Innovation Studies

Students in this course will participate in a project-based curriculum that engages students in active, hands-on learning to challenge, motivate, and inspire students. Students experience and apply the engineering design process to compete in different challenges - building, programming, and adapting robots to solve problems and earn points. Students will learn a version of the programming language C, program sphero Bolt robots, work with VEX robotics parts, and collaborate in teams, integrating HC’s Leadership standards. 

What does it mean to be a changemaker? How might I use my interests and skills to make a meaningful impact? What role can I play in responding to complex global and local issues? Innovation for Social Impact students explore critical global issues within the spheres of society, environment, culture, and economics. Students build the skills of changemakers as they learn and practice frameworks of Design Thinking, research, and collaboration. This project-based course will connect students to local and global partners actively engaged in real problems in their communities. In the second semester, student teams undertake projects related to a selected issue and are guided through the process of planning, implementation, evaluation, and reflection. Students will build the skills of leaders, thinkers, and communicators as they work to achieve tangible and measurable goals designed for meaningful impact. 

This course invites high school students to embark on a journey of self-discovery, empathy, and creativity through the art of digital innovation using various forms of media. Students will explore and learn the craft of storytelling and its role in marketing. Students will develop video and audio-producing skills and hone their written and oral expression. The course emphasizes the development of critical thinking, communication proficiency, and a deep appreciation for the power of stories in shaping our understanding of the world. This course will be a project-based course that collaborates and produces products for various aspects of audiences in our community.

StangTech Robotics, rooted in faith and driven by innovation, exists to elevate the community through authentic mentorship and responsible engineering. StangTech was started in 2015 and has won several 1st Place BEST Awards in the local North Houston hub competition, along with many top finishes in the Regional Competition. Stangtech has supported the community by working with programs that exist to provide safe pathways for youth to grow through sports, education, and mentoring programs based on Christian principles.

At Houston Christian, our robotics club is separated into different teams, each assigned to a different aspect of the BEST Robotics competition. Each team must complete various tasks, ranging from professional business proposals to the challenging process of iterative design. The club utilizes equipment and consumable resources to solve a real-world problem with an original product and compete against other schools for the BEST Robotics Awards. 

Historically speaking, Houston Christian has consistently taken the innovative path toward the fulfillment of its mission. In 1998, the founding trustees opened an interdenominational school. Soon thereafter, we introduced a one-to-one laptop to the student technology program in support of learning. Several years later, we created the first high school learning commons in this region to improve upon traditional library services. We then created the Distinguished Scholars program to provide academically rigorous research opportunities for qualifying students and joined with President and Mrs. Bush to create the first presidential leadership training center in the nation for high school students. And most recently, we took an innovative approach with an Indexed Tuition model to ensure Houston Christian serves a broad cross-section of students needing financial aid support. Individually, each of these steps is notable and, at their time of inception, set Houston Christian apart from other schools. Collectively, they characterize a school unwilling to rely on past success but, in fact, maintains a bold, strategic path towards excellence, distinctly forward thinking and relevant to a new generation of leaders. To this end, we continue vigorously pursuing a dynamic education that uniquely defines the Houston Christian experience, one that honors God and His calling upon the lives of those who serve and learn at this institution.