An engagement lab that immerses students into lessons opened Oct. 3 at Thomas J. Rusk Elementary. The interactive classroom, housed in the former band hall adjacent to Beall Gym on the TJR campus, provides a 360-degree setting for students as they work on projects ranging from .
“The possibilities on what can be done in this classroom are really endless,” TJR fifth-grade teacher Emily Drewery said during a brief commemoration. Nacogdoches County Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the grand opening.
The labs utilize multiple classroom-style projectors, LED lighting, speakers, and a computer to tie lessons together, providing teachers with an opportunity to deeply engage students in projects, something education research shows can significantly increase student ability to retain information.
Much of the money for the project came from federal funds, Thomas J. Rusk Principal Harshbarger said. But a $4,500 grant received more than a year ago from Nacogdoches ISD Education Foundation helped jump-start the project, paying for three of the nine required projectors, mounts and a portion of the lighting system.
Drewery, Kimberly Teas, Alyssa Wharton, Dacia Strickland, Jamison Forst and Stephanie Harrison wrote the grant that was awarded by the NEF.
“A huge shout out to our technology department at Nac ISD for coming in and finishing everything up for us,” Drewery said during the Oct. 3 ribbon cutting ceremony. “On a personal note, making learning exciting and engaging is what brings me the most joy as a teacher so I’m always looking for new and innovative ways to make learning irresistible for the students.”
Projectors installed on the ceiling of the old band hall produce images that surround the room, surrounding the class into an endless combination of scenes and backgrounds while students collaborate on related projects at tables in the center of the room.
“These tools allowed us to create an immersive atmosphere to teach highly engaging and rigorous lessons at any grade level in any content area,” Drewery said.
Executive Director Erin Windham was excited her organization, Nacogdoches ISD Education Foundation, played a vital role in providing money to start the project.
“I can’t begin to express how excited I am to see this,” Windham said. “When this foundation was created three years ago, this is precisely the kind of project I imagined would be funded with grants to NISD teachers.”
Nacogdoches ISD Education Foundation has contributed more than $100,000 to NISD classroom teachers since being formed in 2022. NEF provides charitable and educational purposes exclusively to benefit Nacogdoches Independent School District and is a 501(c)(3) organization.
