Summer Work-Based Learning Experience Turns into Job Opportunity for Students
For nearly three years, Cedar Falls high school students have had the opportunity to participate in a STEM BEST model they call Cedar Falls Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) during the school year. With the support of a STEM BEST Program award from the STEM Council, a summer course was added to the curriculum.
As part of the STEM BEST® Program, Ottumwa High School launched SparkTank in August 2018. This project-based experience connects students with local businesses and organizations, allowing students to solve real problems in authentic learning environments, while becoming immersed in a professional culture. Read more about STEM BEST Program Sparks Success in Iowa Schools
Currently, the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council is accepting applicationsfor new STEM work-based learning models, known as the Iowa STEM BEST®(Businesses Engaging Students and Teachers) Program . A total of 50 STEM BEST® Programs ha
Work-based learning got personal for a West Delaware High School chemistry student. In 2017-2018 the high school offered a new elective, DelCo BEST. This class connects students with local businesses to undertake real-world, work-based projects and create authentic learning opportunities. Read more about STEM BEST Chemistry Lab Makeover
Woodbine is Connecting Students and Business Early On
As one of thirteen most recently awarded STEM BEST models, Woodbine Community School District and its community partners understand the value of engaging students with businesses. They provide their students with a unique opportunity to interact with local businesses through their STEM BEST Lunch Guest Program. Read more about Woodbine is Connecting Students and Business Early On
What began as a hunt for innovative excellence that routed through Kansas City's CAPS (Center for Advanced Professional Studies) and Brooklyn, New York's P-TECH (Pathways in Technology Early College High School) in 2013 has become a bona fide movement custom-fitted to Iowa: STEM BEST® (Businesses Engaging Students and Teachers). Read more about School + Business STEM Partnerships Reach 37
"Our community partners were reinforcing the idea that students needed to learn in a way consistent with the current world of work," said Greg Smith, principal at Fort Madison High School. "They agreed with us that to be successful as adults, students needed to practice problem-solving in group settings. Read more about STEM BEST: Fort Madison High School
STEM BEST® is a win-win-win. It creates projects for students to explore their passions. It opens doors for businesses to contribute to career awareness and shape the future workforce. It presents examples for teachers to connect content areas to the jobs outside school walls. Read more about STEM BEST: DelCo BEST
BEST practices in business-education partnerships paid forward
No more “take a seat” or “open your textbooks.” Instead, “get to work” is what students can look forward to when they enter STEM BEST (Business Engaging Students and Teachers) classrooms popping up across Iowa thanks to partnerships driven by the STEM Council. Strategies for success in bridging the business-education chasm were aplenty at the first-of-its-kind STEM BEST event this month. Read more about BEST practices in business-education partnerships paid forward