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BELLBROOK — Bellbrook High School has been nationally certified for the Project Lead The Way STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) program, which the school implemented in 2007 for students in grades nine through 12.
The curriculum for the national, nonprofit Project Lead The Way focuses on making math and science relevant for students.
“We were trying to find a curriculum that was not just theoretical knowledge, but also provided hands-on applications for the students,” said Chris Baker, principal of Bellbrook High School. “We realized that we already possessed some of the key components needed for the program including labs, computers and a prototype machine that makes 3-D prototypes.”
The school received more than $40,000 in state grants.
In September, a PLTW certification team visited Bellbrook High School, observing teachers in the classroom and assessing use of the program curriculum. They also interviewed students, parents, teachers and administrators and noted the 95 percent passing rate that Bellbrook PLTW students achieved during post-program testing.
“A lot of kids in the district are interested in the engineering and technology fields,” said Baker.
PLTW has 101 students, or about 12 percent of the total school population.
“It’s a tough economy out there right now, but there’s a need for engineers and we have one of the biggest engineering employers right next door to us at the (Air Force) base.”
With national certification, BHS students can now earn up 18 college credits at Purdue, Ohio State and University of Dayton studying subjects like introduction to engineering design, principles of engineering, and civil engineering and architecture. Baker plans to expand the program to include internships and a class in digital electronics taught by PLTW-trained BHS physics teacher, Chris Schmidt.
“It’s really a win-win situation for our students.”
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