Monessen teacher gets $10K for automation, robotics

By TAYLOR BROWN

tbrown@yourmvi.com

Monessen teacher Matthew Strine has big plans for his students. 

After being hired last year, he got to work right away to secure funding to offer advanced STEM programming to his students. 

Within the first year of teaching — amid a global pandemic — he raised more than $6,000 to create a Makers Space for his students. It will comprise an area with 3D printers and a separate area for welding equipment where students can work on STEM projects, and ultimately, build robots for the school’s new BOTS IQ team.

With the Makers Space funding secured, in October he applied for an additional  grant through the Arconic Foundation to enhance the robotics curriculum called Project Lead the Way.  

He was recently awarded $10,000 that will be used for an automation and robotics class.

While Monessen students have had the opportunity to take courses through Project Lead the Way curriculum for the past few years, the money will allow the district to upgrade its technology based on a newer curriculum. 

“This project serves as a pathway to learn more about robotics and hopefully, have students want to learn more about this topic through the BOTS IQ and computer science classes offered at the high school level,” Strine said. “Without this grant, there is a large possibility that we would have not been able to secure the funding to purchase this new equipment that has new features and other aspects that our students can really benefit from.”

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