SALAMANCA, N.Y. — Salamanca High has been recognized as one of the best high schools in the nation for it's STEM program.
Earlier this month at the Future of Education Technology Conference, Salamanca High was honored as one of three schools to earn the STEM Excellence Award. The school was hand-picked for their interdisciplinary approach to STEM education.
"It is very rewarding to be recognized at this level for the work our teachers and administrators have invested in creating dynamic and focused learning experiences for our students,” Assistant Superintendent Dr. Mark Beehler said in a statement. “It is equally as rewarding to see our students engaged in meaningful work and excel academically.”
The high school created it's STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) program five years ago. The goal was to get students excited about particular areas of study and create a seamless transition from HS to a college or university.
Some of the things that make up the school's STEAM program are 3D printing for projects in history classes, robotics, a drones class and more. The program is able to combine all disciplines into one cohesive learning experience.
“If students don’t want to build, code needs to be written.Wires need to be cut and crimped," science teacher and robotics coach, Cheryl Johnson said. " A student from our business department is in charge of our finances and ordering all inventory. A writer is needed to journal our entire process in our engineer notebook. Our Math and Physics department helps with the layered calculations. We have a student team entirely devoted to design and branding.”
Salamanca is the first school in New York State to earn the award since it's inception in 2015.