UT Tyler University Academy Named Project Lead the Way 2023-24 Distinguished District

May 16, 2024 | Hannah Buchanan

UA Campuses Recognized for STEM Curriculum, Career Readiness

The University of Texas at Tyler University Academy has been named a Project Lead The Way Distinguished District for the second consecutive year. UT Tyler UA is one of just 17 PLTW districts nationwide and the only one in Texas to receive recognition this year.

The PLTW Distinguished District recognition honors districts committed to increasing student
access, engagement and achievement in their PLTW pathway programs in computer science,
engineering and/or biomedical science. To be eligible for this designation, recognized districts had
to have 20% or more of its students in each grade participate in a PLTW program during the 2022-
23 school year, or each school in the district earned the 2022-23 “PLTW Distinguished School”
award.

UT Tyler UA offers PLTW Launch (K-5), PLTW Gateway (6-8) and PLTW (9-12 computer science,
engineering and biomedical science) programs at its three campuses in Tyler, Longview and
Palestine. UA Tyler and Longview campuses are 2022-23 PLTW Distinguished Schools in Gateway,
and the Longview campus is a 2022-23 Distinguished School in Launch.

“We celebrate this achievement and our teachers’ dedication to empowering students with the
knowledge and skills to succeed in STEM subjects, their future careers and life beyond the
classroom,” said Dr. Jo Ann Simmons, UA superintendent.

Project Lead The Way is a mission-driven organization that serves millions of PreK-12 students and
teachers in schools across the United States. More than 12,000 elementary, middle and high
schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia offer PLTW programs. For more information,
visit pltw.org/.

The UT Tyler University Academy is a K-12 public university laboratory charter school with
campuses in Tyler, Longview and Palestine. UT Tyler UA offers STEM curriculum in a hands-on
learning environment. The district currently serves about 1,000 students. For more information,
visit uttua.org/.

With a mission to improve educational and health care outcomes for East Texas and beyond, UT
Tyler offers more than 90 undergraduate and graduate programs to nearly 10,000 students.
Through its alignment with UT Tyler Health Science Center and UT Health East Texas, UT Tyler has
unified these entities to serve Texas with quality education, cutting-edge research and excellent
patient care. Classified by Carnegie as a doctoral research institution and by U.S. News & World
Report as a national university, UT Tyler has campuses in Tyler, Longview, Palestine and Houston.