PCHS Innovation Institute Summer Program

On Friday, students from Platte County High School’s Innovation Institute/Academy summer program came to Platte Valley Bank to present their ideas on how to improve our community and world.

Unlike many traditional summer school courses, Innovation Institute utilizes authentic activities, projects and problems in an inquiry and collaborative learning environment. Teachers engage students intellectually, emotionally, socially, and behaviorally to earn their course credit while meeting specific academic standards and completing meaningful work for their school, their community or the KC Metropolitan Area.

One young woman mentioned ways to decrease pollution in sea water, save lives of sea animals, and preserve and enhance the world we live in today for the lives of our children in the future. One of the main points of this presentation were the hazards of plastics. Did you know, to sea turtles and other sea life, plastic bags look like jellyfish and are eaten which can lead to their death. Also, 98% of seabirds have indigestible plastic in their stomachs and over 1 million birds per year die due to our pollution.

Two partners discussed the seriousness of Colony Collapse Disorder of honey bees. They are trying to find, prevent, and treat the collapse of honey bee hives due to possible pesticide poisoning of worker bees and mite infestations on drone bees.

Other ideas include finding very creative ways for technology to improve the function of the pancreas to help diabetics, water desalinization to separate salt from water, H20 filling stations to efficiently fill water bottles, vibrations over explosions, updating a company website, and creating a new historical website.

Theses brilliant students are on their way to do great things for their school, their community, family, friends, and the world. Good luck with all of your projects!