Former WNBA Star Unlocks Kids’ Love for Science, Tech

Neisha Butler, a former WNBA basketball star, wants Brooklyn kids to have a chance to succeed in science and technology, not just sports.

“There are 200,000 jobs in STEM available,” Butler said, referring to the terms science, technology, engineering and math. “But New York kids from low-income families want to be athletes. But less than 1% go pro. Why don’t we support all the kids?”

With that, Butler opened STEAM Champs in Fort Greene two years ago, becoming the first Black-Latina to open a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) learning center in New York. It offers summer camps, workshops and after-school programs for children ages five to 18.

On a recent visit to the facility at 157 Willoughby St., campers were huddled around overhead computers, laptops and other gadgets, busy making robots or installing video games in a fun, active environment.

Some children made a small Ferris wheel made of LEGO blocks, which was connected to a laptop. A boy created a code to make the wheel move at different speeds. Nearby, several girls assembled a small robot. Another group wrote a video game where a dinosaur avoided cars on the highway.

The goal here is to provide STEM opportunities for underrepresented people in the field, including girls and those from underserved communities, Butler said.

When the New York native transitioned from TV reporting to his first tech job a decade ago, he was hired as a software engineer for Lonnie Johnson, the creator of the Super Soaker. Butler says Johnson was willing to hire women and became his mentor. From there, she began to see the importance of encouraging girls to stay in STEM.

“After 13 years, girls don’t move on,” Butler said. “They lose confidence and focus on the boys. So, it’s an uphill, uphill battle. We encourage the boys to let the girls speak and their mothers appreciate that.”

The same is true of unrecognized nations. STEM careers are dominated by white men and Butler believes it is important to guide children from communities that tend to pay attention to other fields.

“There aren’t a lot of STEAM programs and there’s a big divide in Brooklyn,” said Charlie Calixto, a former student who keeps in touch with Butler. “So it gives parents access to these programs. It has been communicating with parents as well as children, who are growing up and growing in confidence.”

But it’s not just STEM projects that kids are growing and learning in but also leadership skills and problem solving. STEM requires more than just coding or building a robot, but a skill that reflects Butler’s background as a WNBA player.

“STEM is not for everyone,” Butler said. “But there is collaboration, learning and helping to solve problems.”

Hannah Yi, a teacher, believes that STEM has a lot to offer its students. “They find what they love to do,” he said. “They have fun when they get into it and that breeds passion.”

In September, the center will move to a new location on 4th Avenue near the Barclays Center and will be housed at Dock Street School in Dumbo.

Butler said he wants to partner with other schools and is planning a STEM bootcamp for adults so they can have skills for the workforce. In addition, STEAM Champs offers SHSAT courses so students from underrepresented communities can better prepare for the city’s elite high schools, including nearby Brooklyn Technical High School.

Two years since opening STEAM Champs, Butler is happy to be involved, but also looking to the future.

“It’s an American thing,” he said. “Only 4% are big in computer science. That closes the door and allows a few to dominate.”