Elementary STEAM Leaders
Grant Focus Areas
- Administrators and classroom educators understand the value of STEM
- Administrators work with classroom educators to create STEM goals and initiatives for their schools/districts
- Create a network of STEM administrator and teacher leaders
- Increase STEM opportunities in participating schools
- Increase cross-Hub collaboration
Three to six schools from each of the five participating STEM Hubs (GO STEM, UVSH, Columbia Gorge) will participate in the STEAM Leaders in Elementary Schools project. The project will target the needs of districts to improve grade level teacher and administrative leadership/partnership quality in science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), through shared pedagogy for all. Professional development will help educators incorporate STEM into their classroom lessons which will increase the amount of time spent on math and science in elementary classrooms. Principals and/or superintendents from each district will attend professional development sessions and an evaluation session. They will also take part in the summer institutes.
STEAM Leaders will build on and extend the work initiated in the Increase Time on Science in Elementary Schools (TOS) projects implemented by GO STEM and the Oregon Coast STEM Hub that concluded September 2019. TOS engaged teachers in 15 months of professional development. These teachers will be invited to participate in STEAM Leaders and will be able to utilize and advance the skills developed in TOS. The returning teachers will effectively be “advanced STEM educators” and will mentor incoming educators and administrators as well as continuing to develop skills and confidence as STEAM leads in their schools. Teachers who are also part of the Oregon Science Project will be able to provide in-depth information related to integration of all aspects of NGSS into the curriculum. Each Hub participating will target 22 elementary teachers to participate. Preservice teachers will be invited to attend with their mentor teachers as appropriate in each Hub.
See: https://sites.google.com/view/umpqua-valley-steam-champions/home