Warsaw Community Schools

WARSAW, IN - Warsaw Community Schools (WCS) is excited to announce that Edgewood Middle School has been recognized as a 2025-26 Project Lead The Way (PLTW) Distinguished School. This honor is given to a select number of middle schools across the U.S. for their commitment to increasing student access, engagement and achievement in career-connected learning through its PLTW Gateway program, a grades 6-8 STEM curriculum.

Edgewood Middle School offers several Project Lead The Way (PLTW) courses, including Medical Detectives, Automation & Robotics, Design & Modeling, Computer Science for Innovators & Makers, App Creators, and Flight & Space. These hands-on courses continue to be a popular choice among students because they combine STEM concepts with real-world problem-solving experiences and opportunities to explore future career pathways.

“Students need opportunities to explore different careers so they can better understand which pathway they may want to pursue,” said Abbi Richcreek, PLTW instructor at Edgewood Middle School. Students also have the opportunity to continue each of these pathways at the high school level, allowing them to further develop skills and interests connected to future careers.

“We are so proud to be recognized as a Project Lead The Way Distinguished School for the past five years! Our commitment to STEM and quality hands-on learning opportunities for all students at Edgewood continues. This honor would not be possible without the incredible PLTW teachers, led by Abbi Richcreek, who embed project-based learning each day,” commented JoElla Hauselman, Principal of Edgewood Middle School.

Project Lead The Way is a national nonprofit organization that creates transformative learning experiences and empowers students to develop in-demand knowledge and skills for future careers. The PLTW Distinguished School recognition honors schools committed to increasing student access, engagement and achievement in their PLTW programs.

To be eligible for the designation, Edgewood Middle School had to meet a variety of criteria, including the percentage of students participating in PLTW, the percentage of students who participate in more than one PLTW unit, the number of PLTW units offered, and efforts to ensure access to PLTW courses for all students.

Research shows that middle school grades play a pivotal role in influencing high school, college and career success. During this transitional time, it’s crucial to provide students with access to relevant, engaging and real-world learning experiences that expose them to future career opportunities and help build critical thinking, collaboration and problem-solving skills.

####