Launched in September 2023, Itz’at STEAM Academy is a secondary school in Belize developed from a partnership between MIT's Abdul Latif Jameel World Education Lab (J-WEL) and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Technology to develop a school that prepares students to build sustainable futures for themselves and their communities, using science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM).
Now currently at 64 students, with plans to reach full capacity of 300 students by 2026, Itz’at was developed from a 2019 agreement to implement a STEAM laboratory school in Belize with funding from the Inter-American Development Bank. The goal is to continue to build capacity toward STEAM education across the country, expanding the possibilities available to students after graduation and foster a robust school-to-career pipeline.
“One of the key aspects of the project has been the approach to co-design and co-creation of the school,” says Claudia Urrea, principal investigator for the Itz’at project at MIT and senior associate director of MIT J-WEL pK-12. “This approach has not only allowed us to create a relevant school for the country, but to build the local capacity for innovation to sustain beyond the time of the project.”
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When 14-year-old Jahzhia Moralez played a vocabulary game that involved jumping onto her friend like a backpack, she knew Itz'at STEAM Academy wasn’t like other schools in Belize. Transferring from a school that assigned nearly four hours of homework every night, Moralez found it strange that her first week at Itz'at was focused on having fun.
“I was very excited,” Moralez says. “I want to be an architect or a vet, and this school has the curriculum for that and other technology-based stuff.”
The name “Itz’at” translates to “wise one” in Maya, honoring the local culture that studied mathematics and astronomy for over a thousand years. Launched in September 2023, Itz’at STEAM Academy is a secondary school that prepares students between the ages of 13 and 16 to build sustainable futures for themselves and their communities, using science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM). The school’s mission is to create a diverse and inclusive community for all, especially girls, students with special educational needs, and learners from marginalized social, economic, and cultural groups.