Harrisburg, PA - The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) today celebrated the state finalists of the 10th Annual Governor’s STEM Competition. Twenty regional winning teams from across the Commonwealth displayed and demonstrated their projects for this year’s theme, Creating a Commonwealth with Universal Design in Mind.
“STEM education prepares today’s learners for tomorrow’s high-wage, in-demand careers, and the Governor’s STEM Competition takes hands-on learning to the next level,” said Secretary of Education Dr. Khalid N. Mumin. “By engaging in STEM activities that directly impact the world around them, participants are not only learning, but are also creating solutions to benefit their whole community.”
The Shapiro Administration is committed to making sure students get the support they need to succeed – in school and beyond. The Governor’s 2023-24 budget secured $23.5 million for career and technical education to prepare more students for skilled careers, $6 million in pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programming, and an additional $3.5 million to fund the Schools-to-Work Program to develop and expand career pathways for high school students. The 2024-25 budget proposal builds on last year’s progress with another $2.4 million investment in career and technical education to ensure all Pennsylvania children have the freedom to chart their own course and the opportunity to succeed.
This year’s budget proposal also includes a nearly $1.1 billion increase in basic education funding – the largest in Pennsylvania history. It also includes $300 million for school environmental repairs, $100 million for mental health supports in schools, a $50 million increase for special education funding, increases in career and technical education, a $50 million annual investment in school safety and security improvements, $10 million for the Educator Talent Recruitment Account, and $975 million to the community colleges and PASSHE universities that will comprise a new postsecondary system—a 15 percent increase in the amount of funding those institutions received last year.
Facilitated by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE), the Governor’s STEM Competition challenges and engages students from high schools around the Commonwealth to create teams that work together during the school year to research, design, and present a device or project that can help improve the lives of Pennsylvanians and fulfill real-world needs.
This year, a total of 75 teams submitted projects for consideration. The top 20 teams represent 14 different intermediate units across Pennsylvania and today demonstrated or displayed their STEM-related projects for peer review and selection as “People’s Choice Award” in the Governor’s STEM Competition.
The top 20 teams in the 2024 Governor’s STEM Competition included:
- Bishop Shanahan High School, Chester County
- Boyertown Area High School, Berks County
- Council Rock High School North, Bucks County
- Downingtown STEM Academy, Chester County
- Exeter Senior High School, Berks County
- Fox Chapel Area High School, Allegheny County
- Glendale Jr/Sr High School, Cambria and Clearfield counties
- Highlands High School, Allegheny County
- Lower Dauphin High School, Dauphin County
- Monroe Career & Technical Institute, Monroe County
- North Allegheny Senior High School, Allegheny County
- Parkland High School, Lehigh County
- Simmons Academy, Adams County
- South Fayette High School, Allegheny County
- South Park High School, Allegheny County
- Susquehannock High School, York County
- *Tunkhannock Area High School, Wyoming County
- Whitehall High School , Lehigh County
- Wyoming Area Secondary Center, Luzerne County
*Two independent teams placed from this school district.
For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Education, please visit the website or follow PDE on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or Pinterest.
MEDIA CONTACT: Taj Magruder, tmagruder@pa.gov
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