Echo, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain and Capstone Head Start Collaborate on STEM Education Opportunities for Teachers and Students
For Immediate Release
Contact: Yvonne Lory, Capstone Community Action
Phone: (802) 479-1053
Email: ylory@capstonevt.org
ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain and Capstone Head Start Collaborate on STEM Education Opportunities for Teachers and Students
(Barre, VT) ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain and Capstone Community Action’s Head Start are collaborating on an exciting STEM enrichment grant project for preschool classrooms.
The Early STEM Outreach project is designed to support teacher professional development by increasing skills and confidence in STEM activity facilitation. Teachers have the opportunity to identify areas where they would like additional support. ECHO provides programming and STEM teaching materials that support fun and engaging outreach programs for the students and their families.
“ECHO is excited to work with 30 educators and over 150 students at the Capstone Head Start sites in Lamoille, Washington and Orange counties” stated Elizabeth Nuckols ECHO program manager. “Students will grow their communication, problem solving, and critical thinking skills as they play and practice working like engineers - designing tools to solve problems. Children will build confidence in their skills and see themselves as capable of science, technology, engineering and math work all while having fun.”
A Capstone Head Start teacher shared, “Elizabeth’s lessons are engaging, and interactive, what a gift this is for our students to have this experience.” The Lamoille county staff started the STEM Outreach grant project in December 2021 and will conclude in June 2022. The positive collaboration with ECHO is a welcome addition to the professional development opportunities already accessible by Capstone Head Start staff.
To learn about Capstone Head Start career opportunities and to make a difference for families moving out of poverty please visit capstonevt.org/jobs. A YouTube video called Why Work for Capstone Head Start can be viewed at https://youtu.be/eK8fyoTUIW0.
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ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain is an innovative science museum located on Burlington, Vermont’s Waterfront. ECHO leverages its unique setting to inspire and engage people to become advocates for a healthier Lake Champlain. ECHO uses its numerous interactive exhibits and animal ambassadors to inspire and engage families in the joy of scientific discovery, wonder of nature, and care of Lake Champlain. ECHO is the public face of the Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, a 2.7 acre campus that also includes the University of Vermont Rubenstein Ecosystem Laboratory and research vessel, Lake Champlain Sea Grant, the Lake Champlain Basin Program, and the Lake Champlain Navy Memorial. To learn more about ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, visit: https://www.echovermont.org/
Capstone Community Action was founded in 1965 and works to overcome poverty by serving people in crisis and creating economic opportunity for people and communities. Capstone’s programs include emergency food, heat assistance, housing counseling and homelessness intervention, savings and credit coaching, business counseling, workforce development, home weatherization, transportation access, and child and family development programs in Early Head Start/Head Start. We serve nearly 13,000 people through these programs each year. www.capstonevt.org.