All Girls & STEM

The DSHA STEM Scholars program is designed for motivated high school students who are curious about and are willing to be highly engaged in learning and applying science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics; furthermore, a STEM scholar will show a commitment to STEM-related academic and career options.

The STEM Scholars program emphasizes:

AP Pre-Calculus covers pre-calculus topics including polynomial and rational functions, exponential and logarithmic functions, trigonometric and polar functions, and functions involving parameters, vectors, and matrices. The material covered in this course will be challenging and may require an increased amount of time to do homework. Students are not required to take the AP exam in May. Students will have to contact colleges about receiving college credit.

AP Statistics is intended for students who wish to complete studies equivalent to a one semester, introductory, non-Calculus based, college course in statistics. This course will introduce students to the major concepts and tools for collecting, analyzing, and drawing conclusions from data. Broad conceptual themes treated in this course include exploring data by describing patterns and departures from patterns, sampling and experimentation, anticipating patterns using probability and simulation, and statistical inference. Students who successfully complete this course and the AP exam may receive credit for a one-semester introductory college statistics course. All students are expected to take the AP Statistics exam. 

Discrete mathematics is a branch of mathematics that studies functions and relations which are discrete (individually separate and distinct) and not continuous. This course will introduce and study different methods of counting, sequences, symbolic logic, and graph theory. Since discrete mathematics is widely used in many fields (ex. computer science, engineering) we will look at applications to those fields. In order to run this course, at least 10 students must be enrolled. Please note that this is an elective math course and should not replace any class in the math sequence.

Linear Algebra is a branch of mathematics that studies linear equations and linear functions and their representations through matrices and vector spaces. This course will introduce and study matrices, vectors and their applications. Since linear algebra is widely used in many fields (ex. computer science, engineering) we will look at applications to those fields. In order to run this course, at least 10 students must be enrolled. Please note that this is an elective math course and should not replace any class in the math sequence.

Advanced Placement Biology is the equivalent of a one year college introductory course in biology. It is designed to be taken after successful completion of a first course in high school biology. A college text is used and the laboratories are intended to be the equivalent of those done in college. The principal topics included in the course are molecules and cells, heredity and evolution, organisms and populations. Emphasis is on understanding the concepts related to each of these topics and recognizing the unifying themes that prevail throughout biology. Application of knowledge and critical thinking are reinforced through quantitative laboratory work. Students should be prepared to spend a minimum of five hours per week completing course work outside of class. Students are required to complete a summer assignment before the start of school. Students are required to do extensive reading and perform all required AP labs and are expected to take the AP exam in May. 

Advanced Placement Chemistry is a college-level course designed to build on the concepts learned in first-year chemistry as well as prepare students for the AP Chemistry exam in May. The course is designed to provide students with an increased depth of understanding of the fundamentals of chemistry in the areas of the structure of matter, stoichiometry, gas chemistry, oxidation-reduction, equilibrium, thermodynamics and descriptive chemistry, to name a few. Significant class time will be devoted to hands-on laboratory work. Students should be prepared to spend a minimum of five hours per week completing course work outside of class. Students are required to complete a summer assignment and are expected to take the AP exam in May. In addition to the course textbook, students will be required to purchase a carbonless lab notebook (cost ~$20) available from the instructor. The course fee covers consumable materials.

11th-12th grade, 2 semesters, $50 fee plus AP exam fee
Prerequisite: successful completion of Honors Chemistry | additional time commitment of 30 minutes each week after school or during the lunch period | graphic calculator required 
Learn more about AP & Dual-Credit offerings here

DSHA offers Advanced Placement Physics C Mechanics as a year-long course. This course is designed to be equivalent to a first semester Calculus-based college Physics course. Students must be enrolled in an AP Calculus course concurrent with this course, but prior coursework in Physics is not required. Course content includes kinematics, Newton’s laws of motion, work, energy, and power, momentum, circular motion and gravitation, rotational motion, and oscillations. Significant class time will be devoted to hands-on laboratory work. Students should be prepared to spend a minimum of five hours per week completing course work outside of class. Students are required to complete a summer assignment before the start of first semester and are expected to take the AP exam in May. The course fee covers consumable materials.


2 semesters, $50 plus AP exam fee 
Prerequisite: Honors Trigonometry/Precalculus and concurrent enrollment in Advanced Placement Calculus AB or Advanced Placement Calculus BC | additional time commitment of 30 minutes each week after school or during the lunch period | scientific or graphic calculator required 

Learn more about AP & Dual-Credit offerings here.

The AP Environmental Science course is the equivalent of a one-semester, introductory college course in environmental science. The course requires that students use a college textbook, complete laboratory experiments and understand environmental science typical of an introductory college course. Students will identify and analyze natural and human-made environmental problems, evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, and examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them. This course is made as an interdisciplinary course, embracing topics from geology, biology, environmental studies, environmental science, chemistry, and geography. Application of knowledge and critical thinking are reinforced through quantitative laboratory work. Students are required to have successfully completed Biology and Chemistry prior to taking this course. Students will need to spend a minimum of five hours of outside work on this course each week and complete all AP labs to successfully prepare for the AP exam in May. The course fee covers the AP lab materials.

11th-12th grades, 2 semesters, $50 plus AP exam fee
Prerequisite: completion of Biology or Accelerated Biology and Chemistry or Honors Chemistry | additional time commitment of 30 minutes per week after school or during the lunch period | scientific or graphic calculator required 
Learn more about AP & Dual-Credit offerings here.

This course provides an opportunity to explore the field of computer science, understand the impact of computers on our global society, and build a foundation in the basics of computer programming. Topics will include computer hardware, network architecture, cloud-based computing, cyber-security, web page design, and an introduction to programming. Software used in this course is free and can be downloaded onto any Windows or iOS computer. 

This course teaches students computer programming using JAVA, an object-oriented programming language. This is equivalent to a first-semester college-level course, covering programming methodology, algorithm design, testing methods, logical reasoning, and problem solving.

This course serves as the basis for students to consider engineering as a career by honing problem-solving and real-world applications of engineering principles and design. Projects involve structural design, data analysis, computer programming, reverse engineering and more.

Students Modeling a Research Topic places students in the role of scientists and engineers, allowing opportunities to learn and use rapid prototyping technology. DSHA’s SMART Team excels at teamwork as they delve into the molecular world, explore science as a process, and work to understand and model the structure-function relationship of a protein. This integration of science and engineering provides students with a more realistic contextualization of problems, increased transfer across problems, more cooperation, and better understanding of the content under study.
Click here to learn more about the DSHA SMART Team

This nationally-recognized club allows students the experience of building, programming, and operating robots, along with opportunities to develop additional skills in web design, marketing, and fundraising – all preparation for and at competitions. This team is nationally recognized, winning first place at multiple regional competitions in 2017, and qualifying for World Championships.
Click here to learn more about the DSHA Robotics Team.

This is an introductory course to the AutoCAD program. It will be offered 2nd semester. Students will learn how to set up, create and edit 2D architectural drawings. Lessons covered over the course of the semester include: drawing set up, 2D drawing and editing tools, navigation tools, understanding of layers and properties, drawing completion including text and dimensions. Students will be expected to supply their own laptop and a mouse for this course and download an educational version of AutoCAD onto their laptop. Use of a personal laptop will aid the student in the ability to work on homework outside of class.