LATEST NEWS & INFO Category: STEM schools

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 […]

Have you heard about esports? If not, you might soon. Esports is competitive videograming, and it’s a wildly popular global phenomenon with a growing professional level. Among U.S. colleges and universities, many are forming teams, hiring coaches and granting scholarships to the best players, just as they do for athletes in traditional sports. Ohio State University is developing an interdisciplinary curriculum spanning five colleges to focus on video-game studies and esports. The curriculum will include undergraduate and graduate degrees; an […]

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 […]

Fourteen schools joined the Ohio STEM Learning Network today as they received our recommendation for designation and the official award from the Ohio STEM Committee. Designation recognizes a school’s holistic approach to STEM learning as more than just science, technology, engineering and math. These schools showed exceptional proof of engagement across academic disciplines, of empowering students as creative problem-solvers, and of a school-wide commitment to a quality STEM education for all students. New schools Meet the newest members of the […]

Many STEM school administrators might want a fresh approach to leading their school but aren’t sure where to turn. It’s difficult to find a fellow leaders to talk with and share ideas. That’s where the Innovative Leaders Institute comes in. The institute is a specialized training program where leaders of innovative schools can learn from veteran STEM principals. The application deadline has just been extended through March 25 for the 2019 Ohio cohort of the Innovative Leaders Institute. (Learn more […]

Since 2015, the U.S. House of Representatives has staged an annual district by district computer science, or “app,” competition for students. The aim of the Congressional App Challenge is to foster an appreciation for computer science and STEM in schools. One Ohio congressman, Rep. Tim Ryan, co-chaired the competition in 2017, and one school has won twice in his district in northeastern Ohio. Teams from the National Inventors Hall of Fame STEM High School in Akron created the two winning […]

The Innovative Leaders Institute (ILI) is now accepting applications for a new cohort of Ohio educators. The ILI is one of the few specialized training programs where leaders of innovative schools can learn from veteran STEM principals. ILI launched in 2012. To date, the program has trained more than 200 educators in Ohio and Tennessee. Many alumni of the program have been featured on this blog as leading STEM administrators including: Josh Jennings, Founding Director of Global Impact STEM Academy and […]

To start of new year, we’re taking a look at some of our most read posts from 2018. Here’s quick rundown of a few highlighted opportunities to connect and participate in the network from last year. First up, you asked and we listened. The number one piece of feedback we received after our 2017 Ohio Design Challenge was simple: Announce the topic sooner. That’s what we did in August with “Food security is our 2019 Ohio Design Challenge topic” and […]

Note from Heather Sherman, Director of the Ohio STEM Learning Network: When I first talked with many of you at our meeting in July, I explained my intention that our network would start to expand its understanding and influence over education policy. Today, there’s big news on that topic. The White House has unveiled a new report that will guide investments by federal agencies and seeks to influence the national conversation on STEM education. Including Ohio. We’ll continue reading through […]