DeKALB – DeKalb residents and their children gathered on Friday at the DeKalb Public Library for a presentation from the NIU Robotics Club hosted by NIU STEAM.
This event was in collaboration with Barb City STEAM, an afterschool program that hosts students within school district 428.
Ebony Dyson, DeKalb resident and mother of two, expressed positive insights on not only the event, but also STEAM itself.
“We like it,” Dyson said. “It seems a little bit more interactive. In the past, we (STEAM) talked about growing food and things of that nature. This one seems to get the kids more excited.”
Aside from local feedback, the Barb City staff enjoys providing educational experiences for DeKalb families.
Jasmine Carey, STEAM educator and Director of Barb City STEAM, explained that experiences like this “fare pretty well for the children.”
Carey also stated that they tend to aim and encourage students while building skills through trial-based learning.
President of NIU Robotics, Cooper Christman, is always seeking opportunities to showcase the club to the community.
“We always try to do outreach and help the community,” Christman said. “When we get opportunities like this, we actually take them up. It’s always worth the extra little bit of work to get out.”
Christman also explained the idea of giving youth opportunities that other young scholars might not have had.
“I would love to go to a library event like this and work with some robots,” Christman said. “I just always had an interest in it.”
NIU STEAM will host their next cafe session at 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 4, at Fatty’s Pub and Grille.
