Project name: Walker Career Center
District:  Warren Township MSD
State:  Indiana
Contact:  Lou Anne Schwenn
Title:  Director, Walker Career Center
E-mail:  lschwenn@warren.k12.in.us
Phone:  (317)532.6151
Brief description:  A group of programs at the local high school which offer classes in

Subject this project is most concerned with: 

Science, mathematics, and technology.

Part of the school system (e.g. elementary school, middle school, high school, all levels, special math/science school, etc.) the project focuses on:

High school.

Primary focus of the program (e.g. new curriculum, attracting or retaining teachers, classroom technology, community outreach, etc.):

Project Lead the Way (PLTW) is concerned with teaching engineering concepts which encompass math, science and technology standards.  PLTW offers a rigorous curriculum which will prepare students for careers in high-demand technical fields, as well as offering them access to cutting edge technology.

Role of the school board in implementing or supporting the program:

The school board’s support in terms of approval and financial support been instrumental in making this a successful program.

Community and business partners:

This project is run in conjunction with several community and business partners.  Business partners include:  Rolls Royce, Raytheon, and United Consulting Engineers and Architects, who provided early input on the programs, and helped decide what classes would be most effective in meeting the needs of the community.

The original advisory board for this project included representatives from the community and from higher education as well as the business partners.

Higher education partners:

This project was developed with help from Indiana University, Purdue University at Indianapolis, Ivy Tech Community College and Purdue University, who were part of the advisory board, and who have made some dual-credit opportunities available.

Funding and resources:

A Lilly Endowment grant provided the startup funds, which included equipment and professional development costs; and the computer technology was funded by the district.

Duration of the program:

The program has been running for seven years, and has been certified since 2003.  Since its inception, the program has grown due to students’ increased interest in engineering.

Detailed description:

The Walker Career Center Director and Technology Education department chairperson attended a strategic planning workshop about PLTW in January, 1999 sponsored by the Indiana Department of Education.  The Walker Career Center Director and department chair then visited Rochester Institute of Technology with representatives from Indiana Department of Education in March, 1999.  All agreed that this would be an excellent addition to our curriculum offerings.  A proposal was developed and presented to our school board for consideration.  After approval, two teachers were selected to attend the summer workshop to become certified in PLTW.  We continued to add one new course each year. 

We presently offer Introduction to Engineering, Digital Electronics, Principals of Engineering, Computer Integrated Manufacturing, Biotechnical Engineering and Biomedical Sciences. We have five PLTW certified teachers on staff, including one in Biomedical Science.   Two of our teachers are PLTW master teachers who also work in the summer to certify other teachers from around the country.

The program began in the 2000-2001 school year and has grown from 31 students to over 300 students in the 2007-2008 school year.