For the fifth consecutive year, Bartlesville Public Schools has been named a Distinguished District in the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) STEM programs. Only 17 districts across the nation earned that honor for 2023-2024, with Bartlesville being the only Distinguished District in Oklahoma.
PLTW is a nonprofit organization that provides STEM curricula in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics to millions of PreK-12 students and teachers in schools across the U.S. The PLTW Distinguished District recognition honors districts committed to increasing student access, engagement, and achievement in their PLTW programs. Each school in the district received the 2023-2024 PLTW Distinguished School award.
To be eligible for the designation, each of the district's six elementary schools had to have more than 75 percent of the student body participating in the PLTW Launch program and had to offer at least one PLTW Launch module at each grade level. Both middle schools and the high school had to meet a variety of criteria such as a certain percentage of the student body participating in PLTW, participation in two or more units during their time at school, offering at least one PLTW Gateway unit at each middle school grade level and at least three PLTW courses in high school, and having strategies in place to ensure equitable access to students.
Central and Madison Middle Schools have been PLTW Gateway Distinguished Schools for seven consecutive years since the district received a $1.7 million Signature Community Initiative grant from Phillips 66 that funded Innovation Labs in those schools. The same grant funded lab spaces and equipment for Bartlesville High School, which has been the only comprehensive high school in Oklahoma to earn Distinguished School status each year since 2019-2020.
The Bartlesville Public Schools Foundation and community partners later funded the expansion of PLTW into the elementary schools. ConocoPhillips has provided ongoing annual support for the district's PLTW programs, and the district now sustains its PLTW programs through a combination of state vocational education funding, federal funding, and local bond issue allocations.
“We are honored to recognize Bartlesville Public Schools for their commitment to providing students with exceptional educational experiences while ensuring equitable access to PLTW programs,” said Dr. David Dimmett, PLTW President and CEO. "We congratulate them on this achievement and celebrate their dedication to empowering students with the knowledge and skills to succeed, not only in STEM subjects, but also preparing them for future careers and life beyond the classroom."