The development of our STEM programming has been the outcome of our district-wide tiered approach.  This has been done with the incorporation of computer science programming starting in the elementary and moving to the middle school and now, Eastern High School.  In this process, we have utilized the feedback provided by our students and community stakeholders to inform exactly what type of programming is desired, and which courses students wish to have more access to.  This has also informed certain decisions that connect directly to our sustainability plan, ensuring that these opportunities continue to be available to the students at Eastern High School throughout the course of the next 5 years.  

It was the goal from the start, to not simply single out courses for a defined STEM program as we worked to embed STEM and project based learning opportunities in all classes offered at Eastern High School.  Part of this decision was informed by our Leadership Team and our Advisory Team as they felt it necessary to better address the need of our community through a comprehensive effort.  This also tied in the desire to embed employability skills into courses, and also the desire to address these skills in a targeted fashion through the incorporation of our Leader in Me Program.  

Adjusting instructional approaches is not easy feat, and possibly the biggest hurdle changing the makeup of our overall program.  To accomplish this, we have worked for the past 3-4 years to provide as many STEM and project based learning professional development opportunities for our staff.  The outcome of this has led to our staff incorporating with intention STEM and PBL into their instruction on a regular basis.  We have connected this work to our regional partners and looked for ways they could actively support our staff and students in order to connect our programming with the highlighted needs of our region.  

All of the students at Eastern High School who have the opportunity to attend Prosser leave with at least one form of industry certification.  We truly are a lucky school to have as many community engagement opportunities as we recognize how student impact can be changed when students are able to be connect with career professionals.  The level of engagement has been profound at the high school level as our students have been able to interact with so many STEM and Career professionals.  This has also led to students being able to explore the various STEM careers that are available to them.