Summer Elementary STEAM Academy Opens to Great Reviews

By

Angela

November 30, 2016

Students learn core programming techniques in a recent STEAM Afterschool course.

Awesome! Fun! Exciting!

Those were the words of students who participated in last Summer’s first ever DPIE STEAM Academy at Amador Elementary School. Talk about creating some summer excitement and fun, that’s exactly what the 173 Dublin students in grades K-5 experienced by participating in the program.

Parent’s Enthusiastic About STEAM

As one parent evaluation read, “This was the only time my kids ran out of the classroom over-the-top excited to tell me what they did each and every day. Their teachers were awesome I *wish* my kids always came home from school this excited to learn. I was not prepared for this level of happiness and curiosity from them, and will DEFINITELY enroll them next year. Thank you so much!”

Program Created to Meet Parent Requests

“The STEAM Academy was the result of feedback received from parents in the Dublin School District.” said DPIE’s Board President, Edy Coleman. “Our Academy Superintendent, Rich Boschetti and Program Manager, Vickie Constantinides, met with the PFC’s (Parent Faculty Clubs) of every elementary school in the district last year. Parents were impressed by what they saw happening in the high school and middle school STEM Academy and wanted a similar opportunity for their younger children.”

Teachers Taught Their Passion

"Teachers had the chance to teach their passion in this program,” said STEAM Academy and Dougherty Principal, Brett Nelson. “It was so wonderful to see teachers and students so excited about what they were studying. Every classroom was a whirlwind of activity and students laughed while they explored and learned. I didn’t want to leave the classes myself." "The program was the outgrowth of our visits to the elementary PFC meetings,” said Academy Superintendent, Rich Boschetti. “We got off to a late start in building the program but we rolled up our sleeves and went about the process of creating an academy that was both educational and fun. We recruited great teachers by asking them to create classes that were challenging yet fun. The program was more than I hoped for and the feedback from kids and parents alike was tremendous. Every parent who responded to our survey said they would re-enroll their child in next year’s summer program."

Planning Underway for 2017 Elementary STEAM Academy

The DPIE staff has already begun recruiting teachers for next Summer’s STEAM Academy. Although they certainly loved the new Amador Elementary school where the program was housed last summer, moving to Dougherty Elementary in the Summer of 2017 will mean the Academy will be centrally located in Dublin. Access should be easier for most families throughout the school district. Staff is planning to open enrollment for summer classes beginning on February 1st, so that families have time to review course offerings and can plan their vacation schedules accordingly. This year the STEAM Academy will offer three two-week sessions with both am (8:30 – 11:30) and 12:10 – 3:10 class offerings.

Session 1 – June 12 – 23 (10 instructional days)

Session 2 – June 26 – July 7 (8 instructional days) Off July 3 & 4

Session 3 – July 10 – July 21 (10 instructional days)