Program Highlight Book

Panther STEAM Academy

Staff:
Courtnie Roberts Site Coordinator & Instructor
Lexi Banic Co-Coordinator & Instructor
Jacob McMaster Instructor
Kaiden Roberts Student Worker
Lydia Hittle Student Worker

The Panther STEAM Academy fosters

ingenuity and creativity. Through the
afterschool program, students are able
to obtain new ideas and discoveries.
Students benefit by meeting new
students and making new friends. The
Panther STEAM Academy encourages
teamwork and creativity. During the
afterschool program, students are .
involved in a positive classroom
community where teachers encourage a
growth mindset.

Quotes from Students

• “I enjoy the Panther STEAM Academy because I am able to make new
friends and I get to get to know them better.” Joseph B. 4th grade
• “Getting to design things with Legos with my friends is fun.”
Kanyon R. 5th grade
• “I enjoyed getting to know my two teachers.” Danika T. 4th grade
Through the Australia project, students hand sewed
pouches for the injured wildlife during Australia’s
wildfires. Students were able to research pouch
templates online that would be appropriate to fit koalas
and joeys. This innovative, hands-on, and team-based
project led students in believing that they can make a big
difference in the world. Our project story was featured
on the front page of the Record Argus Newspaper as well
as a featured story in the Sharon Herald Newspaper.

Delivery!
A post-COVID pandemic highlight that
responded to the needs of our students was a
home delivery of craft supplies and snacks. Site
Coordinator, Courtnie Roberts and her sister and
student worker, Kaiden Roberts, collected
snacks and made individual bags for students and
their families. With the snack bags, students
also received a variety of craft materials. The
snacks and craft materials were delivered
through a no-contact delivery to each students’
doorstep. The instructors enjoyed seeing the
excitement on each students’ face through the
window of their homes.
 Reynolds STAR Academy

Staff:
Staff: Jane Coburn, Dawn Baselj, John Tofani

At the Reynold STAR Academy

students are encouraged to
participate in hands-on activities.
Students solve challenges and
attempt it several times and
achieve good results.

Students were introduced to the Owl Light

up activity in which students used hot glue
guns to attach felt. Students had to read
several pages of diagrams to get the owl to
light up. Students were excited with the end
result!
 Off-Site Learning
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the
Reynolds STAR Academy, instructors
used Google Classroom to interact with
students. Instructors also posted daily
activities for students to complete at
home with family members. Supplies
were delivered to students to complete
these activities. Students were also
connected to the STEM2STUDENTS
Facebook page for additional activities
and videos such as Story Time
Saturdays. Instructor, Dawn Baselj
(left) reads the story “A True Story of
Three Little Pigs” and was a featured
video on the STEM2STUDENTS
Facebook page.
 Trojan STEAM Academy

Staff:
Tricia Gregory, Caitlyn Bleggin, Kristin Thurber,
Molly Zgonc, Seth Higbee – student worker

The Trojan STEAM Academy,

after school program gives
students a sense of belonging,
that they’re part of something
better. Students are able to
connect with one another while
also learning valuable 21st
century skills.
Thiel College Education Majors
Visit Trojan Academy
Greenville STEAM Academy and
their partnership with the Thiel
College Education Department, under
the leadership of Professor Kara
Schreckenghost, proved to be a
success several times throughout the
school year. Education majors
prepared and facilitated lessons
involving science, math, art, and
technology, with topics ranging from
our solar system, Mardi Gras, to logo
design (sticker design).
30 bags of supplies were delivered to
students’ doors, along with notes, as a
way to help them feel excitement,
connection, and normalcy. Some students
used their newly attained sewing skills to
make face masks and cards for nurses,
doctors, and local residents.
NASA Parent Night

The NASA Night was a success with over

15 parents attending, along with the
Meet the NASA Scientist Night, with
over 30 parents, students, and teachers
attending and meeting an actual NASA
scientist! Parents were able to get a
guided tour of projects, ranging from
galaxies in a jar, constellation creations,
Planet Projects, and Safe Travel
prototypes.
Quotes from students & Teachers
• “The Trojan Academy has meant a lot to me. Everyone has gotten to know
each other better, and it is a great opportunity to share and learn new
things. Every day I look forward to the meeting, and the games we play at
the end are all so fun.” -Hannah
• “I think kids have a sense of belonging, family, and accomplishment.”
“There’s a bigger emotional and social component to the program.” -Mrs.
Thurber
• “STEAM after school program gives kids a sense of belonging, that they’re
part of something better.”- Mrs. Gregory
 Trojan STEAM Academy

