$100,000 Outright Grant; $400,000 Challenge Grant
U.S. students recently finished 25th in math and 17th in science in the ranking of 31 countries by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Aurora Central Catholic’s new STEM Center will increase the high school’s capacity to provide STEM classes to over 800 students, the projected enrollment for ACCHS by the year 2021. The new center’s programs will also be in direct response to National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) research which projects a United States shortage of as many as 3 million high-skilled workers by 2018, with two-thirds of those jobs requiring at least some post-secondary education.
A Dunham Fund initial grant of $100,000 and a $1 for $1 challenge up to $400,000 in additional funding can provide $500,000 toward this $1.3M STEM Center. The center will include five state of the art science labs and ten classrooms for science, technology, engineering and mathematics instruction, all fully linked with the latest technology. The school will also host an expanded summer Chemistry Camp offered to area 5th through 8th grade students and has plans to create a summer program for area educators interested in STEM curriculum. The STEM Center is part of Aurora Central’s expansion capital campaign that includes future Athletic and Performing Arts Centers as well.