The Springfield High School of Science and Technology (HSST) is a public high school located in Springfield, Massachusetts. The high school is home to grades 9รข€"12. As of September 2008, the student count was approximately 1,700 students. This makes Science and Technology the third largest high school in Springfield, behind Springfield Central High School and the High School of Commerce. It is located directly next to Springfield's Roger L Putnam Vocational-Technical High School and the two schools share school buses.
History
The building that is currently used as the High School was built in the 1950s as an office building for Monarch Life Insurance, which was bought by Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance (MassMutual) in the late 1980s. In the early 1990s, as Springfield's public school system was rapidly growing and the other three high schools getting seriously overcrowded, the decision was made to create a new high school for the city. The building was purchased from Mass Mutual and underwent an extensive remodel to turn it from an office building to a school. The cafeteria and library were created and an all new sports complex was added in the back of the original building (the two connecting with a skywalk on the second floor). The design of the building still represents that of an office building with the inside classrooms lacking windows.
The high school opened in September 1996 and was billed as the top high school in Springfield with a significant focus on science and technology, with an entire hall dedicated to science labs and (at the time) the most modern computers, with a total of eight computer labs. As the end of the 1990s approached, due to changes in enrollment strategies at the district level, the school was required to take in a high percentage of students who were not interested in the Science and Technology focus of the school, and academic performance declined as a result. The high school also had problems keeping a principal during the 2000s with many different principals passing through.
Former principal of Science and Technology was Ira Brown who started at the school in late 2007. As part of the state-mandated reconstruction of the Springfield Schools in the mid-00s, Principal Brown spearheaded the transformation of the school into a NAF-supported school focusing on the STEM areas, with all students required to join one of four Academies. Under Mr. Brown's leadership, attendance rates and test scores at Science and Technology have continued to rise from their lowest point in 2003.
In 2008, the Springfield Public Schools created the mandatory district wide uniform policy. Sci-Tech's current uniform consists of a Navy Blue Polo & Tan or Black Pants.
STEM 21
Beginning in 2008, with the class of 2012, Springfield High School of Science and Technology adapted the STEM 21 learning criteria. This generally separates the school into 'houses'.
The four houses are:
Biomedical, Biotechnology & Forensic. Engineering. Finance. Information Technology, Film & Media.
This essentially turned Sci-Tech into one of Springfield's ever growing magnet schools. The hope is for more funding, and getting Sci-Tech to be the school it once was. Upperclassmen who were attending the school before the start of the program (classes of 2009, 2010 & 2011) are offered the STEM courses but not required to take them.
References
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