Elizabethtown College School of Graduate and Professional Studies (SGPS) is preparing Pennsylvania PreK-12 teachers for the rapidly evolving world of STEM education through the revamped Integrative STEM Education Endorsement.
The online program equips educators with in-demand skills to take the next step in their professional development by preparing them to implement Pennsylvania’s new academic standards for Science, Technology & Engineering, Environmental Literacy & Sustainability (STEELS). Adopted by the Pennsylvania State Board of Education in January 2022, the STEELS standards emphasize students actively participating in three-dimensional science learning by engaging in science and engineering practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas while making sense of real-world phenomena.
“I’m excited to see Elizabethtown College leading in both post-secondary engineering education and the PreK-12 space to develop a pipeline of knowledgeable and talented individuals to fill our engineering and technology workforce needs while also solving our sustainability challenges,” Elizabethtown College Dean of the School of Engineering and Computer Science, Sara Atwood said.
Through support from ongoing, relevant initiatives within the College’s nationally-ranked Engineering program, Etown is uniquely aligned to implement the standards’ new emphasis on engineering in the PreK-12 classroom and the inclusion of environmental literacy and sustainability.
In 2022, the College was awarded a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to launch the Greenway Center for Sustainability and Equity in Engineering in partnership with the Greenway Institute, located in Vermont. The center explores innovative higher education approaches by re-designing and re-centering engineering education around sustainability and core equity practices that empower students from underrepresented groups.
Offered in partnership with Elizabethtown College’s Education Department, all 12 credits from the online Integrative STEM Education Endorsement can be stacked into Etown’s M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction. As a Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) Endorsement, educators can leverage the program to enhance their existing Level I or Level II teaching certificate (Act 48 credit available).
Graduate certificate classes are offered on a rolling basis with the next set of courses beginning on Oct. 21. Discover more about this program at Elizabethtown College School for Graduate and Professional Studies.