North Penn to roll out SHIELD STEAM special in five elementary schools as pilot

The North Penn School District on Aug. 19 told the district’s Elementary/Community/Instruction (ECI) committee that a new SHIELD STEAM special will begin next week as a pilot in five elementary schools and that the district has hired five teachers and purchased mobile equipment for classroom rotations.

The program “aims to ignite curiosity, foster creativity, and build critical thinking skills through engaging hands‑on experiences in science, technology, engineering and mathematics,” Dr. Sean Arnie said during the update. Arnie and Rebecca Russo presented the plan and timeline to committee members at the virtual meeting.

District staff described SHIELD as a push‑in model delivered on a five‑day rotation. Grade levels will work within an overarching theme for the year so students experience coherence across the rotations, while individual lessons will vary. The district ordered a mobile STEAM cart for classroom travel and cited resources including LEGO activities, Project Lead The Way and code.org.

Arnie said the pilot year will place SHIELD in five buildings — Hatfield, A.M. Culp, Knapp, Gwenor and Gwynedd Square — and that the district expects to bring SHIELD to all 13 elementary schools in the 2026–27 school year. He said the district created a budget, secured materials and hired five teachers for the inaugural year. The district also applied for and received a Project Lead The Way grant to offset registration and professional‑development fees.

For teacher preparation, staff reported two days of LEGO professional learning over the summer and that many SHIELD teachers are completing a 16‑hour Project Lead The Way training requirement. "All of the work is going to be done within the time frame of the class," Arnie said when asked whether families should expect homework in the pilot year. He added the district is not planning to require family purchases for materials: "I'm not responsible for the purchase of any additional LEGO materials."

Committee members asked about program sequencing and space. Board member Joseph Fusco asked whether the plan intentionally limits students to a single thematic area for the year. Arnie and Russo said themes provide an organizing concept but do not limit the variety of activities; materials and lesson types will vary within a grade’s theme. Fusco also asked whether the district has considered a facility or space study to move SHIELD from carts into dedicated classrooms; Dr. Waters said the district has begun discussions and will monitor the pilot year to determine next steps.

Staff said next steps include continued curriculum development, ongoing professional development for SHIELD teachers, further grant applications to support expansion and a communications plan for families. The presenters said they will share a more detailed scope and sequence document with the committee.

Procedural note: the committee approved the minutes from the previous meeting by motion and voice vote at the start of the Aug. 19 session.

The presentation emphasized a collaborative, group‑focused approach and alignment to state standards and district secondary pathways. District staff said SHIELD is intended to complement existing middle and high school Project Lead The Way courses and to provide hands‑on experiences that reinforce cross‑cutting science and technology practices.