Sheldon, Iowa — The Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council has announced Sheldon High School as one of the 38 school districts receiving the STEM BEST (Businesses Engaging Students and Teachers) H.D. Program models for 2022. Sheldon High School has qualified for a grant in the amount of $40,000.
The STEM BEST H.D. Program is designed to prepare students for the workforce through curriculum focused on skills needed in job sectors such as computer science/information technology, healthcare professions and advanced manufacturing.
Sheldon High School will use these funds to support and further develop Sheldon’s CAPS program. Sheldon CAPS (Center for Advanced Professional Studies) is a class where student-associates learn through projects supplied by businesses and organizations in the community while being supported by an instructor in the classroom with leadership, communication, professional skills and career exploration.
Through the development of this class, Sheldon High School partnered with Sanford Health to offer a nursing internship as a specific CAPS strand. Students with a current CNA certification who are interested in the nursing internship apply and interview with Sanford Sheldon Medical Center. If accepted, students get 100 hours of paid clinical experience in different departments around Sanford, plus the opportunity to participate in Sanford’s career exploration activities. The students also continue with CAPS-specific training around building career skills, training with other student-associates from Siouxland CAPS schools and getting additional varied career experiences. As the model continues to grow, the Siouxland CAPS schools can potentially offer more strand-specific classes specifically in the areas of health care, manufacturing, and education.
Sheldon CAPS instructor Cindy Prewitt shares, “I am very excited about receiving this grant and how it can help support students moving into professional roles. CAPS has allowed us to fill a gap in our students’ experiences by providing them the opportunity to apply professional skills to work on real projects. Our student-associates practice handshakes, small talk, pitches, email communication, professional refection, networking, effective verbal communication, and teamwork while being supported by an instructor. The partnership with Sanford to offer the nursing internship has been such a positive addition to the program and Sanford has been amazing to work with to make this program beneficial to both the students and Sanford. In fact, we have received great support from all our community partners which has resulted in greater awareness in our students of the different careers possible in Sheldon.”
The STEM Council Executive Committee reviewed and approved 38 new or expanded partnerships supported by up to $40,000 each. Compared to the traditional STEM BEST Program, STEM BEST H.D. offers a higher grant amount and a lower cost-share requirement for applicants. The awards can be used for facility upgrades, equipment, time for program planning with partners, travel needs or integrating curriculum into existing courses.
To be considered for a STEM BEST H.D. Program award, applicants were required to submit a comprehensive proposal that incorporates rigorous and relevant STEM curriculum, valuable partnerships with community businesses or organizations, align with STEM goals, address sustainability of the model program and conduct an evaluation of the program’s effectiveness.
For more information on the STEM BEST H.D. Program, please visit www.iowastem.org/besthd.
