FIRStbylex: encouraging town participation in FLL
First Lego League is where I first connected with my passion for science, research and engineering. My journey in FLL spurred my involvement in programs such as First Tech Challenge, and National Ocean Sciences Bowl today. I wish to encourage middle school children to join FLL, so they can experience the awe, inspiration and passion found at these events, and connect with the worldwide STEM community.
With these goals in mind, and noting the absence of science programs for elementary schoolers, I created and currently run FIRSTbyLex, an organization that focuses on increasing town involvement in First Lego League (FLL).
With the goal of building a local FLL community, I have been holding monthly zoom meetings for the past year, so interested parents and students can learn more about the competition and community. Currently, our community is 87 members strong, and still growing!
As part of this initiative, I also organized book and technology drives, where we collected and gave away 100+ STEM textbooks, as well as robotics parts to participants, in order to help them with their learning and make STEM more accessible to all. Through this effort, we have been able to create 6 new teams from across the elementary and middle schools, while maintaining school and grade bubbles for safety. My main goal is to encourage a passion for science in younger students, just as my mentors did for me in the past.
