At STEM Launch, innovation isn’t just something we talk about. It’s something our students live, build, test, and grow. This year, our school embarked on an exciting new chapter as one of the specially selected sites for the National STEM Honor Society (NSTEM) and Rayn Growing Systems’ Hydroponic Growing System Pilot Program. With the arrival of our brand new RAYN EdRack, our STEM Ambassadors stepped into the world of sustainable agriculture, hands-on engineering, and cutting-edge problem solving.

The EdRack rolled right into our building, built on heavy duty casters and shining under nine commercial grade grow lights. Students gathered around the system as if welcoming a new team member, eager to understand how they could grow plants without soil. From pumps and reservoirs to digital sensors and nutrient solutions, the system brought a full scale laboratory into our school. And our students didn’t waste a minute diving in.

Because STEM Launch is an active NSTEM chapter, we were selected to participate in the pilot and help shape the future of hydroponics education. Our commitment included taking photos and videos, offering feedback, meeting with program leaders, and sharing our experiences so NSTEM and Rayn Growing Systems can make the program stronger for schools across the country. In return, our students gained access to real world lessons through the EdLabs Portal, along with expert support from engineers, educators, and hydroponics technicians.

From day one, the excitement was electric. Students crowded around the EdRack to test pH levels, measure nutrients, assemble pumps, and prepare edible crops like butter leaf lettuce. The consumables box alone, packed with seeds, substrates, trays, net pots, and more, felt like opening a treasure chest of possibility. With each passing day, our classroom transformed into a living, glowing ecosystem, and students began to see science and engineering not as ideas in a textbook, but as tools they could hold in their hands.

But the pilot is more than a growing system. It is a year long learning journey. Throughout the program, STEM Launch will join other pilot schools in Zoom sessions to share successes, challenges, and ideas. These conversations help shape the curriculum, improve the equipment, and build a community of educators all working toward the same goal: expanding access to high quality STEM experiences.

As plants begin to sprout, our STEM Ambassadors are also growing, developing habits of inquiry, teamwork, experimentation, and innovation. The hydroponics system has become a space where students ask bold questions, troubleshoot real world problems, and see firsthand how science and engineering can transform the way communities grow food.

At the end of the pilot year, and after fulfilling all commitments, the entire EdRack system will belong to STEM Launch. That means this is not a one year project. It is the beginning of a sustainable, long term program that will enrich students for years to come.

This partnership with NSTEM and Rayn Growing Systems aligns with everything STEM Launch values: authentic learning, student leadership, and meaningful connections between classrooms and the world beyond them. Our students are not just watching science happen. They are the scientists. They are the growers. They are the designers of tomorrow’s solutions.

And thanks to this hydroponics pilot, they get to grow their future, one seed, one root, and one bright idea at a time.