Bothell school will receive $20,000 grant for its strong STEM curriculum

Let there be Lighthouse at Northshore’s Secondary Academy for Success (SAS).

Because of its strong focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, small teacher-to-student class ratio for effective instruction and partnerships with organizations like 21 Acres, Brightwater and McKinstry to solidify environmental awareness into students’ minds, SAS will receive a $20,000 grant from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.

SAS, which is located in Bothell, is one of five schools and one school district in the state to garner Lighthouse honors.

Randy Dorn, state superintendent, will present representatives from SAS and the Career and College Readiness program with the award at the Feb. 14 school-board meeting.

“One of the focuses for SAS has been to think about a sustainable environment. We have a sustainable engineering and design class that is a core focus of the program, as well as the school itself,” said Principal Vicki Puckett. “(The school) was designed and built to be energy efficient and to educate students and community members, parents and staff.”

SAS consists of everything from solar panels to a successful recycling program to an interactive-educational kiosk that shows how much energy they’re generating with wind, solar and water.

And that’s just a few examples, Puckett said, adding that SAS instructors are as environmentally conscious as the students, urging their charges to refill their water bottles and engaging them in discussions about global climate change and how different food products break down and affect the environment.

Mike Wierusz’s sustainable engineering and design class is a hot spot for students who are retrofitting a 20-foot cargo trailer and transforming it into a mobile green learning lab — named the Green Machine.

“We’re going to take it around to different elementary schools and just teach them about ways they can incorporate green living into their life; get it in their minds,” said Victoria Arno, a Bothell High junior who takes Wierusz’s class in the morning. “It’s fantastic. This is where we need to be going for the future into more green things, so that we can preserve the planet.”

The machine will feature wind-turbine energy kits and a bicycle that generates energy when you ride it and can power a DVD player, for example. SAS students will also discuss recycling with the elementary students, among other green topics.

Larissa Maninger, a Woodinville High senior, is part of the marketing team that is working with partners — such as Brightwater — to help with signage and other features for the Green Machine.

“I’ve never taken an off-campus class, so to do something so big my senior year — I’ve always been interested in science — it’s really fun,” Maninger said.

Wierusz added that the Green Machine is special because “you’re taking the message out and helping other schools. It’s a small starting point on a big scale.”

Puckett said the Lighthouse money will also go toward purchasing more green-education signage, keeping its building of a greenhouse on track and more.

The greenhouse “gets students to start thinking about organic farming, and hopefully the products we use out of the greenhouse we can use here in school in lunches and in the home-arts class that they take,” the principal added.

Students also learn about organic farming at 21 Acres in Woodinville.

SAS counselor Kjerstin Lee appreciates what she sees at school each day.

“SAS is a really great place to be. The staff that work here, we never leave because we like it so much,” she said.

“We just have really interesting kids, and they’re really out-of-the-box kids, just individuals — and I learn a lot from them every single day. The staff at SAS is really special, as well. The teachers are really caring and they just really enjoy being here. We see a lot of great things that happen with kids.”