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Learning the inventors responsible for the corkscrew, hole punch, ball point pen, US Postal Mailbox, and today’s airline seating were all a part of Pneuma Academy’s 8-week summer camp curriculum.

“Our children don’t know they have come from nobility,” said Dr. Rita Thornton, founder of the new STEM preschool located at 502 Grand Ave. “I reinforce that with the pioneers because so many of our innovations and contributions have been hidden.”

Pneuma, which refers to the vital spirit, soul, or creative force of a person, opened this summer in the former Little Tots building on Grand at the corner of Cookman Avenue.  It offers a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics [STEM] curriculum designed specifically for inner city children.

“I designed it myself after 8 years of research on how our children learn naturally,” Thornton said. “Our children are very energetic and in some of the current school environments, they would be perceived as disruptive and needing medication or having a behavioural problem.”

What is unique about Thornton’s summer camp is its focus on African-American/Black and Latino/Hispanic pioneers in STEM so students learn about their history through STEM education. Take Miriam Benjamin’s gong and signal chair, invented in the 1800s – a prototype is still used in today’s airplanes.

“We are still using a lot of inventions that people of color have brought to this country,” Thornton said.

Anyone who has seen the award winning 1997 film, The Ditchdigger’s Daughter, will know the importance her parents placed on education and striving to do one’s best.

Thornton attended and garnered law and educational degrees from Seton Hall, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Columbia University, the State’s Univ of Medicine & Dentistry as well as Monmouth University. In 2005, she became the first African-American woman to earn a PhD in Environmental Science from the Department of Chemistry and Environmental Science. Her varied accolades include a US Congressional Recognition, Who’s Who of America, and National Minority Role Model in Science.

After a close to 30 year career with the State’s Department of Environmental Protection and working partly as an educator, Thornton set out to create a school based on her research.

“They like thinking on their feet, they like moving,” she said. “If you understand how and why we do well then you can you can encourage that. That is what Pneuma Academy is all about. These children love to be curious about things and investigate things. Those inquiry based skills, they already have them, they just need to be channeled in the right direction.”

The facility features a common learning area, in and outdoor play areas, and an auditorium adorned with art and sculptures, many by Chilean born sculptor Antonio Caballero.

Pneuma Academy will host an open house event 1 p.m. Sunday, featuring a Q&A information session. Light refreshments will be served.

A full day preschool for ages 2 ½ to 5 will be offered as well as a STEM afterschool tutorial program for ages 2½ to 13.

The school is located at 502 Grand Avenue in Asbury Park. For more information, call 732-768-4263 or visit their website.

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