OCTOBER 2024 - When Des Moines Christian School (DMCS) decided to launch a new STEAM class for K-5 students in 2021, the school principal asked teacher Liz Sisler if she’d be interested in leading it. While Sisler often substituted at DMCS, she was new to the world of STEAM.

While searching for an online program, Sisler came across the NISE and the Micro Certificate program that led to a STEM Essentials Certificate. From 2022 to 2024, Sisler completed two Micro Certificates — and she experienced several “a-ha” moments along the way.

“Earning the STEM Essentials Certificate has been a very positive experience for me,” she said. “I definitely see the value of continuing to learn and grow. The more I understand, the better teacher I can be.”

MAY 2023 – Waxahachie ISD leaders decided to pursue STEM certification through NISE as a district after researching STEM certification programs for teachers at Wilemon STEAM Academy and other interested schools. The results included student growth on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR), reduced teacher turnover, and increased job satisfaction...

APRIL 2021 – What does it mean to be a STEM high school? That depends on your staff and students, according to Phil Johnston, the STEM coordinator for Central High School (CHS).

"STEM education isn"t something that will look the same in every school," he said. "It"s about your culture, the people you have in place, and your learners. That"s the beauty of STEM. It"s fully adaptable to meet the needs of the students who are on your campus right now."

CHS became the first high school in Colorado to earn the National Certificate for STEM Excellence (NCSE)–Campus Certificate in 2018. Located in Grand Junction, the largest city between Denver and Salt Lake on the I-70 corridor, CHS enrolls 1,598 students and more than half of students qualify for free and reduced lunch...

APRIL 2020 – Northside Elementary sharpens focus on student needs, increases collaboration and camaraderie, and enhances connections with families through the help of STEM education.

"Northside Elementary teachers see the value STEM provides for their classrooms, and they are great champions of it," said Beller. "The school has the highest free and reduced lunch percentage in our district, and the highest number of children coming in with Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). Northside being a STEM-certified school dispels the myth that STEM is only for certain schools or for students who are ready for STEM, because if they can, anyone can..."

DEC 2019 – Holy Ghost Catholic School is a small school in southeast Albuquerque that draws students from all over the city, surrounding counties, and nearby Native American reservations. In 2009, it became the first Catholic school in New Mexico to be recognized as a US Department of Education Blue Ribbon School of Excellence.

In 2019, Holy Ghost made history again when it became the first school in New Mexico—and one of the first Catholic schools in the nation—to earn the National Certificate for STEM Excellence (NCSE) from the National Institute for STEM Education (NISE)...

OCT 2019 – CCS’s mission is to develop globally competitive college and career graduates. Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) integration is a key part of this mission.

Located 50 miles west of Atlanta, CCS is a rural district that enrolls 15,720 students. More than 60 percent of students are economically disadvantaged, yet the district consistently ranks in the top 20 percent of school systems in Georgia. CCS leaders attribute much of this success to an emphasis on literacy, math, and STEM education...

SEPT 2019 – Studies have identified the elementary years as the period when students form their interests in STEM identities and careers (source: Successful STEM Education, an initiative of the National Science Foundation). Furthermore, the elementary years are a time when fundamental habits of mind form. Attributes of a STEM mindset—such as productive failure and critical thinking skills—influence the lens through which students continue to view learning and the world...