The Power of 40 Interns' Young Minds

By Lydia Schendel, Corporate Communications

National Instruments is dedicated to giving back to the community that we call home. This summer, NIs summer interns had the opportunity to become part of this culture while putting their knowledge and passion for science, technology and engineering to good use. In keeping with our commitment to inspire students in underserved communities in Austin to pursue STEM education, NI partnered with the Austin Pre-freshman Engineering Program (AusPrEP), hosted by Huston-Tillotson University from June 10 July 26. The PrEP program was created to provide encouragement and resources for high-achieving middle and high school students with an interest in STEM careers. In addition to taking classes in math, science and writing, students worked with LEGO Mindstorms NXT robots powered by a version of LabVIEW. Seth Stewart, Anuj Kulkarni and Shuchi Pandit were three of the nearly 40 interns who signed up to assist with teaching students how to build and program the LEGO Mindstorms. Being an intern, I was looking for opportunities during the summer outside of my work, Shuchi said. This program was really exciting because the subject was related to my strengths and also to helping the community. I always wanted to use LEGO Mindstorms while I was in school, but I never got that opportunity, Seth said. I really liked the idea of going out and giving kids that opportunity while representing NIs values. Hands-On Learning Over the course of the summer, the interns watched their students become more familiar with the LEGO Mindstorms robots while improving their problem-solving and reasoning skills. During her visit to AusPrEP, Shuchi helped her students program their robots to compete in a soccer match. Seth recalls the remarkable progress he witnessed each week when he returned to work with the students. The instructor leaves the class open for the kids to explore, Seth said. Theyre getting hands-on experience with the robots, so most of the time they just teach themselves. Anuj and Seth both know that this type of hands-on experience is essential to getting kids excited about STEM, because thats exactly how their own passions and career goals were shaped over the course of their education. A lot of my schooling at BYU taught me that the purpose of teaching is to inspire, not just to inform, Seth said. In India, my professor used to teach us by giving us hints and making us do things practically, Anuj said. Getting hands-on experience helps kids excel beyond their expected potential.

The Power of Young Minds In order to solve the many science and engineering challenges our society faces, we need to inspire younger generations and equip them with the tools theyll need to help make a difference. Programs like AusPrEP do just that, by exposing kids to advanced and influential technology at an early age. When we are young, we are fearless, Shuchi said. Were creative and we dont fear experimenting. If we get their brains working while theyre young, they will definitely do better in college. Well have infinite possibilities. Kids are being exposed to technology at a much younger age than even we were, and much more powerful technology at that, Seth said. Theyre going to be the ones leveraging technology in the future to lift the world. We need dedicated people who have tried things out, understand how they work and just want to help. Shuchi said she feels NIs partnership with AusPrEP is a natural one and a move that benefits not only the students involved but also the company and its employees. NI realizes it has a responsibility to help the community, and employees have a responsibility to help the company do that, Shuchi said. By going out and helping students, we are creating a special bond with the community. Being a part of this program as a volunteer, theres a feel-good factor which gave me a boost to work better here. These volunteers encourage their fellow NI employees to find ways to leverage their knowledge and experience to help others. Life is empty otherwise, Seth said. Youve got to have your normal job and contribute in meaningful ways there, but with any resources you have left over, you should explore opportunities to inspire people or lend a helping hand. Helping the community right now will help kids understand that later on, its their responsibility to go out and help people, Anuj said. I believe in giving back to society what you have learned. Get Involved NI plans to return to AusPrEP with future classes of summer interns. For more information about participating in this program or one of NIs many other volunteering opportunities, contact Jenny Mojica.