by Moira Cullings
moira.cullings@theleaven.org
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Today’s educators face a unique challenge in setting their students up for success.
“We’re trying to educate children for careers that don’t exist yet,” said Maeve Tung, STREAM director at Nativity Parish School in Leawood.
“So, how do you prepare children for those jobs and for a rapidly evolving world?” she asked.
Catholic schools on both sides of the state line are taking up the task.
Real-world problems, innovative solutions
For the first time, schools from the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph came together for a “Stewards of Innovation” STEM competition on April 27 at Visitation Parish in Kansas City, Missouri.
It was organized by the Brown Family Charitable Foundation (BFFKC) cohort of STREAM directors in the Kansas City area with support from BFFKC.
STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and math. STREAM, commonly implemented in archdiocesan schools, adds religion and arts to the mix.
Participating schools from Kansas were Holy Cross, Overland Park; Mater Dei, Topeka; Nativity, Leawood; Queen of the Holy Rosary, Wea; and Resurrection, Kansas City, Kansas.
Representing Kansas City, Missouri, were Notre Dame de Sion Grade School, St. Elizabeth and Visitation.
Two teams of fifth through eighth graders from each school competed.
Their challenge, inspired by real-world sports stadiums, was to design and build a paper ramp with as few materials as possible that could roll a ball from the top to the bottom as slowly as possible without it stopping.
At the end, the students presented their product to a panel of judges.
Tung said STEM opportunities aren’t just fun for the students.
“It really is an integral part of educating a child in 2026,” she said.
Guided by Catholic values
The competition is just one way Catholic schools are collaborating on and expanding their STREAM offerings.
That’s something that Kristen Thompson, STREAM director at Resurrection, said has typically been more readily available at public schools due to resources.
“We’re being innovative by bringing those experiences to our Catholic school students,” said Thompson.
“Also, [collaborating with other] students of faith is really empowering — to know that there are so many other people who have the same beliefs that we do,” she added.
Angela Kopp, science coordinator at Holy Cross, said that having Catholic values at the heart of a project like building a stadium ramp is what sets Catholic schools apart.
“It’s adding that social justice impact — the social justice teachings of the Catholic Church — into our design,” she said.
A key component of the competition was the accessibility aspect, which Thomspon said helped the students consider those with disabilities and injuries.
“We’re trying to make it under real-world constraints,” she said, “which helps them have an engineering mind. That can also be framed as future potential careers that they could go into.”
Community effort
The cohort of educators said expanded STREAM efforts in the archdiocese wouldn’t be possible without wider community support.
“The only way this happens is with really generous benefactors who are willing to provide financial support — not only for personnel but also for the equipment in our schools,” said Kopp.
Christina White, assistant principal and STREAM director at Holy Rosary, has seen the impact that support has had on archdiocesan STREAM programs.
“I think it has grown tremendously throughout our Catholic schools, especially with the Brown Family Foundation helping to support the STEM program in our schools,” she said.
Thompson agreed.
“The Brown Foundation has really opened doors for all students to be able to have these STREAM experiences in their classrooms,” she said.
About the Brown Family Foundation
The Brown Family Charitable Foundation (BFFKC) was founded in 2020 by Michael and Millie Brown, members of Church of the Nativity Parish in Leawood.
“It really starts with Millie and Mike Brown’s vision — shared with our partner school leaders — that every student deserves excellence in a 21st-century education,” said Jo Weller, managing director.
“At BFFKC, we partner with schools to grow strong teacher-leaders, support classrooms through instructional coaching and connect educators through professional learning communities so students can thrive academically,” she said.
Weller believes the power of STEM-related experiences is the human-centered problem students are faced with.
“Students are making decisions, testing ideas and learning from failure,” she said, “while building durable skills like critical thinking, problem solving, communication, collaboration and confidence.
“That’s where you see real joy and engagement, along with strong student ownership of the learning.”
“In Catholic schools, this matters even more,” said Weller, “because we’re forming the whole child, helping them use their talents with purpose [as they] begin to see how they can contribute to their communities.”
