Source: Mercy High School
Author: Mercy High School
Mercy High School named Apple Distinguished School
Farmington Hills, MI October 22, 2019 - Mercy High School is pleased to announce that it has been recognized as an Apple Distinguished School for 2019 - 2022 for our integration of technology across the curriculum and school life.
Apple Distinguished Schools are centers of innovation, leadership, and educational excellence that use Apple products to inspire creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking. They showcase innovative uses of technology in learning, teaching, and the school environment and have documented results of academic accomplishment.
“In order to achieve this designation, Mercy needed to demonstrate a continual effort to plan, implement and evaluate transformational instruction using Apple technology. It is gratifying to have our innovative endeavors recognized in this way.”
- Larry Baker, Associate Principal & Apple Distinguished Educator
The selection of Mercy High School as an Apple Distinguished School highlights our success as an innovative and compelling learning environment that engages students and provides tangible evidence of academic accomplishment. Mercy has been an Apple Distinguished School since 2013.
Mercy teachers are Apple Teacher certified and each one is supplied with iPad and MacBook Air. Classrooms are equipped with Apple TV and most teachers utilize Apple Classroom. Teachers use interactive apps that allow students to demonstrate their learning in various ways and require projects which are enhanced and transformed by video.
All students utilize iPad and in their freshwoman year take Mercy’s active learning iExplore course which centers around projects that employ engineering principles. iExplore introduces students to STEM experiences while delivering instruction through student-centered activities that focus on problem-solving and collaboration.
Students collaborate and edit each other’s work using a variety of note taking, text, video, audio and interactive applications. Most instructional resources and assignments are available through the learning management system Schoology, which also provides integration with apps like PowerSchool and Google Drive.
“Recognition as Apple Distinguished attests to our academic excellence. A Mercy High School student’s education prepares her for college and career readiness through collaboration, complex reasoning and applied learning.”
– Patricia Sattler, Principal
At Mercy, young women have the opportunity to be technology teachers and program innovators through the iPad student tech team called the iWizards and the Robotics Team. The iWizards conduct iPad orientation for all new students, present at tech conferences, provide tech support and media production resources to the Mercy school community.
Mercy also hosts an annual Tech Talk Conference for Educators, has a Mobile APP, iMercy Multi-Touch book, Podcasts featuring Alumnae, three computer labs, a Digital MakerSpace Room, Collaborative Corner, 3-D Printer, and offers coding and AP Computer Science courses. Mercy’s technology vision and goals are to cultivate and support active and collaborative learning, nurture creativity, develop STEM curriculum, assist students in becoming adept communicators, promote global citizenship, cultivate critical thinking, and develop safe, responsible digital habits.
“We are pleased to be recognized as an Apple Distinguished School for the fourth time. Mercy strives to lead as an innovative learning community with committed educators who seek and share knowledge and wisdom.”
– Dr. Cheryl Kreger, President
Our Education & Technology iBook
Read the 37-page multi-touch book here. This book chronicles Mercy High School's continual quest for innovative and transformational practices using educational technology.
About Mercy High School
Mercy High School, a Catholic college preparatory school immersed in the tradition of the Sisters of Mercy, educates and inspires young women of diverse backgrounds to lead and serve with compassion. Mercy is proud to educate women who make a difference from over 70 metropolitan Detroit communities since 1945. Visit mhsmi.org for more information. Mercy High School is located at 29300 W. 11 Mile Rd, Farmington Hills, MI 48336.
School Representative
Laurence Baker, Associate Principal of Operations, lrbaker@mhsmi.org, 248-893-3587