New STEM Program Attracting Community Interest

New STEM Program Attracting Community Interest 

State of Ohio House Representative, Mark Romanchuk, visited MCS on Friday to learn more about the STEM program first-hand. 

Representative Romanchuk toured the school and stopped in the STEM classrooms to observe the learning activities and meet instructor Brian Miller.  At the time of visit, Mr. Miller’s seventh-grade boys’ class was beginning a new unit on web development using HTML5 programming.   The boys were excited to demonstrate their work and Mr. Romanchuk was impressed with how quickly the students were picking up STEM concepts used in today’s high-tech jobs.

Rep. Romanchuk also spent time with Dr. Smith to learn why MCS started the STEM program and how it may benefit our communities in time.  Dr. Smith emphasized that in addition to improving our teaching approaches in both science and math, the STEM program is designed to better prepare students for college and the new job market, while connecting local employers to our students for future employment. 

 “I meet with local executives every year in STEM companies who say that they are desperate for high-quality employees – specifically those with great soft skills such as communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking, and those trained to use the latest technology to solve problems,”  noted Dr. Smith.  As the owner of metal manufacturer, PR Machine Works here in Mansfield, Rep. Romanchuk would agree that this area has a real need to attract our excellent students back to local companies after graduation and training. 

 As the new STEM program begins to attract community interest, MCS has already organized several tours for local business owners this fall.  We are inviting a number of companies to campus in October and November to not only see how we are improving education and benefiting employers, but also for them to learn how they can support MCS.  Dr. Smith stated that a few of our essential needs are a 3D Printer, Chromebooks for every student, and materials for the renovation of the Chemistry Lab.