Standard 4: School/program has established a shared vision for STEM and has leadership structures to support effective implementation.
Concept 1: School/program has developed a model of shared leadership whereby structures exist both internally (STEM Leadership Team, STEM Coordinator) and externally (STEM Advisory Board, STEM Stakeholder Committee) to support and sustain STEM initiatives.
Our school values the input of teachers and encourages them to become leaders. We have various opportunities for teachers to develop leadership skills and provide input. Each of the teams below offer opportunities to voice ideas and lead policy change through the school.
STEM Interdisciplinary Team
The STEM Interdisciplinary team was created in large part to make sure we meet the needs of students related to STEM and college and career readiness. This team has given many teachers from different departments the opportunity to see what is happening in different areas and provide input into the direction of different programs.
Advisory Board
Each area in the CTAE Department has an Advisory Board. The Computer Science department has its own Advisory board that is made up of partners from local businesses, professors from higher education, members of professional organizations, parents and even students. Our Advisory Board meets three times a year to discuss progress we are making in the classroom, but also to explore new paths we could possibly take. The Computer Science Advisory Board is led by teacher leaders including responsibilities like setting the agendas, inviting community leaders and recruiting new members.
The links below lead to folders that contain minutes and agendas for our Advisory Board meetings.
The links below lead to folders that contain minutes and agendas for our Advisory Board meetings.
Aspiring Leaders
Aspiring Leaders is an opportunity for principals to select teacher leaders that will participate in a two year program that focuses on building the leadership capacity within our system. Over the two year period, candidates complete projects based on teacher interest and system needs.
Concept 2: STEM leadership has effectively communicated a shared vision and mission for the STEM culture, with goals, and intended outcomes for STEM initiatives.
Our vision for Computer Science was developed by all Computer Science teachers in the School District at a vertical alignment team meeting. This vision statement was a culmination of the shared ideas of system administrators, school administrators, content teachers, literacy specialists, higher education representatives and even parents. This vision is the guide for constructing curriculum throughout the whole K-12 system in Computer Science classes.
VISION: We believe in Computer Science because it provides the knowledge, skills, and ways of thinking necessary to thrive in a technological world.
IMPACT AREAS:
VISION: We believe in Computer Science because it provides the knowledge, skills, and ways of thinking necessary to thrive in a technological world.
IMPACT AREAS:
- Informed citizens need to understand the basics of how the technological world works in order to contribute productively to society as a whole.
- Being involved in creating technologies can give confidence in dealing with complex, open-ended problems, and persistence in the face of challenges.
- Computer Science levels the playing field and helps close the "digital divide" and "participation gap” around tech for lower income youth and students of color underrepresented groups.