The Merced City School District received the state's leading educational honor, the Golden Bell Award, during the California School Boards Association Annual Education Conference and Trade Show at the San Francisco Marriott Marquee on Saturday, December 3. MCSD also received a $1000 award from Cisco during the ceremony.
The CSBA sponsors the Golden Bell Award, which is now in its 37th year. The award recognizes public school programs that are innovative and sustainable, make a demonstrated difference for students, and focus on meeting the needs of all public school students.
The Merced City School District earned this award for its STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) program, which provides experiential learning in those subjects to help prepare students for bright futures in high demand fields. The program includes 21st century learning opportunities during regular school hours, through extended day offerings, and during the Summer Academy for Academic Achievement. Students have the opportunity to perform plays, compose music, build and program robots, work with 3D printers, design vertical gardens, grow and study plants, build electric circuits, and much more. The district’s STEAM program also includes collaboration with other agencies for opportunities such as “Every Kid in a Park,” which allows all of the district’s 4th grade students to take an educational field trip to Yosemite National Park with correlating classroom lessons before and after the excursion. Efforts are currently underway to continue developing and expanding the program including the recent groundbreaking for a cutting edge STEAM Center next to Ada Givens Elementary, which will serve all students in the district. The MCSD Board of Education has provided critical support for this program by approving plans for the STEAM Center and the addition of specialized staff members, while maintaining a clear vision for the district’s future.
Experts from school districts and county offices of education made up the 16-member judging panel that reviewed the written entries and made the initial recommendations for the awards. On-site validators assessed the programs in action.
“California’s K-12 public schools continue to produce some of the nation’s best and brightest students, and our Golden Bell recipients are a reflection of that excellence as well as the spirit of innovation which is so characteristic of this state,” said CSBA CEO and Executive Director Vernon M. Billy. “The Golden Bell Awards recognize the quality and the determination of school leaders from across California in meeting the needs of California's students through award-winning programs and services.
CSBA is the non-profit education association representing the elected officials who govern public school districts and county offices of education. With a membership of nearly 1,000 educational agencies statewide, CSBA brings together school governing boards and district and county office administrators to advocate for effective policies that advance the education and well-being of the state’s more than 6 million school-age children. Learn more at www.csba.org.
To learn more about the MCSD STEAM program, click here: http://www.mcsd.k12.ca.us/District/Portal/steam-center
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