Cornerstone Christian Academy in Willoughby Hills, Ohio, is celebrating after being awarded a $64,935 grant from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce to enhance its STEM teaching technology. Out of 100 applications, CCA was one of 28 schools selected to receive the Nonpublic STEM Grant.
The grant will be used to purchase machinery to support Cornerstone’s technical and vocational training programs. This includes laptops for the Computer Assisted Design certification program, three additional 3D printers, a 3D scanner, a CNC router/plasma cutter table, and a full-color large format vinyl cutting printer.
Head of School Sandi Ortiz expressed her excitement about the grant, stating, “For the past five years, Cornerstone has committed a significant amount of instructional time and resources to developing STEM programming that allows our students to earn industry-recognized certifications. This Nonpublic STEM Grant helps supercharge the advanced technical and vocational programming CCA already has in place.”
In addition to enhancing their technology classrooms, the grant will also support the development of a woodworking shop at the school. STEM Instructor Bill Fischer highlighted the importance of teaching basic woodworking skills to students, stating, “Equipping our students with basic skills like woodworking is both practical and rewarding. Teaching teens how to use their hands stimulates creativity and opens unique doors of opportunity in engineering and the trades to them.”
Cornerstone Christian Academy, a non-profit chartered school, currently serves nearly 500 students through 12th grade. With the addition of new technology and machinery, CCA is poised to further empower its students in the fields of STEM and vocational training.
