By Dr. Thomas Little
Superintendent of Perry Township Schools

There is a great deal of discussion about STEM education in schools today. STEM refers to an emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math. 

One responsibility of school districts is to prepare students for selecting career choices that they have an interest in and ones that companies have a need for. 

Recent estimates from the U.S. Department of Commerce indicates that STEM jobs will grow 17 percent by 2018, which is nearly double the growth for non-STEM fields. By the year 2018 the United States is expected to have more than 1.2 million unfilled STEM jobs because there will not be enough qualified individuals to fill the need. STEM workers use their knowledge to solve problems while addressing the future needs of the world.
Our ongoing mission at Perry Township Schools is to search for better and more innovative ways to teach your children and prepare them for STEM careers. One model that we believe has a great deal of promise is called Project Lead the Way. 

PLTW is the nation’s leading provider of K-12 STEM programs. Its world-class curriculum and high-quality teacher professional development model, combined with an engaged network of educators and corporate and community partners, help students develop the skills necessary to succeed in our global economy.

PLTW’s success in preparing students with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed has been recognized by universities, Fortune 500 businesses and numerous national organizations including Change the Equation and the Social Impact Exchange.

Project Lead the Way curriculum provides students with an opportunity to apply what they know to identify a problem and find unique solutions that lead to expanding their learning skills. Solving problems through an activity-based project approach prepares students to solve real-world problems. This approach creates practical applications for student learning and provides the rigor and relevance that engages and empowers our students. 

PLTW courses are aligned with state standards in math and English language arts, Next Generation Science Standards and other norms. Among other significant findings, independent studies reveal that PLTW students outperform their peers in school, are better prepared for post-secondary studies and are more likely to consider careers as scientists, technology experts, engineers, mathematicians, healthcare providers and researchers.
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At the end of the day, any education model we seek to use is designed to help our children understand the world and how to choose a career that will help them live happy and productive lives. Options and opportunities are available for our students.

By Dr. Thomas Little 
Superintendent of Perry Township Schools

Perry Township Schools offers a magnitude of Advanced Placement and dual credit courses that affords students the opportunity to attain college credit while fulfilling the course requirements for a high school diploma. 

However, we recognize that we would not be able to offer these academic opportunities without the support and partnerships of local businesses. One of the longest-running and most treasured partnerships our children have embraced is with the Rolls-Royce aviation division headquartered on the Westside.
 
Rolls-Royce is celebrating a century of innovation and dominance in aerospace, and this success is being celebrated on the Southside. On Oct. 7 the company opened its doors to employees, and we were honored to be included in the event. 

Representatives of Rolls-Royce took the opportunity to showcase the company’s aircraft engines and the planes that are equipped with them. Perry Meridian High School’s robotics team, Cyber Blue, and Southport’s CyberCards were special guests. Cyber Blue was extended some time during the event to show off its robot, named 234. 

For many years our school district has been proud to have Rolls-Royce engineers mentor students in our robotics programs. The company has invested thousands of dollars into the programs, and that has led many of our students into various fields engineering, some with Rolls-Royce.   

To give you a little history on this outstanding company, Rolls-Royce and its predecessor companies, for the past 100 years, have been engineering, designing and manufacturing advanced technology. Inventor and industrialist James Allison began his engineering business in 1915, laying the groundwork for what would become a global enterprise offering aerospace products and services. 

Rolls-Royce has been a world-leader providing a century of innovation. While it’s an important year for the company in marking 100 years of operations in Indianapolis, it has been two decades since the company purchased the enterprise that Allison created. It also marks the beginning of a new century of innovation with the company’s recent announcement to invest an additional $600 million in its Indianapolis plant.

Our robotics teams and their mentors had a wonderful opportunity during the event outside the U.S. Posital Service hangar at the airport. The students were able to view many innovative and legendary aircraft powered by engines built in Indianapolis. Those include famous World War II aircraft, such as the P-51 and P-38, up to “future legends” such as the V-22 and F-35B Lightning II. The history of the aircraft industry is fascinating.
 
Business partnerships provides opportunities for real-life experiences embedded within their career interests. We’re grateful to Rolls-Royce and to all of our community partners who enhance and broaden the hopes, dreams and aspirations of our students.  

Together, we make a great school district even better.

