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Fountain Hills district proposes merging art and project-based learning into elementary STEAM course
Summary
Administrators proposed converting an elementary art special and project-based-learning (PBL) offerings into a STEAM course to preserve hands-on projects while addressing lower enrollment and staffing constraints; board asked staff to return with a formal course proposal.
The district presented a proposal to reconfigure elementary 'specials' by combining art and project‑based‑learning into a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) course.
Administrators said the change is driven by lower enrollment and scheduling constraints that make three separate specials difficult to staff reliably. They said the PBL pilot produced strong student engagement—examples included interdisciplinary projects that incorporated art, measurement and nutrition instruction—and argued that merging art and PBL into STEAM would preserve creative, project-based learning while being more affordable and efficient.
Principal Reichler and other staff explained that PE would remain a separate special and that music remains a district priority though staffing for music is currently limited. The board expressed general support and asked staff to prepare a course-proposal packet for formal approval at a future meeting (two reads required for course approvals).
