Lots of excited faces tilled the gymnasium last week as Ms. Dunns special education class learned how to interact and operate robots brought in by Oklahoma State University The College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology at OSU, also known as CEAT, is a community of scholars, innovators and leaders who want to help change the world.

CEAT is committed to creating successful careers in engineering and innovation. From their summer camps to teacher programs to engaging with the community, they want to make sure everyone is introduced to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) at an early age to encourage and engage students to have critical thinking, problem solving and creative skills to succeed in this ever-changing world.

Dr. Jovette Dew, Brandy Mays and Mary Tran are the leaders of a STEM program at OSU and they are working diligently to bring it to as many counties in Oklahoma as they can.

“We are actually the OSU CEAT K-12 STEM team and we do summer programs which is how we got to know Ms. Dunn when she attended one of our programs,” Tran said. “Ms. Dunn is also a stellar teacher with the NASA group and when we were at another event she thought it would be a great idea to bring our robots to her students and we agreed. We want everyone to know that robotics is for everybody.

“Ms. Dunn’s students explored robotics through two types of robots, MakeBlock robots and Ozobots. The MakeBlocks are controlled through iPads. Students with any level of dexterity were able to enjoy controlling these robots. The first rotation allowed students to test their agility through the obstacle courses. The second rotation tested the students’ spatial awareness. They were challenged to retrieve a water bottle and return it into a freestanding basket. Then the students extended the challenge by flipping up the basket to represent refrigerators. Students also had an opportunity to work in pairs and serve as eyes for their teammates. The last rotation had students draw their command patterns to control their robots. Students were challenged to create a continuous loop for their robots. It was all very interactive and exciting for the students.”

Denise Dunn is a special education teacher at Checotah Middle School who loves STEM and was part of a mentorship program with the Oklahoma Space Grant Consortium last summer. While she was part of that program they started doing STEM activities for children with disabilities and now Dunn does workshops to help teachers understand that children with disabilities also need the opportunities to participate in STEM activities. Through research she shows that the one thing that hasn’t changed for children with disabilities is the low percentage of people with disabilities working in STEM. That number has been at three percent for ten years and she believes it’s because they are not getting enough exposure or opportunities while they are in school.

“As we bring these programs to different schools and communities we just want people to know that engineering is everywhere and any teacher can be a STEM teacher,” Dr. Dew said. “There are also good jobs in engineering right here in the state of Oklahoma if they want to stay here. The Department of Defense is our sponsor, so there are good jobs within the government for our students as well. This is why we are working hard to provide this opportunity to students who might not otherwise get the opportunity. We are so fortunate that through the Department of Defense and a grant written by Dr. Paul Tikalsky and his team, we can go out via OSU and offer this incredible program.”

The team has already covered 13 counties and serviced over 26,000 citizens in two years. This is their third year of a four-year grant.

“We know it’s crucial to make STEM education accessible and engaging for all students. That’s why we are working to make resources available to all Oklahoma students in hopes that classrooms can learn with intuitive and educational robots. We want teachers, students and the community to know that Oklahoma State University is here to help prepare these students for the STEM world they now live in.”