By: Ellen Sherberg | Bizwomen Contributor, The Business Journals | Read it >
Sometimes the path is a comfortable progression: from student athlete to coach to educator worked for Desurae Matthews, who also started a non-profit to encourage young girls.
You can feel the thunder of footsteps as the students come up the steps into our mobile STEM lab for their activity of the day.
“What is this?’
“It feels like we’re going on an airplane!”
You can see them imagine different versions of their future as they put on gloves and protective eyewear and hear them trying on roles: “Look at me! I’m a doctor.”
That, right there, is the mission behind what I do every day as an Education Program Manager aboard one of Learning Undefeated’s 16 mobile STEM labs. For more than 20 years, we’ve been taking these mobile learning labs to schools across the country. That means I spend a lot of time on the road, but what keeps me going is the hope and wonder in these kids’ voices. That’s why we create opportunities like these for students to be in an environment where they can envision themselves in STEM careers. We are opening a door in their mind for their career pathways, a role they may not have seen themselves in before.
I always knew I wanted to be an educator and play a part in molding young people’s future. Growing up as an athlete, my mother instilled from a young age that I had to “stay busy to stay out of trouble.” That’s how I ended up in the basketball, track and volleyball teams and learned that coaching was one way to play a part in children’s lives.
True to my Texan roots, the coaching journey led me to pursue an M.S. and a B.S. in Kinesiology from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas. I’m still a coach, but it wasn’t until 2017 that I saw the parallels between a classroom and a team.
That was the year Hurricane Harvey struck the Texas coast. Learning Undefeated was one of many organizations that stepped forward to help schools destroyed by hurricane. I was living back in my hometown of Wharton at the time, and I saw them bring their “Rebuild Texas” program to town to help rebuild schools that had lost everything in the storm. Learning Undefeated came in with these incredible mobile classrooms to help keep the spirits up and help where they could. I was working as a youth coach at the time, but when I saw the impact they had on my local community, I applied to join their team as Education Outreach Coordinator. What I thought would be a summer job has turned into a career. From that single mobile learning lab run by one employee (me), we’ve grown to 10 mobile labs serving Texas with 22 team members here. As a longtime youth engagement specialist, I feel privileged to be part of a team that is shaping the future of my home state.
Everyday includes aspects I learned as a team player and a coach: communication, leadership, motivation, and guidance. We help inspire the kids by bringing a STEM field trip right to the parking lot, letting them picture themselves in the role of an engineer, a doctor, a pilot, and whatever other career they want to pursue.
Working with Learning Undefeated has influenced my work as a non-profit founder myself. In 2016, I started an organization called SisterSista with the mission to surround young ladies with a sisterhood that provides mentorships, love and support while encouraging education, providing service to the community and enhancing life and leadership skills. Introducing kids to diverse potential futures and career paths is critical for youth development. Through SisterSista we pair students as young as third grade with mentors and create a sisterhood built around the idea of “teaching ‘em while they’re young.” I want all these kids to know that they can truly do whatever they set their minds to and that there are people out there dedicated to helping them achieve their goals.
