Saint Thomas More Catholic School breaks new ground as the first private school in the triangle to provide
Project Lead The Way(PLTW) in both middle school and elementary. On the heels of expanding to the dedicated 860 square foot STEM lab and being the only middle school to pilot the Lenovo/Scholastic Virtual Reality product last fall, Saint Thomas More Catholic School will introduce
PLTW “Gateway” middle school and
PLTW “Launch” elementary curriculum.
PLTW is the state of the art project based STEM program that introduces children into a design-thinking mindset. Mr. Fulford states "I am excited to be part of such a wonderful initiative, like Project Lead the Way. This program provides opportunities for students to explore Science, Technology, Engineering and Math in truly creative ways and provides a solid foundation for future careers in STEM."
STM's elementary program will expand to kindergarten through fifth grade students with project based lessons (PBL) in computer science, science, and biomedical science in a nationally recognized STEM curriculum.
STM will offer computer science, design and robotics curriculum to all middle school students which will provide a foundation for 90% of the emerging STEM careers. STM's gateway program will give a leg up to students interested furthering their education in the Engineering and Bioengineering programs at Orange, Durham, and Wake County high schools as well as Cardinal Gibbons Catholic High School.
PLTW is a non-profit organization that has partnered with corporate sponsors including 3M, Boeing, and General Motors, and more than 100 university partners from Auburn, to NC State, and RIT to provide leading edge STEM curriculum.
STM is providing this program through the generosity of parish partners, parent contributions, and STM's parent organization HSA.