AdvancED congratulates Glenwood Elementary, Linden Elementary and Woodland Elementary on receiving AdvancED STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Certification. This achievement is a mark of STEM distinction and excellence only offered to highly effective institutions that prioritize STEM education as a path to success.

AdvancED STEM Certification is the first internationally recognized mark of quality for STEM schools and programs, signaling the growing emphasis placed on STEM education by educators, politicians and business leaders around the world. In earning this certification, Glenwood, Linden, and Woodland have demonstrated their commitment to preparing its students for their educational and career opportunities of the future by ensuring its students will have the skills and knowledge they need to be successful in their postsecondary pursuits and as workforce contributors in the 21st-century economy.

In order to earn STEM Certification, each school had to demonstrate adherence to the AdvancED STEM Standard as reflected by the schoolā€™s performance across 11 rigorous STEM Indicators. The certification process provides a rigorous evaluation and continuous improvement process, supported by research-based tools and resources. Achieving high scores across the indicators certify that students have been equipped and trained to be innovative, creative and systematic problem-solvers across disciplines.

ā€œWe are proud to be an AdvancED STEM Certified School. This certification exhibits Glenwoodā€™s, Lindenā€™s and Woodlandā€™s commitment to addressing workforce needs by preparing our students with the relevant skills and experiences to succeed while demonstrating to the private-sector that we are committed to driving higher levels of student achievement for their STEM pipeline,ā€ said Dr. Larrissa Henderson, Director of Pupil Services. ā€œSTEM certification will continue to uphold our schools to high standards while providing a clear roadmap for us to continuously improve our STEM disciplines and program.ā€

AdvancEDā€™s STEM Certification Reviewers examined each schoolā€™s evidence of quality STEM education that the school provided to the review team beforehand, and conducted classroom observations focused on identifying student engagement and collaboration in the learning process using the Effective Learning Environment Observation Toolā„¢ (eleotā„¢). Reviewers also interviewed key stakeholders such as school administrators, STEM faculty and staff, parents, students, and external partners in order to verify the schoolā€™s commitment to connecting studentsā€™ STEM experiences in the classroom to the local community and the world at large.
For more background on AdvancEDā€™s products and services that support institutions in their continuous improvement efforts visit www.advanc-ed.org.

About AdvancED

AdvancED is a non-profit, non-partisan organization serving the largest community of education professionals in the world. Founded on more than 100 years of work in continuous improvement, AdvancED combines the knowledge and expertise of a research institute, the skills of a management consulting firm and the passion of a grassroots movement for educational change to empower PreK-12 schools and school systems to ensure that all learners realize their full potential.

AdvancED operates three regional accrediting agencies and serves as a trusted partner to 32,000 schools and school systemsā€”employing more than four million educators and enrolling more than 20 million studentsā€”across the United States and 70 countries.