Over the past six years I have had the privilege to serve the students and
teachers of Mt. Pleasant schools through a joint position with Maury County
Public Schools and the Kids on Stage Foundation of Maury County. This
position has provided Fine Arts leadership to the school system but it has
also given me the ability to connect directly with Smelter Service Corporation
of Mt. Pleasant, TN. Smelter specializes in aluminum recycling and they are
committed to making a difference in their community. Through my work with
their Cultural Development team, I visit their facilities frequently and have
seen firsthand the commitment this corporation has to hiring not just well-
trained employees but employees that can be innovative problem solvers.
Smelter is a leader in their industry but they are not alone in their desire to
hire employees that can create solutions. They have however discovered the
very reason STEM needs an “A”. It is the need to hire creative people with
analytical skills that can also problem solve. All of these needs are enhanced
through participation in arts activities. When STEM includes the “A”, students
naturally use divergent thinking to generate ideas to solve not only the problem
presented but most of the time several others along the way. By breaking
a problem down into core components, students are able to take abstract
thoughts and make concrete connections. Join me at Leader U this summer to
learn more about Full STEAM Ahead.
Cindy Pride
Kids on Stage Director
Maury County Public Schools