StormBots in the news: “robotics coach inspires success in students”
VANCOUVER, Wash. – Hours after the last bell rings at Skyview High School, the robotics team called the “Stormbots” are just getting to work on the 120-pound robot they’ll take to competitions around the country.
Head Coach Luke Glassett loves to brag about this team. Not just because of what they do, but who they are.
OF the 56 students on the team, half are girls, and all come from different backgrounds -including transgender students and former varsity athletes like a cheerleader and volleyball player who left their sports to become Stormbots.
Glassett said it’s an impressive roster in the world of robotics.
“Robotics, more so than some of the other clubs, really gives some people a home to belong in the school that they wouldn’t normally have,” Glassett said.
Glassett spends up to twenty hours a week coaching the team. That makes for some long days for a teacher who is up at 4 a.m. every day to prepare for his AP History classes. He’s an energetic and fun teacher, but colleagues say Glassett’s gift is his ability to relate to students and keep them engaged.
“He’s like that less than 1 percent that really drives hard every day to get better,” said Principal Jim Gray. “He truly loves kids and really that drives the rest of his work.”
It’s why kids in his history classes often end up on the robotics team – they can’t get enough of Mr. Glassett.
This leader in learning loves his job and his school, and it shows.
“When kids feel that you care about them or that you’re interested in their lives, then they care more about your class and the grade increases often because of that. For me it’s really never been a job. It’s more of a passion, and it’s fun,” said Glassett.
