GUEST COLUMN
As educators, our job is to plant seeds. That might sound odd coming from a former social studies teacher. But in the 28 years since I joined the Ridley School District, we have been planting seeds all along. Not the kind you would find on a farm or even in a biology class. No, we have been planting seeds of inspiration in our students. Seeds that we hope will drive them to achieve their fullest potential.
Increasingly, that means exciting our students about science and technology – preparing them to understand the wonders of the technological world around them and to compete for the jobs of the future such as computer programmers and aerospace engineers, biomedical researchers or robotics technicians.
Jobs that require STEM – science, technology, engineering and math – skills. Not only are STEM job opportunities projected to grow significantly faster than other career fields, but these jobs also command higher wages than non-STEM careers. In fact, they pay 29 percent more than other professions according to U.S. Department of Labor data. And that gap is expected to grow in the coming years.
These challenges are the reason why we have worked so hard to increase STEM education programs for all students in the Ridley School District. But like every first grader in our district knows, it takes something more for seeds to root and grow.
We have been working on our STEM education programs for more than 20 years. And thanks in part to our partnership with Boeing, our seeds have found the extra nourishment to flourish. The company is more than just our neighbor, which employs 4,400 people here. It is a key part of our community, and a supporter of our school district.
Over the years, Boeing has helped us expand and improve professional development opportunities for our teachers and provide critical equipment for science classrooms.
The employees have assisted us in developing our “Collaboratory” Maker-spaces, where elementary school students participate in creative learning experiences by designing, exploring, and problem solving. As a technology expert and a major employer, Boeing has helped us shape these resources to make sure Ridley STEM students get an early start to be ready for the workplaces of tomorrow.
The company funded our Innovation Center at Ridley Middle School, which now is allowing more students than ever to explore STEM fields and participate in STEM projects. Since the Innovation Center opened its doors in 2015, we have seen a noticeable uptick in interest from students who are traditionally underrepresented in these fields, including girls and students of color. The demand has been so great, Ridley High School has had to expand its curriculum with more advanced math and science courses.
Our “all hands on deck” approach to promoting STEM extends outside of the classroom too. After seeing how successful our Ridley Middle School FIRST LEGO League team afterschool program has been, we are expanding these opportunities to our elementary schools as well.
FIRST is a path-breaking STEM challenge organization founded by inventor Dean Kamen to help inspire young people and prepare them to become the next generation of innovators.
The organization is best known for its FIRST Robotics competition, where each year teams of high school students from around the world build robots and compete against each other. Ridley Middle School students participate in FIRST LEGO League, a similar competition for 4th through 8th graders using LEGO Mindstorms to build their robots. These students not only learn about robotics and engineering, but also develop critical life skills like teamwork, problem solving, and conflict resolution.
And they learn directly from real world experts, thanks to the fact that Boeing encourages its employees to volunteer in their communities including serving as FIRST mentors to students from Ridley. By day, Pat Ridgley works on drive systems for Chinook helicopters and other platforms at Boeing’s Ridley Township site.
During the school year, Pat comes over to connect with students after school. He coordinates with middle school teacher Mike Cerbus to help students solve problems they encounter when building their robots, encourages them to think creatively, and even gives them career advice. Similarly, Boeing V-22 Avionics Engineer Jeff Yenchik mentors several of our younger FIRST teams in Ridley Schools.
Additionally, Boeing volunteers help students gain a wide range of other critical Future Ready skills needed in the workforce. Volunteers like Maryann Skehan, a Flight Control Engineer, have been helping to provide unique learning opportunities through the School to Work Program for more than 20 years. Ridley High School students take classes at Boeing that incorporate STEM experiences into designing a factory and a product. These are seeds taking root, nurtured by our partnership.
They are just three of the many Boeing employees who volunteer with our school district and some of the more than 400 Boeing employees around the country who mentor FIRST teams. While Ridley School District students are the winners in this partnership, the company benefits too. They know the next generation of airplane engineers and rocket scientists are sitting in our classrooms today. In their Philadelphia site, Ridley alumni are solving the engineering challenges of today, and Boeing knows our current students are the future aerospace innovators of tomorrow.
Seeds of inspiration were planted and fostered for students by Ridley School District’s STEM programs. The nurturing of seeds is made possible thanks to our partnership with Boeing and its employees. not alone. It’s time to dispel antiquated notions of shame that surround mental illness. We hope you will consider supporting our efforts.
Mental Health Matters. Leave your comments online Use hashtag at