LATEST NEWS & INFO Category: School leaders

Are you thinking about converting your school to a STEM/STEAM curriculum? Are you unsure how to start? Then consider participating in the Battelle’s Innovative Leaders Institute (ILI) through the Ohio STEM Learning Network. ILI is a five-day program (one day is virtual) spread over 12 months that pairs experienced school principals with other principals or lead-teachers who wish to implement innovative strategies in your school and/or become a STEM school. The curriculum focuses on leadership, instruction, and culture/climate. Participants engage […]

Colorful, twinkling lights of the holiday season can inspire awe and wonder in adults and children alike. But in northeastern Ohio, kids of elementary and high school age have created light displays for an annual drive-through show that draws tens of thousands of visitors and raises money for local charities. Magic of Lights, held from late November through early January, is billed as the region’s largest holiday light attraction. Using the latest LED technology and digital animation, the event includes […]

Good things are happening fast at Chase STEMM Academy. The K-8 building in the Toledo Public district earned an overall grade of “B” on its latest School Report Card from the Ohio Department of Education (ODE), after logging an “F” in 2015. Chase also has received statewide honors, being named an Ohio School to Watch by ODE and earning the department’s Momentum Award. How has the urban school come so far so quickly? We asked principal Jack Hunter about the […]

The Ohio STEM Learning Network collaborates with the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) to support the STEM/STEAM school designation process.  STE(A)M designation is written into Ohio law, and the law defines the contents of the applications for STE(A)M school designation. Periodically, the Ohio STEM Learning Network and ODE make clarifications to the application process, including updating the application itself. A new STE(A)M designation application was approved by the Ohio STEM Committee, the group of policymakers, agency directors, and business leaders […]

After several years of discussion, new graduation requirements are coming. In response to a call for more options, the new graduation standards, which will become effective in mid-October, go beyond the usual tests and offer combinations of criteria that students can satisfy to demonstrate their qualifications to graduate high school. For insight on the new requirements, we contacted Sarah Wilson at the Ohio Department of Education: Q: Tell us about your job at the Ohio Department of Education and your […]

One might think that an enterprise called the PAST Foundation would be focused on, well, the past. But that’s not the case with this Columbus-based non-profit education organization. The PAST Foundation wants to transform the future of teaching and learning through its emphasis on STEM education, school design and workforce development. Through its programs, which include its Innovation Lab; professional development training for school administrators and teachers; and student activities, to name a few, the foundation works to change education […]

What does it takes to be a STEM or STEAM school, as designated by the State of Ohio? Designation requires more than adding a robotics club, going 1:1 with technology, or offering more science and math courses. The Ohio STEM Learning Network and the Ohio Department of Education will be hosting four regional meetings this fall to assist schools interested in applying for STE(A)M designation. Join us to learn about the attributes of a STE(A)M designated school, from creating a […]

St. Ambrose Catholic School is a rare kind of school. Just three nonpublic Ohio schools have earned designation from the Ohio STEM Committee as a STEAM (STEM + arts) school. The pre-K through 8 school in northeastern Ohio’s Medina County has much to offer in its STEAM-based curriculum, which it launched in 2016. From coding and computer science to a planned Fine Arts STEAM Lab, the school has been able to offer its students a wide-ranging STEAM-based curriculum in just […]

Editor’s note We’re publishing today’s interview as Director Heather Sherman joins the Education Commission of the States’ annual National Forum on Education Policy  to present on “State Policies to Support STEAM Education.” You can follow her tweets here. At Herbert Mills STEM Elementary School, the arts have always been a part of the engineering design process. So recently, administrators at the central Ohio school decided to make it official, successfully petitioning the STEM Committee of the state’s Department of Education to […]

For the second year, we’re proud to recognize four leaders from around the network. A teacher, a principal, an innovator, and an advocate each accepted commendation for their dedication to improving education in our state. Below, read the formal release from Battelle praising these important leaders. 2019 Ohio STEM Excellence Awards Unveiled COLUMBUS, Ohio (June 13, 2019)—The Ohio STEM Learning Network (OSLN) has recognized the four winners of the “STEM Excellence Awards.” These awards recognize outstanding teachers, school leaders, or education advocates […]