MADISON – The Madison City Schools district has received a five-year, $1-million grant from the Department of Defense that will enhance science learning in grades 4-10 in all 11 MCS schools.

Improvements will involve additional teacher training, technology and middle-school course additions, like “Green Architecture,” MCS Public Relations Manager John S. Peck said.

The DOD Education Activity or DoDEA Partnership grant directly will benefit for the school district’s S.A.I.L. project or Science Achievement and Investigative Learning. SAIL focuses on improving military-dependent students’ achievement in science; however, students with no military connection stand to benefit also.

Approximately 20 percent of MCS students have a parent or guardian who works in a job connected to the military.

“Madison City Schools is very grateful the DoDEA recognizes the value of a strong science program, especially in this community with such heavy STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) needs,” MCS Superintendent Robby Parker said. “We value the partnership we have with DoDEA.”

The grant will target specific ways in which educators can strengthen science investigations in classes and thus increase college and career readiness of military-connected students. This plan also will help with job coaches and teaching technology.

Madison students in grades 4-6 and their teachers will receive STEMscopes kits as part of the science curriculum. A STEMscope applies a comprehensive digital curriculum that can assist a teacher in classroom strategies.

“This is the fifth grant that Madison City Schools District has received from the Department of Defense Education Partnership Grant Program,” Peck said. “A secondary math grant will end in August 2019, an elementary reading grant will end in 2020, and a secondary reading grant will end in 2021.”