SOLON — Ken Beck, a science teacher at Solon High School, is one of 79 teachers across the state participating in the 2024 Iowa STEM Teacher Externships Program. This program provides teachers the opportunity to work at a vast array of local workplaces to gain STEM-related work experiences that can be applied in the classroom. Since its launch in 2009, the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council at the Iowa Department of Education has organized more than 800 teacher externship experiences throughout the state.
Ken will complete a six-week externship with Johnson County Conservation. During his externship, Beck will provide assistance on the F.W. Kent Park Lake Watershed Water Quality Study.
The Iowa STEM Teacher Externships Program benefits both the participating teachers and the local workplace hosts. Teachers connect their content expertise, along with what is taught in the classroom, to real-world applications, as well as what job skills and knowledge are needed for successful careers. In return Externship hosts get significant projects completed by talented and industrious teachers. By forging matches in the local community, school-business partnerships can develop and last through the following school year and beyond to enhance the community’s future workforce. This ultimately helps make students more aware of the skills needed for job opportunities right where they live.
This summer, the program is supported through state-appropriated funds and investments by Iowa business, industry and community partners; the Iowa Economic Development Authority Grant #21-ARRA-001, Iowa STEM Energy Teacher Externships; and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) Education Program Grant #24-07. This year’s contributions from workplace hosts total approximately $141,000 in addition to the STEM Council’s investment.
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