South County Districts Form Elementary STEAM Work Group with Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy
Press releases are posted on Independent.com as a free community service.
Santa Barbara Unified, Goleta Union, and Hope Elementary School District are joining forces with the acclaimed Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy (DPEA) to unify and improve Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics (STEAM) curriculum in grades TK-6 through an interdistrict STEAM Consortium.
Each Thursday, teachers from 19 schools meet in the DPEA specialized manufacturing facility for professional development and collaboration. Teachers are trained to use a variety of tools and machinery and acquire a range of technical skills that support their curriculum and project development efforts. Plans are in motion to outfit each school site with a modular STEAM Lab that will include many of these tools and machines to enable prototyping, fabrication, and distribution of custom supplies needed to support the STEAM curriculum.
“We are excited to be leveraging all that we have learned over the last 20+ years in the DPEA to impact thousands of students across the community. One of the hallmarks of the DPEA is teacher interdependence and collaboration, which is what this STEAM Consortium is all about. There is nothing more inspiring than people working together toward a common vision,” said DPEA Founder Amir Abo-Shaeer.
Beyond the benefit of teacher collaboration is the collective capacity of the STEAM Consortium to develop and deploy multifaceted curriculum at scale in a sustainable way.
“Collaboration like this can be rare. However, it is valuable as the Districts involved in the consortium are feeder Districts into SB Unified secondary schools. We look forward to seeing the results and its impact on students. We are continually supporting future scientists, artists, and academics as we encourage them to design their own future,” said Dr. Hilda Maldonado, Superintendent.
When designing the projects, special attention is given to ensure each part of the acronym in STEAM is represented since it is the integration of all aspects of STEAM that engages student creativity and drives innovation.
“Thanks to the Foundation and STEAM Consortium, our GUSD STEAM specialists are developing innovative, hands-on curriculum that inspires curiosity and love for learning. These projects truly showcase the power of collaboration!” said Goleta Union Superintendent Mary Kahn.
Anna Scharfeld, principal at Hope School shared, “The collaborative approach with DPEA, Goleta Union, and Santa Barbara Unified has allowed the Hope District STEAM Specialists to provide our students with a comprehensive program that builds sequentially from year to year. This partnership has not only deepened student engagement but has also provided them with the skills and curiosity to thrive in an interdisciplinary world.”
These collective efforts are made possible by generous philanthropic support stewarded by the Formative Foundation, formerly known as the DPEA Foundation.
“This STEAM Consortium is one of the most impactful programs the Formative Foundation is supporting. Through the professional development of STEAM teachers, we have the ability to engage over 6,000 elementary students in developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills via project-based STEAM education,” said Formative Foundation CEO Gary Simpson.