College Prep & STEAM Electives

Here at the Ocala STEAM Academy, your child is allowed to participate in 21st century technology and learning no matter what their learning file says.

English learner, advanced, GATE, or special education, your child will participate in STEAM learning under all circumstances.

We have 1-1 iPads, programming and robotics kits, mechanics kits, virtual reality headsets, 3D photography, green screens in every classroom, large green screens for movie style production, and touch screen projectors in every room. Every year, big tech companies like Hewlitt Packard, Texas Instruments, Verizon, and others partner with Ocala to deliver state of the art education right here off Capitol Expy.

There are gems under these beautiful and sprawling East foothills, and OSA is committed to making your children shine!

College readiness does NOT start in high school. At the Ocala STEAM Academy, teachers across all content areas participate in college going culture ranging from showing college aspirational spirit on college gear Mondays to participating in the AVID elective. During AVID, students have a specific focus on college-going skills and practices to develop readiness in all three grade-levels. The teachers of the AVID elective include Ms. Ruiz at 6th grade, Ms. Lopes at 7th, and Ms. Bustamante as the 8th grade elective teacher. All students are welcome to apply and show their college-aspirations at the beginning and end of each school year.

During the year, students practice college level study skills, organization, writing, collaboration and research. Many students finish our AVID program as 8th graders knowing which universities and specific programs they'll be interested in applying to in their senior year of high school. That means they are 4 years ahead.  We make college preparatory education a reality with our nationally recognized program!

Our Band Director Mr. Louie Flores runs our programs at the Ryan and Ocala STEAM Academies with great pride and high standards of excellence. We are so happy that ARUSD preserves the musical culture and artistic talents here at Ocala. Born and raised in East San Jose, Mr. Flores lets the community know about our students' talents.

Nuestro director de la band, Sr. Flores aprender nuestros programas en Ryan y Ocala STEAM Academies con mucho orgullo y altos estandares de excelencia. Estamos muy felices que ARUSD preserva la cultura musical y los talentos artisticos aqui en Ocala. 

Here he is with our Ocala band performing along with the Ryan STEAM Academy at Eastridge Mall for the holidays.

Aqui esta con nuestra banda de Ocala tocando con el Ryan Steam Academy en Eastridge durante 

Our VILS partnership empowers the OSA staff and students to engage in a state-of-the-art academic experience with the establishment of only 1 of 2 Verizon Innovation Technology labs in the Bay Area. See for yourself.

At the Ocala STEAM Academy, we strive to innovate learning for students in East San Jose.

Our STEAM lab is a space for the creative engineering and technology designing urges of students to complete their PBL projects and design challenges. Creativity and art combined with technology and engineering are central to the learning at Ocala.

Notice the large green screen in the background used for making videos with layered digital backgrounds and 3D effects!

Ms. Balster, OSA's 8th grade math and science department lead stewards the most motivated STEAM scholars in regional mathematics, science, and engineering competitions through the MESA club. In the 2019-2020 school year, OSA will host a MESA Lego Robotics competition.

MESA meets every Friday in Ms. Balster's class. Reach out to her for more information on joining and participation.

Each year, cohorts of OSA educators have commited to training with San Jose's very own Tech Museum of Innovation. During the summer, OSA teachers train alongside educators from throughout the Silicon Valley in current STEM/STEAM practices including mechanical engineering, computer engineering, and design thinking.

Ocala STEAM Academy is part of the No Excuses University network of schools!

"We believe that every child deserves the opportunity to be educated in a way that prepares them for college. When schools exhibit a culture of universal achievement by believing in students, they collaborate around that belief. During collaboration, they align their standards as a team. As teams align standards, they need to assess the standards and manage the data. Then, and only then, can they pursue meaningful interventions with their students."