In the News

Jimmy McDermott’s plans for pursuing consulting while in college changed only moments after his graduation from high school. Thirty minutes after he received his diploma, McDermott, BC ’21, answered a phone call from his superintendent about building a community service tracking app, which he promptly accepted.  

If putting an idea out for expert evaluation is nerve-racking, Grand Island Senior High students Kowsslo Teya and Colton Marsh didn’t show it. Teya and Marsh were challenged to come up with a product idea that would solve a societal problem as part of their INCubatoredu class at GISH’s Academy of Buisness & Communication.

When Amaan Rumi’s business incubator team at Westlake High School came up with the idea to create an app that helps people manage medications and keeps track of things like conflicting drugs and patient allergies, he thought of his grandmother. 

Saint Viator High School and its Mobile Apps class is on a roll.

The Lakota West team – MatchedUp - is among five high school groups nationwide invited to travel to Chicago later this month to compete in the “INCubatoredu National Pitch” for thousands of dollars in start-up funding.

Over the past two decades, there has been an increased interest in K–12 science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) programs to meet the rising demand for talent in these growing sectors of the economy. So, it’s not surprising that STEM classrooms provide fertile ground for integrating 21st-century workforce skills like collaboration, communication, and critical thinking into the classroom.

Township High School Dist. 211’s Business INCubator Pitch Night returned to in-person May 18 at Hoffman Estates High School for the first time since the pandemic, and teams representing each of the district’s five schools competed for a share of the start-up funds.

Building a business from the ground up is a venture that can challenge even the savviest of entrepreneurs, from the planning stages right up to the finished product.

District leaders and educators won’t solve these problems by focusing solely on making up lost academic time. In fact, if piling on more academic work comes at the expense of content that is meaningful and exciting, the approach could further disengage students. That’s why my district is re-imagining high schools with a strong focus on helping students become leaders in their own learning and the learning of others — a pathway to future success and economic mobility.