10 EAD
Elizabeth Seton High School Launches the LEAD Program LEAD (Learning Engineering And Design) is set to begin in August, 2012 when students interested in engineering and technology begin a four year program that combines science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) into one curriculum. While STEM programs have already been initiated in public high schools, Elizabeth Seton High School’s program will mark the first all-female engineering curriculum among high schools in the Washington, DC area. Students who are accepted into this program will engage in hands-on exploration, which includes designing, building, and testing as they apply the skills that they have learned to real world problems around them and gradually progress to more global issues. Students will use their ingenuity with tools, building materials, robotics, electronics, etc. in laboratory classrooms to create models and products for the world in which they live. Why LEAD? According to Sister Ellen Marie Hagar, “LEAD is much more than a new curriculum at Seton. It is Elizabeth Seton High School’s strategic response to educational, business, and economic needs that face our country.” The National Science Foundation supports Sister Ellen Marie’s belief saying, “Innovation in Information Technology has driven economic growth, has been the underlying factor of many of our scientific advances and has ensured our national security. It is not surprising that predicted IT job growth is very strong. Yet students are not majoring in this field in sufficient numbers.” Dean Kern, Deputy Director of the Office of Education of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center offers additional support for this program saying, “Like Elizabeth Seton High School, NASA too has recognized how critical it is to ensure that students from our neighboring communities are equally participating in advanced STEM activities. Women, especially African- American and Hispanic women, have held a disproportionately lower share of STEM undergraduate degrees, particularly in engineering. Elizabeth Seton High School has strategically stepped into this gap to expand opportunities for women in STEM fields through the implementation of an academically rigorous and integrated engineering program. Furthermore we are pleased to be in partnership with Elizabeth Seton High School to further engage and inspire high students in STEM.” By 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor projects that 150, 000 new jobs will be available; however, only 50,000 college graduates will be prepared for these jobs because of their lack of technological education. LEAD changes the definition of technological literacy to include strategies that allow students to build their own understanding of engineering design, the process that transforms ideas into manufactured products that impact the environment, society, and our global developments. Technology continues to change every aspect of our natural world. LEAD enables students to learn principles and designs that allow them to assess, evaluate and discern technological values and ethics as technology affects our behavior, our lifestyle, and our global perspective. LEAD teaches students to work together in teams in an environment where constructive feedback, project management, and participatory learning are valued. This type of collaboration encourages students to share ideas, assist one another in projects, and design solutions together. It promotes students’ abilities to network with others and deepens their appreciation for diverse thinking in problem-solving situations. LEAD prepares students for a wide variety of career paths. Designing and applying technology is vital for those who enter the work force today as technology plays an ever increasing role both in our economic vitality and our environmental survival. Alumnae support for LEAD Elizabeth Seton High School is especially pleased to have JoEllen Gray, a 1986 graduate and a math teacher of l5 years at Seton, become the LEAD instructor. JoEllen eagerly accepted this position saying, “I am thrilled to be part of such an exciting program. This is a great continued on page 14 11
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