Updates

November 18, 2022 - STEM School Info 11/18

Parents/Guardians,

Happy upcoming Thanksgiving! Please note that the next Friday email will be sent on December 2. Here are some items for you as we head into Thanksgiving week.

School Choice Application (Important for Siblings)

The applications for the Hamilton County School Choice period have been opened. The School Choice application period is from November 14 through January 31. For information on applying for School Choice seats and completing the application, please click here. Students who currently attend the STEM School do not have to re-apply through the School Choice application for next year.

IMPORTANT NOTE REGARDING SIBLINGS: If you have a child that does NOT currently attend STEM and you would like for them to do so next year, you will need to complete the School Choice application AND HCS Sibling Form. The HCS Sibling Form must be returned to our front office by DECEMBER 9. So, if you have a child that is in Grade 8 and you would like for them to attend next year, fill the HCS Sibling Form out as soon as possible and return it to our front office. In addition, make sure to complete the School Choice application by January 31. These are mandatory steps in order for a student to be given sibling preference to enroll at the STEM School in 2023-24.

Thanksgiving Week

STEM students (all grades 9-12) should attend all STEM School classes on Monday, Nov 21 and Tuesday, Nov 22. The STEM School will be closed on Wednesday, Nov 23 through Friday, Nov 25 for the Thanksgiving holiday break. Chattanooga State will be closed the entire week (no college classes) from Monday, Nov 21 through Friday, Nov 25.

Food Drive Competition by House Committee

In the spirit of giving for Thanksgiving the Heads of House have created a fun-filled, competition style food drive. All donations go to the Chattanooga area food bank. At the entry to the STEM School there are four barrels labeled by House (Staupers, Tesla, Einstein, Mirzakhani). Whichever House donates the most goods earn HOUSE POINTS. Below is the list of items that are accepted for donation. Competition is happening through Tuesday, Nov 22!

Urgent Needs: canned soups, ready-to-eat meals, grains, rice, pasta, oatmeal, flour, cereal, family-sized microwave dinners.

Other Needs: peanut butter, canned fruits and vegetables, canned meats- fish and chicken.

STEM Seniors - Yearbook Information and Final Senior Picture Day at STEM

Prestige will be at STEM on Thursday, Dec 8 from 9am-1pm for a final portrait opportunity - the sitting fee is $30. Seniors that still need to have their Senior Portraits taken should see Ms. Pearson to schedule an appointment for their Prestige Senior Portrait sitting in advance.

If your senior portraits were taken by Prestige (Lifetouch), we will receive the photo files from them automatically - no need to send them in! Seniors just need to go onto the Prestige online portal to choose their favorite pose for the yearbook. Senior Photo Information Link

If your senior portraits were taken by a photographer OTHER THAN PRESTIGE, please submit a digital version of your favorite Senior portrait to this SENIOR GOOGLE FORM or they can be emailed to bolus_lisa@hcde.org.

Seniors can also submit their Baby Pictures, Senior Quotes, and favorite STEM memories to the SENIOR GOOGLE FORM. Print baby pictures can also be dropped in the envelope outside Mrs. Bolus's classroom. ALL Senior pictures, baby pictures, and quotes are due by Friday, Jan 13 to Mrs. Bolus for the yearbook.

Upcoming Dates

Nov 23-25: Thanksgiving Break (No STEM School Classes)

Dec 9: Culminating Grade 9 PBL Event

Dec 9, 12: Benchmark Testing

Dec 12-15: Grade 10 CDM Lessons with Elementary Schools

Dec 12-16: ER Week

Dec 12: STEM IV Inventanooga Presentations

Dec 13: Inventanooga Finalist Competition at UTC

Dec 16: Last Day of Fall Semester

Dec 17-Jan 3: Winter Break (No STEM School Classes)

Jan 4: First Day of Spring Semester

Thank you for your support!

Dr. Tony Donen

Principal

November 11, 2022 - STEM School Info 11/11

Parents/Guardians,

Happy Veterans’ Day! Here are some items of note for you upcoming.

Quarter 2 PBLs

As we hit the halfway mark of quarter two, here are grade level PBLs (project-based learning units) that are taking place across the school.