Staff:
Diane Martin, Kari Iliff, Amanda Ealy,
Alaina Gregory-student worker

The Trojan STEAM Academy at

Greenville Junior-Senior High
School offers a fun and
challenging enrichment program
after school where students have
a sense of belonging among their
peers. Trojan Academy is a safe
haven for many of our students, a
place where they could be
themselves, in a positive learning
environment. Duct Tape

fashion
During the fashion technology
unit, we made several fashion
pieces out of duct tape.
Students were very creative
and hands-on with their
innovative fashion pieces. Many
wore/used their pieces to
school!
Two is Better Than One
Students enjoyed learning
how to use the Little Bits and
they love building with
LEGOs. Students found a
project to combine the two
interests and created a
masterpiece using LEGO and
Little Bits.

Quotes from parents & Teachers

• One parent said “He just loves Trojan Academy. He wishes he

could do it again next year.” (Student will be a freshman)
• Another parent said, “He LOVES Trojan Academy!”
• Another parent said “She really enjoys Trojan Academy. It allows
her to be creative outside of school.”
• One teacher said, “Your students do really creative and innovative
projects!”
• A teacher said “My daughter loves Trojan Academy! Thank you for
all that you do!”
• Another teacher said, “You guys do such cool stuff in Trojan
Academy!”
 Mercer STEAM Academy

Staff:
Laura James, Tracy Sevin

At the Mercer STEAM Academy, students are

highly motivated to succeed in high school. The
afterschool enrichment program is relaxed and
team-based learning where instructors teach
STEAM skills and give a deeper understanding
of applied scientific and mathematical
principles.

Every day at the Mercer STEAM

Academy it begins with a snack,
followed by a time of sharing.
Students sit in a circle and bring
up any concern or achievement
they want to talk about. The
students are remarkably candid at
times. They bond with each other
during this time and are reminded
that there are no trouble-free
days. STEAM instructors have
created a safe spot for students
to decompress.
 Future Computer Programmers
Students learned about computer
programming by designing a computer game
by using a miniature circuit board and
hooking it to a computer after learning how
to code with the program “Scratch.”
Projects included making their circuit board
act as a remote for their games, while first
learning about energy conductors and
nonconductors (insulators.) One student
created a game that shows a bear chasing a
fish around various background locations.
Anytime the bear touches the fish, the
player scores a point. Another student
created a trivia game.

Community
Outreach
In the community, the Mercer
STEAM Academy hosted a “thank
you” event for local first
responders. Student also helped
with a fund-raiser for Otter Creek
Farm Sanctuary to help them with
their goal of supporting local
animal rescues. Students made
treat bags for the sanctuary to
use as part of their fundraising.
Mercer STEAM loves animals and
the community!
 Sharpsville STEAM Academy

Staff:
Lisa Oliver-Lapikas, Amanda Getway, Maureen Wilson, Jayne Kornbau, Patty
Mendillo, Jessica Ramsey, Debbie Bucciarelli, Hannah VanDyke (student helper)

