Catholic schools get a visit from Dream Flight USA STEM Shuttle

By Patrick Lynn

For the first time since the pandemic hit, the Dream Flight USA STEM Shuttle took up its first mission.

Students from St. Steve and St. Bronislava elementary schools last week got a chance for some hands-on learning on the space shuttle-shaped coach bus that bills itself as “the field trip that visits schools.”

Dream Flight USA reported on its website that after 15 years of visiting schools, it stopped in-person visits in November 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. April 26 marked the organization’s first “mission” since then.

The STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) Shuttle is operated by two veteran teachers, giving hourlong instruction in small groups about space travel and STEM education.

“It’s exciting to have the STEM Shuttle back up and running, and we were thrilled to be their first mission this spring,” said Ellen Lopas, principal of St. Steve’s and Pacelli Catholic Middle School. “We’re grateful to Connexus Credit Union and the Dream Flight USA Foundation for giving our students the opportunity to participate in some interactive, engaging space-related STEM activities outside of the classroom.”

The shuttle’s stop in Stevens Point was made possible by a donation from the Connexus Credit Union’s Connexus Cares Committee to the Dream Flight USA Foundation. The shuttle returns to St. Peter’s Middle School to visit grades 5-8 on May 20.