It would also crystalize Principal Stacy Ceci’s vision for who could participate in the STEM curriculum and lab: every student at O’Dell Elementary. For O’Dell, the funding would allow the school to launch its STEM lab in time for the Fall 2018 school year.
Also, shown OODLE stool and Elemental 5-Star Table.Īccording to Miss K., the grant was unusual, in that most STEM-type grants are for grades six and up, or STEM labs that have been in place for a few years.
Planner Studio Tables shown with Flavors Fixed Height Stools, Cascade Storage and Teacher Desk. The funding would allow O’Dell to turn the unused multi-purpose space into a STEM lab outfitted with the right furniture, equipment and supplies to foster STEM’s higher-level-thinking benefits. In 2018, O’Dell was fortunate to receive a private grant through Hillwood, a large real estate development company active in the Celina area. Looking for more information on the STEM environment? When the building opened, it was unclear exactly how the space would be used,” Ellington said. “The school had a beautiful multi-purpose space adjacent to the computer lab, very contemporary with great light, positioned above the library and overlooking the outdoor learning space. As a Smith System dealer, she’s worked with Celina ISD to evolve the district furniture standards to address 21st century learning needs. To help accommodate that growth, the district opened O’Dell in Fall 2017 and outfitted its classrooms exclusively with Smith System seating, tables, storage and more.īut there was one space where the district elected to delay the purchase of furniture, explained Rhonda Ellington, vice president of sales with Texas-based Lone Star Furnishings. The district’s student population is expected to double in five years, and double again in the subsequent five years. With 500 students, Donny O’Dell Elementary is one of two elementary schools in the rapidly growing Celina Independent School District (Celina ISD) 40 miles north of Dallas. That wasn’t always the case at the grades 1–5 public school. “Even I underestimated the value of a STEM lab.” We have kids begging to come to STEM, instead of P.E.,” reported Shana Kriechbaum (Miss K.), a former fifth-grade science teacher and current STEM instructor at O’Dell. Creating the Ideal Incubator for “STEMineers”Īsk an elementary kid, “Name one thing you love about your school,” and you don’t expect to hear “STEM lab!” Yet that’s exactly what’s happening at Donny O’Dell Elementary in Celina, TX, after only four months of having its STEM lab up and running.
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