My Nonprofit Reviews
ewaldml
Review for Best Robotics Inc, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
My first experience with BEST Robotics was to visit Texas BEST in 2000. At that time, I had heard about the program and was interested in possibly bringing it to teachers in the southeast. After seeing the program in action, I was hooked for life! The students were so positive, the event volunteers were welcoming and answered all of my questions, and the atmosphere was electric.
The next fall, I brought it back to my university and persuaded several others to help me do it. In the first year, we had 24 teams. By the second year, we had 60 teams registered! What a great problem to have. By the third year, there was enough momentum in the southeast to start BEST's second Regional Championship, The South's BEST.
Each year, I coordinate almost 20 different science-related outreach programs for my university. BEST still remains the most dynamic, and most influential program on young people that I am involved with. I truly cannot wait to see how BEST will look ten years from now.
More Feedback
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
So many stories, so little space! One story involves a young man at a very rural high school in west Alabama. His physics teacher decided to try BEST and the young man ("John") joined the team. His teacher told me that John had no aspirations of going to college, and was really a very average, unmotivated student, though very bright. He stayed on the team for 3 years and began to excel in school. Today, John is at the U.S. Air Force Academy majoring in engineering and studying to be a fighter pilot.
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
Find a way to get it into every rural school across the south! I would also like to see more teacher training and stipends for teachers who coach the teams.
