Lt. Governor Larry Rhoden Announces STEM Award for Lakota Tech High School

Pine Ridge Reservation, SD – Today, Lt. Gov. Larry Rhoden announced that Lakota Tech High School will receive an award for its STEM programming from the National Lieutenant Governors’ Association Lt. Governors’ STEM Scholarship Program! NLGA awarded the school $1,000 as part of a national call for applications for funding STEM programming and curriculum in schools.

“Promoting and encouraging STEM activities in schools is critical to building the workforce of tomorrow,” said Lt. Gov. Rhoden. “Lakota Tech’s weather balloon project will further interest in STEM in our youth, and this funding from NLGA ensures that STEM learning will expand for the students at the only career and technical education high school on a Native American reservation anywhere in the United States.”

Lakota Tech is the only career and technical education high school on a Native American reservation in the U.S., offering students access to a diploma and career pathways. Through the use of the NLGA funding, students will learn about high-altitude weather ballooning and gain hands-on experience with designing and testing a payload.

NLGA opened the application period for the STEM Scholarship Program in May 2022. The application process was competitive, with NLGA receiving 170 requests for STEM funding from schools in 32 states and one U.S. territory. Submissions were awarded by region, with three schools in each of NLGA’s four regions receiving scholarships ranging from $500 - $1,000 each.

“As the seconds-in-command in state and territorial government, lieutenant governors are uniquely poised to lead on STEM Education,” said NLGA Executive Director Julia Brossart. “By supporting STEM-related activities in schools across the country, we can encourage a long-term interest and passion in STEM Education in America’s youth.”

The Scholarship Program is administered by NLGA, the nonpartisan, nonprofit association for the nation’s seconds-in-command, and sponsored by ACT, the education and career readiness nonprofit.

“STEM is for everyone, and the NLGA’s STEM Scholarship Program will help ensure that more students are prepared for whatever path they choose after high school,” said ACT CEO Janet Godwin. “ACT has spent decades assessing and analyzing the skills that students will need to be successful in college and career. NLGA’s leadership on STEM will provide more students, including young people from underserved populations, an opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills to fuel their own educational and career successes, as well as the country’s long-term prosperity.” 

Public, private, and tribal schools in the 50 states and five U.S. territories were invited to apply for funding to support STEM-related activities, programming, curriculum, equipment, and other expenses. Funding will be provided to all winning schools in August.

Additional information on the STEM Scholarship Program can be found at https://nlga.us/strategies/nlga-state-strategies-in-stem/.