Reynoldsburg
Reynoldsburg STEM Academy
Thanks to the work of Alexander W. Livingston, Reynoldsburg is known as “The Birthplace of the Tomato”. Livingston, a farmer and owner of the A.W. Livingston Buckeye Seed Gardens in Reynoldsburg, worked nearly two decades breeding the “Paragon” tomato. In all, Livingston developed more than thirty varieties of tomatoes – forever transforming the use of tomatoes in cooking.
Perhaps it is serendipitous that the “birthplace of the tomato” is also is the location of the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) – Ohio’s cabinet-level agency charged with providing regulatory protection and promoting agriculture in Ohio. But one thing is certain: STEM is weaved into the communal fabric of Reynoldsburg.
And it is with the same innovative spirit as Livingston that Reynoldsburg City Schools is developing a STEM school. The school will draw from its community resources and partnerships, including the ODA, to provide complex, real-world learning opportunities for its students.
School Snapshot
What is the vision of Reynoldsburg STEM Academy?
The school’s mantra is “Think well. Do good. Create beauty.” This mantra will guide the planning and programming around the school that will ensure the development of higher level thinking skills through the infusion of inquiry based instruction and the design process – providing opportunities for students to participate in P-16 programs with university partners and relevant internships that foster the synthesis between theory and practice.
Who can attend Reynoldsburg STEM Academy?
Students in grades 9-12 within the Reynoldsburg City School District are eligible to attend the school. Each grade level will be comprised of approximately 100 students.
What makes Reynoldsburg STEM Academy different?
The STEM academy will be a small, school-within-a-school with its own classroom and office space. The school building will have extended learning areas with exposed wiring and ventilation systems and roof-top gardens. And the school site will include a 14-acre eco-lab. In all, the STEM campus will allow students to connect innovation and economic progress to the STEM disciplines.
What are the school’s teaching and learning philosophies?
The school's curriculum will be trans-disciplinary and will allow teaching and learning to extend beyond the classroom walls by working on projects with the ODA and key city staff, for example. Learning will be organized around the development of teams where students will exercise teamwork skills, produce deliverables, solve problems, and earn grades or rewards collaboratively.
STEM academy teachers will work as horizontal and vertical teams to foster to trans-disciplinary learning to engage students in relevant problem solving that will encourage and empower them to be innovative, self-reliant and synthesizers of information.
When does the recruitment start for both teachers and students?
The school is currently developing a comprehensive recruitment plan, which will include a student enrollment event scheduled for fall 2009. Teacher recruitment has already begun, and it is anticipated that the interview process will be complete by October 2009.
When will Reynoldsburg’s STEM Academy open its doors?
Students in grade 9 and 10 will begin in fall 2010. Each year a grade will be added until fall 2012, when all grades 9-12 are a part of the school.
