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GODFREY - On Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025, St. Ambrose Catholic School held the “Grand Opening” for a new STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics) lab.
The vision for the STEAM lab was developed by St. Ambrose graduate and current Edwardsville HS Junior, Elisabeth Preston. Elisabeth chose to complete this project as the focus for her Girl Scout Gold Award (the highest level award presented to scouts). Elisabeth has been involved in scouting for more than 10 years. Elisabeth wanted to create a space for all St. Ambrose students to use and the inspiration came from her love for math, science, and engineering as well as from her admiration and respect for her teachers at St. Ambrose and EHS.
This project has been in the works for many months. After receiving the grateful blessing from St. Ambrose to proceed, Elisabeth had to develop and present a proposal and receive formal approval from the Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois Council.
After receiving approval, donations were sought out and received and the plan went forward. The next step required a significant clean out, as the designated space for the lab had become long-term storage. After clearing out the old, the space was painted and redesigned.
Lastly, many STEAM related lab stations were added along with a Smart Panel for class use, new furniture, and new storage shelving. At the Grand Opening, St. Ambrose Pastor, Fr. Steven Janoski, provided a blessing of the space. The students in 6-8 grades were at the opening and were able to interact with the different stations and see the lab in action.
St. Ambrose Catholic School would like to thank all those that supported this project, especially to Elisabeth Preston and the entire Preston family, Ralph and Mary Pelikan, the Stevenson family, Chris Rose and Lowe’s Hardware, and to the Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois Council.
