The Science Academy of South Texas

South Texas ISD Science Academy (formerly known as The Science Academy of South Texas), also known as "SciTech", is a high school in Mercedes, Texas, United States, as part of the South Texas Independent School District. This campus is ranked among the top 1% Best Public High Schools in America.[4]

South Texas ISD Science Academy
Location
900 Med High Drive

Mercedes
,
Texas
78570

United States
Coordinates26.157108°N 97.939356°W / 26.157108; -97.939356
Information
TypePublic high school
MottoThink Outside the Book!
Established1989
School districtSouth Texas Independent School District
PrincipalDr. Irma Castillo
Faculty44.6 (on FTE basis)[1]
Grades9-12
Enrollment731 (as of 2018-19)[2]
Student to teacher ratio13:1[3]
MascotVitruvian Man
Websitescienceacademy.stisd.net

The school serves as an alternative to high schools of local independent school districts for students interested in pursuing careers in science, technology, and engineering. The school's unique curriculum has given it national recognition.[5] Being a public magnet school, open enrollment has been the school's policy since its creation, although application is required. The Science Academy is part of the South Texas Independent School District which is ranked #9 out of 10,758 school districts in the United States.

The South Texas ISD Science Academy has partnerships with Cornell University, Stanford University, Rice University, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of Texas-Pan American and South Texas College.[6] Its sister school South Texas ISD Health Professions, commonly known as "Med High", resides on the same campus. Both schools are served by Biblioteca Las Américas, the campus library, which is located at equal distance from both schools.

The Science Academy has no athletics department, but students participate in academic competitions regularly. In 2008, The Science Academy gym was completed, no longer sharing with the Med High gym.

A study called The Science Academy a "dropout factory," citing a 55% retention rate.[7]

As of the 2018-19 school year, the school had an enrollment of 731 students and 54.42 classroom teachers (on a FTE basis), for a student-teacher ratio of 13:1.[8]

History
Logo used in South Texas ISD advertising, ?-2019

The school was founded in 1989 as the Math and Science Academy. Jorge Lopez, the principal of neighboring Med High served as principal. After a year, the school's name was changed to The Science Academy of South Texas. In 1992, the main building was completed and classes moved out of the portables.

In 2018, construction of The Science Academy's Congressman Rubén Hinojosa Innovation Lab was completed. A supporting beam signed by the Class of 2018 can be seen near the building's mezzanine.

A detailed history of The Science Academy can be found in Dr. Anna Rudolph Canter's dissertation entitled In the Middle of an Orange Grove, Across the Street From the Tortilla Factory: The Science Academy of South Texas.

Awards and recognition

During the 2005-06 school year, The South Texas ISD Science Academy was recognized with the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education,[9][10] the highest award an American school can receive.[11][12]

In 2003, it was placed 8th on Newsweek magazine's listing of "America's Best High Schools".[9][13]

In 2007, U.S. News & World Report ranked The Science Academy 23rd on its list of America's Best High Schools. SciTech's sister schools South Texas Business, Education & Technology Academy, or BETA (currently known as South Texas ISD World Scholars), and South Texas High School for Health Professions, or Med High (currently known as South Texas ISD Health Professions), were ranked 54th and 64th respectively.[14]

In 2010, The Science Academy was ranked number twelve on Newsweek's ranking of the best high schools in the nation. It was also ranked third among other Texas high schools.

In 2011, The Science Academy was ranked number twenty six on The Washington Review.

In the 2012 issue of the U.S. News & World Report, The Science Academy ranked at number 48. Med High and BETA ranked at 104th and 245th respectively. SciTech's Advanced Placement (AP) exam passing rate was at 44%. BETA had a passing rate of 15%,[15] and Med High had a passing rate of 27%.[16]

In the 2014 issue of the U.S. News & World Report, The Science Academy ranked at number 38 in the nation.[17]

In 2018, it was placed at 13th for Best Public High Schools in Texas and 1st in the Rio Grande Valley.[18]

In 2019, The Science Academy received the PLTW Distinguished High School award. Only 9 out of 1,624 schools in Texas received this prestigious award.[19]

Extracurricular activities

SciTech has numerous extracurricular organizations including but not limited to:

See also

References
  1. The Science Academy, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed April 7, 2013.
  2. Niche
  3. Niche
  4. Niche Accessed October 15, 2018. Best Public High Schools in America.
  5. The Education Innovator #43, United States Department of Education, December 2, 2005. Accessed November 7, 2007.
  6. The Science Academy of South Texas Archived 2012-09-11 at archive.today, South Texas Independent School District. Accessed November 7, 2007.
  7. "Dropout Factories", Associated Press. Accessed November 7, 2007.
  8. Niche Accessed October 15, 2018.
  9. Ashby, Nicole. "Rigorous curriculum puts South Texas students on track for high-tech careers", The Achiever, March–April 2006. Accessed November 7, 2007. "In addition to being ranked eighth by Newsweek in 2003 among the 100 top public high schools in the country, the school last year was named a No Child Left Behind--Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education."
  10. U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 2003 through 2006 (PDF), United States Department of Education. Accessed May 11, 2006.
  11. CIBA cited as one of the best by Education Department Archived August 19, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Journal Inquirer, November 16, 2006. "The Blue Ribbon award is given only to schools that reach the top 10 percent of their state's testing scores over several years or show significant gains in student achievement. It is considered the highest honor a school can achieve."
  12. Viers Mill School Wins Blue Ribbon; School Scored High on Statewide Test; The Washington Post. September 29, 2005 "For their accomplishments, all three schools this month earned the status of Blue Ribbon School, the highest honor the U.S. Education Department can bestow upon a school."
  13. "Science Academy of South Texas ranked 8th in nation", Baylor College of Medicine press release, dated June 6, 2003. Accessed November 7, 2007.
  14. Gold Medal Schools, U.S. News & World Report, November 29, 2007. Accessed December 11, 2007.
  15. , U.S. News & World Report, November 29, 2011. Accessed July 4, 2012.
  16. , U.S. News & World Report, November 29, 2011. Accessed July 4, 2012.
  17. "The Science Academy of South Texas Overview". U.S. News & World Report Education. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  18. Niche
  19. "Distinguished Schools".
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