Starstruck students learned about the stars and planets on Friday, thanks to Divine Mercy Catholic Academy’s new STREAM curriculum. The academy partnered with Saint Francis University to hold a planetarium demonstration.

STREAM stands for science, technology, religion, engineering, arts and math. The pilot-program started this year at the academy in Johnstown.

“We still have our traditional curriculum here that we’re going to service our kids with, but in addition to that, we’re now going to offer things we’ve never offered before,” said Tom Smith, Principal of Divine Mercy Catholic Academy.

The academy received a $180,000 grant to build STREAM labs with robots, a 3D printer and a virtual reality computer.

“The kids marvel at it. You can actually dissect a frog with the virtual reality piece. You can dissect a human being: pull out a heart, cut it open, right there in the palm of your hands. It’s absolutely amazing,” Smith said.

The east campus lab is up-and-running. The west campus lab will officially open next week. The school hopes to build a lab at Bishop McCort High School next year for their 7th and 8th grade students.

Teachers say the STREAM program is designed to teach students how to take what they’ve learned in the class room and apply it to the real world.

“Let’s work on making the world a bettter place by developing  technology and engineering ideas to make them practical that can help people,” said Justin Ogline, the STREAM facilitator.

Students learn about anything from computer coding and renewable energy to architecture and efficient farming and agriculture.

“They completely changed their goals for their lives. They want to be an astronaut, they want to be an engineer,” Ogline said.

School officials plan to expand the curriculum, saying it’s crucial to their students’ success.

“We believe that the job market of the future is calling for our kids to have this type of knowledge and this type of activity at an early age,” said Smith.