CAD
- Step-by-step slides from our mentor's partner program, edited by us
- A real 3D printer to see how it works
- Each student designed and edited their own 3D-printed claw
Outreach
Spreading STEM
We want to be a team known for community outreach. That means sharing robotics with kids, helping other teams grow, and learning from professionals.
2025–26 season
Last season's impact
835Community reached
135Mentoring reached
21Total events
25Pro contacts
Community outreach
8 events · 835 people
- After-school workshops (two of them!)
- Activities at an FLL event
- Booth at a local science fair
- HTK booth at the State Fair
- SHEngineers booth at The Works
- Women in Science booth at the Bakken Museum
- FTC booth at the Bakken Museum
With K–3 students, we introduced STEM through interactive presentations, games, robot driving, science experiments, and circuits. They all loved it, and we're planning to go back.
We worked with the Bakken Museum in Minneapolis to host a booth and robot driving at their women-in-STEM fair, where people were interested in our story and we got to talk with professionals.
Mentoring outreach
13 events · 135 people
- Our summer program (8 sessions)
- Sensors Intro kickoff presentation
- Community Outreach kickoff presentation
- SWE Outreach collaboration meeting
- In-person and virtual FTC family intros
- Emailing teams to answer their questions
We used what we learned over the summer to help other teams reach their outreach goals, sharing a guide to the steps and skills needed to succeed.
Goals of mentoring outreach
- Teach others what we worked to learn so they can grow with us
- Build connections by keeping in touch
- Grow and sustain local programs so more students have opportunities
Coming soon: a YouTube channel to help others in the areas where we've found success.
Summer program · 2025
Our FTC kickstart program
Over eight weekly sessions at a local church, we worked with mentors to build a curriculum where students learned CAD, programming, and building, then showed off their work in an FTC-style game we helped design.
82-hour sessions
24Students
8Joined FTC
4Joined FLL
Programming
- Java with drive-by-gyro, drive-by-time, and drive-by-encoder
- Walking through sample code together
- Pairs editing and testing their own code
Building
- Working from a REV class bot guide
- Learning how to use different tools
- Iterating the base robot to fit their own design and game
Most of our rookie members came through this program, and they're the first girls to join SWFTC in four years!
Professional outreach
Learning from professionals
When we spot an issue that needs outside help, we reach out, connect, and keep the contact for the future.
20Emailed
13Met with
7Met repeatedly
25Contacts
Kevin Hippert · Programmer
Taught us and helped troubleshoot our code, and gave us design ideas.
Karla Beeck
Helped us choose the math to use with CAD and gave input on our design and priorities after qualifier 1.
Sophie Seligman · Engineer, SWE Outreach
Shared what it's like to be a woman in engineering, helped with connections, and collaborated on outreach plans.
Aaron Bengtson · Biomedical engineer
Showed us types of data collection and helped us build and customize our process.
This season’s goal
Our next big outreach event
At a SWE Outreach meeting, we talked about how collaboration can make a bigger impact. We're using our design process to make it happen.
Zone in on where we fall short
Collaborate on a better plan
Research how others did it
Form a plan & materials
Execute and reflect
Grow our impact
Invite us to your event
Want a robot demo or a STEM activity at your school, library, or community event? We'd love to come.