Stantec celebrates national Career & Technology Education Month and its impact on career readiness

Global design firm Stantec is proud to celebrate national Career and Technology Education Month throughout February. Career & Technology Education (CTE) provides educational pathways that respond directly to the changing skills need as professional opportunities evolve. 

Our team designs learning environments that connect academics and skill development with hands-on learning, offering students a comprehensive skill set for a successful future. Stantec has helped K-12 and higher education institutions across North America embrace CTE with related projects such as: Genesee Career Institute; Lebanon Valley College Health Professions Pavilion; Centennial College Downsview Park Aerospace Campus; George Brown College Centre for Health Sciences; Academies of Loudoun; Saline County Career Technical Education Center; Sterling Aviation Early College High School; Olathe West High School; and more. 

With an extensive resume of CTE work, many of Stantec’s CTE projects are starting to realize some exciting results. One such project is the Katy Independent School District (ISD) in suburban southeast Texas, a high performing district and one of the country’s largest. Adjacent to the Energy Corridor and with access to Houston’s numerous energy and gas professions, Katy ISD recognized the need to build a learning and project environment that would serve as a catalyst to spark the imagination and spirit of innovation community-wide.

To meet that need, Stantec designed the new Katy Independent School District Robert R. Shaw Center for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math (STEAM). The center adds a dedicated space for Arts to the more common STEM program. Students have project space to engage in STEM activities, from the adjacent facilities, and from schools district-wide, for all grade levels. Beyond a place for classrooms and applied learning, the STEAM center offers space to host district-wide science fairs, administration meetings, and community forums. 

Since its opening, Katy ISD has seen dynamic relationships across the district with more creative students, passionate teachers, and engaged mentors. Students have a new forum to explore diverse interests through hands-on activities relevant to our changing world.

Often open seven days a week and as late as midnight, the STEAM Center has reached thousands of students and community members with events, professional development, science summer camps, and competitions including the Young Inventors Science competition and the Family STEAM Night. Other uses include robotics teams using the building to create world-class robots for competition; teachers bringing classes to the center for projects such as building a sound cannon, catapults, a hovercraft, and creating life-sized games for children in need; and a forensic event for students to solving a simulated crime in a simulated environment. 

“We have a huge parent volunteer support system…kids have already graduated but their parents are volunteering with current kids,” said Dr. Sarah J. Martin, Director of Career & Technical Education, Katy ISD. “Parents have expertise and they have purpose around sharing that. Parents are committed—they have seen how their knowledge has benefitted other kids and they are bitten by the bug.” 

The potential of the building is only beginning to be realized and is as unlimited as the creativity of the students who use it. This center has been and will continue to be a success for the entire community it serves.

About Stantec
Communities are fundamental. Whether around the corner or across the globe, they provide a foundation, a sense of place and of belonging. That's why at Stantec, we always design with community in mind. We care about the communities we serve—because they're our communities too. This allows us to assess what's needed and connect our expertise, to appreciate nuances and envision what's never been considered, to bring together diverse perspectives so we can collaborate toward a shared success. We're designers, engineers, scientists, and project managers, innovating together at the intersection of community, creativity, and client relationships. Balancing these priorities results in projects that advance the quality of life in communities across the globe. Stantec trades on the TSX and the NYSE under the symbol STN. 

Media Contact
Susan Bender
Stantec Media Relations
Ph: (267) 773-9593
susan.bender@stantec.com