Watertown High School has been named a Distinguished School by Project Lead the Way (PLTW), a national nonprofit organization aimed at educating and preparing students for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics careers.

The PLTW Distinguished School recognition honors schools committed to increasing student access, engagement, and achievement in their STEM programs. To be eligible for the designation, WHS had to meet multiple criteria in the 2023-24 school year such as number of PLTW courses available to students, percent of students enrolled in PLTW, and percent of students taking more than one PLTW course.

“We are thrilled to receive this recognition from PLTW,” said Laura Alderson, Career and Technical Education Coordinator for Watertown Public Schools. “WHS has been partnering with PLTW since 2015 for our Pre-Engineering program. Courses include Intro to Engineering Design, Principles of Engineering, Digital Electronics, Civil Engineering & Architecture, Computer-Integrated Manufacturing, Environmental Sustainability, and the capstone Engineering Design & Development. PLTW Engineering is an activity-, project-. and problem-based curriculum that empowers students to become independent in the classroom and helps them build skill sets to apply to an open-ended design problem.”

Watertown’s STEM education programs give students meaningful, challenging educational experiences to gain the knowledge, skills, competencies, and self-esteem to be successful in today’s fast-changing society. Watertown High School currently offers three Chapter 74 vocational pathway programs: Pre-Engineering, Medical Assisting, and Digital Media Communications. Students outside of the pathway program are also eligible to access these courses through electives. 

Watertown High School is one of 21 high schools in Massachusetts to be named a Distinguished School for the 2024-2025 school year. This is the first time WHS has earned this honor.