Parkland School District Secondary Curriculum Supervisor Jason Henry has been accepted as one of 31 ambassadors in the Pennsylvania STEM Ambassador program.

This program aims to shape the future of STEM education in the commonwealth by targeting vital policy conversations to legislative leadership in the areas of STEM learning, ecosystems, computer science, state and federal policy for formal and informal education, and workforce needs.

“I am honored to be selected as one of the 2019 Pennsylvania STEM Ambassadors,” Henry said. “I am truly blessed to work with an amazing team in Parkland School District that has embraced STEM Education.

“I have always been passionate about STEM education, but this team is truly the reason STEM has reached new heights in Parkland.”

Parkland has been embracing STEM education for the last eight years under Henry’s leadership.

PA STEM Ambassadors have agreed to invest the next nine months in training and policy development to share expertise and content knowledge with influential stakeholders to help develop a stronger voice in shaping STEM education policy issues.

The ambassadors represent leaders and emerging leaders in corporate, prekindergarten to grade 12 and higher education, and after-school programs from 22 counties.

In the very first years, the Parkland Education Foundation supported an idea for a STEM Summer Academy.

The foundation continues to financially support the STEM summer camps and continues to be one of the strongest advocates of STEM education.

The district has grown from hosting STEM summer camps to the integration of STEM across content areas.

Teachers understand STEM can be embedded across the curriculum.

Parkland has focused on the skills needed for future employment.

Supporting these skills in the classroom, a team of teachers, a STEM team, conducted professional development on inquiry-based learning.

This same team also created a “Parkland Problem Solving” design model that all content teachers can refer to during inquiry-based lessons.

As a result, the number of awesome STEM learning experiences Parkland teachers have brought to the classroom are too numerous to count.

From Middle School STEM Expos, Parkland High School Project Lead the Way courses in biomedical science, computer science and engineering, STEM clubs, STEM competitions, STEM summer camps, Makerspaces in every building, and business partnerships, Parkland finds many ways to infuse STEM into everyday learning in all classrooms, kindergarten through 12th grade.

“In order for Pennsylvania to lead in STEM policy, we need to develop leaders across the state to advocate for bipartisan support in advancing STEM Education policies and to have the respect and influence to affect change,” said Laura Saccente, director of Pennsylvania Statewide after-school and Youth Development Network. “PA STEM Ambassadors have been vital part in shaping STEM education and workforce policies.”

The nationally recognized summer STEM program, Camp Invention, for kindergarten to sixth-grade students, will be offered at Parkway Manor Elementary School the week of June 24-28.