The Sharpsville STEAM Academy

inspires students to work together
to learn. Students made new friends
and learned together in a family
environment at the STEAM
Program. Students also had the
opportunity to interact with
students from other Mercer County
schools at NASA Night and at the
Mardi Gras Celebration. All of the
programs helped students learn
about sewing, cooking, technology,
engineering, math, and art.
NASA Project
The NASA Project we did was a success
because students learned about spacecraft
safety as well as keeping data for various
experiments such as the egg drop experiment.
Students also learned about the solar system
and did activities involving many celestial
themes such as planets, constellations, comets,
and moon phases just to name
some. Throughout the NASA Project,
students learned the value of teamwork as
they created projects to be included in a
group video.
Since students were staying
home with parents or other
relatives during the COVID
pandemic, this was the perfect
time to focus on learning about
their heritage. Stuck in
quarantine, students at
Sharpsville Area Middle School
STEAM program saw the silver
lining to the situation and took
the time to talk to their older
relatives, research their
heritage, make family trees, and
cook up some classic, ethnic
recipes!
Quotes
• Patty M., parent of a student in sixth grade, said, “My daughter enjoyed the
fashion piece. She was very excited for the cooking lessons. She learned to
step outside of her comfort zone and learned new things through the NASA
project which is something that she would just not know or choose to learn
on her own.”
• “I feel like the kids really enjoyed and benefited from the Ozobot lessons
we did! It gave them experience with coding but still gave them the freedom
to be creative and put their own spin on the projects. A few kids downloaded
the app on their phone and learned how to direct the ozobot using the
touchscreen on their phones. Another group of kids even programmed one
ozobot to play the song baby shark, with some help from Miss Hannah. But I
think my favorite part was seeing our kids break down into groups and create
their own Mardi Gras parade! It was so hard to choose which one of their
projects to take with us to the showcase because each group did an
outstanding job! The creativity and originality was amazing!” -Amanda
Getway, instructor
Keystone STEAM Academy

Staff:
Rick Blackburn,
West MiddleSex STEAM Academy

Staff:
Luanne Shernisky, Rhonda Williamson, David Poore,
Erica Mauro

At the West Middlesex Big Reds STEAM

Academy, students were introduced to
topics that they have not been exposed to
in detail in school. Students enjoyed
creating, whether it was building, drawing,
painting, sewing, etc. They loved being able
to express themselves through making.

Students were excited about the

teleconference with a NASA
scientist. The students were
attentive and engaged while learning
more about NASA. The opportunity
to meet with a NASA scientist made
students feel important and valued.
Mr. Poore guided students in building
bottle rockets. It was a companion
lesson to the NASA project. They
learned about the design process &
what aspects made their rocket go
farther. Students spent a couple
weeks building, testing, redesigning &
testing over again to achieve the
highest-flying rocket. Instructors
did not emphasize competition
between students; rather the
emphasis was on competing with
oneself in trying to build a better
rocket. They enjoyed cheering each
other on. It also got them outdoors
and a little bit wet, which they liked
during the warm fall temps!
Hermitage STEAM Academy
Staff:
June Ealy, Kristin Kollar, Jessica Gill, Krista Simcoe,
Lexi Callander

By providing a program outside of

athletics, Hermitage STEAM Academy
offered enrichment opportunities in
Science, Technology, Engineering, Art
and Math to students with interests
and skills outside of sports. Hermitage
STEAM Academy after school
participation platform to students who
would not have otherwise had an
opportunity to join a group or discover
and grow skills and talents that they
possess before reaching high school.

Technology
Students were able to explore Little
Bits Kits. - Students were divided
into small groups and given 5 minutes
to explore the contents of the kit
before discussing findings as a whole
group. Students were then given
time to use the kits in open
exploration to use the pieces to
create and construct freely.
 In November students hosted a NASA themed family
night. A slide show was presented featuring pictures of
our students and some quotes of their thoughts about
STEAM Academy. Stations were also set up for
students to walk their families through so they could
learn more about our program. Families were able to
see the NASA Challenge experiment that their
students were working on and the video that they were
making to explain their experiment results. Families
also got to experience a Knex challenge and a Lego
challenge, as well as seeing a few art projects that the
students had been working on before contributing to
our own version of “Reach for the Stars” art mural.

Mardi Gras!
Students joined with other
STEAM Academies to
participate in a Mardi Gras
themed extravaganza.
Students made slime and
showcased their projects in
which they won an award for
their creativity.
 Hickory STEAM Academy
Staff:
Jeannette Anderson & Jacob Morgan

The Hickory STEAM Academy values

Manufacturing!
Students visited a local manufacturing
company where they videoed and
interviewed employees about their careers.
They had the opportunity to see the
operation of robotic arms used in
manufacturing. They then learned about
video editing. They edited the video clips
they recorded, created audio overlays and
added special effects and text to their
project. They then entered the video into a
competition.
 Computer
Component and
Repair Project

Students took apart a

laptop and learned about all
of the components then put
it back together. The
picture to the right shows
the computer working again
after it was put back
together.