WINC writer Jaxon Brudnicki sat down with the STEM club advisor, Mr. Tim Frank, to learn more about the club. Let’s find out what STEM is all about! 

First of all, let’s start with basics. “What do you think is the best part about Stem?” Brudnicki asked Mr. Frank. 

“The best thing about STEM is that it allows every student to be creative and passionate about whatever subject they want,” he replied. 

Jaxon nodded and continued on, “Why do you think Stem is such an important thing to be involved in?”

“There is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math in all aspects of a students life. From the food we eat, to the phones we use, to the roads we drive on. There are endless applications of STEM.” Mr. Tim Frank had explained.

 “Did you take any STEM classes when you were in school?” Jaxon wondered.

Mr. Frank went on to tell us, “I did a quick Google search, the term STEM in education started growing between the years of 2001-2005. I graduated from high school in 2007. I did take science, technology, and math classes but I don’t remember it being called STEM.”

That could be a surprising fact to some people, because most people don’t know that STEM is a relatively new thing. Jaxon Brudnicki continued on with the interview, “When did you first get interested in stem?”

 Our STEM club advisor went on to tell us his first spark of interest, “My appreciation of STEM evolved over time. As a kid, I enjoyed playing with K’nex, which is a type of engineering type of toy. I remember setting up my family’s first PC with dial-up internet. Math was always a challenge for me in school so I tried to avoid it. Through college and into adulthood my appreciation for the complexity and creativity of STEM allows for is inspiring. The current modern world recently witnessed both the youngest and oldest person to be on a recreational space flight, Boston dynamics robots, Tesla’s self-driving cars, 3d printing, modern medicine and so much more we were able to accomplish with STEM. STEM is exciting because it only takes 1 new discovery or adaptation to change our world.”

  Lastly, Jaxon ended with our final question, “Why do you think kids are interested in stem?”

Mr. Frank informed us, “I think students who are naturally interested in the STEM-related subjects are interested in it because of the endless creative potential, and practical use or outcome of their work. These students also enjoy the satisfaction of problem-solving. For students who don’t naturally have an interest, it is important for them to recognize how STEM does have an impact on their life. For example, a student might not understand how the internet works, or how to build an airplane, bridge or cell phone, but all of these topics are fundamental in our current world.”

Those are all of the questions we had to share with you today. A big thank you to Mr. Tim Frank for allowing us to interview him today and thank you to Jaxon Brudnicki for asking these questions. You never know, you may just find yourself interested in STEM sometime not far from where you are now!