ABOUT US

OUR START

In July, 2018 Tesla selected the Desert Research Institute’s Science Alive program to receive Tesla’s Nevada K-12 Education Invesment Funding. The Nevada Robotics program was born from this initial investment.

     

    OUR VISION

    For all students across Nevada to think creatively and solve complex problems through hands-on robotics education.

       

      OUR MISSION

       

      To collaborate with community and industry partners in delivering engaging robotics education to Nevada’s K – 12 students.

         

        OUR PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

        K – 12 EDUCATION

        • Provide ongoing robotics training to in-service and pre-service teachers across Nevada.
        • Develop and distribute robotics curricula and resources to all teachers.

        INFORMAL EDUCATION

        • Engage students with after-school robotics programs, targeting Title 1 schools.
        • Support competitive robotics programs.
        • Develop a workforce with robotics knowledge and experience.

        FAMILY ENGAGEMENT

        • Host and/or participate in Family STEM and robotics nights.
        • Host Girls in STEM and robotics events.
        • Connect robotics programs with mentoring opportunities.

        OUTCOMES

        • Increase Nevada’s workforce pipeline of engineers, scientists, and technical professionals.
        • Increase the number of students entering STEM fields in Nevada’s two and four-year colleges and universities.
        • Increase access to robotics opportunities in rural and low-income urban communities across Nevada.
        • Increase diversity and inclusion of STEM and robotics for young women, and other underrepresented populations.
          Four students smile at the camera from behind a table. Two small robots sit on the table in front of them.
          Three smiling students sit at a table with a robot and building tools.

          INDUSTRY AND COMMUNITY PARTNERS

          • Our advisory council shares its expertise and outreach connections with the robotics community.
          • Create connections among industry, students, and robotics.
          • Build relationship networks to help robotics teams afford the equipment, competitions, travel expenses, and ongoing teacher training.
          • Work in collaboration with our statewide partners to develop robotics programs for all Nevada K – 12 students.

          Want to get involved? Sign up to Volunteer or Mentor!

            NEVADA ROBOTICS ROADMAP

            Diagram showing the benefits of robotics education for students entering a STEM workforce or pursuing a STEM degree at a college or university.

            OUR ROBOTICS PARTNERS

            Nevada Robotics works in partnership with two non-profit robotics programs:
            FIRST Nevada and the REC Foundation. Click on each to learn more.

            Logo for FIRST Nevada robotics.
            REC Foundation Logo

            OUR ADVISORY COUNCIL

            Chris Reilly

            Workforce Development and Education Lead, Tesla

            Melissa Schultz

            Compliance and Engagement Specialist, Nevada Gold Mines

            Amelia Gulling

            Vice President of Development and Marketing, REC Foundation

            Dale Payne

            Robotics Coordinator, Washoe County School District

            Nikki Meador

            STEM Project Facilitator, Career & Technical Education Department

            Angela Quick

            Regional Director, FIRST Nevada

            Dr. Dave Feil-Seifer

            Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director, UNR

            Amy Fleming

            Program Development and Engagement Specialist – Governor’s Office of Workforce Innovation (OWINN)

            Nancy Maldonado

            Vice President of Education, PBS Reno

            Dr. Brendan O'Toole

            Director of the Center for Materials and Structures, UNLV

            OUR TEAM

            AJ Long

            Robotics and STEM Education Administrator

            Phone: 775-830-3287

            Email: AJ.Long@dri.edu

            Claire Parker

            STEM Coordinator

            Email: Claire.Parker@dri.edu

            Jill Strawder-Bubala

            STEM Grant Writer

            Email: Jill.Strawder-Bubala@dri.edu

            Chelsea Ontiveros

            Office Coordinator & Website Administrator

            Email: Chelsea.Ontiveros@dri.edu

            Marlie Gagliardo

            STEM Education Assistant

            Rachael Young

            STEM Education Assistant

            Denielle Oliva

            Robotics Outreach Coach

            Larson Rivera

            Robotics Outreach Coach

            WATCH OUR VIDEO RESOURCES

            Interview with Vivian Michalik – (25:12)

            Robot Recipe STEM Kit Overview – (6:30)

            Interview with Ben Nguyen – Full (30:18)

            Oil Spill Engineering STEM 2 Go Kit Overview – (10:58)

            Interview with Erica Lamar- (30:23)

            Interview with Ben Nguyen – Teaser (4:16)

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