The Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council at the Iowa Department of Education has announced the selected programs for the 2025-26 Iowa STEM Scale-Up Program menu.
Iowa’s STEM Scale-Up Program provides educators and students throughout the state with access to exemplary STEM educational opportunities. These programs offer a diverse range of STEM activities to, on average, nearly 100,000 students each year, helping boost mathematics, science and reading abilities, encouraging resolve to pursue STEM careers upon completing studies and fostering the confidence needed to become lifelong learners and critical thinkers.
Thirteen programs were selected from a pool of 80 proposals from across the country for this menu based on the STEM Council’s strategic priorities, including agricultural science, applied engineering, computational thinking, ecology and energy education, mathematics, STEM and arts integration, STEM careers, integration into existing curriculum and transdisciplinary learning. These priorities were selected to provide Iowa students with educational opportunities that emphasize the necessary skills needed for the future workforce. Students who participate in the STEM Scale-Up Program historically have an increased interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects and careers.
The following 13 programs were selected to be offered to PK-12 educators across Iowa, both in and out of school, for the 2025-26 academic year:
All About Balance (grades PK-3) All About Balance allows children to become more curious and engaged as they actively explore the role of balance within the world of objects and with their own bodies.
Barobo C-STEM Afterschool and Summer Robotics and Robotics-Math Programs (grades PK-12) The Barobo C-STEM program integrates coding and robotics into PK-12 mathematics education, using both virtual and hardware robots in a standards-aligned curriculum to enhance engagement and boost achievement.
CodeJoy Presents: Micro:bit in the Wild (grades 3-12) The program uses micro:bit to teach educators about Environmental Literacy through hands-on activities with computer science.
CodeXcursion: Teach Python Coding with CodeX (grades 4-12) The program provides opportunities for students to start with Python basics and progress to exciting projects like creating games and simulations.
Drone Designers: Exploring STEAM Careers (grades 4-8) The program takes a multidisciplinary approach to introducing learners in grades 4–8 to the world of drones and coding with an emphasis on their use in the arts and entertainment industries.
Getting Started with Elementary OpenSciEd Curriculum (grades K-5) OpenSciEd reimagines the experience of science education to ensure that all students, regardless of their previous exposure to science, can excel in and outside of the classroom.
Grow, Create, Innovate: The STEAM-Powered Art (grades K-8) This program allows students to engage in standards-aligned activities such as the Reaction Game, which explores physics and chemistry through interactive play, The Operation Game combines logic with mechanical design while DNA Modeling merges biology with creative visualization. Students can also build an Automata, which integrates engineering with artistic design.
MathNation.com (grades 6-12) The program offers comprehensive resources for middle and high school mathematics. Math Nation+ uses interactive videos, practice tools and personalized learning paths to engage students in deep mathematical understanding.
Overcoming Barriers to STEM Engagement: A Cross-Curricular Structural and Wind Energy Project Using Sketching as the First Step (grades 6-12) The program provides a hands-on project with wind energy technology that builds engagement with STEM. This project includes design of a scale tower to support a wind turbine with load and deflection testing.
Plant the Moon Challenge (grades PK-12) The Plant the Moon Challenge is a global science experiment, learning experience and inspirational project-based-learning challenge. Students compete to see who can grow the best crops using lunar and Martian regolith stimulant
Positive Physics, Chemistry, Physical Science, Biology, Environmental Science and Engineering (grades 6-12) This program provides an engaging, online lesson and problem bank for middle and high school science. The site was built by teachers in diverse classrooms and designed to be accessible to students on any level from middle school to advanced placement (AP).
Spintronics: Engineer and Design Mechanical Circuits (grades 3-8) Spintronics allows students to learn electronics through hands-on puzzles instead of complex mathematics. Instead of imagining invisible electrons running through wires, the students can see the chains moving through the sprockets.
STEAM Innovators K-8: Pathways for Future Leaders (grades K-8) SAM Labs' STEAM program was designed to make STEM concepts engaging by integrating the arts and blending creativity with science, technology, engineering and mathematics to foster innovation, critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
The STEM Scale-Up Program educator application period for the 2025-26 academic year will open Jan. 7, 2025, and close on March 3, 2025, at 4:59 p.m. Selected educator recipients will be announced in April.
In order to apply, educators will need an account established with the IowaGrants system. First-time users will need to set up an account in IowaGrants, which can take up to three business days for a new account to be activated. For additional instructions on starting and finding a funding opportunity, view the FAQs and tips to navigate the IowaGrants system or use the STEM Scale-Up Application Help Guide.
More information can be found on the Department’s STEM Scale-Up Program page.