Serena Hills Elementary Announces SmartLab Donation

Written by Bill Laurienti

Flossmoor School District 161 in Illinois recently announced a generous donation from alumnus Allan DiCastro to fund the district’s first SmartLab HQ.

DiCastro’s generous donation of up to $200,000 will fund a SmartLab HQ at Serena Hills Elementary School where he was a student in the early 1970’s.

DiCastro remembers his time at Serena Hills fondly. “Experiences in that school made me feel like I could achieve what anyone else could,” DiCastro told the Homewood-Flossmoor Chronicle. “And then as I went out into the world that sense of worth stuck and grounded me.”

Now, after a successful 20-year career in finance, his generosity will provide his alma mater with STEAM resources so that other students can benefit from similar inspiration.

We appreciate his commitment to educating young learners and are proud to partner with Flossmoor District 161.

Serena Hills Elementary and Alumnus Allan DiCastro

Bill Laurienti

Content Marketing Manager

Bill Laurienti is the content marketing manager at Creative Learning Systems. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education (English) from Colorado Mesa University and a Master of Arts in Secondary Teaching from the University of California's Rossier School of Education. Bill came to CLS after 10 years in the secondary classroom. He believes SmartLabs are important tools for engaging unengaged students and helping them access careers they might not otherwise have imagined.

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When the team at Jewell Houston Academy, a magnet school in Texas, looked for a STEM program, they wanted one that would not only engage students in STEM careers but could also teach conflict-resolution, problem-solving, collaboration, and communication skills.

Read about how the SmartLab HQ impacted both learners and enrollment.

View the Case Study

Serena Hills Elementary Announces SmartLab Donation

Bill Laurienti

Going beyond STEM to teach essential skills

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