About Masa:

Masa partners with Mexican and Latino children, youth, and families in the South Bronx to develop strong learners and leaders who fully contribute to the larger community. We envision a community that is civically engaged, empowered, and educated. Masa’s community-led, integrated model engages the entire family, grounded in a deep commitment to strengthening literacy, leadership, and power for Mexican, Central American, and Indigenous People. Masa fosters a culturally responsive learning community in which families engage with direct service and advocacy programs to dismantle barriers to success.

About Masa’s Robotics Program:

Masa’s Robotics course is a fun and educational introductory course to Robotics where children in 3rd to 6th grade learn how to build and program robots using Lego Mindstorm EV3 as they explore STEM concepts. The course ends with a Battle Bot competition where students demonstrate the concepts and coding functions they learned throughout the course. Our goal is to inspire children in our community to pursue careers in STEM fields where women and people of color are underrepresented.

About the Robotics Instructor:

The Robotics Instructor will teach an entry-level Robotics course offered to students in 3rd- 6th grades. The course will focus on introducing students to building robots, coding, and fostering teamwork among small groups of three-five students. The Robotics Instructor will also guide students through hands-on activities, helping them develop problem-solving skills, encouraging them to experiment with different robotic designs and coding techniques, and supporting them to navigate challenges effectively as a team. The Instructor will ensure programming is culturally responsive and that children can see themselves in STEM careers by uplifting the ways in which their communities already plays a role in STEM fields.  This position is expected to be approximately 10-20 hrs/week and to run from March 2026 through August 2026.

Robotics Course Dates:

●      Robotics Course at a Manhattan Public School

o   Students in 3rd-5th grade

o   Offered twice a week, potentially on Wednesdays and Fridays, from 3:00–4:30 PM, running March 2026 through May/June 2026, for a total of 13-16 sessions.

o   Public school in zip code 10029

●      Masa Summer 2026 Robotics Course

o   Students in 4th- 6th grade

o   Six-week period – dates TBD 

o   Location at Masa Community Center, Tlanezcalli, 2770 3rd Ave, Bronx, NY, 10455

Key responsibilities:

●      Curriculum review and development

o   Modify/adapt existing curriculum to meet the evolving needs of students and to implement in the Spring semester

o   Design and develop a new curriculum centered on a new Robotics Kit that is age-appropriate, engaging, skills-based, and intentionally designed to spark student interest in STEM learning and careers to be implemented during the Summer 2026

●      Teaching and instruction

o   Prepare for weekly lessons by reviewing lesson plans and instructional guide sheets to ensure clarity, structure and flow of lesson plan

o   Teach weekly lessons to 12-15 students, along with the support of volunteers and interns including delivering mini lessons, introducing new concepts, and supporting small groups of students with building robots, coding, and/ or completing challenges

o   Provide clear instructions and hands-on guidance as students work on group challenges, & ensure they grasp key concepts in building & coding

o   Create and maintain a positive, strengths-based classroom culture that encourages collaboration, exploration, a growth mindset and centers students' lived experiences and cultures

o   Monitor student behavior and address behavioral challenges in a supportive and developmentally appropriate manner

●      Volunteer training and management

o   Train volunteers/ interns on the fundamentals of the robotics program and ensure they are equipped to support student teams effectively

o   Provide ongoing support to volunteers/ interns by offering regular check-ins, feedback, and troubleshooting assistance as needed

Qualifications:

●     Strong interest in STEM, particularly robotics

●     Prior experience working with Lego EV3 robots is a major plus

●     At least one year of experience working with elementary and middle school children in STEM topic areas (2-3 years strongly preferred)

●     Fully bilingual in Spanish & English (preferred, but not required)

Compensation

●      $30 – $45 per hour, commensurate with experience