A growing movement to add the arts to STEM education -- expanding the acronym to STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) -- is gaining a step up via The Ovation Foundation, Ovation TV's philanthropic arm. Its innOVATION STEAM Grant Awards Program last night (Nov. 3) recognized 10 public schools from across the country for their K-12 model STEAM programs, giving each a $10,000 grant.
The financial awards enable the schools to invest further in STEAM educational programming or curriculum development.
The innOVATION STEAM program, developed in partnership with the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) and Americans for the Arts (AFTA), and in consultation with the Congressional STEAM Caucus and the Rhode Island School of Design, was created in 2013 to raise awareness of the value of integrating the arts into STEM curricula, according to the Foundation's website.
"There is no better way to provide students with 21st century work skills and to regain America's competitive edge than to integrate the arts into education," Charles Segars, CEO of Ovation, said. "The Ovation Foundation is proud to partner with the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities and Americans for the Arts to honor these exemplary schools and congratulate them on advancing efforts to integrate the arts into STEM education."
The 10 schools honored in Washington, D.C., last night were:
- Boston Arts Academy, Boston
- Dayton Regional STEM School, Kettering, Ohio
- High Tech High Media Arts, San Diego
- Highland Park Middle School, Beaverton, Ore.
- Kennedy Elementary School, Janesville, Wisc.
- National Inventors Hall of Fame Center for STEM Learning, Akron, Ohio
- Quatama Elementary School, Hillsboro, Ore.; and
- Renaissance Arts Academy, Los Angeles
The Ovation Foundation advocates for the arts nationally and locally, and has provided more than $15 million in contributions and in kind support to arts institutions and arts education programs.
