BUILDING BETTER FUTURES

ROTARY ROBOTICS CLUB

Recognizing a severe shortage of STEM education opportunities in our area, the club decided to invest in our future generation by sponsoring the South Brunswick Middle School Robotics Club.  Club members go to the middle school to work as coaches for their participation in the nationwide Lego First League competition.  Click here for the latest news on the Robotics Club.

BRINGING BACK THE TRADES

Brunswick County's population is growing at an unprecedented rate. With that growth comes the need for more skilled trade labor.  The two Southport Rotary clubs have worked together to create a program where the carpentry class at South Brunswick High School can build large buildings and come out of school with real-world, marketable skills.  We are about to embark on a new project with Lake Waccamaw Boys & Girls Home to purchase a CNC router for their carpentry shop.  Learning how to master the router and the computer logic behind it will give the students skill sets they can make them immediately employable.  Click here for more.

SENIOR PROJECT MENTORING

South Brunswick High School requires seniors to present a Senior Project as a graduation requirement.  The picture to the left shows club President Jeff Mount working with Andrew Phillips on his robotics theme.  Andrew wrote a 20-page paper on robotics and its future in the workplace.  The final product is pictured below after putting together 200+ parts.  Additionally, members have also volunteered as judges.

5th GRADE ROTARY CHESS CLUB

Rotary volunteers work with 5th graders at Southport Elementary and teach them the basics of chess in order to train them to use logic, strategy, and planning.  More importantly, they learn that each move we make in life has potential consequences.  The club was so successful last year that many of the students want to continue with Chess Club as they have progressed to South Brunswick Middle School.  Additionally, many students start to teach family members how to play chess, thereby spending quiet time that is devoted to building  deeper family relationships.

8th GRADE ROTARY CHESS CLUB

Rotary volunteers work with college-bound 8th graders at South Brunswick Middle School to teach them the fundamentals of playing chess.  There are now 20 new chess players due to this program as the response has been overwhelmingly positive.  Students gravitate toward an analog game such as chess as it gives them the opportunity to slow down their brains and concentrate on strategic moves.