The AFCEA STEM Olympics idea started last Spring following the 2022 SkillsUSA Championships.  I was truly burned out by the amount of work I had to put forth for the event.  It was six months of painstaking work to organize ten contests with seven new contest coordinators.  

Although the event was a big success, it took a toll on my available free time and time I really needed to work on my curriculum.  So after five years of overseeing SkillsUSA Europe, I hoped someone from the district could take the lead as I could not continue having complete oversight, to include teacher meetings, coordinator meetings, AFCEA meetings, etc.

Because of the Ambassador program, I decided to put forth one last hoorah.  For this year's SkillsUSA event, I went all out with ten outstanding contests, plus two live events (Drones and STEM Bowl) and a live awards ceremony (first time in two years).  Also this year, I was able to convince the AFCEA board to provide scholarships for contest winners ($1,600 per contest).  

Although the 2023 SkillsUSA European Championships were outstanding, I knew this would be my last.   But for some reason, I knew I could not let all the years of hard work go to waste, and lose all of that knowledge and structure that was built along the way.  Also, I could not in good conscience leave the students without an opportunity to compete in subjects they love - not to mention possible scholarships.

So, I decided to compromise and reduce the contests only to STEM specific contests.  Not only would I reduce the number of contests, but I would change the dynamics to make it much better for everyone.  I would start putting a greater focus on the schools and teachers.  After all, if we cannot get the teachers to accept and align with the contests, they will not support them.

By providing the contest early in the school year, and having seven months to promote and/or embed into their curriculum, I have a feeling they will be fully on board.  Not to mention that the teachers will receive STEM grants based upon their participation numbers, and schools can win recognition as well.

SkillsUSA has been a blessing... but all good things must come to an end.  Hello AFCEA STEM Olympics 2023/2024..