Elmore County staff and students celebrated International STEM Day and National STEM Kick-Off Day on November 8 with an exciting weather balloon launch at Hohenberg Field! Mr. Tracy Wright, Elmore County Schools STEM Specialist, coordinated this county-wide event in collaboration with local stakeholders, including the Montgomery Amateur Radio Club, Mr. Shane Butler, WAKA meteorologist and Elmore County High graduate, and Mr. Keith Burnett and staff from Elmore County Emergency Management Agency.
The weather balloon launch was live streamed to allow any school to observe and have a STEM lesson around the weather. Selected high school students from our system launched, calculated the flight path, collected data, and retrieved the balloon. The Wetumpka High School videography class documented the project as it occurred.
As part of the launch event, teams of teachers from elementary, middle, and high schools were present to observe the launch in order to develop interdisciplinary lessons (English, science, math, and social studies) around the project. These teams of teachers will use the balloon launch event to model how they built these lessons for other teachers. Our goal for this project was to highlight the importance of STEM and complete a real-world STEM project utilizing local resources.
The weather balloon launch is just one example of the many types of activities that are incorporated in STEM education. STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and math. STEM education takes an interdisciplinary approach that focuses on hands-on, problem-based learning. It helps students connect classroom learning to the real world and emphasizes collaboration, communication, research, problem solving, critical thinking, and creativity—skills students need to be successful, regardless of their future goals.
With Thanksgiving approaching, I have many reasons to be thankful for the Elmore County School System. First, I am thankful for the parents who entrust us to teach and care for their children daily and communicate their high expectations and the value of education to their children. I am thankful for students who work hard in the classroom and participate in extracurricular activities that help them grow personally and equip them with skills to be better students and future workers. I am thankful for the community spirit that is evident in all our attendance areas. The support of local businesses, churches, and other organizations is a tremendous benefit to our schools.
Finally, I am thankful for our employees who contribute in many ways to ensuring that we educate our children to the best of our ability and help us fulfill our purpose: Every Student Empowered—Every Student Succeeds.
Richard Dennis is the Superintendent of Education for Elmore County Schools. He is a 1983 graduate of Holtville High School. He served 21 years as a high school principal at Holtville High, Wetumpka High and most recently, Prattville High. He and wife, Leslie (also an educator) have three sons and a daughter.
