KNIGHTS
STEM Academy

Knights STEM Academy

The Knights STEM Academy is an innovative and student-centered learning experience that offers our students a partnership between curriculum standards and real-life, hands on projects that will help prepare them for college or career.

The Knights STEM Academy’s project-based learning approach provides real-world experiences built on the crucial link between academic achievement and future success. Content and projects focus on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

Facts about the Knights STEM Academy at Kenowa Hills

1. The STEM building has over 3,400 square feet of work space that has been transformed into a learning environment to support the teaching and learning of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
2. Students travel on KHPS buses each way. The center is 1.5 miles from Kenowa Hills High School and Kenowa Hills Middle School. Middle School students travel 5^th and 6^th hours and return to the middle school in time to ride their buses home. High School students attend 2^nd and 3^rd hours.
3. Classes are taught in two hour blocks with core curriculum teachers and STEM teachers.
4. The Knights STEM Academy is under the same roof as an advanced manufacturing company, so our students see production that includes the most recent advances in technology and environmentally sustainable resources.
5. The Knights STEM Academy is a point of pride for our community as well as an exemplar model for STEM education across both the state of Michigan and nation.

The Knights STEM academy is designed for real-world problems and deep thinking. STEM curriculum focuses on projects that help build mastery of core content standards through hands on learning experiences.

As an example, the partnership between construction projects and geometry helps students to learn, master and retain important geometry standards, while being engaged in a real-life experience. In the same way, the content of earth science and physics can be learned in an engaging way by using projects dealing with renewable energies and unmanned aerial vehicle technologies.

Preparing Students for Ongoing Success

As we continue to innovate our educational process, KHPS works closely with officials in the higher education setting, industry professionals, and employers in order to better prepare students for life after graduation. Consistently we hear that colleges, universities, and employers want students who possess the “soft skills” needed for success. These include leadership, teamwork, problem solving skills, creativity, technical skills, flexibility/adaptability, and organizational and project management ability. The Knights STEM Academy is also focused on developing these important skills and more.