March 22, 2022

Hundreds more students across the region are now experiencing robotics thanks to innovative teachers and a partnership with the Allegheny Intermediate Unit (AIU). Through a two-part pilot series designed by the AIU & Carnegie Mellon, educators developed and piloted a series of robotic activities & lesson plans for special education and life skills classrooms.

Lead schools participating in the pilot included: Baldwin High School, Carlynton High School, Friendship Academy, Hampton Township High School, Northgate High School, Norwin High School, Quaker Valley High School, and Steel Valley High School.

The Allegheny Intermediate Unit project lead, Dr. Heather Moschetta, who also volunteers as a Special Olympics coach, described the importance and excitement of bringing this content to a broader range of students: “It is unfortunate that some of our learners lack access to STEM fields such as robotics. The goal of this project is to make robotics content accessible to students who otherwise may not have had the opportunity. The teachers who participated created amazing activities and lessons that can expand access for many, many students in the future.”

The activities and lesson plans build upon the Emmy-nominated PBS Learning Robot Doctor television series created in 2020 by WQED Media, Robowits, LLC. (a Mobility21 UTC Deployment partner), Carnegie Mellon University faculty and staff, and PA Rural Robotics with support by the  Pennsylvania Department of Education. Neurodiversity Week is March 21 -27 and World Autism Day is April 2.