89届的汤姆·史蒂夫是整个俄勒冈州最鼓舞人心、最赋权的老师之一.
As a science teacher at Trinity Lutheran School in Bend, 他建立了一个影响深远的科学项目，让学生进入大学和, 晚些时候, 并为他们的创新项目送去参加全国科学竞赛. 作为一名戏剧从业者, he helped found a drama program at the school, and puts students in charge of all the technical aspects.
“汤姆是那些帮助别人到达他们似乎遥不可及的地方的人之一,格雷格·皮尼克说, 三一学院的校长. “He is a favorite of our graduates. But above all things, he loves the Lord and is a wonderful husband and father.”
可以说, 史蒂夫最大的影响来自于他在2007年创立的俄勒冈太阳能汽车团队, in which high school students design, 构造, and operate a fully functioning, 太阳能赛车. 这个由三一学院学生组成的团队每年都会参加太阳能汽车挑战赛, 今年，他在全国比赛中获得了第三名，在德克萨斯州赛道上跑了327圈，行驶了500多英里. No prior experience is required for students to join the team.
在三一学院的早期, “I was looking for a hands-on team-building activity that seemed challenging, and we happened to have a couple on our faculty from Adelaide, 澳大利亚, where they race from Darwin to Adelaide,史蒂夫说。. “He mentioned solar cars, then wrote the grant. Off to Texas he and I went for training.”
这一引入让学生们在近14年的时间里学会了用铝和现在的碳纤维制造全尺寸汽车. 该团队目前的汽车上覆盖着太阳能电池，可以从太阳中获取能量, 将其储存在电池中, 然后用它来开车.
“This is not a kit,” Stueve emphasizes. “You design the car from the ground up. 它融合了一切. My guys know how to do the hardest kind of welding there is. 他们焊接了整个车架.”
他的学生们现在正在一个接一个地焊接太阳能电池阵列，然后把它带到圣何塞，在那里一家公司将帮助他们“封装”电池.
“The students make all the decisions,史蒂夫说。, 例如, shifting from an aluminum body to one made of carbon fiber. As the team declares on its official website, “我们不害怕以挑战极限的名义将我们的胜利置于危险之中. 我们已经并将继续把科学进步置于必胜之上.”
The pinnacle of each solar-car-year is a four-day, eight-hour-a-day race around the Texas Motor Speedway.
“It’s a marathon, not a sprint,史蒂夫说。. “Whoever does the most number of laps is the winner.”
This year, the race went cross-country from Ft. Worth to Palmdale, California, with an awards banquet at Edwards Air Force Base. 学生们形容这次比赛是“他们做过的最好的事情之一，”史蒂夫说. “It makes them extraordinary problem-solvers.”
Six seniors from this year’s team are going into engineering, 弗吉尼亚理工大学, 加州浸会大学, 乔治福克斯大学, 和冈萨加大学. 通过支持团队的公司网络，团队成员也可以获得工作和实习机会, Stueve说.
Stueve’s passion for starting new things was nurtured in Lutheran education, beginning in Monrovia where he attended Lutheran High School in La Verne. He started the school’s drama program as a student, and while his education was entirely Lutheran, his goal became to teach in the roughest public schools. 为此目的, 他接受了总统奖学金(全额奖学金)进入基督学院，并“在那里度过了一段美好的时光”, 交了很多好朋友, and sent both of my sons there.”
在学习生物化学时, he dived into the university’s “really rich theatre program” and acted in shows, 研究灯光, 制作定位球. 他在1988年遇到了希瑟·赫尔姆, 他后来娶了她, when she was the assistant director and lead actress in Tartuffe. Tom was playing an angry brother with a sword, and helped build the set.
史蒂夫毕业时获得了自然科学学位，辅修了戏剧专业(他的毕业表演是在他自己搭建的两层楼的户外独幕剧)。. 1989年与希瑟结婚后, she was called to teach at Concordia University Portland, and while Tom was “hoping for East L.A.,” he taught for 12 years in the Portland area.
