Expanded Opportunities

San Marcos High School senior Victoria Alvarez carefully puts on medical gloves and walks over to a medical mannequin. She begins thoroughly explaining to her patient that she will be taking their temperature with a tympanic thermometer.

Alvarez is preparing for an upcoming Health Occupations Students of America competition inside the high school’s Certified Nursing Assistant Classroom at San Marcos Consolidated ISD’s Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math Center.

Students work inside a computer lab inside the STEAM Center at San Marcos High School.

The classroom features four hospital beds, several mannequins and a plethora of medical instruments for students to use. For students like Alvarez, SMCISD’s new STEAM Center provides additional opportunities and space for students to learn skills they can take into the job market or college after high school.

“I really like doing these classes just because they gave me an opportunity to have a larger place to learn,” said Alvarez, who completed the high school’s CNA program last year. She earned her CNA certificate as well, which was paid for by the district. Alvarez is currently pursuing her EMT certification and says she sees the benefit of the new building with its expanded space for students to work in.

“I'm doing HOSA (Health Occupations Students of America) and our skill is home health aid and we have to use the mannequins,” Alvarez said. “(The STEAM Center) really helps just because I know many other schools they don't get the opportunities that we have and so we're given a rare opportunity.”

San Marcos Consolidated ISD's new STEAM Center was built with funds from the 2017 school bond. The new building increases San Marcos High School's capacity from 2,400 students to 2,700.

SMCISD’s STEAM Center was funded by the 2017 school bond. The building cost approximately $17 million but added much needed space, allowing capacity at the high school to grow from 2,400 students to 2,700.

The STEAM Center houses high school programs such as Health Science; Law & Public Safety; Arts, Audio Visual Technology, & Communications; Architecture & Construction; Manufacturing; Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics; and Transportation, Distribution & Logistics.

High school students work inside the STEAM Center's Robotics lab.

Inside the building there are robotics and engineering labs; forensic labs for criminal justice students; construction workspaces; automotive spaces for collision repair and vehicle alignments; broadcast television and production spaces; as well as a computer lab.

“It’s a beautiful, phenomenal, first-class facility,” said Mike Doyle, SMCISD Career & Technical Education director. “When we first opened I was here a lot. But everyday I would ask kids ‘What do you think?’ and they were all saying, ‘Man, it’s like college. I feel like I’m in a college.’ And that was one of the big things, we wanted this to be professional and collegiate. Something just striking when you see it.”

The building opened in January and programs such as CNA are already seeing the benefits.

“It’s fantastic because this building has been built around our needs opposed to us trying to fit in an existing classroom in the high school,” said Megan Bading, SMHS health and science teacher. “This is the ideal step up for us. It’s allowed us to have more beds in this space, more working room so the kids don’t necessarily have to trade off whenever they’re practicing. There’s enough space for everybody in our program to do what they need to do.”

San Marcos High School senior Victoria Alvarez, who is working on her EMT certification, prepares for an upcoming competition as she changes a bandage on a medical mannequin 

But this is just the beginning of what SMCISD wants to do with the building. There’s a desire to partner with local businesses to provide students training and skills for current industry needs.

“I’m working on getting business partners to help us,” Doyle said. “This is where if business folks, who have labor demands or training demands, can help us design programs. There’s a possibility of plumbing or electrical or HVAC or all three. Or if company XYZ wants to sponsor teachers and programs, we can build that here. This is your turn-key lab for companies to help us build the next generation.”

For students, such as Alvarez, they acknowledge the opportunities the new STEAM Center provides.

“It’s just extraordinary,” Alvarez said. “Just having it, I guess, just because other people don't get to do this stuff and we're given (an opportunity) to do it and it's all paid for by the school so that’s really helpful.”