ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Englewood School District has integrated its STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts & Math) program with the career and technical education programs at the high school level.
In 2021, the district aligned its STEAM focus across all grade levels.
"Whether it's middle school or elementary school, our teachers will be really intentional on aligning the student experience to a pathway such as engineering or biomedical sciences or, in some cases, urban agriculture," said Paul Whitaker, executive director of technology and innovation for Englewood School District.
The CTE pathways align with the work that STEAM students participate in as early as Pre-K.
"We can think, 'Okay, what does an engineer need to know?' And we can kind of backwards plan how that can look for younger students," said Allison Krzesinski, STEAM facilitator for Clayton Elementary.
The actual curriculum will become increasingly challenging as students progress through their studies. Still, the district noted that there's a common thread tying them together throughout a student's entire educational career with Englewood Schools.
"We teach them how to organize their thinking and plan, and then follow through with their plan. We're using similar language so they can continue that through the rest of their career," said Brittany McKinley, STEAM teacher at Englewood Early Childhood Education. "People don't think that they can, because they're so little, but they really are doing everything that they can."
At the high school level, students can opt to continue taking STEAM classes that align with a chosen CTE path. Three years in, the school district reports 100% of 2025 Englewood HS graduates took at least one CTE course.
"We're trying to get that a little bit earlier, help kids in elementary school, even as early as Pre-K, decide what they want to be when they grow up," said Whitaker.
To learn more about the STEAM program: click here.
