Affton School District

The mission of the Affton School District is to prepare all of our students to become confident and capable citizens through rigorous, customized learning. Affton’s continuous journey toward excellence sparks innovative teaching and learning, developing students as responsible citizens prepared for the challenges of the global society. Students grow as highly capable, curious, and confident learners through customized instruction, fueled by technology integration and the passions of the Affton community. In order to make our mission and vision a reality, Affton has been a leader in the St. Louis region when it comes to implementing nationally recognized curricular opportunities that engage our students in critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, and communication. Therefore, joining the CSforAll consortium is a natural fit for our school district. The Affton School District has been on the cutting edge of nationally recognized STEM learning opportunities through a partnership with Project Lead the Way (PLTW). We are proud to be one of only nine school districts in Missouri to provide PLTW access to 100% of our students in grades K-12 and culminate at the high school level with career preparation in computer science, engineering, and biomedical science. Affton has also been a national leader through implementation of the Centers for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) experience that allows juniors and seniors in high school to test-drive their future in high-skill, high-demand professions. Affton founded the St. Louis CAPS program which is the only program of its kind in the area that promotes local high schools working together to offer real-world experience in the areas of technology solutions, global business, entrepreneurship, engineering, advanced manufacturing, medicine, healthcare, and bioscience. Each year Affton hosts the CAPS Network Hackathon that brings students and teachers from across the Midwest to St. Louis for the purpose of solving problems by designing, coding, and presenting technology solutions. When it comes to Affton’s computer science implementation approach, the district uses hands on problem solving and game design opportunities in grades K-8 that are delivered through classroom experiences, Makerspace access, and after school clubs. At the elementary level, all K-5 students participate in a nationally recognized STEM curriculum (PLTW Launch) and Makerspace opportunities where they design games using resources such as Bloxels. All the middle school level, all grade 6-8 students also participate in a nationally recognized STEM curriculum (PLTW Gateway) and have the ability to join the robotics team and coding team. Affton High School has a computer science sequence of courses and students have access to a technical high school where students can earn certifications in networking, web design, and programming. The high school has a student led club called the Cougar Innovation Association (CIA) that is active in robotics and hackathons. In addition, students at the middle and high school level also compete in the Cyber Patriot competition on an annual basis. Affton still has room for improvement however, the district has embraced a culture of innovation, intelligent risks, and strategic opportunities that will drive a productive partnership with CSforAll.