IN THIS ISSUE
2018 STEM BEST® Application Opens Early June
Governor’s STEM Advisory Council Gathers to Help Advance the STEM Effort in Iowa
STEM Scale-Up Program Drives Onward
Check out the new Iowa STEM Blog!
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June 11, 2018 - 2:00 p.m.
South Central Regional STEM Advisory Board Meeting
June 13, 2018 - 10:00 a.m.
Northwest Regional STEM Advisory Board Meeting
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2018 STEM BEST® Application Opens Early June
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Students from North Cedar Elementary School in Cedar Falls, Iowa, roasted, ground and packaged their own coffee product to fulfill an order of 74 bags to families within the school.
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Since 2014, 37 STEM BEST® models have been established across Iowa. These school+business partnerships create work-based learning experiences where students apply science, technology, engineering and mathematics education to gain real-world workplace exposure. Two of these models are highlighted below.
North Cedar Elementary School
in Cedar Falls, Iowa, received a STEM BEST® award in 2016. Since receiving the award, they have worked in partnership with Sidecar Coffee to learn about the science of roasting and brewing coffee and the process involved in creating and marketing their own product. A total of 74 bags of coffee were sold in the first order to families within the school. They plan to grow the program to make coffee available to the entire district.
Marshalltown Learning Academy
was created by Marshalltown schools to provide a personalized learning environment for students. With a goal of all students leaving the academy with a meaningful plan, the program offers creative scheduling and flexibility for students to gain work-based learning experience. They received a STEM BEST® award in 2017 and have hit the ground running by meeting with 65 local businesses this year. With a handful of businesses already partnering with the program, they are well on their way to meeting their goal.
Valuable resources and supporting documents related to the 2018 STEM BEST® Program are now available at
www.IowaSTEM.gov/STEMBEST/application
. The actual application portal will open in early June.
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Governor’s STEM Advisory Council Gathers to Help Advance the STEM Effort in Iowa
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Governor Kim Reynolds provided introductory remarks at the recent Iowa STEM Advisory Council meeting held in the Jacobson Exhibition Center at the
Iowa State Fairgrounds.
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Traditionally known for the famous butter cow, entertaining concerts and food items on a stick, members of the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council recently gathered at the Iowa State Fairgrounds for a different purpose. The Iowa STEM Advisory Council and Executive Committee spring meeting was held in the Jacobson Exhibition Center on May 16.
Nearly 90 business, industry, education, nonprofit and policy leaders participated in the Iowa STEM Advisory Council meeting. Several presentations and panels were held throughout the day, covering the following topics:
- Getting Iowa Future Ready, led by Iowa Workforce Development Director Beth Townsend
- Iowa’s Fast-Growing Apprenticeship and Pre-Apprenticeship Programs, led by STEM Council Interim Executive Director Cindy Dietz
- Work-Based Learning: Spotlight on STEM BEST Programs in Iowa, led by STEM Council Interim Executive Director Cindy Dietz
- Iowa Clearinghouse for Work-Based Learning Update, led by Iowa Department of Education Director Ryan Wise
The Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council also received substantial support at the meeting from a long-standing corporate partner. Rockwell Collins presented a check for $200,000 at the meeting to support the state’s STEM initiative for the next three years.
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STEM Scale-Up Program Drives Onward
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Students from Shenandoah Middle School brought home several awards from a recent TEN80 national competition.
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The STEM Scale-Up Program offers high-quality educational programs focused on science, technology, engineering and mathematics that have the ability to continue and grow throughout Iowa long after the initial award. There are many programs that have been on the STEM Scale-Up Program menu that have done just that.
Brett Roberts from Shenandoah, Iowa, began teaching TEN80 Student Racing Challenge (TEN80) in his middle school classroom after receiving the STEM Scale-Up Program Award in 2015. Today, in his third year of teaching TEN80, the program is maintained through fundraising efforts and receives ongoing interest and participation from students.
TEN80 cultivates innovation, entrepreneurial and critical thinking through project-based learning. Students learn business, project management, marketing, graphic design, race engineering, small scale manufacturing and innovations in driverless cars and sustainable energies through hands-on experiences.
Through TEN80, students manage their own motorsports team and have the opportunity to enter their race car in competition. This year, the team from Shenandoah came home with six championship awards – the most awards they’ve won yet – including, Pit Stop Challenge, Overall Race Challenge, Enterprise Challenge, MODS Dragster Challenge, Data-Driven Design Challenge and Middle School Series National Finals Overall Championship.
“Students that are involved in TEN80 have shown a continued interest in pursuing STEM,” said Roberts. “It helps students draw a connection to real-world business opportunities. I hope to scale the program to make it available for high school students, too.”
Congratulations to the Shenandoah TEN80 team! We are excited about the ongoing impact this program is having on students in Iowa.
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Check out the new Iowa STEM Blog!
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Get a closer look into the STEM activities taking place across Iowa from the perspective of students, parents and guardians, educators, business leaders, and other STEM partners.
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Alliant Energy was also a sponsor of the Governor's 2018 Future Ready Iowa Summit.
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Contact the Iowa STEM Operations Center by phone at (319) 273-2959
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