Independence Elementary’s Principal Jona Deavel’s face lit up when she described how it felt to be recognized as a STEM School of Excellence by the International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA).
“I’m super proud and super excited!” she exclaimed.
Indy STEM was one of 30 schools from the U.S., Paraguay, and China who have been honored by the ITEEA and the only school in Minnesota to have won. With the award, ITEEA recognizes schools that have demonstrated a commitment to providing a robust integrative STEM education program. This year marks the third time the school has won the award. Indy STEM received the award in 2023-2024 and 2022-2023 as well. Also, in 2022, the school was given the STEM Innovation Award, presented by the Science Museum of MN and the MN Elementary School Principals’ Association.
Why Indy STEM Stands Out
Deavel believes Independence Elementary stands out because STEM learning is integrated into everything that students do rather than the school simply offering extra course work. Students learn the 4C’s of collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creativity and practice those skills in every class. Beginning in the third grade, students take classes in Engineering, Lead the Way Launch, and Innovative Arts. Those classes teach students to build robots and program and code them to perform simple tasks.
“As educators, we are given the task to prepare students for careers that haven’t been invented yet,” Deavel explained. “We don’t necessarily know the hard skills they’re going to need, but we know that likely they are going to need these to be successful in whatever career that is.”
A brief history
The award reinforces the idea that Indy STEM has been creating curriculum that works since 2019, the year the School Board decided to transition Independence Elementary into a focused STEM school. Since that time, Deavel and her team have worked to create and implement curriculum and focus. New teachers receive three years of training and according to their website, “All staff are supported by our three on-staff STEM Integrationists who partner with our classroom teachers and help them effectively integrate STEM into their classrooms. Our STEM Integrationists help brainstorm and implement various STEM activities in order to give our students the best experience possible.”
The hope from the beginning was that the STEM education would begin at Independence and then expand to the other schools. This year is the first year that Liberty Elementary will have two staff members dedicated to STEM. The High School has apprenticeship programs to put STEM skills into use.
Community Involvement
Deavel emphasized the importance of community involvement in STEM training. 17 area businesses are community partners. Every classroom teacher partners with someone in the community. Those businesses are then highlighted to demonstrate how STEM skills are used in the workplace allowing students to see real life examples.
Awards Ceremony
If one goes to Independence’s website, https://indy.biglakeschools.org, at the bottom of the page is the mission statement which reads, “Our mission is to challenge, educate, and inspire all students to reach their highest level of achievement in academics, athletics, and the arts.”
Given how much recognition they have received over the years, one could be confident that they are doing just that.
The school will officially receive the award at the 2025 ITEEA Conference in St. Louis, MO on Sat., April 5. Deavel hopes one of the three STEM integrationists will be able to attend to receive the award.
