Toppenish High-tech prowess to be on display today

TOPPENISH, Wash -- Mechanical devices that stitch wounds, small-scale catapults that are electronically programmed and petri dishes with glowing E. coli will be on display during the STEM Showcase today at Toppenish High School.

During the 5 to 7 p.m. event, students will be showing off the projects that have led the school to be one of only five in the state -- and the only in the Yakima Valley -- to be awarded the STEM Lighthouse Award.

State grants of $20,000 each were given to one school district and five additional schools. The winners were judged on student achievement and the school's execution of specialized classes in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.

Now, the school will use that money to become a mentor to help other nearby schools make the same strides.

"It's a big thing," said science and engineering teacher Shawn Myers. "They give out six awards for the year and for us to get it is really a tribute to the work our students are doing."

STEM Lighthouse schools began in 2010 with the passage of House Bill 2621, which is geared to help schools improve science, technology, engineering and math programs.

Toppenish High School offers more than two dozen various STEM classes.

Those classes are offered through Project Lead the Way, a school-improvement program funded through federal grants.

The only other Yakima Valley school participating in Project Lead the Way is East Valley, which only offers engineering classes at this time.

But Toppenish is the only school in the Valley offering other science and technology classes such as biomedical, aerospace and digital mathematics.

Just two years ago, the school only offered introductory engineering, but the program has since seen dramatic growth in student popularity, and the offerings have increased along with it, said principal Trevor Green.

"It's a major growth in our school," he said. "We went from five (STEM) classes last year to 27 this year," he said. "It gives our students an opportunity to compete on a more level playing field. It gives our students a better background and more confidence in sciences."

At tonight's event in the high school's Performing Arts Center, students will demonstrate their projects and parents will have a chance to also try their hand at the catapults and robotics surgery devices.

There will also be fitness tests and stress tests that folks can participate in, Myers said.

"You'll be looking at some stuff students have designed; we'll have some hands-on stuff, too," he said.

STEM Lighthouse Award winners

Toppenish High School

Eastmont Junior High School (East Wenatchee)

Secondary Academy for Success (Northshore)

Science and Math Institute (Tacoma)

Stewart Middle School (Tacoma)

Odessa School District (near Moses Lake)

If you go

What: STEM Showcase

When: 5 to 7 p.m. today

Where: Toppenish High School, 141 Ward Road.

* Phil Ferolito can be reached at 509-577-7749 or pferolito@yakimaherald.com.