About CPLTW

Project Lead The Way (PLTW) prepares students to be the most innovative and productive leaders in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and to make meaningful, pioneering contributions to our world. PLTW partners with middle schools and high schools to provide a rigorous, relevant STEM education. Through an engaging, hands-on curriculum, PLTW encourages the development of problem-solving skills, critical thinking, creative and innovative reasoning, and a love of learning. The PLTW middle and high school STEM education programs give students a brighter future by providing them with a foundation and proven path to college and career success in STEM-related fields. STEM education is at the heart of today’s high-tech, high-skill global economy. For America to remain economically competitive, our next generation of leaders must develop the critical-reasoning and problem-solving skills that will help make them the most productive in the world. PLTW sparks the ingenuity, creativity, and innovation within all of our students. Project Lead The Way (PLTW) was created to address the United States’ need for more leaders in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). In 1986, Richard Blais, chairman of the Technology Department in the Shenendehowa Central School District in upstate New York, began offering pre-engineering and digital electronics classes to encourage students to study engineering. He developed a rigorous, relevant curriculum and paired it with a dynamic, interactive learning environment to produce more successful, confident, and interested students. Based on the success of these classes, Blais partnered with Richard Liebich, whose family founded the Charitable Leadership Foundation (CLF), to create Project Lead The Way. In 1997, PLTW launched its “Pathway To Engineering” program in 12 New York high schools. Over the next few years, a partnership with the High Schools That Work initiative of the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) brought PLTW programs to an additional 30 states. Today, PLTW is the nation’s leading activities-, project-, and problem-based (APPB) program for middle and high school STEM education. More than 300,000 students are currently engaged in PLTW classes in nearly 3,500 schools. Programs are established in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In June 2009, in conjunction with a major commitment to expansion by the Kern Family Foundation, John Lock was named CEO/President of PLTW. Lock previously served as Executive Director of California’s Environmental Charter High School and established the Colorado-based Charter School Growth Fund, a social venture investment fund. Under Lock’s leadership, PLTW has renewed its commitment to providing the most rigorous and relevant middle and high school STEM education programs and to cultivating critical thinking and innovation in students across the country. PLTW’s next generation of leadership is ready to meet the challenges of developing America’s next generation of leaders.

Parent Information

A parent’s work is never done, but Project Lead The Way can help make it easier and more rewarding.

The PLTW middle and high school STEM education programs provide the inspiration for a new generation of innovators, the practical skills and hands-on experience to make students’ knowledge count in the real world, and the basis for the next generation of leadership in the sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

PLTW develops motivated, well-rounded students by instilling confidence, stressing the importance of self-discovery, encouraging innovative problem solving and critical thinking, teaching team building, and rewarding creativity.

Your student will develop skills essential for achievement in the classroom and success in college and at work.

Not to mention:

• PLTW students achieve significantly higher scores in reading, mathematics, and science.
• PLTW graduates earn higher GPAs as college freshmen.
• PLTW graduates are 5 to 10 times more likely to study engineering and technology.

FAQ's

• Visit our Getting Started page for a comprehensive overview of our programs.
• For more information, contact your State Leader.

How much does PLTW cost?

• The cost of the PLTW program(s) depends on many factors, including which courses are beight taught, how many sections of each course are being implemented, and what you already have in your classroom/lab.
• The Purchasing Manual lists everything that is required for each course, and can be used as a tool to help inventory what you may need to purchase.
• On the Purchasing Manual webpage, please review the Additional Resources that will further help you understsand what is required to implment PLTW programs. In particular, we strongly encourage you to review the Instructions for a comprehensive overview.
• Additionally, for an illustrative breakdown of costs, please view Cost Summary.

Where do I find information about college credit?

• College credit is available to students from PLTW certified schools through their local Affiliate.
• Visit your local Engineering or Biomedical Sciences Affiliate webpage for more information.
• For more information on what it means to be a PLTW certified school, visit Certification.

Where do I find information on PLTW Counselor Conferences?

• Information including dates, locations, cost, and contact information are available on our Counselor Conference webpage.

What kind of programs does PLTW have?

• PLTW has three programs: Biomedical Sciences (high schools only), Gateway To Technology (middle schools), Pathway To Engineering (high schools)
• For general information on PLTW courses, please visit Our Programs.
• To request more specific information, including a copy of our curriculum outlines or to review a sample of our curriculum, please contact Engineering Curriculum to obtain a Permission to Review PLTW Curriculum Form.

Information for this webpage was found on the official PLTW website: (http://www.pltw.org/)