The CASE training allowed me to earn my ServSafe Food Handler Certification, which is incredibly valuable to anyone in the food industry. It means, the students who take my Farm to Table class can earn their ServSafe certifications. The CASE curriculum is nationally recognized and is cross walked between Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS); Common Core; and Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources (AFNR) standards which makes this curriculum incredibly valuable. I will have lifetime access to the curriculum and updates made to it. I am excited to share all that I’ve learned with the students and my colleagues!

While at the conference, we also toured agri-businesses such as the Tug Hill Estate Vineyard and the locally renowned Miller’s Meat Market. The connections I made with other agriscience teachers will last a lifetime, and I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity I had to grow as an educator at this conference. Thank you again for your contribution toward my conference expenses.

We had the chance to fully immerse ourselves in the distinctive cultures of Dublin, Belfast, Edinburgh, and Inverness by strolling the streets of these cities. Some of us even got to sample haggis! As we traveled from place to place, Stephen played Irish and Scottish music, and engaged us with trivia. We even had the chance to watch traditional Irish step dancing performed live. One student said that they enjoyed “how welcoming the people were to tourists and the happiness that surrounded them as they lived in that extraordinary county!” Embracing Irish culture is personally sentimental to me as my great great grandparents, of whom I bear their namesake “Brennan”, immigrated to the US from Thurles, Ireland in the late 1800’s. In preparation for this trip I discussed at length with my grandfather our family’s Irish history. I learned about how the names John and Joseph have been passed down through generations and even continue with my brother, Joseph Brennan. I was able to talk to my grandfather about what he knows and stories that he was told as a child.

While the sights had everyone’s full admiration and awe, many students were intrigued by the influence of religion in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Irish buildings adorned with crucifixes and blessings signed by priests reinforced the influence of religion on each country. This aspect of the trip was also of personal significance because my faith is an important foundation in my life. I was amazed to learn about the concept behind the Celtic Cross, and now I even have my own Celtic Cross necklace that was owned by my great grandparents. That necklace helps me to remember my religion but also part of my heritage. Driving through Western Belfast, our Irish bus driver, Jerry, helped Stephen to explain the meaning behind the Peace Wall in the middle of town, where on one side lived the Catholics while on the other lived the Protestants. We learned that they are separated in everything, including schools, and only work together in the same workplaces. This divide, we learned, is the result of “The Troubles”, a conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted nearly thirty years from the late 1960s to the late 1990s.

All of us had the opportunity to literally leave our mark, writing messages that expressed our hope for love and peace in Belfast. As seen in the accompanying picture, I wrote “He gave his one and only Son. that whoever believes in him shall not perish. John 3:16”. Ascribing to the Roman Catholic religion I, it was fascinating to see how Protestants and Catholics, two faiths with innumerable roots and threads in common, could be so viciously and violently at odds with each other, especially as such violence is intrinsically contrary to the core beliefs of both religions.

This trip to Ireland / Scotland has made a profound impact on my high school career and I, on behalf of all my fellow travelers, extend my most sincere gratitude to the 21st Century Fund for having made it possible.

Mentoring Team 716 has been an incredibly rewarding experience for me. It has allowed me to assist students in acquiring new skills, honing their talents, and pursuing their dreams. I am consistently impressed by the capabilities our students exhibit when faced with challenges. The ability to design, prototype, and construct a 120-pound robot in just six weeks, then compete with other teams who have done the same, is truly remarkable.

Observing our students step onto the playing field for the first time, their eyes reflecting a mix of fear and awe, brings a smile to my face. I know that after a match or two, that initial trepidation transforms into the confident determination of a tiger ready to compete.

FIRST Robotics shapes students’ lives in other significant ways:

• Friendships and community: Teams consist of students from diverse backgrounds who often form lifelong friendships.
• Discovering passions: Exposure to various STEM activities helps students find their passions and interests.
• Problem-solving skills: Real-world challenges in FIRST Robotics develop critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.
• Self-confidence: As students learn and succeed, their self-confidence grows.

As a parent of a robotics student, I can attest to the incredible impact of the FIRST Robotics program. My son joined the program in 8th grade and continued through high school, eventually becoming the lead programmer for the team.  The skills he acquired were matched by the self-confidence he developed. This confidence and skills were demonstrated quite clearly when he designed an alert system for the high school, which he built, programmed, and installed. The cost was just $3,500, compared to over $10,000 for a commercial system, and it remains in use today.

Because of this program he received a scholarship to Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and recently completed an internship with Aurora Aerospace and DARPA on the X-65 CRANE experimental aircraft. I firmly believe this would not have been possible without the robotics program.

Thank you 21^st Century Fund for making robotics at HVRHS possible,