Tappan Zee High School has been designated as a 2020-21 Project Lead the Way Distinguished High School! The high school was one of 204 programs nationwide to receive this recognition based on its scope of offerings, enrollment and efforts to support broad access and participation.
The high school’s PLTW Engineering pathway is composed of a sequence of courses which combine mathematics and science curriculum to introduce students to the scope, rigor and discipline prior to entering college. South Orangetown Middle School students may elect to begin the high school sequence in eighth grade by taking Drawing and Design for Production. Students who intend to pursue an engineering degree may earn college credits for PLTW coursework through the Rochester Institute of Technology.
“2021-22 will be our 13th year,” noted TZHS Technology Education Department Team Leader Nicholas Desantis. “The hands-on PLTW classroom changes the way students experience learning through problem-based activities. Year after year, TZHS alumni enrolled in college engineering programs provide positive feedback about how our PLTW program prepared them for post-secondary education.”
PLTW Engineering students step into the role of engineer through compelling and collaborative activities. SOCSD students have the opportunity to jumpstart their engineering coursework with the Design and Drawing for Production elective in eighth grade and continue throughout their high school academic career. Through the PLTW pathway, students learn fundamentals and study fields within the discipline–such as civil engineering and architecture, digital electronics and aerospace engineering–to determine whether or not to pursue engineering as a career. Targeted efforts, such as participation in the AAUW Rockland New York State Society of Professional Engineers Women in Engineering Conference, aim to encourage female PLTW students to envision themselves as future engineers.
Congratulations to the TZHS Technology Department faculty on earning this PLTW Distinguished School honor!
Learn more about the TZHS PLTW Engineering pathway by viewing the 2021-22 Curriculum Guide here: https://blogs.socsd.org/tzhs/2021-22-curriculum-guide/technology-engineering/.
