While not the most exciting courses for many students, lessons in math and science are critical pillars of the way we understand, and eventually improve, the world around us.

Unfortunately, providing educators with the tools they need to most effectively teach their wards in these classes is a challenge for many school systems, especially in Berrien and Cass counties.

That is why it is such welcome news to see Brandywine Community Schools and Southwestern Michigan College proudly display the fruit of two heavy investments made into STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education this week, with the public unveiling of new buildings devoted toward teaching students these essential subjects.

On Tuesday, SMC and the Greater Dowagiac Chamber of Commerce hosted a public tour of the Dowagiac community college’s recently renovated O’Leary Building. More than 50 people from around the community came out to check out the updated facility, which houses laboratories filled with state of the art equipment for teaching subjects like biology, chemistry, physics and anatomy.

The following day, the Brandywine school district and the Four Flags Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon of their own, for the new innovation academy. Housed in the former Bell Education Center, the academy allows students to learn STEM and other subjects in a virtual classroom environment.

As society moves further and further down the path of digitization, 21st Century students need to be more acclimated than ever with the technology that drives much of the country’s economy. Not only that, but they also need to familiarize themselves with the concepts that drive these devices, which is why STEM is so critical to our educational systems.

Clearly, both Brandywine and SMC recognize these facts, given the investments they have made with these two facilities.

These were no doubt hefty investments at that — in fact, the college spent over half a million dollars for the equipment that powers the O’Leary building, and the computers used at the innovation center could not have been cheap, either.

However, we feel those dollars are going toward a cause that will greatly benefit our area’s students — and, equipped with the knowledge they will no doubt glean from their time at these institutions, they will go on to help make a difference in the world for generations to come.

 

Opinions expressed are those of the editorial board consisting of Publisher Michael Caldwell and editors Ambrosia Neldon, Craig Haupert, Ted Yoakum and Scott Novak.