The St. Mary’s County Public Schools STEM Academy in Maryland has something to brag about: 35% of the young men in the STEM Class of 2019 are Eagle Scouts!
Nationally, only 4-6% of members of the Boy Scouts of America earn the rank of Eagle Scout. Up until now, all of those Scouts have been young men, so when you look at the total number of young men in the United States only about 1.5% of them earn the rank of Eagle Scout. And yet, six out of seventeen young men in the STEM Class of 2019 are now part of that elite group.
According to the St. Mary’s County Public Schools website, the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Academy at Great Mills High School is “a rigorous and unique program of study emphasizing the core areas of mathematics and science with an infusion of technology and engineering.” Students take as many as twelve Advanced Placement courses during their high school career and complete an internship in a STEM field during the Summer before their senior year.
The Scouts represent four different troops throughout St. Mary’s County: Troop 303 in Valley Lee, Troop 793 in California, Troop 1785 in Mechanicsville, and Troop 2819 in California. In addition to their school work, each of these Scouts completed at least twenty-one merit badges in subjects such as citizenship, first aid, cooking, camping and personal fitness. Some of the merit badges they earned were STEM related, with topics such as environmental science, mammal study, robotics, weather, and energy. They each also completed a leadership project to benefit their community.
If that were not enough, four of them participated in varsity sports during high school, including track, cross country, tennis, lacrosse, and soccer. Three are active in the National Honor Society. Two competed with robotics teams and one participated in several school plays.
Their future plans include degrees in paleontology, biology, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, and environmental planning.