By Dr. Thomas Little
Superintendent of Perry Township Schools

The responsibility for the safety and security of more than 15,000 students and almost 2,000 staff members is a rather daunting task and one of those thoughts that can sometimes keep you up at night.
We have spent years developing our safety initiatives through ongoing training drills to assure the safety of the children placed under our care. Frankly, you hope and pray that you never truly have to use one of these procedures, but if you do it’s important that it’s executed as flawlessly as possible, and I believe that’s what happened last week.

As many of you know, a fugitive in a high-speed chase by local police and federal marshals decided to drive onto our property next to Perry Meridian Middle School. This put us in one of those situations where we had to activate our emergency plans to protect students and staff. We are grateful and proud to say that the plan WORKED! 

Staff members immediately went into a secure mode, and our children were positioned out of harm’s way within seconds. 

Members of the brave Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department secured the area around the school, surrounded the armed escapee and subdued him.  

After an incident such as this, you must take time to debrief the entire situation from start to finish. If there are any improvements that need to be made, we will make the appropriate changes. You also must take time to count your blessings and extend thanks to those individuals so helpful during a potentially serious situation.    
We are fortunate to have a multitude of key law enforcement officials living in Perry Township. 

Gary Coons, director of Homeland Security, assisted us in the development of our emergency plans for the entire district, and they worked extremely well. David Wantz, acting director of the Indianapolis Department of Public Safety, was extremely supportive through the entire situation as well. He was on the phone with me when the incident started. 

The Indianapolis officers, under the direction of Perry Township Director of Security David Stalcup, were truly a godsend and addressed the escaped prisoner with swift and decisive action. The police force on the Southside is second to none.

We would especially like to thank the staff members of the three buildings that were placed on lock down for a long period of time. The principals and staff in those facilities followed our emergency plans to the letter. It is no easy task to go on immediate lockdown during a passing period, but the staff at Perry Meridian High School made it happen; within a few minutes the halls were clear. 

Our school board has taken the lead on providing secure areas like secure entrances, which provide a barrier between students and those who would intend to do them harm. We have installed cameras and doors with locks. All of these things are great resources when it comes to safety, but nothing is better than the people who execute them.

Thanks again to our parents who were so patient during the ordeal. We are fortunate to call Perry Township our home, a place where the community unites for the safety of our youth. We’re also grateful to our parents for their kind words as we were placed under lockdown. 

We also appreciate the media at the scene for their accurate coverage and sensitivity to the story as it unfolded. 
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Again, thank you to everyone for dealing with a situation we hope never happens again.

By Dr. Thomas Little 
Superintendent of Perry Township Schools

There has always been a debate about exactly what is the primary responsibility of a public school. 
Computers have replaced pencils and paper. Technology is no longer a separate class to take in isolation but a tool integrated into the entire instructional program. The world has certainly changed, but there are fundamental skills that are important to attain regardless of how advanced we have become.  

Reading, writing and mathematics skills are the foundational pieces needed in whatever career we elect to enter. Beyond those, there are literally thousands of subjects to explore and courses to enroll in at places like Central Nine Career Center or online.  

While your core subjects are important, we can never forget how valuable the arts are to our students and their future success. Many of our schools conduct special projects that provide opportunities for students to use their talents in a variety of ways. Over the next two weeks Burkhart Elementary is hosting a nine-day artist-in-residence program, in which Rita Wrighton, a renowned stained glass window artist, will provide intensified instruction on the subject.

Melody Penish, one of our many outstanding art teachers, guides students in the creation of artwork based on the themes of the three windows for this year: art, music and physical education. In August students drew and colored pieces that they hoped to incorporate into their window designs. Those drawings were then used to create the glass pieces within the individual windows.

Parents play a huge role in the creation of this art work. Students come on a three-day rotation to transfer the patterns to the glass and then to score and cut it under the supervision of staff, parents and artists.  

Students then apply a copper foil tape to the edges of the pieces of glass. The next step involves students soldering the pieces of glass into place and the creation of beautiful windows. The final product produces three finished windows approximately 24 by 36 inches each. We believe this is a unique cultural and artistic opportunity for our boys and girls.

While fundamental skills of reading, writing and mathematics are extremely important, the artistic opportunities that our staff provides for your students on a daily basis is phenomenal. 

As you reflect on your school experiences, you probably remember the special times when you were extended the opportunity to expand your horizons and take part in an activity that was beyond the day-to-day instructional program. Programs such as the artist-in-residence series assist children in determining their talents and interests in life and perhaps even influence what career path to choose.  
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This is but one example of the many experiences that your children are involved in when they attend school in Perry Township. We are extremely proud of our staff and parents, all of whom combine their talents for the benefit of your children.