma School District

• Stewart Middle School, Tacoma School District

• Toppenish High School, Toppenish School District

"I congratulate all the lighthouse schools," said Randy Dorn, state superintendent. "Each of them is taking a leadership role in STEM education and will serve as great models for the rest of the state."