LTUSD to look at STEAM program, new course and budget at Tuesday's meeting

The Lake Tahoe Unified School District trustees will continue their discussion into the future use of the old Al Tahoe school site during a study session prior to their normal board meeting Tuesday.

Starting at 5:00 p.m., the board will discuss the developmental process for the proposed reopening and modernization of Al Tahoe STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, mathematics) Academy. During this session they will brainstorm objectives and ideas in dialogue with the Board of Education. During their first study session, the board and district discussed money to be received with passage of November's Prop. 51 which provides modernization funds, the status of the preschools currently housed at the site, the development of a district employee infant and childcare center, project enrollment figures, the development of a state-of-the-art STEAM academy education program with focus on robotics and engineering in preschool to 5th grade and adding a branch of Lake Tahoe Community College and Sierra Nevada College Teacher Preparation Program which will serve as a lab school to allow college students to earn an Elementary Education credential.

At this time, starting in Fall of 2017. the Al Tahoe STEAM Academy will maintain the preschool program and start introducing elementary robotics and STEAM curriculum for preschoolers (about 198 students), receive the first of four Vail Corporation's donations of $25,000, maintain 20 students in the special-education preschool, relocation of the Independent Learning Academy to two rooms for 30 students, and implementation of the LTUSD employee infant and childcare Center which will be contained in two rooms.

There will be no public discussion during this study session.

The regular meeting resumes at 6:00 p.m. with presentations on homeless youth in the district and Governor Brown's proposed 2017-18 budget, among other items that can be found here.

LTUSD School Board meetings are held at the District Office at 1021 Al Tahoe Blvd in South Lake Tahoe.