Being recognized for excellence once is a notable achievement, and repeating that success is often difficult and elusive. It should be noted just how unprecedented it is for an organization to be recognized four times in a row for excellence. 

Big Lake’s Independence Elementary (Indy STEM) has once again won the prestigious STEM School of Excellence Award given by the International Technology and Engineering Educators Association for the fourth time in a row.

Superintendent Tim Truebenbach recognizes that difficulty saying, “It’s hard enough just to get the award, but to be honest, it’s harder to maintain it and to keep that level of excellence which Jona (Principal Deavel) and her whole team have done ... I’m seriously proud of it. They continue to evolve as the years go by…They continue to do great things.”

Great Things

Those great things are not limited to classes about Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math; they are incorporated throughout every class and activity at Liberty. Deavel explained that kids at Liberty do not just learn facts, they learn how to engage with those facts, not just with themselves, but with others: their fellow students and their teachers. That allows them to be their own advocates for learning, meaning they cannot opt out of their education, they are held accountable for their learning, and, in her opinion, that is what makes STEM at Independence different from other schools that teach it. 

“We want classrooms where our students are learning skills that they’re going to use in whatever career they go into,” shared Deavel. “We teach our kids how to ask the right questions in order to get the education that they need.”

Parents and Teachers

The STEM program that was introduced seven years ago has now been fully implemented. The program not only helps students learn, but it also helps teachers teach. One of Deavel’s teachers explained that she had been hungry for the program. She now sees her students engaged and desiring to learn more. That is a view that many of her teachers have shared with her.  Deavel admitted that many of those teachers were hesitant at first about the program, but as they saw more student engagement, they saw fewer negative behaviors, and that has allowed them to enjoy teaching again. 

A parent whose fifth grader had just transferred into the district told her that their child never said anything about what they did at school before, and now they talk about it all the time, sharing their excitement about what they learned.  

Now that STEM has been fully implemented, Deavel has begun to dream big.  After five years of laying the foundation, she now looks for new things every year that will enrich students. Things that will “give them skills that they might not get at other elementary schools?”

Awards Night

No one will be present when the Excellence in STEM Education award is presented on March 26 at the ITTEA’s Annual Conference in Virginia Beach, VA, but that does not diminish the excitement of winning.

If anyone in the community is interested in learning more about STEM and how it is implemented throughout Big Lake Schools, Deavel recommends attending STEM Night, which she believes will be held on March 12 this year.