Square Root Academy

Square Root Academy received $48,666 to administer the Square Root Academy and to host a STEM Summit for students.

🌐 https://www.squarerootacademy.com/

Key Accomplishments

• Funds were spent preparing for the Spring semester of Square Root Academy at Samuel Jackman and John Still Middle Schools. This allowed them to offer classes at these two schools concurrently for the first time and reach a larger number of kids.

• Over 50 students were enrolled for the Spring semester.

• Square Root held a STEM Summit partnering with Intel, Maker HQ, Brown & Caldwell, Rocket Department, CSU, Sacramento to teach 100 kids various STEM disciplines.

• Through participation in community events, programs at John Still and John Bidwell, and the May STEM Showcase, Square Root Academy was able to reach over 200 students.

• With student cohorts at John Still and John Bidwell and work at additional events, Square Root Academy was able to expose over 100 students to the fundamentals of STEM across 6 school districts.

• Built John Still’s makerspace created specifically for fostering and enhancing technical skills for both John Still and Square Root Academy scholars.

Performance Metrics

	December 2016	December 2017
Scholars Served Annually	57	565
School Districts Served	1	6
Program Retention (%)	72	91

Assessment

With RAILS grant funding, Square Root Academy was able to increase the number of students reached and participate in events alongside community organizations and fellow RAILS grantees that it would not have had otherwise. It is noteworthy to mention that Square Root Academy employs local college students and provides volunteer opportunities through partnerships with the College of Engineering at California State University, Sacramento, the National Society of Black Engineers, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, and Society of Women Engineers to teach students in its programs.