他说:“最后两所学校正是我想要的:资金不足、很难进入的学校。. “Even when I worked in public schools, I always considered it a ministry because it’s about touching the lives of kids. 我现在可以以一种非常开放的方式做到这一点，成为他们(在三一学院)信仰生活的一部分。. 我们有小组圣经学习，我成为年轻人的导师，帮助他们弄清楚他们需要成熟的一些东西. In public schools I did that, but in a different way.”
就像他被任命为波特兰公立学校生物技术磁铁的主任一样, 希瑟被召入康考迪亚大学教育网络(CUEnet)服务。, so the couple crossed the Cascades for Bend. 这个时候, Tom had earned a master’s degree in molecular biology and biochemistry, and in their new location he began teaching at Trinity, a school which now counts around 100 high school students.
多年来，他建立了皮尼克所说的“俄勒冈州最好的高中科学项目之一”，“他的学生接受当地的教育。, 状态, 以及国家认可.”
Crossing the line into the arts, 史蒂夫还加入了一个团队，创建了一个戏剧项目，并让学生们在制作初中和高中年度音乐剧时负责几乎所有的技术工作.
“We teach kids to do everything,他说. “他们设计道具，制作布景，做灯光和声音，以及所有的技术技能.”
Because of their hands-on training, 史蒂夫的戏剧毕业生后来发挥他们的专业技能，并在教堂和音乐会场所担任志愿者.
“It’s because we let them touch stuff,他说. “At public schools, it’s usually an adult running the show. 孩子们主持我们的节目. 他们决定什么时候开始. 一切. 这是我最看重的. If you can empower kids, they come out with such confidence. 他们可以做任何事.”
The entire theater program is accomplished in a gym and two shipping containers.
“We conjure things out of air,史蒂夫说。 with a laugh. The adult side of the theatrical team all share Concordia roots. Tom serves as technical director; Heather is director; Erin Cowan ’19 is vocal director; and Jon Vevia is producer. 还有一个当地的科学博览会，是史蒂夫创办的，然后交给了另一个组织来运营. 它使学生有资格参加国际科学与工程博览会, 今年，史蒂夫的一名学生再次获得了参加国际比赛的资格，该比赛的奖金为3000万美元. 这名学生训练了一个人工智能程序来识别深色皮肤上的各种皮肤癌, and made an app for it which can be used as a low-cost screening tool. All of Stueve’s science students must produce a project for the local fair.
他说:“我的教育理念是让孩子们为尚不存在的工作做好准备。. “I want kids to be able to do it all because that’s what I did, and I think it makes for a well-rounded person. 在剧院和太阳能车上, 他们正在学习如何合作、沟通和解决问题, how to learn things about which they have no idea.”
回到太阳能汽车领域, one big task is to create a telemetry system — that is, getting performance data from the car in real time. That requires students to learn how a car “talks” digitally. 他们还学习像Python这样的计算机语言，这样他们就可以为汽车的计算机编程.
Some team members “hardly touch the car” but canvas businesses, 发展人际关系, 并引入资金. 一些人处理社交媒体, but by the time they get to the race, all team members know everything about the car.
True teamwork begins when the car breaks down, “and it will,史蒂夫说。. “Then they have to figure out how to fix it. 这就是乐趣所在, 当他们弄清楚是什么让他们停在路边，然后把它修好——这就是建立联系的时刻.”
Stueve received Concordia’s 2023 Distinguished Service Award, 颁发给通过对他或她的社区服务做出重大贡献的个人, 教堂, 学校或母校.
“汤姆是三一学院事工、本德和俄勒冈中部社区不可或缺的一部分,Pinick说。. “He is a student-first, servant leader. 他为我们的学生创造了超越梦想的机会，将他们置于可以获得实践经验的环境中. 他引导我们的学生发现解决方案，他们可能没有冒险尝试自己. He is a master builder and a design-thinking expert. He volunteers to serve on our tech team. He models generosity through his time, talent, and treasure.”
For his part, Stueve is proudest of raising students’ level of confidence.
“That’s a huge piece to take with you. 这是我在基督学院(Christ College)读戏剧本科时的感受，也是我大一参加一个节目面试时的感受,他说. “我喜欢在一所小型路德教会学校教书的部分原因是，这不是关于存在什么，而是你想要存在什么. You just have to make it happen.”