Grade 9 students are working collaboratively to design, build, and code VEX robots in order to introduce and expand students’ knowledge of the essential concepts of robotics. For students with previous robotics experience, these students are working in teams building and coding VEX EDR robots. For students with no robotics experience, these students are working in teams building and coding VEX IQ robots. Teams in both groups will ultimately participate in a cumulative robotics competition in EDR or IQ, respectively, on Friday, Dec 9. Students are also creating a Robotics Video to act as an additional resource to consumers, including robot performance and troubleshooting tips.

Grade 10 students have been meeting with personnel from the Creative Discovery Museum (CDM) to develop ideas for elementary STEM lesson plans. Groups are choosing elementary math or science standard(s) and creating a lesson plan that details a STEM lesson for the standard(s) used. CDM personnel are assessing the lessons for quality. Student teams meeting the standard set by CDM will have the opportunity to implement the lessons with grade 4 or 5 students at the end of the fall semester.

Grade 11 students are working on varied STEM projects with business and community partners throughout Chattanooga. Each grade 11 team chooses one project from the following for the quarter. The projects this quarter include:

--Creative Discovery Museum: Coding Machine for Kids – Students are creating a Coding Machine for Kids for family night programs conducted by the Creative Discovery Museum.

--EPB: Holiday Window Build – Students are working with EPB to build the EPB Holiday Windows and use STEM School designs.

--Fillauer: Heat Sensor – Students are designing and fabricating a prototype design for a prosthetic demo socket that uses electronics and mechanical actuators to open and close the prosthetic.

--Lincoln-Electric: Weld Shop Design – Students are redesigning the Lincoln-Electric existing weld shop to make it safer to navigate, weld, and store materials. STEM students are using 2D and 3D design software to create an efficient workspace.

--Reflection Riding Arboretum: Informational Signage – Students are creating informational signage for the plant nursery at the Arboretum.

--Siskin Kids: Adaptable Toys – Students are creating adaptable toys for children with special needs.

--STEM School: Math Hallway Makeover – Students are designing and building out an inspiring STEM Math Hallway to motivate and excite students about the power and possibilities of math.

Grade 12 students are working to finish their startup business plans and pitch for the upcoming Inventanooga entrepreneurship annual competition. Students use design thinking to identify and network with a target audience, analyze their expressed needs, invent a solution, and pitch their invention. After identifying their real-world problem, students then seek expert knowledge to help ideate, invent, and test a solution with their prospective customers. Students build a business plan to produce their product, and present their inventions and formal business plan at the Inventanooga pitch competition in December. We are incredibly excited with the inventions and solutions being designed by our seniors!

Thanksgiving Week

Food Drive Competition by House Committee

Urgent Needs: canned soups, ready-to-eat meals, grains, rice, pasta, oatmeal, flour, cereal, family-sized microwave dinners.

Other Needs: peanut butter, canned fruits and vegetables, canned meats- fish and chicken.

STEM Merchandise Sale by House Committee

There is only one week left to order general STEM merch through the House Committee. The Heads of House merch sale ends on Nov 16. They are selling gray STEM shirts, hoodies, and beanies. It is a first come - first serve basis, so if you want something order now! Here is the LINK for ordering. Happy shopping!

STEM Parent Leadership Team – Staff Appreciation Luncheon

The STEM Parent Leadership Team is setting up a staff appreciation lunch for Thursday, Nov 17. The theme of the lunch is… breakfast! Interested in participating and/or donating items? Go to the following Signup Genius link.

Math Help

Students: Do you need help with Delta Math, Khan Academy, or any math assignments? Mathletes will be hosting a tutoring session on the first Thursday of every month! Come by Mrs. Jaynes' room at 8:30 am to receive personalized math help from your peers. We'd love to see you! Fill out this form link so we'll know what kind of math to prepare for.

Upcoming Dates

Nov 23-25: Thanksgiving Break (No STEM School Classes)

Dec 9: Culminating Grade 9 PBL Event

Dec 9, 12: Benchmark Testing

Dec 12-15: Grade 10 CDM Lessons with Elementary Schools

Dec 12-16: ER Week

Dec 12: STEM IV Inventanooga Presentations

Dec 13: Inventanooga Finalist Competition at UTC

Dec 16: Last Day of Fall Semester

Dec 17-Jan 3: Winter Break (No STEM School Classes)

Jan 4: First Day of Spring Semester

Thank you for your support!

