NWA Life

16 • nwa life • 3.29.2020 Private schools Private schools operate independently of school districts and state regulations and are funded by tuition rather than taxpayer dollars, but that does not stop Northwest Arkansas' private schools from delivering high test scores and adequately preparing students for the future. Many of the private schools in the region, including the largest, Shiloh Christian School, are religiously affiliated. There are also private schools which focus on a specific curriculum designed to prepare students for a future in specific fields, such as The New School in Fayetteville, which teaches a STEAM based curriculum. A STEAM curriculum focuses on sciences, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. CONTINUED FROM 14 To compete with these specialized STEAM schools, most public high schools in the area offer an EAST (Education Accelerated by Service and Technology) program, a largely self-driven curriculum in which students work with technology while at the same time helping their school and the community at large. Springdale schools are proud to be home to the largest EAST program not only in Arkansas, but the nation as a whole. Northwest Arkansas is an area fortunate enough to be bursting with diversity and growing every day, and with less than 75% of the population identifying as white or Caucasian, it is vital that the school systems offer programs to celebrate diversity. Every public school in the district is certainly stellar at ensuring inclusion for their students of all races by providing strong, result- yielding English as a Second Language, or ESL, programs. Additionally, many schools offer Family Literacy programs to help assist parents who are learning English as a second language. Schools in Northwest Arkansas don't just celebrate diversity in the classroom; they also offer a plethora of extracurricular activities that allow students to engage in other cultures. For instance, many Springdale Elementary schools have "w," groups of students who engage in the music and culture native to the Pacific Islands. Northwest Arkansas is full of excellent options for childhood education all the way from pre-kindergarten through the 12th grade, and is only improving more with each passing year. With the school choice initiative in place, Northwest Arkansas offers accessibility for students of every demographic, from ESL to special education. Every student who enters the Northwest Arkansas school systems, whether public or private, will receive a personalized education to fit their needs and help them achieve the future of their dreams. NWA Democrat-Gazette/BEN GOFF @NWABENGOFF Students take part in a team exercise Wednesday, May 1, 2019, in the "STREAM Lab" at Creekside Middle School in Bentonville. Staff from Garver, a civil engineering firm, visited to help 6th grade students learn about engineering and develop critical thinking skills through building Rube Goldberg machines. Garver has selected 100 schools in 11 states, 43 of them in Arkansas, to receive monetary donations, STEM kits and visits from engineers as part of their GarverGives campaign to celebrate their 100th year in business.

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