TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- One Tinker engineer, Chad Unruh, was recognized last week by the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence along with the Boren Mentoring Initiative for his revolution of the after school STARBASE program. Mr. Unruh and other Oklahoma mentors were recognized during the annual Oklahoma Mentoring Day, held at the University of Central Oklahoma.
STARBASE is a Department of Defense funded program that was launched in 1991. The program is designed for primary school students, particularly fifth graders, and targets areas of disadvantaged schools, low socioeconomic status or poor academic performing areas. STARBASE places heavy emphasis on learning activities centered on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). STARBASE 2.0 was later created to cater to middle schoolers.
Activities are considered to be very “hands-on, minds-on” in order to really engage the students in the fields of STEM education. Director Pam Kirk stated that sometimes students who don’t typically excel in traditional school settings see more success through the academy programs because of the hands-on approach. Individual and teambuilding projects are incorporated in the STARBASE academies to help drive interest in science, technology, engineering and math, and to communicate and explore together. Increasing knowledge and confidence in key STEM subjects could result in higher numbers of students pursuing STEM career fields.
STARBASE academies are dispersed throughout military installations in the United States. There are currently two located on Tinker Air Force Base, said Ms. Kirk. In engaging and collaborating with military personnel, the program’s mission is to explore and observe STEM-related fields and how they can be utilized and applied to real world scenarios and careers.
Not only does the premier DoD program seek to provide an outreach to young minds and drive an improved, strong, educated American workforce, but equally the program serves as a mentoring outlet for military and civilian personnel to become role models to those malleable minds who shape the future. With the demand that modernization and advancements bring, Ms. Kirk added, not having students literate in subjects like science, technology, engineering and math is not a viable option.
Tinker Air Force Base’s STEM education outreach has supported the STARBASE 2.0 program since its inception in 2011. Mr. Unruh, an electronics engineer at Tinker, has been an advocate and mentor through STEM programs on base as well as programs conducted at Carl Albert High School.
After working with robotics for years, Mr. Unruh developed ideas and, in his free time, collaborated to create game-like settings in which students could learn. Channeling innovation and creativity, Mr. Unruh crafted games and projects to make subjects more appealing to a wider range of students. For the program, he designed missions and challenges to create an authentic learning experience. Students learn robotics but more importantly, teamwork and problem-solving, in addition to building the confidence and interest in a field to find their own solutions independently.
This year Mr. Unruh passed on his original team to another mentor in order to dedicate his time and resources to serve as an umbrella mentor over the STARBASE 2.0 program. His colleagues said that his positive attitude towards his students and their capabilities, his encouragement to be unafraid of failure and desire to make it fun have made 2.0 a model program for mentors and mentees alike.
By supporting and engaging in mentorship, locals are investing in the future of their own people and communities, companies are investing in their future workforce. Whether it’s school based, corporate sponsored, collegiate peer and professional or special populations, mentoring encompasses a wide range.
The Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence recognized the mentors across the state who influence youth not only from an economic standpoint, but academically, mentally and socially as well. Currently the state of Oklahoma has over 160 mentoring programs in its network.