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Search Back On For STEAM Academy Home

fcps.net

It’s back to the drawing board for officials with the Fayette County Public Schools STEAM Academy. The special program focusing on science, technology, math, engineering, arts, and mathematics was expected to take up residence at a University of Kentucky-owned site off Scott Street, but those plans have been shelved.

The academy has long been in search of a permanent home – first pursuing a former Winn-Dixie location in 2013, then looking for a suitable spot on the UK campus. Tuesday, the district announced that the proposed site near the university’s College of Education doesn’t meet state environmental standards.

"This is a bump in the road and sometimes you have those, but this is a great project and terrific initiative for our community and our schools and we're committed to seeing it through," says UK spokesman Jay Blanton.

As the university begin surveying other potential locations on campus, Blanton says STEAM students may soon have the opportunity to earn dual high school and college credit through UK in the meantime.

"The school system and STEAM are making some plans about when those dual enrollment courses might be instituted for what we might call non-degree seeking students or STEAM Academy students," he says. "We're working through that and exploring those options."

The district had set a goal of completing the transition to the new building by 2017.

Josh James fell in love with college radio at Western Kentucky University's student station, New Rock 92 (now Revolution 91.7). After working as a DJ and program director, he knew he wanted to come home to Lexington and try his hand in public radio.