Pacelli looks to the future of education

Posted at 7:48 p.m. on Friday, August 26, 2022

Pacelli High School just got a little smarter.

With the school year set to begin next Monday, Pacelli will launch its all-new smart labs, which allow students to catch up on technology and learn in a new, hands-on way.

Pacelli manager Kane Malo said the labs would be useful in catching up with the modern world.

“We put our children in a mode of electronic production rather than electronic consumption,” Malo said. “It’s really easy to sit down and watch a YouTube video, but now we’re going to empower our kids to produce that YouTube video that everyone is excited about.”

Pacelli now has a smartlab in high school and elementary school. The labs were funded with help from the Non-Public Schools Emergency Assistance, which was given to schools during the pandemic to help pay for learning losses.

With the addition of the labs, Pacelli is now the only school in Austin able to offer STEM labs to all of their K-12 students.

“These things are designed to put kids in charge of their own education,” Malo said. “It will allow them to show teachers and the community what they know.”

The new labs will encourage students to explore, plan, do, reflect and share what they have learned. Students will learn problem solving and learn about engineering, coding and robotics.

New labs, an overhaul of cleaning and painting inside Pacelli, and a new parking lot outside the building have Malo extremely optimistic about his third year as school principal.

“To finally lead Pacelli in a year that is not related to COVID is going to be great,” Malo said. “Our enrollment is up and there’s a buzz that I haven’t felt in the first two years. With the addition of the street out front and the green space, I’m really excited for this school year. »

The high school lab was placed in an old media center room, and the elementary lab was placed in an old storage room.