Dr. Tony Donen

Principal

November 4, 2022 - STEM School Info 11/04

Parents/Guardians,

November is here! Here are some items of note as we begin the month.

Student Led Conferences – Nov 7 and 10

At the STEM School we do not have traditional Parent Teacher Conferences where the parent comes in and a teacher talks about all the things your child is doing. Instead, our conferences are focused on the student leading a conference with parents and a faculty member. The reason for doing so is because it is vitally important for the student to take ownership in his/her progress, be able to communicate what he/she has learned, and be able to communicate at what level of understanding and mastery he/she is performing. We will have Student Led Conferences during the evenings of Monday, November 7 and Thursday, November 10. All parents and students are expected to participate.

To accommodate parents and students to make the conference as convenient as possible for you, all conferences will be held virtually through Zoom. Each parent and student have been sent an email from their House faculty advisor inviting the parent to the SLC. Parents will have the opportunity to email with the House faculty advisor to set up a time between 6pm and 8pm for the conference. The House faculty advisor will share a Zoom link with the parent and student for the meeting.

HCS Half Day – Nov 9

Wednesday, November 9 is a half day for students in Hamilton County Schools. The STEM School will run classes from 9:30am to 12:30pm, and have lunch available for students from 12:30pm to 1:00pm. Buses will run at the regular time in the morning and leave from STEM at 1:00pm for afternoon routes. IMPORTANT NOTE: Chattanooga State classes are on a normal schedule. Students with Chattanooga State classes are to report to their college classes as normal all day.

Yearbook Retake Opportunity – Nov 10

Lifetouch will be here on Thursday, Nov 10 for YEARBOOK RETAKE DAY for students in grade 9, 10 and 11. Lifetouch will be here from 1pm-4pm in the HQ Room. Students are to be in STEM dress code for their pictures. Students can choose to have their picture retaken if they were absent for the first picture day or were unhappy with their first picture.

Grade 12 students (from Ms. Bolus): This picture day is not for you...be on the lookout next week for a Google Form for your Senior Portraits, Baby Pictures, and Senior Quotes. Flyers and order forms are available on the table by the Front Office if needed.

STEM Merchandise Sale by House Committee

The Heads of House have a general STEM merch sale going on now until November 16. They are selling gray shirts, hoodies, and beanies. It is a first come - first serve basis, so if you want something order as early as you can! Here is the LINK for ordering. Happy shopping!

Math Help

Upcoming Dates

Nov 7 and 10: Student Led Conferences

Nov 9: Half Day at STEM (9:30am-1:00pm)

Nov 23-25: Thanksgiving Break

Thank you for your support!

Dr. Tony Donen

Principal

October 28, 2022 – STEM School Info 10/28

Parents/Guardians,

Happy House Celebration Day! It’s been a great spirit week at STEM and we are excited as the week culminates with a House Competition and STEM Jam this evening. Here are some items of note going forward.

STEM Jam Tonight – Oct 28

STEM Jam is STEM’s version of hanging out and getting together for STEM students. Some schools host a school dance, we host STEM Jam! It is an opportunity for STEM students to play some games, eat some food, and connect outside of the school day. This event happens each fall, so don't miss out!

This year’s STEM Jam will also include a Haunted Hallway. TheHaunted Hallway is the STEM School adaptation of a haunted house. It is designed and hosted by STEM students, featuring a few of your teachers sprinkled in... enter at your own risk. Mwahahaha.

The STEM Jam is also used to raise funds for our Robotics Teamand House Committee. The cost for admission is $10 per student. Tickets can still be purchased at the door for students who have not yet purchased tickets. The STEM Jam will take place from 5:30pm to 8pm. Only STEM students are allowed to attend.

IMPORTANT: The school day dismisses at 4:30pm for grade 9 and 10 students. Underclassmen students who decide to stay for the STEM Jam should not be wandering around the Chattanooga State campus. There will be activities they can participate in outside with the Heads of House or they may wait in the Commons at STEM until the STEM Jam begins. They should not be in the college building areas.

What will STEM Jam feature? Music, costume contest(with prize), pizza, snacks, drinks, Super Smash Brothers competition($5 competition entry fee), haunted hallway, and more!

