In 2016, I campaigned on bringing joy back to education, and supporting teachers. One effort to support teachers is our STEM Resource Center. Maricopa County classroom teachers are short on resources – in particular technology. Through a relationship we developed with Amazon, my office receives a variety of items that Amazon for whatever reason can’t sell or return to the manufacturer.
We took these materials and developed a resource center where any teacher in Maricopa County can come and “shop” for free. We encourage teachers to take these materials back to their students, and use them, take them apart, reverse engineer, and learn from them. Then when they need more, they can come back.
When teachers visit the Resource Center, we have a professional experience for them to imagine how they can use some of the materials offered, and share experiences from teachers who have successfully used the resource center.
Find out more by listening to my interview on KJZZ or visiting the web site of the Maricopa County School Superintendent.