Students participating in Maryville’s Coding Creators project visited the Boeing Makerspace to try their hands at flight simulators, learn about circuitry, experience virtual reality and race robots through an obstacle course. The students also toured the James S. McDonnell Prologue Room where they viewed actual-size Mercury and Gemini capsules
and large-scale models of today’s military aircraft, rockets and missiles, as well as commercial jetliners.
The Coding Creators project is currently in place for middle school students attending the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis and is funded through a Boeing grant. The goal of the project is to get students interested in coding and encourage them to pursue STEM-related careers.
The project is part of Maryville’s Center for Access and Achievement (CA2), which provides high-quality STEM education for pre-K through 12th grade students and their teachers. CA2 supports Maryville’s strategic plan as the beginning of the pipeline from
preschool to profession. Traditionally underrepresented students are given the boost they need to succeed in postsecondary education and the careers of the future.