Move2Stand – Nov 1 (Grade 9)

Next week, students in grade 9 will participate in an important culture building opportunity called Move2Stand. Move2Stand is an interactive training program of STARS (Students Taking A Right Stand) that challenges students to examine their attitudes toward bullying. This one-day youth summit creates empathy and helps young leaders understand how bullying impacts school climate and communities. Since we have students that come from all over the county, this also provides a unique opportunity for freshmen to learn about each other and delve more into the grade 9 diversity focus for collaboration. If you have any questions and/or concerns about this opportunity, please reach out to our school counselor, Anna Millard, (millard_anna@hcde.org).

Student Led Conferences – Nov 7 and 10

Dress Code and Student Handbook

As is the case each year, we have a lot of costumes and participation in spirit week dress up days. We certainly enjoy this experience with our students and staff. When we return next week though, we want to remind everyone that all students are to be inSTEM Dress Code developed and created by the student senate. The senate meets every month with Dr. Donen to address changes, edits, ideas for improved school culture. If any changes to school handbook items are made (including dress code), they are updated immediately after a meeting and communicated in STEM General to students and staff. Allstudent handbook items (intervention tables, dress code, handbook) can also be found on our school website (which always has the most up-to-date information for the handbook).

School Donations – Can We Accept Donations?

The STEM Parent Leadership Team and STEM administration have been working with Hamilton County Schools central office on donation policies for the county. STEM parents have approached the STEM PLT asking if they can donate money for items like Staff Appreciation meals. The HCS central office has made it clear that we cannot directly ask for monetary donations to the school from parents. So, we will not be asking parents for monetary donations. However, please note that the HCS central office also has stated that anyone can make a monetary donation. So, the short version is this… if an individual, business, organization chooses to contact our front office and give a monetary donation for a particular purpose, we can accept the donation and will provide the donating party with a receipt. For example, we recently received a check for $100 from a local organization for STEM activities.

Upcoming Dates

Nov 7 and 10: Student Led Conferences

Nov 9: Half Day at STEM (9:30am-1:00pm)

Nov 23-25: Thanksgiving Break

Thank you for your support!

Dr. Tony Donen

Principal

October 21, 2022 – STEM School Info 10/21

Parents/Guardians,

Happy Fall Friday! Here are some notes as we get moving in quarter two of the school year.

House Committee Spirit Week, House Competition and STEM Jam – Oct 24-28

Next week is our fall spirit week designed and led by our House Committee. The House Committee is made up of our House Heads for each of the four houses – Staupers, Tesla, Einstein and Mirzakhani. This committee of student leaders works throughout the year in developing and implementing different items to support a positive school culture and create collaborative school activities. Next week they have several activities taking place.

School Spirit Days Oct 24-28

Students and staff can dress up on these days in the theme of the day. Costumes should be school appropriate. For students and staff who choose not to participate, they should follow the regular STEM dress code. We look forward to seeing the creativity of our everyone this upcoming week!

---Monday – Character Day (dress up in a character from a book, story, movie, show)

---Tuesday – Duos Day (find a partner or more and have the same theme)

---Wednesday – Meme Day (have a favorite meme, let’s see it!)

---Thursday – Decades Day (anyone for the 80’s? or whatever decade you like)

---Friday – House Out (represent your house in house attire and colors)

House Competition Oct 28

On Friday, students will compete in the second full school House Competition. Competitions will include giant Jenga, pumpkin carving, soccer, and scavenger hunt. It’s time to earn some more house points as we move forward in figuring out which houses are vying for the House Championship this year!

STEM Jam Oct 28

The STEM Jam is also used to raise funds for our Robotics Team and House Committee. The cost for admission is $10 per student. Tickets can be purchased from Ms. Condra during Phase 1 lunch and at the door the night of the event. The STEM Jam will take place on Friday, October 28 from 5:30pm to 8pm. Only STEM students are allowed to attend.

What will STEM Jam feature? Music, costume contest (with prize), pizza, snacks, drinks, Super Smash Brothers competition ($5 competition entry fee), haunted hallway, and more!

From the STEM Parent Leadership Team: We are looking for parent donations to support the fun through food, drinks, and decorations that may be taking up space in your attic. You can find all of the sign ups through the following link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C4EA9A72AA0FAC43-stem1

Still have questions?Email Ms. Jones at jones_mckenzie@hcde.org.

