NEF Awards National STEM Leadership Award to Warren County School District
Albany Times Union, Friday, June 7, 2013
Warren County School District honored by NEF and SUNY for STEM Leadership. District students on average advanced a grade level in 22 learning hours!
Alexandria, VA June 07, 2013
The National Education Foundation (NEF), the national nonprofit leader in K-12 STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) education, and its university partner State University of New York (SUNY), awarded the Warren County School District of Warren, PA, the 2012-2013 National STEM Leadership Award on Wednesday, May 29, 2013. The district received a check for $12,000, and the leaders received plaques.
At the Award ceremony, NEF Chairman Dr. Appu Kuttan stated,”NEF is concerned that US is ranked 25th out of 35 countries in math and science. We hope our STEM academies across the nation will help students of disadvantaged schools improve their STEM skills, thus enabling them to compete for jobs in the global economy.”
The award recognizes Warren County’s accomplishment of advancing an average student one grade level in a subject in 22 learning hours on the NEF’s CyberLearning Total STEM System Solution including individualized learning using top-rated online courses, teacher training, tech support, learning management system, teacher stipends, student awards and parent training.
By providing STEM courses, as well as courses in other essential subjects such as English language arts, social studies, SAT/ACT, IT, business and management, the “STEM Academy” program provides a well-rounded educational experience for students of all grade levels.
The NEF’s STEM Solution has been implemented in school districts across the country by SUNY in partnership with local universities. Warren’s success during the past academic year stood out as a clear example of how to effectively improve student achievement by motivating all the stakeholders—students, teachers, parents and administrators.
Funding for the program at Warren and many other districts is provided in large part by the federal casino Academy Board””>Qualified Zone Academy Board (QZAB) program, which is used to simultaneously improve academic facilities and curriculum programs in underprivileged school districts. See http://www.qzab.org.
Schools, that do not receive QZAB funds, can implement STEM Academies at NO COST, working with local businesses and organizations, via the “Adopt-A-School” national initiative by NEF. See http://www.cyberlearning.org.
This is how the program works: NEF sets up a professional training academy in a school at no cost, and populates it with 5,500 top-rated Web-based courses in IT and business plus 24/7 live online teachers. The school then makes the courses available to local businesses at 50% below market cost, and use the funds for its STEM academy. NEF also provides a Parent Academy and a Teacher Academy at no cost.
The employees receive course completion certificates from the State University of New York (SUNY), NEF’s university partner responsible for the set up and administration of all the academies.
Through the QZAB and Adopt-A-School initiatives, NEF and SUNY have created the most cost-effective and high-quality STEM education solutions. NEF plans to set up model academy programs in several major cities during the coming school year. NEF’s ultimate goal is to reach students in most disadvantaged schools in the US.
For more info, contact NEF VP Dr. Art Stellar, past national president of ASCD at 703-823-9999 or tstephens@nefuniversity.org