Beehive Science and Technology APEX Center scheduled to open August 2027.
Salt Lake City, UT – Beehive Science and Technology Academy, located at 2165 E 9400 S in Sandy, UT, announced it has been awarded a Fiscal Year 2027 APEX Implementation Grant by the Utah State Board of Education, under Utah House Bill 447. The grant funds the Beehive Science and Technology APEX Center, a career-focused environment providing high school students opportunities to conduct hands-on, professional work for partnering organizations and businesses. Built inside the school’s existing campus, the Beehive Science and Technology APEX Center is scheduled to open August 2027 and will serve students in grades 9–12 across four career pathways – Business and Digital Media, Engineering and Robotics, Life and Health Sciences and Digital Technology.
Beehive Academy will run the APEX Center on a model called CAPS (Center for Advanced Professional Studies), which is a national network of more than 120 programs across 22 states with roughly two decades of practice behind it. “The platform is designed to provide a program that helps develops a student stop being someone who attends a class and becomes a junior professional,” said Dr. Halis Kablan, Beehive Science and Technology Academy High School Principal. “Instead of finishing the assignment in front of them and waiting to be handed the next one, students take on a problem that belongs to an outside partner and owns the deliverable that answers it. The teacher’s r le shifts from directing every step to designing the conditions and coaching the team through them, while an industry mentor sits with the students and reviews their work by the same standard their own workplace would apply.”
Fifteen partners have currently signed letters of collaboration in the fields of Industry, Chamber of Commerce, and Universities. Industries include health care and clinical services, IT and cybersecurity, enterprise IT inside large commercial construction, advanced manufacturing, aerospace and aviation technology, engineering design, software and education technology, marketing and digital media, and outdoor and consumer products. The regional Chamber opens a channel to a far wider set of local businesses than Beehive Academy could reach on its own.
Several professors at Utah State University and the University of Utah, working in biological and chemical engineering, computer science and the social sciences, will mentor student researchers, supply the research questions students work on, and collaborate with Beehive faculty on curriculum, while Salt Lake Community College adds concurrent enrollment and college credit.
“Beehive Academy has provided exceptional instruction with a STEM-based focus for our students over the past 20 years in Utah. The school has been honored to receive many local and national awards and educational designations for our curriculum, administration, staff, and student successes,” said Beehive Academy Executive Director, Hanifi Oguz. “The school is now building on that foundation by bringing the professional world inside the school. Beehive is grateful for this grant so we can use that resource to build an on-site space where we can provide the career experience directly into the school day. With the generosity and support of our industry partners, we can support graduating students in their future education and careers as students will leave Beehive Academy high school with delivered work, industry certifications, and the working habits of a professional already in hand.”
About Beehive Science and Technology Academy
Beehive Science and Technology Academy is a tuition-free public charter school that provides a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) focused curriculum and well-rounded programs designed to offer students a solid foundation in humanities and social science with a variety of after school clubs for students in grades K through 12. Beehive Academy is proud to have established a solid foundation in STEM education for a diverse student base in Utah for the past 20 years and in those years, Beehive has earned a reputation as one of the area’s premier STEM schools. In 2026, Beehive Academy received its third Platinum Level STEM School Designation by the Utah State Board of Education and the Utah STEM Action Center, which is awarded every five years, as well as national recognition receiving the first Cognia® School Accreditation and Cognia® STEM Accreditation in the state of Utah. Beehive Science and Technology Academy has also received other local recognitions as Charter School of the Year designation by the Utah Association of Public Charter Schools and numerous Best of State awards.
