High-tech Connections Keep Oak Ridge Students Soaring

Misty Wong

Dubbed Tennessee’s Technology Corridor, the Oak Ridge region boasts more than 500 high-tech companies, and that is excluding high-tech research and development hubs, such as Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex.

As the demand for an increasingly tech-trained workforce has grown, so has the Oak Ridge Schools district’s investment in innovative STEM-based initiatives and college, career and technical education (CCTE) offerings. 

“When planning for our biannual local needs assessment, we meet with local industry partners, parents, students and postsecondary partners to determine immediate local needs,” says Holly Cross, supervisor of career readiness and communications for Oak Ridge Schools.

“We meet quarterly with a district-level STEM committee and survey economic development organizations and industry partners to garner feedback about workforce needs. We compare results from that survey to data that we find on the TSBA (Tennessee School Boards Association) Data Dashboard [to help us] … generate custom reports to tie our local needs to the creation of impactful programs for our school district.”

A Skills Player

One such program is the SeaPerch at Oak Ridge High School. The international program guides students through building aquatic robots that they then use to compete in underwater obstacle courses. Cross says the JROTC students who participate learn valuable soft skills, such as teamwork, problem solving and communication, that help set them up for career success.

“Project-based learning is an embedded practice in Oak Ridge Schools, and SeaPerch is one example of a competitive project-based learning experience,” she says.

“We believe in creating hands-on learning in all subject areas and at all grade levels in Oak Ridge. This transformative approach engages students in learning that is real world, that involves deeper interactive learning by solving complex problems and that creates memorable content standards-based activities that have long-lasting impact.”

At the Edge of Innovation

Another recent addition to the high school’s menu of STEM-based offerings is iSchool, or Innovation School, a state-funded program designed to increase career readiness in Tennessee high schools. Oak Ridge High received a $1.4 million grant to purchase state-of-the-art manufacturing and engineering equipment, including 3D printers. 

The school has also partnered with local employers – Oak Ridge Tool-Engineering, Scrum Inc., Lokar, Tennessee Tool and Engineering, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory to name a few – to give students hands-on learning experiences.

“A particular strength of these local employers is that they have partnered with us through in-kind donations, monetary support and hiring of our students for internships or postsecondary employment for many years. They know the caliber and commitment of Oak Ridge Schools, the students we train,” says Mark Buckner,  iSchool robotics innovation design and manufacturing teacher at Oak Ridge High School. 

Buckner, who is spearheading the iSchool vision, has been a longtime mentor for the high school’s FIRST Robotics team and an instructor for mechatronics/robotics for dual enrollment through Roane State Community College. He is an adjunct faculty member at both Roane State and the University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

On the Right Pathways

The school district’s commitment to career development begins with students as young as pre-K.  “Early grades participate in work-based learning that involves guest speakers and field trips. In middle school, we have coursework in business education, STEM and career exploration across all 16 national career clusters,” Cross says.

High school students can choose from full programs of study in everything from advanced manufacturing to arts and A/V to communications, business, finance and marketing, health science,  information technology and transportation, distribution and logistics.

Oak Ridge High School even offers students certification in AutoDesk Fusion 360, a cloud-based 3D modeling, CAD, CAM, CAE and PCB software platform for professional product design and manufacturing.

“Within each program of study, we offer students early postsecondary opportunities that include AP coursework, dual enrollment, dual credit and recognized industry certifications. These opportunities give students a jump-start to their futures in alignment with our vision for every student to be successful in college, career and life,” Cross says.

“We strive to empower all Oak Ridge students with equitable access to digital learning opportunities – to innovate, design, collaborate and ultimately succeed in local and global communities of the future. They should be creative, critical thinkers, problem solvers and communicative collaborators.”