Student Led Conferences – Nov 7 and 10

To accommodate parents and students to make the conference as convenient as possible for you, all conferences will be held virtually through Zoom. Each parent and student will be sent an email from their House faculty advisor inviting the parent to the SLC. Parents will have the opportunity to email with the House faculty advisor to set up a time between 6pm and 8pm for the conference. The House faculty advisor will share a Zoom link with the parent and student for the meeting.

Parents and students are expected to participate in the SLC. The student will be sharing information during the SLC. If you do not see the email from your student’s house faculty advisor by Wednesday, October 26, please let us know. We can help connect you.

Food City and Publix Partnerships

Food City and Publix have partnered with area educators to raise money for local schools. We would love for you to participate in these programs by simply linking your Food City ValuCard to STEM School Chattanooga and signing up for Club Publix. There is no better time than the present to link the STEM School to your card or account and raise money for our wonderful school.

Please click onthis link for instructionson linking your ValuCard and signing up for Club Publix. Let the shopping begin!

School Donations – Can We Accept Donations?

Upcoming Dates

Nov 7 and 10: Student Led Conferences

Nov 9: Half Day at STEM (9:30am-1:00pm)

Nov 23-25: Thanksgiving Break

Thank you for your support!

Dr. Tony Donen

Principal

October 7, 2022 – STEM School Info 10/07

Parents/Guardians,

Hard to believe, but the first quarter has ended! Thank you to everyone for a fabulous start to the school year!!! Please note that the STEM School will be closed next week, and staff will be on fall break. Emails, calls, etc. will be returned the week we return (Oct 17-21). The next STEM Info email will also take place on Oct 21.

STEM 101 and Math Night Information

Thank you to the many families who attended the STEM 101 and Math Night on Monday night. For those who were unable to attend or interested in learning more about STEM 101 and Math Homework items, we’ve got some good news. All the STEM 101 activities and information are on our website for you!

Everything parents did with their student is at the following link:STEM 101 site. Here is also the worksheet that parents and students worked through together:STEM 101 Worksheet.

If you have questions about any of the information, you are always welcome to contact our lead teacher in grades 9 and 10 – Ms. Condra (condra_erica@hcde.org).

Fall Break Information

Fall Break for Hamilton County Schools takes place from October 10 through October 17. Fall Break for Chattanooga State takes place from October 3 through October 7. These breaks impact our students as follows.

STEM School Classes: There are no STEM School classes during the Hamilton County Schools Fall Break. The STEM School will be closed during this time. The last STEM School class day for the first quarter will be Friday, October 7. STEM School classes will resume on Tuesday, October 18.

Chattanooga State Classes: There are no Chattanooga State college classes during the Chattanooga State Fall Break. The last Chattanooga State class day for the first term is Friday, September 30. Chattanooga State college classes will resume on Monday, October 10.

Students with college classes should make sure they know and understand the above break schedules. For example, if a STEM student has a Chattanooga State college course that meets on Tuesday each week, the student is expected to attend the college class on Tuesday, October 11 (even though the STEM School is closed on this date).

Food City and Publix Partnerships

Please click onthis link for instructions on linking your ValuCard and signing up for Club Publix. Let the shopping begin!

Upcoming Dates

Oct 10-17: STEM School Fall Break

Oct 20: Grade 10 Docent Night at the Hunter Museum

Nov 7 and 10: Student Led Conferences – more info to come

Nov 9: Half Day at STEM (9:30am-1:00pm)

Nov 23-25: Thanksgiving Break

Thank you for your support!

Dr. Tony Donen

Principal

FOR PREVIOUS 2021-2022 UPDATES, CLICK THESE LINKS:
STEM Updates - September 2022
STEM Updates - August 2022
STEM Updates - July 2022
STEM Updates - May 2022
STEM Updates - April 2022
STEM Updates - March 2022
STEM Updates - February 2022
STEM Updates - January 2022
STEM Updates - December 2021
STEM Updates - November 2021
STEM Updates - October 2021
STEM Updates - September 2021
STEM Updates - August 2021

FOR ALL 2020-2021 UPDATES, CLICK THIS LINK: 2020-2021 STEM Updates

Updates

STEM School ChattanoogaExercise Innovation, Think Critically, Collaborate

STEM School Chattanooga
Exercise Innovation, Think Critically, Collaborate