Last year, the Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Initiative (AMSTI) selected the Engineering is Elementary curriculum as part an ambitious program to improve STEM education statewide. So now many Alabama elementary teachers are getting their first exposure to classroom engineering. But for Wendy Goss and John Mark at Barkley Bridge Elementary in Hartselle, AL, engineering is nothing new: They’ve been teaching EiE for almost 10 years. (We don’t know for sure, but we think this may be a record!)

What did you do on your summer vacation? For some of the New York City students who will go back to school later this week, the answer is, “engineering!”

For the first time ever, hands-on engineering was part of the city’s summer school programs. Thousands of students boosted their STEM skills (and their understanding of what it’s like to be an engineer) by learning with Engineering is Elementary’s out-of-school-time (OST) curricula Engineering Adventures and Engineering Everywhere.

The June 2015 online issue of Educational Leadership explores the theme “Improving Schools from Within.” The magazine invited educators to share stories of schools that changed for the better—and how they did it. 

Emily Hardee, a North Carolina STEM coordinator, tells the story of a Raleigh elementary school that transformed itself from one of the lowest performing schools in the district into a STEM school that’s a model for the state. We’re gratified to know that the Engineering is Elementary curriculum played a part in the change.